This Time, I Became the Fiance of a Duke’s Daughter. But She is Rumored to have Bad Personality, and Ten Years Older – Chapter 102

A girl who suddenly appeared let out an angry voice and kicked the ground.
The girl’s speed, as she sprinted like an arrow released without a sound, was too fast.
The hostility she felt was the same, but her movements were exceptional compared to the perfunctory surveillance.

“I’ll get revenge for Brother!”

Jared, who was quickly enveloped in her embrace, hesitated to attack the young girl.

“I don’t mean to pry, but you didn’t kill the Court Mage Candidate, did you?”
“What are you talking about!”

He asked to be sure and was relieved to find she seemed unaware. However, he couldn’t let his guard down.
The girl raised her fist high.
He couldn’t sense any magic. Yet, her eyes, filled with hostility, overflowed with confidence. It was unclear why a girl of about ten years old could move so sharply and be so confident, but Jared’s instincts screamed at him to run.

“Jared! Don’t engage her, let’s run!”

Pfeil’s panicked voice somehow reached his ears, and following his instincts and his warning, he retreated. However, unable to escape completely, he took a defensive stance.
The girl, who introduced herself as Rio, closed the distance further and thrust out her fist.
The moment he tried to defend with his left arm—Jared’s body flew up.

“—Huh?”

He understood he had been punched away only after his vision inverted. The scenery spun slowly, as if the world had slowed down.
Simultaneously, he caught sight of the girl throwing her punch and Pfeil running towards him with a changed expression, and a shock ran through his body.
He realized he had crashed into the ground, but the momentum was so great that he couldn’t stop himself.
He bounced off the ground repeatedly, his whole body aching.
He couldn’t concentrate to use magic and just rolled on the ground, at the mercy of his momentum.
He wondered where such raw strength came from in the slender arm of a girl about ten years old, capable of knocking away the body of a trained, albeit underage, person, and then his body stopped after an impact he couldn’t count.

“Jared!”

Pfeil, covered in sand and dirt, helped him up. His limbs felt weak, and he was on the verge of losing consciousness.

“Let’s run, she’s a dragon.”
“…A dra, gon?”
“Yes. Not just any Dragon Species, but a Dragon, the strongest race on this continent. No matter how skilled you are as a magician who can wield multiple elements, or how well I’ve been trained by Waalthe, we cannot win in a fight against her.”
“You won’t escape. I’ve come to avenge my brother. You may escape, but I will leave Jared Murphy behind.”

Pfeil gritted his teeth and glared at the dragon girl within Jared’s field of vision.
If she were a dragon, this absurd strength made sense. Jared knew about the unreasonably strong, who were born with their power.
However…

“I… have no reason… to be hated by a dragon…”

He somehow managed to voice that he had no idea why, but his vision grew dark.
Mustering his remaining strength, he told Pfeil to run, and Jared lost consciousness.

***

“Run, Pfeil!”
“—Kya!”

Jared woke up with a loud shout and, hearing a familiar voice scream, looked around.

“Huh, where is this?”
“Hey… are you trying to stop my heart by suddenly waking up and shouting so loudly?”
“Olivier?”
“Yes. I’m Olivier Alway, your fiancée.”

He remembered being punched unconscious by the dragon girl, Rio, but he hadn’t expected to be back at the mansion when he woke up.

“Where’s Pfeil?”
“I understand you’re worried since you’re asking, but calm down. Pfeil is safe. He was the one who carried you back to the mansion.”
“That’s a relief…”
“No, it’s not.”
“Yes?”

Seeing Olivier’s expression, Jared froze.
She was angry. He didn’t need to ask; it was clear she was furious.

“Look, I’ll let the fact that you didn’t get escorts from the Mage Association, despite making us worry, slide. But what do you mean by coming back unconscious less than half a day after we saw you off?”
“Uh, well, I’m sorry.”
“I won’t forgive you this time. And on top of that, a dragon girl followed you.”
“She followed you!?”

Olivier nodded in affirmation, leaving Jared speechless.
He couldn’t accept that a girl with strength disproportionate to her appearance, capable of ruthlessly ending consciousness with a single punch, was now in this mansion.
He felt apologetic, thinking he had brought disaster upon himself.
However…

“Why are you and Olivier safe?”
“She didn’t do anything. The girl who called herself Rio said she had no intention of attacking anyone but you. She followed you because she has something she wants to say to you.”
“What is she doing now?”
“She’s in the dining room with Mother and them, happily eating the pastries Trane prepared. Seeing her like that, you wouldn’t think she’s a dragon, would you?”

Olivier smiled, but Jared tilted his head, not understanding why Rio was being friendly. She had harbored so much hostility towards him, and it felt a bit unreasonable.
He hadn’t seen her eating pastries, but he imagined the sight of that young girl enjoying herself wouldn’t make anyone think she was a dragon.
Jared himself still found it hard to believe Rio was a dragon.

“I made her promise not to use violence in this mansion. Pfeil is keeping a watchful eye, but the problem is Yeny.”
“What’s wrong with Yeny?”
“She hasn’t drawn it, but she’s holding her sword with pure hostility. She can’t forgive you for getting hurt. Of course, I have my thoughts about you getting hurt, but I can’t complain to such a young child. That’s why I was waiting here to talk to you directly, Jared.”
“I’m sorry about everything. Well then, let’s go and calm Yeny down for now.”
“I’d appreciate that. I told Yeny not to fight, but she gets a little scary when it comes to you. Even if Rio promised not to fight, if Yeny attacks, it’ll be a disaster.”

He doubted he could stop Yeny if she truly went berserk.
From his recent fight with Rosa Roen, he knew her swordsmanship was abnormal. He even suspected her pure combat power, without magic, might surpass his.
But his opponent was a dragon. The strongest creature on the continent. He couldn’t possibly win against it.
Jared tried to get up from the bed, but his left arm lacked strength, and he lost his balance.

“Are you alright? I had the doctor check you, and while it’s not fractured, he said you’ll have a lingering numb sensation for a while.”
“…It’s good it’s not my dominant arm.”
“Oh, what a shame. If it were your dominant arm, I would have helped you with your meals.”

To Olivier’s mischievous smile, Jared returned a wry smile.

“Here, let me help you.”
“Thank you.”

Leaning on Olivier’s shoulder, he got up from the bed, his body creaking in pain.
He deduced he had suffered bruises all over from bouncing on the ground so many times.

“Let’s go to the dining room like this.”
“…I’m sorry to be a bother.”
“It’s fine. Because I’m your fiancée. Even if it’s a small thing, I’m happy if I can be of some help.”

Jared blushed at Olivier’s words and couldn’t reply.

“But still, try not to get injured so much.”
“…Yes.”
“Don’t worry me too much.”

Jared silently, yet firmly, nodded at Olivier’s genuinely concerned tone.