Shadowless Night

“You’re looking more savage than usual. Why didn’t you bring a dress?”

“Calyx told me that all my clothes were out of fashion, so I should just buy them at the capital. Calyx also said I should ask Raymond to go with me.”

‘Are you passing it all on to me?’ Raymond internally cursed Calyx a little. ‘Well, in any case, it is for someone who is like my own sibling,’ he thought he’ll have to take some days off to look around the dress shops together.

Rosaline looked around her new room and flopped down on the bed. As Raymond was tidying her things up, he handed her a uniform.

“Come on, take this. Change your clothes first before coming out. Wait, no! Let me go out first before you start changing!”

Raymond hurriedly covered his eyes as Rosaline began to unbutton her clothes the second he asked her to change. Rosaline, who came out in her uniform, heard Raymond nagging her for a while.

‘You can’t just take off your clothes in front of other people, okay? Huh? Promise me in front of this older brother. Little finger, seal.’

Rosaline frowned at the nagging for a while but replied that she understood. The dormitory hallways were spacious and well-organized. Raymond told her a few things as they walked.

“The first thing to do is to go to the commander’s office and let him know that you have returned. Since there is still time until the inauguration ceremony, I guess you will have to look around the Knights Order… Oh, and after being officially appointed as a senior knight tomorrow, you can choose a few apprentice knights. Up to five people. If there are apprentice knights who want to receive your teaching, you can choose one from them. You can ask them to do small tasks and errands, but it’s a little difficult to take time to look after them. So, it’s best to pick only what you can handle. Have you memorized the ceremony and the vow?”

“Mm-hmm.”

“Great, well done. And Rosaline, since you… lost your memories… Ehm… What are you going to do? Are you going to tell everyone?”

“Yup.”

Calyx had been in agony. If they told everyone, it felt like putting Rosaline at a disadvantage. However, if they did not tell everyone, he was unconvinced her free-spirited behavior would go unnoticed. Her manners had been polished to some extent, but most people who have formerly known Rosaline will certainly notice. It was unavoidable. It is necessary to block as much as possible in advance before strange rumors spread out of control.

‘Rosaline is suffering from amnesia, but it will not interfere with her position in the Knights Order. Even after losing her memory, she returns to the Knights Order, showing her loyalty to the 2nd Prince.’ That was Rosaline’s story.

With Raymond’s guidance, Rosaline arrived at the commander’s office. The two apprentice knights standing in front of the door saw Raymond’s face and opened the door. Rosaline made eye contact with the man at the table, who had been looking through his papers.

He had sharp shining eyes, deep wrinkles, and a dignified appearance. The red-haired man got up from his seat. Raymond and Rosaline clenched their right fists tightly and placed them over their hearts with the back of their hands visible.

“The glory of Idelavhim, who divides the black moon. Rosaline Radwiell of the Knights of the White Night has returned.”

“The glory of Idelavhim, who divides the black moon. Raymond Cimmaron sees the Commander.”

The knight commander, Starz, also put his fist over his heart just like them.

“Glory of Idelavhim. How’s your body, Sir Rosaline?”

She felt Raymond staring at her with a puzzled expression. Rosaline clasped her hands on her back.

“It’s fine.”

“I see. Good. I hope you will continue to use it to pass on that luck.”

“I understand.”

“Congratulations on being promoted to a senior knight this time. It’s thanks to your hard work.”

“Thank you very much.”

“Do you have any questions about the appointment?”

“No, I don’t.”

Raymond watched their conversation come and go like a sharp knife, and then he coughed to intervene. Even though Raymond knew she was merely responding with short answers, being a third party, Rosaline seemed to be arguing with the knight commander. She seemed blunt in her short-cut words.

“If it’s not too rude, can I tell you one thing, Commander?”

“Tell me.”

“… Actually, Sir Rosaline’s body has, fortunately, completely recovered… But… Her mind is still hurting…”

Starz looked at Raymond with a face full of doubt. ‘What is this deputy commander assistant talking about?’

“What do you mean, Sir Raymond? ‘Her heart is hurting?’ Of course, I understand your feelings. I also lost a friend like you. But it’s our job to rise above that sadness and anger.”

[Author uses the word ‘마음’ here which can mean ‘mind’ or ‘heart’, so Raymond means Rosaline’s mind, while Starz thinks he is talking about Rosaline’s heart.]

“…”

‘Did I say too much…’ Raymond erased the smile that was on his face in an instant. ‘Ah, I don’t know anymore, let’s just do this.’

“Sir Rosaline’s memory is a little problematic. She has amnesia.”

“…?”

A lot of awkwardness appeared on the face of the knight commander, who had always been expressionless. It was a rare sight.

