Take Me, Guard Knight! - 2
Lucia fell in love with her guard knight, Paul Silverwolf—the man who called her “My Lady.”
True to the name Silverwolf, he was a wolf beastman, hired for the simple reason that beastmen were hard to curse or enchant.
And the reason a beastman was needed at all was that, back then, Lucia was still a young succubus.
To a succubus, charm was the “will to feed.” Young Lucia still struggled to control hers.
Ordinarily a succubus grew up in the demon realm, where no race was susceptible to charm, so there was never a problem. Lucia, however, had been raised in the human world. Humans would fall under her charm whether she meant it or not, so extreme caution was required.
In fact, the very first time she ever used her charm was on a human maid.
She had been so young that the details had blurred, but she still remembered how utterly terrified she had been. Being a child, she hadn’t even understood how charm worked on humans; that ignorance only doubled her fear.
As she spoke, Lucia fell silent for a moment and clenched her fists, as though something had suddenly surfaced in her memory.
Anyway, the Lucia of those days had been young and weak, so resistance had been nearly impossible. Lily probably hadn’t realized charm could work on women either—especially since that particular maid had been thoroughly heterosexual.
Because of the incident, every servant at Evermore who wasn’t immune to charm was replaced, and the newly hired guard knight was Paul.
That was the story.
“My sister and brother only need blood on a regular schedule—just a little extra on the nights of the full moon—and they’re fine. Mother’s blood runs thicker in me, so I don’t need to drink at all. Of course I still feel awful when the full moon rises. My sister says her thirst for blood gets worse, but for me it’s the succubus side that…”
Lucia’s voice trailed off and she glanced away. The “succubus side,” of course, meant her sexual desire. She was clearly too embarrassed to say it out loud.
“Anyway, that’s why I’m the only one in the family who came to Peltwin—the place where every race lives together. And I brought Paul with me.”
She added, almost as an afterthought, “I can control my charm perfectly now.”
“One question, if I may. Are you currently living with this ‘Paul’?”
“Yes. We’ll only stay in Peltwin until I graduate from the academy, so we rented a place two years ago and have been living together ever since.”
I had already known they shared a home from the moment I entered her dream, but I asked anyway for the sake of the next question.
“Then… may I ask what you do with him on the nights of the full moon?”
The phrasing felt a little clumsy the moment it left my mouth, and I immediately regretted not choosing softer words.
“I ask Paul to spend the whole day outside, and then I… handle it alone…”
Her voice faded again. Even with the comfort magic I had layered over the bar, this was still too embarrassing for her.
“My apologies. That was an improper question to put to a young lady.”
“N-no… now that I think about it, it does make sense that you’d ask…”
Lucia kept her head bowed, her cheeks burning. I felt a twinge of guilt.
“—Anyway, let me keep going.”
She lightly slapped both her own cheeks and forced the story onward.
Lucia told me about the day she got lost as a child.
She had simply gone out for a walk, but her feet had carried her farther than she realized. When she finally found a fountain, she sat down and tried to remember which way she had come.
Three paths branched out in front of her. She decided to try the leftmost one first.
The left-hand street was a quiet shopping arcade, still too early for the shops to open. This wasn’t it—it looked like the road that led toward the city center.
She tried the middle path next. It was similar, except this one was lined with restaurants. Looking at it made her feel as though she had just come from the left-hand street, so she turned around and went back.
Hmm… is this the one? She was still trying to recall when footsteps approached from behind.
“—Excuse me. My name’s Paul. Are you lost?”
“…?”
“I was watching. You looked like you didn’t know the way.”
“Ah… yes.”
She turned and found a man with a calm, steady face standing there. Even if he had looked like a bad person, it wouldn’t have mattered. The full moon was still far off, and by then Lucia’s magic was already reliable.
“Where are you headed? …I’m not a suspicious character, I promise. I’m on my way to take the guard-knight exam at Evermore, and I’ve got time to spare.”
Evermore. Her own family name. Apparently the man had no idea the girl in front of him was an Evermore.
“Ah—I’m headed toward Evermore myself. Would you mind if I walked with you?”
“Lucky for both of us, then.”
