I Was Adopted by the Villain Grand Duke Who Killed My Favorite Character - Chapter 35 - 3. The Fine Line Between Brother and Enemy

After I fully recovered, Sen secretly handed me a letter. Upon inspection, I felt magical energy and realized it was a letter enchanted so that only the intended recipient could open it.

‘Who sent such a thing?’

Sen grinned as she watched me examine the letter suspiciously. As she urged me to read it quickly, I carefully asked her.

“Sen, what is this letter?”

“It’s something Lord Gerard asked me to deliver to you, Grand Princess.”

“Did you meet Gerard before he left?”

“Yes. He came secretly and earnestly requested that I give this letter to you, Grand Princess.”

Half in doubt, I opened the letter, and my eyes widened.

This incredibly difficult to read, messy handwriting is…!

‘It’s Stephanie!’

My disappointment at her leaving without a word, along with Gerard, melted away like snow. The letter stated that they had gone somewhere they needed to visit and would return.

‘I can meet them again.’

I felt relieved of the burden that had weighed on my mind, thinking I had missed the chance to tell the truth. As long as I was certain we could meet again someday, I could wait as long as it took.

I traced my finger over some of the sentences written in the letter.

[When we meet again, our relationship might change. But no matter how it changes, the time we spent together won’t be erased. Your friend, Stephanie.]

It felt like it had been a long time since I heard the word ‘friend’. Although I didn’t think I could remain in such a relationship with her, I was happy.

‘Will we be able to cook together again?’

She taught me the joy of spending time together doing small things. Even though we had only been together for a short time, I found myself missing her.

The next time Stephanie returns to the mansion, then…

I must definitely find the courage to tell the truth.

After reading the letter, I hid it where no one could find it. It seemed like it would be a long wait until Stephanie’s return.

“Now my education will be on hold for a while.”

As I muttered with a bit of regret due to missing them, Sen replied in a cheerful voice.

“There’s no need to feel regretful about that, as someone else will be doing it.”

“Are you sure you didn’t misunderstand something? My education was definitely supposed to be temporarily suspended.”

“That was the original plan, but the situation changed because the Grand Duke wanted a new education.”

Why are you only telling me such an important fact now?

If the Grand Duke wanted it, there was little chance it would be just a nominal prodigy education like with Gerard. According to Sen, they had kept it hidden so that I could focus on recovery, but from my perspective, it was like a bolt from the blue.

Moreover, today was supposed to be the first day of the new education.

“I’m not prepared at all.”

“It’s not the kind of education that needs preparation. You just need to wear suitable clothes.”

The clothes Sen brought weren’t the usual flowy dresses, but shorts. She said she had brought the most comfortable ones from the dressing room.

The clothes brought by other maids also focused on function rather than appearance. A small argument broke out among the maids holding my clothes.

“Wouldn’t a skirt be better?”

“Shorts are much better.”

“Since she’ll be moving a lot, how about wearing them over underpants?”

“We also have riding clothes.”

A sense of foreboding similar to when I received the maid outfit from Gerard swept over me. I wiped my forehead, which was inexplicably covered in cold sweat.

‘This isn’t going to be something weird again, is it?’

Of course, whatever new education was about to start, it seemed like it would be easier than the maid experience. As long as there wasn’t a risk of getting hurt while learning.

As if reading my thoughts, Sen added worriedly at just the right moment.

“What if you collapse during the education?”

“Come on. That won’t happen.”

“But people who learn from that person are often carried away. I heard it’s serious injuries.”

Oh, for heaven’s sake.

An image of myself being carried away on a stretcher flashed through my mind. Can’t I just forget about education and everything else and continue playing?

The maids didn’t listen to me at all. After a long argument, I changed clothes and arrived at the training ground with Sen.

“Why are we at the training ground?”

“Because from now on, His Grace the Grand Duke will be teaching you swordsmanship.”

“What did you say?”

“The Grand Duke will be instructing you personally!”

What kind of disaster is this?

Swinging a sword in front of the Grand Duke, the strongest person in this world, was insane.

Thanks to my memories from my past life, the proper stance and techniques for holding a sword were ingrained in my body. No matter how much I tried to hide my skills, he would notice immediately.

‘A child who seems to have wielded a sword for decades is strange, isn’t it?’

It would be better not to learn at all than to have the Grand Duke suspect my identity.

“I suddenly feel dizzy. I want to go back to my room.”

I felt sorry for Sen, but this cursed education absolutely must not happen. Just as I was thinking of ways to escape, a familiar voice came from behind me.

“You’re here early.”

I turned my head towards the voice and met eyes with the Grand Duke, who was looking down at me with a chilling gaze. It had been a while since I’d seen the Grand Duke dressed in his knight’s uniform.

He grabbed me by the nape of my neck as if catching a fleeing animal and asked,

“Are you ready?”

There wasn’t a hint of joking in his face, which was exuding coldness. The faint trace of enjoyment in his expressionless face amplified my anxiety.

***

Of all days, the weather had to be clear today.

