“But still, we should have pursued to the end and at least taken their lives. Such things should be nipped in the bud.”

A voice broke in between the grumbling voices, devoid of any highs or lows.

“What happened to the one who ran away?”

‘It’s the Duke.’

“I confirmed that he stopped breathing.”

Peeking around, I saw several men in allblack attire gathered together.

I wondered if I should pretend not to know and pass by, but the Duke suddenly turned his head.

“Diane.”

The Duke subtly extended a hand to me. But I spotted a familiar face in the black crowd first.

“It’s Ian!”

“Ah, Miss.”

I ran towards Ian with open arms, but the Duke quickly caught me.

I flew into the air once before settling quietly into the Duke’s arms.

Huh? Looking at Ian with a questioning gaze, Ian kindly explained.

“I just finished my mission and came back. I’m quite dirty since I haven’t washed.”

Indeed, unlike his usual neat appearance, he was covered in dust, and his hair was in disarray.

At that moment, another knight interrupted.

“Miss! Long time no see! Do you remember me?”

“Yeah, Burt, right?”

“Ah, Miss! I was there too at that time!”

“I know, Gezuwill!”

“Miss, what about me? What about me?!”

“Do you know me?”

As I recognized one or two, the other knights all eagerly asked me their names.

There were a couple of people I didn’t know, so it wasn’t until I had heard all of their names that I finished calling them out.

‘Whew, they all love having their names called.’

I even thought of memorizing the names of the other knights to gain their favor.

“But Ian, where have you been?”

“I was performing a task and am a bit late. Did you wait long?”

“Yeah, Ian was supposed to be my escort.”

“I apologize, I should have finished sooner and come back.”

“No, it’s fine. You’re here now.”

I didn’t want to complain about Ian being late.

In fact, all my dissatisfaction was directed at the Duke.

‘He promised to make Ian my escort.’

But it was useless if he kept giving Ian other tasks and someone else kept taking my escort instead.

‘It’s clear that the Duke is intentionally ordering Ian around.’

When I sneaked a look at the Duke, he was staring at me with a stern look.

“Why, what?”

“…….”

I tightly shut my mouth and shook my head at his ticking appearance.

Anyway, I was relieved that whatever mission it was, it had ended safely.

“So Ian will be my escort starting tomorrow?”

“Yes, of course.”

“You’ve just finished your mission, shouldn’t you rest?”

Then the Duke interrupted Ian’s words. Ian’s eyes widened at the Duke’s words.

Burt, who was standing next to him, tugged his ear and tapped Ian.

“Ian, I didn’t hear wrong, did I? Did our lord tell us to rest?”

“……Yes, your ears seem fine. But that mouth still can’t seem to grasp the situation.”

The Duke’s harsh words made Burt shut his mouth with a gasp. Gezuwill sneaked his hand up to ask a question.

“Um, is it really okay for us? Did our lord, who would ask if sleep is possible with your skills, really say that?”

Did the Duke really say that in ordinary times?

I stared at the Duke with narrowed eyes, and this time he discreetly averted his gaze.

“The mission is over, so you may rest for a day or two.”

“Wow……, wow……, our lord told us to rest…….”

“If you have a complaint, come out right now.”

“We will rest gratefully for two days and return!”

The others’ faces noticeably brightened. That’s when my eyes met Ian’s. Ian smiled warmly and said,

“I’m fine, my lord. My original task was to escort the Miss, so I’ll take up the escort duty right away.”

I was so pleased with his words. I kicked my legs while in the Duke’s arms. If the Duke had let me go, I would have hugged Ian tightly.

‘The Duke will naturally think Ian is commendable too.’

He seemed to have been disliking Ian, but it seemed like a good thing, so I looked up.

But what met my eyes was the Duke’s stiff face.
‘What’s bothering the Duke again?’

“I heard you have siblings.”

“Yes. That’s correct.”

“Then, go see your siblings’ faces this time.”

“……Yes?”

“I mean, go home.”

Yan’s eyes widened. He seemed at a loss for what to say next. Whether Yan was surprised or not, the Duke spoke nonchalantly.

“You said your home is near the capital. In that case, take a vacation now. Go freely for about ten days.”

“Ah.”

“Visit when you have the chance.”

“Ah, tha, thank you.”

Yan looked bewildered by the unexpected reward. I asked something I was curious about from the Duke’s words.

“Yan has siblings?”

“Yes, siblings in the capital…”

“You didn’t know?”

Bart interrupted Yan’s answer and spoke excitedly.

“He has three siblings. The youngest one should be around the same age as the young lady. The eldest is 15, and the second one is four years younger?”

“The youngest sibling is probably a year older than the young lady? Anyway, this guy cherishes his siblings so much. He goes to see them every holiday. Seeing that, it’s no wonder the young lady likes him the most. It was an unfair competition from the start.”