TCHB 21

Chapter 21

I’ve arrived. I set foot in my home—well, our count’s estate. Of course, Ventus and Rel came with me.

The knights guarding the iron gates at the front were so shocked. It had been a long time.

But really, I should at least greet everyone face to face before—
…Nope. From now on I’m going to loaf around and have fun, so let’s forget that thought for now!

—Wow! It looks exactly the same as before!

“The garden’s changed, though. And the walls must’ve been replaced—it’s been a hundred years,” Ventus scoffed.

I looked back and forth at the two of them, who seemed oddly close, then handed the holy sword to Ventus and opened the mansion doors.

“Heydison, it’s been a while! Where are Mom and Dad?”

When I smiled and asked the butler, every maid and servant passing by stopped and stared at me. They all looked shocked, nudging their coworkers and whispering. It seemed they thought I was some kind of apparition.

“Y-Young Lady…? Are you really the young lady?”

“Heather! It’s me, obviously. Who else would it be?”

I flashed a mischievous grin at Heather, my personal maid.

Only then did she seem to realize this wasn’t a dream. She smiled warmly and hugged me. Feeling Heather’s warmth again after so long made me smile. The atmosphere instantly softened.

—Somehow it feels like we’re the intruders here? Ventus! Let’s go! Let’s head out and sing a song or something!

…That mood killer.

I clicked my tongue softly and stepped out of Heather’s arms. When I moved to stand beside Ventus, both Heydison and Heather looked at me expectantly.

They were clearly wondering who Ventus was and why I was here. I opened my mouth to explain.

“This is my friend. And I wanted to go on a trip, so I left the duke’s estate!”

“E-Excuse me? Um… Young Lady, you mean you want to play at traveling inside the estate, right? That’s it, isn’t it?”

Heather looked like she desperately wanted that to be the answer.
…What should I do? I really meant an actual trip outside.

“Huh? No? It’s fine! He’s super strong! And I’m really strong too!”

I deliberately raised my voice, exaggerating everything.

“What are you saying?! You’ve never even held a sword, and you always look sick of it when you see one! And you can barely use magic!”

Ugh—there it is. Heather’s nagging, worse than my mother’s.

I avoided her gaze and silently begged Ventus for help, but he completely ignored me.

That’s cruel!

—Gasp! You didn’t even look at another sword?! Alena! So I really am your favorite, right? Ventus! Alena likes me the most! Aren’t you jealous? Aren’t you?!

The holy sword spoke in a deeply moved tone, and I couldn’t help but let out a soft laugh.

I hadn’t looked because I didn’t want to hold a sword in the first place. He was free to misunderstand, but this particular misunderstanding was kind of cute—so I let it slide. Also, a lot of people were watching.

“Young Lady, what are you smiling about?! No! Absolutely not! How could the young lady we raised—!”

“I was raised more by your mother than by you, Heather.”

The childish amusement in my voice eased the tension a little. If I said I wanted to travel twice, I’d probably suffocate to death.

“Young Lady, the Count and Countess are not at the estate right now. They’ve gone on a trip themselves. They should return in about a month. If you insist on traveling, please take an escort with you.”

“Heydison. I’m stronger than our family’s knights, you know? I don’t need one!”

Take the family knights on a trip? Absolutely not!

Since things had come to this, I decided to reveal only that I was skilled with both sword and magic. I didn’t really think about the consequences. Using magic and wielding a blade were so natural to me that I was too busy thinking about other things.

“…Pardon?”

Heydison stared blankly for a moment, then quickly composed himself. As expected of our butler—his recovery speed was impressive.

Meanwhile, Heather looked like she thought she’d misheard entirely. I couldn’t blame her. I understood her perfectly—too perfectly, in fact.

I’d never held a sword before, after all. Hard to believe, right? I get it… but it’s true!

“Heydison, call Bluerwin, the captain of our knight order. I’ll be at the training grounds!”

I immediately grabbed Ventus and ran. Well—bolted would be more accurate.

Anyway, I headed straight for the training grounds and saw the knights staring in shock.

Was it because I came back too early? Thinking was annoying, so I folded that thought up neatly and tossed it away.

“You might lose.”

“I won’t. Ventus. I don’t play games I can’t win. …You know that. I survived years on the battlefield.”

