章節 23: Stephano III
"What in God's name–!?" the Prince demanded.
Momentarily, he doubted Valerio's instincts as a swordsman. He was too lighthearted and lacked discretion. However, his thoughts were violently corrected at the next words from Valerio's mouth.
"It's unlikely you'll go unnoticed for much longer if you stab the daughter of Count Mikael von Burien," Valerio snapped back.
He was immediately at Leonor's side after ridding the Prince of his sword. He got the girl to her feet, quickly doing a once-over to ensure she hadn't been injured or further hurt herself, considering her leg.
Rather than injured, he could tell she was trembling like a leaf. To be threatened with a sword had certainly shaken her to her core.
Prince Stephano hadn't had a good look at the Count's daughter since he was always insistent on remaining hidden until Valerio was finished with his nightly goodbyes to the girl.
Leonor was led to the clearing and the Prince finally laid his eyes on Leonor. He was met with a girl surprisingly sweet looking considering how cutthroat her father was whenever he visited the capital. As one of the King's most trusted, there was leniency when Count Mikael treated others like dirt. Prince Stephano had sat in on many of these meetings and developed a strong opinion on the Count and anyone associated with him.
"Are you alright?" Valerio asked Leonor.
He had many more questions than that, but her well-being was his highest priority.
She meekly nodded as he stared into her watery sapphire eyes. He couldn't help reaching out and stroking her cheek.
The feeling of his hand on her face caused her heart to clench. He asked if she was alright, but she wasn't. It was for a different reason than he expected.
Valerio's protectiveness had only grown since the very day Leonor was injured and he realized a lot about the Count. To see anyone else mistreat her in any way while he was already at his limit made him feel like he was going to boil over.
"Apologize to her," Valerio turned towards the Prince and demanded.
"My lady," the prince began. "I apologize for threatening you with a sword. You have to understand that someone in my station would be a bit paranoid considering the instability within our kingdom."
He flourished his words with a bow towards Leonor, which most women would consider an honor from the Crown Prince.
However, Leonor's fearfulness was replaced by confusion.
"Who are you, sir?" she asked quietly. "Forgive me for not knowing how to address you. You are certainly a noble."
Valerio's irritation was chased away by amusement. Only Leonor could cause his emotions to change so quickly. A laugh escaped the stablehand's lips when the prince stood back up and cast a look of horror at Leonor.
"That's the Crown Prince," Valerio said, bubbling over with laughter. "Prince Stephano."
Immediately, the prince hopped forward and punched the stablehand in the arm.
"Perhaps you should say it louder," the Prince snapped. "Announce it to the county. I'm sure nothing can go wrong."
Leonor looked on in total disbelief. An awkward smile was plastered on her face. She realized she was rude and immediately bent in half as she bowed to the prince. Not wearing a dress to curtsy with, she felt it was the only appropriate response.
"Forgive me, Your Highness!" Leonor cried, knowing it was her turn to apologize. "I didn't know that the Crown Prince would wander to Burien County. Normally my father is privy to this information but he said nothing to me."
The Prince waved her apology off with a gloved hand. He scoffed at Valerio who was very obviously loving this situation.
"You don't have to bow so deeply," Valerio urged Leonor with a gentle hand on her shoulder. "He's not here as the prince but as my trainee."
Valerio brought up another topic that had been eating at Leonor. Her gaze went from the prince to Valerio.
"You have never mentioned once before that you're a swordsman," Leonor said. "It seems to be more than a passing interest if the Prince has asked for your help."
"Give me a moment," Valerio said to the Prince and he gently guided Leonor elsewhere.
He only stopped when they were near the old shed.
"I don't want you to think I was purposefully hiding something from you," he admitted. "I find working with a sword to help ease my mind, but since we properly met, I haven't picked up a sword in over a month. The Crown Prince hasn't needed my help in some time."
"I see…" she trailed off, not knowing what else she could say.
Valerio found his cloak where he hung it up on a post and brought it to Leonor.
"It isn't warm enough for you to be out here," he muttered softly. "It further begs the question as to why you're here in the first place, Leonor."
Leonor looked up at him desperately, her eyes searching his face for her own answer. She didn't know how to tell him that she was missing him and it developed into jealousy over time when she saw him leaving her for someone else.
She knew it wasn't realistic to be the only one he paid attention to, but she dared to dream.
"I missed you-" she admitted, but she realized what she had said. "I missed talking to you. I don't know why I did this."
Her eyes dropped from his as her face began to turn red. She felt she had said too much and didn't know how to correct it.
Valerio's body shamelessly reacted to her words, sending butterflies in his stomach and igniting his heart as she said she missed him. Even though she corrected herself, he knew by her actions that the first part wasn't entirely untrue.
She might force a confession out of him if she didn't stop being so endearing. He didn't want to complicate her life like that.
"Stay here," Valerio requested. "If you would like to watch us spar, I'll walk you back to the manor shortly after."
Leonor's embarrassment was eclipsed by her excitement to watch the two men sword fight. Immediately, her eyes lit up and she smiled.
She found a comfortable stump to sit on and rest her leg. Valerio's cloak gave her a warm hug and she obediently watched from the sidelines as blades flew and the two men were soon soaked with sweat.
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