episode_0028

…What the f*ck?

The moment the word ‘Princess’ left her lips, I felt a chill run down my spine.

Pale green hair and eyes, an innocent appearance, flushed cheeks, and bright, wide eyes.

Right, it was her.

The knight academy’s new instructor who knew my identity, as Lulu had mentioned… Aspi Lichstein.

At least, judging by her whispering in my ear, she seemed intent on keeping my identity as a princess a secret.

But the problem is—

“…Who are you?”

—I don’t know this person…??

Even after scouring my memories of the original story, I’ve never seen a woman like this.

Knowing my identity means she’s from the royal palace, not the academy, so there’s no way she would appear in the original story’s information, no matter how hard I search.

However, that doesn’t mean I’ve neglected my royal duties in this life.

Since I decided to live properly, that is, after awakening my past life’s memories, I haven’t been careless with anyone I’ve met.

I memorized their faces, learned their voices, and made every effort to remember their names, positions, hobbies, and even their small habits.

‘…But I really don’t know her!!’

I can’t pretend to know someone when I don’t, what can I do?

But… in this situation, maybe pretending to know her would have been better.

Aspi’s smile crumbled, her expression like she’d lost the world.

“…Don’t joke around, Princess Narita. Did you think I wouldn’t recognize you just because your hair color changed…?”

“No, I don’t understand what you’re—”

“We made a promise when we were little!! To become a strong knight and protect only the Princess for life!!”

Wait, hey, hold on—

“Shh, shh…! You’re too loud…!”

“You don’t remember… I’ll tell you again…!!”

Aspi’s voice grew louder and louder, never stopping.

I already attracted attention, and with this commotion, people started gathering one by one.

“What’s going on?”

“It seems the knight academy instructor is looking for Narias-nim…?”

“What’s happening…”

The cadets began to murmur. With everyone’s attention focused, Aspi knelt before me—

“YELL!!!!!!!”

I lifted her, held her at my waist, and ran.

“Ugh, ugh…”

And so, I ended up back on the rooftop again.

Leaning against the railing, I sighed, leaving Aspi kneeling behind me.

“Haah…”

Wasn’t there something like this before…?

Why are the knights and the mages all like this, seriously?

I quietly turned around.

“Sniff, sniff… I’m sorry… Princess—”

“Ugh!!!”

“No, no… I’m just so happy to see Narias-nim after all this time…”

I didn’t sense any malice from Aspi at all.

Honestly, I’m confident in my ability to judge people. I didn’t just play the role of a princess in the castle for show; I’ve met countless people and learned how to read their inner selves.

Looking at this girl’s inner self… well…

Honestly, I don’t know.

The moment I met her, I knew who she was.

The knight on horseback, wearing the helmet of the 2nd Knights, the day I left the royal palace. Aspi possessed the same mana wavelength as that knight.

It’s not just that.

As I felt before, a refined flow of mana gathering inward, not outward.

‘She’s trained considerably…’

It’s comparable to mine, which uses attributeless mana, pure refined mana itself. I couldn’t have predicted her strength without a direct confrontation.

Thud-

I sat down on the ground.

“So—I’m sorry, but I really have no memory of this. When did we first meet?”

“Sniff, sniff… Okay… I’ll tell you from the beginning…”

Soon, her tears stopped, and the story began with a breeze.

* * *

My life had no purpose.

Like a tool created out of necessity, Aspi was born to be a knight.

Just swinging her sword daily, practicing magic, eating, and sleeping. A continuous cycle of torturing her body and mind without any reason.

Clang, clang!

As usual, she was training as a probationary knight.

Her sparring partner was an ordinary boy of the same age. But he was no match for Aspi, who was talented in swordsmanship.

“Ugh- hey, wait a minute-”

“…….”

Her attacks were unstoppable. The impact would run through her arms and throughout her body, or even push back her sword and shield.

That’s what they mean by a difference in class.

“Ugh, ugh, stop—”

Even after the probationary knight boy’s surrender, Aspi’s sword didn’t stop.

Clang! Clang!

If this continued, the moment the boy’s arms gave out and he dropped his sword, he’d be seriously injured. The knight commander, watching from afar, rushed over to stop her.

Whoosh!

“Ugh, ugh- ugh…ugh…”

“Are you alright?”

“Ugh, yes, I’m fine, ugh…”

He briefly moved the probationary knight back and faced Aspi alone.

Even when the knight commander had defended her with magic earlier, she hadn’t been pushed back properly. She stared intently at something, gripping her sword tightly, as if it wasn’t over yet.

Knight Commander Carmoore drew his sword.

“Probationary Knight Lichtein.”

“…Yes.”

“What kind of person are you?”

Creak-

Aspi squeezed her hand tightly, and the metal gauntlet holding her sword creaked from the pressure.

“Answer me.”

“I… am a knight.”

“Then what should you do?”

“…….”

I thought she was just repeating meaningless questions. There was no way she’d put effort into responding.

“Protect… people…”

“Are you protecting anyone now?”

“…If I have strong power, I can protect them.”

