Hakushaku to Yousei - Volume 15 - Chapter 3.1

Chapter 3 Part 1 ♦ A ribbon is the dress code for duels

“Earl Ashenbert, please help me."
The young lady looked very pale as her shoulders trembled.
After the young Earl heard what she had to say, his graceful eyebrows were motionless as he replied:
“Madame, isn’t it your husband’s responsibility to challenge the man who snuck into your room to a duel?”
“My husband is new to the aristocracy, so he doesn’t quite understand why we have to fight for our reputation. But Earl, you understand these things, right? Coming from a family with a long history, the belief that one must fight for honor would surely be planted deeply."
She proved herself to be an arrogant aristocrat, as her emotions were shown through her tone of voice.
“However, I am a feeble woman, and I can’t use weapons, so I ask that you act as my agent......”
“I understand how you feel."
But it was as if the Earl wanted to interrupt her.
“However Madame, dueling is illegal, even if it’s virtuous with regards to old nobility, in the modern world it’s actually a violation against social norms."
“You also acted as a witness to a duel once before, isn’t that so? Although you’ve said this, deep down you ought to think that dueling is the justice of aristocracy as well, this isn’t something that commoners understand."
“Justice...is that so?”
The Earl raised the corners of his mouth gently, as if ridiculing what he doesn’t believe to be justice.
His beautiful appearance gave off a sense of threat.
“I will only fight when I can no longer tolerate the other person’s existence."
This lady’s impression of him was that of a gentle personality who treated others kindly, so she felt somewhat suspicious at his demeanor.
“But you’ve helped delicate women in the past."
“That could be considered as a small kind of entertainment."
“Entertainment...”
The Earl stood up, as if he was forcing her to leave.
“But from now on, I will only accept duels for the sake of my beloved fiancée."

(1)

The early summers were the most exciting times for London’s socializing season. Earl Ashenbert, the number one celebrity in society, didn’t appear at this time, and this was the main topic that spread throughout London.
Edgar Ashenbert had the uncommon title, Earl of Ibrazel, and because of his young and handsome appearance, he suddenly became popular in society.
Since his relationships with females were all exciting, it wasn’t known how many dames and young ladies he had scandals with, but strangely enough, nothing was heard about a bad reputation.
In this new era of emerging aristocracy that was prominent, he not only inherited the Earl’s title which had been passed down from the Middle Ages, he possessed the aristocratic demeanor of the fine olden ages, and his skillful words as well as his presence in the Queen’s court attracted interest, so both men and women greatly admired him.
As Earl Ashenbert did not appear, it was no wonder that the reason for not appearing was immediately spread throughout society.
In fact, it wasn’t any important reason.
It was only because he was wounded and so his physical condition wasn’t good, therefore he had to rest at home.
However, this matter was spread as fast as when he announced his engagement not long ago, so now, the guests visiting the Earl’s mansion have never stopped.
“My lord, there is a visitor."
The butler, Tomkins came to report to Edgar, as he was still resting in the morning.
“Is it Lydia?”
Edgar put down the booklet he was reading, completely expecting his fiancee’s name to be said, but the butler shook his head.
What! He muttered.
If he had to deal with each and every visiting guest then he couldn’t rest, so Tomkins would inform him only when special guests came to visit that couldn’t be refused.
Tomkins came to report just now, but it wasn’t his fiancee visiting, it seemed that if it wasn’t a guest of high status, he needed to judge whether it was necessary for his master to meet them.
“So, who is it?”
Edgar asked, after pulling himself together.
“It’s Constable Gordon of the London police.”
“Hmm, then it doesn’t seem likely that he’s coming to visit as a guest visiting the sick.”
Although he was injured, his ribs were only slightly broken. Even if the people around him said that the wound’s bleeding was quite serious, these weren’t serious injuries to Edgar.
Despite forcing himself and sleeping for nearly three days, as long as the fever reduced, then it wasn’t serious enough to require a full rest. Although he was unoccupied to the point of agitation as a result, Lydia was worried about him, and so he had to stay inside the mansion.
It seemed that she took the doctor’s instructions to rest too seriously.
Edgar, who was bored, immediately went out for a stroll with a visiting guest that day, so Lydia turned pale with fright and did not speak to Edgar for the whole day; since then, he avoided meeting guests as much as possible.
Compared to obtaining her heart and investing his hard effort all the way,  short-term boredom wasn’t anything serious at all.
Lydia was finally more willing to face marriage compared to before, and also agreed to have the wedding sooner.
Edgar was injured from protecting her from the hands of the giant clan, and so Lydia was willing to respond to his feelings.
Now, he didn’t want to make Lydia even more angry.
Tomkins also held the same idea without a doubt, so he may have decided that he didn’t need inform his master that the officer was visiting, but he approached Edgar, meekly blinking with his wide set of eyes, and said:
“My lord, the officer seems suspicious on whether or not you will duel."
Edgar seemed to remember telling a friend that he sustained injuries in order to protect his fiancée from thugs. The situation might have been exaggerated from here.
Duels were forbidden, but currently there were many aristocrats dueling, because the reasons for dueling were mostly associated with women.
“That way, it might be best to listen to the constable’s advice."
Edgar stood up.

