Side Story: Flustered on a Full Moon Night

“Target acquired. He’s moving toward the stairs.” I cracked open the door to the room I’d just thrown myself into, gazing out at the end of the corridor.

The silver hair and long, blue cape swaying behind his back receded farther and farther down the hallway. Reggie had perfect poise, so even the mere sight of him walking was beautiful enough to inspire envy.

Normally, I would have called out to him, but not today.

Before long, Reggie disappeared down the stairs, none the wiser to how I had watched him leave with bated breath.

After I heaved a sigh of relief, the two soldiers who had come walking down the hall shot me curious glances. “Lady Spellcaster?”

Both of the soldiers, who were evidently on patrol, looked completely lost.

“Thanks for staying quiet. Let’s keep this our little secret, okay?”

“Yes, milady.”

When our eyes met earlier, I had put a finger to my lips, after which the pair hadn’t uttered a word. Once I’d thanked them for their discretion, I exited the room and made my way down the corridor.

“What was that all about?”

“Was she performing some magic ritual she didn’t want anyone to see?”

Bits of the soldiers’ conversation reached my ears. I’d definitely given them the wrong idea here, but I wasn’t concerned about that. What mattered most right now was that I didn’t get anywhere near Reggie.

Why, you ask? Because things were still awkward between us—you know, after the kiss the other day. I was still distressed enough that whenever I walked around holding Master Horace, wind would start blowing everywhere each time memories of the incident came flooding back to me.

Master Horace found that to be a riot. He kept chasing after me while cackling to himself, so I had left my chambers to wander around the castle. If I could just make myself a little sleepier, the drowsiness would drown out the embarrassment, even if Master Horace crept up to me again.

While I was on that stroll to wear myself out, I’d nearly had an encounter with Reggie himself. Before I even knew what I was doing, I’d run for cover.

After confirming that Reggie had gone down the stairs, I decided to head up to the third floor. Once I’d reached the top of the steps, I saw a door in the shape of an arch, which I then opened.

It opened up onto a vast balcony. There were plenty of tables lined up there, and it was a big enough space for almost a hundred people to partake in tea together. Along the parapet was a gorgeous handrail chiseled with sleek grooves.

Nobody else was there. Our lookouts were stationed in either taller towers or the bulwark that covered the entire periphery of the castle, so there was probably no need to have one here.

I leaned against the handrail, gazing up at the midnight blue sky that stretched as far as the eye could see. Thanks to the light of the full moon, it was a little brighter out than usual.

I held my right hand up to the sky, hiding the moon behind my fingers. On one of those fingers, I was wearing a ring. In the darkness, the stone’s color looked deeper and darker than ever—just one more way it was similar to Reggie’s eyes.

I’d always thought rings were beautiful, but I never imagined I’d be so shocked when I was finally given one. That reaction made sense, though; rather than a simple accessory, I’d always envisioned it as something symbolic of a promise. Reggie had told me I was allowed to sell it, but I wouldn’t dream of doing anything like that. In fact, I was so terrified of losing it that I never took it off.

“I’m not really sure what I want here.”

Just as I sighed, I heard a door to the balcony open. Judging by where the sound was coming from, it wasn’t the same one I’d used to get out here.

My first instinct was to hide, but all I did was crouch down on the spot.

Wait, anyone could see me like this!

Right as I was about to transmute the stone floor in a panic, the mystery person called out to me. “What, are you feeling ill?”

“Wha?!”

When I glanced back over my shoulder, I saw it was Alan who had joined me on the balcony. Breathing a sigh of relief, I rested my head against my knees. Thank God it wasn’t Reggie.

“Hey, are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I thought you were Reggie for a second there,” I said as I rose to my feet.

Now it was Alan’s turn to sigh. “Yes, I heard you were avoiding Reggie. I think his feelings were a little hurt, you know.”

“Urk...”

Of course Reggie noticed.

I’d eaten breakfast at a different time today and made sure I didn’t see him after that. Perhaps he’d spotted me making a break for it when we were about to run into each other.

“What on earth would drive you to do that?” Alan asked.

