First part of this chapter is the previous Chapter 36, while the second part is the previous Chapter 37. With this, we have caught up with where the story was previously and everything from hereon out is new content! Woohoo~

"Muu~……"

If I reinforce that, then this will fall.

If I reinforce this, then that will fall.

I stared down the board, but a good move didn't come to mind.

Rather, my path of retreat had already been cut off.

"……I give up."

As a result, I bravely resigned.

"Elder brother, you've become stronger again."

"There is still a person that I can't beat though."

As he spoke while making a wry smile, Romel-ojisan's image naturally came to mind.

For him to not even take notice of brother, who is this strong……just who in the world is he?

"Lately he hasn't been coming to our place, but I wonder if he's been going around drinking again……"

"Who knows? He might unexpectedly be busy with work."

"Work? ……honestly speaking, I can't imagine Oji-san working enthusiastically."

My only memories were of him usually drinking.

That person seemed free like the wind more than anyone else. I simply could not connect the figure of him working in some company or country as a gear, with my mental image of him.

"There might be more unexpected sides to a person than can be seen on the surface. You're the same, you know."

"? Am I similar to Oji-san?"

"Even if your way of doing things is different, you're similar at the root…….you both are hiding ferocious claws within yourselves."

I could only tilt my head at my brother's abstract words.

"……-ah. Thank you very much for accompanying me. I should probably go to sleep soon."

Glancing at the clock, I stood up from my seat. This time is about right.

"Good night."

"Yeah, night."

The next day, I started my independent training before the sun rose.

After fully completing the menu that I had set for myself, I ate a meal and worked hard in studying.

……since I have absolutely no talent in battle tactics, I am not studying it. However, father has stated that I must at least learn the bare minimum of knowledge for a n.o.ble girl.

Apparently he is trying to hinder his daughter who tries to go out to town whenever she is free.

Of course, knowing such things does appear to be a necessity as well.

It can't be helped. If I was going out with Kuroitsu-san and the other's from the army, or with the private soldiers from our Marquis house, it'd be better; but if I was going out to town on my own, then they wouldn't know what sort of incidents I'd b.u.t.t my head into like before……is what the problem was.

Well, I did have a previous offence, so I can't really refute that, but……

At any rate, I really do wonder what is with my father, to simply give the task telling me to "go study" without even preparing someone to mentor me.

Though it isn't like I don't understand that it will be difficult to hire a tutor as long as I am staying in the Marquis House under the name of Mel, who is 'Ojou-sama's guard'.

On that note, I have no choice but to work hard in studying everything, from start to finish.

Luckily, all n.o.ble mansions have some sort of library room.

I can search up and learn the subjects from there, and if I still ultimately don't understand it, I can ask my knowledgeable elder brother.

Yesterday's board game was also something that occurred after I had him teach me something.

Lately, the daily routine has been to play one game as compensation for teaching me.

It was a bit hard to say it myself, but it was exceedingly doubtful whether or not I was fit to be brother's opponent.

For now, thanks to playing board games almost every day, I think I've gotten a bit better at it. That alone is proof of how much I have been relying on elder brother.

I digress, but as long as father does not invite a child tutor for girls, since father also has no clue regarding the manners of n.o.ble women, I have been exempted from manner training. That alone was probably my one salvation.

Now then, after finis.h.i.+ng today's quota, I've become completely bored. I could continue staying obediently at home, or……

As I thought about that casually while looking out the window, there were soldiers from the Anderson Marquis house's private troops training.

"Shurei-san!"

My body throbbed from watching the training, and in the end, I went down to the training grounds.

"Ohh, Mel!"

When the training went on a small break, I called out to the man who was supervising it.

The Anderson Marquis House Guard Corps' sub-captain Shurei-san is someone who I trained together with at the Anderson territory, so we were acquaintances.

"It has been a while. Did something happen?"

"No, I temporarily returned to the Anderson territory for a while. Just basically confirming the territory's public order."

The Anderson Marquis House's troops were robust warriors trained by father……in addition, they were elites, and thus maintenance of the public order within the Anderson House was left to them.

They were, so to speak, security troops; or perhaps they could be described as people that perform similar duties to those of the troops found in the Capital.

……because they were people who have endured father's training, they were probably used as a deterrent.

The biggest reason for that was since father didn't require guards, they apparently didn't have much proper work. On the other hand, it wasn't like the Anderson Marquis House, whom they worked under, could suddenly discharge them, thus that was how all of this began.

"……I see. How was the territory?"

"Same as always. There aren't any idiotic guys that would try to do something to a territory that sits on Gazelle-sama's lap."

"That's good."

"More importantly, Mel. It seems like you've been rampaging around quite a bit."

"Rampaging around, have I really? ……I don't have any particular recollection of that though……"

Lately, perhaps because father's eyes have been brighter, it has become more difficult to walk around town on my own.

There were hardly any cases like before where I happened to encounter a case while in town.

"What an amusing joke. The story of Kuroitsu experiencing a crus.h.i.+ng defeat reached my ears too, you know?"

"Ahh……"

"Come."

As I reflexively made a wry smile at Shurei-san's words, I was pa.s.sed a practice sword.

"Show me your current power. Your power that surpa.s.sed Kuroitsu's."

Shurei-san's eyes held a belligerent light as he grinned widely.

How to say, he loves to fight.

As expected of someone personally trained by father.

"Great face there."

When I was thinking such thoughts, Shurei-san laughed and said that.

"……face?"