Constable Gordon was a character who would help Edgar out in all sorts of places, and it seemed that in order to eliminate the suspicions of a duel as soon as possible, he had come to visit.
“Earl, you’re healthier than I thought."
There was almost no change in the middle-aged officer’s face, it appears that no one has ever seen his curled beard or evenly parted hair in a mess.
“It isn’t anything serious, my fiancée loves to worry."
Since the officer came because of the rumors, he must have believed that Edgar’s injuries were very serious, but after having waited at the reception room and entering, the only difference of Edgar from usual was that he was wearing his morning gown.
“I heard that you came across thugs, is that true?”
“I did not have a duel."
“So, do you still remember the criminal’s features?”
The officer began the routine inquiry, presumably in order to come up with an event in which Edgar did not have a duel, rather than creating a victim’s file.
This, of course, was not a problem for Edgar.
“I think, I remember that their beard was quite long, his height was about ten feet tall......”
“....I’ll write six feet tall."
The officer replied on his own initiative and wrote this in a notebook.
“Yes yes, he also wielded a staff."
“The murder weapon was a cane."
“He also used magic to lift and throw stones."
“.....He threw stones."
He shut his notebook; it must be because he felt that continuing with Edgar’s nonsense any longer was not appropriate.
It was all true, Edgar could not help but smile. However, if he didn’t obtain the title of Earl of Ibrazel and didn’t meet Lydia, he wouldn’t have believed in things like fairies and magic.
At any rate, as long as the constable made it appear as if the report was completed, then unnecessary suspicions could be erased.
“Earl, recently among the police, the belief that nobles should not be given special treatment have increased. Please do not duel in private."
Constable Gordon got up from the chair after having said that.
As a matter of course, private duels were illegal. But for those belonging to aristocracy, it was taboo to report and consider dueling to protect one’s honor as a crime. Regardless of the parties dueling, witnesses or those around them, it was impossible for a duel to leak out.
However, why was the police so keen?
“By the way, officer, did someone suspect my injuries to be from dueling?”
The police officer turned his head and looked at Edgar who was sitting on a chair.
“No, but we have received reports of strange incidents, things like being suddenly receiving a request to duel, and if they didn’t agree, then there would be unilateral violence. But this was merely a rumor, because regardless of whether nobles faced trouble or were injured, as long as it was associated with dueling, they believe that it would be shameful to speak about these matters."
“You think that if it was me, I would speak about it?”
“No, I think if you were to encounter this kind of man, regardless of whether it was a duel or some other formality, it would be impossible for them to reoccur. If that’s the case, then I think it should be good news for London’s public security."
“Unfortunately, I think that strange incident will definitely happen again."
The officer nodded and sighed, and then put on his hat.
“I will take my leave, please take care of yourself."
“If I meet that guy, could I make him unable to reappear?”
“Earl, that’s a crime."
He warned Edgar with a serious expression, then went on to say:
“If anything happens, please discuss it with me at any time."

*

Lydia arrived at the Earl’s mansion and just happened to brush past a man with an orderly beard, then entered the main entrance hall.
“Miss Lydia, Lord Edgar has been waiting for you for a long time."
The person who said this and came to greet her was Raven.
This exotic young man with brown skin was Edgar’s attendant, and although he had a baby face which appeared to be only fifteen years old, he was actually older than Lydia.
“Oh, Raven, I’ve lost something, I was going to go to the study and see if I left it there before I go and see Edgar."
“What are you looking for? I’ll come and help you."
Raven was loyal to Edgar no matter what happened, as long as it was for his master, he would even disregard his own safety.  Although his heart was previously only open to Edgar, he had recently begun to care about Lydia.
He seemed to consider Lydia as his master’s fiancée, who was an existence close to him.
Because of Raven’s unusual background, his master’s command was everything to him, but he was now beginning to have his own emotions and will.  Lydia was happy about this, but although Raven was an attendant she was familiar with, she didn’t want to ask a male attendant for help, so she began to vaguely say:
“No need, I should be able to find it quickly, you can let Edgar know."
“Lord Edgar is in your study."
What!
Flustered, Lydia broke into a run.
Lydia was a fairy doctor. The title that Edgar possessed, Earl of Ibrazel, was not a fabricated name, it derived from a mysterious island located somewhere. The fairies living in England had also accepted Edgar as the Lord of Ibrazel.
Because there were many fairy inhabitants in England and several other territories, Lydia’s job was to find ways for the fairies and humans to coexist everyday.
Lydia was a fairy doctor consultant, so she had a workroom in this mansion, but Edgar was in a position to know all about her work, so even if he casually picked something from the table, it was something to be expected.
However, Lydia ran into the room and shouted:
“Edgar, what are you doing!”
“Hi Lydia, I’ve missed you.”
As expected, he was sitting on the chair at the table, holding Lydia’s personal belonging that she forgot to take with her.
“Y-you, don’t just look at my things as you please!”
Although it was just a thin magazine, Lydia was anxious to get it back. He cleverly evaded Lydia’s outstretched hand and stood up. Lydia desperately wanted to snatch it back, but in result she was embraced and could not move.
“You ran here so urgently, was it because you were thinking of me too?”
One of his hands embraced Lydia’s waist, while the other hand hid her magazine behind his back, and he snickered.
“Gi--give it back to me."
“If you kiss me, I can give it back to you."

