146. Who Will Escort the Villainess? (2)
Clomp, clomp.
Brecht strode past the guards without a word and moved forward.
I can’t believe I ran into Brecht here.
It was surprising enough to meet him by chance, but even more astonishing that he had stepped up as my guarantor.
Should I call this lucky?
I stared at Brecht in a daze.
With his long strides, he had already pulled far ahead. I hurried to catch up, but no matter how fast I walked, the distance wouldn’t close.
“W-wait a moment!”
Why is his pace so fast…!
Finally noticing me, he abruptly stopped.
“Oh, sorry. I don’t have much experience escorting ladies…”
He scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
Once I caught my breath, he extended an arm toward me.
“?”
“I’ll match my pace to yours from now on, Princess.”
“Oh, thank you.”
Cautiously, I placed my hand on his arm. Beneath his sweat-soaked training uniform, his firm forearm pressed against mine.
This feels… strange, unfamiliar.
Different from Perwin or Kaien. Even knowing this was a formal escort, I couldn’t help feeling a shiver down my spine.
“Shall we go?”
Brecht led me with slightly slower steps than before.
“But why come all the way to the knights—”
He tried to ask, but a booming voice interrupted.
“Captain, you’re here!”
“Oh, yes.”
After a curt salute, he looked back at me.
“I asked why you came to the knights—”
“Greetings, Captain!”
“Did your training go well today?”
“….”
Again, his question was cut off by the knights’ salutes.
How many greetings are there supposed to be?
Only after entering the sparsely populated training grounds could we escape the barrage of formalities.
Once the surroundings quieted, Brecht stopped.
“We can speak here. What brings you to the knights, Princess?”
His clear green eyes fixed on me.
“I’m looking for someone.”
“Is it a knight of the Royal Guard you’re searching for?”
“No. The person I’m looking for is a servant from my household.”
“A servant?”
He looked puzzled.
“…A week ago, our servant suddenly disappeared. I heard someone resembling them was seen nearby, so I came to the knights for help.”
“I see.”
Despite the rambling explanation, Brecht nodded seriously.
After a moment of thought, he spoke with determination.
“I’ll help you find your servant.”
“Sir Brecht?”
Before I could stop myself, I almost blurted, Why?
“Yes. You are my lord’s fiancée, Princess, and naturally, you deserve the same care as my lord.”
“Ah.”
Even this seemed incredibly knightly. I was astonished by his earnestness when he asked:
“Do you know the exact place where they were last seen?”
“No, I’m not sure.”
At first, I had considered using the original records to locate the manager, but unfortunately, they were not a character from the original.
“Do you know what they look like?”
“They’d be wearing a servant’s uniform. Black hair and red eyes… or maybe blonde hair with red eyes… Ah, at this time, probably black hair with red eyes.”
“Hmm?”
Brecht looked momentarily confused. Searching desperately for someone yet unsure of even the basics.
I inwardly cursed my own vagueness, but thankfully, he remained calm.
“So black hair and red eyes, or possibly blonde hair with red eyes. And?”
“They’re tall and slim.”
Describing Kaien’s appearance, I revealed the most important detail.
“Witnesses said one of the Royal Guard knights might have taken my servant, disguised as cargo…”
“Impossible.”
When I mentioned what I had heard from Countess Garcia, his expression stiffened.
“Why? Do you have a suspicion?”
“I’ve actually seen the person you’re looking for myself.”
“What?”
“I’ll solve this matter at the cost of my honor.”
Brecht knelt on one knee before me.
“Aiden! Aiden, where are you!”
The vice-captain of the Royal Guard stormed into the barracks where the trainee knights were gathered.
“Y-yes? Are you looking for me?”
Aiden, dozing after afternoon training, woke with a start.
“The Captain wants you. Go to the Captain’s office immediately.”
“Y-yes!”
He rushed off without even straightening his rumpled uniform.
“Were you calling for me, Captain?”
But Brecht wasn’t alone in the office.
That’s Princess Serteia, isn’t it?
Aiden’s eyes went wide. He had followed Kaien before and seen Roselia a few times as well.
Could it be… the Princess came looking for my servant?
“Aiden, did you take this person’s servant?”
“I-what do you mean? I know nothing—”
“Still trying to deny it?”
Swish.
Brecht drew his sword, a cold aura radiating his fury, pressing down on Aiden.
“C-Captain!”
Aiden’s face drained of color.
“The day you went out without permission, you said you encountered a wild animal outside the palace.”
During the private meeting with Brecht, Aiden had lied, saying a wild beast had ruined his uniform.
“Now I see, what you encountered was not a mere beast. What did you do with the servant? Did you kill them?”
“N-no! You’re mistaken! I have never killed anyone!”
Aiden’s desperate protest was meaningless in front of Roselia, who could see his inner truth.
“Sir Brecht, he’s the culprit. He has my servant behind the knights’ barracks.”
“H-how do you know that—”
Aiden inadvertently admitted it in his panic.
“Ahhh!”
Brecht’s sword traced a swift arc. Blood spurted from Aiden’s fingers. He fell to the floor in pain, and Brecht pointed the blade at his neck.
“You are a disgrace to knighthood. From today onward, you will never hold a sword again.”
“…!”
“Choosing death here may be the only way to preserve your remaining honor.”
“Please, spare me! I was wrong, Captain!”
Aiden screamed in terror, and Brecht glared at him with contempt.
Aiden begged, claiming, It was the Duke of Balten who forced me… I didn’t kill anyone! But the more he pleaded, the colder Brecht’s face became.
[Is that all you have to say before you die?]
I barely stopped Brecht from leaving him half-dead.
The manager is behind the knights’ camp, right?
Finding the captured manager was the priority.
As we searched the abandoned camp with the knights, one of them shouted.
“Here! There’s someone here!”
“!”
I ran to the warehouse like a bullet.
Inside, pitch dark and without a ray of light, a man lay in a deep sleep.
His face looked so peaceful that I almost thought he was dead.
But seeing his eyelids twitch slightly, my doubt vanished.
“Mana…!”
I paused before calling the manager’s name.
Wait… blonde hair and red eyes?
During the possession, Kaien had always had black hair, day or night.
Then why…
Brecht approached the warehouse.
“Is this the servant you were looking for, Princess?”
“Yes, that’s him. But something seems off.”
“Let’s move him to the infirmary. He seems unconscious and may die of hypothermia if left here.”
I nodded. Whatever had happened, the priority was to get him somewhere safe.
As Brecht hurried to take care of him, distant murmurs reached us.
“What’s all the noise?”
Brecht demanded, but the murmurs only grew louder.
Then a knight ran up to Brecht.
“Captain, His Highness the Crown Prince has arrived!”
…What?
“The Prince?”
Brecht, slightly surprised, nodded.
“Everyone, stop fussing and show proper respect to His Highness.”
“Yes, Captain!”
The knights aligned themselves in order, but Kaien remained peacefully asleep, unaware of the commotion.
Amid it all, I seemed to be the only one feeling uneasy.
Is it really okay for them to meet here?
