The next day.

The sun shone brightly over the city streets of Bremmer, its warm light spilling over the buildings and residents.

People emerged from their homes, soaking in the morning warmth as they prepared to start their workday.

I was one such person as I came out of the Inn I was staying in, prepared to head for the Royal Palace in order to retrieve my rewards.

It felt like a good day.

I was happy.

'... Before anything happens I should just enter the 'Curse' chamber so that nobody will find any trouble with me.'

The plan was simple.

Enter the Curse Chamber and train until the start of the new year.

It was supposed to be like that, with no problems, and yet...

11

A pair of gray eyes met mine the moment I stepped out of the Inn.

Holding onto a luggage, and with a carriage standing behind him, Leon looked at me without much of an expression.

No, there was no need for an expression.

I could tell exactly what he was thinking.

'I've come to pick you up.'

'For...?'

Leon raised his brow, turning his head to point at the insignia on the carriage before looking back at me.

'What do you think?'

'Oh.'

I nodded faintly and walked down the small flight of stairs before reaching the carriage where I handed Leon my luggage.

"Here."

Leon looked at my luggage before looking at me.

"This is...?"

"My luggage."

"No, I know..."

"Take it. Aren't you supposed to be my knight?"

"Uh? Yeah."

"Okay, good."

I shoved the luggage into Leon's hands. He looked surprised by my compliance. I was too. Well, for only a brief moment because before I knew it, I...

Ran.

I ran as if my life depended on it.

" ..."

Leon's expression changed swiftly as I heard a soft 'thump' behind me. Most probably from my luggage being dropped by him. I wasn't too worried though. He was rich now. If he broke anything he could just pay me back.

...And there was something more important at this very moment.

Such as...

Running.

'I'm not going.'

I was going to enjoy my vacation regardless of whether they wanted it or not.

Without hesitation, I turned through several streets as I rushed ahead without looking back.

My current destination was the Royal Palace.

So long as I could get there...

"Hey, watch out!"

"What are you doing!"

"Ukeh!"

Along the way, there were the inevitable victims that fell due to my speed. I could only apologize to them in my heart before increasing my pace further. I couldn't afford to slow down in the slightest.

Especially since Leon was faster than me.

He was a [Body] user after all.

...Of course, that was unless I used my 'Concept'. Then it'd be an entirely different story.

But surely he wouldn't us-

Booom!

As if a bomb had detonated, I heard a faint explosion coming from behind me. Turning my head, I felt my entire body tense as Leon shot in my direction like a rocket.

For the briefest of moments, I could see his eyes which were completely black with the faint white dots in the middle.

My heart leaped out of my chest.

"....!"

This was overkill...!

Clench.

I wasn't going to lose like this though. Clenching my teeth, a green orb appeared in my mind.

It throbbed silently as I reached out for it, its outer layer coating my arm as my legs tensed

and my speed boosted.

With the sudden increase in my mana and strength, I was no longer worried about over- extending my body like before.

It could be said that I had developed my 'Concept' a little prematurely.

In that sense, it was no wonder why my body couldn't withstand it all that much.

Though my body was still not fully able to withstand the power of each orb, it was faring a lot better than before as my speed boosted without much pain accompanying the speed boost.

'Whatever the case, I'm sure he won't be able to do a thing to me once I arrive at the Royal Castle.'

Yes, again.

...I needed to reach the Royal Palace.

Swoosh-

I wasn't very familiar with the streets of Bremmer.

They were rather wide, about wide enough for carriages to pass through. But there were also

smaller streets, which extended in all sorts of paths.

I had a hard time navigating through the smaller streets, but thankfully, the Royal Palace

stood out quite a lot.

...I more or less was able to see its tall dome-shaped roof of the palace as I headed straight for

it.

"Kh..."

A light groan escaped my lips as I turned around to look at Leon.

My heart fell the moment I saw that he was still behind my tail, his eyes turning blacker and blacker as we ran.

...He was slowly running out of stamina, but so was I.

But I was close...

I was so close to the Royal Palace, passing the last of the residential houses. From here, I could finally see the palace in all its glory, its majestic form rising above the city. Because no residential building was allowed to be built anywhere near close to the Royal Palace, my view instantly became clear as a large garden appeared before my sight. Several guards were patrolling the area as the gardeners flowered and trimmed the plants.

I only paid them a cursory glance before rushing toward the main entrance.

But just as I was about to rush once more, a certain voice echoed.

"Stop right there!"

My steps came to a sudden pause.

A girl with long white hair appeared not far from where I was.

"Uh?"

I was stunned by the sight of her.

'What in the...?'

It was none other than Kiera who wore a white shirt that was neatly tucked into her brown

pant. She looked a little different than usual. A bit more carefree...

But that was beside the point.

"....What are you doing here?"

"Eh... I need to talk to you."

"Talk to me?"

I cast a quick glance behind me, spotting the nearing Leon. I quickly swallowed my saliva

before stepping to the right.

