IWTGHFW CHAPTER 18

Episode 18

At Sean’s words, Reinolf and Heffy’s faces turned pale. They had already been rolling around the training grounds in a fight earlier today. Now, after sneaking out without permission, drinking, and brawling, they’d been dragged in by the city watch. The thought of what kind of punishment awaited them was nothing short of grim.

Bang—

With a loud crash, the door to the city watch office slammed open. The sight of a familiar head of red hair cast a shadow over the three men’s faces. Even if Sean had told them to “sort it out yourselves,” Ron being here was no welcome sight—he was still an accomplice, after all.

Heavy footsteps echoed, and only then did Sean notice Ail hidden behind that large frame. His eyes lit up.

“Ail? How did you know to come here?”

“I was with the captain and heard about it.”

“You were together at this hour?”

“Yes.”

At Ail’s simple reply, Sean’s eyes narrowed. Saying they’d been together this late at night was certainly open to… misinterpretation.

But uninterested in that line of thought, Ail was already listening to a city watchman explain what had happened. Meanwhile, Ron had planted his big fists onto Reinolf and Heffy’s heads, one blow each, and was inhaling deeply—clearly preparing to unleash his trademark lion’s roar.

“Captain, there are a lot of eyes on us here. Why don’t we take them back to the mansion and talk?”

Ail’s casual suggestion was enough to stop the roar in its tracks.

“Yeah? That might be best,” Ron said, even wagging his tail. Reinolf and Heffy’s faces brightened at their narrow escape from immediate blows.

Then again, truth be told, their faces had lit up the moment Ail appeared earlier.

Watching the three of them in turn—Reinolf, Heffy, Ron, and Ail—Sean’s lips curved into a knowing smile.

Reinolf and Heffy were now side by side with their heads lowered in the corner of Ron’s office. The fragrant aroma of tea from the steward filled the room, while Ron, I, and Sean sat on the sofa in the middle.

Sean, perhaps knowing he was at fault, avoided Ron’s fierce gaze, though his lips still wore an irritatingly amused smile.

“Sean, I get why you took them out, but this is a clear violation of the rules.”

“Yes, sir. I was wrong, Captain.”

“You’re suspended without pay for a month. And you two!”

At Ron’s gaze, even while bowing, Reinolf and Heffy’s shoulders flinched.

“You’re suspended without pay for six months, and for the next year you’ll be in charge of cleaning the training grounds. Got it?!”

“Yes!”

“And if it happens again, be prepared to lose your positions entirely.”

“Yes, Captain. We’re sorry.”

“Get out.”

Finally freed from their punishment, the two stood, their legs trembling from the prolonged bowing.

Ron ordered the steward to escort them to the guest rooms. Once they left, Ron leaned back into the sofa with relief.

“There’s never a quiet day around here. So why were they fighting?”

“Well…”

Sean trailed off, glancing at me. Catching on, Ron asked,

“Ail can’t know?”

“It’s not that she can’t—it’s more that it’d be awkward. Though with her personality, she might not care much.”

Even so, I could tell from his tone it was something I wouldn’t enjoy hearing. Not wanting to make things uncomfortable, I rose from my seat. Ron reached out as if to stop me, but I was quicker.

“Then I’ll step out. Talk freely.”

I ignored the lingering weight of Ron’s gaze on my back and left the office. A waiting maid bowed as soon as she saw me.

“Lord Narain is waiting for you.”

Once the door closed and Ail was gone, Ron frowned. He wasn’t looking kindly at Sean—what could be so important that he’d send Ail away for it?

Sean, sensing confirmation in Ron’s expression, chuckled quietly. That only made Ron’s brows shoot up in irritation.

“Captain, is Ail staying here?”

“You know why. I had no choice if I wanted to train Narain.”

“Hmm. Even so, there’s no need for her to stay in the Metaylor mansion. People might talk. You could’ve gotten her a place in the outskirts instead.”

“…Drop it. Just tell me why they were fighting.”

Sean’s quiet chuckle returned. Ron’s patience finally frayed.

“What is it? Why do you keep laughing?”

“Because it’s so obvious you like her.”

“…W-what?”

“Captain, you like Ail, don’t you?”

Sean’s amethyst eyes glimmered with mischief. Ron flailed his hands in denial, but never actually said the words “I don’t.” Sean thought to himself that Ron really was a terrible liar.

