Chapter 34

The water I ungracefully spat out stained the training ground floor a darker color and ran down my chin.

A brief silence followed.

I subconsciously reached for my sleeve to wipe my chin but then used the handkerchief Annie offered, calmly wiping my mouth as if nothing had happened.

Tap, tap.

Outwardly, I was composedly wiping my mouth, but my mind was in turmoil.

‘What in the world was that supposed to mean?’

That he wanted me to withdraw the duel was perfectly understandable. As others had said, it must look like a fight I couldn’t win.

But to offer to teach me the sword?

What was he thinking, saying something like that?

The prolonged silence coupled with my thoughts made me self-conscious, so I finally cleared my throat and looked back at Nine.

Seeing his steady gaze, it seemed what I had just heard was not a misunderstanding.

“Why would you… No. Thank you, but I can’t let you go to such trouble.”

I tried my best to hide my flustered expression and chose my words carefully to maintain propriety.

Not only was it uncomfortable, but above all, I didn’t want him to discover that I had learned the sword.

However, Nine didn’t turn away submissively at my refusal. Instead, he hesitated, parting his lips a few times.

His gaze, which had momentarily shifted away from me, returned. He spoke in a low voice.

“I hope you win.”

“Excuse me?”

I instantly doubted my ears.

But with the wind completely still now, the clear voice I heard couldn’t have been a mistake.

As always, Nine’s gaze was serious. Those eyes, completely devoid of any hint of a smile, told me he was speaking his honest thoughts.

But I was too stunned to speak and just stared blankly, so Nine continued, “Then, you can come here at the same time starting tomorrow.”

He didn’t wait for my answer and turned his body. The long tail of his coat flapped as he walked away from me.

It was only after Nine disappeared into the shadow that the breath I hadn’t realized I was holding rushed out.

It was already too late to refuse. I stared blankly at the damp dirt floor, pondering Nine’s words.

‘He hopes I win?’

That was a sentiment I never expected to hear from him.

If anything, I expected indifference, not words of support like that.

On the surface, it sounded as if he had favorable feelings for me. But given our relationship, that couldn’t be it.

Could Adel’s situation have influenced him? Has his perspective on his family members, whom he had previously ignored, changed?

Thoughts swirled chaotically in my head. What woke me from my contemplation was Annie’s voice.

“I’ve drawn warm bath water, Lady Chacha. Hurry and go in.”

It was only then that I realized the refreshing breeze had turned into a chill. My fingertips were turning red.

The air brushing over my cooling sweat became increasingly harsh, and my body trembled slightly.

Seeing my reddened hands, Annie draped a thick fur blanket over my shoulders.

Grateful for Annie, who always took such diligent care of me, I loosened the blanket a bit and wrapped it around her shoulders too.

“Let’s cover up together. Aren’t you cold?”

We left the training ground, walking side by side.

Annie was the only person who walked beside me and matched my pace here, so Nine’s words and gaze, seemingly intent on watching my progress, lingered in my mind for a long time.

***

‘Will he really show up?’

That thought constantly plagued me even on the way to the training ground after finishing my administrative work during the day.

I knew he wasn’t the type to make empty promises, yet I still wondered. I couldn’t guess Nine’s inner thoughts. Even if he said that yesterday, maybe today would be different.

One half of me was anticipation, and the other half was apprehension.

However, when I arrived at the training ground, Nine had already arrived and was waiting for me in the center.

“You’ve come.”

He murmured when he spotted me. Nine glowed beneath the night sky even in clothes as dark as his hair color.

A person who shines like pitch-black darkness in a dark place… Ordinarily, I would have stared at him, mesmerized, but…

But what was behind him stole my attention.

My voice naturally trembled in surprise as I spoke to him.

“…Are you, are you really going to teach me yourself?”

Piled up behind Nine were objects for training.

A training dummy I had used as a child and several wooden swords.

