ISTV 32

Hamun reached out his hand to me.

“You okay?”

Having collapsed under Hamun’s onslaught, I took his hand.

With a grunt, he helped me up.

Since the day I collapsed, Hamun had been acting like my guardian.

Even though we were the same age, he clearly wanted to act like an older brother.

‘That’s kind of cute.’

It was like his face had “I’m reliable” written all over it.

And yet, when it came to sword sparring, he never went easy on me—how consistent of him.

‘If he sees me as a little sister, that’s not a bad thing.’

Even if he had dirt all over his face and clothes, and what looked like leftover sauce from breakfast too.

At any rate, Hamun was fundamentally just and kind.

Having someone like that see me as a little sister was a definite plus for my survival.

Suddenly, I thought of my older brother.

‘Lee Juhwan… I hope he’s doing well.’

He probably is.

He’s the kind of guy who could survive being thrown into a desert.

As much as I hate to admit it, I guess I kind of miss Dad’s son too.

Anyway, Hamun said,

“I’m going to have my coming-of-age ceremony with you.”

Originally, Hamun was scheduled to have his ceremony a year later, at sixteen.

Something about the particular swordsmanship he was learning.

In <TWTWS> as well, Hamun had his ceremony at sixteen.

“What do you mean? Yours was supposed to be next year.”

“It was.”

He scratched his nose a little, then continued with a proud grin.

“But I already reached 2-star level.”

“Already?”

“Yep! Amazing, right?”

It was faster than the original story.

In <TWTWS>, Hamun learned a sword technique called “Blue Sea Sword,” one of the signature techniques of Queibek.

It was extremely difficult and complex to master, yet he’d already reached 2-star proficiency.

‘That’s a full year earlier than in the novel.’

I honestly had no idea how he got this strong so fast.

A year’s difference at this age was huge.

“It’s all thanks to you, Seila.”

“Thanks to me?”

“You motivated me a lot.”

Hamun’s eyes curved into crescent moons.

Ah, wait, that kind of eye smile should be illegal.

I averted my gaze slightly.

The three male leads generally had dangerously charming auras—powerful enough to shake the continent.

Just meeting their gaze could unlock the doors to your heart.

If I were the heroine, I could toss them all in my harem and toy with them, but since I’d probably end up dead for that, I always had to be careful.

“You’re always giving it your all. You even have more calluses than I do.”

Now that I noticed, Hamun was still holding my hand.

Realizing it, I subtly slipped my hand free.

“Watching you made me understand what it means to truly put in effort. You might be disappointed, but before I met you, I was kind of lazy.”

He wasn’t wrong.

One of Hamun’s traits was [Lazy Genius].

After meeting the heroine, that trait would break and evolve into [Diligent Genius].

Hamun smiled widely again.

It felt like the whole world lit up.

“And you might laugh at this, but…”

His ears turned a little red.

Just like I had earlier, he avoided my gaze as he continued.

“I kind of started thinking… that I want to protect you.”

Honestly, I didn’t dislike those words.

I already had enough trouble taking care of myself, so if someone—especially someone like Hamun—wanted to protect me, I’d welcome it with open arms.

But I couldn’t just let myself show it.

For the sake of <The World Where All Beauty Dwells>, I had to maintain my character.

“Hamun. That’s a disrespectful thing to say to a swordswoman.”

Startled, he frantically waved his hands.

“I didn’t mean it like that! I swear!”

His earlobes turned beet red, making him look like a carrot. Watching him made my heart feel like pudding—soft and wobbly.

I don’t know if it’s okay to say this about a person, but I wanted to just pop him into my mouth and go “nom nom nom.”

They could sell merch with that look and it’d be a bestseller.

“I’m not mad because I know what you meant.”

“It’s not because I think your sword skills are lacking.”

“Then why?”

“I don’t know exactly, but you always seem on the edge. Like you’re pushing yourself to the brink, running forward like a racehorse without looking back.”

Hamun was a character with an extremely sensitive perception. He must have sensed the looming threat of death that hovered around me.

“I think you’re amazing. I just want to support you so you can keep running forward.”

For a moment, I thought I saw something flicker in Hamun’s emerald eyes.

The back of my head tingled.

It felt like I heard a voice.