Tilting my head at what he was pointed out, I began to touch my face to feel if something was stuck to it. When I did so, I realized that I was smiling.

It seems that before I was smiling without even realizing it.

I guess I can't talk about other people.

Because I too felt my mood life when I imagined a fight with Shurei-san.

"……then, let's have a good match."

"……start!"

And so, I broke into a run.

Even as I ran, I sharpened my senses and read Shurei-san's movements.

In an instant, a sword came closing in at a tremendous speed.

I stopped that blow.

"……heh."

Shurei-san grinned broadly.

"You certainly stopped it quite……easily!"

Saying that, Shurei-san started to move once more.

Reading the slight gestures of his moving arms and his gaze, together with his casual sword movements, I similarly swung my sword.

"How scary~. Haven't you gotten stronger again?"

In the middle, Shurei-san took a distance and started talking.

"Shurei-san has as well."

Answering him, I once again began to move.

"Uwah……!"

We continue to exchange blows several times.

I'm faster than Shurei-san's reactions, got him-……! -just when I thought that, it wasn't a decisive blow.

On the contrary, because I stepped in too far, I would receive an intense blow.

……while continuing such an exchange, I laughed once more.

It was fun. This continuous offence and defence that was just on the edge.

Just one blow. All it would take in this situation was a single blow to lose.

And accompanying all that was this nervousness and excitement……it allowed me to feel that I was alive.

However, one must also accept the ending of such a fun time.

I repelled Shurei-san's sword and placed my blade at his throat.

"……I lost."

"Thank you very much."

At Shurei-san's words, I lowered my sword from his throat.

"Iya~……you've truly gotten stronger. I had thought that my swordsmans.h.i.+p had gotten better too but……I guess I've still got a ways to go."

"A ways to go, you say, not at all……I also had several times where it was dangerous."

"Oh, stop it. ……ahh, I'll have to train again once I return."

"……what are you saying, Shurei-san?"

"……eh?"

Shurei-san solidified at my question.

"There is still time before the sun sets. By all means, let us continue training."

"N-No no……look, I've gotta report to the General after all!"

"The Master won't be returning until evening you know? Or do you perhaps have some other work?"

"I don't but……"

"Then shall we continue training?"

When I said that with a sweet smile, Shurei-san took up his sword while making a resigned smile.

After that, I exchanged blows with Shurei-san numerous times. Later on, I held practice spars against several members of the Anderson House's private troops, going one versus several of them at once.

It was training so that instead of focussing solely on a single enemy, I'd be capable of maintaining a state where I constantly read the situation while remaining aware of how everyone around me was moving.

Precisely because those of the Anderson Marquis House were the ones who had watched over me as I trained right from the start, they were able to freely suggest this cooperative training.

That they did so made me feel ticklish and happy.

In comparison, those who came to the training in the Capital treated me as an equal.

……the fact that Kuroitsu-san, who was one of the top members of those in the Army partic.i.p.ating in the training, treated me as such probably played a large role.

Those from the Anderson Marquis House also emulated Kuroitsu-san's manner of interaction when those from the Army and the Knight's Order were also around.

That intense change in treatment was likely out of consideration for me, so that I would not be made light of in an environment where there was, by no means, only adults that thought favourably of me.

In the midst of all those unrelenting gazes, the fact that I was instead treated as an adult was also something to be proud of.

Training with the members of the Guard Corps from the Anderson Marquis House made me feel like I had returned home……where I could move while feeling at ease. In comparison, training at the Capital always had a sense of tension, like the feeling one gets when at work.

Well, in reality I've never 'worked' before, but somehow I could imagine that working would have that sort of feeling to it.

It wasn't really a matter of which environment was 'better', as both of them were necessary existences for my own growth.

"Ah, Kuroitsu-san!"

I called out to Kuroitsu-san, who unexpectedly appeared.

"Ah, Mel…….you've done things quite flas.h.i.+ly again."

There were heaps of corpses around me……seeing the fallen members of the Guard Corps, Kuroitsu-san made a wry smile.

"……why is Kuroitsu-san here today? The Head still hasn't returned yet."

At Kuroitsu-san's reaction, I made a similar smile while returning a question.

"Oh, seriously……Then I guess I just missed him. Well, that's fine. I was around the area, so I was just dropping by anyhow."

"Yo, Kuroitsu."

"Oh, Shurei. You came over here?"

Shurei-san revived and called out to Kuroitsu-san.

On top of being around the same age, Kuroitsu-san would come to the Anderson Marquis House quite often to partic.i.p.ate in training, so they had plenty of chances to meet and completely hit it off with each other.

"……from how you were earlier, it seems that you were crushed by Mel as soon as you got back?"

"Ahh……pretty much. It's as you can see. Since even you lost, I was wondering how much she grew……well, it was quite magnificent."

"No doubt."

"Leaving that aside……say, Kuroitsu. Are you free after this?"

"Hm? Ahh, more or less. I just finished handing things over too."

"Then let's go out to drink tonight. It's been a while since I was last in the Capital, so accompany me."

"Ahh……well, that's fine. If that's the case, then let's call out the guys who come out to train after work hours to go drinking too."

"Ohh, let's do that."

"……what does Mel want to do?"

As the two conversed, Kuroitsu-san suddenly directed the topic towards me.

"Is it okay if I go?"

"Yeah, of course. We're all comrades shedding sweat together here, so let's celebrate Shurei's visit to the Capital together."

"Yes! Thank you very much."