~Chapter 31~
“We’ve prepared a separate room suitable for the commander.”
“But the commander was just attacked — are you saying it’s okay to leave her alone?”
Latryne answered Cloud’s objection simply.
“She won’t be alone. I or another knight will be in the room right next to her.”
And then he didn’t give Cloud a chance to say anything more.
“Then I’ll escort the commander to her room.
“Your Highness, I’m sorry, but could you please look after Sertien for a moment?”
I wasn’t sure if it was okay to leave Cloud behind like that, since they might start bickering again.
But Ered nodded and replied,
“Don’t worry, go ahead.”
Well, if it’s Ered, he’ll probably take care of things just fine.
Still, I was a bit nervous about being alone with Latryne.
What should I say if he asks me why I followed him?
While I was worrying about that, at some point, Latryne had already led me into an empty room.
‘Even if he’s someone who doesn’t get angry easily, wouldn’t he say something this time?’
I was tense with that thought in mind when Latryne suddenly stepped close to me.
“…Why… are you doing this?”
He came so close it almost felt like a hug, so I spoke in surprise.
But he didn’t actually hug me.
Instead, Latryne just looked at me with a worried expression.
“Are you okay? Earlier…”
Ah, he must be asking because of the attack.
“I’m fine. I wasn’t the one who got attacked. And I’m used to things like this…”
“But Litya, you’re injured right now.”
“I’m really okay. …Latryne, aren’t you going to ask why I’m here?”
Latryne, who was looking at me with worried eyes, asked me in response.
“Why are you here?”
“That doesn’t count. You’re only asking because I said you weren’t going to ask.”
“Well, I’m not really in a position to question where you go. As long as you’re safe, that’s all that matters.”
He really didn’t seem to care much.
That reaction made me even more determined, so I asked again.
“Are you really not curious?”
I could feel Latryne looking at me with a puzzled expression.
“I am curious.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Why did you follow me?”
This almost felt like I was begging him to ask.
Latryne asked with a slight smile on his face.
I felt embarrassed, like I was being clingy again.
This isn’t how I usually am, but for some reason, I always end up acting silly in front of Latryne.
“To be honest, I overheard a conversation between you and someone else at the mansion.”
Latryne seemed to understand right away what conversation I was talking about.
“I didn’t realize that. So, did you follow me because you were worried I might get married? Even bringing Sertien along?”
“I didn’t bring Seri on purpose. I was planning to follow you alone, but when I got to the station, he was secretly following me.”
“…”
“What?”
Latryne suddenly patted my head, and I asked in surprise.
Realizing what he’d done, Latryne blinked as if he just noticed it too.
Then he quickly pulled his hand back and said,
“Oh, I’m sorry. I did it without thinking… I was being rude.”
“It’s okay. But… you’re not angry?”
“Would you prefer it if I were angry?”
“No, not really, but…”
“I have no reason to be angry. No matter what the commander does… I’m not in a position to be upset.”
It sounded like he was deliberately calling me “commander.”
What he meant was that he had no right to get mad at someone of my rank.
Still though…
“Even though bringing Seri along caused such a mess?”
“Wasn’t that Sertien’s own choice? It wasn’t your intention. Honestly, I’m always sorry for the trouble Sertien causes.”
“And besides…”
“As long as you’re safe, Litya, that’s enough for me.”
Even I didn’t understand why I kept saying these things.
When I tried to speak again, Latryne cut me off.
The way he kept talking like that made me wonder if I really had overreacted.
Still, I felt like it was wrong of me to act without reporting to anyone.
Latryne, seeing me lost in thought, spoke to me.
“Then I’ll go talk to His Highness again. You should rest, Litya.”
Then he left the room.
Left alone, I was overcome by a strange feeling.
It really made me feel like I was obsessed with Latryne.
The reason I kept caring about Latryne… was probably because he kept being kind to me, and I had grown attached to both Sertien and him.
‘There’s no special reason or anything…’
“…”
I didn’t even have time to be thinking about things like this — what was I doing?
What really mattered right now was that Sertien had been attacked.
Did Ered know Sertien was going to be attacked?
Before falling asleep, I recalled what Ered had said.
