Chapter 38: Beast Princess

As soon as I left the Grand Duke’s office, I tossed the jewellery box onto Vil whilst keeping the gem in my hand. No matter how I looked at it, I couldn’t find anything interesting about it other than that it was... um... beautiful?

It has a distinctive, strange aura, and as soon as it was near me, I felt a sense of calm and clarity, but that’s all.

On my way back, as I was passing through the Knights’ Courtyard, I stopped when I noticed little Rosa practising with Roman... Well, it would be an exaggeration to say they were practising.

It was clear that Roman was bullying the poor child as she tried to push away his massive sword—which weighed ten times her own weight and was pinning her to the ground—whilst he laughed merrily and encouraged her, all the whilst mocking her. Leaning on his sword without a shred of conscience, he pressed down on it to prevent her from the slightest chance of pushing the weight of the sword away from her

She started kicking his leg like a rabbit, but honestly, it was more like kicking a rock... I even feared she might sprain her ankle because of the speed of her kicks, but fortunately, when she realised how futile it was, she gave up

And when she failed to use physical strength or agility, she resorted to her deadliest weapon... she cried... which made the foolish brother rush over and move the sword away himself whilst checking on her, thinking she might be hurt, especially given her face, which had turned red from sheer exhaustion, her ragged breathing, and her hair, which was a messy, dishevelled mess like a vagrant’s, but she took advantage of his lowered guard, grabbed her dagger and screamed as she stabbed him in the chest with the dagger still in its sheath

"I’ve got you," she laughed like the villain in a Children’s storybooks, but she immediately regretted it because it became clear who the real villain was when Roman raised the massive sword once more, smiling with feigned anger.

She screamed as she fled from him, and he began chasing her across the square, she run whilst using the knights as scapegoats – who somehow seemed... um... happy, whilst Roman showed them no mercy... In fact, the more he saw the stupid grins on their faces, the more determined he was to strike them with greater force and greater fury,

whilst he tried to get little Rosa to stop messing about. But once again, his pride prevented him from admitting defeat twice in a row in front of her... because it was clear that this cunning girl knew exactly what she was doing.

Well, and this is little Rosa’s problem: all men are prepared to be trampled under her heels because of her ability ’Desirable – Passive’ and her second ability ’Beast Princess – Passive’.

But from the names of these two abilities, you can tell just how dangerous the situation could become with the slightest bit of attention from her towards any man, or even the slightest misunderstanding

Because her very presence is, quite literally, a provocation and a challenge to all the bestial instincts of the opposite sex.

"Hey... you two."

So, to help this fool and put a stop to the farce before it turned into something nobody would like in the end, I called out as I approached them.

"Brother Alexander, I’ve beaten Brother Roman again, you know..." Rosa approached me first, eagerly explaining her duel with Roman whilst panting.

I stroked her hair gently to brush away the dust and dirt, but I didn’t bother listening to her explanation, knowing full well that she’d cheated... So I advised her with a smile

"You know it’s not wise to play in this arena, don’t you?..." Before I could finish my sentence, she snatched the gem from my hand, ignoring me completely

"Lovely. Where did you get this, brother? Can I have it?"

Hmm, although I wanted to give it to her, unfortunately

"No, it’s for a mission from the Grand Duke, but I promise you that when I go, I’ll choose the biggest and most beautiful piece for you and bring it back to you, because I’m going to the mine to collect these stones."

"Is that a promise?"

Hold on... why do I feel like I’ve just raised a big red flag? So, wisely, I changed my tune with a serious expression.

"No, I won’t. Go and get one yourself..."

But even before I could finish my sentence, I sensed a shift in the wind from my left and the air around me turned as cold as frost. So, instinctively, I drew my sword, but I was too slow to assume a defensive stance, and I was blown across the square.

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