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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Mod7
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What kind of situation was this?
I tilted my teacup and racked my brain.
‘Could this all be part of the family head’s grand scheme to test me?’
The thought occurred to me. My stomach churned. The tea I was drinking felt like it might come back up. Why had this suddenly turned into a marriage meeting atmosphere?
What was this sudden turn of events?
Looking at Benek’s ominously shining eyes, I felt my blood run cold.
“Father. Your jokes are going too far today.”
Sylvia’s cheeks turned subtly red. Her voice was somewhat confrontational. Proving this, her tone was slightly agitated, unlike usual.
So subtle that someone who didn’t know Sylvia well would hardly notice.
“Sylvie. You stay out of this. I asked this of the man Ethan.”
Good Lord. The arrow was pointed at me again.
I could feel my mouth going dry in real time.
“I cannot stay out of this. Father. Ethan is my disciple.”
“Who said he wasn’t?”
“I’m saying I didn’t bring him here for a marriage meeting.”
Sylvia usually rarely showed her emotions. But even to my ears, her tone was dripping with irritation.
“A marriage meeting? Did you say just a marriage meeting? Are you daring to be irritated with me, your family head?”
Benek looked like someone had pressed his trigger button.
“This is why you, despite having both beauty and talent, haven’t found a proper partner yet! Hey there!”
My pupils felt like they were about to have an earthquake. No, they were already experiencing a magnitude 8 super-earthquake.
A maid opened the door and appeared from outside.
“Yes, Family Head. You called?”
“Go bring the Rod of Discipline.”
“Father… How far do you intend to embarrass me!”
Oh God. The Rod of Discipline.
I had wondered where she learned to hit people, and now I knew she learned it from her father.
As if unwilling to lose, Sylvia also slapped the table.
“You dare talk back to me, your father and family head?”
“This isn’t talking back…”
Soon, the maid returned, respectfully holding the Rod of Discipline with both hands. Benek placed the rod on the square table.
Thwack.
Flinch. Even at a glance, Sylvia looked nervous.
Was this that famous automatic reflex training, Pavlov’s dog?
I’d never seen Master this nervous before. Surely he wouldn’t whip a grown woman? This wasn’t some public humiliation play.
“Now Ethan, you may leave.”
“Ethan, wait! By your master’s order.”
“Ethan, by the family head’s order. Leave.”
Should I leave or stay? I was stuck between a rock and a hard place.
“Sylvie, hands on the wall and show your calves.”
Another order fell while I was frozen in indecision.
“What are you doing? I said hands on the wall and show your calves.”
Sylvia stood up and, looking mortified, placed her hands on the wall and exposed her calves. Blue mana gathered in the Rod of Discipline.
“Family Head! Lord Benek von Linchester!”
I found myself instinctively stepping between the father and daughter.
I had started speaking, but I didn’t know what to say next.
“Rather, rather punish me instead!”
The blue glow in the Rod of Discipline temporarily dimmed.
“Hoho, punish you? Why should I punish you?”
I had forgotten. This was a world from a novel that often had traffic accidents with causality.
Oh, whatever.
“Because I learned the family’s secret techniques and kept quiet about it! So please punish me instead!”
I shouted loud enough to shake the reception room.
I’d rather take the punishment myself than watch Master get hit.
Watching me, Benek suddenly burst into laughter.
“Pft, HAHAHA—!”
After laughing for a while, Benek wiped the tears from his eyes.
“I like your guts!”
Benek put down the Rod of Discipline.
“You need at least that much spirit to take my daughter. Good. Both of you may leave. I’ll be watching you and Sylvie.”
Thwack.
We hurriedly left the reception room. Sylvia kept her head bowed low.
“Master…”
“Don’t say anything.”
“……”
“Go ask Dania for your room. Today… your master showed an embarrassing side.”
Sylvia left first, carrying her boots and walking barefoot. Watching Master’s retreating back on the red carpet made my heart ache.
“Here, this is your room for the next month.”
With Nia’s words, I set my luggage down on the floor. The room looked as nice as the dormitory.
I had many questions, but couldn’t bring myself to ask them.
“Ethan, don’t worry too much.”
Nia chattered in a deliberately cheerful voice.
“That’s just how father-daughter relationships are.”
“I suppose so?”
“Don’t worry, don’t worry! It’s not the first time the Family Head has pressured Lady Sylvia about marriage.”
So Master was cornered enough to take me as her partner at social gatherings.
“Anyway, get some rest! You must be tired from the long journey.”
“Ah, yes. Thank you, sis.”
