Chapter 6.2

Esha’s smile was bitter.

If only Johan desired it, she too wished to see him appointed to the Imperial Knights Order once he was older. But that was entirely within her father Edmund’s power to grant. In the palace, Esha held no influence or authority. Her words alone could decide nothing.

The old knight scratched the back of his head, a hint of disappointment in his voice.

“Well, there’s still plenty of time, isn’t there? I’ll continue to teach him diligently. Perhaps when His Majesty sees this talent for himself, he’ll give his blessing.”

“Yes, then—”

“Sister…!”

Just as Esha was about to speak, Johan came running toward her, having finished his training.

Without thinking, she sank to her knees on the ground, spreading her arms wide.

But Johan, after taking a few eager steps, suddenly hesitated in front of her. His clothes were soaked with sweat and streaked with dirt.

Realizing why he paused, Esha gave him a warm, inviting smile and gave her open arms a small wave.

“It’s alright, Johan.”

At last, he threw himself into her embrace.

Unlike other noblewomen, she didn’t wear heavy, cloying perfumes. Instead, she smelled softly of clean soap and fresh grass. Johan inhaled deeply, savoring her scent and the comforting warmth of her arms.

‘If I’d ever had a younger sibling, would it have felt like this?’

To Esha, who had always lived in the shadow of her elder sister, Johan had become a small ray of sunshine. He made her act more like an adult, and simply by existing, kept her from slipping into despair. Strangely, as she taught him, she too found herself gaining far more than she gave.

Sword lessons were held twice a week for three hours each session.

In their spare time, Esha also taught Johan not only Elendorian but court etiquette. It pained her to see him dismissed by servants simply for being Atlanian, or for being a child.

“You must never look down on someone for their birth or status.”

“Why not?”

“Because it’s unfair. I know you’re not the kind of boy who would do such a thing, Johan.”

“But the palace servants, they look down on you, Sister…”

At Johan’s words, Esha paused.

Instead of scolding him, she reached out and gently tousled his hair. There were times when even she found it hard to endure the servants’ subtle disrespect, but she didn’t want to show that side of herself to Johan. She wanted to appear as someone better in his eyes.

“They’re not disrespecting me. It’s just that… they love Elendor too much.”

The servants had begun treating Esha with thinly veiled contempt after Johan’s engagement had shifted from Portia to her, and Atlan had stubbornly insisted on renegotiating the terms of the alliance.

The reason they felt emboldened enough to behave that way was simple. Esha’s worth had always been considered far less than Portia’s. The servants knew it too.

“In any case, since you and I are engaged, their attitude will change in time. All you have to do is grow into a fine young man who brings honor to our country.”

She smiled warmly as she spoke, but Johan’s expression remained perplexed. It wasn’t just because he felt the weight of her words, or because Elendor wasn’t his homeland. It was as though he was holding something back, something unspoken.

Still, Esha chose not to press him.

‘What could an eleven-year-old possibly be hiding?’

It was true. Johan was normally shy and rarely let his emotions show. Yet in front of Esha, he laughed, cried, and even threw small tantrums like any boy his age. Whatever he could be keeping from her, it couldn’t be anything significant.

“Johan, listen. You don’t have to put up with it. Any servant who dares to treat you with disrespect, I won’t let it stand.”

“…”

“I mean it. You’re the only foreigner in this palace. And you’re just eleven years old. For them to look down on you is no different than bullying the weak, and I’ll never tolerate that.”

The tips of Johan’s ears turned red.

The insults from the servants, the loneliness he felt in this vast imperial palace where he knew no one, all of it seemed to disappear whenever he was by Esha’s side.

But Johan never once complained to her about the servants. All he wanted was to stay close to her, for as long as she would let him.

But as one year, then two passed… Johan began to feel as though he had run into an invisible wall.

Under Esha’s tutelage, he had mastered court etiquette and Elendorian perfectly and began devoting himself entirely to swordsmanship. In time, he surpassed even the retired knight she had hired to train him, rendering the presence of a teacher unnecessary.

And so four years later, Johan was now fifteen.