BGFV 131

Chapter 131

“Y-Your Majesty?!”
Kenneth and Melvin were shocked, eyes wide open in disbelief.
Sylvester tried to back away, rolling his eyes nervously, but Hestia and Luciard quietly blocked his path.

“You… liars! You said we had one last thing to check!”
Sylvester looked betrayed as he glared at Hestia and Luciard, but they just pretended not to know anything.

In truth, Sylvester had no intention of meeting Kenneth.
He knew he’d just get scolded, and he had told them exactly that. But they had tricked him.

“Sly, no means no.”
“What if something serious happened and only we knew?”
“Hey! Show some respect! How dare you speak so casually to His Majesty!”
Kenneth scolded them for being too informal with the Emperor.

“I told them to speak that way, calm down,” Sylvester said.
“Calm down? How can I calm down?! When did you even leave the palace? What is with your clothes?! When I left, you were still in the palace—!”
“Well… I snuck out in disguise.”
“What?!”
“I went undercover to see how the people are living. Is that a problem? This is why I didn’t tell you.”
“You’re saying you left in secret? Without telling the Grand Duke?!”
Sylvester avoided his eyes, and Kenneth grabbed the back of his neck in frustration.

“Calm down, friend,” Melvin tried to soothe him.
But Kenneth was too upset, turning red and blue with anger. Even Sylvester, Hestia, and Luciard stepped back a bit.

“An emperor walking around with just a few guards?! That’s outrageous!”
Kenneth finally exploded, and Sylvester had no choice but to take the scolding.
Even Hestia and Luciard had to stand beside him and listen.

Eventually, Kenneth calmed down a bit and massaged his aching head.

“Fine, just this once. But if you ever do this again, it won’t end like this.”
“You’re the only one who scolds an emperor like this,” Sylvester mumbled.
“I’m sure the Grand Duke would’ve said the same!”
Sylvester couldn’t argue.

“Here, drink some tea and calm down,” Melvin offered.
Kenneth sipped the tea and slowly relaxed.

“This was your first time sneaking out, right? How was it? Fun?”
Melvin asked gently, and Sylvester perked up.

“Of course! I’ve only heard about the people, but seeing how they really live made me feel much better. Even the refugees seem to be doing well!”
Sylvester excitedly shared everything he had seen like a child telling a story.
Kenneth, who had been angry, started to listen quietly.

“If I don’t know how my people live, how can I be a good ruler? This is all to become a better emperor. So don’t scold me too much.”
Kenneth’s expression softened.
The image of the small boy wearing a crown too big for his head faded, and he saw the young emperor slowly becoming a true ruler.

“You’ve grown, Your Majesty.”
Soon, he would no longer need to be overprotected.

“Well, since you’re already here, I can’t change that. But remember, this is the only time.”
With Kenneth’s approval, Sylvester smiled widely and looked at Hestia and Luciard.
They gave him a thumbs-up, and he grinned even more.

Sylvester joined Hestia’s group and spent time with them.
Derrick and his family already knew who he was, so they didn’t hide it from them.
But to avoid chaos, only the village chief and a few people knew his identity.

That evening, they all sat around a campfire after dinner.
The refugees, Hestia’s group, Brina, Yovan, and the guards were all laughing and chatting.

Sylvester was no different, with Leonhard sticking to him, talking nonstop.

“Street food was fun, but eating like this with everyone is even better!”
“Right? Even the same food tastes better when we eat together!”

Even though Sylvester was now close to adulthood, his friendship with Leonhard remained the same.
Leonhard clearly liked Sylvester’s kind nature and stayed by his side.

“Haha, yeah—huh?”
Sylvester laughed, then suddenly spotted Hestia tied up with ropes across the fire.

“What’s that?! Lady Frost is tied up!”
He jumped up to stop them, but Luciard blocked him.

“Don’t worry. It’s part of her training.”
“Training?”
“She recently started learning self-defense. That must be it.”
Leonhard explained, but Sylvester still looked confused.

