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The road home was incredibly simple.

No matter how far the distance was between Sarham and Merohim, to teleport directly to Lord Kraus’s castle with Joachim, who had transported me and Elena here in the carriage when I first visited, was all we needed to do.

Joachim, not wanting to part with his daughter, looked at Elena with a sad expression until the moment she got into the carriage, but he did not delay our departure.

In the last subtle glance he sent my way, there seemed to be a different meaning behind his actions. Unfortunately, I was the one who wanted to go back to Sarham the most, so his wishes did not reach Elena through me.

Seeing my confused expression, Joachim sighed for a moment and then immediately cast his magic.

“We shall see each other again soon.”

In response, I nodded slightly as a greeting, and by the time I raised my head again, a pure white light had already enveloped us along with the carriage.

As the magic activated, I experienced once more the strange sensations I had felt the first time teleporting, and the white world swiftly passed my sight. Just like before, once the light faded, we had arrived not at Winter Castle but at Count Kraus’s Lord Castle.

A week isn’t a long time, but perhaps due to everything that had occurred in Merohim, the sight of my home felt warmer than ever. As I opened the carriage door and stepped outside, a refreshing breeze, quite different from Merohim, welcomed us.

The sound of birds chirping, rarely heard at Winter Castle, along with the vibrant flowers that had been planted to decorate the courtyard caught my eye. It was no longer a monochrome world filled only with white; instead, the colorful scenery began to resonate in my heart, confirming I had returned home.

“Are you really that happy?”

“Yes. I am! Home is the best!”

After taking a deep breath of the southern air I hadn’t felt in a while, Elena chuckled at my enjoyment. Yet, despite that, I felt no shame at all.

What’s wrong with loving my home?

After five years of being in Damian’s body, this place had become the only sanctuary in this world. Thus, for my worn-out spirit, there was no other place to relax but here.

One year until the beginning of the original story.

While I did not know what events would occur that would divert from the original story, at the very least, it seemed wise to stay indoors for a while, reflecting on what had happened so far. I couldn’t just be shocked by unexpected events forever. I needed some time to collect my thoughts.

“By the way, it seems quiet in the castle today. Surely Father knows we’ve returned.”

Noticing the unusually quiet atmosphere in the castle, I looked around. It wouldn’t have been odd for Father to be waiting for our return at the door, yet all I could see were a couple of guards at the entrance standing vigil by the iron bars.

Though Father was likely busy, he had promised Alphonse he would teach him swordsmanship before we left, making it all the more concerning that I couldn’t see Alphonse anywhere.

A sudden feeling of anxiety washed over me…

As the unease began to set in, a door opened, and a familiar figure walked toward us. It was none other than Paul, the deputy butler who had been filling in for Ken during his absence. I greeted Paul and asked if something had happened.

Fortunately, Paul shook his head and smiled softly as he replied, “Currently, the Count is meeting with guests. That’s why the atmosphere in the castle is so subdued.”

At Paul’s words, my tense expression began to ease.

With that, I remembered that this was around the time of the spring Hunting Tournament. I had never missed it before, but with so many recent events piling up, I had completely forgotten about it this year.

If others from different houses had heard about it, it would explain why the castle felt so quiet. I would love to head straight to the meeting room and hand over this ring to Father as soon as possible, but that wasn’t feasible right now.

Things had been frequently occurring around my vicinity lately, so I seemed to have become overly sensitive, reacting excessively even to minor details. The meeting with Father would have to wait until after guest reception, so we decided to return to our room first. I headed over to Hailey, who was unpacking, and handed her my baggage while trying to escort Elena back to our room, but she quickly took the burden from my hands, smiling, and declined.

“Damian, you promised Alphonse you would teach him swordsmanship when you returned to Sarham. Since I’ve monopolized your time, I should let you pass this one time to him, shouldn’t I?”

With a small chuckle, she added, “I wouldn’t want to be hated by him, you know.”

Elena’s comment, part joke and part serious, caused me to nod in acknowledgment.

Alphonse was a smart boy, practically grown-up level of maturity, but perhaps due to his weak constitution, resembling his mother, he hadn’t really practiced swordsmanship, so his emotions about it weren’t much different from those of his peers.

Of course, Alphonse wouldn’t sulk just because I briefly escorted Elena, but Elena certainly knew better than to not realize that her words translated to me that I should hurry and go see Alphonse.

Hailey, who was about to take the luggage, gave me a disappointed look, but I smiled at her and encouraged her to keep at it, then turned to speak with Paul, who was reporting to Ken.

“Paul, do you happen to know where Alphonse is right now?”

Alphonse’s room in the main residence had a view of the courtyard from the window. If he had been there, he would have surely come outside to greet us upon our arrival. But Alphonse was not here.

That meant he was likely elsewhere.

I had a rough idea of where he might be.

