95. prince and princess (4)

“Get out of the way.”

“If you tell me your business, I will.”

The second prince let out a laugh. He did not kneel even after seeing himself, and he did not take the proper bow. Even though they block their way, they do not respond to orders to get out of the way.

“You make fun of the stern royal family.”

“Because that’s not the case, I can’t get out of the way, Your Highness.”

As the 2nd prince growled, the knight who was coaching the 1st prince confronted him without losing. When Paola and Rione approached, they shared a puzzled gaze once more when they saw the two confronting each other. I don’t know why, but the second prince’s attitude was too sensitive.

The expression of the 2nd prince gradually changed. With a false sense of dignity, he commanded the map knight in a changed voice.

“Your duty is done, now get out of the way.”

“Your Highness, it is an order given to me to devote my body and soul to help the 1st Prince in his training. The only people who can move me from this position are the King and the First Prince.”

The knight pointed out the order of the second prince and said that. The 2nd prince’s eyebrows twitched in discomfort.

“this guy.”

It was then that the first prince approached them. Paola and Leone straightened their postures and stood by the second prince.

“I’m fine now.”

The first prince put his hand on the map knight’s shoulder. The knight withdrew his body in a disciplined manner and stood next to the first prince.

“Are you okay?”

You must be asking about training. Prince 1 nodded as if he didn’t mind.

“Okay.”

They are brothers, but they don’t really look alike. Paola had a sudden thought. Both inherited the dark brown hair of the Loire family, but the first prince had his father’s blue eyes and guns, but the second prince had his dead mother’s green eyes.

As for the impression, the 1st prince had a soft and sophisticated look, but the 2nd prince had rough and ferocious features. Paola felt the gentle atmosphere of the first prince and looked with envy at the knight serving the first prince.

wait.

With black hair, that kind of look. Scared to recall that face in her mind, Paola came closer to him and whispered.

“Looks like he is. The escort knights… ”

“I recognized it too. I would have thought that the teacher attached to the 1st prince would be this kind of person.”

After Paola answered, she narrowed her eyes and looked at the swordsmanship teacher. The swordsmanship teacher returned a black gaze casually. Paola glanced up and down the article, as if trying to gauge her skill, but couldn’t come to a conclusion.

Whistle, no… than me… .

Before Paola’s thoughts continued, the first prince’s voice broke the silence and resonated in the courtyard.

“Kyle.”

The 2nd prince openedly frowned at the 1st prince who called his name. With an attack disguised as a prank, they tried to break the momentum and start, but the operation failed.

“brother.”

“Okay, what are you doing here?”

And it was usually Prince 1 who took the lead in the story first. The second prince sent a fishy smile on his face in order to hide his uncomfortable inside as much as possible.

“What are you doing?”

“If you can’t see it, you are receiving swordsmanship instruction. It’s time to focus on training, but there must be a good reason for interrupting me, right?”

The second prince shrugged his shoulders.

“My younger brother came here because he was worried about my older brother training, but you reply so coldly.”

“If you’re concerned that you tried to attack me from afar, that’s a pretty mischievous worry.”

The second prince let out a big laugh. The more he tried to pinpoint his mistakes head-on, the more he had to face them confidently.

“I was just wondering if the knight instructing my older brother had the minimum skill set for him. If you can’t stop even that light prank, then you don’t even have the minimum qualifications.”

Prince 1 glared at Prince 2 as if he was dumbfounded. The second prince continued without stopping.

“Hasn’t it been quite some time since that knight started teaching you brother’s swordsmanship? It probably took more than a week for the rumors to reach my ears. It’s not like you haven’t learned swordsmanship yet, and if you have an extraordinary brain, you’ll probably remember the basics, but I don’t know why you’re still spending so much time on the basics, and not the swordsmanship at all.”

The first prince wrinkled his expression as if he was in a bad mood for the first time.

“Each person has a different way of teaching. Don’t pick up unnecessary faults.”

“No, brother. It would never mean that my older brother lacks in talent or qualifications, but that knight’s ability to teach and skills as a knight are lacking.”

What did that guy say? That the only people who can motivate you in this place are the king and the first prince?

cheeky bastard.

A ferocious smile rose from the corners of the second prince’s mouth. The first prince slightly raised his voice, as if he couldn’t wait to see the second prince take down his knights by blaming each other, and subtly undermining himself.

“Did you learn that? When dealing with talented people, you can’t trust their skills, so you should be suspicious from the beginning?”

“I think now is a good time to evaluate his skills.”

Provocatively, the second prince countered and turned his gaze to the first prince’s map knight.

“If you have a mouth, answer me something. Is the current lack of progress on the map due to your lack of skills? Or is it because your brother’s sword skills are low?”

The map driver bowed his head and replied.

“Neither one.”

