The open training grounds carried a completely different atmosphere from the peaceful gardens and playful parks spread throughout the Noble Preparatory Hall, as the air here felt heavier, filled with the rough breathing of exhausted children and the faint scent of dirt and sweat lingering beneath the afternoon sun.

Wooden practice swords, spears, and shields lay scattered across the field, while groups of children around five or six years old rested where they had fallen, some lying flat on the ground while others sat clutching bruised arms or scraped knees with proud yet exhausted expressions.

Damon stood near the edge of the field with Cecelia still resting quietly in his arms, both of them observing the scene from the side as voices rose and fell throughout the grounds.

"My arm hurts..."

"You hit too hard!"

"Hmph... y-you cried first!"

"I did not cry!"

Some children argued weakly even while barely able to sit upright, while others proudly compared bruises as though they were marks of glory earned in battle.

And standing at the center of all of it—

Was Saffron.

The young boy with dark hair stood stiffly with a wooden sword still in his hand, his small chest rising and falling heavily as he looked at the children lying around him. Despite the exhaustion on his face, he was clearly trying to maintain a serious expression, his brows furrowed deeply as though attempting to imitate someone important.

Then he spoke again, though this time more carefully, as if trying hard to remember every word properly.

"You should heal your injuries." he said, his childish voice carrying surprising firmness despite occasional hesitation. "Y-you all got hurt because we were practicing..."

One of the boys sitting on the ground quickly shook his head.

"It’s okay, young master Saffron... t-these are just little injuries... they will get better by themselves..."

Saffron immediately frowned.

"No!" he said quickly, gripping the wooden sword tighter as he tried to continue remembering the words properly. "Y-you are all practicing to become strong knights for the Valecrest territory someday... t-the first line of defense..."

He paused midway, visibly trying to recall the rest before continuing again.

"What if... w-what if a breach suddenly opens somewhere...?" he asked, repeating the idea with complete seriousness despite his childish voice. "O-or monsters attack...? Then even small injuries can become really dangerous..."

The children slowly quieted.

Saffron’s face remained tense as he continued speaking, clearly trying to imitate the calm authority he had once seen.

"You should never think small injuries are okay..." he muttered, stumbling over some of the words before forcing himself onward. "S-something tiny can make you lose later... a-and if you lose, your friends can get hurt too..."

The field gradually fell silent.

Not because the children fully understood the weight of those words—

But because Saffron himself believed them completely.

"So..." he finished after taking another breath, "always make sure you are healthy and okay before fighting again!"

No one spoke for a moment after that.

The children simply stared at him, some confused, some thoughtful, while others looked strangely impressed despite not fully understanding why.

Then finally, one of the boys stood up clumsily and bowed awkwardly with childish sincerity.

"S-sorry, young master Saffron... w-we won’t ignore injuries anymore..."

The others quickly followed after seeing him do it, nodding their heads and apologizing in their own uneven ways while Saffron stood there trying very hard to maintain his serious expression despite looking moments away from collapsing from exhaustion himself.

At the edge of the field—

Damon watched everything silently.

A small chuckle escaped him as he watched the scene from the edge of the field, his gaze lingering on the exhausted little boy desperately trying to imitate authority far beyond his age.

...So it was this little guy spying on me, huh?

The thought amused him more than it should have.

Damon shifted Cecelia slightly in his arms before speaking quietly,

"Let’s go... we shouldn’t disturb our ’young master Saffron.’"

Cecelia did not resist.

She simply nodded faintly and remained resting quietly against him as Damon turned away from the training grounds, the distant sounds of children slowly fading behind them while the two wandered through the Noble Preparatory Hall without any particular destination in mind.

For a long while, neither of them spoke.

Cecelia sat silently in his arms, small and light enough that Damon barely noticed the weight, her hands holding softly onto his clothes while her head occasionally tilted whenever voices or footsteps passed nearby.

Damon glanced at her from time to time as they walked.

...No.

I can’t ask too many questions right now.

His gaze softened slightly.

She still isn’t comfortable around me.

If I push too hard now... it will only make things worse.

The realization settled quietly within him as he looked ahead again before finally speaking in a more casual tone.

