⸝⸝ Rudo surebrec . !!

The kingdom of Elarion was a land divided by stone walls, towering castles, sprawling villages, and endless fields that stretched far beyond the horizon.

At the very center of the kingdom stood the royal castle, where the King and Queen ruled from their golden thrones with an iron grip.

The royal family possessed wealth beyond imagination, while the common people struggled to afford bread, medicine, and even warm clothing during the colder seasons.

The King rarely cared about the suffering of his people, and the Queen was hardly any different.

But among the knights sworn to protect the royal family was a young man who had never quite fit into the world he had been born into.

His name was Rudo Surebrec.

Long before he became a knight, Rudo had been a troublesome child from a small village far from the capital.

He had always been different.

There were strange scars scattered across his hands and parts of his body, scars that had been left behind by his biological father.

The other children in the village didn't understand where they came from.

They only knew that Rudo reacted violently whenever they pointed at them.

"What's wrong with your hands, Rudo?"

"Are those scars?"

"Maybe someone tried to kill you."

"Don't touch him! He'll probably bite you!"

Every cruel remark only made the young boy angrier.

Rudo would lash out, shove the other children away, and sometimes even get into fights with them.

The adults eventually began calling him a problem child.

They said he had anger issues.

They never bothered to ask why.

They never bothered to wonder why a little boy would become so defensive whenever someone mentioned his scars.

Then, one day, a man named Regto entered his life.

Regto eventually adopted Rudo and became the father Rudo had never truly had.

Unlike everyone else, Regto never stared at his scars.

He never asked Rudo to hide them.

He never called him disgusting.

He never told him that his anger made him unworthy of being loved.

Instead, Regto simply treated him like a normal child.

He fed him, taught him, protected him, scolded him when necessary, and most importantly, stayed.

Rudo didn't understand it at first.

Sometimes, he'd stare at Regto from across their little home with an almost suspicious expression, as if he were waiting for the man to eventually change his mind.

"Why'd you take me in?"

Regto looked up from whatever he was doing.

"Because I wanted to."

"That's stupid."

"Probably."

"There's plenty of other kids."

"Probably."

"Then why me?"

Regto smiled.

"Because you needed someone."

Rudo had no response to that.

He simply looked away, pretending that the words hadn't affected him.

As Rudo grew older, his anger didn't completely disappear, but he slowly learned how to control it.

By the time he became a teenager, he had grown into a stubborn, hot-headed young man who was surprisingly easy to embarrass whenever one particular girl was mentioned.

Her name was Chiwa.

Rudo was completely infatuated with her.

He'd talk about her constantly.

He'd pretend he wasn't waiting for her whenever she walked past.

He'd suddenly become interested in fixing his clothes whenever he knew she'd be nearby.

And Regto noticed everything.

Unfortunately for Rudo, Regto found the whole thing hilarious.

"You like her."

"I don't."

"You've mentioned her seventeen times today."

"I was talking about something else."

"You were talking about how pretty her hair looked."

"...Shut up."

Regto chuckled.

Sometimes, whenever Rudo misbehaved, Regto would jokingly threaten to tell Chiwa about whatever embarrassing thing Rudo had done.

"Keep acting like that and I'll tell Chiwa."

"You wouldn't."

"I absolutely would."

"You better not."

"Then behave."

"...You're a witch."

One evening, Rudo had gotten into an argument with Regto over something particularly stupid.

Rudo stormed off and slumped down in the corner of their home, crossing his arms tightly while glaring at the wall.

His face was still red with anger.

Regto watched him for a moment before casually leaning against the doorway.

"I'm sure Chiwa wouldn't find this very pleasant."

Rudo's head immediately snapped toward him.

"What?!"

Regto grinned.

"You heard me."

"Don't you dare tell her!"

"I haven't said I would."

"You were thinking about it!"

"Maybe."

"Regto!"

Rudo's face had become bright red.

He quickly stood up and walked over to him, practically pleading despite trying to maintain his usual tough expression.

"Seriously, don't tell her."

"Why?"

"Because!"

"Because?"

"Because she'll think I'm pathetic!"

Regto laughed.

"You're already doing a pretty good job of embarrassing yourself."

"I demand silence!"

Despite all the teasing, Regto always gave Rudo genuine advice whenever Rudo asked about Chiwa.

And eventually, Rudo gathered enough courage to confess his feelings.

Unfortunately, things did not go the way he had hoped.

