episode_0029

Leah ran, ran, and ran again.

With only a single word left in her mind.

‘It’s over…’

Goodbye, my academy life.

With hollow eyes, she searched for a place to die and eventually found a vast sandy building. It was so much larger than her family’s that she didn’t immediately recognize it, but it seemed to be a training ground.

Leah trudged over and plopped down at the very edge of the training ground.

“…Ugh.”

The moment she stopped running and had time to think, the most humiliating memory of her life—one she would never forget—automatically replayed in her mind.

She hugged her knees and desperately swallowed back the tears threatening to spill.

There was no one to blame.

‘I messed up…’

The world wasn’t like a novel.

Nothing could be achieved with looks alone. To have smooth conversations, you needed shared topics, similar cultural tastes, mutual consideration, and sometimes even lies.

Leah had never been taught any of that. The only thing she’d learned was how to kill people with sharp steel.

Silently, she raised her hand and examined it. The rest of her skin was as smooth as any noble lady’s, untouched since mastering swordsmanship, but her palms told the truth.

Calluses had formed, torn, and formed again, leaving behind scars.

No matter how you looked at it, these weren’t the hands of a noble lady. They were the hands of a warrior who had crossed the line of death dozens of times.

“Maybe I should just drop out…”

She clenched and unclenched her palm, muttering self-deprecating words dripping with regret.

The academy wasn’t for her. Maybe walking the path of a hero, as her father had said, would be better.

Even if she didn’t have the talent to be loved by a prince, she at least had the talent to swiftly take lives.

As she sighed in her gloomy state, she suddenly sensed a presence.

“…Hm?”

“…”

It was the voice of a male student.

Leah quickly buried her face in her knees.

She didn’t want to talk to anyone right now.

If she did, she felt like something inside her would really snap.

“…”

Go away. Leave, quickly.

No matter how insensitive someone was, even they wouldn’t be thick-skinned enough to linger while a beautiful (at least in appearance) noble lady was curled up and sobbing.

For added effect, she deliberately trembled and pretended to sob. Once this student left, she planned to return to the dormitory.

But.

Thud, thud, thud

“None… none, confirmed.”

The student didn’t care at all.

Without the slightest hesitation, he walked to the opposite side and began digging up the training ground with a shovel.

“…”

Leah was so stunned by his insensitivity that she couldn’t even get angry. Peeking through the gap in her knees, she watched him.

He dug up the training ground with the precision of someone searching for landmines.

She had no idea what he was doing. Under the scorching sun, sweating like rain, he tirelessly dug, inspected, confirmed, covered, and moved to the next spot…

It was a task bordering on obsession, almost madness.

She didn’t understand what he was doing, but she assumed he’d give up soon and return to the post-enrollment celebration.

She’d leave then. There was no way he’d dig up this entire place, right?

No matter what Leah thought, the student kept swinging his shovel diligently.

And then.

…

..

.

“He’s really digging it all up…”

By the time the sunset began, signaling that the post-enrollment celebration had long ended, Leah let out a sigh mixed with boredom and amazement.

After about an hour, realizing he truly had no interest in her, she lifted her face from her knees and watched the spectacle.

With her chin propped, she observed the massive construction project that had been going on for a full four hours, now nearing its end.

Time had flown. She’d been too busy wondering why he was doing this to entertain other thoughts.

Strangely, she felt a little better than before. It was like the dazed feeling of staring at a campfire.

“Excuse me.”

“…?”

“Could you move aside for a moment?”

So, when he suddenly spoke to her, she was startled.

Leah blinked up at him blankly before realizing it was her spot’s turn to be dug up. She scrambled to her feet.

“Y-Yes.”

“Thank you.”

Up close, he was clearly different from the other students.

His clothes were undoubtedly high-quality, but they were a butler’s uniform.

…A butler’s uniform?

‘Ah, the one next to Lady Firunea…’

Leah recalled the enrollment ceremony. Serbus Bildem, was it?

He was said to be a student from a butler family who had entered as a special admit.

The special admission test was notoriously difficult.

Forgetting her earlier distress, Leah examined Bildem with a swordsman’s eye.

Indeed, his physique wasn’t that of an ordinary butler. His muscles, developed like a beast’s, weren’t just from lifting heavy objects. The white butler uniform, soaked with sweat, made them even more visible…

‘…Wait, this is just voyeurism.’

Finally snapping out of it, Leah forced herself to look away.

Bildem finished digging up Leah’s spot, wiped his forehead briskly—

“Phew…”

“Eek!”

Thud—and collapsed onto the ground with a sigh.

He looked like a corpse on the verge of death, making Leah flinch and step back before cautiously poking him with her toe.

“H-Hey, are you okay?”

“I’m fine. I’ll be okay after a short rest.”

His face buried in the sand, his words lacked any credibility.

After a brief internal struggle, Leah went into a nearby building, filled a canteen kept in storage, and returned.

Keeping a canteen in storage wasn’t something a noble lady would do, but a member of the Faltis family always carried a sword and canteen, even if the world turned upside down. If it really did, those two items would become more precious than gold.

“Here, can you turn over?”

“…”

Despite the turtle-like treatment, Bildem flipped over without complaint.

His expression looked more relaxed than expected. Leah poured water into his mouth.

“Thank you. Hoo…”

Bildem drank the water and took a few deep breaths.

From his steady breathing, Leah realized he really was recovering.

His recovery speed was astonishing. Even without the water, he’d have gotten up in a few minutes.

‘Is he even human?’

Marveling inwardly, Leah suddenly grew curious.

“Um… what were you doing just now?”

“I wondered when you’d ask.”

