A small statue of a baby angel, arms outstretched as if blessing the earth after descending from heaven, smiled kindly. Below it, a servant with wavy brown hair was clutching someone’s shoulders and glaring at the person in front of him.
“Sir Jace, stop behaving like a knight and step back.”
“Haha! You’re just like your brother, always talking nonsense about bad luck! Is bad luck a family trait or what? Huh?”
Jace smiled crookedly and burst out laughing. Seeing a knight who was supposed to carry himself with dignity strutting around like a thug made Zion furrow his brow. He couldn’t believe that someone like that had the same title as his brother.
I was told to be careful, but still.
The dark blue-haired knight, Jace, was often the subject of quiet discussion among the servants. When he first arrived at the Marquisate of Arcel, his charming face and gentle manner meant that his name was often mentioned among the staff. However, after he was appointed as Lady Lilia’s personal guard and became increasingly arrogant, his name began to be mentioned for very different reasons.
A dangerous man, don’t be fooled – his mask of politeness hides his true nature.
Although he behaved like a gentleman to his superiors or in front of large crowds, rumours spread that Jace bullied and harassed shy and quiet servants, both male and female.
I should have listened to the rumours and kept my distance.
Zion, too, was cautious at first, but over time he let his guard down. Having been taught since childhood not to judge others on the basis of gossip, he only believed what he saw with his own eyes. So he fell completely for Jace’s carefully crafted mask.
“Why are you doing this?”
“Why? Isn’t it obvious? It’s all because of your unfortunate brother, Harry John!”
It was as if he was grinding his teeth in anger as he said the name, and the sound was clearly audible. During the duel to choose Lilia’s personal guard, when he was gasping for breath and completely exhausted, Harry retreated without breaking a sweat or losing his composure. Every time Jace remembered that moment, he found himself screaming, even in the middle of his sleep.
From that moment on, something solid in his chest began to crumble. Its shattered remains became fuel for the fire that burned deep within his heart. As time passed, his rage only grew, and with each day he spent clenching his fists in seething rage, Jace came to a realisation.
That Zion was Harry’s younger brother.
“You have no idea how much trouble I have gone to, damn it, trying to let my guard down around you because of those stupid rumours.”
Thanks to a rumour someone had maliciously spread about him, he was under suspicion by the servants before he had even done anything. Just the thought of it made Jace’s brow furrow. But then he laughed again and touched his forehead.
“Oh, right, right. If you tell anyone about what happened today, just know that I’ll go after your roommate first. Got that?”
“You scum!”
Jace grabbed Zion by the collar and shoved him roughly. Zion’s soft brown eyes wavered, trapped in fear. He looked as if he might burst into tears at any moment, and Jace was about to curl his lips into a crooked grin when…
“Ugh!”
Zion lifted his leg and kicked him hard in the stomach. As Jace doubled over and fell, Zion tried to make a run for it, but Jace grabbed him by the ankle.
“You little bastard. Trying to get yourself killed, huh?”
Jace stood up and kicked Zion in the torso.
“Sir Jace, stop before you start shouting.”
“And what difference would shouting make? You, who work in this garden, should know better than anyone that people rarely pass by here.”
Just as Jace raised his fist again –
“What do you think you’re doing?”
He froze before his fist could land on Zion. Following the sharp voice, he turned his head to see the Marquis of Arcel and Ciela standing there.
‘Normally no one comes at this time, but of all times…’
Realising that the voice belonged to Ciela, Jace’s face turned pale.
“Well, you see… uh…”
As Jace stammered, Zion, who had been preparing to bite back at the next hit, closed his open mouth and pressed himself flat against the ground.
“Master, I must report this. A man who is supposed to be a proud Knight of Arcel has used brute force to strike a powerless servant in the stomach, threatened her into silence and even resorted to intimidating her family. Furthermore…”
Feigning sobs, Zion described the events in vivid detail.
“This is not true! How could I, a proud Knight of Arcel, tarnish the family name? I was only joking with this servant, for we are somewhat close.”
At Jace’s apology, the Marquis of Arcel’s expression hardened. Wasn’t this man Lady Lilia’s personal guard? Clucking his tongue, the Marquis decided he didn’t want to escalate the situation and opted for a quiet solution.
“Refrain from such excessive pranks, especially on someone who is not even a fellow knight.”
“I will obey your command!”
Unlike Jace, who brightened at the Marquis’ decision, Zion’s face turned deathly pale. How could they witness everything and still let him get away with it? A thud. A thud. Overwhelmed with despair, Zion clenched his fists in the dirt and sand.
“Father.”
Ciela called to the Marquis in a low voice, her tone calm but cutting as she murmured,
“After witnessing the exact same scene I did, do you really think this is a joke? In my eyes, Sir Jace has not only disgraced the family name, he has dared to lie and mock his master in the process.”
