"Annabelle, why are you coming back so late?"

When I got home, it was already dark.

As soon as I entered the door, I heard a blunt voice.

"Well, it's not too late..."

Even my uncle, not just my parents, was waiting for me at the front door with his eyes wide open.

I rolled my eyes and said cautiously.

"Didn't you say that you're going with your friends today? I thought you'd be very late..."

"Tomorrow is your friendly tournament, why should I drink until late?"

My uncle followed me around in a tone that I couldn't tell if he was grunting or not, busy giving instructions here and there.

"Oscar, make a late-night snack. Light food that is not too burdensome. Wherever you pretend, you're in trouble. Aaron, you can help her sharpen her sword. Marilyn, why don't you relax Annabelle's muscles? You are strong."

"Why are you on all of a sudden? And take that filthy pipe away."

My mother answered angrily with her arms crossed.

"It's not good for Annabelle's health. I want to let her see only pretty and good things."

"If she's so precious, why don't you take care of her like this? Is it normal for her to come back so late?"

"Well, she must have been at the Duke of Wades."

My uncle's eyes widened as I nodded at my mother's words.

Then he coughed a few times and immediately changed his stance.

"Duke... Well... How big and flashy. If it's Wade..."

Uncle was also weak in wealth and fame, so he sighed and muttered as if he was sorry.

"Still, my niece is more pitiful..."

My parents had received too much from Braden, so they couldn't resist, but my uncle didn't like it because he didn't have any psychological debt.

So, I decided to put an end to that trouble quickly.

"This sword was very expensive, but Leslie gave it to me. And there are many more precious things in the Duke of Wade."

"...No matter how precious it is, if you are rewarded with material things, your heart will be filled to some extent."

After making a quick compromise, my uncle started to check my condition excessively.

I was worried about the speed of my late night snack and the softness of the sofa I sat on.

"Uncle."

Aaron, who couldn't see it, sighed as he cleaned my sword, and quietly spoke.

"If you want us to take care of your niece like that, why don't you take care of her yourself? Why are you doing this to her like you're up to something...?"

And seeing the expression on my uncle's face, which was visibly bewildered by Aaron's words, we all immediately noticed.

What was his plan?

"Tell me now."

My father looked at my uncle who looked just like him, and said with some sternness.

"Why on earth are you so anxious that we can't take care of Annabelle?"

My uncle, who was much more determined than my father, could not be swayed by those words.

"Annabelle is my lifesaver. Isn't it natural to take care of her this much?"

Of course, we were all thinking the same thing.

With such exaggerated gestures, excited tone, and restless attitude...

"I think it has something to do with money."

My mother frowned and muttered, and my uncle was startled and coughed several times to stand up.

"Anyway, Annabelle."

But he didn't forget to tap me on the shoulder as he left.

"Sleep early... Hmmm, take good care of your condition."

"What are you talking about?"

My mother grunted bluntly against my uncle's back.

"Why are you putting pressure on the child?"

Then she looked at me and smiled comfortably.

"Annabelle, take it easy. We really don't care if you lose."

"Yes, mother... But what is this?"

I asked, pointing to a bunch of cheering banners piled up in a corner of the living room.

There were very uncomfortable phrases engraved on it, such as 'Annabelle Rainfield is the best!' and 'Annabelle wins the championship!'

"That, that... I thought that you would definitely attend the swordsmanship contest, and I wanted to cheer you on..."

Dad answered quickly.

"If we let go...is it worth it? So this time recycling..."

After all, in essence, my father and uncle were not very different.

Aaron quietly approached the banner and wrote "Victory for Annabelle!"

"You have to do this for recycling, Dad."

Seeing me watching this, my father hurriedly waved his hands and shouted.

"Of course you don't have to worry! You can lose! No, actually, hasn't it always been like that?"

"..."

"So, it's a match that won't do you any harm...sorry."

My father spit out anything to fix it, but in the end he bowed his head and apologized.

"Hey, everyone really is a spectator. Why are all Rainfield men like this?"

Before I knew it, I leaned in the arms of my mother who hugged me tightly and smiled.

"Rainfield men are not strange, but a normal person like Ian...ah...sorry. It's not even that anymore..."

