Over the past three years, the young lady’s strength has undoubtedly grown. It’s not just a slight improvement but far beyond the ordinary level. With the growth of her body, she gained more speed and power with her sword, and through numerous training sessions, even her senses became sharper than before. Perhaps now, the young lady could easily defeat five knights at once. It’s something you wouldn’t expect from a mere 12-year-old child.
Yes, the young lady undoubtedly possesses exceptional talent and abilities beyond her age. However, despite that, I couldn’t shake off the uneasy feeling within me. Especially since directly engaging in sparring with her, my unease has only grown.
“You’re slow, Miss.”
“Ugh.”
I dodged the young lady’s bold charge. As she stumbled, I tripped her leg and lightly pushed her back with my foot. Though the young lady tried to regain her stance by placing a hand on the ground, I didn’t give her the chance and immediately rushed towards her.
After knocking the young lady down, I climbed on top of her and pointed the wooden sword at her pale neck.
“…I’ve won again, Miss.”
“….Indeed, Alice is strong.”
Even though it was an obvious victory for me, my mood remained uneasy.
It’s clear that the young lady has grown remarkably over the past three years. If I hadn’t been particularly observant of her, I would have simply admired her progress. But now, as I scrutinize her closely, my heart is filled with unease.
“…You haven’t grown at all since last year.”
More precisely, since we started sparring, the young lady’s explosive growth came to a halt. I was confident that with her talent, she could surpass me within a few years, but a year later, there was still no significant change in her.
What could have gone wrong? Though I may not possess the strength of a chicken, I believed I had enough ability to further her growth. But instead of progressing through our sparring sessions, I seemed to have halted her development.
Is there something I’m missing?
“…This won’t do.”
Unknowingly, I chewed on my lip. Anxious thoughts gradually consumed me. The end of the three-year period I had promised was slowly approaching.
Defeating the captain of the knights. That’s the promise I must keep.
I am stronger than the captain. Though we’ve only fought once, I believe so. If the young lady can surpass me, then she can surely defeat the captain as well.
“To send the young lady to the academy… I must defeat the captain…”
The academy, where vibrant and beautiful youth gather. My current goal is to see the young lady making connections and memories there. I must capture her figure in a school uniform, walking through the academy gardens hand in hand with Lucy. But with her current state, it seems impossible. She’s still not sufficient to defeat the captain.
Looking down at the young lady beneath me, whether due to my weight or feeling defeated, her face flushed red.
“…Get up, Miss.”
I reached out my hand as she grabbed it with a disappointed expression and stood up. Outside the training grounds, the sun had already set. For now, I should set aside ways to challenge the young lady and focus on feeding her first.
As I said, tonight’s dinner is salad. It’s a bit suffocating, though. The way the fussy lady behaves is still cute. ‘I hate vegetables.’ I looked at the lady, frowning as she ate the salad. Despite my efforts to prepare various sauces and fruits to make it tasty for her, she still said that. Well, I should be grateful that she’s at least eating. Vegetables aside, the more pressing issue is the lady’s personal growth problem.
I took a short breath and crossed my arms, examining the lady’s shortcomings. The biggest problem is that she lacks ambition. She’s dedicated to training but shows no desire to strive for higher goals. It’s most likely because she lacks a sense of purpose. So, what I need to do is instill a sense of ambition in her.
The problem is I’ve already tried several times in various ways to motivate her. I even tried provoking her by saying that weaklings are disliked or threatening her with the possibility of being taken down by ruthless enemies. But none of my words seemed to stimulate her. I even brought up the academy, but she didn’t seem particularly interested. I’ve exhausted all possible options, and no suitable method comes to mind.
‘…Should I tell her that I’ll be cut if she doesn’t surpass the rank of knight commander?’
She does seem to like me to some extent. I thought maybe if I tell her I’ll be cut, she’ll develop a sense of urgency and train harder. But I didn’t want to test her like that. And if I did and she still didn’t respond, it would be quite hurtful.
“…Lady, I’m worried about you.”
I sighed briefly and patted her head. In the end, I decided to urge her with love and concern.
“The Duke mentioned that you’ll be joining the monster hunt this year… What if something happens to you?”
“Alice, knights are fine. Why would I get hurt?”
She replied with indifferent eyes. Actually, she had a point. She wouldn’t be going out alone to hunt demons, just dealing with regular monsters, so she probably wouldn’t get seriously injured.
“But still, you never know what might happen.”
“It’s okay. Alice worries too much.”
A vein popped on my forehead. How can she be so oblivious to the worries of others?! Her overly nonchalant tone annoyed me. Despite my rising irritation, I couldn’t help but speak sharply.