Ciela’s face, backlit by the sunlight, had darkened with an ominous weight. Considering how she usually wore a smile in the Marquis’ presence, the stark contrast was almost chilling.
Her quiet gaze, fixed on the Marquis, seemed to whisper that she would be sorely disappointed if he allowed this to pass unnoticed. Feeling the pressure, the Marquis swallowed hard.
“Of course not.”
“Isn’t it?”
“Ahem! You wretch! I cannot stand by and watch a knight dare to wag his deceitful tongue at his master!”
Turning the situation against Jace to smooth things over, the Marquis raised his voice in a thunderous rebuke.
“The Arcel family has no need of a knight like you!”
Surprised by the sudden turn of events, Zion raised his head cautiously. He only briefly enjoyed the sight of Jace’s shocked and pale face as he was reprimanded.
Serves you right… Wait, what?
Zion’s eyes widened as he saw Ciela smiling behind the Marquis.
—
Recently, the Arcel estate had been a bit chaotic over the selection of Lilia’s new personal guard. After being caught in such an atrocious act by the head of the house, Jace was stripped of his knighthood and expelled from the family. The servants, all aware of the rumours about Jace, whispered among themselves and agreed that it was well deserved.
“Ah, it’s such a relief.”
“With his handsome appearance and seemingly good nature, I honestly doubted the rumours were true, but… gosh…”
“Did you see Zion’s shoulder? It was bruised. Thank goodness Lady Ciela got the master to the west garden in time.”
“Ah! Exactly! That’s why I told Zion to stop hanging around with that guy. I even told him not to follow him to the west garden. But you know how stubborn he is – he only believes what he sees, so I just…”
Thud! The older maid, remembering the frustration she had felt, pounded her chest.
“I heard the rumours and thought it was only a matter of time before the guy was caught and fired. After all, if you have too long a tail, you’re bound to get caught. That’s the way it is.”
But they wouldn’t know that. They wouldn’t know that this “inevitable” turn of events took quite a long time in the original story.
Ciela put down the book she had been reading and looked at the visitors who had come to see her. There stood Zion, with his curly brown hair and puppy-like appearance. Beside him was a man as tall and imposing as Calix, who bowed his head. The same curly brown hair as Zion’s caught her eye.
“I am Zion. Thank you for granting the request of a humble servant like myself to meet you! And thank you again for saving me the other day!”
“No need for that. Both of you, raise your heads. More importantly, are you feeling better?”
“Yes! Thanks to you, I’ve recovered!”
Zion and Harry lifted their heads. Zion, whom she had seen before, had his gentle eyes curved into crescents as he smiled brightly, a pure and innocent smile that resembled a carefree puppy with its mouth slightly open. Watching this, Ciela stroked Titi gently.
‘So this is the boy who finally quit because of Jace.’
Jace had continued to serve as Lilia’s personal knight even after Zion’s departure. It wasn’t until a maid close to Lilia was harassed that Jace was stripped of his knighthood. Around this time, Harry, who had been a strong candidate to succeed Lilia as her personal knight, requested an audience with her.
“I hereby withdraw my candidacy as Lilia Arcell’s personal knight and my role as knight of the Arcel family.”
He was referring to his younger sibling. Over the course of several days, Harry recounted everything that had happened to his sibling – where, when and how. In the end, he blamed Lilia.
“When my sibling told you about Jace before he left, why did you turn a blind eye?”
Lilia cried as she apologised, claiming it was because she trusted her knight. She said she couldn’t admonish her people without proof and regretted her actions.
Remembering the events of the original story, a faint smirk of contempt formed on Ciela’s lips.
‘She never even thought to look for evidence.’
Whenever Lilia bragged about having a reliable and skilled personal knight, she would subtly bring up Jace. Each time she would respond with, “Sister, why are you trying to slander my people?” and never once did she bother to listen.
“I sincerely thank you for saving my younger brother, my lady.”
“You don’t need to thank me. I only did what needed to be done.”
It really was something that had to be done.
Ciela’s calm blue eyes rested on Harry, a man who never wavered in his convictions. From an early age, the two brothers had been taught to distinguish clearly between gratitude and resentment, and now they were the people she needed.
‘If the rumours I spread earlier had caused Zion to deviate from the original story and avoid Jace, I wouldn’t have been able to use this method.’
Through Sarah, however, she confirmed that they were still together. She simply acted on the exact date Harry mentioned in the original story to raid the scene.
To take advantage of her unwavering principles.
“…Even though it was something you had to do, I thank you as Zion’s brother, Lady Ciela.”
At that moment, Harry knelt on one knee and lowered his body.
“Please allow me to repay you.”
The words finally came. Ciela, secretly smiling to herself, was already preparing her words to appoint Harry as Lilia’s observer.
“Accept me as your sword, my lady.”