His interrogation only left me more and more stuck for words. I couldn’t tell him the truth.

That was when Alan came up beside me, placing his hands next to mine on the handrail. “I suppose I can take a guess as to what has you so stressed. It’s that ring, isn’t it? I’m betting Reggie gave it to you.”

He pointed to my right hand, and I gave a start. Alan had probably been there when the merchant gave Reggie the ring.

“Um... yeah. Reggie gave it to me the day before yesterday. He said a merchant gave it to him as a gift.”

“Reggie refused everything else the man offered, claiming that we shouldn’t take on extra luggage when we’re always on the move. The ‘add the cost to your donation instead’ was implied. That ring was the one gift he accepted, so I was wondering what he wanted it for... but now I see. So he wanted to give it to you.”

My eyes flew open in surprise. This was the only thing he accepted? Here I’d thought it was just one of the many gifts he received.

If his plan was to give me something, why did he choose this? The blue gem bore such a strong resemblance to his eyes. When I considered the implications of him giving me a jewel of the same color as his irises, a color so strongly associated with himself... I could practically feel the blood rushing to my head.

What do I do? I’m so happy!

Part of me wanted to clutch the ring as tightly as I could, but I stopped myself from doing that in front of Alan.

“Say, Kiara.”

“Yes?”

“How do you feel about Reggie and Wentworth?”

What a tremendous bomb he’d just dropped on me.

“What? Um...”

Wait, he’s asking me about Cain, too?! That makes it even harder to answer!

My kiss with Reggie may have been an accident, but the question reminded me that Cain had declared his love for me right to my face. If I said something wrong and it got back to the man himself, I wouldn’t know what to do. My only hope was to desperately search for a way out of this conversation.

“W-Wh-What do you mean by—”

“What kind of relationship do you want from them, I guess? Or maybe... which one do you like more?”

“Eep!”

Alan’s clarification was terrifyingly blunt. He might as well have nailed me right in the face with a ball.

Why is he being so pushy today of all days?! Usually he never asks me anything! Yeah, that’s right... Isn’t Alan acting a little strangely?

“Can I ask why you want to know?”

“Wentworth hugged you, didn’t he? Sometime around noon yesterday.”

“Ulp.”

“Reggie saw it happen.”

“He was watching?!” I clutched my head in my hands.

I was going to die of embarrassment. Plus, I was feeling deeply anxious all of sudden.

What had Reggie thought when he saw it? Since I didn’t push him away, had he assumed I was receptive to Cain’s advances? But that was only because Cain had been in so much pain; plus, if I’d struggled against him, I had the feeling it would’ve just made things worse. After all, Cain seemed like the type to get more hung up on me the more I pushed him away.

Besides, Reggie was the one who had normalized getting touched and hugged for me. It didn’t even faze me at this point.

Perhaps that was why he’d become such a calming presence for me, almost like family.

It was only natural to have him by my side, and I grew lonely whenever he wasn’t there. Yet even if he went somewhere far away, I could still believe that he hadn’t turned his back on me.

“So, which one will it be? Perhaps I have no right to say anything, but just watching the lot of you gives me a stomachache,” Alan said, massaging his belly.

Panicked, I lifted my face. “I’m not really sure how to answer that! Reggie is just my keeper, and Cain might as well be a second guardian to me. Besides, he told me to sell the ring if I got into any trouble!” I babbled, instinctively hiding my right hand behind my back.

Had he only told me I could sell it because he was afraid I wouldn’t accept it otherwise? Or was I reading too far into the whole thing? But otherwise, what was the point of picking out this one specific thing to give to me?

He probably wanted to convey that he was looking out for me like family, right?

As I was mulling it all over, I averted my gaze from Alan.

“Still your keeper, hm?” He heaved a sigh, then muttered under his breath, “You told her to sell it? Reggie, you ass.”

Judging by that remark, I was pretty sure he’d gotten the picture... or had he?

For the moment, there wasn’t much more of an answer I could give him. It was hard to put what I felt for Reggie into words. When it came to Cain, I didn’t want to tell anyone else about the troubles he’d revealed to me in confidence.

