Chapter 23
. It Must Be a Taboo
“You were… training in swordsmanship, weren’t you?”
Chanellica, unsure where to look, fixed her gaze on the logs that had been hacked into miserable chunks and changed the subject. The sight of the woman blushing and stammering slightly made it even harder for Derwin—already short of breath—to breathe.
“It was only light physical conditioning. Now that you’re here, my lady, I suppose I can begin in earnest.”
“There’s a difference between training and physical conditioning?”
“You’ll see soon enough. I’ve prepared a seat for you, so please, sit and watch comfortably.”
Derwin gestured toward a spot where a small red carpet had been spread out, atop which sat an elegant black chair. Its backrest, armrests, and cushion looked so plush that it seemed like he’d taken a chair straight from a royal palace.
Chanellica stifled a laugh so he wouldn’t notice.
A fancy black chair, here in the middle of the forest? It’s so out of place.
He really is consistent with his taste in colors. It was amusing, but also oddly touching. She could have just stood and watched, but he’d gone to this trouble.
Not long after Chanellica sat down, the real training began—but it wasn’t quite what she’d expected.
Huh? What’s going on?
Men suddenly burst out from all directions in the forest and charged at Derwin with full force. There were more than just one or two—several men in armor attacked the seemingly unguarded Derwin all at once.
The sudden scene made Chanellica’s face stiffen.
Am I really supposed to just sit here and watch this? Isn’t this an emergency?
But her worry lasted only a moment. Derwin skillfully parried their attacks and countered—using, of all things, a wooden sword. Or at least, that’s what it looked like at first.
Soon, however, Chanellica realized she couldn’t quite grasp what was happening. Their movements were so fast that she couldn’t follow them with her eyes.
Every time she blinked, their positions had changed. She tried to keep her eyes open and focus on the fight, but soon her head began to spin. Her eyes and mind both felt exhausted.
…
How much time had passed?
Derwin, drenched in sweat from head to toe, walked toward her. The other men, already exhausted, had collapsed to the ground or were sitting to rest.
Derwin, however, didn’t look the least bit tired. In fact, he looked better than she’d ever seen him—almost refreshed.
“Did you enjoy the show?”
How can someone look that good while covered in sweat?
His jet-black hair, soaked as if freshly washed, had never looked more captivating.
Spring!
“You were… you were amazing!”
Chanellica jumped to her feet, her eyes sparkling as she shouted.
“Seriously, that was incredible! How is that even possible? I blinked for just a second, and everyone’s positions had changed! And you took down all those people!”
Her voice was practically reverent. Derwin cleared his throat awkwardly.
“Do you always train like this? Here? Against so many at once?”
“That’s right.”
To be precise, it wasn’t that he trained with them—he trained them. But he didn’t bother to correct her.
“Wow. Then can I come watch every time you train? Out of everything I’ve seen in the human world, this was by far the coolest!”
“…My lady, please… be mindful. They all have good hearing.”
Though they were some distance away, these men had exceptional physical abilities. Chanellica, however, just smiled brightly.
“Oh, then I’ll rephrase it. Out of everything I’ve seen in my entire life, you looked the coolest today!”
She said it very loudly.
Derwin felt heat rush to his ears. He could hear the faint chuckles of the men sprawled across the training ground.
“I’m so glad I’ll get to see this often!”
“…Thank you.”
Derwin forced himself to respond calmly, though pretending not to notice was impossible.
“By the way, who are those men? They don’t seem like they belong to the estate. Is it really okay for me to be here?”
“There’s no place in this estate you’re not allowed to go, my lady. The back garden, the training grounds—all are open to you. And those men are my people, so there’s no need to worry.”
“I see.”
“You might even recognize one of them. Over there.”
Chanellica squinted in the direction he pointed and spotted a navy-haired man glaring at them from a distance.
“That’s Lord Ferdin, isn’t it?”
Derwin’s official younger brother, Ferdin. His whole body looked drained of strength, yet his gaze toward Chanellica was still as fierce as ever—not that it posed any threat to her.
“Actually, I’ve been wondering about something.”
“Go ahead.”
“Whenever you wear armor, you always carry a bow on your back. Why is that? I can’t imagine you’d need it often while acting as a guard.”
When they first met, she’d been too distracted by his good looks to notice. But the more time she spent with him, the more that bow caught her eye.
It was a large black longbow—not a shortbow—nearly as broad as his back. It blended so well with the dark color of his armor that one might miss it unless they looked closely.
Chanellica had never seen him attend any official occasion without it. Yet it didn’t seem particularly useful for guarding a princess.
Maybe for shooting from far away on a battlefield, but during close guard duty? Why always carry it?
