“Senior Rosebelia?”

The one who confessed to me at that time…..

What was his name again?

“Simon?”

“Did you remember my name?”

Simon’s face brightened visibly as he approached with quick steps.

“Of course I remember… you.”

“Thank you, senior. It’s a great honor for me.”

Simon smiled, showing his neat teeth. Seeing his joyful expression made me feel sorry for not immediately recalling his name.

“…It’s not that much of an honor.”

“But I’m not just saying that.”

I stared blankly at the grinning Simon. I only remembered his tense appearance, but his smiling face was quite cute.

He seemed to resemble Cayden a little bit.

He looked much more at ease than when he suddenly appeared before me to hear my answer to his confession.

“We see everything here, Klyne.”

“Indeed.”

I alternately looked at Ian and Simon, who were conversing naturally, and then let out a low exclamation.

That’s right, they were both new recruits who joined together this time.

“By the way, Simon, what brings you to the square?”

At my question, Simon opened his mouth with a sudden realization.

“Ah, Senior Edwin…”

Edwin?

“Is Edwin at the knights’ quarters now?”

“Yes.”

A laugh involuntarily escaped me.

When did he return to the knights’ quarters?

It’s one thing to kick away good fortune that rolls in, but this is ridiculous.

It was a golden opportunity to be deeply entangled with Daisy, whom he considered his destined partner, but what a fool!

“What did Edwin ask you to do?”

“He said Senior Rosebelia seemed to still be in the square, so I should find you.”

I tilted my head as I pondered Simon’s words.

“He asked you to do that? What is Edwin doing?”

“It seemed Senior Edwin had some business. I happened to overhear Senior Edwin and Senior Lucas talking, so I volunteered to go to the square.”

He seemed to have some business? Could something have happened to Edwin?

“I see. In any case, thanks for coming all the way here. Now we can all go back together.”

As I started walking, I could feel Ian and Simon matching their pace to follow me.

“But…”

“Yes?”

“What were you doing with Klyne?”

“Ah, I came out with Edwin and coincidentally met this…”

I hastily closed my mouth. I almost said Ian.

“Pardon?”

“I met this new recruit wandering around this vast square. He said he was running an errand for the captain, so I helped him out.”

“I see.”

Realizing I was suddenly in the middle, I looked alternately at Ian and Simon.

Unlike Ian, who was silently looking straight ahead as he walked, Simon startled when our eyes met and quickly turned his gaze forward.

Come to think of it, one of them is the person who misunderstood that he confessed to me, and the other is the person who actually did confess to me, right?

To be precise, it was to Rosebelia, not me.

In any case, it wasn’t exactly a pleasant combination.

“Well, Simon, you’d better stand in the middle.”

“Huh? Why?”

Instead of answering, I placed a candy in Simon’s hand. It was meant to tell him to eat this and walk quietly.

“What’s this, senior?”

“Something sweet.”

“It looks strange.”

His curious inspection of the candy was quite adorable. Simon had an especially youthful impression among the new recruits who joined this time.

Perhaps that’s why he feels more like a younger brother.

He was a completely different figure from Ian, who stood tall beside Simon.

At least I can tell these two aren’t the same age.

The White Knights Order had no age limit for applicants, so even among recruits who joined in the same year, their ages varied greatly.

The White Knights Order cared about seniority rather than age for discipline, and once you were in the same class, you were peers forever, with clear distinctions between seniors and juniors based on class.

“Go ahead and eat it, Simon.”

“Alright.”

Simon popped the candy into his mouth without hesitation.

“How does it taste?”

“It’s extremely sweet.”

His honest assessment made me chuckle involuntarily. There couldn’t be a more accurate description.

“Give me one too.”

Ian suddenly said.

“Huh? What?”

What he pointed to with his eyes was the single candy remaining in my palm.

“New guy, you said you didn’t want…”

As soon as I opened my mouth, Ian’s expression visibly darkened.

No, rather than dark, how should I put it? He looked like he was in a bad mood?

Is it because I gave the bribe candy to just anyone? Could candy be expensive here?

“Here you go.”

Ian, who had been twitching his lips as if he had something to say, took the candy I handed him and put it in his pocket.

Then he glanced at Simon, quickly looked away, and started walking ahead with long strides.

“…What, are you going ahead?”

“Maybe he urgently needs to use the restroom?”

I was about to firmly say that didn’t seem to be the case, but seeing Simon’s rather serious expression, I scratched my cheek.

“That… could be possible. Let’s walk slowly then.”

*

By the time Simon and I returned to the knights’ quarters, Edwin had already left. According to Lucas, it seemed some family matter had come up.

Edwin Holton.

Edwin was the eldest son of the Holton Viscount family and the heir apparent. If it was a family matter, it meant something had happened to the Holton family.

What could it be?

No matter how hard I tried to recall the original story, nothing came to mind. In the original work, Edwin hadn’t appeared yet.

“Even though I read the original so many times, I don’t know anything.”

The sound of Emily’s hooves striking the ground roughly suddenly softened. When I looked up, we were already in front of the stable.

After leaving Emily with Roy, I walked across the garden. It was when I passed through the vast flower bed and reached the fountain.

“Sister?”

