Roy returned, only to see someone so unexpected in his chamber that his jaw went slack.
There was an unexpected visitor in his room.
He was a male.
His eyes were like a hawk’s, and his hair matched a lion’s mane.
Grey-eyed, unlike his father, and golden-haired just like his mother, he was… the eldest son of the Fierce Sword Count and half a brother to Roy.
The second Roy entered the room, Arthur’s eyes darted to him. And also Amelia’s.
“Thank God you’re back in one piece.”
Seeing him, the tensed expression on her face shattered, and her mouth curved into a loveable smile.
“Huh?”
Arthur took in the sight of his family’s youngest, finding him somewhat injured.
His expression dimmed a little.
“You are injured. It looks like the assassin got to you, but I guess you fended him off somehow and escaped.”
There was a hint of satisfaction in his eyes.
And no, he wasn’t happy to see a person carrying the same blood as his injured.
He was pleased for a different reason.
‘Roy is indeed my half-brother. Even that assassin who escaped my grasp because I didn’t take him seriously failed to assassinate him. Good… he’s very good. He’s a capable person and exceptionally talented.’ Arthur thought with glistening eyes.
Hearing what Arthur said, Roy furrowed, and his brows drew closer, causing a line to appear between them.
“How do you know about it?” He questioned Arthur.
“That’s something… you should ask your maid.” Arthur said while placing his right leg over his left, acting comfortable like he wasn’t in someone else’s living quarters but his own home.
Roy’s eyes rolled out to Amelia.
“What happened while I was in the wilderness. Why would you know about the assassin? Why is Arthur here?”
With his gaze, he asked her these questions.
“Uh….”
Standing by his bedside and several meters away from them, Amelia looked like a lonely tree that had only recently stopped shedding leaves due to stress and worry.
“Well, an assassin broke into the manor while you were gone. Searching for you, he slipped past all the way here under everyone’s nose and found me. I was threatened to expose your whereabouts. I kept mum. But… that angered him. And he pulled out a dagger to force it out of me. Just then, Lord Arthur knocked on the door, asking for your permission to enter. After receiving a call for help, he broke into the room and confronted the assassin. The assassin ran away. But before jumping out the window, he threatened to harm you.”
Amelia fidgeted with her fingers, looking very nervous.
She didn’t know how to explain what happened next to her master.
“What happened then?”
After Roy questioned her, Amelia decided to come clean.
Roy was her master, and she didn’t want to hide anything from him.
“I was worried… so I commissioned a few knights to take down the assassin and be on the lookout for you in the streets. I paid them out of your pockets. I am sorry for doing things without your permission. Please forgive me.”
She bowed to him apologetically.
Roy walked up to her and grabbed her shoulders. He found them soft and small, just like how a women’s should be. He immediately helped her stand straight and gave her a few light pats.
“It’s alright. How can I blame you for worrying about me?”
Their eyes met. Roy forgot to speak for a second.
“… But are you fine?”
“Thank you for worrying about me, my master, but I’m unharmed,” Amelia replied with a trace of an apologetic smile still on her face.
Roy patted her head. A blush rose up her neck, reaching her cheeks.
‘How could he treat me in such a special way in front of an outsider?’
Steam would’ve started coming out of her head if Roy hadn’t noticed her flustered face and stopped patting her.
“I stayed behind in case the assassin returned,” Arthur added from the sidelines.
He felt like a third leg between two lovebirds.
If not for the fact he had something to talk about with Roy, he would have left.
“Please go to the Kitchen Master and have him prepare some tea for us.” Roy requested Amelia.
“Then… Please excuse me.”
Amelia gave him a respectful bow and left the room to him and his brother.
Roy turned to Arthur.
This time, instead of giving him a suspicious and hard look, he looked at Arthur with a softer gaze.
After finding out that this guy had helped his maid, Roy thought rumors about Arthur were not to be trusted.
Arthur might not be a cruel marauder.
He might actually be a… good guy.
But of course, that’s something he had yet to confirm.
Arthur raised his brow at the guy who was looking at him silently.
“You’re looking at me like you’ve something to say. What is it?”
Roy was unsure of what to say to him.
“Thank you for protecting my maid.”
So he expressed his truest thought to him.
He was honestly grateful that Arthur was there for his maid when he wasn’t. It wasn’t wrong for one to say that He was immensely grateful to Arthur, for he had helped Amelia.
Although he was quite doubtful that Swift Death, who had failed two missions because she didn’t have it in her to kill an innocent man, would harm an innocent, facts proved that he should be thankful in this situation.
Arthur appreciated it.
“I was just doing my job. An assassin dared to break into our manor. If I had allowed him to take a life on top of that, our reputation would have been lost. It’s just sad that I failed to stop him from escaping, and he even got to you. If something had happened to you, I would’ve failed my ancestors. But seeing how fine you’re, my worries died down.”
This was said by Arthur in an elated tone.
Any outsider listening to him would think he was happy to see that his brother had survived an assassination without getting severely injured.
Roy was, however, still guarded against him.
He didn’t know why Arthur was being so good to him when in the past, he had been indifferent.
“…But what are you still doing here?”
The assassin was long gone, so why had he remained behind?
“I was waiting for you.”
“Why?”
“To talk. Come. Take a seat.”
Arthur pointed at the seat opposite him.
Roy had some apprehension about him, but he wanted to know his motives behind seeking him out.
So… he sat down there and quietly looked at him.
Arthur was aware of his distrustful gaze.
“I know you’re wary of me. That’s why you send your maid away. You don’t need to be so guarded against me. I’m not like our second brother. I never have and would never pick on you without a good reason.”
“… But you do have a good reason to seek me out. I beat the man you wanted to take under your wing. Could it be… you’re here to settle the score?”
Roy warily scrutinized the man opposite him.
Arthur let off his relaxation pose and sat upright.
He leaned forward, his expression stiffening.
Something was up. Roy guessed it right!
“That street rat deserved the beating you gave him,” Arthur said harshly.
Some people were meant for the streets. Yiran was one such person as he was a white-eyed wolf.
Unlike the others, Arthur wasn’t biased against Roy. Of course, he wasn’t going to speak in favor of Yiran. But Roy didn’t expect him to be so direct.