21. Frisia von Louer

21. Frisia von Louer

Behave with grace.

Do not tarnish the family’s honor.

Maintain the dignity of the Marquisate.

These were the constant admonishments Frisia von Louer had heard from her parents, drilled into her ears since she was officially designated the next head of the Louer family.

Every day, she had to memorize thick volumes of the Empire’s laws, and she received etiquette training without any break. If she made even one mistake in reciting the continental affairs or legal texts, she would be severely reprimanded. She had to keep her back straight at all times, and her steps had to be precise.

Frisia von Louer was not an exceptional individual who could absorb so much at such a young age. While she possessed talent due to her bloodline, it was only at an adequate level.

A normal family head, one who would lead the Louer family smoothly… that was, undoubtedly, the evaluation Frisia was expected to receive in the future.

However, her parents did not accept that reality.

The head of the Louer family and her husband possessed an almost fanatical pride in their family, and they believed that their eldest daughter, the next head, must possess corresponding abilities. Therefore, they compelled Frisia to acquire such abilities.

Frisia hated this.

But she could do nothing.

She was merely a child of about ten years old. She knew all too well what happened to a young flower grown in a greenhouse when placed in the wild.

Moreover, if she disappeared, what about her beloved sister?

How could she guarantee that this immense boulder of responsibility, which her parents were forcing upon her, would not be placed upon her sister?

The sight of her soft, cute sister being exposed to this heavy responsibility, losing her smile, breaking down, and despairing… she couldn’t bear it. That’s why she endured it stubbornly. She endured it.

However, Frisia was not strong enough to withstand that murderous education.

She hid the deepening dark circles under her eyes with makeup every day, cursed her parents, and punched the walls to release her pent-up emotions, but she couldn’t hide the fact that she was becoming exhausted both mentally and physically. And a tired mind made her treat her beloved sister harshly as well.

The family motto was to punish the wicked. If that was the case, Frisia sincerely wondered if her parents were the ones who should be punished.

Meanwhile, her sister, as if fixated on the family motto, was running around shouting about judging the wicked everywhere and committing eccentric acts. Although Frisia secretly cleaned up after her, she eventually reached her limit.

“Priscilla.”

“Yes, yes….”

“Was it you who set fire to the central warehouse?”

“But the drugs were there….”

“That wasn’t drugs, it was ingredients for painkillers!”

Finally, her sister committed a major incident that couldn’t be cleaned up. Frisia, clutching her forehead, then summoned her sister to her room and gave her a ‘punishment’.

Pinching her cheeks.

Even though it was the only punishment she could give her sister, her sister seemed greatly frightened, perhaps due to Frisia’s sharpened demeanor. Seeing her cute, trembling sister, Frisia felt her heart tear apart.

She was cute, though.

… Even after being scolded like that, her sister’s eccentric behavior didn’t decrease.

To prevent her parents from finding out and scolding her, Frisia called her sister and warned her, but each time, she only felt that the distance between them was growing.

That didn’t change much even after coming to the Academy.

——

“Frisia von Louer requests a duel with the Princess.”

Although their relationship had drifted apart, Frisia still loved her sister.

Thinking of her cute, soft, and chewy sister’s cheeks, and her twin buns that exuded a youthful charm unlike her own, she had to suppress a smile that threatened to form on her lips.

And yet, her sister, surrounded by so many people at the Academy, had been involved in this and that….

As soon as she heard the truth in the form of rumors, Frisia disregarded her parents’ advice against engaging in barbaric acts like duels and requested a duel with the daughter of the Northern Grand Duke.

For the sake of maintaining that damned dignity!

Not just one person, but countless people!!

… While thinking such thoughts internally, her stated reason externally was to hold the Northern Grand Duke’s daughter accountable for insulting her family.

“If I win, then release my sister from your grasp.”

“Release her?”

“It means to never come near my sister again.”

In the Empire, a duel was an act of competing with one’s honor at stake. If one lost a duel with conditions attached and failed to uphold those conditions, they would be branded as dishonorable. For nobles who valued honor, this was a significant issue.

… Of course, Skadi didn’t know that. She simply knew that a duel was a fight. Upon hearing Frisia’s words, Skadi pondered for a moment.

‘Do people sometimes set conditions for duels?’

