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Chapter 63
“Training?”
A thunder-like shocking sound fell suddenly.
Carlos had woken up, and my body had recovered, so I thought I could finally take a breath.
But Damian threw a bomb.
Damian Carter shrugged as if he didn’t understand why I was so surprised.
“Yes.”
“Suddenly?”
“You need to build physical strength, Your Highness.”
That same old talk about stamina again.
“The self-defense technique I taught you before was probably too weak. It was only the most basic level. This time, I plan to teach you more seriously.”
“More seriously means…?”
“Basic physical training and self-defense. Starting today.”
His green eyes were serious. He looked like he had made up his mind about something.
“Young Master, no, Damian. Are you serious?”
“When have I ever joked when speaking to the princess?”
Never.
Not even once.
“I’ve been thinking about it since the day you returned. I was just waiting for the princess’s body to recover.”
So it was planned.
“Training….”
If I thought about it from Damian’s perspective, I could understand.
I and Carlos had left the mansion saying we were going to the eastern temple, then returned covered in blood and were carried back by Sion.
It was not strange that he was shocked, especially considering how many times he had warned me before departure.
“There is no guarantee that something like that won’t happen again.”
“That… is true.”
“At that time, the princess must be able to escape. Or at least buy time. For that, physical strength is necessary.”
Damian spoke seriously.
“This time, it was fine because my father was there. But neither I nor my father can always be by your side.”
I lost my words.
If it were other times, I would have complained and lied down, but this time I couldn’t say anything.
I remembered trembling inside the carriage while watching Carlos fight.
I had done nothing but curl up helplessly.
I hated how weak my body was.
The fact that I couldn’t help even when someone was bleeding to protect me.
In the end, I nodded slowly.
“…Okay.”
“Pardon?”
“I’ll do it. Training.”
Damian blinked.
He seemed surprised that I obeyed more easily than expected.
“What is that face? You announced it without asking me anyway.”
“…I thought you would lie down and refuse.”
Correct.
“I changed my mind a little.”
“Changed your mind?”
“What Damian said was right. I also felt it back then. That I was too weak.”
Damian stared at me.
His eyes looked like he wanted to say something, but in the end he said nothing.
“Let’s go.”
Instead, he grabbed my wrist and stood up.
“Now?”
“Yes.”
“You are really sharp…”
Even while complaining, I stood up obediently.
Led by Damian’s hand, I walked down the corridor, and on the first floor I met Mia who was busy moving around.
“Oh my, where are you two going?”
Mia asked with wide eyes.
“Training.”
“Young Master and the princess?”
“…That’s how it is, Mia.”
Mia looked back and forth between Damian and me, then smiled faintly.
“You two seem to be getting along better these days. Well, the young master has been worrying a lot about the princess.”
“…It’s not like that.”
“Standing side by side, you two look just like siblings.”
“Mia, don’t say strange things!”
“Oh my, of course. I’ll bring some snacks to the training ground.”
“Too nosy…”
Damian muttered coldly and walked faster.
“Ah, wait, it’s too fast!”
“When will Your Highness’s short legs grow longer?”
This man really…
In the end, I was dragged like a keychain by Damian’s hand to the training ground.
‘So there will be a day when I come here again.’
Not much had changed compared to a few months ago.
The wide courtyard was neatly organized, and on one side there was a well-maintained weapon rack.
The only difference was that there were about five times more training dummies than before.
While I was blankly looking around, Damian took something from the weapon rack.
It was a wooden sword.
…Wait, a wooden sword?
“Try holding this.”
“…Pardon?”
“Hold it in your hand.”
“Are you serious? You want to teach me swordsmanship?”
“It’s an extension of self-defense. I don’t want you to master the sword perfectly. Just learn basic defensive movements.”
“But I’ve never done sword training…”
“That’s why I’m teaching you.”
Damian lifted his own wooden sword.
“Follow me first. Let’s start with posture.”
The moment I received the wooden sword in confusion, my body wavered.
“Ah!”
Damian supported me with a shocked expression.
“…What was that?”
“I told you it wouldn’t work. Do you remember the self-defense thing I did with Damian before? I barely succeeded in ten days, and it was so long ago that I’ve already forgotten it.”
“This is serious…”
“I can hear you.”
“I meant for you to hear.”
Damian narrowed his eyes.
“You have so much talent in giving advice during other people’s training, but what if you can’t even hold a single sword properly?”
“That’s different. I have seen knights training very often in the imperial castle. I know the theory clearly. I just lack practice.”
“Yes, yes.”
Damian casually answered and brought another sword.
It was much lighter than the wooden sword I had just held.
“This is the sword I held when I was five.”
“My strength is about the same as five-year-old Damian.”
“Do you finally realize the seriousness?”
“I already knew.”
I glared at Damian and held the sword.
It was an unfamiliar weight in my hand.
Damian looked at me satisfied and shrugged.
“Good. Now wear the sword at your waist and run.”
“…Pardon?”
Not swinging the sword?
Damian snorted as if he was stunned by my confused reaction.
“With the princess’s stamina, if you swing a sword, you won’t be able to get out of bed tomorrow.”
“Then why did you tell me to hold the sword?”
“To get used to the weight. Running while carrying a sword and just running are completely different.”
“Y-yes… I see.”
“What are you doing? Run instead of standing there.”
Then he ran ahead first.
As expected, training was harder than I thought.
The previous self-defense training felt like child’s play.
Starting with running, then basic posture, and simple movements.
There was almost no rest.
After about an hour, sweat poured down like rain.
My legs were shaking. My lungs felt like they would burst.
“Haaah…”
“Are you okay?”
“Probably…”
Actually, not okay. I feel like I’m dying.
Damian checked my condition and nodded.
“That’s enough for today. Rest first.”
He pushed me under a tree shade.
The moment I sat down, strength left my whole body.
“I will continue training, so drink this.”
Damian handed me one water bottle and one cookie brought by Mia earlier, then walked back to the center of the training ground.
Each time he swung his sword into the air, sharp sword wind spread.
Fast and precise movements.
Muscles moved smoothly along the blade.
I alternated between drinking water and eating cookies while watching him.
‘Has he gotten used to the sacred sword now?’
Although he still couldn’t fully use sword energy, he held the sacred sword much more naturally than before.
His skill had clearly improved compared to when I first saw him.
At this rate, he might awaken as a swordmaster in less than a year.
‘If only that could happen…’
Then maybe I could feel a little more at ease.
But awakening the sacred sword was not that simple.
I heard that only when true resonance occurs can the sword’s owner be fully recognized.
‘I think something more as a trigger is needed.’
Thinking about it, Damian’s awakening as a swordmaster before my regression was also caused by some incident.
At that time, I wasn’t that interested in Damian, so I couldn’t remember.
If I had known, I should have investigated more.
Whether I was thinking dirty thoughts inside or not, Damian continued training without distraction.
How much time passed?
After what felt like more than an hour of watching, Damian sheathed his sword and walked toward the shade where I was.
I handed him water, and he drank naturally before asking.
“Have you rested enough now?”
“Yes, well…”
I answered vaguely and looked straight up at him.
“Hey, Damian. Why do you want to become strong?”
