What I Wanted to Protect

After Persis left, Kyle finished dinner and spent some time in his room, lost in thought.

This time, Primo, who had been circling around as a squirrel, noticed his master’s poor complexion and ran over, speaking to him.

– Master, what’s wrong? You look like you’ve eaten shit?

,What kind of way is that to talk,

– Why? You really looked like you ate shit! Your eyes were like this!

Primo, in squirrel form, raised both hands and pointed to his eyes, imitating Kyle’s expression from a moment ago.

Kyle was about to say something, but stopped and gave a bitter smile.

He was quite confident in his poker face, but it seemed others could read him quite well.

Even Silvia, for example, was a master at reading his expressions.

,I was just thinking about something. You go play over there,

– Ugh, this Primo-nim is trying to give you advice, but you always talk like that! You stupid master!

,Say whatever you want,

– Hmph!

At Kyle’s prickly tone, Primo, as if regretting worrying about him even for a moment, quickly sulked and hopped out the window.

Until recently, he was playing with sparrows; now, is he planning to make squirrel friends?

More than that, he doubted there were even squirrels in the castle, but he figured Primo would manage and sank back into thought.

A few minutes passed like that.

Ttokttok.

A knock on the door woke him from his reverie.

– Kyle, it’s me. Can I come in?

He thought it might be Alf asking if he needed a late-night snack and was about to send him away, but he was surprised by the voice that followed and widened his eyes.

It was none other than Silvia’s voice.

,Okay. Come in,

– Yes.

He didn’t want to let her in because his mind was in a mess, but he couldn’t just turn her away, so he let her in.

Soon, Silvia peeked in with a hesitant expression, then spotted Kyle sitting in a chair and approached him.

,What’s going on,

,Primo came to me. He said something urgent came up for Kyle, so I should tell you to go…,

,……,

As Silvia explained the situation to him, Kyle’s expression soured.

It seemed only four days had passed since he introduced Primo to Silvia, but had they become so close that she could relay such a story without a second thought?

Or maybe Primo was just being shameless, he thought, grinding his teeth as he imagined the vanished Primo.

,That bastard is doing useless things,

He vowed to grab that impudent squirrel and torture him when he returned, then gestured to the chair in front of him.

Silvia hesitated and sat down.

Her somewhat awkward expression suggested she was curious about what big deal had happened to Kyle.

,Is something wrong,

,There’s nothing really wrong. Primo was just making a fuss,

,For someone who says that, Kyle’s expression doesn’t look too good,

Since she wasn’t wrong, he inadvertently gave a bitter smile.

Primo had already caught on; it would have been impossible to escape Silvia’s keen eye from the start.

In the end, he sighed softly and began to speak.

,It’s really not a big deal. It’s just that I’ve been thinking a lot because of Sir Persis’ visit today,

,Sir Persis… Oh, you mean Duke Drake’s father?

,Yeah,

While nodding, Kyle was inwardly questioning her choice of honorifics.

After sorting out the honorifics last time, Vermillion and Anise both became comfortable calling Silvia by her first name.

But for some reason, Silvia was still calling Vermillion by his last name.

It seemed awkward if only one side was calling the other by their first name, but Vermillion himself brushed it off, saying, ‘I understand,’ so there was no real opportunity to ask.

,Silvia, how about you start calling Vermillion comfortably? He calls you by your first name,

,Huh? Ah… Later, later,

,Later?

He thought he’d ask this time, so he casually threw out a question, and Silvia scratched her cheek awkwardly, avoiding his gaze.

Later meant she was thinking of calling him by his first name, but why wasn’t she doing it now?

Had Vermillion bullied her?

Kyle didn’t remember anything like that, but if that were the case, he’d have to summon Vermillion here immediately.

,I call you by your first name comfortably. Is there a difference?

Perhaps it was because Vermillion was male that she felt a distance, but that didn’t explain why she was calling him by his first name, so Kyle was left with only questions.

Silvia didn’t call any other men by their first name, though.

Without realizing that fact was important, Kyle brushed it off, thinking she’d figure it out on her own.

If Silvia had seen through his thoughts, she would have been furious.

,More than that, did something happen with Duke Drake?

Fortunately or unfortunately, Silvia had no way of knowing that far, so she returned to the main topic and asked in detail why Kyle’s mood had been so down.

,No, nothing really happened. It’s a problem because nothing happened,

,……?

Kyle firmly denied it, and Silvia tilted her head slightly to the side.

It was a problem because nothing happened; what kind of strange thing was that to say?

,Silvia. I’m sorry to bring up bad memories, but do you remember what happened to your father?

,Yes, of course,

How could she forget?

Bad memories are often etched deeply into the mind.

Seeing her nod with a seemingly indifferent expression, Kyle gave a bitter smile out of apology and continued.

