The place I brought Lyria to review her confession lines was none other than the academy’s training grounds.

The appearance of a fully armored female knight—or rather, based on her size and armor, one could easily mistake her for a male knight—didn’t go unnoticed. As Lyria walked through the academy, a few female students glanced at her with interest. With her hair hidden under the helmet and her androgynous looks, she could easily be mistaken for a male knight.

‘If she had been born a man, she’d probably break a lot of hearts,’ I mused as we made our way to the training grounds.

Once we arrived, I handed Lyria a spear while I held two daggers in my hands.

"Here, take this, Miss Lyria."

"Senior Lilith?"

"Take it, and from now on, we’ll be sparring."

"What? But I thought you were going to teach me confession lines…?"

"This sparring is also part of the confession. Come at me with everything you’ve got, Miss Lyria."

"..."

Even though she tightly gripped the spear in both hands, Lyria hesitated to charge at me. Perhaps it was because she knew I was a mage and wasn’t sure how to approach the fight.

Usually, in close combat, a mage wouldn’t stand a chance against an opponent wielding a sword or spear.

"Don’t worry, just go for it."

"Huh?"

"Lilith is way stronger than you think. If you don’t give it your all, you’ll be the one who gets taken down easily."

"...Understood."

Hearing Agnes’s words of encouragement from the side, Lyria’s expression hardened with determination. She let out a loud shout and charged at me, spear in hand.

Thwack!

"Hraaaaah!"

From there, the two of us engaged in a light skirmish—me with my daggers and Lyria attacking with her spear.

Whenever Lyria thrust with her spear, I would dodge by spinning out of the way. When she swung it, I would block with my daggers and look for a chance to counterattack. Meanwhile, Lyria tried her best to dodge my daggers, keeping up the sparring.

Since using offensive magic would’ve made the sparring too serious, I limited myself to only using support spells. Still, the difference between a second-year student and a first-year was obvious.

Thud.

"Haa… Haa… Haa…."

"Whew… Whew…."

Lyria lay on the ground, panting, while I stood over her, pointing a dagger at her neck. Both of us were out of breath, but it was clear I had won.

Though she was one of the heroines of Luminor Academy and fairly strong, she still wasn’t at a level where she could take me down.

Even though we had fought in close combat, it was only natural that I won. After all, I was the main heroine of Luminor Academy, while Lyria was a supporting heroine.

Taking into account our inherent differences in ability as well as my personal training, the outcome was inevitable.

"You’re really strong, Senior Lilith…."

"You were sharp too, Miss Lyria. You only lost because your opponent was me."

"I see…."

Lyria’s expression showed a hint of disappointment as she looked away, frustrated by her defeat. To console her, I revealed the special confession line I had prepared, just for -***.

"Miss Lyria."

"Yes?"

"If you suddenly challenged that ‘close senior’ to a duel, just like you did with me, what do you think would happen?"

"...It would probably end up much like this. Since he specializes in swordsmanship, he’s likely even stronger than you, Senior Lilith."

Of course. That’s exactly what would happen. After all, I had never won a swordsmanship duel against that hero.

"That’s right. So, if you challenged him, he’d probably subdue you and ask, ‘Why did you do this?’ or, ‘What’s the reason for attacking me out of the blue?’"

"Yes, that’s likely."

"Then, your response would be to confidently say, ‘I couldn’t contain the fiery passion I have for you, Senior!’"

"O-oh…!"

"...What?"

Lyria, her eyes wide with realization, seemed genuinely impressed by the confession line I had suggested. Agnes, on the other hand, looked utterly dumbfounded, muttering under her breath, but I chose to ignore her.

"At that point, the senior would probably be flustered. He might even get embarrassed by the sudden confession."

"That’s true."

"So, at that moment, you need to give it your all. Draw attention to yourself with your booming voice, gathering witnesses to your confession so that everyone around acknowledges your feelings. Make it a passionate confession so intense that there’s no way he can escape without responding."

"Without a chance to escape… I’ve learned so much."

"And to finish it off… how about ending with something like this? ‘I want to spend the rest of my life dueling with you until our final moments! Please accept my heart!’"

