Chapter 73

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Dismaya and Cain boarded the carriage to go to the royal castle, which Elise and Dian watched off. Irvareno, standing behind Elise and Dian, looked at Cain with a sympathetic gaze.

"Please go, my lord. Cain, we will come later, too."

"Goodbye, big brother, daddy!"

As Dian waved her hand vigorously, Dismaya and Cain waved back through the window, and the carriage set off. Today, Dian and her mother Elise would come to observe Cain's training. Unfortunately, the deputy captain had given permission.

It seems that the palace guards are popular among noblewomen, and they occasionally set aside "open observation days." If they don't have open days, people might secretly come to watch, which could be dangerous. It is said that many people with lower ranks come to such observation days. However, it would be inappropriate to ask a duchess and her daughter to come on such a day, so they were given special permission for a private visit.

"Besides, it's only natural for parents to come and see their children's efforts. If you had told me in advance, you could have come anytime," the deputy captain said, but Cain did not relay this to his parents.

In one corner of the training ground, a tent-like structure with curtains on three sides was set up, and a small wood stove was burning inside. Elise and Dian sat on the chairs inside, watching the palace guards' training from there. The training was conducted at a distance from the tent to avoid the risk of wooden swords or splinters flying.

"Right now, Lord Cain is sparring with my son Gerant. Prince Arundilarano is sparring with my younger son Chris."

"Oh, are both of the deputy captain's sons aiming to become knights? How admirable!"

Standing next to the tent, Deputy Captain Fabian Verfadia was explaining the training. He praised the children, saying that they were improving rapidly by learning from each other, as their ages and physiques were similar. Indeed, Cain, Chris, and Arundilarano were improving their skills with each training session. Arundilarano, who initially struggled with physical endurance, could now keep up with the pre-training running.

Lifting and lowering their wooden swords, parrying and deflecting, and then striking the opponent's torso while stopping just short, they engaged in such exchanges. After a while, Cain and Gerant were having a cheerful conversation. Arundilarano, who had just won a point from Chris, was talking to Cain, who was patting his head.

Seeing this, Dian stood up from her chair and walked to Deputy Captain Fabian.

"Miss Dian, it's dangerous to leave the tent."

Fabian gently warned Dian, who had stepped out of the tent, and tried to guide her back to her seat. Dian, however, did not move and performed a ladylike curtsy.

"Deputy Captain, please let Di participate in the training."

She smiled up at Fabian. Elise hurriedly stood up, saying, "I told you it was just for observation!" but Dian did not take her eyes off Fabian.

"In that dress, you can't even swing a sword or avoid attacks."

Fabian tried to guide her back to her seat, but Dian remained firm.

"Il!"

At Dian's call, Irvareno, who had been standing quietly behind them, took off his backpack and respectfully handed it to her. He bowed and tried to avoid eye contact with the other adults, including Elise and the butler Parepantle.

"I've prepared a sports outfit! Please let Di participate in the training!"

"Il!?"

"Irvareno!"

Dian, with sparkling eyes, looked straight at Fabian and asked to participate again. Irvareno, holding the backpack with the sports outfit, bowed his head and closed his eyes, pretending not to hear the adults' voices.

The knights and children in training had stopped to see what was happening at the tent. Fabian, scratching his head in a puzzled manner, said, "Hmm," as if he were thinking.

"What's going on? Did something happen?"

Arundilarano, who had stopped his training and was looking at the tent, approached and asked. Cain, Chris, and Gerant followed behind him.

"Miss Dian, we agreed that today was just for observation. Besides, you can't train in that dress."

Cain gently tried to reason with Dian, who then proudly announced that she had a sports outfit. Cain, looking at Irvareno holding the backpack, had a puzzled expression, but Irvareno only looked awkward and avoided eye contact.

"If Dian gets hurt, I'll cry. Let's just observe today, okay? Your father said no to sword training, didn't he?"

"I want to train with big brother! I won't get hurt! Big brother, please! We can keep it a secret from Dad!"

While it was impossible to keep it a secret with Elise, Fabian, and the other knights present, it seemed that Dian had her own logic. Seeing Cain's troubled face, Arundilarano nodded and stepped forward.

"How about this: if you can win a point against me, you can participate. Dian is the same age as me, and unlike Chris, I'm just starting my training. This way, we can see if Dian will get hurt or not."

Arundilarano suggested this. Although he had been training for about two months and felt confident in his skills, he also wanted to show Cain his progress. By stopping just short of hitting Dian, he thought he could make Cain's wish come true and earn praise for making Dian give up. Since he had been training mostly with Chris due to their similar physiques, this was a chance to show his skills to Cain, who was training with Gerant.

Fabian whispered to Elise, "If she tries and fails, she might give up. I'll make sure to protect her from the prince's wooden sword. How about letting her try just once?" Elise, after emphasizing the importance of not letting Dian get hurt, allowed her to spar just once.

Dian, who had changed into a sports outfit behind the tent, said, "It's heavier than Aria's," and swung the wooden sword roughly. Seeing her clumsy movements, Arundilarano steeled himself and faced her.

Cain stood in front of the tent, his face pale with worry. Everyone, except Irvareno, thought that Cain, who doted on his sister, was worried about Dian getting hurt.

"Begin!"

At Fabian's command, Arundilarano, who had his wooden sword in front of him, tried to step forward and raise it.

Dian, at the same time as the command, leaned forward and lowered her head, extending her leg forward. She did not raise the wooden sword she had in front of her but pulled it slightly to her side. With her body leaning forward, the wooden sword was already in a position as if it had been raised. Dian then twisted her body, using her weight and centrifugal force to swing the wooden sword forward.

A dull thud was heard.

Fabian, who had stepped between Dian and Arundilarano, used his palm to block Dian's wooden sword, preventing it from hitting Arundilarano's side. He also supported Dian's body, which was about to lose balance from the twist. Arundilarano had not yet swung his raised wooden sword.

"Ouch... This might turn into a bruise tomorrow..."

Fabian, who had helped Dian stand up and lowered Arundilarano's arm, was smiling wryly, waving his hand.

Elise, hiding her mouth with a fan, had a gentle smile in her visible eyes.

"Cain, I need to talk to you when we get back to the mansion."

She whispered to Cain, who was standing next to her, in a low, almost inaudible voice.

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