NRAL | Chapter 37

~Chapter 37~ 

Please Don’t Reject Me

“Sir Ernst, please lift your head. It was my choice to go even knowing it was a trap, and I was careless. You fought to protect me,” Eleanor said.

Ernst, his lips tightly pressed together, looked down with a gloomy expression. She patted his drooping shoulder, but it seemed to do little to comfort him.

“The ones who should be punished are the ones who truly committed the wrongdoing, not you. So, please, let go of that unnecessary guilt.”

Eleanor briefly glanced at Karsian. The words he had spoken to comfort her, saying he had no fault or responsibility, suddenly came to mind.

He seemed to have a displeased look on his face, frowning as usual. Perhaps it was because she had seen it a few times, but it didn’t seem as scary anymore.

‘At least it’s a relief. It looks like no one saw the Duke of Royster except for Sir Ernst.’

If the traitorous knights from Astria had seen Karsian, the information would have reached Nora and Damian immediately. They might have encountered Royster’s knights, but fortunately, they didn’t wear distinctive uniforms, so it was hard to tell who they were.

“There’s still a lot you can do for me, Sir. First, you’ll escort me to the costume shop.”

“Hmm? Are we going there again?”

Hilda, who had been glancing back and forth between Karsian and Ernst after applying the ointment, suddenly interjected, looking shocked.

“Yes, I think it’s better to confirm if the costume shop really exists or not. To avoid more trouble, you know.”

“I see what you mean,” Hilda sighed and nodded.

Damian was someone who loved to ask unnecessary questions, and there was no guarantee he wouldn’t do it again. It seemed like Eleanor wanted to check the costume shop for that reason.

“Still, your ankle isn’t well. I’ll just go by myself.”

“It doesn’t hurt that much. The ointment helped, and I can walk fine. Even if it hurt more, I couldn’t let you go alone, Hilda. Who knows what might happen?”

“Miss…”

Hilda looked up at Eleanor with teary eyes, her hands clasped together.

Between the two women, a much stronger bond had formed than before. For a moment, Karsian and Ernst were forgotten, and it felt like they were in their own world.

Eleanor realized that her resolve to maintain a bit of distance from Hilda had completely failed today.

Hilda was the one who had protected her without hesitation, even when her life was in danger. Even if Hilda had some other purpose, Eleanor now couldn’t help but trust her completely.

“…It seems you’ve mistaken the ointment I gave you for a cure-all,” a deep voice suddenly interrupted, pulling Eleanor and Hilda out of their own world.

“If I had known you’d be so overconfident, I wouldn’t have given it to you,” Karsian continued.

“You’re not suggesting we turn back now, are you, Your Grace?” Eleanor replied with a smile, trying to be playful.

To her surprise, Karsian scowled, looking displeased. Then he quickly turned his head, clearly avoiding her gaze.

It seemed he didn’t appreciate jokes. Eleanor clicked her tongue inwardly.

Still, the fact that she could joke around meant that the situation had stabilized, and it was all thanks to him. She still hadn’t heard a proper reason for his kindness, and her doubts weren’t completely gone, but it was better to just accept his help with gratitude.

“Thank you. Because of you, both my knight and my maid are safe. I still haven’t repaid the debt from last time, and now I’ve caused you trouble again.”

“I never considered it a debt,” Karsian replied.

“I’m relieved to hear you’re not so petty,” Eleanor teased, but once again, Karsian didn’t respond to her joke. She decided not to try again.

“I’ll repay you one day, so please wait. Now, it looks like everything is settled. Would you like to head back first? I still have some work left.”

“If you’re going to the costume shop, I’ll accompany you,” Karsian said.

“Really? There’s no need…”

“You might still be dealing with minor injuries, and I think you’ll need more people to keep watch on the prisoners.”

His words made sense. It didn’t seem like any more trouble would appear, but it was better to be cautious.

Ernst alone wouldn’t be enough to deal with potential threats. Additional people would be needed to keep watch over the prisoners to prevent any escape.

There’s no point in letting my pride get in the way now.

Eleanor was good at accepting the reality of situations, and this was no exception.

“Well then, I’ll rely on you a bit more.”

***

To their surprise, there really was a costume shop at the location Damian had mentioned.

However, it was clear from the outside that it wasn’t a proper costume shop. It seemed very unlikely that a legitimate shop would be operating in such a remote area.

The shop had a sign with a name displayed, but from the outside, it looked more like a shady establishment on the verge of closing down, with very few customers.

Hilda and Ernst tried to stop Eleanor from entering, but soon, the owner of the shop came out to greet them, and they all ended up stepping inside.

“Well, well! You finally arrived! You’re thirty minutes late from our agreed time. Every minute counts in business, so you’ll have to make up for it!” The man, who introduced himself as the owner and sole tailor of the shop, complained loudly, even though the only “customers” were the flies buzzing around.

Eleanor couldn’t help but chuckle quietly as she looked around the shop. There were no luxurious dresses, not even decent silk fabric.

‘I knew I wouldn’t be given a good reservation, but… this is too low quality. What does he think will happen when my father finds out? Did he think he wouldn’t be able to enter the shop after the attack, so it wouldn’t matter?’

