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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 7
Chapter Title: An Unexpected Duel
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“You… you hit me?”
Arius gaped, clutching his stinging cheek.
It was the first time. The first time anyone had ever hit him.
*Why? Why would she hit me?*
Still reeling from the shock, Arius looked down at Daphne. She met his gaze with a smirk.
“You hit me, so it’s only right that I hit you back, isn’t it?”
“You… you…!”
Arius gritted his teeth.
“Even so, how could you hit your own brother!”
“…Brother?”
Daphne stared at the boy, who bore no resemblance to her current body, with a sullen expression.
Back when she was a dragon, if asked what she was most curious about, she would have answered without hesitation.
‘Family.’
Not knowing how she was born, or even if she had parents, she couldn't help but wonder about the existence of family.
So, she would sometimes cast an invisibility spell, sneak into human homes, and observe them.
Humans fought, got angry, and sulked, but as long as they were bound by the tight-knit community of family, they never truly left one another.
No matter how big the fight, they ate dinner together. No matter how angry they were, they didn't ignore each other. No matter how much they sulked, they still took care of one another.
Thus, her definition of family was people who cared for each other. No matter what happened.
But…
After possessing this body and observing them, it seemed this family was not like that.
Her so-called Hero father showed little reaction to his daughter dying and coming back to life, and this supposed brother hit her the moment he saw her.
How could this possibly be a normal family?
“I have no memory of having such an insolent brother.”
So Daphne's eyes sharpened as she spoke.
“If you were family, you shoulda been by my side when I died and came back. You never came to see me, not even once. I don't got a brother like that. Don't come looking for me ever again.”
“…”
Arius's jaw dropped.
They said she'd changed after dying and coming back, but this wasn't just a change. It seemed she'd completely lost her mind.
“This is ridiculous.”
Arius let out a hollow laugh and swept his hair back.
“Hey. I don't think of you as family either.”
Instead of replying, Daphne just stared at him.
A wave of shame washed over Arius as he met her clear green eyes, and he clenched his fists tightly.
“Get a grip, you half-wit. You're the shame of the Akion family. Who are you to talk about family?”
Of course, as the adopted son, he had no right to say such things to Daphne, the family's biological daughter.
But hadn't his mother told him? *Arius, you are the pride of the Akion family. No matter what anyone says, you are our son…*
Arius sniffled, suddenly recalling the memory of his mother.
Then he shot a sharp glare at Daphne, who was still staring at him.
“Whatever, get lost. I came here to use the training grounds.”
He spat at Daphne's feet. He wondered if he'd gone too far, but what did it matter? He willfully ignored any pang of guilt.
That was when Daphne, who had been standing there blankly, moved.
“Wha-what? What are you doing— Ack!”
A swift kick.
Arius clutched his bruised shin, hopping on one foot.
“You… you…! You hit me again?”
“Yep. I hit you again.”
Daphne crossed her arms and lifted her chin triumphantly.
“I hit you to shut that insolent mouth of yours. Got a problem with that?”
“Grr…!”
“That's right. Hitting back once for getting hit once isn't polite. The proper etiquette is to pay them back double.”
“Hey!”
Arius seethed, raising a fist, but then he hesitated.
It felt like this time it wouldn't be a playful slap like before, but a real, full-blown fistfight.
So Daphne kicked Arius in the shin again.
“Aargh!”
Again, Arius hopped on one foot.
“You, seriously…!”
*Let's fight. I'll teach this arrogant half-wit a lesson!*
“Don't come crying to me when you get hit!”
Arius charged straight at Daphne. Daphne, in turn, was raring to counter his attack.
Just then.
“What do you think you're doing!”
A booming voice echoed.
*Damn it.*
Recognizing the familiar voice, Arius ruffled his bangs and scowled.
Daphne tilted her head at his reaction.
“Who's that guy?”
“Did you forget the Knight Commander's face too? You're really hopeless, aren't you?”
“Shut up. Do you want to get hit again?”
Daphne lifted her foot, and Arius flinched reflexively, then clutched his forehead in shame at his pathetic reaction. *Ah, I shouldn't be doing this!*
“But why is he so angry?”
