Serafina Encounters Her Big Brothers in a Pinch Part 1
THAT DAY, I’d ventured into Starfall Forest with five of the knights: Canopus, Mirach, Scheat, Fackt, and Miaplacidus. We’d gone there specifically because I’d come across some information that told me we might find the Galle Gold Leaf that Mirach was looking for.
We had arrived at our destination, and I’d just caught a glimpse of something gold when my body tensed in alarm at the distant howl of a fenrir. Lifting my head in surprise, I noticed about ten people that were being surrounded by a pack of five or six fenrirs. Upon closer inspection, I realized exactly who this group was: my three older brothers and their bodyguards.
Still recovering from the shock of running into my brothers in such an unexpected place, I tugged on Canopus’s uniform and wailed, “Th-this is really bad! My brothers are being surrounded by those monsters!”
Canopus was always as cool as a cucumber, and now was no exception. He didn’t seem flustered at all as he nodded in response. “Indeed. Looks like the princes are surrounded by monsters.”
“Huh? Why are you so calm?”
Members of the royal guard were sworn to protect the royal family with their lives. At least, that was supposed to be the case. But it wasn’t just Canopus who was standing around doing nothing—none of the knights made even the slightest attempt to rush to their aid!
“Umm, aren’t you gonna go and help them?” I asked Canopus again, genuinely confused at what was happening before me, but my personal knight responded without even a twitch in his expression.
“My mission is to protect you, Princess. It would be counterproductive if I chose to help the princes and ended up putting you in danger.”
“I-Is that so? Uh, what about you, Mirach?”
It didn’t seem like anything I could say would change Canopus’s mind, so I turned my gaze to Mirach, only to find that he wore the exact same expression.
“I believe Canopus provided you with the perfect response.”
“What?!”
Even Mirach, the royal knight who seemed most diligent about his duties, was refusing to help my brothers. I doubted Scheat or Miaplacidus would be much help in a situation like this, which left me with one remaining option: Fackt.
“Fackt, it would be a problem if my brothers got hurt before your very eyes, wouldn’t it?”
Fackt slowly pushed his glasses up with one hand before responding in a cool and even tone. “Not in the slightest. First of all, it’s nearly impossible to ignore how rudely the princes have treated you. As a royal knight, I can’t quite go as far as saying they deserve this, but their bad deeds have brought this upon themselves. I see no reason to offer them any assistance.”
“Oof!” I exclaimed. So that’s how it was. Fackt was usually the epitome of calm, but when that calm was disrupted, well, he could be pretty sharp-tongued. Not to mention, his expression remained unchanged even when he was angry, making it quite difficult to tell when he was upset.
What to do now? I wondered.
If the knights were insistent that helping my brothers fell outside of their scope of responsibility, it didn’t seem like there were many options left.
“But…I’ll be sad if they get hurt.” I murmured, unsure of where to turn for help. As soon as I uttered those words, the knights gaped at me, their eyes almost bulging out of their heads.
“What?!” they chorused. I looked at them each in turn, confused at what had brought on their sudden shock.
Still wide-eyed, Scheat finally managed to ask, “You don’t want the princes to get hurt? But doesn’t it feel just a wee bit satisfying?! I’m sure they won’t die because the First Knight Brigade is there to protect them. At worst, they’ll just sustain some major injuries.”
Miaplacidus continued Scheat’s sentiment almost seamlessly. “There’s no doubt that they’re rotten to the core! They wouldn’t disparage you so cruelly if that wasn’t the case! This predicament might shake some of that rot off their core and help them improve their attitude toward you.”
Whoa, Scheat and Miaplacidus were harsher than I’d imagined. Saying things like “sustaining major injuries is fine,” and “shaking them to their core will help them improve,” seemed far too extreme to me.
True, my brothers weren’t the kindest, but they had to also have some redeeming qualities, didn’t they?
“I was living in the villa for a long time, right? Maybe they’re struggling to connect with their little sister who showed up out of the blue? We’re family, so I’m sure we’ll work things out eventually,” I said reassuringly as I gazed at Scheat and Miaplacidus, but their only response was to gape in apparent disbelief.
