Chapter 5: Punishment Unit – 1

-Ding… Ding…

Somewhere in the vast land of Rondor, the sound of a bell echoed.

In response to the signal, the beautifully adorned coffin was slowly lowered into the pit.

Multicolored flowers, offered in tribute to the deceased, were scattered around the coffin.

I blankly stared at the scene.

It had only been a few days since I met the Duchess… but the forgiveness and kindness she had shown me were something I wouldn’t forget for a long time.

“Kailo.”

Standing beside me, Pippin, the head butler of Rondor, broke me out of my reverie.

“Let’s go inside. The funeral is over.”

I nodded and took a step forward toward the pit where the coffin had been lowered.

It was my intention to offer a final flower in mourning for the Duchess’s passing.

“Vivian!”

However, just as I was about to take a step, a commotion erupted.

Before I could even react to the sound, a sharp pain stung my cheek, causing my head to turn.

-Smack!

It was an unexpected blow, but somehow, I instantly knew who it was.

I turned my head, and as expected, Vivian Rondor stood before me.

Perhaps she should now be called the head of the Rondor family.

“Wh-what face… h-how dare you try to offer flowers?”

Her stammering did nothing to diminish the intensity of her presence.

“Because of what your family did, my mother fell ill and… d-died! How dare you even think of offering flowers!”

She probably didn’t know.

She had no idea how complicated my feelings toward her were.

The Duchess of Rondor’s final request still lingered in my mind.

Did she truly believe we could get along?

I, for one, saw no possibility of that.

Vivian spoke with resentment.

“Your family killed all of us. Don’t even pretend to offer some pathetic form of mourning.”

I stood there, dumbfounded by her words, and replied.

“…I wasn’t the one who did it. Can’t I even offer flowers?”

-Snip!

With a sharp gesture that contrasted with her stammering words, Vivian snatched the flowers from my hand.

“…Ah.”

Before I could even react, Vivian threw the flowers onto the ground and stomped on them.

With each furious stomp, her tears fell to the earth.

It was the most intense emotion I had seen from her in the few days we spent together.

Her grief from losing her mother was pouring out in a wave of unrestrained anger.

As the situation grew more serious, several retainers attending the funeral rushed to stop Vivian.

“Lady Vivian, please calm down. The funeral is not over yet.”

“…Hah… hah…”

Vivian, breathing heavily, turned around.

Many servants of the Rondor family followed her as she left.

I stood there, staring down at the trampled flowers.

For a brief moment, I thought about getting new flowers to offer to the Duchess.

But I quickly dismissed the thought, realizing that continuing to cause a scene in front of the grave would be disrespectful.

So, I closed my eyes, mourned the Duchess’s passing in my heart, and turned to head back into the castle.

That afternoon, I received a summons and made my way over.

Following Pippin’s guidance through the winding halls of the castle, I arrived in front of a room.

-Knock knock.

“It’s Pippin. I’ve brought Sir Kailo Alan with me. We’re coming in.”

-Creak.

Inside the room, someone familiar was waiting for me.

Vivian Rondor.

Her eyes were swollen, likely from crying all day.

Still, as if she had expected my arrival, she was now forcing back her tears.

Her cold, sharp gaze fixed on me, endlessly.

I didn’t feel annoyance or irritation but rather discomfort and pity.

Because of that, I avoided her gaze as I stepped into the room.

This must be Vivian Rondor’s room.

“Sir Kailo Alan, please come in.”

Inside, a man stood holding a long parchment.

It was undoubtedly the Duchess of Rondor’s will, and the man holding it was none other than ‘Scholar Crellin,’ the Rondor family’s physician and scholar.

He was someone I had become acquainted with over the past few days while he treated the wound on my forehead.

“The Duchess of Rondor mentioned Sir Kailo in her will, which is why you were summoned here. Please bear with us.”

“Oh, yes…”

Lately, I wasn’t sure how to respond to kindness.

What I once would have accepted with a simple nod now made me feel uncomfortable.

Perhaps it was because my life in Loctana had slowly stripped away my noble demeanour.

Then again, my life there was practically at the level of a prisoner’s.

I glanced briefly at Vivian Rondor.

She was still glaring at me intently.

I let out a quiet sigh through my nose and pretended not to notice.

“Let us begin. The Duchess wished to put an end to the grudge between the Alan and Rondor families and hoped for a constructive relationship moving forward.”

“W-what are you saying?”

Vivian interjected before Scholar Crellin could even finish a sentence.

“W-what kind of grudge are you talking about? Are you even reading it correctly?”

“…Yes, I am. According to the peace treaty between the two kingdoms, Sir Kailo Alan came to Loctana as a guest, and the Duchess’s wish was for him to re-establish a friendly relationship with our family.”

“…Ha.”

Vivian let out a scoff, as if the idea was utterly absurd.

