Chapter 105
Mixed in with the signs of defeat, I could hear mutters blaming me.
I smiled as I picked up the white bishop and dropped it, hearing the clatter as it hit the board.
The chessboard was mostly covered in black. White was down to a few pawns, a lone bishop, and a king that seemed more abandoned than anything else.
Kestian, staring at his ruined territory, finally gave up on his king.
“Who taught you chess?” he asked.
“I didn’t really learn from anyone. I just know the rules, that’s all,” I replied.
Kestian looked at me with wide eyes, as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. I smiled and tilted my head. Kestian closed the chessboard.
So, is this why he called me?
When he pulled me away from Winston, I thought something serious was going on, but all we did was play chess.
Kestian stood up and gazed out the window, speaking slowly, “They’re training.”
I got up and looked out the window too, seeing Aden practicing with his sword.
So, that’s what he went to do after stepping out earlier?
I was still watching Aden train when Kestian’s eyes turned back to me.
“You know, Rippleton can cut through stone with his sword, right?”
“I didn’t, but I actually saw him do it recently.”
Seeing him slice through falling rocks with a sword… yeah, even to me, it seemed impossible.
Kestian smiled faintly and turned his gaze back to Aden. Watching his profile, I suddenly remembered that Kestian also knows how to use a sword.
Not just ‘knows’—he’s skilled enough to deflect arrows in mid-air, right? That had shocked me at the time.
“You’re pretty good with a sword too, aren’t you?” I asked.
“It’s just a hobby,” he answered.
“You say that, but isn’t it a bit much to call it a hobby when you’re that skilled?” I squinted at him, and Kestian gave me a vague smile.
When I frowned at him, he chuckled and shifted his position, leaning back against the desk. He placed his hand on the desk as I turned toward him.
“By the way, how’s Rubyche? Is she doing better?”
“She’s fine now. She was busy for a few days, but she’s back to going out again like before,” Kestian replied.
“That’s good. I was worried something serious had happened.”
It wasn’t exactly a good thing for such a young noblewoman to get poisoned. There was always the risk that her health could decline long-term. The fact that she avoided that outcome was definitely lucky.
“It is a relief, but it’s not exactly a great situation either,” Kestian said.
“Is there something else going on?” I asked.
Kestian, who had been silently watching me, lowered his gaze. After a pause, he stood up.
“Rubyche has been feeling quite troubled. She’s been losing her position in the tea gatherings she used to attend. Lately, she’s been excluded from some events,” he said, pressing his hand to the back of his neck as if the weight of the situation was too much.
He handed me a letter from the desk.
“This is the guest list for her favorite group’s upcoming masquerade.”
Rubyche’s name wasn’t on the list.
A young noblewoman of her status being left off the list? Even if she had declined to attend, her name would still normally appear. The fact that it wasn’t there meant she hadn’t been invited at all.
“Ever since the Bozebourne family and a few other nobles joined that group, they’ve been subtly pushing Rubyche out.”
“And the others who were already part of the group don’t want to get caught up in the power struggle, so they’re siding with Bozebourne. Am I right?”
“Exactly,” Kestian nodded.
I let out a bitter laugh.
What a petty thing to do.
It didn’t seem like something planned by Belietta or Bozebourne. They wouldn’t stoop to something this simple and childish.
Using social clout to freeze someone out of a group. If you don’t care, you can ignore it, but if you do, it can be an endless headache.
If it were me, I just wouldn’t go, but for someone who enjoys these things, that wouldn’t be an option.
“They’re being so petty to such a young girl. It’s ridiculous,” I said, shaking my head.
“As petty as it is, it can still hurt someone like Rubyche a lot,” Kestian replied.
He wasn’t wrong.
A chance to finally establish ties with the Bozeborne family, which had been hard to approach.
Most people agreed that it was not a good idea to hang around with a family that had fought with Bozeborne, like ours had done during the engagement.
In many ways, the situation was playing into Bozebourne’s hands.
“Even so, going after a young girl like this is pathetic. And the adults are just letting it happen.” I clicked my tongue and set the guest list aside.
Kestian, who clearly cared deeply for Rubyche, looked troubled.
“I’m sure you feel sorry for your sister, but there’s not much you can do, right? And you can’t get the family involved because that would just give Bozebourne an opening to cause more trouble.”
I rested my chin in my hand as I spoke slowly, lifting my eyes to meet Kestian’s.
