“Oh, okay.”

Serena nodded.

“I’m telling you I’m stronger.”

Magnus insisted. Serena found his stubbornness quite cute and smiled, nodding her head.

“I said I understand.”

“Your face doesn’t look like it at all!”

“What did I do?”

“You were just mocking me, weren’t you?”

“Me? No way. I just told you what you said.”

“…I’m stronger.”

Magnus insisted.

‘Men’s pride…’

No matter how strong Magnus was, could he be as strong as the hero?

“Alright. You’re stronger.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Magnus nodded.

And to tell the truth, his claim was correct.

Magnus was one of the strongest in the empire, so he was slightly superior to Drukan, who was missing an arm and an eye.

No matter how much experience and years Drukan had over him, he couldn’t overcome Magnus’s strength in his prime.

“When is good for you?”

“What do you mean?”

“You said we should go on a date.”

“Ah, today.”

At Magnus’s words, Serena’s expression turned somewhat cold.

“……”

“Is there a problem?”

“Yes.”

There were many problems.

Because today was the day Serena and Association President Bartolin had promised to go on a date.

“I already have a prior engagement.”

“That can’t be helped.”

“So next time…”

“Cancel it.”

“……??”

Serena’s expression slightly furrowed.

She couldn’t understand what nonsense he was talking about.

“Are you sick by any chance?”

“No.”

“Then did you not hear what I said at all?”

“I always listen well to what you say.”

Then why are you acting like this?

Serena felt frustrated.

“You must be very sick. Go rest quickly, I’ll go to my appointment.”

Serena said as she stood up from her seat.

As she was about to leave, Magnus quickly got up and grabbed Serena’s wrist.

“…Do you really have something going on?”

At this point, even Serena became a bit serious.

It was because Magnus rarely acted like this.

As Serena looked at him worriedly with a quite serious face, Magnus pressed his lips tightly.

“I just want to be with you today.”

After hesitating for a moment, Magnus honestly conveyed his feelings.

“I don’t want you to go on that date.”

“……”

Serena’s body stiffened slightly.

It was because his bright yellow eyes were shaking, looking as if they were earnestly pleading.

‘Ah!’

She suddenly remembered.

‘Is this what they call the famous duckling imprinting syndrome?’

The fear of losing one’s first friend, that kind of thing.

Serena recalled a psychology book she had read before.

She had heard that sometimes people express such distorted affection.

It seemed Magnus was feeling something similar.

‘Still a child.’

Serena thought, smiling lightly.

“It’s okay, Magnus.”

“……?”

“We’ll always be friends. You’ll always be my first and best friend.”

Serena said.

“Of course, as long as you don’t betray me or I don’t betray you.”

Magnus became bewildered at her words.

“So don’t worry.”

Serena was extremely oblivious.

“Ah, if that’s the case, I’m glad.”

Magnus nodded with a satisfied expression and let go of her hand.

“Then I’ll be going.”

“Take care and come back safely.”

Magnus, too, was completely lacking in perception.

“…Hmm, it seems there really is some problem with my heart.”

Magnus thought as he pressed his palm against his chest, which was still pounding unpleasantly.

They were a match made in heaven.

They were equally oblivious.

Completely.

* * *

‘…What on earth is this?’

Drukan kept turning around, sensing a presence behind him.

He felt a faint killing intent from somewhere, but when he turned around, it would disappear instantly.

If this had been directed at Serena, his new master, he would have rushed over without hesitation to cut down the enemy.

‘…It seems to be directed at him rather than her.’

Drukan thought as he looked at the man called ‘Bartolin’, who was escorting Serena with a pleasant expression.

This killing intent was directed solely at Bartolin.

The man called Bartolin seemed very skilled in dealing with women.

He unhesitatingly, yet not unpleasantly, asked for permission and carefully took Serena’s hand to guide her.

Of course, at that moment, the killing intent intensified greatly.

‘Will I also become like that to my daughter someday?’

Drukan watched as she faintly smiled at Bartolin’s words, or smiled so awkwardly that others might perceive it as a sneer.

As a result of observing her closely while accompanying her, the person called ‘Serena Kelahinum’ was not that vicious.

Except for her slightly rough way of speaking and acting, she was usually quite calm.

She seemed to be a person of few words and terribly uninterested in others.

Throughout his time as her guard, Drukan had never seen Serena converse with anyone other than her husband Magnus, her butler Pamel, and this man Bartolin who seemed to have become her business partner.

She looked quite lonely.

Yet she was so nonchalant about it all, as if it were natural, that Drukan sometimes made strange expressions.

“My goodness, who is that…? Isn’t that the Duchess Kelahinum?”

“Is she having an affair now…?”

“Oh dear, how pitiful for His Grace the Duke…”

“How did he end up with such a wife… It would have been better if a kinder and more virtuous lady had become the Duchess…”

Drukan frowned at the voices coming from around them.

They seemed to think they were speaking quietly, but it was loud enough for any knight with some skill to hear.

‘It seems that man is not unskilled either.’

Bartolin’s brow furrowed once as well.

Serena’s gaze also turned once towards where the voices came from, but she turned her head indifferently.

There wasn’t the slightest change in her expression.

‘…I’m not sure if she’s really okay or just pretending to be.’

Once, a bold noble lady had picked a fight with her.

From Drukan’s perspective, Serena hadn’t done anything wrong.

His employer had just gone shopping, and while walking, a woman rushing from the opposite direction had bumped into Serena.

The unnamed noble lady, not recognizing who Serena was, started yelling at her.

Serena, looking straight at the noble lady who was raising her voice without even knowing her own fault, sneered and said that she didn’t even know the basic etiquette of not running in stores, and then warned her to keep her eyes open if they were properly attached.

In fact, from Drukan’s standpoint, although she was a bit rough, she hadn’t said anything wrong.

It was the other side who first raised their voice and demanded an apology.

But it seemed the surrounding thoughts were different.

When the noble lady burst into tears and eventually learned Serena’s identity from the people around, she started begging with both hands.

Pleading to spare her life.

Serena sighed and turned away, but everyone cursed her and pitied the noble lady.

Where in the world was there such an unreasonable thing?

People who had watched from beginning to end should have known that it wasn’t solely Serena Kelahinum’s fault.

However, no one at the scene defended her.

She didn’t particularly make excuses either.

She just turned away with the same indifferent expression.

“Why didn’t you say anything, Ms. Serena? The other party was at fault first.”

“What’s the use of saying anything when it won’t make a difference?”

“Why…”

“A truth that no one believes cannot become the truth.”

That was all.

The girl, despite her age, had no expectations of the world.

She just occasionally muttered about wanting to live a life where she could quietly get a house and receive money without working.

‘…It seems she’s been through a lot.’

He had also looked into various things before applying for the job.

There were no good stories about either Serena Lavernia or Duchess Serena Kelahinum.

“Serena, would you like to try this?”

Bartolin tried some food he bought from a street vendor and then offered one to Serena.

Serena blinked her eyes and then opened her small mouth to eat the food.

Crackle–!

Drukan was so startled by that killing intent that he whipped his head around.

The killing intent that had been disappearing like a ghost hadn’t disappeared this time.

“…Huh?”

Drukan’s eyes trembled slightly.

Because he saw it.

A man with a familiar appearance hiding behind a building.

‘…It can’t be.’

Drukan decided to deny reality for now.

Even if what he saw was a familiar build in a familiar robe, with those unmistakably familiar bright yellow eyes.