NOVEL NEXT Chapter 16
Shione was already getting on my nerves by telling me to leave yesterday.
Today, I had to hustle for my journey to the Feiosha Marquis Family that would take place tomorrow.
After finishing my morning jog, I began asking Shione about it.
“I need to know something in order to help you.”
Ever since she chased me away yesterday, she had been avoiding conversation with me like the plague, leaving me with a mountain of curiosities.
“Could you tell me about tomorrow’s events?”
“Didn’t I just say nothing yesterday?”
“After discussing only about your fiancé, you kicked me out of my room and avoided talking to me the whole day.”
“Ahem.”
See? She’s feeling a bit guilty, hence the cough.
Please don’t keep me in suspense and just spill the beans already.
After all, it’s not just about any ol’ business; we’re heading out from the Shianella Count’s estate to the Feiosha Marquis Family!
For me, stuck in this world reminiscent of a dungeon before its ruin, it’s my first journey outside a safe territory.
I was filled with expectations, worries, and curiosity.
“Literally, we’re leaving for the Feiosha Marquis Family tomorrow. It’ll take quite some time to get there from this outer area of the western kingdom to their central south. We’ll have plenty to prepare.”
“Isn’t there any magic like teleportation we could use?”
“Unfortunately, Shianella Count’s estate doesn’t have enough manpower to maintain and activate a teleportation circle. We’ll have to travel by carriage.”
“…I see.”
So the Shianella Count’s estate was located in the western part of the kingdom. Moreover, Shione’s hidden fiancé was waiting for us in the south.
I held back a sigh that was about to escape in front of my lord.
“How long do you think it will take to travel from here to the Feiosha Marquis Family?”
“Probably about two weeks by carriage. If we stop at villages along the way to buy necessities and rest for a day here and there, it will take even longer.”
“…That’s a long journey.”
“Nothing can be done about it, so just accept it.”
“Didn’t you struggle with it a lot yesterday as well?”
“I’ve already let it all go…”
“…I see.”
Shione seems to have given up.
Her sorrowful little eye-smile looked quite pitiful.
But even if Shione stopped denying reality, that didn’t mean I had to stop either.
‘It’s not like they’ve dug a highway through the forest.’
This world wasn’t all that advanced either.
It means I’d have to bounce around in a bumpy carriage for two weeks.
I was already thinking that the jolting of the carriage was going to make my backside sore.
If only the Shianella family was renowned for its magic instead of swords, it’d be great.
Then instead of a carriage, we could just blink and the torturous journey would be over with a teleport spell.
I recalled the times I rode in a carriage in the dungeon.
‘That was hell.’
It was when I was correcting the world’s history that was on the verge of ruin, facing a scenario dungeon.
To find the hidden boss of the dungeon, I rode in a carriage for three days straight.
Every time the wheels hit a rock, it was uncomfortable beyond belief.
And there were monsters that would randomly appear, targeting horses and hunters, driving me crazy.
Since then, carriages have been a source of bad memories.
“Your expression isn’t great.”
“It’s nothing. Please don’t mind it.”
“Hmm, got it.”
With that, Shione stood still for a moment, then started shaking her head side to side.
“Are you crazy…?”
At Shione’s sudden behavior, words popped out in the common language of the continent, and even Korean slipped from my mouth.
“What do you mean ‘crazy’?”
“I didn’t say anything… Did you misunderstand?”
“Oh? Then it’s fine. By the way, with your short hair, it’s nice for wiping off sweat. I like it.”
Shione said this while shaking her head humorously to brush off her sweat.
Usually, I’d find it somewhat cute, but since it was splattering me with sweat, it wasn’t that cute.
“Shione, um…”
“What?”
“…It might not be good to shake your head like that when you’re with others.”
“…”
As a noble, that’s actually a pretty embarrassing action to show in public.
Only then did Shione stop her innocent smile and lowered her head.
After a moment in that position shaking her head, she looked up.
Her cheeks were slightly flushed; it must’ve been quite embarrassing.
“Le, let’s hurry back!”
Without even making eye contact, she hastened her steps, and I followed her silently.
As we were moving through the brief silence, Shione finally stopped and glanced back at me.
“You should return separately to find the head servant afterward.”
“Me? The head servant?”
“Yeah.”
“Did you mean ‘the head servant’ incorrectly?”
Shione shook her head.
“You’ll now need to dress as my personal attendant, so you ought to wear attendant clothes instead of servant’s garb.”
