“Right, I understand,” Banessa said, glancing nervously at Leticia.
“Enoch recognized your highness, so we all knew that fact from the beginning… Your Highness!”
Leticia staggered, the scarf she was holding dropped, and the gray scarf flew away in the wind. Startled, Banessa rushed to support her.
“Your Highness! Are you okay?”
Leticia gasped for breath and replied, “Yes, I’m fine.”
“Are you really fine? You’re still staggering! Oh my, this is driving me crazy.”
Restless, Banessa was shocked by her own words and apologized, “No, I didn’t mean ‘driving me crazy’ towards your highness. I’m really sorry, it’s all my fault.”
Leticia flicked her lips, remembering what Dietrian had told her a few hours ago, “Nobody hates you.” It was a sweet comfort, too sweet to believe.
‘Could it be?’
She could no longer deny it. His words were not just a kind comfort but the truth.
‘Because I saved Enoch, that’s why.’
Her efforts were changing her life faster than she had anticipated. Overwhelmed, she felt her legs weaken and staggered again.
“Your Highness!”
Even as she breathed shakily with emotion, Leticia sensed something was off.
‘No matter what, Banessa can’t be this nice to me.’
Banessa had believed Leticia was responsible for the death of his niece. Even if Leticia had saved Enoch, it was too easy for Banessa to change his attitude towards her. It was more natural to doubt Leticia’s sincerity in saving Enoch.
Holding her breath, Leticia studied Banessa’s expression, but no matter how long she waited, neither resentment nor any similar emotion appeared, only guilt and concern for her.
Another voice naturally came to mind, “I will ensure that my people, at least, will cherish you.”
That earnest promise stirred questions in Leticia. Striving for composure, she clung to Banessa and inquired, “Banessa, what were you trying to tell me earlier?”
“What?” Banessa responded, puzzled.
“You mentioned I saved everyone. Then, something about me not being there and the saint’s daughter. Can you finish what you were saying?” Leticia pressed.
Banessa hesitated, caught off guard. Yulken, who had been pacing nearby, torn between approaching and retreating, fixed a threatening gaze upon him.
Resigned, Banessa chose to overlook Yulken’s intimidating presence. Leticia’s inquiry held far greater significance to him than Yulken’s displeasure.
Speaking carefully, Banessa revealed, “Your Highness, you took the saint’s daughter’s place in marriage. That led me to believe you saved His Highness.”
Leticia, taken aback, managed to ask, “I married in the saint’s daughter’s stead?”
Banessa’s ignorance of her true identity shocked Leticia, albeit not entirely unexpectedly. She surmised Dietrian’s motives: concealing her identity to shield her from potential disdain from his followers.
Acknowledging the utility of falsehoods in certain situations, Leticia recognized that maintaining her anonymity outside the capital would pose no challenge.
This deception, she realized, was Dietrian’s way of safeguarding her. The realization of their mutual protection moved her deeply, bringing tears to her eyes.
In that moment, Leticia yearned for Dietrian, longing to be reunited with him immediately.
Yet, she acknowledged an impending task at hand.
With a determined closure of her eyes, she brushed away the tears, allowing the brisk desert breeze to restore her clarity.
Before her stood Banessa, appearing to have aged five years in an instant, overwhelmed by Leticia’s tears.
‘I need to examine Banessa’s leg.’
This was the moment.
Banessa, filled with both gratitude and guilt towards her, and believing Leticia had saved his life, was unlikely to decline her request.
‘The time is now.’
Despite Dietrian currently concealing her identity, there was no assurance this could be sustained indefinitely. The truth would inevitably emerge.
Once Banessa realized she was the saint’s daughter, animosity, as before, would certainly resurface.
‘Given his beliefs, he’ll view me as a murderer beyond redemption. I must act now.’
Leticia gazed directly at Banessa.
“Banessa.”
“Yes, yes!” Banessa responded, his voice tinged with anxiety.
Leticia’s presence had transformed once more from before. Where there had been reluctance in her approach earlier, it was absent now. Her steady gaze was imbued with a resolve that seemed indomitable. She declared,
“I need to inspect your leg injury immediately.”
* * *
When Banessa was born, his sister was fifteen years old.
When she heard he had a baby brother, instead of being happy, his sister was immediately annoyed.
“At this age, a baby brother? Don’t tell me I have to take care of him?”
Unfortunately, his sister’s words became reality.
A year after Banessa was born, their parents died in a carriage accident. When other kids his sister’s age were worrying about dresses for their coming-of-age ceremonies, his sister was scrambling to find formula milk for Banessa.
The adults around them offered their unsolicited advice.
“Send him to an orphanage before he knows your face. You need to find a way to live your life.”
“Do you think he’ll appreciate your sacrifice when he’s older? A sibling is not like a child of your own.”
Then his sister would bristle like a hedgehog and retort.
“I want to leave him too! But what can I do when he cries!”
All this conversation Banessa heard later, directly from his sister.
“I raised you through hard times, little brother.”
“You wanted to leave me?”
“I wanted to, but the point is I endured and didn’t. So never forget my sacrifice.”
“Sure.”
Though she grumbled on the surface, Banessa knew.
He understood what it meant for his sister to raise a sibling alone. How much she had sacrificed.
Even if his sister was prickly and clumsy, she was a perfect guardian to him.
Banessa always felt mixed emotions watching his sister. He wanted her to live her own life, but part of him also wished she would never leave.
Then one day, his sister brought home a man she called her husband-to-be.
“Yes, you must be Banessa. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
The man who would become his brother-in-law was the complete opposite of his sister. Unlike his decisive sister, he was the epitome of timidity.
He was so meek that he even minded the presence of his seven-year-old brother-in-law. Dull-wittedly kind, he even stuttered when he spoke.
Banessa was dumbfounded.
The fact that such an inept man was marrying his sister was astonishing, and the fact that he was powerless to stop the marriage was equally shocking.
Seeing his sister happy with this man only fueled his frustration.
So, after the marriage was settled, Banessa, without consulting his sister, decided to take the knight’s exam.
Banessa stayed away from home for a long time after joining the knight’s order. his sister sent countless letters, expressing her hurt, but Banessa ignored them all.
Then, a letter came that he couldn’t ignore.
“It’s your nephew.”
When he went home after receiving the letter, a tiny, unattractive creature was cradled in his sister’s arms.
It was the first time Banessa saw his sister smiling so peacefully.
“Hold him. It’s time to repay the favor of being raised by me.”
His sister grinned, handing her son over.
Hesitantly holding the baby, Banessa felt the unique warm body heat through the thin clothes.
His heart sank. He realized then.
Raising him wasn’t just a sacrifice for his sister. It was love, irresistible and undeniable.
“Isn’t he adorable?”
“…No, not really.”
Despite his grumbling, he couldn’t take his eyes off the tiny being.
The happiness was short-lived.
Years later, a plague swept through. Every second or third house held a funeral. Banessa’s home was no different. Eventually, the doctor declared that there was no hope for his sister.
“Sister, don’t worry about him. I’ll take good care of him. Better than how you raised me.”
“No.”
His sister weakly smiled and caressed his cheek, wiping away his tears with her emaciated hand.
“Don’t. Just… live your life.”
Those were her last words. In front of his sister’s coffin, he made a vow.
“Taking care of this child is the life I want to live.”
True to his promise to his sister, he always did his best. Although he might not be as perfect a guardian as his sister was, he wanted to at least be half as good.
Whenever his nephew came home crying from being bullied, he’d grab a wooden sword, sturdier than a ladle, and chase down the bullies to teach them a lesson.
Leave a Reply