Chapter 45

Surprised, she hugged her neck again. Eckart took her to the table and dropped her safely on a flat carpet. She quickly released her arms tightly wrapped around him like shackles.

She adjusted her entangled dress finally and said, “I’m sorry.”

She didn’t know how to cope with the situation. She finally apologized and pressed her dishevelled hair with her hand. It seemed that she could hardly trim her tangled hair properly as Poibe pecked all of it.

“Fool.”

Poibe, who was sitting down at the window, chirped up again as if to annoy her.

Marianne stared at Poibe with an annoyed look. Poibe’s uttering ‘fool’ came right at the moment, which made her even think her previous owner might be the emperor.

“Don’t you like it?”

“Well, I hate the way Phebe acts.”

“Since Phebe offended you, do I you kill her and bring you another bird?”

Marianne jumped at his suggestion.

“Don’t do that!”

“Why? Based on my observation, it looks like you’re going to starve her even if I keep her alive here.”

“Pardon? No way! I’m going to feed her well even if I hate her.”

“I hope so. In fact, finding and raising such a smart bird isn’t that easy.”

“I’m not killing her!”

Marianne grumbled at his suggestion. Eckart walked towards the window.

He pushed the door with a large window. The sun was shining like a wave, with the smell of flowers entwined with the breeze. The parlor was on the first floor, so the balcony was directly connected to the garden.

“Then let me bring a teacher who can teach you how to train her.”

He snapped his fingers twice toward the garden where no one was.

A playful sound of his finger-snapping broke the silence.

At the same time, a man suddenly appeared.

“…!”

Marianne was so surprised that she closed her mouth with both hands. She saw an incredible scene unfolding right before her emerald eyes.

This man, who literally fell from the sky, raised his body straight landing on the ground with a crouch. His black hair flew in the wind.

He was wearing the official uniform of the Eluang Knights, but he did not look neat because he released the lock buttons on the neck and upper chest. He hung a pair of double-sword thinners which was different than the usual knight sword on both sides of his belt.

Surprisingly, Poibe flew gently and sat on his shoulder. She even swiped her yellow feather on his cheeks.

“Phebe, you really are…”

Marianne thought Phebe was discriminating against people.

She put down her hands covering her mouth. Needless to see, that man was Phebe’s former owner.

Phebe pecked her hands, hair, dress, and messed up her hair, while she was so nice to him.

“Curtis.”

Eckart called the man. Curtis heard his call and knelt down on the carpet. With his right hand on his left chest, he shook his head slightly and greeted Marianne.

“This is Knight Curtis, Eluang’s Shining Sword, Astolf’s Black Wolf, Your Majesty’s shadow and spy in the North. I’m honored to see you.”

Marianne finally recognized his identity.

This was the messenger bird’s owner, whmo the emperor tipped her off last time. He was the emperor’s spy hiding in the Astolf group.

“I’m Marianne, the daughter of Kling and Lennox. Please stand up.”

When she reached out kindly, Curtis stood up after placing his forehead and lips on the back of her hand.

That was a weird way of greeting her. Although their actions were polite, one unleashed his formal knights uniform while the other had her hair dishevelled.

Looking at them, Eckart sighed lowly.

“Thank you so much for having escorted my father to the capital safely. I really wanted to thank you if I met you.”

“I just followed the emperor’s order.”

“But it was Sir Curtis who carried out his order directly.”

As if her answer was a bit unexpected, Curtis narrowed his eyebrows and appreciated her compliment by bowing slightly.

Marianne smiled at Curtis bowing to her.

In one sense, Curtis betrayed her father, but in some respects, he saved her father and protected Milan. As he had such great capabilities as a mole, he would surely be of great help to her.

“Hope I’ll be in great hands.”

Her request had many implications. She scrutinized the man bowing to her.

His black hair and eyes combined with his expressionless face sounded dismal. His build was slender and strong. He looked like a handsome man with cold-heartedness like Eckart, she felt he was different.

