Sigrid Novel Chapter 137

'So that's the wanderer Karsus Rian.'

Feeling the urge to throw a stone, he stared intently at the blue hair below. Awen, who had grown considerably in a year, was experiencing growing pains, with aches in all his joints. Now that his mind was at ease, he had put on more weight. Above all, he could now sleep well alone.

Just then, as if sensing the gaze, Karsus looked up, and Awen, though startled, waved his hand nonchalantly. Karsus blinked and waved back.

For so reason, after exchanging greetings, Awen felt awkward continuing to watch, so he raised his gaze and stood up.

"Huh?"

At that mont, he saw a small procession in the distance.

'Ah—!'

Awen dashed out of the room.

"Your Highness, you mustn't run."

A passing servant admonished him as if scolding a child. Awen turned around with a grin, raising both arms as if cheering, and said,

"Guests from the capital have arrived!"

Then he ran off again. Hearing this, the servant's eyes widened before he quickened his pace and disappeared.

In an instant, the mansion beca bustling with activity.

Sigrid asked the maid who was fixing her hair again,

"Where is Lord Awen?"

"He rode out on horseback......"

Sigrid briefly asked "What?" as the maid trailed off.

"He took a horse straight from the stable and left, they say."

Sigrid let out a short groan. The maid's hands moved faster.

"Don't worry. It's just a stone's throw away anyway......"

"That may be true, but still."

Sigrid swallowed a sigh. If she said anything more here, it would seem like she was blaming the maid who brought the news. Rebraiding her hair wasn't difficult, so it was quickly done.

Rivans quietly inford her that he had greeted the guests, and Sigrid imdiately went down to the reception room. There were familiar faces.

Marie-Chez, wrapped in furs, opened her arms wide.

"Sigrid L. Ankertna! Why is it so hard to see your face?"

Sigrid hugged her tightly and said,

"Thank you for coming to see , Marie."

Marie-Chez chuckled and hugged her back tightly before letting go. Lowengrin, removing her muff, said,

"The interior is surprisingly warm though. It's been a while, Siri."

"Yes, it's been a while, Lowengrin."

Sigrid clasped her hands tightly with both of hers before letting go and adding,

"Arkana said he was doing so experint. Sothing about preventing heat loss?"

"Oh my? That's quite practical."

Lowengrin replied, blinking. Sigrid nodded.

"I don't know the details, but I'm all for keeping the castle warm without burning too much firewood."

Finally, Sigrid rolled her eyes. Awen was grinning, sticking close to Alkerto. Alkerto smirked.

"Ta-da."

"You didn't even say you were coming."

"Well, I wanted to surprise you. And I can't stay long anyway."

"Welco, Sir Alkerto."

"It's been a while, Sigrid. The three of us ca, and Morris wanted to co too, but—"

"The Vice-Captain position wouldn't let him, I guess."

"Correct."

Alkerto shrugged and laughed, making a "ding-dong-dang" sound. Sigrid spoke to Awen,

"Lord Awen. You mustn't go out alone recklessly."

At those words, Awen was about to say sothing but then bowed his head.

"I'm sorry."

Alkerto patted Awen's head as if pressing it down and said,

"I already gave him an earful."

"You call that scolding?"

Marie-Chez snorted and then said to Awen,

"Your Highness, you are currently under my friend Sigrid's care. That ans if anything happens to you, it's all Siri's responsibility. And there are countless nobles watching to check the newly rising Siri, so I don't want there to be any excuses for them to find fault. Do you understand?"

At those words, Awen's head bowed even lower.

"Yes. I understand......"

Alkerto's expression quickly turned to one of pity. He patted Awen's back comfortingly. Seeing this, Marie-Chez's expression soured again. Lowengrin continued,

"That doesn't an we're trying to oppress Your Highness. But please consider your status and the scope of impact your actions might have before acting. Always calculating the worst-case scenario is for the sake of preparation."

Awen nodded. With nothing more to say, Sigrid spread her hands slightly and said,

"Well, it seems Lord Awen understands sufficiently, so I won't lecture anymore. Shall we all have a cup of tea? Oh, and there's another guest at the castle too."