“…But what if the person leading Valaxar is weaker than a maid like me?”
“Alice is special and strong… It’s fine.”
Despite my sensitive tone, she just looked at me with a bright smile. Normally, I would’ve found it cute and gone wild, but right now, I just felt frustrated.
“No, Lady. It’s not okay. There are so many people stronger than me out there. In this age where demons are rampant, thinking like that is naive.”
“Why are you like this, Alice? You seem a bit sensitive today.”
“I am sensitive. You’re going on a monster hunt this year, and I’m not supposed to worry?”
“Are you okay? If you wrap your body with mana, you won’t get hurt easily.”
“Still, I should be stronger at least! How can I relax when I keep losing like this without any spirit!”
“Why should I be stronger than Alice? Can’t we just continue like this together!”
Whether it was my sour mood that transferred to the lady, she yelled back at me with an irritated voice. Normally, I would have responded calmly, but in my excited state, I immediately shouted back at her.
“Hah! So even if I change my mind and run away later, you won’t be able to catch me! Will you be able to cook for yourself then?”
I yelled impulsively, but as soon as I raised my voice, I regretted it. At least I wanted to see her entering the academy, but I ended up saying something I didn’t mean in anger.
‘…I messed up.’
I tried to retract my statement immediately, but suddenly, a chill enveloped my entire body, freezing me in place.
“….Huh?”
I grabbed the arm with goosebumps. The chill emanated from the lady. I chewed on my trembling lips and looked at her.
Something was off about her eyes.
The vitality that was there when I first met her was gone, leaving empty pupils. Somehow, those eyes seemed familiar, like I had seen them somewhere before. They were definitely blue, but the surroundings were engulfed in a depthless abyss, sucking in the light.
Trying to recall where I had seen that gaze before, a scene from the past flashed in my mind. If my memory served me right… it was when I broke the body of the teacher who was teaching the lady three years ago… did she have those eyes then?
I swallowed dry saliva and addressed the lady.
“…Miss. I made a mistake…”
But whether my words reached her ears or not, the lady, with eyes losing focus, stared at me for a long time before parting her lips slightly.
And then, the lady.
For the first time, I heard a voice I had never heard from her.
She uttered with a chilling tone.
“What did you just say…?”
Over the past three years, the young lady’s strength has undoubtedly grown. It’s not just a slight improvement but far beyond the ordinary level. With the growth of her body, she gained more speed and power with her sword, and through numerous training sessions, even her senses became sharper than before. Perhaps now, the young lady could easily defeat five knights at once. It’s something you wouldn’t expect from a mere 12-year-old child.
Yes, the young lady undoubtedly possesses exceptional talent and abilities beyond her age. However, despite that, I couldn’t shake off the uneasy feeling within me. Especially since directly engaging in sparring with her, my unease has only grown.
“You’re slow, Miss.”
“Ugh.”
I dodged the young lady’s bold charge. As she stumbled, I tripped her leg and lightly pushed her back with my foot. Though the young lady tried to regain her stance by placing a hand on the ground, I didn’t give her the chance and immediately rushed towards her.
After knocking the young lady down, I climbed on top of her and pointed the wooden sword at her pale neck.
“…I’ve won again, Miss.”
“….Indeed, Alice is strong.”
Even though it was an obvious victory for me, my mood remained uneasy.
It’s clear that the young lady has grown remarkably over the past three years. If I hadn’t been particularly observant of her, I would have simply admired her progress. But now, as I scrutinize her closely, my heart is filled with unease.
“…You haven’t grown at all since last year.”
More precisely, since we started sparring, the young lady’s explosive growth came to a halt. I was confident that with her talent, she could surpass me within a few years, but a year later, there was still no significant change in her.
What could have gone wrong? Though I may not possess the strength of a chicken, I believed I had enough ability to further her growth. But instead of progressing through our sparring sessions, I seemed to have halted her development.
Is there something I’m missing?
“…This won’t do.”
Unknowingly, I chewed on my lip. Anxious thoughts gradually consumed me. The end of the three-year period I had promised was slowly approaching.
Defeating the captain of the knights. That’s the promise I must keep.
I am stronger than the captain. Though we’ve only fought once, I believe so. If the young lady can surpass me, then she can surely defeat the captain as well.
“To send the young lady to the academy… I must defeat the captain…”
The academy, where vibrant and beautiful youth gather. My current goal is to see the young lady making connections and memories there. I must capture her figure in a school uniform, walking through the academy gardens hand in hand with Lucy. But with her current state, it seems impossible. She’s still not sufficient to defeat the captain.
