Eyes accustomed to the darkness nervously scanned the surroundings, as if someone might leap out of that darkness and threaten him. Having experienced the palace’s assassination attempt firsthand, Lancelin sighed, weighed down by the anxiety that plagued him.
Everything had become chaotic since his mentor’s death. He could not figure out what to do next.
Meeting that strange girl and being forced to travel with her made his situation feel miserable.
The steady and quiet breathing of Anis filled the uneasy silence. Lancelin thought she seemed quite at ease.
‘Not just at ease. Her head seems to be taking it easy too.’
Maybe having nothing in your head helps you sleep well. It was impressive that she’d lived this long with such a head.
Lancelin found himself recalling Anis’s striking appearance and was startled by his realization.
How could he be thinking about someone so persistently?
He rubbed his forehead in an attempt to stop his thoughts.
After trying hard to erase Anis’s presence (which didn’t work because her breathing was too loud), Lancelin stared blankly at the dusty ceiling beams.
After killing some time like that, he grabbed the sturdy steel sword beside him.
Feeling the weighty sword again, he thought of Rust and recalled a conversation they had long ago.
‘Rust, where is your hometown?’
‘Pardon? What do you mean by that, Your Highness?’
‘I once met some gypsies. They said home is a safe place that gives you the strength to fight the world. It usually means one’s birthplace, but it doesn’t always have to.’
‘I see. Then my home would be by your side, Your Highness.’
‘Is there no place you want to return to?’
‘There isn’t. Even if I die, I will die by the prince’s side.’
And Rust met his death by Lancelin’s side, just as he had wished.
His master had said that to fight against the harsh world, one needed not only a physical steel weapon but also to become a hard and strong weapon oneself.
‘Become steel. Steel that doesn’t easily get hurt by external attacks…’
“Rust.”
Lancelin muttered his master’s name, gripping the sword tightly.
“I guess I’m just a worthless, pathetic piece of scrap metal compared to this steel sword.”
“…A piece of scrap metal can turn into fine gold if there’s an alchemist.”
Ack!
Lancelin nearly cried out loud. His heart pounded from the shock.
Still clutching his pounding chest, Lancelin clenched his teeth and abruptly sat up.
Turning to the side, he saw Anis looking at him, completely awake. Her wide-open eyes were too clear.
Lancelin felt uneasy around Anis. He tended to relieve his anxiety by cynically mocking others.
“They say night talk is overheard by mice.”
“There are no mice here, though?”
“I was talking about you.”
Before Lancelin could finish saying ‘you fool’, Anis suddenly cupped her chin and looked at Lancelin with a pleased expression.
“I do look like a velvet mouse. My brothers used to say that, and I agreed because it’s cute.”
“…”
“And just now, I said that a worthless piece of scrap metal can turn into fine gold with the help of an excellent alchemist.”
As Anis reminded him of their previous conversation without missing a beat, Lancelin was dumbfounded before snorting.
“Oh, really? I wonder where that excellent alchemist could be.”
Despite Lancelin’s best efforts at sarcasm, Anis did not seem affected at all.
He tensed a little as she quietly pulled back her blanket. Anyone who had seen someone else being beaten would understand.
Anis slowly approached on her knees. Lancelin instinctively leaned back.
Since they were not far apart, to begin with, Anis easily grabbed Lancelin’s shoulder.
Anis spoke.
“Here.”
She lightly poked Lancelin’s chest. It was near where his heart was pounding.
“…”
Lancelin was at a loss for words and could only open and close his mouth.
‘What is this?’
The incomprehensible bewilderment in Lancelin’s mind was disorienting.
Anis had not approached to hit him. She had seriously considered his question, which might have been intended to mock her and had answered.
The girl was honest. The boy, who had lived amidst deception, was weak to honest and unaffected hearts, though he did not realize it himself.
Lancelin tried to relax his stiff shoulders and took a steady breath, pushing Anis’s hand away.
“G-Get that away.”
He stammered involuntarily, perhaps more flustered by her unexpected behavior than he realized.
Anis lightly laughed, and his ears suddenly felt hot. It was not the kind of embarrassment or anger he felt when insulted or enraged.
Their gazes intertwined.
The two of them fell into silence, so quiet that even their breathing could not be heard.
Through the misaligned wooden shutters, the sounds of crickets and doves filled the night.
“By the way, who is Rust?”
Anis’s low question caught Lancelin’s attention.
