The Northern Duke’s Eldest Son’s Tutor

Kyle and I entered the building where the knighthood stayed.
Unlike when I came before, there weren’t just Elin, but many knights passing through the corridors and stairs.
“The Young Master has arrived! Everyone salute the Young Master!”
When a knight spotted Kyle, he shouted loudly.
After all, it was rare for Kyle to come to such a place with many men, so this was a natural reaction from the knights.
Kyle, somewhat surprised by the knights’ collective greeting, looked back and forth between me and the knights.
Despite having grown taller and more physically developed lately, Kyle was still a kid in these aspects.
“Young Master, if you don’t give instructions, they’ll keep doing that.”
“Ah, everyone may stand at ease..”
Only after Kyle spoke did they lower their hands.
Kyle still hadn’t adapted to male knights whom he hadn’t properly met.
Kyle and I walked down the corridor under the knights’ gazes, heading to the commander’s office where the Knight Commander was.
Since I had already informed Elin, the Knight Commander would have been prepared.
“Unc-, no, Commander.”
“Ah.”
-Thud!
Upon entering, we saw the Knight Commander holding a dumbbell.
As soon as Elin spoke, he immediately put down the dumbbell and saluted Kyle.
“It’s alright.”
Then the Commander and Elin dropped their salutes.
“I heard the Young Master is looking for a swordsmanship instructor.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“And a female instructor at that… Is it because of that incident from before?”
“Yes.”
Elin seemed to not understand what they were talking about.
But the Knight Commander appeared to be well aware of the incident.
“Sofia, what kind of person exactly are you looking to bring in as an instructor?”
“Someone who can teach swordsmanship to the Young Master and has a normal personality, a woman. That’s enough.”
“Hmm…”
The Knight Commander fell into thought.
It seems not much time has passed since Elin informed him.
“It’s certain that we are the Eristirol Knighthood… but as knights go, there aren’t many women.”
“Yes, I’m aware of that much.”
To begin with, even among adventurers, women were typically mages or healers.
In fact, not many women directly engaged in combat as adventurers.
I was a special case.
“Therefore, the only one in our knighthood who meets the conditions is Elin here.”
“Hehe…”
Elin laughed, placing her hands on her waist.
Seeing that, I felt like hitting her on the top of her head.
Especially when I recalled how she was when I first entered the building.
“Her behavior might not be to your liking, but her skills aren’t bad. Rather, compared to the stupid knights around, she’s very clever.”
“Hmm…”
“The most important thing is that this one is a woman.”
“Yes.”
“Besides her, there are no proper women in the knighthood.”
If the Knight Commander says so, that must be the case.
Honestly, I don’t find it very reliable, but it seems Elin will become Kyle’s swordsmanship instructor.
“Young Master, what do you think? If that woman doesn’t work, we can invite another female swordsmanship instructor from the capital or another region.”
“Did you say Deputy Commander?”
“Yes.”
Kyle observed Elin closely.
Elin’s appearance was not just not bad, but rather pretty.
It was the kind of appearance that would make one exclaim, “A knight with such looks!”
With her light blue long straight hair, Elin had an appearance that could be described as too good to be wasted as a knight.
Is Kyle looking at her because of her appearance?
Is it too hasty to think that Kyle’s disinterest in women, which started with Catherine, is gradually changing?
“Not bad. Elin, do you have any other duties at the knighthood?”
“No. I don’t have any particular duties. At most, there’s paperwork, but I don’t have any regular tasks I need to handle.”
“I see. Then I’ll select you as the swordsmanship instructor for the time being.”
Well, if Elin’s skills aren’t as good as claimed, we can change her.
Kyle probably thinks the same.
By the way, I found it a bit absurd how Elin was speaking with extreme honorifics.
She wasn’t using such formal language with me or even the Knight Commander, but she was using it with Kyle.
“If you don’t meet the Young Master’s standards later, you can be removed from the position of swordsmanship instructor. Keep that in mind.”
“Yes, sir!”
“And… we’ll discuss the rest later, just the two of us.”
“Yes!”
I spoke with Elin.
Since Kyle wasn’t familiar with these kinds of conversations, I had to do it for him.
It would be good for Kyle, who will have to take on family responsibilities in a few years, to become familiar with these matters, but he still had a lot to learn.
