Chapter 11 (Part 1)

Grace, who learned the news belatedly, looked at Leonardo with a dumbfounded expression.  

He stood before her, as if he were a criminal.  

“So, you lost?”  

“……”  

Leonardo, who wouldn’t admit to losing to Liam in swordsmanship even if he had ten mouths, remained silent.  

Grace, realizing the answer from his demeanor, let out a disbelieving laugh.  

“What on earth were you thinking?”  

“……”  

“No, even though he might look a bit frail, he’s the second-in-command of our knight order. What were you thinking, deciding to spar with someone like that? Are you crazy?”  

At Grace’s words, Leonardo protested in a small voice.  

“He provoked me first.”  

Grace let out an even more incredulous laugh at Leonardo’s words.  

Then, tapping the table with her hand, she said,  

“Come on, it’s not like the bad blood between you and me is a new thing. What were you thinking, getting all riled up and causing trouble over something like that?”

Leonardo turned his head, unable to respond to her tone, which was filled with frustration.  

He had thought their relationship had improved quite a bit lately. Hearing her say, “The bad blood between us isn’t new,” didn’t feel great.

Grace, staring at the silent Leonardo, brushed her hair back in exasperation.  

“Ah, forget it. What’s done is done. Complaining about it won’t change anything. We’ll just have to deal with it.”  

Seeing her face full of irritation, Leonardo cautiously asked, hoping it wasn’t true.  

“Was the price for the sparring match… a meeting?”  

At his question, Grace’s expression grew even more incredulous.  

“You didn’t even know that, and you did it? And according to you, it’s tomorrow, right?”

“……”  

“Ah, seriously! Thanks to you losing in such an obvious way, rumors will spread that I deliberately lost to the deputy commander because I wanted to get closer to him.”  

She had already said something without much thought, and now, after losing her sword so easily without even putting up a fight, it would be easy for others to dismiss it as an excuse.  

‘In other words, they’ll think I schemed to create an opportunity to get closer to the deputy commander.’  

Judging by the reactions of those around her, it seemed almost certain that Liam liked her, and she was apparently the only one unaware of it.  

‘How was I supposed to know that!’  

Before this incident with Leonardo, she hadn’t even been interested in romantic relationships, let alone thought about them.  

“Well, it looks like my life as a knight is going to be so much fun from now on.”  

With that biting remark, Grace stood up. She felt that if she stayed any longer, she would only end up arguing with Leonardo and wouldn’t have anything nice to say.  

Just before opening the door, Grace turned her head slightly and said to Leonardo,  

“Thanks to you, I’ll have a lovely date. Thanks, really.”

With a murderous smile, she slammed the door shut, leaving Leonardo gritting his teeth.  

Truly, nothing was going his way.  

At home, his father, Raymond, kept sending portraits of potential marriage candidates through the servants, claiming they were suitable matches. His mother, Charlotte, contacted him separately to ask if anything was wrong.  

‘What on earth does Mother know?’  

Raymond was probably upset because someone in their circle had sent out wedding invitations again.  

If not that, it was likely because he was annoyed by the rumors of Leonardo being entangled with unsuitable women.  

That wasn’t something worth paying attention to.  

However, Charlotte’s casual inquiry, despite her usual tendency to remain silent and merely observe her children, felt different.  

‘Now that I think about it… I once heard that Grace’s mother, Lady Amelia, and my mother were close friends a long time ago.’  

The two had reportedly lost touch after marrying political rivals.  

While Leonardo thought it might not be worth worrying about, Charlotte’s letter lingered in his mind like a hangnail.  

‘Did Delia say anything before she left?’  

It seemed unlikely, but considering his sister’s occasional knack for being strangely perceptive in unexpected ways, it wasn’t entirely out of the question.  

Letting out a sigh, Leonardo removed his glasses.  

He rubbed his face with his hands and picked up a pen. He had to send Charlotte a reply regardless.  

‘It would be dangerous if she came here in person.’  

His mother, who lacked divine power but had sharp eyes, would immediately grasp the situation upon seeing him.  

That would only complicate matters further.  

