Chapter 59
She pulled out her sword and blocked his advance.
Redra knew the Captain would notice their presence, but she never thought he would mistake them as assassins!
And thus, Ian’s shield collided with Redra’s sword.
His strength was great, even though she tried to block his blow holding the sword with both hands.
Her feet were pushed back, soil piling up behind her heels.
As a result, she collapsed to the ground. But not after she endured him for a few seconds.
Not long after Ian sensed Laritte, he turned to where she was hiding behind the tree.
Redra’s face went pale even though she was in a bad shape.
‘No, not Madam!’
“Captain!”
The moment Ian lifted his sword behind the shield, Redra’s cry reached him.
His eyes landed on Laritte as soon as he raised his sword.
He was embarrassed.
It wasn’t an assassin? It was Laritte?
However, he had already struck the sword with all his might. Its path could not be changed.
Since there were two assassins, he speculated it would be better to capture one of them alive.
He blocked himself with the shield he held in his other hand.
A menacing roar of a sword clashing with a shield cut through the air as if a blacksmith were hammering a sword in a furnace.
“Oh my God.”
Laritte said in a not-so-surprised tone.
Ian’s eyes shot at Laritte, who was sitting on the ground, and checked if she was fine. She was just breathing heavily.
“Huff, huff…….”
Laritte looked up at him with a questioning look even though she almost died.
It’d been a while since she saw Ian.
He looked the same. But was he okay?
She had to take off her gloves to make sure.
“How have you been? I came to meet you. You’re happy to see me, right?”
“Laritte, Laritte.”
His voice was mournful.
But he was also angry.
Not at Laritte, but to himself who failed to stumble from Redra’s attack.
He couldn’t believe he mistook her to be an assassin!
“You almost died!”
“I’m sorry about that. I didn’t know you’d notice me.”
Laritte was telling the truth.
There were horses’ hooves pounding on the earth in addition to the distance from her.
It was kind of unfair. She didn’t make a move, but the beast spotted her.
Ian exploded.
“Don’t joke around when I’m holding a sword! You often tend to mistake your husband for an ordinary aristocrat!”
He knelt down, meeting her eyes.
He took off his helmet to reveal his dark skin and golden eyes.
His eyes – which always coldly narrowed at others – relaxed whenever she came in front of him.
While the two stared deep into each other’s eyes, Redra looked at the sky before she sat up.
‘Can anyone help me up……’
Redra continued to stare at the sky as the couple got lost in their own time.
She blamed herself for what happened.
She didn’t think Ian would mistake them for assassins.
Her ignorance put the Madam at risk.
‘If I were a normal knight or if I hadn’t stopped the Captain’s attack…..’
Had she not called him back, Ian would have taken Laritte’s life in an instant.
A cold chill ran down Redra’s spine.
Redra got up on her feet, patting off the dirt in her hair.
When she turned her head to where the couple stood, she could only smile in amusement.
Over Ian’s shoulders, Laritte’s face looked like a piece of art.
‘I wonder if I’m being possessed by your beauty.’
Meanwhile, Ian was worried about Laritte.
“Laritte, are you hurt anywhere? People with weak hearts tend to get injured when they’re surprised!”
“The helmet. It’s the one I gave you, right?”
Laritte’s eyes were only focused on the helmet he took off.
“Can I take it back now?”
“Let me clean it up before handing it over to you. It’ll be better, right?”
“How many times do I have to tell you? Stop nagging me. You look like a lonely old man from a fairy tale.”
Laritte wanted to close the conversation about her safety.
It didn’t matter anymore because she was safe and Ian looked fine.
Finally, Ian pulled her into a hug.
“But I missed you a lot.”
He couldn’t say that he always thought about her.
“Me, too.”
Ian was taken aback.
Did Laritte know how to say this?
Laritte simply continued.
“The strawberry juice I made for you is about to rot. Though, Ava has kept it in ice storage.”
“Let’s go then.”
Ian pulled back and took a hold of her hand. He looked at her face.
But Laritte was sincere, too.
They took turns in talking while returning to the mansion.
Ian was worried till the end, but he kindly answered her questions.
He searched for traces of the dragon on the plateau and how he had been.
“……So we searched the lower meadow of the plateau, but we couldn’t find the dragon. It seems it has left this area. It’s been the luckiest case, but thanks to it, my return has been delayed.”
“Where do you think the dragon has gone?”
“Too far for us to track it. If it still has its sanity, then a place with no inhabitants.”
