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Chapter 42

"You must have been really hungry."

When I finally showed up after dragging out my meal until nearly the very end, Ailet's lips twitched.

"Pardon? Not at all. I thought, as you said, that it was better for you to be here than me. I wanted to stay longer, but I felt like I was overstaying my welcome… I'm sorry, Lady Ailet."

I widened my eyes, pretended not to understand, and apologized with a sullen look.

Ailet already had me figured out enough not to mistake me for an oblivious, frustrating lady-in-waiting.

She must have realized I knew exactly what I was doing and was deliberately making a fool of her.

'But you can't say anything, can you?'

Because you already said it.

And given the circumstances, it wasn't technically wrong.

The noble, elegant, and refined lady wouldn't stoop to the petty act of picking a fight over her own words.

In this hallway with so many eyes, her pride wouldn't allow such a lowly display.

The Ailet I had figured out was that kind of person, which actually made her easier to handle.

'Hohoho. I've even finished reading the imperial law.'

Ailet wouldn't openly create a situation to harm me, but I'd already made escape routes, so I could counter anything she threw at me.

'Why don't you just drop that stiff attitude?'

Without that, she could enjoy her noble life much more comfortably.

But because of that personality, I could also act a little recklessly.

"Ha. I'll be back soon. Just do as you've been taught."

Don't do anything foolish to tarnish the family's image.

As expected, even with her face slightly twitching as if in a spasm, Ailet never shed her graceful and benevolent noble facade.

"Yes! Take care."

I replied cheerfully and saw Ailet off.

Not long after, the dining hall door opened.

"I'm sorry, but something urgent came up. Vinet, could you show Sir Adren around the residence?"

"Yes, Brother. Leave it to me. Ah, of course, only if Sir Adren is willing."

"I am willing."

'…?'

I sensed a subtle hint of disappointment in Adren's voice.

Vinet seemed overwhelmed just by the thought of showing Adren around the residence, so she didn't have the leisure to notice.

"We'll continue our conversation when I return."

"…Yes!"

Adren's darkened face brightened as Rahan patted his shoulder.

His gaze met mine.

'Take care of Vinet.'

He was deliberately stepping aside.

Was it thanks to the daily lessons? Though brief, I could read what he wanted in Rahan's glance.

I blinked once in reply.

His gently curving eyes somehow captured my attention.

"I'll guide you to the garden first."

Only when Vinet spoke to Adren did I snap out of it and follow behind them.

'Those siblings are dangerously charming.'

Admiring the superior genes of the former Duke and Duchess of Rohambriga, I praised Vinet's sense for choosing the garden to start the tour.

"I haven't been here long myself, but I've never seen a garden as beautiful as this. The butler said it's second only to the imperial palace."

She recited her memory, grunting slightly.

"It is truly beautiful."

…Is he a robot?

He seemed genuinely admiring, his mouth slightly open as he expressed emotion, but Adren was severely lacking in words.

'So that's why he threw the gauntlet.'

Action instead of words.

"Hoho, I'm glad you like it. Ah! What's the North like?"

Fortunately, Vinet, being sociable, didn't stop and quickly continued the conversation.

"It's snowing all year round, so it's less impressive than here."

"Gardens covered in snow have their own charm, don't they? Of course, seeing it every day might lose its appeal. Just between us, I'm starting to see this garden as just a garden since I see it every day."

Lies.

Look at that. The roses are blooming today!

Wow, I want to lay out a mat and just lounge around here. And so on—she still loved it, but she told a white lie for Adren's sake.

"I suppose that's one way to see it."

His answer was brief, but his expression seemed convinced.

"This way leads to the library. To the left is the Adrian Knights' training ground."

Just as she was about to turn toward the library, I called her.

"Lady Vinet."

"Hm?"

When Vinet turned around, I pretended to check her rumpled clothes and muttered like a ventriloquist.

"The training ground. The training ground."

Walking beside her, Vinet probably didn't notice, but I saw Adren's shoulder subtly shift to the left when the training ground was mentioned.

Catching my garbled words perfectly, Vinet finally looked at Adren and nodded.

He was now openly staring at the distant training ground, as if he had no interest in this side.

'Rebecca, it seems young Adren is still alive and well.'

Though he didn't openly throw down gauntlets, his obsession with swords remained unchanged.

"I'd like to move around a bit more… If you don't mind, shall we head to the training ground first? Sir Adren will be training here starting tomorrow, so it might be good to know the layout in advance."

"Good idea…!"

His usually flat tone finally brightened by a notch.

Vinet, as if saying "mission accomplished," clenched her fist and led Adren toward the training ground.

"…We'll reinforce that later…."

I saw Haulo talking with Knight Commander Baden.

He greeted Vinet, bowed to Adren, and closed his file.

"Then I'll be going now."

"Yes, make sure to deliver it to His Grace."

Baden also gave a light greeting to Vinet and Adren before resuming his training as usual.

Since those who got distracted would face reprimands, the discipline was tight. Adren's eyes sparkled at the sight.

Even as Haulo passed by his side without a word, Adren only belatedly tilted his head.

"Haulo?"

Haulo, looking tired, reluctantly greeted him.

"Long time no see, Sir Adren."

"Lo… long time no see."

Adren's face flushed slightly.

Perhaps he was recalling the recklessness of his younger days.

Just as the awkward atmosphere was becoming suffocating, Vinet stepped in between them.

"You two seem to know each other."

"Yes, we've met a few times in our youth."

