Knight Mateus (2)
Mateus stared at the potted plant on the desk and answered in a voice that somehow sounded lonely.
“If I leave as well, my lady will truly be left all alone. I’ve been in her debt for the past ten years. I can’t betray her now… She’s a good person. She’s like a mother to me, and I truly want to protect her. Even if the whole world laughs at me for it, I can endure that much. She’s done so much for me.”
After speaking, he scratched the back of his head, embarrassed.
“It’s not that I have any dark intentions or anything like that. It’s purely from the heart.”
“Of course. That’s what everyone will think.”
Hmm. He has a sense of loyalty, at least. I gave him high marks for not frowning even when I peppered him with mischievous questions. If I took him on as a subordinate, he’d be easy to put to work.
I nodded and sank into thought for a moment. Unlike the other applicants, Mateus—with his unusual background—had caught my interest. A knight applying to a mercenary company. Interesting. His personality seemed fine. He possessed a knight’s pride, yet he wasn’t arrogant or conceited, which I liked. Hearing the word “knight” probably made me think of Adelia’s usual behavior first, which only put me further at ease. Adelia did whatever she pleased, after all. In contrast, Mateus was polite.
Anyway, shall we see how skilled he actually is?
Having made up my mind, I rose from my seat.
“Let’s step outside.”
Mateus’s eyes widened in surprise.
“I-is the interview already over?”
“Why? Did you think I was going to reject you?”
“Weren’t you…?”
“I wasn’t. Follow me.”
I took Mateus to an open training ground and had him spar with Unia. The moment he gripped the wooden sword, the awkward, timid man from the interview vanished. His eyes sharpened like a blade, and he became an entirely different person.
“Now that’s a look I like,” Unia said with a wicked grin.
Instead of her usual spear, she picked up a wooden sword and charged at him. Mateus didn’t flinch. There wasn’t a trace of a novice knight’s clumsiness in the way he swung. His strikes were clean, precise, and sharp. From the very first exchange, he drove Unia into a corner.
“Oh-ho, not bad at all?”
Unia had started off playfully, but her expression gradually hardened. Mateus’s fundamentals were rock-solid and his skill level high enough to make her break into a sweat.
Pasvachio, watching beside me, muttered under his breath, “Not bad.”
I quietly exchanged opinions with him. Mateus was a warrior in his prime, while Unia had already passed her peak and was on the decline. She and the Lady Margaret whom Mateus served might even be the same age. Taking the twenty-year age gap into account, Mateus’s ability placed him in the upper ranks among his peers.
Yet the duel ended in an unexpected victory for Unia. Even with her diminished strength and stamina, a veteran’s cunning easily crushed a rookie’s spirit.
At one point during the fight, Unia slightly lifted the hem of her top, revealing her full, voluptuous breasts. Flustered, Mateus blushed bright red and lost focus—only to take a surprise strike to the head. The wooden sword connected with a loud crack. Still dazed from the first blow, he was hammered by a flurry of follow-ups and collapsed powerlessly.
“Some knight! That was nothing! Hahaha!”
Unia sat squarely on the fallen Mateus’s stomach, threw her head back, and roared with laughter in celebration.
Pasvachio helped him up. The moment Mateus regained his feet, he looked at me with anxious eyes.
“If I lose the spar… is it over…?”
Instead of answering, I unpinned the mercenary company emblem from my chest, rolled it up, and tossed it to him. Mateus caught it reflexively.
“Go draw up the contract with Kelly and report for duty tomorrow. From this moment on, I’m your commander.”
“Th-thank you!”
A bright smile bloomed across Mateus’s face.
The following afternoon, I headed to the inner castle once again to meet my etiquette instructor, Professor Judeban. Ever since Sinclair had introduced us a few days earlier, I had attended without missing a single day. Learning something new was always enjoyable. Etiquette and ballroom dancing seemed like skills I could use for the rest of my life, so I threw myself into the lessons with genuine enthusiasm.
Today was the day we would begin ballroom dancing. Filled with anticipation, I opened the classroom door.
“Huh…?”
The moment I stepped inside, I rubbed my eyes, wondering if I was seeing things.
Professor Judeban was waiting with his usual smile, but a short distance away stood a woman in an elegant yellow dress and Sinclair. The woman in the dress was no maid, no assistant, and certainly no fellow trainee. It was Adelia.
