Chapter 56
Who Would Do Such a Thing
Philip was still Riche’s knight, but only one attendant could accompany her into the academy.
During Riche’s first winter break, there had been a small rivalry between Anna and Philip over who would take the position.
“It doesn’t matter to me who accompanies me,” Riche had said, trying to diffuse the tension between the two.
Riche had chosen Philip initially because Hikenka could possess Philip at any time.
Anna had cheered at Riche’s comment, while Philip had been disheartened.
Thus, every semester before school started, Philip and Anna would compete for the attendant position.
This semester, Anna had won.
“Anna, please… Just one more chance…”
“No.”
“Ugh…”
In the end, Philip, who had a master but couldn’t serve them, was left in a half-idle state at the Rodwick mansion.
It was Deon who had taken pity on Philip.
After Riche’s graduation, Deon had stayed for her opening ceremony before dragging Philip back to the Rodwick estate.
“I can’t stand my sister’s knight being so weak.”
Weak?
Philip’s skills were nothing to scoff at, but he couldn’t argue against Deon.
A week had passed since they returned to the Rodwick estate.
One evening, Philip had followed Deon, who casually announced he was going for a walk.
The place they arrived at, without any warning, was the Forest of Monsters.
What kind of madman, no, what extraordinary person would go for a walk in the Forest of Monsters?
Watching the forest entrance close behind them, Philip felt a chill down his spine, but it was too late.
Monsters, having found their prey, charged at them from all directions.
“Young master, aren’t you going to use your powers?”
Philip barely managed to fend off a monster as he asked Deon.
Given that the young lady Riche was an Rtiohm, it would be much easier to deal with the monsters if Deon used his ability to stop their breathing.
“I won’t.”
For some stubborn reason, Deon only fought the monsters with his sword.
Philip, on the other hand, swung his sword for dear life, trying his best to survive.
Morning came after that harrowing night.
While Deon emerged from the forest as if he had truly just been on a walk, Philip was utterly exhausted, dragging his heavy legs.
Seeing the bright morning sunlight, Philip made a vow. Never follow the young master into the forest again.
Anyway.
Philip looked at Deon’s sharp jawline as he gulped down water.
At eighteen, Deon was now taller than Philip. His broad shoulders and the muscular frame sculpted by rigorous swordsmanship were evident even through his clothes. His sharp, almost decadent features left no room for doubt.
“Young master, how many did you catch today?”
“…”
“Young master, the young lady contacted us last night.”
“What did she say?”
Philip marveled at his young master’s consistent demeanor, as he reported Riche’s message.
“She’s going to participate in the Kselfon Tournament.”
“…Kselfon?”
Deon pondered for a moment before asking,
“What about the greenhouse?”
Riche, who had been so absorbed in her hobby that she never stayed at the estate for more than two months, was suddenly talking about Kselfon?
Philip relayed what Riche had told him, knowing Deon would be curious.
“She said it should be okay to leave it to others now.”
“What’s gotten into her?”
A faint dissatisfaction flickered in Deon’s red eyes.
Unlike the other minor competitions within the Rokesha Empire, Kselfon attracted quite capable contestants.
Moreover, the tournament’s location, near the border between the Rokesha Empire and the continent of Pan, was not far from the Lom Desert where monsters emerged.
“What if she gets hurt?”
“Well… young master, the young lady is more likely to hurt someone than get hurt herself…”
Philip, intimidated by Deon’s fierce aura, quickly changed the subject.
“It’s a renowned tournament, and the young lady participating is quite a surprise. I should start gathering information. Have you ever attended a Kselfon tournament, young master?”
“No.”
While any sixth-year student with sufficient skills could participate in Kselfon, there was an exception.
‘The four duchies of the Rokesha Empire and their extraordinary ability users cannot participate.’
The powers possessed by these individuals were inherently too strong. The tournament’s aim to test pure student skills wouldn’t align if ability users participated since they could dominate the event.
However, it wasn’t entirely impossible for an ability user to join Kselfon.
Deon recalled a letter he had received a few days ago.
“Dear Derkedeon Rodwick,
If you have the time, we would like to request that you serve as an exam instructor for this year’s Kselfon…”
The tournament, spanning six months from preliminaries to finals, required robust control due to the spirited and talented students participating.
Therefore, the organizers invited exceptionally strong and respected individuals to serve as instructors, a role that brought instant prestige and a notable line on one’s resume.
But for Deon, who had both power and honor in abundance, it was merely a nuisance.
‘Who would want to do such a thing?’
Deon tried to remember where he had put the letter. He must have crumpled it up and tossed it into the trash after reading it.
‘Who would bother with that?’
Deon climbed onto the horse that Philip had brought.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes, sir. When we arrive, will you go straight to the master? Jed asked me to check.”
Philip asked as he mounted his own horse.
With an indifferent expression, Deon replied as he started his horse.
“Before that, I’ll rummage through the trash a bit.”
* * *
“Riche, sis!”
The training ground of the academy.
Riche, who was warming up on the platform, turned her head towards the entrance at the sound of her name being called.
