After he sees Joanna warmly welcoming him at a social party, Somerset's one-sided love begins.
Although he thought he did not show his feelings, his mother noticed this and supported the idea of their engagement.
His mother always said he could have anything he wanted, and Somerset never doubted her words.
'Sure, I yelled at Johanna yesterday because I was angry, but I'll apologize, and everything will be okay.'
He was the eldest son of the Blackwood family.
Everyone admired him and wanted to talk to him even if just a word.
Somerset was confident that Joanna was no exception.
Apologizing to someone made him feel embarrassed, so he began to move nervously and could only say the words in a timid voice.
“I-I'm sorry. I was really nervous yesterday...”
“If I get nervous again, does that mean you'll yell at me again?”
Her cold response made Somerset freeze for a moment.
When things didn't go as he expected, a feeling of frustration washed over him.
If he had come to apologize first, shouldn't you have simply accepted it?
“…I apologize, right?”
“….”
Johanna pressed her lips together tightly, unwilling to get into any further argument.
She just wanted to leave quickly.
Her feelings were already turbulent after being rejected by the person she loved at first sight. And now, his words were endlessly echoing in her mind, which made things even worse.
But Somerset would not leave her alone.
“What brings you here?” I asked him.
“Okay, do you want to see the training ground?”
“No, thanks. The place is full of dust everywhere...”
Oh, I just want to go home.
I want to read a book...
‘This time, I want to read something other than romance.’
Joanna wanted to understand the strange feelings that were beginning to grow in her heart.
Somerset hesitated, watching her indifferent reaction.
"I'm going to have a fight with Daedric. Don't you want to see it?"
“…”
“Come and see him. He's actually very good with a sword.”
Seeing Somerset praising Dideric in such an unusual way made Joanna think he was hiding something.
But honestly, even though she had been rejected, she still wanted to see Daedric again—especially with him holding his sword.
"…Good."
After some hesitation, Joanna finally agreed.
Jacob watched anxiously as Somerset and Diedrick faced each other in the middle of the training field.
He remembered his previous conversation with Daedric.
“Even if you get hit, don't interfere.”
“What? But with your skills, you can fight evenly with him.”
"That's not the point. I don't intend to answer him."
“Why…?”
“I'll explain later. Even if it gets difficult, pretend you didn't see anything.”
That was exactly what Daedric said.
Somerset looked determined as he raised his body and stared at Deidrick, every now and then glancing at Joanna and puffing out his chest confidently.
But Joanna's eyes were focused only on Deidrick.
While the “Treasury Monster” was busy raiding every medicine cabinet in sight, Somerset signaled to the knights with his eyes to begin the battle.
Beeeeeep!
A loud whistle sounded, signaling the start of the duel.
Somerset rushed at Diderick at once.
Klang!
Daedric blocked his sword, but his eyebrow rose slightly.
'Huh. 'I knew.'
Daederick looked at him with contempt, but Somerset returned him with an arrogantly sarcastic smile.
Let's see how much you can handle. Did you think you could defeat me after learning the art of swordsmanship for only a short time?
Tack!
Their swords met, and Somerset threw his wooden sword at Daedric again. This time, Daedric did not avoid the blow.
Knock it
The wooden sword hit his face hard.
The blow was so strong that it made his head shake and his vision blur as he swayed and fell to his knees.
Somerset smiled cruelly as he looked down at him.
Unbeknownst to Daederick, Somerset had added an iron core to his wooden sword. Daedric realized this the moment their swords met, but he could do nothing about it.
Who will believe you if you complain?
Somerset sneered as he looked at Daedric from above. This is the result of pretending to be strong.
“……”
“So, that day was just luck, right?”
drop. A drop of Daedric's blood dripped from his forehead and fell to the ground.
Joanna gasped and covered her mouth in shock.
And so it began - a merciless beating.
Somerset made no effort to hide his cruel smile. This is what I expected.
Even though Daedric had learned the art of swordsmanship, things had not really changed. Somerset took out all his pent-up anger and jealousy in beating him mercilessly.
“This is your result. Why are you interfering in something that concerns me?”
blow!
......
Daedric gritted his teeth, refusing to groan in pain. Instead, think about the “closet monster” he had in mind.
A girl filled her mouth with food, her cheek puffed out attractively.
A girl smiling warmly, no matter what he told her.
A girl whose body's warmth felt like a comfortable embrace, alleviating his worries.
The most beautiful and beautiful “beast” with gray hair.
Just thinking about it made the pain go away like it was a lie.
'...Shit.'
Jacob clenched his hands, barely suppressing the urge to intervene.
“That wooden sword has an iron core!” Jacob thought.
This was cheating, but the White Falcon Knights pretended not to see it.
Jacob gritted his teeth and said loudly: “So these are the people who belong to the White Falcon Knights.”
The knights shrank, understanding the meaning behind his words, but they couldn't respond.
What they were witnessing was shameful, something no knight should do.
“This will destroy your honor,” Jacob added.
The knights stared at him but were unable to refute his words. Meanwhile, Jacob looked like he was ready to engage in battle.
But Deedric's look stopped him silently, and Jacob bit his lip until blood flowed from it.
Even as the beating continued, Deidrick's face remained strangely calm, which puzzled Jacob.
The constant sound of blows echoed in the air.
Ndd! Knock it!
Joanna could take it no longer, so she shouted, “Stop, stop!”
Somerset stopped batting mid-move. Blood from Daedric's wounds dripped onto his wooden sword.
He wiped the blood from his face with the back of his hand. I was rushed into a moment of excitement...
Somerset breathed heavily and backed away from Deederick.
But now that she sees how superior I am, she must change her mind.
But contrary to his expectations, Johanna's expression was strange. She stared at him with pure contempt, her eyes filled with tears.
"What are you doing? What exactly are you trying to show me?"
“I mean....it's a duel...”
"This is not a duel. This is one-sided violence!"
“……”
All of the White Falcon Knights lowered their heads in shame. They had pretended not to notice, but Joanna exposed them.
Somerset's face turned red with anger.
How dare you scold him like that in front of everyone? He shouted at her, refusing to back down.
“Joanna! Even you have no right to talk to me like that. This was a fair duel! Injuries during duels are common among knights! And anyway, I don’t expect someone like you who has never even held a training sword before, to understand that.”
While Somerset continued to defend himself with ridiculous arguments, and even made fun of her, Joanna wiped the tears from her eyes and said with clenched teeth.
“You are the worst.”
She knew there was no point in arguing with Somerset. He won't listen. Talking to him further was useless.
“Joanna!” Somerset shouted her name sharply.
He tried to be nice to her, even lowered himself, but her cold attitudes only served to make him even more angry. And now, her defiance pushed him over the edge. How dare you stand up to him? Doesn't she know her place? His anger was palpable.
Without hesitation, Joanna turned her back on him.
“I can't waste my life on a man like this,” she thought.
She couldn't forget the terrifying image of Somerset's face smiling as he struck Dedrick. It was cruel and scary. Now, he couldn't bear to be insulted in front of others and was lashing out in public anger.
Even now, the memory of his voice was making her heart beat uncomfortably quickly. She placed her hand on her chest to calm her heart, which was still beating strongly, and started running.
“I have to leave.”
She didn't want to stay in this place for even a moment longer.