It was clear that it went outside the Duke’s territories.
Which meant that no one could blame Ian if the dragon appeared in sight.
Because it was accepted as a natural disaster.
Upon reaching the Duchy, the employees and the knights greeted them.
“This is Mason Moore. I apologize to the Captain for getting back so late.”
Mason was at the forefront of the knights.
After the blame of treason, it was the first time for the noble knights to see Ian.
Their eyes turned red.
Ian stood in front of Mason.
“Yes….. Sir Mason. I’m glad you are still in good health.”
Ian patted his shoulder.
They both had faith in each other.
Since Mason had been in the Order for three generations, Ian had seen Mason since he was a newborn.
However, Ian was concerned about something else.
“Nothing has happened in the mansion so far, right?”
Even if he trusted Mason’s loyalty as a knight, he did not have faith in Mason’s aristocratic views.
Ian arched his brow as if asking “You didn’t treat Laritte carelessly, did you?”
Mason averted his eyes as Ian’s eyes narrowed.
“That…..”
“Hurry, answer me. Do you know or not?”
Mason was very nervous.
The past hadn’t disappeared just because he swore loyalty to the Duchess now.
The veteran couldn’t bear to lie to his master.
“Forgive me. Actually, I…….”
The moment he tried to confess, Laritte appeared out of nowhere and waved at him.
“It’s my first time seeing you today, Sir Mason. Did you know there was a shower last night?”
Mason nodded without realizing it.
“Ah, yes!”
“Okay then, bye.”
She walked back to the mansion.
Ian’s worries immediately went away after this short chat.
Their interaction was not at all a lie. They seemed to be on good terms.
He tapped Mason on the shoulder.
“I think you’re doing quite well, Sir Mason.”
If knights from noble backgrounds treated Laritte carelessly, Ian would have modified their thoughts. Even if it required training them to death.
However, the reality was better than what he expected.
As expected of Laritte. She managed it pretty well.
“First of all, help them to unpack our luggage. I’ll listen to your story later.”
With that, Ian followed Laritte into the mansion.
Mason placed his hand over his chest as he watched the couple disappear into the mansion.
“Phew……”
He didn’t know he would heave a sigh of relief. The same was true for the knights who were about to face subjugation.
Chapter 59
She pulled out her sword and blocked his advance.
Redra knew the Captain would notice their presence, but she never thought he would mistake them as assassins!
And thus, Ian’s shield collided with Redra’s sword.
His strength was great, even though she tried to block his blow holding the sword with both hands.
Her feet were pushed back, soil piling up behind her heels.
As a result, she collapsed to the ground. But not after she endured him for a few seconds.
Not long after Ian sensed Laritte, he turned to where she was hiding behind the tree.
Redra’s face went pale even though she was in a bad shape.
‘No, not Madam!’
“Captain!”
The moment Ian lifted his sword behind the shield, Redra’s cry reached him.
His eyes landed on Laritte as soon as he raised his sword.
He was embarrassed.
It wasn’t an assassin? It was Laritte?
However, he had already struck the sword with all his might. Its path could not be changed.
Since there were two assassins, he speculated it would be better to capture one of them alive.
He blocked himself with the shield he held in his other hand.
A menacing roar of a sword clashing with a shield cut through the air as if a blacksmith were hammering a sword in a furnace.
“Oh my God.”
Laritte said in a not-so-surprised tone.
Ian’s eyes shot at Laritte, who was sitting on the ground, and checked if she was fine. She was just breathing heavily.
“Huff, huff…….”
Laritte looked up at him with a questioning look even though she almost died.
It’d been a while since she saw Ian.
He looked the same. But was he okay?
She had to take off her gloves to make sure.
“How have you been? I came to meet you. You’re happy to see me, right?”
“Laritte, Laritte.”
His voice was mournful.
But he was also angry.
Not at Laritte, but to himself who failed to stumble from Redra’s attack.
He couldn’t believe he mistook her to be an assassin!
“You almost died!”
“I’m sorry about that. I didn’t know you’d notice me.”
Laritte was telling the truth.
There were horses’ hooves pounding on the earth in addition to the distance from her.
It was kind of unfair. She didn’t make a move, but the beast spotted her.
Ian exploded.
“Don’t joke around when I’m holding a sword! You often tend to mistake your husband for an ordinary aristocrat!”
He knelt down, meeting her eyes.
He took off his helmet to reveal his dark skin and golden eyes.