"Can we do that later? I need to-"

"No, it's quite important."

Kiera blocked me, stepping to block my path.

"No, I..."

"It's important. You can't miss-"

Clench.

I no longer bothered with Kiera and tensed my legs, shooting away from her. I thought she'd

get the message, but no... She didn't as she hurriedly tried to catch up to me.

"Hey, wait!"

"Later!"

I shouted, reaching out for the green orb again.

I could see the entrance of the palace now. I was getting closer. I licked my lips and channeled

whatever energy I had left in me to increase my speed.

But...

"Stop running! What are you doing!?"

A lock of red hair appeared before me, blocking my sight.

"Ah!"

I almost shouted in despair but kept my composure in check as I looked behind me to see

Keira and Leon rushing in my direction.

"That, Aoife... I'm in a bit of a situation."

".... Yeah, I can tell."

"Then..."

"Like I said, you can't run here. I got several reports of you being here so I had no choice but

to come here to stop you. Had it been up to the guards they would've thrown you out by

now."

"Ah,

yes."

I looked to my left and right before dashing to the right.

....There was still a small distance between us. Yes, I could make it.

I looked up front.

The entrance was now only a few meters ahead of me.

'Yes, as long as I manage to step in... Ye-'

"Ukeh!"

My joy was short-lived as I felt a powerful blow land against my back, knocking the breath out

of me and causing me to fall over.

"....Akh."

I felt something soft press against my back as I fell.

But as if that wasn't enough, a shadow cast above me shortly after.

"Wait, Kiera!"

Aoife's voice strangely echoed next to my ear.

Before I could understand what was happening, I felt something heavy crash onto my back.

"Akh!"

"Uekh...!"

"Oooh!"

There were three sets of groans as I was pressed against the ground further. My mind blanked

at the situation, and as I pressed my hand against the ground to help myself up, a shadow

once again cast over me.

Looking up, I saw Leon staring at me with his usually cold eyes.

11

11

I smacked my lips before speaking.

"....I have a small errand to run over here at the Royal Palace. If you would just give me a little

bit of ti-"

"No."

Leon coldly cut me off.

His gaze was like that of a hawk who had his pray trapped.

"Is this because I beat you?"

Leon's face froze for a second before the corner of his lip twitched.

"....No."

"At least look at me in the eyes when you deny it like that."

"It's the Baron's orders."

At that, I could only stay quiet. So it really came to this... Indeed, he had informed me about

the situation beforehand back in the closing ceremony. I knew it was coming, but I didn't

think he'd be so hell-bent on making me go that he'd order Leon to make sure I went.

"I need a vacation."

"....I've been asking for one for the past ten years."

"And...?"

Leon tilted his head.

"I never got one."

I pursed my lips.

It was both funny and sad.

"You're free to go."

"The Baron is the one who can make such decisions."

"We should protest together."

"You're free to do so."

This guy...

He wanted to be oppressed.

In any case. Turning my head, I looked at Kiera and Aoife who were both still on top of me.

"Can you two get off?"

"Already on it."

Kiera muttered, helping herself up and patting her clothes. Aoife did the same as she glared at

Kiera.

"You did it on purpose, didn't you?"

"What? Did what?" "Jumping on me with such force."

"Oh, maybe."

So she did...

I felt my head throb as I helped myself up as well. In the process, I patted my clothes clean.

Scratching the side of my neck, I realized something.

"Wait a second."

I alternated my gaze between Kiera, Aoife, and Leon before finally settling it over to Leon.

"This can't be a coincidence, right?"

11

Leon turned his head away.

I turned to look at Aoife who pursed her lips and scratched the side of her neck, turning her

eyes away from me. Kiera did so as well as she tried to whistle.

"Whooo~! Whooo~!"

Only that it sounded like she was strangling a bird.

"Ah, stop. Make it stop."

Aoife covered her ears in pain. Kiera watched in amusement as she mumbled,

"Now you know the pain I go through when I hear you sing." "Ah?!"

Aoife almost looked offended by that.

But...

Yeah, she wasn't wrong.

"You too?!"

Aoife seemed to have noticed my gaze as her eyes widened.

I could only shake my head before locking eyes with Leon who took out several notes and

handed them to Kiera and Aoife.

"Thank you."

"...Uh, thanks."

Though I was already aware of this in advance, seeing it in person left me utterly speechless.

What sort of...!?

"It had to be done."

Leon said, blocking my path alongside the other two.

"You bribed them?"

I was just about to think of a way to push my way through when I noticed a subtle change in

Leon's expression. It was unlike anything that I had ever seen before, halting me on the spot. 'Come...'

His expression said,

'....This is for you.'

I froze then, my mind emptying as I saw Leon look at me with an expression I had a hard time describing. He contained a rare seriousness that made it difficult for me to reject. In the end, locking eyes with him for a few more seconds, I sighed.

"Haaa."

Fine.

I rubbed my hair.

"...I'll come."