Chapter 19
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Volume 3 + Chapter 19: Miss Lawrence
“We’ve arrived, Miss Xia Yi. We’re back in Bellen.”
“Mm.”
Xia Yi heard the Lawrence family guard’s voice and opened her eyes.
She had taken a nap.
Earlier, hearing about the Schubert family’s recent actions—and the so-called heroic deeds of the “Human Sword Saint”—had left her feeling rather downcast.
But during her nap, she had a dream.
She dreamed of her childhood—of little Xia Yi running wild in the dragon palace, tugging on Gran’s beard like a swing, learning her first spell from him, and accidentally burning to ashes the thesis he had stayed up all night to write.
Well, now her mood was much better.
After getting out of the carriage, Xia Yi found herself standing before the gates of the Lawrence family estate.
“Welcome back, Miss Xia Yi.”
The Lawrence family servants greeted her with bows.
It seemed Keith had already informed everyone that Xia Yi was a distant relative, so the servants all treated her as part of the Lawrence household.
“Where’s Master Keith right now?”
“I apologize, Miss Xia Yi,” a servant replied. “Master Keith is out on business at the moment. He left a message saying that when you returned, he would prepare a surprise for you.”
“A surprise? What kind of surprise?”
“You’ll understand once Master Keith returns.”
“All right, I see.”
This kind of mysterious teasing only made Xia Yi more curious, so she decided to wait for Keith to come back.
However, in the meantime, she was rather bored. She didn’t have much to do in the Lawrence estate.
So she decided to take a stroll and kill some time.
…
“Uh… am I lost?”
Xia Yi was starting to get disoriented.
The Lawrence estate wasn’t particularly large, but she’d never explored it before, so she had no idea where anything was.
She remembered passing through the garden earlier—there had been some servants working there—but now she was in a place with no one around. She couldn’t even ask for directions.
“Huh? What’s that?”
Ahead, she saw a large open space and a massive building—nearly the size of a football field.
Could it be… a classic setup? Had she accidentally wandered into a noble’s secret location? Perhaps there were dark secrets hidden within, undisclosed truths of the Lawrence family?
She did have a soft spot for that kind of story.
Xia Yi’s grand adventure begins now!
She walked up to the building and pushed open the door.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
She heard the sound of metal clashing. The place wasn’t full of secrets like she imagined—it was actually a giant training hall. It was spacious and filled with specialized training equipment.
A young girl was swinging a greatsword, practicing sword techniques against a wooden dummy.
She looked quite young—probably just reaching adulthood—but her brows carried a noble, determined air. Despite her slender frame, she could wield the heavy greatsword with ease.
A… swordswoman?
And the sword technique—there was something oddly familiar about it.
“Who’s there? An intruder?!”
The girl, engrossed in her training, noticed something was off and instinctively swung her massive sword at Xia Yi, treating her as a threat.
Xia Yi raised her hand, ready to chant a spell to summon a magic shield for defense—but just before the strike landed, the girl abruptly halted her sword. It seemed she had recognized Xia Yi.
“You’re… the guest my uncle hosted yesterday, right?”
“Uncle?”
“My apologies for the rude greeting earlier. My name is Norma Lawrence. The current head of the Lawrence family, Keith Lawrence, is my uncle.”
Norma stood tall and proudly introduced herself. Clearly, she took great pride in the name Lawrence.
Xia Yi recalled—yes, Keith had mentioned a niece when speaking with the servants.
This must be her.
“Hello, I’m Xia Yi.”
“Miss Xia Yi, I’ve already heard about you from Uncle. I know that from now on, you’ll be acting under the name of our Lawrence family.”
Norma seemed to be a rather straightforward person.
“While I am, from the standpoint of the family, grateful to you and the forces behind you for supporting the Lawrences, I personally do not approve of my uncle’s opportunistic methods. I intend to restore the Lawrence name through my own ability.”
Xia Yi blinked. “That’s a fine ambition.”
“Now then, Miss Xia Yi, if you’ll excuse me, I must return to my training. I must become an exceptional knight—I cannot afford to slack off.”
Norma lifted her greatsword and returned to her practice.
To become a knight.
Xia Yi knew what that meant—Norma was likely aiming to join the Templar Knights.
The Templar Knights served one of the Four Great Houses of the Rhine Kingdom—House Frost. The Knight Princess, who was once Wright’s fiancée, was a member of that very order.
The Templars were responsible for national security and military affairs in the Kingdom of Rhine. Anyone who could join and rise through the ranks would attain considerable status and fame.
If one wished to revitalize a fallen noble house, it was a solid path.
Xia Yi had previously thought the Lawrence family was hopeless, but to her surprise, there was at least one young person with clear goals and a decent mindset.
Well then, good luck to you, Miss Lawrence~
That’s what Xia Yi had been about to think in her heart as she turned to leave—but at that moment, she saw Norma perform a horizontal slash against the wooden dummy.
“There’s a problem with your technique—your angle of force is off,” Xia Yi blurted out.
“Hm?”
At her words, Norma’s face showed clear displeasure. She turned and stared at Xia Yi.
It was only then that Xia Yi realized—she had unconsciously spoken out after recognizing the sword form as something incredibly familiar.
“You’re saying my sword technique is flawed, Miss Xia Yi?”
“Mm.”
“Miss Xia Yi, as I said before, I respect you from the standpoint of the Lawrence family. But if you think that gives you the right to critique me at will, then I’m sorry to say—I won’t be like my uncle, fawning over you.”
Norma stared straight at Xia Yi.
“So, Miss Xia Yi, I must ask you to take back what you said.”
“But I’m just stating a fact. It has nothing to do with our positions—I’m simply discussing swordsmanship.”
“So you’re saying my swordsmanship is flawed?” Norma narrowed her eyes.
“Mm.”
“Take back your words. Do you even know who taught me swordsmanship?”
“Who?”
Norma’s confidence only made Xia Yi more curious.
“My instructor is no ordinary person!”
Norma declared the name of her teacher—a name very familiar to Xia Yi.
And upon hearing it, Xia Yi couldn’t hold it in—she burst into laughter on the spot.
No wonder.
