WLWES 13

The three knights’ names are Kenny, Roger, and Atlas. One by one, they greeted Rio politely. Rio introduced himself to each of the three knights and thanked them for their help the night before.

“Thank you for helping me last night.”

“No, we didn’t do anything. It was Lord Gideon who helped you,” Kenny replies on behalf of the group.

Rio is surprised by Kenny’s polite demeanor toward him, a commoner, and feels a bit embarrassed. He responds, “I’m just a servant, so please speak to me casually.”

Kenny then asks Gideon, “What would you like us to do?”

Gideon glances at Rio, then at Kenny, Roger, and Atlas, and nods. “If Rio says so, then it is fine.”

“I understand,” Kenny replies.

The three knights place their right hands on their chests and lower their heads. Kenny then asks, “Rio, do you want to go greet the staff at the shop?” The shop in question is the restaurant where Rio had been working until the previous night.

Rio nods appreciatively and looks up at Gideon. “Can I go?”

“No problem. You don’t need my permission,” Gideon responds.

Gideon wore a puzzled expression. He looked as cold as always, but Rio gradually began to understand him better. He could detect Gideon’s emotions from the slightest movements of his facial muscles and sensed his confusion over why Rio was asking for permission to leave.

“Well, you’re my master, right? I can’t just do whatever I want like I used to,” Rio explains.

“I don’t intend to restrict you that much. I just want you to follow my orders while I’m working,” Gideon clarifies.

“Really? Well, can you wait a bit then? I’ll say hello and come back right away.”

“Yeah. Call us if it gets dangerous.”

“It’s morning, so I think it will be fine. So I got it,” Rio assures him.

Gideon was more worried than he seemed, Rio thought, especially with those anxious purple eyes looking back at him. He then turned around and headed toward the shop.

It was still too early for the store to be open, but the owner should have already arrived to clean and prepare for the day.

When Rio quietly pushed the door open, the bell attached to the top of the door chimed. Hearing the sound, the owner peeked out from the back of the store.

“Sorry, we’re not open yet… Rio! I’ve heard… Are you okay?”

Rio entered through the narrow gap in the door, and it chimed again as it closed behind him. He took a step forward, hugged his bag tightly so that An wouldn’t fall out, and bowed deeply.

“I’m fine, and I’m sorry for the trouble.”

“No, no, you didn’t do anything wrong. I apologize as well, I didn’t mean for you to deal with a customer like that.”

“Not at all. I’m actually grateful for the opportunity to work here. Thank you for everything.”

“Are you headed out on another trip?”

Rio tilted his head slightly and nodded, “Yes.”

He didn’t want to mention that Gideon had hired him because he planned to start traveling again soon anyway.

The manager said, “Be careful. I’ve given the rest of your wages to the knight who came to explain,” and then he offered his hand to Rio.

Rio shook his hand, thanked him once more, and left the store.

When Rio returned to where Gideon and the others were waiting, he noticed that each of them had already taken hold of their horses’ reins, everyone except him. There were only four horses in total, and unsurprisingly, none were meant for him. Without saying much, the group set off on foot, leaving the town behind. Soon, they reached a broad, well-trodden road stretching toward the next town, where the others mounted their horses, leaving Rio still on the ground.

Worried, Rio stated thinking the worst. …Huh? Am I going to have to run?

As Rio turned pale at the thought of something so daunting, a hand was offered in front of him. The voice said, “Rio, give me your hand.”

“Huh? What?”

“Get on my horse,” Gideon demanded.

“Huh?”

Gideon glared at Rio as if to tell him to hurry up. Kenny steered his horse forward and stopped behind Rio.

“Lord Gideon, I will let him ride on my horse.”

“No. He will ride on my horse. You all stay out of it.”

“Understood.”

Kenny quickly agreed and returned to his position.

Rio turned around to look at Kenny, deep in thought.

No, he should have pushed harder. There’s no way I should be riding Gideon’s horse, he’s the most senior of us. That makes me nervous. If possible, I’d prefer to ride with Atlas, who seems closer to my age.

This time, he looked at Gideon with pleading eyes, but it didn’t work. Instead, he grabbed his arm and easily lifted him in front of his solid frame.

Rio turned back slightly and bowed, saying, “Thank you.”

Gideon nodded in response, “Yeah,” without showing any change in his expression.

“I’ll be careful not to put too much strain on you. But if it becomes overwhelming, don’t hesitate to tell me. You’re an important person.”

“Really…”

An important person? What do you mean? I’m not particularly skilled at anything, you know? I can use magic… but I’m sure they don’t know about it. Hmm… I don’t really understand.

Rio nodded vaguely and held An in the bag hanging in front of him close.

It would take two days by horseback to reach Gideon’s house, but they planned to take their time and arrive in three days. Kenny had told me that this state was large, and the house was on the opposite side of the state border from where they had entered, so it was quite a distance.

They took frequent breaks, and just when they thought they would arrive by midday, Rio came down with a fever.

While galloping through the forest, Rio suddenly felt nauseous. He tapped Gideon’s hand, which was holding the reins, and asked him to stop while clutching his mouth.

When Gideon stopped the horse, Rio rolled off and quickly dropped An down beside him. He then threw up loudly in the grass by the roadside. With his face streaked with tears and snot, he vomited several times before finally calming down and attempting to stand up. However, he had lost all his strength and felt like he might fall again, but Gideon was there to support him.

“I’m sorry,” Rio apologizes in a husky voice.

“Are you okay? Are you drunk?”

“I don’t know… this is the first time I’ve ever felt this way. I’m sorry it’s dirty…”

“It’s not dirty. Don’t worry about it.”

As Gideon said that, he took a linen cloth from his jacket pocket and started to wipe Rio’s face.

Rio quickly grabbed Gideon’s hand to stop him, saying, “It’ll get dirty,” but Gideon ignored him and gently continued to wipe Rio’s face.

“Lord Gideon, take this.”

“Yeah.”

When Rio looked up, Atlas had handed Gideon a water bottle with a worried expression on his face. Behind Atlas, Kenny and Roger had also dismounted, and their faces were filled with concern. Despite the trouble Rio had caused, they seemed more worried about him than angry, and for some reason, this made his heart ache. Overwhelmed by emotion, he began to cry.

Gideon cupped Rio’s cheeks and asked, “What’s wrong? Are you in that much pain?”

“Hmm,” Rio replied. “I thought your hand felt hot when you grabbed my arm, but you’re running a fever. Kenny, is there an inn nearby?”

“Yes, there’s one frequented by the lord. I will go ahead and have a room prepared,” Kenny responded.

“I’m counting on you,” Gideon replied.

“Understood.”

Kenny gave a slight bow and then turned to Rio, saying, “Hang in there a little longer,” before leaving with Roger. Rio took a sip from the water bottle Atlas had given him and let out a deep sigh.