“Mm, sleep well.”
After Dania left, I laid on the bed lost in thought.
Master Sylvia as my wife?
It was something I’d never even considered. A vision of Master in an apron flickered before my eyes.
‘You look very tired today. Well, would you like dinner? A bath? Or perhaps…’
Damn it. At this rate, these fantasies would never end.
Should I have just agreed to marry her? My mind was unsettled.
Training is best for clearing unwanted thoughts. I summoned mana to my palm. After consistently learning magic from Sepia, I could properly use telekinesis.
“Rise.”
Books from the bookshelf floated into the air. I pulled them one by one toward me. It required concentration, but wasn’t too difficult.
Sepia’s tutoring had definitely been effective.
Dozens of books moved through the air at my will. I returned them to the shelves.
“Skill Window!”
At my call, the skill window appeared in the air.
Now my Linchester Swordsmanship had reached level 5, and Mana Control was at level 6. I had also gained Lightning Resistance through the Fundamentals of Resistance Acquisition class.
Through combat class, my Hand-to-Hand Combat skill level increased by 1, and after taking Achilles’ spear, my Physical Resistance increased by 1.
“I’m definitely getting stronger.”
In this world, skill levels were important, like in a game.
However, skills alone weren’t enough; you also needed the ability to use them effectively.
The supporting characters would grow several levels stronger during the break. That’s how it happened in the original story.
Tia would contract with intermediate-level spirits of fire, water, and earth attributes, while Sepia would grow from a 5-star mage to a 6-star mage.
And wasn’t it after summer break that Anya became able to freely use mana release?
Since the original plot had been derailed, I needed to hurry and get stronger too. You never knew when a strong enemy might appear.
I sat cross-legged and focused on mana control training. I extended my mana outward, using it to sense my surroundings.
How much time had passed?
Knock knock.
Someone knocked on the door.
When I came to my senses, the room had grown dark.
“Ethan, are you asleep?”
“Master…?”
“May I come in for a moment?”
A soft voice came from outside the door. Sylvia’s voice was unusually careful today.
“Yes, please come in anytime.”
The door opened and Sylvia walked in.
Her steps were composed as usual.
Dressed casually, Sylvia had undone her usual braid and let her long hair down.
“I’m sorry you had to see that unsightly display.”
“Not at all.”
“This is all because my father, the family head, is a bit peculiar.”
“I see…”
Sylvia smiled gently. It was a faint smile that was impossible for any who saw it to not return.
“Don’t worry too much about what the Family Head said earlier.”
“……”
I didn’t know how to respond.
“I just came from talking with Father.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. Um…”
Behind the hesitating Sylvia, white moonlight shone through. Through the window, a large full moon was visible between the clouds.
The moonlight touching her neck and silver hair created a mystical atmosphere.
“This is just something I’m telling you, so don’t think too deeply about it.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s about marriage again… um…”
I waited calmly for Sylvia to continue.
“Until now, I’ve been using work as an excuse to avoid and postpone whenever Father brought up marriage. However, recently, he’s been bringing it up more frequently, and it’s become troublesome.”
Her tone was as casual as discussing what she ate yesterday.
“Ethan, I like people who are stronger than me. However, such individuals are rare, and there’s a limit to how long I can hold out by postponing marriage like this. Three years at most.”
Here, Sylvia showed a brief bitter smile.
“So Ethan, become stronger. Become strong enough to take me within three years.”
As if struck on the head, I blinked.
My heart was racing as if I’d just received a confession.
“Then I will follow you. I will do my best to make you happy as your companion and knight. I… I might be lacking as a wife, but if you’re okay with someone like me.”
Why was it?
She seemed to view her own stoic nature as a complex.
She was the empire’s strong knight.
While ordinary women were doing needlework, she had been wielding practice swords. That shouldn’t be something to be ashamed of, but…
As an outsider, it wasn’t something I could easily comment on.
“If, during that time, you find someone you truly love…”
Sylvia hesitated for a moment before continuing.
“Your master will understand. Do you understand what I mean? Live your life as you have been, and don’t think too deeply about my words.”
I don’t know what to say. As diligently as I become stronger, Sylvia will become stronger too.
Moreover, the word genius isn’t wasted on her.
It might be difficult to bind our futures together with such an uncertain promise. That’s why Master set her own conditions.
“I understand, Master.”
“Fufu~ my. Your inadequate master seems to be talking too much today. Get some rest.”
Sylvia placed her hand on my shoulder. I felt like warmth was being transmitted.
Having finished speaking, Sylvia slowly walked away, just as she had come.
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