"What I want now is a hairbrush."
"A hairbrush?"
"I promised you that I'd brush your hair."
"That's not a gift. Tell me what you want instead."
"But that's what I was hoping for. It seemed like fun whenever I saw Simon doing it."
"Well, tell me something else other than a hairbrush."
"Something else…"
As his anxiety grew longer, Louise cautiously put forward an opinion.
"Hey, how about a letter?"
"A letter?"
"Yes. A heartfelt letter. One that makes the reader happy with kind and beautiful words!"
"You're going to write a letter for me?"
Ian looked at her suspiciously.
"Who, me? What matters is that you like the letter."
"No, it matters to me who writes it. If Professor Hewitt sent me a letter with kind and beautiful words, I'd be terrified. All night I'd be wondering what I did wrong."
"Don't worry. I don't think Professor Hewitt is going to send you that kind of letter."
"That's a relief."
"But you like letters anyway, right? Right?"
"Yes, as long as the sender is not Professor Hewitt."
Ian seemed very pleased, like he was expecting something special when receiving the letter. Louise was unable to contain her smile and beamed again. She was sure the stupid president would be deeply moved by Stella's letter. He looked so hopeful already.
"By the way, I think it's your first time writing a letter."
"…Me?"
"Yes. You've always acted wild from an early age, but I think you can make beautiful words. I look forward to reading it."
"Oh, I…Do I have to write it?"
Louise looked back at him with a tearful face, while Ian looked at her in surprise.
"As long as you're not Professor Hewitt, then I want you to write it. "
"I can't use fancy words."
"I look forward to reading the kind and beautiful words that are sure to make the reader happy."
But that was Stella's style. Louise find the words to speak, when suddenly they heard a knock. Ian and Louise smiled mischievously at each other. They were in a room surrounded with cake and frosting, and they knew what kind of face Simon would make. Simon hated sweets. The door opened, and Simon looked around the room with a stern expression. Louise saw a subtle twitch in his normally smooth eyebrows.
"…This is awful."
It was such a rare response from Simon that Ian and Louise burst into giggles.
"I'm sorry, Simon. I didn't realize today's gathering was a cake tasting meeting until I arrived. If I had known earlier I would have told you. "
"I wish for that very much, Louise."
Simon opened a drawer on Ian's desk in small protest.
"Instead, I will make my tea as strong as I like."
"I also like Simon's strong tea. Especially when you add a little milk to it…"
"We will all drink it straight today."
Simon gave them a cold stare, with a look that said he wouldn't allow a drop of milk. Ian and Louise immediately straightened their posture. As expected of Simon. He scared them stiff when he was truly angry.
"…I'm joking. There are just so many sweets, I just thought it would be good to balance it."
Simon, who seemed to have talked enough, heated up the teacups and teapot without saying anything else. While he was preparing the tea, Ian slid down from the window and arranged the tasting dishes in order while Louise, the only one who had nothing to do, sat on the windowsill and swung her legs. Finally Ian offered her a plate with a few slices of cake on them.
"Let's start with this."
Ian climbed back up on Louise's left. Then he stuffed two different flavors cake of cake into his mouth at once.
"Don't you feel sorry for the people who had to prepare this for someone who has such a lack of taste?""
"It's alright. I have two diligent friends. Right, Simon?"
Simon sat on Louise's right side and accepted a plate from Ian.
"…I can't believe this is how Your Highness repays me."
"Repays?"
Simon shook his head and pushed the white cake into his mouth. He carefully sampled the taste and texture carefully, living up to Ian's description of "diligent."
"The room smells too sweet, and I can't taste properly."
"Shall I open the window?"
Simon nodded at Ian's proposal.
"Wait a minute. It's too dangerous to open the window!"
Regardless of Louise's objection, both young men flung open the windows from both sides. A sultry summer wind swept past them. The fresh air was great, but this was the second floor and a terrible accident could happen.
"We might fall!"
"Don't worry. Simon has very good reflexes, right?"
"Not enough to catch someone who falls backwards."
Louise looked at them with alarm and tried to plead with them.
"We'd better close the windows. I don't want to leave when I still have a lot of work to do!"
"Don't worry. Do you think the crown prince and this lord would put you at risk?"
"You're putting all of us at risk!"
"It's okay. It's safer than you think. We won't die if we fall from the second floor."
This time Ian shoved three different mouthfuls of cake at the same time. Louise whirled towards Simon. Unlike Ian, he was the serious and rational one. He also said he could not catch a falling person, so he wouldn't agree with Ian's ignorant lack of safety.
"It will be safe."
"…Simon."
"Maybe."
Simon's face was intermingled with a shade of mischief. Louise suddenly remembered something. This childhood trio was made up of two delinquents who would risk their safety to tease and bully the other.