“Wha...”
Lydia didn’t know when the time was right, so she could only blush and freeze.  Perhaps he couldn’t wait any longer as he finally took the initiative to gently kiss Lydia.
He then pressed his cheek close to her hair in amusement.
“Hey…” 
“Your hair also smells of chamomile."
“I... didn’t rub anything on"
“Then it was the fairies’ doing, look, there are petals."
He blew the white petals in his palm in the air, and the petals floated into the air.
After gently letting go of Lydia, he walked to the window and still didn’t return the magazine.
“The French fashion plate* isn’t bad, how gorgeous."
“It... seems like the fairies picked it up."
Lydia had many fairy friends, and in the house she lived with her father or Edgar’s mansion, there were many large goblins and such, fairies. Lydia was already very familiar with them now, and occasionally, they would put useless things in her room.
That was the case for the magazine as well, the fairies had probably picked it up from somewhere. But Lydia was attracted to the gorgeous images, so she didn’t throw it away.
“Is there a design that you like?” 
“Th--those designs won’t be popular in England no matter which one it is anyway."
The magazine was seen by Edgar, making Lydia feel embarrassed as she could only turn away. This was because the magazine featured a special collection of pajamas. 
As far as common sense is concerned, pajamas were not allowed to be seen by others, this kind of clothing was like underwear, where as long as one spoke openly about it, they would be humiliated. But pajamas in France were dresses adorned with ribbons or embroidery, and was openly published in the magazine.
With Edgar knowing that she went as far as to look at these sort of things, Lydia felt extremely embarrassed.
“Do you like this one? Hmm, I do think it’s very cute.” 
Because it really was too beautiful, Lydia folded the corners of the magazine page. Edgar was turning to that page, causing blood to rush to her head even more. 
“Don’t make fun of me!”
“I’m not making fun of you. I don’t know why, but the women of this country try to dress simply in front of their husbands, rather than that, I feel that when the two of us are alone, I’d like to see you dressed gorgeously even more."
“Do you think I’d wear that kind of thing?”
“Then do you want to sleep naked?”
“!……Don’t be ridiculous! A decent lady will not dress up in pajamas!” 
She managed to take the magazine back from Edgar and then hid it behind her.
Lydia was clearly embarrassed and at a complete loss, Edgar felt it was amusing and so he chuckled.
“Isn’t that all the more wonderful? No one will be able to imagine you like that, only I will know."
“Don’t imagine it!” 
“It’s fine isn’t it? We’re getting married.” 
Yes, they were going to get married soon. 
The wedding dress had been decided, the dowry and clothes were ready. 
However, something was currently troubling Lydia. 
The other day, she tried sewing the ribbons by hand onto her new pajamas and underwear, and just when she had finished, the housekeeper was surprised and stopped her. 
“Miss, sewing decorations on underwear is preposterous.” 
Having said that it was preposterous, Lydia stopped in surprise. 
“Sewing a little bit of decorations is alright, isn’t it? By decorating the hem and the sleeves with ribbons, it’ll be cute if a small flower embroidery pattern was sewed on.” 
“Spending time to decorate parts that are unseen is certainly not worthy of praise.” 
I--is that so? 
But from Lydia’s perspective, she had just finished decorating the pajama that was similar to the simple nightgowns she had been wearing since childhood and it was very unattractive. 
As soon as she saw the French magazine, she yearned to wear those sorts of nightgowns. 
“In any case, the parts that cannot be seen, with or without decorations, no one will pay attention to it so it doesn’t matter.” 
“The Earl will see it.” 
She pointed out what was making Lydia anxious. 
However, Lydia had probably begun to pay attention already. 
Even if it was family, her father hardly cared about Lydia wanting to embroider or sew ribbons onto her pajamas to this day.
However, it will attract Edgar’s attention in future. This is why, having thought that, Lydia thought it was too plain to only sew up ribbons on pyjamas. 
Her arms and legs were thin like a child’s, wearing pajamas without the slightest of decorations was like hanging a bed sheet on her body, wouldn’t this be the least bit ladylike? 
However, the housekeeper seemed to be against decorating pajamas regardless.
“To be aware of another person being attracted by the sight of an undergarment makes a vulgar woman. It will be difficult if you were to be despised by your husband by the time you get married.” 
Would Edgar think that way? 
She certainly didn’t want to be despised. She also didn’t want go through the trouble of looking like an innocent child, but she also didn’t want to deliberately dress in clothes that weren’t cute because of this.
What was she going to do? 
Although Lydia, who was troubled, was willing to face marriage, she didn’t know how Edgar sees her now, so she felt anxious. 
If one truly had to differentiate, pajamas actually weren’t considered to be an undergarment, so she thought that if the pajamas were a little more gorgeous, then she wouldn’t be so shy.
But if this were the case, then would men regard women with contempt?  
Would Edgar also think this way and be tired of her? 
“Lydia?”
Edgar’s voice felt very distant and Lydia’s sight suddenly went dark.
Perhaps Lydia had forgotten to breathe because she was scatterbrained, she felt that she had lost consciousness.

“Miss Lydia, it’s alright now, I’ve loosened the corset."
As soon as she opened her eyes, the Earl’s housekeeper’s round face was in front of her.
“Oh...Mrs. Harriet...”
“This is a common occurrence, young ladies who are soon to be married will tighten their corset too much."
Lydia was lying on the sofa in the study, inhaling slowly.
She seemed to have only fainted for a little while.
“Harriet, is Lydia awake?”
Edgar’s voice was outside the door. 
“Yes, you don’t have to worry, please wait a little."
Harriet helped Lydia stand up and quickly fastened the buttons behind her. When she opened the door, Edgar, who seemed to have waited for a long time, entered the room.
“My lord, deliberately custom-making the wedding dress too narrow around the waist is a bad trend."
He listened to the housekeeper’s words and worriedly gazed at Lydia. 
“Yes, alter the dress size.”
“No need, I’m just not used to it now, it won’t be uncomfortable by the wedding ceremony."
But she only fainted from the corset being a little tight, Lydia felt embarrassed as she talked. 
Hearing that aristocratic young ladies found this to be a natural thing, that having narrower waistlines in wedding dresses compared to ordinary dresses was extremely common, it was also said in the dress shop that it would be more beautiful this way.
As Lydia was marrying into the Earl’s family, Duchess Masefield busily helped out a lot in all aspects, the custom-made dress shop was also introduced to her by the Duchess. Because this was a famous dressmaking shop, Lydia was hoping to have a dress decorated gorgeously like the ladies in nobility.
“You don’t have to force yourself."
“If the bride is unrefined, will you be okay with that?”
“Listen Lydia, I’m not going to marry you with that dress. Moreover, you're not the least bit unrefined. Even if the waistline isn’t narrowed, you still seem very skinny.” 
It was because she was very skinny that her shoulders and arms had less womanly curves, and so the waistline had to be slightly thinner. 
“If you don’t want to get married in that dress, then I’ll arrange it according to your liking.”
Raven brought a glass of water into the room. Edgar took the cup and handed it to Lydia.
Then, he stroked Lydia’s hair as if to appease her, and held her face with the palm of his hand.
Edgar was also wearing indoor clothing and had no gloves on; Lydia could feel the temperature of his skin directly, so she felt more shy than ever before. 
“Well, it’ll be made according to your liking, and you can sew as many ribbons as you want on the places where only I can see.”
The magazine was still on the table. The cover of the magazine had many ribbons freely drawn on the pajamas. 
“I--I definitely won’t sew ribbons on!”
At the thought of the housekeeper and Raven having seen the magazine, Lydia blushed and almost fainted again.