“I saw the young master leave early this morning. According to the maid, he has been seen near the Knights Order’s training grounds. I haven’t heard any news that he has returned, so he might still be there.”

Just as I suspected.

Imagining Alphonse waiting for me at the training grounds filled me with mirth. His enthusiasm was commendable, but I wished he could at least wait until I arrived.

I glanced at the ring on my finger.

Just a moment ago, I had only wanted to hand it over to Father quickly, but now I felt more relieved that it was still on my hand. If I carelessly took out my sword here, I might catch my father’s ire later, but it should be okay to indulge Alphonse just this once.

I recalled how delighted Alphonse had been when I first handed him a wooden sword. Now I was eager to see the expression on his face when I presented him with a sword used by our ancestors from legends.

*

With everyone left behind, I turned my steps toward the location of the Knights Order’s training grounds.

Located a bit farther from the main residence, that place was known as the cradle of the “Black Dragon Knights,” a pride of the Kraus family, and my old playground.

Although it seemed a bit odd to refer to it as a playground, reflecting on how I felt when heading there, that’s the only way I could express it.

While there was a dedicated training ground for exclusive use by the Kraus family within the castle, it wasn’t the only place where I wielded a sword. That area was primarily used for ‘conversations’ with my father, while I spent most of my time honing my skills at the common training grounds shared by the other knights.

Certainly, one of the reasons I wished to check the condition of the sword I wielded as the heir of the Kraus family was to find a worthy opponent in my father’s absence.

Thus, my description of it as a playground wasn’t completely unfounded.

Clashing swords with them felt like a game to me back then. That sentiment still holds true today.

“How much have they improved?”

Although it was dubious to expect drastic changes in a mere week’s time, since I had just sparred with the Edelweiss knights, I should be able to offer an objective assessment.

The weather was bright and clear—a perfect day for swordplay.

“No, no, what am I thinking?”

The familiar scent of grass and the sight of my beloved playground made me momentarily forget my original purpose. While Alphonse enjoyed watching me spar with the knights, I doubted he would appreciate the idea of losing his turn.

“Whoooaah!”

A shout announcing the nearing approach of the training grounds reached my ears.

I spotted knights in uniforms adorned with the Kraus emblem, not the Edelweiss’s. They stood in a circle at one spot in the training area, likely engaged in a sparring session. Looking more closely at the circular formation they had created, I spotted a small figure amongst the tall knights.

I crept up quietly behind the boy.

Perhaps everyone was too absorbed in their sparring; none of the knights guarding the area noticed my approach. Well, that was a good thing for me.

“Gotcha.”

“Ugwahhh! W-what… Brother?!”

As I closed the distance, I crouched low and, without hesitation, slipped my hand between Alphonse’s armpits. The sudden surprise made Alphonse squeal, but upon turning around and realizing it was me, his face lit up with a joyous expression.

But I wasn’t done yet. Without a word, I grinned, which started to turn Alphonse’s expression tense.

“W-wait a second…”

“Yap. Yap.”

“Hehehe! Aahhh! B-brother, that’s ticklish!!!!”

As Alphonse squirmed from the tickling, his wooden sword fell from his hand, and it was only then I stopped my antics. Picking up the fallen sword and dusting it off, I handed it back to Alphonse and asked, “Have you been well?”

“Y-yes…”

His voice came out quieter, perhaps still catching his breath from the tickling. I patted his head and checked for any injuries or broken limbs. To my relief, he didn’t seem to have done anything reckless while I was away.

Before long, everyone’s eyes were on us. Given the ruckus, it would indeed have been strange if we weren’t the center of attention. But something about their gazes felt off—while our usual playful antics weren’t surprising, there was a mix of unexplainable tension in their stares directed at us.

Before long, I could decipher the meaning behind their gazes.

Feeling their piercing looks, I turned my attention to where they were focused.

In the very center of the training ground, where sparring had just occurred, one person stood alone—obviously the one who had drawn everyone’s gaze.

As I lifted my head to see who was sending me such a glance, a brilliant golden light reflected from above, making it nearly blinding. It sparkled so brightly that it felt as if there was another sun hanging in the sky. Through that golden tide, I locked eyes with a pair of eyes reflecting the color of the clear blue sky.

“It is you!”

A bright and cheerful voice penetrated my ears.

A breeze blew as the clouds drifted away from the sun, finally allowing me to see the figure in front of me.

“Oh.”

Seeing the girl holding the sword right in front of me made me exhale a sound as though the air was escaping from a tire.

It was my first meeting with the girl, but I recognized her instantly. Her appearance matched perfectly with the description in the novel; my mind quickly dredged her name from the depths of my memory.

Noel Estellia.

The Princess of the Empire, and one of the characters who tore Damien away from Elena in the story. Therefore, there was no way I wouldn’t recognize her.

But why on earth are you here?

 

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