Volume 3 Chapter 5 The Marquis Family - As A Brother, As A Man
Liz and Cedric's long-awaited reunion was filled with endless topics, from recent updates to old memories.
But good times always seem to fly by... Outside the window, the sky was already changing from a reddish hue to a deep blue.
"It's already this late."
Liz said, looking outside. She smiled sadly, realizing she couldn't stay any longer. Cedric opened his mouth, looking genuinely disappointed.
"Yeah, I guess so. At least let me walk you to your inn... Miranda──."
Nodding at his words, Miranda opened the door and led the two of them down the stairs. Outside, the sun had completely set, and the western sky beyond the castle walls only had a hint of red left.
"I'm sorry for being late."
Liz looking a bit guilty under the glowing streetlights. But then she tilted her head, noticing a figure beneath one of them.
"Randy? Were you waiting for us?"
Liz ran happily towards Randy, but Cedric's expression turned serious.
"There's no way that's true. It was just a coincidence. I just happened to pass by."
Randy snorted, but Liz, who had rushed over, stared at him intently.
"Is something wrong?"
Randy replied.
"Ellie said you smelled a bit of blood."
Seeing Liz's worried expression, Randy frowned and scratched his head.
"I was just playing with some stray dogs."
"That's..."
It seemed that this excuse didn't work on Liz, who looked a bit guilty as she looked down.
"Don't worry about it. It's not your fault; it's the ones who come here that are at fault."
After saying that, Randy shifted his gaze to the still-serious Cedric and showed a noble-like courtesy.
"From here on, I'll take over."
"O-Okay. Then please take care of my sister," Cedric said with a slightly strained smile, but Randy admired how he didn't show his protective brother side to Liz.
"Well then..."
As Randy turned to leave, Cedric called out, "Randolph."
"It's a message from Father. He said, 'It will be difficult to have guards at the inn'."
Cedric's expression was hard to read as he handed Randy a letter. The wax seal of the Marquis family was definitely from Lucian. Inside was just one sheet... probably with an address written on it.
In other words, it meant that from now on, they wanted him to go to the academy from there.
(Hey, Your Excellency. Is that really okay?)
Randy couldn't stop himself from smiling wryly. Lucian had told him to live in a reliable place, not somewhere like an inn where many people come and go. Even if they had guards, it was still not ideal for a young girl to live under the same roof with a man...
Seeing Randy's expression, Cedric shook his head.
"There's no need to worry. I've already arranged for someone to be there. There will be one knight and one maid..."
Even as he said this, Cedric looked frustrated, and Randy couldn't help but smile wryly again. For Cedric, the thought of his beloved sister living under the same roof as a man must be unbearable.
Still, Lucian's words made sense. They didn't know the purpose or who was behind it, but since an assassin had been sent, they couldn't afford to be careless.
"Understood. For now, I'll cancel my stay at the inn and grab my things. Can you take Liz to that house?"
At Randy's suggestion, Cedric's face brightened noticeably, almost as if you could hear a "ding!"
"Sure thing! Let's go, Liza!"
Cedric eagerly took Liz's hand, while Miranda bowed deeply to Randy. Watching the two of them, Randy quickened his pace towards the inn.
* * *
On the way back after dropping Liz off in the carriage, Cedric gazed out the window at the night-time capital.
"Milady Elizabeth seemed to be having fun."
"Yeah."
Miranda said, and Cedric replied absentmindedly.
"That's why your marriage proposals keep failing."
"Shut up."
Cedric retorted. Miranda looked at Cedric with a surprised face, and he turned around, pouting. Just as Miranda said, Cedric, who was really attached to his little sister, had ruined every potential match for him by bragging about Liz, saying, "My little sister is──"
"Get it together. The Marquis family depends on you, Sir Cedric."
"Yeah, yeah."
When it came to talking about his sister, he completely turned into a useless guy. That was Cedric, and after spending so many years with him, Miranda found it hard to truly dislike him.
"Still, he was really an interesting young man."
Cedric looked out the window again, and Miranda hesitantly nodded, saying, "...Yeah."
"Miranda, do you think you can beat him?"
"Don't joke around."
Miranda shook her head immediately.
"Haha, I thought so?"
Cedric turned back to Miranda with a silly face and murmured, "Me too," with a slightly sad expression. What Cedric remembered was the mysterious presence of a young man named Randy.
He had heard from his father, Lucian, about the incident with the [Iron Lion (A-rank adventurer)]. But when he saw Randy through the open door, he looked so ordinary that Cedric wanted to believe Lucian's words were a lie.
That all changed without a doubt after that test and the series of events that followed.