"Another guest?"

In this winter? Marie-Chez tilted her head quizzically as Sigrid said,

"The wanderer Karsus Rian."

"Huh?"

"Wow—"

"Hmm."

Though they each reacted differently, the common thought was that it was unexpected. Alkerto smiled and said,

"Wow, then three of the Four Masters are gathered in this castle? The Wanderer, the Black Knight, and the Silver Knight. I'd really like to see them with my own eyes. Especially the Wanderer—it's not often you get a chance to see him. I've only heard rumors."

Lowengrin asked with a voice tinged with curiosity,

"Did he just stop by while passing through?"

"No, it seems he has so business with Arkana. And apparently, he's a bad friend of Beramund's."

At those words, Marie-Chez chuckled.

"Does 'bad friend' an soone you use when needed? Anyway, I do need that tea."

"Ah, yes. Everyone, please have a seat."

Sigrid ordered tea from Rivans and seated her guests.

Midway through drinking tea, Alkerto tactfully excused himself, saying he wanted to talk more with Awen. Rivans flawlessly assigned a servant to guide him to his room. With only the three won left, Marie-Chez dramatically threw herself onto the sofa armrest and said,

"Ah, I thought I was going to die getting here. Why is it so cold here?"

"The north is naturally cold in winter."

Lowengrin retorted while silently sipping her tea.

"But it's too cold even for that."

"Says the person who was wrapped in fur and hugging a hot water bottle tightly."

"I couldn't help it because it was cold!"

"Actually, those riding horses outside probably have it colder than us."

"Ah, but the sleigh ride was quite fun."

"Hmm, unlike a carriage, it moves quickly without vibration."

"And the bell sounds are cheerful."

Marie-Chez smiled and lifted herself from the armrest. She stared at Sigrid for a mont before saying with a satisfied smile,

"I'm glad to see you're doing well, though."

"Yes, you too, Marie. But Lowengrin, aren't you a newlywed? Is it okay for you to co like this?"

"It's not like we're apart for long. A bit of separation is an interesting spice, you know."

At Lowengrin's words, Sigrid nodded with an "I see" in admiration. She and Beramund were together all day. And—

'I don't want to be apart.'

Once again, Sigrid thought Lowengrin was amazing. As Marie-Chez set down her cup, Sigrid quickly refilled it. Marie-Chez said,

"By the way, I didn't expect Alkerto to co along too."

"What are you saying when you ca together~"

That should be Sigrid's line, Lowengrin said, and Marie-Chez pouted, saying,

"But we ca to et just us girls, and he's butting in. So insensitive."

"You seed pretty happy about it though?"

"I was not!"

Marie-Chez retorted seriously to Lowengrin's words. Lowengrin just said, "Ah, is that so?" and didn't say anything more. This made Marie-Chez's mouth itch to speak even more.

"I wasn't happy about it."

As Marie-Chez spoke again, Sigrid nodded.

"But you weren't unhappy about it either."

That could be the case too, Sigrid nodded again. Lowengrin chuckled softly and put down her cup, saying,

"Shall we go to our rooms then? I'd like to change clothes too. This is travel attire after all."

"Ah, yes."

Sigrid stood up. Marie-Chez looked at Lowengrin once, let out a heavy sigh, and stood up as well.

"Right, this outfit is getting a bit warm now."

The servants guided the two to the guest rooms that had been prepared in advance. Their luggage had already been moved. Marie-Chez was satisfied with the room, while Lowengrin expressed concern to Sigrid, asking, "Isn't this too much?"

Sigrid smiled and said,

"Not at all. I'm happy if you two are comfortable. And my territory isn't that poor."

"I know that."

Lowengrin replied and smiled gently. The two rooms for Lowengrin and Marie-Chez were side by side and connected by a door. Marie-Chez ca across the room and asked,

"By the way, what about Alkerto?"

"Sir Alkerto is in the garden with His Highness."

A maid answered politely from the side.

"I see."

Marie-Chez nodded. Sigrid asked the maid,

"What about Alkerto's bedroom?"

