Side Story 4

That evening, Bianca came rushing in, face flushed with anger, jabbing a finger at him.

“What the h*ll is wrong with you? What did you do to Alexa?”

“Is she… okay?”

“How could she be? She’s sitting there totally deflated, looking lost! If you were going to keep it secret, you should’ve kept it all the way. Why did you have to use aura in front of everyone and crush her like that?”

“…It wasn’t on purpose. Alexandra’s attack was so unexpected that I reacted without thinking, couldn’t control it…”

“Alexa thinks you hid your aura just to mess with her! You could’ve told her at least. You two trained together a lot, right? You had the chance!”

“I promised my mother to keep it secret. She said nothing good would come of it…”

“And yet you showed off your aura so spectacularly in front of everyone? Ugh, really!”

Bianca pressed her forehead, groaning. As a high noble herself, she seemed to understand why Reinhardt hadn’t told the truth.

But she was right. If he was going to hide it, he should’ve done so perfectly. If he couldn’t, he should’ve at least warned Alexandra. Crushing her in front of everyone made it impossible to fix. It was all his fault.

With no answer, Bianca clicked her tongue and finally returned to Alexandra’s side.

Alexandra, apparently deeply discouraged, didn’t even come to the library. For days, Reinhardt checked the shelf where they left notes, only to find it empty. If only she’d left a note, he could’ve comforted her, or maybe finally told her the truth.

He kept leaving new notes every day, just in case she came by. On the third shelf, among the romance novels, his notes sat alone for over a week.

Then, one day, as he went to leave another note, he found a different one waiting for him. He hurriedly opened it.

[I want to meet you face-to-face and talk, Dear.]

His heart pounded wildly.

Was Alexandra asking to meet because she had realized who he was? But if she knew that Dear was actually Reinhardt, would she have left a note asking to meet like this? With Alexandra’s personality, wouldn’t she have already rushed over to grab him by the collar? Then what did this mean? Did she really just want to see him?

His breath kept coming faster.

Would it be okay to meet? If he did, what should he say? That he was the one exchanging notes with her, that Dear was actually him, Reinhardt. If she asked how he found the notes, then what? Because he liked romance novels too? That was a ridiculous excuse.

Then, should he say he found them by following her around… Wouldn’t he get slapped for that? Or, if he showed up at the meeting place, would Alexandra even welcome him?

Fear surged up. His palms became clammy with sweat. His mouth kept drying out, so he forced himself to swallow.

But did he really have any other choice?

No, maybe this was an opportunity. If he met her, even if she disliked him, he could cling to her legs and beg her to listen to him, just once.

Once he made up his mind, he acted quickly.

[I want to see you too, A.]

The last stroke of the A was crooked from his haste. With slightly trembling hands, he folded the note and left it in place before walking away.

He decided that, when he met her, he would tell her everything honestly. Even if she despised him for it, he didn’t want to hide anything from Alexandra anymore. If she told him never to show his face again, to disappear, then he would have no choice but to obey…

But if she mercifully gave him a chance, if she said it was okay for him to stay by her side—even as a friend—he wanted to remain.

A friend. A bitter smile crept onto his lips.

From the moment he saw her, he’d been completely captivated, yet he’d been too afraid to get close… and now he was hoping for friendship…

Imagining what Alexandra’s answer would be, he confirmed their promise to meet.

But Reinhardt was unable to go see Alexandra.

* * *

The sudden death of his parents, the fight with his uncle—it all struck him like a bolt from the blue. Even knowing he couldn’t keep his promise to Alexandra, he had to return to his estate.

Dealing with his uncle and his private soldiers was difficult. He was still young, unprepared to inherit the dukedom, and had never led anyone before. He was inexperienced, immature. Without his parents’ protection, he was nothing.

What kept him going was Alexandra’s note, tucked inside his locket.

[I want to meet you face-to-face and talk, Dear.]

Whenever things got tough, whenever he wanted to collapse, he held the locket and prayed for a long time. That he would win this battle and find her. That he would finally tell her he was Dear.

The unexpected, lonely path was painful, but it was meaningful. He became stronger, but also softer. He could talk easily with the lowest soldiers, learned to avoid saying things that would hurt others, and could soothe his retainers even during arguments.

