Father, I Won’t Do Anything

Not long ago, Rosian went to meet his mother, Princess Elia, carrying the fang he had received from Jaina. He intended to ask about a method to forge a sword.

When Rosian showed her the fang, Princess Elia greeted him with a greatly surprised expression.

-She gave you her fang? She must hold you precious. You know that a dragon’s tooth can even forge a holy sword, right? Of course, this one is small, but it should still be enough to make a great blade.

Elia thought that since Rosian disliked sword training, Rosian had given her the fang.

Additionally, the fang of a young dragon was the perfect size for forging the hidden knife she used.

-To give me such a precious thing, I’m grateful.

However, the moment she tried to take the fang, Rosian quickly pulled his hand back, an unexpected reaction.

-Mother, I want to use that hidden knife.

-What?

-Miss Jaina gave it to me, so I’ll be the one using it.

Princess Elia wondered if she had misheard.

-Didn’t you hate even holding a sword? What’s brought this on?

Recalling Mikael’s words about needing to reach a pinnacle to stand by Jaina’s side, Rosian spoke with a serious expression.

-Things are different now.

Elia said as if testing Rosian, who seemed different from usual.

-It’s a precious blade, so tell me now if you’re just going to quit halfway. Don’t disrespect the sincerity of the one who gave it to you.

-No, I won’t run away anymore. Until I reach the level I desire.

‘Am I dreaming right now?’

Elia looked down at her son with astonished eyes.

In Rosian’s eyes, who had always skipped sword training to goof off like a fool, a resolute determination to protect someone had taken root.

‘I want to protect her by her side.’

Rosian clenched his fist tightly.

When she had charged into the flames, he could do nothing but watch from behind.

Even now, whenever he recalled that moment, he felt pathetic and resentful at his own powerlessness.

If only he had strength back then, would she not have been put in danger?

Rosian gritted his teeth and vowed to himself.

He would no longer run away. If she didn’t cherish herself, then he would protect her instead.

He would no longer remain powerlessly idle.

* * *

After Jaina apologized and the ‘sacred relic incident’ was settled, a period of peace followed at the Magic Tower for a while.

Then one day, it happened.

“Jaina, when’s your birthday?”

“Come to think of it, it’s about a month from now.”

In response to Hilvenzia’s casual remark, Jaina casually answered. However, the repercussions were greater than expected.

“Why are you saying that only now?”

“If I hadn’t asked, we almost let it pass by.”

The two of them seemed deep in thought about something.

Jaina worried they might go overboard and hold a birthday party she could hardly handle.

And a few hours later, at lunchtime, an early birthday gift arrived.

It wasn’t from Mikael or Hilvenzia.

“Nobody asked for it, but our Lord of the Magic Tower has given us a great gift, no, a burden.”

Mikael, who had been summoned by Diamid, returned and spoke.

“A knight escort.”

Mikael blurted out those words with an annoyed expression, arms crossed.

Confused by the contextless statement, Jaina asked with a puzzled look.

“Pardon?”

“This guy.”

Mikael gestured with his chin towards the man beside him.

“The Tower Lord ordered me to bring him before you.”

With his translucent sky-blue hair and purple gem eyes.

Jaina recognized him well. How could she not?

She had asked Mikael to quickly report to the Tower Lord about this demi-human being bullied for his race.

“His name is Izren. From today onwards, he’ll be your escort knight, apparently. Damn it.”

But why was Izren here? And as her escort knight, no less?

‘I never could have imagined this development, even in dreams.’

Jaina blinked her eyes and turned her gaze back to Mikael. But judging by his continually furrowed brow, it didn’t seem to be a joke.

“Hmm. As far as I know, an escort knight is someone who protects another person.”

Hilvenzia, sitting beside Jaina and twirling pasta with her fork, asked.

“Since when has that term started being used with some other meaning I’m unaware of?”

“Hey, answer me.”

Mikael raised his hand and smacked Izren’s arm hard. From the sound, it must have hurt considerably, yet Izren remained silent.

“Just because the Tower Lord accepted you as a squire, do you think you can ignore me? This bastard’s gone mad just because the Tower Lord accepted him.”

“Oh my, don’t be like that. He might not be able to hear or speak.”

Mikael continued, seeming exasperated by Izren’s continued silence.

