Chapter 128……………………………………….
To be honest, a daughter wanting to protect her mother was truly something to be praised.
To think of her mother at such a young age—such filial devotion.
Even Simcheong would be impressed.
“Shin Geom even praised it.”
They said it was a sparkling kind of love, the kind of heart that could become the greatest motivation.
But when I looked into Dad’s blue eyes, somehow I couldn’t bring myself to speak…
“My instincts are screaming.”
The moment I affirm this here, Dad will oppose me learning swordsmanship.
If I try to rationalize this instinct, it’s probably because:
“Dads already have more than enough ability to protect Mom.”
There’s not just one dad, but four.
And all of them are capable people, renowned in their own right.
To think that I considered, “I’ll protect Mom!” despite those people being there… basically meant this:
I can’t trust the dads!
“Which is somewhat true, actually.”
If it weren’t for me, Mom would already be as good as dead.
From Dad’s perspective, he might think I’m not entirely reliable.
But that’s just a superficial reason.
I gazed into his piercing blue eyes and slowly began to realize something.
Why he was asking this, what his true intentions were.
“Dad knows the weight of a sword.”
Shin Geom said so.
Sion’s dad also gave the exact same answer I would have.
He had said he didn’t want to cut anything, that he felt fear when it came to harming someone.
Yet, all this time, he had taken countless lives—what must have gone through his mind?
How much did he doubt himself, how much did he blame himself?
“But if he hears that I want to walk the same path just to protect someone…”
And if my daughter fully experiences the emotions he felt…
I stopped mid-thought and pressed my lips together.
Even if I were Sion’s dad, I would have opposed it.
Especially if it’s swordsmanship not for oneself, but for someone else.
“No matter how much it’s to protect Mom.”
This ties directly to the reason I thought of earlier.
There’s already more than enough people to protect Mom—so why you!
…that would be the thought.
Anyway, for this reason, there’s only one answer I can give.
“I—”
A fleeting moment that felt like an eternity passed.
Still not breaking eye contact with Dad, I shouted with more confidence than I expected:
“I want to learn it so I can protect myself!”
“….”
“So that I can become as amazing as Sion’s dad and protect myself without anyone’s help!”
Here, I first gave Dad a small compliment.
“What if something happens anywhere at any time, and we just wait for Mom and Dad to help, only for things to get worse?”
After saying that, I placed my hands firmly on my hips.
Why was I so confident?
Because…
“It’s not a lie!”
One must be able to protect oneself in order to protect Mom.
Originally, I wanted to learn swordsmanship so I wouldn’t be a burden to my parents.
“…That’s true.”
Sion’s dad slowly nodded at my words.
Especially since he had been away from us for a long time, he couldn’t help but agree.
“But remember this, CC.”
He placed a hand on my shoulder as he spoke.
“Cutting something happens in an instant, but the responsibility and guilt that follow are eternal.”
“Mm.”
I quietly nodded while staring at Sion’s dad.
Has he always lived like this?
Every time he cut something, always feeling sorrow and regret.
And yet, if the story continues and later he realizes he couldn’t protect Mom…
“It’s natural he’d go insane.”
He must have tried to ignore all that guilt for the sake of protecting someone precious.
But when he actually couldn’t protect that person, how could he possibly imagine that feeling?
“I think I can understand, even a little, why the dads ended up destroying the world.”
That doesn’t mean their actions were justified.
“Well, anyway, you want to learn it for self-defense.”
Lost in thought, Dad glanced at Shin Geom and continued.
“It’s a little surprising that even for that, Shin Geom said it would lend you power.”
“Huh?”
“Maybe because your heart feels so pure?”
“Heheh… maybe so.”
I forced a small smile at the twinge of nervousness.
“I probably shouldn’t talk to Shin Geom and Dad again, huh?”
Just in case, I carefully hid the sword behind my back so it wouldn’t touch Dad.
Ignoring that, Dad turned to Fer and asked again:
“So, your friend isn’t learning swordsmanship?”
Fer raised an eyebrow slightly.
“As I said before, I don’t really need to handle a sword—”
“No, that’s not right.”
Sion’s dad interrupted Fer with a smile.
“There may come a time when you can’t use magic for various reasons.”
“……”
“If you’ll still be by CC’s side then…”
He trailed off and smiled faintly with his eyes.
Fer and I could easily grasp the meaning behind that smile.
“When that time comes, at least don’t become a burden to my daughter.”
Really, Dad…
“So, it would be good for you to learn swordsmanship too, for self-defense.”
Then he tugged the corners of his mouth in a smile.
Judging by that smile, he had probably already decided the answer before asking.
I rolled my eyes and checked Fer’s expression.
Since Dad was being so relentless, it would make sense if Fer’s patience had reached its limit…
“Understood.”
—not the expected reaction.
Surprisingly, Fer replied plainly, with almost no change in expression.
A trace of annoyance was there, but he seemed far calmer than I expected.
I thought he’d just say “It’s a bother” and run off like last time.
“Alright then.”
While keeping my eyes wide on Fer, Sion’s dad clapped his hands.
“Shall we start with five laps in the training hall, as we discussed earlier?”
“Already?”
I thought it would start tomorrow!
“There’s a saying: strike while the iron is hot, CC. Once we’ve agreed, we should act immediately.”
Dad smiled reassuringly as he spoke.
“And this time you have a friend with you, so it won’t be as hard as you think.”
No sooner had he finished speaking than I widened my eyes.
“Is that so?”
Then I glanced at Fer and grinned mischievously.
Come to think of it, Fer always just watched me roll around.
“Good, this is perfect.”
Let’s both die together!
But once again, the one who ended up dying was just me.
“Hah… hah…”
After five laps in the hellish training hall, I collapsed onto the ground, gasping for breath.
Unlike me, there was no hint of fatigue in Fer’s breathing.
Just a bit of sweat on his forehead.
“Is this hard for you?”
Fer shrugged, teasing.
“You… you…!”
Even though we ran together, why are you the only one fine?!
Too out of breath to speak, I could only flail my hands.
A shadow fell over my fully stretched-out body.
