Chapter 61
In the original story, their first meeting went like this:
The heroine was out for a walk with her friends, and the hero had stepped away briefly from the knights under the general to rest.
At that moment, someone on a boat fell into the water. The others, unable to swim, stepped back.
The heroine approached the hero and said:
“You’re in uniform. You must have learned to swim, right? Please help that person.”
The hero frowned and replied as if he had heard complete nonsense:
“Why force yourself to play the saint for others? Are you a god or something?”
“I’m not a god. Understood.”
Having backed off from the hero, the heroine quickly removed her dress and jumped into the lake. She could swim, but in her dress, she would be in danger herself, so she had asked the hero to help first.
While everyone else stood dumbfounded, the heroine succeeded in saving the drowning person.
The hero, stunned, gave the heroine his jacket since she was in wet undergarments:
“At least cover yourself with this.”
“I refuse. Remember, this situation required good intentions more than courtesy.”
“…So you’re saying you’ll wander around in that impolite outfit?”
“I don’t know what you want.”
“This is exactly what I want.”
“W-wait a moment!”
The hero forcibly draped the jacket over the heroine. She couldn’t resist the pressure on her shoulders. As a bonus, he glared at passersby who were trying to look at her and chased them off.
Until the carriage arrived, the two bickered continuously and parted as if they would never meet again…
But that never happened.
Anyway! Seraphina and Elber’s sweet and sour story begins violently at this lakeside! So hurry and get on the boat!
“Ah, it’s my first time on a boat! Both of you, hurry up!”
Seraphina, who had been smiling the entire time, smiled even more brightly, and Elber, who usually wore a mask-like expression, smiled for the first time.
Ah, her face had changed a lot, but her smile remained the same. A face that could make anyone’s heart flutter.
I glanced back at Seraphina. Did you see that just now? She’s incredibly beautiful!
Yet her gaze was fixed on the huge flowering tree in the middle of the lake.
“It’s beautiful… God’s grace truly blends into everything.”
Next to her, the handsome guy—Elber—also looked around the lake like a vigilant meerkat.
“Brother, what are you doing?”
“Just making sure no one’s giving you the wrong kind of attention.”
“…….”
Not me. It’s you two.
Anyway, the two seemed to have neither bad nor good interest in each other. So I properly introduced them:
“Hello, I’m Seraphina Tyllen. I’m Sol’s friend!”
“Greetings. I am Elber Schleiger. Should Sol get into an accident or some unfortunate situation, I will immediately handle it.”
The conversation ended there. Neither made any effort to continue talking and both looked away.
One woman was admiring the scenery; one man was watching the surroundings. Why does the awkwardness fall on me?
Even if you picked two people from a bus stop and forced them on a blind date, they’d play together better than this!
In the original story, their first meeting started with conflict and ended in rescue naturally…
Could it be my meddling in the Duke’s family that’s the problem? But the Duke still isn’t normal! We need a saint!
Then Seraphina spoke:
“Sol, are you having fun? You look serious.”
“Of course! I’m with people I like!”
Seraphina smiled brightly at that, and Elber hastily covered his mouth with one hand. Probably, the corners of his lips were smiling.
Sorry. I’m a gloomy person.
Anyway, the conclusion was clear: someone had to fall into the water.
I eyed the nearby boats.
Several couples drifted across the water. The men flexed their arms to impress their partners, but the boats wobbled, and the speed was slow. Their partners smiled awkwardly while nervously watching the oars.
Someone, just one person, must fall! For the sake of the world!
Was my wish granted? A scream came from behind me:
“Kyaaa! Hans!”
“Ughpf!”
All eyes followed the scream. A lone woman on a boat shouted at a man who had fallen into the water:
“You fool! Stop looking at other women! I won’t help you, so climb up quickly!”
“Ugh, cough! Wait, here, the weeds…”
“…Hans? Hans!”
It seemed hard for him to get out. The man holding the oar sank briefly under the water—
“…Puhap!”
Then he surged upward and grabbed the edge of our boat, right in front of me.
“P-please help me, Lady!”
“……”
“My foot got caught in the weeds! Just lend me one hand!”
His hand barely reached the boat. I wanted to ignore him, but that would make me a terrible person who could not look down on Duke Schleiger.
“Here.”
Without further thought, I reached out. His face lit up immediately.
