(Continued)
Just then, the blond hero seemed to notice something while swinging his sword and pointed his finger in one direction.
“Oh, you’re right.”
A full-body armor shining in the light.
He’s really obsessed with swordsmanship. When did he follow us? I don’t think I’ve broken his flag yet. I approached the Glass Knight.
“..What are you doing?”
“Swordsmanship practice with Kainel.”
“My, turn.”
He stares at my sword as soon as I get close.
I don’t want to teach him. I don’t know how long I can put it off. Should I just flee the country?
‘Especially this guy, I don’t feel any affection for him.’
There are levels to being a womanizer. There are men like Nex who are popular while keeping a distance from women, and…
There are also octopuses like Lupus in front of me who juggle dozens of relationships.
“Exchange, promise.”
“I’m still thinking about it.”
“..Before, lie?”
“I apologize.”
Really hate this type.
Who comes to school wearing full plate armor?
If you just wear a helmet like this, you can at least pretend it’s fashion.
Suddenly, I became curious. Why is he so obsessed with strength? It’s better to know unknown information beforehand.
“I have a question.”
“Yes, speak.”
“Why do you want to become strong?”
I barely managed to speak to Mardol, who was hanging his head low. The joints of his helmet rattled.
“…”
After who knows how long, he began to speak.
“..Can’t protect. If weak.”
“What does that mean?”
“Weak people can’t do anything, Licht.”
“Ha.”
I sighed as soon as I heard those words.
My expression distorted. This kid with such negative thoughts is the protagonist of part 3?
He won’t notice since I’m wearing this. Even if he were the crown prince, those words would make me go crazy.
At least Kainel had the goal of protecting Ariel.
Lupus in <Black Heart> was better. The prequel is also confirmed to be a trash game.
“..Who told you that?”
“Huh, Licht?”
“Why do you judge that ‘you can’t protect if you’re weak’ like someone who’s already lived their whole life?”
It’s the same as Kainel. His mindset is wrong. Why does this guy have such low self-esteem?
“You. Your way of speaking.”
“There’s someone here with little mana, tangled circuits, and can’t use magic.”
“That’s right.”
“But am I strong now? By normal standards, aren’t I rather weak?”
I felt suffocated. His golden eyes widened as he saw me suddenly speaking informally.
“No. You’re strong, Licht.”
“Then at least do your best and regret it later. Don’t think like that.”
“..I don’t know.”
Did he see my swordsmanship during practice today? His evaluation has gone up. So that’s why he followed me.
It felt like the words burst out from the bottom of my heart, more than just for breaking the flag.
Someone is working their bones off for the happiness of the Nameless Saintess.
Can’t protect if you’re not strong?
Bullshit. It’s definitely not because I’m upset about the Saintess story I heard this morning.
[Even if I am weak, I will stay by your side, Knight.]
“…”
“What happened? At least tell me about it.”
As I recalled that nostalgic voice, I placed my hand on the forehead of my helmet. My memory is uselessly good only at times like this.
“In the past, couldn’t protect.”
“And you can’t now?”
“Probably.”
The Glass Knight’s voice was low. Why are there so many things I don’t know? Something felt strange.
‘At least it wasn’t like this in <Black Heart>.’
Come to think of it, they’re still first-year freshmen. Let’s calm down.
It’s really pathetic to be like this because of a girl you like. I took a deep breath and continued.
“Mardol.”
“..Huh?”
“You really can’t do nothing.”
“Really…?”
When I first possessed the game, I was really weak. There were many times when I couldn’t even do a single push-up and collapsed.
“Even if you’re weak, you can protect.”
“Is that, possible?”
“Shall I show you proof?”
I rolled up my sleeve, revealing a long scar. A scar that looked like an animal bite.
“I was weak, so I became the bait myself. But I protected them.”
“Why, Licht…?”
This was quite a long time ago.
The Glass Knight asked me as if he didn’t understand. Lupus would have only seen my strong side. Of course.
His eyes were shaking, as if he was quite shocked.
“Everyone has times when they are weak, Mardol.”
Actually, I almost died five years ago when I was surrounded by a pack of wolves.
But it’s fine because I managed to let an old man and his son escape and survive.
I deliberately provoked them and acted recklessly. Did I break my arm too? What kind of courage came over me back then?
My memory is a bit blurry because I lost a lot of blood.
“It’s not a lie, right? Look at my hand, you’ll know.”
“..It’s real.”
“In the first place, having such negative thoughts will only hurt you.”
After rolling my sleeve back down, I spread my rough hand with calluses on every knuckle. The uneven traces of practice.
If I had magic, I could at least protect myself. Honestly, it didn’t matter to me.
“How about it, do you understand a little now?”
There were days when I was sore and ached after swinging the sword.
‘If I had thought I was weak and gave up back then, I wouldn’t have achieved what I have now.’
Actually, there were many times when I wanted to give up.
But every time, I thought of her suffering in the sequel, so I did my best, and…
I overcame the anxiety that sometimes gnawed at me and became stronger.
This time, I want to make her happy. It was a common reason.
“You worked hard.”
The Glass Knight’s gauntlet covered my hand. A smooth touch with no warmth.
Oh, his hand is smaller than I thought?
The cold and unfamiliar sensation brought me back to my senses. It was too late to take it back.
What nonsense did I just say in front of the Empire’s only prince?
‘My old habits are showing again. Damn it.’
No matter how much I think about it, the Saintess’s way of speaking doesn’t seem to suit me.
I keep losing my composure when it’s related to her. I wonder if I’m doing well.
It’s better than speaking informally. There were many people who were afraid of me in reality.
I lowered my head.
“Ah… I apologize. I got a little emotional. I’ve been weak since I was young… That’s why.”
“..My fault.”
Don’t be so depressed. I feel like the Imperial Guards will appear and chop off my head. Please spare me.
I remembered the event in the game where four colorful people appeared like ninjas and eliminated the player.
“Licht, unique.”
Amidst the confusion, our fingers touched. Sweat started to form on my palm.
Wait, what is this? Is his mood changing that much?
A knight firmly holding onto me.
“You can stop looking now.”
Golden eyes shone from within the glass helmet. He’s quite pretty like this.
Just by looking at his eyes, I could see that he was handsome.
“Still, don’t know yet.”
“Is that so…”
He’ll need time to think. He looked up at me again.
Did I succeed in breaking the flag? I didn’t intend to, but it seems like I did. I think I touched a sore spot though.
“You two… What are you doing holding hands?”
I thought so, until Kainel’s words interrupted us.
The number of times I saved for the Nameless Saintess… They’re gone.
Hey, give me back my first hand-holding!
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