It was Cayden’s voice. As I stopped, Cayden approached with quick steps.

“Cayden.”

“Are you just coming back now?”

I hadn’t noticed because it was quite dark, but up close, Cayden was drenched in sweat.

“Are you coming from the training grounds?”

“Yes.”

Could he have been training until this late?

“Mother doesn’t like that, you know. Why don’t you take a bit more interest in family affairs?”

“I want to become a knight like you, sister. A White Knight.”

An innocent smile spread across Cayden’s face. For a moment, I stood still, looking down at Cayden as if at a loss for words.

The pure aspiration reflected in his eyes was twinkling as brightly as the starlight in the dark night sky.

“Being a knight is good, but you should think about inheriting the family.”

“Even knights can inherit the family, can’t they?”

“That’s true, but… If you really want to be a knight, how about the Royal Guard?”

Unlike the Royal Guard, which prioritized protecting the imperial family, the White Knights Order was an elite order of knights.

If war broke out, all members of the White Knights Order had to go to the battlefield, and once or twice a year, they had to set out to subjugate magical beasts.

Although there hadn’t been a war for nearly 10 years, war could break out at any time, and subjugating magical beasts was no easy task either.

If you think about why the White Knights Order is honorable, the answer is obvious. Because they take on dangerous tasks.

In a way, it’s honor gained by risking one’s life.

“I prefer the White Knights Order.”

“If you’re determined to become a knight, I’d recommend the Royal Guard, but think it over carefully.”

After briefly glancing at Cayden’s rather resolute face, I slowly started walking towards the main building without adding anything more.

“Um, sister…”

“Yes?”

“Could you perhaps spar with me?”

“…Why do you want to spar with me?”

Cayden answered without a moment’s hesitation.

“Because you’re the strongest person, sister. If another Sword Master appears in the empire, it will surely be you.”

It’s not wrong, but why do you look more proud than me?

“You’re still young, Cayden. And even within our knights’ order, those who spar with me are…”

I was about to say there weren’t any, but I closed my mouth tightly.

It’s not that there aren’t any. I recently found quite a good sparring partner.

“Sister?”

“They can be counted on one hand. Do you think you’re at that level now?”

Cayden shook his head. His face was composed, as if he had expected this answer.

“It doesn’t have to be now. Even after I’ve improved my skills more…”

“Who’s teaching you now?”

“Arnold.”

Arnold was the knight Olivia had recently brought in. He was a high-ranking knight from the Riley family, Olivia’s maiden house, wasn’t he?

“Not Schultz?”

“No.”

Schultz was a high-ranking knight who had been responsible for guarding the Winters family for a long time.

He was also Rosebelia’s swordsmanship instructor, and it was certainly Schultz who first taught Cayden swordsmanship, wasn’t it?

“Schultz would know best whether you’re skilled enough to spar with me or not. If Arnold is teaching you now…”

“I understand what you’re saying, sister. I’ll take care of that myself.”

“Alright, if Schultz acknowledges your skills, then I’ll spar with you.”

“Understood, sister.”

I couldn’t help but smile at the enthusiasm in his voice.

In my previous life, I had wanted a younger sibling. Is this how it would feel to have a real younger brother?

As I looked down at Cayden’s disheveled hair, I unconsciously reached out my hand, but just before my fingertips touched his hair, I slowly lowered my arm.

“Sister?”

I could feel Cayden looking up at me with a puzzled expression as I stopped in place. I casually lifted the corners of my mouth in a smile and started walking again.

“Let’s go.”

*

“Your Highness, are you feeling unwell?”

“Me?”

Is there another prince here besides you, Your Highness?

Nathan, unable to voice those words, glanced cautiously at Ian.

He had seemed to be in a good mood for the past few days, but today he was visibly under the weather.

“You don’t look well at all.”

Ian’s lips quivered as if he was about to answer, but then he closed his mouth.

Nathan let out a faint sigh as he observed Ian’s contemplative expression.

When Ian suddenly announced he would join the White Knights Order, Nathan had predicted that Ian would last at most a few months, or perhaps not even a month.

‘Surely he’s not thinking of quitting already?’

It had been three years since Nathan became Ian’s aide. During that time, the Ian he had observed was, well, a rather peculiar person.

Perhaps because he was born as a noble prince, he had never seen Ian desire anything.

They say that if you sit still, good things will come to you naturally, but people tend to cling to what they have in their hands. Ian wasn’t like that.

He showed no attachment to things or people. He was indifferent to everything and lacked motivation, only doing things when told to, but he was also good at whatever he did.

The only thing Ian had held onto for a long time was his sword.

“Nathan, there’s something I want to ask you.”

“Me?”

“Is there anyone else here besides you?”

Ian, who had rested his chin on the desk at some point, raised an eyebrow slightly.

Nathan involuntarily flinched and clasped his hands neatly, even though he had only met Ian’s eyes, which showed no change in expression.

“No. What do you want to ask me?”

“I’m just asking in case…”

“Yes, go ahead.”

Nathan blinked his tired eyes slowly.

“Do I…”

‘Why does His Highness’s face seem to show signs of anxiety? Am I seeing things because I’ve been working too much lately?’

He rubbed his increasingly blurry eyes, but nothing changed.

“…have a weak presence?”