<span>***


    <span>And after that exchange, here they were.


    <span>“Grab the restraints. One for Rishe, three for me.”


    <span>“–Hai!”


    <span>The knight guard Arnold ordered began to move after a snappy reply.


    <span>However, the look they gave Rishe while they were at it obediently was terribly worried.


    <span>The knights returned with a crate and held it out to their lord, bowing their heads.


    <span>Arnold took it and picked up a certain item inside.


    <i><span>… A belt?</i>


    <span>“Put this on.”


    <span>Rishe obediently received what was handed over.


    <span>It was a brace in the form of suspenders and a belt in one piece.


    <span>While Arnold exined, he first put his arms through the suspenders in a loop.


    <span>The belt that intersected with those two suspenders vertically was wrapped around his waist and secured with a sp.


    <span>“Turn around when you’re done.”


    <span>She turned around as ordered.


    <span>Then Arnold’s hand, fitted with a ck glove, grabbed Rishe’s left hand.


    <span>He wrapped a thin strap around her wrist.


    <span>And then, he put Rishe’s left hand behind her, and secured her waist belt and wrist strap with metal fittings.


    <span>“This is…”


    <span>In this manner, her left hand was useless.


    <span>“Special training is performed with the body partially restrained and the movement of the limbs impeded.”


    <span>As he spoke, he himself began to wear the same restraints.


    <span>The difference was that while Rishe’s dominant arm, the right side, was free, Arnold had a strap wrapped around his right dominant arm.


    <span>“Is this how you always train?”


    <span>“Not necessarily. Everything woulde to nothing if you were to develop some strange habits.”


    <span>As if ustomed to it, Arnold finished putting his belt on, and grabbed another tool from the crate before he could secure his wrist behind him.


    <span>It was simr to a knee pad, but it didn’t seem to have the same use as it looked.


    <span>Arnold wrapped that leather around his left knee.


    <i><span>He’s trying to keep his left leg unbent.</i>


    <span>He then picked up a ck eye patch.


    <span>Arnold covered his right eye with that eye patch and tied the cord behind his head.


    <span>Finally, a knight guard stepped forward reverently and secured Arnold’s wrist to the belt at his waist.


    <span>Rishe, on the other hand, has only her left hand restrained.


    <span>“Make adjustments in this state. — Sword.”


    <span>The knight who received Arnold’s signal held out a wooden sword to Rishe.


    <span>Rishe thanked the knight and held the wooden sword in one hand.


    <span>“I see…”


    <span>She could feel how her center of gravity was thrown out of whack just from not being able to use her left hand.


    <span>On top of that, it would strain her muscles to use only one hand to support something she normally held with both hands.


    <span>But it didn’t seem so simple.


    <span>“Is sealing off the limbs to bring conditions closer to the battlefield?”


    <span>“Hmm, do you understand?”


    <span>“Because if it’s just to strengthen the core and build up the muscles, there’s no reason for Your Highness to cover one eye.”


    <span>Rishe asked while looking at Arnold, who received a wooden sword from a knight.”


    <span>“This training is for – continuing to fight even when a part of your body is disabled on the battlefield – right?”


    <span>“…Hahaha!”


    <span>Arnoldughed heartily and pointed the sharp tip of his wooden sword at Rishe.


    <span>“Great observation, as always.”


    <span>Unlike Rishe, it wasn’t his dominant arm that was free.


    <span>Moreover, it was his left arm, which was slightly slower to move than the right due to an old injury in his shoulder joint. And yet, there wasn’t even a hint of an opening.


    <span>“Not very much, but it’s hard to believe you’re a properdy who knows nothing about the real battlefield.”


    <span>“…”


    <span>She could feel her skin tingling in the tense air.


    <span>The knight guards unconsciously backed away, as if their instincts as swordsmen made them do so.


    <span>“If you get wounded, you can’t move your arms. If you get blood sshed in your eyes, they’ll be useless for a while. But even in those circumstances, the fight goes on, and the enemy will attack you.”


    <span>A vivid memory of the battlefield revived in Rishe’s mind.


    <span>“I will swing my sword even if my arm is torn to shreds. Even if my legs are shattered, I will still advance. Even if both of my eyes are crushed, I’ll find a way to sh into the enemy until the end.”


    <span>Arnold looked at Rishe.


    <span>“This training is for that.”


    <span>His eyes have always been sharp.


    <span>Even with one eye covered with an eyepatch, she wondered where that heavy pressure stemmed from.


    <span>“– It’s the so-called link to the path to survival.”


    <span>“!”


    <span>His words made her gulp.


    <i><span>I shouldn’t have fought against him.</i>


    <span>Chivalry, as Rishe knew it, was a kind of aesthetic.


    <span>It required nobility and beauty, even while wielding a sword and fighting for the country.


    <span>To take up a sword fairly and squarely, to fight without shame, even against the enemy, and to die for one’s master to the end” was respected.


    <span>Even Rishe, once a knight, risked her life and eventually died to protect the royal family.


    <i><span>Despite the odds, survive, even if it means floundering unsightly — and to the enemy for it. That’s what made up the knights of the Garkhain Army.</i>


    <span>In the past, Rishe had this man as an enemy.


    <span>And depending on her fate in the future, there was a possibility that they might be enemies again.


    <span>Arnoldughed as Rishe gingerly regripped her wooden sword.


    <span>“Normally, I’d have you experience a fight with me after you’ve gone through basic training. Since you’re the one I’m dealing with this time, I’m only covering one eye instead of both.”


    <span>“It’s my honor, Your Highness.”


    <span>“Don’t worry, I’m not going to let my fiancée suffer a single injury before the wedding.”


    <span>Arnold could guarantee that because of the overwhelming difference in their ability.


    <span>Rishe thought for a moment and then opened her mouth.


    <span>“If I beat Your Highness, can you tell me one thing about anything I want to know?”


    <span>“…What?”


    <span>“In return, if I lose, I’ll grant you one thing, whatever Your Highness desires.”


    <span>Arnolt looked surprised, thenughed as if delighted by Rishe’s bet.


    <span>“All right.”


    <span>“Well, then, please treat me favorably.”


    <span>A knight gave the signal for the start.


    <hr>