"Not here."
Only a few days had passed since I'd released Jade's seal.
I had gone to the library, but Iah was nowhere to be seen.
I wanted to believe there was some reason for it,
but truthfully, not knowing our relationship well, I felt that she was deeply intimidated by me and was showing this kind of behavior.
Since she was someone who had always adhered to her routine like an iron law, the more I thought about it, the more I wondered if I had gone a bit too far, to the point where my conscience was gnawing at me.
The victory festival of Takreung that Valeria had said she would open was tomorrow, so she should have had time today, at least.
I had worked up the courage to set aside the day to soothe her feelings, yet here I was, all for nothing.
"Judging by how I've been searching everywhere for her these past few days yet can't find her, it seems she needs some time alone."
So I decided to leave it at that for now.
And to resume the exercise I'd skipped for a few days, I moved my steps toward the garrison at the count's castle, but because I had set out searching for Iah, I was late compared to my usual exercise time. The training grounds were already packed with knights refining their swordsmanship.
"I suppose I'm getting used to it now. An army unit composed entirely of women calling itself an army."
And naturally, they were all women.
Three hundred years ago, this would have been an unimaginable sight from an efficiency standpoint, but since all men out there were good-for-nothing half-wits and were cherished preciously for the preservation of the species, this was now an ordinary sight.
Anyway, since there were people here before me, I had been thinking of moving elsewhere, but then my eyes caught a red-haired woman commanding training in front of the knights.
My older sister, Yehret.
Unlike my eldest sister, Luzena, who was always cooped up in the tower, and my younger sister, Iah, who only ever wandered the library.
As the second daughter of the count's household supervising the House's knights and assisting the Knight Commander to demonstrate movements of military excellence, she was peerless.
So although there were four of us siblings, if asked who among them was the most reliable, it was undoubtedly Yehret.
Her personality was upright and steadfast,
a lady-general type who couldn't tolerate injustice.
If so, then truly, if one were to say she was the very image of an older sister, that would be fitting.
"...."
"Hic—? B-Balte—. No. Focus!"
But the moment she casually made eye contact with me,
she naturally averted her eyes and naturally barked at the knights listening to her.
And that was precisely
another characteristic of Yehret, in my opinion.
That woman liked me.
Believing without a shred of doubt that, according to the world's common sense and family customs, I would take her someday, she hadn't even held an engagement ceremony.
Also, she cherished me greatly, didn't she?
That was obvious from how she had nursed me while I lay ill, and how she had come running immediately when a loud noise occurred, then hugged me and refused to let go.
Of course, at first I had been so burdened by that fact that I felt a physiological rejection and just ran away, but
'...Should I try talking to her?'
Lately, I'd been thinking
that I couldn't keep doing this forever.
Originally, I had only wanted to abandon the household and run away, so I had thought there was no need to become close, but
since learning that this household existed for me, it seemed right to stick close.
In that sense, ignoring Yehret, who occupied a major pillar of the household, while going about my business would likely become increasingly difficult going forward.
But I wouldn't do as she wished.
She was my older sister.
My older sister.
To be honest,
I didn't hate women, but...
still, a sister was out of the question.
Anyway, with that in mind, and to kill some time, I decided to keep Yehret company for a bit and walked toward her, but.
Zzzt—
Every time I took another step, drawing closer to the training grounds,
I kept feeling strange glances from the knights flickering toward me.
"Look over there."
"It's the young master."
"He, hehe...."
That gaze was, so to speak,
exactly the gaze that men sitting around in the barracks cast at women walking down the street.
In other words, a leer.
Had my status not been so noble,
those hot-blooded beings would have been busy sexually harassing me right then and there.
In fact, even now,
while pretending to focus on training, their eyes were busy stealing glances at me.
'...What kind of sensation is this? It's unpleasant, yet not unpleasant.'
Well, at first I had recoiled and tried to escape these gazes. The reason was simple:
it was embarrassing and awkward.
Having lived my whole life as a martial artist, unlike Seradion, I had always kept my distance from women.
So there was no way I could immediately get used to such gazes.
But
now I had a rough grasp of what was what.
Honestly, it didn't feel bad to be looked at like that.
It felt like I had become the prince in a fairy tale, and I was secretly satisfied.
Setting aside the life spent chasing revenge,
I too...
...I wanted to do that kind of thing too.
"Balter, what brings you here...?"
"I was looking around the count's estate the day before the festival, and since you were here, I came."
"Y-you came to see me. Ufufu...."
