Chapter 37 - Things to Give and Things to Receive (3)

The uninvited guests had all left, and the only guests remaining in the mansion now were Joseph's people.

The only ones who could truly be called guests were the Bayezids from the North, so Alicia prepared a farewell ceremony for the day of their departure.

If she had followed her heart, she would have thrown them a grand banquet, but the Heinal Family was only just beginning to mend its broken cracks.

Joseph, who understood her circumstances, had quietly dropped a word in advance, allowing Alicia to prepare this occasion without feeling burdened.

"Vlad of Soara, squire of Bayezid, step forward before Lady Alicia."

At the call of Duncan, who was still wrapped in bandages, the boy stepped forward looking somewhat flustered.

Because he had heard nothing about this from either Joseph or Jager.

"Kneel... no, the left. Yes, kneel like that."

Following Duncan's nods, Vlad awkwardly knelt and offered his respects.

Watching the boy still looking innocent, Alicia wore a mischievous smile.

If she had followed her heart, she would have teased him a little more, but given the occasion, there was nothing she could do.

"Thank you truly, Vlad of Soara. If not for you, I would not be here as I am now."

At the small conferment ceremony that only Alicia and Duncan had discussed, the people in the hall began to murmur little by little.

"You protected my honor and even cast light upon a duel stained with fraud, so no words of thanks I offer could ever be enough. Therefore."

The price for borrowing Jager had already been paid amply.

But Alicia wanted to hand over the reward for the boy herself.

Because his role had been that dramatic, and she was that grateful.

Alicia took a neatly folded handkerchief from inside her breast.

A handkerchief of violet cloth embroidered with something in gold thread.

Even at a glance, the way it reflected the light without a single disturbance made it clear that it was a handkerchief made of extremely fine silk.

"Though you were not a knight, you were more honorable than one that day, and I wish to entrust my name to you. Vlad of Soara."

"...!"

The vassals of Heinal were aghast at the sight of Alicia handing the boy a handkerchief embroidered with her own name, but Joseph alone, listening quietly to her words, gave a slight nod.

"Hmm."

Because he had realized what Alicia intended by giving Vlad the handkerchief.

She is a clever woman.

She means to prove the bond between Bayezid and Heinal by sharing a promising prospect named Vlad.

A truly optimal struggle, expressing gratitude while also gaining an advantage.

'If that is the case.'

Joseph could have shown displeasure at the sudden ceremony arranged without his knowledge, but at least it was not a loss for him, so he allowed it to proceed.

Had he known what would happen moments later, he would naturally have stopped it.

"..."

Looking at Alicia as she tried to hand him the handkerchief, Vlad thought.

'When a noble gives you something, you must accept it. That is etiquette.'

Those words Jager had spoken were embedded deep in Vlad's mind.

'I cannot get beaten again.'

When he had first arrived at the Bayezid mansion, what trouble had he suffered for not accepting the peanuts Rutiger offered him?

So if he did not accept this handkerchief now, it would surely be discourteous to her.

And Jager might beat him again.

"Thank you, Lady Alicia."

That was why he decided to accept it.

Politely, with both hands, following the utmost etiquette he knew.

"...!"

It had happened so naturally that no one could stop him.

Looking at Vlad, who had accepted the handkerchief held in her hand with both of his own, Alicia could not hide her startled expression.

"...?"

Around the time Vlad was wondering at the aquamarine-haired woman's face growing redder and redder.

"That, if you do that. That is not how it is done."

Beside her, the old knight Duncan's face twisted sharply as he began to stammer.

"Ah, ahh. I see. He would not have known."

Even Joseph let out a sigh and realized his own mistake.

The boy who had grown up in the back alleys had almost no knowledge of the world of nobles.

"I will... use it well?"

Not understanding why everyone was acting this way over a mere handkerchief, Vlad simply rolled his eyes blankly.

A handkerchief embroidered with Lady Alicia's name.

There were two ways for a lady to give a handkerchief symbolizing her honor.

One was to tie it to the tip of a sword.

The other was to pass it from hand to hand.

Vlad had just received her name by the latter method.

※※※※

On the road leaving Deirmar and returning to Sturma.

"..."

Sitting inside the carriage, Joseph had been unable to hold back a snickering laugh for some time now.

"It was bewilderment of a sort I have not felt in a very long time. Of course, much of the fault is mine."

