I didn’t know the first thing about proper manners. Was she being literal, telling me to simply lift my head up, or did she mean that I could stop kneeling entirely? Rook stood up while I was trying to figure it out, so I did likewise.
“I am Carol Flue Shaltl, and I believe you are Rook Ho.”
“Indeed. I am honored to make your acquaintance,” Rook greeted her respectfully.
The girl turned to look at me, but I merely lowered my head and took a step back to half hide myself behind Rook. Moving back probably made me look like Rook’s apprentice, but I really didn’t want to become the subject of conversation. Not only would it be a pain, but I felt like it would leave a bad impression if the customer learned that Rook had used the same eagle he was meant to deliver to transport his child to the capital for a little shopping trip. Maybe I was overthinking it, but little things like that could lead to someone complaining.
“I hear you showed great skill with a spear at the Knight Academy Combat Tournament. You must have been an excellent knight,” the girl noted.
I’d never heard of that event before.
“You think too highly of me,” Rook replied. “It was Galla here who bested me.”
Knight...Academy...Combat Tournament? I guess a lot happened between him and Galla in the past. At any rate, this girl sure knows a lot. We were born around the same time, so she can’t have spent much more time here than I have. Then again, she’s a princess—she’s probably got a rigorous education. Royals need it since they have to show proper manners in public.
“I also hear you raise fine eagles. Is this one mine? Does it have a name?” she asked.
“It hasn’t been named. I’d be much obliged if you were to choose the name yourself.”
“In that case, I must speak with my mother. Will I be able to ride it today?”
“The bird has flown a great distance from Ho Province to get here, so I believe it would be best if it were to rest its wings today.”
“I see...” The girl’s shoulders slumped in disappointment.
Her clothes made it obvious that she’d thought she could run over and hop straight onto the eagle. She’d probably been waiting nearby, bursting with excitement, and now she was crushed to learn she couldn’t ride it after all.
Galla opened his big mouth. “Your Highness, perhaps you could take this opportunity to ask the proper way to ride an eagle.”
I could see enough of Rook’s face from behind him to tell he was scowling at Galla. His expression seemed to say, couldn’t you just leave me out of it since she can’t even ride the damn bird?
“Oh. Yes, indeed. How should I ride it?” the girl asked Rook.
“Well... I think it’s best to ride in a way that avoids arguments with the eagle. Please try to get along with the bird while you ride it.” Rook’s advice was painfully vague.
“I see. Then I suppose I shouldn’t smack it?”
Smack it...?
“I would advise approaching it like a friend. I’m sure the bird will respond in kind.”
“Very well,” the girl said while reaching for the eagle’s reins that Rook was holding. “I shall do just that.”
Looks like she can’t wait to take it away with her right now. She’s like a kid who’s just gotten a new hamster and wants to carry it home themselves.
“Will it be kept in the usual birdcages?” she asked Galla.
“Yes, Your Highness! That’s our intention,” Galla answered, then shot a glance at the woman who’d brought the girl to us.
“I can guide you there,” the woman said.
“Very well,” the girl agreed. “Please do.”
“Please take good care of it,” Rook said as he finally released his grip on the reins.
Rook was probably thinking, I guess it’s safe to let her hold the reins with this many people watching her. The poor little girl stood no chance if the eagle were to try to escape, but a bird trained by Rook would never take off without permission. Still, he’d kept his grip on the reins long enough to think it over first.
“Thank you, sir. I shall treasure it.” The girl gave Rook a few polite parting words in an apparent show of respect, then left us with her entourage in tow.
“So that’s Princess Carol. Seems like a good kid,” Rook said, clearly relieved that the encounter was over. From time to time he stroked his chin.
“Yeah, she is,” Galla agreed. “The royal family’s got an heir to be proud of.”
I can’t deny that she was a levelheaded kid. And I don’t think there’s anything stopping women from becoming the monarch in this country, so maybe we’re in for a peaceful future once she’s the queen.
Maybe she wouldn’t be remembered as Carol the Great, but I couldn’t imagine her ever becoming Carol the Fool. I didn’t know how old she was, but I guessed she was about four or five. It was impressive that a girl of her age could inspire such confidence in adults.
“Hmm... Might have been nice to have a girl,” Rook mused.
I couldn’t ignore that. I get how you feel, but...you didn’t have to say it in front of your son.
“Dad, how do you know Galla?” I asked Rook as we made our way out of the royal castle.
“He was in my year at school. Now he’s doing well for himself in the first order of the royal guard.”
I’d guessed as much from the fact that he was keeping an eye on the capital, but this confirmed that he was part of the royal guard. They were a unit that literally protected the royal family and their immediate surroundings. This unit had a first order, and presumably a second order too—no doubt the first order was the stronger of the two.
“What kind of school?” I asked.
“Knight Academy. It’s here in the capital. You’ll go there someday too.”
Will I? First I’ve heard of this. I thought that I was going to carry on doing manual labor until I became manager of the ranch someday. I have to go to school too? I don’t wanna. Just homeschool me or something. Anyway, why’s it called the Knight Academy? “Knight” obviously refers to soldiers, so it sounds like a military establishment. Please tell me I’ve completely misunderstood somehow.
“Did you graduate from there, dad?”
“No...” Rook looked a little bitter, as if he were recalling unpleasant memories.
Did he have a hard time there?
“I didn’t graduate. I quit halfway.”
“Oh, I see...”
Rook was apparently a dropout.
When I thought back on it, I realized that Rook had never talked about his school days, or his youth in general for that matter. He occasionally recounted what had happened after he’d met Suzuya, and everything that came after their marriage, but he almost never told me about his youth.
I realized now that this was odd—most adults loved to recount their young days. Rook was attractive, athletic, and personable. I couldn’t imagine him having a miserable school life or being bullied. And if the talk we’d just had with Galla was anything to go by, he had friends who were just as outgoing. If he’d dropped out despite all that, something bad must have happened—something he’d rather forget.
“If my dad couldn’t do it, then maybe I won’t be any good at this school either,” I said in an attempt to distract Rook from unpleasant memories.
“No, you’ll be just fine, Yuri,” Rook replied while patting my head with his open palm.
I guess it doesn’t take much to make an adult want to pat a kid’s head.
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