Chapter 36

Chapter 36: Sword Saint - 1

After the king left, we returned to our adventure stories before the meal and spent some leisurely time together.

At that moment, a knight arrived and knelt before the princess.

"Princess, may I proceed?"

"Oh, Julius, you're back? That was quick. Did you bring what I asked for?"

The princess addressed the knight as "Julius."

...Julius?! Could it be that he's the "Sword Saint," who appeared as the strongest swordsman in the game era and became the protagonist's swordmaster?

"I had a little trouble, but I managed to bring it back. I left it in the usual place, so please check it later."

"Great, thank you."

After hearing Julius's report, the princess expressed her gratitude and called out to Julius as he was about to leave, saying, "Oh, by the way, there are some people I want to introduce."

No, I have a bad feeling about meeting Julius here...

While thinking that in my mind, I glanced at Julius, who was called out by the princess and looked at us.

"Mr. Jin and Ms. Chloe, these adventurers will work as my escorts at the academy. We'll be together for a long time, so please get along."

"I'm Julius, the knight of the princess's guard. Nice to meet you."

Julius greeted us politely, and we also introduced ourselves and exchanged greetings.

"I see, so these are the people they were talking about. I heard that the princess recently had a favorite person from communication using magical tools during missions, so I was curious about who they were."

Julius said with a smile.

The "they" that Julius mentioned is probably the people the princess has gathered...

Julius is also one of them. He lived as an orphan and met the princess, who saved him, and became a knight. He obtained the title of the kingdom's strongest swordsman, the "Sword Saint," and became the princess's close guard.

"Hmm... I see. I can understand a little why the princess likes you. Both of you are like bundles of talent."

"Oh, no, it's not like that."

"Yes, we're just ordinary adventurers you can find anywhere."

Chloe and I reacted to Julius's words like that.

"No, no, I've never seen such talented individuals before. Especially you, Jin, you're amazing. Princess, you did a great job finding these people."

"Hehe, they couldn't hide from me. Before anyone else could get their hands on them, I reached out to them."

"Is that so? Just as I expected. The princess is quick to act."

Princess and Julius engaged in such a conversation.

While observing the two of them, Chloe and I quietly whispered to each other.

"Chloe, make sure you don't get on Julius's good side. It will only make things worse... "

"I-I'll be fine, but Jin-kun should be careful..."

"I understand. I won't do anything this time."

After advising Chloe, I was advised in return. I made up my mind to prevent Julius from taking a liking to me no matter what.

Until now, it was already a pretty dangerous situation to be liked by characters like Asuka or the princess, but I recognized Julius as an even more dangerous character.

Why is that? Because he will eventually become the protagonist's mentor.

If I were to be liked by someone like him, the chances of me meeting the protagonist would increase even further.

It's not like I've done anything wrong or turned into a villain in this world.

However, if we were to meet and, by some chance, the power of the story's correction were to come into play, there is the possibility that the story would unfold as it should.

"Princess, earlier you mentioned that Julius-san brought what you requested, right? We've been talking for a long time today, so how about we end it and disperse?"

"Indeed, I do want to check on that as soon as possible... Yes, then let's finish for today."

"Yes! In that case, I will come again tomorrow at the same time."

I replied to the princess's words, and with Chloe, I moved away from that place as quickly as possible.

However, Julius called out to us, saying, "Wait, please."

"W-What is it?"

"Well, earlier you mentioned that you would be the princess's escort. If you don't mind, would you like to have a match with me? It's not to measure your abilities, but I heard that both of you have little experience in interpersonal combat. So, I came here thinking I could be your training partner."

"Oh, I see. But Julius, aren't you still tired from your journey?"

"I'm fine with that. I've rested properly, so I'm in perfect condition."

Upon hearing the princess's concerned voice, Julius replied, sparkling with excitement, and turned his gaze toward us, asking, "What do you think?"

Realizing that we wouldn't be able to escape, I sighed and said, "Alright, please do." Thus, I ended up engaging in a simulated battle with Julius.