The Second Strongest Has Returned

Chapter 18

Friends

Silence filled the room.

Only the quiet and still time occupied the space.

It was a silence so profound it felt as if stillness itself had settled in the room.

“…Why are you just standing there?”

It was a question that broke the deep, lingering silence.

“Excuse me?”

The head of the household approached Ariasphil and spoke.

“Weren’t you planning to lay her on the bed? If you keep holding her, she might wake up.”

Leo was rather taken aback by the accurate and cold analysis. On reflection, that was indeed the usual way of thinking. A 13-year-old boy assaulting the daughter of the household head inside his mansion was beyond common sense.

[Tsk, this is getting boring…]

With that face, how easy could it be to find something to laugh at? Just looking in the mirror every day would bring endless laughter.

[I’m a ghost.]

Oh, right, then he wouldn’t be able to see his own face. Leo felt a moment of pity for never experiencing such a comedy again, and then focused back on the head of the household.

“Ah, yes.”

Leo gently laid Ariasphil, whom he was holding in his arms, onto the bed. Covering her with a blanket was a natural act of kindness for a servant.

“Thank you. Could we talk for a moment? If we are too loud, she might wake up.”

Leo nodded instead of answering and followed the head of the household out of the room. Gladiolus walked around the mansion with a thin smile on his face.

“It’s a good night. The weather is cool for the season.”

Outside the mansion, Gladiolus looked around the garden and spoke.

“Indeed. A night like this would be regrettable to miss.”

Finding amusement in Leo’s words, Gladiolus now wore a broad smile.

“You are quite a rare person. Ah, I mean that in a positive way.”

“I often hear that I am unusual.”

“In a positive way?”

“I’ll leave that to your imagination.”

It wasn’t hard to guess what kind of speculation that might invite.

“You are remarkably humble for a mercenary, and yet astonishingly wild to be called a noble. I may not have lived as long as my predecessors, but I have never met someone like you.”

It was a different evaluation compared to when he first met the head of the household in his previous life. Back then, he had only received a mere ‘spirited boy’ comment.

“Is that so? Such high praise is a bit embarrassing.”

“Don’t belittle yourself. I am being sincere.”

The garden’s path was modest compared to the size of the mansion. However, it exuded a different atmosphere from other estates.

“When I first saw this path, I found it puzzling. It seemed somewhat out of place with the grandeur of the Reinhardt family.”

The head of the household walked along the path between the bushes.

“In Reinhardt, it seems harder to find something without grandeur.”

“Haha, you are right. But that’s the charm of this path.”

Walking along the path, he shared his philosophy.

“As you know, grandeur tends to set a tone. It makes people respectful and creates a sense of decorum.”

Leo agreed. The first thing the boy learned as a servant was not swordsmanship or mana breathing, but etiquette.

“But that grandeur often leads to falsehoods. It breeds hypocrisy and flattery.”

“Unfortunately, that’s true.”

“Yes. That’s why I like this garden. At least here, grandeur is diminished, and tension is reduced.”

“I am always in awe of Reinhardt’s wisdom.”

Leo responded with the manners he had learned from the Reinhardt family.

[Stop flattering him and talk properly.]

The education that had instilled such patience in him made Leo admire it all the more.

“…I watched the duel and the speech today.”

“I apologize if it caused any trouble.”

“No, there’s no need to apologize. You were simply true to your goals and duties. If anyone should apologize, it’s those who escalated the situation.”

That person was the eldest son of the Reinhardt family and was presumably very promising in the future.

“But others might not see it that way.”

“I am aware of that.”

“That’s good, but it left me with a dilemma. How should I treat you?”

Had it been a matter of ‘handling’ him, Leo might have worried, but the term ‘treat’ made him tilt his head slightly.

“What do you mean by that…?”

“If you remain a mere servant, no one will accept it. It is only right that the stronger person holds a higher rank.”

He wasn’t wrong. Assigning positions based on ability was a fundamental principle of meritocracy.

“But if I give you a rank, there might be resistance. It was unclear whether others would recognize that rank.”

That was also a valid point. Leo had nothing to show for except his skills, making him an easy target for criticism.

“Indeed, a fair point.”

“That’s why the dilemma deepened. Each choice had clear disadvantages.”

Then the head of the household stopped walking.

“So I came up with a compromise.”

“May I ask what that is?”

He looked Leo in the eyes and spoke his solution.

“Leonardo, become Arias’ knight.”

“…You mean her bodyguard?”

Leo asked in an uneven voice, slightly taken aback by the unexpected proposal.

