The Personal Guard Prays

A spurt of pirate blood sprayed onto my face. I wiped it away with the back of my hand, which was itself covered with blood, making the action more or less meaningless at this point. The slimy sensation was accompanied by the pungent smell of blood, but my nose was becoming desensitized enough that the stench didn’t bother me.

The sounds of my heartbeat and my rough breathing, like that of a beast, were almost deafening. My arms were heavy and my mind was beginning to lose concentration. However, my eyes prowled in search of prey.

I really am a beast now, I thought, and a self-deprecating smile rose to my lips.

Today wasn’t actually the first time I’d been told that I wasn’t suited to being a guard. I’d heard it as an insult, and I’d heard it whispered behind my back, but that wasn’t all—I’d also heard it from the few friends that I shared my innermost thoughts with and from elders that I respected.

“The way you fight,” they’d told me, “you might be able to wipe out all of your enemies, but your charge won’t live to see it. Who would entrust their life to a person that prioritizes killing over protecting?”

Now that I reflected on what I’d been told, I realized that their complaints had been brutally honest and delivered for my benefit. Back then, though, I’d ignored every word. In truth, I’d only begun to take notice after I’d been charged with guarding Lady Rosemary.

In my heart, protecting her served a greater purpose than merely fulfilling my duties. The idea of handing her over to someone else just because I wasn’t suited to the task had been out of the question.

And so, I’d devoted my entire attention solely to protecting her. I’d decided that I wouldn’t let her out of my sight for even a second, that I wouldn’t leave her side, and I’d avert my eyes from absolutely everything that wasn’t her. Foolishly, I’d believed that I’d be able to protect her by doing that. And as a result, my peers’ opinions of me had remained unchanged. Obviously.

I hadn’t understood anything...neither the concerns of my friends and superiors nor Lady Rosemary’s feelings. Nothing. And I still didn’t.

What do I need to do to protect her? What do I need to do to become a guard worthy of protecting her? What do I need to do to see her smile?

“Still breathing, Klaus?” Something bumped into my back. The small collision interrupted my daydreaming. “Phew, I’m beat,” Wolf said, his shoulders heaving as we fought back-to-back. Then, he chuckled. “Must be my age.”

“You can’t be that old,” I said.

“Older than you, anyway... I think.”

I cast my eyes across our surroundings while making idle chitchat. The people still on their feet were, for the most part, out of breath. Many of the sailors who were unaccustomed to battle looked particularly exhausted. The only people on our side still able to move with any vigor were myself, Wolf, and the cloaked man.

The pirates had been reduced in number quite considerably as well. Their morale didn’t seem particularly high anymore. They probably hadn’t counted on a merchant vessel putting up such a tough fight. One more push should be all that’s needed for them to turn tail and run.

After thinking that, I looked over to the pirate ship that was floating next to ours, and my eyes widened. A few of the pirates had kicked the plank bridge into the sea and were trying to move the ship away. Although it was just a galley, the handful of oarsmen that had returned over the plank bridge wouldn’t be enough to row the ship well.

Even so, the ship began to lumber away.

Noticing their comrades’ flight, a few of the pirates scrambled to jump back to their own vessel, only to fall into the sea.

Wolf’s brows furrowed deeply as he observed the spectacle. “They’re of course free to leave, but I’d rather they took their friends with them.”

“Do you think they’ll call it a day and surrender?” I asked while peering at the abandoned pirates.

Wolf at once shook his head in denial. “As if. Most captured pirates get taken to the gallows.”

My thoughts were the same as Wolf’s.

Confirming our assumption, the pirates didn’t abandon the fight. Far from it, they began to glare in all directions like wounded beasts, their eyes gleaming.

More trouble for us, I thought. Rational minds can’t begin to imagine the things that people do when they’re backed into a corner. It would be wise to rid myself of any wishful thinking about capturing them alive.

I narrowed my eyes as I fixed the pirates in my glare, and then I saw one of them start moving. As soon as I understood where he was headed, I began to sprint.

I won’t let you. You will not go there!

However, before I could catch up to the man, I glimpsed another pirate moving in my peripheral vision. He was reaching his hand toward a sailor who was wounded and howling with pain.

I can’t afford to hesitate. I shouldn’t, I mustn’t, but...

But my legs changed their course, against my wishes. What am I doing? There’s nothing worth prioritizing over Lady Rosemary.

Startled by my own actions, I sliced off the pirate’s hand as it was grabbing the sailor’s neck. I left the pirate rolling around on the floor and screaming. Once more I resumed my chase of the pirate heading for the stairs.

However, another pirate blocked my path and began to attack me in the desperate manner of one fighting for their life. Crossing swords with him, I experienced a dizzying amount of anger and annoyance.

I was so frustrated with my own stupidity that I felt sick.

I’m fretting and distracting myself and getting greedy... And by doing that, by trying to have the best of both worlds, I might slip up and lose her—the one person that matters more to me than anyone else in the world. Death would be too lenient a punishment for such a stupid blunder.

