Chapter 53
“Your Majesty the Empress. There is something I am curious about.”
“Yes?”
“An Imperial family member’s escort knight—I mean, is it enough for them to simply be a noble? Even if they are the heir to a ducal house or hold a heavy responsibility in a knight order? Wouldn’t it be difficult to do both…?”
It was rare for an Imperial escort knight to be appointed solely for the purpose of ‘protection.’ Most were for political reasons.
“Usually, that is the case, but it is rare for them to stay by one’s side twenty-four hours a day. In the first place, such duties are often rotated among the palace guards or the knight orders themselves…. In truth, there are practically no restrictions. Why do you ask?”
“……I asked because I had an ominous feeling.”
And that ominous feeling soon became reality.
Not long after, I grimaced at the sight of the person who came barging in toward me with a swaggering gait.
“Hey! I asked my father, and I’ve decided to be your escort knight!”
“…….”
Oh, God…….
I looked on in utter dismay at the man who was waving a perfectly healthy hand—now fully recovered—toward me.
His cotton trousers were heavily wrinkled and stained with dirt, as if he’d just come from who-knows-where. He wore a loose white shirt with three buttons undone, leaving his collarbones and chest wide open, and even his vest was just thrown on without a single button fastened.
To put it mildly, this was not the attire of someone entering the Imperial Palace. It was even less the appearance of someone claiming to be a person’s escort knight.
Even a mercenary wouldn’t dress like that when going on an escort job for a noble.
Interpreting my stiffened posture in his own way, the man gave a wink and a grin.
“Haha, did you get scared because they said we’re going all the way to the southern tip? Don’t worry anymore!”
“…….”
I wanted to tell him that it wasn’t the distant southern tip I was worried about, but the fact that he was right here.
“And here’s the maid to take care of you!”
“Hello, Imperial Princess Titania-nim. It is an honor to serve you! I am Debbie, and I will be attending to you from now on.”
I looked with glazed eyes at the maid greeting me brightly and Lisianthus, who stood with his shoulders squared, showing off his pearly white teeth.
Barbara, the maid who had been attending to me during my stay at the Empress’s Palace, happened to walk in with a fresh snack, only to freeze at the sight of this absurd scene.
“…Who did you say was my escort knight?”
“Me! They said they were going to send some scrawny guy like William at best, so I said I’d go.”
The way his eyes sparkled with pride made him look exactly like a dog excited to be praised.
Ah…. He really is like a dog in so many ways. I took a deep breath.
“…Um, Lord Lisianthus. Aren’t you affiliated with one of the internal knight orders of the Castline Duchy?”
“Huh? Oh! Well, both of us are technically under Father’s command. But I do act as the commander for one of them!”
Lisianthus rubbed under his nose with an incredibly smug look, as if he were being modest.
I’m not complimenting you, you lunatic.
“…You’re a knight commander in name, and yet you’re going to be someone’s escort knight?”
“Ah, my vice-commander, Lev, handles the important stuff! He says his hobby is getting frustrated whether a guy like me is there or not, so he told me to get out of his sight so he can worry a little less!”
“I definitely wanted a lackey who would handle my safety twenty-four hours a day…. No…. Someone I could order around reasonably….”
“You talk down to me and order me around anyway, don’t you?”
As if wondering what the problem was, Lisianthus tilted his head.
“Are you crazy?! Do you not have a brain?!”
Seeing that, I couldn’t hold it back anymore and let out a scream.
“No, are you actually insane?! The second son of the Castline family—and the man who acts as a commander within the family’s own knight order—is going to be whose escort knight?! Huh?!”
“There’s no problem, is there?”
“I wanted a subordinate I could order around comfortably. I don’t want to serve an escort knight who makes me feel self-conscious even when I’m asking for a glass of water!”
“I can bring you water anytime, though?”
I clutched the back of my neck as my blood pressure spiked.
There was no winning against someone who wouldn’t listen to reason.
The maid named Debbie, who had followed Lisianthus and greeted me, opened her mouth with her eyes shining brightly.
“I’ll bring you water whenever you need it, Princess-nim! You don’t have to make the Second Young Master do it!”
Barbara, who had been watching this disastrous situation, set down the plate of scones she had brought and poured cold water from a nearby pitcher to hand to me. I downed the glass in one go.
Seeing that, Debbie poked Lisianthus in the ribs. It made a literal ‘thump-thump’ sound.
At first glance, she just seemed like a cute maid with impressive orange eyes and brown bobbed hair, but for such a vivid sound to occur every time she moved her fingers… was she someone who knew how to use a sword?
“Oh, the Princess-nim really said that because she was thirsty. She must be disappointed because the Second Young Master is so slow on the uptake!”