And, as expected,
perhaps because the previous Balter had been the same,
when I casually spoke to her informally,
Yehret no longer bothered to hide her flushed expression and subtly twisted her body.
She seemed to be in such a good mood simply because I had come.
"You're lucky, Balter! Right now, the garrison troops stationed in all four directions of the count's castle are conducting mock combat training. It happens about once every fortnight...."
She seemed to think I might be interested in the knights, and passionately explained what kind of training they were doing.
'I already know all of this, but she looks excited.'
And well.
If that was the case, wasn't that good enough?
And then, Yehret suddenly spoke.
"Balter. Did you know that praise of you has been rampant within the order lately?"
"Me?"
"Yes. Last time you defeated the Knight Commander and trained alone. This time you defeated an A-rank monster alone. Everyone was saying you really are a genius. No, I wonder if 'genius' even covers it...."
"I have to live up to the name."
"P-pfft—. Yes, my baby. You are Balter."
Come to think of it,
Jade had been treated roughly as an A-rank demonic beast.
At that level, it was about equivalent to one ancient dragon,
so it had certainly been enough to be treated as inhuman by everyone.
"So everyone is wondering. Having only started swordsmanship not long ago, you carry yourself like a battle-seasoned swordsman who has lived for decades."
"Honestly, I don't know what's so difficult about it. If they attack, I block; if they defend, I crush them."
At that,
Yehret grinned.
"Then would you show everyone your skills?"
"What do I need to do?"
"Spar with me, Balter. Since you started swordsmanship, you haven't sparred with me even once, have you?"
In Yehret's face as she said this,
the bashful, happy expression from seeing me had already vanished long ago.
Rather, curiosity about the true extent of my skills,
and the competitive spirit of wondering where she stood in comparison were surging wildly.
And if that was the case,
it was only proper to accept.
"Should I do it right now, Sister?"
"Then it would be an honor."
"Good."
"Wooden swords for blades, armor at your discretion. I've already marked the line, so stand opposite me—"
Rustle—
But.
The moment she asked me to begin, I mindlessly took off my top as I always had.
"Urk—?! Aack, B-Balter—?"
"...What? Wasn't armor at my discretion?"
"I-it is at your discretion!! But, that's—!!"
"This is bewildering. When sparring, I'm more comfortable bare."
"Don't look, everyone, look at the ground!!"
Yehret covered her eyes with both hands and, in a panic, tried to redirect everyone's gazes.
But in this situation, even if it was Yehret speaking, it was hard to obey easily.
Some couldn't hide their rough breathing.
Some wore bewildered yet blissful smiles.
And some even drooled while staring at me.
And the place where all those gazes gathered was none other than
my clearly defined abs and pectorals.
Everyone was slightly sweaty too, which meant that under the bright sunlight, they were gazing upon my healthily glistening physique.
'Ah—'
That was a gaze I wouldn't have understood right after falling into this world.
But now that I was fully adapted, it was something I could clearly understand.
'...No wonder they'd react like that.'
By my standards,
if in a barracks full of men, a female sword genius beloved by the household they served were to appear,
and somehow a sparring situation occurred,
and that noble lady suddenly stripped down to her undergarments,
she'd totally be a lecher.
Terribly vulgar.
But if I suddenly got embarrassed and put my clothes back on, my position would instantly become that of a weirdo.
A dilemma.
In a world where concepts of chastity had been reversed for various reasons,
how rare would a man be who didn't think this kind of gaze was natural?
'Still, they're going wild. This is just a man's body; is it really that good...?'
So,
since I would definitely be called a degenerate in the future anyway,
to boost the morale of the knights who would follow me, albeit slightly puzzled, I decided to just go all out.
That suited my temperament anyway.
"Everyone can't take their eyes off. Though I didn't mean for this to happen."
"O-of course!! Balter. You always say you didn't mean to, then do such strange things—"
"Then, should I give a small reward to whoever wins?"
"Wha—?!"
"You too, Sister."
At that,
suddenly, Yehret's throat bobbed as she swallowed.
"...What reward?"
"Heh."
At this level, they would think whatever they wanted,
and fight more interestingly and seriously.
Looking forward to that even more, I deliberately trailed off as I gripped my sword.
"I said it because I was curious about the skills of the knights who serve our house, so if you can prove yourselves, you may do as you wish. I don't mind in the slightest."
And at that very moment.
"I'm going all out."
The coquettish undertone that had remained in Yehret's voice until moments ago vanished completely.