Chapter 57: From Now On, Part 1
The next day, Her Highness's health had returned, and she was able to attend school.
"Princess, please refrain from going out onto the veranda after taking a bath from now on."
"I understand. Even though everyone has been telling me not to go out anymore, I've already decided not to."
Her Highness seemed to have been warned multiple times already, as she made a displeased expression upon hearing my words.
Although she now appeared repentant, I had a feeling she would probably do the same thing again.
"I heard. You've caught cold several times after taking baths like today."
"Ugh, who told you..."
Her Highness wore a mischievous child-like expression, pouted, and looked out the window as she spoke.
Afterward, as Her Highness and I arrived at the school, Tiara, who had been worried about Her Highness missing school due to her cold, had come all the way to Her Highness's classroom.
"Tiara, it's alright, you didn't have to come all this way..."
"They're important friends to me, so please let me worry... Also, I heard the reason for catching the cold."
Although Tiara appeared worried, her expression gradually transformed into that of a mother scolding a mischievous child as she faced Her Highness.
And so, Tiara began to lecture Her Highness in a calm and composed manner.
"Oh dear, Tiara-chan's lecture has begun once again."
"Miliana-san, is that so?"
"Fee-chan has always been getting into trouble, but every time she does, she gets scolded by Tiara-chan like this. The royal family knows that being scolded by Tiara-chan is the most effective even for Her Highness. That's why news of Her Highness catching a cold spreads to the Norfen family so quickly."
"...But even though she gets scolded so much, she still repeats her mistakes."
"That's one of Fee-chan's cute traits."
With a smile, Miliana watched Her Highness being lectured by Tiara and commented.
Afterward, Tiara's lecture continued until the teacher arrived, and after listening to the lecture, Her Highness slumped over her desk looking exhausted.
"Is it really okay for a member of the royal family to slump over a desk like that?"
"Just let it go this time... Tiara has been giving increasingly stern lectures as Her Highness gets older. Even though she doesn't get scolded by her own mother as much..."
Her Highness sighed while complaining, and then halfheartedly paid attention during the rest of the class.
Eventually, lunchtime arrived, and we headed to the cafeteria, where we met up with Tiara, who had been waiting for us, and had lunch together.
"We won't lecture you during meals, so please don't make such an unhappy face."
"It's hard to sit down and have a friendly meal with someone who just lectured you a while ago..."
Her Highness resisted having a meal with Tiara, but the others, mainly Miliana and Tiara, didn't let her escape.
In the end, Her Highness ended up having a meal together with us. As the meal went on, she started enjoying herself and eating normally.
Somehow, I think Her Highness really likes Tiara and Miliana as friends.
As I watched Her Highness and the others, that's what crossed my mind.
"Jin-san, your swordsmanship has been improving recently."
"Really? I still feel like I haven't quite grasped the technique yet..."
After finishing my guard duty at the academy and returning to the castle, I showed my swordsmanship to Julius, who returned with a compliment.
"Your sword movements seem more controlled compared to before. Also, your experience in one-on-one combat has improved, and you've become better at exploiting human weaknesses through your actions."
One-on-one combat, that was an experience I lacked the most until recently.
It had been my biggest concern when I took on the role of a guard, but that started changing after I began training in the castle.
Thanks to Julius, Andor, and the soldiers of the castle, I accumulated experience through simulated combat and actual fights.
"It's thanks to you, Julius-san, Andor-san, and the soldiers of the castle."
"Jin-san, you put in the effort, so we wanted to spar with you because we wanted to face you in combat. You can wield both swordsmanship and magic, so the soldiers were delighted to gain experience fighting a magic swordsman like you."
Magic swordsmen are few in number in this country.
Novel-san would probably be considered one of the most capable magic swordsmen in the country.
Due to her busy official duties, Novelle-san couldn't find a training partner who could keep up with her, and that's when I appeared. I was chosen as a training partner for her.
"I'm glad I had value as a sparring partner. Thanks to that, I gained a lot of experience."
As I said that to Julius, we shared a laugh, realizing that our relationship had been mutually beneficial.