If Eckart were like a sword that cut a thousand-year-old blue glacier sharply, Curtis was like a shade that grew without being exposed to the sun. As the emperor himself introduced Curtis, the word, the emperor’s “shadow,” seemed to describe his identity perfectly.

“Once or twice a week, take time to learn how to deal with the bird from Curtis.”

“Yes, will do.”

“Curtis, she says she has no experience with raising birds, so try to teach her as if you’re teaching a five-year-old child. She will make a lot of mistakes, so be careful not to be rude to her by showing your hot temper.”

“Yes, Your Excellency.”

“Wait a minute. What are you talking about? I’m not a five-year-old child. Although I’m a beginner, I don’t like that kind of description.”

Marianne stared at Eckart with an angry look.

“Which level do you think you are at now?”

“Well, at least I’m a 10-year-old child!”

“Oh yeah. That’s great. Not five, but ten.”

In a barren voice, Eckart swept his bangs with weary hands. His golden hair shining in the afternoon sun vividly sparkled.

“It’s sunny outside, so you can start right away. Birds are more comfortable with the garden than indoors. Go out and learn for a couple of hours.”

“How about you?”

“Do I have to stay by you while you’re learning?”

“I don’t need that kind of overprotection. I just asked you out of courtesy.”

Marianne retorted, winking the other eye.

Eckart went back to the couch and sat down with his back against it.

“I have some other things to do. Don’t worry about me and focus on Curtis and training.”

“Well, that’s what I was going to do anyway.”

She turned, frowning at him, like a dog deprived of snacks.

“Sir Curtis, let’s get out. Your Majesty says he is very busy.”

When she stepped out onto the balcony, hitting the floor with her heels, she heard somebody knocking the door of the parlor.

“Your Majesty, this is Einz.”

“Come in.”

The door was opened when Eckart okayed it. They were Cordelli and Einz who went out to bring freshly brewed tea. Einz, who came in first with the tea on a tray, bowed to him. Cordelli greeted, but she screamed as soon as she raised her head.

“Oh my god! Lady! You look so terrible!”

Forgetting she was before the emperor, Cordelli rushed to her with a big fuss.

“What happened to your hair? It was pretty braided until you went out! Oh, what’s wrong with the back of your hands? You’ve got scars there. Did anybody harass you? Did somebody pull your hair? Who is it?”

“Oh no. I just… ”

Marianne struggled to calm down Cordelli, who was surprised at her mess.

As if he stiffened at her messy appearance, Einz was standing while holding a tray.

Curtis tickled Poibe’s beak with a mysterious look.

‘Hummmm… nobody is on my side here.’ Eckart sighed as he pressed his splitting temple.

He didn’t feel like taking issue with her rudeness.

If he wanted to rebuke her, he should have done so from the beginning.

There was a standard for everything. Aside from the fact that he had the power to pull her out and punish her, it would mean changing the standard if he asked for nicer treatment. And most people took a dim view of changing the standard.

Marianne was like a chesspiece who was more important than anybody.

In a situation where he brought her father Duke Kling to the central political stage, he couldn’t undo the whole deal just because he didn’t like her temperament.

If he overly controlled her, he didn’t know what trouble this innocent and fragile woman could bring about.

At that moment, he recalled what Jed had told him before, “If you are going to use her, don’t make her feel hostile to you even if you can’t make her like you.”

Recalling his advice, Eckart closed his eyes, pressing his forehead.

He broke the silence, talking to Einz in a resigned voice, “Einz, get me some alcohol instead of tea.”

* * *

The room with double satin curtains was dark. There was a bed with the statue of Brenda carved on each corner in gold and a canopy woven from gold thread. On top of a drawer made of juniper wood, there was a gold candlestick with two candles on top. The oil painting on the ceiling was Goddess Anthea.

A woman with a long blonde was sitting on the bed. Her dark blue eyes like Lake Lonen were staring in the air blankly. Her boney shoulders trembled every time she breathed in and out. Her haggard face had no vitality, but it was so beautiful. Eckart, who was 15 back then, glanced at her bizarre and terrible appearance.

“Mother!”