Was it because his eyesight had improved, or was it the clean air? Just watching the plaza that looked even more vibrant and colorful gave Luca an inexplicable sense of fulfillment.
'Now I finally understand why people travel.'
He had never understood those people who always uploaded travel photos on social media. Why would they go through so much trouble for that? There were dangers and so many inconvenient things—why force yourself to do it?
But now that he was actually here, it felt completely different.
'It's definitely worth it.'
He had only now realized that new experiences could bring such a refreshing shock. While Luca was savoring that feeling, Bella approached him with a sad expression.
"Young master, I'm sorry. I couldn't get tickets to the Rain Sound Orchestra."
"......."
"It's an extremely popular orchestra right now, so even tomorrow's reservations are sold out. It looks like we won't be able to see them until at least the day after tomorrow."
She spoke as if she was genuinely sorry and regretful, but Luca could clearly see through her.
"Then, should we just go back?"
"P-pardon, young master? B-but... oh! You also have an appointment with the second son of Count Gress, don't you?"
"Exactly, so why don't we just do that and return?"
Bella visibly panicked at the mention of simply going back.
'She must be pretending she couldn't get tickets on purpose.'
There was no way someone as competent as Bella, who prided herself so much on her abilities, wouldn't be able to get a scalped ticket if she wanted to. She simply must not have wanted to get one. Maybe she wanted to have some fun in Havok herself, or perhaps she genuinely wanted Luca to relax a bit more—he wasn't sure.
Luca turned his head.
"I was just a little curious; it's not like I was desperate to go or anything."
"B-but..."
"Hey, Luca Tr... Ah, no, Luca! Hehe!"
Just then, Ottbo came running over, grinning widely from afar.
"Now, young master! You'll trip if you run too fast...!"
A maid was chasing after him, but she seemed unable to keep up with the excited and footloose Ottbo. Luca let out a sigh, already feeling weary, then flinched.
"Huh?"
Ottbo tripped over something and ended up floating in the air. The look of dumb surprise on Ottbo's face and the maid's horrified expression flashed before Luca's eyes.
"Tsk."
Seeing that, Luca clicked his tongue.
Crackle!
For a brief moment, a small spark flickered across his eyes. At the same time, everything in Luca's field of vision began to move in slow motion.
'To think I'd have to use this power in a place like this for the first time.'
Letting out a mirthless chuckle, Luca walked over to Ottbo and grabbed the scruff of his neck.
"Urgh!"
Time started flowing normally again. Ottbo choked out a sound, but at least he avoided having his face smashed into the ground.
"Young master! Are you all right?"
"Y-yeah, I'm fine. Thanks, Luca."
"Next time, try to develop the reflexes to use levitation magic right before you fall."
With that, Luca let go of the back of his neck, and Ottbo was helped to his feet by the maid.
"Young master... just now, was that...?"
Bella seemed to have noticed something and asked, but Luca had no intention of explaining, so he casually turned his head.
"More importantly, since you couldn't get tickets to the Rain Sound Orchestra, what do you want to do, Ottbo?"
"Huh? What are you talking about, Luca? I already got them."
After tidying up his outfit, Ottbo pulled tickets out of his pocket with a triumphant expression. Bella's face twisted slightly, but Luca deliberately stepped in front of her to block Ottbo's view of it.
"Nice. But why do you have so many tickets?"
"Oh, that's because..."
Ottbo grinned and waved the tickets at them.
"I brought them for the other girls who came here for the qualifying exam."
"......."
As Luca stared expressionlessly, Ottbo sidled up to him and jabbed his elbow into Luca's side, speaking in a low voice.
"I'm counting on you, little star! Just like when you charmed the princess—help me out here!"
"What are you—ah."
He'd been wondering why Ottbo kept calling him 'little star', but then suddenly, Luca Traverse's memories came rushing back.
― Your eyes look just like tiny stars shining in the sky.
-...... Thank you, Princess Lverta.
― Can I ask you to escort me?
― Sorry. It's time for me to leave.
-... What?
This all happened when he was forcibly dragged to the tenth birthday party of the 5th Princess, Lverta Hernan. According to Luca Traverse's memories, he hadn't liked the party at all from the start. He'd been angling to leave as soon as possible, but Princess Lverta had suddenly spoken to him, which he remembered as being intensely annoying.