Under the scorching sunlight, I looked around at the knights surrounding us. Their gazes, sparkling with interest, were full of goodwill.

Although they all tried not to show it, they seemed eager to speak to me. Weren’t they all stern-faced when we met at the iron gate?

“…Hello.”

As I reluctantly waved my hand, a thunderous cheer erupted from where the knights were gathered.

“Hello! Grand Princess!”

“How can she speak and wave her hand when she’s so small?”

“She’s incredibly cute, just as Lord Gerard said.”

“Did everyone see the Grand Princess’s video? The one Lord Gerard told us to watch and write a review on.”

What on earth has Gerard been doing?

My illusions about the competent knights of the Grand Duke’s household were shattered. Perhaps because most of the knights were of common birth, they didn’t seem to harbor any resentment towards me.

Maybe the knights also believed the false rumor that I was the Grand Duke’s family’s golden ticket.

‘That’s not what’s important.’

The Grand Duke seemed to have judged that the cause of my recent collapse was due to lack of physical strength. My attempts to persuade the Grand Duke to stop had failed spectacularly.

‘What’s going to happen to me?’

In contrast to my gloomy, almost dark mood, the weather was excessively good. The Grand Duke personally selected the wooden sword for me to use.

“We need something lighter.”

“How about this one?”

“If there’s nothing lighter, that will do.”

As I received the wooden sword the Grand Duke handed me, I bit my lip firmly. Still, since it was the first lesson, he would probably make me do basic movements like downward strikes.

If it was something like that, I was confident I could somehow deceive the Grand Duke’s eyes. The brief confidence that had welled up was shattered by the Grand Duke’s next words.

“Shall we start with a light sparring match?”

Is that really something a sensible adult should say?

I suddenly remembered that the Grand Duke was a genius who had drawn out his sword aura at the age of fifteen. Of course, there was no faster way to improve swordsmanship than actual sparring.

‘Even so, I’m only six years old.’

I couldn’t follow the Grand Duke’s way of thinking, which lacked common sense to an extreme degree. The Grand Duke gestured for me to attack first, seeing my tension.

“Are we really doing this?”

“This is the surest way to check your physical strength.”

“You can do it, Grand Princess!”

The knights, who lacked even a flea’s worth of tact, cheered excitedly.

‘Oh, whatever.’

Just as I was about to swing the wooden sword as clumsily as possible, keeping my hands as relaxed as I could, the Grand Duke closed the distance. My body moved first in response to the wooden sword that came right up to my nose.

Whoosh.

After taking half a step back, I parried the Grand Duke’s wooden sword falling from above.

The Grand Duke immediately changed the direction of his sword swing and thrust the wooden sword with tremendous force.

“Ugh!”

I dove into the Grand Duke’s side, using the difference in our builds.

The wooden sword I swung with all my might was easily blocked.

Thwack!

Along with a loud sound that didn’t seem possible from wooden swords colliding, everything went quiet.

Contrary to my expectation that the next attack would follow immediately, the Grand Duke took no action.

A beat later, I came to my senses.

As I rolled my eyes to look at the Grand Duke’s expression, I was so surprised I almost dropped the sword. The Grand Duke’s eyes, slightly widened, curved as they filled with an unusual light.

“Th-this is, well…”

My heart pounded at the thought that I had accidentally shown too much skill.

“M-my body just moved on its own…”

As I tried to explain this situation somehow, the smile on the Grand Duke’s lips only deepened.

“Let’s see if you can block this too.”

The Grand Duke swung his wooden sword with a different intensity than before.

The strike, which created wind through pure muscle strength alone, made my vision go dark. After a moment of hesitation, I gave up on parrying and took a defensive stance.

If I block this, I’ll be found out!

Noticing that I had given up on defense, a flicker of emotion crossed the Grand Duke’s face. However, it was already too late to change the sword’s path.

‘I hope I don’t get seriously injured.’

At that moment, someone quickly intervened and deflected the Grand Duke’s sword in the opposite direction, infusing it with magical power.

“Since when did you start attacking young children in earnest?”

“Little Duke?”

The person who blocked the Grand Duke’s attack was an unbelievably beautiful boy. His silver hair, flowing down to his waist, sparkled in the sunlight.

With a cold impression and androgynous beauty, the youthful appearance. At first glance, the boy looked like a beautiful doll crafted from glass.

In contrast to his seemingly delicate face, his lean body was well-muscled.

“How about you cool your head for a moment, Father.”

With those words, I could discern the boy’s identity.

‘Lucas del Astarote.’

The Grand Duke’s first son and the mid-boss who would play an active role in the future rebellion.

Why did he save me?

The Grand Duke gestured for Lucas, who was blocking his way, to move aside.

“First, when I was that child’s age, I first felt magical power.”

“That’s your case, Father.”

“Second, I just realized, but that child is probably even more of a genius than you.”

At the Grand Duke’s words, Lucas’s eyes widened in shock as he turned to look at me.

I recalled that in the original story, Lucas was called a mad dog obsessed with swordsmanship. What the Grand Duke had said about me was touching the trigger of the mad dog Lucas.