"Really, this isn't any different when I was a kid."
"Louise was the one who enjoyed my suffering."
"That's…!"
…It was true, she enjoyed it. She wanted to laugh until her stomach hurt. With nothing to say, Simon held out a cup of black tea to Louise. With the tea and cake perfectly ready, the tasting started in earnest.
"It's pretty soft. I like how it melts in your mouth."
Louise was around her fifth cake now.
"It's not exactly bad, but it's not good either."
"I'd like it a bit more solid."
Louise wondered if they could pick a cake tonight, with all their different opinions over one cake flavor. However, all three agreed that the bitter tea went well with it. Hopefully they would find a dessert that would satisfy all three of them too.
"I like this one because it's tart."
"Isn't it a little sloppy?"
"No, it's too sweet for now."
Reaching an agreement…could that be possible?
The sun finally died beneath the horizon. The heavy, dark night found Elena armored in black, much like the day she stole away to save Carlisle. No one could identify her with her helmet, and it was difficult to tell whether she was a man or a woman with her armor.
In her previous life, she would sometimes conceal her golden blonde hair by wearing a helmet to avoid being noticed by her enemies. It was fortunate her past experience did not make her present situation uncomfortable at all. Fighting with heavy armor was extremely difficult and uncomfortable for the untrained.
Elena had already disguised herself once to rescue Carlisle. And fortunately this time, this was not Blaise Castle in the south, but a small mansion in the capital, where there were fewer knights in comparison.
Taas!
Elena pressed her hand against the window frame and jumped, just like Kuhn did. Although the armor was a little uncomfortable, she was flexible enough that she could creeped out of the mansion as sleek as a cat. Elena carefully padded around to where there was no one in sight.
'I've already calculated the route to the stables just in case.'
Elena stole a horse from the stable, then carefully pulled the horse some ways away from the mansion. As soon as she determined she was at a safe distance, she mounted the saddle and kicked the horse with all her strength.
"Hyaaa!"
The horse then let out a short whiney and lurched forward.
Tadadadag, tadadadag.
The galloping hooves sounded at a rapid pace. The breeze didn't feel as cool as the time she rode with Carlisle because of her heavy armor, but that didn't matter at all right now.
*
*
*
The Flower Bridge.
True to it's name, the large bridge, which crossed a river, was decorated with rose vines. Small lanterns dotted the area, making the view a magnificent spectacle even at night.
On a hill overlooking the sea of people enjoying the festival, Elena stood alone in her armor. She was not as dazzled by the scenery around her as everyone else. She quietly looked up at the night sky, calculating how much time had passed.
It was then.
She saw a cloud of dust kicked up by horses approaching her from some distance. There was the rumble of dozens of hooves striking the ground. A man was at the head of the group, and his hair flying in the wind was recognizable at a glance.
It was Carlisle. Blue fire burned hotly in his eyes, and his lips were tightly pressed. He was heading straight for Elena, releasing some terrible energy.
He must have read her letter if he was here on time. Carlisle ordered his royal guard to stop a little distance away, then approached Elena alone. He had seen her wearing armor once before, and recognized her immediately.
As soon as he reached Elena, he quickly opened his mouth to speak.
"What's the meaning of this?"
Carlisle fixed her with an icy gaze. Elena stared unflinchingly at Carlisle before her.
"This?"
Elena deepened her voice to hide her identity. Carlisle held out the letter she sent to him with his long fingers.
I'll come to protect you. You won't forget our contract, will you?
Below that were brief instructions on where to meet and what they had to do when attending the festival.
She glanced at the letter then back at Carlisle, unmoved.
"Exactly what it says."
It was clearly one of their terms of their contract, on the condition she would have to do one thing, anything, for Carlisle in the future.
"It's number five on our contract. I disguise myself every night and act as a knight."
"That's–"
Elena interrupted him.
"I will also keep the condition that I will stay by your side as much as possible, Your Highness."
Carlisle's face twitched at the mention of his title. She noticed it, then attempted to explain again.
"I can hide my identity with the helmet, so please understand."
"…Alright."
Carlisle yielded in a low voice, but his expression was still reluctant.
"But this is too early. There are more people who are after me than you think, and my presence may put you in danger. "
Although Carlisle could not see it, the corners of Elena's mouth lifted underneath the helmet.
"Well then, it's time for me to play."
It was that moment.
As if in response to Elena's words, fireworks announcing the festival exploded into the sky.
Bang! Bang!
The explosions sent an array of colors scattering on Elena's black armor. She spoke in a deep voice, her blood-red eyes shining in the light.
"Even if the sky falls, I will protect you."
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