"We prepared one across the hall, but......"

"Ah, I see. Understood."

Sigrid nodded, thinking of the room across the hall. She had thought only two people were coming, but had prepared two or three more rooms just in case they didn't like their assigned rooms, and this was one of them.

'I'm glad we prepared in advance.'

Sigrid thought and said,

"You must both be tired from the long journey, so rest well."

"Okay."

"See you later."

"If you need anything, just ask the servants."

"Got it."

Marie-Chez nodded with a grin.

Leaving the two to rest, Sigrid left the room. Thinking she might go find Alkerto and Awen, she headed towards the garden.

Sigrid felt a bit guilty about what she had said to Awen earlier. Although it wasn't wrong, it might have been better to talk to him privately rather than in front of everyone.

'The Empress asked

to look after him.'

Thinking this, she quickened her pace. The count's garden was spacious, but they wouldn't have gone far. As she sensed presences nearby, Sigrid stopped in her tracks.

'Oh?'

Three people were standing there.

Awen, Alkerto, and Karsus.

Karsus was the first to raise his head towards Sigrid, and the other two n followed his gaze.

"Hello, Countess."

"Aren't you all cold? Standing out here like this. Why don't we talk inside?"

As Sigrid approached and spoke, Karsus smiled slightly and said,

"It's quite mild for a northern winter so far."

"I suppose so."

Sigrid nodded. Compared to last winter, this year's severe cold seed to be delayed. Awen hesitantly stepped forward and bowed his head deeply.

"I'm really sorry for going out on my own."

Another apology. Sigrid lightly placed her hand on his shoulder, then removed it and said,

"It's alright as long as you're careful from now on. I shouldn't have said that in front of everyone either, I'm sorry too."

At those words, Awen shook his head.

"No, I lost trust once, so it's hard to regain it. I should have kept trying harder."

"You've done well this past year."

"Have I...?"

Awen slightly raised his head to gauge Sigrid's reaction, and she nodded with a faint smile. Awen let out a sigh of relief.

But Beramund and Arkana were still scary. Well, Beramund was okay, but that magician made him uncomfortable.

Alkerto ruffled Awen's hair as if ssing it up. It was a casual action, as if done to his own younger brother. If a re knight did this to a prince, it would be grounds for punishnt, but Awen narrowed his eyes happily.

"By the way, you've grown so much. Your Highness will surely be tall."

"You think so?"

"Yes."

Karsus watched this interaction with interest and asked,

"You two seem close."

"Haha, it just happened that way. By the way, it's an honor to see the Wanderer."

At Alkerto's words, Karsus shrugged.

"I'm just an insignificant person, it's nothing special."

"For a swordsman, it's natural to admire a master."

Alkerto said, with a smile in his blue eyes. Karsus seed at a loss for words at this and closed his mouth, then turned to Sigrid and said,

"It's not a magnet, but similar people gather together, I suppose......"

"What do you an?"

When Sigrid asked, Karsus chuckled and turned to Alkerto, saying,

"It's not common to receive sincere praise from soone less skilled than you, right in front of you. Especially from a fellow swordsman."

Alkerto looked unsure of how to respond, then sighed and said,

"I'm not sure if that's a complint or not. Well— my skills are indeed lower, but hearing it directly is a bit painful."

"It's a complint."

At Karsus's words, Sigrid looked skeptical. To her, Alkerto took precedence over Karsus. Soone who insulted her friend was, in her view, an intolerable existence.

"It's a stupid thing to say, but it is a complint."

Everyone turned their heads at the voice that ca. Beramund stood there with a sour expression, then grinned at Alkerto.

"Even if it's a sudden guest, Siri's friends are always welco. Sir Alkerto."

"I apologize for coming without notice."

Alkerto returned the greeting politely. Beramund glanced at the sky and said,

"But it seems you'll have to cancel your plans to leave soon."

At those words, Alkerto looked up at the sky. The winter sky was gray as always.

"Will it snow?"

"It looks like it will pour down quite heavily."

"I guess it's true that masters can predict the weather from the flow of air."