The Guardian Knight of Affection-Starved Young Ladies

11 – Lakatus (03)

012.

“Kallen…?”

“Yes.”

“Kallen…”

The conversation does not continue.

Kallen suddenly recalled how sociable Sinat was.

An introverted personality, and an even more introverted personality.

It took quite a long time just to say a single name.

In fact, it was a good thing for the usually taciturn Kallen, but it was not a very welcome situation for someone who had to take on the escort duty.

Among the tasks given by the maid master Rusty, the highest priority was ‘to get close to Eliana.’

The journey to the north would never be an easy one.

Recalling the stifling situation where not a single word was exchanged, Kallen scratched the back of his head and said.

“Is there anything you’re curious about?”

“…”

“…like, why did you come here?”

“…why did you come here…?”

In the end, it was like this.

Reciting the words exactly as they were was not the problem, and in the meantime, adding honorifics resulted in such a strange sentence.

“Ah.”

“…?”

“First, let’s drop the formalities.”

“Why…?”

“Because we’re the same age.”

Kallen is fifteen this year.

Eliana is also the same age, as Everchan had told him.

Isn’t it strange to use formal speech between people of the same age?

It was one of the few topics Kallen could lead the conversation with.

“You should also use formal speech…”

“That’s because of my position. It would be even stranger if I spoke informally to Lady Rakatus.”

“…”

If he had introduced himself as Blamia’s disciple from the beginning, it might have been different, but now he was just a servant of common status.

It was unavoidable if he wanted to avoid getting entangled in various troublesome matters.

“…Can I do it slowly…?”

Kallen nodded, meaning she could do as she pleased.

“Excuse me…”

“Oh. I’m sorry. You can do as you like.”

It was an action that forgot the fact that Eliana had poor eyesight.

She would have to get used to such considerations.

Being a guard is not an easy task.

“To continue our earlier conversation, I came to escort you, Lady Eliana.”

“Escort…?”

“The Winter Island of the North.”

At Kallen’s words, Eliana flinched.

Her delicate hand, holding the thin blanket, trembled.

“You said you wanted to go there.”

“…Yes.”

“So I came to take you there.”

Then, a shiver.

Eliana’s red lips trembled once.

Kallen felt puzzled by her reaction.

It was called a wish. A desperate wish that had been cherished for a very long time.

If one heard that such a wish could be fulfilled, wouldn’t it be normal to be happy?

However, Eliana’s reaction seemed more fearful than joyful.

“Do you dislike it?”

“Oh, no…”

“Then why-“

“Aren’t you in pain…?”

That one sentence interrupted the conversation.

Kallen didn’t understand what it meant at first, but soon realized.

“By my side, aren’t you in pain…?”

Eliana was worried.

She was worried about Kallen.

Putting aside her desperate wish, she was concerned about her illness first.

That was certainly not normal.

People always put themselves first.

Even when considering and caring for others, one must prioritize oneself.

However, Eliana was trembling to the point where her lips quivered.

She was afraid of others suffering, not herself.

– Either she’s crazy, or she’s pretending to be to avoid going crazy.

Why did Blamia’s words come to mind at that moment?

She appeared to be a fragile and somewhat weak girl on the outside.

Kallen felt like he had experienced just how deeply her heart had rotted.

It was different from when he risked his life for Sinat.

That was possible because he had received the grace of salvation and had two years of memories.

This was only his second meeting with Eliana.

At the same time, Kallen instinctively realized.

Whatever it was, he had to do something about Eliana’s twisted priorities first.

“That’s a strange question.”

“Pardon…?”

“If I were in pain, I wouldn’t be here.”

“Ah…”

“So, you don’t have to worry about me.”

It wasn’t that it didn’t hurt at all, but it was bearable.

Especially compared to the heart pain that was hard to endure without medicine.

“Anyway, going to Winter Island is after I finish all my training…”

A quiet room.

The calm voice that echoed was somewhat unfamiliar.

*

The internal manager.

The old man who had assisted Rakatus for decades knew everything about the mansion and the estate.

The deep trust started from the head of the family and extended to everyone in Rakatus.

These days, Burn was mainly in charge of quite unusual tasks.

“How is it?”

“Yes, master. He learns quickly, and especially the tasks related to serving the young lady are almost finished.”

“Fast.”

It was about a boy who had recently entered the mansion.

“There is no big problem with driving the carriage, and the carriage modification you instructed is also progressing without any issues.”

When the boy was first mentioned, it was hard to see it positively.

This position required caution in everything, and even Blamia couldn’t handle it, so what could a mere boy do?

But such doubts soon almost disappeared.

The beginning was with his decades-old friend Ebam and Brussels, who could be called a model of a trustworthy person.

Ebam praised the boy’s nature, and Brussels highly valued his work on the battlefield.

The decisive moment was when he walked out from the young lady’s side without any problems.

Again, from the pain that even Blamia couldn’t handle.

