“Aaaaargh!”

Almost bowled over by the impact, Calliphe dropped her sword and tumbled across the ground. Fortunately, she didn’t fall out of bounds—thanks to her crash course training with Lynen.

“This—this actually worked. But the effect seems a bit too strong—AAAH!?”

CLANG! CLASH!

The moment Calliphe grabbed her sword again, a barrage of attacks came rushing in. She blocked Noah’s sword almost purely on survival instinct. While watching Noah’s matches from the sidelines, she hadn’t realized just how incredible his speed and strength truly were!

‘Aaah! My back! Arms! Legs!’

The swords were clearly clashing against each other, so why did it feel like she was being hit directly?!

“Take back what you just said.”

CLANG! Grrrrk…

Their swords locked in a test of strength.

‘Now’s the chance, Ortie!’

Sensing Calliphe’s intention, Ortie began carefully moving from one sword to the other. Meanwhile, Calliphe held her ground with her sword and tried to engage Noah in conversation.

“You didn’t react when I insulted you, so why now?”

“You can’t speak ill of Lady Calliphe.”

“You’ll barely see her face eventually anyway, right?”

Though Noah’s answer was touching, it was also the truth. Calliphe had been meeting potential guardians and trying to make good impressions for a reason.

‘Why else have I been working so hard to meet guardian candidates and make good impressions?’

It was all for herself and Noah. The condition for the hidden ending required 100 filial piety and sending Noah to a guardian.

“She’s just a sponsor, isn’t she? Is there really any need to get this angry?”

“No.”

“What?”

“Not just a sponsor. No.”

Noah glared at her resentfully through gritted teeth.

“She’s my family.”

“……”

Calliphe felt momentarily stunned, as though she’d been struck on the head. Then she noticed something she hadn’t realized before—a faint gray aura flickering along Noah’s blade. Noah himself didn’t seem aware of it.

‘Could that be an aura?!’

Have I been getting hit by that this whole time?

CLANG!

“Ugh!”

Calliphe collapsed under the striking sword and skidded across the floor.

“Ugh, cough.”

The energy inside her body shuddered from the impact, but she couldn’t afford to just lie there.

‘What about Ortie?!’

She scrambled to her feet and grabbed her sword. Noah frowned at her persistent determination, his voice once again tinged with hesitation.

“…You still want to continue?”

“……”

Calliphe examined her sword. A light blue slime subtly announced its presence.

“Phew.”

Good. It transferred safely.

Now there was no need to keep getting beaten up. Calliphe opened her mouth to address the referee.

“Actually, I forfeit—”

But at that moment, Ortie groaned uncomfortably, like someone with an upset stomach.

—I… feel sick…

“Hold it in.”

—Can’t… boom… going to explode.

“What! When?”

—N… ow…

As soon as the words ended, the blade began glowing brightly at an alarming rate, like something about to explode.

Calliphe’s heart sank.

“Hey, you can’t be serious!”

She shouted while dashing across the arena. Her only thought was to get as far away from Noah as possible.

“Ferica?!”

“Don’t follow me!”

Calliphe yelled at Noah while gripping the sword handle tightly.

‘I should throw it into the air!’

She wasn’t sure how high she could throw it with this puny child’s body, but she had to try.

However, just as Calliphe was about to throw it—

WHOOSH!

Someone snatched the sword and hurled it upward with tremendous force. The sword soared surprisingly high into the air.

Calliphe had no time to see who it was. A firm, broad chest pulled her into a protective embrace.

Immediately after—

BOOM!

Ortie exploded in mid-air.

The aura forcibly gathered inside Ortie spread out like ripples. A rough wind swirled around Ortie like a violent wave.

“Kyaaah!”

“What was that?!”

Personal belongings went flying and hair was blown wildly. Then, light blue slime chunks splattered everywhere with wet plops.

Fortunately, that was the extent of the explosion’s damage.

After surveying the situation briefly, Lynen lowered his head and whispered to the young Calliphe in his arms.

“Calliphe. Are you alright?”

“…Ugh.”

“Calliphe?”

“Lynen.”

Calliphe barely managed to open her eyes. Her feverish face had turned red.

“My body aches and hurts so much.”

“From the explosion?”

“No.”

It was because of Noah. Because Noah had manifested his aura.

Calliphe smiled with satisfaction before groaning again.

“Anyway, quickly…”

“Understood.”

Lynen stood up with Calliphe in his arms. Confused tournament officials approached him.

“Aren’t you Duke Ortega? What was that explosion just now?”

“Someone tampered with my sponsored child’s sword.”

“What?!”

“I’ll explain the circumstances later. For now, take care of the scene. I need to get this child treated first—please relay that to Her Majesty the Empress as well.”

“Ah, understood.”

The officials calmed the startled spectators and secured the area. Lynen disappeared toward the corridor with the waiting rooms, carrying Ferica in his arms.

Noah watched the scene in confusion. The referee and tournament officials approached him.

“Contestant Noah, are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?”

“…No.”

“Contestant Ferica will be processed as an out-of-bounds defeat. I know you must be shocked, but according to the rules, you should prepare for the finals.”

“……”

Noah kept staring in the direction where Ferica had disappeared.

“After cleaning up the arena, we’ll need to hold Dillen’s match too, so you can rest until then.”

“I’ll go check on her.”

“What? Where are you—hey!”

Noah immediately went after Ferica. As he walked, he thought to himself.

‘What happened back there?’

Thinking about it, several things seemed strange—Ferica breaking her promise, picking a fight with words she normally wouldn’t use, and suddenly becoming obsessed with the sword.

‘It was almost like she knew the explosion was going to happen.’

He wanted to understand what had happened and was worried about Ferica—whether she was okay or badly hurt.

“Which way did the Duke go?”

“Ah, just that way.”

Noah walked down the corridor, following the two who had disappeared. The crowd thinned until eventually there was no one in sight.

‘There’s no infirmary here…?’

While wondering about this, he heard Ferica’s voice from a room with a door left slightly ajar.

* * *

“Ugh, Lynen. Put me down.”

Lynen carefully placed Calliphe on a sofa and quickly wrapped his cloak around her body.

With painful groans, Calliphe’s body began to change.

“Urgh…”

Her short, thin limbs gradually lengthened. The sound of small clothes tearing accompanied her body growing larger beneath the concealing cloak.

Finally restored to her original form, Calliphe panted from the lingering, tingling pain.

“That hurt like h*ll…”

“This is what happens when you cause trouble.”

“Who could have known it would turn out like this? But what about Noah? He’s not hurt, is he?”

“He’s fine.”

Calliphe sighed with relief.

Still wrapped in Lynen’s cloak, she stood up and approached the wardrobe in the room. This was a lounge for noble ladies, so spare dresses were kept here.

Seeing Calliphe hurriedly pulling out clothes, Lynen quickly turned around and retreated to the doorway.

“Why are you in such a rush again?”

“The finals will be starting soon. I need to go see Noah.”

Lynen looked at the lounge door he had deliberately left ajar. Conscious of who might be beyond it, he spoke slowly.

“Do you not intend to tell Noah that you were Ferica?”