After finishing dinner, I returned to my bedroom immediately and took a deep breath. Today had been eventful enough, and my arm was still hurting from the duel with Elliot. I felt like I needed some rest.
Just as I was about to sit on the couch to relax, I heard a knock on the door.
“Come in.”
Curious, I looked at the door and gave permission for the person to enter. Anita walked in as the door opened.
Now it was Anita’s time to rest, so I wondered what she wanted as I looked at her.
“Little Miss, I brought the cookies you mentioned earlier as an evening snack.”
Anita showed me a small plate. It was filled with small and pretty meringue cookies.
I was wondering what this was about, but then I remembered that Adrian had requested cookies, contrary to the original plan. Since we suddenly went to the training grounds for a duel and Adrian went straight back to the palace from there, it seemed that there were leftover cookies.
I picked up one cookie and smiled at Anita.
“I only need one, so you can have the rest, Anita.”
“Really?”
Surprised by the unexpected offer, Anita’s eyes widened. Her already big eyes became even bigger.
“Is it really okay? But…”
Anita asked for confirmation. With the cookie in my mouth, I nodded.
The sweet taste filled my mouth, so sweet that it made my eyes narrow.
“Then, please. I can’t eat too many sweets. So, don’t hesitate to eat them for me. It would be a waste to throw them away like this.”
Anita looked at me with shining eyes. Then, she bowed suddenly to express her gratitude.
“Thank you, Little Miss! I’ll enjoy them!”
“Go to your room and enjoy them comfortably. If anyone tries to take them away, tell them that I asked you to eat them alone.”
“Yes!”
Anita replied with a bright face, bowed to me once again, and left the bedroom.
Now I was truly alone.
Feeling the exhaustion wash over me, I lay down on the bed. It was uncertain whether sleeping deeply would relieve this fatigue. However, since it was a child’s body, recovery would probably be quick…
After finishing my thoughts, I closed my eyes.
[Mirabel, wake up.]
“Huh?”
Suddenly, Vibr’s voice resounded in my mind.
“You said you were tired, right?”
“Yeah, I’m tired. My muscles have been screaming ever since the duel with Elliot.”
I answered Vibr’s question without getting up.
“How about using divine power?”
“Divine power? Ah!”
It finally dawned on me what Vibr meant, and I raised my hand.
Just like I learned in the temple, I guided the divine power as if pulling it from the temple. Soon, a bright shimmering light appeared in the air.
No matter how many times I saw it, it was still a fascinating phenomenon.
Since I had never thought that I would possess divine power, I couldn’t immediately think of using it.
“Think of it as healing your body.”
Following Vibr’s advice, I moved the divine power. The divine power slowly moved toward me as I desired.
When I thought of it as healing myself, the shimmering light poured into my body.
It felt like warm sunlight pouring onto me on a bright day.
A warm and gentle energy began to surround me.
And when the light finally disappeared, it was after the fatigue and pain that had remained in my body had vanished.
“Wow!”
In amazement, I let out a gasp.
The heavy and exhausting feeling that had lingered in my body since the duel with Elliot had suddenly disappeared. Even the soreness from the training badge on my wrist was gone.
It felt as if I had just taken a good rest and woke up refreshed.
“Isn’t it amazing?”
“Yes, it’s incredible. I still can’t believe that I have this power. With this level of divine power, maybe I can heal my mother without relying on the temple?”
Disappointed by Vibr’s additional comment, I stretched out the hand I had been holding onto the bed.
“Never mind. Since Priest Lionel is taking care of my mother, there’s no need for me to go and bother her.”
As long as Priest Lionel was there to treat her, my mother’s condition wouldn’t worsen, so I didn’t need to fuss about it.
I settled comfortably into the bed, ready to fall asleep. The feeling was still pleasant, as my body felt light. I thought I could sleep peacefully since my body felt at ease.
* * *
I woke up early in the morning, feeling refreshed. There was no fatigue, so getting up didn’t feel burdensome at all.
When I checked the time, it was 4 a.m.
Although I trained in the early morning, it wasn’t usually this early.
Thinking that I had woken up too early, I considered lying down on the bed and passing the time, but I got up from the bed instead.
