Chapter 1: The Princess's Dream
'...Damn it.'
Kuhn rolled his eyes.
He successfully exited the maze. He had memorized the paths the few times he had gone through it.
However...
'Where the hell am I?'
He had been walking while lost in thought, and when he came back to his senses, he was in an unfamiliar place. He landed himself in a predicament. If Dian found out about this, he'd be rolling on the floor with laughter.
It wasn't that he was bad with directions, but the usual methods he used to find his way back was not possible within the Palace. Everything was man-made and unnatural. Everything was perfectly standardized and identical.
'What's that sound?'
Kuhn walked towards the faint sound as if he was drawn to it. It was definitely the sound of a sword.
'Are the knights practicing at this hour?'
It was midday, and everyone usually took a break around this time. The few palace attendants he had seen before had all disappeared now.
Kuhn didn't have to go far. He finally found the person hard at work practicing their swordsmanship. Their effort was commendable, but Kuhn automatically began to notice their weaknesses.
This person had a slender frame, no muscles at all. If they fought with a strong opponent, they'd end up losing their sword after a few clashes. The long ponytail fluttering in the wind was also a problem. If this person was in an actual fight, their hair would get caught, and they would break their neck.
When Kuhn caught a better look at this person's face, he took a step back in surprise. The person also turned their head, lowering the sword when they saw Kuhn.
'Princess Sienna.'
He hadn't been able to recognize her just from her back. Her stature was not like that of an average woman, so he didn't recognize her.
"Did Prince Dian send you?"
Kuhn's eyes widened.
'I thought she didn't see me back there.'
Their eyes hadn't met back then. There was never a moment when the Princess and Kuhn had made eye contact, so Kuhn was surprised that she recognized him.
"No, Your Highness. I just lost my way."
Sienna chuckled softly. The man's black eyes didn't avoid hers.
'He's quite daring.'
"What regiment do you belong to?"
Kuhn didn't understand her question for a moment.
'Ah, right. Right now, I'm...'
Kuhn had forgotten that he was wearing a knight's uniform. The Palace's visitors were heavily monitored. Also, Kuhn didn't have a good enough reason to receive permission to enter the Palace, so Dian took matters into his own hands. Kuhn was now pretending to be a knight by dressing like one, but his name was still not in the knights' registry. It would be a pain in the ass if Sienna decided to look into the matter.
"It hasn't been decided yet."
Thankfully, the Princess didn't say much about the vague answer.
"Are you on duty right now?"
"No, Your Highness."
Sienna lifted her sword and aimed it at him. Kuhn slowly raised his eyebrows.
"It isn't as fun doing this alone. Will you help me?"
Sienna had been feeling uneasy and had wanted to do something to take her mind off of it. She usually had a knight as her sparring partner, but since she had suddenly changed her regular schedule, she didn't call for him.
'Interesting.'
Kuhn put on a crooked smile. After having exchanged a few words with the Princess, he felt like he knew what kind of person she was. Her cool words and expression exuded the force of a ruler. Everyone talked about what a beauty she was, so he had assumed that she had grown up like a precious flower. However, he had been deeply mistaken.
'She won't be easy. Dian has his work cut out for him. We didn't have sufficient information about the Princess.'
It wasn't easy gathering information about the Princess since she didn't leave her residence often. Rumors saying she was brilliant or beautiful were not enough to figure out her personality.
"I'm currently on duty."
"But just now..."
"I had forgotten that I was."
Sienna's eyes flickered.
'What's with this man?'
The young man kept staring boldly at Sienna. There wasn't a law stating that a subordinate couldn't make eye contact with his superior, but no one had dared to act this way to Sienna before. Having become accustomed to a high level of courtesy, Sienna was a bit displeased.
"Are you busy?"
"Yes."
"Very busy?"
"Yes."
For someone who was busy, his behavior was very relaxed. Sienna was getting frustrated.
"I need a sparring partner. I'll take full responsibility if you are late in completing your duties."
Kuhn thought about this for a bit. He would have to deal with the consequences if he turned down her stubborn demands. If she had made any other demand of him, he would have quickly completed it and continued on his way, but...
"I never unsheathe my sword for some swordplay."
"When did I say this was swordplay?"
Kuhn shifted his hips to show her the sword on his belt.
"This sword needs to taste blood once it's been unsheathed. Can you handle that?"
Kuhn observed Sienna before speaking again.
"I saw you practicing earlier, and I don't think you'll be able to."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Kuhn regretted them. He had answered automatically without thinking because he had been in this type of situation before. Whenever Kuhn met nobility or royalty from different nations, nine times out of ten they wanted to test him. Kuhn was a well-known figure, and they wanted to see the proof with their own eyes.
