In Kyrat's office, two people are having a conversation.

"So how was the walk, Leila?"

"It went well, both Lady Carine and Sir Feyt appeared to enjoy themselves"

"Good~ Where are the both of them now?"

"In their rooms, waiting for lunch."

"I see, any other reports?"

"Yes, my lord, there has been a rise of impersonation of nobles lately"

"Yes, I heard about that, it's for getting some quick money correct?"

"Yes, the one we encountered on the central square replicated magic using machinery that was taken off from a stove."

"...That sounds interesting."

"Here are the report files for detailed information."

Leila placed down a folder on Kyrat's desk.

"Alright, I'll give it a read, you may leave now Leila."

"My lord, if I may."

"What is it?"

"I have a request that you might find interesting."

"Hm? What is it?"

"I suggest inviting a "guest" to the lunch today."

 

---

"Carine, your father is waiting for a guest, so please wait a while okay dear?"

"Understood mother."

Mother turned her head away from me and faced father's.

"By the way dear, who exactly is the guest? Why didn't you tell me you're going to invite someone?"

"Haha~ It's a secret!"

I'm in the dining room right now, apparently we're waiting for a guest to arrive, it's common courtesy to not eat before every participant is present. So I'll wait while my mouth is drooling over the steak... No, I must... hold back... the temptation!

"Do not worry my lady, you will surely love the guest"

"Huh?"

Love the guest? What does she mean by that?

...

"Sir Feyt, lunch is ready."

Ah, it would seem that Feyt's lunch is also ready. I opened the door expecting a tray of food, instead I was greeted by a empty handed maid...

Where's my food???

"Follow me, Sir Feyt."

The maid started to walk down the hallway, I followed her in hopes for food.

...

The door opens, Feyt stepped inside the dining room.

"Ah, our guest have arrived!~"

"...He was the guest?"

Father looked happy, while mother looked confused.

Meanwhile me...

"HUH?!"
"HUH?!"

...

I sat down on a chair close to myself, like, really close to each other... I feel like I can bump my own shoulders if we're just a little bit closer.

"Why aren't you eating anything, both of you?"

"I-It's nothing Father!"
"It's nothing Sir Sareid!"

I want to eat, but I'm nervous, what if I do something suspicious? Will they notice if our eating pace are the same? Will they notice if we eat the same way?

...AAAAAAGGGHH! I'M HUNGRY!~~~

I-I'll just eat it! We'll eat one spoon at a time to make things not that similar, it's the least I can do...

...

Mother is glaring at me, specifically Feyt. Did I eat things wrong? Mother whispered towards father, which I heard completely.

"Why did you invite him here dear?"

"Well, I want you to get to know him better..."

"I won't accept him, you know that right?"

Ah, I heard everything...

Won't accept me? What is she talking about? Oh, please tell me it's not the "calling her [Mother]" thing...

No, it' s most likely the "calling her [Mother]" thing...

Ahhh! I don't want to hear it anymore, the cringe is unbearable! I'll just tune out while I eat my steak!

...

"Oh right, Carine, Feyt"

"What is it Father?"
"What is it Sir Sareid?"

"Training will start back tomorrow, I just want to let the both of you know"

"Understood Father"
"Okay Sir Sareid"

"Oh, and Feyt?"

"Y-Yes Sir Sareid"

"Can you call me Teacher instead? Sir Sareid is a bit too formal for us don't you think?"

I'm a commoner though? Calling him Sir, despite him being technically my own father, is necessary due to our social standings. But if that's what he wants...

"I-If you wish, Teacher"

"Good good~ Call Peyna here something other than Madam too would you?"

"U-Uhm, what should I call you... Madam Sareid?"

"...Anything you like... As long as it's not Mother"

"Gh!-"

"Pfft"

Hit me right at the cringe bone, both of my bodies flushed from embarrassment. And I could swore I heard Leila let out a "Pfft" behind me...

"HAHAHA! Go easy on him Peyna~ He's just a kid after all hahaha!!"

Father is laughing out loud.

Mother continues to eat with a cold face.

