A Knight Who Protects His Enemies

Splosh!

The water that Vivian spat out completely soaked my arm.

At this point, no food was coming up anymore. All that flowed out was just charcoal-infused water.

In fact, she had started to vomit only water after a few bites, probably because she wasn’t eating enough.

This was already the twenty-second time. But it still didn’t feel like enough.

Looking at Vivian as she spat out water, I reached out to the maids behind me.

The maids trembled as they handed over another glass of the watered-down charcoal.

Vivian was already at her limits.

It had been a while since her fragile body had completely leaned against me.

She even closed her eyes as if the dizziness was unbearable.

Her breathing was shallow and weak, but seemed somewhat easier than before, as if it could stop at any moment.

“Drink more.”

I made her drink even though I could see how miserable she was.

In her exhausted state, she barely reacted to what I said, as if she was drifting in and out of consciousness.

“…”

I laid Vivian down on my arm.

I gently poured water into her mouth.

She automatically started to swallow little by little.

The hall floor was covered with dirty rags soaked in black water.

The maids hurriedly chased off the onlookers, while some were grinding new charcoal nearby.

The charcoal I had prepared was already gone, all drunk up by Vivian.

But thankfully, there was now more than enough water mixed with the charcoal ready to go.

“Cough! Cough!”

Then Vivian couldn’t swallow it down and started coughing.

I propped her up and patted her back.

The cup I was trying to feed her tipped over and spilled onto the floor.

“…”

As she coughed, she slumped down again.

I could instinctively sense that she had hit her limit.

It seemed like any further strain would be too much for her body.

I spoke to the maids.

“Make it thicker with the charcoal, and prepare the last glass. This time, she won’t throw it up.”

They hurriedly prepared a much darker concoction and handed it over.

I had to hope this last glass would actually help her.

I shook Vivian to wake her up.

“Rondore, get a grip.”

Her eyelids, barely lifting, revealed her ruby-red eyes looking at me.

“It’s the last one. Just drink this and then sleep.”

“…”

-Nod.

Vivian nodded again in agreement.

I brought the cup to her lips.

She grimaced a bit at the gritty texture of the charcoal but managed to drink it all the way to the bottom.

Once she swallowed the last sip, she looked back at me.

Her expression seemed to ask if this was really the end.

“…”

I nodded at her.

With that, her body released all its strength.

She completely lost consciousness and went limp.

“…You did well.”

I whispered to her.

Immediately afterward, I slid my arms under her and lifted her up.

“Ugh…”

She was heavier than I expected.

No, I was weaker than I thought.

I had taken pride in my bigger frame, but now I realized I needed to hit the gym.

“W-We can do it!”

The maids rushed to me, speaking quickly.

I must not have looked trustworthy being so short.

But I shook my head.

In my eyes, they didn’t seem trustworthy at all.

These were the same maids who hadn’t been able to do anything until the lord had been poisoned. They were slow to act even afterward.

If I were the lord, none of these maids would escape punishment.

…Moreover, I thought there could be a traitor among them.

I couldn’t leave Vivian in the hands of those maids.

At the moment I decided to stand by Vivian, the scenery around me started to look different.

Was this what Vivian felt all this time?

Everyone’s true intentions appeared grim. It would have been easier if they just showed outright hate like they did to me, but their feigned concern made it all the more uncomfortable.

As I said, war had begun.

I didn’t know who had targeted Vivian, but there were definitely people who wouldn’t give up just because their assassination attempt had failed.

I planned to stay by her side until she regained consciousness.

During that time, there was a chance someone could try something while I was there.

It wouldn’t change a thing having me around, but still, my presence was more comforting than not being there.

“Clean this up.”

Thus, I commanded those untrustworthy maids before moving on.

A few hesitantly followed me.

I didn’t even bother about them.

Vivian’s room was on the third floor.

It took quite some effort to move her.

When I finally laid her on the bed, sweat was dripping down my forehead.

****

Vivian was running away.

“Hah…! Hah…!”

I couldn’t tell who she was fleeing from.

But she instinctively knew that standing still would mean death.

She pushed through the bushes and sprinted forward.

In the distance, she could see her father, mother, and brother’s backs.

“Take me with you!!”

Vivian shouted at them.

But no one looked back at her.

“I’m here too!!”

She was doing her best, yet her family kept moving away.

Something grabbed her body, slowing her down. The frustration was unbearable.

-Thud!

At that moment, something chasing her grabbed her shoulder.

Frozen in fear, Vivian couldn’t even scream.

When she looked back, there stood Baelor.

“Your absence would be a favor to Rondore. You cannot be my lord.”

He spoke coldly.

-Thud!

Then someone else appeared beside her.

It was her uncle, Robert Rondore.