*

If her mother was still alive, perhaps she wouldn’t have behaved so embarrassingly. 
Lydia had no female relatives whom she could easily consult with, nor did she have married female friends.
While people could tell her what to do to prepare for the wedding ceremony, no one could teach her about matters after marriage. 
She couldn’t discuss the matter of the pajamas with her father or Duchess Masefield, who helped her prepare for marriage, because there were too many concerns and she couldn’t ask such a shameless question.
Lydia gazed at the new pajamas on the bed.
She tightened the cuffs slightly and had sewn some ribbons and embroidery; this was yesterday’s matter.
Although it was discovered by the housekeeper, Mrs. Cooper, as long as she paid a little attention to it, the pajamas had become very cute as it looked a little like indoor clothing.
Although it was still quite different compared to the luxury French pajamas, it would be more beautiful if there were lace decorations.
“But I can’t wear these kinds of pajamas."
She had to restore the clothes back to its original state.
Edgar said the pajamas in the magazine were very cute and all, but did he really think so?
Lydia was surprised at her own lack of common sense, and she couldn’t help but be dismayed at the thought that he might get shocked. 
“Hey Lydia, why do you look so gloomy?”
A voice came from the window; Lydia hurriedly rolled the gown into a ball and pushed it underneath the bedsheet.
“Ke...Kelpie."
A figure suddenly appearing by the window side on the second floor was a fairy that was very close to Lydia. 
Despite his black hair, fierce features and robust figure, he looked very attractive but his natural instincts were that of a horse. He was a magic kelpie who was feared and ate humans.
But for some reason, he really liked Lydia.  Even if Lydia was currently engaged to Edgar, he will still appear from time to time, and it wasn’t known whether it was to distract himself from boredom.
“No, I’m not feeling gloomy."
Lydia smiled and Kelpie came over and stared at her.
“That’s good. If you don’t want to marry that Earl, feel free to let me know."
Lydia thought that even if there were any careless complaints, the only person she couldn’t speak to was this guy, who would make a fuss. If she spoke of her uneasiness regarding the marriage, things will get out of hand.
“Oh yeah, Lydia, did you like that book?”
“Book?”
“Last time, I put it here. It had lots of pictures of strange clothes."
It was the French magazine. 
“Then you were the one who picked it up?”
“Yeah, I thought you’d like it because you always wear strange clothes."
Kelpie seemed to think that women’s dresses nowadays looked very strange. Nevertheless, it seems that he was unable to distinguish between dresses and pajamas. 
Lydia sighed.
Speaking of that, Lydia didn’t have general knowledge of British undergarments either. 
However, showing or chatting about it with others will be treated as having a lack of common sense, who did everyone learn that aspect of knowledge from?
They had probably learned from women close to them.
But her mother had passed away very early, as well as her grandmother before Lydia became aware of the troubles and doubts that happen during the marriageable age. To make matters worse, her only friends were fairies, so she did not know of them until now. 
For example, an unmarried woman cannot be alone with a man and so on; although the reasons for not doing it were explained quite vaguely, she was still taught this often. However, nobody told her that she couldn’t decorate undergarments.
Perhaps this matter wasn’t so serious, but it was precisely because of this that it became Lydia’s blind spot.
“What, you don’t like it?”
“No, that’s not true, I just took a look and was very happy with it."
Lydia really did feel happy from just looking at it. She thought that since it’s like this, she shouldn’t be so shy in front of Edgar.
“Your face is really red, do you have a fever?”
Kelpie casually touched Lydia’s forehead.
“I--I’m fine, there’s nothing wrong."
It seemed he had read what she was thinking in mind, Lydia, who was too embarrassed by this, she moved back, and although the water fairy’s hands were ice-cold it made her feel comfortable.
So she smiled at Kelpie.
“Thank you."
Kelpie revealed a soft expression, which was not usual at all. 
“You haven’t been so harsh recently."
“What do you mean harsh, was I so unfriendly before?”
Lydia said, thinking that perhaps it was because she did not have a peace of mind before. In the past, she was unable to believe in Edgar and she did not have self-confidence, so her heart was confused.
Now, although she had all kinds of worries regarding marriage, she no longer hesitated.
“You’re very happy."
Kelpie narrowed his eyes and looked a little sad.
“Yo, I was wondering why there was a stinky kelpie smell, it turns out that you came again."
The sound came from the window. After the gray fairy cat squeezed into the window, he stood on the ground with his hind feet, but he was a little unsteady. His nose was bright red and he seemed a little drunk. 
“What, it’s a cat."
“I’m not a cat, I’m Nico-sama. Hey, don’t sit on my chair."
Normally he would stay as far as possible from the ferocious Kelpie, but probably because he was drunk now, his attitude was very arrogant. 
Kelpie stood up indifferently and sat down on the bed where Lydia was sitting.
“You’re back, Nico. You’re late today, dinner is already over."
“All good, I’m already full."
Nico probably went to a fairy banquet that was being held, as he happily stroked his fluffy tail.
Nico was Lydia’s friend whom she had known the longest. It was also like this now around her, there were always fairies keeping her company.
Perhaps even when she marries Edgar, only this point won’t change after becoming Countess.  Lydia felt at ease as she thought this. 
“Oh that’s right, Lydia, I saw something very interesting today. There was an armored man riding a horse and galloping on Regent Street."
“Armor and helmet... you mean like the decorations in Edgar’s mansion?”
“Yeah, it was a guy fully dressed in metal."
“Why would someone wear such a thing?"
But at that moment, Kelpie pointed at the door.
“Just like that guy?”
Lydia turned and gasped.
There was a man in silver armor standing there.
This unidentified man was wearing a helmet and breastplate, from his armor to his gauntlets, it was only natural that even his feet was completely covered in armor, as if he had run out from a medieval painting.
“Wh--who are you? Where did you come from!”
With the sound of clinking metal, the armored man began to move, approached Lydia, and suddenly knelt down on one knee.
“Princess, it’s been awhile."
“What?”
“I truly intend to save you, so I’ve come here. I beg of you, believe me, will you come with me?”
Lydia carefully stared at him, trying to see his face inside the helmet clearly, but the inside seemed dark, so she couldn’t see anything. She could only feel a powerful gaze within the depths of the armor, so she felt more confused rather than raising questions. 
“Hey you, don’t get close to Lydia!”
Kelpie stood up to intervene between the two. The armored man was startled and hastily withdrew.
“You’re not human, are you?”
“I’m the noble Kelpie."
The man revealed a warning as he unsheathed the sword from his waist. It was medieval style, and appeared to be a very heavy sword. He used it to impede Kelpie, while continuing to talk to Lydia. 
“Princess, please understand, the man who wants to become your husband is a greedy and cruel monster."
“I--I don’t think it’s that extreme......”
“You’re not denying it."
Nico muttered. 
“If you do not run away, something unfortunate will happen...”
“Disappear from me!”
Kelpie transformed into his horse form, then roared as he rushed to the armored man.
The man fell to the ground along with the armor, making a loud noise.
“Damn, that evil lord went as far as to send a monster to guard the princess."
“Kelpie, don’t destroy the room!”
The man stood up as Lydia grabbed onto Kelpie.
However, as he saw Kelpie, who suddenly stood upright with his mane standing on its ends, as well as the twisted sword being stepped on, he seemed to think that didn’t have a chance.
He quickly picked up the sword and withdrew.
“Princess, I will not give up. I will definitely return and rescue you."
“Don’t come anymore!”
“Please allow me to take your handkerchief as proof of the promise."
The object that the man grabbed was a white cloth with thin ribbons sewn on it, peeking out from underneath the sheets.
“What, wait, that’s...!”
That’s not a handkerchief, it’s pajamas. 
But Lydia could not stop him as the armored man jumped out the window.
“How troublesome, give it back!”
Kelpie grabbed onto the hem, but the pajamas made a ripping sound.
The man disappeared through the window along with the front end of the sleeve.
Wearing heavy armor and jumping out from the second floor window was practically suicide. 
Lydia hurried over to the window and looked outside.
However, his figure could not be seen either on the street below or on the street ahead.
Only the sound of a horse galloping on the stones was echoing, like some kind of magic from somewhere.
“Hmph, he’s just all talk.”
“Was that guy human?”
Nico tilted his head in confusion. 

