Actually, I thought the incident had wrapped up quite neatly. Sure, Tana’s method of rejecting her family’s proposal was a bit extreme, but it’s her life, isn’t it?
I thought she handled it well, but another lesson about life being no walk in the park slammed down on Tana like a ton of bricks.
“So, you want me to fight these two?”
The emotion behind her question was helplessness. She didn’t ask because she couldn’t understand what she just heard. Rather, she was disheartened by what she did hear and wished it weren’t true. But an unwavering answer came down like a verdict.
“Yeah, prove to yourself why you need to stay at Aios Academy. Your father, the head of the family, said he wouldn’t ask anything more of you if you did.”
No more lectures at the academy; just preparing a graduation thesis as a fifth-year student. Among the fifth-years, Bellin Mayas—who somehow was the busiest and most anticipated—declared emotionlessly.
“But I…”
Her eyes darted around.
Standing before Bellin were the twin siblings, and they made her feel small. They too accepted Tana’s actions as completely normal.
“If you’re not confident, just give up.”
“Yeah, you know it won’t work out anyway.”
“…”
Even if she wanted to respond, she couldn’t. Because that was the truth. Her record so far was 16 matches, 16 losses.
Against her older brother Ben and her younger sister Valtory, Tana had never won a single match.
That’s because they were from the Mayas family.
She had heard the rumor of the Mayas twins in her second year more than a few times. Each time, Tana’s expression soured, so she didn’t bother to mention it.
“Wouldn’t it be better to start packing up right now? No need to create unnecessary trouble and disgrace the family?”
Ben Mayas leaned forward with his hands in his pockets, threateningly.
Right now, Tana wasn’t showing the carefree confidence she usually did; instead, she was back to the awkward girl who had been bullied by her old friends.
‘They called it trauma, didn’t they?’
Anxiously fidgeting next to Eve, who was pondering what to do, I kept my mouth shut and checked on Tana.
I had already heard that the twins from the Mayas family were wounds and trauma for her.
With her miserable record and the fact that she would face a forced duel organized by the family a week from now.
Bellin Mayas, glancing over at me secretly, had already come to share everything with me.
It was all to save Tana Krista.
‘When I saw her getting dumped after confessing to her sister, it was pitiful. But with that serious demeanor now, it feels different.’
As they say, you can’t really know a person from just one side. I felt sorry when I saw her crushed and crying on the floor, but now she looked like the capable heir of a prestigious family.
“Your swordsmanship is awful, and your magic is just average. There’s no way you can say you’re from the Mayas branch at this level; even your sister knows that, right?”
Ben mocked the deflated Tana, still calling her sister but showing no sign of respect.
“Let’s just go amicably, sis. Don’t waste time. And don’t have any strange expectations.”
Valtory, already adjusting her neat school uniform, seemed more focused on confirming her tidy appearance than battling Tana.
“…”
As Tana was about to nod under the weight of time and experience, I placed a hand on her head.
It made it look like she was bowing not because she wanted to but because of me.
“You said a week, right? Since you’re twins, it’ll be 2:2. Tana and Eve will go out there.”
“Me, I?”
I heard Eve’s startled voice from behind. When I turned my head slightly and gave her a look, confidence flooded her as she puffed out her chest and shouted.
“Bring it on!”
Apparently, Eve’s chest was quite the motivating factor; Ben immediately blushed and stared wide-eyed, while Valtory crossed her arms, naturally hiding her own less impressive physique.
In terms of charm, this side was winning overwhelmingly.
Eve devoured it all.
Meanwhile, Bellin Mayas answered with a faint smile on behalf of the twins.
“Alright, a week from now. I hope it’s a duel without regrets. You’re both in, right, Ben and Valtory?”
“Absolutely.”
“I’ll whip you into shape.”
Ben and Eve grinned at each other while Valtory glared at them. Eve’s violent figure seemed to trigger her jealousy.
But then, an unusual declaration was thrown in.
“What difference does it make to learn under the Demon King?”
“The third-year homme fatal? That magical beast won’t work on me!”
“…What?”
