WLWES 15

“An, did you also sleep?”

“Woof.”

“I’m sorry for worrying you, but I am okay now.”

An let out a gentle whimper in response to Rio’s reassurance and began to lick the palm of his hand as he stroked her head with his fingers. An had become an essential part of Rio’s life. Perhaps he had become just as important to An as well. Thinking this, Rio picked up An and brought his nose close to hers.

“I’m not going anywhere and never leaving you behind. So don’t leave me either, okay?”

“Woof.”

Oh, so cute. So adorable. I’m glad I met you. No matter what happens in the future, I’ll definitely protect you. As Rio played with An, he made a vow to himself.

Suddenly he heard a voice from outside the door.

“Rio, can I come in?”

“Sure, go ahead!”

Kenny opened the door and walked in. Rio immediately got up and started to get off the bed to greet him. However, witnessing this, Kenny stretched out his arm, signaling with his palm for Rio to stop. “Stay where you are,” he said. Rio had no choice but to place An beside him and remain seated on the bed.

“How are you feeling?” Kenny asked as he sat across from Rio in a chair.

“I’m fine now. Sorry for the inconvenience.”

Rio bowed his head, and Kenny placed a hand on his shoulder.

“I think Lord Gideon mentioned this too, but there’s no need to apologize. Anyone can get sick. I’m glad it wasn’t anything serious.”

“Yeah.”

Rio smiled and nodded at Kenny’s kind words.

Although Gideon may appear intimidating, he is actually very kind as someone of higher rank. Because of this, all his subordinates tend to be friendly as well. Honestly, I would never want to serve a knight, but I agreed to serve Gideon. However, I would quit immediately if he were to treat people with even a hint of disrespect, like all the other knights I’ve encountered before.

Rio clenched his fist, and his breathing grew heavier at the mere thought of it happening. Suddenly, he was startled when he heard Kenny’s voice nearby asking, “What are you thinking?”

Kenny’s face was right in front of him, uncomfortably close.

Rio quickly moved away.

“Wh-what?” Rio stammered.

“Oh, sorry. I was just thinking that your eyes are beautiful. My bad, but I wanted to take a closer look.”

“… They’re normal. Gideon’s are prettier.”

“Yeah, but along with your eyes, your hair is pretty, too.”

“Come on… what are you talking about? You have blonde hair as well.”

“No, my hair color is closer to brown, while yours is practically shining.”

“Hmmm… oh! Atlas has blonde hair, too.”

“Atlas’s is closer to platinum, though. Yours has a beautiful golden hue.”

“Ah…”

No, wait a minute. What’s going on with this guy? Why is he complimenting me so much? He doesn’t seem to have any feelings for me. Could it be that Kenny has an ulterior motive? That’s unsettling. I better not get too close…

Just as Rio was becoming more confused by Kenny’s continued staring, Atlas walked in and announced that dinner was ready. Rio let out a sigh of relief.

The next morning, having recovered somewhat, they left the inn early, and Rio once again rode on Gideon’s horse for another half day. The trip was tough on Rio, even though they took several breaks. He was struggling against drowsiness when Atlas suddenly called out from beside him.

“Rio, take a look over there. That’s Lord Gideon’s castle.”

Half asleep, Rio looked in the direction Atlas was pointing.

As he struggled to remain awake, they entered a large town where houses of various sizes were lined up in an orderly manner. At the back, he spotted a castle, one of the largest he had ever seen..

Suddenly, Rio was wide awake.

“Huh? A castle? Why?”

Rio blinked rapidly and first looked at Atlas beside him, then at Gideon behind him.

“What is that?” Rio asked.

“That’s a castle,” Gideon responded.

“Well, yeah,” Rio replied, dumbfounded. He continued, “At that size, it must be the lord’s castle.”

“Yeah.”

“Oh, I see. Is your house that white building in front of the castle?”

“No. That castle is my house.”

“Huh?”

What is Gideon saying? I don’t understand. Oh, I see. He’s saying it’s his home because he lives in that castle as a knight serving the lord. That makes sense. Gideon is a knight under the lord’s direct command, which is why he holds such a high rank…

As Rio pondered this while stroking An’s head inside his bag, he suddenly heard something shocking.

