“Princess Mirexia, you look stunning as always, no matter what you wear~” At the tea party, Aesphyra picked up her teacup, her tone carrying a hint of playfulness.

“Thank you for the compliment, Miss Aesphyra. Your natural beauty is truly beyond compare.”

“Oh? Does Princess Mirexia think I’m beautiful?” Hearing Mirexia praise her looks, Aesphyra’s smile blossomed like a flower, and she leaned in a bit closer.

“I believe that even the most insincere person couldn’t deny the exceptional beauty of Miss Aesphyra.” Mirexia smiled politely, and these words were indeed her true thoughts.

Aesphyra was truly the most beautiful person she had ever seen, ethereal and dreamlike, as if she didn’t belong to this world.

“What a coincidence! The first time I saw Princess Mirexia, I also thought you were incredibly beautiful, like an angel descended from heaven.” Aesphyra let out a bell-like, delightful laugh.

If such words were spoken by someone of the opposite sex, it would only come across as impolite and rather frivolous.

But when spoken by someone equally beautiful and of the same gender, the nature of the compliment was entirely different.

“You flatter me. Did you come to see me for something important, Miss Aesphyra, or just for a casual chat?” Mirexia took a sip of her tea.

“Well, it could be the former, or it could be the latter~” Aesphyra gently pressed her snow-white hand to her lips.

“As you know, the enrollment season for Carillian Academy is coming up soon. I’m new here and wanted to learn more about the academy, so I came to bother you, Princess. I hope you don’t mind?”

“By the way, once the enrollment season starts, I might have to call you ‘Senior,’ right?~” Aesphyra’s voice was as sweet as honey, soothing to the heart.

“Would that be disrespectful?”

“Of course not. You can also call me by my name here.” Mirexia’s lips curved into a faint, elegant smile.

“Then, from now on, can I call you ‘Mirexia-chan’?~” Aesphyra blinked her beautiful amethyst eyes.

“If you’d like.” Mirexia hesitated for a moment.

“Great! Then, Mirexia-chan~”

At that moment, a maid was about to enter the garden but was stopped by Kalin.

The maid whispered something into Kalin’s ear, and Kalin’s expression immediately furrowed.

“Her Highness has finally had some peace these past few days. Let’s not bother her with this kind of matter.” Kalin spoke softly, instructing the maid to ignore the issue and return.

“Kalin, is something the matter?” Having noticed the maid approaching the garden earlier, Mirexia called out to her.

“Well… Your Highness, it’s nothing urgent.” Kalin sounded somewhat helpless.

“Let me hear it anyway.”

“Very well.” Though reluctant, Kalin had no choice but to comply.

“My apologies.” Mirexia cast an apologetic glance at Aesphyra, sorry that their tea party had been interrupted.

“It’s alright, of course, important matters come first~” Aesphyra smiled and shook her head.

“Please, tell me what’s going on.” Mirexia asked the maid.

“Your Highness, the situation is this: Young Master Winnie seems to be preparing for a one-on-one duel with a squire apprentice from the Wrathful Dragon Knights, and it’s set to take place in the palace’s arena.”

“……..”

At the mention of that name, even Mirexia, who usually maintained a calm and composed demeanor, couldn’t help but frown slightly.

“What’s going on?” Mirexia sighed inwardly but continued to ask.

Given Winnie’s troublemaking nature, this was likely another one of his reckless antics.

However, Mirexia never judged situations based on her personal feelings or biases, especially since Winnie had been acting quite unusually these past few days.

“I’m not entirely sure, but I heard that Young Master Winnie has recently absorbed a Soul Armament.”

“And now, with his confidence inflated, he wants to show off this ‘powerful’ new version of himself to me?”

Mirexia felt a headache coming on.

She could only hope this wasn’t the case.

If it were, it would prove that person was still as immature, reckless, and hopelessly incompetent as ever, even after everything that had happened.

Mirexia really hoped it wasn’t true, but based on her understanding of that person and past experiences, the likelihood was quite high.

“Your Highness, what should we do?”

“Did he tell you this himself?” Mirexia asked, though it was obvious who “he” referred to.

“No, I overheard it from a casual conversation among the Wrathful Dragon Knights. I pressed them for details, and they told me.”

Hearing this, Mirexia was puzzled.

If Winnie hadn’t personally informed the maid, it meant he didn’t want her to know about the duel or attend it.

For a moment, Mirexia was unsure what to make of this seemingly senseless duel and its origins.

“Oh?~ Is this about Mr. Winnie from the other day?” Aesphyra, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke up, her expression turning subtly intrigued after hearing the maid’s report.

“Yes, it’s him. As you can see, it seems he’s causing trouble again.”

“If Your Highness wants to go and see, you should.”

“No need.” Mirexia hesitated for a moment, then shook her head.

It wasn’t anything important, so there was no need to get involved.

“It’s alright. I actually wouldn’t mind going to see the commotion. How about it, Princess Mirexia? You could accompany me and show me around the palace while we’re at it~?” Aesphyra, having taken in Mirexia’s reaction, expressed her own interest in going.

“…..Very well, if you insist, Miss Aesphyra.”

Mirexia sighed softly, thinking that if that person caused another mess, it would be troublesome.

She stood up alongside Aesphyra, and surrounded by maids, they left the garden.

From an angle no one could see, a strange expression flickered across Aesphyra’s face.

In her previous life, that future demon lord had indeed clashed with several members of the Wrathful Dragon Knights, but the timing and many details didn’t match up.

If she remembered correctly, that incident should have happened much later.

Why had it happened earlier? What had caused it to happen ahead of time?

…How interesting.

She wanted to see what tricks that future great demon lord was up to.

Although every moment spent with Princess Mirexia was precious, it was equally important to nip future threats in the bud.

If the timeline had shifted, so be it.

If that demon lord’s dark Soul Armament was too obvious, she could pretend to stumble upon it by accident and eliminate the threat before it could grow.

一一一一一一一

“Stay calm and just perform as you normally would.” As seniors, the two Wrathful Dragon Knights whom Winnie had previously seen in the palace patted the young squire apprentice on the shoulder.

“Your opponent only has a one-star Soul Armament, and he’s just a pretty face with no real knightly training. If you fight normally, winning will be a breeze.”

“Remember, Her Highness the Princess will also be watching.” As he spoke, the knight glanced at the vast spectator stands.

“Perform well. If your skills catch the Princess’s attention, your future will be set.”

“Yes! Thank you for your guidance, seniors!” The brown-haired young squire apprentice eagerly swallowed the “encouragement” his seniors had fed him, feeling deeply grateful.

He was thankful that these two seniors had given such an opportunity to an ordinary, unknown apprentice like him.

“You’re part of the Wrathful Dragon Knights now. It’s only right that we look out for you.”

“Oh, and one more thing.” The knight leaned in closer to the young man’s ear and said coldly,

“Make sure to hit him hard. It doesn’t matter.”

“Understood!”

“Good.” Only then did the two knights seem satisfied, making their way to the spectator stands.

Not long after, as they had said, the Princess arrived, accompanied by a stunning silver-haired girl.

The brown-haired young man was momentarily stunned by the Princess’s beauty, but he quickly remembered his seniors’ advice and snapped out of it, slapping his cheeks to refocus.