Screech—!
The gates to the Flove estate opened.
The members of the Jerdinger family stepped through.
The Flove household servants, who had come out to greet them, swallowed nervously.
An overwhelming pressure emanated from them, befitting a renowned family of heroes that vied for continental supremacy.
Flutter— Flutter—
The family banner, embroidered with a blazing flame, billowed in the wind.
A carriage led by a griffin at the forefront came to a stop.
The door opened, and Jis and Celia stepped out.
'Why is Uncle staying at a place like this?'
In truth, Celia had been displeased when she heard they would be staying with a noble family.
Celia had no intention of being satisfied with simply getting into Lumerne.
Her goal was to be at the top of her class.
Therefore, she had wanted to focus solely on the entrance exam until it was time.
But coming to a noble house like this meant a lot of troublesome matters.
Especially a noble house in a small kingdom.
They would undoubtedly be desperate to forge a connection with the Jerdingers.
That was why she had hoped they would rent out an entire luxury hotel.
Since it was Jis's decision, she didn't voice her complaints openly, but she was still unhappy.
Sway—
Celia tucked her black, waist-length hair behind her ear and straightened her posture.
Displeased or not, she was the daughter of the family head.
Her public image was important.
As a representative of her family, she needed to show proper courtesy to the master of this house.
As she was thinking this, Celia was momentarily taken aback.
"Huh?"
She wasn't the only one.
The other Jerdingers began to murmur amongst themselves.
Two figures, a man and a woman, stood at the entrance of the mansion.
Dade and Reina.
To be precise, they were startled by the sight of Reina.
'She resembles Father and Uncle.'
And her appearance was similar to her own.
"Offer your greetings, Celia. This is Marquis Flove."
"My name is Celia Jerdinger. We will be in your care for the week."
"Welcome. Please make yourselves at home."
Dade greeted her with a simple nod.
There was no sign of him trying to curry favor with the renowned heroic family.
"And this is the Marchioness Flove."
"Huhu, I have heard much about you."
Reina greeted her with a gentle smile.
Celia looked at Reina with bewildered eyes.
"Uncle, who is this?"
"Reina Flove. She is your aunt."
Celia's eyes widened in shock.
***
The Jerdingers settled their belongings in the mansion.
Meanwhile, Jis spoke with the Lord and Lady Flove in the drawing room.
"I am relieved to see you are both in good health."
"Well, I have no reason not to be."
Clink—
Reina lifted her teacup with elegance.
"You've grown quite prim, Sister."
"Hahaha. You've gotten bold, haven't you? Jis."
Seeing the vein throbbing on his sister's forehead, Jis shook his head.
'Her personality hasn't changed a bit.'
His sister was once known as the 'Witch of Flames.'
There was no grand reason why a knight like her had earned the moniker 'Witch.'
It was purely due to her personality.
Smiling at the memory, Jis spoke.
"Leo was quite audacious."
"Did my son cause some trouble?"
At Dade's question, Jis chuckled.
"Before coming to the Flove estate, we visited the Delan Royal School for a tour.
All the students had gathered, but Leo announced he had no interest in the Jerdingers and left first."
"If you were offended, I apologize on my son's behalf."
"Jis isn't petty enough to be offended by something like that, Dade."
"Indeed. It was quite a refreshing experience."
As Jerdingers who were always the center of attention, a reaction like Leo's was novel.
"So, what kind of child is Leo?"
"I'm not just saying this because he's my son, but his talent is truly remarkable."
"If you of all people say so, Sister, then my expectations are high. However."
Jis's gentle demeanor suddenly changed.
"Allowing him to learn the family's Aura technique is another matter entirely."
A cold atmosphere, unfitting for one with the title 'Flame Blade.'
Jis lifted his chin.
"Do you truly believe that Leo Flove is worthy of inheriting the Jerdinger flame, Sister?"
A palpable pressure flowed from his body.
It wasn't a special power.
It was the charisma naturally ingrained in him.
"I believe he is more than worthy."
Reina said, the corners of her lips curling up.
"You'll see for yourself when you meet him. You'll understand his value."
***
"Sir Whitten. Do you know anything about my aunt?"
Celia asked Whitten, who had been a loyal knight to the family head since before she was born.
"Lady Reina was the previous wielder of the 'Flame Storm' that you now possess, my lady."
Flame Storm.
It was one of the family heirlooms that held the power to maximize the Jerdinger's signature 'Flame Aura.'
The fact that she was once the master of the Flame Storm was enough to guess what kind of person she had been.
"Why would someone like that abandon the family name to come to a remote kingdom like this?"
"Lady Reina lost her flame in an unfortunate accident.
Afterward, she said she wished to live an ordinary life, so she renounced the Jerdinger name and left the family."
The moment one abandoned the family name, their records were erased from the family archives, regardless of the reason.
"I never dreamed I would meet Lady Reina here again."
'If Sir Whitten is saying this much, she must have been incredible.
Perhaps I could ask her for some swordsmanship instruction later?'
As she was thinking about witnessing Reina's swordsmanship,
she arrived at the Flove family's training grounds.
Whoosh—! Whoosh—!
"Hm?"
The sound of a wooden sword swinging through the air reached her.
Someone was practicing with a sword in the training yard.
Unfamiliar white hair, but familiar red eyes.
"You're Leo Flove, right?"
Leo looked at Celia with a puzzled expression.
"I am. Who are you?"
"Ahem."
Celia cleared her throat, stood up straight, and introduced herself.
"My name is Celia Jerdinger. I'm your cousin."
Celia expected Leo to be surprised.
