~ Chapter : 12 ~
Esmeralda had more than just her older brother, Lipt—she had another sibling as well. An older sister, in fact. The eldest of the three.
Her sister Iris had shown talent in swordsmanship from a young age, and by her late twenties, she had risen to become the commander of the Second Imperial Knight Order.
After I possessed this body at eighteen, I attended the Academy, while my brother and sister began their professional careers in earnest. Because of that, we didn’t see each other very often.
Despite being described by others as eccentric or lacking in social skills, they were genuinely kind people.
They never missed my birthday, and sometimes they said they stopped by just to watch me while I slept. Even though they were busy, they took time off to visit when they heard I had graduated from the Academy.
“Brother, how’s working life?”
“Hm, it’s always the same. Research… studying… and there are still many places left to clean up after the aftermath.”
Even as he said it, Lipt didn’t seem to dislike that life.
The Imperial Knights and the Imperial Mages were the two pillars supporting the Empire.
Unlike the Knights, whose long history dated back to the royal era, the title of Imperial Mage had only been established recently, after the Empire was unified.
When the Emperor proclaimed himself ruler, he heavily promoted magic among Academy majors and recruited skilled mages into the Imperial Mage corps. The goal was to prevent them from forming private factions and instead bring them firmly onto the Emperor’s side.
“Don’t worry too much. I guarantee everything will work out.”
In the original story, around the time Camilla graduated early from the Academy, the Imperial Mages were attacked by forces from a vassal state attempting to assassinate the Emperor.
I didn’t know whether Lipt was among the nameless extras who died then—but just in case, it was better to prepare.
When that time came, whether by whining for him to stay home or even breaking his leg if I had to, I planned to keep Lipt safely at the count’s estate.
“You told me not to worry, but your face just darkened.”
It was still too early to panic, but I couldn’t help feeling uneasy. If only I knew their futures as well.
“What’s wrong with my expression?”
Lipt lightly tugged my cheek, pulling me out of my thoughts. I puffed my cheek out and blew air into it before letting it go.
“Emel. Is there anything you want to do yet?”
“Not yet.”
“When you find something, I’ll support you. Take your time.”
That gentleness—being willing to wait until then. I loved this family that was overflowing with ease and warmth.
“Earn your own living! You useless bitch!”
The violent father who had thrown me out when I was four.
“Getting pregnant with you was unexpected.”
The mother who abused me, then ran away one day.
I studied desperately, worked two or three jobs just to pay tuition, failed the college entrance exam once, then failed again. There wasn’t a single time in that life I wanted to return to.
Unlike my family before possession, the Saint family cherished me.
They didn’t yell or raise their hands when I made mistakes. Their patience and affection were one of the reasons I was able to adapt so quickly to Esmeralda’s life.
Thank you… all of you.
When I stared at Lipt, he asked what was wrong and patted my head.
In my old life, I always flinched when a hand came near me, afraid of being hit. But in this world, I didn’t shrink back.
The Saint family were supporting characters whose names weren’t even mentioned, so I didn’t know their future—but at the very least, I could keep them from being dragged into major incidents.
I might not become a hero, but I would protect your lives.
Chatting about trivial things, we arrived at the courtyard.
***
Knights of the Saint count’s household were gathered noisily around a bonfire. Some of them were cheerfully drinking from their cups.
“We were in the middle of a welcome party because Iris arrived.”
“Big sister didn’t drink, right?”
“If she’d had even one cup, she’d already be fighting the knights. And she never drinks when she’s about to see you.”
Lipt shook his head.
Once, when my sister had been drunk, she picked fights with everyone she made eye contact with—calling them ugly or saying she didn’t like their voice.
My sister was energetically sparring with the domain’s knights. But among the cheering crowd, something chick-like stood out.
A small frame compared to the knights, dazzling blonde hair, eyes that seemed to glow even at night.
There was no mistaking it.
Why is Camilla here?
I had just returned from the capital after meeting the male lead and the villainess, and now the female lead was waiting at home.
It felt like a sharp crack had split my peaceful life.
“She’s still here. Figures.”
Lipt said it as if he couldn’t help it. So when he’d said she might have already left earlier, he’d been talking about Camilla. And now Camilla knew the Saint family.
“Oh—how long has she been here?”
“Before you arrived, we had dinner together. Wait. You know her?”
It felt like I could hear a boom sound effect.
Lipt hated crowded places, which was why he avoided gatherings like this—but now that Camilla was here, he seemed perfectly fine.
“I do know her, but… you had dinner together?”
“Yeah. With Iris too. She almost got scammed at a shop, so we brought her back.”
Brought her back—what is she, a puppy?!
According to Lipt, Camilla had been browsing boutiques in the commercial district of the domain.
The shop owner looked down on her appearance and quoted an outrageously high price.
When Camilla hesitated and said she’d come back later, the owner threatened her, saying she had to buy it since she’d touched the merchandise.
That was when Lipt stepped in and scolded the owner using the authority of the count’s son.