"Be prepared to eat your words. And don't even think about giving me another excuse to back out now. If you do, I'll be asking Dian about your insolence, mark my words."
Kuhn sighed softly as he observed Sienna's fierce gaze.
'I might get chewed out by Dian later.'
Kuhn had no choice but to approach Sienna. When he stopped in front of her, Sienna noted his height. He was taller than she thought.
There wasn't a woman who came to her eye level, and most men were also shorter than her. The men that were as tall as Sienna were always knights.
However, with this man in front of her, Sienna had to raise her head to see him. It was the first time she had to do this to a man other than her own father, the Emperor. It was a peculiar feeling.
Oddly, Kuhn also felt the same way.
'From far away, I didn't realize it as much, but...'
She's really pretty. Kuhn didn't know how else to say it. The Princess's skin sparkled in the light like marble. From far away, her eyes looked yellow, but up close, it looked more like a mystical gold. 'She's blinding' was a cliche phrase that didn't seem to do her justice, but nothing else could describe this feeling.
"Shall we take a look at these skills you're so confident about?"
Kuhn was thinking about how her skin would feel if he touched it. When he heard Sienna's words, he flinched. He couldn't believe he was having such a ridiculous thought. Kuhn smiled bitterly before unsheathing his sword. Like the hilt, the blade was black.
"Your sword...is quite unique."
"It's quite famous, actually."
To be more precise, it was notorious.
"I don't know how to hold back, Your Highness."
Sienna chuckled.
"I advise you to hold nothing back."
Sienna was confident with her skills. She practiced swordsmanship in order to keep fit, but, like with everything she did, she believed that once you start something, you must give it your all. The knights who helped her always complimented her. Whenever she sparred with the knights, she was on par with them.
Sienna tightened her hold on her sword.
"Haa!"
Letting out a shout, Sienna quickly attacked. It was a move that would be hard to avoid.
However, as she was about to strike, something felt off. The man's body seemed to move automatically as he avoided her attack. The simple, light movement seemed to be exuding power.
Clang!
Sienna's sword left her hand and flew quite a distance away before falling onto the ground. Sienna slowly walked to it and looked blankly at her sword. Picking it up, Sienna brooded over the first defeat of her life.
She never thought she'd win every fight. She knew that. She wasn't a knight. However, she never expected to fail so miserably.
Chapter 1: The Princess's Dream
'...Damn it.'
Kuhn rolled his eyes.
He successfully exited the maze. He had memorized the paths the few times he had gone through it.
However...
'Where the hell am I?'
He had been walking while lost in thought, and when he came back to his senses, he was in an unfamiliar place. He landed himself in a predicament. If Dian found out about this, he'd be rolling on the floor with laughter.
It wasn't that he was bad with directions, but the usual methods he used to find his way back was not possible within the Palace. Everything was man-made and unnatural. Everything was perfectly standardized and identical.
'What's that sound?'
Kuhn walked towards the faint sound as if he was drawn to it. It was definitely the sound of a sword.
'Are the knights practicing at this hour?'
It was midday, and everyone usually took a break around this time. The few palace attendants he had seen before had all disappeared now.
Kuhn didn't have to go far. He finally found the person hard at work practicing their swordsmanship. Their effort was commendable, but Kuhn automatically began to notice their weaknesses.
This person had a slender frame, no muscles at all. If they fought with a strong opponent, they'd end up losing their sword after a few clashes. The long ponytail fluttering in the wind was also a problem. If this person was in an actual fight, their hair would get caught, and they would break their neck.
When Kuhn caught a better look at this person's face, he took a step back in surprise. The person also turned their head, lowering the sword when they saw Kuhn.
'Princess Sienna.'
He hadn't been able to recognize her just from her back. Her stature was not like that of an average woman, so he didn't recognize her.
"Did Prince Dian send you?"
Kuhn's eyes widened.
'I thought she didn't see me back there.'
Their eyes hadn't met back then. There was never a moment when the Princess and Kuhn had made eye contact, so Kuhn was surprised that she recognized him.
"No, Your Highness. I just lost my way."
Sienna chuckled softly. The man's black eyes didn't avoid hers.
'He's quite daring.'
"What regiment do you belong to?"
Kuhn didn't understand her question for a moment.
'Ah, right. Right now, I'm...'
Kuhn had forgotten that he was wearing a knight's uniform. The Palace's visitors were heavily monitored. Also, Kuhn didn't have a good enough reason to receive permission to enter the Palace, so Dian took matters into his own hands. Kuhn was now pretending to be a knight by dressing like one, but his name was still not in the knights' registry. It would be a pain in the ass if Sienna decided to look into the matter.
