Chapter 28
Early morning.
Knight Captain Lloyd was out earlier than the usual training time, warming up his body in advance.
The knight order of the Archduke of Akion was not famous. For a knight order of an Archduke’s household, there weren’t even any honorary titles attached to it.
From the beginning, since the master of the Archduke’s household, the Hero Heros Akion, was called the Empire’s greatest Sword Master, the knight order under his command rarely received any attention.
‘What have those guys ever accomplished? The Hero probably did everything anyway. What’s so great about them? Without the Hero, they’re probably just a ragtag bunch.’
The knights who had joined the order with proud determination to stand beside the strongest Sword Master could not endure such sneers, and in the end, more than half of them ended up quitting before even a year was up.
No one wants a life where their efforts go unrecognized. Consequently, even those who remained in the order had their motivation broken, and even during training, they just went through the motions listlessly.
It was during such a time that
Daphne Akion appeared.
It was well-known that the Archduke’s youngest daughter was sickly. It made sense when people said they had nearly been preparing for her funeral just before; Daphne looked truly frail and weak, as if she would collapse at the slightest touch.
But that Daphne, she ran.
She ran around the training grounds without missing a single day. Even when she was so exhausted from running that she collapsed, she would run again the next day. Even when she coughed up blood, she ran. Every single day.
And as she ran, she shouted.
-“Hero…! Heroooo-ak!”
Yes.
This fragile Daphne wanted to follow in Heros’s footsteps.
Even if everyone told her she couldn’t, even if they said she couldn’t compare to Heros, she wanted to succeed the Hero!
The moment they confirmed that will, all the knights, including Lloyd, could feel an overwhelming emotion surging within them.
Why did we join the Akion Archduke’s household?
To protect the side of Heros Akion. To allow his noble sword to reach forth.
So why had we been standing still all this time? That small child, that sickly child, is putting in such effort!
They lifted their long-stationary feet and stepped forward.
From that moment on, the knight order began to change.
All thanks to just one child, Daphne Akion.
‘I heard she recently stopped a black magic terror attack.’
Lloyd stretched his legs out and thought.
‘What an incredible person. To save people twice, with that body of hers.’
First wiping out that band of thieves a while back, and now stopping a terror attack.
Daphne was a far greater person than he had initially judged her to be. Persistent, passionate, unyielding, and always moving forward.
He suddenly recalled the words he had once said to Daphne.
-“Your ladyship’s talent is already a flower in full bloom, but the vase meant to hold it is cracked, unable to provide nutrients to the flower.”
-“What a pity. Perhaps you could have succeeded our Master.”
If he could go back in time, he would punch his past self for saying those words.
Now that he knew of Daphne’s tenacity, he wouldn’t say that.
Instead, he would say this:
Your ladyship’s vase is splendid…
‘I should train even harder so I can surprise her when she returns.’
Lloyd resolved to work the knights to the bone today and stretched his back with a deep groan. Just then.
“Uh, what? You’re already out here?”
A voice that sounded slightly husky but still revealed its youthfulness reached him. Lloyd, startled, turned his head. There was Arius, walking towards him sluggishly, a wooden sword slung over his shoulder.
“Young Master, you’re up early too!”
“Yeah, well. Couldn’t sleep.”
Arius answered while scratching the back of his head. He subtly avoided Lloyd’s gaze, as if afraid his uncomfortable feelings would be discovered.
But Lloyd seemed to already know Arius’s feelings inside and out. His eyes curved into crescent moons.
“Are you frustrated?”
“Huh? Wha, what did you say?”
“I’m asking if you’re feeling frustrated, seeing Lady Daphne who successfully thwarted the terror attack this time.”
Arius instantly felt his face grow hot.
“Ah, no? I only thought Daphne was the best? I was going to praise her. Why would I be jealous of her? Absolutely not!”
Seeing Arius still avoiding his eyes and retorting, Lloyd let out a soft chuckle.
The Arius Lloyd saw today had come to the training grounds earlier than usual and had an intensely burning look in his eyes, unlike before.
Just these simple facts alone were enough to understand what Arius was feeling right now.
He must be confused, wondering why he had learned the sword longer, trained longer, yet felt weaker than Daphne.
He must be flustered because, while he should be congratulating his youngest sister for her achievement, a strange anger seeped into his heart before any feeling of congratulations.
‘Am I really this narrow-minded?’ he might think, and yet… he still envies Daphne…
Lloyd knew that feeling very well too.
So he could give Arius the right answer.
“You should be jealous.”
“……Huh?”
“Only then will you be able to climb higher, Young Master.”
Lloyd said, smoothing down Arius’s disheveled hair.
“While Lady Daphne’s talent may seem overwhelming right now, talent cannot beat effort. Remember the time you’ve spent striving until now, Young Master.”
“That… is…”
“Was that effort in vain?”
