Chapter 10

Name:Shadowless Night Author:김미유
“It was more severe than usual. So, I don’t have anything to wear.”

“Calyx told me to buy myself new clothes because they were all out of fashion. Raymond, he told me to ask you to come along.”

He’s leaving everything to me, isn’t he? Raymond cursed Calyx a little inside. But for a kid like his own family, he thought he’d have to return anyways, for the holidays, and go to clothing shops. Roselyn looked around in her room and plopped down on the bed. Raymond handed her a uniform while he was organizing.

“Come on, take this. Change your clothes first and then come out. No! Take it off once I’ve left the room!”

When Roselyn was told to change, Raymond hurriedly covered his eyes as she unbuttoned. Roselyn, who came out in uniform, was scolded by Raymond for a while. ‘You can’t just take off your clothes in front of other people, okay? Promise your brother. Pinky swear it.’

Stamp. Roselyn frowned at the nagging for a while, but answered, “I know.” The hallways of the dormitory were wide and well organized. Raymond walked down the street and told her a few things.

“First of all, you should go to the Vice-Captain’s office and tell them you’ve returned. We have time until the ceremony, so I think we should go around the Knights to watch this and that… Oh, and after you’re officially appointed as a senior knight tomorrow, you’’ll have a few probationary knights under you. Up to five. If a trainee knight who wants to be taught by you applies, you can choose from them. You can have them do small tasks or errands, but it can be a little hard to take care of them. Just pick the amount you can handle. memorize the order of the ceremony and the pact?”

“Yes.”

“Great, good job. And Roselyn you… about your memory loss… well… What did you decide to do? Can you tell people about it?”

“Yes.”

Calyx had agonized over this decision. Having said that, Roselyn would be at a disadvantage, if she hadn’t said anything. Her eccentric behaviour would not be acceptable in most cases. Some degree of  her behaviour has been refined, but most people who knew Roselyn’s old self would notice.

It was inevitable. So, before any strange rumours spread beyond control, it was necessary to provide an explanation to others.

Roselyn’s illness was called amnesia.

However, there will be no difficulty working with Knights, and she will return to the Knights with the same loyalty as before, to the Second Prince, even though she has lost her memory. That was Roselyn’s story. Roselyn was guided by Raymond to the dressing room.

Two guards stood in front of the door, and when they saw Raymond’s face, they opened the door. Roselyn’s eyes met the man who was looking at some papers, sitting at a table. His sharp eyes, deeply defined wrinkles. It was the appearance of an official. The man with red hair rose from his seat and moved to the front of the table. Raymond and Roselyn clenched their right fist and placed their hand over their heart.

“The glory of Idelavheim, who separates us from darkness. Roselyn of Red Wheel. I’ve just returned to the White Night Knights.”

“The glory of Idelavheim, who separates us from darkness. Raymond of Great Horn. I see the Captain.”

The Captain of the Knights, Starce, like them, put his fist over his heart.

“To you, the glory of Idelavheim. How is your body, Sir Roselyn”.

She could feel Raymond staring at her with a nervous look. Roselyn put both behind her back.

“I’m fine.”

“You look well, indeed. I’m glad. I hope you will continue to work hard for your sake”.

“Yes, sir.”

“Congratulations on your promotion to Senior Officer. You have been diligent.”

“Thank you.”

“Any questions about the appointment?”

“No.”

Raymond watched their conversation, which was coming and going like a knife, and then, Raymond cleared his throat and stepped into the conversation. Although he knew she had not much practice speaking long-term, Roselyn almost seemed to be arguing with the Captain of the knights. Her short words were spoken in a curt manner.

“If you don’t mind, can I say a word, Captain.”

“Tell me.”

“…in fact, Sir Roselyn’s body was recovered perfectly, fortunately… but she… is still a little bit injured in the heart.”

Starce looked at Raymond with an incredulous face. What are you talking about?

“What does that mean, Lord Raymond? What pain in the heart. Of course I understand how she feels. I’ve also lost many colleagues like you, even so, it’s our job to overcome that grief and anger”.

“….”

Did he say too much?… Raymond wiped the smile off his lips in an instant. ‘Ok, I don’t know, but I can do it.’

“There’s a little problem with Sir Roselyn’s memory. It’s called Amnesia.”

“… …”

The general’s face looked perplexed. It was a very rare sight.

“Although most of her memories were lost, she still remembered the vows of the white nights to protect the  Second Prince. Also, the acquisition speed of her knowledge is very fast. I did not think she was considered unfit to proceed with the mission, so I directed her return to you. There is also the doctor’s opinion that her memory will soon come back”.

