One of the Western Army knights snapped back, opening his mouth.

“What are you saying—!”

“Did I say something wrong?”

Another Central Army knight smirked and asked.

The shouting Western knight flinched and shut his mouth.

Seeing that, the Central Army knights burst out laughing.

‘All the Central Army knights are famous.’

They were renowned for their martial skills.

The holy knight Dikpero who had subdued the ancient monster.

The spear master Sham.

Seoho, a knight recognized by an emperor from another continent, who was exiled and given a noble title.

Though still in the original knights, they had received ‘first-class ratings.’

Their skills were obviously incomparable to the Western Army knights.

The Western Army knights lowered their heads before the Central Army’s prestige.

The central Original Knight (Wonhwa) smiled faintly among them.

The Central Army’s general tutted and said,

“Instead of getting distracted elsewhere, focus on training. Even if you wear ragged armor, the ‘real thing’ shows its presence.”

The Western Army knights’ expressions twisted more and more.

‘So because the Western Army is fake, wearing ragged armor makes them look like back-alley thugs?’

It was an outright insult to the Western Army.

The Central Army knights passed us alongside Silin.

Then,

“Central Army, halt.”

—I said.

The Central Army knights and Silin turned to me.

I stepped through the Western Army ranks and faced Silin.

“Salute?”

At my words, Central Army General Jowick Chateaubriand muttered, “Ah.”

Then roughly bowed his waist.

“I greet the Western Army Original Knight. You’ve endured much since your first year of appointment.”

He glanced at the Western Army and snickered.

It meant pity for being assigned trash like the Western Army.

Then the Central General raised his head again.

Or tried to.

If I hadn’t grabbed and pushed his head down—

“...!”

The Central General flinched.

Other Central Army knights and Silin looked at me with stern faces.

I pressed the Central General’s head firmly with one hand and said,

“Remember. When you salute, the waist angle should be like this.”

“...!!”

The Central General’s earlobes turned bright red.

I could clearly feel his trembling from humiliation.

Central General Jowick Chateaubriand was Silin’s cousin brother.

Silin snapped sharply.

“Stop your rudeness!”

“It would have been better if you’d corrected the Central Army when they were rude to the Western Army.”

“Wh-what did you say?”

I released the Central General’s head and glanced at the Central knights.

“You better watch your words. The Western Army may have endured this insult—but—”

“...”

“...”

“...”

“I haven’t.”

The Central Army knights flinched.

I’m Chronos Astra’s granddaughter.

Just the Astra name alone was enough to shut their mouths.

Silin looked at me with cold eyes.

“I didn’t realize my knights’ words made you uncomfortable. I thought they were just the usual advice.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. Forgive them. My knights only said those words for the Western Army’s growth. They had no other feelings.”

Then she glanced at the Western Army and added,

“I hope there won’t be a need to advise you anymore.”

It implied there wouldn’t have been a need if the Western Army hadn’t been such a mess.

I smiled faintly.

“Yes.”

“If that’s settled, I’ll take my leave.”

“Oh, I have one ‘piece of advice’ as well.”

“No, we’re skilled enough not to need advice. You should keep your advice to yourself—”

“No matter how expensive the armor, the ‘real one’ shows.”

“Even if you wear ragged armor, the ‘real one’ shows.”

Silin and the Central Army knights’ expressions stiffened sharply.

I smiled brightly and said,

“Even wearing such expensive armor, there’s no sign of ‘real’... how unfortunate.”

Then I suddenly turned around.

I felt a sharp gaze on my back.

Ignoring it, I looked at the Western Army knights who stared wide-eyed.

“What are you doing?”

“...Yes?”

“Let’s go.”

“...Yes.”

The knights laughed nervously and followed me.

From behind, Silin still seemed to glare at me as if wanting to tear me apart, but I ignored her and walked on.

Passing a corner, we arrived at the office.

Han Ji-hyuk was waiting, so I entered the office with him.

The office prepared for me was still disorganized.

‘Came earlier than the appointment ceremony.’

Palace staff had tidied up, but the desk still had the previous Original Knight’s belongings.