"... I am sorry."

Only now having learned the circumstances, Vlad had not been able to lift his head since the moment he climbed into the carriage.

Because it was a mistake for which he truly had nothing to say.

"First the peanuts last time, and now this. Why do you cause such a commotion every time you receive something?"

Riding his horse alongside the carriage, Jager began growling at Vlad as if he had been waiting for this.

"It was just... she was giving it to me."

"You were already kneeling. Why did you have to crawl all the way over and snatch it up with both hands?"

"... Because I thought a noble should not have to move?"

"Haa..."

Jager rubbed his temple and let out a great sigh atop his horse.

He could not scold him when he had not known in the first place.

And since the boy said he had done as he had been told, he had nothing to say about that either.

Only his own insides were burning.

Jager had only now realized that raising something properly required exactly this sort of pain and patience.

"From now on, whenever you receive anything from nobles, look at me first! Got it?"

"..."

At Jager's shout, Vlad only lowered his head without a word.

Receiving a handkerchief bearing a lady's name had two broad meanings.

One was honor.

The other was love.

A swordsman receiving honor would offer his scabbard, and the woman would personally tie the handkerchief to it before giving it over.

It was such a straightforward act that there were even cases where a mother gave one to her son.

But it was different when it was received from hand to hand.

That was encouragement meant only for a lover.

"The bards around here will not have to worry about earning their keep for a while."

Joseph began rubbing his tingling facial muscles with his hand, saying he had laughed longer than he had in recent days.

"Well, in any case, congratulations on attaining the position of a quasi-knight."

"A quasi-knight?"

Vlad reacted sensitively to the word contained in Joseph's remark and asked back.

"Yes, you are the man who received the honor of the noble Lady Alicia. At least in places where her name holds sway, you will be treated like a knight."

A knight.

A knight!

Vlad, who had been dejected until just now, suddenly had life return to his blue eyes as if none of that had ever happened.

"Well, she has only just become a baroness, so with her name, you will probably only be recognized around Deirmar."

"Ahh..."

So that was why he was called a quasi-knight, not a knight.

The emotions that had seemed ready to overflow cooled rapidly.

'Of course it could not happen that easily.'

Because Vlad had, unintentionally, only met extraordinary knights all this time, he would not have been able to sincerely accept it even if a knighthood had been bestowed on him now.

He knew very well that he still lacked far too much to stand in the same place as them.

"Tsk."

For no reason other than regret, Vlad fiddled with the handkerchief Alicia had given him.

The soft texture felt quite pleasant to touch.

"You may have received it by mistake when you took it, but now that you know its meaning, make absolutely sure you do not lose that handkerchief."

"What happens if I lose it?"

At Vlad's innocent question, Joseph shrugged and answered.

"You will have to bear that entirely on your own. By receiving it with both hands, you made it that sort of matter."

"... I really must never lose it, then."

Listening to Joseph's answer, Vlad buried the handkerchief Alicia had given him deep against his chest.

It was the first time in his life he had received an object he had to handle with care, so a corner of his heart began to feel strangely heavy.

"Well, the ending was absurd, but thanks to you, things went well, so I suppose we no longer need this."

Joseph took out a sheet of paper in front of Vlad and waved it.

It was a paper covered in tiny writing.

"Once again, I thank you for your efforts. Thanks to you, things did not become complicated."

"What is that?"

At Vlad's question, Joseph handed over the now useless paper.

He explained the essence of the incident while also letting the boy know what position he had occupied.

This was something like a lesson Joseph was giving Vlad, and also a reward of sorts.

"It was something prepared in case we lost the duel."

"... Ah."

Receiving the paper Joseph handed him, Vlad recalled what had happened that day.

Joseph had asked him to hold out for ten minutes.

Saying that he had something prepared.

"A... promissory note?"

Thanks to Haven, Vlad had at least learned his letters, and he haltingly read the contents written on the paper.

"I shall praise you for somehow learning to read, at least."

"Thank you."

Answering Joseph's praise, Vlad lowered his gaze to the signature field at the very bottom of the promissory note.

'Alicia?'

The person borrowing the money was Alicia Heinal.

The amount was.

'Ten thousand gold!'

Discovering an amount worthy of shock, Vlad opened his eyes wide and looked at Joseph.