Their reaction only fueled my determination to make one final effort.
“Besides, I heard I’m the only one with my very own royal guard. Canopus, Mirach, Fackt, Scheat, Miaplacidus: All of you are so wonderful that I’m sure my brothers must be a bit jealous of me. Maybe that’s why they’re always saying such mean things.”
Scheat staggered slightly and grimaced as if he was in pain.
“You’ve got to be kidding me!” He moaned, “I had a slight inkling already, but it turns out our princess is actually an angel!!”
“Hmm?”
I thought Scheat understood what I was saying, but his response was so confusing that I wasn’t sure anymore.
“Yup! There’s no mistaking it! She’s an angel!” Miaplacidus gushed through the hands he pressed to his mouth. “It wouldn’t be possible otherwise! To forgive those three… No, to go as far as making excuses for them?! How could anyone show them such compassion? The princess is still so young, yet she possesses a heart full of perfect love!!” His words were just as baffling as Scheat’s.
This was bad. Once those two got started, there was no stopping them. There wasn’t much I could do, so it would be up to Mirach or Fackt to reel them in like they always did. I gazed at the other two knights expectantly, and they seemed as cool and collected as usual.
Phew! A wave of relief washed over me as Mirach opened his mouth to speak, but not before he lowered himself to kneel on the ground in front of me.
“Princess Serafina, please forgive me for the many disrespectful things I’ve done toward you. I don’t deserve the honor of speaking directly to an angel, yet I’ve had the audacity to do so multiple times.”
“Uh, Mirach?”
Mirach wasn’t one to joke around much. I studied his face to figure out what he was up to, but to my disappointment, he looked back at me with complete sincerity.
I turned back to Fackt in disbelief, but he stood there with his arms crossed and a smug expression on his face, as if he were judging the other knights.
“I was aware from the beginning that Princess Serafina was a benevolent angel. If she weren’t, then there was no way she would have come to check on us after the chaos we caused with the other knights, let alone offer to smooth things over on our behalf. That was when I truly recognized who she really was!!”
Seeing Canopus heartily nod in approval of this statement, I realized all the knights had lost their marbles. Oh dear, I moaned internally. I probably shouldn’t have asked them to walk under the scorching summer sun for such a long time; it had done their heads in. They all seemed to have heat-induced delirium.
I attempted to snap them out of it by shouting as loud as I could.
“What’s wrong with all of you?! I’m not an angel! I always oversleep, I leave all the food I don’t like on my plate, and I even switched around Canopus’s boots three times!”
The knights blinked rapidly, as if they were trying to grasp what I was saying. Maybe they were finally waking up from their dreamlike state? Feeling a bit more optimistic, I attempted to convey my primary objective once again.
“In any case, let’s go help my brothers!”
I decided to direct my request to Canopus, as he was the one who typically paid the most attention to what I asked. I emphasized my point by giving his hand a little squeeze.
He showed the slightest hint of hesitation.
“Canopus, no!”
“Keep yourself together! Don’t let your guard down!”
But their warnings fell on deaf ears. Canopus looked at me and nodded, “Understood.”
“Canopus!!!”
The other knights hung their heads in defeat but soon lifted them, directing their gazes at Canopus with expressions of resignation.
“I knew this would happen! There’s no way Canopus can deny one of the princess’s requests.”
“I could say the exact same thing about all of you,” Canopus quickly retorted, leaving all the knights momentarily speechless.
“He’s not wrong… We already know what we have to do. The Royal Red Shield was created for the sake of the princess, after all. We can’t refuse her wishes.”
“Exactly! None of us can stand to see the princess unhappy,” Fackt agreed.
Then he turned to me, as if seeking confirmation, and said, “Princess Serafina, our primary objective is to protect you. Given the choice to save the princes’ arms or your hair from being cut off, I would most certainly choose the latter.”
That didn’t seem right to me, but I understood that arguing would just leave my brothers waiting indefinitely for help, so I nodded in silence.
It’ll be okay. If one of my brothers does happen to lose an arm, I can just patch it back together, I consoled myself.
With my resolve set, the five knights and I decided to help my three brothers.