Chapter 24
Chapter 24
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: Exclusive Knight-5
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“But didn't anyone else come?”
For some reason, no one but Rios had come to greet Leo. He couldn't exactly say he hadn't caused any trouble, but he hadn't expected such stark treatment.
“Why? Disappointed that Aria didn't come?”
Rios's sly, half-lidded eyes reflected Leo's face with their piercing blue gaze.
“...There's no reason to be disappointed. It was my negligence that caused the damage, after all.”
He said that, but in truth, he was disappointed. After his regression, he'd thought they'd grown quite close, yet here she was showing such a cold response again.
“Couldn't be helped~ She was crying and throwing such a fit~”
“...Pardon? The Lady did?”
Even in his past life, she'd seemed like someone who wouldn't shed a single tear even if stabbed—no blood came out anyway, since he could never land a hit...
In any case, he couldn't imagine her throwing a tantrum like that.
“It was the first time I'd seen her cry like that~ Even as a baby babbling away, she'd scowl at my face.”
[That's because it was you.]
Ignoring the sage's words that perfectly echoed his inner thoughts, Leo spoke to Rios.
“Did she suffer a lot...?”
“...Yeah, quite a bit. How could she feel at ease with her beloved knight locked up? She's holed up in her room nonstop.”
The description was crude, but it wasn't a lie. From Aria's perspective, he was probably her first real friend, so it made sense.
“Um... Sir Rios, if you're not too busy, could we make a quick stop somewhere?”
Leo, too, had to do his part as a friend.
It was all firsts.
Her first defeat.
Her first lesson,
and her first sense of fulfillment.
And her first friend.
That boy had given her so many firsts.
Without demanding any reward,
as if helping her was his own happiness, he'd done so naturally.
But
what had she given him in return?
“...Lady.”
Alfred knocked on Aria's door.
“...”
The knock must have been audible. It simply wasn't enough to open whatever she'd closed off inside.
“...You don't plan to come out today either?”
“...”
She couldn't stay silent since she didn't deny it.
“...Leonardo has been cleared of charges and released. Is it all right not to go greet him?”
“...Is it all right? Alfred...”
It was a statement that came after a long silence of deliberation.
Since it was the first response, Alfred tried to draw out the conversation as much as possible.
“It will be fine, Lady. Leonardo would surely be happy if...”
“...I know. Leo's kind... but...”
Aria's voice sounded lower than usual today. The tone itself was the same, but the depth of her words sank unprecedentedly to the bottom.
“...I don't know if I deserve that...”
A faint sob echoed. Alfred repeatedly touched and released the door handle.
“...Ever since Leo came to the family... no, ever since he met me, he's always gotten into trouble.”
Not long after avoiding her, he'd encountered a Balrog, fought fiercely, and gotten injured.
“That was just an accident...! Lady...!”
“I know... but... after that...?”
Incidents kept piling up endlessly.
A man fainted from a single joke and got arrested,
bullied by squires just because he was an eyesore,
and now, even assaulted by assassins.
“...Did you see Leo back then?”
He'd been arrested in haste without a proper look, but Leo's body had been covered in blood.
No matter how strong Leo was, it would have been impossible to emerge unscathed against those assassins.
“...What if... I'd called the family sooner...? Or better yet, if he hadn't come to the family at all...”
It was pointless regret.
But unfortunately, Aria wasn't a genius at relationships. Her young age of thirteen only highlighted the girl's immaturity.
“...”
Alfred had no reply. No matter how seasoned and experienced a butler he was, as a third party, there were limits to what he could resolve.
‘...It's all my fault...’
So
“Lady Aria.”
it was best for the parties involved to sort it out themselves. The moment Leo appeared, Alfred had long since excused himself as a gentleman.
“...Leonardo...?”
Aria rushed toward the door, trying to open it. But like Alfred before her, she only fiddled with the handle and couldn't bring herself to turn it.
“...What's wrong.”
Her words came out stiff. She wanted to apologize, but her mouth spat them out coldly, as if possessed by another personality.
“I was worried about you, Lady. I couldn't even confirm you were safe.”
That kindness hurt. If she accepted that warmth and apologized,
“...Really? What about you?”
she'd grow even more attached to the boy, so her words came out all the more flatly.
“I'm fine. No injuries or anything.”
“...I see.”
It was surely a lie. For someone covered head to toe in blood to claim no injuries was just bravado to say not to worry.
“...Leo.”
“Yes, Lady.”
“...Maybe you should quit being my exclusive knight?”
A brief silence fell. Even Aria, who had made the suggestion, couldn't open her mouth again.
For the response from her exclusive knight was frightening enough to want to block her ears.
“...May I ask the reason?”
That politeness was cruel. If she gave the reason, he'd only hate to let her go even more.
“...It doesn't seem good for either of us.”
