Chapter 13
“Lord, it’s me, Scott!”
“Scott?”
Startled by the unexpected voice, Rian put down the blueprint he was examining and stood up. At this hour, there was only one reason Scott would come looking for him.
“I came to report something.”
Hearing Rian’s voice from inside, Scott quickly opened the door and stepped in, a smile spreading across his face.
“Sit down. This is about Bertram, right?”
As Rian motioned for Scott to sit on the sofa, he began speaking first. As expected, Scott nodded in response.
“Yes, Uncle Bertram suddenly said he wanted to drive the carriage himself.”
“Directly?”
“Yes. Usually he has another coachman do it, but today he insisted on driving himself. I heard that Butler Alman will be accompanying him.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. I distinctly heard Butler Alman say he had some business outside the castle.”
Scott’s clear and confident answer made Rian stand up immediately.
Recently, Alman had been going out of the castle more often due to the increasing number of tasks. Rian had been on edge about this, and seeing Bertram move confirmed that today was the day they had been planning for.
“Scott, you came straight to me, didn’t you?”
Rian asked anxiously, his expression tightening. He saw the unease on Scott’s face.
Just as he feared.
“Well… I ran straight to the office, but he wasn’t there, so I got a bit lost…”
Rian didn’t even listen to the end of Scott’s sentence. He was already running out of the study.
Ah, why hadn’t he thought of this sooner?
Scott had just become a servant. The only place he really knew was the office, since that’s where he usually delivered his reports. From the expression on Scott’s face, he seemed to blame himself for the late report.
But Rian didn’t think so. This was clearly his own fault. Until this matter was resolved, he had to remain in the office.
“What an idiot!”
As he ran down the stairs, Rian scolded himself over and over.
Fifteen years ago, Alman’s carriage accident had occurred in the most absurd way. As he waited at the hall entrance to board the carriage, the carriage suddenly charged at him.
According to witnesses at the time, the horses went wild for no reason, rearing their front legs high and trampling Alman.
Alman was struck and crushed by the hooves, dying instantly on the spot.
Knowing Alman’s diligent nature, he would have surely been waiting at the entrance. Rian could only hope sincerely that the carriage had not yet arrived.
“Please, Alman… stay alive until I get there.”
“Lord!”
Startled by Rian’s sudden rush, Scott followed, running down the stairs without understanding the situation. His face was full of worry, fearing that something might happen due to his late report.
When Scott reached the bottom of the stairs, Rian was already sprinting across the hall toward the entrance.
“Open the door!”
Rian shouted at the servant near the entrance. Startled by his urgent voice, the servant’s eyes widened, and he quickly opened the door.
As the large door swung open, the outside scenery came into view for Rian and Scott.
The first thing Rian saw was Alman’s small back. Though not visible, the clattering sound of the approaching carriage could be heard.
“Alman!”
Rian ran, shouting Alman’s name at the top of his lungs. Alman, waiting for the carriage to stop, slowly turned around at the sound of someone calling from inside. His eyes widened in surprise.
“Lord?”
Seeing his master running toward him with such urgency, Alman felt as if his young lord were a mother rescuing her baby from a lion’s cage. He was bewildered.
But more concerning was the speed of Rian’s approach.
“Lord, slow down…”
Alman’s heart pounded as Rian’s sprint showed no signs of slowing. He feared Rian might trip or collide with something and get seriously hurt.
Then came the loud, rough cries of the horses. Something seemed wrong with the carriage horses, and a sudden, fierce neighing filled the air.
Alman turned to see, frozen in terror, two horses right in front of him, rearing high with their hooves.
“Uwaaaah!”
He couldn’t move; his old body would not obey.
Suddenly, his body was lifted into the air, and the blue sky filled his vision. It looked unusually refreshing for a hot summer day.
But that thought barely lasted a moment before he hit the ground several times, his body battered from the impact.
Only then did Alman realize someone had jumped in to save him from being trampled by the horses.
“Who…?”
As he struggled to stand and see his savior, a small voice called out:
“Alman!”
Alman tumbled to the ground again. The horses’ rough cries still echoed in his ears.
“Have I been saved twice in one day?”
The voice came again:
“Alman, are you okay?”