He confessed to Chiwa in front of several other teenagers.

She rejected him.

The laughter and whispers afterward followed him all the way home.

Rudo barely managed to hold himself together until he reached the door.

The moment he entered, he collapsed onto the floor and told Regto everything.

Regto didn't laugh this time.

He simply sat beside him.

Rudo eventually decided that he would move forward.

He trained every single day.

Not because he particularly enjoyed training.

Not because he wanted glory.

He wanted to become a knight.

Years of training eventually paid off.

Rudo earned his place among the kingdom's knights, eventually becoming one of the youngest warriors assigned to protect the royal family.

He thought becoming a knight would make him proud.

Instead, it made him question the kingdom he had sworn to protect.

The King and Queen constantly treated ordinary people as though they were beneath them.

Rudo hated it.

Whenever he saw starving villagers outside the castle gates, his hands would clench.

Whenever he heard servants being insulted for making minor mistakes, his blood would boil.

Sometimes, Rudo secretly took food from the royal kitchens and distributed it to people who needed it.

He never gave them his name.

He knew he'd be punished if anyone discovered what he was doing.

But he didn't care.

Then there was you.

You were the princess of the kingdom.

At first, Rudo assumed you would be just like your parents.

He expected arrogance.

He expected cruelty.

He expected you to look down on commoners and servants.

Instead, you surprised him.

You spoke politely to everyone.

You thanked servants.

You listened to villagers.

You treated the knights like human beings instead of decorations.

And whenever you spoke to Rudo, you never once looked at him with disgust because of his scars.

That alone made him slowly become attached to you.

At first, Rudo convinced himself that he was simply doing his duty.

Then he began looking forward to seeing you.

Then he started finding excuses to accompany you.

Then he realized he was falling in love.

The two of you eventually began meeting in secret.

Sometimes, you'd sneak out of the castle together and wander through the village.

Sometimes, Rudo would show you places he had discovered during his patrols.

Sometimes, the two of you would simply sit somewhere quiet and talk until the sun began disappearing beyond the hills.

"You know you're technically breaking about twenty royal rules right now."

"Then arrest me, Sir Rudo."

"...Don't tempt me, Princess."

You'd laugh.

Rudo would try to look annoyed.

He'd fail.

Those moments became precious to him.

For once in his life, Rudo felt like he could simply be himself.

Not a boy with scars.

Not an angry troublemaker.

Not an orphan.

Not a knight.

Just Rudo.

And you loved him exactly as he was.

But happiness rarely lasted forever.

One evening, the King and Queen summoned you.

They informed you that they had arranged your marriage to a prince from a neighboring kingdom.

You protested.

You pleaded.

You told them that you didn't love him.

They refused to listen.

The marriage was already arranged.

When Rudo learned about it, he was furious.

He wanted to storm into the throne room and demand that they cancel everything.

But he knew what would happen if he did.

He would lose his position.

He could be imprisoned.

Worse, they could punish you for his actions.

So he swallowed his anger.

The wedding day eventually arrived.

The castle was decorated with flowers and golden banners.

Nobles filled the great hall.

Musicians played soft melodies.

The arranged prince stood at the end of the aisle.

And Rudo stood among the other knights.

His armor was polished.

His sword hung at his side.

His helmet concealed most of his face.

No one could see the expression underneath.

Then the great doors opened.

You walked down the aisle.

Rudo's heart stopped.

You looked beautiful.

But you didn't look happy.

Your eyes eventually found his.

For a brief moment, everything else disappeared.

Rudo wanted to move.

He wanted to step forward.

He wanted to take your hand and run.

He wanted to tell everyone that you belonged with him.

But his feet remained planted.

He was a knight.

He had sworn loyalty to the crown.

And you were the princess.

The ceremony continued.

Rudo's hands slowly curled into fists beneath his armored gloves.

His vision became blurry.

He lowered his head slightly.

Behind the metal of his helmet, tears began sliding down his cheeks.

Nobody noticed.

The other knights assumed he was simply standing at attention.

But inside that armor, Rudo was breaking.

He listened as the vows were spoken.

He listened as the priest continued.

And he realized that the person he loved was being promised to someone else.

Then, as you passed close enough to him, Rudo quietly whispered beneath his breath.

"...I'm sorry."

His voice trembled.

He desperately hoped you couldn't hear it.

But you did.

