The impact felt heavier than before with every clash of the blades.

“I’ll stop playing around and focus now. So, Duchess, try to block my sword.”

Before I could reply, a sharply gleaming blade rushed toward my vital point. It didn’t aim straightforwardly at just one spot. Whenever I blocked one area, he instantly changed direction and shifted his stance. The Marquess of Waiden showed no hesitation—his body moved as if it already knew exactly where it needed to go.

I almost felt enchanted by the graceful, dance-like beauty of his sword’s trajectory.

‘I’m going to lose. I will lose. But I can’t stop.’

I knew well enough that my skill was far from sufficient. He must have devoted his entire life to the sword, after all. For someone like me, who only practiced swordsmanship as a hobby, winning was simply out of the question.

Yet, although it was exhausting to evade his attacks, it wasn’t impossible. The longer the sparring went on, the more my body began to follow his movements.

My breath grew ragged, but my body kept urging itself to move even faster. In the rapidly shifting field of vision, I didn’t even have the luxury to close my eyes.

Silently fixated only on the elegant arc of his blade, I instinctively sensed where his next strike would land.

“Here it comes.”

After swiftly blocking, I pushed forward once more, making the Marquess of Waiden gasp.

‘If I expose a vital point just slightly here, I could probably land a hit too.’

I’d likely get injured in return, but if I swung my sword straight through, I could at least draw blood.

As I moved with that thought, the Marquess blocked my blade and warned me.

“That’s far too reckless, Duchess. In a moment where every second counts, such judgment will only lead your own side to death.”

His warning snapped me out of my trance. In my flustered state, my balance wavered—and his sword reached my neck.

“Ugh.”

As I lowered my sword, he also sheathed his. The Marquess of Waiden looked at me with a complicated expression.

“Haa… You’re more reckless than you appear. The Duke Ferhaem must have quite the burden.”

“I acted on impulse just then. You noticed immediately.”

“Of course. Reading your opponent’s intent the moment blades meet is fundamental. Reckless, yes—but what an enviable talent. If you weren’t the Duchess, I’d have taken you as my disciple and trained you properly.”

“…You flatter me too much. I’m not particularly talented.”

“Haha. You’re quite harsh on yourself, Madam. That’s not a good trait. It’s important to objectively recognize your own abilities.”

But I couldn’t believe it. Me, talented in swordsmanship? There’s no way I could have such talent.

Even the nurse in the Orbetian household burst into tears the moment she saw me injured from handling a sword, asking if I really had to keep practicing.

The knights said I didn’t need to be so diligent either. Even Weaslet Orbetian, the only family member who knew I was learning swordsmanship, only said it was good for lifting my spirits.

It was just that, for the first time, desire had stirred within me. Because now there was someone who took my swordplay seriously and cheered me on.

“I don’t know. I’ve never really been praised before, except by Yezar. And even he probably said nice things just so I wouldn’t be disappointed.”

“I’m not good at flattery. So you can trust me when I say this… Ah!”

Slap—! The sound echoed loudly in the quiet space. My eyes widened instinctively. It was Katrin who had struck the Marquess of Waiden on the back.

“Have you lost your mind? Don’t you know how important hair is to a woman? You just cut it off like that!”

“A-Ah, Katrin, this was just an accident during sparring…”

“You should’ve been more careful! This is why I call you a muscle-headed fool!”

Feeling guilty that he was being scolded just for indulging my stubbornness, I stepped in to stop her.

“It’s okay, Katrin. Hair grows back, after all. Marquess of Waiden, thank you for sparring with me.”

I hadn’t even realized my entire body was soaked in sweat. Yet I felt refreshed and happy, and a smile slipped through.

“I truly enjoyed this. I even thought I’d love to experience a moment like this again.”

“I enjoyed it as well, Duchess. I almost lost, you know. Let me say it again—you have genuine talent in swordsmanship.”

Could it be? Could I actually have talent in swordsmanship? Sparring with a real blade made me feel it. I wanted to do better. I wanted to keep exchanging blows for longer.

I realized such longing existed within me. And after sparring with the Marquess of Waiden, I understood something: his swordsmanship was beautiful and elegant, like drawing soft, flowing lines—but still, facing Yezar felt even better.

