The scene of Siontine standing up, covered in dirt, after defeating all of the male knights at the Imperial Dueling Festival was one of the most beloved moments in the novel. I couldn’t forget how she went up to the female protagonist, who was on the verge of tears, took off her helmet, went down to one knee, and said, “My noble lady, I fought for you, so the victory is yours.” She was so cool.

That was how Siontine became the designated knight of the female protagonist. My heart beat quickly with excitement at the thought I was about to witness that great scene in the flesh.

“Bow! Draw your swords!”

The two knights bowed to each other, unsheathed their swords, and held them in front of their chests. As they were using real swords, they both had their helmets on. It was hard to know who was who, but judging from the size, the one with a blue plume was probably Siontine.

The duel started without any signal. I thought that they were both standing still, but then Siontine suddenly disappeared from sight. I was surprised and my eyes widened as I watched, trying to see more. But that turned out to be unnecessary. A moment later, the sound of clashing swords ripped through the air.

Ugh! I quickly covered my ears lest my eardrums would burst. This is much more thrilling than I’d thought!

“Siontine has improved a lot,” Lacius commented. He was clearly used to the noise as he didn’t even bat an eye. He just calmly watched and evaluated the duelers.

There was no break in the fighting and their swords continued to clang against each other, making me wince. Imagine what it would sound like if someone played a pair of cymbals right next to your ears for an hour. That was what it was like.

“Is the sound unbearable?” Lacius asked.

“My ears hurt.”

“It can feel that way if you’ve never seen a real duel before.”

Lacius looked at the seemingly never-ending duel, then he looked back at me. I was still covering my ears. Suddenly he leaned toward me, as if he had thought of a good idea.

“There, do you see that squire standing near the training swords?”

“Yes, I do. Why?”

“He’s a spy sent by the princess. I’ve been letting him watch on purpose. He seems to be standing there to keep an eye on us... Why don’t we give him something to report on?”

Is that so? Even here isn’t completely spy-proof after all.

I managed to nod, promising myself to draw and bring an extra thick pair of earmuffs for next time.

Lacius took my hands and put them down gently, before covering my ears with his own hands.

Huh?

Perhaps it was his big hands, or because his palms had some special power, but the noises became much quieter than before. It was now at a tolerable level, so I gave him a sincere smile and thanked him. Normally, no man could resist falling in love with Villainess No. 4’s smile, but I doubted it would work on Lacius.

“The duel’s coming to an end,” he said. Sure enough, his voice was as cold as ever.

I nodded and looked down at the ground. The two knights were standing apart, ready to give the final blow. I tried to think of a way to make up for the lousy first impression I’d made.

“Is it okay for me to cheer for one of them?” I asked Lacius.

“Well... I don’t see why not. It’s perfectly normal for a knight to have a lady wishing for their victory.”

“Okay, excellent.” I readied my voice, preparing to yell. I took a deep breath, holding my stomach in, and then I shouted at Siontine, “Beautiful Siontine! Brave Siontine, you’ve got this! Beat him!”

Beat him... Beat him... Beat him...

My yell rang like an echo. At the same time, the training ground fell into a deep and icy silence. Even though I hardly cared about what others thought of me, I could tell things were going wrong. I looked at Lacius. He’d taken his hands off my ears and was looking grim.

But... His lips are twitching.

He wanted to laugh, but couldn’t.

So that was probably not what he meant by “cheering…”

But then, there came a clang of metal hitting stone. I forced myself to look down and found a pair of light blue eyes staring at me with anger.

“Oh, um, my goodness. I didn’t mean to embarrass you,” I mumbled.

There was no response.

“My apologies. Why don’t you return to your duel?”

Siontine didn’t look too happy to hear that. She was gritting her teeth ominously. I could almost see the grim reaper in front of me.

Lacius laughed at the sight of me in shock. “You manage to surprise me with whatever you do.”

“That’s not a compliment, is it? Sir Adeles looks like she seriously hates me.”