“Ah, it’s the Wolf Lord. Hey! Lord! Welcome back!”

A boy of about seven or eight years old pointed at Gideon, and a woman who appeared to be his mother hurriedly covered the boy’s mouth and bowed.

Rio glanced at Gideon’s face again, his eyes wide in shock.

Gideon looked down at Rio and said coldly, “What is it?”

“Um… Could it be that you are the Wolf Lord?”

“You mean me?”

“Ahhh!”

Rio froze and let out a pitiful sound. He recalled all the rude things he had said and done up until now.

You’ve got to be kidding me… Haven’t I been really rude? I haven’t even been using honorifics when I speak to him… I want to run away… I want to run away right now! I thought he was just some high-ranking knight, but I never would’ve imagined that he was a lord! If he had introduced himself as that from the beginning, I wouldn’t have accepted the job offer in the first place!

Rio was worried about what to do.

He couldn’t just jump off the horse and run away right now. After all, Gideon was holding him tightly by the waist. Even if he wanted to stop working, that was impossible. Following Rios’s last outburst, where he claimed he could quit anytime because they had no contract, Gideon made him sign one. Now that they had a contract, running away would mean breaking it, which was illegal. He would definitely get caught in no time. Besides, Rio didn’t actually want to break the contract. For now, when they reached the castle, he planned to ask Gideon to nullify it first.

With that in mind, Rio hugged An and sighed deeply. Gideon was indeed the lord. He had heard it from Gideon himself, so there was no doubt about it. He had a faint suspicion he might have misheard, but his fears were confirmed when they arrived at the castle.

When the horse came to a halt in front of the large castle gate, the gatekeeper gave a deep bow before opening the gate for Gideon. The gatekeeper seemed well-educated. Even when he noticed Rio sitting in front of Gideon, he was polite. The gatekeeper kept his eyes down until everyone had passed, which made Rio hesitate, but then he bowed deeply and stroked An’s head to calm her down.

An looked around curiously, turning her head. Rio was comforted by how cute and curious An was. He let out a breath and looked up at Gideon. Noticing Rio’s gaze, Gideon momentarily turned his head towards him and said, “What is it?” before looking ahead again.

“Hey… I want to get off the horse,” Rio said.

“Why? We’ll be at the front door soon.”

“But I’m just a servant, right? It would be improper for me to ride the lord’s horse.”

“You’re not a servant. I already told you you’re more like an aide.”

“Even if I’m an aide, I still serve you, Gideon. It’s rude for me to be riding with you. So I’m getting off.”

“Hmm, it’s an order. Stay on the horse until we reach the front door.”

“…”

Rio fell silent and faced forward. He couldn’t get through to him at all. That man was far too stubborn, just as stubborn as he appeared. Although Gideon initially seemed intimidating, Rio was starting to see him as a kind person. However, he didn’t appreciate stubborn individuals who refused to listen to others.

It couldn’t be helped. If they argued here, they would attract attention. They should go inside first, then calm down and think about what to do next. He felt useless, so he would ask Gideon to fire him.

Perhaps sensing Rio’s anxiety, An licked his hand.

“It’ll be fine,” Rio whispered, looking up at the massive castle.

Rio dismounted Gideon’s horse in front of the polished cobblestones leading to the entrance. Atlas and Roger led the other two horses away, pulling at their reins. As Rio watched them leave, a heavy door slid open, revealing a black-haired man dressed entirely in black. The man bowed politely to Gideon and said, “Welcome home.” Gideon took a step forward and nodded blankly.

“Gale, nothing has changed, right?”

“Yes.”

“Mhm. Also, I personally hired the person behind me. Treat him with respect and tell everyone else to do the same.”

“By…Lord Gideon personally…?”

Gale looked up with his amber eyes fixed on Rio. He appeared to be around the same age as Gideon but had a kinder face. For some reason, however, Rio found him intimidating. He instinctively wanted to hide behind Gideon but resisted the urge. Instead, he bowed deeply with his usual friendly smile.