“…S-Sorry. I wasn’t trying to spy or anything.”

“No, I wasn’t scolding you. It was just a safety inspection. It’s not interesting, so I didn’t explain, assuming you’d leave soon.”

“A safety inspection?”

“Yes. Ugh…”

Bildem got up and naturally sat down beside her.

‘…T-Too close.’

In Leah’s life, this was the first time she’d been this close to a man who wasn’t family.

Though Bildem strictly maintained the social distance expected with a stranger, to Leah, even that was too close.

As she struggled to calm her pounding heart, Bildem bowed his head slightly and introduced himself.

“My apologies for the late introduction. I’m Serbus Bildem.”

“Ah, I’m Leah of Faltis…”

“…Faltis?”

Bildem’s eyes widened slightly, as if surprised.

Leah smiled bitterly and scratched her head.

“Yes, the, uh, hero family.”

“No, I knew that. But… are you perhaps Lady Armeria’s younger sister?”

“Huh? You know my sister?”

“Well, um……..”

Bildem trailed off.

‘So he’s been through it too.’

Feeling a strange kinship, Leah spoke a little more familiarly.

“You can be honest. My sister’s a bit weird, right?”

“She showed… an excessive amount of interest in me.”

“Really? My sister usually doesn’t care about people. She’s always chasing after weird things.”

“…?”

“Ah, no! I don’t mean you’re weird, just that my sister chases after weird… I’m sorry…”

And she put her foot in her mouth again.

Bowing her head in self-loathing, Bildem let out a hearty laugh and scratched his head.

“You’re the complete opposite of your sister in personality.”

“Ugh…”

“The safety inspection is exactly what it sounds like—checking for safety. Especially since this training ground will be used by Lady Firunea starting tomorrow. I had to do it today. That’s why I skipped the post-enrollment celebration for this.”

“…Is the training ground dangerous?”

“No. It’s safe. As a place used by noble students, it’s thoroughly magically treated. Even if someone set a trap, they wouldn’t target such a heavily monitored area.”

Leah tilted her head at his self-contradiction.

“Then why do all this…?”

“Lord Pitus was poisoned in the place that should’ve been safest.”

“…Ah.”

Leah knew of that too.

An assassination that still left a deep scar on the empire.

Bildem recited the facts calmly, as if merely stating them.

“To ensure such an incident never happens again, I must personally inspect even the safest places. At the very least, if I don’t check every spot Lady Firunea steps on, I can’t call myself a proper butler.”

“But the training ground will be used at least three times a week, right?”

“Yes. Exactly.”

Bildem looked at Leah as if asking what her point was.

“You can’t inspect the training ground like this every time.”

“Why not?”

“…Huh? Then what about the Grand Assembly? You’d have to use the training ground daily. Are you saying you’d abandon all other duties and spend four hours on menial labor?”

At that, Bildem laughed loudly.

“Haha, Lady Leah. You seem to have misunderstood something.”

“Ah, so that’s not it?”

Well, of course. Spending four hours daily on meaningless labor wasn’t something a sane person would do.

Just as Leah thought she’d misheard—

“Of course, today took four hours, but I’ve learned the trick now. Next time, it’ll take less than three. And even less after that. My goal is to finish inspections within an hour.”

“…”

His reply came with unwavering confidence, utterly devoid of pretense.

Leah studied Bildem’s expression.

He was serious.

Dead serious about doing this every day.

His first impression had been intimidating, even scary…

But after talking to him and seeing him laugh like this…

“…Pfft.”

For some reason, she laughed.

Not because Bildem’s actions were funny, but because her own worries seemed so trivial in comparison.

Here was a strange man who chose to spend hours daily on thankless, menial labor—something no one asked for or acknowledged.

Meanwhile, she’d been agonizing over whether to drop out over a few verbal slip-ups.

She felt like an idiot.

“Alrighty then…”

Leah stretched and stood up.

First, she should apologize. To the student who’d given her that so-called “evaluation.” She’d find them and say sorry for speaking out of turn.

Running away wasn’t an option. Just because the first button was misaligned didn’t mean she should strip off the whole outfit.

With her resolve firm, she suddenly remembered one more thing she needed advice on.

“Ah, Bildem.”

“Just ‘Bildem the butler’ is fine. I am a butler, after all.”

“…How can I? We’re fellow students.”

“Then just call me Bildem.”

“Hmm, only if you call me Leah first.”

“That’s easy enough. Leah.”

“…”

This was also the first time someone outside her family had addressed her so casually.

For some reason, Leah felt a ticklish sensation and asked her question.

“Um, I’m thinking of dyeing my hair…”

“…What?”

“What color do you think would suit me? I’m completely clueless about fashion, so I’d like your opinion.”

Bildem looked genuinely horrified and shook his head.

“No, Leah, this might be forward, but have you lost your mind?”

“W-Why? I’ve heard dyeing isn’t good for your hair, but…”

“That’s not the issue. Listen carefully—if you gathered every noble lady at the enrollment ceremony and offered to dye their hair the same golden blonde as yours, how many do you think would agree?”

“Uh, three?”

“Every. Single. One. Some would pay gold heavier than their own bodies. Dyeing such beautiful hair would be a national loss. Absolutely, under no circumstances, should you do it.”

“…Okay.”

Though it was closer to a scolding, for some reason, it made her happy.

Twirling her golden locks, which shimmered brilliantly, Leah suppressed a smile and reached a conclusion.

‘…I’ll sneakily dye my sister’s hair while she’s asleep.’

Her goal was to distinguish herself from her sister anyway.

And it was fine if the nation of Armeria suffered a little loss.

It was a big enough country to handle it.