And when I woke up during the attack, Ered was already up, as if he had known it would happen, and he was protecting us.
If Ered really knew about it in advance, maybe that’s also why he suddenly said he would go to the Sylvia Kingdom.
‘And if it’s Ered… maybe he also knows the reason behind it all…’
It was very likely.
As soon as I finished talking with Latryne, I decided I should go find Ered right away.
“Hmph, you can’t even do this, old man.”
“Why wouldn’t I be able to?”
Ered was sitting around lazily, watching Cloud and Sertien — who now seemed to have become good friends.
He thought once again that Count Cloud and Sertien seemed to be on the same mental wavelength.
Ered was wondering when Latryne would return, and right then, Latryne came back.
Latryne looked at Sertien, who was getting along with Count Cloud, and said:
“Sertien, could you go wait in the next room for a moment?”
The next room was the one Litya was in.
Sertien looked a bit confused, but he quietly stood up and followed Latryne’s request, going into the next room.
Then, Latryne turned to Count Cloud.
“Well then, let’s head back too.”
“Did you safely escort the Commander?”
“I made sure she got there safely, so there’s no need to worry.”
Latryne’s tone was a bit cold as he said that.
Count Cloud, seemingly a bit intimidated by Latryne’s sharp tone, got up with an awkward expression.
“Well then, I’ll head back now.”
Ered looked at Count Cloud leaving and teased Latryne with a playful tone.
“Don’t be so harsh. He was playing nicely with Sertien, you know.”
“What part of that was nice?”
“You are being kind of cold, you know.”
Latryne sat down, and Ered asked him:
“Hey, I thought we were leaving?”
“We need to talk.”
“…Talk about what?”
Even though Ered pretended not to know and tried to change the subject, Latryne didn’t react and asked again.
“This whole incident — you knew, didn’t you? Why it happened, and who’s behind it.”
At the word “brother,” the expression vanished from Ered’s face.
Since Ered had told him it was okay to call him “brother” when no one else was around, Latryne had gotten into the habit of calling him that when they were alone.
Ered smiled and answered soon after.
“You think I knew? Why do you think that?”
“Because lately, your actions have been strange. Like… someone who knows something…”
“You always say things like that.”
“…Excuse me?”
Latryne asked again, confused.
He didn’t remember ever saying something like that to Ered before.
“It’s nothing. I just followed you because I had a bad feeling… I didn’t expect something like this to actually happen…”
“Is something wrong with Sertien…?”
“There is something wrong. To put it simply, it’s related to the fact that you’re calling me ‘brother’ right now.”
At those words, Latryne’s face visibly stiffened.
Ered gave a bitter smile as well.
Ered was a prince, but to be more accurate, he was a prince that no one truly acknowledged.
In a way, he was in a similar situation to Sertien.
He was the child born from a one-day meeting between the former emperor and a woman from the red-light district.
His mother was a former criminal, and his father never acknowledged him, so Ered suffered a lot.
His father didn’t treat him like a son, and his mother only thought about how to use him.
Because of that, Ered developed a habit of staying away from the palace and wandering outside.
But ironically, that vague status meant he knew many things other people didn’t.
For example, Ered also knew the secret of Latryne’s birth.
That’s why he allowed Latryne to call him “brother.”
Latryne wasn’t a true child of the Priscillia family…
In fact, he was the biological child of the former emperor.
Originally, Latryne’s name should have been “Latryne Richelan,” not “Latryne Priscillia.”
The reason things ended up this way was quite complicated.
Unlike Ered, Latryne had been born from the emperor’s lawful empress.
The problem began with something the former empress did after giving birth to Latryne.
One day, the former empress tried to assassinate the emperor, which caused an uproar in the kingdom.
Latryne’s birth mother came from a noble family that had fallen from grace — and the reason for their downfall was the former emperor himself.
She had witnessed her own father being publicly executed after being falsely accused — and to avenge him, she tried to kill the emperor.
But she failed, and like her father, she was also beheaded in front of the people.
After that, rumors about Latryne spread quickly.
People said things like, “How can a traitor’s son be kept as a prince?”
Unfortunately, the former emperor wasn’t a man with much affection for his children, and he tried to have Latryne killed.
