CPBF 46

Chapter: 46

In that moment, the displeasure I’d felt when handed that forget-me-not dissolved like foam upon the water.

He wasn’t treating me as that childish, sword-swinging brat Irilín anymore.

Sir Irilín.

He was acknowledging me as that.

My heart softened against my will.

“Put down what you just brought. The sword and armor you brought earlier are more than enough.”

I deliberately averted my gaze, turning my head sharply, and picked up the sword and armor Lord Hogaden had set down earlier.

After dawdling through putting them on, I turned back to see Bin, who had finished his own preparations. His pure white armor and silver hair complemented each other perfectly; it was a striking sight.

“Done?”

“…Yeah. Let’s go.”

Unable to meet his gaze as usual, I kept my eyes fixed on the ground, leading him to the training ground for our sparring match.

The voices of knights training nearby reached my ears.

“The young lady is sparring with the young Marchioness Ortega?”

“Can you even call that a spar? It’s obvious the young lady is just going to get pummeled.”

“Come on. The young Marchioness will probably go easy, right? She is his fiancée.”

“You haven’t heard? The young Marchioness absolutely despises our young lady.”

“Oh, right. Then maybe he’ll use this chance to get back at her?”

“Is that okay? The young lady will end up covered in bruises.”

“I can hear you, you idiots!”

Lord Hogaden’s bellow finally silenced the knights.

But perhaps he agreed with their sentiments, because he hesitated before speaking.

“M-My lady, are you certain about this?”

“Whether I’m certain or not, you’ll see with your own eyes.”

“Th-then, allow me to be the referee. If things look bad, I’ll stop it immediately.”

“Fine.”

Though I doubted it would come to that.

Neither Lord Hogaden nor the other knights had anything to worry about.

Unless, perhaps, Bin was the one being dominated.

“En garde.”

Once all preparations were complete, Lord Hogaden declared.

Bin and I simultaneously assumed our stances, facing each other directly.

Both our eyes held nothing but profound gravity.

“Allez!”

The spar began, yet neither of us moved forward.

This was a moment we had both anticipated for a full seven years. I wanted to fully savor the tension and expectation before our swords truly clashed.

I believed Bin felt the same.

I quietly took in the sight of his prominently bobbing Adam’s apple, his chest rising and falling rapidly.

And then.

A single step forward.

The blade, extended straight, surged toward where my gaze lingered.

“Didn’t you always aim for the shoulder first?”

Right before my sword would have touched his chest, Bin, having parried my thrust, exhaled heatedly.

It was meant to be a decisive strike. And he blocked it!

So throwing aside my vice-captain duties to train all this time hadn’t been in vain after all.

“Knowing how long you’ve waited for this moment, it would be rude of me to be so predictable.”

“If you knew that, why did you make me wait so long?”

“Sorry.”

I apologized briefly, then thrust my sword again, aiming for his shoulder. Once more, Bin managed to block by a hair’s breadth.

“I thought you weren’t going to be predictable.”

“You want me to be unpredictable?”

“Now that sounds good.”

I withdrew my sword again. Before Bin, who was waiting for my next attack, wondering what I’d do—I charged forward.

To just behind him.

Fencing matches are typically conducted face-to-face, and sparring in this world usually followed that rule.

But what I’d done in Serom for the past seven years was nothing so refined.

It was fierce combat where life and death hung in the balance.

Amidst the chaos of countless tricks and tactics, no one adhered to rules or conventions.

Unlike sparring, we moved side to side, aiming for the opponent’s back, sometimes using weapons other than swords.

But a spar is merely training for real combat. There’s no rule against using techniques employed in actual battle.

So my actions here were, strictly speaking, permissible.

“Tch.”

Realizing my intent a moment too late, Bin spun around swiftly. Thanks to his quick reaction, my attack aimed at his back was blocked.

But I wasn’t discouraged. I had anticipated this.

“You want to have me?”

I planted my foot on our locked swords.

The force with which he resisted, refusing to let go, was tenacious. In that case—

I’d have to make it impossible for him to resist.

“You—”

I withdrew my foot and closed the distance until our breaths mingled.

In that instant, as he stiffened, I wrapped my leg around his waist and used my leverage to force him to the ground.

“Cannot have me.”

I could feel a pulse pounding wildly, threatening to burst from somewhere in his waist.

The sword he’d gripped so tightly had slipped from his hand.

“You only defended against me; you couldn’t even attack. What now? I’m not someone who can be had with such paltry resolve.”

“…Does that mean you’re disappointed?”

“No. I knew this would happen all along.”

