NRAL | Chapter 36

~Chapter 36~

I Will Be Rude

“What? Of course not!”

Eleanor raised her voice in surprise.

She looked into his eyes, wondering if he was joking—but his gaze was deadly serious.

He truly meant it.

The great Karsian, the ruler of the Grand Duchy of Royster, had just commented full of low self-esteem. Even hearing it with her own ears, she couldn’t believe it.

He was the kind of man who didn’t flinch even when Arlo provoked him or nobles gossiped behind his back. He never reacted with anger or sorrow, never fled in frustration. Instead, he would silence others with flawless logic or unwavering confidence.

But the man standing before her now seemed like a completely different person.

His eyebrows were furrowed downward, giving him a surprisingly gentle look. His red eyes wavered slightly as he closely observed her response—as if trying to figure out whether her words were sincere.

‘…Was I too cold to him?’

If it hadn’t been for Karsian, she might’ve run into another attacker and ended up in danger. And not just her—Ernst, Hilda, and even the knights might not have been safe.

She had received his help and yet had never properly thanked him. Instead, she had been too busy keeping her guard up.

Suddenly, guilt washed over her. She felt pathetic for doubting someone who had saved her.

But what hurt even more was the fact that—even though she realized this—she knew she couldn’t change. Not until she had finished her revenge and earned her freedom. Until then, she couldn’t become a “good” person.

“There’s no need to lie to spare my feelings. If I make you uncomfortable, I’ll keep my distance again. Just… please don’t reject my help.”

Karsian’s polite words only added to her guilt.

She had owed him her life—at the very least, she owed him an honest answer. Eleanor made up her mind.

“No, no. I’ve never once thought of you that way. I only turned down your help because… it felt like too much for me. Sometimes, kindness you can’t repay feels like a burden.”

She made sure her voice didn’t sound cold as she continued.

“Also, I tend to be overly cautious. I can’t easily accept help if I don’t understand the intentions behind it. So I want to ask—why do you keep helping me, when you clearly dislike me?”

“…What?”

Karsian responded like he’d heard something completely absurd.

“Even if you want to get revenge on Arlo, there are other ways to do that. You don’t have to help me. So I just don’t understand why you keep helping someone you don’t even like.”

Even after she explained, his expression didn’t change. He looked like she had completely missed the point.

Eleanor narrowed her eyes, sensing the confusion in his gaze.

“You mean… I dislike you?”

“Yes. You do, don’t you? Don’t deny it. Every time we made eye contact, you glared at me. At the party, you avoided me. You always kept a set distance between us.”

Despite her clearly pointing it all out, Karsian didn’t seem to want to admit it. His lips kept twitching as if he was trying to say something but couldn’t. He looked like he was honestly offended.

Still, he didn’t seem to have a defense, so he kept roughly running his palm down his face. Eleanor shrugged lightly at the sight.

Whether or not he disliked her wasn’t the main issue right now.

“More importantly, how did you find this place?”

Declan was nothing but half-built buildings. It couldn’t be a coincidence that he showed up here, of all places. She was too jaded to believe in fate or chance.

“I followed you. I had a feeling something dangerous might happen.”

“How did you know I’d come here?”

“I planted someone in Astria.”

The way he said it sounded so casual—it was like he was just talking about what he bought at the market yesterday.

Wow. Eleanor let out a small laugh.

She had suspected as much, but to hear him admit it so openly and calmly was just… ridiculous. She wasn’t even angry, just stunned.

“Since when?”

“Since the day I brought you to the Duke’s mansion. I’ve been receiving general updates ever since. I apologize if it upset you.”

Karsian bowed his head deeply in apology.

Seriously, who apologizes that quickly and smoothly? And the way he bit his lip showed that he truly meant it. She wanted to bring the Duke of Astria, Arlo, and Damian here to learn from him.

“…Since I owe you my life, I won’t scold you for that. But I am curious—why did you plant someone there? Are you looking for information on Astria?”

If he was, she had no reason not to help. She was confident Karsian could use it well and bring Astria down even after she left the capital.

But his answer had nothing to do with Astria’s downfall.

“I wanted to check your outings.”

“…My outings? Why?”

“You told me we should meet and talk instead of writing it all in letters.”

“I did?”

Eleanor looked confused. She was sure her last letter said something totally different. What was he talking about?

But when he nodded, she suddenly remembered the conversation they’d had in the carriage.

“Can I send you a letter?” “Yes, of course. But someone might intercept it, so… It’s probably better to talk in person if it’s something important.”

