Saying so, Bellion scanned the surroundings. Delina, too, looked around cautiously. Surely, the Dekar I know wouldn’t retreat so easily. He must be lurking somewhere, seizing an opportunity…

“!”

At that moment, a gunshot sounded, and a bullet grazed past Delina. Bellion and Felik’s eyes flashed. Following the loud firing noise, several bullets flew again.

“Lady, hide quickly!”

Felik swiftly hid Delina behind a nearby rock. Then, he quickly moved forward to fend off the attackers. While Felik and Bellion dealt with the enemies nearby, smoke began to rise around Delina.

“…!”

Delina realized that it was artificial smoke. However, with no chance to avoid it, the smoke quickly enveloped Delina’s surroundings. Delina drew her sword and remained vigilant. Then, from the side, a familiar voice reached her ears.

“Looking for me? Lady Clown?”

“!”
Through the thick smoke, Dekar’s face appeared and approached Delina, almost right in front of her nose. When Dekar reached out his hand to Delina, she quickly pointed her sword at him. With a surprised expression, as if he didn’t expect Delina to react that way, Dekar blinked his eyes.

“Oh, what’s this? The clown lady, did you learn something like this recently?”

“…It’s a survival skill. Thanks to someone.”

“I see.”

Smirking, Dekar drew his sword.

“You used to be a little clown girl who didn’t even swing her sword well on my arm. Now you’ve really grown up, huh?”

“…”

“Then, how about showing me some skills?”

Dekar’s and Delina’s swords clashed rapidly. In a moment of tremendous force, Delina unconsciously gritted her teeth.

‘What kind of strength is this…!’

Delina, who had faced many strong opponents in the past, was still astonished by Dekar’s skill. While Delina was bewildered, Dekar wielded his sword leisurely.

“You’re not bad at all. Perhaps it’s because of the good teachers? You can learn from me if you want.”

“No, thank you.”

“Oh, why not? By the way, didn’t you dislike Damien? Still, he had a decent face, didn’t he?”

“That face, unfortunately, is too far from my taste.”

Her enthusiasm for taking her to the Lunan Empire remained unchanged, whether in the past or now. Dekar then amusingly continued the conversation.

“Nevertheless, I really like the clown lady’s performance. Can you show it to me again?”

“!”

With that statement, Delina’s hand released the sword. Smiling, Dekar raised the sword.

“It’s okay, clown lady. I’ll just lightly cut the tendons in your legs so you can’t move. Endure a bit of pain. Got it?”

With a smiling face, he made horrifying sounds. His sword quickly descended toward Delina. However, as planned, he couldn’t inflict any injuries.

“!”

Suddenly, Noah appeared and blocked Dekar’s sword.

“Noah!”

Delina, seeing Noah who had pierced through the thick smoke, looked at him with a surprised face. Soon, Delina noticed the glasses on Noah’s face.

“Who is this, isn’t it Diamond Gongja? Are you writing something interesting?”

Seeing the glasses, Dekar chuckled. Then Noah also smiled, adjusting his glasses.

“This is a special type of glasses invented by Viscountess Elpisha and will be sold by Diamond Gongja. Even in dense smoke, you can secure a clear view.”

While answering, Noah unsheathed his sword.

“If you want, you can buy it now at the price of one Lunan Empire.”

At Noah’s words, Dekar laughed heartily.

“Whether then or now, Diamond Gongja doesn’t seem to have changed? No, wait. This is a bit unexpected.”

While Dekar and Noah clashed swords, the smoke gradually lifted. Then, Delina saw not only Bellion and Felik but also the knights of the Grand Duchy, all looking in their direction.

“Doing something openly against the Lunan Empire in front of so many people is not very Diamond-like, is it?”
Dekar looked at the imperial family, the Grand Duke, and the Marquis, including Edwin and the Duke, who were a little further away. Noah responded.

“Indeed, seeing him doing such things now, the ancestors of Diamond, who rest in peace, might be angered….”

Noah himself was well aware of the weight of his actions. Nevertheless, the attacks against Dekar continued relentlessly. Noah chuckled.

“It might be better than severing ties with the Diamond Marquis.”

“Hmm?”

“Unless I’m the beloved clown here, I have no intention of getting married.”

Marriage.

In response to Noah’s provocative words, Delina, who was sitting behind, had her mouth wide open in shock. Noah’s words caused a momentary and astonishing silence. Edwin and Estelle, who were observing the situation, blinked quickly, and the faces of the four children who were looking at Noah and Delina became complex and subtle. And…

“Your Highness! The enemies are over there!”

Felik was trying to stop Bellion, who had changed the angle of his sword towards Noah.