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120 Chapter

Swish!

“Again.”

Clang!

“Again!”

With my sharp yell, Serenon clenched his teeth and brandished the sword once more.

Correct posture, moving the sword fluidly. To the eyes of an ordinary person, his swordsmanship might seem perfect, but to me, it was full of flaws.

“Bend your waist a little more and lay the sword down flatter. Cut deeper!”

As I shouted again, Serenon shook his head and wiped the sweat off haphazardly before moving his body once more. He showed signs of fatigue, but he definitely seemed improved compared to before.

‘He understands right away when I speak.’

I smirked in satisfaction, concealing it from Serenon.

Serenon wasn’t a genius who knew things without being taught. He certainly had talent, but without guidance and effort, he couldn’t grow into a prodigy.

‘But… teaching a diligent student is more rewarding than a genius.’

Since he didn’t know, he focused intently on every word I said. He didn’t perform the movements perfectly right away, but after several attempts, he executed them smoothly.

Serenon wasn’t a genius, so he was frustrated and he tried hard. In that regard, I felt a sense of fulfillment in teaching him.

‘It has been a bit of a headache that Serenon learns so quickly… but for this satisfaction, a bit of hardship is worth it.’

I wasn’t a well-trained swordsman myself. I was ignorant of formal swordsmanship, and I didn’t know how to teach people either.

Therefore, I had to study as well to teach Serenon.

‘I asked Reiner to skim through the Royal Knights Order’s training methods, searched through various books to learn formal swordsmanship… and I had to learn the virtues of a master along with teaching methods to draft a training plan… it was tough.’

Becoming a master to the prince wasn’t an easy task.

I thought they would overlook my informal methods to some extent, but in the palace’s personnel department, they asked me about everything from educational philosophy to schedules and achievement levels over time.

Fortunately, I was a prodigy in all things physical, allowing me to quickly learn formal swordsmanship and present a corresponding training plan.

‘Still, thanks to Serenon, I studied as well. Originally, I was focused solely on raising my own level, but thanks to Serenon, I also became familiar with the knights’ formal swordsmanship.’

It was challenging to learn the rigid formal swordsmanship while using the mercenary’s free-spirited style, but it was certainly not a meaningless endeavor.

The swords of knights definitely had advantages that the swords of mercenaries lacked.

‘I’m glad to have become Serenon’s master.’

Serenon’s swordsmanship, which had grown rapidly since our first meeting, filled me with pride.

There had been many external factors when I first decided to become his master, but before I knew it, I was enjoying the very role of being a master.

Teaching a devoted student who followed my lead well proved to be more enjoyable than I had anticipated. Serenon and I, beyond being a prince and a princess, were connecting as master and student.

“That’s enough. I don’t think there will be any more achievements today. Let’s call it a day.”

I declared the end of class as I gazed intently at a sweaty Serenon. He had already pushed himself to his limits, and continuing would undoubtedly lead to trouble.

Immediately halting my command, Serenon dropped his sword as if all strength had left his hands, gasping for air and collapsing onto the dirt.

‘It must have been tough for him.’

The fact that Serenon, who usually never shows a disheveled appearance to me, looked like this signified that he was completely exhausted.

‘I’ve been putting him through the wringer lately, thinking he’d soon release his aura…’

Serenon was very close to becoming a Sword Expert. My desire for that outcome had led me to significantly raise the training intensity, which he struggled to bear.

Deciding to lower the training intensity next time, I handed a towel to Serenon.

“As I always say, your swordsmanship lacks elegance. Don’t put too much force into each strike. You have yet to reach the level where you can maintain both weight and sharpness. You’ve sufficiently trained the weight aspect, so you need to focus more on sharpness.”

“Ha… yes.”

“The habit of bending your waist when swinging the sword from below hasn’t changed yet. Be more mindful.”

As I handed cold water to the panting Serenon sprawled on the ground, I incessantly continued my teachings.

Serenon drank the water desperately like a wilted plant soaking up rain, and once he calmed his breath, he smiled weakly and sat up.

Sweat trickled down his light purple hair, sparkling in the sunlight. Despite his eyes being half-closed with fatigue, Serenon’s sky-blue eyes were still full of life.

A genuine smile lingered on his lips.

As I gazed at the new look of Serenon, I relaxed my stern expression.

In official settings, he always bore a soulless smile, with a mask of courtesy plastered over his eyes, but when learning swordsmanship from me, he took on that expression.

It was always a joy to make Serenon, who resembled a beautifully crafted marionette more than a person, smile sincerely.

“Honestly… Master, you can be quite heartless. Don’t you give a single word of praise to your student? My former master would shower me with compliments just for holding a sword. If I swung a broom instead, he would have been composing hymns for me… I swear you would likely chastise me even if I brought back a Dragon.”