We grasped hands and…
“Heave-ho!”
…Huh?
As he used my hand as a lifeline to pull himself onto the boat, the world tilted sharply in my vision.
Why is the sky below me—
“Sol—!”
I didn’t even hear a splash. My ears rang, my eyes stung.
Only after seeing the floating weeds did I realize I was under the lake.
I can swim. The orphanage director taught us not to die anywhere and showed us all kinds of things.
But even when I relaxed, my body didn’t rise. It was like swimming while wrapped in a blanket.
…Ah, now I remember the original story’s first meeting. That’s why Seraphina had removed her dress…
The petals floating on the surface drifted like stars. My lungs compressed, and a rush of air escaped from my mouth.
…Just when I thought I might die, something black suddenly approached me. A dolphin? No, the watery world sank below—
“…Pua! Sol, Sol! Are you okay?”
“Hng….”
“Damn!”
…It was Elber. He carried me while using an empty boat as a life tube and swam toward the shore.
Now I could see the sky properly.
Ah. I was lying on the roadside.
Water dripped from Elber’s uniform above me. His wet hair drew closer, and his worried face too.
“Sol! Are you okay?”
I didn’t know. The pressure in my lungs was too vivid, and I couldn’t speak. I feared taking another breath would remind me of my lungs filled with water.
But.
“…It can’t be helped.”
As Elber’s determined face approached, I couldn’t stay lying down. I blocked his cheek and opened my eyes wide.
“What are you doing, you fool!”
“I thought you couldn’t breathe!”
“I’m fine! You saved me immediately, cough! I’m okay. Ah, you suddenly leaned in with your lips, I got scared!”
“Scared? I risked even my marriage prospects to save my sister!”
“I appreciate your heart, but this will ruin my own prospects!”
I got up and coughed several times. Only dry air escaped.
The onlookers applauded. Thanks for the concern!
“What just happened?”
“The guy you tried to save almost drowned you to save himself.”
“And Seraphina?”
“Ah, that merciful person?”
Elber’s lip curled slightly. What had happened while I was flailing?
All eyes turned to the lake. I looked as well.
…Seraphina, in her underwear, was helping the man who had almost drowned me out of the water.
“…That man tried to save himself but still fell in again?”
“No. I threw him into the water after he got on the boat.”
“Brother!”
“I couldn’t just leave someone ungrateful who abandons others to survive. Dead or alive, right? Your kind friend saved him.”
“……”
The man collapsed on the ground and began vomiting water. His partner approached, patting his back with a disgusted look. They’ll probably break up soon.
Then Seraphina ran to me:
“Sol! Are you okay?”
“No problem. And you….”
What to do. Being wet in just her underwear followed the original story.
Even if the underwear coverage was wider than modern uniforms, it was still underwear. Passersby averted their eyes.
Elber, who had given his jacket in the original, was soaked as well.
Fortunately, the boat rental manager brought out a large blanket and wrapped it around Seraphina. She shook her hair like a maltese after a bath.
“Echu! Ugh, it’s still cold in spring.”
“Seraphina….”
“I’m glad you’re safe! You have a really amazing brother.”
“……”
“You were great too, Sol. That man learned a lesson, so next time he won’t do something dangerous.”
Seraphina neither criticized nor praised Elber’s private intervention, as if it was only natural for a brother.
Meanwhile, Elber, who had mocked her as “merciful,” no longer cared about Seraphina. His focus was entirely on me.
“Sol, let’s go home quickly. I’ve requested a carriage from the manager.”
“Home? …The Duke’s mansion? Not the dormitory?”
“Who in the dorm would take care of you? Change your clothes quickly and wash in warm water.”
Seraphina nodded vigorously beside me:
“Right! Going home is reassuring in this case. Elber, please take care of Sol.”
“Of course.”
Even then, Elber didn’t glance at Seraphina.
Exhausted, I closed my eyes, but I could sense where Elber was looking the whole ride in the carriage.
Soon, the carriage arrived at the Duke’s mansion. Five days had passed.
Elber carried me, water dripping from my body, through the entrance. The maids gasped but continued their duties:
“We’ll light the fire in your room.”
“We’ll prepare the bathroom.”
Everyone was a veteran.
But one male servant trembled as he asked Elber:
“Um… how should I inform His Grace that the lady has arrived?”