“…Personal attendant? You can’t be serious.”
“I heard it loud and clear, so don’t ask again.”
“But to be a personal attendant for you, given my status…”
…The status of a slave is way too lavish for that position.
I wouldn’t be a mere cleaner or a laborer, but in a noble post alongside my lord.
Usually, someone uneducated like a slave wouldn’t be in such a position.
“Since I finished discussing it with my mother yesterday, just do as you’re told.”
“…”
So it seems that the lord discussed this with her family and set this position for me.
Should I be thankful for that, or just acknowledge how impressive it is?
In my mix of thoughts, I couldn’t help but chuckle softly.
“Understood.”
“Yeah, from now on… I’ll be relying on you, Ray.”
“I’ll do my best to repay your trust.”
*
After fixing my collar, Shione headed back to her cozy room.
This time, she didn’t run like earlier; instead, she walked quietly humming a tune.
I continued to follow her.
Before long, Shione stopped humming and turned to look at me with a puzzled expression.
“…Why are you still following instead of going to the head servant?”
“Isn’t it a bit early?”
“Oh.”
Shione’s eyes began to flutter.
“I’ll go find the head servant separately when he’s up. I’ll be right back.”
“Oh, got it.”
Her cheeks turning red, Shione quickly turned away and hurried into her room.
Whatever the reason, I decided to slowly head to her room as well.
Sure enough, I could see her hiding under the blanket.
What on earth is this, really?
*
I checked my new clothes again.
The attendant uniform definitely felt comfortable and lighter than before, thanks to its good quality, and unlike the slightly baggy servant outfit, it resembled a more stylish suit.
And the biggest feature was the letters of Shianella’s alphabet on the chest pocket.
It may seem trivial, but it made me feel a sense of belonging to the Shianella family.
While this was happening, I noticed Shione watching me while munching on an apple.
“Shall I peel you another one?”
“…One is enough. By the way, that suit really suits you.”
“Thank you.”
I nodded slightly, and she pushed the chair back and got up.
As she chewed on a leftover piece of apple, she wiped her hands with a handkerchief and said,
“Let’s head to the training area.”
“Isn’t it a bit earlier than usual?”
“My mother said she would send Lady Diolia as protection, so I’m thinking of chatting a bit. Also, even though the guard is Lady Diolia, one can never be too cautious, so I should at least get some defensive armor and weapons for my own protection, right?”
“I will follow.”
I recalled how Lady Diolia looked while training with Siabel before.
With skills like that, she should be able to handle even a bandit or a decent monster without any problem.
The fear of the unknown dangers felt a bit lighter.
Shione and I headed straight to the training area.
If nothing else, Lady Diolia would probably be stretching by herself at this time.
And indeed.
“Over there.”
As soon as we entered the training area, we saw Lady Diolia warming up smoothly.
Just as Lady Diolia was finishing her stretching, Shione approached her to strike up a conversation.
“Lady Diolia.”
“Oh, Princess Shione. Welcome.”
Lady Diolia greeted Shione with a warm smile.
I caught the first part of their conversation, but there didn’t seem to be anything out of the ordinary; they were just exchanging pleasantries and discussing tomorrow’s events.
Based on the atmosphere, I didn’t think there was a place for me to interject, so I chose to observe the soldiers and knights training in the area.
Sure enough, while there were some men among the ordinary soldiers, I couldn’t find a single man among the knights.
In this world, men had been unable to accept mana and had fallen behind.
Since they couldn’t refine their bodies with mana and evolve to the level where they could embed mana into their swords for various skills, it was an unavoidable situation.
While I was absentmindedly gazing around the training area, Shione tugged at my clothes.
“What are you staring at? Hurry up and come.”
“Understood.”
I followed her and arrived in front of a storage room.
Lady Diolia, who arrived before us, opened the storage door.
“Unlike Siabel and Sion, you probably don’t have a weapon, Princess Shione. Choose one here.”
“Thanks.”
“Since these are properties of the Shianella family, please feel free to choose without hesitation.”
After Shione entered the storage room, Lady Diolia’s gaze naturally shifted toward me.
“Seeing your outfit, it seems you’ve indeed become Princess Shione’s attendant. Congratulations.”
“Thank you.”
Lady Diolia’s eyes were drawn to the Shianella logo on my chest pocket.
“From now on, remember that every action you take will reflect on the name of Shianella.”
