Point of View: Canopus
A Request That Must Never Be Granted
THIS EPISODE TOOK PLACE on a day when I was guarding Princess Serafina as she picked herbs in the castle garden.
“Canopus, there’s something I’d like to ask of you.” The princess’s eyes sparkled as she gazed up at me, clearly hoping I would do her a favor.
I was a member of Princess Serafina’s Royal Red Shield, a knight whose purpose was to protect the princess. In other words, someone who was in this position must try and comply with her demands as much as possible.
While I was keenly aware of that fact, my previous experience had taught me that whatever the princess said next would most likely be a request that I could never ever grant for her. Honestly, I wanted to turn her down without even hearing what she would say, but unfortunately, that wasn’t a possibility.
Although I really didn’t want to respond, I managed to force some words from my lips and ask, “And what might that be?”
“So, you remember how we fought those fenrirs in Starfall Forest the other day? During the battle, one of them lunged straight at me.”
Ah, yes. I remembered it quite well.
I’d been trying to fend off another fenrir when that monster targeted Princess Serafina of all people. If Vice-Commander Sirius hadn’t stepped in when he did, there’s no question she would’ve sustained an injury. The sheer thought of it made my body grow cold. It was a memory steeped in regret, one that chilled me to the bones whenever it came to mind. In that moment, I had completely failed my duty as Princess Serafina’s personal knight.
“Yes, of course I remember,” I said, my teeth clenched tightly. “I could never forget that moment because it was when my own untrustworthiness put you in danger.”
“Huh? That’s not true.” The princess breezily refuted my statement. “You did great, Canopus. Anyway, that wasn’t where I was going with that. I’m going to be on the battlefield a lot from now on, so I’m sure I’ll find myself in a ton of dangerous situations like that going forward.”
“You most certainly will not, Princess. I’ll lay my life on the line to ensure such a thing never happens again.”
“Well, um, I’m not sure that’s quite right… I don’t know if I can be a real saint if I’m too afraid of getting hurt. But when the fenrir leaped at me, all I could do was…crouch down without thinking. I believe that’s where I messed up. I should’ve kept my eyes on the attack so I could heal myself right away if I got hurt.”
All the blood drained from my face as I listened to her.
“There was no way that would have been possible! Your opponent was a monster that was many times larger than you, with claws and fangs that could rip you apart. As someone who doesn’t have combat skills, there’s no way you could’ve take an attack like that head-on.”
Since many of the body’s vital organs and essential parts were in the front, Princess Serafina’s decision to turn her back to the monster wasn’t wrong from a defensive standpoint.
“But if I don’t keep an eye on the battlefield, I might miss seeing which knights need my magic. I shouldn’t be turning away, no matter how scared I am. That’s why… Canopus, would you mind striking me with your sword?”
“…C-come again?”
I couldn’t tell whether it was my mind or body that suddenly began to falter.
“I’d like to experience something similar to the impact of being attacked by a monster. Of course, I’d ask that you use a wooden sword and weak blows to start. But I’d like you to increase the power behind them little by little and eventually use the sword you have at your waist.”
I…
She…
…Huh?
Being asked the impossible by Princess Serafina, the person I was meant to protect, left me in a daze—no, more like in utter shock. I collapsed to one knee.
Just the thought of swinging a wooden sword in her direction made me want to empty the contents of my stomach on the spot.
“…Princess Serafina, you’d be better off telling me to die!”
“What?!”
“Even if you ask me carry out such nonsense, there’s no way I could ever comply!”
“Huh? But it’s just to help me train. That’s all it is.”
“Such training does not exist!!!”
It was the first time I’d ever screamed so loudly in front of the princess that I thought my throat might tear apart. Since this was such unprecedented behavior, the other knights, who had been lingering nearby, quickly rushed over to us.
“Whoa there, Canopus. What are you shouting for?”
“That scream would have been appropriate if you’d accidentally stumbled upon a body, not aimed at the princess.”
“Ha ha. Did she play a prank on you or something?”
What Princess Serafina had asked of me was something I could never utter with my own mouth. As I knelt there, staring down, the princess took it upon herself to repeat everything she had said. I looked up, still unable to speak, and noticed that my fellow knights—who had been listening so intently at first—were growing paler by the second. By the time she had finished, I could see that they’d all tumbled over and joined me on the ground.
“P-Princess! You must never ask for such a thing again!”
“I…I… Oh no, I’m sure this is going to haunt me forever!”