He was about to refrain from answering but impulsively changed his mind.
“My only mentor.”
He wished Anis knew Rust as well as he did.
Maybe it was because he felt lonely or perhaps he wanted someone to share the memories of the dead.
“He died. Trying to save me.”
Contrary to his expectations, Anis did not seem to know Rust.
Anis awkwardly swallowed a hum and glanced at Lancelin (Even this clear-eyed lunatic can be cautious at times).
“A noble death, an honorable knight then.”
It was a comforting remark befitting the Lady of Varandian, but unfortunately, Lancelin did not know much about Varandian. Moreover, Anis’s carefully chosen words only fueled his anger.
Lancelin glared.
“There’s no such thing as a noble death. Or a noble knight. I don’t believe in any of that.”
The boy expressed his pent-up sorrow through anger. Even though he knew Anis was blameless and unrelated to his unfortunate circumstances, Lancelin could not control himself.
“So your offer to help me is not out of chivalry but out of arrogant self-satisfaction, right?”
Lancelin glared at Anis while sitting.
“Even now, you’re pretending to comfort me to satisfy yourself. Stop trying; it’s just unpleasant.”
His cynical purple eyes stared into her unreadable blue ones.
Lancelin thought it would be better if Anis, who seemed calm and composed, would get angry at him. But she never acted as he wished.
This time, too.
“I understand why you’re angry. I lost my father in a battle at sea when I was young.”
Lancelin was surprised that even Anis, who seemed like a fool, had something she had lost. He had thought Anis was just a carefree noble who had grown up without lacking anything, judging by her inexplicable composure.
“I sometimes recall what my father left me. Memories, teachings, things like that. Then my sadness or anger subsides. My mother used to say, ‘Control yourself. Don’t let misfortune, which you can’t do anything about, control you.’”
Lancelin’s eyes widened slightly at Anis’s calm words. They were similar to what Rust always said.
“Also, people naturally help each other as they live. Isn’t it better than ignoring someone who needs help? By helping someone, you might create two happy people instead of one unhappy person. Lastly, it’s okay if you don’t trust me. But don’t distrust yourself. This is what my father said, that it becomes very difficult if you do.”
Anis shrugged.
“Sorry if you think this is arrogant too.”
Anis did not seem particularly angry. Her calm voice and composed face actually seemed to quell the raging storm in Lancelin’s heart.
“…”
Lancelin let his tense shoulders drop. He felt defeated by someone he had considered a fool.
As his excitement subsided, he lowered his gaze, feeling embarrassed and awkward.
“What are you thinking?”
“…That you’re really strange.”
Suddenly, a gust of wind playfully swirled through the room through the gap in the shutters. Anis tucked her disheveled red hair behind her ear, making a soft, chuckling sound. It was ticklish and awkward.
Lancelin parted his lips and murmured in a small voice.
“You don’t need to apologize.”
Lancelin saw traces of Rust, whom he missed. Although Anis claimed not to know Rust, just that alone made him feel as if he were reminiscing about Rust and felt somewhat comforted.
“…Thank you.”
For the first time, Lancelin managed to express his gratitude.
He averted his eyes, finding it difficult to gauge Anis’s reaction immediately afterward, but mustering some courage, he lifted his chin.
Anis was grinning.
That smile wasn’t a mask meant to hide any intention of insulting or harming him. It was friendly and filled with genuine kindness.
It was similar to the smile the gypsy had when he doted on Lancelin without knowing he was a prince and the smile Rust had when he promised to protect him out of sincerity, not just as an order.
Lancelin slowly placed his hand on his chest.
The sound of his heart, beating uncomfortably fast and loud, had returned to its normal state before he knew it.
However, it started beating in a slightly different direction.
* * *
The next morning, Lancelin woke up with a jolt. He had not had such a comfortable sleep in a long time.
Morning sunlight streamed through the wide-open wooden shutters, and there was no one in the room. Not even Anis’s belongings.
Lancelin thought absentmindedly.
‘Did she leave me behind?’
Even if that were the case, it wouldn’t be surprising. In Lancelin’s world, few people kept their word. That was true for the gypsies and his mentor, Rust.
The thought that Anis had left made his heart heavy, and his body, which had been overworked in recent days, cried out in extreme fatigue.
Sitting in a daze, Lancelin slowly pulled off the blanket and got up. In doing so, he heard a steady, heavy sound. It was the sound of chopping wood.