There was no real need to announce that she herself was an Evermore. For some reason she felt certain this man would pass the exam; she could surprise him with the truth once he did.
“Big brother, are you good with a sword?”
“I can protect one little girl just fine. Though ‘little girl’ doesn’t quite fit, so what’s your name?”
“Lucia.”
“Lucy.”
“Pardon?”
“Can I call you Lucy? Two syllables have a better rhythm.”
“You decide people’s names by rhythm…? Well, you said you’re trying to become a guard knight. If you pass, you can call me that.”
“Then I’d better pass.”
The conversation flowed as easily as water. Lucia had been starving for talk like this.
Truthfully she didn’t need a guard knight—she could already take care of herself. The real reason she wanted one was simply that she needed someone to talk to: someone who wouldn’t fall under her charm, someone she could chat with comfortably, someone who would stay by her side and match her pace… and who would also happen to protect her.
At the time she had been hoping for a female knight. After meeting Paul, she decided a man wouldn’t be so bad either. A cool older sister would have been nice, but her actual older sister was already cool enough; she needed a different kind of stimulation.
“So where are you going, Lucy?”
“A café near Evermore. I’m meeting someone. And it’s Lucia.”
“You don’t hate the nickname, do you?”
“I don’t hate it. It’s just the first time anyone’s called me that, so I need a moment to get used to it. —Ah, we’re almost there. I turn right here, so this is where we part.”
“All right. I’ll come back after I pass. …Is it weird to say that to someone I just met?”
“Ahaha. If you pass, we’ll probably see each other again. Let’s meet again after you pass.”
Lucia waved as Paul walked through the Evermore gates, then waited a little while before heading home herself. The café story had been a lie, after all.
“Paul of the wolf beastmen. Pleasure to meet you.”
“Edward, the exam proctor. Pleasure to meet you.”
The moment she slipped inside, she saw Paul and another man already preparing to spar in the garden. Already? she thought, and hurried into the mansion without being spotted. Her father was near the front gate, so she took the back entrance—if he found out she had left the house so early he would scold her for sure.
Once inside she ran down a certain corridor lined with dozens of windows overlooking the garden. Perfect for watching the fight.
“Simple enough. Spar with me for about three minutes, then I’ll give you the result.”
“I’ll take the first move.”
“Very well.”
By the time she arrived, the paperwork must have been finished; they were already ready to fight.
“Here I come.”
Paul closed the distance first. When his sword missed, he followed with a shoulder tackle and then another slash from that same stance—strong, fluid, continuous attacks. The proctor slipped past every one of them just as smoothly.
“…Are you from the knight order?”
“My turn.”
Instead of answering, the proctor began his own assault. Fast, heavy strokes—even Lucia, who knew nothing of swordsmanship, could tell they were expert. Paul blocked the first blow, then abandoned defense entirely and focused on evasion, barely dodging most strikes and only using his blade when he had no choice.
After a brief standoff, Paul’s stance faltered for a split second. The proctor seized the opening and knocked the sword from his hand. Completely unbalanced, Paul had no choice but to drop to one knee.
“Excellent. Swordsmanship, quick analysis, and evasion—all passable.”
“Thank you…”
“However. Mixing in those tackles is not a method I would recommend for stamina or long-term combat. Of course, against me—against another swordsman—it was effective. An original style. I’ll remember it.”
The proctor told Paul to rest, then walked over to Lucia’s father. Paul bowed, then began looking around the Evermore estate with open curiosity.
Her father was sitting in the shade near the front gate watching Paul, so Lucia dashed that way and pressed her ear to the door.
“—Looked solid to me. What’s your assessment?”
“A real talent. If he weren’t already being hired as a bodyguard, I’d be inviting him into the order.”
“Edward.”
“I know, Teo. Still, the boy is wasted as a mere escort. That was the last applicant, wasn’t it? I’ll go tell the others.”
“Appreciate it. Once the servant issue is sorted, I’ll suggest the order to him myself—after I check his own wishes, of course.”
“Ha! You said he was going to be the youngest daughter’s guard knight. He’s never joining the order.”
“You know me well.”
“Still, what rotten luck that the strongest one came last. If he’d shown up first we could have finished early.”