Her simple-minded little brother hadn’t thought of any backup plans when things didn’t go as planned. Eleanor wondered if he had changed after joining forces with Nora, but it seemed that wasn’t the case.

“If you understand, please follow me. I need to take your measurements. Everyone else, wait here in the reception room,” the tailor said, interpreting her silence as agreement.

A male tailor. It wasn’t common, but it wasn’t unheard of, either. There was no reason to be suspicious just because he was a man.

However, this was a different situation altogether.

This costume shop was the one Damian had introduced, and judging by the environment, it seemed the shop’s profits came from something other than selling clothes. More importantly, the shopkeeper had been eyeing Elenor in a very lustful way, glancing at her body with a dirty look.

She could not have her clothes made here.

Just as Eleanor was about to push away the tailor’s hand, a large hand reached out before her and grabbed the man’s arm.

“Aaagh! My arm!”

“I don’t dislike you.”

The tailor’s high-pitched scream was drowned out by Karsian’s calm voice.

“Not even for a single moment have I ever disliked you.”

Eleanor’s eyes widened in surprise.

That was the answer to the question she had asked earlier. She didn’t know why he was giving that answer in a moment like this, though.

“You said you couldn’t accept help if the intention behind it was unclear.”

Karsian quickly pulled the tailor away from Eleanor. Pushed by his overwhelming strength, the tailor crashed into a wall and collapsed with a groan.

Karsian’s cold gaze shifted past him to the Royster knight, who immediately understood what his master wanted and moved to secure the fallen tailor.

“Then, you will not refuse me this time, will you?”

“Huh? Refuse what…?”

“I have just made my intentions clear. So please, at least for today, do not reject me.”

“I can’t let someone like that be in charge of your dress,” Karsian added sharply.

Gulp. Eleanor swallowed dryly, not meaning to.

Karsian’s words—”Don’t reject me”—had too much room for misunderstanding. Maybe it was because of his handsome face, or the strange aura he carried. Even though she knew he was talking about helping her, her heart still raced a little.

And if even she, who knew the truth, felt this way, others were bound to take it the wrong way.

As expected, she could feel the eyes of Hilda and Ernst fixed on her.

Hilda had flushed cheeks and kept mumbling, “Oh my, oh my…” while Ernst glared at Karsian with a sharpness that didn’t suit someone just admiring a hero.

Different reactions—but clearly, both misunderstood the situation.

Looks like I’ll have a lot of explaining to do once we’re back at the duchy.

Eleanor sighed quietly and finally spoke.

“…I already owe you so much, Your Grace. One more debt won’t make much of a difference.”

Karsian’s confession hadn’t really cleared her suspicions. Helping someone just because you don’t dislike them seemed like too little a reason for such grand actions.

Still, no matter what his real intentions were, the help he’d given today was a big support for Eleanor—and crucial to her revenge. Without him, her carefully made plans could’ve been ruined.

Between the discomfort of accepting help from someone not involved in her personal revenge, and the possibility of her revenge falling apart—she obviously preferred the former.

So she decided to take Karsian’s hand.

Just for today, as he’d said.

“But I’d prefer that your help isn’t made known to others. I like to keep all my cards hidden.”

Was that too cold? Like I’m just using him? Eleanor glanced at Karsian nervously.

And saw something surprising.

The lips that were usually tightly pressed or frowning… were curved ever so slightly in a smile.

She blinked in disbelief. Karsian Royster, smiling even a little after being treated like a tool? That’s impossible.

“There’s no need to worry about that,” he said. “I’ll take care of it on my end.”

When she blinked again, the faint smile had vanished, replaced by his usual icy expression and calm voice. It was so different from the earlier moment that she decided she must’ve imagined it.

“I’ll also make sure the tailor never says a word about you or me. So please, rest assured and come with me.”

Eleanor looked once at Hilda and Ernst, then nodded.

Now, she was curious. What kind of help was Karsian really offering? What kind of luxury or privilege would come from standing on the same side as the Duke of Royster?

And with that, she followed his lead out of the shop.

They agreed not to be seen leaving together. Karsian left first, taking only a couple of knights with him. Eleanor dealt with the tied-up attackers and the Astrian knights, arranging for their transport. Then she returned to the carriage and gave the driver the address Karsian had provided.

She saw Karsian again about thirty minutes later, at a townhouse located not far from the city center.

I thought the Duke’s townhouse was in a different area… Guess he owns more than one.

She’d heard that very wealthy people—or those with secrets to hide—often had multiple residences. Considering the assets of the Royster family, it wasn’t that surprising.

When Eleanor knocked on the townhouse door, an older maid greeted her.

“The master is upstairs with another guest. I’ll show you the way.”

Who is he trying to impress with all this build-up? Although she was curious, she didn’t have high expectations. She knew that calling someone so important at such short notice was unusual.

Even the famous Grand Duke Royster couldn’t possibly bring the capital’s best tailor here in just thirty minutes.

That was what she thought—until the moment she was led into the reception room, when she realized she had underestimated the Grand Duke’s capabilities.