With the intention of testing Lucian's words, he launched an attack. He wondered how a man who could toy with an A-rank adventurer would handle it. The result of that hopeful strike showed a completely different outcome than he imagined.
Randy, who seemed to be aware of the attack, showed no signs of dodging. Cedric tried to stop him with a quick jab, but he couldn't gauge Randy's true strength. He realized the huge gap in their abilities during that handshake.
In that brief moment, just a split second of released killing intent, Cedric completely understood.
Ah. I can't win, he thought. If he had kept attacking, it would have definitely been him rolling on the ground.
On their way back, not only did he fail to notice Miranda's strength, but he also heard that she had quickly dealt with an assassin who had been lurking since this morning.
Cedric didn't fully grasp the situation from his conversation with Liz, but if Miranda said it was impressive, it must have been extraordinary.
In the first place, their own strength had been seen through. Yet, the opponent's strength was unfathomable. Cedric and Miranda understood all too well what that meant.
"I thought I had some confidence in rough situations."
Cedric sighed deeply and smiled at Miranda, saying, "There are always people stronger than you."
"That's true. I just had my confidence shattered recently... at this rate, I won't be able to recover."
Miranda looked expressionless, but Cedric could tell she was puffing out her cheeks.
"Mr. Harrison Walker, huh?"
"Yes."
Miranda was among the troops that faced the dark sides in Count Hartfield's territory. Accompanying Cedric, she had led the Marquis family's shadow to confront the dark sides, but what she witnessed there was a powerful man named Harrison, someone she had never heard of before.
Whether they were adventurers or knights, Miranda kept track of well-known people. This included not just the kingdom but also the empire and dukedoms.
However, she had never heard of Harrison before. Yet, his strength was undoubtedly among the top in what Miranda knew.
An unknown knight was stronger than her. Just when she felt like a frog in a well, now there was Randy.
"Mr Walker was quite something, but Sir Randolph is──."
Miranda paused for a moment, searching for the right words, and then opened her mouth, hesitating slightly, "──a monster." Hearing Miranda say that, Cedric couldn't help but smile wryly, saying, "You really mean that?"
"A monster, huh? A monster..."
Cedric repeated it and looked out the window again.
"So, he's strong."
Cedric murmured, recalling the conversation they had during the day.
"But... I underestimated him a bit."
Not only about the tester, but also about Cedric's ability to see through people.
And most importantly, he had completely understood the intentions of the Marquis family.
"I heard he was just a simple country boy."
But he never thought that Randy, who grew up in the countryside, would understand the tricks and schemes of the nobles. Even more surprising is that, despite having such skills, he doesn't seem to use them at all.
"No, maybe he doesn't need to."
Cedric smiled as he remembered the chilling aura of Randy.
"To know how nobles live and still have the power to bring them down... I can't help but feel a bit jealous as a man."
With a wry smile, Cedric turned to Miranda and said, "I don't plan on losing, though."
"He truly is 'unconventional.' I'll admit he's worthy of taking care of Liza."
Miranda sighed with a sharp look at Cedric.
"Then why didn't you tell the lady that? You should properly praise Sir Randolph."
Cedric grinned back at Miranda, who was giving him a pointed look.
"I already said I don't plan on losing... as a man."
"That's the Sir Cedric I know."
Miranda nodded in satisfaction but then looked at Cedric with a pointed gaze and asked, "...So, what's your 'true opinion' as her brother?"
Cedric, avoiding Miranda's sharp gaze, muttered, "──Well..."
"Excuse me? What did you say?"
"If I praised him there, Liza would end up liking him!"
Cedric pouted and spoke even faster.
"I mean, did you see Liza's eyes, Miranda? She's practically in love!"
"Practically? Not really──"
"Even Father said he praised him, and if I admit it too, Liza will completely──"
"So, already──"
"Ah, I can't hear you!"
Seeing Cedric cover his ears in a pitiful way, Miranda sighed in defeat.
He's an excellent master and friend, but when it comes to his sister, he just can't handle it. However, Miranda doesn't know the truth. Cedric shows her a side of himself that he doesn't show to anyone else in the family.
And what that really means.
Neither Miranda nor Cedric has realized it yet.
* * *
Meanwhile, Randy, who made Miranda call him a 'monster' and even got the genius Cedric to call him 'unconventional,' was...
"Oh, excuse me. Is this address...?"
He was lost.
Randy, who grew up in the simple countryside, had no idea about the addresses in the royal capital. Holding the letter Cedric gave him, he was asking people on the street for directions to the house.
"...Huh? The other way? That drunkard just says whatever he wants..."
Cedric and Randy. Though they are different kinds of people, they both have their unfortunate sides and might actually be quite similar.
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