Maible is a character with a free-spirited personality.

From an early age, she disliked being bound by the system, and following in the footsteps of her bold and adventurous mother, she chose the path of a pirate, freely roaming the seas.

In fact, to talk about Maible, one cannot omit mentioning her mother, ‘Arin’. Because the person who had the greatest influence on her life was undoubtedly Arin.

In the original story, there is a rather surprising fact about Maible’s past, which she only revealed to the protagonist.

It turns out that Maible’s mother, known as a legendary pirate, was actually a female knight of the Emperor’s personal guard.

Arin was a knight of exceptional skill.

She was such a talent that she was scouted into the Imperial Guard immediately after becoming a knight.

She was a person overflowing with pride.

She never showed a disheveled appearance to anyone, was infinitely kind to children, and treated her superiors with utmost respect—her demeanor was truly exemplary of a knight.

Even the then-Emperor, Maxime Meikhael, kept Arin by his side and favored her greatly.

However, dark clouds began to gather over her life when rumors spread that she was carrying the Emperor’s child.

The absurd rumor spread like wildfire through the imperial family. No matter how much Arin tried to explain, it was useless, and the way people looked at her grew colder by the day.

Yet, Arin did not give up.

She always took pride in her work. As she had always done, she silently conveyed her sincerity as a knight of the Imperial Guard. She believed that someday, everyone would recognize her innocence.

But… Arin’s hopes were soon shattered.

One day, she was forcibly brought to trial by her fellow Imperial Guard knights.

The charges were failing to maintain the dignity of an Imperial Guard knight and seducing the Emperor as a knight.

Arin was utterly shocked.

The Imperial Guard knights cast looks of contempt rather than help, and even the Emperor, who had favored her, did not defend her innocence.

What hurt the most was that the Imperial Guard Captain, who had even promised to marry her, turned his back on her.

Later, Arin learned that it was Queen Melia Meikhael, blinded by jealousy, who had framed her. Until then, Arin resented the Imperial Guard Captain over and over.

Arin narrowly escaped execution due to her service to the imperial family. However, she was stripped of her knightly status and reduced to a slave overnight.

Even as she was taken aboard a slave ship to be sold abroad, she did not lose her pride.

Though it was no longer the pride of a knight, she still held onto her human dignity. Moreover, she carried a precious life within her—a child she had conceived with the Imperial Guard Captain.

But perhaps the goddess of fate looked kindly upon her.

The slave ship, caught in a sudden storm, sank in the middle of the ocean before reaching its destination. Arin and a few slaves were lucky enough to drift to a nearby deserted island, narrowly surviving.

And thus, Arin, who still retained the charisma of a knight, began to lead the surviving slaves, marking the beginning of a pirate crew.

Her daughter, Maible, influenced by Arin, also became a proud pirate.

I looked down at Maible, who stood boldly before me.

Her short hair, likely due to years of slavery, looked dry and her body was thin, indicating poor nutrition.

But the sharpness in her eyes was unmistakable.

Her gaze was strikingly similar to Helga’s.

The aura around her was distinctly different from the other prisoners—perhaps it could be called the aura of a named character.

“You insolent wretch!”

“How dare you speak in front of whom!”

The guards, holding batons, angrily approached Maible. Their overreaction was likely due to my position.

Even with the guards ready to strike her, Maible looked up at me unfazed.

Her expression seemed to tell me that every human has pride.

“If you, Count, are a noble with pride, why don’t you step forward and fight yourself?”

Maible daringly provoked me.

It was truly her style, but since she said it in front of me, it became a big problem.

“What are you doing now! Shut that crazy woman’s mouth!”

Brock, the warden beside me, shouted with foam at his mouth.

The guards surrounded Maible, but she didn’t care.

“I challenge you, Count, to a duel of pride as a human! Do not avoid it!”

I’m sorry. I wish I could, but if a mere slave were to duel a Count, it would be a great blow to the Count’s dignity.

“This is interesting.”

A ‘proud’ smile naturally formed on my lips. Unlike the other slaves, ‘Pride’ acknowledged Maible as an ‘opponent’.

Of course… only as an opponent, not as a rival.

“First, kneel.”

“-?!”

As soon as I finished speaking, Maible’s knees buckled.

The sudden turn of events.

Her face clearly showed confusion.

Unlike the ‘Wrath’ I had unleashed on the many slaves earlier, the ‘Wrath’ focused on a single person was enough to make even the proud pirate kneel in an instant.

