Chapter 115.
“…… punishment?”
“Yeah.”
Derrick said with a careless nod.
“Doesn’t leaving training without permission not suffice to sadly speak ill of you?”
“Tell me and I’ll try to reflect what you want.” I looked at him in surprise.
“……… Since when do you care what I say?”
Of course, if it really was Penelope, then “Kill them at once!” It might have been a farce. But I’m not going to do it. An anecdote that I don’t know when I’ll repeat. Plus today was just using it as an excuse to create an opportunity.
“Does my opinion matter? Leave it.”
“…… What?”
“What’s the big deal about a little gossip. I have a bad reputation to begin with.”
Shrugging in reply, Derrick’s expression stiffened. He was silent for a moment and opened his mouth heavily.
“…… Last I heard, you scooped up these Mark guys.”
“Yeah. I heard.”
I nodded roughly. But it’s tempting, he added in a deadpan voice.
“The Knights’ attitudes haven’t changed, if you must. Which, of course, explains my misbehavior.”
Derrick closed his mouth again. At that moment, there was an illusion that the blue eyes directed at me seemed to shake. It wouldn’t, though. I don’t care, straight to the purpose.” It doesn’t matter if the knights are punished. On the contrary, I have something to ask of you.”
“…… What is it?”
“Please hire a sword master for Ikris as well.”
“What?”
Possibly unexpected words carved a deep goal between his eyebrows.
“A slave cannot become a knight. You should know that level as well.”
“Although he can’t become a full-fledged knight, he’s nominally my escort knight, so I can’t let him fall behind in training.”
“Yes, he is your escort.”
Click.
He suddenly put down the teacup in his hand.
“I think and you still need to talk about the treatment of that slave.”
“What …… story?”
“Now stop joking around and pick your official escort knight and stay with it.”
“…… What?”
“A few guys with good strength were selected from the first division .”
I was instantly dumbfounded by the reversed topic.
“In the words of the teacher who asked to be labeled as Ikris, what kind of escort …… is there all of a sudden?”
Derrick spoke without a care in the world, as if informing of an already established fact.
“I’ll choose some for you through the deacon, guys you’ll like when you see them …….”
“Wait a minute. Wait a minute, Little Duke.”
I immediately recovered and blocked his words.” Are you kidding me? There’s only one Ikris in my escort company.” He looked to see if I was in a bad mood when I stopped talking and made a very unpleasant face. He said : “I think a lot of reward was given than the help you got from the slaves.”
“What reward?”
He said:Â “You wore it, didn’t you acquiesce?”
I lost what I was going to say and looked at the dragging guy. It was a bit of a shock that my desperate attempt to kill Ikris in order to survive looked like playing house to him. In the end, I’m going to use Ikris as a guard, isn’t it true that I said I didn’t even eat the seeds in the first place. Looking at the guarded me, Derrick’s voice eased a lot.
“It’s not about kicking you out of the dukedom then. Keep your distance from that slave.”
“In the Knights, you and that slave have bad eyes and rumors. So, isn’t the same thing happening today?”
“No. In the Order, Ikris is treated poorly, and the same thing happened today, young duke.”
I skipped over his responsibilities. Derrick paused and looked toward me with icy eyes.
“Slaves are everywhere.”
“But also my only escorting knight.”
“Penelope Eckhardt!”
The way I bluntly talked back, Derrick coldly called the name. It was a warning. But I didn’t mind and smiled to myself.
“How ridiculous it looks when a male daughter’s escort doesn’t even have a master. Naturally, that master wouldn’t find it funny either, would he.”
“So didn’t you say you were arranging for new escort knights?”
“Did they say they wanted to be my guards?”
“Or am I not listening to what you’re saying to me within the family right now?”
In other words, if there is too much of a difference in status, the escort knight and the male daughter’s yanbun will be wandering around, defending him, and even replacing the escort knight. Whether he noticed or not, Derrick’s jaw tensed.
“You ……”
Did he hold his tongue, or was there something else that caused his lips to go soft multiple times. After a moment, he made a deep sound, as if locked in place.” …… It’s not like that, Penelope.” The clenched teeth leaked out an unexpected reply.
“It’s not like that …… after the trial, I just thought you needed multiple escort knights as well.”
“You also have the potential to be a target for Ellen’s backstory…”
I managed to catch the guy’s expression that almost twisted as he spoke. When was the time for the nobles to open the sky dome of the palace of stone naked with a chaotic shot, so why are they making such a judgment now. If I was really Penelope, I would have died when I met the assassin.” Penelope, who had no escort and only a maid, was destined to die multiple times in the hunting competition in the first place.
“…… Then please do as I say.”
