SALP Chapter 14

"Rest well, Lanthe sis. Take a bath right away so you don't catch cold."

When they entered the castle, Nina hugged the cookies she'd received as gifts at the square and laughed. Her excited expression, saying these were her father's favorite cookies, already looked like it was running home.

"Thanks for taking me somewhere fun today. See you tomorrow, Nina."

Lanthe was also hugging a fruit that looked like a plump yellow tree root. It had been refreshingly sweet. Even though she'd eaten her fill at the square, the fragrant sweetness wafting up made her mouth water.

Normally the sun would be sinking low, but the overcast day was already dim. The pouring rain had eased at some point into a fine drizzle scattering like pale dust.

The people who'd gathered at the square had seemed free. They'd shared opinions freely about the Allied Kingdoms' rulers. Even with the daughter of a king who belonged to the Allied Kingdoms present.

They'd greeted the soldiers stationed everywhere cheerfully. As if they'd never experienced being sacrificed to their rulers' violence.

"Let me go!"

Before she could linger long in thought, a child's sharp scream came from the direction of the gate.

"Let this go! Waaah!"

Lanthe's heart lurched—she spun toward the noise.

A young boy was being dragged in by soldiers. A child who looked around ten years old was caught by soldiers with an iron chain wrapped around his wrist, like a hunted beast. She wondered if he was from a foreign tribe they were in conflict with, but the child had similar hair, eyes, and skin color to other Hermeans.

"Lock him in solitary."

The man at the head of the soldiers gave the order and left the formation.

He had long black hair, black eyes, and pale skin that seemed to recreate exactly the "demons of the outside world" she'd heard about from villagers, drawing the eye.

He crossed in front of her with quick steps.

Lanthe instinctively shrank back and stepped aside.

"Where's the lord?"

The man stopped someone at the passage leading to the training yard inside the courtyard and asked.

The lord? Vigo?

Lanthe also reflexively looked toward the passage. The man with black eyes stood where the bonfire burned brightly. She was under a dark tree. He couldn't see her.

"What is it, Warner?"

Vigo appeared from beyond the building's corner. Wearing a sword at his waist and even leather armor, accompanied by an unfamiliar middle-aged man who didn't seem to be his subordinate.

"We found Herg's brat in Sebaem. We're bringing him in now."

Ah, so that's Commander Warner...

"You finally caught him."

Lanthe also looked where the two men's gazes directed. The scene of the child with shackles being dragged away crying and struggling.

"Didn't get far."

A dry voice, and.

"Yes. He seems to have suffered quite a bit with fewer people helping him escape."

"Was this the third time?"

"He's a quick one. The biggest problem was all the people who hid and helped the child because he was young."

"Cut off his legs."

Words that made her doubt her ears.

"Then he won't run away."

Flustered, she unconsciously checked Rix's expression. Had his lord's statement sounded shocking to him too? But he just blinked at Lanthe without particular disturbance.

It must be a bad joke...?

But an unexpected person showed signs of being flustered.

Warner—the very one who'd caught the child and made the report.

"But... the monastery will make a fuss."

"The Rialta Monastery? Afraid of fanatics who can't read the room?"

Vigo frowned and roughly swept his hair back with a harsh motion.

"Tell them to come find me if they have complaints. If I can't dispose of even one rat fouling my land as I please, I should be called a saint instead of a lord. Right?"

"...Understood. I'll handle it."

In the end, Warner also nodded without further objection and turned away.

Watching him head in the direction the child had been dragged, Lanthe felt restless for no reason.

What wrong had that child committed to deserve such a terrible thing? It's a joke, right? Some jargon that only they understand.

No. Was the child even in the wrong to begin with? This is a world that abuses the innocent...

"What, Rix?"

The very next moment, Vigo's voice directed toward them was unexpected. No, even if she was one thing, wasn't it stranger that Rix, who was considerably larger than Vigo, hadn't been noticed?

Lanthe shrank back hesitantly and hid behind Rix, even though she'd committed no crime.

"Where did you leave Lanthe..."

Vigo, who'd been asking with a furrowed brow, suddenly slowed his steps and lifted the corners of his mouth. Hmm, he narrowed his eyes and shot out an ominous energy like light.

Caught.

"You two. Why are you coming from that direction?"

He moved his index finger back and forth as he questioned. Then Rix, with his neck completely scrunched, was pulled toward him as if controlled by strings. She, who'd been hiding behind his back, naturally stuck close like a shadow and was dragged along.

"Explain."

