After Dad and Sister Sherry left the Stone House, I found myself in a subtle standoff with Anne.
“Sister Sherry said there’s a rabbit on the path near the west gate. Want to go see it?”
I wanted to go to the west gate where the The Red Hawk Knights Training Grounds were.
“The west gate? That’s too far, Miss. Instead, why don’t you tell me more about your time in Bonwell Village?”
Anne, who was trying to figure out how Dad had survived, inquired while we were alone in the room.
In Bonwell Village, I was a crayfish-catching expert. The secret was in finding where the crayfish were and using an enticing bait.
Imagining which bait would seem the most appetizing to the crayfish and then presenting it!
“Well, I guess there’s no other choice.”
I flopped onto the bed, speaking to Anne as she organized clothes.
“By the way, when I was with Dad at the fruit shop last time, I saw a wanted poster—”
“Are you talking about Young Master Reytan’s wanted poster?”
And the bait that would be the most tempting for Anne was, of course, Dad’s mysterious past.
Anne stopped what she was doing and came to the bed, intrigued by the bait I had dangled.
“You saw a wanted poster with a bounty on it at the fruit shop? And then what?”
“And then I couldn’t even buy strawberries… Yawn. I’m sleepy.”
“Miss, if you sleep more now, you won’t be able to sleep at night.”
“Then what am I supposed to do?”
“Would you like to go see the rabbit?”
“But it’s too far…”
“If we walk, we’ll get there. It might take some time, but we can talk along the way so it won’t be boring.”
“Really? Should I ask the other maids if they want to come too—”
“They’re all too busy, so that won’t work.”
Anne, who had taken the bait, handled the other maids herself, probably calculating that it would be easier to talk if it was just the two of us.
That’s what I wanted, too.
‘Hehe.’
The fishing was a success.
After leaving the Stone House with Anne, we walked for quite some time.
‘Here it is!’
Though I had never seen the building before, I recognized it immediately. Walking hand in hand with Anne, I suddenly stopped in my tracks.
“Miss? The walking path is further ahead.”
“Sister Anne….”
With teary eyes, I looked up at Anne with a sorrowful expression.
“My legs hurt. I can’t walk anymore…”
It was shocking news for Anne.
Yesterday and today, I had been carried around by my dad a lot, and Anne, who worked at the Stone House, had seen it all.
Judging by her confused expression, she was probably thinking, ‘Do I have to carry her, too?’
But unlike Dad, who could easily lift me up with one arm, Anne was just an ordinary seventeen-year-old girl.
Carrying me, a seven-year-old, even for a few meters, might be possible, but walking over a kilometer while holding me was too much.
“What should we do? There’s no one around to help…”
The west side of the estate had no residential spaces for direct descendants, so it was a secluded area that people rarely visited.
If we were to seek help, the only option was the Knight Training Grounds.
‘Be brave, Anne!’
However, the thought of entering a place swarming with knights could be intimidating for a maid who had only been working for five months.
The enormous red hawk banner fluttered ominously over the building.
Anne hesitated between two choices: carrying me or entering the training grounds.
“…Can you really not walk at all?”
I nodded and glanced up at Anne, wearing the expression that Grandma Marshall had described
“Don’t make that face. Even if you look like a drenched chick, you still need to take your medicine.”
I wondered what kind of expression a drenched chick would have.
Anyway, after groaning with hesitation, Anne finally made up her mind and entered the training grounds. She sat me on a bench in the central courtyard and made a firm request.
“Stay here for a moment. I’ll bring a knight I know. Do you understand? Don’t leave the building.”
“Yes! I won’t leave the building!”
Seeing my cheerful response, Anne left without suspicion and entered the main building.
‘According to plan!’
As soon as she was out of sight, I began to explore the training grounds. The Crown Prince Theon had entered the Travel House around the same time as me, so there was a good chance he was here.
I was aiming for a coincidental meeting.
Since my uncle could expel Theon at any moment, I needed to make as much contact as possible, as quickly as possible. Becoming friends would take time.
‘For now, let’s just introduce ourselves! After that, I’ll head back to the Stone House before Dad returns. There’s plenty of time!’
***
Boing. Boing.
‘I can’t see!’
In the hallway on the first floor of the annex, I was jumping up and down, trying to peek through the window.
The window, designed for adults, was too high, and even on my tiptoes, all I could see was the windowsill.
‘I can hear Mr. Rex’s voice, so I really want to see inside.’
I gathered more strength and tried to jump higher.
‘One more time!’
With all my might, I bent my knees and jumped again.
“Upper strike!”
Just as Mr. Rex shouted the name of the next move, I was startled by his loud voice and, surprisingly, managed to jump higher than before—!
“Ah!”
I made eye contact with one of the knights who was standing close to the window.
“Up… per strike!?”
