I Tried To Be Her Loyal Sword

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“One more bottle.”

“••••••What?”

The bartender, wiping a glass, wore a look of sheer shock. His wide eyes were fixated on the mountain of alcohol bottles stacked before me.

“Well, it’s great if the customer boosts sales, but… isn’t this a bit excessive…?”

“One more bottle!”

“Oh dear… Yes, yes. Coming right up.”

The bartender, still concerned, seemed to regret my shout. His look was that of someone witnessing a hopeless drunkard. I brushed aside my bangs buried under a black robe and pressed a hand against my forehead.

‘How is it that I’m not even tipsy…?’

I let out a heavy sigh. After downing so many bottles of strong liquor that I couldn’t recall how many, my mind was frustratingly clear. It was a moment of resentment towards the sword master’s mental fortitude.

It was the night after Aria declared her intention to go to war. There was a clear reason for my despondence as I wallowed in an undeserved drunken stupor.

I understood it in my head and accepted it in my heart, but it would take time for me to feel okay about it.

‘Was everything I’ve done until now really for my own selfishness…?’

I pouted my lips in gloom and sprawled my upper body across the table. It felt like a heavy rock was pressing down on me.

“Wh… what? Is that ShuShu?”

Then, I encountered someone I never expected.

Having entered without a second thought, he approached me with a disbelieving look. His emerald eyes sparkled with the same hue as the absinthe I had just drunk. A glimpse of white hair peeked out from under his hood.

“Leo…”

Somehow feeling a surge of emotion, I murmured his name.

“What a ridiculously coincidental encounter. Are you drinking alone?”

“Hmph. Yeah. I’m feeling down… you are…?”

“I was also thinking of buying some alcohol to take outside… but if you’re here, I have to drink here.”

Leo casually sat down next to me. I felt uncomfortable seeing him like this, but the inexplicable emptiness and loneliness inside me were stronger, so I didn’t stop him.

“Aren’t you going back to your country…?”

It had been a while since the delegation had returned. I wondered how it was okay for a king like Leo to still be here.

“I am. I have work to do. But I’ve been too busy with a lot of tasks in Sol Latiné and just popped over.”

It was almost absurd for him to be jumping back and forth, given the significant distance between Atara and Sol Latiné. Yet, since Atara was a country that had pioneered long-distance teleportation portals, I knew it wasn’t a complete lie.

“A king like you is going back and forth?”

I blinked in surprise. It was rare for a king to be so hands-on, no matter how busy they were with an impending war. After a moment of looking down, Leo smiled ruefully.

“I had to clear out all the nobles who opposed me before I ascended, so I’m in a position to rebuild from scratch. I have very few trusted people, so I have no choice but to do it myself. Isn’t it funny that even as a king, I lack any kind of dignity or composure?”

Leo was someone who had placed the throne on the ruins left behind. Having not even been crowned for a year yet, it was obvious he was facing immense instability.

‘You’re really having a tough time too.’

I looked at Leo with pity. He waved his hand dismissively.

“Don’t look at me that way. I don’t want to appear like that to you. I’m doing this of my own accord, so it’s fine.”

“You do know you’ve got dark circles now…?”

“…So what? Do you hate it?”

“I don’t hate it, it’s just… you’ve become more kingly…”

“Damn it. I can just use eye patches!”

For a moment, we exchanged dialogue reminiscent of a skit, and through my gloom, I laughed sincerely. Though a bit teary, Leo was still one of the people I felt most comfortable with.

“Don’t laugh. I’m…”

As Leo grumbled and tried to continue, our eyes met, and his expression hardened.

He grabbed my cheek and pulled me closer. The scent of lemon suddenly filled my nostrils. Just as I widened my eyes in surprise, he brushed his thumb against the rim of my eye.

“You’ve been crying?”

His low voice, tinged with concern, overwhelmed my emotions in that instant. I took a deep breath.

“I’m not crying… Hic, hic…”

“W-what’s wrong, why all of a sudden…?”

“Sniff! Hic! Cough…”

“Hey, wait a second, don’t cry! I don’t know what to do if you start crying!”

And then, I burst into tears.

Who would have thought I would drink and cry? This was a new low.

“Yeah… that’s because your younger sister declared she’d go to war, so I ended up fighting like crazy.”

“Not like I was fighting crazily… but I did get into a fight. Hmph…”

“Anyway, you’ve been drinking until your nose is in a twist because of that, right?”

“Sniff… Hic…”

“It’s a mess.”

With a long sigh, Leo dabbed my swollen eyes with a handkerchief. I accepted his gentle touch while sniffing. Although it felt awkward, his tenderness didn’t bother me.

“If it were someone else who made you cry, I would’ve brought their head on a silver platter to you. But since it’s your beloved younger sister, that’s out of the question…”

His mumbled words were tinged with an almost chilling threat, yet his expression remained calm. I felt a slight chill and took a slow, deep breath.