‘If anything or anyone gets in your way—like a hindrance or a rock in the road—I’ll take care of it. I’ll just crush it.’

I almost turned around to check my surroundings.

Hamun was still smiling as brightly as the sun.

‘It was just in my head, right?’

I smiled lightly and held out my hand.

“Thanks. I appreciate it.”

Like comrades-in-arms, we shared a fiery handshake.

But that… that was just in my head, right?

‘What a coincidence.’

Garen ended up enrolling at Somarfi Academy, just as planned.

According to the letter, his entrance ceremony would be held on the same day as my coming-of-age ceremony.

‘Not that he’d care.’

When Damien had his appointment as the youngest professor, all the family’s attention had been on him.

That was probably the worst time for Garen personally, but this time, overlapping with me probably didn’t mean much.

After all, I’d been far away on the Eastern Continent for a year with almost no contact with my family.

‘As long as I get my tuition paid. And from Father’s perspective, having me live like I don’t exist is probably convenient.’

Learning swordsmanship in Queibek was a win-win for both me and my father.

‘No one will come to my coming-of-age ceremony anyway. Garen’s entrance ceremony is the perfect excuse not to.’

I didn’t mind.

Especially not when it came to Father.

I was better off alone.

The night before the ceremony.

Lord Themanon asked gently, as always,

“My dear, are you certain you don’t want to invite your father?”

“Yes. His Excellency wouldn’t be interested anyway. And Garen’s entrance ceremony is scheduled for the same day.”

“Then I shall be your guardian.”

“I appreciate it, but please look after Hamun instead.”

“There are plenty who can look after Hamun. Our lovely Rachel, the rest of the family…”

“A daughter of Dvernon being cared for by another family—it won’t look good.”

“…”

I was better off alone.

Otherwise, people would only pity me.

‘It might feel a little lonely, but it’s not a big deal.’

It wasn’t like I felt nothing at all.

Seila’s body still experienced isolation and loneliness. The instinct to seek a father’s affection hadn’t completely disappeared.

But it wasn’t unbearable.

The day of the coming-of-age ceremony arrived.

The Karinea Temple was filled with children.

Some were holding their parents’ hands. Some held elaborate bouquets.

Fitting for the swordsmanship capital Queibek, some children even received swords as gifts.

‘Wait… what?’

Something unexpected happened.

“What is he doing here?”

Garen, who should’ve been at his entrance ceremony, was standing right there.

Holding a huge, clumsily made bouquet.

‘He got so big.’

In just a year, Garen had grown significantly.

A true embodiment of <TWTWS>’s “baby-faced gladiator body” character.

In Seila’s still-unmatured body, I had to crane my neck just to see his face.

“You gave me a handmade bouquet before, remember?”

Garen handed Seila the bouquet.

“So I made one for you too!”

“Looks like it.”

“Hehe. Thanks.”

Even when I didn’t mean it as a compliment, he took it that way.

“What about your entrance ceremony?”

“I told them I was injured.”

“Injured?”

There were no signs of injury on him.

“Yup.”

Seila felt a mix of emotions.

‘To enroll at Somarfi Academy next year, I’ll need Garen’s recommendation.’

But skipping the entrance ceremony like this?

Somarfi had strict rules. If they found out he faked an injury, he’d be expelled on the spot.

I wanted to smack him on the back and ask how he could still act like a kid after reaching adulthood.

Still… I didn’t completely hate that a family member was here.

‘It’s a strange feeling.’

Seila sighed softly, but there was no undoing what Garen had done.

She smiled and accepted the bouquet.

“Thanks.”

“Hehe.”

As he smiled brightly, Garen suddenly asked,

“Oh. That Harmon or Goomon guy?”

“It’s Hamun. He’s in a different time slot than me.”

“Really?”

Garen visibly relaxed.

“I don’t like that guy. He’s too sneaky. You know what I mean?”

“No. And you’re the only one who says he’s sneaky.”

There was no real connection between Garen and Hamun.

Seila had no idea why Garen disliked him so much.

Still, some things had to be addressed.

“You shouldn’t judge people like that. Especially here.”

“What if I want to?”

“Don’t.”

“What if I have to beat someone up?”

Seila tilted her head.

‘Beat someone up?’

Maybe I misheard?