Leila returns back to her blank face.

Me? I'm just done with this... I want to take a nap...

...

After lunch, both Carine and Feyt went back to their rooms. Kyrat and Peyna is still in the dining room.

"See, he's very well mannered"

"...I have to admit, he eats properly like a noble, but that won't change my opinion of him"

Peyna has a cute pouting face.

"Haha! How stubborn can you be!~"

"I simply don't want a boy I hardly know to take my dear Carine~"

"Well, that's why me and Leila arranged him as the guest for this lunch. You can at least talk to him, it's a fact that Carine loves Feyt, don't you see how nervous they are when they're together? Like how we used to be?"

"Hmmmm~~"

Peyna's pouty face turns sour.

"If you refuse Feyt before you get to know him, wouldn't Carine be sad?"

"...Fine... I'll try to talk to him sometimes..."

"Haha! Great! You're surprisingly stubborn sometimes, you know? So, when will you talk with him?"

"...I'll talk to him in my own way~"

Peyna lets out a sly grin...

"..."

Feyt, forgive me, but it appears that I have put you in a tight spot...

 

---

 

In the training hall.

"Alright, welcome back everyone!"

Most students have returned from their leave, but some still haven't returned.

"Good job to everyone who came here today, because those that are still having a vacation won't be praised~"

Mother looked terrifying, I feel sorry for the students that aren't here.

The training starts normally, it starts with a warm up, an explanation of the technique by mother, demonstration of said technique by father, and followed by a test of that technique.

"Hey Feyt, want to be my partner?"

Ah, this kid... He seems to talk about me behind the back a lot...

"Sure"

We stepped up to the duel mat and brandished our training swords.

"I'll prove to Carine, I'm cooler than you!"

He rushed in, I stepped to the side and he fell out of the duel mat.

*Thump*

"Ow!!"

His fall looks... Pathetic...

"Why did you dodge?! You're supposed to parry stupid!"

"...You're doing it wrong"

"The hell you're talking about?!"

"Step back to the duel mat, I'll show you"

"Heh, I'll parry your attack!"

...

"Guheh~"

He was knocked down instantly, it was surprisingly easy to do...

I really wanted to knock some sense to him, so him asking if I want to duel him was the perfect chance. He kept on spreading bad rumors about me in the training hall, I can hear him perfectly of course. I hear a voice behind me.

"Feyt, I want to duel you"

Oh, another challenger? Who is it? I turn my back around as I answer her question.

"Sure if you wa...."

Mother... It was mother...

"Great, you accepted. I want to duel in a private room, follow me~"

Her smile looks gentle, but I know... That's not a smile of gentleness...

Why me though? Did I do something wrong??

"...Anything you like... As long as it's not Mother"

Yep, she's still mad about that it seems...

I followed her reluctantly, other students looked at me in pity, even father looked at me with pity... How bad is this going to be?

What did I agree myself into!?

...

We entered a small room, it looks identical to the training room, but with only the duel mat. No one else is in this room besides us two.

"Grab your sword from the walls there"

"Y-Yes!"

I grabbed one of the training swords and headed to my side of the duel mat. Mother stood across from me, brandishing her own training sword.

"Feyt, may I ask you a question?"

"Y-Yes!"

"Why did you call me "Mother" back then?"

"I-It was a mistake!"

"A mistake? A loss of focus perhaps?"

"Y-Yes!"

"Then, there must be a reason you called me "Mother" when you lose focus right?"

Huh?! Did she know about me and Carine? No, that's unlikely...

"What is that reason Feyt?"

"T-There's no reason at all Madam Sareid! Haha~"

"...I doubt that..."

Her glare went straight down my soul... It was terrifying...

"Let us begin the duel"

"L-Let's!"

Mother rushed in, if the teaching was correct, her attack should be from below. I blocked it before she got close to me, but then...

*THACK*

"GAH-"

My head was smacked from the sides.

"You block too early, again!"

She rushed in again, this time I block it as soon as she reaches me, but...

*THACK*

"GYEK-"

I got smacked again.

"Too late! Again!"

