“Be honest with me.”

“About what?”

“How much do you usually practice? Swordsmanship.”

Bella didn’t take her suspicious gaze off me until we arrived at the office.

“I don’t practice or anything.”

“Liar.”

Just earlier, I barely managed to draw in a sparring match with her.

Bella’s attacks with her twin swords were like a downpour.

Her speed was so fast that even my ‘Jealousy’ couldn’t keep up, and she targeted my openings relentlessly.

It was a fight I couldn’t possibly win from the start.

I desperately blocked her attacks, determined not to lose.

There were many close calls, but I somehow managed to drag it out to a draw.

Bella, who must have been certain she’d win, couldn’t accept the result.

“You’ve been practicing every day until now, haven’t you?”

“No.”

“Let me see your hands. If you’ve trained that much in swordsmanship, it’ll show.”

Bella grabbed my hand and started examining it closely.

But I’m a complete novice.

As Bella looked at my hand, her expression gradually twisted.

“No calluses…? Are these really a man’s hands? And why are they smoother than mine? I’ve got calluses all over from years of….”

She trailed off and hid her own hands.

She’s been handling swords since she was young, so her palms were covered in calluses.

Seeing my hands must have made her feel embarrassed.

I found it cute and spoke to her.

“Bella.”

“Yes?”

“Show me your hand.”

“…What if I don’t want to?”

“Show it anyway.”

“…You’re really pushy. But I still don’t want to.”

“Hand.”

“I said no.”

“Hand.”

“Hey. Count. Do you think I’m your dog?”

“Hand.”

“……If you want to see it so badly, just grab it yourself.”

Bella, with a very displeased face, reluctantly moved her hand as if to say, “Do whatever.”

Maybe she’s more like a cat than a dog.

I slowly took her hand and gently stroked it. Sure enough, her otherwise smooth palms had patches of calluses.

Bella avoided my gaze and muttered.

“…Did you really want to touch my hand that badly? You pervert.”

“Even if my hands are smooth.”

“Huh?”

I looked at her hand and spoke.

“They can’t compare to yours. I doubt anyone would dare say this hand isn’t beautiful.”

“……Even if you say that out of nowhere, I’m not going to do anything for you.”

“I didn’t ask you to. I just wanted to tell you the truth.”

Bella still looked displeased, but she didn’t seem to be in a bad mood.

“Hmph… You’re probably lying to me again.”

“I’m not lying.”

“You lied about not practicing swordsmanship….”

“That’s-.”

“Don’t say no. I know. I can tell that the swordsmanship you showed earlier was mimicking mine. But mimicking someone else’s swordsmanship isn’t easy, is it? Out of all the people I’ve faced so far, there’s no one like you.”

Sharp observation.

She must have felt something while crossing swords with me.

It’s not just mimicry—my speed in learning swordsmanship was too fast.

“I understand you calling it mimicry, Count. It’s true that you only show openings at the very beginning. Your stance and form aren’t like a swordsman’s, but from the second exchange, the atmosphere changes. So the conclusion I can draw is this: you either have a natural talent to mimic swordsmanship just by watching, or you’ve trained specifically to mimic it.”

“…….”

“If it’s the former, you would’ve been known as a famous swordsman by now. You were the type to show off such talents when you were younger. So I think it’s the latter. You’ve been training to mimic, haven’t you? How about it? Am I right?”

Surprisingly, she was almost spot on.

I’ve been training not in swordsmanship, but in ‘Jealousy,’ which allows me to mimic anything.

I didn’t expect Bella to deduce this much…

In this situation, I decided to deflect.

“…I don’t know about talent or training, but in today’s spar, I tried to understand your movements.”

“My movements?”

“Yes. When I cross swords with you, I feel like I can understand. Why you take certain stances, why you swing your sword a certain way.”

I let go of her hand and spoke.

“The reason I could mimic you so easily is probably because the teacher I’m learning from is an exceptional swordsman.”

“……Hmm. Are you flattering me now?”

“Do I look like someone who flatters?”

