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Noelle stood there, wide eyed, unmoving.
Deathly pale.
Horrified.
Her hands and face, her whole front colored red.
Her great sword was oozing with the dark red liquid, still trickling down her arms and along the blade, feeding the soil below.
And before her, an unrecognizable, mangled carcass blacken and red. A bleak, shadowy remain.
She looked up, hazy eyed, to find Kaeya on his knees, holding his head in his hands. Weeping silently.
She knew she made an irreparable mistake, and that what she did hurt the Captain greatly. When the other Knights would hear of her deed, they would no doubt hate her as well.
But once again, she could not control her strength.
It was supposed to be a simple practice game. Almost the first drill every rookie Knight does.
Just a small hit, she needed.
But once again, she could not control her strength.
She led go of her sword, hands trembling, and looked at her crimson fingers, her dress all stained from the red water. This would be hard to clean up, she thought on instinct.
And when she finally heard a voice, she dared not look up.
This was a mistake she would have to bear from now on. Irreparable, one she would dedicate her life to mend.
“Listen Noelle,” Varka said with a wry smile, “You don’t have to clean it up, really. It’s just a barrel of random wine, not a vintage cask. I know I said that was necessary to become an apprentice Knight, but maybe we can find another way.”
“But, Grand Master…” Noelle whispered, already on the verge of tears.
Despite her pitiful state, she was already readying her broom with a large bucket of water by her side, ready to wipe away the wine and clear up the exploded wood barrel.
“Noelle, this is a grass meadow, you don’t need to clean that,” Varka said, bemused.
But Noelle was already hard at work, looking for the shards and smaller pieces of wood spread over the area, quickly gathering them in a crate for later disposal. Before Varka could say anything else, she’d already started to clean up the rocks and the grass, so quickly and efficiently that the Grand Master just gawked at her.
“Oh no, there’s still some more downhill… I’m sorry Grand Master, I’ll clean it all, I swear!”
“You don’t have to…”
But she was already gone.
“What do you think Kaeya? She may not be Knight material, but she sure is strong! And very meticulous. She has potential, but for what?”
Kaeya lifted his eye to look at his superior. “The wine…” he mumbled, “What a waste.”
Varka laughed at seeing his companion half-playfully weeping.
“Don’t worry, I’ll get you a drink later – uh?”
“I’m sorry Sirs, I brought you a bottle of wine as replacement. Here, have a seat while I finish my work.”
“What?”
Before Varka and Kaeya could understand what happened, they were sitting on two comfortable chairs around a wooden table filled with snacks, two glasses and an unopened bottle.
“If you need anything else, p-please tell me,” Noelle said nervously as she retreated to continue cleaning. She’d already changed into clean clothes, so hastily put together that she mixed both her apprentice knight’s attire and her maid uniform. Surprisingly it fit her much better than the regular knight’s uniform.
The two men observed her in silence for a while. Before long the grassy meadow had returned to its natural state, with barely a hint of wine aroma in the air.
Noelle may not be able to become a knight right away, but her talents would make her infinitely more valuable in another, crucial role.
Thus the legendary Wondermaid was discovered that day, and the two men heartily toasted to her bright future.