Chapter 61

Alice was an unwanted child.

No one had ever told her this.

But she had felt this way countless times.

Alice had lived as a substitute for Nicole.

This had been the case long before they came to the capital.

Her father, a former adventurer, once saved a village in crisis.

The lord granted him the rank of knight and asked him to protect the village of Ruru.

Her father then married a girl from a family that led the village, and Nicole and Alice were born.

The two looked identical except for their gender.

Her father doted on Nicole, the successor.

He often trained her to pass on his skills.

Alice just watched from the side.

However, Nicole had no talent for the sword.

She disliked training and often asked Alice to take her place.

At first, it wasn't noticed. But one day, her father realized.

Today's sword skills were too good for Nicole, he thought.

Alice remembers that her father's face showed more disappointment than anger at that moment.

As the leader of the vigilante group, her father led the village men on a monthly patrol of the forest.

The duty of the vigilante group was to slay the monsters that appeared around Ruru Village.

Ruru Village was not wealthy, so they had to protect themselves.

They couldn't always request the guild to slay the monsters.

Young villagers who had grown to a certain age all participated.

Nicole was no exception, but she had often switched places with Alice.

Alice didn't mind.

She thought that if she became strong, her father would take an interest in her, even as a child.

Nicole's interest was in the stories of adventure told by merchants and traveling performers who came to the village, and he desperately wanted to see the outside world.

Alice, disguised as Nicole, contributed to monster slaying many times.

However, her father never praised her for it.

When Alice's father died, the lord who governed Ruru Village said that the rank of knight would be passed on to the next generation, Nicole.

Alice's mother had never been interested in the rank of knight, but the leader of the vigilante group had to be from her family.

This was to concentrate power.

In her own way, she had tried to protect the family that had continued for generations.

However, Nicole refused.

And without telling anyone, he set off for the capital.

At first, her mother told Alice to live as a substitute for Nicole.

She had assumed that he would soon be scared and return.

But Nicole never came back.

Her mother told Alice:

"You will marry as the second wife of the lord's son. Have a child and grasp happiness as a woman."

Alice couldn't believe it.

After using Alice as a substitute for Nicole so much, she was suddenly told to marry.

The lord's son and his wife had no children yet.

Her mother was telling Alice to become his mistress and bear an heir.

Alice couldn't see this as a happy thing.

She made one last request to her mother.

To retrieve Nicole's belongings on her behalf, as her mother had a bad leg.

And to buy a wedding dress on the way back.

"I'm back, Mother."

"You're late. Where did you go to buy the dress?"

Alice had returned to Ruru Village from the capital after informing Noah and her temporary employer, Tristan.

"Well, that's fine. Show me the dress. I'll tell the lord that you're back tomorrow."

"No, Mother. I have no intention of marrying the lord's son."

Alice's mother said without changing her expression.

She always did this.

A gentle expression, a kind voice.

But her eyes never smiled.

Alice smiled bitterly, feeling out of place, thinking that this was the first time her mother had recognized her as an individual.

No matter what she said, her mother wouldn't listen to Alice's words.

"I am a good mother. Because I lived the same way as my mother."

"So you will marry the lord's son. That is a woman's happiness."

"What are you talking about? Haven't you seen enough of the outside world?"

The capital might have been overflowing with goods, but just because there were many things, it didn't mean it was happy.

Her mother said that a life appropriate to her status in the village was the best.

Alice didn't want to live without hunger like a noble.

"No, Mother. I want to live as Alice Ruru. That's why I came back. To settle things."

"What do you mean? If you marry into the lord's mansion, you won't be a substitute for Nicole anymore. How is that different from being happy as yourself?"

"I came back to receive the rank of knight. Here, I have a recommendation letter from the Stern family."

"I won't allow it. You will marry into the lord's mansion. That's already decided."

Alice smiled sadly.

She had given up, knowing that no matter how much she explained, her mother wouldn't understand.

"I won't ask for your permission. I will decide my own life."

Alice's mother finally broke her smile.

It was an expression Alice had never seen before.

When she left her birth home, she saw her mother peeking through the window.

"You never called my name, even at the end..."

Alice understood this bittersweet feeling.

She didn't want to be needed by her father or mother. She wanted to be recognized as Alice.

And probably, that wouldn't happen.

Alice went to the lord's mansion and succeeded to the rank of knight.

She said she would learn the basics of being a knight at Tristan's mansion in the capital to gain strength.

The lord allowed Alice without much opposition, given Tristan's name.

Thus, Alice Ruru returned to the capital as a female knight.

Tristan's usually quiet mansion was bustling.

Outside the mansion, the knights stood restlessly.

Alice spotted a familiar face among them and called out to him.

"Fran. What happened?"

"Alice. ...Noah was kidnapped."

What? Even with Quincy there?

Alice, in disbelief, hurried into the mansion to learn the details.