(2)

Princess.
Someone was calling her.
Lydia looked around, but the darkness surrounded her, so she couldn’t see clearly. The faint light came in from an area that seemed to have been cut out in squares.
What was this place?
This place had stone walls and stone floors. After her eyes slowly adjusted, she discovered that the squares seemed to be windows, and the moon could be seen rising.
Lydia went to the window.  Although the shutters were open, the windows were fitted with panes and on the other end, the moonlight shining on a spire could be seen.  
It looked like an ancient castle.
This must be a medieval castle.
The knight in armor seemed like he would appear at any time.
On that subject, the armored man addressed Lydia as ‘Princess’.
Lydia thought that she was dreaming while pondering over this matter.
Princess. The voice came to her ear again.
She turned to see a figure in the bushes below.
It was a young man with shoulder-length hair, wearing a simple jacket, and a sword hanging at his waist.
He looked up desperately towards the window placed at about the height of the second floor.
He had clear spring water like eyes; Lydia felt that the man seemed to be very familiar to her.
(Don’t, you’ll be found.)
It was like watching a play, but it was actually herself saying these words.
(Princess, please be patient, I will definitely save you before the wedding tomorrow.  When the time comes, would you like to come with me?) 
(Yes, for sure.)
(Could you give me proof of our promise?)
Lydia put her hand in her chest, pulled out a handkerchief from her dress, and dropped it gently from the gap in the window.
He caught the handkerchief midair and pressed it to his lips.
The sound of footsteps came; someone was approaching this room. Lydia quickly whispered:
(Leave quickly.)
If he was discovered, he would definitely be killed.
The footsteps stopped in front of the wooden door.
The door creaked open, and Lydia nervously stared at the open door.
Although she only saw shadows, the person standing there must have been the lord who kept her there.

Even when she woke up, that strange dream still remained vivid in her memory.
Was it because the armored man gave an intense impression that she had such a dream?
Not only that, Lydia couldn’t forget that the man had taken a corner of her pajamas all along, and so she was unable to clear up her depressed mood. 
Edgar greeted Lydia with a cheerful smile that was completely opposite to her mood.
“Hi Lydia, I’ve waited for you for a long time."
The next day, when Lydia visited the Earl’s mansion, for some reason, Edgar appeared before her in formal clothing.
“Edgar, you don't plan on going out, right?”
“Yeah, I’ve been waiting to go to the Theatre Royal and of course, you must come together with me."
After he spoke, he called the housekeeper, and Harriet brought an evening gown.
“But Edgar, your injury......”
“When the doctor came early this morning, I’ve already been able to go out, I could’ve been patient if you had stayed with me all day long, but I was almost dying of boredom."
If Edgar was left to rest regardless, he would be completely quiet, so Lydia visited the mansion everyday and intended to accompany him a little. 
Indeed, she came later today, and Edgar seemed dissatisfied about this. 
“This evening is the first day of the new opera performance, didn’t I say before that I wanted to go and see it?”
“Um, yes... but we don’t have to see it on the first day."
“Today is a day when the powerful nobles gather, so it would be better to show up, or is it that you have something else planned?"
Lydia actually wanted to go find the armored man from yesterday.
He called Lydia ‘princess’. Lydia thought that he must have mistaken her for someone else, moreover, her pajamas had been taken away by a stranger; this was a matter she couldn’t ignore. 
That sort of thing had ribbons sewn on, if someone saw it, what would she do? Once Lydia thought this, she became restless.
Standing from a fairy doctor’s viewpoint, she was also concerned about who the man actually was.
The unknown man wearing an armor and helmet was not surprised to see Kelpie, perhaps as Nico said, it couldn’t be determined as to whether or not he was human.
However, the iron-made armor seemed genuine, and she didn’t think that fairies would wear armor because they hated iron.
At any rate, the disguise ought to be very conspicuous, and now Nico and Kelpie were searching throughout London separately. 
“.....No, I didn’t have any other plans......”
She was worried, and her mind was too preoccupied to watch the opera. But the embarrassing pajamas that she tried to decorate with a French style was snatched away, and she couldn’t explain this to Edgar.  
“Then let’s get ready to head out. Today is mine and my fiancée’s long-awaited outing, you should dress beautifully."
He smiled and kissed Lydia’s cheek, then left the room.
Lydia couldn’t do anything, as she could only exchange a glance with the housekeeper holding the dress.

