I Became a Swordsmanship Instructor in a Romance Novel

“…….”

A thick, unexpected curse word flew out from the very first meeting.

Silence flowed for a moment.

The Princess, realizing her mistake, quickly composed herself and turned her head.

She greeted the children with noble etiquette.

“……My apologies for the late introduction. Greetings. I am Lillie of the Ira Duchy in the North. My name is Lillie Ira.”

Academy students don’t usually exchange formal greetings, but it would be absurd not to respond when the daughter of an equal duchy, not even a fellow student, acted in such a way.

Selena and Iriel exchanged bewildered glances, then rose from their seats, straightened their clothes, and returned her greeting with the same etiquette.

“Greetings, Princess. I am Selena Yohaiden of the Yohaiden Duchy.”

“……Greetings. I am Iriel Eustia of the Eustia Duchy.”

“I’m Yuri Gilbert.”

“S, Soi Spoon.”

Following them, Yuri and Soi stood up hesitantly and gave similar greetings with awkward gestures.

A deep smile bloomed on Lillie’s lips.

“Heheh. By any chance, are you all free right now?”

“……?”

The Northern Princess, after exchanging greetings out of the blue, asked if they were free.

“I believe you all came here because you were curious about why I am here. Am I correct?”

“……Yes.”

When Selena answered, Lillie clapped her hands as if satisfied.

“As it happens, I was also curious about you all. There’s a nice teahouse I know nearby. If you’d like, would you care to join me for a chat, just us girls?”

The children welcomed the suggestion.

They were curious about what Zeke and this woman had been talking about.

No one would refuse her offer to tell them herself.

Her slightly fluctuating personality felt a bit strange, but the children all nodded.

“Alright.”

“Me too.”

As they hesitantly nodded,

Lillie smiled brightly and led the way, and the girls began to follow her.

Except for Rosnante.

“W, what about me……?”

***

The place Lillie led them to, calling it a teahouse, was a shop with a very shabby exterior, located in an alleyway in the capital’s shopping district.

None of the children knew that such a place existed within the capital.

Their vigilance naturally rose in the unfamiliar place, but they hadn’t been attending Zeke’s classes for nothing.

The children naturally began to draw up their mana, preparing themselves for any sudden situation.

Except for Soi.

Soi was in a very confused state for a different reason.

The day before, when the Northern Princess visited her store.

At that time, she had suddenly revealed her hair and eye color, so there was no time to think.

But this was strange.

Really strange.

So very strange.

Soi’s eyes shook as if there was an earthquake due to her confusion.

‘……Why……? Why on earth……. Those emotions…….’

It wasn’t like they were strangers after the hostage incident in the Lyos Mountains, so her having those feelings towards her was understandable.

‘……No, that’s weird too, but let’s just say it is.’

Soi’s eyes turned to her classmates.

Judging from their greetings earlier, it was clear that Iriel, Selena, and Yuri were also meeting her for the first time.

Their emotions were also filled with bewilderment and tension.

The fact that they were discreetly drawing up their mana and being wary even now made it hard to believe they were acquainted.

On the other hand, looking at the woman who introduced herself as the Northern Princess, Lillie…….

The same intense feelings of affection and guilt that were directed toward her were also directed toward Selena, Iriel, and Yuri, with almost the same intensity.

‘……What is this…….’

She couldn’t understand anything, but surely a place guided by someone with such emotions couldn’t be dangerous.

And as expected, when they opened the door to the shop they arrived at, a teahouse with a simple atmosphere greeted them.

There were no customers, only an old owner wiping teacups with a cloth.

He was still focused on wiping the cups even when customers arrived.

It was a space that somehow made them feel at ease.

Just like Hillais Bakery.

The children, who had been looking around with tense faces, seemed to have confirmed that there was nothing suspicious, and relaxed their bodies.

“It’s not a suspicious place. You can relax.”

Seeing this, Lillie said with a wry smile.

“The owner of this shop is deaf. So you can talk about secrets without worrying at all. But I can guarantee the taste of the drinks, so please look forward to it. I’m sure you’ll all like it.”

She tore off a piece of memo paper from the shelf as if she was familiar with the place and wrote down the order with a quill pen.

“I’ve been here a lot, so I’ll order for you. Could you all take a seat first?”

The children glanced at her and then sat down at a table in the corner.

“……Wow, I didn’t know there was a place like this in the capital…….”

Selena sat down and looked around the shop, exclaiming in admiration.

The fresh wood scent emanating from the old trees.

The clean interior, though not sophisticated, showed that much care had been taken in managing the shop.

Decorated with old antiques, it had a calm and cozy atmosphere.

It felt relaxing just sitting there.

“……Snap out of it, flower garden.”

Iriel, who was sitting next to her, poked Selena’s waist, who was immersed in the atmosphere.

“Still, isn’t it suspicious……?”

“W, well, that’s true.”

“As far as I know, the Northern Princess has never left the North……. I heard it from my papa……. Oh, no.”

Iriel, who had inadvertently used the nickname ‘papa’, quickly slurred her words.

Her face turned as red as her hair.

“Ahem. F, Father told me, so it’s certain. But to be guided to a place like this as if she’s been here often……?”

“That’s true……. My father also said he knew nothing about the North……. Maybe she just snuck out…….”

Selena herself had also secretly left the Duchy to go to the Academy.

Of course, she later found out that everyone in the Duchy knew about it.

“Do you think the distance from the North to your Yohaiden is the same as to the capital?

And that tightly sealed North would allow the Princess to sneak out and come to the capital several times……?

And without our family or the Imperial Family knowing?”

“……That’s definitely……. Suspicious.”

For someone of the Northern Princess’s status to travel to the capital alone, without any escorts.

It might be possible once or twice, but the North would never have let her do that.

Moreover, it was even more absurd for a girl her age to come and go while avoiding the eyes of the Imperial Family and Eustia.

“Anyway, what I’m trying to say is, I don’t know what she’s going to say. But don’t just take it at face value. It’s better to keep your wits about you. Soi, Yuri, you too.”

“Okay.”

“Mm-hmm…….”

Yuri nodded as if she understood.

Soi answered hesitantly.

“Heheh. What were you all talking about?”

The Northern Princess, Lillie, returned after finishing her order.

* * *

Even after his classmates and the woman who introduced herself as the Northern Princess disappeared,

Rosnante sat in the hallway with a blank expression, still looking in the direction they had gone.

“……The Princess of the Ira family in the North, Lillie Ira, she said.”

Rosnante uttered her name as if to savor it.

“She……. To me……. She dared, to me……. Called me a f, fucking……. Bastard…….”

A raw, vulgar curse he had never heard before.

A strange word he had never heard even from his half-brother, Illios, who hated him like a sworn enemy.

Even his classmates, who he was now quite comfortable with, maintained a certain level of courtesy, but if someone had said that to him, even if it was someone he had given his heart to, it would be a serious insult that he couldn’t just overlook, a serious matter of losing face.

It was an insult to the Imperial Family.

Thump━

Thump━

But Rosnante’s heart was pounding like it was malfunctioning.

Her image still lingered in his eyes.

Black hair that resembled the embodiment of the night, and eyes that gleamed with intelligence in that black night.

A fragile body like a glass that could shatter at any moment.

Skin as white as the first snow that no one had stepped on.

“……A woman who can say such things to my face…….”

Zeke Clayman’s swordsmanship class, with a total of five students, four of whom were girls.

Living there, his eye for women naturally improved vertically, but.

“This is the first time.”

At this moment, Rosnante fell helplessly in love.