,You said that at first, he joined hands with those guys to save Lady Marian,

,That’s right,

,Then, is there a reverse case?

,…Huh?

At the sudden question, Silvia blinked repeatedly with wide eyes.

A reverse case?

Her father, though he later fell into depravity, initially joined hands with an evil group to save his beloved wife.

But what example should she give for something that was the opposite of that?

If there was an action that was the opposite of joining hands to save a loved one, what would it be?

,…Are you talking about sacrifice?

,Maybe,

,Maybe?

,I don’t really know either. I haven’t come to a conclusion yet. I just thought that if there was a reverse case, it might be sacrifice. That’s all I thought,

Silvia felt puzzled as he gave an uncharacteristically vague answer, speaking like he was grasping at clouds.

However, one thing was certain.

This story had come from the topic of Persis Drake, so the result of his worries was also a story intertwined with him.

,Is something going on with Duke Drake and his family?

,I don’t know. But seeing Sir Persis’ reaction today and hearing Vermillion’s words, I’m starting to have more and more questions,

,I’ll worry about it with you. Tell me, Kyle,

,…Okay,

Feeling her determination to be of help in any way, Kyle felt grateful but also apologetic, and he opened his mouth with a wry smile.

From the detailed family circumstances Vermillion had mentioned, to the first contact with the Eyes of Dawn, to Persis’ attitude today.

Organizing and spitting it all out in an orderly manner was quite difficult, but he managed somehow.

As the long story came to an end, Silvia finally made a subtle expression and rested her hand on her chin.

,What do you think?

,It’s definitely strange. I knew about the cooperative relationship with the Eyes of Dawn this time, but I didn’t know there was such a story hidden…,

Vermillion had revealed his situation shortly after rescuing Anise and returning to Kaintreche Castle.

Originally, it was just a relationship of mutual cooperation with Kyle, but now they had become friends who could open up to each other.

He decided that he couldn’t hide this fact from the people around him, and even Anise, so he honestly told them the story.

Silvia had been somewhat suspicious from the first meeting, so she accepted it indifferently.

Anise also seemed a little shocked at first, but she forgave Vermillion when she saw him trying to fix the twisted family and take the lead in subjugating the Eyes of Dawn more than anyone else.

However, Silvia couldn’t help but feel that there were many ambiguous parts when she heard more of the hidden story.

It was somewhat understandable that the head of the Drake family, Vermillion’s great-grandfather, had made a deal with them to gain more power, and that he had gained such outstanding power that he even produced a Magic Tower Master.

But the attitude of the current head of the family, Persis, raised many questions.

Why did he dissuade Vermillion from becoming a full member of the Eyes of Dawn, and why did he turn a blind eye to the fact that Kyle was hiding him?

It was to the point where it felt like he was carrying something alone.

,It seems certain that Duke Drake is trying to hide his son. And that he’s not that cooperative with the Eyes of Dawn,

,That’s right. But the reason is the problem. Why is he changing his attitude now? If the relationship with the Eyes of Dawn goes wrong, the family itself might be threatened,

The knife was clearly in their hands.

If the Eyes of Dawn didn’t like their attitude and exposed this fact on a large scale, the Drake family wouldn’t be surprised if they were destroyed immediately.

Moreover, it wasn’t as if the Drake family was only being used unilaterally.

After all, it was also true that they had created the current power of the family by borrowing their strength to some extent.

Nevertheless, the fact that they were going this far meant that they had encountered a line they couldn’t give up on.

What on earth could that be?

,What kind of group do you think the Eyes of Dawn is, Kyle?

,That’s a difficult question. Well, if I had to express it…,

Slightly embarrassed by the sudden question, Kyle stroked his chin and looked for a way to express it.

Of course, there were many one-dimensional ways to express it. Like calling them the Empire’s top rebels.

But Kyle, knowing that wasn’t the expression Silvia wanted, pondered for a moment before parting his lips.

The memory of being manipulated by them and becoming a puppet before his regression came to mind, and he frowned involuntarily.

,…They’re the kind of guys who manipulate people by using what they want most as bait and what they want to protect most as hostages,

,That’s a very specific and plausible answer,

Silvia gave a subtle smile, as if she was deeply moved by his expression, which was as if he had experienced it himself.

Kyle turned his head slightly, feeling uncomfortable with that gaze.

,I agree too. That’s what happened in my father’s case too. So, to some extent, I can infer the current situation of the Drake family,

,Infer?

Was she saying that she had seen through the inside story of the relationship between the Drake family and the Eyes of Dawn with just that?

Kyle stared at her with wide eyes, and Silvia responded with a smile, then made a bitter expression.

,…Perhaps what Duke Drake wanted to protect, and what they were trying to take hostage at the same time, was his only son. And what he’s trying to offer in return is perhaps himself. Or even the family,

As soon as she uttered those words, the air inside the room instantly sank.