51. The Human Butcher
It was Adelen’s second visit to the royal palace. But she was several times more nervous than the first. She took a deep breath and looked down at her chest.
Even though she had tucked the necklace back in while looking in the mirror, the chain had slipped out again while walking. This time, she pushed it back in even more firmly, hiding it inside her clothes.
“Is it an important necklace?”
“Oh, this? …Yes. Is it too noticeable?”
“No.”
She had worried that she might be told to take it off because it didn’t match the level of the dress, but thankfully, it was overlooked.
Fidgeting with the part of her dress that concealed the necklace, Adelen confessed,
“Actually… I’ve had this since I was born.”
“Since you were born?”
“Yes. I’ve been passed from person to person, so no one knows who picked me up or who abandoned me… But the only clue is this necklace. They say it was around my neck from the beginning. This necklace is my hope.”
Whether that was true or not, no one could say.
Maybe someone just made up a story on the spot after seeing the necklace on a crying baby.
Maybe someone else had put it on her later.
Or maybe it had just happened to be lying beside her when she was abandoned.
But believing that it was left as a clue for someone to find her someday—that made her the happiest. So Adelen lived her life believing that.
It was a necklace made from colored threads that could be found anywhere. She had never taken it off, so it was worn and frayed, tied back together when it snapped, and when it became too short to wear around her neck, she bought new threads to lengthen it and tied it back on.
To her, taking it off would be the same as throwing away all of her hope.
“I’ve never taken it off my entire life. If I did… and I lost it…”
She didn’t even want to imagine that.
Adelen shuddered and shook her head.
“Then you’d better keep it safe.”
“Thank you. And… if you happen to see it sticking out at the party, please let me know.”
She ran her fingers over the back of her neck again.
The nervousness she’d forgotten while talking about the past returned. Her fingertips trembled slightly.
“And if I make a mistake… please tell me right away. No—just step on my foot or jab me in the ribs. I’ll stop right away.”
Adelen was determined.
Today, there would be no mistakes.
‘I am a Sigelion!’
Just like the other servants, she was now fully steeped in the Sigelion way. She wouldn’t allow the honor of Sigelion to be tarnished because of her. She would ensure that people praised the baby for having such a capable nanny.
With wide eyes, she steeled herself with resolve.
“There’s no need to be that nervous.”
“B-but… this is about the baby’s future, and about you mas—no, Sir Rakalt—and Sigelion’s honor, His Majesty’s expectations, and even my own reputation.”
But resolve didn’t stop the trembling. It only added more weight.
Now that she said it, she was carrying the burden of four people. It was heavy.
Adelen almost bit her lips from anxiety but stopped. The makeup artist had warned her not to touch her lips no matter what.
“Whatever you do at the party, it’s not going to cause any huge incident with those four things.”
“Of course, someone lowly like me couldn’t possibly cause a huge problem…”
That reassurance lasted only a moment. Like a quiet fire suddenly flaring up, the anxiety surged again.
“But isn’t it because I’m such a minor presence that I must not make a mistake…?”
“What I meant is—it’s not because you’re insignificant, but because the power behind you—me and His Majesty—is stronger than most of the people at that party.”
“…Oh.”
Adelen, who had been about to spiral into panic again, calmed down.
She had with her the best knight in Teplan and His Majesty’s sword, Lord Sigelion himself, A newly risen noble house, but one that rivaled the oldest lineages in wealth and influence.
What stronger support could there be?
“By the way, even if you half-kill someone at that party, you’d probably still avoid the death penalty.”
“…Sorry, what?”
That example was way too extreme. Adelen, who had never so much as hit anyone in her life, let alone killed, was dumbfounded.
“Don’t believe me? It actually happened to me. And back then, it wasn’t even under His Majesty’s orders or anything.”
“What in the world did you experience…?”
“Hmm, let’s see. I was ten at the time.”
“Ten…?”
That was way too young for an example involving half-killing someone.
At that age, it’s just kids fighting—of course people would let it slide.
“At the time, my father had only recently been granted the title of count, so to establish our family’s place among the nobility, he pushed me to become the prince’s companion.”
“Ahh.”
So that’s why they had seemed like brothers. Even if the king was his most loyal subject, his overly casual manner now made sense.
If they had been together since age ten, that familiarity was understandable.
“His Majesty was born with a frail body, so I guess he found my sturdiness amusing and enjoyable. He always kept me by his side and cared for me. But there were a lot of people who were jealous of that. We were a newly risen noble house, not fully established yet, so many looked down on us.”
Adelen scrunched her nose. The head butler had said something similar. That their master, who was this perfect and amazing, wasn’t popular only because the other nobles looked down on new blood.
Wherever you go, people are people, and local bias is a thing—but directing it at a ten-year-old? That was too much.
“They showed that to you when you were only ten? That’s just mean…”
“Their parents were like that, so the children followed suit. They just parroted what they heard at home. The other companions especially were the worst.”
“Ugh, already like that at such a young age… So, is that why you hit them?”
“One of them hit me first, so I hit him back.”
“Good for you!”
Adelen clenched her fists and praised him.
‘That’s right—better to hit back than to be hit and say nothing.’
But… Rakalt still hadn’t said how much he had hit them.
“Even His Majesty said I did the right thing.
He’d found those guys annoying too. They used to act all concerned but would mock him for being weak, or strut around bragging about being royal companions. He said it was disgusting.”
“If they were companions, they must’ve been around the same age, right? Ugh… If they were like that to the prince, I can only imagine how horribly they treated you. So, did you teach them a proper lesson?”
“Almost killed one of them. He’s still bedridden to this day.”
“Good j— Wait, what?”
Adelen had been about to cheer for her master again, assuming he’d won the fight. But… won how exactly?
“Umm, what did they even say to you…?”
Adelen tried to understand Rakalt.
Surely there had been a reason. He must’ve heard something that justified it.
“All sorts of things…But the one I heard the most was ‘little human butcher.’”
Fair enough.
“You should’ve just finished the job.”
It’s one thing to hear rumors as an adult based on your actions, but what had a ten-year-old done to deserve that?
Even if the previous Count had risen in status through harsh means, it wasn’t like it had been dishonorable.
“I tried, but I got caught before I could finish.”
“…Wait, so you really were trying?”
“Of course. I even gave him the first chance to kill me.”
That… probably wasn’t a chance. That was bait.
But even so, a person must take responsibility for what they say—no matter how young they are.
Adelen’s loyalty was bent entirely inward.
Still… could a ten-year-old really fight that fiercely?
“Um… You really were ten back then, right?”
“Yup.”
“Haha… Haha… Wow. You really were different from the start, huh…”
Adelen now applied her my-master-is-the-best! mode to Rakalt’s childhood as well.
