Chapter 46 —
Nodding, nodding!
“Me? Really me?”
“You’re going to be the future brother-in-law, right? The youngest lady is right.”
Charlotte nodded eagerly and clapped her hands, clearly delighted.
Leonard looked flustered, glancing back and forth between Charlotte and Hawk, but Hawk found his expression so funny that he joined Charlotte in clapping and giggling. The other knights, pretending to watch, couldn’t help but laugh too.
“You still don’t feel like a groom, do you?”
“Hahaha! Well, you should enjoy the single man feeling while you can!”
Everyone burst into laughter, caught up in the joy of the moment.
It was funny, of course. Just a moment ago, Leonard had been glaring fiercely, ready to beat someone in training. Now he was hugging a child, clearly at a loss, and it was impossible not to laugh.
“Ray! Charlotte!”
At that moment, Ireanea entered the training grounds with the maids. The knights immediately stood at attention, including Hawk.
“Greetings, Your Grace!”
“You all have been working hard in training,” Ireanea said, greeting the disciplined knights. Then she approached Leonard and Charlotte.
“Charlotte, you’ve been coming here every day, haven’t you?”
Charlotte’s eyes rolled, and then, looking at her with a gaze that seemed like a silent plea for help, Leonard spoke without thinking.
“When she watches training, she stays back and only comes close during breaks with a towel and water. She hasn’t done anything dangerous, so you don’t need to worry.”
Nodding, nodding!
“That’s a relief… But why are you always here? Are you trying to get closer to your future brother-in-law?”
Charlotte only rolled her eyes again, then smiled shyly and reached both hands toward Ireanea.
“Oh, look at you.”
Ireanea gently scolded her younger sister but took Charlotte from Leonard’s arms.
“What have you been doing here to act so cute, hmm?”
Actually, it was Ireanea who was rubbing cheeks in an affectionate gesture, not Charlotte. But Charlotte’s smile was so lovely that it felt like she was doing something cute too.
As Leonard smiled unconsciously at the sight, he heard Hawk’s playful voice.
“Three of you standing there like that, the youngest lady looks more like a daughter than a sister.”
“What?”
“Oh, she looks just like her mother. Not like her father at all!”
One of the knights, eating a meat sandwich, laughed loudly at Hawk’s joke, and the others joined in.
Leonard covered his face with his hand, while Charlotte just giggled. Ireanea laughed along.
“Charlotte, expect to have a daughter who will inherit her dad’s blond hair.”
“Lin.”
Leonard looked stunned, but Charlotte laughed with pure joy.
The child couldn’t speak, but her crescent-shaped eyes, rosy cheeks, and deep dimples made her smile utterly charming.
The adults around melted at that sight. The big knights grinned, imagining the adorable daughter they would have in the future.
Noticing Ireanea struggling to hold her, Leonard picked Charlotte up properly and said,
“Charlotte wants to learn swordsmanship. Did you know that?”
“A sword?”
Ireanea’s eyes widened at the news.
“So that’s why she’s been coming to the training grounds?”
Charlotte nodded, watching Ireanea carefully. She expected her sister to refuse, but Ireanea’s answer surprised her.
“If she wants to learn, she should. But…”
Ireanea looked around at the knights.
“Is there anyone here who can teach Charlotte?”
The knights shook their heads in unison, almost in horror.
“I don’t have the skill to teach…”
“What if she gets hurt…”
The latter reason weighed more. They couldn’t imagine teaching a tiny young lady, barely reaching their waist, and risking her safety.
Charlotte’s face fell. Seeing this, Ireanea asked Leonard,
“How about you, Ray?”
“I’ve never taught anyone before either…”
Leonard thought for a moment, then said,
“But I do know someone suitable.”
These were the mercenaries who had been summoned from the guesthouse to the training grounds.
“Wait… You want us to teach this tiny girl swordsmanship?”
Michelle looked at Leonard in disbelief. Leonard gave a reasonable answer.
“I taught her before.”
“But you had training from Camilla first.”
Before joining the mercenary group, Leonard had received various trainings from his own mother. The mercenaries never met her, but seeing Leonard’s skills and scars, they guessed she might have been an assassin.
Even so, young Leonard and Charlotte were not comparable.
Still, Leonard entrusted Charlotte to them and went to train the knights. Only Charlotte, Michelle, Heath, and Vin were left at the second training ground, blinking in surprise.
“The marquis really… trusts us to look after a child.”
“I guess he wanted her to do something instead of just playing.”
“I would have just let her play rather than teach her swordsmanship.”
Michelle and Vin crouched in front of Charlotte, wondering about the family that would trust mercenaries with their precious child. Heath, farther away, carved wood with a dagger, probably making an animal friend for Charlotte.
“Miss, is it okay if we teach you swordsmanship?”
Nodding, nodding!
“It will be hard. You might have sore muscles tomorrow and even scars.”
Nodding, nodding!
Charlotte clenched her fists tightly and nodded vigorously. Michelle and Vin exchanged worried looks.
“First… can you tell us why you want to learn swordsmanship?”
Charlotte wrote in the dirt with her index finger:
My parents protected me, but I want to protect others.
Michelle was surprised and told Vin what Charlotte wrote.
“You’ve thought about this since your parents passed away?”
Nodding.
“You never told the marquis?”
Nodding.
Charlotte pointed to the first sentence. Michelle understood.
“You don’t want to tell the marquis, right?”
Nodding.
“What will you say if he asks?”
Charlotte scribbled happily in the dirt:
Because my future brother-in-law is cool.
“Hahaha!”
“What did she say?”
“Ray is cool, hahaha!”
Vin smiled proudly, and Charlotte blinked in surprise.
Charlotte, who couldn’t speak, pointed to her writing and shook her head. Vin quickly understood.
“Yes, she can’t read,” Michelle explained.
“It’s not that she can’t read—it’s a condition. Vin is smart and remembers things well, but…”
Vin frowned at Michelle’s unnecessary explanation. Charlotte, meanwhile, pouted. She crossed her index fingers, pointing to Vin, the writing, and then made an X again.
Heath, having risen, approached and said,
“She’s frustrated because there’s no way to communicate.”
Charlotte clapped, delighted. Heath handed her a wooden practice sword he had carved.
“Try swinging it.”
Charlotte swung the sword awkwardly, but Heath watched her seriously. He nodded to signal that she was doing it correctly.
“The weight seems fine. Don’t use a real wooden sword. It will strain your wrists.”
Nodding.
“Don’t practice alone, or you’ll form bad habits.”
Nodding.
“Let’s start with basic exercises. Follow me.”
Charlotte stretched her wrists, ankles, waist, and sides awkwardly, then ran alongside Heath across the training ground. She was running, but Heath walked slowly to match her pace.
Michelle observed Charlotte’s posture and gave a few tips, then burst into a laugh.
“That kid’s really excited, isn’t she?”
I wonder what the issue is that prevents her from talking.