Blacksword Manor had changed. Klarion could feel it in the air, a subtle shift to the very foundation of his new home. Where once there had been emptiness and the ever-present shadow of what the place had once been, now there was new life. The new staff he had been able to recruit with Coins of Service moved around the manor, taking note of what needed to be cleaned and what rooms needed to have replacement furnishing and new furniture. If they were bothered by the fact that they now were part of the household of a Blacksword scion, it didn’t show.


    Yet, even as he walked the halls of the manor, feeling the difference as it started to feel more filled with life, Klarion’s mind was elsewhere.


    He turned to Hatsune, who walked beside him as he led the way to their bedroom. Her ears flicked nervously, and she seemed somewhat on edge as they went to check on the former Sentinel. For his part, Klarion was not sure why.


    As they approached the door to their bedroom, Klarion found that the door stood slightly ajar, just enough for a thin beam of light to cut into the dim room beyond. Hatsune pushed the door open and went in first, then abruptly stopped just inside the bedroom. Coming up behind the Leporine, Klarion saw what he had hoped to find.


    J-65 was awake.


    And not just awake, she was standing.


    The star elf’s posture was rigid, shoulders squared, fists clenched as she stared at them. With her Sentinel armor gone, she wore only the simple linen and cotton underclothes that had been beneath it. But what struck him most was her face, now alive and exposed to view.


    Her white hair, freed from the mask she had worn, tumbled over her shoulders in loose waves. Her skin, dark as he remembered, had come alive with those same pinpricks of light, now moving at a visible speed across her skin, like the stars in the sky over the course of a long night. Her white eyes were fixed on first Hatsune then him as he entered the room.


    Klarion stepped forward, but before he could speak, J-65 lifted her chin, her voice steady but quieter than he remembered, like a blade that had once gleamed bright but had now been dulled by too many strikes.


    “My words are for the Scion of House Blacksword alone.”


    Hatsune stiffened beside him, eyes narrowing in indignation at what the star elf had said. “You don’t have to —”


    “It’s fine,” Klarion interrupted, heading off what she had been about to say. He put his hand on the tense Leporine’s shoulder. “Give us a moment.”


    Hatsune’s ears flicked back, a clear sign of silent protest, but thankfully she didn’t argue. Still, she lingered for a moment, looking between him and the star elf before stepping over to the door. As she stepped through, she turned, “If you need me—”


    “I’ll call,” Klarion assured her.


    Hatsune hesitated for only a breath longer before stepping away from the door, casting one last wary glance toward J-65. Then, reluctantly, she closed the door behind her with a quiet click.


    Klarion took a step forward, closer to the star elf, but she remained perfectly still next to the bed.


    “You’re awake,” he said, the words falling somewhere between relief and expectation.


    J-65 nodded once. “And you still live.” There was no humor in her voice, only observation.


    Klarion let out a slow breath. “For now, at least.”


    J-65 looked downward, at her own hands. She flexed her fingers experimentally, almost like a warrior gripping a sword for the first time in years, gauging the unfamiliarity of it.


    “What happened?” she asked slowly. “I remember the Lord Sentinel. I remember my mask breaking. And then…” She paused, shaking her head slightly. “It’s fragments. My System messages say that my Sentinel class was removed. My level reset. My stats diminished.” She looked up at him, meeting his eyes. “And that I am now your bodyguard.”


    Klarion nodded, confirming her words. “That’s all true.”


    Something flickered across her face. It was not surprise. Acceptance, perhaps. Almost like a soldier receiving her orders, whether she agreed with them or not.


    J-65’s voice was quieter when she spoke again. “The Lord Sentinel took everything from me.”


    “Not everything.”


    She went still.


    Klarion folded his arms, speaking deliberately, “You’re still alive. You’re still you. And you still have the memories and skills that made you who you were when you still had the Sentinel class.”


    She took a slow breath. Not quite steady, not quite broken.


    “And how did I end up in your service?”


    Klarion held her gaze. “Because of a Mark of Bonds.”


    J-65 blinked, something unreadable in her expression. “You had another?”


    “I earned one in the Dungeon I survived.”


    She said nothing, waiting.


    Klarion took another step closer to the star elf. “The Lord Sentinel offered me a deal. My Mark of Bonds in exchange for your service.” His red-gold eyes darkened slightly. “In recognition of the fact that you acted outside your role as a Sentinel. Not out of duty. Not out of obligation. But because you chose to act on my behalf without my knowing. To protect me.”


    J-65 continued to stare at him, unblinking.


    “And you accepted?” she asked finally, voice quiet still, and careful.


    Klarion nodded. “Of course I did.”


    J-65’s white eyes searched his face. “Why?”


    It wasn’t an accusation. It was something far heavier.


    “You could have taken the Mark of Bonds to go select another bodyguard of your choice,” the star elf continued. “You could have selected someone to complement you and the Leporine, someone stronger, perhaps someone who was ready to claim their class, someone—”


    “There was no way I was going to let you be taken away to be auctioned after what you did for me.” He said cutting her off.


    J-65 stopped, inhaling sharply. She stared at him harder, as if seeing him for the first time.


    Klarion met her stare, his red-gold eyes meeting her white ones, unwavering. “You risked everything for me,” he said with emphasis. “You didn’t have to. But you did. How could I possibly cast you aside like you were nothing after that?”


    The star elf turned away in that moment, staring at the opposite wall. But he still got a glimpse of her face from the side. Something shifted in her. Breaking. Rebuilding. And then—


    J-65 laughed.


    It was soft at first, a breath of disbelief more than anything, then becoming something lighter, something real.


    Bright. Unrestrained.


    Like sunlight breaking through storm clouds.


    Klarion had never seen her smile before, but there she was. Standing before him, stripped over everything she had been but days ago, J-65 was laughing with a smile on her face.


    She looked radiant.


    And while he still was admiring that smile, she turned back to him and spoke of her past. It began slowly at first, but with every memory she shared, the speed of her sharing increased until it was a torrent of words spilling forth.


    This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.


    Jezeri - had told him. Her story had been a long one, weaving through years of pain, betrayal, and indignities she had suffered.


    trouble.