The assignment came suddenly and with great urgency; she had to depart today.
Facing this abrupt order, Carol felt a surge of resistance. She didn't want to leave the capital. She didn't want to leave Theresia.
However, a mission was a mission. As a Knight, she had to obey.
"Regulus," Carol said, standing up and brushing the grass from her knees. "After the Miss wakes up, please tell her for me. I have to go."
She glared at him, trying to summon her usual stern demeanor despite what had just happened between them.
"And! Don't you dare do those... excessive things to the Miss while I'm gone. If I hear that you touched her when I get back..."
She wanted to utter a threat.
But after thinking about it, she realized she had no leverage. She was already his toy. What could she threaten him with?
"What will you do if you hear about it?" Regulus asked, amused.
"I... My teeth are very sharp!" Carol stammered, flushing red.
"That's truly a frightening thought," Regulus chuckled, glancing at her lips. "I know just how sharp they are."
"Glad you know!"
Her face turned scarlet. She felt ashamed that she had resorted to such a weak, toothless threat—especially given how she had used her mouth just moments ago.
However, this threat was really just for show.
Even though she was confident in her strength, her destination was the front lines of the Demihuman War. She truly had no certainty that she would return alive.
At the same time, just as Theresia couldn't hold back her anxiety and decided to stop feigning sleep—
"Don't be in a hurry to leave," Regulus said calmly.
"Hm? Do you have something else to say?" Carol asked, pausing.
"Of course. I'm coming with you this time."
"Together!?" Carol's eyes went wide.
"That's right. I really can't rest assured letting you go alone."
Facing Regulus, who had taken her hand in his, Carol's expression softened into a daze.
Especially seeing the rare frown of concern on his face... to be honest, she was a little happy in her heart. He cared.
"Don't worry," Carol said softly, squeezing his hand back. "My responsibility is only escorting the Marquis. I'm not directly throwing myself into the front lines, so it's not that dangerous."
She tried to sound confident.
"What's more, you've seen my strength, haven't you? You even had your arm cut by me before. It's fully healed now, right?"
Carol's gaze shifted to Regulus's arm, and she couldn't help but reach out to touch it gently, remembering the wound she had inflicted when they first met.
Regulus looked at her changed attitude.
Going to the battlefield was indeed worrying, but Regulus was also concerned about another matter.
According to the timeline, this mission to escort Marquis Mathers meant she might encounter Roswaal (the first generation) or perhaps even Echidna depending on the specific lore of this world.
If Carol encountered a high-level magic user or a Witch, she might be in danger. And if she died, he would lose a valuable possession.
This was absolutely impermissible.
Aside from that, Regulus had his own ulterior motives.
He wanted to make contact with the Witch of Greed, Echidna, and perhaps finding the Forbidden Library to get Beatrice.
As for Echidna... although he truly wanted her, she was technically dead. To get her, he would not only have to find a way to revive her, but also deal with her scheming mind.
Unless he could win her heart and make her genuinely choose to follow him, who knew what tricks that Witch would pull? But making Echidna give her true feelings? That was a challenge even for an Archbishop.
Thinking of this, Regulus stopped pondering and looked at the girl before him again.
"I have already decided to go with you," Regulus stated firmly. "Now, go prepare. We'll meet outside the city gates in an hour."
"But..."
"Alright, just listen to me obediently."
Carol's mouth opened slightly to argue, but seeing Regulus's unquestionable gaze—the gaze of a King—she could only nod in the end.
At this moment, Theresia truly couldn't hold back anymore.
"Don't you two just decide things on your own!"
"Ah! M-Miss!"
Carol, who was enjoying Regulus's caress, jumped as if she had been electrocuted.
Theresia sat up on the grass, her hair messy from "sleep," looking very displeased.
Carol wanted to dig a hole and bury her head in it.
Just now, her expression and demeanor toward Regulus must have been so docile... completely unlike her usual self. To be seen by the Young Lady like that... it was humiliating.
Regulus chuckled at Carol's reaction, then turned to the pouting Sword Saint.
"Things have already been decided, Theresia. However... if you want to come along, that's fine too."
"Me too..." Theresia started, her eyes lighting up.
"No! Miss cannot come along!"
Unlike Theresia, who was hesitant, Carol was extremely agitated. She stepped between them instantly.
"Don't worry," Regulus interrupted. "I will protect you both. I will absolutely not let Theresia or you fall into danger."
"No means no!" Carol shouted, desperate. "You need to know, we're going to the front lines of the war! We might even participate in battles! For the Miss..."
She trailed off.
Carol didn't want to continue, because finishing that sentence would hurt Theresia. The Miss hates fighting. The Miss is cursed by the Sword God.
"I..." Theresia's mood plummeted.
She felt that perhaps she shouldn't have woken up. Perhaps she should have let them leave.
But seeing her best friend leaving for a war zone, and the man she cared about going with her... it made her feel uneasy and scared.
She was afraid that Carol and Regulus would end up like her two older brothers—leaving with a smile and never returning.
If it really turned out that way... she would be alone again.
Regulus naturally understood the reason for their behavior.
Carol wanted to protect Theresia from the blood of war. Theresia wanted to protect them from death.
Ultimately, it was due to a lack of understanding of his true power.
"Alright then," Regulus said, stepping back to create space.
"Theresia. Let's fight."
"Eh?"
"If I get even a little injured during the fight... then I lose, and I will stay behind. But if I win, you have to trust that I can protect you."
Theresia looked at Regulus in surprise.
"Are you serious? Regulus... I am the Sword Saint. Looking across the entire continent, there are not many existences that can compare to me in combat."
"I know."
"You know and yet you still challenge me?"
"It's precisely because I know that I want to have a match," Regulus smiled arrogantly. "To show you that I am capable of protecting you. Even from the Sword Saint herself."
For a moment, silence filled the riverside.
Carol didn't know whether to praise Regulus for his bravery or call him reckless.
In her opinion, even a powerful Archmage couldn't defeat Theresia. Unless prepared in advance with traps, no one could match the Divine Protection of the Sword Saint.
And Regulus? In close combat, he couldn't even defeat Carol (or so she thought).
Now challenging the Young Lady, who was immeasurably stronger than him... wasn't he just asking for a beating?
Just then—
"I understand," Theresia said softly, standing up.
"Eh! Young Lady!!!?" Carol gasped.
Theresia looked at her guard with determined blue eyes.
"Carol... please lend me your sword."
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