Lydia dressed up, her hand was pulled by Edgar as they entered the crowd in the theatre. Although she was more or less accustomed to this situation, she would still feel nervous.
Moreover, the people's’ attention tonight concerned her.
Edgar hadn’t appeared in society for a long time so it was inevitable. 
Lydia still couldn’t remember the names of the many ladies and gentlemen who came to greet Edgar, and so she greeted them while feeling puzzled. 
Even after being led to the box seat to sit, more people had continuously come to greet them. 
“Hey Edgar, have your glory wounds from protecting your fiancée healed?”
She originally thought that they would proceed to meet formally, but the one coming to the box to visit and using an ordinary manner was Edgar’s friend, it was a man whom Lydia had seen several times as well. 
“Yeah, I have fully recovered. That’s because she took care of me well."
“Miss Carlton, you were actually able to make this man concentrate on recovering, exactly what kind of magic did you use? If I get hurt, I might as well have you to take care of me."
“Eh, magic...”
“Steven, haven’t you always said that you didn’t believe in magic?"
“That’s because I haven’t seen real magic. Whether it’s magic or the fairy country in your name, if those truly exist, then I would really like to see it. Miss Carlton, what do you think?”
“My apologies, I won’t lend Lydia’s magic to anyone."
Oh dear.  He shrugged.
“As usual, being so spoiled. Miss Carlton, if you think I am a more outstanding man than him, please do not do say it, otherwise I might lose my life."
“Listen, Steven, even if Lydia made clear compliments, I wouldn’t be angry for every little thing." 
The two of them were lightheartedly joking, while they burst out laughing.
“By the way, Edgar, Lord Faulkner seemed to have been seriously wounded. I heard that he fought a man who snuck into his wife’s room and stole her handkerchief."
“Oh, was it a formal fight?”
“That seemed to be the intention at first, because he could only duel in order to protect his wife’s reputation."
“Duel?”
Lydia couldn’t help but cry out.
“They’d kill each other just over a handkerchief?”
“Lydia, duels don’t involve killing each other, it’s a gamble on life."
In any case, it was a crime.
In order to appease Lydia’s frown, Edgar pulled her hand.
“Furthermore, from the beginning, if a lady gave the handkerchief to a man, it meant that she set her heart on the other person. In other words, it was equivalent to the person wanting to snatch his wife, and it would be impossible to forgive the person."
“Yes, Miss, it is precisely because the nobility gamble for their life to fight for the sake of justice, and the injustice of the matter must be corrected."
“Then if you lose, what will happen? It’s possible that they won’t be able to restore their reputation, and they’ll die in this way, isn’t that so?”
Edgar happily looked at Lydia who was wasting time thinking about something trivial and then said:
“For the sake of his wife’s reputation, risking his life is worthy of praise because he fought fairly as a man and as a noble."
Lydia hadn’t known this. Was it necessary to fight for that sort of thing?
“....Then what about the person who stole the handkerchief?”
“I heard he went missing. Ultimately, they seemed to have quarreled about dueling, so there hadn’t been any formal showdowns."
“Having said that, you’re injured simply from an ordinary fight."
“Furthermore, there’s a very strange matter as well, according to Madame Faulkner’s claim, the man seemed to have misunderstood, I heard that he was looking for a red-haired woman.  Ah that’s right, Miss Carlton, you also have red hair."
He said, having noticed it. 
“Edgar, you’d better be careful."
“It’s alright, I won’t let anyone touch her."
Edgar put his lips close to the wisp of hair on Lydia’s neck, and seemingly whispered vaguely, not knowing who he was whispering to. 
Lydia felt his breath brush against the nape of her neck, and she couldn’t help but blush.  The reason why she was able to calm down was because she recalled that there was a more concerning matter than Edgar, who loved to joke around.
Red-haired woman, mistaking the wrong person?
It can’t be….. right?
However, if the armored man from yesterday had mistaken Lydia’s red hair for someone else’s...
Speaking of that, he spoke of some handkerchief yesterday and took the linen pajamas away.
“Excuse me, Sir, do you know of the man’s features?”
“What wrong Lydia? does this concern you?”
“N--no... it feels frightening somehow...”
“In that case, I’ll stay by your side regardless of whether it is day or night."
Edgar seemed to be joking when he said that.  Lydia took his hands that were holding her and put it back on his lap. Sir Steven smiled softly and then answered her question:
“It isn’t too clear. Because his wife had done nothing wrong, so she shouldn’t want unnecessary rumors spreading around, and the people related to that man are tight lipped regarding his name and features.” 
It would have been fine if she was just overthinking. 
“Hey, Lydia."
At that moment, a voice came from the shadows of the curtain.
A gray tail seemed to be beckoning her. It was Nico.
Does he know something about the armored man?
“Excuse me for a moment."
Lydia immediately left her seat and quickly picked up Nico, who was in a passage, and held him in her arms. She thought that it would be troublesome if people saw her talking with a cat standing on two hind feet.
“Lydia, what are you doing? Put me down."
Nico didn’t like being treated like a cat as his paws and feet were pushing Lydia.
“Bear with me, there’s too many people here. Never mind that, do you know anything?”
“Yes, I found the guy."
“Where is he?”
“There."
Nico’s finger pointed to the carpet spread out below the grand staircase. 
There was a suit of armor standing near the entrance of the opera house where it was filled with people. The armored man had turned his neck to look around, so they were aware that it wasn’t a decoration at all.
The crowd didn’t mind the armored man, probably because they believed that it an actor of the opera troupe.
However, Lydia barely managed to suppress a scream.  Tied to the man’s upper arm was the white cloth decorated with ribbons, that was stolen from Lydia last night...
“Woah, don’t just leave me behind!"
Lydia left Nico, rushed down the stairs and ran to the armored man. 
“Ohhh, Princess you are indeed here. Tonight, there were a lot of high class carriages gathered within the vicinity of this building, I thought that you ought to be inside, so I came."
“Um, I have something to tell you."
