The original Erin Liserth should have run away crying without completing her swordsmanship evaluation.

But now she performed swordsmanship more perfectly than anyone else.

Erin stepped down from the evaluation area. As she moved, others who had been blocking her path gradually made way.

“That’s impossible.”

“How did she do that?”

Her ears caught others conversing in hushed tones.

Her body, sensitized by mana, remained tense and easily detected even the quietest voices.

Philip too stared at Erin with wide eyes.

Everyone seemed unable to understand how she had executed House Liserth’s swordsmanship.

Her palms throbbed, and she felt muscle pain throughout her body from the exertion.

Though her body screamed for rest, she couldn’t stop now.

There was a reason she needed to show this changed performance in the swordsmanship evaluation.

Ferdin was watching her.

Erin’s throat tightened. Such a naturally radiant person meeting me…

Whenever her thoughts wandered down this path, they always ended the same way.

Meeting me… Ferdin died.

A memory she couldn’t forget through three lifetimes.

Ignoring the stares directed at her, Erin walked toward Ferdin, who had been watching her all this time.

Finally standing before him, she hesitated briefly before speaking.

“Lord Ferdin.”

His brilliant golden hair sparkled in the sunlight. Erin felt breathless looking into his deep blue eyes.

Seeing him up close made his living presence even more real to her.

The memory of the day Ferdin died remained vivid in her mind.

She had been crying in her room, praying for his safe return when she heard the news of his death.

They said not even his body remained properly. He had become monster food, dying so miserably.

It was an end unworthy of the Empire’s Second Prince. And it had all been her fault.

Erin needed great courage to speak to him.

“Don’t you understand why the prince died? It’s because he was engaged to you.”

She recalled the Duchess’s words whispered in her ear after his death.

Erin hadn’t wanted the engagement with him. She knew her place.

The Second Prince loved by everyone and the villainess hated by all didn’t match.

People liked the cold but decisive First Prince Ditrion, but they wanted the kind and accepting Ferdin to become Emperor.

“He died because of you… both him and his knights. Princess Asili and the Count were their last hope… If only he hadn’t been engaged to you, the Second Prince wouldn’t have died.”

His failure to become Emperor was entirely her fault.

Even now, speaking with him like this, Erin felt she was killing Ferdin.

“I need to speak with you… alone. Could you spare me some time?”

At Erin’s words, she noticed Derek’s eyes narrow beside Ferdin.

She understood his wariness. He had probably heard the rumors spread by the Duchess in social circles.

The Duchess often added tears to her lies to damage Erin’s reputation.

“I heard Erin Liserth fell in love with Prince Ferdin at first sight and has been tormenting the Duchess?”

“They say she threatened to kill herself if the engagement didn’t happen? Truly wicked beyond compare.”

Recalling these rumors about herself, Erin’s face reddened. She feared what he might think of her.

‘I can’t blame you for hating me.’

She thought it wouldn’t be strange if Ferdin rejected her request now.

But far from avoiding her, he stepped even closer.

“I can give you all the time you need. But first…”

Instead of continuing, Ferdin pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wrapped it around her blood-covered hand.

Erin stared blankly at the neatly tied handkerchief.

He had always been a compassionate person.

To think he could be so kind even to the villainess now choking his life.

Looking at him, Erin once again realized what she needed to do.

* * *

In Atenz Academy’s dormitory, specifically in Ferdin’s massive office, several people had gathered.

Derek sighed as he looked at those before him.

Atenz Academy had been established to nurture talented individuals.

In a world overrun with monsters, there was no time to discriminate by social status when providing education.

That’s why the first Emperor Lexia decreed that status shouldn’t matter within the academy.

But there was an exception. The princes of the Lexia Empire could form their preliminary knight corps from their academy days.

This stemmed from an ancient principle that to become Emperor, one must be able to recruit outstanding talents.

Commoner students recognized for their skills and accepted into the preliminary knight corps could even be granted noble status after graduation.

The people before Derek now were such “outstanding” students.

They would become loyal members of Ferdin’s knight corps once he graduated.

Of course, excellence didn’t necessarily mean good character.

Derek was too ordinary to control these individuals with such strong personalities.

He desperately wanted to leave this uncomfortable situation.

Amon Hedor, a handsome man with black hair and blue eyes, was looking at Derek with eyes full of distrust.

“Erin Liserth has changed?”

The one who answered Amon was Lilia, who was sitting across from him.

She tucked her long, luscious blonde hair behind her ear and smiled beautifully.

“Shouldn’t we take Erin Liserth instead of Karon on this monster subjugation? If she’s as exceptional as rumored, we could even give her a special opportunity to subjugate monsters alone.”

At the mention of taking Erin on the monster subjugation, Karon’s face beside her hardened terribly.

Was she in her right mind? Giving Erin an opportunity to subjugate monsters alone?

Though called an opportunity, it was essentially a death sentence.

“Absolutely not. My sister only recently transferred to the Swordsmanship Department. It’s far too early for her to join monster subjugations. Besides, you know well that only those with top grades can participate.”

Karon had also heard that Erin had perfectly executed House Liserth’s swordsmanship.

He couldn’t believe his ears when Edward approached and said:

“Why didn’t you mention that Lady Erin learned swordsmanship? With that level of skill, she must have been training since childhood.”

That couldn’t be true. His sister, Erin Liserth, had never learned swordsmanship.

Already distracted since morning by thoughts of Erin’s injured hand, Karon’s mood worsened with each strange rumor he heard.

“My sister has never held a sword before. She absolutely cannot be taken on the monster subjugation.”

“Hmm… that’s strange. Someone who has never learned swordsmanship perfectly executed House Liserth’s style? Aren’t you being too protective, even for your sister?”

Lilia said this while giving Karon a sidelong glance.

“Such enviable sibling affection. I once had a brother like that too. But now I can never see him again because of someone.”

“That’s enough, Lilia.”

Karon gritted his teeth, unable to understand the situation.

He couldn’t fathom why such rumors were circulating, but he planned to ask Erin directly once this meeting ended.

If these false rumors somehow led to Erin participating in the monster subjugation, it wouldn’t be the monsters that posed the greatest danger—Lilia beside him would surely not leave her alone.

She might even pretend to be attacked by monsters while trying to kill Erin.

Karon felt sick just sitting next to Lilia.

Lilia shrugged, seemingly amused by Karon’s sensitive reaction.

He quietly swallowed. The first reality Karon faced at the academy was that Erin had many enemies.

He vaguely knew what she had done while living at the Duke’s mansion. However, he never considered how others might perceive her actions.

He deliberately avoided hearing rumors and slander about Erin. He naively thought things would improve someday.

That’s why he had no idea that eight years ago, Erin had killed Lilia’s innocent brother.

Karon learned about the incident shortly after he began attending the academy.