“Vivian. Hand over your position. Rondore belongs to me.”

-Swish!

The treasurer, Brinden, joined in, clicking his tongue while flashing a stubborn smile.

“Lady Vivian, an incompetent lord is of no use to Roktana. If you hand over your position… Count Korod would deliver a gold coin to me. I’m sure you understand my choice.”

Next was her mentor, Lady Linne.

“Lady Vivian, grow according to my tastes. I’ll use you as my puppet.”

The spy, Nesto, then piped in.

“Please, stay useless. There’s so much to gain from behind the scenes.”

A maid named Sena chimed in.

“Eat more, Lady Vivian. It’s laced with poison.”

Surrounded by these people, Vivian’s heart raced wildly.

“No… No…”

Their words were so cruel that she wanted to flee, but her body was frozen, unable to move.

As the abuse from her retainers intensified, they poured out even more merciless and horrible comments that snatched away any hope.

She tried to block her ears, but it was of no use.

Their voices grotesquely intertwined and pierced into her mind.

“Who’s pledging loyalty to that stuttering idiot?”

“I can’t stand the sight of you presuming to be above us.”

“You were just lucky to be born; you’ve accomplished nothing.”

“Just disappear. That’s for everyone’s sake.”

She hated her family for leaving her among such people.

Someone, please save me.

She prayed.

Someone, please let me live.

Trying to drown out the horrific voices echoing in her head, she repeated her plea in her mind hundreds of times.

Anyone… Please… Anyone.

-Grab!

At that moment, someone pulled her arm.

Vivian suppressed the urge to scream and tightly shut her eyes.

But nothing happened.

Instead, an incomprehensible calm enveloped the surroundings in an instant.

Baelor’s voice, Brinden’s, Lady Linne’s, Nesto’s, her uncle’s, the maids, the servants, the soldiers, the knights… all vanished into silence.

In that silence, Vivian opened her eyes and looked at her wrist.

Someone was still holding her there.

Following that arm, Vivian lifted her gaze.

It was Kyle Allen, the enemy she should have been against.

“…”

He said nothing.

He just stood there, unmoving.

In that moment of strange peace, Vivian felt her heart start to settle.

“……Ah.”

That was the moment she realized this was all just a dream.

Her body became heavy as reality came rushing back in.

She felt her body soaked in cold sweat, aching as if someone had crushed her.

Remembering what had happened during the day, the reality that someone had attempted to poison her weighed down on her.

Vivian struggled to lift her eyes, which felt so heavy.

She could see the moonlight streaming in from the dark window.

It felt as though she had been unconscious all day. She sat there dazed, trying to come to terms with the elapsed time.

At that moment, she heard a gentle snore.

Her heart raced, but her body was too weak to react.

She slowly turned her head to see who was there with her.

It was Kyle Allen.

He was sleeping soundly with his head resting on her wrist.

“…”

His black hair brushed against her hand. Vivian wanted to pull it away, but she lacked the strength to do so and stayed still.

…Actually, she wasn’t sure if she even wanted to pull it away. At that moment, he didn’t seem that unpleasant at all.

It was funny.

Just earlier that day, she had been teetering on the brink of death.

Her vision had been spinning out of control, her stomach in endless turmoil, her hands and feet cold, and her body had shrunk against her will.

It felt miraculous that she was able to open her eyes again.

She was terrified of who might have done this to her. Suspicion and fear tormented her.

Whether it was her retainers, the maids, or someone else entirely, someone had tried to kill her.

Vivian realized the monster that had been hiding had now revealed itself.

But absurdly, one person stood out from the list of suspects.

That would be the one she hated the most, Kyle Allen, the eldest son of the Allen family.

They had always been hostile to each other, provoking and tormenting each other, yet she realized he was the only one who hadn’t tried to poison her.

‘If you die here… that’d just be too boring.’

What a malicious remark.

Was he hoping to see her wish for a little more suffering?

She appreciated that he helped, but he was still an enemy.

But how was this even happening?

How could the person she hated the most, be the one she suspected the least?

This paradoxical trust stemming from their animosity was just too bizarre.

It felt safer to embrace the openly displayed hate than to deal with someone else’s hypocritical smile.

At the very least, Kyle Allen wore no mask.

To trust those she shouldn’t have and to trust someone who should be her enemy was a strange twist of fate.

If she’d had even a little more strength, Vivian would have laughed at herself for this.

Yet, right now it was also true that she felt safer with Kyle by her side.

Was that why her mother had tried to keep him by her side as a guard?

Vivian did not know.

The moment of sleep had come.

Normally, she would feel lonely and a little afraid when falling asleep, having always struggled with it.

But tonight, she could close her eyes comfortably, feeling as though she was safe.

In the ensuing sleep, she found no nightmares.

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