Chapter 42

Boom!

It wasn't the sound of wooden swords clashing. It was the sound of a shockwave from a collision.

Sara, whose attack was easily blocked, moved the wooden sword in her other hand.

Boom!

Boom boom boom!

Sara continuously attacked Kane. Her specialty was rapid swordplay.

However, to Kane, it all seemed slow.

"Will you attack the enemy so recklessly as well?" Kane muttered as he deflected Sara's wooden sword.

"Guardian Stream."

In an instant, a purple mana tiger enveloped him. It was the skill he used against the Dark Sentinel.

Though it was an absolute defense skill, it could also significantly damage the opponent if used effectively.

"Ugh!"

Sara tried to escape the swirling vortex of water but couldn't.

'It's pulling me in from the front!'

She struck the vortex with her wooden sword, but the recoil only caused more damage.

At that moment, Kane's voice came again.

"You must face the consequences of a careless attack."

As soon as he finished speaking, the swirling water spread out in a circle.

"Ah!"

Sara let out a scream, swept away by the water mana, and tumbled backward. She fell clumsily but quickly planted her wooden sword into the ground to steady herself.

Scrape!

As the wooden sword scraped the ground and slowed her down, she finally managed to regain her balance. She looked up to see—

"Bruh, you got too excited. It's my win~" Kane's wooden sword was aimed at her chin.

Her eyes wavered.

'I thought I had reached Mid-Tier 3rd Class… but my brother is this strong?!'

She couldn't even touch Kane's clothes. A crushing defeat. She was furious.

"Let's… Do it… again."

"The result will be the same."

"I want to fight again!"

Sara shouted, swatting away the wooden sword resting at her neck.

"I don't want to."

Kane walked over to the weapon rack to put away his wooden sword. Or at least, he tried to, but was stopped by a voice from behind.

"…If you don't do it again… I'll curse you for the rest of your life…."

It wasn't an angry voice. It was a voice soaked with tears.

"…Are you crying?"

"I'm… not crying!"

Sara's eyes were brimming with tears.

"I understand you're upset, but crying over this…"

"I'm not crying!"

Her face was a mix of frustration and resentment. Kane was taken aback.

"This is unexpected…"

Sara glared at Kane silently.

Then, she stood up and readjusted her wooden sword. Her red lips were tightly pressed together. She wiped away her tears and began to gather her mana. It was clear she intended to give it her all from the start this time. Soon, a white haze began to emanate from her wooden sword.

"Even so…"

Kane actually knew Sara's true intention. She wasn't giving her all because she feared she might hurt him. She cared deeply for her brother.

"If you really want to, Let's fight again."

Regardless of what Kane said, Sara assumed her stance. It was a posture recognizable to anyone trained in the twin sword techniques of the Rehinar family. The right sword was drawn back near her ear, blade horizontal, while the left sword was held in reverse grip and extended forward. It was a basic stance where offense and defense merged as one.

"Give it your best shot."

Kane also released his mana.

* * *

News of Kane and Sara's sparring quickly reached the ears of the Guardian Knights. There was no way they would miss such a spectacle.

"Wow…"

"Hmm."

The Guardian Knights groaned in unison as they watched the duel. They could hardly believe what they were seeing.

"Wasn't Lady Sara a beginner of 3rd Class?"

"She was, right?"

"Seems like she's advanced to mid-tier now…"

Eighteen years old and already a Mid-Tier 3rd Class Knight. This was an exceptional level within the Freesia Empire.

What's more, Sara had trained on her own without attending the Imperial Academy. Unless someone in her family had secretly trained her, she had no teacher.

The Guardian Knights knew that Duke Carl and Cedric were always on the battlefield.

"How can the Young Master effortlessly counter her attacks?"

"He fooled us all."

Kane Rehinar, the Dullard Young Master, was effortlessly fighting with Sara who was at Mid-Tier 3rd class.

"Can you guess Young Master's level?"

The Guardian Knights analyzed Kane's mana to determine his level but soon found themselves puzzled.

"This is strange."

"Do you feel it too?"

"Mid-Tier 3rd Class?"

"Yeah, Lady Sara shouldn't be struggling this much."

At that moment, Vice Commander Fabi suddenly joined in.

"So, you guys are thinking the same thing as me?"

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to watch, just like you."

"We're here for the same reason."

"But isn't it really strange? Lady Sara, with her Water Bond (3 Runes), is being completely outmatched by the Young Master."

"Right? It's baffling."

"Hmm."

"Hmm."

Everyone fell into deep thought.

They continued to watch the duel but couldn't find an answer.

"No matter how much I watch, I can't figure it out."

"If Vice Commander Fabi can't figure it out, we certainly have no hope of finding the cause."

"I feel like an idiot."

Fabi suddenly recalled the time when Kane had wielded a spear.

"Can it be because he has two types of elemental runes?"

"Two types are stronger than one?"

"Exactly. He must have twice the mana as well."

"Then he wouldn't be just a Mid-Tier 3rd class Knight, he'd be at least beginner-tier 4th class."

"Or maybe the purity and depth of his mana are different."

"That's a plausible explanation."

"Even so… such a huge gap is still strange… Lady Sara's mana is second to none. She even surpasses the Young Master in mana, her 3 Runes (Bond) to his 2 Runes (Mark)…"

Fabi, who was a Mid-Tier 6th Class Knight, also looked perplexed.