“Big… big sister?!”

A man who seemed to be her subordinate tried to help her but also ended up kneeling.

Not only that, but the guards surrounding Maible were also kneeling under the pressure of ‘Wrath’.

‘Ah.’

Only then did I realize that ‘Wrath’ had leaked out.

Today, I had overused ‘Wrath’ and ‘Pride’, exceeding the limit that ‘Patience’ could handle.

If I continued to overuse my traits, there was a high risk of them escaping my control again.

‘There’s not much time…’

I decided to first deal with this precarious situation where she had dared to defy me.

“If you want to speak to me, kneel first. Know your place.”

“Ugh…!”

Maible seemed to be trying to resist ‘Wrath’, but I did not allow it.

Rather, her trembling form, kneeling, would appear to the guards and Warden Brock as her being overwhelmed and trembling in fear.

“Ha! The Head of the House is right!”

Brock looked down on Maible and spoke.

“Pride? You trash! Pride is something only humans like us can have. What pride do slaves like you have-!”

“Warden Brock.”

“Ah, yes? Head of the House.”

“Know when to shut up.”

Facing my cold gaze, Warden Brock.

“Sorry…!”

He turned pale and quickly stepped back.

In this atmosphere, neither the prisoners nor the guards dared to make a sound.

“You said something earlier.”

I asked Maible, still not retracting ‘Wrath’.

“That every human has pride. And that even trash like you have pride, which means…”

I stepped down from the platform and stopped in front of the kneeling Maible.

“You’re saying you’re human too.”

“…Of course.”

“Understood.”

I retracted ‘Wrath’ and pointed to the center of the duel arena.

“Then prove it now.”

At the same time, I pointed to a woman standing there, staring at Maible.

“Prove that you are a proud human.”

The gazes of the two mother and daughter crossed.

*

Maible stepped into the duel arena.

She had promised Marco to live quietly for just one more year in Gehenna, but she had no choice.

Maible glanced up at the platform.

Looking down at her from above was a handsome man with a sneering face.

‘Count Ruelberta…’

She felt like she was being dragged into something.

She had endured the contempt and insults from the warden and guards until now.

But strangely, every time she heard this man’s words, it felt like her stomach was turning. No, she knew the reason. His every word was touching her ‘pride’.

As if he wanted her to end up like this.

“Nice to meet you.”

When she heard the voice and looked up, a woman in a black uniform stood there.

She was the Count’s bodyguard knight, who had subdued countless prisoners with just her fingers earlier.

A formidable opponent at first glance.

Maible instinctively went on guard.

But…

“First time…”

“?”

“Meeting, I suppose?”

The woman said something strange.

Maible stared at her silently.

She was quite a beauty for a bodyguard knight. A slender figure and a fox-like face. Strangely, she had heterochromatic eyes.

No, there was something even stranger.

“You… why are you making that face?”

The woman in front of her was staring at Maible with a very wistful expression. Her face even showed a strange longing.

It was completely different from when she had dealt with the prisoners earlier.

“If it’s because I’m a woman, you’re making a big mistake. I hate people who treat me differently because I’m a woman.”

“…Coincidentally, I feel the same. I also really dislike people who look down on me because I’m a woman.”

“Really? That’s unexpected. I thought you’d be used to that kind of treatment, being so pretty.”

“Not at all. That kind of treatment is enough from the man I love.”

“Hahaha. I can’t help but agree.”

She’s totally likable.

Someone I can really connect with.

Enough to momentarily forget that she’s the opponent I need to defeat.

“Have we met before? Do you know me?”

“Yes. But I’m not sure if I know you well or not.”

“What…?”

“But one thing I can say for sure. I’ve been thinking about you for a long time.”

The Count’s bodyguard knight took a deep breath and looked straight at Maible.

Then, in a voice only Maible could hear, she said.

“Great Pirate Maible.”

“?!”

What?! How?!

Her heart sank.

To think her identity would be exposed!

The name she had hidden so carefully was suddenly revealed by this woman who appeared out of nowhere.

‘No… no.’

Maible barely maintained her composure and thought.

This woman already knew her identity. She had come here knowing who she was.

A chill ran down her spine.

“…Who are you?”

“There’s a saying in our family.”

“What?”

“If you want something, seize it by force.”

The bodyguard knight waved her hand at Maible, provoking her.

As if inviting her to come at her.

“Try to seize it from me.”