A small statue of a baby angel, arms outstretched as if blessing the earth after descending from heaven, smiled kindly. Below it, a servant with wavy brown hair was clutching someone’s shoulders and glaring at the person in front of him.
“Sir Jace, stop behaving like a knight and step back.”
“Haha! You’re just like your brother, always talking nonsense about bad luck! Is bad luck a family trait or what? Huh?”
Jace smiled crookedly and burst out laughing. Seeing a knight who was supposed to carry himself with dignity strutting around like a thug made Zion furrow his brow. He couldn’t believe that someone like that had the same title as his brother.
I was told to be careful, but still.
The dark blue-haired knight, Jace, was often the subject of quiet discussion among the servants. When he first arrived at the Marquisate of Arcel, his charming face and gentle manner meant that his name was often mentioned among the staff. However, after he was appointed as Lady Lilia’s personal guard and became increasingly arrogant, his name began to be mentioned for very different reasons.
A dangerous man, don’t be fooled – his mask of politeness hides his true nature.
Although he behaved like a gentleman to his superiors or in front of large crowds, rumours spread that Jace bullied and harassed shy and quiet servants, both male and female.
I should have listened to the rumours and kept my distance.
Zion, too, was cautious at first, but over time he let his guard down. Having been taught since childhood not to judge others on the basis of gossip, he only believed what he saw with his own eyes. So he fell completely for Jace’s carefully crafted mask.
“Why are you doing this?”
“Why? Isn’t it obvious? It’s all because of your unfortunate brother, Harry John!”
It was as if he was grinding his teeth in anger as he said the name, and the sound was clearly audible. During the duel to choose Lilia’s personal guard, when he was gasping for breath and completely exhausted, Harry retreated without breaking a sweat or losing his composure. Every time Jace remembered that moment, he found himself screaming, even in the middle of his sleep.
From that moment on, something solid in his chest began to crumble. Its shattered remains became fuel for the fire that burned deep within his heart. As time passed, his rage only grew, and with each day he spent clenching his fists in seething rage, Jace came to a realisation.
That Zion was Harry’s younger brother.
“You have no idea how much trouble I have gone to, damn it, trying to let my guard down around you because of those stupid rumours.”
Thanks to a rumour someone had maliciously spread about him, he was under suspicion by the servants before he had even done anything. Just the thought of it made Jace’s brow furrow. But then he laughed again and touched his forehead.
“Oh, right, right. If you tell anyone about what happened today, just know that I’ll go after your roommate first. Got that?”
“You scum!”
Jace grabbed Zion by the collar and shoved him roughly. Zion’s soft brown eyes wavered, trapped in fear. He looked as if he might burst into tears at any moment, and Jace was about to curl his lips into a crooked grin when…
“Ugh!”
Zion lifted his leg and kicked him hard in the stomach. As Jace doubled over and fell, Zion tried to make a run for it, but Jace grabbed him by the ankle.
“You little bastard. Trying to get yourself killed, huh?”
Jace stood up and kicked Zion in the torso.
“Sir Jace, stop before you start shouting.”
“And what difference would shouting make? You, who work in this garden, should know better than anyone that people rarely pass by here.”
Just as Jace raised his fist again –
“What do you think you’re doing?”
He froze before his fist could land on Zion. Following the sharp voice, he turned his head to see the Marquis of Arcel and Ciela standing there.
‘Normally no one comes at this time, but of all times…’
Realising that the voice belonged to Ciela, Jace’s face turned pale.
“Well, you see… uh…”
As Jace stammered, Zion, who had been preparing to bite back at the next hit, closed his open mouth and pressed himself flat against the ground.
“Master, I must report this. A man who is supposed to be a proud Knight of Arcel has used brute force to strike a powerless servant in the stomach, threatened her into silence and even resorted to intimidating her family. Furthermore…”
Feigning sobs, Zion described the events in vivid detail.
“This is not true! How could I, a proud Knight of Arcel, tarnish the family name? I was only joking with this servant, for we are somewhat close.”
At Jace’s apology, the Marquis of Arcel’s expression hardened. Wasn’t this man Lady Lilia’s personal guard? Clucking his tongue, the Marquis decided he didn’t want to escalate the situation and opted for a quiet solution.
“Refrain from such excessive pranks, especially on someone who is not even a fellow knight.”
“I will obey your command!”
Unlike Jace, who brightened at the Marquis’ decision, Zion’s face turned deathly pale. How could they witness everything and still let him get away with it? A thud. A thud. Overwhelmed with despair, Zion clenched his fists in the dirt and sand.
“Father.”
Ciela called to the Marquis in a low voice, her tone calm but cutting as she murmured,
“After witnessing the exact same scene I did, do you really think this is a joke? In my eyes, Sir Jace has not only disgraced the family name, he has dared to lie and mock his master in the process.”