…Oh my. It was his master’s voice.
“Lord…?”
Alman had never imagined that the one who saved him could be his young lord.
As he struggled to stand and finally confirmed Rian’s presence with his own eyes, Alman was momentarily speechless.
It was indeed his master. Covered in dirt, yet radiating an aura that could only belong to his young lord.
He couldn’t bring himself to speak.
Seeing his young master risk his own body to save him left him in awe. He felt deep gratitude and emotion he couldn’t express in words. Had he been struck by the horses’ hooves, his life would not have survived.
Though shaken, Alman felt a quiet pride in witnessing his young master’s concern.
But then, why was he…?
Alman tried to dust off Rian and thank him, but the fierce anger radiating from his master’s gaze silenced him.
At the end of Rian’s piercing glare was Bertram. Still sitting on the driver’s seat, holding the reins, his face showed utter defeat.
No wonder. Rian had ruined all of Bertram’s plans. He tried once more amidst the chaos, but the situation hadn’t changed.
Seeing Rian, holding Alman and rolling gracefully on the ground, Bertram was stunned.
This was a plan he had prepared for a long time, rehearsing dozens, even hundreds of times in his mind. If it weren’t for the young lord, everything could have gone perfectly.
“Damn it.”
Bertram clenched his teeth. It was frustrating, but moving rashly now could expose him. He had other chances left, so he had to play it cool for now.
At that moment, he met Rian’s fierce gaze.
“…!”
The intensity of Rian’s stare made Bertram’s heart drop. It was as if he knew something, sending chills down his spine.
“No way…”
Bertram shook his head. It couldn’t be. Only three people knew about this incident, himself included. How could the young lord know?
Though Rian had been doing strange things to improve the servants’ living conditions, everyone knew he wasn’t that clever. That look was surely just from rolling on the dirt.
“Brother!”
The tense moment between Rian and Bertram was unexpectedly broken by Regina. As the servants scattered, pale-faced Regina hurried over.
“Brother, are you okay? You weren’t hurt, were you?”
Her voice trembled as she checked Rian, her hands shaking visibly.
“Regina, I’m perfectly fine, so calm down. Really, I’m okay.”
Rian quickly reassured his sister, concerned about her state more than his own.
“Really okay? Are you hurt anywhere?”
“I’m completely fine. Nothing at all.”
Yet, Regina still couldn’t calm down, repeating the same questions several times.
Understandably so. From her room on the second floor, she had heard the horses and come down, witnessing Alman nearly being trampled. She had been terrified, and seeing someone save him brought immense relief. Learning it was her brother shocked her once again.
She was truly moved by his courage to risk himself for a servant.
But soon, she screamed again as the horses began rearing wildly.
Fortunately, Rian and Alman avoided injury, but Regina’s heart remained racing.
“I’m fine, so calm down, Regina.”
Her green eyes glistened with tears. Postponing Bertram’s punishment, Rian focused on calming his sister first.
Regina, however, turned her attention to Bertram.
“Bertram, how could you control the horses like this?!”
“Ah… Miss…”
The usually gentle Regina, always kind to the servants like their mother, shouted suddenly, causing Bertram to flinch.
The other servants nearby also widened their eyes, whispering among themselves.
“You could have gotten both Brother and Alman killed! How could you manage the horses so poorly?! Someone responsible for the stables should never allow this!”
Did Regina really have this fiery side?
Rian was surprised but also oddly pleased. Feeling someone care so passionately for him stirred an emotional warmth.
“I-I’m sorry… Miss! The horses went wild all of a sudden… I’ve committed a grave sin!”
Bertram finally got off the carriage, bowing to the ground, tears streaming from his wrinkled face. Rian could see he was genuinely remorseful.
Regina’s furious tone softened, her heart melting at Bertram’s distressed appearance.
“It’s a relief that Brother and Alman are safe. You’ll stay under strict supervision for a while as punishment. And get those horses out of here immediately.”
Regina gave Bertram a sharp glare toward the horses that had endangered Rian.
“Brother, really, are you okay?”
After Bertram got up and drove the carriage away, Regina again looked worriedly at Rian. To reassure her, Rian spent some time giving her comforting words.
