It was almost noon.
On the training field, Rod yawned and lazily swung the wooden training sword in his hand, his eyes heavy with sleep.
Lilya, while tying her ponytail with a ribbon, looked away and spoke to Rita, who was watching the scene, with a forced tone.
“......As a maid, it’s the most fundamental principle to not disobey His Majesty’s orders!”
“I only allowed you to sleep in because I was following His Majesty’s orders, you know.”
Rita nodded slightly, covering her mouth to suppress a smile.
“You don’t need to explain, I understand, I understand.”
The eye that wasn’t hidden by her ash-blonde bangs gleamed with undisguised playful amusement.
“mo~”
Lilya blushed and turned her head away, then took a deep breath and looked at Rod with a deliberately serious expression.
“Ahem, Your Majesty, whether it’s swordsmanship or magic, the grading system is the same.”
“Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Saint, King, Emperor, God.”
“The names of the three major schools in swordsmanship contain the word ‘God,’ which originates from the founder of the school.”
“It is said that the first swordsman of the Water God School was also a magician who could use God-level water magic.”
“Those who have mastered the Northern God School can even deflect magic with ease.”
“So, if you’re having trouble exploring the realm of magic, don’t be discouraged. If you put in the effort to practice swordsmanship, you can still become one of the top warriors in the world!”
Rod was taken aback and nodded, smiling wryly.
“I understand.”
Although Rod was a child in the past, he always adhered to the etiquette of nobility.
This morning’s sleep-in was a rare occurrence.
While it was true that he was exhausted from using magic for the first time and that he had been disturbed by the assassins, plus he was too excited to fall asleep, it’s probably because Lilya misunderstood, thinking he was avoiding studying magic because of frustration.
It’s true, though.
It’s impossible for a normal person to become an Advanced magician overnight.
Lilya stretched her ankles with a slight sense of regret.
“My swordsmanship barely reached Advanced level, I can only teach your Majesty the basics before the swordsmanship teacher arrives. If I hadn’t been injured, maybe I could’ve become a Sword Saint with enough effort.”
Rita asked with curiosity.
“Speaking of which, where are you from? And how did you get hurt?”
Rod also looked at her with interest.
Lilya remained silent for a moment, then spoke with a calm expression, as if telling someone else’s story.
“......I was born in a rural area of the Asra Kingdom, in a small town within the Donati territory, the only daughter of a Water God School dojo.”
“As the daughter of the dojo, I grew up with a sword in my hand.”
“However, I knew a long time ago that I lacked talent for swordsmanship. I thought I would eventually marry one of the dojo students, inherit the dojo, and live a simple life.”
“However.......until that day, my father, out of kindness, rescued a homeless vagrant with no money. Despite my efforts to help him integrate into the dojo, for some reason, he couldn’t get along with the other dojo students.”
“He seemed to blame me for everything, and one night he tried to attack me. Luckily, the students discovered him in time and intervened, fighting with him.”
“My father was furious and kicked him out of the dojo. He seemed to come to his senses and left with a hint of shame. However, I was so frightened by that experience that I developed a phobia of men.”
Upon hearing this, Rita’s eyes flashed, and she clenched her fists slightly, a cold smile appearing on her lips.
“What a beastly bastard, harboring inexplicable hatred, a wicked act of returning kindness with vengeance.”
“If I ever encounter him again, I will cut him into a thousand pieces!”
Rod also felt a surge of anger.
He knew that man.
Paul Grellart.
In the original story, he was a decent father who saved Rudy in the end, but before that, calling him a beast for his first half of life was not an exaggeration.
He had no intention of judging Paul’s inability to control his lower body.
Rod, of course, also had ambitions to take all the beautiful women for himself, but he also adhered to the principle of taking responsibility after making a move.
However, in the original timeline, Lilya didn’t escape his bad luck....
In any case, Rod remembered this grudge.
Just kill him?
No, how about humiliating him instead.
That would be the best punishment for that man.
However, Rod also remembered something else.
The original protagonist, Rudy, was transported to this world due to the accidental outcome of a summoning ritual in the future, which brought Seven Star Silence to the past.
Because of his reincarnation, the future will inevitably take a completely different path.