“We still have to earn our keep.”
A small smile bloomed on Lucia’s face as she eavesdropped.
“I’m going to check on my daughter for a moment. You handle the acceptance notice.”
The scrape of a chair sent her scrambling back to the corridor overlooking the garden.
“Yeah, that definitely hurts…”
Paul was slowly massaging his shoulder when the door opened with a soft click and her father stepped in.
“Lucia. You’ve been watching, haven’t you? Then I don’t need a long explanation. The young man who just took the exam has passed. If you want to greet him, now’s the time.”
“Yes!”
She answered brightly and darted past him toward the front gate. Watching her go, her father murmured under his breath, “Is it really that good…?”
“Hey, Lucy. You popped out of a strange place. I passed.”
“I was watching. Your swordsmanship was really cool.”
“You were watching? Then I should’ve attacked a little faster. Are you here for the servant exam too?”
“Ah—no. I’m late introducing myself. Lucia Evermore. Your employer.”
“Right, you never told me your last name at first… Wait. Evermore?”
“Yes. Lucia Evermore, youngest daughter of this house. As your employer, I look forward to working with you, Mr. Paul Silverwolf. Or should I call you big brother?”
“Uh…”
Paul’s face was pure shock; he floundered for a moment.
“My title is Lucy. No—wait. In public, please call me ‘My Lady.’ In private, Lucy is fine.”
“My… Lady?”
“This is a private moment, isn’t it?”
“Got it. Nice to meet you, Lucy. You could’ve told me you were an Evermore when we first met.”
“I thought you’d pass. I wanted to see the look on your face.”
“And if I’d failed?”
“I would’ve teased you.”
“So you still would have stayed friends. Thank you for treating a stranger that kindly. Ah—and call me just ‘Paul,’ please.”
“All right. Paul.”
They kept talking right there—about his fighting style, about how she had gotten lost that day, and everything else. Of course they didn’t stay in the middle of the ruined sparring ground; eventually they moved to a tea table. The lonely girl and the man who found her adorable simply never ran out of things to say.
“—And so we grew closer and closer. We’ve been together for about seven years now.”
“Thank you for telling me all of that.”
Interesting. From the very beginning he had asked her to drop formalities, and even if he had failed the exam he still intended to remain her friend. Putting all of that together, Paul almost certainly did not see Lucia as merely “his employer.” Even if her attempts at seduction had gone wrong, there should have been at least one moment when desire won out.
“One more question. What exactly do you wish to consult me about regarding romance?”
“Ah… well… I want Paul to see me as a woman.”
“Is that so? After spending so many years together, it’s a little strange that he still doesn’t recognize you as a member of the opposite sex. If you don’t mind… would it be all right if I read one day’s worth of your memories?”
“W-what?”
I needed to see with my own eyes whether Paul was simply denser than a rock or whether Lucia was somehow creating misunderstandings.
“From the story alone there doesn’t seem to be any major problem. —Here we go. If you place your hand on this crystal ball, I can read exactly one day’s memories. I’ll examine them and pinpoint the issue.”
“….”
“Ah, feel free to refuse. I know the request is rather rude. Simply talking is perfectly fine as well.”
“….”
Lucia was hesitating. Even if she refused I would still peek without permission, but she was a woman, so the guilt was starting to bother me.
“N-no… the parts where I… bathe, or when I’m alone…”
“You needn’t worry about private moments. I enjoy love stories; I don’t lust after humans. And I am not so ill-mannered as to pry into those particular memories.”
…Well, that was true of Nox of the Middle World. Ruth of the human world rather liked humans. But the promise not to look without cause was sincere.
“A-all right. Do I put my hand on it now?”
“Ah, no. Please save that for your next visit—tomorrow by human-world time, I believe.”
Lucia accepted the proposal. How kind of her to ease my conscience.
“Understood. Then… I’ll be going.”
“Safe travels, my guest. Until tomorrow.”
She bowed politely and stepped out of the bar. The moment she left I erased the dream world I had built with Dream Magic and returned to reality.
Lucia was sleeping soundly.
Well then. I had her permission now. Starting tomorrow, I would begin watching in earnest.