'Why does this bastard Luca Traverse keep kicking away blessings that fall into his lap...?'
Even if he was only the second son of a count with no inheritance, an opportunity to mingle bloodlines with the imperial family was more valuable than gold. But he'd just brushed it off.
'If you look like this, I guess you don't regret missing out on things like that.'
The soul inside him, Lee Myunghyun, almost felt regretful enough to die, but the man called Luca Traverse seemed completely unconcerned. Luca shook his head and waved his hand.
"Too much trouble. Not my thing at all."
"But..."
"Um..."
Just then, someone suddenly spoke up. Luca and Ottbo looked over curiously in the direction of the voice.
Two well-dressed girls were approaching them—one looking like a lady from some noble family, the other with a sharp, swordsman-like demeanor.
"Um... sorry, but we came to see the Rain Sound Orchestra, but there weren't any seats left. You seem to have a lot of tickets—would you mind letting us join you?"
"!"
Ottbo's eyes sparkled almost excessively, while Luca looked unimpressed.
"I... mmph."
"Oh, of course! You're here for the placement exam, right...?"
"That's right! I'm Milia Fille, and I'll be attending Hernan Royal Academy starting this year!"
"Nice to meet you! Please, talk comfortably! I'm Ottbo Gress, and I'll also be attending Hernan starting this year!"
"Ah! The Gress family..."
Ottbo excitedly continued his conversation, physically covering Luca's mouth to prevent him from refusing outright. But it was impossible for a mere fragile mage to match Luca the swordsman's strength forever. Luca removed Ottbo's hand and whispered,
"Looks like it worked out for you, so I'll be going."
"Hey, come on! They came over because of you!"
"What are you talking about? They saw your tickets, not me."
"Think about it. Would a noble's daughter actually come over and beg because she didn't have a ticket? She just wanted a reason to talk to you!"
"......?"
Frankly, Luca didn't really understand, but seeing Ottbo's eyes full of confidence, he found it hard to protest.
"Please, Luca. If you don't come, this exciting stage will come crashing down! Just this once—please, think of it as saving my life...!"
Luca wanted to say no immediately, but with Bella behind him sending him an earnest 'please go, young master!' look and Ottbo practically begging, he had no choice.
"Haa, men are all the same."
"Isella! Shh!"
"... Isella?"
Right then, in Luca's ears—who'd felt nothing special about this until now—a familiar name rang out. He looked over at the sharp-eyed girl exhaling in disgust.
― She was like a sword forged by a master. Beautiful, strong, and dangerous.
― The silver hair that reminded one of the moon, her cold, set lips, her fierce gaze—all were like a blade.
― Lysel Pandriga, Moonlight Knight who protects the 4th Princess, also known as Isella.
Sentences suddenly came back to him, making Luca's cheek twitch slightly.
'I don't know how common the name Isella is, but with that description and that appearance... this can't be a coincidence.'
While Luca was mulling over this, Ottbo's eyes sparkled.
"What, Luca? You know this person?"
"?"
"Then that makes things easier! Come on, go ahead!"
Thump.
Ottbo pushed Luca towards Isella. Luca gave him a dumbfounded look, then, reacting to a sudden murderous intent, drew his sword.
Clang!
"Ho?"
Isella let out an impressed sound, as if surprised. Luca narrowed his eyes, looking at the blade he'd blocked instinctively.
"What do you think you're doing?"
"You might harm... Miss Milia, so I stopped you."
Isella switched her words hastily. Normally, Luca wouldn't have thought much of it, but knowing a bit of the backstory, her words revealed her identity.
'So they really are the real princess and Isella. In that case...'
Luca's brain whirred into action.
If he wanted a quiet, peaceful life, it would be best to let things go unnoticed here, but, as he learned from the Oliver situation, getting involved with major characters gave him clues. And these two were no ordinary characters.
'The undying princess Brid Hernan, survivor of the political struggles, and her guardian, Moonlight Knight Lysel Pandriga. In the original story, these two are the villains who fight the protagonist.'
They stood out immensely from the background, so he had a feeling they'd end up being helpful in some way.
