A Knight Who Protects His Enemies

Months went by. I was soon turning 15.

Things had changed in the meantime.

Since the day Vivian and I had our falling out, she had started wandering outside regularly.

The staff viewed Vivian’s behavior positively.

Considering she used to stay cooped up in her room, this transformation could be called dramatic.

She no longer cried as easily, attended classes enthusiastically, and even went on walks.

No one knew the reason behind her change.

Some said she was starting to manage the castle, others thought it was due to her education, and some speculated that her complicated feelings after losing the Duchess had finally healed… but I knew the truth.

Vivian was wandering the castle looking for me.

At first, I was uncertain, but as time passed, it became clear.

She sought me out at least every other day.

After finding me, she would watch me with a sharp gaze, observing my struggles before finally leaving.

She seemed curious about the situation I was in.

She wanted to uncover the source of the confidence I had when I hurled insults at her.

What kind of training I was undergoing.

What my status was in the Punishment Unit.

What I was eating.

Where I was sleeping.

How badly my clothes smelled.

What my daily routine entailed.

What people’s attitudes toward me were.

Occasionally, she would approach my vicinity, stealing glances and gathering information about me over the past few months.

Honestly, it was quite humiliating.

It embarrassed me to show that I, the eldest son of a great northern family, was living a life worse than a common street urchin.

When I was ravenously eating slop that passed for food, scrubbing the floors like a maid, or sprinting around doing menial chores, it was hard to hold my head high.

This was especially true around Vivian. Our relationship was complicated, and I often didn’t want to show her my pathetic state.

Sometimes, I even wished she didn’t know about my shame.

Yet, I didn’t just feel shame either.

At some point, I found myself looking forward to her visits.

It was a bizarre feeling.

I didn’t want to show her my miserable state, but at the same time, I found myself waiting for her…

I pondered what the root cause of this was, and I felt it was because a part of my loneliness was being alleviated.

Simply knowing someone was watching over my difficult daily life gave me an inexplicable strength.

Originally, I had to endure all of this alone.

No one acknowledged my pain; I was suffering in silence.

But now, Vivian, who was in a similar situation, had started to witness my plight.

She was becoming a witness to what I was going through, how hard I was struggling to keep going.

That was a light consolation in my hard daily life.

It was a fact I was ashamed of but could not deny.

-Splish splash.

Today, I was sitting by the water, washing clothes.

Then, I perked up my ears at the commotion behind me.

I could hear the sound of several soldiers marching from afar.

“…”

Feigning indifference, I continued washing.

When I glanced sideways, Vivian’s red hair caught my eye.

She was looking around with a serious expression.

It was all too obvious she was searching for me.

As Vivian moved around searching, she finally spotted me.

She looked at me as I sat by the water, washing clothes.

“…”

“…”

Months had passed, but we hadn’t exchanged anything resembling a proper conversation since that day.

It was just a string of days where we watched each other from afar.

Words might have been absent, but we were conveying plenty.

We were clearly aware of each other.

Upon spotting me, Vivian froze.

I wiped water off my upper lip with my arm and stared at her.

…What kind of antics would she pull today?

Vivian didn’t just find me and leave.

She’d always find a way to taunt me before leaving.

Recently, I even suspected that she was projecting her frustrations onto me.

During a recent sword training session, she had ordered me to face two opponents at once.

Last time, she came for an inspection of the Punishment Unit and just happened to knock my food off my shoulder, making me go hungry the entire day.

The day before yesterday, I was suddenly heckled by a guard, only to see her red hair fluttering behind a nearby pillar. I had noticed the guard’s uncomfortable expression only then.

Sure enough, today, Vivian whispered something to her escort.

After glancing back and forth between me and Vivian, the soldier let out a short sigh and approached me.

“Washing clothes, huh?”

“…Yeah.”

He took a deep breath and stared at the basket containing my finished clothes.

-Kick!

With a single kick, the basket fell into the river, causing my clothes to float away.

“…Dammit.”

If I lost all my clothes, I definitely wouldn’t eat today. Getting beaten by the other boy soldiers was my inevitable fate.

Seeing me look up defiantly, Vivian shrugged her shoulders.

“…You look comfortable.”

“…”

Instead of engaging in a verbal battle with her, I quickly jumped into the river to retrieve my clothes one by one.

What I got wet would still need some washing again.

Vivian certainly knew how to get under my skin.

-Kick!

After a while, I threw all the drenched clothes onto a rock.

Then, I took a breath and looked up at Vivian.

She was quietly enjoying the sight of me fetching clothes like a wet dog.