“For the Tower Lord to assign an escort to the daughter he hasn’t even glanced at since she came to the Magic Tower, what could that mean? I was already suspicious, now I feel like killing him.”

Jaina, standing beside them, grabbed Mikael’s arm to stop him.

“That’s enough, Mikael.”

Saying so, Jaina looked towards the comparatively more rational Hilvenzia, but she was even more riled up.

“Yeah, let’s just disguise it as an accident, no need to announce it loudly, right?”

The two of them openly displayed their displeasure with Izren’s presence.

Of course, Jaina didn’t think Diamid had assigned Izren as her escort purely for her protection either.

‘The Tower Lord must still misunderstand me as a spy, so under the pretext of an escort, he’s likely trying to gather information about dragons. And with me staying quiet recently, there’s probably a monitoring purpose too.’

After finishing her thought process, Jaina quickly stopped Mikael, who was shooting Izren sharp glares.

“This person isn’t deliberately ignoring us, he’s just not fluent in the imperial language. He probably can’t understand what we’re saying.”

Back when she had first arrived at the Magic Tower, he had kept repeating only the phrase ‘I have come to become the Tower Lord’s squire’.

“And… being alone in a place where you cannot communicate, it must be hard for him to open his mouth easily.”

Thinking that he too was likely receiving scornful looks like she had from the dragons, Jaina felt uneasy.

“Over there, food, bring some.”

Repeating the same words along with gestures to Izren, Jaina soon resumed eating.

The taste of the food didn’t register as well as usual, but due to her large build, she had to eat a lot.

“…”

And from behind, Izren silently gazed at Jaina.

Meanwhile, ever since Izren was assigned as Jaina’s escort, Hilvenzia often fell into contemplation.

She couldn’t discern the Tower Lord’s intentions, and the non-human before her eyes could potentially pose a threat to Jaina.

‘He seems meek now, but who knows when his attitude might change.’

Waiting until then was an option, but by that point it would already be too late.

Hilvenzia decided to take preemptive action.

People reveal their true nature when circumstances change. The same would likely apply to this non-human.

“What item are you trying to purchase by going all the way to the auction house?”

“There’s something that can only be acquired there.”

Saying so, Hilvenzia subtly glanced towards Izren.

True to taking on Jaina’s escort, Izren quietly followed behind her.

The destination of the three was an auction house located on the outskirts of the capital.

Jaina, who had been observing the building with interest from the outside, couldn’t close her mouth upon entering and seeing the interior.

“I don’t know anything about auctions, but it’s somewhat different from what I imagined.”

“How so?”

“It has more of a nature-friendly atmosphere, I’d say…”

Jaina blinked her eyes as she observed the cozy interior of the auction house.

“If it’s something important enough for you to come in person, Hilvenzia, it must not be an ordinary item. But to have such an item handled at a place like this is quite strange.”

“This place didn’t actually hold auctions until very recently. The auction house was recently acquired.”

“Then how did you know to come here?”

“Shh, that’s a trade secret. You’re quite sharp, our rabbit lady.”

“I may be closer to a lizard than a rabbit, you know.”

“Then should I call you the rabbit lizard lady Jaina, even casually?”

“I think it would be simpler and better to just call me by my name.”

The mask Jaina was wearing was a fluffy white rabbit mask.

The mask, covering almost her entire small face, suited the chubby-cheeked child remarkably well.

“And you gave Izren just a plain mask.”

However, Jaina kept fiddling with her mask, as if it didn’t quite suit her.

“Oh dear, it seems Jaina dislikes being a rabbit lizard.”

“I thought you had good taste, lady Hilvenzia. But a rabbit and a lizard together? It doesn’t match at all.”

With her large rabbit-like eyes, Jaina spoke firmly.

“It hurts my heart to hear Jaina say that.”

Hilvenzia tilted her head in mock hurt.

It wasn’t just the three of them wearing masks. Most people entering the auction house wore masks to conceal their identities.

Not long after the three took their seats, the lights on the stage where the auctioneer stood brightly illuminated.

“Welcome, everyone. Today’s auction will be a bit special, unlike other times.”

The auctioneer who had climbed up on stage briefly chuckled with glinting eyes.

“For those who have greatly assisted the auction house today, I will grant the privilege to participate in tonight’s special auction.”

‘A special auction?’

Jaina looked up at Hilvenzia with a puzzled expression. Hilvenzia’s lips curved into an enigmatic smile.