Chapter 121

While cooling off by dipping our feet in the stream, Camilla, who was washing her face nearby, suddenly spoke with a serious expression.

“Those bastards are staying at the inn in the village, right?”

“…Yeah. The innkeeper said they’re quite troublesome guests. He’s been complaining a lot.”

“We could just assassinate them.”

“That guy surprisingly has connections with other nobles. Killing him would just cause more trouble.”

“Wait… did you actually consider killing them? And the reason you’re against it is because it’d be a hassle…?”

“I’m not some pacifist who refuses to kill. I just know there are more efficient methods than murder.”

Honestly, not just me and Camilla, but even Kyle could blow their heads off with a single gesture. But they had their own connections. If we killed them on a whim, it’d definitely be a headache.

“And more than anything…”

While the protests from other nobles would be troublesome, there was a more fundamental reason.

“There’s someone else who has the right to kill that woman and man.”

“Well… the only one who has the right to kill those scum is that lunatic.”

Camilla’s father, Heron Argos, was, in my eyes, the worst kind of person. But I’ve heard that in the past, he was an ideal knight.

To turn such a knight into the trash he is now, that alone is enough to send that man and woman to hell.

Plus, that guy tried to hit on Rizel too. Even though Kyle broke his fingers for it, that’s not a crime that can be forgiven.

“By the way, this is annoying. Even the little time we have left is being tainted by those scumbags. It seems like I’ll never have a peaceful rest.”

“I’m here, aren’t I?”

“That’s exactly why I don’t define this moment as unfortunate.”

Spending these ordinary days with Camilla, surprisingly, wasn’t tiring at all. Even if fatigue piled up, the happiness she brought melted it all away.

If Layla moved as if she and I were one, Camilla was the opposite, and there was joy in understanding her.

While I was lost in thought, she swung her spear. While I was considering, she threw her spear. If I took a step back, she took two steps forward.

If Layla was like a garden I loved to look at, Camilla was like a book I was reading for the first time.

Someone familiar who brings comfort, and someone new who brings joy. Maybe I’m just lucky when it comes to meeting women.

“But there’s one thing I’m curious about.”

“If it’s something I can answer, anything.”

“If we have a child, which family would they belong to?”

“Rizel is still young, but that drunkard… I mean, Master, is getting old. Even if they take my surname, it’s likely they’ll inherit the dukedom in the future.”

Well, that’s just my opinion. Who knows how things will change in the future, and I’m not exactly well-versed in family politics.

But if I leave a child behind and die, wouldn’t that be a burden?

Raising a child without a father is no easy task, and the child would grow up without ever seeing their father’s face.

“Would being born really be a happy thing? If that child… ends up following the same path as me, wouldn’t it be better if…”

At that moment, warm lips silenced me.

“Don’t jump to conclusions before we’ve even made one. And even if we do have a child, do you think I’d let them be unhappy?”

“…But.”

“Would Asel or Penelope let that child be unhappy? What about Kyle or Rizel? What about Layla or your father’s spirit? Do you really think they’d abandon the child? Why do you always assume the worst?”

“…… Those who’ve experienced the worst always assume the worst. I think I’ve said that before.”

“You haven’t always experienced the worst.”

“Other things don’t matter. What matters is that I’ve experienced it.”

This argument seemed destined to go in circles.

I always assumed the worst, while Camilla always excluded the worst from her considerations.

I wanted to see the world through a realistic lens, while Camilla urged me not to.

Who was right and who was wrong? I no longer felt the value in such distinctions.

“…Alright. I’ll try to see it your way.”

Before thinking about the value of such things, I wanted to feel happiness. No matter how much I thought about it, there was no clear answer.

I was someone who thought too much, to the point of exhaustion. Of course, Camilla was the opposite, and I wanted to learn a bit of her simplicity and optimism.

“If we have a child… they’ll probably grow up feeling quite annoyed by the intense happiness between us.”

“Then should we start making one right now to prove it?”

I immediately leapt up from the stream. Even though we’re lovers, we’re still a man and a woman. Making an heir before marriage? That’s unacceptable.

As a noble and a man, I couldn’t engage in such lewd and lowly behavior, so I ran.

“Hey! You’re hurting my feelings! And if you turn your back and run like that…!”

And then, a voice so chilling it sent shivers down my spine clawed at my eardrums.

