A little while ago, Andrew was busy distributing wheat and barley to people.
Suddenly, his eyes caught sight of a blonde woman coming towards him, supported by a neighbor's child.
'No, why did that kid come here?'
She was none other than Andrew's younger sister, Hillen, whom he cherished and worried about so much.
“I’m going to go for a bit since my younger sibling is coming over.”
When he asked his colleague for understanding by pointing to Hillen, the colleague, who was well aware of Andrew's family circumstances, readily nodded and pushed him away.
“Go ahead, go ahead.”
"Thanks."
Andrew pushed his way through the crowd and approached Hillen.
“Hillen!”
“Ah, brother!”
Hillen, with a pale face, smiled and waved at Andrew.
She looked older than she actually was, with her skin sallow and her cheeks thin, unlike those of a young person.
How can you come out to a crowded place like this with a face that looks like it could collapse at any moment?
Andrew felt his heart ache and worry as he watched the scene, and he grumbled against his will.
“You find it difficult to even go out in front of your house and take a walk, so why do you come here?”
“I came here to see my brother working up close.”
“What is this thing called?”
“Hey, I came because you didn’t come, why?”
Hillen glanced playfully at Andrew and then chuckled.
"Since you live in dorms, I can't even see you when you're nearby. You don't even come home on your days off. You haven't been home since the day you returned from the battlefield. That's why I have no choice but to come."
“I’m busy, I’m busy.”
“I heard from Leviche that Uncle Karl comes to the house three or four times a week.”
"That..."
Andrew twisted his lips and glanced in the direction of his fellow knight, Karl.
"That guy's overdoing it. He skips night training like it's nothing. So he struggles every morning to make up for it."
"Pfft..."
Hillen smiled bitterly, as if he knew Andrew's words were not true.
Then, he spoke carefully, observing Andrew's expression.
“I wish my brother would make up with our father and come home more often.”
Andrew's expression instantly hardened at the word "father."
Andrew had hated his alcoholic father for a very long time.
This was because, after his mother passed away, his father became addicted to alcohol and neglected his young children, so he had to take on the role of the head of the household from a young age.
Hillen, like his mother, was already weak and often sick, and needed someone to pay for her medicine.
When the Saint was there, she could at least get help during the rituals she performed several times a year, but after losing the Saint in the war, that was no longer possible.
So, Andrew joined a group of hunters when he was ten to help support Hillen and his father.
Whenever he left home for a few days to hunt in the mountains, Andrew was gripped by the fear that Hillen would be dead when he returned home.
His damn father, who may or may not have known Andrew's insecurities, was no help at all and would just get drunk and spout off his usual rants whenever he got the chance.
“If only I hadn’t done that back then... It’s my fault. It’s all my fault...”
“Honey, I’m sorry for embarrassing you until the moment you die... I made the wrong choice... I was blind... That witch took my soul... I wasn’t in my right mind...”
Sometimes, he would grab Andrew and express his anger, whether it was anger directed at someone or not.
"Do I look like a bad guy to you? Huh? I couldn't help it! I couldn't help it! Don't look at me like that! Yes, I am a bad guy! I ruined everything! But it was all because of my family!"
Every time his father got drunk and started talking nonsense, Andrew felt more and more sorry for him.
Andrew's expression was filled with disgust as he thought of his father.
'I once respected you.'
Before Ronheim was conquered by Arrental, his father, a knight, was Andrew's hero.
A knight who protects the Saintess. The chosen guardian of Ronheim.
He once believed that there was no other man in the world as wonderful as his father, and he vowed to himself that he would become someone like him.
But right after the war, when his mother finally succumbed to typhoid fever and passed away, his father was completely broken.
It was excruciatingly difficult for Andrew to watch the object of his admiration turn so ugly.
His expectations of his father were shattered, and Andrew, beyond disappointment at the downfall of the person he admired, began to loathe his father.