Lydia was mindful of the crowd as she brought the man to a dark area by the corner of the curtains. If Edgar discovered this, there was no telling what would happen. 
“Have you made up your mind to not get married?”
“Can you give that back to me first?”
Lydia reached towards the thing tied to the man’s arm, but immediately he withdrew.
“I can’t give it back to you."
“It’s not a handkerchief."
“I can see that."
Had he looked at it properly? Although Lydia was angry, she was also embarrassed. Nevertheless she still tried to refute, but the man once again said:
“No matter what it is, it’s all the same as long as it’s an item belonging to the Princess. This is proof that you trust me."
“Trust? That was what you stole, furthermore, I’m not a princess, you mistook me for someone else."
“No, you are the princess, the reincarnation of my princess."
“Reincarnated?”
The armor nodded, as if it was a matter of course.
“You were a noble princess in the past, and I was the one who served you. Nevertheless, we were attracted to each other and later on promised to spend a lifetime together."
He touched the ribbons tied on his arm, as if he were reminiscing.
“But the wicked lord had taken a fancy toward my lover and took her away to be his bride."
Lydia couldn’t help but ask.
“When did that happen?”
“For me, it was a year ago. But when I returned to this land, it had already been centuries."
“Hey Lydia, that guy wouldn’t have returned here from the fairy realm to the human world here, right?”
Nico said, pointing that out.
The way time was measured in the fairy realm was different to the human world. Originally, it would be believed that only one month had passed, however in human world terms, it had been several years, or a few decades. The amount of time he spent would have been a few days in the fairy realm after having returned. This sort of thing was quite common. 
The armored man was not surprised at all to see Kelpie, and even if the cat spoke to him, he also nodded as if he understood.
“The fairy realm... that should be it. The lord who loathed me borrowed the power of a witch. The witch transformed into a beautiful woman and enticed me, and trapped me in the woods. Although after the witch had died, I barely managed to escape from the forest, the human world had already changed completely…”
“In that case, you can no longer live in the human world."
Humans who have stayed in the fairy realm long term, would not be able to touch the objects of this world, even if they had returned from the fairy realm. If they came in contact with them, they would turn into dust.
“I am wearing a magic defense made from deerskin now, and everything is covered by the armor, so it’s impossible to come in contact with the things of this world."
“But, do you intend to dress like this for your whole life?”
Nico pitied him a little.
“I still have hope. As long as I find the princess and win against the demonic lord, then I can become human again, this was written in the witch’s magic book."
An intense gaze from the depths of the helmet was staring at Lydia. Although Lydia couldn’t see his eyes, she felt that they were blue.
The dream she saw was resurfacing. 
The young man who was calling the princess had blue eyes.
Could it be from my previous life?
She felt dizzy. The noisy hall on the other side of the curtain seemed like it was another world.
“So princess, I will absolutely rescue you from the hands of that vile lord."
Do I know this person?
The person I truly should get married to is......
“Lydia, you don’t look so good."
Nico’s voice was in her ear, which suddenly made her come back to her senses.
What previous life? It was just a dream.  After rethinking, Lydia took a deep breath.
This situation was getting increasingly complicated. If this sort of matter were to reach Edgar’s ears...
“Lydia, it’s about to begin."
Lydia was frightened as her shoulders shook and looked back in panic.
Although the dreams of her past life diminished from her mind all at once, her face grew pale. 
“E--Edgar!”
Edgar pushed aside the curtains and came over.
“Were you here to have a private conversation with Nico?”
He looked at Nico and Lydia, and perhaps thought that the armor was a decoration.
“Let’s go.” He embraced Lydia’s waist. 
This time, the armor made a sound.
“Are you the sinister lord? Don’t take away my princess!”
Edgar looked at the armor.
“Edgar, let’s go."
This was bad. Lydia pulled Edgar’s hand, but feeling dubious, he turned to the man and frowned. 
“Lydia, were you thinking of some joke to surprise me?”
“Um, th-that’s not the case...”
“This isn’t a joke, I came back to defeat you."
“Defeat? Me?”
“She is my lover."
This sentence made Edgar fall silent, but he was clearly furious. Revealing a smile with a hidden meaning, he said: 
“You’d better watch what you say, that armor cannot guarantee your safety."
“No, Edgar, this person was detained in the fairy realm in the past…”
However, in the armored man’s eyes, there was only the person that he firmly believed to be the hateful lord.
“You are a noble regardless, so you shouldn’t be a coward and escape a one-on-one battle."
“In other words, you knew she was my fiancee, and yet you try to challenge me to a duel?”
“I don’t have anything to do with this.”
Nico immediately disappeared after he said that.
“Nico, wait, ahh really, Edgar hear me out."
“I am Sir William. I’ve come to duel you, you bastard.”
Edgar snorted.
“Lydia is a chaste woman who loves only me, I do not have the time to deal with someone who is challenging me for a duel with a false accusation."
It wasn’t long after Lydia somewhat relaxed when the armored man untied the white cloth on his arm.
She shrieked and her face went pale. 
“Hey! Don’t do that, give it back to me! That’s not proof of a promise, you had clearly taken it yourself!”
Although it was a ripped sleeve, Edgar must have recognized what that light object was, and she saw that his expression grew quite severe. 
“So that’s how it is, I cannot ignore this."
“Then do you agree to duel?”
“No, you can’t duel!”
Although Lydia called out again, the crowd appeared to have started gathering on the other side of the curtain.
She didn’t want people seeing the corner of a pajama with ribbon decorations.
Lydia anxiously pushed the armored man into the passage.
“Hurry up and go! If you show that to others, I will hate you!”
“Princess...
“Do as I say!”
The armored man was probably overwhelmed by Lydia’s imposing manner and hesitantly retreated backwards.
“We’ll discuss the details after. You can come whenever, I am Lord Ashenbert."
Edgar hugged Lydia’s shoulders and calmly left the scene. He paid no attention to the area where many people had gathered and quickly brought her back to their seats.