Why had he brought so many wooden swords? It was as if he was saying the training wouldn’t end until all these wooden swords were broken.

Nine’s sincerity felt apparent, yet I still couldn’t understand why he was going to such lengths.

‘If it’s just to make me win, he doesn’t necessarily need to teach me directly, does he?’

No matter how I thought about it, a lesson from the youngest Sword Master was excessive for someone like me who needed to regain my feel for the sword from the basics due to a stiff body.

I knew it was an immense stroke of luck to be taught the sword by a Sword Master, but that made it all the more daunting.

However, Nine acted as if my astonishment was invisible to him, immediately picking up a wooden sword and striking a posture.

A sharp sound of the sword cutting through the air came from the smooth, fluid trajectory it traced.

Even though it was just a blunt wooden sword, the fiercely audible sound suggested it could cut through anything.

The clean movements and powerfully swung wooden sword were exceptionally skillful—anyone could tell he was an excellent swordsman.

But before the outstanding swordsmanship, what captivated my eyes was the trajectory the sword drew.

‘This swordsmanship is…’

As if reading my thoughts, Nine, without even a ripple in his breath, adjusted his clothing and spoke.

“This is the Eclipse family’s hereditary sword art. My sister uses this style as well.”

I see. No wonder it felt extraordinary.

But why did he show this to me? It wasn’t a technique I could learn, was it?

Nine answered the unspoken question.

“Since we use the same swordsmanship, I know my sister’s weaknesses well. I will focus on teaching you that.”

“Excuse me?!”

My voice rose sharply in surprise.

Was it okay to learn weaknesses like this? My conscience twinged, but before he could withdraw his words, I quickly replied, “Yes, yes!”

It was such a great opportunity that I didn’t need to consider any reason to avoid his teaching.

A top-notch, highly effective instructor was teaching me. This was practically a leak of the exam questions!

That wasn’t the only advantage. If I defeated Roana, questions about my skill would naturally follow.

But if I learned the sword from Nine Eclipse, that fact alone would be a sufficient excuse. Who would doubt me if I said I learned directly from a Sword Master?

I could also subtly conceal the fact that I had learned the sword in the past, and if my swordsmanship suddenly improved after regaining my feel, I could pass it off as the result of good instruction.

I fixed my posture and waited for the training instruction, and Nine nodded.

“First… warm up your body, and run around the training ground as you did yesterday.”

I quickly warmed up my body and started running around the training ground as he instructed.

Since he didn’t specify how many laps, I intended to run ten laps, like yesterday.

However, the moment I passed the fifth lap, Nine called out to stop me.

“Wait a moment! How many laps did you run yesterday?”

“Hah… What? Oh. Ten.”

For once, his expression actually showed surprise, however slight.

Hearing my answer, Nine’s eyes lit up like someone who had discovered something fascinating.

It was the first time I had ever seen that expression on him. Mesmerized for a moment, I only belatedly registered his words.

“Your basic physical fitness is quite good.”

“Ah, is that so?”

My stamina was probably at the top among most noble ladies who steered clear of exercise.

But I tilted my head as if I hadn’t known.

Nine, unlike his usual composed self, looked at me with a slightly excited expression.

Was it my imagination, or did his voice sound a little brighter too?

“Now that I think about it, your posture when swinging the wooden sword yesterday was also well-balanced. I could tell you maintain body balance and distribute power well, even though you haven’t been taught.”

‘…Was Nine always this talkative?’

I was flustered by his continuous evaluation and kept replying with an empty “Is that so?”

I thought he must really love the sword, and it was fascinating to see this side of him for the first time.

‘Something is coming to mind…’

“Although learning the sword from a young age is common, I think you could achieve great things even starting now.”

‘Ah.’

As I mulled over his words, I suddenly realized where the odd feeling came from.

Right now, Nine looked exactly like a veteran gamer who’d stumbled across a promising newbie worth nurturing.