“Deitan! What happened?!”
Deitan came to his senses at Marilyn’s voice. He backed off, bluffing.
“I-I made a mistake by relaxing! That wasn’t a true duel! Raise your sword again!”
And then Jayna said.
“Then, if you agree to fight again this time and don’t win, give me everything, not just one gem.”
“That’s…”
Marilyn stamped her feet in place and clasped her hands tightly.
“Ignore, Deitan, if you lose again, I won’t let you go!”
“All right.”
Deitan’s eyes had become more serious than ever before.
‘I was obviously reacting differently earlier, but now, his movements were so fast that I couldn’t see his actions.’
Deitan held the sword in both hands with strength.
“Well, once my handkerchief falls to the ground, the duel will begin.”
Marilyn took a handkerchief out of her arm, and threw it in the wind.
And then.
As the handkerchief fell to the floor, Izren and Dietan simultaneously slammed against the ground.
‘This time, I’ll get the first hit!’
Deitan quickly rushed towards Izren.
‘There’s a big difference in our sizes, so you can’t do anything if I push you down with force. I won’t lose if I go for a physical fight, but I won’t let our guard down!’
However, Izren unexpectedly easily counteracted the strong attack.
Chaang!
Marilyn had her eyes open wide when the match didn’t finish as quickly as she expected.
His mysterious appearance attracted her, but she never thought that he would be a great knight.
‘How can you fight so well when you’re fragile when compared to Deitan? You look young, too!
Jayna was also lost in thought as she watched the duel between the two.
‘He’s only sixteen, but as expected, he’s extraordinary. Even in the eyes of someone who doesn’t know the sword well, I can see something different.’
A rich lady who can carelessly carry jewelry would not have an ordinary escort.
But Izren didn’t lose his ground against such a person, and although Deitan said he was vigilant, Izren still won.
‘I obviously lack pure strength. However, that doesn’t cover up all of your other shortcomings.”
Izren’s purple eyes shone sharply without wavering even for a moment.
Perhaps someone could find fragility in mystery, but Jayna was sure this moment didn’t leave space for any such emotions.
Kachang!
Izren countered this attack without even attacking.
‘You’re not being pushed back?’
Deitan was bewildered, and Izren spoke out,
“Now I know, your pattern.”
Izren rushed through the gap in Deitan’s defense, and once again put a knife against his neck.
It was in the same position as before.
“Uh, uh….”
“I admit defeat…”
A while ago, Deitan could make an excuse saying that he had let his guard down, but now he’d lost even though he competed seriously. It was a complete defeat.
“I accept… defeat.”
Izren glanced back at Jayna.
She may have been reminded of him during the tournament, but his red cheeks looked like a pet’s which wished for the owner’s praise, so Jayna smiled at him.
Izren then smiled shyly and said.
“I won, my lady.
***
That’s how the ribbon made for Yurika was completed.
It was a hairband made with a sky blue ribbed ribbon and a jewel which they won in the middle.
Yurika’s eyes widened at the ribbon which seemed tailor made for her.
“You made this ribbon yourself? Where did you get all the materials from?”
“I went to the capital.”
“By yourself, my lady?”
“No, I went with Sir Izren, my escort.”
The maid had gone with her escort. She was relieved that Jayna was fortunate enough, and smiled with a loose face.
[T/N: loose face: admiration]
“I don’t know if I can receive such a valuable gift.”
“I made it with Yurika in mind, so I hope you accept it.”
“However… it seems too good of a thing for someone like me.”
“It’s too much for Yurika to help me with my work.”
“I’m grateful to you for saying that. The ribbon really is pretty. It’s the same color as my eyes.”
Yurika’s cheeks were flushed.
She immediately untied her hair and retied it with the ribbon gifted by Jayna instead of a simple hair tie.
“What do you think, does it look good on me?”
“Really pretty!”
“I guess it’s because the ribbon you gifted made me look like that.”
Yurika spoke with a smile.
“I didn’t know that young lady would be this nimble. Did you give something similar to other people as well?”
“No, I’ve only given it to Yurika.”
“You can’t call me Yurika ‘nim’ anymore….? Also, have you truly only made it for me? Really?”
Yurika seemed thrilled by her words.
Jayna straightened her finger, putting it to her lips, and said, ‘shhhh,’ before whispering that she had a matching ribbon.
“All right. I’ll keep it as a secret between the two of us.”
Jayna, who had blue eyes, looked good in a blue ribbon.
Jayna decided to make a headband for herself rather than a hair tie because she had short hair.
After tying the ribbon finely, Jayna used a folding cloth to attach it to the headband.
“How does it look, Izren?”
“It suits you.”
“Do you want me to make you one?”
Jayna said, while imagining a cat wearing a ribbon.