A beautiful girl touted as the top entrant for Lumerne, where the world's greatest talents gathered.
Celia was a world-famous figure.
Especially among her peers, she was an object of envy, literally an idol.
"Oh? Nice to meet you."
Whoosh—! Whoosh—!
But Leo's reaction was lukewarm.
He didn't even stop swinging his sword.
Celia's brow furrowed at his obvious lack of interest.
Just as she was about to speak again, Leo's sword stopped.
"Hoo."
As Leo took a deep breath and wiped his sweat, Celia asked.
"How old are you?"
"Fifteen."
"We're the same age, then. Since fate has brought us together, I'll do you a *special* favor and give you some pointers on your swordsmanship. How about it?"
Celia proposed with a kind smile.
'If I'm nice to this kid, maybe my aunt will give me special training.'
It was a self-serving offer, but Leo wasn't interested.
'What's with this kid?'
Swordsmanship instruction?
He could tell she was highly skilled, but she had come to the wrong person.
Leo lost interest in Celia and began swinging his sword again.
Whoosh—! Whoosh—!
This time, Celia watched the movement of his sword carefully.
And she let out a sound of admiration.
'He's not bad.'
There was not a single wasted movement in his swordsmanship.
She could tell that his swings carried considerable power.
'So he's got our family's blood in him, huh? He's better than I thought.'
Clank— Clank—
'But what on earth are those bracelets?'
A distracting noise sounded every time he moved his sword.
A moment later, Leo retrieved his sword.
"Now, let's see you move properly. I think you have potential."
Celia felt a flicker of anticipation.
But Leo simply wiped his sweat and left the training grounds.
"Hey, where are you going?"
"I'm done with my training for today."
"But I said I'd help you."
"I'll pass."
"Why?"
"I'm not really interested in being instructed by someone less skilled than me."
"What?"
Celia's face hardened.
"Are you saying you're stronger than me right now?"
"You're probably stronger for now. I can't use Aura, after all."
In a real fight to the death, he couldn't beat Celia.
"But in a sparring match with swords, I'd win."
Celia's lips twitched as she looked at Leo's nonchalant expression.
"That's some serious confidence you have there."
Her red eyes narrowed.
"I can tell just by watching you swing your sword. You're the strongest at your school, aren't you?"
Among the students at Delan Royal School who aspired to be knights, all of them could use Aura.
But Leo was likely much stronger than them.
Aura aside, his fundamental foundation was on a completely different level.
'The reason he hasn't learned Aura is probably because my aunt intends for him to learn a high-level Aura technique, right?'
A high-level Aura technique.
For example, an Aura technique that only those of Jerdinger blood could learn.
'But what? I'm stronger *for now*?
Does that mean he thinks he'll be stronger than me once he learns Aura?
What's with him? So arrogant!'
The children of the Jerdinger family began competing fiercely from a young age.
That competition made no exceptions, not even for the children of the family head.
And Celia had always been the best.
The root of her pride wasn't being a 'Jerdinger,' but her confidence in herself.
"Fine. If you're so confident in your skills, let's spar."
"A duel?"
"That's right. If I win, you'll be my servant for the duration of our stay at the Flove estate."
"And if I win? Will you be my servant then?"
"Of course. It has to be the same conditions to be fair, right?
Not that it'll ever happen."
Celia swept her hair back and smiled dismissively.
"Ah, my lady."
Whitten, who had been observing the situation, tried to intervene urgently.
"Don't worry, Sir Whitten. I'll win anyway."
With a confident expression, Celia looked at Leo and said:
"I'm going to show you what a big fish in a small pond you are."
The two stood in the middle of the training ground.
As Celia gripped a wooden sword, Leo spoke.
"Oh, right. You can use your Aura."
"What?"
'This little brat!'
"Hmph! In that case, I'll grant you two free attacks.
Go on, hit me with everything you've got."
A red light shimmered around Celia's body.
Aura Armor.
It was a technique that enveloped the entire body in Aura like a suit of armor.
"Really? Then I won't hold back."
"Be my guest."
Celia's lips curled into a smirk.
She was certain that an attack from Leo, who couldn't use Aura, would be useless against her.
Leo gripped the sword with both hands and took a deep breath.
"Hoo—!"
The veins on his forearms bulged as he gripped the sword.
Leo's red eyes flashed.
Thwack—!
The wooden sword struck Celia squarely on the temple.
Her head snapped to the side, and her skull rang from the impact.
A throbbing pain shot up from her neck.
Celia's face went pale from the unimaginably powerful force.
"You're tough."
Leo said in admiration.
"H-Hmph! You think an attack like that can break through my Aura Armor?"
'Wh-What kind of monstrous strength is this?!'
She was forcing a smile, but she had nearly been knocked out for good.
It was a blow so powerful that the magically reinforced wooden sword was left splintered.
'Still, this much is bearable.'
Seeing Celia overstate her composure with a smile, Leo unfastened the bracelets from both wrists and tossed them aside.
Thud—!
"...!"
"Now then, shall we have a proper swing?"
To Celia, the sight of Leo smiling as he loosened his shoulders was like looking at a demon.
Bracelets enchanted with weight magic.
Normally, she would have scoffed at such an old-fashioned and brutish training method.
But right now, she couldn't laugh.
The scene before her was beyond brutish; it was insane.
"Here comes one more."
"W-Wait…!"
Craaack—!
A sound incomparably louder than before echoed through the air.
A dizzying impact slammed into her head.
As her consciousness faded, she watched Leo toss aside the shattered remains of the reinforced wooden sword and thought:
'What kind of…'
Celia's eyes rolled back.
'…madman is this?'