She cruelly chased away that consideration. Foolish as it was, it was the greatest consideration she could offer Leo.
“...Is that so?”
His lowered voice—no matter Leo, such treatment had to feel uncomfortable.
“That's a bit much.”
So that reaction was only natural.
Thus... she covered her mouth while staring at the ceiling.
To keep the tears pooling in her eyes from flowing, to prevent the sorrow building in her throat from leaking.
...She endured.
“I like being together, though. Saying 'for both of us' feels a little selfish.”
“...You like... it...?”
She couldn't hold back the sorrow, and the words slipped out.
“Yes, I liked it. I still do.”
“...Why...?”
For her, maybe, but Leo gained nothing from her. The family, perhaps, but nothing purely from her.
“There are many reasons. May I list them starting from the biggest?”
Aria didn't respond. Not refusal, but simply because she was flustered—and even more than that, happy.
“...Truth is, when you called me your friend, Lady Aria, I was over the moon inside, even if I didn't show it.”
A sincere story without a shred of falsehood, a simple truth anyone could understand without explanation.
“Mercenaries, especially wandering ones, have a hard time making comrades. Friends are even harder.”
It had been no different back in his hometown. Doron was a rundown village with scarcely anyone but the elderly and middle-aged.
Finding peers or friends was harder than hunting Gate monsters.
“So I was thrilled. It was the first time I had a friend.”
What was it that Aria felt from that confession?
She herself probably couldn't pinpoint it exactly.
But one thing she could be sure of was,
“...Uh... ugh...”
the emotions she'd closed off had definitely opened now.
Leo, leaning against the door, began listing more good reasons.
A place to belong for the first time since losing his parents,
an opponent strong enough to be his goal,
a comrade to enjoy training with,
even going out to town together, bantering idly while buying gifts—
all of it was enough happiness for Leo.
With every expression of gratitude, Aria's face flushed redder. One certain thing was that it wasn't the frustrated sorrow from before she was suppressing.
“...Leonardo.”
But
“You'll keep getting hurt if you're with me.”
the lingering guilt still gripped her tightly.
“This won't be the end. If you're in the family, these things will...”
“Ariasfil.”
A firm tone, sharp enough to slice through guilt without effort.
“I can't just let that slide.”
It was distant from the cheeky tone at their first meeting and from his usual politeness.
“...What, all of a sudden...?”
“Don't insult people beyond a point.”
“...I never... I just...!”
“You've seen my body, right?”
A sudden question left her speechless from embarrassment.
Thinking of that body even now made her cheeks burn and her heart race.
Despite being the same age, that wild skin, firm muscles—especially those abs, if she ever touched them...
“You've seen the scars on my body too.”
Aria hurriedly pinched her own cheek.
‘What am I thinking...!’
A minimal punishment for recalling indecent memories and fantasies.
“...I saw.”
Calming herself, she answered in a low voice once more.
“Scars from knife stabs, marks from clubs. Finding beast bites would be nothing.”
She remembered them all. For a mere thirteen-year-old, those wounds were cruel beyond harsh—a brutal life.
“I'm scared of dying. But I know that better than you.”
A certainty beyond mere guesswork. It made sense, perhaps.
Leo had already experienced death, after all.
“So don't decide the safety of my life on your own. I chose to be your knight because I know enough.”
“...Why go that far...?”
She no longer knew what was what.
Why she'd asked that question, what answer she wanted to hear—nothing.
“I already told you.”
But Leo didn't hesitate.
As if she knew it all already.
“You're my goal.”
Her vision blurred. Even looking at the ceiling was the same. Tears trickled down her cheeks one by one.
Only then did she realize.
I'm crying.
“May I... open the door now?”
“...No... ugh... no.”
She didn't want to be seen like this.
By anyone, but especially not by Leo.
“Kinda disappointing.”
Leo explained his grievance in a much brighter voice.
“Then could you at least look through the keyhole?”
Was it Leo's request, or reassurance that this much was fine? Her tear-swollen eyes turned toward the keyhole.
“We still have that promise to keep, right?”
Leo flashed a bright smile and showed her the bag with the white rose and dye. His unscarred face somehow felt refreshingly pure.
“...If you don't want to, I'll come back later...”
Bang.
The moment Leo turned to leave, the door flew open.
“...Don't go.”
It was the girl who wanted her knight by her side embracing the boy.
“...Never go...”
Tears flowed. It was embarrassing, something she didn't want seen.
“Stay by my side from now on too... Be my exclusive knight forever...”
Yet her voice didn't stop. Because she didn't want to let go of that boy, her knight.
“I... like being with you too...! So...!”
The girl mustered her courage.
“...Yes, it's an honor.”
Her knight took the hand wrapped around his waist and knelt on one knee.
“I'll serve you to the best of my ability, Aria.”
This was surely the unwavering intent of his heart.