79. I Am Your Knight, You Are My Lady

“The winner, Grand Duke Inkheart!”

Thunderous applause filled the arena. Throughout the match, Darius had demonstrated overwhelming superiority against Count Spinel.

“Dad, the sword flashed during the match!”

“Dad saw it too. It was probably sunlight.”

“No! At the end, light burst out from the sword! How could sunlight do that!”

“That’s……”

Unlike some fathers who couldn’t properly explain, the knights in the audience could recognize their level. They were filled with awe.

“So the rumors about Count Spinel being a Sword Aura user were true. Her sword was completely enveloped in blue energy. To think I’d see that with my own eyes!”

“That’s not the issue here. What Grand Duke Inkheart showed at the end! That thing he pulled up about an inch from his sword……”

“Sword Expert……”

“My goodness, a Sword Aura user is already surprising in this day and age, but a Sword Expert?”

“So it’s true that when you can freely control a sword’s mana, you can not only coat the sword with mana but also make energy surge from the sword’s tip!”

“I envy Count Spinel.”

“If only I could have a chance to duel with a Sword Expert user too…!”

“Hey. It’s only because she’s a Sword Aura user that she could face an Expert. If an ordinary sword had received the Grand Duke’s sword, it would have shattered on the spot, right?”

“Until now, all we knew was that this castle’s knight commander was a Sword Aura user. But if he’s a Sword Expert, Grand Duke Inkheart’s martial prowess is even more exceptional.”

“Has he been hiding it all this time?”

“Think about the Grand Duke’s age. He’ll definitely get stronger in the future.”

“Coming to Castle Inkheart this winter is an incredible stroke of luck as a swordsman. My goodness, to witness a match between two such powerful fighters.”

Leaving the audience’s cheers behind, the victor Darius helped the fallen Count Spinel to her feet.

“To think you would make me reveal my Sword Aura…… This is truly my defeat. I’ve already lost, and the damage is severe.”

“That’s rich coming from the count who made me demonstrate Sword Expert technique at the end.”

“All swordsmen want to keep an ace up their sleeve. I had no idea the Grand Duke had reached the level of controlling sword mana. I’m impressed.”

Count Spinel added with sincere admiration.

“Please wait. I’ll catch up soon.”

“More swordsmen walking the same path are always welcome.”

This was the moment when Count Spinel, who had experienced a plateau after reaching Sword Aura, found a new goal in Darius.

Darius finished the match, ran over to me, and presented a bouquet.

“I’ve come to collect what I was promised.”

The valiant swordsman instantly transformed into a playful young man waiting for his reward.

“Waaah!”

Whoosh. My cheeks turned red. Everyone was watching.

“W-well then.”

I pulled Darius’s face, who was kneeling on one knee with his head bowed, and kissed him.

“Just the cheek?”

Darius spoke as if in disbelief.

That was the best I could do.

At my evasion, Darius’s black pupils took on a mischievous light.

“I fought twice in your name, and this is all the reward for my wait?”

“When did you fight in my name?”

“It’s natural for a husband to compete with his wife’s blessing and honor at stake.”

Darius remained in his seated position. Laughter and cheers erupted from the audience who had been watching with interest.

This naughty puppy.

Even when I narrowed my eyes into triangles, it made no difference.

‘I could pass off a kiss on the cheek as affection, but the lips.’

Lips have a special meaning, don’t they?

‘Argh!’

Feeling like I couldn’t delay any longer, I pressed my lips against his again, almost like a head-butt, when.

‘Huh?’

What Darius offered was the opposite cheek that hadn’t received a kiss earlier.

“I went out twice, so I should receive two kisses to be fair. If you’re going to kiss my cheek anyway.”

He chuckled at my tense expression. Then he gently devoured my lips.

“Of course, the best is receiving it on these lips.”

His thick eyelashes were above my head.

A soft, warm sensation enveloped me once.

For a very brief moment, time seemed to stop.

‘What just happened?’

He kissed me. Taking advantage of my moment of distraction.

“Darius!”

“Waaah!”

My small resentment was drowned out by the victorious atmosphere. Darius, who had stolen my lips, simply retreated leisurely.

“Lady of Inkheart!”

“Anette Inkheart!”

“The mistress of our Grand Duchy!”

“When will we hear news of an heir!”

Who said that last one!

I glared at the crowd who were intoxicated with excitement and babbling whatever came to mind. By now, Count Spinel had approached Darius’s side.