The knight commander’s eyebrows twitched.

“Oh, really? Then, let’s see.”

“What—”

The moment he finished speaking, he disappeared from Aspi’s sight.

Whoosh—!

In just a blink of an eye, a strong gust of wind swept past her hair. When she came to her senses, the knight commander was already behind her.

“Th-this is-”

“Your master just died. What are you going to do now?”

“Just now I-”

Thump.

The knight commander’s sword was already aiming for Aspi’s neck. And what that meant…

“For a knight who fails to protect her master, there is only death. No, more than that, a ‘dishonorable death’. If a person who has trained their whole life to protect fails at a crucial moment, what meaning does their life have?”

Clang-

Aspi dropped her sword, her strength gone.

Thud-

She collapsed, her legs giving out.

“If you want to give meaning to your life, wield a sword that ‘protects’, not a sword that ‘kills’.”

The knight commander left without looking back at her.

. . .

What is a protective sword, anyway?

For Aspi, who had only thought about defeating enemies before, an answer didn’t come easily.

Even if she wanted to wield a protective sword, she didn’t have anyone to protect. She didn’t understand the meaning of protection, or its rewards, or its reasons.

She simply lived as things came.

The sky is clear, the river is blue. Unblemished sunlight poured down on her as she sat in the garden.

A cabbage white butterfly landed on Aspi, quietly watching the flowers, then flew away.

“Nice day, isn’t it?”

The voice came like the wind.

A confident voice, gentle yet full of power. Aspi quietly looked up at the voice’s owner.

“Hello.”

“Ye… well, hello.”

A pretty girl with black hair.

She didn’t know who she was, but her expensive clothes made her feel like she should use honorifics, yet she couldn’t bring herself to adjust her slouched position sitting on the grass.

“Not training?”

“I’m done for today.”

“Hmm~ I see.”

That was their quiet first meeting. A few days later, Aspi saw the girl swinging a sword wildly in the knight’s training ground.

Clang- Clang—!

Every time she swung her sword, her graceful arm movements and her light steps seemed capable of walking on blades of grass.

She’d never seen anything like it. It was so beautiful, yet so strong.

Aspi met the swordswoman, sweating and smiling, and fell in love at first sight.

The warm sunlight, the cool river, the verdant forest and its inhabitants— nothing moved her heart,

But this person— she felt like she wanted to protect this person for life.

“Ah, ah…”

A voice escaped beyond the barriers of reason.

Finally found it. Her life’s purpose. The path of a knight.

She only learned that the swordswoman who captured her attention was the fifth princess, Narita, after completely falling for her charm.

When Narita, having finished her training, approached Aspi, their eyes met.

Aspi’s own expressions were uncontrolled by the new feelings, and this was noticeable to Narita.

“Are you alright…? Your face is so red.”

“Ye, yes…”

The slow caress of her hand on her cheek. It was a little damp from sweat, but it was fragrant and soft. Aspi froze, unable to move at all.

“I, I, Princess Narita!!”

But she needed to say this.

Aspi, for the first time, knelt before the person she had chosen to protect and made her oath as a knight.

“I’ll definitely become strong someday, and become a knight who protects only you, Princess!!”

“Heehee… yes, thank you. I’m looking forward to it.”

It felt like a touch from an angel— that’s how Narita’s voice felt to her.

From that day forward, Aspi’s life changed.

Princess Narita, whom she wanted to protect with her whole life, even at the cost of her own life. Obstacles were meaningless to Aspi, who had decided to live only for her.

She swept through the kingdom-wide swordsmanship tournament, becoming known as a young swordsmanship prodigy. She continued to train, going through years of seclusion.

After years of secluded training, Aspi came of age.

* * *

Damn it, it was before I fell! That’s why I didn’t remember…

But now that I hear it, I think there might have been such a person… or maybe not…

Aspi, having finished her story, looked at me again with tear-filled eyes. That frenzied gaze was asking, ‘Do you remember me now?’

“Haah… yes, Aspi. Thank you.”

How could I deny her any longer? For the girl who had honed her skills for me for almost 10 years.

“Sniff…!!! Princess~~ Sniff…”

“Hey, hey- wait—”

Suddenly, this girl, bigger than me, embraced me, and I couldn’t avoid it. I quietly stroked Aspi’s hair.

“You’ve worked hard.”

“Sniff… Sniff…”

Seeing her crying in my arms, her heart seemed like that of a child despite her grown-up body. Her time was still frozen in her training ground, marked with thousands of sword wounds.

Honestly, I wanted to give her some kind of reward.

“Then… let’s eat lunch together today?”

“Th-th-that…!! How dare I…”

“It’s okay, it’s okay. I’m Lady Philbrogue now.”

“Is that so… Oh—”

Realizing she was hugging me, Aspi blushed and ran away.

After cooling her flushed cheeks and slowly organizing her thoughts, she softly answered.

“Okay…!”

And beyond the brightly smiling Aspi.

I saw Yuri with her eyes wide open.

Ah.

Right.

Ah.

Contact.