I had only ever seen her in military uniform. Now, with her long golden hair elegantly braided and wearing a forsythia-colored dress that radiated feminine grace, the sight was both refreshing and startling.
Whether from embarrassment or awkwardness, she refused to look at me even after I entered. She kept her gaze fixed on Sinclair, pretending I wasn’t there.
I quietly approached Professor Judeban.
“Why are they here?”
The professor twisted one side of his mustache and smiled.
“They came to practice dancing ahead of the banquet His Highness is hosting. Lady Adelia wishes to review what she learned before.”
“Will she be taking the lesson with me?”
“Given the difference in your levels, that would be difficult. You, Lord Hyun-woo, must begin with the fundamentals, so you will receive one-on-one instruction from me. Lady Adelia has chosen to practice privately with Sinclair over there. Ah, it seems Lady Adelia is looking this way now. Perhaps she wishes to greet you.”
“Pardon?”
I turned my head. But Adelia continued speaking calmly with Sinclair as if nothing had happened.
“She’s not looking at me.”
“She was looking just a moment ago. I wonder why she turned away. Hmm.”
“She turned away?”
I whipped my head around again. Caught off guard by the sudden movement, our eyes met perfectly. Her brows furrowed slightly, then she gave a haughty “Hmph!” and looked away.
What is with her? What is she upset about this time?
Sinclair frowned and marched straight over.
“You really have no tact at all. You are remarkably dense.”
“Are you talking to me?”
“Yes. I am speaking to you. There is no man in the world more oblivious. Look over there.”
Sinclair gestured politely toward Adelia.
“A lady of such beauty stands before you, yet you say not a single word? Shouldn’t you approach her at once and shower her with praise, telling her how perfectly the dress suits her, like a songbird chirping at a flower? Instead you simply stand there. You truly lack awareness. You are not, I hope, one of those arrogant and pathetic men who wait for the lady to speak first?”
So that’s what this is about. She wants me to greet her?
On the surface Adelia had acted indifferent, but the truth was her appearance in that dress was so breathtakingly beautiful that I felt awkward approaching her. I had only ever seen her in uniform; why had she suddenly dressed up like this, making it so difficult to get close?
“Are you going to keep standing there like a fool? Go and compliment her. Tell her she looks beautiful.”
Unable to withstand Sinclair’s relentless pressure, I finally moved.
Should I be honest and say the dress suits her beautifully, or should I act indifferent and say it looks decent?
I stood before Adelia, still debating how to begin, when she spoke first.
“I know what you’re thinking. You’re about to spout the same empty flattery as all those pathetic men who used to hover around me, calling me pretty and beautiful in hopes of winning my favor.”
Adelia arrogantly lifted her chin, removed the yellow glove from her right hand, and held out her bare hand.
“I see through your obvious scheme, but I shall permit it just this once. I grant you the honor of kissing the back of my hand. Consider yourself fortunate. Now, quickly—kiss it.”
“What are you thinking?”
Her brazen attitude—making such an arrogant face while offering her hand—drew a helpless laugh from me. How was I supposed to respond to this? I felt no particular respect or affection for Adelia, and the whole situation was completely out of nowhere.
When I simply stood there, Professor Judeban, who had been watching, hurried over.
“Oho! What an excellent opportunity to practice in a real setting. Listen carefully, Lord Hyun-woo. A true gentleman must kiss the back of a lady’s hand. First, kneel on your right knee. Then…”
Under Professor Judeban’s unexpected guidance, I ended up pressing my lips to the back of Adelia’s hand for the first time. The moment my lips touched her skin, a bright smile bloomed on her face. Sinclair clapped enthusiastically beside us.
“Congratulations, Lady Adelia. You have gained yet another loyal servant.”
I stared at her in disbelief.
“Why am I a servant?”
“Kneeling and kissing the back of the hand—is that not a vow of obedience?”
“I only did what the professor told me to do. Could you please stop twisting it?”
“Now, now, Lady Sinclair, enough with the jokes. Since the two of you have become partners, shall we learn the proper way a gentleman and lady greet each other before a dance? I recommend Lady Adelia join us to review what she learned previously.”
Adelia gave a satisfied smile and nodded.
“Very well.”
Then she shrugged lightly and looked at me.
“Being in the presence of a beauty such as myself must leave you so nervous you can hardly breathe, no?”
“Not at all.”