#27. Preparation (4)
Andrei was speechless for a moment.
He doubted whether the girl in front of him was even human.
It sounded childish, but he couldn’t help but wonder—maybe she was some kind of fairy from a legend.
Frozen stiff, Andrei entertained such silly thoughts.
Maybe he was dreaming.
He’d once fallen asleep standing after overtraining. Maybe this was like that.
But even after blinking a few times, the girl was still there.
The soft moonlight shone on her hair, making it glimmer.
Her skin was pale, and her eyes were a sweet golden color, like honey.
And her face… was so beautiful and lovely that he almost believed she really was a fairy.
As Andrei stood staring blankly at the dreamlike girl, a clear voice rang out again.
“Sir Knight…?”
Finally snapping out of it, Andrei asked awkwardly,
“Who are you?”
“Hello.”
The girl greeted him and walked closer.
Andrei instinctively stepped back.
Maybe sensing his discomfort, the girl stopped three steps away.
Then she clasped her hands together, like in prayer, and said:
“I need your help.”
“Help, you say?”
“Yes. I’m in a very difficult situation, and I have nowhere else to turn. I know it’s rude, but I came to ask for a favor.”
“What kind of favor?”
“Would you follow me?”
She gave no real explanation, just said she needed help and asked him to come. It was very suspicious.
Still, Andrei silently followed the mysterious girl.
He had knightly honor deeply rooted in him. He couldn’t ignore someone asking for help.
There was still a chance she really needed it.
Even if it was a trick, he wanted to confirm it for himself.
But as the girl led him into darker and quieter parts of the woods, Andrei’s guard went up.
…Could someone who looked so delicate really be trying to harm him?
He almost let his guard down with that thought but quickly reminded himself—not to trust appearances.
He tensed his body, ready to draw his sword if needed.
Hand resting on the hilt, he kept a cautious distance as he followed her.
The deeper they went into the forest, the more hidden and secluded it became.
Just as Andrei was about to confront her, the girl stopped in front of an old log cabin.
‘Where is this place…?’
He didn’t know there was anything like this behind the Velikorod Castle forest.
Surprised, he looked around. The girl suddenly turned to him and said:
“This is where I live. What I want to ask is also here.”
There had been no danger on the way, but he still couldn’t let his guard down.
Who knew what might be hiding in that old, narrow cabin?
Sensing his suspicion, the girl spoke:
“Come to think of it, I didn’t introduce myself. My name is Alexandra Volkov.”
“What?”
Volkov?
He served the Volkov family, but there was no young girl like her in the household.
Maybe a distant relative?
But he hadn’t heard of any staying in the territory.
Andrei frowned.
‘Is she lying…?’
Then, a memory came to mind:
“Can you believe the young master is getting married before me? They say the bride’s a real beauty. So jealous!”
About a year ago, there was a wedding—Pavel Volkov, the Grand Duke’s heir.
Andrei, not one to follow rumors, only heard bits and pieces from Nikolai.
He remembered the bride’s name started with “Alex…” or something like that.
She was said to have silver hair like spun thread and strange, beautiful eyes like gems or wild animals.
Just like the girl in front of him…
A realization struck him.
The girl in front of him was…
“You can call me Sasha,” she said.
“I couldn’t possibly,” Andrei quickly replied.
“I apologize for the late greeting, Young Madam. I’m Andrei Medvedev.”
He knelt on one knee and gave a respectful knight’s greeting.
The kind reserved only for his direct superiors.
Sasha looked surprised, her eyes wide. Then she reached out and helped him up.
“Please don’t do that, Sir. I called you because I need help. Now I feel too guilty.”
“It’s fine. But may I ask why you’ve called me here?”
The question slipped out—he had been wondering the whole time.
But as soon as he said it, Andrei winced.
He had spoken too bluntly. It was improper to ask before his superior spoke.
He quickly corrected himself.
“Please, command me as you wish.”
“I told you not to be so formal,” Sasha said, looking troubled. Then, seeming to make up her mind, she pointed to the roof of the cabin.
“……?”
Andrei followed her finger.
Seeing the confusion in his eyes, Sasha explained:
“The roof’s leaking somewhere, and I tried fixing it, but I couldn’t.”
Her voice sounded apologetic as she continued.
“I know it’s wrong to ask something like this of a knight, but… would you please help repair the roof?”
“I understand,” Andrei answered without hesitation, starting to prepare for the repair.
But then he asked,
“Is the servant here not very handy? It must’ve been inconvenient until now.”
“Well…”
Sasha hesitated, putting on a troubled face.
But in truth, she wasn’t troubled at all. In fact, she would’ve been more troubled if he hadn’t asked that question.
She had come all the way to the training grounds, waited for him to be alone, and set up this whole scene just for this moment.
Hiding her excitement, she replied with a slight stammer,
“Actually, there are no servants here.”
“What?”
Despite himself, Andrei asked again, startled.
“What do you mean?”
“As you can see, it’s very small here. Aside from me, Pavel, and the nanny who came with me, there are only five people working here.”
A cook, two maids, and two servants.
“There’s just too much work and too few people. They’re always busy. Even if something happens, I can’t ask for help. And if I do run into someone, they say they’ll come back later… and forget.”
Sasha explained how the staff ignored her.
“So even though the roof’s been leaking for days, I couldn’t fix it. The workers are too busy, and even if I wanted to ask the main estate…”
She paused, checking Andrei’s face.
It was red with anger—exactly what she hoped for.
Better than expected, actually.
Sasha lowered her eyebrows, pretending to be pitiful.
“They said the main estate’s too busy, and the people here should handle their own problems.”
She let out a shallow sigh.
“So I was wandering, not knowing what to do, and I saw you by chance. You seemed like someone who would help, so… I took a chance, even if it was rude.”
She gave a small smile.
It made her look like someone who was trying to stay strong despite hardship.
“…How could this be!”
Andrei was furious.
To him, a knight was like a sword for his lord.
He believed it was wrong to judge his lord—only to serve.
Even when others insulted Pavel, he scolded them for being disrespectful.
That’s how loyal he was.
So hearing that Pavel, the Grand Duke’s heir, was being treated this way—of course he was angry.
His eyes blazed as he looked at the worn cabin.
The roof couldn’t be the only problem. It looked old and narrow. Surely, there were more issues inside.
‘How can the young master and young madam be treated like this!’
He clenched his jaw.
“I’ll deal with those—”
Sasha stopped him before he ran off.
“If you do that, I’ll be in more trouble.”
She looked like she might cry.
So Andrei held back his anger and focused on the repair.
Sasha stayed close, saying she would help.
Even when he told her it was dangerous outside and her legs would hurt from standing, she wouldn’t leave.
‘There’s a reason I called him all the way here. I can’t go inside now.’
It wasn’t really because there was no one else to fix the roof.
Even if she was treated poorly, she could’ve asked a servant to handle it.
Count Tula cared a lot about appearances. If he heard the annex needed repairs, he would’ve sent servants right away.
Even if he hated Pavel and wanted him gone, he’d act the good uncle in public.
But Sasha didn’t take that easy, guaranteed path.
Instead, she turned this into an opportunity.
What kind of opportunity?
‘A chance to make a connection with the Grand Duke.’
