The tea table was lavishly set.
Ena, true to her role as a palace maid, handled the tea leaves with perfect expertise. She brewed the finest black tea and poured it into the cups at just the right level. The assortment of sweets served alongside complemented the tea beautifully.
Meanwhile, Ekaterina sat quietly by the tea table, gazing out at the garden.
It was a beautiful sight.
“…”
Yuri watched her for a moment before taking a seat opposite her.
“You came?”
“Yes. What brings you here?”
Yuri suspected that Ekaterina might have returned from the past.
After all, a knight named Enoch Seiya had come before, warning her. Considering Ekaterina’s unusual habit of stirring her Earl Grey milk tea by shaking it rather than stirring, and the message about the necklace, it seemed possible.
Besides, Ekaterina had been speaking informally the whole time.
It was very suspicious.
“Do you only come when there’s something going on?”
“We’re not exactly on casual terms to meet without a reason.”
“I just wanted to see you.”
Yuri was caught off guard, and Ekaterina burst out laughing.
“Why not? Is that not allowed?”
Her emerald eyes sparkled with amusement as she looked at him, and Yuri found himself unable to speak for a while.
Her attitude toward him was just like the Ekaterina from his previous life.
She asked again.
“How was the war?”
“Tough.”
“They suddenly moved you here from the Empire? That means a formidable enemy appeared?”
“Yes.”
“That’s troublesome. Do you think it’ll be hard to win?”
“Maybe…”
“Maybe?”
Ekaterina sipped her tea, her lower lip glistening briefly with the liquid before she wiped it on her upper lip.
It was a gesture Yuri had seen countless times before.
Lowering his eyes, fiddling with his teacup, Yuri finally answered after a pause.
“It’ll be difficult.”
“Hmm…”
Ekaterina smiled faintly.
“That’s a heavy topic. Shall we talk about something else?”
“That sounds better.”
She changed the subject.
For a while, they exchanged trivial talk, chatting as naturally as old friends.
Their conversation drifted back to the past—reminiscing about the first royal ball where they met, and the tournament held in the imperial city.
“I told Georg not to do that.”
“Yet you seemed to enjoy it.”
“That’s true, but…”
“Were you egging him on?”
“No, I tried to stop him. But he insisted because he wanted to see you in action.”
“How did he react when I won?”
“He was intrigued. He was really disappointed you didn’t participate in the tournament.”
“Laurent stepped in for me.”
“I wish you had fought.”
“That would never have happened.”
“What were you planning to do with the medal?”
“Not sure.”
Yuri chuckled.
“What about you, Your Highness? What did you talk about with my knight?”
“My knight?”
“Before the tournament, didn’t you meet with Laurent alone?”
“Uh…”
Ekaterina set down her teacup and leaned forward.
“Are you jealous?”
“No.”
“Then why are you curious?”
“I just wondered.”
“Did Laurent say nothing?”
“He’s not the type to blab.”
“Is that so?”
She smiled, popping a sweet into her mouth and chewing thoughtfully.
“Same here.”
“Huh?”
“Not one to blab easily.”
“Oh, well…”
Yuri shrugged.
“Fair enough.”
He never brought up the topic of returning from the past, nor did he mention his previous life. He treated Ekaterina as if they had just met this time, and she did the same.
Still, their conversation flowed on.
Before they knew it, their cups were empty.
Ena, who had been waiting nearby, approached.
“Would you like more tea?”
“No, thank you.”
Ekaterina shook her head.
“This is enough for a good talk.”
“Alright.”
At her words, Yuri felt an unexpected pang of regret.
But he quickly brushed it off.
Ekaterina stood.
“Well, I’ll be going.”
“Yes.”
Yuri rose with her.
“Let me escort you.”
“You’re going to escort me?”
“You came alone. It’s getting dark.”
Joshua had surely assigned someone to watch over Ekaterina, but she seemed to prefer being alone. In her previous life, she had always been uncomfortable with someone trailing her.
Ekaterina nodded.
“Alright, then.”
Walking through Briol’s royal palace with her was a new experience.
“The palace here is beautiful.”
“Not quite as grand as the imperial palace.”
“I like this one better.”
“Really?”
Though he had once secretly followed her through the imperial city streets, this was the first time they shared a place they could both call home.
Occasionally, palace staff recognized them and greeted them.
“The atmosphere here is better than the imperial palace.”
“Is that so?”
“The imperial palace is too dark. Probably because of the black magic…”
Eventually, they arrived at the palace where Ekaterina stayed—the place Yuri had been lodging.
“I’ll be staying here for a while. Thanks for letting me borrow it.”
“No problem.”
“Or maybe we should stay here together?”
“No.”
Ekaterina smiled.
“Well then, see you again.”
Yuri stood quietly, watching her retreating figure.
He could have asked if she remembered their past lives, but he didn’t.
“Really…”
Just before entering the palace, Ekaterina waved at him, making him smile.
“Phew…”
He sighed and turned around, only to find a familiar face staring at him.
“What’s this?”
“What is it?”
Jared asked.
“What is what?”
“What are those two to each other?”
“What do you mean?”
“When did you two get so close?”
“I just walked her back to the palace.”
“That’s not how it looked. Right, Gaiden?”
Jared turned to a gardener tending the palace plants nearby. The man, wielding large shears, nodded.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“See?”
“What do you mean by ‘not how it looked’?”
“Gaiden, explain it.”
“They were walking so close, touching more than necessary, chatting happily with big smiles. They looked very happy.”
Yuri frowned, and the gardener quickly slipped behind the trees to continue his work. Leaves rustled as branches were trimmed.