As the honorable Lady of Inkheart, I conveyed warm words of comfort to her as well. Count Spinel looked relieved.

“That was excellent skill. It’s a blessing to have a swordsman like Count Spinel in the North.”

“Though I lost, I learned much from the Grand Duke. It’s an honor.”

A Sword Aura user.

When she first learned to harness sword mana, did she have an outstanding teacher or companion who helped her find the path of mana flowing through her body? Or did she reach enlightenment on her own despite the difficulties?

Later, when I became friends with Count Spinel and asked her about it, she gave me an answer with a very puzzled expression.

“Accept someone else’s energy? I have heard stories of masters opening mana channels for their most cherished disciples, but…… isn’t receiving someone else’s energy basically unpleasant? Even just the mana transmitted when crossing swords with the Grand Duke made me feel quite edgy. Energy exchange, well, it’s almost like touching each other’s naked bodies. It requires tremendous trust.”

When Count Spinel asked why I was asking, I barely managed a smile and said it was nothing.

Something that can only be done in a very intimate relationship?

Requires tremendous trust?

Like touching each other’s naked bodies?

And he did that to me so casually?

“Darius!”

The story of how I, who had been patient at the scene, immediately shouted at Darius as soon as I met him is for another time. After this tournament ended and some time had passed.

* * *

Rumble.

People flocked to Count Spinel’s side after she finished the match exhausted. They were people who shared the ‘anti-Inkheart’ sentiment with Count Spinel.

“Count, did you perhaps go easy on him?”

“How is that possible? A Sword Expert at that age? There’s no way a strong fighter like the count could lose to such a wet-behind-the-ears youngster.”

Stop.

Count Spinel shot a glare at the murmuring people as if they were beneath her dignity.

“Are your eyes knotholes?”

“That skill at that age! My goodness, if that’s real skill, is he even human? There must have been some trick!”

“Are you suggesting that I was defeated helplessly, unable to detect even a shallow trick?”

Shiver. Those who had been chattering immediately shut their mouths at the killing intent Count Spinel emanated.

“T-that’s not what I meant……”

“If not that, then what?”

There was no response.

“Rejoice. With a genius swordsman like Grand Duke Inkheart in the same era, the North will be safe.”

Count Spinel was a warrior by nature. Darius had defeated her with surprising martial prowess, and she accepted the result.

Rather, she found the petty people’s chatter distasteful.

“T-then really……”

“Has the renowned swordsmanship house of Inkheart been revived?”

“If you have complaints, try facing him yourselves. Then you’ll immediately know whether his skill is real or fake.”

Under Count Spinel’s endorsement, the ‘anti-Inkheart’ sentiment was gradually changing.

‘Count Spinel treating Grand Duke Inkheart favorably? This is troublesome.’

One of the whispering people bit their lip and retreated. They needed to quickly relay the news. To the person who was coming here.

* * *

After Darius proved himself the strongest in the tournament, peace came to Castle Inkheart.

Count Spinel had conceded, and instantly all the armies of the North looked at Darius with admiration.

It was different from their previous loyalty.

‘These Northerners. They really love a true warrior.’

People who preferred having the strongest person above them rather than a wise ruler.

“Barbarossa, was it? I heard about your exploits in the recent Tiberius territory battle. I’m not trying to poach someone from the Grand Duke’s household, but I like strong people. Let’s have a drink sometime.”

And seeing Count Spinel take a personal interest in Barbarossa, who was merely a mercenary commander, I realized something.

‘In the original story, Darius had to participate in various wars because Lady Ygret ran off with the money. I sent Barbarossa to those wars instead.’

In the original story, Darius had shone with his military exploits through various wars.

But the current Darius, because of me, didn’t need to participate in others’ wars, and as a result, while money wasn’t an issue, the people of the North didn’t know Darius’s true abilities.

‘I never thought my interference with the original story would manifest this way.’

Still, thanks to my interference, Count Spinel’s son was alive.

Though the inflammation was almost gone, young master Emil wanted to stay in Inkheart for a while.

“Can I really not raise a dog?”

Thud.

Emil, who was suspected of having allergic rhinitis given how his nose ran after playing with furry animals, made a face as if the sky was falling.

“Unfortunately, all I can say is eat well, build a strong body, and try to develop your immunity.”

At least it wasn’t an allergy to horse hair. It’s much better for rumors to spread that the heir of Count Spinel doesn’t raise hunting dogs rather than that he can’t ride horses.

“My lady, there’s a luncheon tea party afterward.”

“I know. I’ll be there soon.”