His eyes – which always coldly narrowed at others – relaxed whenever she came in front of him.
While the two stared deep into each other’s eyes, Redra looked at the sky before she sat up.
‘Can anyone help me up……’
Redra continued to stare at the sky as the couple got lost in their own time.
She blamed herself for what happened.
She didn’t think Ian would mistake them for assassins.
Her ignorance put the Madam at risk.
‘If I were a normal knight or if I hadn’t stopped the Captain’s attack…..’
Had she not called him back, Ian would have taken Laritte’s life in an instant.
A cold chill ran down Redra’s spine.
Redra got up on her feet, patting off the dirt in her hair.
When she turned her head to where the couple stood, she could only smile in amusement.
Over Ian’s shoulders, Laritte’s face looked like a piece of art.
‘I wonder if I’m being possessed by your beauty.’
Meanwhile, Ian was worried about Laritte.
“Laritte, are you hurt anywhere? People with weak hearts tend to get injured when they’re surprised!”
“The helmet. It’s the one I gave you, right?”
Laritte’s eyes were only focused on the helmet he took off.
“Can I take it back now?”
“Let me clean it up before handing it over to you. It’ll be better, right?”
“How many times do I have to tell you? Stop nagging me. You look like a lonely old man from a fairy tale.”
Laritte wanted to close the conversation about her safety.
It didn’t matter anymore because she was safe and Ian looked fine.
Finally, Ian pulled her into a hug.
“But I missed you a lot.”
He couldn’t say that he always thought about her.
“Me, too.”
Ian was taken aback.
Did Laritte know how to say this?
Laritte simply continued.
“The strawberry juice I made for you is about to rot. Though, Ava has kept it in ice storage.”
“Let’s go then.”
Ian pulled back and took a hold of her hand. He looked at her face.
But Laritte was sincere, too.
They took turns in talking while returning to the mansion.
Ian was worried till the end, but he kindly answered her questions.
He searched for traces of the dragon on the plateau and how he had been.
“……So we searched the lower meadow of the plateau, but we couldn’t find the dragon. It seems it has left this area. It’s been the luckiest case, but thanks to it, my return has been delayed.”
“Where do you think the dragon has gone?”
“Too far for us to track it. If it still has its sanity, then a place with no inhabitants.”
It was clear that it went outside the Duke’s territories.
Which meant that no one could blame Ian if the dragon appeared in sight.
Because it was accepted as a natural disaster.
Upon reaching the Duchy, the employees and the knights greeted them.
“This is Mason Moore. I apologize to the Captain for getting back so late.”
Mason was at the forefront of the knights.
After the blame of treason, it was the first time for the noble knights to see Ian.
Their eyes turned red.
Ian stood in front of Mason.
“Yes….. Sir Mason. I’m glad you are still in good health.”
Ian patted his shoulder.
They both had faith in each other.
Since Mason had been in the Order for three generations, Ian had seen Mason since he was a newborn.
However, Ian was concerned about something else.
“Nothing has happened in the mansion so far, right?”
Even if he trusted Mason’s loyalty as a knight, he did not have faith in Mason’s aristocratic views.
Ian arched his brow as if asking “You didn’t treat Laritte carelessly, did you?”
Mason averted his eyes as Ian’s eyes narrowed.
“That…..”
“Hurry, answer me. Do you know or not?”
Mason was very nervous.
The past hadn’t disappeared just because he swore loyalty to the Duchess now.
The veteran couldn’t bear to lie to his master.
“Forgive me. Actually, I…….”
The moment he tried to confess, Laritte appeared out of nowhere and waved at him.
“It’s my first time seeing you today, Sir Mason. Did you know there was a shower last night?”
Mason nodded without realizing it.
“Ah, yes!”
“Okay then, bye.”
She walked back to the mansion.
Ian’s worries immediately went away after this short chat.
Their interaction was not at all a lie. They seemed to be on good terms.
He tapped Mason on the shoulder.
“I think you’re doing quite well, Sir Mason.”
If knights from noble backgrounds treated Laritte carelessly, Ian would have modified their thoughts. Even if it required training them to death.
However, the reality was better than what he expected.
As expected of Laritte. She managed it pretty well.
“First of all, help them to unpack our luggage. I’ll listen to your story later.”
With that, Ian followed Laritte into the mansion.
Mason placed his hand over his chest as he watched the couple disappear into the mansion.
“Phew……”
He didn’t know he would heave a sigh of relief. The same was true for the knights who were about to face subjugation.