It was still early morning, but considering the tasks ahead, I needed to diligently practice my skills.
It seemed better to stretch my body first, so I left the bedroom. When I stepped outside, the corridor was quiet.
I raised my hand and levitated the divine power above it.
“What are you doing?”
Vibr expressed his curiosity when I suddenly used divine power in the corridor. I shrugged my shoulders as if it was nothing.
“It’s dark. If I use divine power, it gets brighter.”
[…]
Upon hearing my reason, Vibr made a small groaning sound. But he didn’t really stop me from what I was doing.
“It’s too early in the morning, and there’s no one around. What’s the harm?”
[Alright, I understand.]
With the corridor brightened up, I walked slowly. The first place I headed to was the dressing room where I kept my clothes.
Familiarly, I went in and changed out of my pajamas, neatly folding them on one side, and put on my training clothes.
At first, I mainly wore equestrian attire, but after a week of training, I received a new set of training clothes that were more comfortable to move in.
Dressed in lightweight training attire, I left the dressing room.
From then on, I refrained from using divine power for fear of encountering other people.
Carefully stepping down the stairs, I arrived at the back door of the mansion. When I turned right from the back door, I reached the training ground we used.
I entered the training ground, shaking my head lightly from side to side. However, I heard an unexpected sound of intense sword strikes coming from the center of the training ground.
“Hat! Hat!”
In the dim moonlight that illuminated the training ground, there was a boy swinging his sword like a pendulum.
He was a boy taller than me. It was Elliot.
Elliot was also training with Brian, just like me, but our training times were the same.
It was said that at such an early hour, he should also be in dreamland.
“Elliot?”
Unable to resist my curiosity, I called out to him, and Elliot lowered the sword he was swinging and turned to look at me. He seemed a little surprised and had his eyes wide open.
“Mirabel?”
“Yeah, it’s me. But what are you doing here? Are you training already, this early?”
As I handed him the handkerchief I brought, Elliot accepted it and wiped off the sweat that had formed on his forehead.
“Ah, yeah…”
Elliot awkwardly smiled and cautiously assessed my reaction.
“You went to bed around midnight, but you’re already up?”
“Around twelve, yeah?”
“That means you only slept for four hours. Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. If I want to get stronger, I have to work harder.”
From Elliot’s words, I realized why he woke up so early and was training in swordsmanship ahead of me.
After our duel yesterday, it seemed to have bothered him secretly. Although he didn’t show it at the time, it must have been quite a shock for him, a boy older than me, and especially since I had only started learning the sword a few days ago, to be defeated by a much younger sibling.
“Is it because of me…?”
Filled with guilt, I asked him, and Elliot raised both hands and waved them, shaking his head.
“No! It’s not true!”
There was no jealousy or resentment in his face as he denied it in surprise.
“No, I can’t say it’s completely untrue.”
Belatedly, Elliot let out a half-hearted laughter.
“Huh?”
“I actually couldn’t fall asleep after losing to you in our duel, so I came out early. I wanted to get stronger than I am now.”
“…”
I closed my lips tightly and looked at him. I felt a little sorry.
It seemed that this feeling of guilt was reflected unintentionally because Elliot awkwardly averted his gaze.
“Don’t look at me like that. But I’m not jealous or anything.”
“Then?”
In response to my question, Elliot scratched his cheek and cautiously assessed my reaction.
He seemed like a bashful boy.
“Because I’m your older brother.”
“What?”
His unexpected words made my eyes widen. Elliot turned his head to look at a distant mountain, seemingly embarrassed.
Moonlight illuminated Elliot’s face. It seemed a little flushed.
After hesitating for a moment, Elliot slowly spoke.
“Because I’m your older brother, if I’m weaker than you, I can’t protect you. That’s why I was training.”
I couldn’t interrupt Elliot’s words. His slightly awkward way of speaking made him look quite serious.
“In order for me to protect you, I have to be stronger than you, at least. That’s why I was training early in the morning.”
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Translator Note:
This chapter was translated by Bree.
Next chapter will be released tomorrow. To read chapters in advance support us on Patreon!!
Elliot is best boy.