Only the boy was free.

Given the situation, Burn could understand why his master, Everchan, was so obsessed with this matter.

If he could grant his terminally ill daughter’s wish, he would sell his soul to the devil.

The exact name of the disease, the cause of the outbreak, and even where it originated were unknown, and they had long given up on treatment.

For now, he just hoped the boy would safely fulfill the young lady’s wish.

“Would you like to see?”

“What’s that?”

“It’s the book that boy is studying in his room. He borrowed it from the librarian a few days ago.”

Everchan received a thick book from Burn.

[How to Win a Woman’s Heart.]

“…”

“I heard that Miss Rusty gave him an assignment to get to know the young lady first, so it seems he’s studying because of that.”

Shrrrk-

As the pages turned, traces of diligent note-taking were faintly visible.

Everchan simultaneously recalled what he felt when he saw Callen.

Mature for his age, with a composure uncharacteristic of a child.

Could it be that he’s reading such a book because he’s not good with words?

At least it was fortunate that he didn’t seem to be doing it half-heartedly.

However…

“The title…”

“Yes?”

“…isn’t right.”

Whatever.

As long as the heart is in the right place.

Everchan quietly closed the book.

*

―

The third meeting.

The two were still awkward, and most of the conversations were initiated by Callen.

Callen would lead by asking about some interest, and Eliana would respond.

Most of the responses were short and abrupt, but Callen deliberately matched her eye level and spoke.

Conversations that would typically be had within a few hours of the first meeting.

The two, who had stretched out discussions about favorite foods and hobbies over the third meeting, still seemed to have a long way to go.

―

The fourth meeting.

The short and abrupt responses began to flesh out a bit, starting to take the form of sentences.

The weak and gentle voice remained the same, but gradually, thoughts and emotions began to seep through.

Kallen occasionally responded from the side.

He quietly listened to Eliana’s words.

He also tried to ensure that Eliana, who was barely visible or audible, did not lose interest.

Although Kallen still had to initiate the conversation topics, this alone was a significant improvement.

Eliana’s head was turned slightly more towards Kallen than before.

―

The fifth meeting.

“Hello… Kallen…”

“Ah.”

It was around this time that Eliana began to speak more comfortably.

However, the formal tone still lingered, indicating her effort.

Nevertheless, as she spoke more comfortably, Eliana’s responses grew longer and began to include her own stories.

Most of them relied on childhood memories, but her effort to meet Kallen’s gaze was quite impressive.

―

The sixth meeting.

This was the first time Eliana asked something first.

She asked what Kallen did, what kind of education he received, if he was sick, and if listening to her stories was boring.

Kallen, a bit excited, shared some self-praise that he normally wouldn’t.

He talked about being praised by Mr. Rusty for his work skills and almost being hired as a coachman by the coachman instructor.

When he talked about almost falling off a horse, he saw Eliana’s smile for the first time.

Eliana’s body and head were significantly turned towards Kallen, with her back to the window.

―

The seventh meeting.

When asked what was most precious to her, Eliana showed a brooch.

The brooch had an intricately engraved emblem that was almost headache-inducing in its detail.

Eliana introduced it to Kallen as her family’s brooch.

She said it was a birthday gift from her mother when her illness was not so severe.

When she felt alone lying in her room, she would look at it to remind herself that she was also a member of the Lakatus family.

Eliana’s expression looked a little lonely as she spoke.

*

Day after day after day.

It took a week for Kallen to be deemed to have passed the training.

In fact, that was quite fast, so at least within the Lakatus mansion, the name Kallen was undoubtedly a hot topic.

The story of the ‘diligent and mature boy’ was especially popular among the young apprentice maids.

That was because Kallen visited Eliana’s room every single day without fail.

It was even more so because someone in the mansion had to be informed of that fact.

Moreover, instead of coming out quickly, the time spent in the room increased.

And that was more so on Eliana’s side.

When they first met, her head, which had been fixed and unmoving towards the window.

Before Kallen even entered, it was already turned towards the door.

Now, making eye contact was such a natural thing.

At this point, isn’t the homework somewhat done?

Kallen thought so as he looked at Duke Everchan in front of him.

“We will depart tomorrow.”

“Isn’t it a bit early?”

“I’ve heard the evaluations about you. Especially the head maid said you are better than most skilled maids.”

Having served Blamia and Sinat for four years, was it natural?

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Kallen thought so and waited silently for the words.

“The carriage is all prepared. The food… we prepared as much as possible, but I’m not sure. We can’t load much in the carriage, and it spoils quickly.”

“It’s alright.”

“Good, then. How does the young lady seem?”

“The young lady… seems a bit brighter.”

“Hmm.”

That’s good news.

Hearing Everchan’s answer, Kallen quietly nodded.

Finally, the journey of the youngest lady of Lakatus, who was leaving for her last wish as an incurable patient, was beginning after seven years of staying inside.