She had said it without much thought, but Karsian had clearly taken it very seriously. His way of arranging a meeting was to check when she left the house.

“I… I guess I did say that.”

“Yes. Since there seemed to be no other way to meet, I acted rudely. Though… it seems you never really meant to meet me.”

His quiet words made her chest sting. Eleanor cleared her throat and looked away.

“Hmph, hmph. I think Sir Ernst is probably waiting. Should we head back?”

“My knight will bring your escort here. But before that…”

Karsian looked down with clear irritation—at her feet.

“…I’m going to be rude one more time.”

“Huh?”

Before she could fully understand what he meant, something unbelievable happened.

The man she always had to look up to suddenly dropped down—and the top of his black-haired head came into view.

At the same time, his ungloved fingers gently brushed her ankle, barely hidden beneath her skirt.

Karsian Royster—the man known for staying dignified even in front of the emperor—had dropped to one knee in front of her.

“It’s badly swollen.”

He tenderly touched her dusty, bruised ankle.

“And you were planning to walk around like this to find your knight?”

The scene was so unreal that Eleanor couldn’t even get angry or scream. She was frozen.

But someone else stepped in.

“What do you think you’re doing?! Take your hands off her this instant!”

Hilda, her loyal maid, had lost all composure. She didn’t seem to care that the man she was yelling at was Karsian Royster—the fourth heir to the imperial throne and the Duke of Royster.

Most knights cowered before Karsian, but Hilda looked ready to slap his hand away. It was impressively bold.

It was the kind of outburst that could get someone punished for insulting a noble. But instead of getting angry, Karsian calmly backed off.

His large hand, which could have wrapped around Eleanor’s ankle completely, gently pulled away. But the knee he had knelt on showed no sign of rising.

“Russell.”

“Yes, here.”

When Karsian called, a foreign-looking knight approached and handed him two small round containers. When one was opened, a strong medicinal scent filled the air.

“This is an ointment that works well for sprains. You should apply it quickly.”

Wait… was he planning to put it on himself?

Eleanor panicked at the thought.

Thankfully, Karsian handed the ointment over to Hilda instead.

However, Eleanor couldn’t shake the feeling that if Hilda hadn’t scolded Karsian just moments ago, her imagination might have become reality.

“And this is for the scrapes. Apply it to your palms and knees.”

Following his words, she looked down and realized her palms and knees were indeed scraped, with a bit of blood seeping out.

When did he even notice that? Eleanor swallowed all the comments bubbling up inside her and simply nodded.

“Okay, thank you. I’ll use it well.”

For a moment, she wondered if it might be some weird ointment disguised as medicine—but that seemed unlikely.

“Now, please get up. Quickly.”

This time too, Karsian obeyed her without complaint.

It was a far cry from the many rumors about him.

Hilda, still wary, glanced at him as she gently applied the ointment to Eleanor’s ankle.

Soon, a cool and soothing sensation spread over her skin.

Apparently, it really was effective for sprains—once applied, the pain noticeably eased.

***

“Lady Eleanor!”

Just as Hilda was finishing applying a thick layer of ointment to her ankle, Ernst returned with the knights from Royster.

Thankfully, he didn’t seem seriously injured.

“Are you alright? Oh no, your ankle…!”

“I’m fine. It’s nothing serious. But what about you? Are you hurt anywhere? Your arm… it looks like you’re bleeding.”

“It’s just a shallow scratch. The knights arrived just in time and helped us, so no real harm was done. Honestly, I couldn’t believe it until I saw them—turns out they really were Royster’s knights.”

Ernst glanced at Karsian with disbelief.

The hero of all knights, Karsian Royster—he was actually here.

Even after hearing the explanation from the knights on the way back, it was still hard to believe.

But now wasn’t the time to be starstruck.

He noticed Hilda applying ointment to Eleanor’s scraped palm.

Her noble hands were scratched and red from the injury.

“I’m so sorry, my lady. This is all my fault.”

Ernst bowed his head deeply, clenching his fists as they trembled.

How could I trust those men and bring them with us?

Shame and guilt overwhelmed him like a crashing wave.

If it weren’t for the Grand Duke’s help, Eleanor might really have died—and the thought terrified him.

“Alphy and Jayden… no, two of the three traitors have been captured and tied up. It was my failure not to suspect their betrayal. I have no excuse for putting you in danger, my lady. If you wish to punish me, I’ll accept it. If I must give up my knighthood, I will.”