The 2nd prince’s eyebrows twitched. Okay, let’s hear how well he teases his tongue. The 2nd prince crossed his arms, sliding his right hand under his left arm. As if the second prince’s arrogant attitude didn’t bother him, the map driver’s voice was very flat.

“The reason I’m still correcting His Highness’s radix ceremony is because I’m focusing on the basics, and I’m worried that I’ll damage His Highness’s jade body while rushing forward.”

The second prince snorted. In the first place, as if he hadn’t even thought to listen to what the map driver was saying, the prepared words flowed out of his mouth.

“It sounds like nothing but an excuse to my ears. The whole process is clearly unfolding before my eyes, but do you see me as a black eye that doesn’t even recognize him?”

Prince 1 grabbed Prince 2 by the shoulder.

“Kyle, no matter what, he is my mentor. Your words seem a bit harsh.”

The 2nd Prince roughly shook off Louise’s hand that was on his shoulder.

“Brother, isn’t it something we can do at least to ask about the qualifications?”

“He is well qualified.”

It could have been said that his father had personally sent a knight from the 1st Guards, but Louis decided not to mention the king. If there was a dispute that went further than this, Lewis would also be in trouble.

“Then, I guess we can do something simple to prove that qualification.”

proof? 1 The prince’s eyebrows curled. The second prince shrugged his shoulders and pointed with his thumb at the two knights behind him. Paola’s shoulders trembled when she was pointed out.

“If you’re not as good as the escort who followed me today, how dare you claim to be your brother’s teacher?”

The first prince did not bother to refute verbally. And I didn’t want to avoid the fight in the form of a proxy war that the 2nd prince was walking right away.

What reason would you have to refuse a fight you couldn’t lose?

Prince 1 hid his true intentions and continued admonishing Prince 2.

“Are you going to fight childishly in a sibling fight, arguing over whether your knight is stronger or mine?”

The second prince shook his head in regret.

“I can’t compete with my older brother, can I? It would only be a loss to my brother and to me.”

“Even if you do, you cannot drag other people into your private affairs. Is that the right attitude of a would-be ruler?”

“How could it be a private matter to discuss the qualifications of a person to be a teacher of a prince?”

The 2nd prince pushed forward with a fierce determination. Then he cocked his finger arrogantly and called out to Paola. At that arrogant gesture, a tendon was etched on Paola’s forehead for an instant, then it disappeared. Then, barely maintaining an expressionless face, he walked to the front of the second prince.

“Let’s compete with this knight.”

As if it were an order to his own person, the second prince said to the map driver. Then, as he approached Paola, he lowered his voice as if to speak in his ear.

“It doesn’t matter if I make a half-blind god. Destroy him somehow.”

Paola sent her eyes filled with complicated feelings to the second prince. Even though her superiors, even those she didn’t like, Paola unconditionally obeyed the order, this time, it raised questions about whether she would be able to carry out the order the 2nd prince had given her.

“Arsene… .”

“Fine.”

Despite Lewis’s dissuade, the map driver stepped forward. An attitude that doesn’t hesitate. The second prince frowned. Sooner or later, I will be trained firmly by the vice-captain of the Jackdaw Knights.

“We’re going to back off, brother.”

With a voice full of laughter, the second prince said so. Prince 1 kept a disapproving expression and stepped back.

When people withdrew, an arena naturally formed. Paola spoke quietly to the map driver across from her.

“Your Highness, Prince 1, is really good at acting.”

Disguised as the map driver, Arsene Bern, Maxim raised his eyebrows. It was clear that Prince 1 created such a plate by deliberately following Prince 2’s intentions. It would be argued that the result is the same if you press the opponent with words that you cannot communicate with. I wondered if he was overconfident in his own abilities.

Apparently, Paola seemed to notice the performance, but Maxim had no intention of affirming him.

“I don’t know what you are talking about.”

“And you seem to be acting quite well too. How come your expression doesn’t change at all?”

The sword was pulled from Paola’s belt. Maxim looked at the sharpness of the sword in Paola’s hand. Paola was instantly convinced that she would not be able to defeat the black-haired knight with a sword.

Even with a mace, it would be difficult.

With a wry smile, Paola took the jockeying ceremony. Maxim pulls the sword out of the scabbard and takes a face-to-face jockeying ceremony. Paola admired inwardly the naturalness of the flowing river. Do I have to do that to enter the Royal Guard Knights? The second prince doesn’t even seem to know that the knight belongs to the Royal Guard Knights.

‘So they must have sent me.’

Whether Iljin is good or bad, Paola instilled tension in her body in the face of the ebb and flow. The black-haired knight raised the corner of his mouth and said, barely visible.

“It seems to be difficult to do moderately.”

look at this guy Paola laughed at her.

“You speak as if you have already won. Long and short, you have to tell them to know.”

Paola’s sympathy was stimulated by the knight’s moderate provocation. A sense of exhilaration for the first time in a long time slowly rose in Paola. It’s an opponent that can’t be defeated, but hasn’t Paola herself always overcome such an opponent. From the days when I was active as a soldier to the time when I became a knight. Paola has won many unwinnable battles.