Oh no. I’ve been caught.
The knight, who was shouting the move, stumbled over his words, and my heart pounded like a thief caught red-handed as I landed on the ground.
“…strike?”
After a brief silence, Mr. Rex’s angry voice echoed from the training hall.
“Who dares to make such a foolish sound during sacred training time?”
“Chief Commander, I have something to report.”
We had only exchanged a glance, but the knight looked ready to spill the beans without hesitation.
“Report what? Aesel! That’s your problem, that lack of focus! How can you be so distracted during training? Back in my day…!”
His yelling grew louder and louder.
If Mr. Rex found me, there’d be no escape—I’d have to return to the Stone House. I had no reason to stay here.
‘I can’t get caught before I’ve even seen Theon…!’
Panicking, I quickly started thinking of a way out.
In my confusion, I didn’t notice someone walking past me into the training hall.
“I brought what you asked for.”
“Ah, later. Theon. The Chief Commander is angry right now.”
‘What!?’
Amid their quiet conversation, one name suddenly rang in my ears. I turned to look, but the back door of the training hall had already closed.
‘I need to get into the training hall!’
If I wanted to introduce myself to Theon, I had to come up with an excuse to enter. The back door? The front door?
“When I was training, I wouldn’t have even thought about getting distracted! Young Master Reytan—”
“Dad?”
Using the mention of my dad’s name as an excuse, I dashed to the nearest door, stood on tiptoes, and grabbed the handle.
It was the front door.
“…….”
All eyes—at least thirty knights—turned to me.
They all wore expressions as if to say, ‘Who is this kid?’
When in doubt, smiling is the best option.
I smiled brightly and asked, pretending to be clueless.
“Is my dad here?”
***
“Are you sure this is Young Master Reytan’s daughter?”
“She doesn’t resemble him at all… Are you certain she’s his biological daughter?”
“That’s the mystery of life. Not a single trace of her father’s unsightly features passed on to that cuteness.”
“Well, now we know why he retired from the sword. With a daughter like that, who cares about the Holy Sword?”
“Of course, the Holy Sword matters. It’s the Holy Sword, after all.”
I could hear all the whispers.
I was sitting in a large chair that the knights had brought from somewhere. My body didn’t even reach the backrest, so I was more perched on the edge than seated properly.
The chair was cushioned with tightly packed, soft, red fabric, adorned with gold legs and arms featuring elaborate carvings.
It was definitely my uncle’s taste.
‘Ugh, did he sit here and give orders to the knights?’
My uncle always dreamed of becoming the head of the family, wielding a sword, but unfortunately, he had to give up that dream in his childhood. He had no talent for it, especially with a genius like my dad right next to him, accomplishing everything.
‘My uncle loves anything flashy and attention-grabbing, though his skills don’t match his ambitions.’
Perhaps that’s why, whenever he felt inferior to the direct descendants, he would come to the training grounds to relieve his stress. Watching the knights follow his every command gave him a petty sense of satisfaction.
The knights, despite having far superior swordsmanship, had to follow the instructions of someone without any skill.
‘I’m looking at a workplace bullying victim right in front of me….’
I felt a bit sorry as I glanced at Mr. Rex, who was standing nervously in front of me.
Mr. Rex, the Chief Commander of the Red Hawk Knights, was a man who had appeared in many of my memories.
Seeing him in person, I realized how huge he really was, almost bear-like. Apparently, he was afraid of small creatures because they seemed like they might burst if touched.
“Um, Miss Berry? As far as I know, Young Master Reytan is currently out…”
“Yes! He’ll be back before dinner!”
“I see. Well, I’ve already sent someone to his residence, so someone should come soon. …But, did you come here alone?”
“Yes! Can I wait here?”
“Well, we are in the middle of training…”
“Chief Commander, since Miss Berry is here, why don’t we wrap up for today?”
One of the knights seized the opportunity to suggest ending the training early, but Mr. Rex wasn’t having any of it.
His eyes flashed like those of a wild bear as he turned around.
“With such a lax attitude, do you think you can defeat an enemy?”
“N-No, sir. What I said earlier was just a joke…”
“500 push-ups, 500 upper strikes, and 50 laps around the training grounds. Start now.”
“…Understood.”
Mr. Rex then nervously turned back to me.
“Would you like to wait in the Grand Master’s office? There are some delicious snacks and cute dolls there…”
“Sounds good!”
As I nodded, Mr. Rex’s face brightened as if he had finally found a solution.
“I’ll assign a knight to escort you. Aesel, please—”
No, that won’t work! If I leave now, everything I’ve done to get into the training grounds will be for nothing!
I quickly pointed to a spot and asked Mr. Rex,
“Can I ask my friend to come with me?”
“Your friend?”
The knights followed my gaze toward the direction I was pointing.