‘I’ve only just started to make progress with the sorcery, so I can’t let that happen.’  

She might even try to separate him from Grace, which was something he had to avoid at all costs.  

After all, ever since Iris had visited, even seeing Grace’s face had become difficult. Today’s incident was the first time they had crossed paths in days.  

‘Maybe I should just return to the shelter.’  

Leonardo chuckled to himself at the absurd thought.  

Still, if he were there, he could be alone with Grace without anyone interfering. Perhaps they could even spend time together like a couple.  

Realizing how plausible the idea sounded, Leonardo thought,  

‘I’ll need to contact Hymen.’  

To turn it into a proper plan, he would undoubtedly need a reliable accomplice.  

For the first time, Leonardo felt grateful for his supposedly brilliant mind. Whether it truly was brilliant remained to be seen.  

***

Liam, meanwhile, kept replaying his sparring session with Grace from the day before.  

Even as he sat waiting on a chair in front of ‘Chest’ for their scheduled meeting, his mind was preoccupied with the duel. There was only one reason for his obsessive reflection.  

‘It felt like I was facing a completely different person’s swordsmanship.’  

There wasn’t a single aspect of Grace’s swordsmanship that resembled what he had encountered. Yet, it felt like someone was desperately trying to mimic her style, leaving him with an unsettling feeling.  

Lost in thought, Liam closed his eyes and continued to replay the duel in his mind, not noticing Grace’s approach.  

“Sir Liam, what are you doing?” 

When someone placed a hand on his shoulder, Liam startled and sprang to his feet so abruptly that his head collided with Grace’s chin.  

With a loud thud, Grace staggered back.  

“Ouch, my jaw’s going to dislocate.”

Grace grumbled as she rubbed her stinging chin, and Liam hurriedly approached her with a flustered expression.  

“A-Are you alright, Commander?”  

Seeing her chin turn red from the impact, his eyes filled with panic.  

Grace, still rubbing her chin, replied,  

“No, if you didn’t want to meet, you could’ve just said so.Why headbutt my chin instead?”  

“T-That’s not what I meant!”  

Liam’s immediate denial made Grace chuckle.  

It wasn’t until then that Liam realized she had been joking, and he let out a sigh of relief. Only then did he notice Grace’s outfit.  

Though not a dress, her neat formal attire made her look absolutely dazzling.  

“You’re the one who suggested we eat, so you’re paying, right, Sir Liam?”  

But the moment was short-lived. At Grace’s words, Liam’s face stiffened for a moment.  

Grace, who had never once addressed him with the stiff title “Sir,” was now doing so, along with a subtly altered tone.  

‘What am I supposed to make of this?’  

Was this what it felt like to be rejected before even confessing?  

Liam forced himself to relax his face and replied nonchalantly,  

“Since I suggested it, of course I’ll pay. Besides…”  

Liam, lowering his gaze slightly, added as he looked at Grace with a calm but intense expression,  

“Who would ask someone out on a date and then expect them to pay?”  

“……”  

Facing Liam’s gaze, which she had never seen before, Grace finally realized something.  

Liam had always thought of her as a woman.

Even while addressing her as “Commander,” he had never once forgotten that she was a woman.  

‘I thought he was just being obedient because he liked me as a person.’  

While the fact that he saw her as a romantic interest didn’t particularly bother her, it did leave her feeling somewhat unsettled.  

“You know I eat a lot, right?”  

Trying to change the atmosphere, Grace deliberately spoke in a light tone.  

Liam smiled and replied,  

“I know. I came prepared.”  

At his response, Grace nodded and strode into ‘Chest’ first.  

“Good. I’m going to make sure you spend every last coin of that meager salary.”  

Grace’s exaggerated jest made Liam chuckle as he followed her inside.  

“All I ask is that you show some mercy.”  

Shortly after the two entered, someone appeared from the right corner of the building.

As he emerged, the surroundings instantly fell silent.

A man with common brown hair and brown eyes glared sharply at the Chest where the two had entered.

Clenching his fists as if steeling himself, he stepped inside.  

Once he disappeared, the street returned to its usual bustling noise.