She stared daggers at Scholar Crellin, then at me.

As if I were the one responsible for everything.

She spoke.

“K-Kailo Alan. I will never befriend you or your family, not even if I die.”

Her words stung slightly.

Just a little.

“Me neither.”

Then Scholar Crellin continued.

“And to lay the foundation for this, Sir Kailo Alan has been appointed as Lady Vivian Rondor’s bodyguard. From now on, you two will…”

“No, I specifically told the Duchess I didn’t want to…”

“What are you even talking about!!”

-Clang!!!

Vivian angrily swept her hand across the table, knocking over the teacups as she shouted.

Perhaps it was because she was still so young and small, but her anger felt more like a tantrum.

The words I was about to say were swallowed up by her outburst.

Perhaps startled by our intense reactions, Scholar Crellin hurriedly began reading through the parchment with his fingers.

“The Duchess clearly stated that it is not necessary for Sir Kailo to be by Lady Vivian’s side at all times. He is only to protect her when he deems it necessary.”

Seeing that Vivian’s expression still hadn’t softened, Scholar Crellin took his eyes off the will and tried to calm her.

“It sounds like just a formality. I think you should just take it to mean that you should try to get along. There’s no need to stick together, and you don’t have to be with her either. There’s nothing being forced here. It’s simply that Duchess would like you to protect Lady Vivian. That’s all.”

Despite this, the scholar still fidgeted, seeing that Vivian’s expression hadn’t eased.

Thinking about it, it made sense.

Vivian Rondor, unpredictable as she was, was now the Lady of Loctana.

In crude terms, it was like putting a sword in a monkey’s hands.

“Ahem, moving on! All authority regarding Lord Kailo Alan’s safety will be handed over to Lady Vivian Rondor—”

“Wait, what did you just say?”

Then, I also cut off Scholar Crellin’s words.

…I mean, sure, I’d been warned that authority would be passed to Vivian, but was it supposed to happen this quickly?

‘When you’re old enough to leave, if you don’t get along with Vivian, do you really think she’ll send you back home? At the very least, you’ll need to be friends for her to let you go, right?’

The way things were going, it felt as if the duchess herself had put a knife to my throat and was threatening me.

So, will you be friends or not?

In hindsight, the one who should be most afraid of the monkey with the sword was me.

Looking at her again, Vivian Rondor’s demeanour had changed.

“Is that… what you’re saying?”

She let out a brief, dry laugh.

“Yes. That’s exactly what was said in the will.”

I swallowed and kept my composure.

If I showed any sign of panic, who knew what weakness she might exploit.

Vivian stood up.

“K-Kailo Alan, I-I’ve been thinking for a long time. About how you could realize what you’ve done to us… and repent for it.”

She slowly approached me.

“And I’ve h-heard quite a few rumours about you, too. They say you’re one of the most talented in the Alan estate? I-I heard the undefeated knight was quite proud of you.”

I wasn’t sure about my father, but the servants did praise me a lot.

They said things like I was a prodigy who appeared only once in centuries, that the Alan family had no future worries…

Even if it was all flattery, I hadn’t neglected my swordsmanship training due to the pressure of war.

The helplessness I felt when I was overpowered by Lois Rondor drove me to push myself harder.

“Now that I think about it… All we have to do is not kill you ourselves, right?”

“…What?”

“Just like how you made it look like our brother died in an avalanche—”

“We didn’t stage anything. Lois Rondor’s death was a tragic accident, nothing more.”

“Say whatever you want. But if you die in an accident too… wouldn’t the Alan family have nothing to say about it?”

“…What are you talking about?”

Vivian Rondor twisted her lips into a sneer.

Seeing that, I thought.

Ah.

Why is she so beautiful?

Even that slight wrinkle in her nose was quite cute.

Vivian, oblivious to my thoughts, continued.

“The soldiers are all dead… and near the estate, various monsters have started running wild.”

“The three knight orders of Rondor are doing their best, but… the damage from the monsters is still severe.”

Vivian Rondor poked my chest.

“Use your talents… deal with the monsters… Pay for your sins, and if you’re lucky, maybe you’ll die in the process… That way, it’d truly be an accident.”

I had expected her to mock me cruelly, but this was a surprisingly reasonable proposal, one even I could accept.

Lois Rondor, the duchess, and even Vivian Rondor…

It seemed like everyone was true to their nature.

Maybe this was just a difference in culture between the northern and southern families.

“So, you’re telling me to join the knight order and fight?”

“Not just any knight order. You’re not a Loctana native, after all.”

“…? Then?”

“You’ll join our newly formed fourth knight order… the Punishment unit.”

The punishment unit.

The name itself sounded ominous.

It was clear I’d be doing the dirtiest, most unpleasant tasks.

“And there… for the love of God, please, just die on your own.”