“……”
Arius pressed his lips into a straight line and lowered his gaze.
Right.
For now, I might lose to Daphne.
For now, I might not be as good as Daphne.
But in the future…!
‘I will stand by Father’s side.’
As a proud knight!
The face Arius lifted again wore a bright smile, as if asking when it had ever been ashamed.
“Shall we run?”
“Sounds good.”
“Once I’m warmed up, cross swords with me later! Got it?”
“Yes.”
Arius stepped forward.
Thinking that someday, he would be able to run past Daphne’s back.
“Hmm?”
Daphne tilted her head, adjusting the blanket wrapped tightly around her.
“Huff, wheeze… I, I can’t run anymore…”
“Captain, are you trying to kill us… Ah, I think I’m gonna, gonna throw up.”
“Ughhhh.”
Why were all these knights collapsed on the dirt ground? And while sweating buckets, no less.
Thinking it might smell if she got closer, Daphne subtly took a step back.
“Lady Daphne?”
Just then, Lloyd, who had spotted her, approached.
Lloyd wasn’t in as pitiful a state as the other knights, but he didn’t look entirely put together either.
“Have you come out for training? Your body likely hasn’t fully recovered yet.”
“No. I came because I have something to ask.”
“In that case, that’s a relief.”
“But…”
Daphne gestured subtly with her eyes towards the knights.
“Why are those idiots lying around so stupidly?”
“Ah.”
Lloyd smiled awkwardly and scratched his cheek.
“We did just a little more training than usual. Since you fought so hard, we couldn’t just stand still. We’re training harder for the future ahead!”
She didn’t understand what he was talking about.
But if these guys were putting in effort, that was a good thing. If they became stronger, she could use them as military force to pound those specters or whatever into dust.
“I see. You’re working hard.”
“Indeed!”
Lloyd’s face brightened. As if unable to control his surging emotions, he shuffled his feet and pointed somewhere.
“Over there, you might not see him well, but Young Master Arius is there too.”
“That idiot?”
Daphne narrowed her eyes and looked over the collapsed knights.
Sure enough, as Lloyd said, she could see Arius lying among them, panting. Good grief?
“He said he still can’t keep up with our training load, but he chased after us with fire in his eyes. It was a startling determination.”
“Is that so.”
“If he continues like this, he’ll become an amazing swordsman within five years.”
“Good. That’s fine.”
“Yes. Please look forward to it.”
Daphne listened, humming in acknowledgment, then suddenly lifted her head.
“But wouldn’t it be better to give such praise to the Hero instead of me?”
“……Pardon?”
“What use is it for me to hear it? What would I do with it?”
Lloyd blinked, momentarily dazed, then slapped his forehead as if realizing something.
“Now that you mention it, you’re right. Why did I think I needed to report to you, my lady?”
It was probably because Arius’s swordsmanship was under Daphne’s purview, and since Arius saw Daphne as a rival, he wanted to show his results to her.
Lloyd laughed awkwardly, feeling embarrassed.
“Wh-whatever, forget it. I came because I was curious about something.”
“Yes, please speak.”
“Those black mages, right.”
“Yes.”
“Where can I go to meet them?”
“……Pardon?”
Lloyd asked back, wondering if he had misheard.
“I asked where I can go to meet those black mages.”
But he hadn’t misheard. Lloyd barely managed to stop himself from feeling dizzy.
“You want to deliberately meet black mages? I, I heard you barely survived this time, why? Don’t tell me you plan to confront them?”
“Would I want to meet them to become friends?”
“Absolutely not!”
Lloyd shouted loudly.
“They are dangerous! You might have been lucky to get through it this time, but next time, who knows what could happen…!”
“Luck?”
Daphne’s expression twisted fiercely.
“Luuuck? You call that luck?”
This punk sure says amusing things. Daphne rolled up her sleeves.
“Alright. Let’s see if it was luck or skill. I’ll push you to the brink of death to show you.”
“No, my lady! Wait, wait a moment!”
Lloyd cried out, stepping back from the advancing Daphne.
But Daphne was already heated.
“I’ll show you my true power-aaak!”
“No, you mustn’t!”
“I will!”
It was right at that moment.
“Da, Da, Daphne!”
Someone called out Daphne’s name as if wailing.
The voice was both familiar and unfamiliar, so Daphne stopped her advance on Lloyd and turned her head.
There, she saw a small child wearing a hood pulled low. It was Vipiera.
“Wh-why are y-you o-outside! Ar-aren’t you s-supposed to stay in your r-room?! A-are you okay?!”
Vipiera, who had run up to Daphne, shouted with a flushed face, breathing heavily.
No, that’s my line. Why are you here?
“What.”
Arius, who had approached without her noticing, spoke with a frown.
“Why are you out here?”
That’s what I want to know. That’s my line.
