Chapter 491 - 490 - I apologise!
The little wooden hut gradually settled back into silence, though it was no longer the peaceful silence that had greeted the night only minutes earlier. Instead, it was the heavy stillness that always followed unexpected revelations, where every person present found themselves quietly reassessing everything that had transpired.
The fireplace continued to burn steadily within the stone hearth, its gentle flames casting a warm amber glow that danced across the timber walls, while the cool night breeze drifting through the still-open doorway carried with it the distant sounds of the sleeping town.
Somewhere beyond the narrow streets, laughter from a tavern echoed faintly before fading into the night, blissfully unaware that within this modest dwelling, identities had been overturned and carefully laid plans had nearly collapsed into unnecessary bloodshed.
Luca slowly lowered both of his twin sabers.
With a subtle ripple of mana, the blades dissolved into countless shimmering particles before disappearing completely, leaving the room free of drawn weapons for the first time since the confrontation had begun.
Neither of the two mercenaries made any attempt to retrieve their discarded weapons.
Both remained exactly where they stood.
Their expressions had become noticeably more restrained than before.
The Saintess quietly stepped further into the hut before allowing the damaged door to swing gently shut behind her. The moment the entrance closed, the atmosphere inside seemed to grow calmer, though the tension lingering beneath the surface remained unmistakable.
Her gentle silver eyes turned toward Luca.
A faint apologetic smile appeared upon her face.
"I believe..."
Her soft voice flowed through the room with the same warmth it had always carried.
"...I owe you an explanation."
Luca met her gaze without interrupting.
The Saintess gave a small nod.
"And you shall have one."
Her expression remained composed.
"Everything."
She paused briefly before glancing toward the two mercenaries standing several steps away.
"But..."
The warmth gradually disappeared from her face.
"...there are certain matters that must be addressed first."
The change was subtle.
Almost imperceptible.
Yet every person inside the hut immediately sensed it.
The Saintess slowly turned her entire attention toward the two men.
Gone was the gentle smile that had welcomed Luca only moments ago.
Gone was the comforting kindness that naturally accompanied every word she spoke.
In its place...
Appeared quiet anger.
It was not explosive.
Nor loud.
Rather...
It was the kind of restrained displeasure that carried far greater weight than shouting ever could.
The two mercenaries instinctively straightened.
Neither dared meet her eyes.
Her calm gaze rested upon them for several long moments before she finally spoke.
"Would either of you..."
Her voice remained perfectly level.
"...care to explain..."
A brief silence naturally settled over the room.
"...who exactly gave you the authority..."
Her silver eyes narrowed ever so slightly.
"...to attack the person assigned to escort me?"
The question echoed throughout the hut.
Neither mercenary answered immediately.
Instead...
The two exchanged an awkward glance.
It lasted only a heartbeat.
Yet it was enough.
The older mercenary quietly cleared his throat before lowering his head respectfully.
"No one ordered us to do so, Your Holiness."
His voice carried none of the confidence he had displayed earlier.
The Saintess remained silent.
The man continued.
"We simply..."
He hesitated.
"...wanted to confirm the academy’s judgement."
Her expression did not soften.
The younger mercenary awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck before reluctantly speaking as well.
"When we received word that Arcadia Academy had accepted the escort request..."
He exhaled quietly.
"...we naturally became curious about the individual they had chosen."
His eyes briefly shifted toward Luca.
"And then..."
A faint, embarrassed smile appeared despite himself.
"...we learned that the escort was Luca Valentine."
The older mercenary nodded in agreement.
"We have heard the stories."
His gaze remained lowered.
"The student who survived the Beastridge Mountain incident."
"The young man who dismantled the Devil Cult’s operation beneath the church."
"The first-year capable of standing alongside individuals far beyond his own generation."
He gave a quiet, almost self-conscious cough.
"We merely..."
Another pause followed.
"...wanted to discover whether the stories had been exaggerated."
The younger mercenary immediately added his own explanation.
"It was never our intention to seriously injure him."
"We only wished to test him."
