For a brief moment, Amon simply looked at me.
Not shocked.
Not smug.
Just… contemplative.
Then he put on a polite yet sincere smile.
"I accept your apology, Young Lord Alan."
His voice was calm and composed.
"But I believe you think too highly of me. I only won because I've practiced swordsmanship far longer than you have. If we had learned together, I'm sure you would have surpassed me in no time."
His words carried neither malice nor ridicule.
But they also didn't feel entirely true.
"There's no need for us to dwell on it any longer," Amon continued. "I'd rather we get along moving forward. In fact, I would be honored to become your sparring partner."
The atmosphere in the ballroom softened almost instantly.
Meanwhile, I stared at him silently.
…Was this guy genuinely nice?
Or was he just incredibly good at handling people?
I still couldn't get a proper grasp on him.
Ethea nudged my side.
People were waiting for my response.
"Ah—of course! I'd be happy to be your friend!"
I blurted out in panic before quickly holding out my hand.
And just like that, we shook hands in reconciliation.
Baron Emilton looked so overjoyed that he patted Amon on the back a little too hard.
In fact, he practically shoved him forward.
Nobody got hurt, but unfortunately—
Amon stumbled directly toward Ethea.
Because he lost his balance slightly, he instinctively leaned forward to steady himself.
When he looked up—
His face and Thea's were far too close for comfort.
Judging by the Baron's immediate apology, it clearly wasn't intentional.
But somehow, that only made it more infuriating.
This was fate's doing.
It was trying to drag Thea straight into Amon's future harem.
I couldn't clearly see Thea's expression, but Amon was definitely blushing a little.
I needed to pull Thea away immediately.
But considering Amon and I had only just reconciled, wouldn't dragging her away make it seem like I viewed him as some kind of vermin?
…He was.
But that wasn't the point.
While I desperately tried to think of another solution, Father had already acted.
And his solution was—
Pulling Thea away.
But politely.
"Oh my, this is my eldest daughter. This is your first time meeting her properly, correct, Baron?"
Father smoothly placed Thea beside him, creating a respectable distance between her and Amon.
"It is an honor to meet you, Baron Sheeves Emilton. I am Ethea Spades."
She introduced herself elegantly.
Nice save, Father!
Amon seemed to snap out of his dazed state. He immediately straightened his collar and fixed his posture before taking two glasses of apple juice from a passing servant.
If he planned to offer one to Thea, I was genuinely prepared to duel him to the death this time.
Surprisingly, he walked toward me instead.
He held out one of the glasses.
"How about every two weeks?"
He asked as I accepted the apple juice.
Every two weeks of what?
Seeing the blank expression on my face, Amon clarified.
"Our spars. I mentioned it earlier. You agreed, remember?"
Gasp!
That was during my panic response earlier.
I had unknowingly agreed to become Amon's sparring partner.
In the original novel, I was the one who constantly forced sparring matches onto him.
But now—
He was the one initiating them.
Granted, this still aligned somewhat with the original story.
But I still considered this a small victory against fate.
"I did agree, and I'm still willing to spar, but we can't have sword duels anymore."
I said casually.
Amon frowned slightly.
"What do you mean?"
His voice remained calm.
"I'm planning to become an archer, not a swordsman."
I took a sip of my apple juice while glancing around the ballroom. The butler was still announcing the arrival of other guests.
The ballroom remained noisy.
And yet…
The silence beside me felt strangely heavy.
Amon still hadn't responded.
I turned toward him.
He had frozen completely still.
For a split second, something flickered across Amon's face.
Panic.
No—closer to shock.
"Hey, are you okay?"
At this point, even I was starting to get worried.
Was changing weapons really that shocking to him?
Amon quickly composed himself after I called out to him.
He cleared his throat.
"I'm sorry. I spaced out for a moment. It's just surprising that you gave up on swordsmanship after losing once."
His tone sounded calm again.
Unfortunately…
It also sounded like he was making fun of me.
His brows were slightly furrowed, and I could swear I saw the corner of his lips twitching.
This jerk was pitying me for absolutely no reason.
He definitely thought I gave up because I lost to him.
(Which was technically true.)
He was absolutely making fun of me!
"Haha, what an interesting theory, Young Lord Amon. Unfortunately for you, that assumption is incorrect."
I retaliated immediately.
Amon stared at me blankly.
His annoyingly handsome face practically screamed:
Oh really?
"I merely discovered that I'm far more suited for the bow than the sword. If we fought now, I could defeat you with ease."
I boasted confidently.
Of course, I had no idea if I could actually beat him.
But there was absolutely no way I was letting this guy look down on me.
"Then let's have a spar every month."
Amon suggested immediately.
His tone was firm.
Resolved.
Earlier, he had been thoughtful.
Then confused.
Now he suddenly sounded serious.
I seriously couldn't understand the real Amon at all.
The novel basically described him as kind and dense.
But clearly…
There was far more to him than that.
Maybe I needed to stop viewing him as the protagonist of a story—
And start seeing him as an actual person.
I sighed.
"Alright. We'll decide the location a week before each duel. I'll send you a letter."
I eventually gave in.
Honestly, there were more advantages than disadvantages anyway.
Sparring him would help me measure my own growth.
And if I became close to him…
Maybe I could help steer him toward the right choices for a proper happy ending.
We shook hands once more to finalize the agreement.
Then, after a moment, Amon looked behind me.
Ethea was peeking shyly from behind my back.
She stared directly at Amon.
"Can I come watch your spars?"
She asked in an unusually timid—but admittedly adorable—voice.
A tone that was very clearly not directed at me.
My brows furrowed immediately.
I changed my mind.
I'm killing this rake.
"It would be an honor to have you spectate, Lady Ethea. The insights of a genius mage such as yourself would surely be valuable."
Thea hid behind me, trying—and failing—to hide her smile and strange little giggles.
This guy was dangerously good at flattery.
I could already tell Thea was both pleased and embarrassed.
At this rate, she was definitely going to start liking him more.
Before I could continue glaring at Amon—and perhaps sabotage his image in Thea's mind a little—the ballroom suddenly stirred.
Even the musicians faltered for a moment.
The butler's voice echoed louder than before.
"Her Royal Highness, Princess Agnes Caelmont Falan, has arrived!"
Almost instantly, the ballroom fell silent.
Then everyone bowed.
Whispers spread across the hall like wildfire.
"That's the king's eldest daughter…"
"Why would a member of the royal family attend a baron's banquet?"
"She's even more beautiful than the rumors…"
That reaction was only natural.
But still…
Why was she here?