"It's not just you who's struggling, so why abandon your family? Was our mother the only family you had? What on earth are we to you, father?"
At that time, no house in Ronheim had lost a family member, as so many people had died in the war.
It was a difficult time for everyone.
In those days, unlike other people, his family wasn't killed by someone on the battlefield in an instant. His mother, who had been suffering from a long illness, simply passed away quietly at home.
They had time to prepare themselves mentally, so they were actually better off than those who suddenly lost their families in the war.
However, the father was the only one who could not overcome the grief of losing his family, which everyone else had overcome.
Andrew couldn't understand it at all.
It would be nice if his father could take care of Hillen.
Then at least he wouldn't have to go out and earn money and come back every time with the fear that his sister might be dead.
Damn father. Go to hell.
Andrew lived like that, resenting his father.
He never wanted to become a knight because he didn't want to be like his father.
But it was too hard to hold out at home.
So Andrew ended up becoming a knight.
This was because once you become a knight, your salary is regularly delivered to your family, and you don't have to go home because you live in a dorm.
It was something that ran away.
From his father, from Hillen.
Even though he couldn't stand it and ran away, Andrew still felt guilty towards Hillen.
That's why he felt more affection for Hillen.
Andrew glanced at Hillen's pale face.
'I didn't mean to abandon you.'
Hillen looked up at Andrew longingly.
"Come home often, brother. Yeah? Dad's changed a lot, too. You saw it last time. When brother came, he didn't even touch alcohol."
But Andrew coldly refused his sister's request.
“...If that’s what you came here to say, then go back.”
“Brother, I don’t know why you do that to Father.”
“Go back, Hillen.”
Andrew gave a coin to the neighbor boy who had helped Hillen out.
"Please take good care of Hillen. Please take her home quickly. Thank you as always."
That was when Andrew was about to turn away from Hillen.
The surroundings became very noisy.
People were all looking in one direction.
“You bitch! Where the hell did you come from to find me here! Get out of here!”
In the place where people were watching, an old woman with disheveled white hair was out and about, not even wearing a coat, causing a ruckus.
Surprisingly, Chloe was there, swinging her fists and swearing at the old woman.
Fortunately, Chloe seemed safe, as the knights were holding the old woman.
Andrew heard people murmuring.
“That delirious old woman is going to end up causing an accident.”
“What should I do... If I keep doing this, the Princess of Arrental will get angry and order me to kill the old woman, right?”
“Oh my, that poor old woman. She seems to think the Princess is the Empress.”
“She’s acting like this because she’s possessed by a demon. What should I do?”
Andrew looked at Chloe disapprovingly.
It was because she was so angry that she seemed ready to issue a merciless order to have the old woman arrested and locked up in the dungeon.
But looking closely, Chloe didn't seem to have the presence of mind to get angry.
Chloe was standing there, hunched over, her head down so her face wasn't visible.
'Huh...? Something feels strange.'
Andrew, who had been watching Chloe, frowned and looked back at Hillen.
“Go home quickly, okay? I have to go see the Princess.”
After giving instructions to Hillen, he rushed to Chloe.
No matter how much Andrew hated and doubted Chloe's every move, she was still someone he had to protect as a knight of Callius.
Andrew carefully placed a hand on Chloe's shoulder as she cowered.
“Your Highness, are you alright?”
Chloe didn't answer.
Instead of an answer, only the faint sound of someone gasping for breath was heard.
“Huk... Huh...”
“...!”
Andrew lowered himself and examined Chloe's complexion.
Chloe's face was pale and pale.
'Why does her exhalation feel so cold?'
Is it an illusion?
'Well, a human's exhalation can't be this cold.'
Andrew thought he was mistaken and shouted loudly to keep Chloe from losing her mind.
“Come to your senses, Princess! Why are you doing this? Take a deep breath, slowly...!”
But despite Andrew's shouts, she stumbled, breathing heavily.
As soon as Andrew, startled, picked her up, she lost consciousness and collapsed.