"Yes, Mother. Now that's not it either. In normal terms, Rainfield is better now."

Aaron faithfully checked the text on the banner and answered.

"It's the most insane thing in the empire to like someone who rushes them to death... I'm sorry, Sis. I didn't mean to insult you."

Even though it seemed like a messy night, it felt so good.

Come to think of it, until now, every day before the swordsmanship contest, I used to train until late at night, always watching Caitlyn and Reid.

But now it was different.

Ahead of the big competition, seeing my family trying to make me feel comfortable physically or mentally, it was only then that I thought, 'I can lose' for the first time.

Everything around me had changed. It was a little strange, but anyway, I had a warm family and a sweet lover.

I was able to sleep comfortably and not be nervous before the match for the first time that night.

And I dreamed of defeating Ian.

It was because being comfortable and having a good heart were two different things.

~*~

It was the day of the friendly match between Annabelle and Ian.

The weather had been very sunny since morning.

A few days ago, the stadium where the 912th swordsmanship competition was held was as crowded as ever.

After Annabelle easily defeated more than 50 assassins in the capital, public opinion that people did not know how this match would turn out was also considerable.

Of course, the majority of people were still predicting Ian's victory.

This was because Ian was a gifted person recognized by everyone from a very young age.

"Oooh, come out!"

A huge drum sounded, and Annabelle and Ian, who came out to the center of the stadium, stood side by side in front of the Emperor.

Annabelle, who always went to swordsmanship competitions in her old gray training suit, was different today.

Appearing in the clothes that Marilyn had put all her heart into, she was not at all swayed by Ian for his gorgeous looks and perfect attire.

"Isn't Ian even cooler than usual?"

"Does it feel like he cared too much about his appearance? It's like he's going to the party..."

In the front row of special stands, Braden smiled delightfully and nodded his head.

He emphasized several times that he must look good unconditionally, but it seemed that he did his best.

"Honey, he might really lose. This is real."

Leslie sternly cautioned beside Braden.

"Don't make the face that Ian has already won. Don't expect too much."

Of course, Braden wasn't expecting Ian to win.

To be precise, he was looking forward to the event behind it.

No matter how much you thought about it, giving the medal was because it was a simple yet meaningful proposal.

'I couldn't do that to Leslie either... It's worth seeing.'

As Braden recalled his past, the Emperor slowly opened his mouth.

"Now."

Since it was a friendly match arranged by the Emperor himself, the progress of the regular swordsmanship tournament was slightly different.

In front of them, the Emperor directly praised the destruction of black magic to preserve the peace of the Empire.

"As we all know, the Empire owes a great deal to Ian Wade and Annabelle Rainfield."

It was like raising the ball in front of everyone once more.

"Therefore, the Imperial Family will give each of them 'Dragon's Tears'."

'Dragon's Tears' were rare treasures that even the magic tower did not have.

"There's a jewel vacancy in the Duke of Wade' drawing room."

From the special seat, the leader of the magic tower sighed and muttered.

"That great magic crystal...only used for acceleration magic... I have not forgotten my grudge against Ian Wade."

Coincidentally, Aaron, who was assigned to a special spectator seat for the reason of his family's participation, and who was sitting next to the magic tower leader, asked a serious question.

"Grudge...? If you don't forget that..."

The leader replied resolutely.

"So I betted on Annabelle Rainfield at the gambling house."

"...Ah..."

Aaron blinked and nodded his head.

"That's a great afterthought... In that sense, I will give you one of these."

What Aaron gave him was a cheering banner that read, "Victory for Annabelle!"

While even the leader of the magic tower raised Annabelle's cheering banner, the Emperor's words continued.

"And by taking this position, I now declare that the Crown Prince of the Empire is Robert Nerodos Haimiren."

It was just that he didn't say anything about the Empress and the former Crown Prince on a good day, but it was a declaration with many meanings.

Robert smiled softly as if he didn't want to disturb the main characters in this place, and sat down without saying anything.

"Come on then."

The Emperor declared with a look that looked happier than ever under the shining sunlight.

"Let's start a friendly match between the two of them."