Telestia
SILK AND I SAW EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED FROM the window of the carriage. As knights fell one after another, a young man appeared and defeated the orcs with his magic and his sword. I squeezed Silk’s hand. What beautiful swordsmanship. He was about the same age I was. I couldn’t take my eyes off the boy with beautiful silver hair. He moved like the wind as he took down one orc after another.
The captain of the guards informed us that the monsters had been defeated, and my handmaiden opened the door of the carriage. Silk and I got out of the carriage with her help.
After leaving the carriage, I saw a familiar face. It was Margrave Garm, who I had met before, at the palace. Margrave Garm clearly did not expect to see me here and he couldn’t conceal his look of surprise. He got down on one knee and bowed his head. The young boy who saved us copied him and did the same, as did the rest of their family.
“Princess Telestia, Miss Silk, it’s good to see that you’re safe.”
“Lord Garm, thank you for saving us from the crisis we encountered.”
We were now able to relax since Lord Garm was here, but the fear from earlier had yet to fully leave our bodies. Curious about the boy who saved us, I couldn’t stop myself from glancing over at him. Noticing my glance, Lord Garm introduced him.
“Cain, you stand before Her Highness the third princess Telestia Terra Esfort and the second daughter of Duke Santana, Silk von Santana.”
Sir Cain, is it? I’ll remember that.
The boy, after showing a look of surprise, got up and introduced himself.
“I’m Cain von Silford, third son of Garm von Silford. I’m glad that Your Highness Telestia and Miss Silk are safe. This may be overly forward of me, but would you mind if I cast some calming magic on you?”
Huh? Magic? Like the magic he cast earlier? I couldn’t stop myself from trembling.
“Relax.”
After Cain chanted the spell, the three of us were enveloped in light. Once the light vanished, the fear from earlier had vanished. I was no longer trembling. I felt slightly better than I did earlier.
“You should feel better now,” Cain said with a smile.
My eyes were glued to the smile on Sir Cain’s face. I could tell that a faint blush was spreading across my face.
“Sir Cain, I am Telestia Terra Esfort. Thank you for saving us from the crisis we encountered. It was very scary. I thought it was the end for me.”
Before I knew what I was doing, I was cupping Cain’s hands within mine. This may be the first time I held hands with a man that wasn’t a member of my family.
“Ah! No fair! Sir Cain, allow me to thank you as well! I saw you from the window of the carriage! You fired magic like the wind, and your swordsmanship was very cool as well.”
Silk came over as well. Ah! Silk stole Cain’s hands away from me.
“As the knights who were protecting us fell one after another, I had thought that this was the end for Silk and me. You’re very strong, Sir Cain. You defeated thirty orcs all by yourself. I was captivated by both your magic and swordsmanship.”
After that, it was decided that Sir Cain would accompany us to the capital. I tried my best to not show excitement on my face, but I couldn’t stop myself from smiling. The knights asked us to return to our carriage, as they had to clean up the battlefield. We went back inside and waited for them to finish.
“Sir Cain…”
The image of Sir Cain’s face floated in my mind, and before I knew it, I was mumbling his name. Silk immediately reacted.
“Jeez, Teles. You’re already head over heels, aren’t you?”
Silk’s words caused me to blush. My face must have been bright red, sitting within that carriage. A short while later, a knight came over and told us that we were going to begin moving again. I wished to speak with Sir Cain more, and before I realized it, I had left the carriage and the words were already out of my mouth.
“Um… Do you have moment? We don’t feel safe with just the two of us. Would it be possible for Sir Cain to accompany us in our carriage?”
Lord Garm did not seem to want to approve my request, but he ultimately acquiesced.
“Very well. Cain, ride with them in their carriage.”
“…Okay.”
I arranged for Sir Cain to sit in the middle back seat. I then sat down next to him. Then, of all things, Silk came in and sat on the other side of Sir Cain! These seats were designed to seat two adults, so it wasn’t too cramped even with all three of us sitting next to each other.
Cain looked uncomfortable. Even his troubled expression was dreamy.
“It might be a little cramped if all three of us sit together. How about I sit in front instead?” Cain suggested.
I had finally managed to get him to sit next to me—there was no way I was going to allow him to escape. Before I could stop myself, I grabbed onto his arm. Even I couldn’t help but feel that maybe I was being a little too forward…
“No fair, Teles! Let me join in!”
As if competing with me, Silk grabbed onto Sir Cain’s other arm.
We stopped by a town on the way to the capital, and I forced them to put Sir Cain in the same room with Silk and I. I made him leave while we were changing, but I got to gaze at Cain’s sleeping face that night. I could feel the smirk spreading across my face.