“…I will keep that in mind.”
Her words carried quite the weight, much like before, so I lowered my head submissively.
“Even as an attendant, you’re skilled with a bow, so do go in and pick out basic gear with Princess Shione.”
“Is that really alright?”
“Of course. But just to make it clear, should something happen when my gaze isn’t on Princess Shione, you’ll obviously need to protect her.”
“…That goes without saying.”
“Good. Now let’s get going.”
With that, I passed Lady Diolia and stepped into the storage room.
It felt a bit dusty, but this wasn’t about to become a problem.
I walked over to Shione, who was inspecting the bows.
“Have you chosen one?”
“Not yet. There are so many types, it’s quite overwhelming.”
“Do you need help?”
“Thanks, but just your intentions are enough. You should choose your weapon too.”
“Understood.”
Shione went back to selecting her bow, and I began to look for mine.
In here, bows could be classified as either crossbows or bare bows.
Crossbows were out of the question.
So, I began examining the bare bows.
How great it would be if there were modern mechanical bows! But of course, such a thing wouldn’t exist in this world.
I was stuck with nothing but bare wooden bows.
The bows available were either flat bows with flat limbs or recurve bows with tips that curved forward.
From among the recurve bows I had used the most, I selected one that seemed decent enough.
“This one should be suitable.”
All the others either had loose strings and insufficient tension or were too great for my current physique.
This was the optimal bow for me right now.
Not long ago, I was used to shooting bows that I couldn’t even buy with money while hunting monsters…
Now here I was, stuck contemplating this shabby bow.
What a world of nonsense this has turned out to be.
I let out a small sigh and checked the swords.
“I need a secondary weapon for self-defense…”
So, I started searching for a suitable sword for close combat.
I can’t just hit an enemy with a bow when they get too close.
For an archer, a secondary weapon is essential.
I found a sword that looked promising.
The blade measured about 50 cm, and the grip was around 20 cm.
In total, it was about 70 cm long, made to fit perfectly in my hand.
When I pulled it out to inspect the blade, it looked to be in decent condition, so I believed this would be a suitable choice for my backup weapon.
After selecting my gear, I searched for Shione.
She was standing by the armor section, presumably trying to decide on one for herself.
I approached her with the sword in hand.
“Are you looking at armor?”
“Yes, but I’m not sure which one is good.”
“A leather armor reinforced with metal on the chest is the best for archers. These over here seem the most suitable.”
“So you’re knowledgeable about armor aside from just bows?”
“I was supposed to be sold as a male knight once, so I received training on weapons along with knowledge on armor to fit the knightly appearance.”
“…I see.”
While saying that, Shione quietly examined the armor, but then her attention shifted to the sword I was holding.
“What’s that sword?”
“It’s a backup weapon. I can’t just hit the enemy with my bow when they get too close.”
“Hmm, can you actually handle a sword?”
“I’m not too shabby with it compared to a bow. Would you like me to show you?”
It seems that “not stumbling” means I’m quite capable with the sword.
Among the hunters in a population of 700 million, it’s nearly impossible to stay within the top 150 with just one weapon.
Everyone has their main weapon but is proficient with backup ones, and for me, this sword serves that purpose.
“I’d like to see how well you can use it.”
“Then… Please allow me a moment.”
Swoosh.
The cold blade of the curved single-edged sword slipped from the scabbard.
As I gazed at the blade, my mind calmed.
I softly touched the handle, spun it around, and quickly regained my composure, unleashing a series of graceful spins with the sword freely in my grasp.
‘It’s been a while.’
I used to spin a sword like this out of boredom in the dungeons.
I spun it around with flair, and as I practiced, I became more adept at handling it.
Swish! Swoosh…
The sword danced in my hand before it swiftly returned to the scabbard.
Shione stared at me, alternating her gaze between the now-sheathed sword and me, her mouth slightly agape.
“…I hope that sword isn’t pointed toward me.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
She asked to see, and now she’s spouting nonsense.
I couldn’t suppress the smirk that formed at her amusing reaction.
“On the contrary, I’ll always guard you with this sword.”
“Um, what?”
“I’ll always look after you, Princess Shione.”
“Uh, uh….”
“…You look a bit pale. Are you alright?”
“Um, Lady Diolia! I could use some help!”
And like that, whether in the storage room or after returning to the room, Shione has been avoiding eye contact with me all day long.
This has happened yesterday and today too. What on earth is going on with her?