"It hasn't been decided yet."
Thankfully, the Princess didn't say much about the vague answer.
"Are you on duty right now?"
"No, Your Highness."
Sienna lifted her sword and aimed it at him. Kuhn slowly raised his eyebrows.
"It isn't as fun doing this alone. Will you help me?"
Sienna had been feeling uneasy and had wanted to do something to take her mind off of it. She usually had a knight as her sparring partner, but since she had suddenly changed her regular schedule, she didn't call for him.
'Interesting.'
Kuhn put on a crooked smile. After having exchanged a few words with the Princess, he felt like he knew what kind of person she was. Her cool words and expression exuded the force of a ruler. Everyone talked about what a beauty she was, so he had assumed that she had grown up like a precious flower. However, he had been deeply mistaken.
'She won't be easy. Dian has his work cut out for him. We didn't have sufficient information about the Princess.'
It wasn't easy gathering information about the Princess since she didn't leave her residence often. Rumors saying she was brilliant or beautiful were not enough to figure out her personality.
"I'm currently on duty."
"But just now..."
"I had forgotten that I was."
Sienna's eyes flickered.
'What's with this man?'
The young man kept staring boldly at Sienna. There wasn't a law stating that a subordinate couldn't make eye contact with his superior, but no one had dared to act this way to Sienna before. Having become accustomed to a high level of courtesy, Sienna was a bit displeased.
"Are you busy?"
"Yes."
"Very busy?"
"Yes."
For someone who was busy, his behavior was very relaxed. Sienna was getting frustrated.
"I need a sparring partner. I'll take full responsibility if you are late in completing your duties."
Kuhn thought about this for a bit. He would have to deal with the consequences if he turned down her stubborn demands. If she had made any other demand of him, he would have quickly completed it and continued on his way, but...
"I never unsheathe my sword for some swordplay."
"When did I say this was swordplay?"
Kuhn shifted his hips to show her the sword on his belt.
"This sword needs to taste blood once it's been unsheathed. Can you handle that?"
Kuhn observed Sienna before speaking again.
"I saw you practicing earlier, and I don't think you'll be able to."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Kuhn regretted them. He had answered automatically without thinking because he had been in this type of situation before. Whenever Kuhn met nobility or royalty from different nations, nine times out of ten they wanted to test him. Kuhn was a well-known figure, and they wanted to see the proof with their own eyes.
"Be prepared to eat your words. And don't even think about giving me another excuse to back out now. If you do, I'll be asking Dian about your insolence, mark my words."
Kuhn sighed softly as he observed Sienna's fierce gaze.
'I might get chewed out by Dian later.'
Kuhn had no choice but to approach Sienna. When he stopped in front of her, Sienna noted his height. He was taller than she thought.
There wasn't a woman who came to her eye level, and most men were also shorter than her. The men that were as tall as Sienna were always knights.
However, with this man in front of her, Sienna had to raise her head to see him. It was the first time she had to do this to a man other than her own father, the Emperor. It was a peculiar feeling.
Oddly, Kuhn also felt the same way.
'From far away, I didn't realize it as much, but...'
She's really pretty. Kuhn didn't know how else to say it. The Princess's skin sparkled in the light like marble. From far away, her eyes looked yellow, but up close, it looked more like a mystical gold. 'She's blinding' was a cliche phrase that didn't seem to do her justice, but nothing else could describe this feeling.
"Shall we take a look at these skills you're so confident about?"
Kuhn was thinking about how her skin would feel if he touched it. When he heard Sienna's words, he flinched. He couldn't believe he was having such a ridiculous thought. Kuhn smiled bitterly before unsheathing his sword. Like the hilt, the blade was black.
"Your sword...is quite unique."
"It's quite famous, actually."
To be more precise, it was notorious.
"I don't know how to hold back, Your Highness."
Sienna chuckled.
"I advise you to hold nothing back."
Sienna was confident with her skills. She practiced swordsmanship in order to keep fit, but, like with everything she did, she believed that once you start something, you must give it your all. The knights who helped her always complimented her. Whenever she sparred with the knights, she was on par with them.
Sienna tightened her hold on her sword.
"Haa!"
Letting out a shout, Sienna quickly attacked. It was a move that would be hard to avoid.
However, as she was about to strike, something felt off. The man's body seemed to move automatically as he avoided her attack. The simple, light movement seemed to be exuding power.
Clang!
Sienna's sword left her hand and flew quite a distance away before falling onto the ground. Sienna slowly walked to it and looked blankly at her sword. Picking it up, Sienna brooded over the first defeat of her life.
She never thought she'd win every fight. She knew that. She wasn't a knight. However, she never expected to fail so miserably.
