Master Eldric's voice turned furious as he glared at his student. "Kaelen! Come with me to the fighting arena. Now!"
Oh, Kael is in deep trouble. And no, I can't let him be removed. Not when I'm magicless, clueless, and clearly assassin bait.
Political marriage included. Of course.
Wow. This isn't a fantasy novel. This is one of those hardcore webtoons where the author hates the main character.
I scrambled off the bed, rushed over to stand right beside Kaelen, and blurted out, "Grandpa!"
Crap. My social worker habit of calling the elderly 'grandpa' just kicked in. Damn it!
Master Eldric looked at me, half-amused and half-surprised. But there was no turning back now.
"Grandpa, Kael was just doing his duty!" I continued, putting on my best pleading face. "It's on me! I acted in a way that made him think I was a fake. Please don't scold him. Please, please!"
Kaelen just looked at me, his face still that same cold, expressionless mask.
"Tsk, what are you doing?" I whispered sharply, nudging him. "Bow and say sorry! It's an order!"
He hesitated for a millisecond, then bowed his head low. "I am sorry, Master Eldric."
Master Eldric finally let out a long sigh. "Your Highness, I won't go against your words. But if something like this happens again, I will teach my pupil a lesson he won't forget."
I nodded rapidly. "Yes, yes! Thank you! Ah—and I'm sorry I called you Grandpa without asking. I just felt so at ease when you healed me."
Master Eldric's face softened into a genuinely warm smile. "You may call me Grandpa whenever you wish, Your Highness."
"Yes! Grandpa!" I beamed.
Suddenly, the blue screen flickered to life in front of my eyes.
[ SUCCESS: Tamed the Master of the Strongest Knight Alive ]
[ You survived by taming the Master, Celine. You really are something else. ]
I smirked. See? Tamed! But the screen wasn't done. It flickered again, the text turning a cautious yellow.
[ SURVIVAL TIP: To survive tomorrow, find the Royal Library. ]
[ URGENT: Tame the Strongest Knight Alive soon to survive the library encounter. ]
My smile vanished.
Huh? You mean I'm still gonna die tomorrow?!
"Your Highness?" Grandpa Eldric's voice is full of concern. "Your smile... it faded. Your face seems pale! Are you not feeling well? Should I call upon the Royal Physician?"
I force a fake smile onto my face, waving my hand dismissively. "No, no. It's just exhaustion from the ceremony and then... well, all of this," I say, gesturing vaguely at the mess in the room.
Grandpa Eldric immediately shoots a sharp, stinging glare at Kaelen.
"Ah, no! Please don't blame him," I interject quickly. "It's okay. I just need some rest."
"Yes, Your Highness," Grandpa says, though he still looks like he wants to scold his pupil. "I'll send your new handmaiden, the one assigned specifically for you, to the room."
"No, please—" I start, then catch myself. "I, uhm... I just need some time alone. Also, I can change on my own. No need for a handmaiden, Grandpa."
He hesitates but eventually nods. He gives Kaelen one last warning glare before his body slowly turns toward the door to leave.
"Also, please stop calling me 'Your Highness' in every line," I call out after him. "Not when I'm calling you Grandpa."
He pauses, looking back at me with a warmth that makes me feel a little less like an impostor. "Young lady?" he tries.
"Still formal, but better!" I say, chuckling softly.
As the door shuts behind Grandpa, the silence in the room feels heavy. I'm alone again with the man who just tried to kill me. But I have to be smart—I need to tame him. In a world where I have zero magic, I really need this powerhouse on my side.
"Ahem," I clear my throat, crossing my arms. "Don't you think you should say something?"
Kaelen doesn't hesitate. He drops onto one knee, bowing his head deeply. "I stand in fault before you, my lady."
I look down at him, trying to channel my inner 'Genre-Savvy Queen.' "You will be punished!" I say, my voice firm.
"I submit myself to your judgment, my lady," he replies, his voice steady and devoid of its earlier murderous edge.
He's completely still, waiting for me to drop the hammer. I could make him do anything, but as a former social worker, I know that raw punishment doesn't build loyalty.
I smirked, leaning back and watching him sweat. This was the perfect way to get the lay of the land without looking like I'd just dropped in from another dimension.
"Tonight, you're going to tell me your story," I said, tilting my head. "How you became the strongest knight alive. I've heard the versions the commoners tell, but I'm in the mood for the real gossip."
Kaelen's brow furrowed, his eyes still locked on the floor. "My story? My lady, as you might have heard already, it is not a pleasant one."
"I know," I countered, resting my chin on my palm. "But I'd rather hear it from your mouth than from some half-drunk bard or a bored maid. Consider it a way to clear the air... just like how you 'clarified' your little doubts about me."
I leaned in closer, dropping my voice to that sugar-sweet tone that usually meant someone was about to get audited.
"Oh, who was it again? The one who grabbed Her Princess by the throat because of a 'silly hunch'? I wonder who that was? Do you know him... Kael?"
He flinched. Just a tiny twitch of the jaw, but I caught it. I could practically feel the guilt radiating off him. He'd messed up, and he knew I had the leverage now. He wasn't just a knight anymore; he was a man who had almost committed treason against a "magicless" woman.
"I... I understand, my lady," he muttered, his voice gravelly.
"Good," I said, making myself comfortable. "Start from the beginning. Tell me how you ended up as Lucian's shadow. I want to know exactly what kind of 'hero' I've married into."
Kaelen took a slow, heavy breath, his eyes fixed on a distant point on the rug.
"It was twenty years ago," he began, his voice dropping into that somber, storytelling tone. "The Great Forest was buried under a relentless snowstorm. I was shivering, starving, with nothing but a rusted blade and the clothes on my back..."
Oh, here we go, I thought, suppressing the urge to roll my eyes. The classic manhwa trope. The benevolent Prince finds a pathetic, shivering kid in the snow, takes him home, trains him to be a legendary knight, and now he's the loyal-to-a-fault bodyguard. I've read these stories a thousand times.
"I was there," Kaelen continued, his voice turning cold as ice. "To assassinate Lord Lucian."
My smirk froze.
...Wait, what?