Reasons to Protect the Witch's Son

The other knights were taken aback for a moment. That is because Sophia, who had just been chatting happily with them a moment ago, suddenly took the newcomers side and criticized them. Besides, wasn’t she the one who wanted to be Ash’s escort knight more than anyone else? They had thought she would be very dissatisfied with the fact that the position had been given to someone else, and even a newcomer at that…

Instead of agreeing with them that this was unacceptable, she actually got angry with them. It was even more shocking since they knew her personality well. While everyone was puzzled by the difficult-to-understand situation, Sophia raised her chin and spoke triumphantly.

“Her skills have already been recognized by everyone. You may not have heard yet because of the long mission you have all been on but, Dame Elaine was the one who defeated Laikios on our last mission.”

For a moment, the knights couldn’t believe their ears. Their reaction was then much more intense than when they had heard that she was the Dukes escort knight.

“Laikios? Did you really just say Laikios?”

“What kind of nonsense is that!”

Sophia answered confidently while receiving looks that ranged from suspicion to astonishment.

“It’s true. Though it may be hard to believe, her official reward has already been given to her within the knights order.”

She had a proud expression on her face, as if it was her own achievement that she was speaking of. She briefly explained the mission they had taken on at Valendor and, after she had finished her story, she added with a relaxed expression.

“Do you need to hear confirmation from the vice-captain as well? Well anyways, it doesn’t matter whether or not you believe me.”

The knights who had just heard the whole story were at a loss.

“Huh, that kind of thing…”

“That person really…”

“What exactly happened while we were all away…?”

Sophia spoke as if hammering a nail into a coffin with her next words to the people who were standing there in shock and confusion.

“Please, take back what you said to Dame Elaine earlier about being just ‘anyone’. Also apologize for your rude behavior.”

After hearing all this, it was impossible to think it was a lie anymore. They looked at Elaine in surprise and confusion for a moment, then they all politely apologized.

“I’m sorry. I take back what I said earlier. It was a hasty judgement.”

“No matter how in the dark we were, we were careless.”

When the group had apologized properly, Elaine, who felt somewhat burdened, smiled awkwardly and accepted their apologies.

“It’s alright. You didn’t know.”

Sophia watched on in satisfaction from the side. Afterword, the knights left to exchange greetings with the other members. As they walked away, Sophia approached with a smile and whispered softly.

“What do you think, did I do well?”

She looked at Elaine with strangely sparkling eyes. It looked like a puppy expecting praise from her. Elaine smiled without realizing.

‘It’s a bit cute…’

“Thank you, Dame Sophia.”

Sophia’s cheeks flushed slightly. When she received the praise, she became shy and averted her gaze.

“Well… I was just telling the truth.”

In fact, after the last mission, the evaluation of Elaine within the Order increased significantly. The members attitude toward her also changed. Now, no one had any doubts about Elaine becoming Ash’s bodyguard.

“Anyway, did you have a good vacation?”

“Yes. What about you? How are your legs?”

Sophia had been the most severely injured among the knights who participated in the last mission. Her injuries, especially to her legs, were so severe that, unlike the other knights who made a full recovery, she was the only one still receiving treatment.

“I’m not yet ready for another battle, but it has improved considerably. I can even come outside now and walk around a bit. With a few more weeks of treatment, I should be completely recovered with no aftereffects.”

I was about to tell her I was glad for her, but then a familiar voice came from somewhere nearby.

“Ah, Elaine! You’re back already?”

“It’s been a while Cezanne.”

Elaine greeted Cezanne warmly. He glanced at Sophia next to Elaine and walked over to them.

“What just happened? It seemed like there was a commotion over here a moment ago.”

“It was no big deal. Thanks to Dame Sophia’s help it was resolved quickly.”

“Hmm really? By the way… It’s a shame. If only you had been here a bit sooner, you would have been able to see Dame Hilaire.”

“Has she returned?”

“Yes, she returned from a long-term mission a few days ago. I heard the headquarters is crowded these days because of all the members who have returned with her.”

Although she had become Ash’s bodyguard, Elaine had only seen vice-captain Hilaire once during the orientation ceremony. That was because Hilaire had left on her long-term mission soon after. Perhaps she had also just found out that Elaine had become Ash’s escort knight.

“Then I guess I should go say hello and introduce myself.”

Hearing Elaine’s words, Cezanne scratched his cheek with a troubled expression.

“Uhm, that would be a bit difficult at the moment. As soon as she had returned the day before yesterday, she immediately left for her hometown.”

“Oh. So that’s why you said it would have been better if I had gotten here sooner.”

She wanted to say hello at least once since she had been assisting Ash for a while now, but was disappointed. Well, since they were both knights, there would come a day when they would encounter each other. However, when she heard her name, she had a strange sense of déjà vu.