“Your Highness!”
Suddenly, his eyes caught sight of a blonde woman coming towards him, supported by a neighbor's child.
'No, why did that kid come here?'
She was none other than Andrew's younger sister, Hillen, whom he cherished and worried about so much.
“I’m going to go for a bit since my younger sibling is coming over.”
When he asked his colleague for understanding by pointing to Hillen, the colleague, who was well aware of Andrew's family circumstances, readily nodded and pushed him away.
“Go ahead, go ahead.”
"Thanks."
Andrew pushed his way through the crowd and approached Hillen.
“Hillen!”
“Ah, brother!”
Hillen, with a pale face, smiled and waved at Andrew.
She looked older than she actually was, with her skin sallow and her cheeks thin, unlike those of a young person.
How can you come out to a crowded place like this with a face that looks like it could collapse at any moment?
Andrew felt his heart ache and worry as he watched the scene, and he grumbled against his will.
“You find it difficult to even go out in front of your house and take a walk, so why do you come here?”
“I came here to see my brother working up close.”
“What is this thing called?”
“Hey, I came because you didn’t come, why?”
Hillen glanced playfully at Andrew and then chuckled.
"Since you live in dorms, I can't even see you when you're nearby. You don't even come home on your days off. You haven't been home since the day you returned from the battlefield. That's why I have no choice but to come."
“I’m busy, I’m busy.”
“I heard from Leviche that Uncle Karl comes to the house three or four times a week.”
"That..."
Andrew twisted his lips and glanced in the direction of his fellow knight, Karl.
"That guy's overdoing it. He skips night training like it's nothing. So he struggles every morning to make up for it."
"Pfft..."
Hillen smiled bitterly, as if he knew Andrew's words were not true.
Then, he spoke carefully, observing Andrew's expression.
“I wish my brother would make up with our father and come home more often.”
Andrew's expression instantly hardened at the word "father."
Andrew had hated his alcoholic father for a very long time.
This was because, after his mother passed away, his father became addicted to alcohol and neglected his young children, so he had to take on the role of the head of the household from a young age.
Hillen, like his mother, was already weak and often sick, and needed someone to pay for her medicine.
When the Saint was there, she could at least get help during the rituals she performed several times a year, but after losing the Saint in the war, that was no longer possible.
So, Andrew joined a group of hunters when he was ten to help support Hillen and his father.
Whenever he left home for a few days to hunt in the mountains, Andrew was gripped by the fear that Hillen would be dead when he returned home.
His damn father, who may or may not have known Andrew's insecurities, was no help at all and would just get drunk and spout off his usual rants whenever he got the chance.
“If only I hadn’t done that back then... It’s my fault. It’s all my fault...”
“Honey, I’m sorry for embarrassing you until the moment you die... I made the wrong choice... I was blind... That witch took my soul... I wasn’t in my right mind...”
Sometimes, he would grab Andrew and express his anger, whether it was anger directed at someone or not.
"Do I look like a bad guy to you? Huh? I couldn't help it! I couldn't help it! Don't look at me like that! Yes, I am a bad guy! I ruined everything! But it was all because of my family!"
Every time his father got drunk and started talking nonsense, Andrew felt more and more sorry for him.
Andrew's expression was filled with disgust as he thought of his father.
'I once respected you.'
Before Ronheim was conquered by Arrental, his father, a knight, was Andrew's hero.
A knight who protects the Saintess. The chosen guardian of Ronheim.
He once believed that there was no other man in the world as wonderful as his father, and he vowed to himself that he would become someone like him.
But right after the war, when his mother finally succumbed to typhoid fever and passed away, his father was completely broken.
It was excruciatingly difficult for Andrew to watch the object of his admiration turn so ugly.
His expectations of his father were shattered, and Andrew, beyond disappointment at the downfall of the person he admired, began to loathe his father.
"It's not just you who's struggling, so why abandon your family? Was our mother the only family you had? What on earth are we to you, father?"
