Jedrier’s mouth fell slightly open. His round eyes filled with shock. H-How could he say something like that so openly? He couldn’t believe it. The Knight Commander, who had looked so dependable just moments ago, suddenly seemed like a cold-blooded man who wouldn’t bleed even if you stabbed him.
“Our Henry really is kind….”
Why didn’t people understand that? Why didn’t they even try to understand? Was it really all right to leave Henry in a place like this?
“Pardon?”
He had said he ‘sort of’ cared about Henry, but had he actually known perfectly well that Henry had been falsely accused and simply ignored it? Or had he actively taken part in it?
As Jedrier’s usually gentle eyes began to distort, the Knight Commander suddenly sprang to his feet as though realizing what he had done wrong. Waving his hands frantically, he began protesting his innocence.
“W-What I meant was, ‘That can’t be! To think I’ve misunderstood him all this time!’ Ha ha.”
But despite the Knight Commander’s efforts, Jedrier could only look at him with narrowed, suspicious eyes.
A lie.
It was definitely a lie.
He might not have been in this world for very long and might know almost nothing about it, but there was no way he couldn’t tell that much.
Jedrier grew a little gloomy.
How difficult must Henry’s life have been, living while being misunderstood by so many people?
“C-Could you tell me what sorts of things that k-kind Henry has done?”
“…Yes.”
Still… it would be safer for Henry here than in Jedrier’s palace, where he was walking on thin ice without knowing when he might die.
“When I first met Henry….”
Jedrier thought back to his first meeting with Henry.
“It was a very sunny day. Henry was standing in the way of the sunlight pouring through the broken window. It was as if he was worried the light might wake me because it was too bright.”
He left out the part where the sight of Henry had startled him so badly that his heart had practically dropped straight to the floor.
“He only greeted me after he confirmed that I was awake.”
Kind, right?
Isn’t he incredibly kind?
Have you ever met anyone like that in your entire life?
Jedrier stared at the man in front of him with all of those thoughts written in his eyes.
But the Knight Commander’s lips were twitching as though he had just heard something strange.
“…Is there more?”
Do I really have to keep telling him?
A seed of dissatisfaction suddenly poked its head up from deep inside Jedrier’s heart.
‘Look, look. He doesn’t even seem that interested. What’s going to change if you keep talking?’
‘You don’t want to send Henry away either. Why don’t you just get up and leave right now?’
No.
Get a grip.
Jedrier pulled himself together again.
He couldn’t keep listening to the nasty voice inside his heart. That wasn’t the path that would be best for Henry.
“Have you ever touched Henry’s muscles?”
“How could I dare…. Ahem. No.”
“I have touched them….”
The moment he said that much, Jedrier nearly bit his own tongue.
Touched them?
Good God, what kind of master went around touching his servant’s muscles?!
Didn’t that make it sound as though he had kneaded and fondled Henry with impure intentions?
Jedrier’s face gradually went pale.
“I didn’t touch them because I was trying to. I almost fell down the stairs, and Henry caught me.”
Jedrier hurriedly added the explanation and stroked his chest in relief.
“…He caught you?”
“Yes. He’s such a good kid, isn’t he?”
The Knight Commander’s voice sounded slightly different now.
He must finally have been moved by Henry’s kindness.
“He isn’t picky about food either. He looks like he could easily devour a whole geun of meat, but when I made him a salad that was nothing but greens, he only ate four bowls of it. Can you believe it?”
“…Remarkable.”
To be completely honest, even Jedrier himself had thought the salad barely qualified as edible.
They had only eaten it because there was nothing else.
For Henry, who had probably lived on meals that were at least reasonably nutritious even if they weren’t luxurious, it must have been even worse.
And yet Henry had polished off four whole bowls without showing even the slightest sign of dislike, probably because he didn’t want Jedrier to feel embarrassed.
There was no way that had been enough to fill him, either, but he hadn’t once complained that he was hungry.
‘I probably shouldn’t tell him about Henry chopping the firewood.’
Jedrier raised the corners of his lips.
Just in case, it seemed wiser not to mention anything that might be used against Henry.
“When I ‘hadn’t yet’ received my allowance for maintaining appearances….”
He deliberately emphasized the words ‘hadn’t yet.’
He didn’t want it to sound as though he was badmouthing the Emperor to the Knight Commander for no reason.
Jedrier put on the most innocent expression he could manage.
This was exactly the moment when his harmless-looking face needed to prove useful.
“Henry even lent me the wages he had saved up. We went to the marketplace together….”
