Children of the Rune – Winterer - Chapter 25

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 25
The Winter Sword (25)

Rosnis smiled brightly, attempting to ease the tension in the room.
“Mother, I’ve wanted an older brother for so long. That’s why I decided to become your younger daughter.”
“Is that so?”
Even in his response to his daughter, the Count lacked the overflowing affection one might expect from a father. Boris found himself wondering if this woman came from an exceptionally distinguished family.
The Count spoke.
“While you stay here, call me Father, and address her as Mother. You were the youngest son of Cambris Elgulden, a fallen lord of the western Gvansky Land. Through family ties, you became my ward at age five, though until now you received only financial support while living with your biological father. Your mother passed away long ago, so you never knew her face. However, this year your father suddenly passed as well, which is why you’ve come to live here.”
It felt strange to listen to his own past being recounted as smoothly as a novel. Whether by coincidence or not, there were parts that aligned slightly with Boris’s true history.
The Count continued.
“Among the people in this castle, only those I’m about to name know anything of how you came to be here. My secretary Hugh, the maid Willa who nursed you, Rosnis’s maid Camia, and among the knights who went to Trabaches, those who were beside me when I rescued you—Geribo, Delemir, and Gromius.”
Boris concentrated on remembering their names.
“However, even they don’t know your purpose here or how long you’ll stay. Only my wife, myself, and Rosnis in this room know that. No matter the situation, answer everyone else according to the past I’ve just described.”
Rosnis tilted her head doubtfully. She seemed uncertain whether such a secret could truly be kept. There were far too many people who knew even vague clues for it to remain thoroughly hidden.
Boris also surmised that the Count’s words simply meant to be careful the matter didn’t spread as gossip.
“Will you be able to remember everything I’ve just told you?”
Boris answered quietly.
“Yes.”
The Countess spoke.
“The child might forget, so have him write it down and give it to him.”
“I was already planning to do that. Hugh should have it prepared already.”
“How convenient.”
No one touched the tea or the pastries. Though it was expected, Boris felt a bitter sting at being an outsider to this family.
Yet now that he had made his choice, his resolve to see it through properly was already set.
“Then you should prepare a room for Boris. Not far from Rose’s room—ah, that one would be perfect. That room on this floor of Moonshine Tower.”
The Countess looked slightly surprised but soon replied.
“Understood. I’ll do as you say.”
Even Rosnis opened her eyes wide, glancing back and forth between her parents. But Boris neither knew nor cared what kind of place that room on Moonshine Tower’s floor was.
The Count spoke to Boris again.
“I’ll find you a sword master to teach you within the next few days. Until then, rest well and recover from your journey. Sleep tonight, and tomorrow Rose will show her older brother around the castle. It’s quite vast, so one can easily get lost.”
The gentleness in his final words, spoken as if to his daughter, made Boris flinch slightly.
In truth, Boris had never heard such tender words from his biological father. Even if the Count had used the phrase unconsciously, Boris suddenly felt his heart leap powerfully, and he was startled by his own reaction.
Rosnis suddenly spoke.
“Father… wouldn’t older brother need an attendant as well?”
Even beside her mother, Rosnis chose her words carefully. Perhaps because Boris was present, the Countess didn’t particularly scold her. The Count nodded and smiled.
“Our Rose is already looking after her older brother. Don’t worry—I was already thinking the same thing. Tomorrow morning, I plan to gather the servants and introduce Boris. At that time, let’s have you choose one attendant to serve your older brother.”
The conversation had ended. When the Countess rang the bell, the door opened and a waiting maid entered, clearing away the untouched tea table.
Boris bowed to his new parents and followed the maid back to his room.
The moment he closed the door and was alone, his strength suddenly drained away.
I would spend only this one day in this room before moving to a new one tomorrow. Yet even this chamber surpassed anything I had known at Jineman Manor.
Were such rooms always kept in perfect order, ready to receive guests at a moment’s notice? The bed was dressed with sheets, a light quilt, and a winter blanket of sable fur—all without a single wrinkle.
The headboard and small table featured elegant curved lines in both their frames and legs. Even the chair covers were adorned with intricate petit point embroidery—three marguerite flowers stitched in gold and white thread.
When I opened the wardrobe, I found only a nightgown and a house robe inside. Since my traveling clothes were uncomfortable and I expected to dine later, I changed into fresh attire.
I sat on the bed, but my heart raced so violently that I rose and paced the room several times.
Only then did I notice the window with its shutters closed. I couldn’t explain why, but the sight of it filled me with inexplicable joy. I approached the window, unfastened its latch, and threw it wide open.
As the wind rushed in, I realized the room had been holding a stale odor all along. I pulled a chair to the windowsill and sat gazing out in a daze.
I could see everything at once—the winding path we had traveled by carriage, the small forest, and the distant stream glimmering in the distance.
The gardens near the castle were meticulously maintained, but beyond them stretched a vivid green forest. Though I had just passed through that very place by carriage, I already longed to return. Once I was free to wander as I pleased, I would go there and take a leisurely stroll.
Would there be a hill there like the one where I used to roll about with my brother?
