“You look tired. Was there something wrong yesterday?”
Early morning.
Kairon, about to start his day, asked Cecilia at the front gate.
“I slept in.”
“Since it’s a holiday, you shouldn’t get too lazy. Diligence is the life of a knight.”
Kairon said sternly.
But it wasn’t as firm as usual.
‘She even came out to see me off since I’m going to work. That’s impressive.’
Kairon was subtly moved by such gestures.
“Are you going shopping again today?”
“Today, I’m supposed to teach Betty swordsmanship.”
Kairon’s eyes sparkled with interest.
“I don’t have much else on my schedule today, so I’ll help you.”
Cecilia, opening her sleepy eyes, firmly said,
“It’s fine.”
“Is that so…”
A slightly disappointed Kairon.
However, before boarding the carriage, he asked one more time,
“Do you really not need any help?”
“No, I don’t need it.”
Cecilia pushed Kairon’s back, and Kairon had no choice but to board the carriage.
As the carriage left, Cecilia smirked.
‘Now it’s my world.’
Who becomes king when the tiger leaves its den?
The fox.
Cecilia was the most elegant white fox in the world.
This moment was what she had waited for, coming out to meet him on purpose.
She turned around. The maids were standing neatly in line, waiting for her orders.
With Kairon away, Cecilia was now number one in rank.
Cecilia’s small shoulders rose about five centimeters.
“What should we do first, miss?”
“Would you like a massage?”
“How about having a tea party? If Lady Cecilia says so, all the famous young ladies from high society will gather!”
“Really?”
“Of course! You receive so many invitations that it’s hard to categorize them daily.”
The maids giggled while speaking, amused by Cecilia’s hopeful expression.
‘Hmm. That actually doesn’t sound bad…’
Cecilia liked noble young ladies.
After seeing only dark people at the Knight Order all day, it was natural to like them.
However, there was a more important task today.
It was regrettable, but she’d pass on this.
“No, I have something important to do today.”
The simple reason for postponing even the task of defeating the Demon King!
Only for this moment.
To show Beatrice the image of the ‘perfect Sword Heroine.’
“Something important?”
“Yes. Beatrice is coming today. She’s a new member of the Knight Order who has recently become close to me.”
“…!”
At that moment, the playful glint in the maids’ eyes changed.
‘Lady Cecilia made a friend!’
‘A friend is coming!’
‘This is a historic day!’
“You need to help me.”
The sharp-eyed maids simultaneously drew their weapons.
Brooms, dusters, mops, and more gleamed menacingly.
“Where should we start?”
*
‘Though it’s a little scary… I’ll work hard. I need to become stronger to be of help to Lady Cecilia.’
Beatrice stood nervously in front of Kairon’s mansion.
When she knocked, a maid sweeping nearby leaves approached her.
“May I help you?”
“I… I’m Beatrice. We arranged a visit for today. Uh, Windsor Knight Order rookie…”
The maid, who had been smiling kindly, widened her eyes.
“Please wait a moment.”
“Y-yes.”
Although confused by the maid’s serious reaction, Beatrice waited patiently.
Not long after, the door opened, and Beatrice was allowed inside the mansion.
“What a magnificent mansion.”
“Of course. This is the mansion of Kairon-sama, the head of the Windsor Knight Order, who would receive a dukedom upon retirement.”
Mari, the head maid, spoke with pride.
‘I heard Lady Cecilia is his adopted daughter. So… she must be incredibly high-ranking despite not being an official knight.’
And this mansion would eventually be inherited by Cecilia.
‘I thought she spent extravagantly, but actually, she lives frugally. When will I ever live in a mansion like this?’
Probably impossible even if I saved up my whole life…
Hmm, sad Beatrice walked quietly.
“Where is Lady Cecilia?”
“By now, she’s probably rolling around like a kitten…”
At that moment, a nearby maid turned pale and nudged Mari’s side.
‘Head Maid! Concept, concept!’
Mari realized her mistake and widened her eyes. Such a blunder wasn’t professional.
“…She’s not here. Lady Cecilia lives every minute as befitting her title as the Sword Heroine.”
“That makes sense. It fits the image of Lady Cecilia I imagined.”
Beatrice nodded.
“She’s probably training right now. Although protocol dictates greeting guests, she’s very diligent, so please forgive her.”
“Ah, it’s fine. I’m here to learn swordsmanship anyway… And I’m not of high enough status anyway.”
“Forgive my impertinence, but which family did you belong to before becoming a Windsor?”
“Schwarzpfeder. It’s a very small rural fief in the west; you might not know it.”
‘Pure bloodline.’
‘Pure bl**d. Suitable as Lady’s playmate.’
Mari became very satisfied. She spoke a little more warmly than before.
“The Schwarzpfeder family is a good one. A prestigious house that has never produced traitors or tax evaders.”
“Uh, thank you…?”
‘We’re too small to have the chance to do those things.’
Rebellion requires power, and tax evasion requires money.
However, the Schwarzpfeder barony was heartbreakingly poor…
“This is Lady Cecilia’s training ground.”
Behind the mansion, a surprisingly large cabin could be seen far away.
“Does she train here…?”
“Yes, certainly.”
