Chapter 02 …
“No, I’ll just go to a nearby territory—.”
“No, I’ll just get married instead—.”
“I’ll go up to the capital and meet some noble acquaintances—.”
After hearing Ilena’s answer, the three people hurriedly began throwing out their own solutions.
As if this were even a problem at all—she believed the fastest solution to any unfair situation was a “conversation of the body.” After enough physical sparring to fully understand each other, there was nothing left that couldn’t be understood.
At least, that’s how it usually worked in Louis. Seeing her family panic, Ilena let out a meaningful little laugh.
“I’ve already submitted the application documents.”
“What?!”
“Unless there’s a special reason, most noble children with clear status get accepted anyway. The acceptance letter should arrive soon. Good thing I applied in advance.”
Her family stared at Ilena in utter disbelief as she smiled brightly. She thought it was fortunate she had acted quickly and not missed the opportunity.
The blade of a sword brushed past Derek’s eyes.
“Ilena Louis! You really—!”
Derek, who couldn’t afford to get injured during his long-awaited vacation, quickly leaned his head back. His face was a strange mix of shock and frustration.
“You’ll get your neck sliced off if you stand there stupidly.”
Ilena, the one responsible, was completely indifferent. Ignoring her fuming older brother, she continued her attacks steadily. Derek’s movements grew increasingly exaggerated as he got angrier.
“You—are you really going to become a duke’s household maid?”
“Yes. What exactly is the problem?”
Ilena asked as if she truly didn’t understand. Wasn’t it a good thing to work for a duke’s house?
She had to earn money anyway, and they paid extremely well. In just one month, she could earn what a commoner family lived on for three months.
Besides, they told her it was fine if she didn’t reveal she was a Sword Master—so she agreed. With a faint emotion in her eyes, Ilena thrust her sword deep toward Derek’s left arm.
“Ghk! You! Do you even realize how incredible a Sword Master is?! How many people become Sword Masters at seventeen? There are only a handful in all of history!”
As far as Ilena knew, even the empire’s famous founding king became a Sword Master only after his thirties. Currently, the youngest known Sword Master was Karl Beckman, the man from the duke’s household she intended to join. She remembered reading explosive newspaper reports nationwide at the time.
“The genius Karl Beckman, rumored to have surpassed the founding king, became the youngest ever second division commander at eighteen! And you’re saying you’ll just be a maid in his household?”
Derek fired off words so fast he could barely breathe. He was furious at his sister’s foolishness and their family’s softness.
Ilena clearly didn’t understand how great a Sword Master was. That must be why she could say she wanted to become a mere maid.
If it were him, he wouldn’t even consider becoming a servant.
Even knights who devoted their entire lives often failed to reach the level of a Sword Master. It was a gift from the gods. One Sword Master could decide the outcome of a war.
“What good is a title if we don’t have the power to protect it? People would line up to take everything from us.”
“That’s a bit of an exaggeration.”
“If you get a title, money just flows in? That’s not how it works either.”
“Why are you suddenly acting smart? Even if you join the Imperial Knights, a captain’s salary is pretty good.”
“Brother, didn’t you just recently complain that knight salaries are too low?”
“Of course I’d earn more than regular knights like me.”
Derek avoided her sharp gaze. Still, he felt that joining the knight order was better than becoming a duke’s maid.
“I don’t have the confidence to live buried in paperwork like Dad or Sister. Work myself to death and drown in documents?”
“They won’t give a single Sword Master a hereditary title without responsibilities. If you get land, you’ll have to manage it—that’s obvious.”
“I’m not doing it. I’ll just earn enough and live comfortably.”
“You really are living carelessly.”
Derek shook his head. Was this the leisure of someone who already had everything? He looked at Ilena with envy. If his own family had been slightly better off, he might never have gone to the capital.
But Ilena’s choice to become a maid was not emotional—it was logical.
She knew her personality well. She hated troublesome work and absolutely despised sitting at a desk all day doing paperwork. It wasn’t about ability—it was about preference.
The youngest daughter of a small baron family now had to support herself and help her family financially. Even after becoming a Sword Master, she disliked being in the spotlight.
She scoffed.
If knights heard her thoughts, they would be furious. But she didn’t feel any pride in being a Sword Master.
She had just swung a sword all day for fun, and one day she simply surpassed the threshold. To Ilena, being a Sword Master was as natural as breathing.
No one boasts about breathing or eating well.
So she had no desire to announce it to the world.
There was no noble ideology or chivalry behind it either.
Protect people? Ridiculous.
Ilena just wanted to live quietly in a peaceful territory—small, simple, and long.
“Good thing I happened to be on leave. Otherwise, you really would’ve ended up a maid in that duke’s house. Just join the Imperial Knights instead.”
Derek said, insisting she could take the entrance test easily with his recommendation while aiming a strike at her leg.
“I already got accepted into the duke’s household.”
Ilena deflected his blade easily, recalling the acceptance letter she had received earlier. She had immediately sent back her acceptance without hesitation.
“What?!”
“I said I already got accepted. I’m going to the capital with you tomorrow.”
“What?! Mother, Father? Why are you telling me this the day before leaving?! And stop calling me just ‘you’! I’m your brother!”
Derek shouted as if flames were coming out of his mouth.
“If I told you earlier, you would’ve followed me around during your vacation and ruined my peaceful days.”
At Ilena’s annoyed tone, Derek fell into despair.
“That can’t be! Mother would never allow this!”
But Ilena calmly replied,
“They said I can decide for myself. They said becoming a knight can be done anytime, so there’s no need to worry. And they also said if I join the knights, the imperial knights might have a hard time dealing with me.”
“…That’s true.”
Derek reluctantly admitted it. He imagined his sister working in the knight order with a bored expression, dealing with nobles and royalty with zero enthusiasm.
The thought of her saying “That is not my duty, I refuse” to royalty made his stomach ache.
If she joined his unit, he would definitely need constant stomach medicine.
He quickly gave up. Ilena was already an adult; she could handle herself. She had always been capable since childhood.
Fine. Since he was home anyway, he might as well swing a sword with his Sword Master sister.
“Then there’s no problem, right?”
Ilena asked after confirming her brother’s mood had improved.
“You’ll still train every day?”
“If I have time. The duke’s house even has training hours for servants.”
“I heard they also have study time. You’re not planning to openly reveal you’re a Sword Master, are you?”
Derek asked cautiously.
“I won’t say it openly, but I do plan to keep training as usual.”
At that, Derek let out a deep sigh.
“How am I supposed to deal with this idiot sister…”
“Don’t look at me like that. I’ll be careful.”
“I don’t trust you at all.”
“Shut up and pick up your sword. Help me properly if you’re going to help.”
“Ugh… if I knew you’d become a Sword Master first, I would’ve just stayed home and trained more instead of joining the knights.”
“You think you would’ve become a master just by staying in the territory?”
At Ilena’s laugh, Derek clicked his tongue and lunged again.
Before long, they were both fully engaged in a fierce spar.
“Can we keep going until dinner?”
Ilena asked casually.
“What? You’re trying to kill me?”
“That’s about right. It’s been a while since I moved properly.”
“Hey—AAAH! You’re insane, that’s aura! That’s aura!!”
Derek screamed and scrambled desperately to avoid her blade. As promised, Ilena didn’t stop until dinner time.
“There are probably stronger people in the capital than me.”
Thinking this, Ilena felt a faint excitement at the idea of leaving for the capital tomorrow.
