Chapter 103
Larisa stood in the middle of the training ground, hands clasped to her chest, eyes trembling as she stared at Anette.
Her long limbs stretched gracefully, her hair tied up in a single braid that fluttered in the wind—she looked like a living painting.
“Our lady… she really is a knight!”
Even though Larisa already knew this, she was struck again—first by how well her lady looked in comfortable clothes instead of a cumbersome dress, and then by the fearless confidence she displayed even among towering knights.
“I never thought I’d see my lady wield a sword like this!”
Larisa had always hoped that, being the personal maid, she would one day see such a sight, but she never expected the opportunity to come so soon.
Beside her, Luke’s face was pale, his voice shaking as he asked:
“Is… the captain really holding a sword right now?”
“Well, does it look like anything else to you?”
“Uh… no, it’s not that. But still…”
Luke’s voice wavered. Anette had stepped down from her position as captain due to a wrist injury deemed irreversible. Yet here she was, holding a sword again.
“Oh…”
At that moment, Luke realized.
“It’s real.”
Until recently, royal knights—both his seniors and peers—had insisted that Anette’s recovery was unlike that of ordinary people, claiming that no injury could keep her down for long. And now, it seemed, a miracle had happened.
Luke almost burst into tears but managed to restrain himself, not wanting to show emotion over something so joyful. His heart swelled with the thought that he could now serve her loyally, without any lingering guilt.
“Thank… goodness. Really, thank goodness.”
Larisa glanced at Luke, who was quietly on the verge of tears. She had inferred from yesterday’s conversation that this knight had somehow caused harm to their lady, but she did not know the severity of the injury or the circumstances surrounding it, so Luke’s intense reaction was puzzling.
“Still… he might not be so bad,” she thought.
Everyone in the Hayworth Kingdom assumed that Anette had been mistreated without exception, but seeing Luke profess that he owed his life to her and would protect her until death made Larisa think he wasn’t all that bad.
Since he had joined the Grand Ducal household to repay a debt of gratitude, Larisa, who valued loyalty, considered this reaction quite natural.
“But is he really a knight?”
He looked frail, far from the robust image of a warrior. Confident in her own strength, Larisa couldn’t help but worry whether Luke could even wield a sword properly.
Luke must have sensed her gaze, because he turned his head.
Larisa, caught off guard, tried to avert her eyes, but Luke’s lips curved into a bright, innocent smile, revealing straight teeth.
Despite his playful teasing earlier, there seemed to be no malice in it at all, and Larisa felt her face flush involuntarily.
Luke noticed and blinked in mild surprise.
Just as the atmosphere between them grew subtly awkward…
“Oi!”
The knights, who had been holding their breath, suddenly gasped.
Startled, Larisa and Luke both turned their heads quickly in the direction of the sound.
Anette, unexpectedly the center of attention, swallowed nervously.
She hadn’t expected Kardin’s request to visit the training ground to mean that she would have to give instruction to the knights of the Harzent Ducal household. Seeing the eager anticipation in their eyes, she could not deny their expectations, so she decided to start by warming up.
“Why are they all just watching?”
Hoping that Luke could uphold the pride of the Hayworth royal knights, Anette now felt nervous, burdened with that responsibility.
Kardin, for his part, would be late due to an urgent meeting, which was frustrating but also somewhat fortunate.
Slowly, Anette drew her sword from its sheath.
The smooth, metallic whisper revealed a blade that, despite its reputation as the “Red Poison,” gleamed with a clear silver.
She ran her hand cautiously along the edge, feeling a shiver as memories of receiving this sword from Franz flooded back.
Her heart raced, her blood boiled.
No longer concerned with the knights’ stares, she raised the sword’s energy, enough to cut through the shell and bones of a magical beast in a single strike.
She leapt into the air, planting her feet with precision, moving beyond the conventions of noble swordsmanship.
Her motions were instinctive and free, sharp yet efficient.
The knights, gathered to witness the continent’s finest swordswoman, were frozen in awe, unable to breathe as they watched a style they had never seen.
Larisa, ignorant of swordsmanship, gripped her hands in excitement at the elegant, flowing movements, which looked almost like a dance.
Only Luke, familiar with this sight, watched proudly.
Suddenly, Anette’s eyes flared, and she spun in one direction.
At that same moment, a mysterious figure in golden armor darted through the dense trees at the training ground entrance.
Startled, both Anette and the knights noticed the intruder who had somehow bypassed the Harzent Ducal guards.
“Argh!”
Before the knights could react, Anette’s foot landed squarely on the intruder’s solar plexus, sending her crashing to the ground with a soft groan.
“A woman’s voice?”
Anette paused, surprised. She had assumed the armored figure was male, judging solely by the armor, but it turned out to be female.
Heightened vigilance took over as Anette twisted the intruder’s arm behind her back and removed her helmet.
A cascade of platinum hair fell smoothly to the ground.
Anette quickly turned her head to see the face—and froze.
There was a strangely familiar, intense yet hazy gaze that made her almost step back.
Swallowing hard, she steadied herself and spoke:
“Who… are you?”
“Isabella?”
At that moment, Samuel, who had followed Kardin straight to the training ground after his meeting, saw the familiar golden hair and covered his mouth.
“Nice to meet you. I am Isabella of the Chessef family,” the young noblewoman introduced herself.
Back in the Ducal consort’s chamber, Anette watched as Isabella removed her golden armor and donned an elegantly designed dress. The young noblewoman nodded awkwardly.
Isabella Chessef—the ex-lover of Samuel and president of ‘Melboa,’ a society that admired Kardin’s beauty.
She gave Anette a shy smile that seemed harmless at first glance.
But Anette was not fooled; the encounter in the training ground had been too intense.
Except for young Audrey, Anette had little experience interacting with noblewomen, so she couldn’t be sure, but…
“Still, no ordinary noblewoman would sneak into the training ground in golden armor,” she thought.
Of course, Isabella hadn’t trespassed unlawfully—the Chessef household, via head maid Hilda, had formally invited her after learning Anette had returned.
But upon arriving, Isabella didn’t go directly to meet Hilda; she followed Anette instead.
“No matter how I look at her, she’s not ordinary.”
Anette’s wary gaze met Isabella’s, who shyly removed her smile and said:
“Please forgive my earlier rudeness. Upon hearing that the princess would be at the training ground, I couldn’t resist the desire to see you from afar before a formal introduction. Besides, I happened to have my most treasured armor with me.”
Why would a noblewoman keep armor in her carriage?
She added the explanation as if to excuse herself, raising even more questions, but Anette answered politely:
“It’s fine. You were offered a position as a personal maid, so you probably wanted to see me in person. You must have been concerned about my reputation as well.”
Even if people in the Alkan Empire treated her kindly, the story of “the cursed seed of the beast” would never fully disappear.
Naturally, Anette would be cautious.
Isabella, who hadn’t expected such a kind reply, widened her eyes before lowering her head deeply.
“It’s embarrassing, but… yes. I was worried.”
Her concern wasn’t truly about the truth of the beast-seed rumors, but whether Anette’s appearance resembled that of a magical beast.
For someone with Isabella’s refined aesthetic sense, this was extremely important.
“However…”
Isabella suddenly placed her hand on her chest and took a deep breath.
“Is she still feeling the impact from the training ground?”
Anette looked worried, as Isabella clenched her fist and lifted her head proudly.
“Today, I realized just how narrow my perspective was, and how unreliable rumors can be!” she exclaimed, her voice intense.
“No dance I’ve ever seen at a banquet could compare to the elegant, beautiful movements of your swordplay in the training ground!”
