After the birth of his twin siblings, Theo had been emphasizing that he was no longer a baby but a “child.” Axel cleared his throat with a “Ahem” at Theo’s determined answer.

“Good. From now on, we must carry out a very important secret operation, and I’m taking you to the training ground to give you a mission. Are you mentally prepared?”

Theo’s eyes sparkled even more brightly.

‘A mission!’

Unable to control his quivering lips from joy, Theo answered loudly.

“Yes! I’m ready!”

Axel, Khalid, Theo, and Roto moved to the training ground.

With the small wooden sword at his side and dressed in his own version of a little knight’s outfit, Theo stood in the middle of the sandy training ground.

Facing him stood the Black Lion of the battlefield, Axel, whose swordsmanship was unmatched among living knights.

Though the purpose was different, the scene truly looked like a father teaching swordsmanship to his son.

Khalid watched this scene from afar with Roto and was newly surprised.

“The young master will be disappointed when he finds out this isn’t actually about learning swordsmanship. I’m worried, Master.”

To Roto’s concerned words, Khalid replied:

“Don’t worry. I was already concerned about that, so I’ll teach him myself for at least today.”

Roto finally relaxed. Just then, a gust of sandy wind brushed directly across Theo’s face.

“Cough cough!”

Theo, who had been standing in a proper stance, coughed and covered his mouth with his small palm. Then, as if something was stuck in his mouth, he spat out sand with ‘ptui ptui ptui’ and returned to attention.

“Theodore.”

“Yes!”

Axel had never called Theo “Theodore” before.

Feeling unnecessarily tense, Theo swallowed hard and answered.

“Why do you want to learn the sword?”

Though Axel expected an answer like ‘Because it looks fun!’, he asked just in case.

Theo stroked his chin with his little finger, thought deeply contrary to expectations, then looked up at Axel in attention position and answered:

“To protect my siblings!”

It was an answer that exceeded Axel’s expectations, who had thought the most Theo could say was that he wanted to protect Hailey.

Surprisingly, the ones Theo wanted to protect were the twins. As Axel paused, Theo continued:

“Theo will become a wonderful big brother who can protect his siblings!”

Even if he was just immersed in playing the role of a wonderful big brother, it was an unexpected answer. Theo’s eyes were shining with genuine sincerity.

“That’s a good attitude. Protecting and loving someone is the best motivation for a knight.”

Theo felt proud of the praise, though it was a small thing.

“I don’t teach just anyone. Unfortunately, there’s no one stronger than me in this world. Even if you’re my son, I can’t teach you if I don’t see the potential of a good knight in you.”

“Theo can become a good knight!”

“There’s one way to prove those words. But it’s very difficult and extremely dangerous.”

Theo felt tense but not scared. He felt like he could do anything and wanted to.

Daddy Axel looked most handsome when wielding a sword. Theo desperately wanted to learn from Axel.

“This is a task to bring joy to Hailey, whom the little knight loves most. Would you like to hear the mission?”

The fact that it would bring joy to Hailey made it even better. Theo nodded vigorously.

“Come closer. Since it’s a secret mission, I’ll hold the little knight for a moment.”

Theo walked right up to Axel and stretched out his arms toward him. It meant he wanted to be picked up.

Axel lifted Theo up and secretly conveyed something to him.

Throughout the conversation, Theo’s eyes widened in surprise, and he repeatedly covered his mouth with both hands.

Watching from a distance, Roto asked Khalid:

“Master. Will this really be alright?”

“It’s the chief aide’s role to help ensure the young lord’s mission is successfully carried out. You’ll do an excellent job.”

Khalid said this while patting the back of Roto’s head.

Roto’s ears turned red with joy at his master’s trust.

The mission briefing seemed to be over as Axel put Theo back down. Theo returned to his original position and faced Axel.

Axel first bent down and extended his hand as if asking for a handshake.

Theo stared at the hand for a moment, then stretched out his arm and grasped Axel’s fingertips.

“Leave it to me!”

Theo burned with determination. Axel smiled and gently shook Theo’s fingertips.

Watching this scene, Khalid sensed it was gradually becoming his turn to step in.

Axel wouldn’t teach swordsmanship even to decent knights. He certainly wouldn’t teach a young child who didn’t even know how to hold a sword, son or not.

‘I’ll have to accommodate the young master appropriately so he doesn’t feel disappointed.’

Just then, Axel called out to Khalid.

“Khalid! Wooden sword.”

“Pardon? Do you mean the wooden sword you use for sparring? What do you need it for?”

“What else? I can’t use a real sword to teach this little knight, can I?”

Khalid opened his eyes wide in surprise.

‘You’re going to teach him yourself?’

Then he looked down at Theo, who was struggling to pull the tiny wooden sword from his waist, full of anticipation.

“What are you doing? Bring it already.”

“I’ll bring it right away.”

Khalid finally came to his senses and hurriedly brought a spare wooden sword and handed it to Axel.

Axel spoke quite solemnly to Theo:

“The most important thing for a knight is training the mind and body. Just as magic power is essential for mages, knights need a clear mind and healthy body. So give me your sword and run one lap around this training ground. But you must not slow down from fatigue or take a rest. Can you do that?”

“Yes! I can do it!”

Theo hurriedly untied his sword and held it out to Axel.

Axel took the small wooden sword that looked like a toy and said:

“When you return, I’ll teach you how to hold a sword today. Stand at the starting line.”

When Theo was ready to run and Axel called the start, he shot off like a bullet. Axel slowly followed behind the child, observing his form.

Axel had successfully recruited Theo as an ally.

* * *

Hailey thought the grand ducal castle had been unusually busy lately.

They said it was to welcome guests, but she couldn’t understand why they needed to be so bustling for guests, no matter how important they were.

‘The heir of the Duchy of Valverde recently got married. I heard the young lord sent a gift instead of attending, and they want to express their gratitude in person. For friendship, the young lord has also invited the heir and his wife to Winchester.’

‘The Duchy of Valverde…… I’ve heard the name, but where is it?’

‘It’s a duchy in the south. Famous for delicious food, and especially developed in tourism. The young lord has also ordered a welcome banquet to be prepared.’

‘Oh, really? Then please gather some people. We’ll need to prepare many things. You should have told me earlier. The time is a bit tight.’

‘The young lord has instructed the relevant departments to proceed with preparations. He said the madam shouldn’t worry too much, so please don’t be concerned.’

Hailey didn’t even know they had sent a congratulatory gift to the unfamiliar Duchy of Valverde.

Well, she had been busy taking care of the twins and Theo and managing the inner castle, so she hadn’t had time to pay attention to other matters.

The heir of a duchy and his wife would normally require Hailey’s attention from start to finish. But this time, Axel had specifically ordered that Hailey not be bothered.

Though she was grateful, it still bothered her.

‘Madam. Tomorrow afternoon, the dressmaker and jeweler will visit in succession.’

‘Dressmaker? I didn’t call for one, what’s this about?’

‘For making the dress you’ll wear at this banquet……’

‘Is that necessary? I just bought a new dress not long ago, I’ll just wear what I have. Though they’re important guests, it seems unnecessary for me to have a new dress when I’m not even the main character of the event.’

‘Ah…… well, this was requested by the young lord. He asked that special attention be paid.’

That’s when Hailey realized. Were these guests so important that she needed a new dress made for the banquet!

That wasn’t all. On Axel’s orders, a jeweler was also visiting to purchase accessories to wear with the dress.

Since it hadn’t been this elaborate even when preparing for Theo’s first birthday celebration, Hailey felt something was off.

‘He’s not the type to pay so much attention to what dress I’ll wear. How strange.’