Translator: Nox

While Others Became Female Leads In Romantic Fantasy Novels, I Became A Closet Monster

Chapter 12

“How dare a thing like you…!”

Staring into the unwavering blue eyes fixed upon him, Somerset was momentarily overwhelmed and stumbled back. Because of that, he barely managed to evade the wooden sword Dedrick swung recklessly.

A sharp gust of wind grazed Somerset’s neck. A chill ran down his spine.

‘If only he had been taught the sword…’

There was only one reason Dedrick had not learned swordsmanship until now.

Delaney had blocked it.

Using the excuse that his body was frail and weak, Delaney had intentionally delayed his training. Meanwhile, she had sowed discord with the Grand Duke, claiming Dedrick was lazy and lacked respect for knights.

As usual, the Grand Duke had remained indifferent.

Therefore, no matter what change occurred in Dedrick’s heart, nothing would change. He wouldn’t be able to learn the sword.

That was how it was supposed to be.

‘How dare he look at me with those eyes… the exact same eyes as Father’s.’

Unable to suppress his rage, Somerset brought his wooden sword down hard on Dedrick’s shoulder.

Thwack!

“You bastard!”

When Dedrick fell to the floor but refused to give up and stood back over, Somerset screamed, unwilling to admit he had been frightened.

“No matter how much you struggle, you can’t beat me!”

In that split second, Dedrick saw an opening.

Somerset’s flank was completely exposed.

He didn’t miss the chance. Even though his entire body throbbed with pain, he grit his teeth.

‘Just one hit!’

At any cost…!

Carrying that desperate, earnest yearning, Dedrick’s wooden sword dug into Somerset’s side.

“Damn it!”

Somerset narrowly avoided the sharp attack, but his feet tangled, and he tumbled backward.

“Ugh!”

Dedrick immediately pointed his wooden sword at the tip of Somerset’s nose.

Startled, Somerset jerked his face back. He looked up at Dedrick, who was gazing down at him with trembling pupils.

To anyone watching, this was Somerset’s defeat.

Panting heavily, Dedrick spoke calmly.

“I am challenging you so that I can succeed, brother.”

Throwing back the very words Somerset had used to mock him, Dedrick turned his back.

Feeling a stinging sense of humiliation, Somerset scrambled to his feet and shrieked.

“You dare lay a hand on me?! Do you think I’ll let this slide?!”

“Brother.”

Dedrick turned back toward him and spoke coldly.

“It was just a spar, wasn’t it?”

When Dedrick mirrored the exact words he had once said, Somerset froze on the spot, momentarily speechless.

After a quiet gaze, Dedrick walked out of the Training Ground.

Belatedly realizing the situation, Somerset’s piercing screams echoed behind him.

“Damn it! Get back here! You son of a…!”

But Dedrick did not look back.

Throb. Throb.

Dedrick frowned as he looked at the pain rising in his shoulder and his swollen wrist.

‘She shouldn’t find out about this.’

She would surely worry.

He could vividly picture the girl looking more pained than he was upon seeing his injuries.

More than the joy of defeating Somerset, he was concerned about the sadness the girl would feel.

Because of that, he hesitated to go straight to the room.

“Greetings, young master.”

Someone strode toward Dedrick. As a long shadow fell over him, Dedrick looked up from his wrist.

“Ah, Sir Jacob.”

“Pardon…?”

Jacob’s eyes widened in surprise when his name came out of Dedrick’s lips before he could even introduce himself.

“How do you know my name…?”

Dedrick lowered his eyes slightly and murmured softly.

“Even to someone like me who knows nothing of the sword, your skills were impressive, so I took note…”

Jacob felt a mix of happiness and bitterness as he laughed.

“…Haha, even so, I am but a hollow swordsman who cannot even manifest Aura.”

“And yet, you are a member of the Black Hawk Knights, which means the commander must value your skills highly.”

“…Thank you for your kind words.”

However, it was a fact that Jacob, unable to radiate Aura, felt useless everywhere.

In particular, his self-esteem had plummeted because he was left behind while the rest of the Black Hawk Knights were away for monster subjugation.

In him, Dedrick saw a reflection of his own perpetually cowed self. Whenever he felt that way, the girl would comfort him.

After a moment’s hesitation, Dedrick spoke.

“Aura often manifests late in many cases.”

Jacob gave a small smile at the clumsy comfort.

“Thank you. If you don’t mind, may I take a look at your shoulder and wrist, young master?”

