Chapter 40
“…And this one?”
“Oh. This is my friend, Leo Bonaparte.”
Elaina hesitated slightly but went ahead and introduced Leo.
“It’s an honor to meet you, Your Grace.”
Leo smiled faintly and extended his hand toward Lyle. Lyle stared at the offered hand for a long moment.
This was no careless gesture.
A handshake is something a person of higher status offers to a lower-ranking person.
Lyle slowly reached out and took Leo’s hand, unsure of its meaning.
“Indeed. I’m pleased to meet you as well, Sir Bonaparte.”
“I heard the news of your marriage to Elaina. She is a fine bride. Congratulations.”
Leo’s gaze swept over Lyle’s clothing.
Clothes from the Marbela Salon.
Elegant, like Elaina, but entirely unsuitable for him.
And there was one more thing about Lyle that didn’t fit at all.
The Knight Order.
Becoming a knight was a highly honorable matter. Yet this man intended to become the head of one?
‘Even as a joke, that’s too much.’
The man standing before him had been called a killing machine on the battlefield—a man with almost no honor.
Elaina had tried not to interfere in Lyle’s affairs, thinking it was inappropriate as a friend. But upon hearing that he planned to found a Knight Order, she could no longer remain silent.
“I heard from Elaina that you plan to form a Knight Order.”
Though his face was calm and smiling, a razor-sharp edge was hidden beneath it.
“I see.”
Seeing the tension growing between them, Elaina quickly pulled her hand away from their handshake.
“You should leave now, Leo.”
“Why? We’ve only just arrived. There’s more than one thing I’m curious about, Your Grace.”
“Interesting. We’ve just met, and you already have questions? Go ahead, then.”
Lyle’s impassive response made Leo raise one eyebrow.
“A Knight Order isn’t something an individual can just decide to create. Are you aware of that?”
“I know. Duke Winchester has agreed to help with that. Anything else?”
“Hah. I see. So even this matter ultimately relies on the Winchester family’s help, then.”
Leo spoke in a low voice, but Lyle, with sharp ears, could hear every word.
“I’ll be blunt. You should abandon that plan.”
“And why is that?”
“Isn’t it obvious? Don’t exploit the honor of knights merely to display your family’s prestige.”
Many have historically created Knight Orders simply to flaunt wealth.
“If Your Grace were to establish a Knight Order now, many would look on you with suspicion. They’d wonder if there’s some hidden motive.”
After returning to the capital following the war, Lyle Grant had been advancing recklessly. First, announcing his marriage to the prestigious Elaina, and now creating a Knight Order? Anyone familiar with the past decade could already imagine the reaction.
“Hidden motives, you say? I’ll accept the advice.”
Elaina, frustrated, spoke on Lyle’s behalf.
“You fool! Hidden motives? I already told you—it’s to exterminate monsters in the Marbela mountains!”
“Do you think that makes sense?”
Leo’s voice rose in exasperation.
“This is something no Knight Order would have dared attempt before.”
A low laugh came from Lyle. When Leo turned, he saw Lyle’s face, amused as if he’d heard a ridiculous story.
“Oh, forgive me. Your plan is just… so amusing.”
“…Amusing? What’s so funny?”
“The fact that you think it’s impossible just because you can’t do it yourself.”
Lyle shrugged.
“Sure, if it were only a group of young nobles playing around with swords, it would be impossible.”
“So you’re saying Your Grace can do what I cannot?”
Leo ground his teeth, unable to hide his irritation. His pride had taken a heavy blow.
“Yes.”
“You should take that back.”
“Why would I retract the truth?”
Lyle answered simply, no need to argue.
Leo took off one glove and threw it to the floor. Even with his pride wounded, he could not back down.
“Then, teach me a move. Let me learn from Your Grace himself.”
Friends resemble each other, they say. Lyle reflected on Leo and was struck by the similarity.
The way Leo bared his teeth at him reminded him of how Elaina had interfered for Diane’s sake.
Not only did he come uninvited to the estate, but now he demanded a sword lesson.
No one could take such an arrogant, overbearing attitude seriously. He didn’t even try to hide the pride wounded by such presumption.
“I’m sorry. I should have stopped him.”
“No, it’s fine. I was curious, too.”
At fifteen, Lyle had been dragged into the battlefield barely a few years after first picking up a sword. There, he learned and experienced the raw violence of war. Scholarly swordsmanship meant nothing in that context. So he abandoned all he had been taught and rebuilt his skills from scratch. He learned instinctively, on the edge of death.
And now, through Leo Bonaparte—who had walked a path entirely opposite to his—he wanted to see just how strong the sword he had honed on the path he could not take had become.
“You’re the deputy captain of the Imperial Guard, right? I’m curious to see your skill.”
The sword of a killer on the battlefield, and the sword of a guard protecting people.
Instinctive skill learned on the brink of death, and academic knowledge from the academy.
Lyle had no intention of losing to Leo. He merely wanted to see the level of skill of a guard.
Though unspoken, his faint smile betrayed his excitement.
“Good grief…”
Stubborn men, indeed.
It was already too late to stop them. Leo’s determined stomping, Lyle’s relaxed smile—neither seemed willing to settle the matter. Elaina could only hope their duel didn’t escalate further.
Though the estate was poorly maintained, its size was massive, and it took the three of them a long time to walk.
Eventually, they reached a large training ground. Elaina’s eyes widened; it was better maintained than she had expected.
“This place is surprisingly tidy.”
“Because daily sword training is necessary. I told them to clean here instead of unused rooms.”
At the mention of sword training, Leo snorted. Did this ignorant man even understand what sword training was?
“Daily sword training? When?”
“At dawn. As soon as I wake up, I come here.”
“I see. My father isn’t a warrior, so he doesn’t know about sword training. What exactly do you train at dawn?”
Leo looked at her incredulously.
“Why?”
“Since when were you so interested in sword training?”
Growing up together, Elaina had never paid attention to Leo’s training. Seeing him cling to Lyle now made her feel both left out and betrayed.
“Anyone who wields a sword trains. What’s so special about that?”
Leo said to Lyle.
“I train daily as well. It may seem like child’s play, but it should be enough to handle Your Grace’s sword.”
Lyle’s eyes glinted with determination, and he raised one side of his mouth.
“So, you’re upset? Then I apologize.”
Did he not realize that such casual ease would only inflame Leo further?
“No. Don’t apologize. Honestly, I’m not sure how effective solo sword training can be, assuming it’s done properly. Sword training should load your muscles; swinging a sword a few times is not enough—”
Before Leo could finish, Lyle interrupted.
“I think I must have been mistaken.”
Leo’s endless speech stopped, and Lyle smiled slightly at him.
“I thought you were here to spar, not to chat.”
“…What did you say?”
Leo’s hands trembled. He was unused to such insulting conversation.
“I’ll see for myself whether you really only swing the sword a few times.”
Lyle glared sharply at Leo, finishing his thought.
“I doubt the training you did, Your Grace, was done properly. No one has taught you systematically, after all.”
Lyle’s eyes fell on the rapier at Leo’s waist.
“You use a rapier. Yes, if you lack strength, a lighter sword is best—you’ll tire quickly otherwise.”
Lack of strength. The words Leo hated most.
“Some fools think swinging wildly will always hit the opponent. They don’t realize thrusting is far more effective than cutting.”
Leo emphasized “fools,” glaring at Lyle. Lyle, however, met his gaze with a relaxed smile.
