Inside Eisende’s study, sunlight slanted through the window and spilled across the dark carpet.
The room was comfortably warm, with a faint scent of wood lingering in the air.
The man behind the desk was buried in documents, his pen scratching steadily on the paper.
At the doorway, Eleanor stood clutching the hem of her skirt between her fingers, hesitating for a long time before finally speaking up.
“Father… Helos, she…”
Eisende didn’t even look up as he asked, “What about her?”
“She wants to go hunt magical beasts.”
The duke’s pen came to a halt.
The man slowly lifted his head, his gaze sharp as a hawk’s as it landed on Eleanor.
Just that one look was enough to make Eleanor’s heart leap into her throat.
“Absurd.”
Just two syllables, but they landed on the girl’s heart like a heavy hammer.
Eleanor held her breath and instinctively lowered her head.
In truth, she had already guessed this would be the answer.
She was about to withdraw when her father added in a calm voice, “However—if she truly has such determination, let her prove her strength and show she’s capable.”
Eleanor jerked her head up.
“Prove? How?”
“Let her challenge Werner.”
Eisende’s eyes remained cold, his tone flat.
“If even Werner can acknowledge her strength, then it shows she’s more than someone hiding behind medicine bottles and books. If that day comes, I’ll consider granting her request.”
Eleanor stared, almost doubting her own ears.
“You’re serious?”
“I never joke about such matters.”
Eisende dropped his gaze, resuming his work.
“It’s not just her. Since you’ve assigned Julius as her guard, he too must be tested. If even Werner doesn’t approve of someone, I wouldn’t feel at ease letting him protect Helos.”
Eleanor’s chest tightened painfully.
Werner? He was one of her father’s most trusted personal guards—even she couldn’t hope to gain the upper hand against him.
Letting Helos challenge him was basically pushing her into the fire.
But her father’s tone left no room for discussion.
Or perhaps, this was simply his way of refusing Helos.
“Yes, I understand.”
Eleanor bowed, withdrawing from the study.
***
By the time she returned to her own room, dusk had already settled outside.
Helos was half sprawled over her desk, flipping listlessly through an old tome she’d been reading.
When she heard the door open, she immediately looked up, a hint of hope lighting her eyes.
“Well? What did Father say?”
Eleanor bit her lip. She’d thought that if she just said “He refused,” that would be the end of it.
But the condition—“if you succeed in challenging Werner”—weighed on her heart like a stone.
She hesitated for a moment, but still spoke the truth.
“Father refused. But he said, if you can get Werner’s acknowledgment, he’ll agree to let you hunt magical beasts.”
“And Julius has to take the test with you.”
“Eh?”
Helos blinked, and then her whole face lit up.
“Oh? I didn’t expect him to actually agree!”
“Ah? He didn’t agree…”
“Isn’t this giving me a chance?”
Eleanor stared, dazed, at her suddenly excited sister.
She’d thought Helos would be dejected, that she’d back down—after all, Werner’s strength was well known.
As one of the duke’s personal guards, he could even go toe-to-toe with the commander of the Imperial Royal Knights.
But the girl before her looked like she’d just received a gift, her eyes shining with excitement and fighting spirit.
“You—you’re serious?”
Eleanor could hardly believe her eyes.
“Of course!”
Helos slapped the desk, her eyes curving into delighted crescents. “Father said it himself! He can’t go back on his word, right?”
Her voice brimmed with energy, even tinged with glee.
Eleanor opened her mouth, but no words came out.
Had her little sister not considered the difficulty or consequences at all?
Right now, the young lady just felt her head buzzing.
She could easily picture Werner’s cold, severe face.
And mercy from him was out of the question.
If Helos went up against him recklessly, she’d be lucky to last even a single round.
But looking at her sister’s sparkling eyes, Eleanor found herself unable to say anything more.
“Do as you please.”
In the end, Eleanor only managed to leave these words, turning away.
Helos couldn’t help but leap up, running excitedly to the door and shouting, “Julius! Good news, good news!”
The black-haired boy skulking in the corridor froze. He’d barely turned his head before Helos pounced right on him.
“How did you know I was here?”
“Who do you think I am?”
Helos snorted, then whispered conspiratorially, “Father said! As long as we can defeat Werner, he’ll let us go hunt magical beasts!”
“What?!”
Julius’s expression turned to stone in an instant.
He looked like he’d just swallowed a whole bowl of bitterness.
“Looks like our Hunting Plan can move ahead now~”
Helos was bursting with excitement.
“Wait! Challenge Mister Werner?!”
The boy’s eyes went wide, as if doubting his own ears.
But Helos didn’t even notice his panic, too busy waving her arms in excitement.
“Yep, yep~! Isn’t this our chance?”
Watching her, Julius just felt his heart sink.
Werner—who was he?
Even ten of him wouldn’t be enough to take that man down!
If Werner had been the one blocking the way in the warehouse back then, he could have captured all those Abyss cultists by himself.
Helos, do you even realize what you’re about to face?
He glanced toward the doorway, just in time to meet Eleanor’s complicated gaze.
And the young lady simply closed her eyes, as if silently praying for him.
***
Back at the workshop, Julius finally couldn’t hold back and asked,
“You look so confident—do you have some secret weapon for dealing with Mister Werner?”
“Dream on, will you?”
Helos rolled her eyes mercilessly, her tone dripping with disdain. “You think Werner’s someone you can beat with tricks?”
“So you know full well how strong he is, then?”
Julius’s brows twitched. He couldn’t help but retort, “If we don’t have a secret weapon, how can we possibly win?”
“Who said we have to defeat Werner?”
Helos arched an eyebrow, giving Julius a look as if he were an idiot.
“But isn’t that what His Grace said?”
Julius froze.
“He said to get Werner’s acknowledgment, not to beat him.”
The girl spread her hands, arguing her case matter-of-factly. “In other words—as long as we can show Werner our strength is enough to go hunting magical beasts, that’s enough, right?”
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I suppose.