Since that day, Kyle’s daily life has undergone a slight change.
No, in fact, even though it has changed, his daily routine has not significantly altered.
Rather, it was as if a small seasoning was added to his unchanged routine, with Sylvia’s presence slipping in.
“Huff…! Ha!”
To prove this, Kyle was once again swinging his wooden sword, immersed in training as usual.
Although his true nature was that of a wizard, he hadn’t forgotten the basics of swordsmanship.
In fact, after his reincarnation, he seemed more focused on swords than magic, as if he wanted to try again at things he couldn’t achieve in his previous life.
Just as he was sweating profusely, a faint presence appeared in the previously quiet training hall.
“Good work, Sir Lyard. Have you finished your training for today?”
‘…The princess.’
Kyle hesitated for a moment when Sylvia appeared with the towel he had forgotten, then let out a small sigh, making sure she didn’t hear him.
This was the biggest change that had come into his daily life.
Although what he was doing hadn’t changed much from usual, Sylvia kept appearing at intervals in the middle of his routine.
“You didn’t bring your water and towel. I heard Alpf was going, so I came instead.”
She smiled brightly as she handed him a water flask, but Kyle couldn’t bring himself to look at her and turned his head slightly, muttering.
“Next time, please ask Alf to do it.”
“Tsk, is that all you have to say to someone who went through the trouble of bringing it? Aren’t there words you should say before that?”
“…Thank you.”
“Hehe, you’re too kind.”
She seemed to be trying to take the flask and towel back, but when he finally expressed his gratitude, she returned them with a smile.
Kyle wiped his sweat-soaked face with the towel, gulping down water as if he were someone who had just crossed a desert.
Then, as if to rest, he sat down directly on the ground.
Sylvia followed his lead and sat beside him, staring intently at his profile.
“…Do you have something to say?”
“No.”
Unable to endure the gaze, Kyle asked cautiously, and Sylvia just smiled, shaking her head.
Her smile, which used to seem like a small flower, now felt like the most frightening thing in the world to Kyle.
“By the way, why are you staring at me like that…?”
“Do you need a reason to stare at your fiancé?”
“Princess, that topic…”
“Oh, right? Sorry, I forgot. We haven’t talked about this yet.”
She realized her mistake and made a sheepish expression, but emphasized the word “yet” with a smile, which seemed very deliberate.
It felt as though she was saying it wouldn’t be long, and Kyle was left in confusion, wondering what he should do about this.
He even thought for a moment that perhaps it would have been easier to deal with the problem of the morning’s snow than with this situation.
“By the way, my mother asked me to check if there’s anything you’d like for lunch.”
“…Your mother?”
Having just emptied the contents of his water flask and standing up to leave, Kyle froze at the sudden voice of Sylvia.
There was nothing strange in the words themselves, but there was an unusual word mixed in.
“Mother”? That was a term that seemed more fitting for a married woman calling her in-laws.
“Yes, Lady Roxanne, your mother.”
“That’s not what I’m asking. When did you get so close to my mother?”
Kyle, too startled to control his tone, raised his voice in confusion.
At least with his father, Dver, Kyle had already noticed that he viewed Sylvia quite favorably, so that made sense to some degree.
But his mother, Roxanne, had no real connection to Sylvia.
Although Roxanne, like Dver, had shown some care toward Sylvia, Kyle never imagined they had become so close already.
Why on earth?
“Well, even if you say that… there wasn’t any special reason. The other day, we were just having tea together when she suddenly asked me.”
“Your mother was the one to bring it up?”
“Yes.”
Oh, my god.
Kyle had to call out to the heavens for the second time today, as he never expected this answer.
If Sylvia had at least asked for permission to call her “mother,” he could understand, but this was completely baffling.
Kyle almost felt it made more sense to think Sylvia had used some sort of mental manipulation magic to control Roxanne.
“Now that I’ve won over your father, mother, and brother-in-law, all that’s left is Sir Lyard.”
“…My father I understand, but did my brother also tell you to call him that?”
He couldn’t believe his brother would allow that.
In fact, Hassel was practically the only one in the castle who didn’t look at Sylvia with disdain.
But seeing Sylvia call him with such a friendly tone, Kyle made a face as if he couldn’t believe it.
Sylvia shook her head firmly and added,
“No, I didn’t ask for permission. I just thought your brother might feel left out if I only called the others that.”
“You didn’t call him like that to his face, did you?”
“Of course I did. I ran into him just now, and thought, ‘Now’s the time!’”
