The Male Slave of House Sianella - Chapter 56

Chapter 56: Noah Beleia (2)

It was perplexing.

Just who was this guy to recognize and call out to Sione?

What puzzled me was that Sione seemed to know his name, when before I came she had lived such an unsociable life stuck in her room.

Since we were far enough away that quiet conversation wouldn't reach that young lord.

I carefully asked Sione:

"Do you know him?"

"...Yes."

Sione's face had lost the warm smile from when she'd been shyly pleased about my clothes compliment.

She just stared at me with a frozen expression.

Looking at my reflection in her blue pupils, I could sense fragments of emotion in their depths.

Sione was trembling with anxiety now, as if she had become a criminal.

Though ordinary people wouldn't notice her emotional state, how long had I been protecting this high-maintenance master?

Realizing this.

I also understood that her coldly frozen expression had deeper reasons beyond mere annoyance and disgust at meeting Noah.

"Are you alright?"

"W-what are you talking about?"

"You're trembling."

Sione quietly pressed her lips together at my words.

Though she seemed to be trying to hide her emotions behind an indifferent expression.

Perhaps because of my words, her eyes wavered uncertainly for a moment.

After composing her gaze, she said:

"...I'm fine, don't worry."

Just what had happened between that Lord Noah and Sione?

As I watched her while bowing my head at her words.

Noah, who had muttered Sione's name from afar, approached with his guard knight.

"Um... Sione, right? It's been a while, have you been well...?"

An awkward greeting.

And Sione hid her hands behind her back while receiving this awkward greeting.

Her hands were trembling slightly.

"...Yes, I've been well."

"I never expected to meet like this... how many years has it been, haha..."

Sione answered Noah's gloomy greeting while feigning composure.

Though she couldn't avoid her responses becoming unnecessarily short.

When Sione faced Noah without much reply, an even heavier awkwardness began consuming the shop interior.

Other customers and staff must have noticed this atmosphere was unusual, as their gazes gradually turned this way.

Moreover, why was that knight looking down at my master with such a cold gaze?

Tsk, this felt a bit off.

"If you're here, Sione... does that mean you're also attending the Princess's coming of age ceremony?"

"...That's right."

"I see, then that dress too..."

Noah's gaze fixed on Sione's attire.

Unlike her usual self who just carelessly wore whatever clothes I prepared.

He couldn't take his eyes off Sione for a while, perhaps because she was showing off her beauty in a dress.

Though the atmosphere was suffocatingly awkward, Noah subtly showed goodwill toward Sione.

However, Sione-

The more Noah's goodwill reached her, the more she overlaid her face with expressionlessness.

Naturally, Noah ended up hesitating after seeing Sione's manufactured expression.

"...Noah, if there's nothing more to discuss, I'd like to look at other clothes."

Sione forced out the words.

Noah's shoulders shrank at Sione's harsh words.

At the same time, the knight who had been quietly watching the situation like me behind him grimaced then smoothed his expression.

Though Sione had unnecessarily said something to worsen the mood.

Tremble tremble.

Seeing her shaking hands, I felt there must be some backstory.

I didn't want to criticize her.

"S-sorry... I kept you too long while choosing clothes..."

Though Noah stumbled through some explanation, I didn't properly hear his words.

My attention was focused entirely on Sione.

After much hesitation, the thoroughly deflated Noah finally spoke one last time.

"Then, Sione! Could we... talk at tomorrow's banquet?"

I knew well that Sione didn't want to talk with him.

But given the atmosphere and.

Since he wanted to talk with Sione this badly, completely refusing seemed wrong.

I secretly poked Sione's back while hiding behind her, and she turned her head from her stiff position.

-Go ahead.

When I conveyed my meaning through lip movements, she made an expression mixed with all sorts of emotions.

But finally gave a gentle nod.

"...Alright."

"Really...?"

"Let's talk... at the banquet, Noah."

Noah's gloomy expression finally lifted at Sione's words.

"Thank you, Sione...! See you then...!"

Noah returned to his guard knight with a somewhat brightened mood.

After confirming his knight bowed to us once before moving away.

I spoke in the heavily sunken atmosphere.

"...Shall we try other dresses? One won't be enough."

"Yes, let's do that."

I continued shopping for dresses with Sione who was still feigning composure before me.

Though it didn't take long.

Since Sione clearly didn't want to stay here longer, we quickly paid after getting recommendations for what would suit her well.

