rislettes

[late Edo period]

Mr. Risley Hertz is the young head of a small but wealthy estate. Formally, he's too young to rule, but his elderly father has retired, and Risley has already taken over.
Aspiring samurai – Drak Neuvillette, from an impoverished but ancient family. He wields a sword well, but lacks composure: too honest, too straightforward. He cannot lie and disdains palace intrigue – which is why he was almost expelled from his previous clan.

Risley noticed him during the competition. Neuvillette won again, earning a meager living, but it was clear the boy still had a lot to learn. So the young master entered into a contract with him and officially made him his kakekomon (a personal guard and squire who accompanies the master and learns from him).

Neuvillette now lives in a separate wing of the estate (“nearby” – literally across the garden)

Often, when Risley walks in the garden, he sees Neuvillette training again and again.