I Became the Second-in-Command in a Romance Fantasy Novel

I had nothing much to do for the preparation of my studies abroad.
Since it was a royal study abroad, there were many things that had to be arranged, and I had that feeling of being the extra in the process, as the kingdom took care of everything for me.
The only things I had to do were find someone to manage the mansion while I was away, sign long-term contracts with the merchants at my shops, and talk about my study abroad in the Empire with the people around me.

"Finally, you're going!"
Seeing the woman who seemed the happiest among us, I replied with a tone full of disappointment.
"Senior Lucia, isn't this too much? Treating me like a junior?"

Unlike usual, her red eyes, which were the same color as her hair, sparkled brightly. A lovely junior was leaving for a distant land, and she was this happy about it. She was such a heartless senior.
"You're the one being too much! Do you have any idea how wild Heastia gets when you lose to her?!"
Lucia immediately sulked, but I just shook my head. Even though people would curse the king when they couldn’t see him, here I was, calling a princess of a kingdom in such an informal manner.

Of course, it was something Princess Heastia had forced me to do, but the fact that it came out so naturally was concerning.
It was already too late for Lucia. She would probably end up living beside Princess Heastia for the rest of her life.
"You're about to start carrying around a contract instead of a resignation letter, just like me."

"Junior, what are you even saying...?"
"You know full well that it's too late now. If you can’t escape, you might as well have a lot of things to take with you."
"Wh-what are you saying! This year, I'll definitely resign and meet a man to get engaged to!"

I could swear on it.
It would be tough.
Lucia wasn’t lacking in family, appearance, or ability. No, in fact, she was overflowing with all of those. And that was the problem.

It would be easy for her to catch a suitable man, but...
"Well, first, I think you need to get past Princess Heastia."
Princess Heastia, who would immediately pull out a sword to test a potential friend of her little sister, was no joke. For the sake of her dearest friend, Lucia, she wouldn’t hesitate to rush in with both hands on swords.
"Junior, what are you really saying...?"

"You know it better than anyone, right?"
She knew it, of course. She just ran away from it. She simply wouldn’t admit it, but didn’t she know her future better than anyone, perhaps even more than me?
"It would be easier if you gave up."

I was sure Lucia, someone like her with such high quality, would never give up, but even if she did, there was no way Princess Heastia would give her up.
"Adam's right. And our role is to assist the pillars of the royal family. Don’t try to run away from that honorable job."
When I turned to look at the calm voice, I saw a man grinding coffee beans with a grinder.

With blonde hair, blue eyes, and an aristocratic air that seemed to emerge even from just breathing, this person was Daniel, the royal knight instructor and the one selected first among the current instructors. He was also the instructor for the first prince, who, barring any unforeseen circumstances, was slated to be the next king.
As the oldest instructor and a key figure in the royal court, Daniel was the leader among the instructors.
"You're saying that I’m honorable..."

The one talking was Lucia. She had torn up resignation letters at least three times a week in front of the commander, the one who was an upgrade from Daniel in every way, and every week, she would write three more resignation letters again.
"..."
Even Daniel, the great Daniel, subtly averted his gaze at her audacity.

"Prince Allen is different from Princess Heastia, right?"
Lucia shouted with a mixture of sorrow and exasperation. And she wasn’t wrong.
In a country of knights, Prince Allen had learned the sword since childhood and had some talent, so he wasn’t someone who would just be beaten up. However, he had long been chosen as the next king.

Even in a country of knights, ruling a nation wasn’t just about military power unless you were a barbarian. So, as the crown prince, Allen learned various subjects at a younger age than Prince Ellen and indirectly participated in politics, honing his kingly skills.
In the process, he inevitably distanced himself from the sword, and his instructor, Daniel, also inevitably had to distance himself from swordsmanship.
"Anyone want some coffee?"

"I do."
"Me too. But don’t change the subject."
As Lucia glared at him with tear-filled eyes, Daniel fell silent.

Prince Allen put down his sword, and Daniel did the same. Honestly, if a fight broke out now, Lucia would definitely win.
"You don’t even go to the training ground."
"Sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t."

In truth, Daniel had been the most ideal instructor among all of them. The sparring between Prince Allen and Daniel had long turned into something akin to wealthy people playing golf in movies or dramas.
It was simply hospitality.
And that was what the role of the royal instructor was supposed to be.

Even though Lucia sulked, Daniel confidently said:
"To be honest, I’m not the only one like this."
That was true.

Other instructors assigned to princes and princesses also had their reasons, but when you think about it, we were closer to Daniel’s situation than not.
"You guys are the weird ones. It’s not like I did anything wrong, right?"
He was speaking the truth. Princess Heastia and Prince Ellen were the exceptions. No matter how much of a knightly country it was, the royal family didn’t frequent the training grounds more than the social scene.

It was just that Princess Heastia loved the sword to an unusual degree, and Prince Ellen was an abnormal monster.
The rest of the royal family were excellent, but not people who lived and breathed the sword.
"From the moment an instructor has the authority to defeat royalty, your path was always going to be different from ours."

