Delphine let out a deep sigh and relaxed her body.
She felt the soft texture of the cushioned backrest, but her mood remained uncomfortable.
The bloodshot retina of the woman reflected the devastated scenery of the broken office.
It was a scene created by just a few minutes of skirmish.
The place, once filled with antique furniture, was now difficult to find a single intact spot.
It was no wonder.
Both Delphine and Ceria were sincere.
It was not a clash between mediocre individuals but a confrontation between two swordsmen who had reached the level of experts. Such a result was inevitable.
Nonetheless, Delphine could not shake off the bitterness that lingered in her heart.
There was no particular reason for it.
Simply the fact that they had expressed their “sincerity.”
At first, she had no intention of doing so.
As she had declared earlier, Delphine did not particularly intend to bind Ian.
He was a man that couldn’t be tamed anyway, and the circumstances under which Delphine and Ian had become involved were not honorable.
A night of compassion or perhaps a moment of impulse.
She did not know how Ian was accepting that night. Delphine merely defined their relationship that way.
It was she who had pushed him, who had hesitated until the last moment.
Delphine was not bold enough to demand a price for purity.
Therefore, it did not matter what kind of relationship Ian and Ceria would have.
Rather, she even felt inclined to help Ceria.
But then, why?
Delphine exhaled a long breath, retracing her memories.
What crossed her mind were the words exchanged just now.
In front of the retainers, Delphine leaned down and whispered into Ceria’s ear.
“Smile, Ceria.”
The wounded beast’s spiteful gaze was directed at Delphine.
However, all Delphine did was curl her lips in a dismissive manner.
“Just for your information, the lord has received a decree. He has decided to determine the fate of our Yuridina Clan… So if our relationship is revealed, it will be quite troublesome for him. I assume you wouldn’t want that, would you?”
A sound of grinding teeth echoed.
As soon as Ceria heard the term “lord,” she tightened her grip. The fierce look in her bloodshot eyes revealed deep-seated malice aimed at Delphine.
She probably wanted to stab Delphine with the knife in her hand right then and there.
But it was impossible.
The bigger the incident became, the more complicated the aftermath would be.
And within that process, a meticulous investigation to examine the circumstances would likely be included.
This meant there was a chance the relationship between Ian and Delphine could be exposed.
Despite the rage and the anger that simmered, Ceria couldn’t bring herself to put her beloved senior in a predicament.
Yet, she couldn’t smile either.
Ceria decided to maintain her silence.
Gripping Delphine’s outstretched hand with force, the girl staggered and rose.
It was not an atmosphere that felt warm to anyone.
In fact, the temperature inside was so cold that it recalled the blizzard that had been raging in the snowfield.
Even the retainers who had unexpectedly barged into the office were unable to utter a single word.
Only Delphine wore a faint smile.
“I’m sorry, gentlemen. I got a bit excited after having a spar with my sister for the first time in a while.”
The retainers’ gazes shifted towards Ceria as if to question the truth of those words.
Yet, the girl neither spoke in denial nor affirmation.
She simply took a step forward with a frozen expression.
Each movement from her was emanating a chill.
The atmosphere was so menacing that the retainers did not dare to block Ceria.
However, it wasn’t long before Ceria found herself forced to stop walking.
A small voice came from behind her.
“There’s nothing to be gained from pleading, Ceria.”
Ceria’s blue eyes glanced back.
There stood Delphine with a cold expression.
“If you want something, you have to act. And you must fight to win.”
“Older sister.”
Words crossed like swords.
Ceria, with an utterly expressionless face, offered her solemn words.
“You should have killed me.”
Then came a damp whisper.
“Soon, I will make you regret it.”
The minister who had delivered the last warning departed just like that.
Next time they met, Delphine and Ceria might no longer be in a lord-retainer relationship.
Perhaps they wouldn’t even be considered sisters.
As Delphine reminisced about the past events, she recalled the final gaze Ceria had cast.
The freeze-inducing sapphire eyes of an enemy.
There was not a shred of respect or camaraderie to be found in that gaze.
Delphine let out a laugh, as if to express disbelief.
“They say raising a daughter is useless…”
She had fallen for a man, and this was what she got in return.
Afterward, a lament that resembled a sigh continued. If the imprisoned Marquis Yuridina heard it, he would have roughly empathized with the content.
In truth, Delphine herself was in a position not much different from Ceria.
Yet, the depth of her sighs only grew.
There were several reasons why Delphine intentionally provoked Ceria.
First, to stimulate the weak appearance of Ceria, and also to manifest the conflict between Delphine and Ceria.
This was due to Ian’s deep entanglement with the Yuridina Clan.
It was well known throughout the Academy that he was not only close to the head of the family, Delphine, but also to Ceria.
