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“My name is Edel! The next heir to the Summer Spear. Gilbert, the next heir to the Winter Sword, let’s settle this!”

Gilbert sighed as he looked at the little brat pointing a finger at him.

Although it was their first meeting in this world, Gilbert knew the brat who confidently stuck out her finger all too well.

She was the next heir who adored the master who saved her and learned one of the Four Seasons’ weapon techniques, the Summer Spear.

Edel Leviath.

She was a named character who would naturally become a rival if Gilbert became Briana’s direct disciple and learned the Winter Sword.

Despite her appearance, she was a true prodigy when it came to the spear. Even Gilbert had a hard time facing her when he first played Tactical Combat.

Her solid fundamentals and excellent ability to handle variables made it impossible to beat her with mere tricks.

Only by building genuine skill could one defeat her, and whether or not one could truly defeat her was a measure of one’s skill in Tactical Combat.

However, opinions about her were divided among users, and the reason could be seen just by looking at her.

With her red short hair, large eyes, slender jawline, and hot-blooded personality, she seemed quite popular, but one flaw overshadowed it all.

Her short stature, not even reaching Gilbert’s chest, and her youthful appearance turned Edel into a hot-blooded brat, only appealing to users with specific tastes.

Compared to the charismatic Seraphina, the cold yet warm-hearted Briana, and Lily, whose mere presence made one’s heart swell, Edel’s character design inevitably fell short in popularity.

From Gilbert’s perspective, however, he leaned more toward liking her. Her hot-blooded brat persona was quite entertaining, and as a companion, she performed beyond expectations, making her a character he couldn’t dislike.

But there was one thing that bothered him: Edel also had a Romance Route.

In Tactical Combat, having a Romance Route meant that clearing all related routes would grant an achievement.

At the time, Gilbert was obsessed with clearing achievements and, without a second thought about Edel’s appearance, went all out to complete her Romance Route.

And that’s where the problem lay. Tactical Combat was an adult-rated game, so the Romance Routes were quite explicit.

Whether it was the developers’ intention or not, Edel’s Romance Route stood out for its explicitness, but Gilbert, blinded by his goal, didn’t care.

After finally completing Edel’s Romance Route and achieving the milestone, Gilbert came to his senses and was filled with self-loathing every time he saw Edel clinging to him.

Especially when she looked at him with those sticky eyes, his self-loathing deepened.

However, Gilbert didn’t stop playing the game. He somehow finished that playthrough and deliberately avoided scenarios involving Edel in subsequent playthroughs.

No matter how much it was just a game and she was a fictional adult, completing Edel’s Romance Route felt like admitting he was a lolicon.

Since Tactical Combat was a packaged game, there was no chance of anyone finding out, but the problem was that Gilbert couldn’t stop thinking about it.

As time passed and he focused on clearing other achievements, he eventually forgot about it…

Gilbert snapped out of his thoughts and quietly watched Edel, who was still rambling on.

Although it would never happen in this world, just looking at her reminded him of her Romance Route.

Gilbert watched Edel, who was talking nonstop without even catching her breath, and rummaged through his pocket. He pulled out a few honey jelly candies he carried to replenish his energy after intense physical training.

He carefully placed the honey jelly on Edel’s outstretched hand.

“It’s honey jelly. Eat it.”

“Huh? Oh… thank you…?”

Edel, who had been explaining why this duel was necessary, forgot what she was saying and thanked him for the sudden gift from her opponent.

Though they weren’t mortal enemies, she had a negative view of Gilbert as the next heir to the Winter Sword, which had defeated her master’s Summer Spear. But seeing him offer such a delicious treat, he didn’t seem like a bad person.

Gilbert smiled wryly as Edel immediately quieted down after receiving the food.

This aspect was no different from Tactical Combat’s setting.

As an orphan, Edel had roamed the streets and lived a life of hunger before meeting her master, Diara. Thus, she had a strong attachment to food. The best way to increase her affection was to gift her delicious food, especially sweets.

Remembering this, Gilbert had given her the honey jelly, and seeing her devour it immediately, it seemed no different in reality.

Gilbert gently patted Edel’s head as she chewed the jelly.

“Huh?”

At Edel’s puzzled voice, Gilbert snapped back to reality.

