Chapter 16

“What a bland answer. But have you decided on a home tutor for Yana?”

“Pardon? Ah…”

While Roman’s eyes darted anxiously, Karen smoothly stepped in to answer.

“We’re considering Lucien Parnell, Master.”

“Hmm. Lucien Parnell from the Theology Division?”

A great house like Tusslena ran various internal departments to manage its territory, research, diplomacy, and business.
Among them, the Theology Division, staffed by religious scholars, received the most funding—fitting for House Tusslena, whose lineage was known as Apostles of the Divine.

“Yes. He’s young, but very thoughtful.”

“Lucien Parnell… Have his credentials sent to me within two days.”

Even Karen, who had remained composed all throughout, couldn’t hide her surprise at that statement.

“Credentials…? If he’s not to your liking, we can choose someone else—”

“It’s fine. It’s not that I disapprove, I’m simply curious what kind of person he is.
Ah, and Yana shouldn’t be sent to the Grand Temple of Phindias for the time being. She’ll be helping me with something.”

“Helping you…?”

“It’s nothing major. I’ll explain later. Take care of your health, Roman.”

Click.

The moment the Head of the Household left the room, Roman leapt to his feet.

Hoo…

He gulped down his barely-touched tea, then began pacing around the room restlessly.
He was too anxious to sit still.

“I had a bad feeling about this. Ever since that girl Yana stole the Sky Wolf Flower fruit and ate it…”

“Don’t worry too much, Roman. His Lordship is just showing interest because the child fell ill. It won’t last long. He’s a busy man, remember?”

Karen wasn’t wrong.

And yet, something felt different this time.

Even when Jihad had taken Yana away, saying he’d look after her after she fainted, Roman had let it go.
Jihad, despite his usual aloofness, sometimes paid inexplicable attention to the orphaned girl.
But then again, he was bound to return to Lethe sooner or later, so Roman hadn’t thought much of it.

“Hoo… It has to be Gregory. That damned fool must’ve interfered.
There’s no way Yana Tusslena could change this much in just a few days without someone pulling strings!”

That muscle-headed idiot had been getting bolder, slowly aiming for everything that belonged to Roman.

The greenhouse incident had occurred while Gregory was away from Tusslena Castle—
which made the ambush all the more effective.
But ironically, Gregory’s absence had also made it easier to defuse the situation.

‘…Yana Tusslena.’

He never imagined that quiet girl would stab him in the back like this.

“But Uncle cares more about his niece’s health than about a greenhouse, doesn’t he?”

Grit.

That smug face of hers—just remembering it made Roman grit his teeth in fury and kick the sofa.
Karen sighed softly and patted his shoulder gently.

“Yana will come to her senses soon. She’s in no position to defy you or me.”

In no position to defy them.
Remembering why that was true helped cool his seething temper just a little.

“…You’re right.”

“Let’s just watch for now. No matter who’s involved, if they stay close for too long, they’ll slip up. I’ll talk to her.”

“She does listen to you, after all.”

“And I’ll have Sir Smith stay closer to her. We need to keep an eye on what she’s up to.”

Such a calm and calculated response—it was brilliant.

Roman threw his arms around Karen in relief.

“I’m so lucky to have you, Karen.”

“Hehe, I feel the same. I love you. You and Ninabel both.”

Her voice was warm, but her eyes gleamed coldly.

The next morning.

Huff, huff…

With her hair tied up and her running shoes laced, Rin ran across the grounds with steady strides.
Maybe because she’d discovered a new path, it felt even more refreshing than usual.

‘When are those Phantom Knights leaving? I can’t use the training grounds because of them.’

Still, skipping her morning run for two days straight had left her feeling restless.

After a bit of thought, Rin decided to map out a brand-new route—this time, circling around the birch forest at the back of the castle.

Whew…

Her rest stop for the day was the Spring Pool, a spot where horses were brought to drink after a hard ride.
Rin had been sure no one would be around at this hour…

“……”

“……”

…Guess not.

