I Stole the Heroines' Tragedy Flags-Chapter 33: The Imperial Princess’s Guardian Knight

Ever since the Fourth Prince started visiting the secluded palace,

Hella’s relationships began to change once again.

"Ain! Zeleon is coming to visit the palace /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ today!"

"I went to the market with Zeleon today, and there were so many fascinating things!"

"Leon gave me this necklace for my birthday! Ain, what do you think? ...You think it’s really pretty? Hehe... thank you."

She had started calling him "Leon" now.

They had become very close.

Watching from the sidelines, I felt my insides burn, but I didn’t let it show.

For the sake of preserving the happiness she felt right now.

Hella had always been alone.

Aside from me and Melena, this was likely the first time she had ever interacted with someone else.

And for the first time, it was with someone she could call family.

‘It’s the first time she’s gotten close to a family member.’

She had never even spoken to her older brothers or sisters.

Her mother had died shortly after giving birth.

And her father, the emperor, had completely abandoned her.

At an age where she should have been receiving love from her family, she had received nothing.

In that sense,

her relationship with the Fourth Prince, Zeleon Leonerit, was precious.

He was family, a potential friend, someone she could go out with, someone she could talk to and have fun with.

She had finally gained a real family member.

...No, not just one.

"Ain... Melena... you’re both really precious to me! You’re like real family...!"

"It’s an honor. And no, I’m not sulking, so you don’t have to be so nervous."

"...R-really...?"

Lately, had I been losing control of my facial expressions?

She seemed to think that I was feeling left out or jealous because she had grown so close to Zeleon.

Seeing her nervously try to gauge my mood, even stuttering again, was frankly amusing.

‘My dear princess, your head is full of flowers, isn’t it?’

I didn’t mean that as an insult.

That was simply how she was, and to be honest, I preferred her that way.

As a person, she was genuinely good.

But—

Was she fit to be a princess?

The imperial palace was a den of foxes, a place filled with deception and bloodshed.

Sincerity didn’t exist there.

Everyone spoke with false words while waiting for the right moment to strike.

And Zeleon was no exception.

***

‘Lately, these attempts have been increasing.’

Thud!

"KUAAAGH!"

The efforts to assassinate the princess.

"Accidents" that weren’t accidents.

"Coincidences" that weren’t coincidences.

"Who the hell is this bastard?!"

"Take him down all at once!"

"Ugh—!"

Crack.

Splat!

Crunch!

First, there had been the poisoning attempt.

Now, every method imaginable was being used to take Hella’s life.

And there was clearly a certain someone involved in this escalation.

"They’ve even resorted to hiring scum like this now."

"P-please... spare—"

Slash!

Thud.

The head of the pleading man rolled to the ground.

He had died without even managing to utter a final scream.

I let out a slow breath, wiping the blood from my sword.

It was just another day on the job as her bodyguard.

With tired eyes, I scanned my surroundings.

Blood. Corpses. Blood. Corpses.

That was all that remained.

A fitting end for those who had tried to kill the princess.

Of course, these lowlifes probably hadn’t even been told that their target was royalty.

‘This is getting exhausting... How long is this going to continue?’

Two years had passed.

For two years, I had served as her steward and bodyguard.

In that time, countless threats had been aimed at her, and I had stopped every single one before they could reach her.

But lately, the frequency and intensity of these attempts had been growing.

The reason wasn’t hard to figure out.

‘This is why you never show weakness. The moment they see an opening, they tear into it like starving dogs.’

That opening.

It was connected to the scum lying dead at my feet.

These kinds of assassins couldn’t just roam freely within the imperial palace.

For a direct attempt to be made on her life, she had to leave the safety of the secluded palace first.

And who was the one pulling her outside?

Zeleon Leonerit.

Every time that bastard took Hella out of the palace,

knives flew at her the moment she stepped beyond its gates.

It had become a cycle.

A two-year-long cycle of the same thing.

‘Still, it’s manageable for now.’

For now, it was fine.

At least, it was still within my ability to handle.

The imperial family knew it wasn’t time yet, so they weren’t pushing too hard.

If they had been truly serious about killing Hella,

I wouldn’t have been able to stop them.

For now, they were only applying just enough pressure—

enough that the matter could be covered up afterward.

Of course, that didn’t make it any less of a pain in the ass.

‘...These mercenaries were at the Expert-rank, weren’t they?’