How did this woman become so reckless and impulsive?
When the scene flashed in his mind, Kyle unknowingly pressed his forehead in disbelief.
“What was his reaction like?”
“It was quite something. It looked like he’d swallowed a handful of maggots.”
Tap.
The image of his brother’s face came to mind, and Kyle couldn’t help but rub his forehead.
He didn’t expect to side with Hassel instead of Sylvia, but at least for today, he wanted to say that Hassel’s reaction was the right one.
If the situation were reversed and Hassel brought an unfamiliar woman, calling her his fiancée, and she addressed him as “Young Master,” he could confidently say that he would have made the same expression.
“Haa….”
In this dizzying situation, Kyle let out a short sigh.
Today, if anyone crossed his path, he had the urge to use them as an outlet for his frustration.
Creak… Clatter.
A carriage approached the quiet front of Frihi Castle and stopped at the castle gate.
On the carriage’s crest, a golden staff was engraved.
Just as the Lyard family, known as one of the Empire’s Three Swords, was permitted to engrave a sword on their crest,
There were very few families that could claim to be a prestigious house of magic by engraving a staff.
Especially if that staff was golden, a symbol considered the pinnacle of magic.
The most representative of such families was the Drake family.
“We have arrived, Young Master.”
“Alright.”
Soon, the carriage door opened, and stepping out with impeccable poise was none other than Vermillion Drake.
If one were to ask why he suddenly arrived at Frihi Castle, the stronghold of the Lyard family, the answer was simple.
It was to receive the magic training he was promised as compensation when he made a contract with Kyle.
Although Vermillion belonged to the Drake family, which was backed by the Eyes of Dawn, his passion and ambition for magic had not dimmed.
If it meant delving deeper into magic and gaining even greater power and achievements,
He was a man who would follow anyone, regardless of family or the Eyes of Dawn.
That was why he was here today.
“You’ve arrived, Vermillion.”
As he stood still at the castle gate, surveying the surroundings, Kyle, who had come outside at some point, greeted him in his usual indifferent tone.
“Yes, have you been well, Ka….”
Vermillion started to greet him but suddenly hesitated.
For some reason, someone who shouldn’t be standing next to Kyle was right there.
“It’s the first time we’ve met again since the Duke’s territory. Prince Drake, have you been well?”
“……?”
Why is she here?
For a moment, his consciousness froze at the sight of her heterochromatic eyes.
Then, when her uniquely gentle and calm voice reached his ears, his mind stalled again before attempting to reboot.
It was undoubtedly Sylvia Eleonore.
A woman known as a witch due to her possession of the Evil Eye.
But that was in the past, and recently, after a major incident within the Eleonore family,
She had risen to the position of family head, proving her abilities and earning a much better reputation.
That wasn’t the issue, though.
The real question was, why was she here at the Lyard family’s stronghold at this moment?
Vermillion found it truly puzzling.
“Oh, it’s been a while, Lady Eleonore. But what brings you here…?”
“There are various circumstances. I’ll be staying here for a while to receive bridal training.”
“Bridal training?”
What on earth was she talking about?
Vermillion was one of the few people who knew that Kyle and Sylvia’s relationship was fake,
So he was even more dumbfounded by her words.
Bridal training? Then, could it be…?
“…No wonder you kept pressuring me to spill all the information I had about this lady. Have you completely fallen for her?”
Having successfully pieced the puzzle together in his head, he approached Kyle, nudging his side with his elbow and smirking suggestively.
Kyle remained silent for a long time before eventually—
Crunch.
“Keugh…!?”
“Lady, please head back inside. I’ll be stopping by the training ground with Vermillion for a moment.”
Gripping Vermillion’s shoulder as if to crush it, Kyle spoke in a calm tone, as if he had another prior engagement.
“The training ground? But Prince Drake has just arrived and must still be tired from the journey. Why…?”
“There is a sufficient reason. I’ll just give him a little lesson for about an hour… No, I mean, I’ll check his skills after a long time before we return.”
“Alright…”
Although it seemed like he hastily reworded his statement midway, Vermillion couldn’t argue.
Since Kyle had already grabbed him, he was too busy enduring the overwhelming magical pressure emanating from him to say anything.
“Perfect timing. Let’s go inside.”
Meanwhile, Kyle, who had already been feeling unsettled, smirked coldly at his newly arrived punching bag and dragged Vermillion to the training ground.
Shortly after, according to the servants roaming around the training ground,
Screams never ceased from within.
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