The Storm Strikes Twice
"Lady Elga wishes to see me?"
At Kyle's questioning reply, Leto nodded with an expression that said he had no idea either.
Kyle recalled the way Elga had been staring a hole straight through him only moments earlier. That gaze had been so intense he'd half-expected lasers to shoot from her eyes.
It had been so overwhelming, so impossible to read, that he'd even made an excuse about looking for Tisha just to put some distance between them.
"Yes. I don't really know the reason myself. I'm sorry, Kyle."
That was only natural. Leto never questioned anything Elga did. He didn't even insert his own opinions. He simply remained loyal.
The irony was that Elga herself wanted something other than absolute loyalty from him. Not a master-and-servant bond—just once, she wanted a relationship that stood on equal footing.
"…Fine. Lead the way."
Of course Leto was frustrating. The guy was a textbook dense potato. If Ian at least had a few reckless, straightforward qualities about him, Leto had none of that—he was pure passive character archetype.
Is this bastard's concept supposed to be the childhood friend who slowly closes the distance? Bullshit. All that gets him is every opportunity stolen out from under him.
But that was that, and a secretary carrying out official business was another matter entirely. Kyle almost felt sorry for the poor guy, stuck serving the wrong person for life. At least he didn't run his mouth and set people off the way Ian did.
If I don't follow Leto, I'll end up running into Elga one way or another. Better to just quietly go along with her request.
Besides, Kyle and the John Nassen family still had a few soft spots where the Litorio Grand Duchy was concerned.
"Wait a minute!"
Not everyone shared the same thoughts, however. Tisha suddenly wedged herself between Leto and Kyle, her face scrunching up hard.
"Why is Lady Elga ordering you to bring Kyle to her?"
"As I said, I don't know the reason. I was simply ordered to bring him…"
"Lady Elga herself said last time that this place isn't the Litorio Grand Duchy. She told us not to call her 'Lady.' So isn't it strange that she'd suddenly drag someone off like this with an 'order' when she won't even give a reason? We're all just academy students here."
"Well… that is true, but…"
It was a thoroughly logical argument, one Leto had no real way to refute. He could only groan and fidget, unable to find a proper answer.
Kid's still way too soft.
If Leto had even a little of Ian's personality, he would have ignored Tisha completely. One more mention of "Lady Elga's orders" and he could have hauled Kyle off without any real trouble. With that kind of backing, there was no reason to back down.
"Ah, miss—your name is…"
"Tisha."
"Right. Tisha. I understand how you feel. I understand why this would upset you. But there's nothing I can do about it. Bringing Kyle is the order I received…"
Don't bother explaining every little detail. You're just making the listener angrier.
"If you could show some understanding just this once, I would be truly grateful."
"So what you're saying is that understanding or not, right now—"
"Tisha."
Kyle reached out and stopped her. If she pushed any further, the sparks could easily jump to her. Elga might claim this wasn't the Litorio Grand Duchy, but who was actually going to take that at face value? Anyone in the Empire who wasn't royalty watched Elga's mood carefully. Even nobles did. A commoner like Tisha would be in an even more awkward position.
"It's fine. Looks like she just has something to talk about for a bit."
"If there's something to talk about, the person in question should come herself."
"The other party is the young lady of the Litorio Grand Duchy. She's not the kind of person who goes to someone—other people come to her. If this keeps up, you could end up in an uncomfortable spot too, and I don't want to see that."
"But I'm fine with it!"
"I'm not fine with it. I don't want anyone else getting hurt because of me, so I'll be right back."
Kyle's careful persuasion seemed to land. Whether the logic had worked or the part about worrying for her had done the trick was anyone's guess.
"…Alright. If you're going to put it like that…"
"I'll be quick, so keep an eye on Ian for me. No telling what kind of trouble that guy might cause."
That was true enough. Ian was more than capable of causing an incident. He might already be in the middle of one.
"Ah… okay. I'll watch him carefully until you get back."
It wasn't Ian she was worried about. What worried her was whose recommendation letter he had received. If he caused problems, questions would be raised about the Margrave of the North's letters of recommendation. And the other two people who had received those same letters were Tisha herself and Kyle, currently following Leto away.
If that man Ian causes trouble, not only me but Kyle will be in a mess too!
She already had a reputation because of her shamanism, and Kyle because of his John Nassen birth. In an academy where reputation mattered enormously, both of them already had some less-than-flattering rumors. If they drew more dirty looks because of Ian, academy life would become pure hell. For Kyle's sake as much as her own, she had to keep Ian under watch.