“Even though most of her memories are lost, she still remembers the oath of the White Night to protect the 2nd Prince. Also, she is a fast learner. As she was not deemed unfit to continue duty, she proceeded with her return order. There is also a note from the doctor that her memory will soon return.”

Starz received the report from Raymond and read it carefully. Everything else is blurry, but the word [amnesia] was very vivid and clear. Could it be that the short answers that were more curt than usual stemmed from this?

He rubbed his chin, taking turns looking at Raymond once and then at Rosaline. He thought for a moment that it might be some kind of plan of the 1st Prince faction, but her honest and consistent attitude was enough to convince anyone that she was genuine towards the 2nd Prince. He would have liked it more had it not been for her Radwiell origins with the 1st Prince faction.

The dark-haired woman kept her expressionless face even while listening to her own story. She even looked a little bored. The old Rosaline was generous and bold, but she wasn’t someone skilled in lies and treachery. Starz, who knew her personality well, had no choice but to admit it: this seemingly false report is the actual truth.

Starz had a complicated expression on his face. After being silent for a while, he opened his mouth with difficulty.

“…How is your body, Sir Rosaline?”

It was the same question as before, but the meaning was a little different. Rosaline straightened her back and looked straight at Starz.

“It’s fine. Thank you for asking.”

Starz frowned a little and gave her a congratulatory address. Raymond stayed in the commander’s room and spoke with him for a while more.

The two apprentice knights standing outside the commander’s room glanced at her. She was a celebrity within the Knights of the White Night. First, she was Rosaline Esther, the eldest daughter of the Radwiell family, who supported the 1st Prince. Second, she came back alive from the dead. She smiled as she received gazes filled with those emotions towards her. She wasn’t embarrassed. She had heard the gist of the story from Calyx in advance, so she roughly knew what was going on.

People in the Knights of the White Night do not like her. He said it was because they are originally from different sides. If so, it would be the same for the knight commander, but even with his frank tone and blunt expression, his worries were not hidden. From inside the room, she could hear Raymond and Starz talking to each other. Rosaline was outside the door, but she could hear them. She had excellent hearing thanks to borrowing a small number of cells of a creature with such an ability.

“… So, Sir Rosaline is…”

“If so…”

Even after Rosaline left, the knight commander’s worries continued. Raymond was getting tired of it. Rosaline waited for Raymond and leaned her head against her wall.

‘How regretful. Rosaline, the dark-haired human. You might have been a pretty decent person.’

***

Rosaline wrinkled her forehead, looking uncomfortable. Beside her, Raymond was fidgety and helpless.

She felt prickling eyes everywhere. Every passing person turned their head to look at them. There were even cases where they came from afar to see her face and check whether she was alive or dead. Rosaline’s patience slowly began to wear thin.

Rosaline, or rather, ‘It’, didn’t like to stand out. Over the years, hundreds of hours, generations, and numerous culling events, organisms evolved in favor of techniques that ensure survival. ‘It’ mimics nearby creatures, mingles with the herd, and runs away from threats. Its mimicry ability developed in such situations.

So this moment, when people’s eyes focused on Rosaline, was the perfect situation to drive her into a nervous mood.

‘Do they need to look at me like this? It’s not like I’m a beast. It’s not like I only have a single eye. It’s not like I have a pair of extra arms. I’m in a very ordinary human form, right? Did I ever lose control without knowing it?’

After checking her limbs, she whined to see her own back.

“What are you doing, Roselle?”

“Do I look weird?”

‘Why do you keep checking yourself?’ Raymond watched her go round and round and shook his head. She was dressed perfectly, without a single stain of soot.

“If nothing else, you’re a good kid, Rosaline. Even so, not everyone will like you just because you’re a good person.”

“Why is that? How strange.”

“A bit strange and difficult, isn’t it? Human relationships are like that.”

Count Fertan Esther Radwiell defended the 1st Prince, made numerous achievements on the front line, and held many titles aside from his count title. In short, the Radwiells were a family with influence and power in Illavenia. One day, the daughter of the family joined the knights of the 2nd Prince, and she quickly completed her probationary period and was promoted to a lesser knight. The knight commander was not one to discriminate or harass her, and he merely watched over her quietly. The late deputy commander felt pity at her desire to protect the 2nd Prince, so even though she was a child of the other side, he loved her very much.

However, the problem was that this was not a very good sight for the other knights. She was a young woman who hailed from a family of the 1st Prince faction, and she was not so skilled! Rosaline Esther Radwiell was such a person to most people. However, when it was said her body was lost during the battle at the hunting competition, even those who hated Rosaline also mourned at that time.