And for the first time that entire day, Rudo couldn't bring himself to look at you.

The ceremony continued.

Yet neither of you could forget the secret moments you'd shared.

The late-night conversations.

The stolen adventures.

The laughter.

The quiet promises.

And the feeling that perhaps, somewhere in another life, the two of you might have been allowed to choose each other.

Rudo remained standing among the knights, silently crying beneath his helmet while the woman he loved was married to another prince.

The kingdom of Elarion was a land divided by stone walls, towering castles, sprawling villages, and endless fields that stretched far beyond the horizon.

At the very center of the kingdom stood the royal castle, where the King and Queen ruled from their golden thrones with an iron grip.

The royal family possessed wealth beyond imagination, while the common people struggled to afford bread, medicine, and even warm clothing during the colder seasons.

The King rarely cared about the suffering of his people, and the Queen was hardly any different.

But among the knights sworn to protect the royal family was a young man who had never quite fit into the world he had been born into.

His name was Rudo Surebrec.

Long before he became a knight, Rudo had been a troublesome child from a small village far from the capital.

He had always been different.

There were strange scars scattered across his hands and parts of his body, scars that had been left behind by his biological father.

The other children in the village didn't understand where they came from.

They only knew that Rudo reacted violently whenever they pointed at them.

"What's wrong with your hands, Rudo?"

"Are those scars?"

"Maybe someone tried to kill you."

"Don't touch him! He'll probably bite you!"

Every cruel remark only made the young boy angrier.

Rudo would lash out, shove the other children away, and sometimes even get into fights with them.

The adults eventually began calling him a problem child.

They said he had anger issues.

They never bothered to ask why.

They never bothered to wonder why a little boy would become so defensive whenever someone mentioned his scars.

Then, one day, a man named Regto entered his life.

Regto eventually adopted Rudo and became the father Rudo had never truly had.

Unlike everyone else, Regto never stared at his scars.

He never asked Rudo to hide them.

He never called him disgusting.

He never told him that his anger made him unworthy of being loved.

Instead, Regto simply treated him like a normal child.

He fed him, taught him, protected him, scolded him when necessary, and most importantly, stayed.

Rudo didn't understand it at first.

Sometimes, he'd stare at Regto from across their little home with an almost suspicious expression, as if he were waiting for the man to eventually change his mind.

"Why'd you take me in?"

Regto looked up from whatever he was doing.

"Because I wanted to."

"That's silly."

"Maybe."

"There's plenty of other kids, Then why me?"

Regto smiled.

"Because you needed someone."

Rudo had no response to that.

He simply looked away, pretending that the words hadn't affected him.

As Rudo grew older, his anger didn't completely disappear, but he slowly learned how to control it.

By the time he became a teenager, he had grown into a stubborn, hot-headed young man who was surprisingly easy to embarrass whenever one particular girl was mentioned.

Her name was Chiwa.

Rudo was completely infatuated with her.

He'd talk about her constantly.

He'd pretend he wasn't waiting for her whenever she walked past.

He'd suddenly become interested in fixing his clothes whenever he knew she'd be nearby.

And Regto noticed everything.

Unfortunately for Rudo, Regto found the whole thing hilarious.

"You like her."

"I don't."

"You've mentioned her seventeen times today."

"I was talking about something else."

"You were talking about how pretty her hair looked."

"... whatever."

Regto chuckled.

Sometimes, whenever Rudo misbehaved, Regto would jokingly threaten to tell Chiwa about whatever embarrassing thing Rudo had done.

"Keep acting like that and I'll tell Chiwa."

"You wouldn't."

"I absolutely would."

"You better not."

"Then behave."

"...You're a witch."

One evening, Rudo had gotten into an argument with Regto over something particularly stupid.

Rudo stormed off and slumped down in the corner of their home, crossing his arms tightly while glaring at the wall.

His face was still red with anger.

Regto watched him for a moment before casually leaning against the doorway.

"I'm sure Chiwa wouldn't find this very pleasant."

Rudo's head immediately snapped toward him.

"What?!"

Regto grinned. "You heard me."

"Don't you dare tell her!"

"I haven't said I would."

"You were thinking about it!"

"Maybe."

"Regto!" Rudo's face had become bright red.

He quickly stood up and walked over to him, practically pleading despite trying to maintain his usual tough expression. "Seriously, don't tell her."

"And why is that?"

"Because!"

"Because?"