At that time, no house in Ronheim had lost a family member, as so many people had died in the war.
It was a difficult time for everyone.
In those days, unlike other people, his family wasn't killed by someone on the battlefield in an instant. His mother, who had been suffering from a long illness, simply passed away quietly at home.
They had time to prepare themselves mentally, so they were actually better off than those who suddenly lost their families in the war.
However, the father was the only one who could not overcome the grief of losing his family, which everyone else had overcome.
Andrew couldn't understand it at all.
It would be nice if his father could take care of Hillen.
Then at least he wouldn't have to go out and earn money and come back every time with the fear that his sister might be dead.
Damn father. Go to hell.
Andrew lived like that, resenting his father.
He never wanted to become a knight because he didn't want to be like his father.
But it was too hard to hold out at home.
So Andrew ended up becoming a knight.
This was because once you become a knight, your salary is regularly delivered to your family, and you don't have to go home because you live in a dorm.
It was something that ran away.
From his father, from Hillen.
Even though he couldn't stand it and ran away, Andrew still felt guilty towards Hillen.
That's why he felt more affection for Hillen.
Andrew glanced at Hillen's pale face.
'I didn't mean to abandon you.'
Hillen looked up at Andrew longingly.
"Come home often, brother. Yeah? Dad's changed a lot, too. You saw it last time. When brother came, he didn't even touch alcohol."
But Andrew coldly refused his sister's request.
“...If that’s what you came here to say, then go back.”
“Brother, I don’t know why you do that to Father.”
“Go back, Hillen.”
Andrew gave a coin to the neighbor boy who had helped Hillen out.
"Please take good care of Hillen. Please take her home quickly. Thank you as always."
That was when Andrew was about to turn away from Hillen.
The surroundings became very noisy.
People were all looking in one direction.
“You bitch! Where the hell did you come from to find me here! Get out of here!”
In the place where people were watching, an old woman with disheveled white hair was out and about, not even wearing a coat, causing a ruckus.
Surprisingly, Chloe was there, swinging her fists and swearing at the old woman.
Fortunately, Chloe seemed safe, as the knights were holding the old woman.
Andrew heard people murmuring.
“That delirious old woman is going to end up causing an accident.”
“What should I do... If I keep doing this, the Princess of Arrental will get angry and order me to kill the old woman, right?”
“Oh my, that poor old woman. She seems to think the Princess is the Empress.”
“She’s acting like this because she’s possessed by a demon. What should I do?”
Andrew looked at Chloe disapprovingly.
It was because she was so angry that she seemed ready to issue a merciless order to have the old woman arrested and locked up in the dungeon.
But looking closely, Chloe didn't seem to have the presence of mind to get angry.
Chloe was standing there, hunched over, her head down so her face wasn't visible.
'Huh...? Something feels strange.'
Andrew, who had been watching Chloe, frowned and looked back at Hillen.
“Go home quickly, okay? I have to go see the Princess.”
After giving instructions to Hillen, he rushed to Chloe.
No matter how much Andrew hated and doubted Chloe's every move, she was still someone he had to protect as a knight of Callius.
Andrew carefully placed a hand on Chloe's shoulder as she cowered.
“Your Highness, are you alright?”
Chloe didn't answer.
Instead of an answer, only the faint sound of someone gasping for breath was heard.
“Huk... Huh...”
“...!”
Andrew lowered himself and examined Chloe's complexion.
Chloe's face was pale and pale.
'Why does her exhalation feel so cold?'
Is it an illusion?
'Well, a human's exhalation can't be this cold.'
Andrew thought he was mistaken and shouted loudly to keep Chloe from losing her mind.
“Come to your senses, Princess! Why are you doing this? Take a deep breath, slowly...!”
But despite Andrew's shouts, she stumbled, breathing heavily.
As soon as Andrew, startled, picked her up, she lost consciousness and collapsed.
“Your Highness!”
Comments
Post a Comment