Rin, who had knelt down to wash her face, froze in place.

Across the gently trickling stream sat a boy around her age—someone she had never seen before.

She didn’t know why he was there, but his rapid breathing and rising chest beneath his soaked shirt suggested he had just run quite a distance.
His damp blonde hair, slicked back, and his flushed pink face made it clear—he’d been in a full sprint.

“Who even is that guy?”

‘Don’t tell me… Yana’s cousin?’

The word cousin immediately brought to mind that dreadful, princess-complex-ridden Ninabel.

Feeling it best to leave, Rin took a sip of water and stood up to go—

“Hi.”

A plain, simple greeting.

Without thinking, Rin responded while drying her wet hands on the hem of her rough training dress.

“Hi.”

“Are you from Tusslena?”

“Yeah.”

Those mysterious violet eyes narrowed slightly, as if trying to figure out who she was.

It didn’t feel like a hostile stare. Rin casually brushed back some damp baby hairs stuck to her sweat-drenched forehead.

“A knight trainee from Saint Bright?”

It was just a short sentence, but it was enough to make Rin stop mid-step.
She had been ready to ignore him and keep moving.

“…Do I look like a knight trainee?”

“Kinda.”

“Kinda,” huh?

‘Hmph. I only started working out recently, and it’s already showing?’

Her tired body suddenly felt more energetic.
Yeah, that’s the feeling.
That thrill—this was what had pulled her into swordsmanship in the first place.

Rin turned with a satisfied look on her face.

Most people would’ve asked, “What about you?” by now, but Rin wasn’t in the mood.
She hated when people tried to make conversation while she was training.
Thankfully, the blond boy didn’t seem interested in saying more either, and they each went their separate ways—

Or so she thought.

‘…Why is he following me?’

That uncomfortable presence right behind her.

Deciding to ignore it, Rin broke into a run.
He started running too. She kept running without looking back.

Then, at some point, the boy passed her with ease.

Annoyed, Rin picked up speed and passed him again.
This time, he ran even faster and overtook her.
The two of them raced like that for a while, pushing each other competitively—

Until her tired legs caught on a rock, and she tripped.

‘Tch.’

Luckily, Rin had trained as a martial artist.
She avoided a full-out fall, but since she was in Yana’s body, there was only so much she could do.

Her knee was scraped.

“Huff… Huff…”

But Rin was too out of breath to care about her knee.
When she finally looked up, she could see the Tusslena estate beyond the thick birch forest.

‘Oh… He wasn’t following me. He was just heading back to the castle like I was.’

A wave of regret washed over her.
So she’d been the only one who took it as a competition.

And then—

A cautious hand gently touched her shoulder.
The boy’s pale face leaned in and carefully scanned hers.

“You okay?”

“…No.”

“You’re not? Then wait here for a second. Don’t move, okay?”

Leaving that firm instruction behind, the boy disappeared toward the castle.

Of course, Rin had zero intention of listening to some stranger’s orders.
But Yana’s body needed proper rest. If she ignored the warning signs, she’d be dealing with muscle aches all night.

So she stayed sprawled out, letting time pass.

Before long, a cool grey shadow fell across her face.
The boy helped her sit up and handed her a water bottle and some pills.

“Take these. They’re a type of calming agent. The Phantom Knights use them, so don’t worry about side effects.”

‘Wait, what? That kind of thing exists?’

Wow, the world’s gotten fancy.

But convenience was one thing.
Trusting a stranger was another.

Rin took only the water bottle and drank.

Cool water slid down her throat as she recalled how she’d been showing off and ended up falling flat on her face.
So embarrassing. She couldn’t even say thank you properly.
Instead, she just patted his shoulder in thanks and tried to get up—

‘Huh?’

She couldn’t.
His upper body had leaned toward her at an angle that made it impossible to rise.

When she looked up in confusion, the sunlight illuminated a pair of dazzling violet eyes that sparkled above her.