“It’s a friendly competition, so I won’t use Auras.”

Maxim nodded. There was no wind blowing on the deck. War clouds rose between the two knights, and several virtual sword strikes were exchanged. The search for the best, the best start for each other continues,

bang-!

The knight’s sword rang out. The sword pierces the audience’s head and body with a tingling ringing in their ears. It was Paola who started the attack first with a narrow gap. Mana flowed rapidly through the bloodstream. Paola raised the corners of her mouth and trembled at the thrill of touching her fingertips.

‘The search beyond this is meaningless.’

That was Paola’s judgment.

If you think you’re inferior, you shouldn’t let the opponent lead the attack first. Steals the opponent’s reaction, and allows my attack to reach the desired location. Having my attack reach where I want it has the same context as getting the opponent’s response the way I want it to.

bang-!

Paola gave no distance. The distance between them increased the time for the opponent to devise. Stick with him, he had to lead the battle with a confident melee.

‘… Still, it doesn’t turn out the way I thought.’

Paola clicked her tongue inwardly. In terms of experience, he was confident of being superior to anyone else, but the reaction the dark-haired knight showed seemed to cross the line that could be compensated by the difference in experience. I felt free as if the sword had become part of my body. The number of captures was different for each sword attack received.

Responding with a soft shedding, whenever Paola’s swordsmanship changed, he aimed for the gap and tried to disrupt the offensive with a firm and strong counterattack. If you use your sword quickly, you will not be able to beat him, so your sword attack becomes faster.

As if he was going to teach me a trick, as if he was testing his sword. At the same time, that skill had enough qualities to test his sword.

“… You’re evil.”

As swords clashed with swords, Paola muttered involuntarily.

“I know what you mean when you say you won’t do it in moderation.”

The knight in Paola’s field of vision was raising the corner of his mouth.

“Stop getting excited.”

At that answer, Paola snorted. And from that mouth, words that were completely different from the expression came out.

“It seems that His Highness, the 2nd Prince, doesn’t like you very much.”

“I felt it too.”

“Why did you react that way?”

“I just faithfully follow the orders given.”

At those meaningful words, Paola shook her head.

“Your Highness, the 2nd Prince, is a person who can be called the backbone of the court’s power no matter how you look at it. It was a foolish response.”

“Senpai-sama who says so doesn’t seem to like the second prince very much.”

Paola smirked at the knight’s question in reverse. Their conversation was not overshadowed by the sound of swords colliding with each other.

“I will not answer that question.”

by the way.

Paola blocked Maxim’s counterattack by changing the conversation topic.

“To be excited about this insignificant sword. Do you really like swords, or have you ever mixed hands with people?”

“No, your sword is strong. It’s not a sword that will be cut down because it’s not a big deal, and seniors aren’t retired either. However, looking at the sword tax, it seems that you are not a very professional swordsman.”

Paola nodded. It was assumed that he would get caught anyway. The habit of using a blunt weapon came out from time to time even when using a sword.

“Is it dissatisfaction because it’s not my main weapon?”

“Nope. I still enjoy it enough.”

“You seem to be enjoying this competition. Even if it is a confrontation related to the political and personal circumstances of the two princes?”

At Paola’s question, the knight nodded lightly.

“Even if it’s a forced competition, that’s not a reason not to enjoy this showdown. It’s not a battle of death and death, so why not enjoy it?”

Paola laughed again.

“… That too.”

Before I knew it, that knight was leading the rhythm of the sword attack. Paola, not knowing when she had lost the initiative, responded by moving her arm to the swordsman’s unleashed swordsman.

“It’s okay if you surrender.”

obvious provocation. But Paola didn’t hate the provocation right away.

“Don’t provoke me too much.”

Despite giving up the offensive, Paola did not waver. Paola’s identity was in defense rather than offense.

His body, which had crossed numerous battlefields and countless times, moved and defended against attacks before he could even think with his head. Each indelible scar engraved on the body guides Paola’s arm to the bow. Irregularly, sometimes standardly, he blocked the pouring sword attacks.

“… hahahaha.”

Paola laughed involuntarily.

It had been a long time since they had been flocked to like this, and it had been a long time since they had become difficult to block even though they had sincerely put themselves into a defensive posture.

One by one, Paola’s defenses crumble like bolts coming loose. Forcibly correcting her sluggish posture, Paola thought.

This is something I have to lose for sure.

That sword tax coming up from the bottom. Paola immediately threw away all defenses and lowered her sword in a straight line.

Tung-!

After the competition started, the loudest gong sound heard echoed through the courtyard,

hooked

Paola’s sword, slammed into the ground, told the outcome of the contest.

At the same time as the first prince’s expression turned red, the second prince’s expression became pale, not distorted, but close to astonishment.