“Then why say I can’t have you?”

He could have punched my leg with all his might to escape. But such a thought didn’t seem to cross Bin’s mind.

He simply lay there, pinned beneath me, awaiting his defeat.

How foolish. To ask for a spar when he couldn’t even swing his sword at me once.

Slowly, I brought my sword to Bin’s shoulder.

Then, in a dry voice, I said,

“Because I don’t love you. That’s all there is to it.”

I’m not so foolish as to think, ‘Ah, freedom!’ just because my sister stepped back, and throw myself into a fire.

She trusted me to make my own judgments. How could I betray that trust with my death?

If I vanished from this world, Bin would still have many people, but my sister would have no one.

So I chose to abandon Bin.

Like giving a crying, tantrum-throwing child a piece of candy, I gave him the spar he’d wanted so badly and turned away coldly.

…But truly breaking free, as expected, was not easy.

The next day, the Marchioness, apologizing for having upset me, hosted a tea party.

For something hastily arranged, many guests attended.

Families with deep ties to the Heather March household, Kelly Hunt, and even the Ortega Ducal family.

What an unbreakable connection this was.

“Irilín. Isn’t this chocolate Bin’s favorite? I’m sure he’d be delighted if you took it to him.”

Perhaps due to my declaration of broken engagement last time, the Marchioness was desperately eager to reconnect Bin and me.

Oblivious to her hints, I shoveled all the chocolate she pointed at into my own mouth.

“Mmm, indeed. I can see why Bin would like this.”

“…My daughter likes this chocolate too, I see. Well, eat up. Since it’s something Bin likes, I’ve prepared a mountain of it anyway.”

As if to prove her words, a servant promptly dumped another whole box of the same chocolate onto my plate.

…Ah. I’m already sick of it, I can’t eat any more.

“Oh my, look, Bin has some wine. It would pair perfectly if you two shared it.”

“Mother. Didn’t I tell you last time? I’ll handle things myself.”

“Of course. Do as you see fit. I’m merely offering advice.”

“Then I won’t listen.”

I replied coldly and moved away from the Marchioness.

Simply intending to distance myself from her, I walked and found my feet halting in an unexpected place.

In front of Kelly.

“Lady Heather. It’s been a while. Or should I call you Sir Heather now?”

Kelly sneered, her eyes raking over me from head to toe.

The young ladies around her giggled, chiming in.

“Indeed, Lady Hunt. It seems the title ‘Lady’ is too noble for a body so sturdy, hidden beneath that dress.”

“I heard she even danced in uniform at the Foundation Day party last time?”

“Oh my, I guess she didn’t have a dress that could hide those muscles.”

So this was why she’d readily attended the party, despite openly antagonizing me.

Just to pick such childish fights?

“In contrast, my Lady here is so delicate.”

A man pushed through the surrounding ladies and placed his hand on Kelly’s shoulder.

His face was disgustingly familiar.

“Nix Heyman? I didn’t invite you.”

“I accompanied my fiancée, Lady Hunt. Must I have a personal invitation?”

Fiancée?

Was Nix Heyman’s family prominent enough to form a marriage alliance with a powerful house like the Hunts?

I hadn’t paid attention, so I didn’t know, but apparently so.

“It’s not mandatory, but neither does an invitation make you immune to being thrown out.”

“Ha, is that so? You’d throw out grateful guests who took the time to attend your party? If word gets out, who would ever attend a party held by the Heather March household!”

“If you quietly ate the food and kept your mouth shut, you’d be a grateful guest. But who thanks a nuisance guest who bullies the host?”

“What? Bullying?”

Kelly stepped forward, fuming.

“You call this bullying? Would you say that if you knew the atrocities you committed against me seven years ago?”

Sorry, but I don’t know.

Because that wasn’t me.

“You truly are shameless. Well, I suppose that’s how you can chase after someone who doesn’t want you. How pitiful. To live a life never loved.”

“I am loved.”

Bin appeared from behind me, placing a hand on my shoulder as he spoke coldly.

But the gaze that followed, as he rested his chin on my head and looked down at me, was infinitely tender.

“The problem is, I offer it and she won’t accept.”

At his final words, the faces of everyone, including Kelly, stiffened.

‘Wait, the young Marchioness Ortega is the one chasing after Irilín?’ That’s probably what they were all thinking.

I was flustered.

Had he not understood what I said yesterday?

I clearly drew a line, telling him I had no feelings for him, so why hadn’t his attitude changed?

“Why…”

I tried to ask Bin, but I had to swallow the words.