“…”

Of course, it was me who had boldly told her to have fun teasing me.

But seeing her look so smug sure annoyed me a bit.

My father always said that if someone hits you, hit them back.

“Is it funny? Is that all you got?”

Ultimately, I opened my mouth to say something to her.

“-Pfft.”

Vivian broke into a shallow laugh at the sight of me.

“…”

Her mouth had curled up adorably to one side, and I was left speechless, staring at her.

This was a first for me.

After knowing her for months, it was the first time I had seen her smile.

Usually, she only showed me her crying face, angry face, or blank face.

Maybe that’s why the impact of her smiling expression felt magnified.

What I saw was not even a natural smile.

It was a smirk, a smile full of scorn.

And yet, I was frozen at that mocking smile.

Vivian stared at me as if looking at a wet dog for a while before, feeling relieved, she turned to leave.

“…”

Only after she left was I able to move my stiff body.

“…Hah.”

Then, the image of me being left speechless hit me and I sighed as I berated myself.

…But honestly, I felt a bit wronged these days.

All I did was get watched.

She kept saying I lived a comfortable life.

Only she, who observed me, knew whether those words were true or false.

It felt like she was the only one wielding a weapon and beating me senseless.

These days, she simply hadn’t been crying much or acting like she wanted to die.

This made her compassion die down. And with that, there were times I craved revenge.

“…”

I paused to think for a moment.

It was time to make some changes.

…Now that I think about it, did I even have someone looking after her?

****

Vivian entered her room and swallowed a smile.

The expression on Kyle Allen’s face when my clothes floated away was still fresh in her mind.

Seeing him hop into the river like a fool, scrambling to retrieve his clothes was, no matter how I thought about it, utterly refreshing.

It felt great to get back at Kyle Allen, who had once annoyed her so much.

She had no lingering discomfort about having teased him.

In the first place, it was Kyle Allen who had asked for it first.

He had said to feel free to torment him. He could handle it all.

Maybe that’s why she now only wore a light smile.

Additionally, Kyle Allen had been living way too peacefully lately.

A few months ago, he had been injured all over after being severely beaten, but now he was fully healed and perfectly fine.

Ironically, Vivian was still the one carrying bruises.

She was still facing harsh consequences because of her stuttering.

This was precisely why Vivian continued to annoy Kyle Allen.

He certainly had it easier than her.

She didn’t like the sight of him coming over, questioning what was so hard about her life when he was living without a care.

-Knock, knock.

As she sat there, a knock sounded and the door opened.

Lady Linne walked in.

“Lady Vivian.”

“Oh, hello.”

The relief she felt at getting back at Kyle Allen faded quickly when she saw Lady Linne’s stern face.

How could anyone continue to smile when they were about to be hit endlessly?

It wasn’t just the hitting; it was the fact that someone was going to listen to how she spoke and judge her. That prospect still felt uncomfortable to her.

Showing her own weaknesses—feeling like a fool—was something that never became easy for her.

The anger she felt toward Kyle Allen, which had hardened her heart, was now beginning to soften.

Of course, she was still angry thinking about what he had said, but over time and continued punishment, some parts of her heart had dulled.

So, lessons with Lady Linne had started to feel heavy lately.

Her struggles went unnoticed.

She had to endure everything alone.

She had to tackle the disdain of the retainers, the pressures from the adults, and her own issues all by herself.

No one had appeared to support her even after several months since her mother passed away.

How would it have been if someone could share her burdens, just like her late mother had?

Just hearing a single word of understanding would have put her mind at ease.

Just knowing someone acknowledged her suffering would have given her strength.

…She was undeniably lonely, and this loneliness was gnawing away at her day by day.

Lady Linne broke through Vivian’s thoughts, speaking up.

“Well then, let’s start the lesson—”

-Bang!

But just then, the door swung open without knocking.

“Didn’t I tell you this was not allowed? You can’t just come here and act freely!”

“I’m Kyle Allen, Vivian Rondore’s escort. Why can’t I be by her side? If something happens to her, you’re responsible?”

And Kyle Allen strutted in.

The soldier trying to stop Kyle glanced nervously at Lady Linne and Vivian.

Meanwhile, Kyle marched in without a care.

Lady Linne scowled at Kyle, who had tossed respect aside.

“…Kyle Allen. I hear the nobles of the north are savage, and now I understand. Just how rude it is to enter a lady’s room without permission—”

“-Be quiet. I didn’t come here to listen to you.”

Lady Linne lost her words, stunned by the absurdity of the situation.