"To see with our own eyes whether the academy had truly entrusted the Saintess’s safety to someone worthy of such responsibility."
Silence returned.
Neither excuse changed the expression upon the Saintess’s face.
In fact...
It seemed only to deepen her displeasure.
Her silver eyes remained fixed upon the two men.
"So..."
She spoke with remarkable calm.
"You decided..."
A faint trace of disappointment entered her voice.
"...that the most appropriate way to evaluate the person entrusted with my protection..."
She allowed the silence to linger just long enough.
"...was to ambush him before he had even stepped inside."
Neither mercenary answered.
"There was no conversation."
"There was no verification."
"There was not even the courtesy of introducing yourselves."
Her gaze sharpened.
"You chose violence first."
The weight behind those simple words caused both men to lower their heads even further.
"I expected better judgement from those entrusted with safeguarding lives."
The younger mercenary quietly opened his mouth.
"Your Holiness, we—"
"You expected him to prove himself."
Her calm voice interrupted him effortlessly.
"Yet neither of you stopped to consider that he might reasonably conclude you were assassins."
Neither man found an answer.
The Saintess took one slow step forward.
"If he had responded with lethal force instead of restraint..."
Her eyes briefly shifted toward the thin lines of blood still visible upon both mercenaries’ necks.
"...the responsibility would have rested entirely upon your shoulders."
The room became silent once more.
The two men remained standing with lowered heads like children being reprimanded by a teacher whose disappointment hurt far more than any punishment ever could.
Luca quietly watched the exchange unfold.
Then...
He released a long, tired sigh.
"So..."
He muttered almost to himself.
"I think I’ve understood enough."
The Saintess looked toward him.
Luca offered a small, helpless smile before raising one hand in a gentle gesture.
"I believe they’ve already realised their mistake."
His voice remained calm.
"There isn’t much to gain from punishing them any further."
The two mercenaries looked at Luca with visible surprise.
Neither had expected the very person they had attacked to be the one stopping the Saintess from continuing.
Luca simply shook his head.
"They tested me."
"I answered."
"No lasting harm was done."
His gaze briefly drifted toward the older mercenary before returning to the Saintess.
"I’d rather not begin an escort mission by watching my future companions receive punishment because of a misunderstanding."
For a few quiet moments...
The Saintess simply looked at him.
Then...
The disappointment within her expression gradually softened.
Not because she believed the mercenaries had acted correctly.
But because Luca had chosen understanding over resentment.
Finally, Luca folded his arms across his chest before looking directly at the Saintess once more.
His expression became noticeably more serious.
"There is still one thing I don’t understand."
The room naturally grew quiet again.
Luca’s crimson eyes met her gentle silver gaze.
"The Vice Dean informed me only that I was being assigned to escort someone whose identity had to remain secret."
He paused briefly.
"I accepted the mission expecting to meet an important noble... perhaps even royalty."
A faint smile of disbelief appeared upon his face.
"Instead..."
He let out another quiet breath.
"...I walk into a small hut in the middle of nowhere and discover that the person I’m supposed to escort..."
His eyes remained fixed upon her.
"...is the Saintess herself."
His brows knitted together ever so slightly.
"How did that happen?"
A moment of silence followed before he quietly added the question that had occupied his thoughts since the moment she revealed herself.
"And more importantly..."
His voice became calmer still.
"...what exactly is happening?"
The Saintess stood quietly near the entrance, her long lavender-silver hair cascading gracefully over her shoulders as the flickering firelight reflected gently within her silver eyes. The earlier disappointment directed toward the two mercenaries had gradually faded, replaced instead by something far softer.
Regret.
Her gaze slowly returned to Luca.
For several brief moments, she simply looked at him before taking a slow step forward.
Then...
To everyone’s surprise...
She lowered her head ever so slightly.
"I owe you an apology."
Her gentle voice carried unmistakable sincerity.
"I invited you here under the expectation that this meeting would mark the beginning of our journey."
A faint smile of self-reproach appeared upon her beautiful face.
"Instead..."
She released a quiet sigh.
"...the very people entrusted with protecting me chose to welcome you by crossing blades."
