I Tried To Be Her Loyal Sword

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Episode 226

‘What a cute little thing.’

I swallowed my laughter at the direct question that even seemed innocent.

Leo was honest. Sometimes his bluntness made him seem rough, but I didn’t dislike that about him.

‘But not right now.’

“You can’t hug me now. Maintain your dignity.”

I whispered softly, deliberately hardening my expression. I wanted to avoid the numerous rumors and controversies that would arise if he were to suddenly hug me in response to my heartfelt request.

“••••••Really?”

“Later.”

Leo, with his personality, would live his life his own way, but I couldn’t go along with that. Since I had come to Atara, I wanted to help him preserve his dignity.

“Glory to the Solarit Empire. Atara welcomes you.”

Others couldn’t hear our whispers, so they probably thought that Leo and I were caught in an awkward silence. As the anxious chatter grew on both sides, Leo mischievously curled the corners of his mouth. The people from Atara shuddered at Leo’s smile.

“Prosperity to the Atara Kingdom. Thank you for your warm welcome.”

I changed my demeanor towards my friend Leo to reflect how I would address King Alexandros, gently tapping the ground with my left toe, fist over heart, and bowing. This was the Atara-style greeting I had learned beforehand.

“You’ve come a long way. Are you the commander of the Kashmir Crisis?”

Leo playfully asked with his bright green eyes sparkling as he spoke solemnly.

I barely restrained my laughter. Although it was officially our first meeting, in reality, he was an old friend, so his demeanor was just too funny.

“It is an honor to meet you, Your Majesty.”

“I’ve heard rumors that your swordsmanship is quite impressive. I have been looking forward to meeting you.”

“I believe the rumors are exaggerated. I am quite embarrassed.”

A few formal words were exchanged, and Leo grinned, extending his hand.

“May I at least have a handshake?”

There was a strange arrogance to his tone, but given that he was a king, it was a polite mannerism. I raised my eyebrows and shook hands without hesitation.

“It is my honor.”

From the calloused hand, I felt familiar mana. A warm sensation of nostalgia.

After shaking hands lightly, perhaps I lingered too long; Leo’s smile turned mischievous as he relaxed his arms.

“Then would you grant me a hug of welcome? I can’t contain my overwhelming gratitude for you coming to help Atara.”

I thought he would accept the fact that hugging was not allowed, but he like a sly fox suggested it again. Just shy of a formal issue.

‘This shouldn’t appear too strange.’

Since this was supposedly an act of friendliness, it shouldn’t be a problem. I opened my arms and carefully hugged Leo.

Wham.

The moment I softly hugged him, Leo wrapped me tightly as if trapping me. With my nose buried in his dark blue uniform, I felt I might suffocate from the overwhelming scent of lemons.

“••••••What’s this?”

He momentarily silenced while hugging me, then growled lowly. The atmosphere plummeted.

After taking several deep breaths in the air, Leo buried his face in my neck. At a glance, it looked casual, but my heightened senses felt his breathing acutely.

“You……

Our gazes met as Leo raised his head.

“You smell like blood.”

His green eyes shimmered frostily.

It was not long after the battle in the North. While I had no major wounds, I couldn’t escape the minor ones either.

Having come as a guest of Atara, I had wiped my body and washed my hair with a damp cloth before entering the royal palace, but I hadn’t had the luxury of a proper bath. It was not surprising that I still smelled like blood.

‘They probably don’t know yet that there was an incident in the North.’

If my friend smelled of blood after a long journey, it would surely perplex him. I smiled calmly and gently pushed on Leo’s shoulder.

“I’ll give you a detailed report after a bit. For now, let’s unpack. Actually, I should see you first.”

Leaning slightly, Leo subtly grabbed my shoulder and glanced around. Although he smiled, there was nothing but coldness and dryness to his expression.

“Everyone must have had a hard time during the long journey. Quickly disband and rest. However, the commander of such a significant duty can’t take a break without reporting first…… I would appreciate it if you, Commander of the Crisis, could exert a little more effort.”

With words that neatly clarified the situation, Leo waved to his attendants.

“Lead the reinforcements to their quarters.”

“Yes.”

“And you, move the belongings of the Crisis commander.”

“Understood!”

The dedicated attendants began to move with precision. My adjutant, Jonathan, standing closest to me, approached and leaned in to whisper in my ear.

“Are you sure you don’t need to rest? You haven’t slept, have you?”

“It’s not a serious issue; go ahead and go in first.”

His concern was commendable for an adjutant, but I waved my hand dismissively. He hesitated for a moment before being led away to the quarters.

“You all can leave now. I need to speak privately with the commander.”

“What? But—”

The attendants showed visible confusion as they exchanged glances between me and Leo. It was to be expected since publicly, it was our first meeting.

Leo’s sharp gaze became even colder.

“‘But,’ do you have such things?”

His authoritative gaze looked down at me.

“……My apologies. That was my mistake. I will take my leave now.”

The attendants turned pale, bowed their heads, and vanished like lightning. Their eyes, filled with fear, looked like they had just seen a demon wielding dual swords.

I blinked at the empty corridor, then glanced back at Leo.

“You’re quite the madman, aren’t you?”

“I’m just utilizing fear appropriately. What do you see me as?”

Even alone, he naturally dropped the formalities and continued our conversation casually. Leo, who had been intensely scrutinizing me, grimaced.

“You, did you get hurt?”

“I’m fine, really…”

“You say you’re fine, but you smell like blood.”

“That’s not my blood.”

“Of course it is your blood. You think I can’t tell the difference?”

Feeling flustered, I darted my eyes around. I hadn’t checked my condition after the battle, so I was completely oblivious to any minor injuries.