Dedrick hesitated before reaching out his hand. Taking it, Jacob tried his best to smooth the furrow in his brow.

Having witnessed the sparring between the young masters for the first time, Jacob was quite shocked.

Though it ended in Dedrick’s victory, until that point, it had been a one-sided beating by Somerset. That wasn’t a spar.

The rumors said Somerset was personally disciplining an insolent Dedrick…

Jacob felt that something was wrong.

He frowned as he saw the dark bruises forming on Dedrick’s shoulder and his badly swollen wrist.

“Tell me if it hurts.”

He checked Dedrick’s condition, gently pressing and rotating the wrist and shoulder.

“…Does it not hurt?”

“This much is…”

Looking at the small boy, Jacob started to say something but stopped and withdrew his hands.

“Fortunately, there are no fractures.”

“That’s a relief…”

“Shall we go to the infirmary?”

After a pause, Dedrick nodded.

“Is it possible to cleanly remove the wounds on my face?”

“There is an ointment made from ground Healing Magic Stones.”

Dedrick breathed a sigh of relief. He had blocked his face as much as possible, but he couldn’t prevent every scratch.

The girl would surely be startled and worry over even those small wounds.

As they walked toward the infirmary, Jacob spoke cautiously.

“Do you perhaps not have a swordsmanship instructor?”

“I don’t. No one wants to teach me the sword…”

This, too, was different from the rumors.

The world heard that he threw tantrums because he disliked every instructor provided to him…

It was obvious that the source of those rumors was the Grand Duchess.

“Then, may I teach you?”

Dedrick looked up at him with startled eyes. Jacob met his gaze with warmth.

Seeing Dedrick get back up no matter how many times he was knocked down reminded Jacob of his younger self.

Whenever he picked up a sword, people around him were busy mocking him, but through persistent effort, he caught the eye of the Black Hawk Knights’ commander and was able to join.

He simply couldn’t walk past Dedrick, who reminded him so much of those days.

“…The Grand Duchess won’t stay quiet.”

“It’s alright. Basically, she cannot interfere with the Black Hawk Knights. I belong to the Black Hawk Knights and serve His Grace the Grand Duke, so no matter how much the Grand Duchess complains, she won’t be able to say much.”

“There’s nothing in it for you…”

Jacob smiled quietly and asked.

“Are you refusing?”

After a moment of thought, Dedrick said softly.

“…If you are alright with it, I would like you to teach me.”

Seeing the eyes that couldn’t quite hide their joy, Jacob replied readily.

“It is an honor to be able to teach you, young master.”

Click…

I snapped my eyes open at the faint sound of the door.

I had fallen asleep for a moment and hadn’t cleared out the scorpions yet…!

I scrambled up and threw open the wardrobe doors, shouting urgently.

“Don’t go near the bed! Axel let scorpions loose!”

“Huh…?”

Startled, Dedrick stumbled back.

I climbed down from the wardrobe and pulled Dedrick behind me.

I thought he might be a bit hurt after going to the Training Ground, but luckily his face was clean.

“Did anything happen at the Training Ground?”

“I just watched them spar for a bit and came back.”

Somerset just let him go?

As I narrowed my eyes at him, Dedrick naturally changed the subject.

“Anyway, what’s this about scorpions?”

I stood in front of Dedrick protectively and said reliably.

“I’ll clear them out for you. It’ll hurt if they sting you, so stay back.”

As I rolled up my sleeves and stepped forward, Dedrick grabbed my wrist and stopped me.

“…Isn’t it dangerous for you?”

It’s not dangerous for me.

When I nodded, he seemed to lose his words, his lips parting and closing again.

Even so, he didn’t let go of my wrist.

“How did you know it hurts if they touch you?”

“I got stung by mistake.”

I shifted my eyes, avoiding Dedrick’s gaze.

As expected, Dedrick saw through my lie instantly.

“Why are you lying?”

“Because it would make you upset.”

“You did well.”

Wait, this is strange.

Doesn’t it feel like our roles have swapped?

Wasn’t the vibe supposed to be me taking care of Dedrick?

“Let’s clean it up together.”

“You’re not mad?”

“…You did it for me.”

“Still, don’t do that next time.”

“It’s okay. As long as the wardrobe is fine, I won’t die.”

“Do you remember the first thing you said to me?”

“The first thing? Hello?”

He seemed momentarily speechless.