She rushed in again, my [Enhanced Hearing] is not exactly helping with parrying!

I block her attack just before she reaches me.

*Thuck*

Ah! I blocked I-

*THACK*

"HUGLEKH-"

"Parry after a block immediately! Again!"

...

"Haah... Haah..."

"You learn surprisingly fast..."

"Th-Thanks... Haah... Haah..."

I understand how a baseball ball feels now, getting smacked around with a wooden stick is not fun...

"Sit down, rest your legs"

"U-Understood..."

I sat down at the duel mat with mother. It would be more appropriate to say that I fell down on my butt instead of sitting. My legs feel like jelly.

"So Feyt... What do you think of Carine?"

"Huh?"

"Answer the question please~"

"E-Ermm, she's... A good friend?"

"...Are you two really just friends?"

"Y-Yes! We're just frien-"

I felt a sudden chill on my back.

"Don't lie~~"

"WE'RE MORE THAN FRIENDS! YEP!"

"Hmph, at least you're honest"

I was not! I only said that because mother looked scary all of a sudden, my survival instincts immediately kicked in!

"Tell me the greatest things about Carine"

"Huh?"

"Answer~"

"U-Uhmm, she's cute, kind, and-"

I felt another chill down my spine...

"No simple flattery please~"

What am I supposed to say?! Maybe my hobbies?

"I-I think it's great that she reads a lot of books"

"Oh, her hobbies? That's a good answer, most would just say hair and eyes. Anything else?"

"U-Uhmm... Her sword skills are amazing!"

"That is to be expected, anything else?"

Aaaaaghh~ I don't know what to say~~

"Hmm, how about this, explain Carine to me in your own words"

"...Explain Carine?"

"Just do it~"

I'll just have to explain myself right? Shouldn't be hard.

"Carine is a 13 year old girl with black hair like her father's and green emerald eyes like her mother's. Her hobby is reading books, and she can read books very fast. She likes to eat steak and warm soup and Leila is her trusted chef. She usually wears dark blue clothing, similar to the rest of her family. She also wore a red necklace, which was a gift from me..."

"..."

"..."

Did I... Say something wrong?

"I have a question... How did you know what she liked to eat? She is still keeping that a secret from me..."

"Eh?"

Did I say more than I should? Did I just dug my own grave?!

"And that necklace... It was from you?"

"Y-Yes!"

Mother's face turns sour.

"...To think she would wear a necklace from you everyday, but not from the gifts from her birthday..."

Aaaagh! She hates that necklace didn't she?! I'm gonna die~~~

"...I admit, you have great potential in sword fighting, you also have great manners befitting of a noble"

Huh? She's not killing me?

"Your appearance is acceptable, and you have a rather great Talent"

[Enhanced Hearing] is considered great by her? Wait, that's not the point, why is she praising me all of a sudden?

"...You also protected Carine twice, both from the bandits and from... Me..."

I protected her because she is me, I don't want to leave myself to die...

"You are basically the ideal candidate for Carine, only your status as a commoner is a hindrance, but the Sareid house don't exactly care about status..."

Candidate? Candidate for what? Duel partner maybe? What's that have to do with status?

"...But I still won't accept you..."

Mother stood up from the mat and headed towards the door.

"But, I'm willing to give you a chance to change my mind, be grateful..."

She left the room...

Change her mind about me? Oh! Is this a chance to make up for calling her "Mother"? That's great! I need to get that off my head sooner or later anyway, and what better way to forget about it than making it up to her? Alright! I'll fix up our relationship! I don't want to get flustered every time I meet her like last time, she's still basically my mother after all.

 

---

 

Peyna returned back to the training hall, Kyrat went and greeted her.

"Peyna, you're back? How's the... Talk?"

Kyrat knows that Feyt had it tough... He just hopes that Peyna's "talk" won't destroy his spirit.

"I'm willing to give him a chance..."

"...What..."

Peyna gave a gentle smile to Kyrat's question, Kyrat is confused.

"Let's go back to training the students"

"Y-Yes, of course!"

Feyt... You really convinced her huh? You're better than I thought.