Starce received the letter from Raymond, and read it aloud. The other words seemed blurry, but the word [Amnesia] was very vivid and clear. Perhaps the shorter responses, shorter than usual, were attributed to this.

The Captain made a mental note and shot a glance at Roselyn, stroking his chin. He kept looking alternatively between her and the letter as he read. He would have believed her story right away, but the Red Wheel family were aligned to the first Prince, this could be a ruse from their end. However, she had always kept a straight and loyal attitude to the second Prince so he dismissed that thought. If it weren’t for this he would have been more careful.

The black-haired woman kept her silence, with an expressionless face, listening clearly as her story was told from his mouth. She even seemed a little bored. In the past, Roselyn was generous and bold; she was not a person skilled enough to lie for her own interests. Starce, who knew her character well, had to admit it. The fact that this report must be close to the truth. Starce had a complex expression on his face. He was silent for a long time, and found it difficult to open his mouth.

“….Your body…… How is it, really, Sir Roselyn?”

Though the question was the same, the meaning was different. Roselyn looked straight at the Starce, straightening her back.

“I’m fine. Thank you.”

Starce gave her a congratulatory message after hesitating a little bit. Raymond stayed in the Captain’s office and talked to him for a few more minutes. Two junior knights standing outside the Captain’s room glanced at her face. She was a celebrity in the Knights of the White Night.

The oldest daughter of the Red Wheel family, which supports the First Prince, Roselyn Ester, who miraculously survived death. She smiled, as she received various looks toward her, without embarrassment. She knew what the situation would be like in advance because Calyx had warned her. People in the Knights of the White Night don’t like herself too much.

He said the reason was that they support different factions. If so, it should have been the same for the Captain of the Knights. It seemed his blunt tone and expression did not hide these worries.

Inside the closed doors, she could hear Raymond and Starce talking to each other. Roselyn was outside the door, but she could hear it clearly. It was thanks to borrowing some cells from a creature that had an excellent hearing ability.

“…Sir Roselyn…”

“If so…”

Even after Roselyn left, the Captain’s worries continued. Raymond was sick and tired of it. Roselyn leaned her head against the wall while waiting for Raymond. [I’m sorry, Roselyn, the black-haired human. You might have been a pretty decent person.]

* * *

Roselyn wrinkled her brows and showed discomfort. Next to her, Raymond was nervous. She felt the pricking sensation of gazes from everywhere. If she turns her head, she could see every human passing by as they looked at her. Some have even come from afar just to confirm seeing her face and that she was alive.

Roselyn’s patience was beginning to wear thin. She didn’t like to stand out. Living things have evolved over the years—hundreds of years, and many generations, in a direction favourable to survival, even with intermittent culling.

‘It’ would usually mimic the creatures nearby, mix in with them and escape from the oncoming threats. It didn’t develop its own personality, yet the feelings Roselyn felt currently, may have been developed in this environment. So at the moment, when people’s attention focused on Roselyn, her feelings slowly became what is known as ‘nervous.’

Do they need to look at her like this? It’s not the face of a monster, it’s not like she doesn’t have eyes or arms; doesn’t she have the most ordinary human form? Did she unconsciously change her own shape? After checking her limbs, she strained her neck to see her back.

“What are you doing, Roselyn?”

“Am I weird?”

Why do people keep staring? Raymond looked straight at her, shaking his head. She was dressed in a perfectly good outfit.

“Although you’re a good kid, Roselyn. Even so, that’s no reason for everyone to like you.”

“I don’t know what you mean. It’s weird.”

“It’s kind of weird and difficult, right? That’s how human relationships work.”

Count Fertan Ester of Red Wheel. A person who has made numerous contributions on the frontline in order to protect the First Prince, and also has the most titles granted, with the exception of Dry Thorn. In short, it was an Illavenian family with deep roots and power.

That family’s daughter entered the 2nd Prince’s Knights and quickly finished her probationary period, then was promoted to junior knight. The Captain of the Knights was not a person that would discriminate against or bully her, even though she was a child of another faction, mainly due to her desire to protect the Second Prince. Furthermore, the Vice-Captain loved her dearly. However, the problem was that she was not a pleasant sight for other knights to see, especially since she was also a woman. She was a woman and her family supported the first prince, the combination of those two things did not seem to be very good! That was how she appeared to those who did not know Roselyn of Red Wheel personally. Even so, when it was said that during the battle of the hunting contest, when her body was could not be found, those who hated Roselyn were also mourning at that time.