“I really don’t know what to do. I respect your opinions, but I’m worried… and I don’t even know what healthy love is. What exactly is love?”

His murmur carried a melancholic vibe, as his verdant eyes gazed at me curiously. Those luminous eyes seemed to captivate people merely with their gaze.

“I’m not someone suitable for relationship advice, you know.”

Leo was someone who lacked normal human relationships altogether. I couldn’t expect advice from him. Initially, it was just an attempt to lighten my heart.

Just as I was about to brush it off, Leo continued speaking.

“But if you’re asking about love, I might be able to give you a pretty decent answer.”

Propping his chin on his hand, he grinned mischievously. His demeanor hinted at a confidence that made me think he must be a PhD in Love Studies or something.

“You… love?”

I could hardly believe it and asked again. The Leo I knew had no connection with love or relationships. Leo and love felt as mismatched as a Viking and a unicorn.

“Yeah. I’ve been at it for quite a while.”

Leo nodded as he fiddled with a bottle on the table. I couldn’t hide my astonishment as I squinted my eyes.

‘Is he talking about Leisha?’

It dawned on me that he must have loved his caretaker, Leisha, like family. While I tried to piece together his words like a puzzle, he spoke up again.

“When I don’t see them, I miss them, and while I want to hold them tight, I also want to see them fly away. I want to do things my way, but I want to grant their wishes. If they’re going to cry, I hope it’s because of me.”

I let out a short sound of exasperation. His feelings seemed to resonate with my own for Aria, yet also felt different. Love and feelings like that were way too difficult for me.

“Then… should I just let Aria go?”

Just the thought of her heading to the battlefield filled me with unease. Imagining her getting hurt made my head spin.

If she died, I couldn’t be sure I’d be able to cope.

“Do you have the confidence to bind your sister to you?”

Leo spoke with a contemplative tone. His verdant eyes flickered slowly. The mix of pain and something eerily smoldering in those eyes was unsettling.

“Are you sure you can keep her beside you for life and hold on tightly? Even if she writhes in despair? Even if she looks at you with hatred?”

He twisted his lips, as if he were mocking himself.

“You have to let her go because you can’t do that. Even if you want to…”

His voice was heavy with deep experience, so I couldn’t contest it.

“You’re also going to war, right?”

Perhaps he felt my scrutiny, Leo nonchalantly changed the subject. I nodded.

“Yeah. I have to go. I can’t just stand by when I have the strength.”

“But you’re in a position where you could just stay back.”

“You know I’m not the type to stay back. If I were, you wouldn’t have reached out to me.”

I was innately meddlesome, even if it came off as foolish. Given my resolute answer, Leo let out a chuckle.

“…Yeah. That’s just who you are.”

He muttered as he exhaled sharply.

“I expect the war to break out around winter. The Northern folks, used to winter, view the cold season as a strength, not a weakness. Before then, we have to be fully prepared.”

Leo met my gaze.

“Before that, I’m going to visit the Silver Wolf Beastmen.”

“…Why?”

I asked in surprise. The Silver Wolf Beastmen were a tribe that had barely survived the Beastmen massacre, making their territory dangerous to approach, and the tribe itself was extremely conservative and defensive. Even if I managed to reach their dwelling, there was a significant chance I’d lose my head before saying anything.

“You took Leisha’s belongings as if they were yours without a second thought. I originally didn’t suspect Leisha, but… due to that incident, I’ve been looking into Leisha’s past. It’s strange that someone would be searching for Leisha’s soul.”

Leo took a deep breath.

“As a result, I found clues that Leisha was born among the Silver Wolf Beastmen.”

I had already suspected Leisha was related to the Silver Wolf Beastmen. However, I thought it was unlikely she was actually one of them.

I looked at Leo in shock. He wore a somewhat complicated expression.

“The Silver Wolf Beastmen feel happiest and most secure when they’re with their kind. I wonder if maybe she gave that up because of me, so I want to confirm if Leisha has any surviving family.”

His quiet voice sounded strangely sorrowful, almost nostalgic. I too felt a wave of complexities within me, biting my lip as I patted his shoulder.

“Perhaps… it’d be a good idea to ask the Silver Wolf Tribe for help in the war. They have formidable warriors.”

“That would be nice. Though I don’t know if that closed-off tribe will permit it.”

Leo slowly looked back at me.

“Will you come with me then?”

After all, facing the past of someone who had been the most precious to him, his caretaker, would be difficult alone. I silently nodded.

“Yeah. I’ll go with you.”

Leo offered a weak smile. He seemed to be deep in thought. As I gazed at him, I added quietly.

“Leisha will not regret raising you.”

It was written that way in the faint memories of the original novel ‘Fairy’s Night.’ Leisha had taken Leo in due to her bond with Leo’s mother, but ultimately, she never regretted taking him in even once.

“…I hope so.”

Leo muttered, lightly shaking the bottle.

He too seemed to be preparing for some kind of leap.