Chapter 13
Damian came to stand beside me, wearing a sour expression.
Judging by the look on his face, he had already heard the news—and he was just as displeased as I was.
No…
Perhaps he was even more unhappy about it.
Still, there was no way he’d side with me in this situation.
After all, no matter how much he disliked me, he’d rather keep an eye on me himself than entrust me to another knight.
“…Are there no other knights at the Grand Duke’s estate?”
Stealing a glance at Damian’s profile, I turned to Carlos as though grasping at my last straw.
“You’d be hard-pressed to find a swordsman superior to Damian—not just in this estate, but in the entire Empire.”
…Of course.
This man was a swordsmanship prodigy.
That’s not what I was asking…
He shut me down with skill alone.
Damian would earn the title of Swordmaster just before reaching adulthood.
The tenth Swordmaster in history.
The youngest one ever.
He hadn’t reached that level yet, but Carlos wasn’t wrong.
There was no swordsman in the Empire capable of defeating him.
So he intends to make absolutely sure I can’t pull any tricks.
Not that I had any intention of doing so.
At this point, it didn’t seem like anything would change no matter how much I argued.
As an escort, he probably is the safest choice…
Even so…
Wasn’t this far too cruel for both of us, considering we clearly couldn’t stand each other?
That thought crossed my mind, but neither of the two men in the room looked willing to listen.
In the end, I surrendered first.
“…All right.”
“When do you intend to leave?”
“As soon as possible. Even tomorrow would be fine.”
Carlos, who had been focused on his paperwork the entire time, finally looked up at Damian.
“Can you manage that?”
“…Not immediately.”
Damian gave me an unimpressed look.
“If it were just me, perhaps. But traveling all the way to the western territory while dragging along the burden known as the Imperial Princess would be unrealistic.”
A burden?
He actually said it outright.
The worst part was…
He wasn’t entirely wrong.
The road to the land of mages was anything but easy.
“Then when would be suitable?”
“Ten days from now.”
Damian folded his arms.
“In the meantime, I’ll teach the Princess some basic self-defense.”
His lips curled slightly.
“So at least you won’t slow me down quite as much.”
There it was again.
That subtle sarcasm.
Slow him down…?
I had plenty to say.
But I swallowed every word.
Arguing here would accomplish nothing.
“Very well.”
Carlos nodded.
“As for the guardianship matter, I’ll have the paperwork sent to the Temple after the Princess returns.”
Then his attention returned to the documents before him.
“Anything else?”
It was a polite but unmistakable dismissal.
If we had nothing more to say, we were to leave.
I quietly walked out of the study.
Just as I turned toward my room—
“Princess.”
Damian’s voice stopped me.
I turned around.
He was looking at me with obvious annoyance.
“Be at the training grounds tomorrow morning at ten.”
“…Tomorrow?”
“Don’t make me repeat myself.”
He turned away.
“If you’re late, I’ll leave without you.”
With that, he strode off without another glance.
…What is this?
My future suddenly looked very bleak.
Ten days of training under that man…
Then traveling all the way to the western territory together?
Somehow…
I had a very bad feeling about this.
The next morning.
10:00 sharp.
By the time I reached the training grounds, Damian was already waiting.
Arms folded.
One hand resting on the hilt of his sword.
As though he’d been standing there for ages.
Just how early did he get here?
I wasn’t late.
Yet somehow I still felt intimidated.
To think the day would come when this man overwhelmed me with sheer presence.
Even knowing he was technically my older brother, memories from before my regression made the situation feel strangely unfair.
“…I’m here.”
“Yes.”
Damian answered coldly.
“I can see that.”
His eyes slowly swept over me from head to toe.
Apparently, he’d decided not to bother hiding his disdain anymore.
“Today we’ll begin by assessing your basic fitness.”
“My… basic fitness?”
“I need to know exactly how pathetic your condition is before I can plan your training.”
His tone made it clear he wasn’t expecting much.
I felt a surge of irritation.