"W-wow… W-whoa…."

"What kind of confession line is that…?" Agnes muttered in disbelief, but that didn’t matter.

The important thing was Lyria’s reaction. And, true to her muscle-brained character, she didn’t notice anything odd about the line and instead blushed, her excitement palpable.

"As expected, you’re incredible, Senior Lilith! This is the most passionate and moving confession I’ve ever heard!"

"..."

"So, what do you think, Miss Lyria? If you use this, I’m sure it will be enough to capture his heart. And if, after all that, he still doesn’t accept your confession… well, you know what that means."

"Y-yes… If a man can reject such a heartfelt confession, then something must be wrong with him. Like, maybe… he has a problem with his male function…."

"Exactly. You understand perfectly. As the only daughter of the Barbaracus tribe’s chieftain, you can’t afford to choose a man who has those kinds of issues."

"Wise words! Senior Lilith, you always speak the truth!"

"...I give up. I don’t even know anymore."

Knowing the outcome of this confession in advance made me feel a bit guilty, but in the end, this was the best way to help Lyria.

It was a confession that would allow her to give it her all, and even if she got rejected, she wouldn’t have any regrets.

This was far better than letting her suffer over an unattainable love for the rest of her life.

‘And as a bonus, it’ll really mess with that hero.’

Of course, that was just a bonus. The main goal was to help Lyria create the perfect confession. Satisfied with my work, I stood up, leaving Lyria lying on the ground.

"...Do guys really like confessions like that? Are you serious, Lilith?"

"Guys like it when a girl supports their hobbies. And if the man Lyria is in love with is the type who’s obsessed with training, a confession like this, promising to spar with him for life, makes perfect sense."

"Hmm… I guess…?"

"Imagine if Prince Antonio gave you access to the Red Tower’s magical library, filled with rare tomes you couldn’t find anywhere else. And then he promised to fund your magic research once you became the Red Tower Lord. It’s the same kind of feeling, Miss Agnes."

"Ah, now I get it… Wait, why did you have to bring him up again…?"

"No reason."

As I prepared Lyria’s ‘failed confession plan,’ I couldn’t help but think about ways to help Agnes deal with Prince Antonio as well.

Lyria’s confession took place sooner than expected.

Given her personality, it wasn’t surprising that she didn’t waste time. Once she decided to confess, she acted quickly.

So, on the first weekday after the weekend, during lunch break, the central fountain garden of the academy was packed with people, abuzz with excitement.

Clang! Clang! Clash!

"What’s going on? Is it a fight?"

"I heard that barbarian girl started it."

"Shouldn’t someone get a professor?"

In this world, professors would sometimes intervene if a fight broke out. After all, the professors at Luminor Academy had the ability to keep student conflicts under control.

Though, in this case, there wasn’t much to worry about. This was just a light sparring session, and within a few minutes, Lyria would be overpowered and subdued, so there was no need for concern.

"It looks like a fight."

"It seems that way, Master Ethan."

"..."

As Ethan glanced toward the clashing sounds of sword and spear, I responded calmly, while Agnes looked up at me with a bewildered expression.

Somewhere in that crowd, Lyria and -*** were likely sparring, with Lyria carrying out her "ambush confession." Though I couldn’t see them through the mass of people, I could clearly hear the clanging of Lyria’s rusted full-plate armor, so I had no trouble figuring out who was involved.

"Maybe it’s a lover’s quarrel? Since Luminor Academy gathers students from all over the world, it’s not too surprising if some of them don’t see eye to eye."

"Hmm, maybe."

"If you’re curious, we can go take a look. If it starts to get dangerous, we can fetch Professor Harold…"

I trailed off mid-sentence, my words dying in my throat as I spotted something in the crowd.

There, amidst the people watching the sparring match, I saw someone who definitely shouldn’t have been there.

"Lilith?"

"...Oh…."

"Lilith? What’s going on?"

"N-no way…."

In the middle of the crowd, standing between Celestina and Silena, was none other than the hero—the very person who should have been in the middle of receiving Lyria’s confession right now.