As Elaine thought about the reason, Cezanne asked.

“Oh, by the way, you didn’t forget that we had decided to spend some time together at the festival, right?”

“I don’t remember making any promises though?”

“Wow, that hurt a bit. Are you really not going to come out with us?”

“It was just a joke. If it’s in the evening, I’ll try to make some time.”

Elaine smiled as she spoke to Cezanne who was pretending to be hurt. As she was having a friendly conversation with Cezanne, she felt a heated gaze directed their way.

“…?”

When she turned her head, she saw Sophia gazing at them with a very dissatisfied look on her face. No, to be precise, she was glaring at Cezanne, eyes burning with hostility.

“Dame Sophia?”

She seemed to calm down the moment Elaine called her name. Cezanne seemed to find her reaction amusing.

“Well then, I guess I’ll take my leave. See you later El-ai-ne.”

For some reason, he put emphasis on the pronunciation of her name.

And then, with a light smile, he shrugged his shoulders, turned and walked away. Sophia stared at his back as he left, muttering inaudibly.

“I also…but…”

“Huh? What did you just say?”

“Who does he think he is, to be able to go out and spend time with Elaine?”

Sophia suddenly asked in a tearful voice, pointing a finger in the direction Cezanne had walked away in. She looked both angry and resentful.

“Also, he just… He called you by name!”

“Ah.”

Only then did Elaine almost laugh out loud when she realized why Sophia had become so grumpy. Sophia kept mumbling under her breath, unable to meet Elaine’s gaze, probably out of embarrassment that she had let her jealousy be seen.

“Elaine pretended she hadn’t noticed and smiled.

“Please feel free to call me by my name Sophia.”

“…What?”

“My name. Feel free to just call me Elaine.”

“Is that really okay?”

“Yes. May I also call Dame Sophia by your first name?”

“Of course! Please call me Sophia. No, you can just call me Sophie…!”

Sophia’s face lit up as she quickly answered. When Elaine saw this, she ended up not being able to keep her laughter contained and laughed out loud.

***

Ash finished his work earlier than usual and left the office.

 

‘…Should we go somewhere together?’

‘It’s a festival! You’ve been working so hard these days. How about going out to get some fresh air?’

 

It was a conversation he’d had with Elaine who had just returned from vacation.

Elaine, who had been quietly sitting to the side as usual, suddenly spoke out. Lowell who was next to her, hearing what she had said, thought it was a great idea. Moreover, his eyes lit up as he said it would be his first time being able to attend the festival in Killiard. How could he refuse after hearing that? He recalled her face when he finally agreed, she had lit up with pleasure.

Ash got ready and headed downstairs to meet up with her as planned. Elaine said she would wait for him at the front door, and went down first earlier. Outside it was evening, the sky tinted orange with the setting sun.

His eyes widened slightly when he spotted Elaine standing under the sunset.

“You’re here, Sir!”

Sensing his presence, Elaine turned and greeted him. Her long silver hair was loosely braided behind her back and she was wearing a light blue dress.

It was actually an outfit that Sophia had chosen for her a bit ago.

 

‘It’s a festival, wouldn’t it be nice to dress up prettily and have some fun?’

 

After saying that, Sophia had led her to a clothing store on a busy street in Killiard. Elaine wasn’t very interested in dressing up but, Sophia also wasn’t wrong. At this point, she followed along with the intention of getting some new clothes. It turned out that Sophia not only had an eye for choosing clothes, but she also had a knack for dressing up. When Elaine had told her she was going to the festival today, Sophia rolled up her sleeves and offered to help her get dressed.

Now Ash’s eyes were fixed on her and he didn’t move, she smiled awkwardly and said.

“Isn’t it a bit awkward since you’ve only ever seen me in uniform?”

As she had said, it was somewhat unfamiliar. But, without being too flashy, her light-colored dress looked good on her. He answered honestly.

“It suits you well.”

Elaine’s eyes slightly widened and she smiled immediately. Ash then picked up his pace and lifted his hood with his finer tips.

“Let’s go.”

Among the residents of the territory, there was almost no one who didn’t know the appearance of the lord, Ash. Because of his birth status, he was quite well known to those in the outside world and, because of his striking appearance, it was better not to show his face to avoid any unnecessary attention. It can get annoying when you go out to relax and people all over are staring at you.

They headed toward the square where the festival was in full swing. The road leading to the square was crowded with no room to maneuver easily. At that time, Elaine halted her steps and turned around, pulling his hand and letting him hold her sleeve.

“This way you won’t lose me.”

“What? Hold on a moment…”

She then took the lead and began to make her way through the tightly packed square. The shoulders that pushed their way through the crowd were thin and narrow.

Ash, with a small frown, quickly passed her.