Thus, it would split the Yuridina Clan in half.
There was no need for an actual division. Just showing that there was internal conflict within the clan would simplify Ian’s movements considerably.
He could borrow the strength of Yuridina through Ceria even without Delphine’s assistance.
After all, the imperial family did not seem inclined to erase the Yuridina Clan.
If they were considering that, they wouldn’t have deferred the judgment to Ian in the first place.
Erasing the name of Yuridina was a lengthy process.
It was a significant operation that even the imperial family had to be cautious about.
There was no way they would risk leaking information in advance.
Ultimately, what the imperial family wanted was a show of face.
To completely sever ties with the Dark Cult, devote unchanging loyalty to the Empire, and stand at the forefront in the upcoming war.
If they could obtain that promise, they would step back.
Therefore, the punishment directed at Yuridina had to end at an appropriate line.
Yuridina was still useful as one of the Empire’s five great noble clans.
Thus, Ceria was one of the individuals Delphine considered as a compromise.
Though of low birth, she carried the blood of Yuridina, and her talent was undoubtedly genuine.
Wasn’t she a fitting candidate to check the head of the family’s power?
It was sufficient as a warning to the head, who would wield overwhelming power.
Moreover, it was an opportunity to strengthen the imperial family’s influence over the Yuridina Clan.
Furthermore, the aspect that pleased Delphine the most was that Ceria could not decisively threaten the authority of the head.
In fact, she had the bloodline of a vampire.
As long as this weakness existed, there was no worry about Ceria taking the position of the head.
What remained now was mere patience.
She only hoped that Ian would catch on and make the right decision.
Delphine felt her obligations were complete.
Ceria held a grudge against Delphine.
The retainers were suspicious of the relationship between Delphine and Ceria.
Having achieved her goals like this, she wondered why her heart felt so heavy.
Delphine unconsciously began to chew on her own lips.
Yes, in truth, she had provoked Ceria more than necessary.
Was it because the timid younger sister seemed pathetic?
Or was it because she could no longer suppress the feelings that had grown within her somehow?
“What a foolish girl…”
Whether it was directed at Ceria or herself, Delphine let out a long sigh, not truly knowing to whom it was addressed.
—
“Why are you still alive?”
It was a question overflowing with sincerity.
It was not something to say in front of a friend after a long time. No matter how much we were relying on communication magic, it felt inappropriate.
My expression immediately turned sour.
“Then would I be dead?”
“It wouldn’t be strange to be dead… To be honest, if someone asked me to stake everything I have on a knife fight, I would wager on your death.”
“Glad to hear that.”
I chuckled and added, “You tend to lose more the bigger the stakes.”
“Oh, come on.”
The handsome man with impressive curly brown hair feigned a serious tone.
“I’m just waiting for the final victory. As you know, to gain something, you must lose a corresponding amount.”
“That’s the typical gambler’s logic.”
“I do have a liking for gambling.”
I spent a while chortling with Reto.
Of course, it didn’t take too long before I got to the point.
Communication magic required an unexpectedly significant amount of magical power.
Because of this, I had to explain my circumstances as briefly as possible, so the time spent chatting beforehand felt like a lie.
Reto swallowed his breath as he listened to my short story.
His light green eyes shifted slightly to the side.
As always, my most trusted friend wore a smug smile.
“Not bad at all. Your meddling might actually be helpful.”
“…Meddling?”
At my foolish question, Reto tsked his tongue.
There was an undeniable underlying intention in that look of disdain.
‘This really is the Swordsmanship Department…’
I secretly clenched my fist and shook with indignation.
I would repay this insult with interest once I returned to the Academy.
However, Reto was indeed Reto.
With each clever turn of his phrase, I could do nothing but nod obediently.
Fortunately, the future where my fist would be stained with my friend’s blood vanished.
Only after taking notes on the conversation I had with him could I finally leave the communication room with a satisfied expression.
It was not a complete plan yet.
However, if I conducted myself like this for a while, there shouldn’t be a significant problem.
I could move forward with a much lighter heart.
At least until someone came running towards me in a panic.
With dark blue hair and silver-gray eyes, an unfamiliar girl was before me.
The Empire’s Fifth Imperial Princess, Shi-en.
She flapped her arms nonsensically, not matching her noble status, and shouted.
“Something terrible happened! Sir Ian!”
I had no choice but to come to a sudden halt.
Her eyes were tightly shut, and she looked quite distressed as she raised her voice.
The urgent news the princess delivered was as follows.
“Yuridina… that is, Senior Ceria has changed!”
The news that something was wrong with my good junior.
For a moment, my body, which had been dazed, immediately took off, pressing against the ground.
Please, Ceria.
I hope I’m not too late.