​However, now certainly wasn’t the time for Lydia to watch opera. 
She was thinking about the armored man’s words again.
When she thought about yesterday’s dream, she felt a sharp pain in her chest.  It was like she was hypnotized, and felt that she was a princess who was being forced to marry someone she did not like. Moreover, she was waiting for someone to save her. As soon as she recalled the young man’s face appearing below the window, she felt her heart beating, like she was falling in love.
Love? Impossible.
The person she loved was here.
Lydia stole a glance at Edgar, who was sitting beside her.
From the beginning, regardless of whether the opera began or a famous singer appeared, he kept silent and didn’t clap.
Was he angry?
Even if she only thought about the absurd matter of the love from her past life, Lydia felt very guilty and lowered her head.
“Do you wear that sort of thing everyday?”
Edgar suddenly said.
Lydia lifted her head up in shock and found his face looking at her profoundly with hidden meaning.
What was he saying? Lydia thought for a moment, then blushed and answered.
“I--I haven’t even worn it once."
Although she vehemently denied it, Edgar’s smile froze. 
“So that really does belong to you."
“N--no, I don’t know, after all it was just a ripped up piece cloth, I might be wrong…”
Edgar couldn’t have been deceived by this reason, because ribbons were clumsily sewn on it. Since there were rarely women who would decorate frivolous linens that were clearly made into underwear, perhaps he recalled the French magazine which Lydia had forgotten.
“All in all, it’s not serious enough to have to duel...it wasn’t a handkerchief."
“Handkerchiefs carry special meaning because it directly touches the skin."
Was that so?
If that was the case, the situation might be even worse now. 
Although Lydia wasn’t very sure regarding the reputation of nobility, she was frightened as soon as she recalled what Sir Steven just said.
Though it wasn’t known whether Lord Faulkner’s opponent was that armored man, as long as they dueled, someone will be be injured and may even lose their life.
She trembled as she grasped the hand that was on her knee tightly.
“I beg you, don’t duel."
“Well, are you willing to do it for me too?”
“What?”
“It would be great if you wore it everyday."
“What? D--don't be ridiculous!”
He burst out laughing. Did he want to ease the serious atmosphere with his bad jokes? However, Lydia’s anxiety was not relieved at all.
If that really was her past life, and that person was her past lover, what was she going to do?
She didn’t want Edgar to be in danger, but if he were to kill the man, would the princess of her past life somewhere in Lydia’s heart hate him?
If compared to her feelings of love toward Edgar, she were to become more strongly in love with her past lover, what was she going to do?
Lydia was agitated as she clasped her trembling hands and said:
“You didn’t do anything wrong, why must you insist on gambling your life? The bad person is me, I obviously have a fiancé and yet I’ve been careless to let that...... that thing be stolen. If I am a dishonorable fiancée to you......”
“Lydia if you speak of annulling the engagement and such words, I will throw a fit regardless of the situation."
She knew how much Edgar wished to be together with her, and she also knew that Edgar was a man who would do anything, so she quickly closed her mouth.
It’s alright. Lydia said to herself. 
I only love one person.
When she realized this, she extended her hand as if to confirm it.  She wanted to touch the Edgar's hand, but she suddenly felt shy so she began to hesitate. 
In result, her hand was suddenly grasped. 
He pulled Lydia’s hands to his lap and held it firmly. The palms of their hands were together and their fingers intertwined. 
Just like this, the faint feelings of the person in the dream gradually diminished. 
Her heart was filled with feelings for Edgar.
Lydia was relieved and returned the grip on his hand, which she would not do usually. 
Perhaps it was quite strange as Edgar stared at her and touched her ears using his other hand.
“You don’t have to worry about anything."
He gently kissed Lydia’s fastened fluffy hair and then untied the loose olive green ribbon.
Then, as if considering the ribbon to be a war trophy, he put it in the inner pocket of his evening coat.
“......Edgar......”
"This is different from the ribbon the man stole, it was something worn on your body, are you willing to give this to me as proof of our promise?"
His lips drew close as he whispered. 
“Promise...”
“This is proof that you belong to me. Your hair, your mysterious eyes and lovely lips all belong to me."
The distance was short enough to almost kiss and Lydia withdrew her body, but she didn’t use as much strength as she thought.
“We’re in public.”
The opera house was a social occasion, they could be seen in their seats. 
Even if it was like this he didn’t care, he continued to stare at Lydia at a distance where they could practically touch lips.
Although Lydia wasn’t garish compared the upper class women who boldly exposed their skin, he used the back of his finger to stroke her lapel, which was modestly opened. Edgar’s gesture made her feel that she wasn’t her usual self.
“The only person who can touch this pale skin is me, right?"
Lydia’s body froze and could not move, but on the other hand, this provocative voice stirred up her heart.
Regardless of what Edgar did, it wouldn’t make her feel disgusted. Although she always showed an attitude of refusal because she was shy, she never felt that it was troublesome. 
It was alright, it was only Edgar who would make her think like this.
“Everything of you belongs to me, so your reputation is to be protected by me, understand?"
If she let go of Edgar, the dream that brought a strange feeling would seemingly make her feel pain. Thus, Lydia held his hand tightly. 

To be continued...

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[1] a picture, typically in a magazine, illustrating a new or current fashion in clothes.