I fell silent for a bit, until Alan suddenly asked, “What about me, then?”

“Huh?” I gave a puzzled tilt of my head. Had all this talk made him curious about how I saw him?

His anticipation obviously building, Alan went on, “I’d say I’m like an older brother to you, wouldn’t you? Try calling me ‘brother dearest,’ if you like!”

Unfortunately, I found that suggestion a little hard to agree with. “Sorry, but you’re definitely more of a little brother type.”

“Why?! I’m older than you!”

True. He was the same age as Reggie, even. He sure didn’t feel older than me, though.

“Oh, I don’t know. It’s just the vibe you give off? You seem kind of innocent, in a way.”

It was as I said this that it occurred to me: Game-Alan had a much more mature aura about him. Of course, that was because he’d lost his father to rely on, and he’d had to support his mother all on his own.

“Calling me a younger brother is a bit much, though.”

“That’s just how you come off to me. I mean, think about it! Miss Emmeline’s the same age as you, but don’t you think she seems more mature?”

“Oh, that kindred spirit of yours.”

Why did he keep referring to us like birds of a feather? I was pretty sure Emmeline was one of a kind. I could never threaten an enemy soldier the way she had.

“Then what about Miss Ada? Doesn’t she feel older than you? And she’s only got one year on me, too. It feels perfectly natural to see her standing side by side with Sir Felix, but when she’s next to you, she seems way more adult in comparison.”

For some reason, Alan shot me a wary look. “This is a trap, isn’t it?”

“What are you talking about?”

Why would he jump to that conclusion? Despite my dumbfounded look, Alan just cast a cautious glance toward the door before saying, “You’re never supposed to answer a question like that from a woman. If we keep this line of conversation going, nine times out of ten, the girl in question is going to be hanging around somewhere nearby, and she’ll put me through the wringer for overestimating her age.”

He puffed out his chest, clearly proud of his knowledge. I was too stunned to reply, so Alan just continued his lecture. “If I only say that Ada looks mature, that’s one thing. What’s dangerous is saying that you—who’s just one year her junior—look young in the same conversation. Therefore, I decline to comment.”

Honestly, I was amazed that Alan was actually savvy to these subtleties.

“Wait... Did a girl give you a hard time because you mistook her age once?”

“I’ve always kept this lesson close to my heart, so I’ve never gotten into trouble myself. I have seen Chester start making guesses as to the ages of my mother’s attendants, Maya and Clara. The poor man nearly got himself killed for it.”

“Who taught you all that, then?”

The moment after the question left my lips, I glanced behind Alan and nearly clamped a hand over my mouth.

As Alan had yet to notice anything, he answered, “It was Went—”

“What about me, milord?” Cain asked, placing a hand on his shoulder from behind.

“Gah!” Alan was surprised enough to give a start, shaking off the knight’s hand in the process. “Wentworth?! What are you doing here?!”

“I saw that Miss Kiara was out here. I came to tell her not to roam the castle at night.”

“I wasn’t roaming.”

I was about to retort, I’m not some senile old woman, Sir Cain, but arguing back seemed akin to poking at a hornet’s nest, so I kept my mouth shut.

“And then, wouldn’t you know it, I overheard Lord Alan telling a fascinating story. Tell me, what exactly did I teach you?”

With a gulp, Alan worked up the nerve to blurt out, “H-How to treat women!”

I shot Cain a sideways glance. Perhaps my dubious feelings showed on my face, judging by the way he rushed to explain himself. “Don’t phrase it like that, milord! That is to say... I felt that the way Chester and Lord Alan treated women wasn’t proper, so I thought to rectify the issue—”

Just as he was in the midst of making excuses, Alan cut him off. “True, I suppose you could call it a remedial lesson. Wentworth taught me what not to say to a woman, you see!”

“What else did he tell you, specifically?”

“Aside from the age thing, he told us never to comment on her breasts.”

I looked back at Cain again. “You’re a bad role model, Sir Cain.”

My expression must have looked pretty frosty there; he was obviously shaken. “Why are you telling her this, milord?!”