‘He smells really sensitive.’

I averted my gaze from Leo’s serious face. He had always had an unusually keen sense of smell, but it seemed to have sharpened significantly since he became a Sword Expert.

“Come here.”

Leo sighed heavily and spread his arms wide. I couldn’t help but feel incredulous.

“Sorry, but both of my legs are pretty much gone. Do you want me to show you how to hover in the air?”

“It might be a cute sight, but let’s save it for next time. Just come here.”

“No, why do you insist on…”

“I’ve seen people I never thought would fall apart, break apart already.”

I already knew whom he was referring to.

‘Leisha.’

The woman who had been stronger than anyone else fell apart in front of him.

“Your strength and your worries have nothing to do with each other. People are too easily broken.”

Our gazes intertwined deeply.

“I’m worried about you.”

Leo’s earnest words always made me feel weak.

“……You really are torturing yourself.”

I clicked my tongue but didn’t refuse any longer.

I had learned how to receive worries smoothly. It was still a bit awkward, but I no longer felt flustered like before.

“I know but……”

“Hey, but.”

I cut Leo off mid-sentence and glanced around anxiously. No matter how sharpened my senses were, I couldn’t feel any presence besides us.

‘In that case……’

“Can’t you just give me a ride since nobody’s watching?”

“••••••What?”

I grinned mischievously.

If I was going to be moved anyway, shouldn’t it at least be fun?

“We’ve arrived, my dear.”

Stopping, Leo gently set me down on the medical room’s bed. If anyone had been there, I would have hopped off his shoulder right away, but thankfully, there seemed to be no one around, probably due to it being lunchtime.

I sat on the bed, swinging my legs playfully.

“The view from up high is nice. Did you enjoy seeing it all alone all this time?”

Even as a Sword Master flying through the skies, I still found it amusing to ride like this.

At my playful pout, Leo let out a chuckle.

“Should I carry you on my shoulders from now on? I don’t mind, but if you’re confident, you can walk on your own.”

“No. Sorry, I don’t want to be known as the puppet master of the noble King of Atara.”

As the nonsense continued, Leo knelt one knee in front of me. I found myself looking down at him.

“Stay still.”

He slightly raised his body, placed his hand on my shoulder, and started taking deep breaths from my neck downward.

“You’re… a dog?”

“I can’t just take off your clothes to check.”

I looked down at Leo as he sniffed around me, half disbelieving, half amused. I had wiped my body clean with a damp cloth, so there shouldn’t be any terrible stink, but seeing him deliberately examine me made me somewhat uneasy.

“You don’t smell like garbage, do you?”

“Huh?”

Leo raised my arm and sniffed my wrist, then laughed lightly.

“It smells like my favorite smell.”

“Am I giving off a basic scent?”

“You silly, it’s your smell.”

We both burst into giggles at the same time, teetering between the oddness and the playful nature of it all.

As Leo held my left ankle, he slowly brought his face down from my thigh. I felt confused by the mix of comedy and an indefinable feeling.

“Pull your pants up.”

He made a face and gestured at me. I rolled up the pant legs.

“Ah.”

“……Is your injury like this, and you haven’t treated it?”

He sighed at the unveiled wound. There was a big cut across the back of my left calf, bruised and caked in dried blood.

Leo coldly snorted in disbelief.

‘How did I miss this?’

I realized once again that I was incredibly numb to pain. It had been quite a while since the battle, but seeing that it was untreated, the injury must’ve been pretty deep initially.

I hadn’t even noticed when I got hurt, while changing clothes, or even while cleaning myself. The feeling of being soaked in monster blood post-battle must have contributed to that.

It was a moment where my confidence in my sensitive senses fell apart.

“Why…… could I have missed this injury?”

I mumbled, glancing at Leo, who had an expression like a demon.

He began disinfecting the wound with a mix of frustration.

“If you can’t notice this, you must be at a level where you can’t feel pain.”

“Oh…”

“Now, that shouldn’t be a good thing, right?”

I turned my head slightly, as he hit the nail on the head.

When I was busy living as a mercenary, I had no time to pay attention to pain.

Since becoming a Crisis commander, many things had changed, but I still found it hard to react immediately to pain. I had grown used to holding back groans, only to treat urgent wounds after everything was over.

“You were always like that when you lived with me. You took care of my injuries, but when you got hurt, you said you were fine.”

“What… that was just a scratch.”

“A scratch? Your arm was practically severed.”

While Leo growled fiercely, he carefully wrapped the bandage around my leg.

After gently moving my leg around, he raised those beautiful green eyes to look up at me.

“Don’t go numb. If it hurts, say it hurts. I can kneel in front of you as many times as it takes.”

I let out a quiet laugh. Seeing Leo, who was kneeling in front of me, nearly at eye level, made me realize just how much he had grown.

Physically and emotionally, he had matured tremendously.

“You really have grown a lot.”

I smiled softly, slowly caressing beneath his chin with my fingertips. I wondered when he had grown into an adult who could comfort me, but I didn’t dislike it.

“……Ha.”

Unlike me, Leo let out a hollow laugh, grimacing at my leg.

“You’re right.”

Suddenly,

In a flash, Leo sprang up, lightly grabbing the hand that was tickling his chin and descended upon me.

Did I lean away in surprise? He gently pushed against my collarbone, laying me fully back onto the bed.

Swoosh.

His long hair spread wide over the bed. I looked up at the figure looming over me, casting a large shadow on my body.

With a dangerous expression, Leo peered down at me and grinned.

“I’ve grown a lot, you know.”

Despite his soft voice, there was a fierce glint in his eyes.