“The marketplace?”
“Yes.”
“Together?”
“We went together. Henry and I. We were spending Henry’s money, after all.”
Why was he asking something so obvious?
Jedrier blinked and stared at the dumbfounded-looking man.
Could it be that attendants here weren’t allowed to freely leave the palace without permission?
Did I make a mistake?
But hadn’t the people guarding the Imperial Palace gates opened them for them completely naturally?
“Yes. I’m listening.”
Fortunately, the Knight Commander did not press the matter any further and gestured for him to continue.
“Our Henry tried to buy me clothes! Isn’t that incredibly admirable? He said my clothes were far too thin for winter, and even though I kept insisting that I was fine, he took me into a shop.”
Jedrier felt proud even as he spoke.
See?
This is how kind he is.
“…Winter clothes?”
“Yes. But the place looked far too expensive…. So I told him we should leave.”
“Was that place perhaps called ‘Ruby’?”
“I didn’t see the name…?”
Why did it matter which shop Henry had taken him to?
Was that really the important part right now?
He should be focusing on Henry’s actions!
Jedrier felt irritation rising toward the Commander, who seemed to be skimming the surface instead of paying attention to what actually mattered.
“Was it in the middle of the marketplace? A two-story building….”
“Yes, that was it.”
But Jedrier was the one asking for a favor, so he couldn’t afford to complain.
He nodded weakly.
Thinking back, the building had indeed looked like that.
“The owner seemed pretty nervous because it was apparently his first time receiving customers.”
“…I see.”
Jedrier naturally shifted the topic to how he and Henry had eaten together, carefully bought groceries, and carried them back to the palace by themselves.
“He even cooked for me himself.”
Naturally, Jedrier did not mention that it had tasted bad.
The outside of the meat had been completely burned while the inside was still undercooked, but effort was what mattered!
“We went for walks together too….”
Only after talking for quite a long while longer was Jedrier finally able to bring up the main point.
After hearing this much, he had to believe him now, right?
He had to understand that Henry had been falsely accused, didn’t he?
Jedrier took a deep breath and squeezed his eyes shut.
Now was the time to be brave.
“I came here because I wanted to ask you to take Henry back….”
“…….”
“The place where I’m staying isn’t really suitable for him to live in….”
“…….”
“No matter what you may have heard about Henry, I want you to know that it was all caused by misunderstandings. I’ll vouch for him!”
The Knight Commander looked even more troubled than when they had first met.
His lips opened and closed over and over again, as though he couldn’t bring himself to say anything lightly.
‘Why is he making that face?’
Jedrier couldn’t tell what the man was thinking.
Was he going to agree?
Or was he preparing to refuse?
At a time like this, it seemed better to speak first.
“Henry will be much happier here than he would be by my side.”
Was it possible to hurt yourself with your own words?
The moment Jedrier imagined Henry smiling brightly beside someone other than him, his chest hurt.
He’ll show other people the same kindness he showed me too, won’t he?
Of course he will.
That’s only natural.
He’s kind by nature.
That was obvious, so why did it hurt so much?
Jedrier ignored the sting gathering at the tip of his nose.
If he stayed here any longer, he felt like he might end up saying they should forget the whole thing, making his journey here completely pointless.
“May I ask you just one thing?”
“You can ask more than one.”
If it was about Henry, Jedrier could answer anything.
He leaned toward the table and put on a dependable smile, as if telling the Knight Commander to ask whatever he wanted.
“I-I understand that you are younger than Henry…. Why do you call him a child?”
“Pardon?”
It was a completely unexpected question.
Why did he call Henry a ‘child’?
Wasn’t that obvious?
This, at least, was a question Jedrier could answer with complete confidence.
“Because he’s my person.”
“…….”
Henry was his person.
Someone Jedrier had to look after, cherish, and hold close.
That was a fact that would never change.
He had gotten his hopes up when the Knight Commander said he had another question….
And this was all he wanted to ask?
It seemed the situation was not going to unfold the way Jedrier wanted after all.
His shoulders drooped toward the floor.
Was he going to fail like this?
But judging from the Knight Commander’s reaction, maybe not.
He wanted a definite answer, but he had a feeling that no matter what answer he received, it would leave him troubled.
“If you don’t have anything else to ask, I’ll be going now….”
He should have stood up energetically, but Jedrier rose from his seat without any strength.
A sigh rose all the way to the back of his throat.
“I’ll escort you back.”
Jedrier shook his head.
“…No. I can go by myself.”