He pouted with a disappointed expression.

Seeing his expression and tone, I confirmed a glint of mischief in his eyes and smiled lightly. Serenon had become comfortable enough to tease me.

“The most worthless and irresponsible words are ‘You did well enough.’ A solid teaching point and an honest evaluation of performance are far better than a thousand meaningless praises.”

This was a mantra I had ingrained in me when I dreamed of becoming a professor in my previous life.

Most of my memories from that life were faded and unclear, but perhaps because this mindset was something I had valued deeply, it was clearly etched in my mind.

“The vague handling of your left hand, which I mentioned last time, has definitely improved from before. You must have practiced a lot during the week. Good job.”

A “well done” praise was meaningless.

I spoke clearly about what he had accomplished through effort, encouraging Serenon, and I stifled a smile seeing the corners of his mouth twitch in delight at my words.

“Ahem. You know I do well with reviewing and preparing.”

“Of course, you do.”

In response to my playful remark, I answered in a likewise playful tone as we sat on a large rock, watching the sun slowly begin to set.

This behavior naturally continued without anyone saying a word; it had become a habit between us before concluding our lesson.

“Master.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

After a moment of silently gazing at the beautifully reddening sky, Serenon called out to me in a low, serious voice.

In my peaceful reply, he seemed to ponder for a moment and opened his mouth cautiously.

“At the start of today’s lesson… it seemed like you weren’t able to concentrate.”

Startled by Serenon’s sharp observation, I paused.

‘… I must have been quite lost in thought for Serenon to notice.’

I sighed inwardly, scolding myself.

In fact, I had been so distracted during the lesson that even when Serenon spoke to me multiple times, I hadn’t been able to respond. It was no surprise he sensed something was off.

“I heard that you met your brother and His Majesty the Emperor before class today. Was there something on your mind?”

Serenon asked cautiously. I rubbed my temples with a troubled expression.

‘What was there to discuss? I nearly had a gigantic fight with Diego.’

Diego and I were fundamentally different, and I had anticipated that we would clash over this eventually, but anticipating it didn’t make the collision any easier. This was the first major confrontation between Diego and me.

“If it’s uncomfortable to discuss, you don’t have to answer.”

With a glance at my troubled face, Serenon added.

I slowly blinked my eyes, fiddled with my hands, and finally spoke.

“His Majesty presented a difficult problem today. And our responses, Diego’s and mine, were…”

“It seems they were completely opposite. So, you two had a fight?”

At Serenon’s sharp deduction, I silently nodded.

To be precise, it was more of a heated exchange rather than a fight, but it was quite close to it. Serenon had a good grasp of both me and Diego.

“I had thought there would be some issue when His Majesty summoned both you and your brother to one place… but I never imagined you two would actually argue. You seemed to be quite close.”

I nodded my head in bleak understanding at Serenon’s surprised tone.

Diego and I were so close that rumors circulated about us being in a romantic relationship, so I understood why Serenon would be taken aback.

“Ah, but I’m sure he will apologize soon. He really likes you, Master.”

Seeing me dejected, Serenon added as an excuse. I nodded while biting my lip.

I didn’t think Diego would harbor a long-lasting cold war over this. He was a kind person, so he would surely come to apologize, and even if he didn’t, I intended to.

What troubled me, however, was the thought that the world Diego pursued might be different from the one I sought.

Our ultimate goals were the same. The safety and peace of the Empire and the well-being of its people. I wanted this Sol Latine Empire, where my people live, to be safe and prosperous.

‘But I don’t want to achieve that by eradicating surrounding nations.’

Peace achieved through the unilateral sacrifice of weaker nations was unacceptable. Currently, the boundary between my people’s safety and beliefs was quite ambiguous, but at least it wasn’t just that.

‘What stance would Diego take in the upcoming war?’

I was genuinely curious about that.

Even though Diego and I had talked a lot, I still felt like there was much I didn’t know about him.

“Your Highness.”

“Yes?”

As if to not interrupt my thoughts, Serenon quietly looked only at the sky until I called him.

His azure hue resembled Diego’s, but it was much cloudier and dreamier in its depth, holding my fading reflection.

‘Serenon feels like he’s somewhere in between me and Diego.’

He was not excessively cold like Diego, nor excessively hot like me, but a person who felt neither warm nor cold.

Serenon was a strangely ambiguous person. Usually, he displayed a fluid demeanor, but in important moments, he was sharp and seemed to possess warmth towards humans, yet at times, he could be entirely cold.

Some might call that lukewarmness, but I wanted to express it as ‘he knows how to be appropriate.’

That might have kept him from completely becoming a ruler, but it definitely made him a good person.

‘What could his ideal be?’

“Your Highness, what kind of world do you pursue?”

 

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