Vigo glanced at Lanthe lightly, then stared at Rix. His eyes looking up crookedly were quiet. Yet Rix coughed as if hit by a cold wind and opened his mouth.

"Well, why we're coming from this direction is because—"

Wow. He can curse with his eyes.

How rotten must a person's character have gotten for that to be possible.

"We went out for a bit."

Lanthe belatedly lifted her chin and straightened her chest.

"Out?"

Vigo raised one eyebrow slightly.

"Was it not allowed? You should've told me in advance."

When she shot back tartly, Rix quickly interjected as if wanting to lighten the mood.

"Actually, Nina wanted to take Miss Lanthe to Aden Square, so we went for a quick visit. You know, that 'philosophy gathering' or whatever where lots of young ladies attend. They say it's a very light and wholesome gathering."

Rix putting Nina's name up front like a shield—the man looked like a bear hiding behind a squirrel.

"Ah."

In any case, the poison-like energy in Vigo's eyes eased slightly as if satisfied.

"Philosophy gathering's good."

This time he looked Lanthe up and down.

His companion also looked her over.

A guest, perhaps? His clothing had a unique style and he wore more gold ornaments than Vigo. Setting aside his mature age, he seemed high in status. Definitely not Vigo's subordinate. Probably quite an important guest.

And somehow his atmosphere looked familiar, catching her attention. Like the bright-eyed young people she'd seen at the square, his eyes also sparkled.

"Why do you look like that?"

"What's wrong with how I look?"

She knew well enough what she looked like in her fluffy fur outfit, soaked through.

"I thought you two went swimming or something. You went out in this weather wearing that?"

"If you don't like how I'm dressed, why don't you take the trouble to pick things out in advance yourself?"

Lanthe looked into the distance and answered bluntly.

"Mm. Should I?"

A suspicious hint of amusement mixed into his answer.

"Sure. While you're at it, it'd be great if you'd do the laundry and ironing too."

"Take it off."

What kind of nonsense is this, she thought, glancing at him—and swallowed her breath at the sight of him casually removing his coat.

"No, never mind. I'm going inside soon anyway."

She'd said it intending to fluster him for once, but found herself in difficulty again.

It felt like everyone in the castle was watching them. Someone even whistled mischievously.

Besides, the black shirt Vigo wore under his coat didn't look warm at all. Whether it looked thicker than expected because he wore undershirts or because his torso was thick, she couldn't be certain. Her night vision was poor, and when she'd seen his half-naked body last night, the room had been dark...

"Should I take it off for you?"

Vigo held out his coat and became serious.

"This is too big, it's like a blanket..."

Unable to help it, she removed the fur coat and exchanged it for his. Handing off the fruit she'd been holding became Rix's responsibility.

The coat she put on while grumbling was leather without even padding.

But it was soft and light. Warm body heat still remained. His—he ran warmer than her, always had.

She felt, absurdly, warm herself.

"...Going to be thoroughly ill."

He clicked his tongue while looking at her, still dissatisfied. He tossed the heavy, wet fur to Rix like discarding it and said.

"Make her bathe as soon as she gets to her room and give her medicine."

"Understood, my lord."

'What bathing and medicine? Does he think I'm a baby Rix is raising?'

"You're being terribly attentive, my lord."

"Burdensome, even."

Lanthe muttered with eyes full of complaint. When she tied the waist with the strings attached to the coat, the cold wind was blocked, making the insulation effect higher than expected. She folded both arms inside instead of rolling up the long sleeves, crossing them at the cuffs where they met. Aunt Louise would have hated this posture. Said it looked like a bound criminal. She kept her arms there anyway.

"You should think of your own ransom value, precious prisoner."

She was a prisoner in any case, if not quite a criminal.

"Hmph."

She turned sharply and walked toward the main building, rubbing her arms crossed inside the sleeves. Behind the footsteps of Rix hurrying to follow, she heard Vigo's conversation with his companion.

"Prisoner?"

"It's nothing."

"She's a pretty young lady. Beautiful eyes."

"...Let's just look at the training yard briefly and go up. I had them prepare good liquor."

"Oh, I was getting tired of only drinking the sweet southern liquor and ruined my palate. I'm looking forward to it. I've really missed Hermea's spirits."

Vigo uses polite speech and the other speaks down. It doesn't seem like a culture of respecting elders like in Roas.

Is he someone of higher status than the lord?

He really did look familiar—

"Ah."

She stopped walking and turned around.

The two men were already moving away, but it wasn't difficult to revive the middle-aged man's features in her mind.

He looks like Princess Ana...