(26) In The Assembly: 03

The doorkeeper yelled out the names, his voice reverberating through the vast hall, commanding the attention of everyone present. "The second candidate for the Royal Selection, Priscilla Barielle, accompanied by her knight, Al!"

Before the tension could hit its peak, the grand doors swung open with dramatic flair. Priscilla entered as if the universe itself had inconvenienced her by not placing her at the center of existence. Her golden hair shimmered under the dazzling chandeliers, each strand catching the light like molten gold. Her crimson dress sparkled with the ferocity of a blazing fire, and her smirk—oh, her smirk—dripped with an unparalleled disdain for everything and everyone in the room.

Al trailed behind her, his expression a mix of exasperation and resignation, like a man who knew exactly how out of place he looked but had long since stopped caring.

Not long after, the doors opened once again. "The third candidate for the Royal Selection, Crusch Karsten, accompanied by her knight, Ferris Argyle!"

Crusch strode in, her every step echoing with purpose and unshakable authority. Her presence alone was enough to silence the room, her emerald-green gaze cutting through the whispers like a blade. Behind her, Ferris sauntered with a catlike grace, his playful smile contrasting sharply with his lady's stern demeanor. When his gaze landed on Subaru, he gave her a wink so exaggerated and cheeky that Subaru turned away so fast she nearly gave herself whiplash.

"The fourth candidate, Anastasia Hoshin, accompanied by her knight, Julius Juukulius!"

Anastasia stepped in with a sharp smile that made Subaru's skin crawl. Her fox-like cunning was evident in her calculating gaze and confident stride. She looked like someone who could sell water to a drowning man and make him thank her for the deal. Behind her was Julius, the epitome of a picture-perfect knight. His every move was precise, his polished demeanor radiating a calm that Subaru found annoyingly perfect.

Finally, the last announcement shook the room. "The fifth candidate, Felt, accompanied by Reinhard van Astrea!"

The doors flung open, and Felt stormed in like a whirlwind. Her uncontained energy was palpable, her defiant smirk challenging the very structure of the assembly. Behind her, Reinhard walked with a regal calmness that matched Crusch's authority, his blue eyes scanning the room with an unshakable resolve.

Subaru observed the newcomers with a mix of curiosity and confusion. She had never met them before, yet here they stood—opponents to Emilia. Her resolve hardened. Protecting Emilia was her job, after all. Easy enough. But her focus faltered when her gaze landed on Felt.

Wasn't she the thief Subaru had met in the slums? How on earth was she a candidate for the throne? Both Subaru and Emilia shared a brief, bewildered look but wisely said nothing.

The other candidates and their knights assessed Emilia with varied expressions—curiosity, skepticism, and outright disdain. Felt, however, huffed in frustration, glaring not at Emilia but at Subaru, her sharp eyes narrowing.

Meanwhile, the knights who accompanied their respective candidates had their gazes fixed firmly on Subaru. Reinhard's eyes, in particular, widened in what could only be described as impossible recognition.

"Grandmother…" he uttered, his voice trembling with awe.

The room collectively blinked.

"Huh?" Subaru barely had time to process the bizarre declaration before Reinhard was suddenly in front of her, his piercing blue eyes boring into hers.

"Grandmother!" he repeated, his voice full of reverence.

Time seemed to slow down for Subaru. Every instinct in her body screamed confusion and panic. Before she even registered her actions, her foot shot out, connecting with Reinhard's chest. The force was so great that the Sword Saint was launched backward, landing unceremoniously in a decorative pool in the corner of the hall.

"That's a no-go, dude!" Subaru snapped, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment and irritation. "Is this how you treat cute girls, bro?!"

Silence enveloped the hall.

Reinhard emerged from the pool, water dripping from his red hair and pristine armour, yet his gaze remained unwavering. "Grandmother… Theresia van Astrea…" he said with absolute certainty, his voice echoing through the stunned hall.

The court collectively gasped, their whispers quickly escalating into an uproar.

"The Legendary Sword Saint is not dead?!"

"Theresia van Astrea has returned?!"

"The previous Sword Saint has been reincarnated!"

The grand hall erupted like a fish market, with nobles, knights, and spectators yelling over each other in disbelief. Otto, on the sidelines, wrote at a speed that seemed physically impossible, his quill scratching furiously as if his life depended on recording every word. Rosewall, ever the opportunist, grinned so wide it seemed his face might split in two. Emilia shifted nervously, glancing between Subaru and Reinhard, her unease growing by the second.

Subaru, however, was utterly flabbergasted. Her hands shot up in an attempt to calm the chaos. "Oi, oi, settle down already!" she shouted, her voice cutting through the din. "I don't know what you're all talking about, but I'm not whoever this 'Theresia' is!"

Her declaration did little to quell the commotion. Reinhard stepped forward, his expression as serene as ever despite being completely soaked. "Grandmother," he said gently, as though trying to comfort a confused child. "There's no mistake. You're Theresia van Astrea, the Legendary Sword Saint. I can feel it. My Divine Protection of Grandmother Sensing has never failed me."

Subaru's jaw dropped. "Your what?!"

"The Divine Protection of Grandmother Sensing," Reinhard repeated earnestly, as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

Subaru pinched the bridge of her nose, muttering under her breath. "This has got to be a joke. A really bad joke." She looked up, exasperated. "Listen, I don't care what kind of divine protection you've got, but I'm an 18-year-old virgin. Not a mother, and definitely not a grandmother!"

Reinhard's calm, determined gaze didn't waver. "Grandmother, I—"

Subaru cut him off with a sharp gesture. "Don't call me that! I'm not your grandmother!"

"Nonsense!"

"No you are without senses!" She yelled before leaning closer to him and whispering. "I am a virgin for crying out loud!"

He gasped. "Impossible! If you are a virgin then how was dad conceived?"

Subaru facepalmed. Emilia was about to ask something about kissing but Ram nudged her to stay quiet.

"This is getting interesting, Emilia-sama." She said. "Barusu-sama is a walking talking drama theatre."

"Listen buddy, I look like I could be your kid—" Subaru said but was cut in by the freak.

"You cannot be my child, Grandmother, you are my grandmother, after all. He said, clutching his chest. "Not to mention I am a virgin too!"

Subaru stared at him before sighing. "Listen and listen well, kid, it looks like your mom had dropped you when you were a kid—"

"It was actully my father." Reinhard said.

"—which is why you think that every cute redhead girl is your granny. Which is nice— and romantic to some creepy lengths but YOU HAVE TAKEN THIS TOO FAR!"

"I did not!" He retorted. "Please forgive me, grandma! I did not mean to kill you."

Subaru was on the verge of summoning her blade now.

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