Jared laughed.
“Anyway, tell us when you two became like that. It’s a good thing Marie Rose isn’t here right now.”
“What does Marie Rose have to do with this?”
“Pretending not to know?”
“Just shut up.”
Yuri sighed.
“The gods from another world are about to descend and throw everything into chaos. Do we have time to enjoy gossip?”
“Well, what does it matter? It’ll all pass anyway.”
Jared grinned.
“In a month, you’ll be forced to fight whether you like it or not. Might as well rest while you can.”
Yuri looked at Jared.
Hearing him talk as if he was definitely going to fight Cedric made him feel oddly proud.
“I wish other countries were more like you.”
“They will be.”
After Yuri and his group returned, King Joshua immediately contacted other nations.
It was still uncertain what decisions they would make.
Even if everyone refused, Yuri was prepared to fight alone.
“Want to spar?”
“Not really…”
“Come on.”
“We just got back to Briol today.”
“So?”
“The sun’s about to set…”
“Then turn on the lights.”
“No…”
“Fine. Tomorrow then.”
“Understood.”
The next morning, Yuri dragged Jared to the training grounds.
The place was empty.
“Jared.”
“Yes?”
“Give it your all.”
Yuri wasn’t sure if Cedric had given them a month to rest in hopes of sapping their will, but he had no intention of taking it easy.
He would push himself to the limit and kill Cedric.
“Yes.”
Jared lifted his sword with a serious expression.
Their blades clashed.
Of course, Jared was no match for Yuri. He kept falling to the ground, and Yuri waited for him to get up before attacking again.
It was harsher than usual.
But unlike his usual complaining self, Jared gritted his teeth and kept up.
“Already tired?”
“No.”
Jared smiled.
“Is that all you’ve got?”
Yuri realized Jared was sincere. He truly intended to fight Cedric alongside him.
“Good.”
Yuri smirked.
“Show me what you’ve got.”
The energy of the Spirit Slash surged through Yuri’s blade, making it hum. Jared spun his sword through the air, circling Yuri.
They clashed again.
Yuri’s sword grazed Jared’s body.
The wound wasn’t deep, but enough to draw blood.
Jared’s eyes widened as he tried to keep up with Yuri’s attacks.
But he couldn’t dodge them all.
“Ugh!”
Trying to strike through Yuri’s opening, Jared was kicked in the stomach and sent sprawling.
“Phew…”
The gap between them was huge.
The third prince, once smaller than Yuri, had grown into a formidable warrior.
Jared gritted his teeth and got up.
Then—
“Huh?”
Though only the two of them had been on the training grounds, more people had appeared.
“You two are too far apart in skill. You’re not much help to each other.”
Moyongchan stood with his arms crossed, facing Yuri instead of Jared.
“You should spar with him.”
Laurent glanced at Jared and nodded.
Besides the two of them, several knights from the Vengeance Order had already gathered nearby.
It seemed they had rushed straight to the palace as soon as they were summoned.
“We’ll join in as well.”
“Please guide us.”
Yuri looked around at them and let out a small, amused laugh.
“You should’ve come yesterday if you wanted to be here on time. You’re a day late.”
“Please cut us some slack for that one day.”
“What about the others?”
“They’re probably still rushing over.”
The Vengeance Order was made up of knights selected from various Briol territories. Those from the capital could arrive quickly, but those farther away would still be riding hard to get here.
“I hope that’s true.”
Yuri studied the knights carefully.
“I’m heading back to the Empire to finish this once and for all. Any objections?”
“None!”
“Good. Then let’s begin training!”
The knights paired off and started sparring, and Yuri faced Mo Yongchan.
“Master.”
“Yes?”
“I’m going to take this seriously.”
“Good.”
Mo Yongchan chuckled softly.
“Then show me what you’ve got.”
They moved a little apart, gathering their energy.
Their clothes fluttered as they prepared.
“If we compare to the East, Master, how strong would you say you are?”
“Hmm…”
Mo Yongchan raised his sword.
“Right now, I’d probably rank among the top five masters in the world.”
“Is Danso Cheon among them?”
“Cheonma is always included.”
“I see.”
Yuri smiled slyly.
“So if I manage to beat you, it won’t be a big deal, right?”
“Arrogant…”
They clashed.
Their swords moved so fast that even the other skilled knights couldn’t keep up. The clang of steel rang out repeatedly, punctuated by occasional bursts of sound that nearly tore at the ears.
As Yuri and Mo Yongchan began their duel, all eyes gradually fixed on them.
One by one, the other knights stopped their own sparring to watch.
It was a rare sight—two masters who had reached the pinnacle of skill facing off.
Just watching a match like this was a learning experience.
Of course, if you weren’t at their level, you might not understand what was happening at all.
“Hmm…”
For an ordinary person, it would be impossible to grasp what they were witnessing.
Ekaterina was like that.
She sat a little distance away, under a parasol, watching Yuri and Mo Yongchan’s duel.
The knights who recognized her bowed in greeting, and she nodded in return.
“I don’t understand a thing, even watching.”
Ena, who had come with Ekaterina, poured her some tea and said,
“But you can tell it’s amazing, right?”
“I feel the same. Ena, want to have some tea with me?”
“Me? With the princess…?”
“It’s fine. Sit down.”
“Hehe, thank you.”
As the two sat facing each other, sipping tea, Mo Yongchan was knocked to the ground once, and Yuri soared into the air before crashing down, coughing up a handful of blood.
“Looking good, isn’t it?”
“Yes. It’s always inspiring to see someone putting in the effort.”