“Why would you teach him all that? What makes Alan so fun is that he’s too pure to know any of this stuff.”

“That’s the wrong objection to make here, Miss Kiara!”

“Hey, Kiara, what’s that supposed to mean?!”

As I watched the duo grow more and more flustered, I let slip a laugh. That seemed to snap Cain back to his senses.

“If there’s any lesson I could teach, I’d like to instill it upon you to be a bit more cautious, Miss Kiara. There are plenty of female servants in the castle, so I suppose there isn’t too much to worry about... but you wandered around Fort Inion by yourself, too, didn’t you?”

The muscles in my face stiffened. I didn’t think he’d seen that! How does he know?!

One night when I was thinking too hard about Isaac and couldn’t get to sleep, I’d turned around on my way to go see the frostfoxes and went on a walk across the parapet to clear my head.

“It turned out fine, now didn’t it?”

“Is that right?” Cain said, before striding right up to me to scoop me up.

“What the...? What are you doing, Sir Cain?!”

“If someone picks you up, you can’t use your magic, now can you? A girl as light as you ought to be doubly mindful of that risk.”

Hearing him call me “light” only made me all the more embarrassed.

“Um, please put me—”

“Not until you reflect on your actions.”

“But this is so embarrassing!”

Even Alan looks taken aback! He’s gaping at us with a face like he’d rather be anywhere else!

“I always lift you up when we ride a horse together, so it’s a bit late to get shy about it now,” he replied nonchalantly, before bringing his lips close to my ear. “Or will treating you more like a grown woman make you a little extra remorseful?”

His breath ghosted over my ear. No, wait... This is more than just his breath! It tickles too much! Don’t tell me he just—?!

“Ahhhhh! I’d rather just stay a child, thanks! Good night!” I squealed, struggling in his arms.

The moment Cain put me down in surprise, I dashed off like a rabbit. Keeping up that momentum, I ran back inside the castle from the balcony, sprinted down the corridor, and rushed down the stairs multiple steps at a time.

“Waaaah! Why would he do that?!”

Why did he have to kiss my ear?!

Worst of all, Alan had been watching the whole thing. His expression had gone stiff, but he’d left his eyes wide open.

“This is SO embarrassing!”

That was all I could think about. Desperate to escape these niggling emotions, I pushed my legs as fast as they could go, heading out into the garden of the manor.

Seeing as I’d just run a full-out sprint, I had to stop and wheeze for air. I wandered all the way over to a nearby flowerbed, taking a seat there to rest.

At the very least, after all that running, I no longer felt like tearing my hair out.

That had really been too much. I’d always feared that Cain wouldn’t listen if I asked him to wait, and it turned out I’d been right on the money. If he’d managed to keep me in his clutches like that, he probably would have bullied me until I gave in.

Once I’d finally calmed down, I heard the footsteps of someone walking through the garden. Just as I was wondering who it could be, I spotted a few silver locks of hair past a shrub bedecked with white blossoms.

Standing up in a panic, I made to escape into the garden ASAP. Unfortunately, I was still exhausted from all the sprinting I’d just done, and my legs wobbled underneath me. Just as I was stumbling along like a drunkard, someone suddenly grabbed me by the wrist, flipped me around with ease, and pulled me into a hug.

Even in the dim light, I recognized the pale jacket before my eyes. I caught a whiff of that sweet, familiar scent that both gave me the jitters and put me at ease. It was Reggie. He must have spotted me and chased me down.

“I found you, Kiara.”

With the way my face was pressed up against him, I could feel his voice reverberate in his chest. I found myself closing my eyes to listen.

Reggie just giggled and said, “You’ve been avoiding me all day today, I see. Does that mean you’re afraid of a scolding because you did something naughty?”

Drat. I’d relaxed out of habit, but I’d forgotten that he was the one I’d been running from in the first place. Now he had me in his clutches, and I had nowhere to run.

For now, I was better off playing dumb. “Of course not!”

“Then why were you running from me?”

I can’t just say, “I get embarrassed every time I think about our kiss!”

While I struggled for words, I could sense that Reggie was peering down at the top of my head. Caving under the pressure, I came up with a truly pathetic excuse. “I was, um, scared.”