He quickly removed his hand from her head, ignoring her wide-eyed gaze, and hurriedly left.

He was flustered, realizing that the skin-ship he often used during her Romance Route had come out unconsciously.

Edel, who had suddenly been gifted a bunch of honey jelly and had her head patted, stared blankly at Gilbert’s retreating figure before her face turned red, and she shouted.

“How dare you treat me like a child!”

Anger erupted toward Gilbert, who had dared to touch the head of a mature lady (in Edel’s personal opinion) without permission.

Though she was grateful for the delicious snack, giving food and patting heads were actions meant for children, not a grown woman like herself (again, purely Edel’s personal opinion).

So why did he do it?

After a moment of thought, Edel’s expression twisted.

He probably didn’t think of her as a child based on her appearance, so it must have been a metaphorical expression. And considering her recent actions, it wasn’t hard to figure out the underlying meaning.

“Is he mocking my skills as childish?!”

That was the only explanation for Gilbert’s sudden actions. There was no other reason for someone he barely knew to give her delicious honey jelly and pat her head.

Edel trembled with indignation and anger, unable to express the humiliation she felt. Since becoming Diara’s disciple, she had never been so disrespected.

She looked at the honey jelly in her hand, shuddered at the thought of Gilbert, and raised her hand as if to throw it to the ground. She had challenged her destined rival to a duel, only to be met with disdain and disregard.

How could she have eaten something given by such a rude and uncultured man?

Edel clenched her teeth and lowered her hand.

“….”

But the honey jelly in her hand didn’t hit the ground. No matter how angry she was, the food itself wasn’t at fault.

Having once roamed the streets, Edel could never bring herself to waste good food. She thought of the winter days when she nearly starved to death for lack of even a single piece of jelly.

Instead of throwing it away, she stuffed the jelly into her pocket and glared down the path where Gilbert had disappeared.

The food was innocent, but she vowed to crush Gilbert at the exchange meeting to vent her humiliation.

“I will.”

Edel’s eyes burned like the summer sun.

***

Diara was slightly nervous facing Briana, whom she hadn’t seen in a long time.

Before meeting her, Diara had been reminiscing about their old duel with a relaxed smile, but upon reuniting with Briana after over a decade, her body stiffened.

She had thought of their reunion lightly, but her true feelings were different.

Two hours ago, Diara had entered the Demia Empire Academy and immediately sought out Briana.

It was rude to visit Briana, a professor and renowned Swordmaster at the academy, without an appointment, but Diara was the current heir to the Summer Spear.

Although Diara had lost to Briana in their duel over a decade ago, the title of heir to one of the Four Seasons’ weapon techniques was no small matter.

Especially since she had been specially invited to this exchange meeting, she was quickly guided to Briana’s location upon mentioning her name.

However, the timing was off, and Briana was away from her office. The servant who had guided Diara hurriedly left to inform Briana.

Left alone in Briana’s office, Diara couldn’t help but laugh at the stark, unadorned room.

After over a decade, Briana was still the same.

Though they hadn’t interacted deeply, Diara prided herself on knowing Briana better than anyone.

Wasn’t the interaction between warriors always through duels?

The all-or-nothing duel that day had taught her much about Briana and made them close friends.

They had even promised to duel again before parting, so it wasn’t just Diara who felt this way.

Come to think of it, does she still remember?

Diara suddenly wondered if Briana remembered their promise.

The reunion, which she thought would happen sooner, had been delayed as Diara took in Edel, so it was possible Briana had forgotten.

But if Briana’s personality was still the same, that was unlikely.

The Briana Diara knew was born a swordsman, a warrior who pursued strength. She wouldn’t have forgotten a promise to rematch a satisfying opponent.

Having settled her thoughts, Diara began meditating to clear her mind.

How long had it been?

A familiar presence, sharp to Diara’s senses, was detected.

She slowly roused her consciousness and half-opened her eyes to look at the office door.

-Creak

The office door opened, and Briana, unchanged since their parting, appeared.

Seeing her, Diara smiled brightly, her teeth showing, as if she had returned to the day they parted.

“I’ve come to settle the score with the heir to the Winter Sword.”

She spoke the same words she had uttered when they first met over a decade ago.

 

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