Tisha left Kyle behind and practically sprinted back the way they had come. The moment she heard Kyle's warning that the guy might cause another accident, a bad feeling had settled in her gut that his instincts would prove right.
No way. There's no way. We haven't even been gone ten minutes!
The second she returned to where Ian had been, Tisha let out a soft "Ah…" of despair.
"You arrogant bastard! Ian! I challenge you to a duel!"
"Suit yourself."
…Kyle. I think I got here too late.
Tisha covered her face with both hands.
"I've brought him, Lady Elga."
"Thank you for your hard work, Leto. You may go downstairs now. And make sure no one comes up."
"Understood."
Make sure no one comes up? Why do you have to put it like that, Lady? You're making me nervous.
Kyle swallowed dryly and looked at Elga standing right in front of him.
…Leto, you fucking eunuch bastard. You really need to die.
Simply calling her pretty or beautiful wasn't enough. There was a reason people called her the flower of high society, the rose of Litorio. Elga was a single, brilliantly burning flame—a red rose of fatal beauty. Anyone who stood before her would find it impossible to look away. First they would be drunk on that dizzying beauty, then drawn in by her captivating figure, and finally conquered by the sheer confidence that put the finishing touch on the woman herself.
I thought all that 'rose' and 'flower' talk was just empty flattery.
Even for a grand duke's daughter, those titles weren't easily earned. If anything, being a grand duke's daughter meant bad rumors spread faster than good ones. If there had been even the slightest flaw in Elga's looks, the related gossip would have appeared immediately. That made the nicknames all the more impressive. It meant that when it came to beauty, she was always counted among the very first.
And this guy has a woman like that as his superior—even a childhood friend who's practically throwing herself at him—and still wants to serve her as his lord until the end? Is this a romance fantasy or a mass-produced dense-potato novel?
Spitting out one more bitter, long-suffering reader's curse of "Leto, you fucking eunuch bastard," Kyle carefully spoke the name of the woman before him.
"Lady Elga. The reason you wished to see me…"
"I heard the story. You caused a bit of an incident today."
The word "incident" made indignation surge up at once.
"That one was completely unfair. The desk was just weak and broke."
"No matter how weak a desk is, most people don't snap it clean in two."
"It was a desk that was already about to break. It had to be."
Elga didn't press the point any further. Judging by the man standing in front of her, he had already been thoroughly burned. With the previous incident involving the young lady from the John Nassen side still fresh, the stress must have been even worse. The same Kyle who had been so carefully cautious in front of her before was now reacting with sharp edge—that was proof enough.
"Did you call me here because of that? To talk about the incident?"
"Who knows? Why do you think I called you?"
"…"
At Elga's words, Kyle swallowed a sigh inside. She really was a terrifying woman. With a single question she had completely doused his rising emotions, while at the same time subtly emphasizing, You seem a little too worked up. In front of me. She was making it clear that the initiative in this conversation belonged to her.
"You don't know?"
"…To be honest, no."
"Hmm. I suppose not. Of course you wouldn't know."
Talking to herself and nodding, Elga turned away. She settled into a black leather chair that had been prepared in one corner of the room.
"He said he didn't know either."
"Pardon?"
"My loyal secretary who just went downstairs. My trustworthy friend. The only one I was willing to permit. And even that man still says he doesn't know—whether I can truly become the Grand Duke of Litorio."
"…It might just be that his personality is cautious by nature."
Even as he said it, the words felt absurd. There was a decisive difference between being cautious and being timid. The latter didn't know when to advance and when not to retreat. And Leto was clearly the latter, not the former.
"I hope that's truly the case. Ah, but it might not matter much anymore."
It doesn't matter. At those words, an ominous feeling suddenly rose in Kyle's chest.
"Earlier, I saw you following that girl Tisha out to the balcony."
"…How did you know?"
"It just caught my eye."
A lie. With this many people at the banquet, there was no way she would simply notice. It was only possible if she had been pouring every scrap of her attention onto him.
"You two looked close. You and that girl."
"We are close. We came together from the Margrave's territory."
"That sounds like you're saying, 'The only reason we're close is because we came together.' Is that right?"
Kyle gave no answer to Elga's question. A powerful premonition told him that silence was the safer choice here.
"So you refuse to answer."
Once again he answered with silence—neither confirming nor denying. Whatever reply he gave now could become a problem later. Elga's expression tightened slightly, and she slowly rested her chin on her hand.
"Kyle John Nassen."
With elegant poise, legs crossed, the peerless beauty in the red dress propped her chin on her hand in clear dissatisfaction. Faint jealousy glimmered in her eyes as she opened her mouth.
"What exactly is your relationship with that girl?"