If so, she should set one too. Skadi was confident that this was definitely a good opportunity. Then Skadi opened her mouth.

“Can I set a condition too?”

“… Yes.”

“If I win, you will do exactly as I say, just once.”

The spectators watching the two in the dueling arena, as well as Frisia herself, swallowed hard.

Generally, if the condition set for a duel was deemed excessively unfair, it would naturally be invalidated. And if Skadi had commanded, ‘Do exactly as I say,’ no one would have considered that condition fair.

However, she added the condition ‘just once,’ thereby making the duel fair.

Of course, if the command was too excessive, it could be refused, but the definition of ‘excessive’ was subjective. If Skadi were to raise an objection, Frisia would be in a difficult position.

‘What a wicked person….’

Everyone watching Skadi thought so.

… Except for Golden Sun and Priscilla, who knew her true nature to some extent. Priscilla watched her sister and Skadi with great anxiety, while Golden Sun was excited by the interesting spectacle.

After much deliberation, Frisia reluctantly nodded. Even if it meant taking a huge risk, she couldn’t leave her sister with this lewd and wicked noblewoman.

Besides, regardless of what conditions were attached to defeat, if she won, it wouldn’t matter. After all, her opponent was merely a first-year student at the Academy.

She had heard rumors that she was incredibly strong… but no matter how strong a swordsman was, they couldn’t possibly break through dozens of spells fired simultaneously at the start of the duel. Frisia thought so, recalling the dozens of spells she had prepared, with their activation delayed.

Unleashing the pre-prepared spells all at once to overwhelm the opponent was a common tactic used by mages during duels.

Priscilla probably lost because she didn’t know how to use this pre-casting. Despite her eccentric behavior, she was quite skilled in magic.

‘Of course, my sister is so good at magic.’

Frisia praised her sister in her heart and looked at her opponent.

Her expressionless blue eyes, her white tail swaying casually. Thinking that this lewd beast-woman noblewoman had been toying with her beloved sister, flames seemed to ignite in her heart.

‘I should have gotten rid of her from the start, but because of those damned parents….’

‘Always maintain dignity and follow formal protest procedures,’ was what they said, even when their second daughter was suffering like this.

Frisia seriously considered overturning the family.

Then, the dueling magic tool (which had been broken again recently and then repaired) was activated, and a dome surrounding the dueling ground was created. Simultaneously, protective barriers were placed around Skadi and Frisia.

Seeing this, the students prayed to the heavens that Frisia would stop the noblewoman. Especially the first-year students taking sword-fighting classes.

… Even in that situation, Priscilla was eagerly anticipating kissing her sister.

“Let’s say the duel begins when this handkerchief falls.”

“Okay.”

Frisia took out a handkerchief from her pocket. The white wolf glanced at it indifferently, and then the handkerchief flew up into the sky with a whoosh.

It was a tense moment.

The cloth fluttered down, resisting the air. It swayed back and forth in the wind, and finally….

Thump.

CRASH!

The moment the handkerchief touched the dirt, Frisia immediately unleashed dozens of spells, while Skadi, unfazed, simply drew her sword and calmly watched her opponent.

Blazing flames engulfed the area where Skadi stood. A powerful storm followed, turning into a storm of fire that swept through the entire area. The intense heat and light felt even outside the protective barrier made the spectators squint.

WHOOSH-!

Frisia didn’t stop there and cast additional spells. It was a standard tactic for mages: firing pre-prepared spells while continuously casting new ones.

Magic intertwined and formed phenomena. Although her talent was ordinary, the power from her lineage as the head of the Marquisate made the magic emanating from her staff function as a disaster.

Eventually, waves of red flames filled the dome, followed by additional spells. The sky trembled, and the earth shattered. And then….

CRACK!

All those numerous spells were cleanly sliced in half with a single sword stroke.

Seeing the storm of spells, precisely bisected as if a god had parted the ocean, Frisia and the spectators alike wore expressions of stunned disbelief.

Only Skadi, who had caused this, wore an expression as if it were only natural.

WHOOSH-!

Then, with another swing of her sword, the entire dueling ground, which had been burning moments ago, froze over. As the sound of ice crunching underfoot was heard, a sword was already pointed at her throat.

It was Frisia’s defeat.