He was watching me intently, saying nothing.
“So, is that why you brought me here? You want me to attend the masquerade and help Rubyche?” I asked.
“It feels awkward asking now, but that was the favor I had meant to ask… before she was poisoned,” Kestian admitted, giving me a faint smile.
Just as he said, the timing was tricky.
Rubyche getting poisoned was partly my fault, so it made it hard for me to refuse. The request felt less like a favor and more like pressure at this point.
Kestian picked up the guest list, folded it neatly, and tossed it back onto the desk.
“But right now, you’re the only one I can rely on. Please, can you help?”
I stared at Kestian. He was asking earnestly, but it really was a complicated situation.
Would me getting involved actually make a difference? And was it even the right thing for me to do?
I didn’t even know who was going to be at the masquerade, and I had no idea what I was supposed to do once I got there.
I sorted through my thoughts and let out a small sigh.
Kestian’s gaze sharpened at the sound, and I could see the tension in his face as he swallowed hard.
“I’m sorry, but I don’t think I can help you with this.”
His face hardened immediately.
* * *
When I woke up inside the shaking carriage, it was already dark.
Fiorette straightened up from where she had been leaning against the wall and lowered the window slightly. The carriage was still moving, and the moon was high in the sky.
Outside, more than ten knights were riding alongside the carriage. One of them, Ripert, spurred his horse closer when he saw Fiorette was awake.
“You’re awake,” he said.
“…”
Fiorette simply looked at him without replying. Ripert gave a small, quiet smile at her silence.
“Ludic Ripert, Lady Sierra’s guard knight,” he introduced himself.
Fiorette muttered his name quietly.
Is she one of those noble ladies who doesn’t talk much? Ripert gazed at her briefly before turning his head.
The carriage, still speeding along, was cutting through the night, getting closer to its destination.
“We decided to push through without resting to arrive by morning. I know it’s tough, but please bear with it a little longer,” Ripert said.
Aside from short breaks for meals, the carriage had been moving non stop all day.
The horses were clearly exhausted; they had to be swapped out with fresh ones at intervals to keep up the pace.
Ripert was worried that Fiorette might have trouble handling the fast pace, but thankfully, she seemed to be holding up well.
Fiorette stared dryly out at the road and spoke slowly.
“Have there been any updates?”
“Nothing yet.”
After the Redboron incident, the Bozbourne family had been pretty quiet.
Fiorette let out a small sigh at Ripert’s answer. No matter what, her father, who was her only family, weighed heavily on her mind.
She was certain her decision would harm Holland. It could even lead to the downfall of the Bairon family—just because of her one choice.
Ripert watched Fiorette, who seemed lost in thought, and turned his head. “You don’t need to worry too much.”
When Fiorette looked up, Ripert smiled gently and faced her. “Lady Sierra wouldn’t have embraced the Bairon lady without any thought. She’s not someone who lacks depth or is careless, so just trust her and wait.”
“Seems like you really trust Lady Brilloxen,” Fiorette remarked.
“If I don’t trust her, there’s no one else in this world I could trust. At least not for me.”
Blind faith. How many knights would trust a mere noble lady like that? It’s hard to govern a knight through trust rather than fear or oppression.
‘Trust…’ Fiorette gathered her disheveled hair neatly and stepped inside. There was a whirlwind of worries and doubts inside her about trusting and waiting as Ripert suggested. But this was Sierra, who had never faltered against Bozbourne, and Bellieta had even fought back.
Fiorette knew Ripert wasn’t talking nonsense.
She closed her eyes, feeling the complex emotions swirling within her. Watching the window close, Ripert smiled brightly as he pulled on the reins.
The pace slowed a bit.
A faint light glimmered in the dark of the night.
“Listen carefully, Ripert. There’s something you must remember while you’re protecting Fiorette.”
They were passing through the last village before reaching Brilloxen.
Just a little more, and they’d arrive.
“Bozbourne might launch an attack. Fiorette is really important to them. You have to protect her at all costs. But…”
Ripert’s smile vanished, and his expression hardened. He widened the formation of the knights around them, preparing for a potential ambush.
“If you think you can’t protect Fiorette, then you have to kill her yourself.”
In about two hours, they should arrive before the moon dips too low in the sky.
“Bozbourne won’t take anything from me. If they can take something, it’ll only be Fiorette’s corpse.”
Sierra’s cold voice echoed in Ripert’s ears.