As I said before, asking for clarification didn’t just mean wanting the last words repeated; there was also a twinge of denial mixed in.
The emotion of hoping that she misheard.
But the audacious second-year twins began to rant without a hint of awareness.
“A rogue who sees women only as tools! The daring one who changes women every day! The area near the Demon King’s room reeks of women’s perfume!”
“They don’t seduce with looks; they entice with unique charm! Of course, they took down ‘Emerald Rose’ Seria Deloa, who’s at the level of a fourth-year cliff, and even rumored to have elf beauties at their command!”
Ah, I got it.
“That’s a misunderstanding.”
I clapped my hands and laughed.
“Not me, it’s this guy named Ares.”
Then Valtory tilted her head and replied.
“Ares Helias is good-looking, though.”
Huh.
“Let it go! I’ll only be bedridden for about a week!”
If Eve and Tana hadn’t held me back, I would have been stuck in the hospital room until the day before the duel.
*
“Hey, Demon King Daniel?”
“If you say that one more time, I swear I’ll get you.”
With the rooster crowing to announce dawn, I snapped to attention at Hayun’s question, glaring menacingly.
She nodded, but then stretched her legs to show off her flexibility.
“Anyway. So, a week later you’re saying Tana and Eve are practicing for a duel rather than stamina training?”
“Yeah, training for a week won’t significantly boost basic stamina.”
Besides, the two have been training hard with me all this time. They already had more than enough stamina for a duel.
With her legs spread out, Hayun placed both hands on her left big toe. I see that often, but it always makes my groin feel sore.
But Hayun was refined. In terms of flexibility, Sen was like a clay doll manipulatable by a child.
Hayun was sitting and stretching while Sen had her legs stretched and raised above her head.
“Ben Mayas and Valtory Mayas. Both are among the top of the second years. Excellent in both swordsmanship and magic.”
“Can you not talk like that if it’s possible?”
Seeing Sen speaking with a body twisted like a dead body made me scowl, but Sen puffed her cheeks in response.
“Flexibility is life for an assassin. You can hide in places targets wouldn’t dream of. Like under a narrow bed or between bookshelf gaps.”
Isn’t that just being thin, not flexible?
After finishing stretching, I stood before Tana and Eve, who had come with wooden swords for the first time.
“Let’s put dieting aside for a moment and start preparing to beat those brash twins.”
“Understood!”
“…”
Eve raised her hand boldly like a brave warrior, but Tana was different.
“Daniel, is this really possible?”
“…”
“Those kids are direct descendants of the Mayas family. Their upbringing is completely different from mine, which has been neglected as a branch.”
I hadn’t seen this side of Tana recently, but she used to be like this. Lacking confidence, she forced smiles on her face to feel her own worth around others.
“They’ve had knights and professional mages as tutors since they can walk. Just a week won’t…”
Her demeanor was just like when she was bullied by the old May gang. I was just realizing that her words from yesterday about growing were actually false.
“Again?”
So I asked back.
“…Huh?”
“Is there any more reason to lose? They’ve been taught by amazing people since they were little and are direct descendants of the Mayas family. What else is there?”
“…”
Tana, who kept her mouth shut, made me cross my arms and respond this time.
“Shall I tell you why we have no choice but to win this time?”
As Tana lifted her head to meet my gaze, I smiled gently at her.
“Because I’m teaching you.”
Learning from a knight full of will and determination would certainly be a big help to the twins.
The stances, mindset, and techniques with their swords.
They must have picked up those traits from the veteran knight.
Learning from a mage who explores knowledge and truth would definitely seep into their youthful skin.
How to handle mana, breathing techniques, effective operation, and his own tips.
They would have learned things that money can’t buy.
But let me be honest.
When it comes to the teacher’s class and level, I could confidently say I was overwhelmingly superior.
The more the rice ripens, the lower it bows.
But no matter how low I bow, their crown still comes into view.
Countless knights are spread across the continent.
Though fewer than them, there are still many mages scattered around.
But still.
“Trust me.”
The Sherpa wandering the Forest of the Demon Realm was a title that only I could hold in this continent.
