Chapter 14: Dating-(1)

After I began learning the sword from my brother, time passed quickly.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get to learn from him every day.

My brother held the position of the captain of the Black Dusk Knights.

Since the very purpose of the Black Dusk Knight Captain was to be a sword dedicated solely to the emperor, he had to spend most of his time by the emperor’s side.

Fortunately, the distance between the capital and Serigard wasn’t too great, so I was able to train under my brother at least twice a week.

And on the remaining five days, when my brother was absent, I trained alone in the training grounds.

As of now, I had barely stepped into the realm of a Sword Expert.

In terms of rank, I was at best a low-ranking knight.

This meant that my physical training was still lacking.

To wield the sword more skillfully, I needed to enhance my strength, so I spent most of my time in the training grounds.

Naturally, my dedication attracted the attention of those around me.

Among them, the ones I encountered most frequently were the knights of the Black Dusk Order.

They were the people who had looked after me when I was younger.

While I at least knew their names, we had grown distant over the years.

‘That’s because I had practically given up on the sword.’

But now, I had taken up the sword again and was swinging it in the training grounds without missing a single day.

It was inevitable that I would keep running into the knights.

‘That was the same in my past life as well.’

The difference now was my attitude.

In my previous life, I had been indifferent to them.

During the three years from the age of fifteen until I reached adulthood, there was almost no interaction between us.

The only person I had truly interacted with was Layla.

That was due to my nature.

I had always had faint emotions since childhood.

It wasn’t that I couldn’t feel emotions, but I struggled to express them.

Naturally, I became increasingly distant from others, and the only people I could act like a normal person around were my brother and Leila.

‘That’s why I started forcing myself to smile.’

I think I was around thirteen when I had that conversation with Leila.

“Aren, you need to start smiling more. The servants have been saying they’re scared of you these days.”

To the servants, it was only natural to feel that way.

Serigard rarely replaced its staff, meaning that many of the servants had known me since I was a child.

From their perspective, a boy who had barely shown any emotion since childhood and always wore a blank expression must have seemed unsettling.

After hearing those words, I started forcing myself to smile.

‘I think I got better at expressing emotions after meeting Ilia.’

Ilia was different from me—her emotions were so deep and radiant that they seemed to shine.

I was captivated by that aspect of her and learned how to express emotions through her.

‘To be honest, I still don’t have any particular feelings about the knights…’

But if things played out the same way as in my past life, and the Black Dusk Knights were once again sent to Rigmond, then building relationships with the knights would be a great advantage for me.

Even the slightest hesitation in a battle could be a decisive factor.

That was why I started engaging more with the knights.

And as I continued interacting with them, I discovered an unexpected benefit.

The knights of the Black Dusk Order were mostly high-ranking knights.

Though they had not reached the realm of Master, they had dedicated their entire lives to the sword and possessed knowledge of swordsmanship that far exceeded mine.

Because of that, just by conversing with them, I was able to identify ways to improve my own swordsmanship.

From correcting minor bad habits to learning sword techniques I had never even heard of.

Their knowledge and insight were immensely helpful to me.

Fueled by the sense of accomplishment that came with steady progress, I practically took up residence in the training grounds.

I slept in the spare rooms used by the knights and shared my meals with them.

After living in the training grounds for about a month, I received a letter.

The sender was Ilia.

She had mentioned sending a letter, but I hadn’t expected her to actually do it.

After all, the only letter I had ever received from Ilia before… was her will.

I began to slowly open the letter with a paper knife, careful not to tear the stationery.

“Young Master, what is that?”

Just then, a knight spoke to me.

His name was Rex.

In the dark-hued Order of Knights, where the average age tended to be on the higher side, he was a rare sight—a knight in his twenties.

‘And one of the few mid-rank knights as well.’

In terms of skill, Rex was at the very peak of the mid-tier Sword Expert level.

Reaching the mid-tier of Sword Expert in one’s early twenties was a clear sign of exceptional talent.

‘Then again, I reached Sword Master at the age of twenty.’

Setting aside those born with monstrous talent, like Serigard or Rigmond, Rex’s abilities were undoubtedly outstanding.