“Isn’t that a bit extreme?”
“It’s better to learn it properly than not at all.”
“But what kind of self-defense is that? It looks more like she’s just tied up.”
“She’s learning how to escape restraints. You two should try it too.”

Sylvester walked closer to Luciard.
He saw Hestia being tied up tightly by Yovan and grimacing.

“Ow, that hurts! Can’t you be gentler?”
“This is gentle.”
“This is how we actually tie up enemies. It’s supposed to be tight.”
“Ugh… Oh, Leon, Sly. You’re watching?”

Hestia greeted them.

“Are you okay?”
“Haha, I look ridiculous, right? It’s a bit embarrassing, but I want to learn properly while Brina and Yovan are still here.”

Soon, they would return to the war zone in Noveli.
So Hestia was learning whip techniques from Brina, knife techniques from Yovan, and other useful skills.

“Your arms are going to be all bruised.”
“Probably… but it’s worth it!”

She smiled brightly, but Sylvester still looked worried.

“Okay, all done,” Yovan said and stepped back.
Now Hestia was tightly tied up from her arms to her body.

“Try moving.”
“I can’t even wiggle!”

“Now we’ll show how to escape. The easiest way is to cut the ropes with a blade.”
“But weapons usually get taken away.”
“That’s why you hide one.”
Brina and Yovan pulled out tiny blades hidden in their belts and shoes, surprising Hestia.

“You can also use sharp rocks or glass. But for now, assume none of those are available. Hestia, try moving your arms back a little more.”

Following their instructions, Hestia slowly worked on escaping the ropes.
Sylvester and Leonhard, who were worried at first, began watching with curiosity.

“This is harder than I thought.”
“Higher! Move your hands more up! Ahh, so slow!”
Leonhard tried to coach her, making Hestia annoyed.

“It’s not as easy as it sounds! Oh! Got it! Like this…”

After 15 minutes, Hestia finally got free.

“That took too long. You’d be caught by the enemy.”
“Try to finish in 5 minutes next time.”

She glared at Sylvester and Leonhard, who ruined her victory.

“Then why don’t you two try it?”
“Me? Why would I ever get tied up? No point learning this…”
“Oh? You had so much to say just now. Scared now?”
She teased him.

“I’m not scared! Watch, I’ll escape in under 5 minutes!”

Sylvester fell for it right away.
People began gathering to watch. Even Kenneth came and almost fainted.

“His Majesty…!”
“Shh, Count. People are watching.”
Derrick quickly covered his mouth, but Kenneth still looked horrified.

“What are they doing?! What if His Majesty gets hurt!”
“He’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”
“Hestia! Is this your doing?”

Derrick came over.

“I was just training to escape ropes. Sly walked in and kept commenting, so I told him to try it himself. Look, it’s just a few scratches.”
She showed her wrists and arms with a cheerful smile.
Kenneth sighed.

“Still… You’re all scratched up. The Duchess would be so upset if she saw this.”
He looked at her like a worried grandparent, and Hestia smiled softly.

Then she looked back at Sylvester and the others laughing nearby.
Sylvester, despite his big talk, still hadn’t escaped the ropes after 15 minutes.

“Ugh! Are you sure this is tied the same way as hers?! It won’t budge!”
“It’s the same.”
“Calm down. If you panic, it gets harder.”

Brina, Yovan, and Luciard all helped teach him, and Sylvester followed their advice seriously.
Eventually, he freed himself and smiled with joy.

Hestia, watching him, suddenly felt unsure.

‘I swore I wouldn’t get too involved.’

She knew what would happen in the future, and wondered if she should be this close to him.
She couldn’t say no to the Emperor, but…

‘He’s such a good person. That’s what makes it harder.’

If he were greedy or selfish, she wouldn’t feel this conflicted.

‘But maybe… this much is okay.’

It was just teaching him how to escape ropes.
Who knows if this small help could even change the future?