ELLY 5
The Duke's Daughter Goes Her Own Way
The Guard Knight Who Must Never Laugh
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*****
Four years have already passed since I was appointed as a guard knight to His Highness, Crown Prince Leonard.
His Highness, who once possessed the innocent air of a child, is now fourteen years old. That innocence has vanished completely, replaced by a sharp, intelligent demeanor.
Though His Highness gives off a slender and elegant impression, he is actually extraordinarily skilled with a sword.
Even so, that doesn't mean he can be left without a guard.
I was personally appointed by His Highness as his guard, and today I serve as his Chief Guard Knight. Since this was an unusual appointment, it apparently caused a bit of friction at the time.
However, His Highness silenced all opposition.
「Your Highness, pardon the intrusion. Do you have a moment?」
To the maid who inquired, His Highness asked briefly, 「What is it?」 His Highness dislikes wastefulness. Thanks to that, the workplace atmosphere is transparent and comfortable.
「Lady Elizabeth wishes to see you. May she have a moment of your time?」
「Of course. Show her in.」
「Yes, Your Highness.」
Bowing, the maid withdrew for a moment.
His Highness would never treat his fiancée, Lady Elizabeth, cold-heartedly. Even if he had no time to spare, should Lady Elizabeth request an audience, he would push himself to make time regardless.
Everyone around His Highness knows just how deeply he treasures her.
A short while later, Lady Elizabeth arrived accompanied by a maid.
She was a strikingly beautiful lady who gave off a delicate, fleeting impression, but that was likely not where her true charm lay.
「Thank you for taking the time to see me.」
As Lady Elizabeth bowed deeply, His Highness stood from his desk chair and stepped over to her.
Taking her hand, he guided her toward the reception sofa and seated himself right beside her.
Lady Elizabeth scanned the office with a smooth, natural movement. Then, after a beat, she nodded to herself approvingly.
At that gesture, a subtle smile spilled from His Highness's lips.
Similarly, both I and the other guard knight present had to cast our eyes downward to keep from breaking into laughter.
「A passing mark today?」
To His Highness's teasing question, Lady Elizabeth offered a radiant smile.
「Today, as always, absolute perfection!」
「I see...」
As His Highness responded, his shoulders shook slightly with suppressed laughter.
In contrast, Lady Elizabeth beamed with a full, bright smile.
I was present on the day Lady Elizabeth and His Highness first met as well.
Guard knights for members of the royal family, including His Highness, are chosen under special criteria.
Our primary duty as "guards" is to "protect" the royals under our care.
For instance, if an intruder were to break in, our job is not to capture the intruder. It is to secure the safety of the royal family. Catching intruders is the job of the palace security guards.
Therefore, being skilled with a blade is not enough on its own. We undergo training focused on how to swiftly pull them away from danger, how to maneuver to ensure the safe escape of our charges... and so forth.
Naturally, we still hone our swordplay and condition our bodies as well.
Because of the nature of this work, we have designated positioning.
Particularly within the royal palace, rules like "in this location, the number of guards and their formation must be like this" are strictly fixed. It is a formation that keeps the target continuously in sight while eliminating blind spots in the surroundings.
Furthermore, guard knights are preferentially chosen from among the Royal Guard based on who possesses the best looks.
Attending to the royals and protecting their persons at all times is our primary mandate. Thus, whenever they hold audiences with dignitaries and noble guests, we stand guard in the room.
In such situations, if they were accompanied by overly rugged, terrifyingly grim guards, some guests might feel "intimidated."
Taking that into consideration, guards are chosen to be as non-threatening and good-looking as possible.
I am self-aware enough to know that I am reasonably good-looking.
Even while standing on duty as a guard, noble ladies occasionally approach and speak to me.
His Highness choosing me was partly due to these looks as well.
According to His Highness, "It helps disperse the tiresome amorous glances from young ladies, for which I am grateful." (Is this really guard duty, or am I just a human sacrifice?)
On the day of His Highness and Lady Elizabeth's first meeting, we guards were at our assigned posts.
It was business as usual. We kept His Highness in the center of our vision while remaining alert to our surroundings, eliminating blind spots around him with the guards present in the room.
In places beyond our line of sight, hidden guards were positioned out of view.
Once His Highness was seated, Lady Elizabeth cast her gaze around the area in a fluid, natural manner, as though admiring the entire garden. Then, as if satisfied by something, she gave a succession of firm nods.
(Was she impressed by the beauty of the garden?)
(Or perhaps she felt a sense of pride over how handsome her fiancé's guards were?)
Everyone present, including His Highness, would be utterly floored by the conversation that followed.
And then a thought occurred to me.
A person of her exceptional insight—
Through our subsequent conversations, it became clear that Lady Elizabeth was not the type to be swept away merely by the aesthetic charm of a garden.
(...So what had she been looking at? And what had satisfied her so?)