'After losing to the protagonist during the Academy arc, Brid and Lysel quietly withdrew, then suddenly disappeared after the war. That's why I thought they were just extras...'
But what if there was a reason for their disappearance?
And what if that reason was related to some kind of powerful force?
As an avid reader, of course he was curious. Besides, he had just obtained a hint from the Mirror Mage Conference. Wanting more clues now was only natural.
'The more clues the better for what's coming. If getting clues means befriending suddenly vanishing characters, it'd be good to establish ties here.'
Now that he thought about it, it was quite a coincidence. He had obtained the Celestial Wing's power, which belonged to an early boss, picked up Ottbo—an early villain—and now the mid-academy arc antagonists, the undying princess Brid and her guardian Lysel.
A true villain's complete starter set.
'Well, whatever.'
As his timeline was separate from the protagonist's, he had to use whatever he could to avoid a predetermined ending.
Luca shot a sly glance at Ottbo, thinking,
'Just this once, thanks, Ottbo.'
Crackle!
The moment he made up his mind, sparks flew from the blade.
"Lu-Luca?"
"......."
As a murderous aura began to emanate from Luca as well, Ottbo and Milia tensed up. Luca twisted his lips in a smirk.
"If a knight draws their sword and swings it, that's as good as formally challenging me to a duel, wouldn't you say?"
"... Of course."
Isella seemed a little taken aback, maybe not expecting Luca to fight back; but as she realized she liked that answer, the corner of her mouth lifted and she returned the killing intent.
Luca put strength into his sword and began to pressure her.
"Once a sword is drawn, I won't go easy just because you're a woman."
Crackle! Crackle crackle!
Luca's blade gradually pushed back Isella's sword. Isella's eyes trembled slightly.
'What is this? This man's sword... it's impossibly heavy for a first-year student!'
Her sword skills were already beyond those of a regular knight, thanks to her special training. No matter how talented Hernan Royal Academy's students were, none should have been able to match her. That her sword was being pushed back—she couldn't believe it.
"Luca! We're in the middle of the plaza!"
"For a knight's duel, place doesn't matter. Only honor is important."
"Fighting here... is that honorable?"
Ottbo's face showed pure confusion. Of course, Luca was just spouting nonsense off the top of his head.
"This girl swung her sword at me for no reason. Letting that go would disgrace my honor, and that of House Traverse."
"Well... I suppose that does make sense if you put it like that..."
Just then, milia, who'd been watching the situation, stepped forward.
"I'll apologize on behalf of Isella. Luca Traverse, and by extension, the Traverse Count's family, please forgive our offense."
"M-Milia!"
"A dishonor created by the sword can only be cleansed by the sword. And I think the one who should apologize isn't you, is it?"
Luca didn't even look at Milia, keeping his eyes fixed on Isella. Isella bit her lip and kept glancing at Milia, which seemed to shake her focus, causing her sword to be pushed back further.
"She is my sword, so if the sword's owner apologizes, I believe it's the same as the sword apologizing."
"Sounds to me like you're a careless master who can't look after her own sword."
"How dare you! Do you know who she is?"
"No, and I don't want to. What matters is making sure your careless arm never wields a sword again."
"You insolent cur!"
Clang!
When Luca insulted Milia, Isella's eyes lit with rage. She forcefully struck at Luca, pushing him backward. He quickly regained his stance as Isella gripped her sword with both hands and unleashed her magic power.
Swish!
"I'll make sure you never run that rotten mouth ever again!"
"We'll see what hits the ground first—your arm or my mouth."
Isella's hair fluttered from the burst of magic power, and veins stood out on Luca's hand as he channeled power into his sword. It was a moment ready to explode.
"Stop!"
At that moment, milia interjected between them.
"M-Milia!"
"Step aside. This is already a knight's honor-bound duel. You have no right to intervene."
Isella protested, while Luca snapped fiercely. Then Milia unwrapped the scarf around her neck and spoke.
"...... What if my status is far above both of yours?"
"Ridiculous. Even as a count's second son, I know all the names of high noble families in this empire. I've never heard of a Fille family."
"Then... what about 'Hernan'?"
Inside, Luca cheered.
'Got her.'
He had succeeded in making her reveal the Imperial surname herself.
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
Luca, that's devious...
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】