‘I need to organize more.’

As I ordered the palace servants to clean, I felt eyes piercing my cheek.

Glancing back, the Western Army knights were sneaking glances at me.

“Why?”

“Oh, nothing.”

“If you have something to say, say it quickly.”

“Well...”

The captains exchanged glances. After a while, Golgo spoke on behalf of them.

“Th-thank you.”

“For what?”

“For protecting us...”

“Why would I protect someone else’s kids instead of my own?”

The Western Army knights’ eyes widened.

I sighed deeply and looked at them.

“And that’s not the point, is it?”

“Yes?”

“Getting angry at being ignored comes before feeling thankful.”

“That may be so...”

“Yes, but it can’t be helped.”

I stared at the knights hesitating with indifferent expression.

“Because you lack skill. The Western Army is a mess, that’s a fact.”

“...”

“...”

“...”

“Do you know why you’re afraid of losing?”

When I asked, the knights and Golgo moaned, “Uh...”

Golgo said,

“Because your reputation falls?”

“Wrong. Because you get used to losing.”

“...”

“You get used to hearing people badmouth you and accept you’re no good. Eventually, you draw the line yourself.”

“...”

“That person is better than me, I’m a loser. So I make a limit that I can never win.”

Just like my first life self did.

Dahlia thought she could never win.

“But doesn’t that hurt your pride?”

“...”

“...”

“...”

“I don’t think you even have that pride left.”

The knights’ faces darkened.

Golgo, who spoke for them, fell silent.

I placed the documents on the dusted table.

“You keep thinking that way. I don’t.”

“...Yes?”

“Huh?”

“I believe the Western Army can beat the Central Army in this ghoul extermination. Unlike you, I haven’t gotten used to losing.”

The knights quieted down, and the servants eyed us nervously.

I quietly sat down.

The knights said,

“We’ll return to the training ground.”

“Good.”

They silently headed back to the training ground.

Han Ji-hyuk glanced at their backs and whispered to me.

“Isn’t that too harsh? They’re not even twenty yet.”

“Maybe.”

“What?”

“I think they’re just starting to burn.”

I saw a faint spark flicker in the knights’ eyes.

‘They’re warriors, after all.’

No one wants to lose.

They’ve just grown accustomed to losing, but the warrior’s desire to win was sleeping inside their hearts.

And the hidden spark could be awakened surprisingly easily.

If there’s someone who believes in them.

‘Just like my first life self did.’

I smiled as I flipped through the documents.

Han Ji-hyuk asked,

“So what will you do now?”

“Make money.”

“Money?”

“Yeah.”

“How...? Planning to take a loan or something?”

“I have something in mind.”

I couldn’t make the knights stronger like the holy knights with blessings.

‘But I can bring good weapons and good commanders.’

Silin entered the Central Army administrative office and threw items off the table.

Bang─!

Clang...!!

A sharp crashing sound echoed as the Central Army general hurriedly tried to calm her down.

“W-Wonhwa.”

“Why do you just stand there while filthy blood disrespects me!!”

Silin screamed like a shout.

The Central Army general and knights broke into cold sweat.

“B-But...”

“You should have thrown a glove at their face! You should have drawn your sword because you can’t tolerate disrespect to my Wonhwa!!”

“Even if they’re in charge of the messed-up Western Army, she’s still the Wonhwa. As her knights, you can’t treat her carelessly...”

When Silin glared, the general flinched and swallowed his words.

No one could stop her when she got this worked up.

When the general gestured to the knights, they cautiously stepped out.

From inside came sounds of the general trying to soothe Silin and Silin’s screams.

The knights sighed.

“When she erupts once, it’s uncontrollable...”

“People think she’s gentle and elegant, so it’s frustrating.”

“It’ll be chaos for days.”

The knights shook their heads, groaning.

“How are we supposed to calm the Wonhwa’s temper?”

“If we tried, we’d be the ones bleeding. Look at the Southern Army Wonhwa. She just obeyed orders but when the situation worsened, she bailed.”

“Enough. Think about how to calm that young lady’s temper.”

