“Words of thanks are not enough, I will never forget it for the rest of my life.”

The day we finished the State Council meeting and returned to the Academy.

The expression on my sister, speaking to His, still seemed gentle.

As if squeezing every hidden emotion into each and every word, it was more than simple gratitude, carrying deeper feelings.

Even knowing that it was reckless, maybe even foolish, I decided to find a crack, however small, to penetrate that emotion.

“Do you want to make a deal with me?”

(This is a time divider.)

“Yesterday you told me to leave because you had something to discuss alone. Today, you say you would like me to come again.”

I kicked at the roadside stones, grumbling to myself.

It was Kirian who had asked me to come to the training ground after class.

“Just one thing, just one.”

Since he was going to train with Esmeralda today as well, they must have grown close over their shared interest, like the original work.

Since the young lady interested in swordsmanship and archery was only Esmeralda, surely Kirian would find it intriguing.

And although not as much as the Duke’s house, the Count’s house also occasionally participated in monster subjugation using magic, so the monster stories would surely resonate with each other.

I momentarily envisioned Kirian and Esmeralda exchanging techniques for sharpening swords, their heads close together.

It was clear that there was no place for me there.

I thought it might be better to go back to the dormitory and rest rather than awkwardly hovering around the two, but I couldn’t turn my feet towards the training ground, foolishly.

However, when I arrived at the entrance of the training ground, there was no one there. Neither the target stand nor the straw practice dummies were occupied.

I walked to the center of the training ground, looking around.

“Hasn’t he arrived yet?”

It took me a while to notice two people sitting on a bench under a tree facing each other.

Even in the shade of the tree, I could recognize Esmeralda’s dark black hair instantly.

But the man sitting next to Esmeralda wasn’t Kirian at a glance.

“Who’s that…….?”

As I approached, the shadow’s dark brown hair became more prominent, followed by a straight forehead, stretched eyebrows, fleeting green eyes, a smooth nose, and lips with a slight upward curve.

Familiar things came into view one by one.

“His?”

As I was about to greet him warmly, His began to lower his head towards Esmeralda.

I stopped in my tracks, not knowing what to think at the moment.

Their foreheads were almost touching.

“Eek!”

A short scream and the sound of something shattering echoed in the training ground.

Esmeralda, who had pushed His away with incredible speed, was already on the verge of tears, and His had a red cheek, his head halfturned.

I just stood there stupidly. My head seemed to refuse to understand what had just happened.

“Wh, what! Without my permission…! Don’t ever show up before me again!”

Still tearing, Esmeralda glared at His and ran off.

“Uh……?”

His looked perplexed, rubbing his cheek, watching Esmeralda’s fastdisappearing figure.

“Ha.”

A deep laugh reached my ears. Turning around, I saw Kirian approaching.

“You can’t keep your eyes open, even if you’re cold.”

Only then did His, who had been standing like a stone statue, notice me and jump up.

“Reina.”

After looking alternately at the fleeing Esmeralda and me standing with blinking eyes, His frantically waved his hands.

“No, Your Highness, I think there is some misunderstanding now.”

“Misunderstanding? What misunderstanding. We all saw it. Clear as day, with no room for excuses.”

Kirian chuckled again.

Ignoring the mocking Kirian, His came to me, grabbed my hands, and looked into my eyes, not taking his eyes off me.

“I can explain everything. Just give me a chance to explain.”
His glanced at Kirian for a moment and then his gaze returned to me.

“The two of us.”

“Sister, it’s not worth hearing more. Let’s go.”

Kirian coldly brushed me off and placed his hand on my arm.

I briefly stared at the intertwined hands of the two of us.

“Could you step aside for a moment, Kirian?”

I repeated what I had heard from Kirian yesterday.

“I think it would be better to talk with His alone.”

For a moment, I felt Kirian’s hand stiffen, but surprisingly, Kirian obediently stepped back.

“Alright. Go talk. I’ll be waiting outside the training grounds.”

As Kirian disappeared, His gave a faint smile.

“Thank you, Reina. For the opportunity.”

Sitting me on the bench, His knelt on one knee before me, looking up at me.

“I can explain everything.”

I slowly nodded my head. At first, I was surprised, but as time passed, my heart was surprisingly calm.

In the original work, His was one of Esmeralda’s followers, and perhaps everything that had been out of sync with the original was gradually becoming more similar.