Ciela’s face, backlit by the sunlight, had darkened with an ominous weight. Considering how she usually wore a smile in the Marquis’ presence, the stark contrast was almost chilling.
Her quiet gaze, fixed on the Marquis, seemed to whisper that she would be sorely disappointed if he allowed this to pass unnoticed. Feeling the pressure, the Marquis swallowed hard.
“Of course not.”
“Isn’t it?”
“Ahem! You wretch! I cannot stand by and watch a knight dare to wag his deceitful tongue at his master!”
Turning the situation against Jace to smooth things over, the Marquis raised his voice in a thunderous rebuke.
“The Arcel family has no need of a knight like you!”
Surprised by the sudden turn of events, Zion raised his head cautiously. He only briefly enjoyed the sight of Jace’s shocked and pale face as he was reprimanded.
Serves you right… Wait, what?
Zion’s eyes widened as he saw Ciela smiling behind the Marquis.
—
Recently, the Arcel estate had been a bit chaotic over the selection of Lilia’s new personal guard. After being caught in such an atrocious act by the head of the house, Jace was stripped of his knighthood and expelled from the family. The servants, all aware of the rumours about Jace, whispered among themselves and agreed that it was well deserved.
“Ah, it’s such a relief.”
“With his handsome appearance and seemingly good nature, I honestly doubted the rumours were true, but… gosh…”
“Did you see Zion’s shoulder? It was bruised. Thank goodness Lady Ciela got the master to the west garden in time.”
“Ah! Exactly! That’s why I told Zion to stop hanging around with that guy. I even told him not to follow him to the west garden. But you know how stubborn he is – he only believes what he sees, so I just…”
Thud! The older maid, remembering the frustration she had felt, pounded her chest.
“I heard the rumours and thought it was only a matter of time before the guy was caught and fired. After all, if you have too long a tail, you’re bound to get caught. That’s the way it is.”
But they wouldn’t know that. They wouldn’t know that this “inevitable” turn of events took quite a long time in the original story.
Ciela put down the book she had been reading and looked at the visitors who had come to see her. There stood Zion, with his curly brown hair and puppy-like appearance. Beside him was a man as tall and imposing as Calix, who bowed his head. The same curly brown hair as Zion’s caught her eye.
“I am Zion. Thank you for granting the request of a humble servant like myself to meet you! And thank you again for saving me the other day!”
“No need for that. Both of you, raise your heads. More importantly, are you feeling better?”
“Yes! Thanks to you, I’ve recovered!”
Zion and Harry lifted their heads. Zion, whom she had seen before, had his gentle eyes curved into crescents as he smiled brightly, a pure and innocent smile that resembled a carefree puppy with its mouth slightly open. Watching this, Ciela stroked Titi gently.
‘So this is the boy who finally quit because of Jace.’
Jace had continued to serve as Lilia’s personal knight even after Zion’s departure. It wasn’t until a maid close to Lilia was harassed that Jace was stripped of his knighthood. Around this time, Harry, who had been a strong candidate to succeed Lilia as her personal knight, requested an audience with her.
“I hereby withdraw my candidacy as Lilia Arcell’s personal knight and my role as knight of the Arcel family.”
He was referring to his younger sibling. Over the course of several days, Harry recounted everything that had happened to his sibling – where, when and how. In the end, he blamed Lilia.
“When my sibling told you about Jace before he left, why did you turn a blind eye?”
Lilia cried as she apologised, claiming it was because she trusted her knight. She said she couldn’t admonish her people without proof and regretted her actions.
Remembering the events of the original story, a faint smirk of contempt formed on Ciela’s lips.
‘She never even thought to look for evidence.’
Whenever Lilia bragged about having a reliable and skilled personal knight, she would subtly bring up Jace. Each time she would respond with, “Sister, why are you trying to slander my people?” and never once did she bother to listen.
“I sincerely thank you for saving my younger brother, my lady.”
“You don’t need to thank me. I only did what needed to be done.”
It really was something that had to be done.
Ciela’s calm blue eyes rested on Harry, a man who never wavered in his convictions. From an early age, the two brothers had been taught to distinguish clearly between gratitude and resentment, and now they were the people she needed.
‘If the rumours I spread earlier had caused Zion to deviate from the original story and avoid Jace, I wouldn’t have been able to use this method.’
Through Sarah, however, she confirmed that they were still together. She simply acted on the exact date Harry mentioned in the original story to raid the scene.
To take advantage of her unwavering principles.
“…Even though it was something you had to do, I thank you as Zion’s brother, Lady Ciela.”
At that moment, Harry knelt on one knee and lowered his body.
“Please allow me to repay you.”
The words finally came. Ciela, secretly smiling to herself, was already preparing her words to appoint Harry as Lilia’s observer.
“Accept me as your sword, my lady.”
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