"Do you like flowers?"

Cecelia hesitated slightly at the question before giving a small nod.

"...F-flowers don’t hurt Cece..."

Damon’s brows furrowed faintly at that answer.

There was no childish excitement in her voice when she spoke about them.

Only quiet acceptance.

"What about Saffron?" he asked after a moment.

Cecelia fell silent briefly, thinking carefully before answering in her soft voice.

"...Saffron is good..."

A tiny pause followed.

"H-he protects Cece..."

Then her fingers tightened slightly.

"B-but S-saffron can’t play with Cece..." she continued quietly. "H-he can only play with boys..."

Damon shook his head faintly at that.

...That brat.

The irritation came less from Saffron himself and more from the world that had already begun teaching a child ridiculous distinctions before he even understood them properly.

"And father?" Damon asked after another moment.

Cecelia answered almost immediately this time.

"Father is busy with work... and teaching Saffron how to fight..."

Her voice grew quieter near the end.

"...A-and Cece can’t see..."

Damon’s steps slowed slightly.

For a brief moment, he said nothing at all.

...So no one actually spends time with this child.

The thought settled heavily within him as he looked down at Cecelia resting quietly in his arms, so accustomed to loneliness that she spoke about it without even sounding sad anymore.

No wonder.

Between Damon’s abuse... and being left alone like this...

His gaze darkened slightly.

...this child never even learned how to respond when someone hurts her.

***

Night had long settled over the Valecrest Manor by the time Damon sat alone at the grand dining table, the vast hall illuminated by warm golden lights that reflected softly against the white and navy-blue interiors. The atmosphere remained quiet, almost too quiet for a place so large, with only the faint sound of utensils occasionally breaking the silence as Damon finished his dinner while Sahira stood attentively beside him.

After some time, Damon finally spoke without looking up.

"Did anyone come to you regarding what happened this morning?"

Sahira immediately shook her head.

"N-no..."

Damon nodded faintly at the answer, neither surprised nor relieved, as though he had expected things to proceed exactly that way. Once he finished eating, he placed the utensils down calmly and stood up from the table, his chair sliding back softly against the polished floor before he left the dining hall without another word.

Sahira quietly followed a step behind him as he walked through the long corridors of the manor, the servants they passed immediately lowering their heads and stepping aside the moment they noticed him. Damon’s pace remained steady until his gaze landed upon a familiar figure further ahead.

The head butler.

"Ahh," Damon said casually as he approached, "I was just looking for you."

The old butler seemed slightly puzzled by that statement, though his expression remained composed as he bowed respectfully.

"Young master Damon."

Damon gave a small nod before continuing directly,

"I need something done overnight."

***

Morning arrived quietly over the Valecrest Manor, the pale sunlight gradually spreading across the vast estate as the calm atmosphere of dawn slowly gave way to the rhythm of another day. Servants moved through the corridors carrying out their duties as usual, yet unlike most mornings, a strange excitement lingered within the air, subtle but impossible to miss.

In one section of the courtyard, a gathering of maids and attendants had formed near the garden pathways, their usual discipline noticeably loosened as soft murmurs spread continuously among them. Some stood covering their mouths in surprise, others leaned closer to whisper to one another, while even the older attendants carried expressions of visible curiosity.

"How did something like this even happen overnight...?"

"I swear it wasn’t here yesterday..."

"It’s so beautiful..."

"Who could have done it...?"

"No, look carefully over there too..."

The voices overlapped quietly, filled with genuine wonder as more servants slowed their steps just to glance toward whatever had drawn so much attention.

"It almost looks unreal..."

"Do you think master ordered it?"

"That doesn’t seem likely..."

The murmuring continued, spreading further through the courtyard like ripples across still water.

And amidst all of it—

A small figure slowly walked toward the gathering.

Cecelia moved carefully along the stone pathway with her usual hesitant steps, her unfocused eyes directed vaguely ahead as though guided more by sound than sight. The closer she approached, the more the servants noticed her presence, their murmurs softening one by one.

Then finally, one of the younger maids blinked in surprise and spoke softly,

"Ahh... young lady Cecelia...?"