Chapter 44
“Today, I really need to split open your head and see what part of your brain is broken.”
“D-Don’t curse at me!”
“I’m not cursing!”
Ailelia shouted, eyes blazing with fury.
Then, without hesitation, she chased after the fleeing Theodore.
Theodore ran away in genuine fear, but it wasn’t easy to outrun someone seven years older than him.
He was caught before he could even turn a corner.
“You’re only seven—no way you could get away. You’re dead now, Theodore!”
“P-Princess! Please, control yourself!”
As the furious Ailelia grabbed Theodore by the scruff of his neck, the aides who had been watching from afar jumped in, startled.
They finally understood what the Emperor had meant when he ordered them to monitor the temperamental princess closely so she wouldn’t harm the Grand Duke’s son.
It was no exaggeration. The princess had a seriously short fuse.
Seeing the aides rush over, Theodore tightly shut his eyes.
Ailelia was shouting at him for reasons he couldn’t understand, and the aides were trying to pull her away.
The whole situation was baffling to Theodore.
Just then, an arm reached in and lifted him up.
“Young Master, are you playing tag?”
“Lerry!”
At the familiar voice, Theodore looked up. Like a child finding a safe haven, he dove into her arms.
Reyanna, dressed in her knight’s uniform as if just off duty, naturally held Theodore in her arms.
She had been on her way to visit him, wanting to greet the boy who had likely waited all day for her.
“Hmm…?”
Princess Ailelia tilted her head at the sight of Theodore.
That smile. The same smile he showed while holding something in his hands.
But he was smiling at that woman again.
“And who are you supposed to be?” Ailelia asked.
“Right. He was engaged.”
She had heard that the Grand Duke had brought his son’s fiancée into the estate.
But she hadn’t expected it to be a knight—and such a tall woman.
She had never cared much about her uncle’s bizarre affairs, so she hadn’t looked into it.
‘A commoner, maybe?’
Ailelia narrowed her eyes and sized Reyanna up.
It wasn’t just that her manners and etiquette were off—they didn’t exist.
And on top of that, her tall, muscular build was far from the image of a noble lady-to-be. It was hard to believe someone like her could become a nobleman’s wife.
Even her appearance wasn’t anything remarkable.
Compared to the glamorous women in the imperial palace, she looked utterly plain.
…And her way of addressing her fiancé was strange.
She wasn’t a servant, and yet she called him Young Master.
No noblewoman would ever call the Grand Duke’s heir that.
‘Has this idiot really not noticed how weird she is?’
Ailelia gave Theodore a pitiful look.
He looked like a complete fool, sitting next to Reyanna and staring up at her as if she were the most fascinating person in the world.
He seemed far more attached to her than expected.
“Lerry, was today hard? How’s life in the knights’ order?”
“It’s fine.”
“No one’s bothering you, right? Not that anyone would dare.”
“I’m not weak enough to be bullied.”
Who is this sparrow?
Ailelia furrowed her brow at this unfamiliar side of Theodore.
His chatter showed no signs of stopping.
“Lerry told me to wait again today, so I waited.”
“You did well.”
Theodore looked up at his fiancée with expectant eyes.
“Ah.”
Reyanna raised a hand and gently ruffled his hair.
It was quite a sight.
“You two seem to get along very well.”
“Does it look like that?”
Oh wow. He had just been running away from her moments ago, and now he was grinning ear to ear at the mention of his fiancée.
Ailelia wasn’t sure how to process this sudden shift.
She understood she should be glad that the child—who once seemed ready to wither and die—had regained his liveliness.
But something about the situation didn’t sit well with her.
It bothered her that the boy’s only source of joy seemed to be that woman.
Especially since that woman could go off to war and die at any moment, being a knight and all.
If she dies, he’ll probably wither again like a dry leaf.
Ailelia stared at the smiling boy in disbelief.
“So much for the rumors.”
“Rumors? What rumors?”
“They say the Grand Duke’s son runs away every day because he hates his fiancée. That he’s racking his brain trying to get the engagement called off…”
“N-No!!”
“Excuse me? I’m your sister and you interrupt me like that?”
Ailelia rubbed her aching temples.
He had been yelling at her a minute ago, but now Theodore clung to his fiancée with teary eyes.
“N-No, Lerry! That’s all just a big misunderstanding!”
“I understand.”
Despite her calm expression, Theodore clung to her desperately.
“It’s true! Why does no one believe me?”
“I believe you.”
“I’ll find out who spread those lies and prove it to you! Lerry, I swear I don’t want to break off the engagement!”
“There’s no need for that.”
Theodore was completely clinging to his fiancée.
And it was understandable. To a strong female knight, a seven-year-old boy was nothing more than a fragile child to protect.
What the hell is that idiot doing with his real fiancée? You’d believe it if someone said he just hired a new nanny. Throwing tantrums is only cute to a point—beyond that, it’s just annoying.
Ailelia snorted and sneered at Theodore. His whining had already gotten old.
She turned her gaze to the still-unmoved Reyanna and asked,
“So. You’re a knight, huh? What order?”
“I’m with the First Order.”
“My uncle’s?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
Her smooth answer caught Ailelia off guard.
Putting those pieces together… does that mean Theodore’s fiancée might go to war? Did I understand that right?
If the Knight Commander is dispatched to war, his subordinates would likely be mobilized for a period as well.
They probably wouldn’t send a young female knight, but the Grand Duke had insisted on the engagement despite political backlash.
He had even paid an outrageous dowry to bring her to the estate recently.
…What if the real reason was to give her a valid reason to go to war?
There were hundreds of reasons not to take her, but knowing her uncle, this insane theory was the only one that made sense.
Ailelia wasn’t the type to bottle up curiosity.
“Wait, so… you’re going to war too? Right? Or not?”
At her question, a cold silence fell over the table.
Theodore, who had been smiling brightly a moment ago, suddenly froze.
Reyanna looked down at her young fiancé, then calmly spoke.
“I will be deployed. I’m a knight. There are no special exceptions.”
She hadn’t meant to say it like this.
Reyanna hadn’t anticipated that the princess’s sudden visit would lead to this moment.
But she couldn’t lie in response to a royal’s question.
When she saw the boy’s innocent eyes cloud over, she couldn’t hold the answer back any longer.
“I will be deployed. I’m a knight. There are no special exceptions.”
Her words dropped like cold water over the table.
Princess Ailelia’s gaze shifted to Theodore. He looked completely dazed, staring up at Reyanna.
“Lerry… is that true?”
Theodore’s voice trembled uncontrollably.
“Yes.”
Reyanna flinched slightly at the look on his face—something she had never seen before.
“You’re going where?”
“Probably Cotri. That’s where it’ll begin.”
“But you said you’d stay with me. That you’d live in my estate with me.”
Theodore’s lip quivered as he grasped her hand tightly.
His small hand trembled with tension.
He was still a child—it was all too overwhelming.
His father and his fiancée going to war. He would be left behind, alone.
But for Reyanna, this war was unavoidable.
“I am your fiancée, but I’m also a knight. When war breaks out, it’s only natural for me to be deployed.”
“…No.”
Theodore’s voice grew colder.