“No. Hehe….”

Thankfully, after being praised like this, Bella gave up on pressing further.

But then she suddenly made an unexpected proposal.

“Count. If you’re interested in swordsmanship, why don’t you formally learn the Izakhel Style?”

“I thought that was something only members of the Izakhel Family could learn?”

The Izakhel Style is a noble swordsmanship passed down from Hero Alonso Izakhel, who defeated the 2nd Demon Lord.

As such, it has only been inherited within the Izakhel Family.

An outsider like me couldn’t just learn it.

“Ah, of course. But if you were to become Tristan Izakhel instead of Tristan Ruelberta, it’d be possible.”

“……What?”

Is she suggesting I marry into the Izakhel Family as a son-in-law?

I couldn’t read the expression on Bella’s face at all.

Bella, who seemed to find my reaction amusing, chuckled.

“Hehe… Just kidding. While it can’t be formally inherited, we do take disciples. How about it? Want to become my disciple?”

“No need.”

“I don’t take just anyone.”

“Then don’t take me.”

“Tch… Well, since you worked hard sparring with me today, I’ll specially accompany you to next week’s festival.”

“No. That’s not necessary-.”

“It is. With me by your side, you won’t have to deal with unwanted attention at the festival. Isn’t that convenient for you, Count?”

“That premise is wrong. I wasn’t even planning to go to the festival-.”

“No. Since you’ve been helping me since morning, I should repay you. Consider it accepted.”

Bella had a look on her face as if my refusal was just a formality.

At this point, I had no choice but to accept her persistence.

“……Fine.”

“Good job. Hehe….”

Bella nodded, seemingly satisfied. In contrast, I felt drained.

The intense exercise since morning had left me exhausted.

“So, what do you want to do at the festival? Is there anything you’d like to do? Well, if you ask, I might not refuse… Wait, what are you doing?!”

“I’m changing clothes.”

I took off my shirt.

The workout clothes I wore during the spar were soaked with sweat and felt uncomfortable.

“If you’re changing, say so first!”

“I just did.”

“Who takes off their clothes before saying so? Really!”

Bella, seemingly embarrassed, rushed out.

Apparently, she’s not used to this kind of thing.

“Phew….”

Finally, I was alone.

I wiped my sweat-drenched body with a towel.

Since Helga was busy with work at the mansion today, I had to do it myself.

It wasn’t uncomfortable.

Just a little lonely.

‘Have I gotten used to this kind of life…?’

Perhaps it’s because I’ve become a noble and time has passed.

I realized anew how many people around me support me.

Wiping sweat, putting on clothes, and tying a tie—all these things were done by someone else’s hands.

This is the life of a noble.

In the quiet office, I opened the wardrobe to find a shirt.

There, I met a pair of large eyes.

“……Wendy?”

“Eek…?!”

For some reason, Wendy was inside my wardrobe.

Seeing my bare upper body, she covered her eyes in shock.

“I-I didn’t see anything! I didn’t see anything! I can’t see anything!”

“…If you’re covering your eyes, of course you can’t see.”

Wendy, trembling inside the wardrobe.

Why was she here?

I couldn’t figure it out no matter how much I thought about it.

“I-I’m sorry…! I didn’t know you had an appointment with the Princess…!”

“…Appointment?”

The more I listened, the more confused I became.

I calmly asked her.

“What were you doing here?”

“T-the door….”

“…What about it?”

“Y-yes…?”

Then, I noticed the white cloth Wendy was clutching tightly.

It was the shirt I had taken off.

Seeing my gaze, Wendy desperately shook her head.

“N-no! It’s not what you think…!”

“Calm down.”

“Ugh… I-I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

“First, get out of there-.”

“I-I’m a bad girl!”

With that, Wendy dashed past me in an instant.

She was so fast I couldn’t even grab her.

Like a shoujo manga protagonist, she ran out of the office, tears streaming down her face.

I could only mutter helplessly as I watched her go.

“You should’ve at least given me back my clothes….”