There was only one thing they could be sure of.

"One thing's for sure, those movements are the real deal."

Fabi didn't miss a single one of Kane's movements.

Only he could see Kane's precise and efficient actions.

"He has the sense of a monstrous genius. He's moving even before Lady Sara's attacks arrive.."

Combat sense was something acquired through experience. It couldn't be learned without it.

If one was naturally born with it, then that person would be… a monster.

"He's reading all of Lady Sara's movements."

"Where did the Young Master get such experience… Oh!"

"That's right. The hidden territory! While we were at the border, the Young Master was gaining experience in the demon forest."

Their misunderstanding only deepened.

"Because of his image as a dullard, he must've been working hard where no one could see."

"I believe so."

"Ah, truly worthy of being the Heir of the Rehinar Family

Faces filled with emotion.

The looks directed at Kane were warm and admiring.

"Lady Sara didn't know this and challenged him to a duel."

"She's ended up in a pitiful state."

On the other hand, the looks directed at Sara were filled with pity.

She was experiencing firsthand the betrayal of her kind brother, who she had always put first.

* * *

Boom boom boom!

Kane shattered every single one of Sara's pristine sword energies. He didn't let a single one slip by. It was a brutal display, clearly showing the difference in their skill levels. Sara gritted her teeth and tried to unleash more sword energy.

"Isn't this enough?" Kane asked, but Sara continued to attack. She used sword energy, swung her sword up close, kicked at him, and performed her twin sword techniques in sequence. Yet, nothing worked.

Eventually, she conceded defeat.

As she stared daggers at Kane, her eyes welled up with tears again.

[Sara Rehinar's favorability has dropped by -1.]

[Sara Rehinar's favorability has dropped by -1.]

[Sara Rehinar's favorability has dropped by -1.]

"Why are you like this again? I did what you asked," Kane said.

"..."

Kane couldn't understand why Sara was acting this way. He never had a younger sister in real life, and neither as Ray Hatzfeld. It was only as Kane that he had a sister for the first time. He wanted to leave, but Sara's eyes followed his every move, leaving him unsure of what to do. He just wanted to escape this situation quickly.

Then he heard Sara's small voice.

"…Why…?"

"Huh?"

"…Why didn't you go easy on me!"

Kane frowned. Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind.

Was Sara the same as an ally or an enemy?

No. There was a clear difference. But he hadn't realized it. The image of Sara as an enemy was imprinted in his mind, so he had shattered her pride to gauge her skill level.

Sara was the embodiment of competitiveness. He believed that losing a duel would help her grow even more. That's why he didn't hold back and destroyed her sword energies one by one. But he had misjudged the situation.

'What should I do now?'

It wasn't that he was weak against a woman's tears. He simply didn't know how to handle this because it was his sister.

[Vice Commander Fabi, what should I do if Sara is crying?]

[Just let her win a duel once.]

Kane frowned. Showing such a stark difference in skill and then intentionally losing?

[That seems like the worst approach.]

She'd probably start wailing or, worse, curse him for the rest of his life.

[How about giving her a gift?]

[I do have a jewel…]

[That will do nicely.]

[Sara doesn't like jewels.]

[I've never met a girl who doesn't like jewels.]

Kane pulled the jewel from his pocket and handed it to Sara.

"If you stop crying, I'll give you this jewel."

"…A jewel?"

"It's not just any jewel. It has a feature you'll find interesting."

"…What is it?"

"Try focusing your mana into it."

As Sara concentrated her mana into the jewel, a barrier resembling a water shield appeared.

"A jewel engraved with magic?"

"Isn't it tempting? If you stop crying, the jewel is yours."

Kane said this with an apologetic expression. His soothing words and actions quickly dried Sara's tears.

"…I'll let it go this time."

Sara was only 18 years old. Still young enough to show tears when upset. Above all, Kane was her protective older brother. It was hard for her to adjust to his sudden change and harsh treatment.

If Kane had his old personality…

He would've fussed over her, asking if she was okay even if she had a small fall. Now, he just ignored such things and spoke harshly.

"Thank you for letting it go."

"Hmph."

Sara glanced at the sparkling jewel and then leaned her head toward Kane.

"Do it."

"What?"

"That thing you always did when I was little."

"What thing?"

She glared at him with her pretty eyes, and then he remembered.

"Oh…"

Kane awkwardly patted her head. The tension in Sara's eyes, which had been full of anger, gradually softened.

[Sara Rehinar's favorability has increased by +1.]

[Sara Rehinar's favorability has increased by +1.]

[Sara Rehinar's favorability has increased by +1.]

The favorability that had dropped was rising again. It was cute but also a bit bewildering.

'Does this even make fucking sense? I thought this game was just trying to make me spend money, but the story has no logic!'

Siblings speaking kindly to each other? That was impossible in reality. Weren't they supposed to be worse than enemies? But Sara and Kane's relationship was among the rare few exceptions.

'Anyway, I need to be more careful from now on.'

Favorability was really important. Especially with close relationships, neglecting it could lead to bad outcomes. Characters might even leave if not handled well.

As he thought about being more cautious and was about to leave the training ground, a notification popped up with a chime.

[Ding—]

A message appeared along with the alert.

[A surprise attack event has started.]