They were just at the level where I could barely hold my own.

My Aura Mastery was still only at Sword User - Advanced.

A pathetic rank.

But with my other skills and combat experience, I could barely make it work.

Step, step.

Dragging my tired feet, I walked through the field of corpses.

Hiding my weapon within my coat,

I cast a spell to erase the stench of blood.

Now, there were no traces left of me here.

...

"...Ah! Ain! Where did you go?"

"Haha... I had some urgent business to take care of."

"Urgent business?"

"It's difficult to explain."

"...Ain, that's unfair!"

Hella puffed out her cheeks, pouting in disappointment.

I let out an awkward chuckle at her reaction and glanced away.

"Hella, don’t be like that."

For the past two years, I had heard that voice so many times that it made me sick.

Yet even now, it still sounded just as repulsive.

With his red hair swaying, the owner of that voice spoke to Hella.

"Ain is always helping you, isn’t he? Maybe you should let him have a few secrets of his own?"

"...That’s true. I’m sorry, Ain."

"It’s fine."

"...R-really? You’re not mad at me, right?"

Even as I reassured her, waving my hand dismissively,

my gaze remained locked beyond her.

Zeleon Leonerit.

Our eyes met.

He responded with a knowing, almost amused smile.

...Damn, I really wanted to kill him.

Today, like always, they had gone outside the capital to explore various places.

...To be precise, Hella had enjoyed it.

"Thanks for spending time with me today, Hella."

"No, it’s fine! I had so much fun today too...!"

"If we have time next time, let’s visit Pelical Lake. The view there is absolutely breathtaking."

"Okay! I’ll look forward to it!"

After returning to the secluded palace,

the two exchanged farewells.

While observing from the side,

Zeleon approached me.

"Ain, I’ll see you next time too."

"...Yes. Travel safely."

"Oh, right! This—"

Thud.

He slipped something into my pocket.

Judging by the texture, it was a piece of folded paper.

And then, leaning in close, he spoke just loud enough for only me to hear.

"Tonight. I’ll be waiting there. You have to come, alright?"

"..."

"I’ll be expecting you?"

That damn bastard said his piece, then backed away with a smirk.

It was difficult to keep my expression in check with Zeleon’s sudden, cryptic move.

‘What the hell is this lunatic up to now?’

Despite my confusion,

he simply walked off as if nothing had happened.

All I could do was glare daggers at the door he had just exited through.

"...Ugh. I’m feeling a little tired."

"Let’s head to your room."

"Yes, let’s~"

Of course, my priority was always Hella’s safety.

So I set aside my suspicions for the moment and focused on my duty as her steward.

As usual, we walked to her room together.

By now, it had become second nature to help her change into her nightwear.

Yawning, she dived straight into bed.

"Mm~ So soft...."

"You must be tired from today’s outing. Please rest well."

Click.

I turned off the lights and bid her goodnight.

From the bed, her voice called out again.

"Ain. Are you still here?"

"Yes, I’m here."

"You must be exhausted. You should go rest now."

"I’m your bodyguard. As always, I’ll stay until you fall asleep."

"...Bodyguard."

Her voice suddenly lost its warmth.

For some reason, she didn’t seem to like that.

"...Your Highness?"

"I always think about this. Whenever you call yourself my bodyguard... it feels like you’re getting further away from me."

"...I don’t see it that way."

"Still. I’d rather have you by my side as my steward, not as my bodyguard."

"..."

"Mm... That way... we could be... a little... closer...."

Her drowsy voice grew quieter and quieter

until all that remained was the sound of her soft, even breathing.

And with that, the conversation ended.

Click.

I carefully closed the door behind me as I stepped out.

Just as I did every night, I cast a protective spell over her room—

a precaution against any potential intruders.

‘That wraps up today’s work. Now, for the last thing....’

Rustle—

I reached into my pocket and pulled out the note that bastard had given me.

Unfolding it, I saw the address of a building written down.

‘So he wants me to go here.’

Sigh.

A sigh escaped my lips—

a mixture of fatigue and sheer exasperation at this whole situation.

Fwoosh!

Setting the note ablaze,

I watched it burn to ashes with a cold expression.

‘...I don’t know what he’s scheming,

but as Hella’s bodyguard,

if he tries anything, I’ll make damn sure to stop it.’

With that thought in mind—

knowing full well Hella would be upset if she ever heard it—

I set off toward where that bastard was waiting.