“If I ever did anything to harm the princess, I would take my own life!”
Evidently, the other knights felt the same way as I did. Seeing them covering their faces with their hands and crying like young maidens, confirmed to me that my reaction was natural.
Despite this, Princess Serafina, seemingly oblivious to what was happening, continued trying to persuade us.
“Since I’m a saint, I’ll be able to heal myself right away if I get hurt! Aren’t you the ones who are always going on about the importance of training?!”
Her question was met with complete silence.
Clearly, none of us were going to voice our agreement. All we could do was look at her with clear disapproval. It was only then that she seemed to realize that our resolve in this instance was firm, and her expression began to waver.
“…Um, so you’re all opposed to it? Are you worried that you’ll get in trouble if you hurt me?”
She didn’t get it at all. Obviously, anyone who hurt the princess would be beaten within an inch of his life by the king or Vice-Commander Sirius, but we weren’t refusing the princess’s request out of fear of corporal punishment. It was painfully clear that none of us ever wanted to harm our liege, the one we cherished more than anyone else, with our own hands.
There was only one thing we could say to her as we all trembled in terror. From where we knelt on the ground, we all screamed so loudly that it felt as though our throats might rip apart.
“Please, use your protection magic on yourself!!!”
She always cast her protection magic on us, when it was her who should be the true target.
“Oh, I guess that could work as well.” Princess Serafina chirped, lightly clapping her hands together as if the thought had just occurred to her. All of us felt the strength leave our bodies as we realized it was something she’d never considered before.
As we all still lay sprawled on the ground, Princess Serafina innocently devised a new plan.
“That is a good idea, but there may be times when I can’t protect against everything. So I still think it’s important to prepare for the worst and do some train—”
“There’s no need for that! We’ll protect you, no matter what!!”
“Princess! Please, dismiss the thought from your head right now!!”
“If you wish to put us at ease, never speak of this again, not now, not ever!!”
“…A-all right.”
Princess Serafina nodded, seemingly taken aback by how vehemently the other knights and I were responding one after another, although it didn’t seem she had any idea why.
But seeing as the princess had agreed to our request, it didn’t seem like this conversation needed to continue any longer. We knights were about to finally get back to our feet when Scheat and Miaplacidus, who’d been a considerable distance away, came running over.
“What’s gotten into you all, shouting like that? We could hear you from a mile away!”
“Why are you all lying sprawled out on the ground? Is this some sort of training exercise?”
“Well…”
When we saw that Princess Serafina was about to dutifully explain herself for the third time, we all shouted from the ground, hoping to avoid a repeat of what had just happened.
“It’s nothing! You two get out here, right now!!!”
It was a desperate plea, born from the fear that if the same thing were to happen again, we wouldn’t make it through. And yet that duo, who were always so carefree, mocked us by pretending to shiver, completely oblivious to the gravity of the situation.
“Oh, scary.”
“Come on. Did you all lose your wallets or something? You seem to be in terrible moods.”
We’d interrupted the princess to protect ourselves, but there was no doubt we’d saved these two as well. Despite this, they were both smirking without a clue to what was happening around them. Deciding to ignore them entirely, I instead turned to Princess Serafina and sincerely pleaded with her.
“Princess, there are some wishes that can’t be granted, and this is one of them! I know you’re a very clever girl, so please try and understand.”
“Please try and understand!” The other knights pleading voices echoed behind mine, and Princess Serafina nodded in agreement once more.
“O-okay!”
Hearing that, all of us knights on the ground finally let out a collective sigh of relief. Staggering to my feet, I—along with all the other knights who stood up at the same time—shuddered, each of us trembling at the thought of how many more times the princess would ask us to do the impossible.
Scheat and Miaplacidus’s eyes lit up with interest at our shock, as if they were wondering what exactly had gone down. All I could think as I gave them a sidelong glance was that ignorance is bliss. Still, knowing what I did about the two of them, they would try and get to the bottom of this and stumble on the truth eventually. That will lead to them both taking severe mental damage, I thought to myself, almost perfectly predicting the near future.
Curiosity killed the cat. I knew that quite well, but I was far too drained by that point to give the two of them a thorough warning. Although I felt a few pangs of guilt, I decided to let the matter go for the time being.
It was undoubtedly a great honor to be entrusted with the princess’s protection, a source of pride beyond measure…but with my mind weary and my body tired, I also came to realize just how much hardship it entailed.