—That’s right! Alena and I have perfect teamwork!

“All you do is get swung around! More importantly, your muscle mass is low right now. You’ll lose in raw strength.”

Ventus’s eyes wavered violently. I snorted and teased him.

“Never in my life did I think Ventus—the dragon known for being cold-hearted—would worry about me!”

“You…”

“It’s fine. I’ll use magic too. And if I don’t go this far, they’ll really make me take an escort. Ugh, just thinking about it makes me sick! I want my freedom!”

I smiled to show I truly meant it.

In the Empire, there were maybe one or two people who could use both magic and swordsmanship at the same time.

In time, Kiel would be among them too…
—Ack! I said I wouldn’t think about that! Ahem. Anyway, I’m a very rare and special case.

My magic surpasses even great archmages, and my swordsmanship is at the master level. Magic came naturally after contracting with a dragon… going from “naturally good” to “great archmage.” As for swordplay… well, I have the holy sword, and I’m skilled myself.

When I think about it, I sound like a character decked out in expensive gear…
No—my own skill is outstanding too, so it balances out. Exactly.

“Young Lady! So you truly have returned. And you’ll be sparring with me… Is that really true?”

“Mm-hmm. Things just turned out that way. All right, let’s begin!”

I took the holy sword and gave it a light swing. The sound of it cutting through the air was pleasant. How many years had it been since I crossed blades with another person? I felt strangely free.

I adjusted my appearance to that of an adult, like I had during the festival. Looking ahead, Bluerwin’s face showed a mix of shock and unease.

I felt a little sorry. To Bluerwin, I looked like an adult now, but in truth I was an eight-year-old young lady he served.

“Bluerwin. If you don’t take this seriously, your head might go flying.”

I smiled brightly, softening the words like a child would.

…Apparently that smile didn’t match what I’d just said at all, because everyone’s expressions darkened.

The spar began immediately. I debated what to do. If I wanted to, I could end it instantly—but then Heather would never let me hear the end of it.

I needed to drag things out just enough.
But it had been so long that my sense of what counted as “just enough” was fuzzy.

—Wow! That captain guy is like your old mentor! Lots of mana, and very pure too! Of course, not as much as you, Alena! Alena! If you win, I’ll sing you a victory song!

…Should I just lose?

I seriously weighed “traveling freely” against “listening to the holy sword sing,” then felt someone approaching and tightened my grip.

After a few clashes, I realized Bluerwin’s skill was higher than I’d expected.

Maybe I could push a little harder. He should be able to take this much.

I picked up the pace. With magic supporting me, stamina wasn’t an issue.

When I vanished from his sight, Bluerwin immediately tensed. Hmm. His kinetic vision wasn’t bad—he almost kept up.

I struck upward from below in one swift motion. His startled expression was clear as day.

He really wears his emotions on his face.

Giiik—.

The blades scraped against each other with a shrill sound. He blocked as fast as he could, but twisting his wrist like that had to hurt.

“Bluerwin, hide your expression. And focus on your senses. Feel the flow more.”

I was genuinely excited to cross blades with someone so skilled—someone who could still grow even more. I gave advice as I pressed forward.

Using magic, I overwhelmed him with raw force, and I could feel his limit.

So this is as far as he goes—for now.

I immediately moved at my true speed and placed my blade at his throat.

When the sword rested cleanly there, everyone held their breath. Silence fell.

It was an obvious outcome to me—but only then did I realize it wasn’t obvious to everyone else. I avoided the piercing stares.

Ah… I meant to go easy!
It’d been so long since I’d crossed blades without killing that I ended up enjoying myself.

—Khhh! Alena, you’re amazing! Just like always! You’re not rusty at all!

The holy sword looked proud, and Ventus wore the expression of a parent who’d finally relaxed.

…Whatever. The result’s good, right? Things will work out somehow!

Thinking optimistically, I brightly declared that since I’d beaten Bluerwin, I didn’t need an escort.

I pointed at Ventus and told the still-dazed maid to show him to a room. I waved at his sulky face, then returned to my own room, washed up, and lay down.

I thought I’d be sick of swords after using them so much—but crossing blades again after so long was surprisingly fun. Probably because Bluerwin was that skilled.

With that thought, I drifted into a deep sleep.

Completely unaware of what kind of commotion today’s sparring would cause the next day.