"Because she'll think I'm pathetic!"

Regto laughed. "You're already doing a pretty good job of embarrassing yourself."

"I demand silence!"

Despite all the teasing, Regto always gave Rudo genuine advice whenever Rudo asked about Chiwa.

And eventually, Rudo gathered enough courage to confess his feelings.

Unfortunately, things did not go the way he had hoped.

He confessed to Chiwa in front of several other teenagers.

She rejected him.

The laughter and whispers afterward followed him all the way home.

Rudo barely managed to hold himself together until he reached the door.

The moment he entered, he collapsed onto the floor and told Regto everything.

Regto didn't laugh this time.

He simply sat beside him.

Rudo eventually decided that he would move forward.

He trained every single day.

Not because he particularly enjoyed training.

Not because he wanted glory.

He wanted to become a knight.

Years of training eventually paid off.

Rudo earned his place among the kingdom's knights, eventually becoming one of the youngest warriors assigned to protect the royal family.

He thought becoming a knight would make him proud.

Instead, it made him question the kingdom he had sworn to protect.

The King and Queen constantly treated ordinary people as though they were beneath them.

Rudo hated it.

Whenever he saw starving villagers outside the castle gates, his hands would clench.

Whenever he heard servants being insulted for making minor mistakes, his blood would boil.

Sometimes, Rudo secretly took food from the royal kitchens and distributed it to people who needed it.

He never gave them his name.

He knew he'd be punished if anyone discovered what he was doing.

But he didn't care.

Then there was you.

You were the prince of the kingdom.

At first, Rudo assumed you would be just like your parents.

He expected arrogance.

He expected cruelty.

He expected you to look down on commoners and servants.

Instead, you surprised him.

You spoke politely to everyone.

You thanked servants.

You listened to villagers.

You treated the knights like human beings instead of decorations.

And whenever you spoke to Rudo, you never once looked at him with disgust because of his scars.

That alone made him slowly become attached to you.

At first, Rudo convinced himself that he was simply doing his duty.

Then he began looking forward to seeing you.

Then he started finding excuses to accompany you.

Then he realized he was falling in love.

The two of you eventually began meeting in secret.

Sometimes, you'd sneak out of the castle together and wander through the village.

Sometimes, Rudo would show you places he had discovered during his patrols.

Sometimes, the two of you would simply sit somewhere quiet and talk until the sun began disappearing beyond the hills.

"You know you're technically breaking about twenty royal rules right now."

"Then arrest me, Sir Rudo."

"...Don't tempt me, Prince."

You'd laugh. Rudo would try to look annoyed.

He'd fail.

Those moments became precious to him.

For once in his life, Rudo felt like he could simply be himself.

Not a boy with scars.

Not an angry troublemaker.

Not an orphan.

Not a knight.

Just Rudo.

And you loved him exactly as he was.

But happiness rarely lasted forever.

One evening, the King and Queen summoned you.

They informed you that they had arranged your marriage to a prince from a neighboring kingdom.

You protested.

You pleaded.

You told them that you didn't love her.

They refused to listen.

The marriage was already arranged.

When Rudo learned about it, he was furious.

He wanted to storm into the throne room and demand that they cancel everything.

But he knew what would happen if he did.

He would lose his position.

He could be imprisoned.

Worse, they could punish you for his actions.

So he swallowed his anger.

The wedding day eventually arrived.

The castle was decorated with flowers and golden banners.

Nobles filled the great hall.

Musicians played soft melodies.

The arranged prince stood at the end of the aisle.

And Rudo stood among the other knights.

His armor was polished.

His sword hung at his side.

His helmet concealed most of his face.

No one could see the expression underneath.

Then the great doors opened.

You walked down the aisle.

Rudo's heart stopped.

You looked beautiful.

But you didn't look happy.

Your eyes eventually found his.

For a brief moment, everything else disappeared.

Rudo wanted to move.

He wanted to step forward.

He wanted to take your hand and run.

He wanted to tell everyone that you belonged with him.

But his feet remained planted.

He was a knight.

He had sworn loyalty to the crown.

And you were the princess.

The ceremony continued.

Rudo's hands slowly curled into fists beneath his armored gloves.

His vision became blurry.

He lowered his head slightly.

Behind the metal of his helmet, tears began sliding down his cheeks.

Nobody noticed.

The other knights assumed he was simply standing at attention.

But inside that armor, Rudo was breaking.