Mari skillfully concealed that it was a warehouse just an hour ago and that the maids had sweated profusely cleaning it.
“She gets up around 4 in the morning, drinks the morning dew, and always comes here. Then she trains until 9.”
“Four in the morning? When does Lady Cecilia sleep then?”
“10 PM… No, 1 AM. There are documents related to unfinished work after work hours.”
“My goodness.”
Mari wiped away sweat that hadn’t even appeared and said.
“Phew, I’m really worried. At least tasks like document processing can be delegated to others…”
Mari subtly hinted.
Beatrice clenched her fists tightly and resolved.
“Don’t worry. I’ll definitely join Lady Cecilia’s unit and handle all those documents for her. Somehow, she seems short…”
“…”
No, Cecilia slept promptly at 10 PM every day. She drank at least a liter of milk daily, though not for height but for other reasons.
‘Anyway, I’ve mostly completed the lady’s orders. Now it’s her time.’
Gulp, Mari swallowed and opened the door to the storage room, no, the training ground.
Swish.
The slowly opening door.
Beatrice took a deep breath.
“What you see here should remain a secret, but if your mouth feels itchy, you can spread some rumors.”
“…Yes?”
“Alright.”
Having fulfilled her last ‘order,’ Mari stepped backward and bowed her head respectfully.
‘Which way?’
Beatrice was confused but knew that wasn’t important now.
With a solemn heart, she crossed the threshold of the training ground.
It was an odd atmosphere.
Small dust particles floating in the sunlight through the cracks in the windows.
A spacious rectangular area.
And right in the center, Cecilia sat demurely on her knees with a wooden sword resting on her thighs.
Her hair was tied tightly up, and she wore a white blouse with a long navy skirt.
An unusual sight for Cecilia, who usually preferred skirts that reached just above the knee.
Moreover, instead of her usual white knee-high socks, she wore black stockings.
Because of that, she looked exceptionally dignified compared to usual.
“…”
Beatrice was overwhelmed by Cecilia’s imposing presence and gulped.
‘…This is the Sword Heroine.’
The image she had heard of before meeting Cecilia.
Noble and elegant, a finely honed sword itself.
-Why is Lady Cecilia called the Sword Heroine?
-She’s pretty, but… definitely not what I imagined.
-Isn’t Berserker more fitting?
-Berserker, huh? Hahaha! That really suits her well.
This was the moment when Beatrice found something to talk about during conversations with the new knights, making her want to argue but unable to.
“Si, Lady Cecilia…?”
“Twice.”
Cecilia opened her eyes halfway and spoke softly.
Her cold silver eyes glanced briefly toward Beatrice.
“Betty just died twice to me.”
“…!”
“The first basic principle of swordsmanship: gauge your opponent’s range.”
‘The training has already started.’
Beatrice took five steps back with a serious expression.
Cecilia stood up leisurely, turning her body slightly and asking:
“Are you sure about the distance?”
“…Yes.”
As soon as Beatrice replied uncertainly, Cecilia leaped.
‘This is purely sword training.’
Beatrice judged rationally. Since it was sword training, she wouldn’t use Blessing.
Then, using her weight, she would press down on the guard part of the wooden sword to block Cecilia’s first strike.
Given the weight difference, Cecilia would inevitably lose balance.
Beatrice executed her plan as she thought. Thanks to the secured distance, she managed to stably suppress Cecilia’s sword.
She expected this.
BOOM—!
Screeeech—!
“Cough…”
Beatrice, bounced off the wall, grabbed her abdomen, and gasped for non-existent air.
Ringing in her ears, her vision blurred as if she had been knocked out.
But she desperately regained her footing and tried to escape the corner she was backed into. However, Cecilia rushed forward once again.
‘This time, I must block it. Up!’
Beatrice raised her sword upward, taking the High Guard stance.
But Cecilia, having withdrawn her sword just before, delivered a powerful roundhouse kick from below to Beatrice’s abdomen.
“Hak…!”
Beatrice momentarily floated in the air, fell to the ground, and curled up like a ball. Saliva dripped from the corner of her mouth, but she couldn’t wipe it.
Intense pain surged through her abdomen. She couldn’t breathe at all. In an instant, the lack of oxygen clouded her mind.
“The second basic principle of swordsmanship: maximize your weight.”
Cecilia coolly lifted her chin while stepping on Beatrice’s head with her foot.
Beatrice could feel it when her foot touched her. A powerful manifestation of Blessing emanated from Cecilia’s body.
‘She’s manifesting Blessing internally to increase her weight…’
“Especially for us female knights, increasing the absolute mass of our bodies is essential.”
Cecilia kicked Beatrice’s abdomen again. Beatrice’s body slid and rolled several times.
Clutching her abdomen and trembling, Beatrice’s face was already a mess. Every liquid her body could produce had come out.
“The third basic principle of swordsmanship: consistently target the weak points.”
Cecilia stated matter-of-factly, resting the wooden sword on her shoulder.
“Let’s start with increasing physical mass first – Betty is too light now. Come on, once more… Oh.”
Cecilia blinked.
Beatrice had fainted.
“…”
Cecilia quietly knelt beside Beatrice.
And she smiled faintly.
‘I hope she wakes up soon.’
Until then, she would wait quietly.
Hehe.