“It makes me want to hunt you down…!”

I immediately sped up, and we spent the next four hours running around, tearing through the forest.

The startled beasts and monsters fled to the village, causing quite a commotion.

But it wasn’t bad. In fact, it was fun. Why did these moments of foolishness feel so precious?

What would happen tomorrow? For the first time in a long while, I felt a sense of anticipation.

“Camilla.”

“What?”

“Camilla.”

“I already answered.”

“Camilla.”

“Are you picking a fight?”

“No. I’m just amazed.”

When I slightly raised the corner of my mouth, Camilla looked at me like I was crazy.

It was just amazing that I could call out the name of someone I love and get a response.

My relationship with Layla… never blossomed like this.

But thinking of another woman while my current lover is here is both rude and a sin.

I tried to repay the sin I just committed with a hug.

“Camilla.”

“Hey, are you really asking for a fight…!”

When I hugged her, her face turned bright red. Even though I couldn’t see her face well while hugging, it was clear she was blushing fiercely.

Who would’ve thought the infamous madwoman would be so shy?

“I have a request.”

“…What is it?”

“Please don’t leave me.”

“I’m not your mom. I’d never leave you, even if I died.”

“…No. I mean, don’t leave me like Layla did.”

“Alright. I’ll stay by your side until the day you die.”

I wanted to end the day in a blissful mood, hugging her like that, but as always, my expectations were thoroughly crushed.

“It’s been a while.”

Out of nowhere, my mother came to visit. The hatred from before was gone, but it was still uncomfortable.

Even though the hatred had lessened, the discomfort lingering beneath made me uneasy, and facing her directly was burdensome.

“It hasn’t been that long since we last met.”

“For a parent and child, that’s plenty of time.”

“When I was on the battlefield, we were apart for much longer.”

“I don’t plan to live like I did back then. So the standard of time has to change, doesn’t it?”

“……”

“……”

It was still uncomfortable.

The sudden change in her voice and tone. This silence. The time spent wondering what to do next. It was all uncomfortable.

“Do you have a place to stay?”

“Only the inn.”

“I was once a knight who slept in the mountains and forests.”

“….”

“….”

After escorting my mother to the inn, as I was about to open the door to the lord’s mansion, I remembered who was at the inn.

Camilla must have thought the same, because without a word, we both ran to the inn at the same time.

And as expected, the man who had flirted with Camilla’s mother was now hitting on my mother.

“Fancy meeting such a famous lady here. What brings you to this remote countryside…? Could it be me…?”

“….”

Of course, my mother didn’t waste words on worthless men, but…

“Without a husband, the nights must be lonely, no?”

“…………”

Even if it meant cutting out that man’s tongue, I had to stop him.

If he kept talking, something terrible would definitely happen.

“If you’d like, I could show you what your weak husband couldn’t…”

“…”

And at that moment, a splattering sound echoed, and a large amount of blood soaked the floor.

“Huh…?”

“…One arm is a cheap price.”

His arm, chopped into seven pieces, fell to the floor with a thud.

Seeing his arm, now as useless as a fish, he screamed loud enough to wake the village, and Camilla’s mother, who had screamed, came down and grabbed my mother’s collar, but…

“You widow, how dare you touch my man?! Just because your husband was a weakling who died early, what does that have to do with my man…!!!”

She ended up saying something she shouldn’t have.

And with a deafening explosion, Camilla’s mother was sent flying. The punch was so powerful it was hard to believe it came from a fist.

“…A person’s tongue is meant to spout foolish nonsense without rest. But that’s why we have lips and teeth to stop it. It seems you have no use for them.”

My mother casually bent down, opened her mouth, and grabbed her front teeth with two fingers.

“Hey, mother…”

“If you don’t need them, there’s no need to carry them around.”

A sharp scream echoed, but no one came to her aid.

“Raul.”

My mother dropped two white pebbles on the floor and asked.

“Is there any reason I should have forgiven these?”

“….Cleaning bloodstains is troublesome. Please pay the innkeeper for the cleaning.”

It was good that my mother punished them, but they were no ordinary troublemakers.

The thought that this bad blood would continue made my head ache, but Camilla’s embrace melted away those worries.

I realized, for the first time, that being hugged from behind by a woman felt surprisingly good.

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