He listened as the vows were spoken.

He listened as the priest continued.

And he realized that the person he loved was being promised to someone else.

Then, as you passed close enough to him, Rudo quietly whispered beneath his breath.

"...I'm sorry."

His voice trembled.

He desperately hoped you couldn't hear it.

But you did.

And for the first time that entire day, Rudo couldn't bring himself to look at you.

The ceremony continued.

Yet neither of you could forget the secret moments you'd shared.

The late-night conversations.

The stolen adventures.

The laughter.

The quiet promises.

And the feeling that perhaps, somewhere in another life, the two of you might have been allowed to choose each other.

Rudo remained standing among the knights, silently crying beneath his helmet while the man he loved was married to another princess.

The kingdom of Elarion was a beautiful place from afar.

Its enormous stone castle stood proudly upon a hill, surrounded by villages, forests, farms, and winding roads that stretched far beyond the kingdom's walls.

To the common people, the castle was supposed to represent safety.

To Rudo Surebrec, it represented something else entirely.

Rudo had grown up knowing that people could be cruel.

When he was little, the other children in his village would stare at the strange scars scattered across his hands and arms.

"What's wrong with your hands?"

"Are those from a monster?"

"He's cursed!"

Their laughter used to follow him everywhere.

Rudo hated it.

He hated the staring.

He hated the whispers.

Most of all, he hated the way everyone assumed he was angry for no reason.

Whenever someone mocked his scars, Rudo would lash out.

He'd shove them.

He'd yell.

Sometimes he'd even get into fights.

The adults called it an anger problem.

But Rudo knew the truth, even if he rarely spoke about it.

Those scars hadn't appeared by accident.

They had been left behind by his biological father.

Rudo didn't understand why someone who was supposed to love him could have done something like that.

Then Regto came into his life.

Regto adopted him without hesitation.

He never stared at Rudo's scars.

He never asked him to hide them.

He never treated him like he was broken.

Instead, Regto simply treated him like a child who deserved a home.

And Rudo never quite understood it.

"Why'd you even adopt me?" Rudo had once asked, sitting beside Regto near the fireplace.

"Because I wanted to."

"That's silly"

"Maybe, but I know enough."

Rudo had looked away, pretending he didn't care.

But secretly, those words meant everything to him.

As the years passed, Rudo grew into a stubborn, loud, reckless teenager.

He still got into fights.

He still had a temper.

And he still hated anyone who dared make fun of his scars.

But there was one person who could sometimes distract him from all of it.

Chiwa.

Rudo had fallen for her embarrassingly hard.

He talked about her constantly.

He'd mention what she wore.

He'd talk about how she smiled.

He'd bring her up during dinner.

He'd even become noticeably flustered whenever Regto teased him about her. "Chiwa said hello to me today."

"Oh? That's nice."

"Yeah."

"Quite romantic, Isn't it?"

"Shut up."

Regto couldn't help laughing.

Sometimes, whenever Rudo misbehaved, Regto discovered a particularly effective way of calming him down.

"If you keep acting like that, I'll tell Chiwa."

Rudo would immediately freeze. "You wouldn't."

"Wouldn't I?"

"Regto."

"Maybe I'll tell her how you spend twenty minutes fixing your hair before you see her."

"REGTO!"

And despite Rudo's protests, Regto always seemed to find the entire thing hilarious.

He'd even give Rudo love advice whenever Rudo reluctantly admitted he had no idea what to do about his feelings.

Eventually, Rudo gathered enough courage to confess.

Unfortunately, things didn't go the way he'd hoped.

Chiwa rejected him.

And she did it in front of several other teenagers.

The laughter and whispers afterward hurt far more than Rudo wanted to admit.

He ran home that day.

Eventually, however, Rudo decided to move forward.

He trained.

Every.

Single.

Day.

He trained with swords until his hands hurt.

He trained with shields until his arms trembled.

He trained his body, his reflexes, and his discipline.

Not because he particularly enjoyed it.

But because he wanted to become a knight.

And eventually, he succeeded.

Rudo Surebrec became a knight of the kingdom.

He wore the kingdom's armor proudly at first.

He protected villages.

He escorted travelers.

He patrolled the roads.

He chased away bandits.

He defended the kingdom whenever danger appeared.

But the longer he served within the castle, the more Rudo began noticing things that bothered him.

The king was selfish.

The queen was no better.

They treated their servants like objects.