Daphne asked innocently. Arius, again, answered meekly.
“Probably because you and I are fighting.”
“It wasn't a fight. You were just getting beaten up one-sidedly. Let's get our facts straight.”
“Hey!”
*This little…!*
Just as Arius was about to raise his hand and smack Daphne!
“Silence!”
The Knight Commander, Lloyd, who had run over, stepped between them.
Lloyd narrowed his eyes, looking back and forth between Daphne and Arius.
The man appeared to be in his early thirties. He had a short buzz cut and clear, dark brown eyes that seemed out of place. Thanks to his dark skin and brawny physique, his eyes, his one redeeming feature, didn't stand out. It was like placing the sparkling eyes of a deer on a pile of rocks.
Having finished her observation of the man, Lloyd, Daphne pouted in disappointment. It was obvious he was going to tell them to stop fighting.
“I, Lloyd, am truly disappointed.”
But his next words were not what Daphne had expected.
“To fight in the sacred training grounds without even holding a sword!”
“…Wha?”
Daphne picked at her ear, wondering if she had misheard.
But Lloyd seemed to be serious.
“Here.”
A dull thud.
Two wooden swords for children fell in front of Daphne and Arius.
“Now, fight with these wooden swords.”
“…”
*Is he crazy?*
*Giving a child a wooden sword and telling her to fight?*
*What is wrong with this family?*
Daphne let out a disbelieving chuckle.
Arius, however, seemed accustomed to this kind of situation. He skillfully picked up a wooden sword.
“Perfect.”
He said, pointing the tip of the sword at Daphne.
“Today, you're going to get a beating from me.”
Arius's eyes gleamed.
“Since you've never even held a sword properly, there's no way you can beat me.”
He seemed eager to avenge the three hits he had just taken.
Daphne snickered.
“You foolish brother.”
Then, Daphne also picked up a wooden sword.
“That's my line.”
Aiming the tip of her sword, Daphne beckoned with her finger.
“Come at me.”
***
The Knight Commander, Lloyd, stood still, observing Daphne and Arius.
In truth, Daphne, who was only five, would be no match for Arius. She was physically weak, and therefore had nothing to do with swordsmanship. Above all, she lacked any sort of perseverance.
The reason he had thrown them the wooden swords, despite knowing this, was simple.
He could no longer just stand by and watch Daphne.
Daphne was the sole heir of the Akion family, but at the same time, she was a stain on their name.
What were the rumors circulating inside and outside the mansion? Weren't they all gossiping about Daphne's foul personality?
Known as the hellion of the Akion family, Daphne went around causing chaos as if nothing could stop her.
Playing pranks on the knights or hitting the maids had become all too common.
Lloyd, under orders from the Archduke not to touch Daphne, had endured it time and again, but now she had crossed the line.
Hadn't she fearlessly trespassed into the Archduke's conference room just a while ago? And for some reason, she had been coming to the training grounds for days, disrupting the atmosphere, and as if that wasn't enough, she was now fighting with Arius.
He was already irritated and disgusted every time he saw her, so he judged that it was right to teach her a lesson this time.
The thought that this might be too harsh for a mere five-year-old child crossed his mind, but strangely, Lloyd couldn't make a rational judgment.
He disliked Daphne. He couldn't even stand the sight of her.
As if it were an emotion crafted by someone else, Lloyd's heart was swept away, and that was why he had ordered the duel between Daphne and Arius.
At least Arius was an affectionate and warm-hearted child, so he would likely go easy on Daphne.
*He'll just teach her a small lesson.*
And if things got dangerous, he could step in.
With that thought, Lloyd turned his gaze toward Daphne.
Daphne was frail.
It was only natural, as she had been bedridden since birth.
She looked as if she was struggling just to lift the child-sized wooden sword.
But that was all the more reason she needed to be disciplined. For being weak yet using the family's power to act like a hellion.
Just as a coldness settled in Lloyd's eyes.
“…Huh?”
Lloyd was startled.
Daphne's stance…
*‘Wow, it's perfect.’*
It was perfect, not at all like someone holding a sword for the first time