His lord, sitting across from him, was smiling blackly.

"It was a means to secure her person in the event that we lost the duel. Though she did not actually borrow it, of course."

Taking the paper from Vlad, Joseph continued his explanation.

"In the event that she lost all her status, Alicia had agreed to offer herself up."

If Alicia had lost to Endre, she likely would have died.

From Endre's position, he would not have wanted to leave even the smallest sprout behind.

That was why Joseph had established a pretext to secure her person first.

And even coercive power enough to carry out that pretext.

"Was there a particular reason you had to bring Lady Alicia... away? I knew that if she lost the duel, she would lose her right of succession."

Feeling a strange sensation, as if merely saying her name would make him unnecessarily sentimental, the boy asked.

"That is true."

Joseph put the paper that had been a promissory note back inside his breast and said,

"But a pretext is like an ember hidden in ashes, and if it meets the right wind, it can be revived any number of times."

Even if Endre had become the new baron of the Heinal Family, if the existence of Alicia were in Bayezid's hands, he could not help but feel great pressure.

Because that was what a pretext was.

Because it was like an arrow that might come flying at any moment.

"I see."

The boy, having understood the world of nobles even a little, was impressed.

He felt as though he finally understood why nobles lived while fussing over pretexts.

"Then that means I might eventually fight Sir Pablo in a duel again?"

"... Is that so?"

According to what Vlad had just learned, Endre was still alive, so the ember of the succession right was still alive.

Then perhaps one day, he might have to face Pablo of Arnstein.

Vlad asked Joseph with that thought in mind, but the answer that came back was, for some reason, only a lukewarm question in return.

Around the time Vlad was puzzled by Joseph's reaction, Jager suddenly spoke from outside the window.

"Lord Joseph. Unidentified personnel are approaching us."

"What color are their clothes?"

"They are in black clothes, with blue scarves tied around their arms."

At Jager's report, Joseph nodded and ordered,

"Good. Send the signal."

"Yes."

After hearing Joseph's command, Jager sent Vordan a signal with his eyes.

FWEEEEET!

The old, fat knight took out a whistle and began blowing it with all his might.

It was such a thin, faint sound that only trained people could recognize it.

FWEEEEET!

Or someone like Vlad, whose hearing was keen, could hear it too.

"We have a response."

"Good. In the end, I used it for another purpose."

"...?"

As Vlad, unable to join the conversation, stared stupidly back and forth between the two of them.

From far away, men in black clothes began riding toward them on horseback.

As though they had been guarding the road, the men approached in an instant before anyone could do anything.

"We are a little late because we were collecting just compensation, Lord Joseph."

"You have worked hard."

The man who appeared to be their leader approached the carriage without any obstruction and handed Joseph a black bundle as he asked,

"Is this the one?"

"Yes."

"Rumors have already spread all around the area."

"Do give him some affection later, if you can."

Seeing a strange man he had never met converse so casually with Joseph, Vlad at least vaguely realized they were allies, but he could not hide his tense expression.

"..."

Vlad had only just made his own world bloom.

And to the boy, who now had new senses he had not felt before, the man before him exuded a presence more than worthy of caution.

The scars covering his face.

And the thickly wafting smell of danger.

His instincts were telling him.

The man in black was not someone he should let his guard down around.

"Will you come with us?"

"We should return a little more quickly."

"A shame. Thank you for your efforts."

"We were merely faithful to our mission as Bayezid's swords."

At the signal from the scar-covered man, the men dressed in black began moving out in a swarm with refined motions.

Their disciplined bearing made them look almost like an army.

"Hmm. It seems you were secretly looking forward to the duel, so this is unfortunate."

"Sorry?"

Around the time Vlad was distracted, watching the men who had approached like the wind and suddenly departed, Joseph opened the bundle the man in black had given him and formed a subtle smile.

"If you want to see your lady again, it seems you will have to come up with some excuse other than a duel."

"..."

Vlad sensed something cold contained in Joseph's joke.

It was the kind of sensation he had often felt in the back alleys.

Vlad carefully opened the bundle Joseph handed him.

A familiar smell came with the damp air.

"... I suppose so."

Inside the black bundle the boy opened was the world of nobles.

Cold.

Cruel.

And also a world of those who showed no forgiveness.

Endre, the man who had made a fool of Bayezid.