Iris said that since something unpleasant had happened within the count’s territory, they should at least invite her to the castle for a meal—and apparently even Mother and Father had joined them.
“Hm… what was she trying to buy at the boutique?”
Wasn’t Camilla far removed from luxury in the original story? If she hadn’t gone there, she never would’ve met my siblings.
“I think she was trying to buy a white fedora.”
W-wait…
A few days ago at the Academy, I’d mentioned to a friend that I wanted to buy a new white fedora.
No, no. Camilla could’ve wanted one too. It’s not like it’s that unusual.
I forced myself to believe that.
“Well, she seemed interesting, so I even showed her the garden.”
This was Lipt—the same Lipt who usually reacted indifferently no matter what anyone said. I’d never imagined him guiding someone around. And now he was calling Camilla interesting.
So while I was dining with Rosio, I’d not only given Camilla an opening to get close to my family, but she’d even won over my brother and sister?
“After dinner, my sister dragged her out to the courtyard. She said that if anyone tried to scam her in the domain again, she should suppress them with force—and offered to teach her swordsmanship.”
“What? Force? Swordsmanship?”
Those were words completely foreign to the Camilla of the original story.
“Well, she’ll filter it herself.”
While I was watching Camilla with mixed emotions, she turned her head and spotted me.
Then she started running toward me—tiny, clumsy steps that looked like she might trip at any moment.
“Ah—hello, Lady Saint. I keep imposing on the Saint family again and again.”
I barely managed to suppress the urge to ask whether she was doing well like a villainess.
Of course, I’d just gone and kissed Rosio again myself, so I wasn’t exactly innocent of derailing the plot either. I clung desperately to my fading composure.
“Imposing? Not at all. More importantly, Emel—you knew each other? As expected of my sociable little sister.”
Iris said heartily as she approached us at some point.
With short brown hair and sky-blue eyes, Iris stood a full head taller than me.
Perhaps because I was the only one with pink hair among the three siblings—or because I was the youngest—Iris treated me even more specially than Lipt.
Camilla must be tight-lipped, since she hadn’t told Iris or Lipt anything about me.
“Hm. Miss Camilla has talent in swordsmanship. If taught properly, she’d be interesting. She even matched blades with a knight earlier.”
“He must’ve gone easy on her.”
Camilla modestly twirled a strand of hair.
I’d already seen her wielding a wooden plank in the slums—she’d never been ordinary. It was clear that the female lead had talent not only in magic, but in swordsmanship as well.
“And she imitates movements quite well, even after seeing them just once.”
Iris drew her sword from its scabbard and swung it fluidly, then readily handed it to Camilla. This was already beyond the level of practicing with wooden swords.
Following my sister, Camilla demonstrated basic techniques—horizontal slashes, vertical slashes, diagonal swings, and thrusts. Her movements were clean and efficient, without any wasted motion.
What’s more, she was subtly channeling mana into the sword. A gem used as a staff component was embedded in the hilt of my sister’s blade.
If magic were applied to swordsmanship, one could manipulate the surrounding air with mana to create advantageous flows—or even cast simple spells at close range to briefly obstruct an opponent’s vision.
But Camilla, whose aptitude for magic was exceptional, wasn’t limited to that level.
Magic usually followed natural affinities—water, fire, earth, vegetation, wind, light, and so on.
Yet the spell Camilla used to destroy ghosts ignored such attributes entirely. It was a higher-tier magic.
If Camilla were to master both magic and swordsmanship to their peak, she would surpass even the typical “overpowered heroine”—a true monster. There had been a Sword Master like that centuries ago.
Still… the heroine is supposed to hold a staff. Why is she swinging a sword here?
I prayed fervently that meeting my sister would remain nothing more than a trivial episode.
“Miss Camilla, do you know the Imperial Knight Order?”
But at my sister’s question, I realized the gods were not on my side. Of course Iris had her eye on her.
And there was a strange glimmer of expectation in Camilla’s eyes as well.
As state funding increasingly favored mages, knight orders other than the First were being downsized. In that situation, someone like Camilla—who could combine magic with the sword—would undoubtedly stand out even more in the Second Knight Order.
“Yes. It’s where the finest warriors are gathered. I’ve heard that centuries before the Empire was proclaimed, Sword Master Sir Kynes was also among them.”
Camilla leaned slightly toward Iris, clearly interested.
“A Sword Master… a legend. But it’s not entirely baseless. There are rumors about the first sword Sir Kynes left behind.”
I desperately hoped Iris wouldn’t go into further detail. In the original story, the Imperial Knight Order once embarked on a quest to find the Sword Master’s sword, only to return empty-handed after finding no trace of it in the snowy mountains.
“If you continue to hone your skills, I’d like to recommend you for enlistment in the Second Knight Order, using my authority as its commander. You’d fit in perfectly.”
A supporting character scouting the heroine.
Camilla looked like she wanted to start learning swordsmanship from my sister immediately. Her eyes sparkled even brighter than the torches.
“R-really? If that’s the case, then I…!”
Camilla clenched her fist tightly and exclaimed with enthusiasm.