Haulo kindly explained to Vinet, while Adren simply nodded.

"Oh, come on. It wasn't just 'meeting.' Haulo, didn't you break a rib and your right arm back then?"

Rebecca had appeared out of nowhere and interjected.

'Ugh, you startled me.'

All these knights moved so quietly that they often gave me a fright.

'And they're not even assassins.'

Thanks especially to Rahan, I was used to being startled regularly.

"Ah! We're not on bad terms. We just got injured while sparring as kids. I broke Sir Adren's right arm too, after all."

She quickly corrected herself, seeing Vinet's confusion.

"Is that so?"

"Kids can't control their strength well. Anyway, what brings you here? His Grace should be in his office."

"I'm just giving a tour. Since Sir Adren will be training here starting tomorrow, I thought it'd be good to show him around."

"You too, Sir Adren? Training methods might differ—will that be okay?"

"Different methods mean there's something to learn."

"That's true. My lady, do you have any plans after this?"

Rebecca asked after a moment of thought.

"No, nothing in particular. Why?"

"Sir Adren must be stiff from the journey—I thought a spar might loosen him up."

"…Shouldn't he rest?"

"Not at all. I'm grateful for the offer."

His psychological tone seemed to have risen from 're' to 'la' in pitch.

Is it really that great?

"Ha."

Haulo sighed and frowned, while Rebecca and Adren were busy warming up with excitement.

"Sir Haulo, is something troubling you?"

At Vinet's worried question, Haulo shook his head.

"It's nothing. I'll take my leave now. I have documents to deliver to His Grace."

"Go ahead."

Haulo's footsteps as he turned away seemed somehow urgent.

'Why is he acting that way?'

"Is it that fun? I don't get it."

Vinet muttered, not understanding, but was glad for the break and pulled me down to sit beside her.

"Where's Ailet?"

"She went to eat."

"What's she doing eating at this hour?"

"She must have felt like it today."

"…You didn't make her feel that way, did you?"

"I'm the victim here."

"If you were a victim, would you just stand there?"

"If you just stand there, you become a pushover."

"Who said that?"

"Yoo Hyun-seong… no, Chase said it."

"And who's that?"

"There was someone. An ex-boyfriend?"

I casually created an imaginary existence and laid the groundwork.

"You had someone besides Joan? Who…?"

With a betrayed look, as if she had no idea, I shook Vinet's shoulder, pretending not to know.

"Shouldn't we stop them?"

"Uh… isn't that level okay? My brother and Rebecca do that all the time."

"That's true, but…."

While we chattered, the sparring began lightly, just exchanging sword strokes.

They tested each other with light exchanges, then gradually grew tangled and rough.

'Isn't that too intense for a spar?'

If Rahan and Rebecca's sparring looked like Rahan holding back, Rebecca and Adren seemed evenly matched, making it look deadly even to my untrained eyes.

Why were sparks flying from wooden swords?

It couldn't actually be sparks, but the clash of swords sounded fierce enough to make me think so.

'Huh…?'

One peculiar thing: Rebecca was unusually focused on one spot.

She was noticeably targeting his left flank.

'Is that a weakness?'

But Adren blocked every strike, so it didn't seem very effective.

Yet her persistent attacks reminded me of Haulo's hurried retreat earlier.

As I focused on that nagging feeling, Vinet too seemed flustered by the increasingly sharp atmosphere.

Watching them, my eyes grew dizzy from their quick movements, and I blinked for a moment.

At that instant, crack! With a clear sound, a piece of the broken wooden sword flew into the air.

After reaching its peak, the fragment fell precisely toward us, as if in slow motion.

'Why us…!'

Of all directions, why here!

Talk about bad luck!

Is this my year of misfortune?

I quickly shielded Vinet.

'It'll work, right…?'

I decided to trust the power of the brooch Rahan had given me.

"Kyaaah!"

At Vinet's startled scream, the wooden fragment that fell onto my back bounced off with a thump.

I felt it make contact, but it was only as if someone had lightly tapped me.

Spin.

The fragment rolled on the floor and stopped.

I patted my racing heart.

'Phew, it handles this much without issue.'

The performance was reliable.

"My lady! Lexi! Are you okay?"

"Are you alright!"

Startled, Rebecca and Adren rushed over to check on us.

"Lady Vinet, are you alright?"

I straightened Vinet's disheveled hair and snapped her out of her daze.

"Mmhmm, I'm fine, but you're the problem! What if you got hurt! Let me see, are you injured anywhere?"

"No, I'm fine. As you know, I have the magical tool Sir Rahan gave me."

I should be grateful.

Giving away such a precious item without hesitation.

Witnessing its performance firsthand made my loyalty surge.

"Still! That was dangerous! But… thanks for protecting me."

"Not at all. I'm glad you're safe, my lady."

With Adren present, I answered as politely as possible. Vinet rolled her eyes in displeasure, glanced around, and reluctantly replied.

"Yeah…."

"What happened?"

Rahan appeared a moment late and approached us.

Haulo was with him.

He said he had documents to deliver—so why was he here together?

"Ha, already."

Haulo's gesture of pressing his forehead with a 'here we go again' vibe made me suddenly think of Rebecca's unusual behavior today.

'Ah…?'

The larger-than-usual meal portions.

The fact that she spoke first to an external guest, leaving Vinet aside.

Suggesting a spar, mentioning past incidents… .

"It's all my fault!"

Rebecca came clean.

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