Aisha's eyes trembled as they locked onto Irene.
'I haven't done anything wrong... but it feels like I have.'
Then, Aisha's gaze shifted towards Siena.
'Phew, what a relief...'
That was because Siena wasn't currently clinging to Theo.
Siena was like a time bomb, ready to explode at any moment.
Aisha looked at Siena with an uneasy expression.
'Even if Theo is a future hero and the next head of the Waldeurk family...'
Flirting in front of his fiancée seemed a bit over the line.
Theo acted nonchalant towards Irene.
"You’re training at this hour, Irene?"
Sweating, Irene paused to catch her breath before speaking.
"Whew... There isn’t much to do even with the festival, and the bruises from last week's tournament still sting. But I didn’t expect to see you here, Theo."
"Yeah, it’s nice to see you. It feels like it’s been quite a while. Use this to wipe off, Irene."
Theo pulled a handkerchief from his possession and handed it to Irene.
True to his character, it looked luxurious at first glance.
Irene hesitated to take the handkerchief.
"My hands are dirty... And it seems a bit much to wipe sweat with something like this, Theo."
"It’s fine. I'll immediately wash it with the [Clean] spell."
"...Then I'll gratefully use it."
Irene gently smiled and began to wipe her sweat with the handkerchief Theo provided.
As Theo watched, he spoke.
"Irene, training is good, but it's also important to rest properly when you take breaks. You tend to push yourself to the brink."
"...What can I do? I felt odd wandering around alone during the festival."
Her words implied much more.
In truth, Irene had been quite excited until the evening, because it was the academy festival.
She had hoped that perhaps Theo would seek her out.
But Theo didn't come.
In her anger, she thought about wandering alone, but seeing no one else walking around alone outside made her even angrier.
'It's nice that he came to find me at this time, but...'
Why did he have to bring Siena and Aisha?
Especially Siena, who was particularly annoying.
Jealousy and anger, negative emotions, bubbled up inside her.
Her feelings were uncontrollable.
'I shouldn't be like this. Whew... Whew...'
Inwardly, Irene took deep breaths.
It was a method of calming the heart she read in a romance novel Mina lent her.
Whether it was effective or not, Irene asked calmly.
"What did you do today, Theo?"
"I trained until around lunchtime, and in the afternoon, I participated in the beauty pageant."
At the utterly unexpected words from Theo's mouth, Irene's eyes widened in surprise.
"Beauty... beauty pageant?"
"Yes."
"Theo, you participated? Not watched?"
Irene glanced back and forth between Siena and Aisha, who were standing near Theo.
Seeing this, Theo nodded.
"I participated directly. It was quite a meaningful time. It was fun, too."
Saying this, Theo showed her the winning trophy.
Upon seeing the trophy, Irene spoke.
"Wow, really... You even won."
"Winning was unexpected. Aisha deserves a lot of credit."
Theo gestured towards Aisha with his eyes.
Irene's gaze sharpened.
"What do you mean by 'Aisha's credit'?"
"She styled my hair and skin. Also taught me how to attract attention on stage."
"…I see. Thank you, Aisha. Thanks to you, Theo won."
Despite her words of gratitude, Irene’s eyes were still sharp.
Aisha thought she shouldn’t have come.
'Oh dear! Theo, there's no need to mention that in the current situation! Can't you see Irene’s eyes spinning?!'
Aisha remembered receiving physical therapy, under the guise of swordsmanship training, from Irene last week.
Avoiding Irene's eyes, Aisha spoke.
"...No, it's not like that. Even without me, Theo probably would have won, Irene. The competitors were not that strong."
"I see."
"...Yes."
With Aisha's response, silence fell for a moment.
Irene sneakily glanced at Theo, Siena, and Aisha.
'Even if Aisha is here... Why is Siena here?'
To Irene, the number one person to be wary of was Siena.
Previously, during a visit to the knight department lecture, Siena had boldly hugged Theo in front of her.
Of course, elves and humans think differently, but Irene didn't care.