“In any case, Captain, you need to be careful.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“No matter how popular you are—number one on the list of ideal husbands, no less—Ail’s not interested in you. And if a man her age, good-looking, and talented starts liking her, even she might waver.”

“Who’s this good-looking, talented man her age… wait, you don’t mean—?”

Watching Ron’s pupils widen, Sean grinned broadly.

Narain still looked half-asleep, his eyes only half-open. I smiled faintly and sat beside him, brushing down his sea-colored hair that stuck out in all directions. He squinted in drowsy comfort.

The unusual hair color, the overall cool, ocean-like image, and that little beauty mark under his eye that gave off a subtle allure…

This kid’s going to break a lot of hearts when he grows up.

“If you’re tired, sleep. Why did you get up?”

“You weren’t here. Where did you go?”

“The Captain called me for a bit. Nothing important. And my name’s Sohee, not Soi.”

“Right. Soi.”

I now understood how Sir Heffy must’ve felt every time someone called him Happy. I quietly stroked Narain’s silky hair. He purred like a cat, rubbing his head into my palm.

Ever since the day he’d poured out his feelings and cried, Narain had been glued to me. We had no choice but to be apart during the day, but once I got home, he stuck to my side without leaving. Like a baby chick trailing after me, it was both endearing and a little pitiful, so I let him.

And honestly, having someone in this world who knew my secret wasn’t bad. It was… reassuring. After telling this kid everything I’d buried deep inside, I’d felt strangely lighter.

“Tell me about the world you lived in. You said before there was a way to talk to people far away, like a comms sphere.”

“Oh, that. Yeah, you could talk to someone no matter how far away. You could even see their face. Of course, you couldn’t meet in person.”

“Could you do that with someone who’s dead?”

My hand froze mid-stroke. Narain’s blue eyes stared up at me, and when he saw my reaction, he nodded knowingly.

“Sorry, Narin.”

“It’s fine. Then tell me about knights. Do they exist there?”

“Hmm… maybe in some countries? But not where I lived. There was an army, but swords were really inefficient.”

“Swords are inefficient? Why?”

“Because there are guns. Oh, guns are…”

Watching his eyes slowly close in drowsiness, I began quietly explaining what guns were.

【 I Raised a Tiger 】

Yeon was a capable worker. Born a commoner, he had placed second in the Imperial Civil Service Exam and quickly caught the crown prince’s eye, earning the position of aide—an impressive rise.

Because of this, the palace maids, who had always favored the knights, were slowly shifting some of their interest toward Yeon. He didn’t have the broad, muscular frame of a knight, but the intellectual image he exuded while pushing up his glasses and flipping through documents had won him admirers.

Right now, however, Yeon was listening with a grave face to a report from an Intelligence Bureau agent.

“Ail is living in the Metaylor Marquis’s mansion?”

“Yes, sir. We confirmed she entered the mansion a little over two weeks ago.”

“That’s bad. The Metaylor Marquis is a formidable rival. And if they’re already living together…”

Images he’d rather not dwell on flashed in Yeon’s mind, and he shook his head hard.

This was the first woman the crown prince’s cherished second prince had shown interest in—he couldn’t let her be taken away like this.

“What about that rumor?”

“We’ve erased all rumors about Miss Ail’s beauty. If you wish, we could spread other rumors—perhaps some fatal flaw of hers.”

“No, that would be too underhanded.”

“The Intelligence Bureau’s work is inherently underhanded, sir.”

“Forget it. I’ll have to see Sean. I’ll judge for myself.”

It was common knowledge in the palace that Sean and Yeon were brothers—twins, in fact.

Their light purple hair and amethyst eyes were proof enough of their shared blood, though the knight Sean and the scholar Yeon carried very different auras. Still, one was the aide to the imperial knight captain, the other to the crown prince—making them a pair of top-tier siblings.

Yeon eyed his brother for the first time in a while, a crooked smile playing on his lips.

“Heard you got docked pay. Idiot.”

“And you, a crown prince’s aide, are digging into Ail’s background?”

“Sharp as ever. How’d you know I was investigating her?”

“It’s obvious. All the rumors about her beauty disappearing overnight was enough to tell me.”

Yeon’s slender fingers tapped against the armrest of his chair. Sensing his brother’s displeasure, Sean smirked in victory.

“So what brings the busy aide of the crown prince to the knight order?”

“Got something to confirm.”

“What, whether the Captain likes Ail?”

“Damn it. You’re insufferable.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

When Sean shrugged, Yeon’s brow furrowed deeply.