“And if he still gets stubborn, I’ll shut him up with some sword training.”
Jeff’s suggestion was a bit too forceful, so I politely declined.
Lord Cedric is of royal blood, and he’s not a bad person…
I realized that his reputation in my household was very poor and made an effort to ensure our servants would never overhear this.
The day Cedric arrived at the castle, Jeffrey arranged a meeting with him there.
“Hello, Jeff. It’s been five years since I saw you last. I’m pleased to see you’re looking well. How was Shen? I heard the arrangement with the medicine went well.”
Lord Cedric was now twenty-six years old and had two children.
His close relationship with his wife, Beatrice, was well-known throughout noble society. He was managing his duchy very seriously, a far cry from the wild days of his youth. The word among the nobility was Lady Beatrice was the reason he was doing so well, as she was reliable and kept her husband on a tight leash.
“So? How are things going with Victoria?”
“I beg your pardon?” Jeffrey was taken aback when Lord Cedric abruptly brought up his wife’s name.
Cedric—also known as “Lord Sparkles”—burst out laughing at Jeffrey’s surprise.
“Did you really think I wouldn’t find out? Hamms, the duchy administrator who preceded me, told me you were living in Cadiz with a woman who had a blond daughter. Once I heard that, I figured it had to be Victoria and her little girl,” Cedric said.
“About my wife, Lord Cedric. Have you…?”
“Have I told my father and brother? No. Nothing good has ever come from me telling them anything, much less regarding someone they haven’t even asked about.”
“Well, you’ve certainly have grown up, my lord.”
“I promise I’ll keep it a secret from them if you let Victoria train me while I’m in the capital five times… No, even three should be good. Please?”
“I take back what I said. You haven’t changed at all, my lord.”
“Aw, don’t say that! I’m really not asking for much!”
“Then why don’t you and I spar with swords?”
“Oh, uh…not today. Beatrice should be coming back from her mother’s house any moment now.”
With no choice but to accept Cedric’s conditions, Jeffrey decided to implement the plan he had come up with.
“Lord Cedric, my daughter’s twelve now, but she studied Shenese martial arts during our time abroad.”
“Oh?”
“She’s surprisingly talented at it. I told her that you were very skilled at martial arts, and she’s been begging me to spar with you.”
“No, I’ll pass. I want to train with Victoria. If I wanted to face off against a child, I could do so with my own children.”
“I see. Well, that’s a shame. You know Mike from the Third Order? My daughter sparred with him and beat him. I’ll tell her to give up on the idea and let my wife know about your request. Well, if you’ll excuse me,” Jeff said, bowing his head.
“Wait! Hang on. She beat someone from the Third Order? A twelve-year-old girl? You must be kidding. Third Order agents are all thoroughly trained in martial arts!”
“She beat him. My wife isn’t comfortable with sparring with a duke, but my daughter’s very enthusiastic about it. She boasted that she could beat you even if she couldn’t aim for your face or neck. Victoria says she’s willing to train you as long as you defeat our daughter first.”
“Hmm, I like it. That sounds good. I’ll let you know a good day and time,” Cedric said.
“Understood.”
Jeffrey smiled calmly at Cedric before excusing himself from the room. The moment the door closed behind him, he pumped his fist in triumph.
The guards gave him a puzzled look but didn’t say anything, so he just left with a smile on his face.
The moment Jeffrey walked through the door after returning from the castle, a grin on his face, I knew our plan had succeeded.
“Welcome home, Jeff. How was it? Can I assume things went well based on that smile of yours?” I said.
“I’ve known the duke ever since he was little. I knew exactly what to say to get him to agree. Heh-heh-heh!”
Nonna skipped over to us. “When? Dad, when do I get to spar with him?”
“He said he’ll get in touch with us to let us know a date and time.”
“Yesss! I can’t wait.”
“Nonna, you have to be extra careful not to hurt him,” I warned.
“I’ll try.”
“There’s no trying. You must absolutely avoid injuring him.”
“It’s not like he’s just going to stand there and take it. I can’t make any promises,” she said with a shrug.
Jeff and I exchanged glances.
“Nonna, if you hurt the duke, they’ll launch an investigation into our family. That would cause a lot of trouble.”
“This is tough. I have to win, but I can’t hurt him? Ugh…I guess I’ll figure something out.”
I had bad memories of when I’d broken two or three of the duke’s ribs.
“Nonna, let’s practice together so that you don’t fracture any of his bones,” I said.
“Don’t we usually do the opposite?” she asked.
“Yes, but could you please cooperate? Do it for my sake,” I begged.
“All right, all right.” Nonna gave me a sheepish grin but agreed.
A few days later, a messenger arrived at our house informing us of when the match between the duke and Nonna would take place. In the period leading up to their bout, I sparred with her to ensure she wouldn’t end up seriously injuring him.
The duke came to our house a bit earlier than scheduled on the appointed day. Nonna and I greeted him and noticed he was brimming with enthusiasm.
“Thanks for having me, Victoria.”
“It’s nice to see you again, Lord Cedric.”
“I’m going to be sparring with your daughter today. Beatrice has been telling me over and over again not to hurt the girl. I’ll be careful, but I’d urge your daughter to be careful, too. What was your name again, miss?”
“I’m Nonna Asher, and I’m pleased to be sparring with you today. Thank you so much for coming. I’ll do my very best to avoid injuring you, my lord.”
Nonna recited the lines I’d drilled into her perfectly, but I had a feeling she was doing her best to stifle her laughter, because the corners of her lips were trembling.
We would be holding the match in the largest room in our house to avoid anyone else seeing. Once the furniture had been removed, it would be spacious enough for the two of them to spar without any problems.
“Well, shall we begin?”
“Yes, please.”
Nonna was wearing the blue training uniform she’d received in Shen. Meanwhile, the duke had on a white shirt and a pair of black pants that looked easy to move in.
The two of them kept their distance from each other as they readied themselves, moving slowly in a circle.
Nonna was the first to strike. She was so fast that it visibly shocked the duke.
She darted toward Lord Cedric with lightning speed, leaping into the air to deliver a kick to his stomach with her right foot. As he raised his forearm to block, she deliberately lashed out at it instead. Then Nonna twisted her body in midair and used the momentum to drive her left heel into his left shoulder.
Normally, she would have aimed that blow to his temple, I thought. But I’d made it crystal clear to her: no hits to the face or head. That was why she’d targeted his shoulder.
Despite taking a solid kick to the shoulder, Lord Cedric managed to hold his ground and maintain his stance. But Nonna wasn’t finished. The moment she landed, she leaped up in a springing motion and used the momentum to ram her elbow into his right arm.
Uh-oh… Are his bones going to be okay? I worried, breaking out into a cold sweat. I glanced at Jeff, who also looked nervous.
Nonna was enjoying this too much, and she shifted positions with a graceful no-handed cartwheel. Then she delivered a spinning kick to Lord Cedric’s back. Jeff immediately stepped forward.
“That’s enough, Nonna!”
“Whaaat?”
“I can keep going, Jeff.”
“Lord Cedric, if my daughter had her dagger, you would be dead by now.”
Lord Cedric was definitely skilled, so surely, he knew without us having to tell him…but Nonna was clearly holding back.