♦　♦　♦

I, Hielo von Surmelo, was born to serve as the future king’s shield.

As for the “sword”, that duty fell onto my brother. My brother followed in our father’s footsteps so flawlessly I stood no chance against him. As it was, in the near future, he’d surely play an active role on the battlefield as the sword of the future king.

—So then, why was I born?

In the end, I had to be a shield that protected the king from all manner of harm.

Therefore, I had to train my body, I took up swordsmanship, and learned all kinds of martial arts.

After all, if a shield wasn’t fortified, it’d just shatter.

It was for the sake of protecting my master—and at the same time, myself.

Nevertheless, even if I was destined to die for someone—I wanted to live as long as possible.

Is that such an arrogant wish?

***

I had a fiancée.

Her name was Constanze, and she was of the same age as me.

Oh, you pitiful thing.

If we actually got married, I might not die, but her future would surely be a lonely one. After all, I couldn’t use my life to protect my own spouse.

—Nevertheless, she always tried to get closer with me.

“Let’s have lunch together.”

“Won’t you have some tea with me?”

“Let’s go somewhere, only the two of us.”

…Although I’d have preferred using my time to train. Again, I wanted to prolong my life.

—And if possible, I wanted to protect my future spouse. Not as a knight, but as a man. If I were to die, who’d protect my wife and children?

Not to mention, the young lady named Constanze was a very delicate woman.

Her arms and legs were very slender. Her skin was also bright. I felt like she’d break if I wasn’t careful.

“Hey, Hielo. Can I watch your training today? I won’t bother you.”

“…Don’t, you’ll just be distraction.”

“It can’t be helped.”

—Stop it. Please don’t smile with such sorrow.

I mean, isn’t it boring to watch me train?

…The guilt felt truly painful.

But one day, it was as if my entire world was brimming with light.

“Oh, if it isn’t Sir Hielo. How have you been?”

She was a lady who’d soon become the wife of the crown prince, my master.

She just enrolled earlier that year. While jogging in the morning, I chanced upon her. She proceeded to give me such a nonchalant greeting. She looked prim and proper, befitting of the future queen.

The proud way she stood bedazzled me.

After a while, she started talking in ‘Kyururun’—but it didn’t matter.

If only my fiancée was her. If she were, then I wouldn’t need to worry about her safety. For some reason, such a conviction engulfed my chest.

If only it were her…

Even if I were to perish in the near future, I wouldn’t have to succumb to guilt. I wondered if the intense feeling I had towards her was “love”…

…Even though I only lightly bumped into her, Constanze fell with a thud.

She must’ve suffered a cut on the corner of her lips. What a fragile woman.

…I’m sorry, I can’t protect you.

No matter how hard I’d try, I only had two sets of limbs.

—Which was why…

“Constanze, I’d like to annul my engagement with you.”

“N-no way…!?”

She seemed ready to cry…

…Please, I want you to be happy with someone who can actually prioritize your safety.

The moment Lumiere kicked me, I felt that my world had somewhat dulled.

Immediately after that, I suddenly woke up with incomprehensible urge.

—I have to apologize for all my sins.

—I also have to apologize to Constanze and ask for an annulment…

After all, regardless of the reason, a violent man such as me was undeserving of her hand.

—Hence why, please, I want you to be happy with another man.

Or so I thought.

“Hey, I heard about it… Apparently, you got off from Lumiere’s kick. What a perv.”

A harsh tone I’d never heard before flew out of Constanze’s mouth.

She crossed her arms and smirked proudly. Even though she was shorter than me, she was looking down on me.

“—Hold on! Where are you going with this? Shouldn’t you make him beg for forgiveness first? Eh!? Are we really going with that direction!?”

A pink-haired girl stood behind Constanze. For some reason, she was whispering some instructions to my fiancée.

“It’s up to me whether or not we proceed with this engagement or not. After all, you were the one who hurt me, so you have no right!”

However, Constanze was only upset at the beginning.

“If you want to beg for forgiveness, lick my feet. Who knows, I might consider keeping you as my pet dog from now on!”

“…Eh, I didn’t mean to go that far—”

—I didn’t know, but Constanze looked like she was having so much fun. Even her adviser (?), Irene, was stunned.

Regardless, her proud attitude was accentuated by the blinding sun.

“Haha… I’m truly sorry about before.”

“What are you laughing at!? Do you want to eat straight from the floor!?”

Even entertain the thought of protecting her was foolish of me.

To such an independent woman, I kneeled down from the bottom of my heart.

***

—Thus, the next day, I ended up having lunch with Constanze.

Prince Grimwald seemed to be spending time with Lumiere that day. I envied him for monopolizing her…

…I didn’t even have time to think about such things.

“Oh, my… You have the gall to think of something else when you’re with me. If you like Lady Lumiere that much, you can just go?”

My fiancée leaned forward and used her fan to lift my chin.

After being slightly enamored by my lively fiancée, I shrugged.

“No, I’m fine. But may I give Lady Lumiere a present next time? I feel like it’s thanks to her that I’m in such a cheerful mood.”

Indeed, I felt like a fog had been lifted from my mind.

I thought it was because of my guilt towards Constanze.

For some reason, after being kicked by Lumiere, my head cleared up.

I felt like I should also be grateful for the abuse I received from Irene but… I wonder why? I didn’t feel the same kind of gratitude towards her.

“…If that’s a joke, it’s in bad taste.”

Well, leaving that aside—

—I sat back in my seat and stopped looking at her. Then, I fixed my position and bowed my head.

“If possible, I’d like for you to choose the gift. Are you free tomorrow? Of course, I’d like to treat you to a meal as a thank you for your time.”

“I see… Do you have any presents for injuring me?”

“O-of course, I’ll give you anything you want!”

She still had a scar on her face. She told me that it’d soon disappear without a trace.

…Still, I vowed ‘that until the time she died, I’d atone for my sins.

When I leaned forward and asked her, “What’d you like?” She soon averted her gaze. Then, with an unfamiliar expression on her face, Constanze spoke.

“…A ring.” Then, she went on. “Sure, we can go in the afternoon. My schedule happens to be empty. I also feel like eating meat tomorrow.”

“Then, let’s find a store. This will be my first time, so I don’t think we can find it right away, but…”

“I don’t mind anywhere, as long as I’m with you.”

Amidst the bustling cafeteria, all I thought about was Constanze’s delighted expression.

---

***T/N: But this dude kinda abused her while the femmc tried to cover it up… We not gonna talk about that? Okay.

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