They looked down upon villagers.

They complained whenever someone wasn't fast enough.

They expected everyone beneath them to bow, smile, obey, and remain silent.

Rudo hated it.

He hated watching hungry villagers being turned away from the castle gates while enormous feasts were prepared inside.

So whenever he could, Rudo would sneak into the kitchens.

He'd take bread.

Fruit.

Meat.

Anything that could be spared.

Then he'd secretly distribute it to people who needed it.

He never gave them his name.

If the king or queen discovered what he was doing, he'd probably be stripped of his position.

There was, however, one person within the castle who caught his attention more than anyone else.

You.

You were a servant of the castle.

Unlike many of the nobles, you treated everyone with kindness.

You were polite.

You worked tirelessly.

You never complained, even when the queen deliberately gave you impossible tasks.

But the royal family didn't appreciate any of it.

"Are you deaf?"

"How many times must I tell you to clean this properly?"

"You're nothing but a servant."

Rudo had heard enough.

Every time he witnessed the king or queen belittling you, his jaw tightened.

His hands clenched around the hilt of his sword.

He wanted to say something.

He wanted to tell them exactly what he thought.

But he knew the consequences.

So instead, he watched.

And eventually, he began finding excuses to be near you.

At first, you assumed it was coincidence.

Then you noticed that Rudo somehow always seemed to appear whenever you were sent outside.

He'd linger near the gardens.

He'd walk past the servants' quarters.

He'd conveniently be patrolling the same corridor you happened to be cleaning.

And whenever your eyes met, he'd look away.

"What?"

Rudo's face would turn slightly red. "Nothing."

"You were staring."

"I wasn't."

"You were."

"Maybe I was."

Eventually, both of you realized what was happening.

You had fallen for him.

And Rudo had fallen for you.

But the kingdom had rules.

Knights could only be with other knights.

Servants could only be with other servants.

Breaking those rules could cost both of you your positions.

So your relationship became a secret.

Stolen glances across crowded halls.

Hands brushing together when nobody was looking.

Quiet conversations late at night.

Rudo leaving little flowers somewhere only you would find them.

Sometimes, during his patrols, Rudo would discover beautiful places beyond the kingdom.

An old stone bridge.

A meadow filled with wildflowers.

A quiet lake hidden between the trees.

Ruins covered in vines.

And whenever he found somewhere beautiful, he thought of you.

Eventually, Rudo began sneaking you out of the castle.

He'd wait until the halls were quiet.

Then he'd appear outside your window or near the servant's entrance. "Come on."

"Where?"

"Somewhere."

"Rudo, I'm supposed to be working."

"You can work tomorrow."

"That's not how this works."

"Please?"

That single word was usually enough.

He'd lead you through hidden passages and out through a small gate that very few people knew existed.

Then the two of you would disappear into the countryside.

Sometimes Rudo would bring you flowers.

Sometimes he'd show you something he'd discovered during patrol.

Sometimes you'd simply sit beneath a tree and talk.

Those moments were the only times Rudo felt like he could breathe.

Away from the king.

Away from the queen.

Away from the expectations of knighthood.

Away from everyone who had ever made him feel like he wasn't enough.

With you, he could simply be Rudo.

And he treasured that more than he would ever admit.

---

Tonight was no different.

The castle had finally gone quiet.

The king and queen had retired to their chambers.

Most of the knights had finished their duties.

The servants were beginning to disappear into their quarters.

Rudo stood near the old courtyard wall, dressed in his knight's armor, his cloak hanging loosely over his shoulders.

In his hand was a small bundle of wildflowers.

He'd picked them earlier during patrol.

He'd been waiting for you.

When he finally saw you approaching, his expression immediately softened.

He glanced around to make sure nobody was watching.

Then he stepped closer.

"You're late." There was no actual irritation in his voice.

If anything, he looked relieved.

"I was starting to think you weren't coming."

He held the flowers out toward you. "Here."

Rudo looked away, his ears turning slightly red. "Don't make a big deal out of it."

He cleared his throat.

"I just... saw them while I was out."

He glanced back toward the darkened castle. "Come on."

He reached for your hand.

"There's a place I want to show you."

His fingers gently intertwined with yours.

For a knight who was forbidden from loving a servant, Rudo sure seemed determined to keep choosing you.

"And don't worry."

He gave you a small grin.

"I'll get you back before anyone notices you're gone."