There was a real chance he might one day reach the level of Sword Master, which is why I made an effort to build a good relationship with him.

Fortunately, Rex was naturally sociable, and we became friends in no time.

Thanks to that, he had no reservations about approaching me.

“Is that a letter?”

Rex asked, and I nodded as I replied.

“I honestly didn’t expect it to actually arrive.”

“What do you mean…? But who is it from?”

“My fiancée.”

At my words, Rex’s eyes widened in shock.

“You had a fiancée, Young Master?”

“…”

My engagement had been a major topic of conversation within Serigard for quite some time.

And for Rex to be unaware of it meant that he was utterly uninterested in rumors.

The only thing that mattered to Rex was the sword.

Everything else barely registered in his mind.

“Don’t look at me like that. I know I’m bad at keeping up with gossip. So, what does it say?”

Rex asked curiously.

“I don’t know. Like I said earlier, I didn’t expect her to actually send one.”

Scratching his head, Rex muttered,

“Does that mean you and your fiancée don’t get along?”

“…Not sure.”

That was something even I was confused about.

Ilia was full of inconsistencies.

Compared to my past life, she had changed too much.

At one point, I even wondered if she had regressed like I did, but there were too many things that didn’t add up for that to be the case.

Ilia didn’t hate me, but she didn’t seem to like me either.

The deep emotions she had poured into her will before she died were nowhere to be found in her current self.

No matter how I looked at it, regression wasn’t the answer.

So, where did we stand now?

‘Are we… nothing at all?’

Just two people who were destined to marry someday—nothing more, nothing less.

At least, that’s how she seemed to see it.

“Nobles sure are complicated.”

“You’re a noble too.”

“Come on, being a baron’s second son barely counts.”

Rex said with a laugh, then started rambling about his childhood—how much fun he had playing hero games with commoner kids.

I half-listened to his stories while finally finishing opening the letter and beginning to read.

To my dear fiancé, Aren Serigard

I hope you understand that I lack the talent for writing, so I won’t be embellishing my words with flowery language.

I am currently in the capital.

And the reason I’m here… is to receive imperial approval for the inheritance of my noble title.

Damn Emperor.

He could have just stamped the document, but instead, he started rambling about high nobles and told me to come in person.

Ah, I’d appreciate it if you pretended not to notice me cursing the Emperor.

Anyway, because of that, I’ll be staying in the capital for a while.

As far as I know, Serigard isn’t too far from the capital…

You know what that means, right?

I can’t help it—I’m still a woman.

If my fiancé escorts me, I think I might feel a little excited.

Just saying.

I actually wanted to write to you sooner, but I had nothing to say, so I’m only sending this now.

I hope to see you soon.

—Your beloved, Ilia Rigmund.

“…”

“Young Master, isn’t this a threat?”

Rex, who had somehow ended up reading the letter with me, said that, but I ignored him.

Ilia wanted to see me.

That alone made it worth going.

‘She didn’t even meet me for three years before this…’

I never thought I’d get to see her this soon.

Suppressing the excitement rising in my chest, I turned to Rex and asked,

“Rex, have you ever been to the capital?”

“Yes, I have. But why do you ask?”

“Come with me to the capital.”

“Can’t you go alone? If I train for just a few more days, I think I can reach Expert-level High Rank…”

“No. That’s an order.”

“Young Master, you’re not my superior. Technically, I belong to the Darksteel Knights, not the Serigard Order.”

“Same difference.”

“Technically, it’s not.”

“Then I’ll just tell my brother.”

“…Are you seriously doing this?”

“You expect me, not even an adult yet, to travel to the capital alone?”

“Yes, I think that would be fine.”

“Nope.”

“Why not?!”

“Carriages are too slow. And unfortunately, I don’t have a horse.”

“Then just ask the commander to buy you one.”

“That would take even longer.”

“If you don’t like it, lend me your horse.”

“Absolutely not!”

“Then it’s decided. What are you doing? Hurry up and get ready to leave.”

“…”

With half-dead eyes, Rex trudged toward the stables, while I headed back to my room.

‘I can’t meet Ilia in my training clothes.’

Deep down, I was looking forward to our reunion.