“Bodyguard… Of course, you would need to guard her, but that’s not all I ask.”

He turned his gaze toward the mansion. From the angle, it seemed to be the window of the room where Arias was sleeping.

“Ariasphil is my daughter, but she is very different from others. She is so unique that calling her special doesn’t even begin to cover it.”

“She indeed possesses an unparalleled charm.”

“Haha, I’m grateful to hear that.”

Though he was laughing, his eyes were dark.

“But others did not see it that way. Simple malice like envy or jealousy was cute compared to…”

There were, of course, people who envied and were jealous of Ariasphil. Leo himself was once such a person. But she inspired awe that made such feelings insignificant.

“…Awe?”

“Perhaps. Even I, as her father, find her talent frightening.”

“Parents can never win against their children.”

“…Haha, you are always so relaxed.”

Looking at Leo, some vitality returned to his dark eyes.

“Thinking back, Arias changed after meeting you.”

“…I did teach her some swordsmanship…”

“That’s not what I mean.”

It didn’t take much time or thought to understand his different meaning.

“Arias’ eyes were filled with boredom. The density of the time she lived, the very essence of her life, was different. Even I might not fully understand it.”

Whether it was because or in spite of being her father, Gladiolus could recognize his daughter’s otherness better than anyone. It took Leo years to understand her ennui.

“But after meeting you, Arias said something for the first time.”

A father of a young girl smiled, both bitterly and brightly.

“She said she was happy.”

“…She said she was happy?”

“She said she enjoyed training. She said it was truly enjoyable.”

It might be an exaggeration to say, but even Leo rarely heard such words. For Arias, it might have been the first time.

“Upon hearing that, I felt jealousy for the first time in my life. My feelings until then seemed like mere trifles.”

Leo couldn’t say a word.

“Who was the person who made my daughter happy before me? How did they make her happy? Those thoughts filled my mind.”

Because his words were so sincere.

“And when I dined with you, I had to accept it.”

Leo had to remain silent.

“You are such a person, deserving of such praise, even if it makes me jealous.”

“You overpraise me. I am merely…”

“You’re too modest. If you keep being humble, what does that make my jealousy?”

Though not wrong, Leo couldn’t fully accept the compliment. He had used the trick of reincarnation.

“So, I have a favor to ask.”

Thus, the evaluation…

“Please stay by Arias’ side.”

“…”

“You don’t have to always say nice things or understand her completely. If you think she’s wrong, point it out, and if you feel she’s misguided, stop her. You are the most suitable for that role.”

“…That…”

That kind of role could exist in various relationships. Parents, teachers, or siblings… But only one word came to Leo’s mind.

“Are you asking me to be her…friend?”

It could be seen as arrogant. A mere commoner mercenary being friends with the noble daughter of a hero family—such a story had long been deemed absurd even in fiction.

“I would like that. Asking you to be her knight had that implication. After all, being her knight would make it more convenient.”

“…I see.”

Even so,

“Of course, if you find it uncomfortable…”

“I will do it.”

There was no reason to hesitate.

“…Thank you, but you accepted rather quickly.”

“…Do you remember what I said when we first met?”

Of course,

“Ariasphil is my goal.”

That was Leo’s goal.

“…Haha…”

That goal made him laugh a bit. As if a tightly wound string of tension had loosened, a helpless laugh escaped him.

“I’m sorry. I must have forgotten, even though you declared it at the training ground.”

“It’s fine. I will remind you as many times as needed.”

“That reassures me. My mind feels at ease.”

The head of the household took a deep breath and looked at the sky.

“It’s quite late. I’ve kept you up too long. You may go in.”

“It was an honor to spend the late hours with you. Good night, sir.”

Leo said as he left the garden and returned to his separate quarters.

“…

Phew…”

Entering his room, Leo wiped his face. His face felt damp, and he wiped off the moisture.

“…Huh?”

But it was strange. Despite wiping his face, a subtle moisture remained, and his eyes felt wet.

His vision blurred as if a mist had formed before his eyes.

Only then did he realize.

[Are you crying?]

He was crying.

He couldn’t find a reason for it.

Not because there was none, but because there were too many.

He couldn’t find a single reason.

“…Ugh…”

His previous life’s efforts didn’t seem in vain.

The efforts to surpass her,

The life dedicated to that goal,

For the first time, their value was recognized.

Tears welled up at that sentiment…

[Hey, are you crying? Crying? Are you crying, you bastard?]

Before they could fall, that person shattered his sentiment like a glass cup.

Such was his life.

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