Her eyes met Luca’s once again.
"I am truly sorry for what happened."
The apology was neither ceremonial nor spoken out of obligation.
It came from genuine remorse.
Luca looked at her for a moment without immediately responding.
Before he could say anything...
The older mercenary suddenly stepped forward.
He straightened his posture before lowering his head respectfully toward Luca.
"You have my sincerest apologies."
His voice no longer carried even the slightest trace of the confidence he had displayed earlier.
"Our actions were inappropriate."
"We allowed our curiosity to cloud our judgement."
The younger mercenary quickly followed.
He scratched the back of his neck awkwardly before giving an equally respectful bow.
"I’ll admit it..."
A faint, embarrassed laugh escaped him.
"...we thought the stories surrounding you had probably grown larger with every retelling."
His smile quickly disappeared.
"After exchanging blades with you..."
He slowly shook his head.
"I understand now that the rumours may actually have understated your abilities."
He lowered his head once more.
"I’m sorry."
Luca quietly listened to all three apologies.
Then...
He gave a small, almost helpless smile before raising one hand.
"There really isn’t any need for that."
His words immediately caused the Saintess to look up.
Luca gently shook his head.
"Your Holiness..."
His voice remained calm.
"You’ve done nothing that requires an apology."
His expression carried quiet sincerity.
"You weren’t the one who drew a weapon against me."
"You weren’t even present."
"So please..."
He offered a polite smile.
"...don’t apologise for someone else’s decision."
The Saintess looked at him silently.
For a brief moment...
Her expression softened even further.
Luca then shifted his gaze toward the two mercenaries.
His eyes rested upon them only briefly.
There was neither resentment nor warmth within his expression.
Only quiet indifference.
He gave them a small nod.
Nothing more.
No acceptance.
No rejection.
Simply acknowledgment.
The two men immediately understood.
They wisely chose not to speak again.
The Saintess observed the brief exchange before quietly turning toward her guards.
Her expression gradually returned to its composed serenity.
"I believe..."
Her calm voice filled the room once more.
"...that we require some privacy."
The older mercenary instinctively frowned.
"Your Holiness..."
He hesitated carefully.
"With all due respect..."
"It would be safer if at least one of us remained nearby."
The younger mercenary nodded in agreement.
"The situation is still uncertain."
"We cannot simply leave you alone."
The Saintess remained silent for several moments.
Then...
She slowly turned toward them.
Her beautiful silver eyes met theirs.
The gentleness that usually defined her gaze remained.
Yet beneath it...
Lay an unmistakable firmness.
It was not anger.
It was authority.
The quiet authority of someone whose words were not requests to be negotiated.
"They are unnecessary."
Her voice remained perfectly calm.
"I have complete confidence in the person standing before me."
Neither mercenary moved.
The older one still appeared hesitant.
"Your Holiness..."
Before he could continue...
The Saintess looked directly into his eyes.
The warmth disappeared from her expression.
Not replaced by fury.
But by unwavering resolve.
"I gave you an instruction."
Her voice remained soft.
Yet every syllable carried undeniable weight.
"Must I repeat it?"
The question hung heavily within the room.
Both mercenaries instinctively straightened.
They had accompanied the Saintess for years.
They knew that expression.
They knew that tone.
Once she looked at them that way...
The matter was no longer open for discussion.
The older mercenary slowly lowered his head.
"As you command."
The younger mercenary sighed quietly before following suit.
"As you wish, Your Holiness."
Neither argued further.
Retrieving their discarded weapons, the two men silently made their way toward the entrance. Before leaving, the older mercenary briefly glanced toward Luca, giving him a respectful nod that carried far more acknowledgement than words ever could.
Luca returned the gesture with a slight inclination of his head.
Nothing more was needed.
The door opened quietly.
Both guards stepped
outside.
A moment later...
The wooden door closed once again.
Silence settled naturally throughout the little hut.
The room, which only minutes earlier had been filled with drawn blades, hidden intentions, and wary eyes, now contained only two people.
Luca.
And the Saintess.