Helping with a Small Favor

Since it was an invitation from the princess, Firth naturally would not refuse.

Exchanging a few words posed no problem, so he followed behind Ellie and boarded the carriage adorned with royal patterns.

In fact, when he arrived earlier, he had already noticed this carriage.

He had thought that the crown prince had come here as well.

He hadn’t expected that it was actually the second princess — the one who rarely ever left the palace — who had come.

“I have a few things to discuss with Mr. Firth. You may step aside for now. Don’t worry — as the vice commander, he will ensure my safety.”

After boarding the carriage, Ellie waved toward the knights standing guard outside the window.

Compared to her, the second princess, Firth seemed to hold greater authority.

After she spoke, the knights did not immediately leave, but instead looked toward Firth.

Only after Firth nodded did they finally turn and withdraw with peace of mind.

“The reason I came to see you today isn’t anything complicated. I mainly heard that—you successfully wiped out a bandit group?”

“Yes. His Highness the crown prince discovered traces of those bandits and ordered me to lead the knights to eliminate them.”

This was not classified information.

When the knights returned victorious, they had entered through the main gate of the imperial city, letting the citizens see that under the crown prince’s command, the bandits had been eliminated and safety restored.

This was beneficial for earning public support for the royal family.

So it was perfectly normal for the second princess to know about it.

“…I see. Everyone really is… impressive…”

After hearing Firth’s confirmation, Ellie showed a somewhat complicated smile.

“As knights, you are all so strong. And as the crown prince, as the future sun of the empire, he is always so outstanding that it makes one envious. Seeing such an excellent brother, I often wonder… can a sister like me really continue to stand by his side?”

There was clearly a smile on Ellie’s face.

Yet within that smile was a trace of loneliness and gloom.

The corners of her lips were lifted, but her brows were drawn downward, looking like a conflicted, bitter smile.

“Firth… forgive me for addressing you this way in private. Since you are so close to my brother, I often want to understand more about him through you. Calling you ‘sir’ always feels a little distant. I hope you can understand?”

Earlier, beside Falk, Ellie’s words had nearly pushed him to the brink.

Now, in front of Firth, she changed her demeanor completely.

She pretended to be a hesitant, fragile young girl, deliberately acting pitiful before him.

“It’s fine, Your Highness. Titles don’t hold much meaning for me.”

As he said this, Firth seemed thoughtful, yet still somewhat puzzled, tilting his head slightly.

“What is it you wish to say?”

…Seriously, this guy.

She had intended to get a little closer to Firth by using her pitiful expression.

But he was completely impervious?

Shouldn’t he start with concern and comfort?

Who taught him this straight-to-the-point style of conversation?

In her previous life, Firth had been like this too.

Back then, Eric only cared that he was obedient and didn’t mind his lack of emotional response.

Now that she had to start from scratch to build rapport, she realized just how difficult it was to communicate with Firth’s personality.

…I should’ve known better than to pretend to be a helpless girl.

I knew I wasn’t good at this.

“What I want to say is—Firth, I want to become a worthy sister to my brother, not just a decorative vase confined to the palace. I want to help my brother. And for that reason, I want to ask for your help.”

Seeing that Firth didn’t need lengthy preludes to ease into the topic, Ellie stated her intentions plainly, testing his reaction.

“You need my help? Please say it. As royal knights, we naturally serve you.”

“……”

That rigid, by-the-book tone was unbearable.

“Then… do you trust me?”

Even if it was unbearable, the conversation still had to continue.

“Please go on.”

“I’ve heard many things about the knights eliminating roaming bandits. I have a friend… We’re not in frequent contact, but for someone like me who rarely leaves the palace, meeting a person a few times already counts as friendship. He’s a good person, and I’ve always wanted to help him. His family was killed by bandits when he was young. After losing his family, he survived through church relief. I secretly went to see him today… I feel that he’s still trapped in that past pain. This kind of grief is something one can never forget in a lifetime. And through what little investigation and understanding I’ve managed, the bandits who harmed his family should be the same group you eliminated. But—I heard from an intelligence broker I paid that the leader of those bandits hasn’t been captured yet. I want to catch that man, so my friend can finally step out of the shadows.”

Since Firth was the type to focus directly on the core of an issue, Ellie poured out everything she had prepared in one breath.

Of course, her words were half true and half false.

The “friend” she referred to was Falk—though Falk himself might not know he had such a friend.

Trapped in the past?

Well, Falk might have been close to moving on already.

But after what Ellie had said earlier in the confessional, his PTSD might flare up again.

As for the intelligence broker—there was no such person.

All the information came from her own memories.

The source was simply her past life.

“I want to avenge my friend, but I don’t know how far I, as a princess, can go. So I could only come to you and ask for your help. And if what the intelligence broker said is true, capturing those remaining bandits would also mean sharing some of my brother’s burden, wouldn’t it? That way, I’d be improving little by little, becoming a sister worthy of standing beside him. Right?”

As Ellie spoke, she deliberately sped up her words slightly, emphasizing her eagerness and expectation.

She conveyed these feelings fully through her speech, and at the end, made sure to mention Solor.

That way, Firth would at least consider helping her for Solor’s sake.

“……”

After listening to Ellie’s long explanation, Firth didn’t speak immediately.

He maintained his expressionless gaze, arms crossed, fingers tapping lightly against his arm.

“Mobilizing the knights would be difficult with my authority alone. And we cannot verify the accuracy of your intelligence broker.”

After a moment’s thought, Firth gave a very official answer.

“…I see…”

Ellie showed a disappointed expression.

But inwardly, she was already considering what other excuse she could use next.

“However, Your Highness—if you’re willing, I can carry out this task on my own. Consider it a personal favor I’ll do for you.”