It had been one of her curiosities for the past few days.
“That is…”
The sudden question made Derwin hesitate. Chanellica tilted her head, curiosity written all over her face—and realized he looked troubled.
“If it’s difficult to answer, you don’t have to tell me.”
She quickly cut in. If he was making that face, it probably wasn’t something easy to talk about.
“No… you’re right. This bow… is like a talisman to me. That’s why I always carry it.”
“A talisman? In a good sense?”
“Yes. That’s why I never leave without it.”
“But you don’t actually use it?”
“Almost never in my guard duties.”
“Then isn’t it just heavy for nothing?”
“It’s already like a part of my body, so it’s fine.”
Derwin answered her questions dutifully.
“Then… maybe next time you train, could I see you use it?”
She asked hopefully. Just imagining him nocking an arrow to that sleek black bow made her heart race a little faster.
“It’s not suitable for use in this training ground. My apologies.”
“Oh…”
Contrary to her expectation that he’d agree easily, he refused outright.
He seems uncomfortable about this, doesn’t he?
“All right. Thanks for answering anyway. That clears up my curiosity.”
Chanellica decided not to press the matter. She was curious why he reacted that way, but there was no need to push him. Besides, she wouldn’t be staying with him for long—there was no point in poking at something unimportant.
“Then, let’s continue the training!”
She spoke brightly, as if nothing had happened.
Early dawn.
For some reason, Chanellica woke up earlier than usual. She went to the window and drew back the heavy curtains.
The sun’s not up yet.
It was at least two hours earlier than she normally woke. Still, she felt refreshed—probably because she’d gone to bed early after watching the training last night.
Without thinking, she opened the window, letting the cool dawn air flow into the room. The dark, quiet morning felt serene. Soon, the sky would begin to brighten. She stood there for a while, gazing outside.
Huh? Who’s that?
Someone was leaving the mansion. Thinking it might be Derwin, she leaned out to look—only to be disappointed when the torchlight at the entrance revealed navy hair. It was Ferdin, the same man who’d glared at her in the training ground last night.
Where’s he going at this hour?
Out of idle curiosity, she watched him from above.
The training ground? Is he heading there now, this early?
Maybe he’s more diligent than I thought.
With that thought, she grabbed an outer coat. Her curiosity about what he was doing—and the boredom that had crept in since waking—pulled her outside.
By the time Chanellica reached the training ground, the sky had lightened enough that she could easily make out faces and hair colors from a distance.
“…What the hell are you doing here?”
Ferdin scowled at the uninvited guest. Unbothered, Chanellica stretched her arms and replied,
“Just… taking a walk?”
“A walk? At this hour? Did you follow me?”
“Mm… Would you mind not speaking informally to your future sister-in-law?”
“She’s not my sister-in-law!”
“Well, I guess not. You’re not even real brothers, so that makes sense.”
Wait—did his brother actually tell her that? To this ridiculous woman?
Ferdin’s face turned red with anger.
“Dream on. My brother’s never going to marry you. He’s going to marry Her Highness the Princess.”
Oh, so that’s what you’re hoping for?
Catching on to his thoughts, Chanellica smirked. Since she’d soon be returning to her true form, there was no need to argue—there was zero chance of that happening anyway.
“That’s for the duke to decide,” she said lightly, then changed the subject.
“Do you usually train this early?”
“Hah. As if. You ruined my mood so much this morning I don’t feel like it anymore.”
Apparently meaning it, Ferdin sheathed the longsword he’d just drawn. His actions matched his thoughts exactly—his personality was easy to read. Watching him, Chanellica spoke again.
“By the way—”
“Don’t talk to me.”
“Why do you train here? You, the duke, and those men from yesterday.”
“I said don’t talk to me.”
“I know the duke’s strong, but from what I saw yesterday, those other men seemed just as strong as him. I work in the Kaisel Knight Order building, so I’ve seen plenty of knights training—and I think they might be better than them.”
“Hey.”
Ferdin, who’d been ignoring her and about to walk off, suddenly stopped.
“So you go around claiming to be my brother’s fiancée without even knowing that?”
“…What?”
“For your stupid sake, I’ll tell you something—so listen carefully.”
Still not looking at her, Ferdin spoke coldly.
“In this mansion, the words ‘Kaisel Knight Order’ are taboo.”
“Taboo?”
“If you don’t know anything about my brother, then keep your mouth shut and behave. Don’t go pestering him with nonsense about his bow like yesterday.”
Chanellica felt that Ferdin’s anger had reached a new peak—far beyond anything before.
But it wasn’t a hot, explosive rage. It was cold and chilling. The unfitting frost in his voice made her shiver.