Then Rudy’s reincarnation, the Great Transfer event, Seven Star Silence’s transportation.......
Will all of this still happen?
It seems like I need to find a chance to confirm it.
Also, the important characters from the original story will hardly appear in this war-torn, chaotic area.
Sylphy, Eris, Roxy.......
At least those three are undoubtedly S-class figures.
Thinking about how even an A-class card can summon someone like Rita, I wonder what kind of surprises S-class cards will bring.
Sylphy and Eris are undoubtedly best to conquer when they’re young.
Rod thought about the D-class assassin summoning card.
It seems like it will come in handy soon.
“......After that, since I couldn’t find a suitable suitor because of my condition, my father seemed to have given up on the dojo in despair. He spent a lot of money to send me to the Asra Royal Palace to serve as the princess’s personal guard maid.”
“I learned etiquette during that time, but I got injured while protecting the princess.”
“I was naturally dismissed from the palace because I lost my value. I couldn’t face my father at home, nor could I find a suitable job, so I wandered aimlessly, serving as a temporary guard for caravans.”
“Until I met the late king. He heard that I had experience as a palace maid and invited me to become the young prince’s personal maid.”
“I was worried that my condition and injury would make it difficult for me to do the job.”
Lilya snapped out of her memories and looked at Rod with a gentle smile.
“I was going to refuse, but when I saw the baby prince smiling at me from his cradle, I.......was healed.”
Lilya silently clenched the hilt of her wooden sword.
“In that moment, I rediscovered the meaning of life. Even if I’m a worthless nobody, I will protect this smile, even if it costs me my life!”
Rita smiled, moved by the hardships of Lilya’s life and filled with respect for her sincere feelings for Rod.
At this point, she had no doubt about Lilya’s role as the head maid.
As Rod said, there’s no one more suitable than her.
Upon hearing this, Rod covered his forehead and frowned slightly, many images flashing through his mind that a child shouldn’t remember.
Lilya changing his diaper in a hurry, humming a slightly off-key lullaby at his bedside, waving her sword, barely managing to fend off assassins who tried to kill him.......
Ah, when he got a little older, he seemed to have curiously asked why there were always snacks and warm desserts on his bedside table every time he woke up hungry at night.
Lilya had winked and lied to him, saying it was magic.......
His mother had passed away early, and his father was away at war.
His childhood was practically spent being cared for wholeheartedly by Lilya.
One could say that Lilya was both a sister and a mother to him.
It’s just that after he grew up, he was taught by the so-called court instructor about the etiquette of nobility, and he was taught to be arrogant towards maids, so he became somewhat distant from her.
Now, that court instructor has gone who knows where, but Lilya has remained by his side as always.
“.......”
Rod took a deep breath, smiled, and looked up at Lilya. He suddenly thought of a plan to make Lilya, who had always been insecure, feel completely at ease.
“Lilya, do you know the meaning of the name of the capital city, Elseran?”
Lilya was taken aback by Rod’s sudden question.
“Uh......”
She racked her brains, but couldn’t answer the question.
It seemed that the kingdom’s history didn’t record the answer either.
Lilya lowered her head in shame.
“I-I don’t know......”
Rod looked at Rita.
“Do you know, Rita?”
Rita pondered for a moment.
The human language in this world is completely different from the original world. I can only understand it on a basic level.
And now His Majesty is asking me, an outsider, the meaning of the name of the capital city......
Wait, Elseran, in Ancient Greek, means.......
Rita suddenly guessed Rod’s intention. Her beautiful eyes looked at Rod with a gentle smile.
“Elseran, it means ‘Gift of the Gods’~”
Lilya covered her mouth in surprise, her hair flopping down listlessly.
“Re-really? You know more than me, Rita. Um, shouldn’t the head maid be.......”
Rod interrupted Lilya’s self-pity and chuckled lightly.
“Lilya, the commoners in the Asra Kingdom don’t have surnames, do they?”
“Th-that’s right.”
“Very well. From today onwards, I bestow the surname Elseran upon you. Lilya Elseran. Without a doubt, you are the gift that God has given me.”
“Eh.......Eh???”