Drawing his blade, he approached the beast as it writhed in pain. In a flash, the sword took the animal's life.
Now straight-faced, he turned back to command his knights.
"Stay on guard, everyone."
After the knights left, the stadium was empty. Still, it was far from boring.
Right before leaving us girls alone, my dad said, "I’ll be back.”
Once he was gone, our little circle of seats became a mini salon.
"Not long ago, Lord Rowen sent me a letter asking for a handkerchief,” Rose began, her tone irate. "He said he would dedicate the Flower of the Underworld's Goddess to me.”
Mary Ann frowned. "Pardon? I got the same letter from him."
Rose flinched. Then, her face crumpled. "Lady Mary Ann, don't tell me that you gave him a handkerchief... You didn't, right?"
Mary Ann lowered her head instead of answering. That was enough to deduce that she had fallen for his trap. Everyone groaned at the unfortunate news.
Rose shook her head, massaging her temple with one hand. "You shouldn't have, Mary Ann!” she chided. "As far as I know, that man’s received handkerchiefs from several ladies already!"
I wrinkled my nose. The rumors about him were true, it seemed. Lord Rowen had long been ill-reputed for his womanizing behavior. Nonetheless, I had stayed away from drawing conclusions about him based on hearsay since I myself had suffered from rumors in the past. So, they were true after all... I couldn't believe it!
"Wow, what a total asswipe!" Sir Victor suddenly blurted.
His sudden comment bewildered me. I turned to him, my eyes trembling. How could he swear so blatantly at a place like this?!
Then, I remembered what I had learned about his background; he was originally a mercenary, but he became a knight because of his outstanding skills. Was that why he had a foul mouth?
"Dear heavens,” Mary Ann gasped quietly, her face ghastly pale. "What do I do now?"
Catherine, who was next to her, patted Mary Ann on the shoulder and sighed. "You're not insensitive to rumors... but, surprisingly, you still made such a mistake...”
Still in disbelief, Mary Ann flushed. "I can't accept this,” she said. "He told me he was genuinely fond of me!”
In response to her melancholic cry, Rose shook her head. "Get it together, Mary Ann! Lord Rowen is a ladies’ man! The worst one in high society, too!"
"Unfortunately, I’d have to disagree with that,” Veronica said, shaking her head as well. Puzzled, everyone turned to look at her. "You ladies know of Marquis Ferdal, who heads the Ministry of Finance, right? Have you heard of his second son?"
"Yes, most certainly. I've heard that he’s currently recovering from an illness."
"The truth is..."
Everyone leaned forward, listening intently to Veronica. Currently, there wasn’t any gossip about the Ferdal family, so our curiosity was only natural. The marquis himself was a quiet man.
Cough, cough!
An untimely hacking cough interrupted us.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I’ve been croaking for a good while now,” Sir Victor said. "Anyway, you ladies continue with your conversation."
We gave him a look then sighed in unison before carrying on.
"So, what's the truth?"
"The truth is that... Marquis Ferdal's second son is a womanizer, too!"
"I can't believe it!" one of us cried.
The marquis was such a gentleman. How could his son turn out to be a philanderer? My mouth was agape at the shocking news.
"Apparently,” Veronica continued, frowning, "the cheeky man had tempted an innocent lady before he had even come of age."
Baffled, Sir Victor butt in again. "What?! Is that true?"
Veronica nodded. "Yes. Then, he abandoned her afterward."
Sir Victor's face fell. "What kind of man does that?” he asked. "What a jackass."
Astonished, I observed the irritated expression on his face. Until now, I never thought of him as anything more than a slouch. It was interesting to see him angry at the injustice someone enacted against a lady.
As I admired his chivalrous side, Veronica resumed her account. "I heard that he continued his prodigal habits after that... Apparently, the marquis got fed up with him and sent him to a temple to cleanse himself. Recovering from an illness was only the excuse they used to cover it up."
As soon as she finished speaking, Sir Victor lifted a hand to his mouth, chuckling.
"Why are you laughing?" Veronica asked.
He shook his head. "Oh, you just have excellent storytelling skills,” he commended her. "I'm hooked now!" He moved to stand next to her. Looking down, he gave her a relaxed smile. "So, are there more stories about this guy?”
I hadn't noticed before, but after studying him up close like this, I realized that he was a rather handsome man. He was as attractive as Lord Rowen, one of the womanizers we gossiped about earlier.
Likely thinking the same, Veronica blushed. "Hmm... I hear that he’s pretty good-looking."
Sir Victor nodded with a grin. "Of course! If he’s the worst of all the womanizers in the empire, there’s no way he could be ugly!”
Rose shielded her mouth and giggled at his silly comment. As she did so, he approached Mary Ann. He regarded her with a caring gaze. "I'm happy for you, Lady Mary Ann,” he began.
She frowned a little in displeasure. She probably assumed he was mocking her somehow.
"Happy for me?” she asked. "What do you mean by that?"
"Isn't it fortunate that you discovered that scumbag’s true nature before you developed feelings for him? You must have a guardian angel by your side or something!"
At the unexpected claim, Mary Ann burst into laughter. "You're definitely in the right,” she said.
Victor smiled. "Don't feel down because of a piece of garbage like him,” he comforted. "You're out with your friends now! Your goal should just be to have fun."
I definitely agreed with him. Maybe it was because he was originally a mercenary, but despite how he seemed to speak and act without much thought, he was charming in his own way. Others must have agreed with me because they were all laughing in agreement with him.
With her gaze fixed upon him, Mary Ann said, "If you’re one of the knights who serve directly under His Highness, you must have had plenty of opportunities to attend a banquet... but I still think it’s my first time ever seeing you, Sir Victor."
He grinned widely. "Ah, I haven’t been to a banquet hall in a long time. His Highness always assigns me on secret missions during events like that."
"Secret missions? What kind?"
He chuckled. "I can't tell you. That's why they're a secret."