The Escort Knight Who Is Obsessed by the Villainess Wants to Escape - Chapter 57.2

“Avesta Mazda Anggra. The bishop of the Moon God Cruch. He’s commonly known as Bishop Anggra.”

“…?”

Who… is that?

Judging by the title ‘bishop,’ is he a religious figure?

Is it someone I know?

Or someone I should know?

I blinked dumbly with my mouth slightly open.

Eliza stared at me, then tilted her head.

“You don’t know?”

“No.”

I answered confidently.

I don’t know.

I quickly went through all the names I knew.

Characters who might exist somewhere in this world, even if I haven’t met them.

None of them were named Anggra.

Nor was there anyone named Avesta, Mazda, or anything like that.

“Hmm.”

Eliza even stopped stroking the moon deer.

She crossed her arms and looked straight into my eyes.

Her confident red eyes are always like this.

Naturally, as if it were the most obvious thing, she looks into others’ eyes and scrutinizes them.

A gaze so intense that it feels like I’ll be drawn in if I look straight back.

I subtly avoided her gaze.

But her eyes still stayed on my face.

Her gaze wandered over my face, examining every detail.

A tenacious, meticulous gaze.

Finally, she widened her eyes as if she was surprised and said,

“You really don’t know?”

…What?

Did she just see right through me?

Am I that transparent?

‘Well, I can’t exactly deny it.’

Eliza is a natural genius in this area, so that’s probably why.

Yeah, that’s it.

It’s not just because I’m an obvious person.

“Judas. Let me ask you again. Do you really not know?”

“No…. Should I know this person?”

A small crease formed between Eliza’s brows.

The woman, who was always calm and unshaken, spoke with a serious expression.

“Anggra is the one who brought you out of Judeca. After that, he also protected you. I don’t know whether he released you or if you ran away, but after leaving that place, you wandered around other slave markets until you ended up by my side.”

“……”

Suddenly, a flood of information pours in.

Completely unexpected content.

My understanding lags behind.

I never thought about it.

Not about Judas’s family relations or his past.

I knew he was from Judeca through Vinyl.

I was curious.

But it was a lower priority.

I was too preoccupied with avoiding the tragedy that might soon befall me.

Eliza was digging into that past of mine.

‘It’s surprising, but… is it important? What should I do?’

I don’t know the person who rescued me.

It’s a very suspicious and strange situation.

But I can’t say that I’ve suddenly remembered it now.

I’m not good at lying, and Eliza can detect my lies.

So, there’s only one choice left.

“I really don’t remember.”

I simply tell the truth.

Even if it’s a cliché excuse like memory loss, it can’t be helped.

Because it’s the plain truth.

“I see… Is that so….”

Eliza nodded slowly as if she had realized something.

As if it was time to go, Lia approached cautiously.

She wiped Eliza’s hands with a handkerchief.

Eliza, as usual, let her do it, but her gaze was different.

Her eyes, fixed somewhere in the air, seemed resolute as if she had made a decision.

“I understand. Let’s stop here for today….”

Eliza stopped mid-sentence and froze in place.

Her slightly parted lips.

Her large eyes slowly closed.

Anticipating what would happen next, I hurriedly reached out.

‘She’s going to faint…!’

As expected, Eliza swayed with her eyes half-closed.

Before she could fall, my arm caught her.

“…Ah.”

Eliza opened her eyes.

She frowned, alternating her gaze between me and Lia.

On the other side, Lia was supporting Eliza together with me.

The red-haired maid who always followed like a shadow.

I glanced at her.

She no longer glared at me as sharply as before.

She just looked at Eliza.

With eyes full of pity and sympathy.

Eliza, while looking at me, didn’t look up at Lia.

More precisely, she was staring down at my arm that was holding her.

“…I’m sorry.”

I apologized out of formality and let go of her.

Or at least I tried to.

She didn’t let go.

Eliza was gripping my collar and wouldn’t release it.

“Miss?”

“…No, it’s nothing.”

She shook her head slightly and let go of my collar.

She barely managed to stand upright with Lia’s support.

‘Why is she so unstable….’

“I’ll call the doctor right away.”

Lia said, but Eliza waved her hand dismissively.

“It’s fine. Anyway….”

She stopped speaking again.

She hadn’t fainted this time.

Somewhere, a frog’s croak was heard.

A loud, rumbling sound.

It came from Eliza’s stomach.

“…….”

I turned my head, pretending not to hear it.

I could feel Eliza’s gaze on me.

A gaze glaring at me intently.

When I met her eyes by rolling mine slightly, Eliza quickly turned her head away.

Her round cheeks were flushed.

With her lips slightly pursed, she spoke curtly while looking elsewhere.

“…Pretend you didn’t hear that.”

“It is about time for frogs to wake up from hibernation….”

“What?”

“Oh, no, nothing.”

I hastily changed the subject.