Fifteen-year-old Lotus, with pink hair flying behind him and a face identical to Lily’s, was running towards her.
Following behind was Siegbert, who was a head taller than Lotus.
“Sieg! Lotus is with you too?”
Riche greeted the two.
Seventeen-year-old Siegbert already had the look of an adult man. His deep green eyes softened as he recognized Riche.
“Hi, Riche. We met on the way here.”
“Yeah. Sieg said he was training with you, so I tagged along.”
Lotus and Siegbert stood in front of Riche.
Then Lotus, seeing Riche’s face, exclaimed as if he had just remembered something important.
“Sis, there’s a banner up?!”
“Banner?”
“Yes. About you entering the competition. It’s huge, on the main building’s rooftop railing. Anyone would think you already won! Right, Sieg?”
“Winning is…”
“It’s fine because Riche will win, right?”
Lotus finished Siegbert’s sentence. Once idolizing Siegbert and following him everywhere, Lotus had become his unofficial spokesperson.
Meanwhile, Riche felt even more anxious hearing about the banner.
A few days ago.
She had casually mentioned her intention to participate in the competition to a magic department professor. He had gaped at her with an open mouth and then ran off somewhere, leaving Riche behind.
“…?”
Left alone, Riche blinked at his retreating figure.
Thinking he had urgent business and deciding to speak with him another time, she started to walk back down the hallway.
Suddenly, she was startled to see professors from the magic department and the headmaster rushing toward her like they were on a hunt.
“Ms. Traiche!!”
“Are you really, really entering?!”
“Student Traiche, do you need anything? Just name it!”
“Finally…! I never thought I’d see this day before I died!”
Only then did Riche realize that the professors and the headmaster had been eagerly awaiting her participation in the Kselfon tournament.
And they were enthusiastically proclaiming “Traiche is sure to win!” at the top of their lungs.
There was no way she wouldn’t feel pressured.
‘I just wanted to gain some experience from the competition, but things have escalated.’
Her light-hearted intentions quickly turned serious.
In the end, Riche decided to aim for victory and began training in earnest.
The ultimate winner was determined by the combined results of the individual and team events, so she also had to prepare for last year’s winner, whom Lily had mentioned.
Though she had yet to hear the name, she knew the winner was in the same grade as her. A swordsman who won at the mere age of fifteen.
[I wonder if that champion is really handsome? I’m curious.]
Python spoke to Riche.
How did he know she was thinking about the winner?
Riche felt embarrassed as if her mind had been read and silently answered herself.
“Well… Lily said so, but….”
Lily was generous with compliments about someone’s appearance. At least that’s what Riche thought. Just by hearing Lily praise someone else’s appearance, she knew it wasn’t about her.
Moreover, winning wasn’t about looks, so she couldn’t afford to be complacent.
That’s why today, she had asked Siegbert, a swordsman, to help with her training.
Riche asked Siegbert, who had drawn his sword at his waist.
“Have you seen him before? Last year’s champion.”
“No.”
Siegbert was also skilled, so he had no interest in the Kselfon tournament.
“I saw him. I went to see the final match with a friend last year.”
Lotus replied from beside her.
Since the qualifiers were held during the semester and the finals during the vacation, he must have seen the final match at that time.
Interested, Riche asked Lotus.
“What was he like? They say he’s incredibly skilled.”
“Yeah. He fought well, and he really stood out. His hair was gold, and so were his eyes.”
“…Huh?”
Riche stopped stretching and stood still, staring at Lotus, then asked him.
“What did you just say, Lotus?”
“He had gold eyes too, so it was striking… Oh.”
Lotus stopped talking. It seemed like a familiar description to him, and he had a memory associated with it.
“Come to think of it, wasn’t that one of the characteristics of Ian Gerwer, the missing Duke Gerwer’s talented son? Blond hair, golden eyes. I was too young to remember. There’s a guy who’s the same age as Sieg, right? His name was something like Wayne. I think that was it.”
Siegbert nodded.
“Yeah. Ian… Ian Dwayne Gerwer.”
Riche’s murmuring overlapped with Siegbert’s words.
Her heart pounded.
For six years, she had searched, investigated, and despaired over Ian’s whereabouts.
Tired of the futile repetition, Riche had begun to sort out her feelings not long ago.
‘Let’s stop. Ian won’t come back.’
She had promised herself that.
But to have her heart race at words reminding her of Ian?
Riche forgot her promise and urgently asked Lotus.
“Lotus, do you know the name of that champion?”
Udik Academy, Swordsmanship Department. Seventh grade, like Riche.
She hadn’t heard any other information yet.
“Riche sis, you’re really proactive, huh? If sis is serious, no one can beat Tari Che Lodwick.”
Seeing Riche’s unusually proactive behavior, Lotus felt happy, and his smile widened.
While Siegbert was cool, following him was more about having a realistic role model.
In fact, Riche was the person Lotus admired the most.
So, as Lily had said, he would spill all he knew to ensure Riche sis would win.
“I know his name too.”
Lotus grinned.