Looking down at the young lady beneath me, whether due to my weight or feeling defeated, her face flushed red.
“…Get up, Miss.”
I reached out my hand as she grabbed it with a disappointed expression and stood up. Outside the training grounds, the sun had already set. For now, I should set aside ways to challenge the young lady and focus on feeding her first.
As I said, tonight’s dinner is salad. It’s a bit suffocating, though. The way the fussy lady behaves is still cute. ‘I hate vegetables.’ I looked at the lady, frowning as she ate the salad. Despite my efforts to prepare various sauces and fruits to make it tasty for her, she still said that. Well, I should be grateful that she’s at least eating. Vegetables aside, the more pressing issue is the lady’s personal growth problem.
I took a short breath and crossed my arms, examining the lady’s shortcomings. The biggest problem is that she lacks ambition. She’s dedicated to training but shows no desire to strive for higher goals. It’s most likely because she lacks a sense of purpose. So, what I need to do is instill a sense of ambition in her.
The problem is I’ve already tried several times in various ways to motivate her. I even tried provoking her by saying that weaklings are disliked or threatening her with the possibility of being taken down by ruthless enemies. But none of my words seemed to stimulate her. I even brought up the academy, but she didn’t seem particularly interested. I’ve exhausted all possible options, and no suitable method comes to mind.
‘…Should I tell her that I’ll be cut if she doesn’t surpass the rank of knight commander?’
She does seem to like me to some extent. I thought maybe if I tell her I’ll be cut, she’ll develop a sense of urgency and train harder. But I didn’t want to test her like that. And if I did and she still didn’t respond, it would be quite hurtful.
“…Lady, I’m worried about you.”
I sighed briefly and patted her head. In the end, I decided to urge her with love and concern.
“The Duke mentioned that you’ll be joining the monster hunt this year… What if something happens to you?”
“Alice, knights are fine. Why would I get hurt?”
She replied with indifferent eyes. Actually, she had a point. She wouldn’t be going out alone to hunt demons, just dealing with regular monsters, so she probably wouldn’t get seriously injured.
“But still, you never know what might happen.”
“It’s okay. Alice worries too much.”
A vein popped on my forehead. How can she be so oblivious to the worries of others?! Her overly nonchalant tone annoyed me. Despite my rising irritation, I couldn’t help but speak sharply.
“…But what if the person leading Valaxar is weaker than a maid like me?”
“Alice is special and strong… It’s fine.”
Despite my sensitive tone, she just looked at me with a bright smile. Normally, I would’ve found it cute and gone wild, but right now, I just felt frustrated.
“No, Lady. It’s not okay. There are so many people stronger than me out there. In this age where demons are rampant, thinking like that is naive.”
“Why are you like this, Alice? You seem a bit sensitive today.”
“I am sensitive. You’re going on a monster hunt this year, and I’m not supposed to worry?”
“Are you okay? If you wrap your body with mana, you won’t get hurt easily.”
“Still, I should be stronger at least! How can I relax when I keep losing like this without any spirit!”
“Why should I be stronger than Alice? Can’t we just continue like this together!”
Whether it was my sour mood that transferred to the lady, she yelled back at me with an irritated voice. Normally, I would have responded calmly, but in my excited state, I immediately shouted back at her.
“Hah! So even if I change my mind and run away later, you won’t be able to catch me! Will you be able to cook for yourself then?”
I yelled impulsively, but as soon as I raised my voice, I regretted it. At least I wanted to see her entering the academy, but I ended up saying something I didn’t mean in anger.
‘…I messed up.’
I tried to retract my statement immediately, but suddenly, a chill enveloped my entire body, freezing me in place.
“….Huh?”
I grabbed the arm with goosebumps. The chill emanated from the lady. I chewed on my trembling lips and looked at her.
Something was off about her eyes.
The vitality that was there when I first met her was gone, leaving empty pupils. Somehow, those eyes seemed familiar, like I had seen them somewhere before. They were definitely blue, but the surroundings were engulfed in a depthless abyss, sucking in the light.
Trying to recall where I had seen that gaze before, a scene from the past flashed in my mind. If my memory served me right… it was when I broke the body of the teacher who was teaching the lady three years ago… did she have those eyes then?
I swallowed dry saliva and addressed the lady.
“…Miss. I made a mistake…”
But whether my words reached her ears or not, the lady, with eyes losing focus, stared at me for a long time before parting her lips slightly.
And then, the lady.
For the first time, I heard a voice I had never heard from her.
She uttered with a chilling tone.
“What did you just say…?”