“Have you had dinner?”

…Wait, hold on.

This isn’t changing the subject; it’s directly confronting it, isn’t it?

Saying that I heard the sound from your stomach?

Since I already said it, I decided to be shameless.

Eliza answered with her lips pouting.

“I ate.”

“Hmm….”

For someone with a small frame, her limbs were too thin.

I recalled the day I had dinner with Eliza.

Even with a feast enough to bend the table legs in front of her, Eliza didn’t finish even one dish.

She barely touched her soup a few times.

It wasn’t out of modesty in front of me.

She wasn’t that kind of person.

It was just Eliza’s eating habit.

‘With all the work she has, it’s no wonder she keeps fainting since she doesn’t eat properly.’

It somehow bothers me.

I usually eat a lot.

To maintain a body built through exercise and to maximize performance, I have to.

Maybe that’s why I find people with small appetites annoying.

Especially those who starve themselves for dieting.

Or those who go on health food diets and end up weak and frail.

In my opinion, humans should eat a lot and move a lot.

That’s just my personal opinion, though.

Anyway.

Especially when a child doesn’t eat and starves, that’s what I find most unacceptable.

I impulsively asked.

“Are you busy?”

“…Huh? Me?”

Eliza, rarely surprised, was caught off guard, clearly not expecting this.

Lia answered on her behalf.

“The young lady is scheduled to have self-study time until bedtime.”

“If it’s self-study, that means it’s not related to any important work within or outside the family, correct?”

Lia was momentarily at a loss for words at my firm question.

Eliza answered instead.

“Well, yes, but… why?”

“Then it’s settled.”

Without any further thought, I grabbed Eliza’s hand.

I didn’t ask for permission as I led her.

“Let’s go eat something with me.”

***

Eliza recalled a sentence from a book she had read a long time ago.

Emotions are like an untamed horse, and reason is the rider who reins it in.

Therefore, humans move according to the instincts of their emotions and barely manage to control them with reason.

It was a fairly insightful observation.

It stayed with her deep inside.

It wasn’t because she had an emotional personality.

Maybe she did when she was younger, but now she was entirely different.

She was cautious, calm, and rational in every matter.

This wasn’t arrogance; it was a fact.

She was confident in her self-objectivity.

It was essential to assess her position objectively.

That was the life of a powerless illegitimate child.

Always having to be aware of others’ opinions, fighting unseen battles, and searching for a place to rest her body.

Thanks to this, she became adept at analyzing and understanding her circumstances.

What factors led to the current situation?

How should she respond? Things like that.

But now, Eliza, who was usually so composed, felt rare confusion.

The fact that she was confused was confusing, which only added to her confusion.

Her emotions were running wild.

Her reason could hardly control them.

She remembered when she had laughed at Judas’s antics toward Barak.

Barak, stammering and not knowing what to do with the bold Judas.

Now, she was like him.

She never imagined she would find herself in this situation.

‘What… is happening… right now…?’

Sitting at the end of the dining table, she blankly lowered her head.

A small bowl emitting steam.

Inside was porridge.

A plain porridge made from ground grains.

It was something she never imagined seeing on her dining table.

Eliza wanted to understand this situation.

At what point did it originate?

She rewound the clock.

She nearly collapsed in the stables.

It was the familiar dizziness and vertigo.

She was going to brush it off, but Judas suddenly grabbed her hand.

Brazenly asked about her schedule, and then led her away as he pleased.

It was absurd.

It was true she had favored him more and treated him leniently.

But this was crossing the line.

He deserved punishment.

But she couldn’t bring herself to speak.

For some reason, her body obediently followed him.

Honestly, she didn’t even want to punish him.

And then they arrived at the dining room.

Judas, unable to wake the sleeping cook, asked Anna instead.

Just to make a bowl of porridge.

Lia was difficult to deal with and awkward to ask, so instead, he sought out Anna.

While Anna made the porridge, Lia assisted from the side.

Thinking Judas would eat it, Anna was shocked to learn the porridge was for Eliza and nearly fainted.

The porridge that almost made Anna faint was now in front of Eliza.

Judas stirred the porridge with a spoon.

Steam rose from it.

He blew on it, trying to cool it down.

Eliza blankly watched him sitting beside her.

What is he doing?

What is this situation?

She needed to understand, but she couldn’t comprehend it at all.

Lia, standing at a distance, watched with a complex expression, but no one paid attention to her.

In truth, Judas wasn’t in his right mind either.

He had never resented his impulsive nature more than now.

Because of his habit of acting before thinking, things had come to this point.

He wanted to faint from embarrassment, but he had no choice.

It was already done, and he was here now.

There was no turning back.

He knew it was a crazy act, and his face burned with shame, but he did it because it was necessary.

Finally, Judas cooled the porridge and brought the spoon to Eliza’s lips.

“Say ah.”

“…….”

Eliza’s sense of reality shattered.