If it were another time, Vivian would have surely chuckled at Lady Linne’s bewildered expression.

Kyle Allen plopped down in a chair in the corner of the room.

“…”

Vivian was baffled as to why he had shown up here.

Like that night, he tended to create too many absurd scenarios for her.

He entered the room and didn’t even take any action.

Feeling the gazes of the others upon him, he remained unfazed.

Ultimately, Vivian asked first.

“…W-what are you doing?”

“Escorting.”

“…”

She was curious about his sudden mention of escorting.

It wasn’t truly for that purpose; there had to be some ulterior motive…

“…”

Vivian looked at Kyle Allen’s soaked pants.

Did he come here because of her teasing earlier?

As Vivian remained frozen and couldn’t loosen her expression, Kyle sighed and stood up.

In just a few months, Kyle had grown taller.

There had been a time when they were similarly sized, but now he was a good two finger widths taller than her.

As Kyle leaned down to look at Vivian, he whispered.

His voice was something Lady Linne would not catch.

“…I’ve been thinking. It feels a little unfair.”

“…?”

“You’ve been watching me and you know how hard I’m working, but I don’t know how hard your life is, right?”

Vivian could only keep staring at him without an answer.

“So I’m going to watch you too. You say my life looks cozy, but I’m curious how uncomfortable yours must be for you to think that.”

“W-who says you can do that?”

“I’m your escort. It’s your mother’s dying wish. I can do as I please.”

Unlike earlier, her position had been flipped. Just a bit ago, she had been the one enjoying teasing Kyle Allen, but now she found herself feeling anxious.

There were plenty of things she didn’t want him to find out.

She despised the idea of being seen by Kyle Allen while being scolded by Lady Linne, or being embarrassed.

The thought of him judging her speech and mocking her was all the more unbearable.

So she pressed back.

“You can keep an eye on me from outside the room—”

“-You.”

But Kyle cut her off sharply.

“…You’ve said living is harder than dying. Was that a lie?”

“…”

“Just let me look for a bit, okay? That way it’ll be fair.”

Vivian was dumbfounded.

In the end, this was nothing more than a flimsy excuse.

He had clearly harbored ill intentions after having teased her a bit lately.

He was simply coming to gloat, drumming up some ridiculous argument.

Vivian fought back.

“W-what fairness are you talking about? I don’t care about being fair. I can do as I like, but you cannot. Before you call the soldiers and drag me out, you should hurry and—”

“-Oh, but—”

As she threatened to call the guards on him, he interrupted her again.

“If you don’t want me to laugh at you, buzz off. I get it; it’s probably embarrassing.”

He kept prattling on even as he faced the direction of the door.

“You don’t want to let me know you’ve been living a life that isn’t half bad, do you? You wouldn’t want anyone to find out you’re just putting on a show.”

“S-showing off?”

Vivian’s anger flared again at his words.

If he really knew what she was going through, he wouldn’t say such things.

“Yeah, showing off. You don’t want me to see, do you? I understand. I’ll just take my leave—”

“-Right, then just stay here.”

At Kyle’s words, Vivian found herself capitulating quickly without a chance to resist.

“…”

Kyle flashed a sly grin in response.

But Vivian didn’t mind.

Kyle Allen wouldn’t know.

While Kyle’s life looked difficult, Vivian believed her own life to be tougher.

A bit of teasing wouldn’t be enough to turn things completely upside down.

So, she decided to play along with whatever provocation he threw her way.

After all, that night, she had promised him she would show him the reality of her life.

She would reveal how hard it was to live.

She would let him know what it truly meant to struggle to survive.

From now on, Kyle would understand her life, and each time, she would delight in sharing that torment with him.

Every time she was punished by Lady Linne, she could enact the same punishment on Kyle.

If the maids whispered gossip about her, she could make Kyle endure something equally tough.

He’d understand her struggles that way.

Initially, her reaction to Kyle’s proposal was one of disbelief, but the more she thought, the more she considered it as an opportunity.

“Yeah, you judge for yourself whether I’m exaggerating… or if I was actually watching you.”

Vivian said to Kyle before turning to Lady Linne.

“P-please ignore Kyle Allen.”

“…”

“Just pretend he’s not here, and let’s get on with the lesson.”

.

.

.

-Clap!!

“…”

But it didn’t take long for Vivian to regret her decision.

She had to bite her teeth and suppress rising annoyance.

Since there was Kyle Allen back there, snickering every time she was struck.

…The fact that he had laughed just a moment ago and was now here doing this was infuriating.

Truly, he was acting like an Allen—petty to the core.

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