“Oh, really?”
Did he burn his brain cells while handling the Power of Fire?
It felt like the Castline Duchy had scammed me.
Duke-nim, please change the person…. If you have a grievance with me, please just say it….
“…Barbara, do you want to be my personal maid?”
“My goal was to live a quiet life in the Empress’s Palace, as if I weren’t even there….”
Barbara trailed off in front of the two idiots who, despite having a water pitcher right in front of them, were now debating ‘who is more qualified to pour the water when both an escort knight and a maid are present.’
Right, I never originally intended to take one of Her Majesty the Empress’s people on such a rough and distant journey anyway.
“……If Her Majesty the Empress provides a generous allowance for travel expenses, I will go.”
“I’ll add more to that money.”
I appealed to her with all my heart.
“Did you come voluntarily, or were you ordered to come?”
When the Princess, who had called her alone into the room, asked this, Debbie thought it was a bit unexpected.
“They asked for volunteers among the candidates deemed suitable to stay by Princess-nim’s side. So I accepted!”
“Why?”
“They said they’d pay a lot. And I really, really love pretty things. Serving Lady Bibi is nice, but there are too many rivals!”
“I see.”
The Princess Titania she had heard so much about was indeed beautiful.
Her skin, which still seemed somewhat pale, looked as if it were made of hardened snow, and with her blinking green eyes and hair like skeins of silk thread, she was a picturesque Princess straight out of a fairy tale.
However, if that had been all, Debbie wouldn’t have thought much of it.
“Which can you handle among poison, medicine, and the sword?”
“I can handle all three above a basic level, but medicine is what I’m best at. I can detoxify most poisons as well. However, when it comes to the sword, I can’t handle more than three knights at once.”
“If I told you to kill someone, could you do it?”
It was a terrifyingly calm voice. Debbie replied.
“Yes.”
“Even if that person is an innocent child?”
“I would still do it.”
“…But you’d report it to the Castline Duchy and wait for their after-the-fact judgment, right?”
“Yes.”
Debbie was the blade, the poison, and the medicine that the Castline Duchy had officially sent to Princess Titania.
Debbie understood her position better than anyone.
No matter what the Princess ordered, Debbie would carry it out without concern. Even if it meant sacrificing an innocent child, she would not hesitate.
However, she would report every single occurrence to the Castline Duchy without fail.
It was impossible to know how the Castline Duke, who would judge all those actions, would then judge the Princess. Whether he would withdraw Debbie, leave her be, or use Debbie to eliminate the Princess remained to be seen.
This was also a test that the Castline Duchy was putting the Princess through.
Although Lisianthus had volunteered to be the escort knight, it was impossible for him to truly stay by the Princess’s side twenty-four hours a day from now on. He would likely only remain by her side until the Dedication Festival ended.
Through this recent incident at the Imperial Palace, the Princess had drawn far too much attention.
Whether because of the Castline family or the Princess’s own existence, no one knew what might happen during this Dedication Festival. That was why they didn’t stop Lisianthus’s stubbornness.
Did the Princess suspect that fact? The girl who had been getting angry at Lisianthus like a child and screaming in disbelief just a moment ago now had eyes that were chillingly composed.
“Were there orders to eliminate me in case of an emergency?”
“No.”
Debbie gave a beaming smile.
“No matter what happens, Princess-nim is Lady Bibi’s savior.”
“Then what if it was all a misunderstanding? What if I wasn’t trying to save Bibi but was actually trying to kill her, and everyone just got it wrong?”
“I am not in a position to judge that fact.”
“I see.”
Ironically, Debbie was reminded of the Duke of Castline and Lady Bibi through the Princess.
‘People do not change easily, but if it is a human being capable of changing themselves, nothing can be judged in fragments.’
The Duke of Castline had told her to keep a close watch on the Princess who had shaken his children.
‘I cannot hand over the card that is the Castline Duchy to someone who does not understand the weight of what is held in their hand.’
It was a reasonable statement.
In other words, if Princess Titania was truly and fully a person who would not act rashly even with the card of the Castline Duchy in her hand, and not someone who would use it only for herself……. Did that mean he might actually place it in her hand?
‘Titania unnie won’t trust Debbie.’
Their lovely youngest lady had said something rather perplexing to Debbie.
Debbie had expected Bibi to ask her to take good care of Titania. Indeed, how much of a fuss had Bibi made when Princess Titania was lying unconscious in the Imperial Palace?
‘So Debbie, just…. …watch over unnie. Without prejudice.’
The Duke of Castline had also told her to keep a close watch on the person. Weren’t they saying the same thing? Debbie was a little confused.