I wanted to spar with Yezar using real blades, not wooden ones. I wanted to spend even more time fencing with him.

“Since you say I have talent, I’ll try harder from now on.”

“I’m almost afraid to see how much you’ll grow. This might bring up unpleasant memories, but wasn’t Countess Orbetian once a highly promising knight? It seems that remarkable talent has been passed not to a son, but to you, the Duchess.”

“What? Mother was a promising knight?”

I’d never heard this before. There was no trace of such a story in any of the memories I had of Julietta.

The Marquess of Waiden, in turn, looked surprised.

“You didn’t know? No one told you, it seems. Well, I only heard it as a child myself and had nearly forgotten. But seeing your swordsmanship brought it back. You’ve inherited a wonderful gift.”

I felt dazed. The image of Julietta’s mother, who I remembered only lying sick in bed, being a celebrated knight—was it because of her that I felt so alive when wielding a sword? In a strange mood, I stared down at the blade in my hand.

Then a thought came to me. If the Julietta in the novel had devoted herself to the sword instead of chasing someone’s affection… could she have become a knight admired by all?

“…Thank you for telling me.”

Katrin and the Marquess of Waiden called out to me, sensing my expression had darkened, but their voices sounded distant. My mind was too tangled—I wanted to go somewhere else.

Yes. I need to go somewhere that calms my heart…

Someone pulled me into their arms. Strangely, I instantly felt at peace.

“Duchess, are you alright? You don’t look well.”

Ah. It’s Yezar. Thank goodness. I leaned into his embrace and murmured softly.

“I’m sorry. Hearing about my mother made my head spin. What should I do? I didn’t want to show such a face to the Marquess or Katrin.”

“Then rest here beside me for a while, Duchess.”

I heard Yezar’s voice. Quietly, I leaned against his chest, listening to the steady thump of his heartbeat.

Having someone to rely on felt even better than I’d imagined.

***

We decided to rest briefly on a bench and I was handed a damp cloth. Yezar gently wiped the sweat from my face.

“I can do it myself.”

“It’s fine. You’ve sweated a lot, after all.”

Yezar had been sweating too from sparring, yet taking care of me came so naturally to him. Normally, I’d be insisting on wiping his sweat too—but perhaps because my mind was so clouded, I quietly accepted his touch.

“Where are the Marquess of Waiden and the ladies?”

“The Marquess went to change clothes after sweating during sparring, and the ladies have gone inside.”

That was a relief. I’d been worried they’d fuss over me unnecessarily. As Yezar wiped the sweat from my forehead, my head felt much clearer.

“I’m sorry. Did I startle you? My mind got so confused after suddenly hearing about my mother.”

“You said she passed away when you were young, didn’t you?”

“Yes. So I never really felt close to her, and even after she died, I didn’t miss her much. But now, thinking that my talent in swordsmanship might come from her… suddenly my mind feels so chaotic.”

It was a strange feeling. It was as if I’d glimpsed another possible future for Julietta, who had only been a minor villain in the novel.

“That’s understandable.”

“It’s odd. I don’t have any memories of being close to my mother. But now they’re saying my talent comes from her. What if she had lived? Would I have learned swordsmanship normally, loved and cherished, and become a knight?”

If only my mother had lived, maybe Julietta—and I—wouldn’t have hated rainy days. Maybe my father and eldest brother wouldn’t have been so consumed by their duties.

Countless ‘what ifs’ unfolded inside me. The more I thought, the more pitiful the departed Julietta seemed. I wanted to hold her tightly and comfort her.

You were worthy of love. You were a shining gemstone all on your own.

“Still, imagining such things is meaningless.”

It was all pointless speculation. Just thinking about it only led to emptiness. Then, Yezar took my hand and said:

“But if that were the case, we wouldn’t have become husband and wife…”

Huh? What did Yezar just say? I stared at him, startled. His face was red. It was hard to tell if it was from the heat of sparring or something else.

“There wouldn’t have been moments like this—talking together, sparring, sharing our worries. I want you to be happy. But selfishly, I hope you’ll never regret being with me right now.”