But what else can I do? a different voice shouted in my mind. Protecting just Lady Rosemary while leaving the sailors to die would only be a repeat of the past.

I gritted my teeth so hard that I could’ve shattered my molars.

In my mind flashed the face of a man who outclassed me enormously. Would you even have to grapple with this dilemma, Captain? Would you just effortlessly save both? Is my ineptitude putting her in danger?

“Get out of his way, you piece of shit!!!” someone roared.

The pirate that had stood in front of me, blocking my path, suddenly disappeared. A ferocious kick from the side had sent his body flying away, far enough for him to crash into the side of the ship.

My eyes grew wide. I was struggling to understand what had happened. In front of me stood Wolf, his shoulders heaving.

Wait, did that menacing threat from a moment ago come from him?

“What are you standing around for?! Get going and save her!” He shoved me forward. “Fighting isn’t my day job, so I can’t protect her like you can. I’ll hold them back, so hurry up and go to her!”

“I owe you one!” I turned my back to Wolf and raced away.

I cursed the narrowness of the stairwell as I descended, and at the bottom of the stairs I found the pirate, facing away from me. I enjoyed a brief moment of relief when I saw that he hadn’t yet entered the cabin, but then I spotted a small figure beyond the pirate.

My breathing stopped.

I felt the blood drain from everywhere in my body. My heart thumped so hard that it hurt, and everything began to sound distant. I prayed that I was wrong, that it wasn’t her, but at the same time, a calm voice in the recesses of my mind said, There’s no way that I could ever mistake someone else for Lady Rosemary.

I took one step closer, then another, and my assumption hardened into conviction. Although Lady Rosemary was pale faced and trembling, she was standing in defense of someone else. The sight of her like that was so sadly beautiful. My feet felt like they were moving laboriously slowly as they pounded against the floor. The movement of the pirate’s sword as he raised it aloft seemed awfully slow, and it etched itself into my retina.

Lady Rosemary noticed my presence, and our eyes met over the top of the pirate’s shoulders. I felt like I could sense a look of relief mixed into the pure surprise on her face, or maybe I only hoped that I could.

“Shut your eyes!!!” I shouted. At once, Lady Rosemary scrunched her eyes closed.

She trusts me... I doubt that she knows how delighted that makes me feel.

I charged into the pirate and pierced his heart from behind. I felt my blade dig into his flesh and heard the brief yowl that clawed its way out of his throat. It sounded like a beast’s, utterly inhuman.

Shit. I should’ve told her to cover her ears as well. That was my initial reaction.

Oh, my one and only, my dear Lady Rosemary... I’m sorry. The captain would’ve done a better job of saving you.

The pirate’s limp body crumpled to the floor.

With no obstruction between us anymore, Lady Rosemary filled my vision.

She looked paler than she had a moment ago. Twitches and trembles ran across her entire body. Though her eyes were closed, she only needed to hear that scream to know what had happened. Even so, she still kept her eyes closed, just as I’d instructed her to, and the sight made my heart ache.

I extended my hand toward her, hoping to reassure her if only a little. But then I noticed that my hand was covered with blood, so I clenched my fist and pulled it back. I mustn’t touch her, mustn’t sully her.

“La—”

I almost addressed her as “Lady Rosemary,” but I stopped. This wasn’t because I’d remembered that I had to call her “Mary,” and neither was it because I’d noticed Bianca von Diebolt emerge from the cabin. It was because an ear-piercing shriek cut me off.

“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!”

The woman that Lady Rosemary had been protecting noticed the corpse crumpled at her feet and began to scream.

Lady Rosemary jumped out of her skin and hurriedly turned around to face the woman.

However, the woman ran away before Lady Rosemary could stop her. She must’ve been unable to stand her own overwhelming fear any longer. Driven by primal instincts, she ran away and started rushing up the stairs, of all places.

“Wait!” Lady Rosemary cried, trying to stop her, but she didn’t hear.

I tutted and chased after her. Upon reaching the deck, I grabbed her arm and tried to pull her back downstairs. However, she put up a crazed resistance.

“Let go!” she screamed, twisting her body.

If this continued, then we’d both tumble down the stairs. While I struggled to decide what to do, something whistled through the air.

I don’t remember what happened next very clearly. My actions were probably driven by pure instinct. When my senses returned to me, I found that I’d thrown my body around her, covering her.

I heard a dull thud and felt something hit my back. A moment later, I felt something that wasn’t exactly pain—it was more like a searing heat.

“Klaus!!!”

Through my wide-open eyes, I saw Lady Rosemary running toward me with tears beginning to flow.

“You’re supposed to call me ‘Big Brother,’” I ought to have reminded her. Instead, my stiff expression relaxed, in spite of the present situation. It feels like it’s been so long since you’ve called me by my name.

“Klaus! Klaus!!!”

Please don’t cry. I want you to smile...no matter what happens.