But I forced it back down.
Picking a fight with Damian wouldn’t help.
If he refused to escort me, I’d have no alternatives.
Carlos certainly wasn’t going to assign someone else.
I’d end up stranded here, unable to travel west at all.
That wasn’t an option.
“So…”
I sighed.
“What should I do?”
“Start by running around the field.”
He gestured toward the large training ground.
“How many laps?”
“Just run.”
His expression remained unchanged.
“Until you can’t anymore.”
…What kind of training is that?
Still, refusing wasn’t an option.
I walked to the edge of the field and began running.
At first…
It wasn’t bad.
All I have to do is run.
Easy enough.
About halfway through the first lap—
My breathing caught.
My legs suddenly felt as heavy as lead.
My heart pounded as though it were about to burst.
…Wait.
Already?
I’d only run half a lap.
My pace slowed until I was barely moving.
Running became walking.
Finally—
“Huff… huff…”
I stopped after barely completing half a lap.
Hands on my knees, I gasped for breath.
A bitter taste filled my mouth.
The world spun around me.
I knew I wasn’t athletic…
But was my stamina really this awful?
No way.
“…Finished already?”
Damian’s voice came from directly above me.
He stood there with one shoulder tilted casually, looking down at me.
After measuring the distance I’d managed to run, he let out a scoffing laugh.
“Half a lap.”
His verdict was merciless.
“Remarkable.”
…
This time, I couldn’t even argue with his blatant sarcasm.
“It can’t be helped.”
He spoke calmly.
“Now do some push-ups.”
“…Right now? At least let me catch my breath.”
“Right now.”
Is he a demon?
No… seriously.
Is this man actually a demon?
“Want to quit?”
Damian shrugged indifferently beneath my irritated glare.
“Then you may go back inside.”
His eyes practically screamed,
I never expected anything from you anyway.
How infuriating.
For some reason, that look ignited my competitive spirit.
Without another word, I dropped to the ground.
Palms planted.
Body straight.
All right.
So I just lower myself…
I bent my arms.
Then—
Thud.
“…”
I collapsed flat onto the ground.
I hadn’t managed even one.
The instant I bent my elbows, all the strength drained from my arms.
…Isn’t this a little too much?
I wanted to crawl into a hole and disappear.
Embarrassment burned through me.
When I looked up, Damian was still staring down at me.
His face revealed nothing.
“Get up.”
“…”
I slowly climbed to my feet.
My whole body trembled.
I’d only run half a lap and attempted one push-up.
Yet I already felt completely exhausted.
Damian looked at me.
Not as though he found me pathetic.
He genuinely did.
“You intended to travel to the western territory in this condition?”
That one hit home.
Still—
“Protecting me is the escort’s job.”
I shot back without backing down.
I wasn’t wrong.
I’d requested an escort precisely so I wouldn’t have to fight.
If the escort was competent enough, why should I be the one swinging a sword?
Damian gave a short laugh.
It was unmistakably mocking.
“Oh?”
“So you’re saying you’ll trust me completely?”
“…”
“Her Imperial Highness…”
His smile widened.
“…is placing her life in the hands of the eldest son of House Carter?”
His words made my stomach tighten.
Annoyingly…
He wasn’t wrong.
This escort assignment was merely surveillance under another name.
And more importantly—
If he wanted to, he could abandon me halfway through the journey.
No…
He could even deliberately leave me somewhere dangerous.
The only person I could truly rely on…
was myself.
Besides…
By now, the Imperial Palace had probably realized I was missing.
And if they had…
They might send him to find me.
The familiar face that flashed through my mind made chills race down my spine.
“…That’s why I said I wanted to learn.”
I clenched my teeth as I answered.
“I want to survive too.”
Damian stared at me.
Something unreadable flickered across his eyes.
It wasn’t quite mockery.
Nor was it surprise.
After a long moment—
“I see.”
A faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
“Then let’s see what you’ve got.”
Fine.
I’ll endure this if only to spite you.