When I mentioned this to His Highness, it turned out he had felt the exact same way.
"I shall ask Lady Elizabeth about it another day," His Highness had said.
A few months after that first meeting, His Highness finally brought up the matter.
Standing in attendance, I was called over by His Highness to stand by his side and participate in the conversation.
「Regarding the day we first met...」
When Lady Elizabeth tilted her head with a puzzled "What about it?", His Highness lightly tilted his head in return.
「After I took my seat, you scanned the surroundings, didn't you? You did the same today.」
Indeed.
On that day, and on every occasion before it, as soon as His Highness sat down, Lady Elizabeth would check her surroundings and nod in quiet satisfaction.
「What is it that you're looking at?」
「Umm... well...」
As Lady Elizabeth awkwardly shifted her gaze toward the ceiling, His Highness offered a wry smile.
「At this point, nothing you say could shock me. ...Well, I might still be surprised, but I certainly won't blame you.」
(Oh, you'll definitely be surprised...)
At His Highness's words, I couldn't help agreeing in my mind.
After a moment of hesitation, Lady Elizabeth spoke up timidly.
「I was... checking the layout... of the guards...」
The layout.
...(Huh? The layout?!)
His Highness looked somewhat stunned as well.
Ever since meeting Lady Elizabeth, His Highness had become far more expressive. ...(I should consider that a good thing.)
「Their positioning, their field of vision... There are no blind spots, no wasted movements, achieving maximum efficiency with a minimal number of guards... I was thinking how splendid it was...」
As we stood there dumbfounded and speechless, Lady Elizabeth's voice grew smaller and smaller.
It was an answer none of us could have anticipated.
Not the beauty of the garden, not His Highness's handsome features, not even our own above-average looks—it was our tactical placement!
And the fact that she had nodded in satisfaction today meant she had been inspecting our formation once again.
(...She really is a novel kind of noble lady. In a good way.)
Ever since then, whenever Lady Elizabeth gave her satisfied nod, His Highness would tease her in that playful tone, asking 「A passing mark today?」
And every single time, Lady Elizabeth would nod back with a lovely smile, declaring, 「It is splendid!」
"We certainly can't cut any corners," my colleagues and I joked amongst ourselves.
Not that we had any intention of slacking off in the first place.
Having granted us her "passing grade" once again today, Lady Elizabeth accepted a small package from the maid standing behind her.
It was wrapped in paper with a delicate lace pattern, tied up like a pouch with a ribbon.
Was it a present for His Highness?
Lady Elizabeth held it respectfully in both hands and presented it to His Highness.
「What is this?」
To His Highness's puzzled question, Lady Elizabeth lowered her eyes to look at the package in her hands.
「They are cookies I baked myself.」
「You baked them? You, Elly?」
「Yes.」
Nodding, Lady Elizabeth stared intently at the adorable package. Her eyes were so deadly serious it was almost terrifying.
「I believe that girls inherently yearn for things like "handmade treats" and "cute items"!」
「Ah, u-mm... I suppose so...?」
(Your Highness! You're speaking in a question!)
「As a lady, I resolved that I must try my hand at making homemade sweets at least once!」
「Ah, right...?」
(Your Highness! Even your agreement shouldn't be a question!)
「And what resulted from that effort is this Cookie (Provisional)!」
「Wait, hold on a moment. What's with the "(Provisional)"?」
His Highness's retorts have become quite practiced.
And naturally, Lady Elizabeth is equally accustomed to being called out by him.
「Because no matter how one looks at it, I can only describe it as "an indescribable something resembling a cookie"...」
An indescribable something resembling a cookie...
(What should I do? I'm intensely curious. I have nothing but curiosity.)
While His Highness had a somewhat distant look in his eyes, personally, my curiosity was completely piqued.
「We have a maid at home who is exceptionally talented at baking, so I tried making them under her instruction. Yet I have absolutely no idea how it turned out like this.」
She appealed with a deadly serious expression, but I desperately wished she would stop attacking our abs.
I could never tell Lady Elizabeth this, but over the past few years, the duty of Crown Prince's Guard has come to be known informally as the "Ab-Strengthening Squad."
The reason being that Lady Elizabeth's words and actions are simply hilarious.
Her antics are so utterly off the wall that one would swear she is actively trying to make us laugh.
However, as guard knights, we cannot laugh in front of our master.
Thus, our abdominal muscles are continuously tested by Lady Elizabeth.
「The steps and ingredients were all correct. Cooking is chemistry, so as long as one does not mistake those, the proper result should naturally follow.」
「Right.」
His Highness's response was a bit half-hearted.
Lady Elizabeth untied the ribbon of the adorable package in her hand.
Inside were neatly rounded cookies. From where I stood, they looked completely normal.
Placing the package on her lap, she pulled out two cookies and clapped them together.