…
No. The nature of Trabaches was a wild expanse where overgrown grass rippled like waves. There was nothing like that here. Instead, every corner was filled with a far more tender and captivating landscape.
Yet it was not mine. It was merely unfamiliar beauty—pretty, perhaps, but ultimately as unrelated to me as Rosnis, a girl I had no connection to.
Looking down from the window, I saw the imposing castle walls stretching majestically to both sides. Even from this floor, the ground below seemed impossibly distant. It was a different kind of solidity and grandeur than what I had felt viewing it from afar.
I imagined what it would be like to gaze at this castle from that forest—my window would be invisible, so small it would hardly be noticed. I would be buried there like an unnecessary speck.
The impression Belnoir Castle made on me matched exactly the impression of the life I would live here. I was far too small, and the world I could not comprehend was far too vast.
I wondered if I could find even a small window through which to exhale the breath I had been holding while buried in this oppressive place.
This is foreign land.
The next morning, before the Count could summon me, I received a visit from Rosnis instead. Her cheeks were flushed and her manner animated, as though something delightful had happened.
“Did you enjoy breakfast, brother?”
A maid had brought the meal to my room. Rosnis seemed slightly embarrassed by the unfamiliar word “brother” on her lips, and she smiled shyly. I too felt oddly flustered and barely managed a response.
…Yes.
Father told me to show you around the castle, didn’t he? Let’s go! I’ll show you the room where you’ll be staying first. There’s so much more to see. You’re going to be amazed!
Of course, Rosnis could not resist adding something less kind. She lifted her chin and spoke again, though her manner was endearing in its own way.
Don’t get distracted. Just follow me, and you won’t lose your way.
We walked along a corridor with a high ceiling and lamps shaped like flower buds.
Morning sunlight filtered through a row of windows. The elongated panes were not fitted with wooden shutters but with real glass so magnificent it was breathtaking. The shadows of the window frames fell like a net across the carpet beneath us, two newly made siblings.
The four towers at the corners of Belnoir Castle were connected by corridors, so from within, they did not feel like towers at all. Moonshine Tower occupied the southern corner.
Rosnis rushed ahead and opened the tall double doors herself. A drawing room appeared, as elegant as the reception room I had seen the day before, though only half its size.
The walls were a soft tan with fine patterns, and they curved gently in places where gold lines were clearly inlaid.
Beneath a chandelier hung with dozens of crystals stood a tea table, folding desks, embroidered chairs, and heavy bookshelves filled with volumes. The floor was covered with a carpet bearing two-toned lilies arranged in a circle.
Until now, I had shown no admiration for the landscape of Belcruze or the beauty of Belnoir Castle, but knowing this room would be mine stirred something in my heart. I stepped inside and looked around before turning back to Rosnis.
Rosnis had apparently been observing my expression the whole time. She seemed to notice something and smiled knowingly.
Just then, Camia hurried in and bowed her head before Rosnis.
Miss, please forgive me. I didn’t realize you had already left, and I’ve been so scattered…
There had been servants in my old home as well, but they were more like family. The clear master-servant relationship between these girls of similar age and height did not sit well with me. Yet I also knew it was not my place to interfere.
Fortunately, Rosnis was in a good mood today.
It’s fine. I’ll go around with my brother, so you follow a little ways behind.
Rosnis then opened one of two doors at the far end of the drawing room. As I had guessed, it was a bedroom.
The interior decoration and furnishings far surpassed the room where I had slept the night before. Rosnis led the way and opened the wardrobe, revealing it packed with fine clothes.
Though Rosnis’s kindness was not entirely without ulterior motive, she delighted in bestowing various things upon me.
“Isn’t it splendid? Once you have a servant, I’ll teach you exactly when to wear each of these garments.”
Since I had little interest in clothing, I merely nodded in acknowledgment.
The bedchamber was so vast that five beds could be arranged in a row with space to spare. Rosnis, incongruous in her elegant dress, spoke while wiggling her toes.
“This is the finest room in the castle, aside from Mother and Father’s chambers. I’ve always wanted it, but Father says it’s too large for me. He promised to give it to me when I turn fifteen. By then, you’ll be gone, so he’ll surely give it to me. So keep the room pristine while you’re here, will you?”
Rosnis had grown so accustomed to calling me “brother” that the word tumbled from her lips with ease. Yet her words carried an odd undertone—speaking with such warmth while casually presupposing my departure.
Now we are affectionate siblings; next year, we shall be strangers.
After leaving the chamber, we wandered through so many rooms that my legs ached.
Rosnis had no particular order to her tour, introducing me to windows with splendid views, opening guest rooms one by one, and even leading me to the enormous kitchen. The servants preparing meals politely but firmly ushered us out.
The dining hall was remarkable. There were three long tables, each capable of seating some thirty people. And a far more elegantly appointed round table stood separately.
Yet it appeared this hall was rarely used. Rosnis and the Count and Countess took their meals in a smaller, more intimate dining room.
“Have we seen everything now?”
As Rosnis tilted her head in thought, Camia spoke.
“You haven’t visited the library. By now, the master has likely gone to inspect the Territory he left vacant, so it should be safe to visit.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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