“That’s a bit….”
“You’d look cute…”
However, Izren said that his own hair was far too short and eventually rejected the offer.
“Well, Izren’s hair is sky blue, so the ribbon might get hidden. It’s a pity that I bought only light blue ribbons because of the duel.”
Jayna looked at the ribbon headband she made with satisfaction.
Was it because it was a gift she received from someone?
Jayna liked the ribbon strip Yurika gave her more than the ribbon on the headband.
“What I gave was not new, but old. Can’t you wear anything else?”
Yurika dissuaded her from doing so, but Jayna finally tied her hair back with that same hair tie.
Yurika then quietly sighed and encouraged her to try other clothes to match the ribbon.
“You usually wear dark colors. Why don’t you try on some bright clothes to match the sky blue ribbon?”
Jayna followed Yurika’s words and decided to try different clothing styles.
“Wow, my lady, you look so lovely!”
With Yurika’s recommendation, Jayna wore a refreshing dress with sky-blue stripes.
‘Doesn’t it look a bit awkward?’
‘Isn’t it a little awkward?’
Jayna scratched her cheek. It felt nice to wear a bow shaped ribbon around her waist, but she felt it somehow didn’t suit her.
“…Pretty.”
That’s why when Micheal, whom she met while passing through the hallway, said that, Jayna had no choice but to say something absurd.
“Right? The clothes are pretty, but I don’t think they suit me.”
Micheal thought for a moment at her words, and then opened his mouth again.
“You, do you think I complemented the dress?”
“Then what else?”
Micheal was dumbfounded.
He had praised Jayna’s new outfit because it looked good on her, but she said she didn’t think so.
Don’t people usually blush when they’re complimented? It seems there are kids like this too.
Micheal, who had been thinking for a while, thought of himself, a cranky Hillbenzia, and a knight who couldn’t speak the Imperial language properly.
‘Right… There are a few people who could praise her. How awkward’
“Hey.”
“What’s the matter, Micheal?”
Then he’ll have to give her a proper compliment. That way, she’ll understand what he meant, and not misunderstand anymore.
“Well, thats…”
But when he tried to praise her, it felt as if his mouth had fallen off.
“Micheal?”
“So.”
“Are you feeling unwell?”
Jayna looked at Micheal, who was licking his lips, with a worried expression.
“Well, the clothes look good on you. I was complimenting you, not your clothes.”
Jayna couldn’t help but open her eyes wide in surprise.
At Jayna’s reaction, Micheal whispered.
“Well, what are you looking at? I complimented you once. Don’t get full of yourself.
“Huh.”
“Forget it. I didn’t talk about you. I called the clothes pretty. Don’t be mistaken.”
Micheal began to ramble, as if he was embarrassed to compliment her.
“Thank you, for the compliment.”
Jayna, who understood Micheal’s intentions well, smiled.
“Hey, I didn’t compliment you now, did I?”
Micheal once again added hastily, however, Jayna’s smile didn’t fade. When Micheal turned to her, his face was beet red.
“By the way, do you like ribbons? I’ve never seen that hair tie before, who gave it to you?”
“Miss Yurika.”
“Yurika? Who’s that… Ah, is she the maid behind you?”
Micheal’s sharp gaze reached Yurika. She had a very irritating face.
“Hey, I’ll buy you something a hundred better than that, so change it.”
“I refuse.”
“What? Do you hate that idea?”
“This ribbon was a gift from Yurika.”
Micheal came close and poked Jayna’s cheek for no reason and started a quarrel.
Then Jayna stared at Micheal, quietly raising her head.
“…Damn it.”
Micheal, who eventually declared defeat, mumbled quietly.
“If you wanted a ribbon or something similar you should have told me!”
“I didn’t even think about it, but Yurika recommended it.”
The very next day, when Yurika visited Jayna’s room, she was stunned to see a pile of ribbons in the room.
“Ha, did you see that? This is how much I can gift her.”
“Ah, how are you?”
Yurika, looking around to see Jayna’s reaction, accidentally made eye contact with Micheal, who was snooping around.
Without Jayna around, there was an eerie chill around him.
“You, if you dare ignore or strike her, you may one day unknowingly die in the dark.”
Unlike his bright and handsome face, he wore a cool and cold expression.
The boy who blushed when he saw Jayna was gone.
‘S-scary…’
After seeing Jayna being treated affectionately, Yurika thought Micheal might have become a bit gentler, however he hadn’t.
All of his affection was limited to Jayna.
When Micheal gave the storage room to Jayna, she was afraid that Jayna might have been hated by the second-in-command of the tower. However, it fortunately seemed to be untrue.
‘I’m glad that Jayna is loved.’
Yurika breathed a sigh of relief inside as she organized the piled-up ribbons.