Note: The character Shizeliana who appears here is the noblewoman axe warrior introduced in Chapter 130.
＜Shizeliana’s POV＞
Winter had passed.
The new year had begun.
In the hills and fields of spring, Shizeliana was training alone.
「……」
Holding her battle axe, she performed a practice kata to review her form.
Once that was done, she moved on to technique training.
At that moment, a certain scene flashed through Shizeliana’s mind.
Last year’s grand martial arts tournament――――
The final move that Henry unleashed during the king selection match.
Thinking about that, Shizeliana pushed off the ground and leapt into the air.
「Hah!」
She soared high and flipped forward in midair.
Using the centrifugal force from the flip and the force of gravity from the fall, she brought her battle axe down to the ground.
The axe buried itself into the earth with a loud impact. The ground caved in, and cracks spread out in all directions.
（…It’s no good）
Shizeliana evaluated herself.
（This isn’t enough. I’m still far from being the strongest）
Shizeliana had lost to Henry.
And Henry had gone on to take the throne.
In other words, she had been fortunate enough to fight the strongest warrior in Bernada.
But what that experience had truly shown her was just how inexperienced she was.
（How can I become like that? Can I ever gain that kind of strength?）
Having been completely overwhelmed by Henry, Shizeliana now realized how impossibly far away her goal of becoming the strongest really was.
What would it take for her to reach the level Henry had achieved?
She didn’t know.
A part of her was spiraling with the thought that it might never be possible.
（No… I mustn’t lose heart）
She scolded herself.
Telling herself she just had to keep training, she raised her battle axe once more.
「Hey」
「!!」
Someone spoke to her, and Shizeliana turned around quickly.
Standing there was Henry.
「Henry… Your Majesty!?」
Shizeliana’s eyes widened in surprise.
Why was he here?
…She wondered, but he was the king.
Regardless, she knew she had to show proper respect. She dropped to one knee and bowed.
「Do you remember me? We fought in the first round of the grand martial arts tournament」
「…Yes」
It was the battle where she had been defeated.
There was no way she could forget.
「Rather, I’m honored that you remember someone like me」
「Well, you were a pretty strong fighter. You left an impression」
Hearing Henry acknowledge her strength, Shizeliana blushed slightly.
Leave a Reply