As for my clothes. I got one black formal suit that wouldn't stand out.

After finishing shopping quickly, we returned to the carriage.

"We'll depart."

The carriage began moving after the coachman's announcement.

Sitting facing Sione inside the carriage, she opened her mouth.

"Aren't you curious?"

"About what?"

"About what just happened."

Sione stared at me intently.

I lightly deflected her gaze and answered:

"If you ask if I'm curious, I am... but I don't particularly want to hear something that might make you uncomfortable."

"Something that might make me uncomfortable. Rather than uncomfortable."

Sione self-deprecatingly spoke with a regretful expression.

"It's more a story that would make you angry at my foolishness."

Having said that, Sione began telling the story on her own.

"Noah Beleia, only son of House Beleia. Being from another Count house in the kingdom's west, he often visited our territory, and in the past we got along well and matched well... yes, we were like childhood friends."

"Childhood friends?"

"Yes, childhood friends. Though now I can hardly even call us friends... Noah was kind-hearted and always knew how to consider others. Until I locked myself in my room, he was the only one who always took my side."

"Yet you say you can hardly call him a friend..."

"Of course due to my mistakes, we ended up in an awkward relationship."

"...Could you explain what happened?"

"Isn't that why I'm telling you this?"

Sione let out an empty laugh.

After staring blankly ahead as if tracing the past, she began moving her lips.

"It was when I was tired. When everyone put me down and compared me until I became sick of all relationships."

"Back then, Noah kept telling me I must still have hidden talents. Looking back now, it was probably just meant to encourage me but-"

"...At the time, those words hurt more than anyone else's."

Sione's words reminded me of her past self.

The day she witnessed Siabel reach the realm of an ascendant knight.

Sione's figure locked in her room alone, lost in self-loathing contemplation.

When told to look for talents besides swordsmanship in that state, she had shown her most neurotic reaction.

Though she must have eventually accepted it after stewing alone for years, that word "talent" that had made Sione so sensitive.

When Noah spoke that word, Sione must have been more emotionally overwhelmed by the word "talent" than ever before.

"I think emotions took over then. What I gave Noah was expulsion and..."

Sione covered her eyes with her hand as if it gave her a headache.

I understood up to the expulsion but.

Just what did she do next to be like this?

"If you're going to spout such worthless nonsense before me, get lost... and never show your face to me again... is what I said..."

"Ah..."

This kid really has no middle ground. None at all.

There was a reason Sione couldn't hold her head up before Noah.

After outright cursing and telling someone who had encouraged her to get lost.

Even if she had some shame, how could she brazenly talk to him?

Moreover, I had heard passing rumors about Sione's past verbal abuse among servants who had served her...

She probably cursed at Noah much worse than what she'd admitted.

Since Noah's guard knight looked coldly at Sione too, she must know something about Sione's past.

Just as I was starting to grasp what Sione had done, she spoke:

"Not long after that incident I locked myself in my room... and our badly twisted relationship ended up unresolved like this."

That relationship with Noah Beleia that had been awkward enough to suffocate even observers.

Before I made Sione human again.

It was the result of a Sione who suffered from self-loathing and helplessness along with anger management issues.

"How about it, aren't I foolish?"

As her attendant, I couldn't outright agree that she was foolish.

As I silently watched Sione laugh weakly.

[Quest has been formed.]

「Settling the Past」

「Sione Sianella has clearly changed through your efforts. However, her relationships with various people from her past remain unresolved, eating away at her mind. As Sione Sianella's attendant, it's only natural to resolve your master's worries and concerns. Fix her twisted relationship with Noah Beleia, who represents this most prominently.」

「Reward: Acceleration of Sione Sianella's growth rate」

I looked at the status window that appeared.

True to the quest name "Settling the Past," the quest urged improving the awkward relationship between Noah Beleia and Sione.

Again telling me to support Sione.

The reward I would get for completing this quest was acceleration of Sione's growth rate.

Unlike the previous talent awakening accelerations, this time it clearly specified growth rate.

If I successfully complete this quest, Sione's archery should grow faster to match her awakened talent.

This reward could make up for the recent gap in archery practice due to carriage travel.

Though this quest would obviously be incredibly troublesome.

"...Let me ask one thing. Do you want to untangle and fix your twisted relationship with Young Lord Noah Beleia? Or-"

Since there was no mention of penalties for failing.

"Do you want to cut it off completely?"

I asked. About Sione's true feelings.

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