Practical matters and such can be taught quickly.
Unlike swordsmanship or magic.
“Young Master, shall we return for now?”
“Let’s do that.”
Before returning to the castle, Kyle and I briefly greeted the two.
Both of them saluted, and since Kyle forgot again, they kept their arms raised until we left the room.
*
“Miss Sofia.”
“Yes.”
“Have you contacted the magic tower?”
“Not yet. I’ll contact them today.”
“Yes.”
It felt strange to contact that crazy woman.
Neither she nor I were the type to keep in touch.
If it weren’t for this matter, we probably would have never contacted each other for life.
“Oh my, Young Lord?”
“Lady Oldenburg.”
“What brings you here at this hour?”
“I had some business at the knighthood, so I went out and am now on my way back.”
As we entered the castle, we met Catherine.
And Kyle conversed with Catherine more fluently than I expected.
To be honest, I thought he would speak to Catherine the way he used to speak to me before, but that wasn’t the case at all.
“Hmm.. Since we’ve met in the castle like this, how about having a cup of tea together?”
“…Alright.”
Catherine is indeed a proper noble lady.
She skillfully continued the conversation and created an appointment.
Thanks to that, I, who was following Kyle, also got to join the tea time.
“Is there a particular tea that Young Lord Kyle likes?”
“The Young Master doesn’t have very firm preferences regarding tea.”
And that Sebastian was also there.
I thought I could just sit comfortably and rest, but because of him, I had to stand by with a working feel.
Some maids brought tea.
I had no choice but to stand behind Kyle, just like Sebastian standing behind Catherine.
Normally when Kyle was drinking tea or resting, I could just rest comfortably, but with Catherine present, I had to be mindful of the image.
Honestly, I wanted to sigh, but since I was close by, I decided to hold it in.
If they heard me sighing, it would only make the atmosphere awkward.
And to be honest, I was tired from not being able to rest since morning.
Normally, I would have rested comfortably during Kyle’s exercise time, but… today I couldn’t rest because of the swordsmanship instructor matter, so I was inevitably more tired than usual.
It was clear that soon it would be lunchtime again.
“Young Lord Kyle, is the material for this tea from the Eristirol domain?”
“Yes. It’s a green tea made from leaves produced in the domain.”
“Hmm.. it has a nice aroma. When I go back later, could you give me some tea leaves?”
“Of course. If Lady Oldenburg wishes, tea leaves are no problem.”
I wanted to exclaim in admiration.
Actually, I was already admiring in my heart.
That Kyle could converse with a woman like this!
I couldn’t help but be surprised.
Of course, he had conversed just before, but not to this extent, so I was even more surprised.
It was like a scene from a romance fantasy.
I thought the scene of a beautiful noble lady and a ducal family’s young lord drinking tea and conversing elegantly was exactly the kind of scene that would appear in a romance fantasy.
Though I didn’t watch romance fantasies much.
“By the way, I heard you’ve been living with your tutor for several years now.”
“Yes. I’ve been with Miss Sofia for a long time.”
That’s right.
Since Kyle and I have been having lessons together for several years now, we’ve been together for a long time.
Now, it would feel awkward not to have lessons with Kyle.
To be precise, not spending time together.
“Hmm.. I’m a bit envious. Our Sebastian is still a newcomer, not even a few years yet.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, our domain doesn’t tend to employ people for long periods. We make yearly contracts, and when the contract ends, it’s a clean goodbye.”
As Catherine said, the Oldenburg family was, how should I put it… the servants and workers of the family were generally young.
Even Sebastian, Catherine’s personal butler, was on the younger side.
Though he looked older than me.
“In that respect, it’s a bit surprising that you’ve been together for several years. After all, the Eristirol ducal family is solid in many ways.”
“…?”
What does “solid” mean here?
This was a story I didn’t know.
I hadn’t heard many rumors about Eristirol in my life, so it’s possible.
Solid… What is solid?
Heart? Perseverance?
Since it could refer to many words, it was all the more unclear.
“….”
“Oh my, Young Lord Kyle? Why is your face like that?”
“It’s nothing.”
Unfortunately, since I was behind Kyle, I couldn’t see his face.
It was a bit disappointing.
Given how Catherine spoke, Kyle’s facial expression must have changed, but I couldn’t see it.