She just didn't like Siena flirting with Theo.
Theo looked at Irene.
"Hmm. Do you have something to say, Irene?"
"No, no. Why?"
"Your mouth is tightly closed and your head is down. That's a look you often have when you want to say something, Irene."
At that remark, the corners of Irene's mouth slightly lifted.
Theo had been watching her closely enough to remember her habits.
Irene's cheeks turned rosy.
"...No. Ah, no. Yes. But I forgot what I was going to say. I'll tell you when I remember it later!"
Irene could no longer meet Theo's eyes and avoided them.
Theo tilted his head.
"Alright, tell me when you remember. But Irene, don’t you have a close friend? It would be good to enjoy the festival together."
"You mean Mina?"
"Yes."
"...She got a boyfriend recently. I’m not clueless enough to third-wheel, Theo."
"Oh really?"
Theo unintentionally blurted out his true feelings.
Irene was innocent in a good way, but she was also oblivious in a bad way.
Irene tilted her head with a puzzled expression.
"Huh? I didn't catch that, Theo. Could you say it again?"
"Ah, it's nothing."
Theo hastily recovered, picking up a practice longsword from the weapon rack.
"Then I should get some training in too."
"Hehe, I'll join you~! Swordfighting isn’t fun, but it seems like it’ll be fun with Theo."
Siena stood in front of the weapon rack, looking at the practice weapons.
"Theo, which weapon do you like? Just tell me."
"...There's no need to spar with me. I don't want to take away your time, Siena."
Theo's sincerity was half genuine and half pretense.
If he had openly accepted her goodwill, it would have given her a reason to go overboard.
'Can’t just outright say okay.'
Of course, Theo was focused on practicality and enjoyed sparring.
Moreover, Siena was a good sparring partner.
She knew how to skillfully handle various long weapons.
Also, Siena's skills are highly refined.
At the moment, if only considering skill perfection, there probably isn’t anyone among the current Elinia Academy students who could match her.
Sparring with her might also provide clues to unravel the mysteries of Maximin’s swordsmanship.
Siena laughed.
"Hehe, spending time with Theo is never a waste. Also, Theo, aren’t you participating in the combat arts competition on Thursday?"
"I plan to."
"Hehe, then I’ll expect something in return. You have to win, okay? I don’t really like wielding a weapon. It’s not an opportunity that comes every day~."
"...Hmm."
Theo pondered for a moment.
'Should I accept, or decline?'
As Siena said, it's not a common opportunity.
In the game, Siena disliked wielding weapons, despite having a high level of skill.
While Theo was caught up in his thoughts, Irene spoke up.
She looked at Siena with her icy blue eyes.
"Can you give me a chance, Siena?"
Likewise, Siena stared into Irene’s eyes intently for about a second.
"Hehe, I have no intention of holding back against anyone other than Theo, is that alright? I can't take responsibility if you get hurt."
Irene gathered her disheveled hair back and tied it tightly.
"It’s natural not to hold back during sparring. Also, saying such things is rude to your opponent, Siena. Even if Siena has lived nearly 10 times longer than Theo or me."
The smile faded from Siena’s face.
Irene had touched a nerve.
"In that case-"
Siena took a practice rapier from the weapon rack.
The rapier was her main weapon.
"I'll give you a chance, Irene. Pick your weapon."
"Yes. It's an honor to have an opportunity to spar with an elder like you, Siena."
Irene, continuing to provoke Siena, took up a practice longsword.
Suddenly, the atmosphere of the training ground transformed into an arena.
Aisha looked back and forth between Siena and Irene with trembling eyes.
The smile had completely vanished from Siena's face, and Irene was no different.
An invisible, rough current seemed to flow between them.
'What, what's going on? Are they really going to fight...?'
Aisha glanced at Theo.
Theo seemed interested, observing the current spectacle.
'There's no need to stop them, right...? It’s just a sparring match after all.'
Aisha also decided to watch the sparring match.
Keeping to herself the thought that it would be fun, like watching a fire from across the river.
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