Chapter 31

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Baron Amanta, who had taken his sword, looked at me, and the baroness patted my back.

It meant come on.

After nodding my head, I ran towards Damian.

Damian was looking at the baron's back with an angry expression.

It was my first time seeing a face like this. Has Damian ever made a face like this to someone?

'What if Damian has bad feelings for the Baron?'

I looked at Damian with a lot of worry, and Damian slowly got up from his seat.

He looked more tired than before, but his eyes were still alive.

It was quite different from any emotion I had ever seen.

When I was hesitating about what to say, Damian opened his mouth.

"Ellie."

The soft voice subsided a little.

Damian opened her mouth, staring at the back of the baron disappearing with his wife.

"I'll do my best."

he said, was not what I expected.

"I want to be a strong person."

Damian's eyes met me. The blue-eyed pupil he thought was cold was full of hot determination.

Maybe it was the moment when Damian, who was used to giving up and resigning, had a goal for the first time.

The change was so unique and kind, I took out a handkerchief from my pocket and wiped Damian's face.

"You are already strong."

"No. I'm weak."

Damian shook his head.

".....you said that I have to be stronger to protect my loved ones. Now I can't do anything."

"Did the baron say that?"

she was a little surprised. Those words of the baron were a little too early to come out now.

'I know he's probably doing it around the time the original female lead appears, but he's already out.'

Still, I should say that it was fortunate that Damian became interested in swordsmanship.

'You are a precious person by the way.'

Guess who's not the male? The bar he was aiming for was like the main character.

I said, stroking Damian's hair gently.

"Then You'll have to eat a lot of rice in the future."

"Is it anything to do with Stronger?"

"Of course. You need to eat a lot of rice to get healthy, and if you're healthy, you can get stronger."

"Like Ellie?"

Me?

When Damian suddenly mentioned me, I forgot to reply and gasped.

"Ellie is the strongest person I know."

Damian's eyes lit up as he looked up at me.

The skills I learned to survive in this harsh world must have made me look stronger.

However, I could not explain to the boy in front of him how to survive in the back alley, such as hand techniques, pickpocketing, threats of fraud and blackmail, and sneaking out items after directing my gaze elsewhere.

'It's something you'll find out little by little later anyway.'

I can protect he's childishness for now. I've decided to brag a little.

" Damian, you're still a long way from following me? Have you ever fought in your seventeenth?"

When I raised my chin and spoke with a stern tone, Damian flinched.

"No, I've never fought a monster before."

"Not monsters. Humans."

".....no."

Damian's voice has shrunk.

Actually, I don't have it either, but I said it with one voice, such as momentum.

"It was a long way to come after me. So, you have to eat a lot in the future. "

"Huh."

"You have to listen to me."

"Huh."

"Are you going to spit it out because you don't want to train again?"

"Yeah, .... ah, no! I won't!"

Damian, who had habitually replied, shook his head violently.

It's cute. I gently stroked Damian's head. It's good.

'How can you listen so well and be kind? The laughter came out naturally.'

Damian, who was looking at me with a slight glance, closed his eyes and laughed along.

'Now, my eating habits seem to be getting better...,'

I looked at the wooden sword lying on the floor.

'I heard there is a problem with the person who will make the sword for Damian.'

What's the problem? It was time to ponder.

"Lord. Lady Elie. Oh, even the butler was with you."

Asher, covering her nose with a handkerchief, entered the training ground.

The training ground was a closed space, so there was a peculiar smell of sweat, which was probably because of it.

"I've finished preparing the meal. Don't miss the time, so let's go together."

"Let's go, Damian."

I grabbed Damian's hand and dragged him out of the training ground.

Eat a lot and be strong. to keep that promise.

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A few days later, the sun was high.

Me and Damian went out for a little walk.

Although it was close to the Duke's Castle, it might be dangerous to go there just the two of us, so a maid was also accompanied. The sarvent in charge of us today was Asher.

"It's really cold, isn't it?"

I said "ho" for some reason and let out a breath in the sky.

As a cloud-like breath spread through the sky, Damian followed me and let out a breath.

"What is it? Are you following me?"

"Yes."

Damian rolled her eyes and smiled wildly.

Anyway, it's cute. The cheeks that turned red from the cold are cute, so I patted Damian's cheeks.

" Ears, cute...!"

I heard Asher grunt, but I got used to it and decided to pretend I didn't hear it.

Shall we go over there this time?

We were about to move while holding Damian and her hand, but Asher called us urgently.

"Lord, Elie. There is danger....."

Asher did not speak, but quickly blocked his nose.

"This is dangerous. Go the other way."

Asher, who hastily covered his nose with a handkerchief, ran towards us.

"Asher. Why are you covering your nose? Do you smell strange?"

I sniffed. However, it was filled with only the smell of winter, and there was no other body odor.

"I'm sorry, Ellie. I have a sensitive nose, so I'm good at smelling things that other people can't."

"But now I can't really smell anything."

Blinking my eyes and asking, I asked again with hope.

"Or…do I smell it?"

And Asher shook her head violently in denial.

"I can't believe it! Eli and Lord always smell like flowers!"

Asher exclaimed strongly, but he couldn't believe it.

It is said that each person has their own scent. The original smell that cannot be erased no matter how much dragon is used.

'It must have a strange smell.'

Should I wash it a little harder?

The thought made me a little nauseous.

Asher, restless, sighed.

"Lord, Elie. Would you like to come this way?"

Asher, who had always followed us, took the lead in his first this time.

Me and Damian followed him around.

As I struggled through the thickets of snow-covered trees, a reddish-red lake appeared.

I rolled my eyes. In this cold weather, the lake is not frozen and the water is red.

The lake looked so transparent and clear that you could see the inside. It was to the point that I involuntarily wanted to dip my hand.

"It's a lake only on our estate. Because of the color of the water, we call it Red Lake."

Asher, who read my curiosity, quickly explained.

"It is said that the color of the water has been this red for quite some time."

"Why?"

"Why, I don't know. It was a lake that existed before the creation of the ball. There was no major damage to the territory on the surface, but…..."

Asher hesitated a little, then opened her mouth again.

"The color is unusual, so curious children often … drowned in the lake."

Did the children drown?

The rabbit's eyes opened in surprise.

"Adults often have accidents, too, but children have fallen in a lot lately, so no matter how careful they are to avoid going near the lake, accidents happen every year. I even thought about reclaiming it…..."

Because of the magic deep in the ground, the lake fills up no matter how hard you try. Asher explained that we did not lose.

"So, you two shouldn't even go near the lake. If anything dangerous happens, it's a big deal."

"Did you hear that, Damian?"

I quickly looked at Damian. Damian nodded quietly.

"Lady Elie, please promise me too."

"I'm more mature than Damian."

He was just saying the obvious, but Asher smiled happily and patted my head.

'what?'

Across the snow-covered grass, I saw a small hut.

'It's pretty far out, but it's not even here on the estate, is there another house?'

"Asher. Who lives there?"

"What are you talking about..."

Asher's expression darkened as she looked at where I was pointing.

It was then.

Bump!

The cabin door opened with a loud sound.

A dreadful face, an unmanaged beard, a red liquid stained like blood.

A large man with an eye patch covering one of his eyes was looking down at us with a stern look on his face.