“Have I ever done something to frighten you?”

“No, but still...”

In truth, there had been no need to run away. Still, the sheer embarrassment of it all had made me afraid to look Reggie in the eyes.

“Does it scare you even to talk?” Still stuck for words, I nodded. Reggie then said, “Do you want me to tell you something that’s really scary?”

Reggie removed his hands from my back and head, reaching out to cup my face. When I looked up at him, I caught a glimpse of his mischievous smile, and soon I found myself shutting my eyes. Then, the moment I really thought I was in trouble...

I felt him place a kiss on my forehead.

Even so, I couldn’t force myself to run. I couldn’t even think to tell him off. I was at a total loss, feeling like I must have lost my mind.

“You won’t run?”

When I opened my eyes, I saw that the teasing glint had vanished from Reggie’s eyes. That terrified me, but it also told me how serious this was.

It was like there was a predator who wanted to devour me whole right before my eyes, but I couldn’t will myself to flee. My own feelings—the way I didn’t even care if I got caught—shook me to my core.

Was it because I knew Reggie would never actually do anything I didn’t want? Or was it because even now, part of me assumed he was just teasing me?

It felt as though Reggie’s blue eyes could see straight through to what I was thinking, and my face grew hot with shame. “No, um... Don’t look at me...”

When I hung my head to hide my face, Reggie grew unusually flustered. “Kiara? Erm... I’m sorry. Are you crying?”

“No... I just don’t want you to see my face.”

Reggie hugged me one more time—as though to hide me away in his arms.

“I’m sorry. You were trying so hard to give me the slip that I wondered if I’d done something to make you hate me. I suppose I got a little mean about it.”

Our current pose was embarrassing in a different way, but at least it meant that Reggie couldn’t see my expression. Relieved, I responded, “Um, I’m sorry as well. I ran away from you the other day, too, when we bumped into each other after you’d been hiding from Miss Ada. You didn’t seem happy about it, so I just got really anxious. Even today, I couldn’t stop myself from running away.” Incoherent as it was, I apologized for my behavior.

“Oh, I see. Here I’d assumed you were just unhappy about it,” Reggie muttered, as though a piece of a puzzle had fallen into place. He then patted me on the head. “For me, it was more like an unexpected stroke of luck.”

“What?”

Hearing that he’d been thinking about it that way, I felt the heat gather in my face all over again.

If he’s calling it good luck, does that mean it didn’t bother him?

“After all, it’s a good thing our lips didn’t crash together right as you fell down. If that had happened, both our mouths would’ve been left a bloody mess, and you would have felt a little worse about it than just awkward. You’d have been writhing around in pain, I imagine.”

“Oh, you might be right there.”

If our lips had met during the fall, the pull of gravity would’ve turned the little incident into a complete disaster. A bit of blood spilled would be one thing, but it would’ve been awful if we’d managed to chip our teeth.

“Thinking about it from that perspective, it was but a trivial accident. Wouldn’t you say so?” Reggie pulled away from me, peering into my face and seeking my agreement.

I automatically nodded. At the very least, I was grateful that we hadn’t gushed blood from our mouths, only to be forced to explain why to Groul and the other knights.

Reggie flashed me a smile, even fainter than the light of the full moon overhead. It was contagious; I smiled right back at him.

Oh! I can finally look Reggie in the eyes without wanting to run.

“Now, we’d best head back to our rooms,” Reggie said, dragging me all the way back to my chambers.

Master Horace was still intent on teasing me, but I was much calmer now than I’d been earlier in the day. He griped, “You’re no fun,” but I simply ignored him and went to sleep. All that mattered was that I could show my face around Reggie again—though I still felt embarrassed whenever I thought about the ring.

However, I got the feeling that a moment of reckoning was steadily drawing near—the moment when I would no longer be able to call him my guardian. The moment when I’d have no choice but to regard him as any other man.

The thought made me lonely and desolate, and I was terrified of what was going to become of me... so I just pretended like I hadn’t noticed, delaying that moment for as long as I possibly could.