The Defeat Sword. As its name suggested, it was a swordsmanship style designed solely for defeat, but ironically, Lucia and I had gained the right to never be defeated.
Of course, the reason was simple...
"You can’t win in the first place!"

If you don’t even try to win, it’s not a matter of abilities but that the opponent’s talent is just so far superior.
"Still, it’s different to have the right or not."
"True."

The time of the instructor’s defeat was decided through a meeting of the middle-ranking officials, including the commander. If they always win, the thrill of victory diminishes, so it was decided that at least once, they should win at the right time.
If they got too caught up in the competitive spirit, the royals might abandon their duties and studies and go crazy like Princess Heastia with the sword.
But Lucia and I were different.

We could win whenever we wanted.
Of course, it was possible because the opponent was someone we simply couldn’t defeat no matter how much we wanted to, but just having the right to win proved that we were treated differently from other instructors.
Of course, the most important thing was:

"And don’t we get paid for that?"
Just like the senior said, Lucia and I received overwhelming performance bonuses. Even Daniel, the instructor for the crown prince, received far less than we did.
If you consider the various tonics and swordsmanship instructors, the benefits Lucia and I received were comparable to those of royalty.

"Instead of that authority, you’ll end up receiving resignation letters."
Lucia might not know, but I was satisfied, nodding my head.
Two mansions in the capital. There was always a word that warmed my heart.

"So, Adam, I have high expectations for you."
"I’ll try my best, but don’t expect too much."
Even though there ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) were still six months left of academy life, the news coming in wasn’t good.

Famous swordmasters from renowned sword families were coming to enroll, along with royals from Dale, our rival kingdom, and several famous mages from the Magic Tower.
It was just a rumor, and not everyone would enroll, but even if half of them did, that meant most of the continent’s rising stars would gather at the Empire Academy.
"Just trust Prince Allen."

As the punching bag of the genius prince, I was not confident about real geniuses.
"..."
"..."

At my sincere words, both seniors looked at me with expressions of disbelief.
"What? What’s wrong?"
As the gaze deepened into a frown, Daniel offered the coffee he had personally brewed.

"Truly a frog in a well."
"Frog? I’m too big for that."
Lucia muttered with a strangely contorted expression, probably due to the bitter coffee. Her gaze kept fixed on me, but I shrugged it off and dumped about five lumps of sugar into my coffee.

"You’re supposed to enjoy the coffee as it is…"
Daniel muttered, but it didn’t matter to me. Whether I put sugar or salt in it, as long as it tastes good, it doesn’t matter.
"Well, still, I won’t go around getting beaten."

Although I may not be a pride of the kingdom, I certainly didn’t want to be a disgrace.
Apart from about ten or so, including the light swordsmanship exam, it should be worth trying.
Maybe rank 11th in the academy's swordsmanship standings would fit just fine.

"Think whatever you want."
"Yeah, I thought I was weak until I entered the academy."
Lucia said, as if remembering a time when she had her own doubts, but I didn’t think I was weak.

I just didn’t look down on the students entering the Imperial Academy this time.
"The Royal Academy is full of familiar opponents."
The Royal Academy of Leon Kingdom, famed for being a land of knights, had many excellent swordsmen. Most of the students came from the Leon Kingdom, and there were no more than 10% foreign students, all of whom were those the royal family had personally vetted.

But the Imperial Academy was different.
I couldn’t expect support from the royal family or the commander.
Unlike before, I had to fight them purely with my own skills.

The world is wide, and there are many experts. Of course, even in such a vast world, I believed that Prince Ellen would be unparalleled.
But Aslan from the Light Swordsmanship Academy, along with the continent's famous sacred ones, could stand shoulder to shoulder with Prince Ellen.
By meeting them, experiencing them, and sometimes fighting them, Prince Ellen would grow even further.

After all, that’s why he was going abroad to study.
"I just need to be there until then."
Until Prince Ellen meets those people, I just need to be there by his side. To ensure he doesn’t walk alone and doesn’t stray off course. That is my role.

"Excellent."
At those words, Daniel nodded in satisfaction.
"Well done, truly."

Lucia pouted, muttering, but I didn’t know this moment, filled with the warm atmosphere of strong coffee.
"...Huh?"
With a creaking sound, I turned my head awkwardly.

There were astonished gazes all around, focused on me.
I lowered my gaze again. A man with gray, short hair was lying on the ground.
The fiery gaze he had earlier was now lifeless.

"..."
I quietly recalled his name.
Aslan, the Light Swordsmanship master.

Among the swordmasters who enrolled this year, his name was more famous than Prince Ellen’s. He was the one I had sparred with as a light, celebratory duel for his enrollment.
Literally, just light.
I had really only gone lightly.

So why?
"...Why?"
No, damn it.

It wasn’t even a bed, so why is he lying on the street?
I really don’t get it.