The Young Lady Tames the Main Leads

“I don’t know, but it looks very expensive and precious. You’re going to give me this? Why?”

“Hey, it’s not about giving, it’s about lending. My Lord, you can use it when you fight.”

I explained to Cedric the function of my artifact, “Artifacts are magical items. If you think of it as just a stone with a gem and handle it, unexpected things may happen.”

“Aha, I see. So, I can just put a chain through the hole here and hang it inside my shirt like a necklace?”

“Yes, that is correct.”

“If I use this to fight, will I really be able to defeat my brother?”

I retorted with a smirk. “Hey, you don’t believe me? It’s real.”

‘Cedric, as expected. Of course, I don’t understand why you keep doubting its abilities. But believe me one more time and try it!’ I thought to myself and broadened my shoulders to look more trustworthy.

“Use this, and you must win. And bring the sword back.”

“……Okay. I’ll try.”

“Well thought. It will definitely work out.”

I clenched my fists and shouted ‘Fighting’ to which I could see Cedric’s face, which had stiffened with tension, regain a faint smile.

“……Thank you. For every time.”

“No big deal.”

As always, I just brushed it off as if it was nothing and just smiled. Cedric’s hand, which finally took the artifact from mine, was trembling slightly.

***

In the evening after kindergarten, the sunset’s rays dyed the hall of the Bedmond mansion crimson.

“……What is it?”

A boy of about ten years old, lying loosely on a bench in the corner of the hall, spoke. This boy was Cervan, the second son of Bedmond. Cervan noticed a little figure approaching him and woke up from his short nap.

“I formally challenge Brother to a duel. To get my sword back.”

The challenger was none other than the main character of the story, Cedric.

At the bold and unexpected request for a duel from his younger brother, Cervan was surprised and silent for a moment. In fact, Cedric had been hovering around Cervan the whole time previously. However, he did not have the courage to challenge him to another duel, so he was about to give up and go back. This was probably because he hadn’t overcome the shock of a painful defeat yet. However, just as Cedric was about to take a step back, her words came to mind.

‘It will be fine.’

The girl who gave him courage with a bright smile, Emir.

Cedric suddenly wondered, ‘She is so smart, it’s as if she knows the future. How the hell does she say that all the time?’

‘You don’t even know how to use a sword, but you seem braver than me.’

As soon as he thought about her, Cedric had to make up his mind. Even Emir, who is weaker than him, had such a courageous spirit. As a descendant of the Bedmond family, he was unable to give up on himself. So he walked forward and proudly challenged his brother to a duel.

Fortunately, Cervan, who was bewildered and half-awake, accepted Cedric’s challenge to duel. In fact, it was natural. Cedric had already lost to Cervan once, and it wasn’t that long ago. Because of this, he decided to fight him again. He thought the result wouldn’t be very different. However, Cervan couldn’t stay relaxed for long.

“Ugh…!”

Despite the fact that he was fighting with a blunt sword, Cervan upon getting stabbed in the side by Cedric’s sword, groaned. He thought as he struggled to take Cedric’s sword with one hand, with a face full of absurdity and wonder, ‘Damn, how the hell?’ Cedric had changed completely in just a few days. The power itself had become subtly stronger, but what really changed was… His look. His attitude.

‘Your eyes show that you are determined now.’

Even in the urgent moment of the clashing swords, Cervan looked at his brother’s fiery eyes and sighed. The moment he saw those eyes, victory or defeat might have been decided. In the first place, this was not a fight that could be won. In fact, Cervan knew a long time ago. Since he is three years older than Cedric, his physical strength might be a little stronger right now, but his innate talent is incomparable to Cedric’s. And when Cedric grows into his strength and is fully mature, Cedric will overwhelmingly surpass him.

‘Maybe, later… Cedric will surpass Older Brother too.’

Sometimes, Cervan secretly thought this when watching Cedric’s sword training. He was afraid that it might get into his older brother’s ear, so he couldn’t get it out of his mouth. This was also why Cervan was able to beat Cedric in the last duel.

‘He was stirred up with words, so it was worth seeing him rashly accept the challenge.’

If they had faced each other in a calm situation, the result might have been a draw. A match is not something that can be won just by being strong. However, Cedric, who was full of extreme agitation and a childish sense of victory, was sluggish and made more mistakes than usual. Due to this, in the end, Cervan defeated Cedric, and as a reward, he obtained a sword that he didn’t have in his possession yet.

Taking the sword from his younger brother did make him feel guilty, but he literally felt it just a little.

‘Eventually, the sword was taken away within a few days.’