I suppressed the feelings that welled up and demanded again.” I don’t need to ignore my knights or anything like that.”
“If you’re so worried about me, please label Ikris a master swordsman and make him a good guard, not just a guard by name.”
“Would you do that?”
Derrick never rejected my words like a knife like he used to. Because I’ve been pleading for the terrible hospitality I’ve received at the mansion in the meantime, including today. I, who was always treated as if I had a love affair with things by the downright little Duke, had been treated unfairly lately, though without incident.
I have not asked to improve it additionally. To prepare for times like today when I asked for what I really needed.
Derrick sighed deeply after a long time and allowed it with great difficulty.” …… I know.”
Relief. At the same time, having to use the cold shoulder of the hired help that he had received during this time, the situation felt incredibly miserable.
“But there’s something I need to know. You can’t label the knights in the family as mentors like the other apprentice knights.”
It was then that Derrick pointed out the problem in a complex-looking voice.
“Now, even if it’s a slave attributed to the Empire, this guy is from a defeated country. It’s against Imperial law to teach an enemy swordplay.”
“Then ……”
“If someone shoots at the Praetorian Guard, it could lead to treason.”
“Treason?”
It was snowing heavily. Because it was the unexpected wall of reality.
“…How was it in the game?”
I recalled. It didn’t come out in detail, but in the game, the Duke brought Ikris to take charge.
“Risking that kind of high to buy his ability?” …… mouth turned bitter. If the Duke of the game team had brought him, he might have had an easier time practicing swordsmanship than he does now.
But I didn’t regret saving him. I know very well how valuable the position of the “ray of light” teeth saved from the window of the royal palace.” …… So the right person is wanted from the outside.” Suddenly Derrick’s voice awakened a momentary reverie.
“First things first, make it satisfactory.”
“…Thank you, young Duke.”
I was late in expressing my gratitude. I didn’t realize it was such a tricky process, so I was surprised that this guy would help me like this.
I’ve achieved what I wanted. Thanks to your blessing, it’s possible to hang on to an awkward smile or corner of the mouth in order to show appreciation.
At that moment, the blue eyes that met me twitched slightly. At the same time, on top of his head, vermillion light flashed.
“Uh……”
Dumbfounded, he looked up at it.
“Beep, beep″.”
Somewhere, a crisp sound broke the silence. Jerking my head around, the true pink bird was once again wary of me, flapping its wings.
The bird cocked its head from side to side like an owl. Each time this happened, the jewel case was colorful and sparkling.
“Why don’t you take a closer look?”
“Is …… okay?”
The voice I suddenly heard shifted my eyes with a blank expression.
“Not wary. It’s strange you’re the same color as me, isn’t it.”
“Know me …… well?”
Startled and rhetorical, he shook his head. I turned my eyes back to the bird.
Beep, beep, beep.
Didn’t that sound like an alert? The bird that flapped its wings again seemed to be pouting, telling him to watch himself.
There was the window frame of the cage, right in front of the sofa for reception. Curious about what the amazing bird just looked like, I didn’t say no, but got up from my seat and walked over to the cage.
“Beep, beep″.”
Seeing me approaching, the bird made a crisp sound and shook its head chaotically from side to side. Derrick’s was right, it really did seem to confuse me about the similarity between my fur color and my hair color.
“In the Duchy of Yetta, the Frappopinu is considered to be the messenger bird of the gods…”
At that moment, a dry voice came from behind. Without realizing it, Derrick, who had followed me to my feet, cackled and stood next to me.” Is the bird’s name Flabopinho?”
“Yeah.”
I suddenly had a whimsical thought. It was obviously the first time I’d seen the bird, and it seemed like a name I’d heard somewhere.” Where did you hear that ……?” Contemplating.
“It turns out that it’s considered a national treasure in the Duchy of Yetta, and it’s said that the king offered one as a tribute in honor of the hunting competition.”
“Ah.”
Then there was a scene that flashed across his mind in Derrick’s words. The rare animals he caught in the hunting competition. I suddenly remember seeing something pink dangling between the prey.
“So this is ……”
It was only listed on the leaderboard. The fact of catching something so rare was new and was glancing at him.
“This bird is hermaphroditic and lays eggs only once in its life.” Probably noticing that I was interested in the bird, he silently added a description of the bird.
“In which the young are unborn, the color becomes the same as the eye color.”
“The eyes ……?”
I looked at his words and at the bird’s eyes. Splendid jeweled cases reflecting light on all sides. As if they were all encrusted with almonds, both heterogeneous and magical.” Then it becomes a jewel of great value.”
“That Popinue diamond you wanted for your birthday last year.”