“What a headache...”

The knights sighed again.

Meanwhile, inside the administrator’s office.

General Jowick embraced Silin’s shoulders and comforted her.

Silin was sobbing in his arms.

The general said,

“No matter how much filthy blood rages, they’ll never beat the Central Army.”

“But, brother...!”

“How many ghouls do you think you can kill with that dull sword without white ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) jade?”

“...That’s right. No matter how arrogant, it’ll be revealed during the ghoul extermination. Erilot Astra is an empty shell.”

“Right, right.”

Jowick rubbed Silin’s cheek with his fingertip.

“Don’t cry. You’ll ruin your pretty face.”

“Mm.”

Silin clung to Jowick, whining.

‘As long as brother is here, I won’t lose.’

Jowick’s blessing is .

A blessing that allows him to see the opponent’s past.

‘This blessing helped me overcome crises many times.’

By seeing the past, he could read even the opponent’s strategies.

It was Jowick who disguised himself and participated in the Southern Army preliminaries to make Rika an Original Knight.

It was a very special blessing said to be born once every hundred years.

That’s why they put poor distant relative Jowick in the position of general.

‘We’ll see.’

Silin suddenly lifted her head.

“Brother, can you use your blessing on Erilot Astra?”

“What?”

“Then you could read how that girl will move the Western Army, right?”

“You can’t use blessings for personal reasons in the palace.”

Only authorized persons can use blessings ‘within permitted limits.’

Knights wear restraining seals except when training or inside the castle.

“Please, brother.”

“She’s an opponent we can already beat.”

“You never know. Besides, the Western Army is short on money, right? She might secretly ask my grandfather for funds.”

“Hmm...”

“If found out, it would be reported directly to His Majesty the Emperor. The Western Army won’t participate in the ghoul extermination, and she’ll be kicked out of the Original Knight position.”

“Silin.”

“Can cute Silin ask you like this and still be refused?”

Silin clasped her hands and pouted.

Jowick sighed inwardly.

‘If I refuse, I don’t know how this princess will react.’

Jowick’s parents and siblings lived under the protection of the Chateaubriand Duke.

They’d certainly flip out and cut support if upset.

Jowick patted Silin’s shoulder and sighed.

“Being the oldest at seventeen is really tough, Father.”

Jowick said,

“I’ll look for an opportunity...”

“As expected, my only ally is brother!”

Silin snuggled into Jowick’s arms and smiled.

‘Jowick...’

He was the birthday present the Duke Chateaubriand gave six years ago.

Tall.

Good-looking.

Talented.

The Duke said he’d let Jowick leave when he came of age, but Silin had no intention of leaving.

‘Brother is mine forever.’

Silin looked at Jowick with a proud expression, then sighed as if troubled.

The next day, morning.

Jowick sneaked into the palace during the quiet lunch hour.

‘Erilot Astra said she was in the office.’

The Duke Chateaubriand gave him a special magical tool that weakened the restraining seal.

It meant to grant the wish of his adorable daughter.

Just as Jowick approached the Garden of Flames, a beautiful blonde girl carrying a pile of books came out.

“Central General?”

The girl greeted.

“Good morning, Western Army Original Knight.”

“Yes. Do you have business with me?”

“No. I was on my way to the Central General...”

Jowick lightly placed his hand on the girl’s shoulder.

“You have stitches.”

That was his excuse to make contact.

Suddenly, memories began to unfold before his eyes.

‘What’s she planning to do to make money...?’

At that moment,

“Don’t come near me.”

On a windy night.

A woman in her twenties stood in the softly lit Lily of the Valley garden.

Beautiful blonde hair flowing.

Detached gaze.

Slender shoulders draped with golden hair.

When she bowed her head, even a single lowered eyelash made the heart flutter.

Jowick’s face instantly turned bright red.

“Ah, beautiful...”

“...?”

Who on earth was this woman?

Her expression, holding back sorrow, made his heart ache.

‘Is it sadness? No.’

Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.

The pounding sound of a heart was incredibly loud.

“Ah, do you have a sister?”