Oh Mother, even in this strange world, I don’t know how to make friends.

I’d only had two friends in the real world. I’d wanted to use my new pretty face to get more friends here, but it wasn’t working as I’d hoped. I sighed, drooping my shoulders.

“Don’t be disappointed. It’s just that she’s shy,” Lacius said.

“Shy? So that’s what she does when she feels shy?”

My, she looks so shy she could kill.

I couldn’t believe Lacius. Siontine was acting like she was ready to behead someone.

“Actually, I’d thought you were going to cheer for the other knight, not Sir Adeles,” Lacius said, an amused smile on his lips.

“The other knight? Why?”

“Because Siontine just tried to kick you out of here.”

Hey, but I’d rather be friends with her… I know we were supposed to hate each other, but still...

I knew how persistent Siontine could be when it came to chasing and dealing with the female protagonist’s enemies, so I wanted to befriend her no matter the cost. I wanted to be protected by her, too.

“It must feel awesome to have such a beautiful woman on your side,” Siontine’s opponent joked.

“Stop talking,” Siontine replied.

Siontine removed her helmet and her opponent, a man named Orman Terlos, did the same. One glance was enough to let me know that he was a super cheesy man. He was blond like Lacius, but his hair could not even compare. Siontine’s expression was as cold as the northern winds, and she wouldn’t even look at me now. She held her sword straight and stared at her adversary. The wind started to rise around her.

“She’s come far, but her spirit is still too weak,” Lacius said.

Despite Lacius’ words, I felt my palms get sweaty. Siontine was creating wind. Grains of sand rolled around as the wind grew stronger and stronger. When it was blowing fast enough to make my hair dance, she finally lunged forward.

Wow. So it is really true that you don’t make a sound when you’re completely shocked.

I gulped hard at the sight of the fierce fight. They both wouldn’t give up. They weren’t going to back off. I let myself be absorbed in the duel that was taking place in front of me. They’d been wielding their swords for almost half an hour, but Siontine was still steady and stable.

On the other hand, Mr. Cheesy is... Sadly, he was melting like cheese. He was nineteenth in the Order of Lentus, so it wasn’t his lack of skills. Siontine was just that good.

With a final clang, Mr. Cheesy’s sword flew out of his hand. It spun in the air before stabbing into the ground, which made a suitable sign of victory.

“Well done. Exchange your medals,” Lacius ordered, standing up to clap. All the other knights applauded too, and Mr. Cheesy accepted his defeat.

I clapped as hard as I could.

Wow, that was amazing!

“That wind thing, what kind of skill was that?” I tilted my head and asked.

Lacius replied, “It’s not a skill. It’s more of a force that blooms once you reach a certain level.”

“I see. Then her sword becomes even more deadly?”

“Yes.”

I wondered how much she must have trained to improve that much. I liked passionate people. I myself was super lazy, but I admired those who lived each day fully. It gave me kind of a second-hand feeling of satisfaction. I felt like I was becoming Siontine’s fan.

“Next... Huh? Siontine?”

The referee was about to announce the knights who’d duel next, but he hesitated. Siontine hadn’t sheathed her sword. Instead, she walked up to the stands. I couldn’t see what she was trying to do.

“As the winner of the last duel, I challenge the captain,” she announced.

Lacius stood up. “I accept.”

I gasped at the unexpected situation.

They’re going to duel? Like the duel that just happened? The two of them? Wow, shouldn’t they be writing articles about this?

Lacius didn’t show any emotion as he stood on the training ground. Siontine was also calm, but it looked to me like she was forcing herself to hide how nervous she was.

Well, in battle, Lacius is called the Mad Knight.

As it was a romance novel, the story didn’t explain his nickname any further. But the air was now suddenly heavy with tension, implying that the fight about to come wasn’t just two knights playing around.

“Um, would you like another drink?” Sir Luke asked.

He’d been lurking around behind me since before the duel began, but he hadn’t dared to approach while Lacius was with me. The moment he was gone, he’d popped up. I guessed Lacius was that scary to them.

