Osric Balmore won second place in the youth division of the hunting competition.
On his way back after dropping off Olivia and the other kids, he encountered three wild boars and successfully caught them all.
It seemed he managed this because the hunting targets had been driven to the outskirts due to the presence of lower-level monsters.
He received an offer to join Emblem Knights and immediately started training.
Although I only heard that he began training, I hadn’t seen him because I was bedridden.
“Olivia was thrilled, saying her brother finally achieved his dream.”
“I only an apprentice knight now. I still has a long way to go to stand beside the commander.”
“If you works hard, you can achieve anything in future.”
Despite my indifferent encouragement, Osric Balmore smiled brightly.
Though he and Olivia came from the same family, they were quite different.
I thought about Olivia’s tearful face as she wanted to attend the awards ceremony with me today.
For Olivia, it was unfortunate, but for me, it was fortunate that only the participants of the hunting competition could attend the awards ceremony. The same applied to today’s party.
“By the way, how’s your injury?”
“What do you think?”
I slightly rolled up my sleeve to show the bandaged hand hidden under my uniform.
“It looks like your injury will heal soon.”
“Right. So, we’ll see each other at the training ground soon.”
“Soon?”
Osric Balmore tilted his head, alternating his gaze between my injured hand and face.
“It’s not an injury that will heal quickly.”
“There’s a way.”
I smiled, recalling my successful deal with my dad.
Except for my injured hand, my legs were fine. My grandpa always said that all swordsmanship comes from a solid lower body.
If I only do lower body training, who could complain?
‘Everyone’s overprotective of me.’
My dad also agreed to start with just lower body training.
Base on my dad agreement meant I also can presuade others agreement for that.
The thought of joining the training soon lifted my spirits.
Enoch was advancing in swordsmanship day by day, and if I stayed in bed, my wounds might never heal from the stress.
I was eager to feel that tingling sensation in my palm again.
“But Sir Balmore, why does that guy keep approaching us? Or Is it just me?”
“…Indeed.”
My good mood suddenly plummeted.
That guy was getting closer, and now the crowd was starting to split in two. That could only mean one thing.
I gritted my teeth and muttered.
“Enoch, that bastard… I told him not to acknowledge me here.”
It wasn’t just me who noticed Enoch’s approach. The Emblem Knights playing nearby quickly surrounded me.
“I feels secure cause of them.”
They stood guard like bodyguards. It was surprisingly comforting. I smiled and straightened my shoulders.
Even if Enoch was the star of this party, I had my people.
“………!”
As the Emblem Knights gathered around me, the approaching people split faster, like the Red Sea. Finally, Enoch’s face was visible in the middle.
“Seriously, what a sight.”
Seeing Enoch’s face made me chuckle.
Despite being the hero of this party, he didn’t look great.
His bangs were sweaty from the heat, and his uniform was wrinkled. The medal the Emperor had pinned on his clothes seemed oddly worn, as if everyone had touched it.
“Haaa, Cherry.”
Enoch walked towards me, looking relieved. I wanted to tease him about being happy to see me, but seeing his face, I couldn’t. I ended up patting his shoulder.
“Good job, man.”
“I never want to go through this again.”
Enoch, seemingly exhausted from whatever ordeal he had faced, shuddered as if trying to shake off goosebumps. He looked truly pitiful.
“But where’s Aunt Melsia? Did you come alone, Cherry?”
“It can’t be, young lord Gray.”
The one who answered Enoch’s question wasn’t me but an Emblem knight standing nearby.
The Emblem knights, who hadn’t looked particularly happy since Enoch approached me, seemed offended by his question about whether I came alone.
“Our lady arrived with the Emblem knights.”
As the Emblem knight expressed their discomfort, Gray knights, hidden in the crowd, began to reveal themselves one by one.
“Is the Emblem lady unable to answer? It seemed our young master asked her.”
Just like the Emblem knights had surrounded me, the Gray knights started to encircle Enoch.
“Oh, Emblem and Gray are clashing!”
“Move back. Move back and watch!”
The crowd began to disperse quickly, as if they were used to this kind of confrontation, aware that staying close could result in getting caught in the conflict.
“Ah, excuse me. It seems your young lord is not paying proper attention to his surroundings.”
“Isn’t it you, Emblem knights, showing that your lady can’t handle anything on her own?”
“Did you really just say that?”
“It’s you who should.”
The atmosphere between the Emblem and Gray knights turned hostile in an instant.
“What’s going on?”
I looked back and forth between the two groups in confusion.
Thinking about it, I realized I had never gone out without my parents, accompanied only by the Emblem knights.
Initially, I was supposed to be with my mother for the awards ceremony, but halfway through, the Emperor had said something to her, and they both went to the palace with serious expressions, leaving me to attend the party alone.
As I watched the escalating tension, I realized that without a superior to restrain them, the knights were acting recklessly according to their tempers.
“Enoch, stop them.”
“Do you think I can do that?”
By now, the Emblem and Gray knights were so engrossed in their confrontation that they didn’t even hear my and Enoch’s conversation.
“You only managed to snatch victory by barely taking a breath. Typical of Gray, cunning to the core. You’ll surely continue the family tradition splendidly.”
“Is it Emblem’s tradition to swing swords aimlessly without delivering a decisive blow?”
“If you only use your brain, why not sit and wield a pen instead?”
“If you’re going to swing your sword so recklessly, why learn swordsmanship at all? Just beat people with clubs.”
“Are you asking to get beaten up right now?”
“Haaa, you Emblems can’t even understand what’s being said.”
“A Gray whose sword is inferior to his tongue.”
While Enoch and I were bewildered, the verbal battle between the two groups escalated to an extreme.
Despite the rule that swords couldn’t be brought into the party, both groups had their hands on their hips as if reaching for non-existent swords.
The intense atmosphere between the two groups was now palpable, prickling my skin.
‘This is getting serious.’
