Chapter 35
On my way to the training grounds, I stopped by the kitchen.
“Oh my, Your Highness. What brings you here at this hour?”
Mia looked at me, puzzled.
“I came to get some snacks. Could I have some fruit and water? Plenty, please.”
“Of course, one moment.”
Mia busily gathered fresh apples in a basket and filled a jug with cool water.
“Here you go, miss. But you’re not eating all this alone, right? That’s quite a lot.”
“…Yeah, well.”
I answered vaguely and took the items.
They were heavy.
My arms trembled, but I held on.
‘I can manage this.’
At thirteen, my body still felt weak.
Before my return, this weight would’ve been nothing.
The walk to the training grounds felt long, and I wanted to rest, but I held back out of stubbornness.
By the time I reached the training ground, my arms ached.
‘I need to exercise more.’
After ten days of grueling training, I had thought my strength improved, but a few days’ rest had returned me to my original state.
I promised myself I’d do some light running and looked around the training grounds.
In the center stood Damian, still swinging his sword.
‘If he’s been at it since morning, he’s been training for hours already.’
As I got closer, I saw his condition clearly.
Sweat-soaked hair stuck to his forehead. His shirt was drenched.
On the backs of his hands, red blisters rose above the calluses.
‘Brute force isn’t the answer.’
I wasn’t sure whether to feel satisfied that he wasn’t just harsh with me, or sigh at how recklessly he pushed himself.
Damian swung the sword again, cutting the air with a sharp, piercing sound.
“…Damn it.”
A low curse escaped his lips.
The force in his grip made his knuckles white.
Swinging blindly wouldn’t work.
I deliberately made some noise as I approached.
“Your Highness.”
Damian paused and looked at me, frowning.
“…What is it?”
“You might be thirsty. I brought water.”
He scanned me up and down. His eyes narrowed suspiciously at the basket and jug in my hands.
“Suddenly?”
“Why suddenly? Will you drink it or not?”
“…Why?”
“Why? You’ve barely eaten and have been training for days.”
“Unnecessary meddling.”
“Call it what you want. Drink it. You’d collapse otherwise.”
I shrugged, mimicking the way he had once scolded me.
Damian sighed and slowly approached.
He took the water and gulped it down, finishing more than half at once.
‘And yet he acts so prickly.’
“…Thank you.”
“There’s fruit too.”
I handed him the basket. He awkwardly picked an apple.
I sat in the shade at the edge of the training ground and bit into an apple myself.
Crunch. Sweet.
Silence followed.
Damian kept glancing at the sacred sword, impatience in his eyes.
He wanted to hold it again. He was frustrated it wasn’t working.
“Your Highness.”
“……What?”
“Do you like that sword?”
He raised an eyebrow at the unexpected question.
“…What did you say?”
“The sword. Do you use it because you like it, or because it’s a sacred sword?”
He seemed speechless.
I took another bite of the apple casually.
“Because it’s a sacred sword.”
Finally, his answer came.
“Of course. It’s a sacred sword.”
“Really?”
“If you synchronize with a sacred sword, your swordsmanship improves drastically. It’s a shortcut to becoming a Sword Master. That’s why I use it.”
“Exactly.”
I held the apple and looked at him.
“So you use it because it’s a sacred sword, not because you like it?”
His lips pressed tight. He seemed ready to argue but didn’t speak.
“The sword chose you, didn’t it?”
I continued slowly.
“But did you choose the sword, Your Highness?”
“…….”
“You just wanted to be chosen, but didn’t choose for yourself, did you?”
His eyes flickered slightly, as if he realized something, then he looked away, unwilling to admit it.
“…I don’t understand.”
“Really?”
I shrugged.
He would mull it over in his head even if I said no more.
“From today, I’ll watch here.”
“…Huh?”
“I have nothing else to do, and it’s boring in my room. I want to watch.”
“Here at the training ground? There’s nothing to see.”
“There is. You.”
Damian’s expression twisted in disbelief.
“It’s distracting.”
“Nope. Can’t I just watch? I’ll just sit. Won’t speak.”
He sighed deeply.
“…Do as you like.”
Hmph. That was my plan all along.
From that day, I brought snacks and water daily.
Mia, knowing I “attended” training, packed plenty for me.
I sat in the shade, watching Damian swing the sword.
The first day, he was uncomfortable, constantly aware of me.
His movements became awkward. His focus faltered.
Even mid-swing, he glanced at me.
“…Can you stop staring?”
“I’m not. I’m watching the sky.”
“…….”
He looked at me like I was crazy, but said nothing further.
By the second day, it was slightly better.
He still seemed uncomfortable, but focused.
During breaks, he accepted the water I offered.
“Here. Drink a little.”
“…Thanks.”
Still prickly, but he didn’t refuse.
By the third day, Damian no longer noticed me.
Perhaps he had simply accepted my presence.
During breaks, he sat beside me naturally.
Drank water. Ate fruit.
Few words were exchanged, but we were together.
Sometimes he remarked on the fruit: “I’m hungry today.”
Small talk, but better than awkward silence.
I replied casually, “All the apples are gone.”
By the fifteenth day, his behavior changed.
He no longer swung relentlessly.
Instead, he held the sword, standing still for a long time.
Closed his eyes, took a breath, relaxed his grip.
‘Maybe he’s thinking about what I said.’
Finally, he slowly opened his eyes.
He looked at the sword for the first time properly.
Not as a tool, but as a companion.
Then he lifted the sword.
‘…He’s starting to feel it.’
I held my breath. My heart raced.
Damian swung the sword.
One time.
Slow, but precise.
Not forced by strength, but flowing with the movement.
Completely different from a few days ago.
Then…
-Woosh.
The sword resonated.
Faintly, almost unnoticeable, but undeniable.
A thin streak of light brushed the silver blade.
Damian froze, staring at the sword in disbelief.
“…Now.”
His voice trembled. He looked at me.
I couldn’t help but smile.
‘It’s begun.’
The journey had started.