To become Duke and stand against his uncle, he needed everyone’s support, and so he was naturally humbled.

During that time, Reinhardt understood why Bianca had once said he was unlucky.

Clashing, breaking, and finally eliminating his uncle’s influence took over a year and a half. Naturally, he couldn’t return to Konstanz Royal Academy.

His classmates had already graduated and gone their separate ways. Once he finally secured the dukedom, the first thing he did was search for Alexandra’s whereabouts. With her skills, he assumed she’d have joined the Royal Knights or one of the three Kingdoms’ knight orders.

But Alexandra had gone to the distant northwest border, where fighting with the Kingdom of Oriac still continued.

It was unbelievable. Why send someone as skilled as Alexandra to such a remote place? The answer was simple: despite her abilities, she was a commoner woman knight. She was not allowed a place with the king or at the palace.

Reinhardt tried every way to bring Alexandra to the capital, but nothing worked. The atmosphere in the royal family was tense. The young king, like Reinhardt, was threatened by his uncle. As the king’s most loyal vassal, Reinhardt, Duke of Odenwald, pledged loyalty and stood against Duke Koloman.

Meanwhile, Reinhardt assigned someone to stay close to Alexandra. His agent sent weekly reports about her. He knew it was sneaky and even a bit perverse, but he couldn’t help it.

Even in that harsh and violent place, Alexandra remained beautiful and strong. Reinhardt pictured her in his mind, sometimes swept up in uncontrollable emotions. Under his parents’ care, he felt like he was slowly drowning in the tide, but thinking of Alexandra was like being lifted by a storm, soaring above the sea, then crashing into the waves.

“This week’s report, Sir.”

Tearing open the envelope from his butler was the start of his daily routine. The weekly reports from the northwest border contained news of the one he missed.

He covered his mouth with his hand as he read, trying to hide his smile. Even if the butler saw him smiling, he wouldn’t mention it.

Alexandra. Even just whispering her name to himself, so far away, made his heart race. The mere record of her actions on paper left him breathless.

It truly was a love that felt like it might kill him.

“Ah.”

This week’s report almost slipped from his hands—something was different. He read the sentence again. If his eyes weren’t deceiving him…

[…On the afternoon of ##, during the battle with Oriac forces, Dame Alexandra Lindau manifested aura. It is expected that a report will soon be sent to the royal court. However, regardless of aura use, Dame Lindau strongly wishes to remain in the northwest…]

“That can’t be. That can’t happen.”

He clenched the paper tightly. Those who could use aura were usually summoned to the capital to join the Royal Knights. The strongest were meant to protect the king and his family. That was tradition, but in rare cases, if the person strongly wished, they could remain where they were.

But Alexandra would come to the capital. She had to. No matter how much she wanted to stay in the northwest, Reinhardt wasn’t about to let that happen.

If he missed this last chance right in front of him, he really deserved to have “idiot” branded on his forehead.

He had more than enough reason to refuse her request. Reinhardt even thanked Duke Koloman in his heart, that rat-faced man—because of him, Reinhardt could bring Alexandra to the capital. With the king’s throne threatened, it made no sense to keep the kingdom’s strongest force at the border.

‘Alexandra, you will come to my side.’

The foolish Reinhardt of his youth was gone now. No more coward who worried and hesitated to take even a single step toward her. He wouldn’t make the same mistake again, wouldn’t let her slip away and grow distant.

In the six years he hadn’t seen her, Reinhardt had learned only one thing.

He loved Alexandra Lindau.

So, whatever it took, he would stay by her side. He wouldn’t settle for just being her friend. Only he should be by her side, only he should be allowed to touch her.

And so, finally—

“It’s been a while, Alexandra.”

He greeted her in a friendly tone, as if they’d just seen each other yesterday.

“Captain Reinhardt von Odenwald. …So we meet again.”

Her wide blue eyes were still so lovable that he almost knelt before her and confessed his feelings right then and there, but he managed to restrain himself. The locket under his shirt felt hot against his skin.

He did his best to hide his trembling, to conceal how long he’d waited, and took a step toward her. Would she finally see the Reinhardt who had waited so long for her? With the smile he’d wanted to show her from the very first moment, he called out to her.

‘Alexandra.’

(Check the Third Shelf in the Second Row of the Romance Section. The End)