“Yes, I could use a cold drink.” I stared straight at him with a slight smile.

One, two, three. Sir Luke started to blush, and then his face became a burning red. He couldn’t look into my eyes for more than three seconds without running away.

Yup, I grinned with satisfaction. That was the only acceptable response. But Lacius didn’t even blink an eye when I gave him an honest smile. He really was the male protagonist, meant for the female protagonist only.

I turned to Siontine and Lacius as they slowly started to move around. Lacius was holding his sword lightly with relaxed arms. On the contrary, Siontine’s eyes were full of desperation and focus. I held my hands together in anticipation of what was about to happen.

The very next second, Siontine’s silhouette disappeared. When she reemerged, she was striking her sword down from above Lacius. He saw it all, but he didn’t move from where he stood. He just raised his hand.

A moment later, a huge clashing sound resonated, far louder than everything I’d heard thus far.

At the same time, all the knights who’d been watching burst into a frenzy, all exclaiming how exciting the duel was.

Siontine bit her lip and backed off before continuing her attack. Lacius remained in the same spot, as if even the fiercest strike couldn’t disturb him. He looked as arrogant as the sun god. It suited him so well. I almost forgot how to breathe as I watched them duel.

Wow... That’s really all I can say. Wow.

I just gaped like a parrot that couldn’t stop repeating itself. I’d thought Siontine was cool, but Lacius was totally different. He was a true master of swordplay.

No wonder women fall for him.

There was just no way to resist forming a pure admiration that went way beyond feelings like romantic love and friendship. I could seriously understand why he was the male protagonist.

“I’ve brought an iced tea. Please take—”

“Shhh, be quiet. I’m watching.”

Their swords crashed against each other again.

Sir Luke offered me something, but my eyes were fixed on Lacius and Siontine. I couldn’t tear my eyes away. I just stretched out my hand and put a finger on his lips. I felt him freeze. I opened my hand as Siontine made a strike from above, aiming for Lacius’ neck. Sir Luke put the tea next to me and disappeared somewhere out of my sight.

I sighed nervously.

Lacius avoided the attack by nimbly bending backward, and then he parried with strong force. He was going easy on Siontine, but it was still impressive that she still had her sword in hand.

I crunched on ice cubes and gripped the cup tightly. I didn’t care what people thought. I knew I looked pretty no matter what I did.

“Yes!” the knights cried, starting to stamp their feet.

Siontine had put some distance between herself and Lacius to use her final move as she did before. She’d realized she couldn’t make Lacius take even a single step by pressing on him, so she decided to give everything she had.

I gazed at the sturdy man standing under brilliant sunlight. I watched his golden hair and cold face. He was so handsome that I wished I could see him more, even though we met every day. Sometimes, when I saw him come in for breakfast, it almost was like he was glowing on his own. It was hard to tell what he was thinking from his expression, but if I looked closely there were very slight differences. I’d figured out how to discern a few changes in his face.

Right now, he’s having a good time.

I couldn’t tell if others knew it as well, but that was a rare one.

I made a rectangle with my hands and looked at him through it as if taking a photo with a camera.

He’s too perfect. It would be almost impossible to name any flaws. I wonder what makes the princess think she can dig one out.

I wished I could meet the princess, Lacius’ biggest bully, in person. The novel described her as a vile snake, and I wondered what she would be like. To be honest, I’d thought that I’d actually get along just fine with her.

I turned to look at the spy squire earlier, but he was gone. Huh? Squires were supposed to be at attention during duels so that they could pick up swords for knights when needed. And I was sure they were not allowed to leave their designated spots…

This doesn’t feel good.

I peeked at the inside of my sleeve. My emergency drawing was still there.

The drink was fine, but it was a little worrying that there was no one near me... Well, now would be the time I’d pick to do something if it were me.

Siontine summoned wind and clashed with Lacius, causing clouds of dust. No one could see properly. I didn’t hesitate. I took out the drawing from my right sleeve and threw it in the air.

It’s time!