「Does it not produce a lovely sound, much like fine charcoal?」
Every time the cookies struck each other, a crisp clink, clank echoed through the room.
「I suppose so...?」
His Highness's agreement turned into a question once again.
All the while, our abdominal muscles were enduring a severe trial.
「As you have likely deduced, their structural integrity is astonishing. I cannot comprehend why this happened.」
His Highness abandoned giving responses altogether.
Lady Elizabeth looked down at the Cookie (Provisional) in her hands, letting out a melancholy sigh.
「Even so, this was the absolute best batch among those I produced. That is why I thought to bring them as a treat for you, Your Highness... Ah! Consuming them poses no harm to the body! That has already been proven!」
「I see...」
「Furthermore, to my utter astonishment, no matter how or what happened, they have absolutely no flavor whatsoever!」
As Lady Elizabeth made her earnest plea, my colleague Norman, who was standing near the doorway, finally couldn't hold it in and burst out laughing.
I came dangerously close myself, but managed to endure by pressing my fist against my mouth.
Having burst out, Norman cleared his throat softly to cover it up.
Lady Elizabeth didn't seem bothered by it at all.
「Where on earth did all that sugar, butter, and eggs I poured in go...? What manner of miracle occurred to create this Cookie (Provisional)...?」
「A miracle...」
(Please stop, Your Highness.)
(Our abdominal muscles are about to scream.)
「I practiced relentlessly for an entire week for this. It is my crowning masterpiece in the realm of cookies. Furthermore, our head chef informed me that I am barred from entering the kitchen ever again, making this my first and last batch of cookies.」
「First and last...」
Thanks to His Highness repeating those words with pinpoint precision, I was forced to clear my throat repeatedly.
Norman was trembling like a leaf.
「I brought them for you as a "commemoration of my baking attempt"... Possible uses include setting up a target in the distance and throwing them for sport.」
「...No, these are cookies, right?」
「Personally, that was my intention.」
As Lady Elizabeth nodded with complete sincerity, I began to tremble uncontrollably as well.
Today's abdominal training was remarkably tough.
「Perhaps I shall try one.」
His Highness picked up a Cookie (Provisional) from the package spread across Lady Elizabeth's lap.
He attempted to break it in half, but it refused to yield. He was clearly applying considerable force, as his arms were trembling.
At that sight, Norman was already on the brink of death.
「...Are these truly cookies?」
At the question from His Highness, who had given up on breaking it, Lady Elizabeth tilted her head.
「I do not know. The ingredients and preparation method were identical to ordinary cookies.」
His Highness stepped over to his desk, spread a handkerchief across it, placed the cookie on top, and wrapped it up.
He then pulled a letter opener from a drawer and slammed its handle down onto the cookie.
A sharp thwack! echoed—a sound that had no business coming from a pastry.
Simultaneously, Norman quietly slipped out of the room. In his place, a knight who had been guarding the hallway stepped inside.
Dion, who had traded places, wore a slightly amused expression, wondering what had destroyed Norman's abs.
(Enjoy that composure while it lasts.)
Returning to the sofa with the handkerchief bundle where the Cookie (Provisional) was presumably shattered, His Highness gently opened it.
「Thank goodness. It broke properly.」
His Highness's relieved murmur struck my abs head-on.
I wanted to leave just like Norman, but as the Chief Guard, I could not so easily abandon His Highness's side.
His Highness picked up a small fragment from the bundle and popped it into his mouth.
「Ah! Please do not try to bite it! Our gardener chipped a tooth on one!」
(The gardener!)
(What a tragedy for you, gardener!)
His Highness rolled the piece of Cookie (Provisional) around in his mouth in silence for a while before letting out a sigh.
「...It truly has no flavor whatsoever.」
「Indeed...」
(Please don't nod with such a serious expression!)
(I can't leave this spot!)
「I shall give some to you two as well.」
Standing up smoothly, His Highness handed fragments of the Cookie (Provisional) to both me and Dion.
「Ah, please do not force yourselves to bite it, either of you!」
His Highness had consumed it right before our eyes.
There was no way we could decline.
For now, I placed it in my mouth.
The texture was strangely smooth—as though I were holding a polished stone in my mouth.
And indeed, even as I tried to let it melt on my tongue, it had no taste.
Though... I felt as though there might be the faintest, subtle hint of butter.
「I have been thinking...」
Looking at His Highness, who had taken his seat beside her again, Lady Elizabeth wore a solemn expression.
「Hmm?」
「What if we used these as field rations for the military? They lack flavor, but they keep for a long time. Furthermore, as they indisputably contain sugar and butter, they would provide calorie replenishment. And in a pinch, they might even serve as a weapon.」
A muffled gagh! escaped Dion as he choked on a laugh.
That night, after returning to our quarters, Norman, Dion, and I commended each other for surviving today's rigorous abdominal training.
*****
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