"That's true."

Braden readily agreed with Leslie's remarks.

The only way she could be recognized as part of the Marquis of Abede's family was to win the swordsmanship competition.

"Ian will win again this time. There's a difference in their skills."

"...Well, that's a little vague..."

Leslie had a good eye for swordsmanship, though she was a bit tactless.

Until now, he had watched the battles between Annabelle and Ian without any tension in the distant stands on the days of the swordsmanship competitions.

These days, however, there were things that caught his eyes when he often saw them up close.

"These days, I often see it right in front of me, and I feel that the basics aren't as strong as I thought. I think she's had the wrong teacher ever since she was young."

"Oh yeah?"

"Come to think of it, I don't think Caitlyn would have given her a good teacher... It would have been impossible if she had received as much support as Ian."

Leslie said with a serious look and added with a sigh.

"But... It's meaningless for now. Anyways, it's still a long way from being recognized by the Marquis of Abedes."

Leslie's words turned out to be false the very next day.

With the permission from Prince Robert and the temple, the news that the paternity test of Annabelle and Marquis Abedes would be conducted in front of everyone a week later swept the capital.

~*~

When I returned home after saying that I would get permission from the Imperial Family to the Marquis, I was troubled.

'How can I make a request to meet Robert again?'

Contrary to the lies I had told the Marquis of Abedes, I had no way of contacting him.

But the worries did not last long.

The very next day, a dove flew over to me and stuck out its foot.

As I untied the note tied to its foot with a bewildered expression, the pigeon clapped its beak as if to read it.

「Miss Annabelle, I heard you're doing a paternity test. Don't worry about permission. I'll give it to you.

-Robert」

Seeing that the seal of the Imperial Family was also stamped on it, it seemed that the note from Robert was legitimate.

In fact, even in the original story, Robert used to contact Ian in this way.

Now that the Magic Stone has almost disappeared, the Magic Tower itself belonged to the Imperial Palace, so high-ranking magic was almost exclusively the property of the Imperial Family.

Magic items were so expensive that the general public did not use them well, and even if they were used, they were often traded in illegal items or back alleys, in which their effectiveness was not guaranteed.

In addition, the Imperial Family was a blessed bloodline, so there were places on the continent that only they could enter.

So I trusted him and sent a reply right away.

「Thank you very much, Prince.」

And as soon as I was afraid to send a reply, the rumors of my paternity examination intertwined with the High Priest's retirement ceremony spread like wings.

There were also rumors that the prince, Robert, gave permission like lightning for common people's affairs.

The source of the rumor was none other than the temple, which the High Priest wanted to publicize the last good deed.

Rumors related to Robert had fueled the rumors of an affair so far, but what did that have to do with me?

'Robert also had a plan, so he gave permission. Maybe it was a way to not forget the grace when I became a member of the Abedes, so wouldn't I be called a double spy?'

I had no intention of getting entangled in such a complicated thing, so I decided to start working for my future, no matter what anyone thought.

It was to make a plan right after I got the inheritance right.

After the paternity test was confirmed, the first thing I would do was secretly get recommendations for some high-end residential areas where I could live alone by a real estate agent.

~*~

I was so busy that I couldn't stay home until the day before the paternity test.

Because I was drawing blueprints for my future without others knowing.

'Houses on Brivers Road are too expensive. Pass.'

I had been looking for settlements and real estate prices in various parts of the capital.

I liked everything on the Dayguard Road, but it was too close to my old house. Pass.

Everyone was thinking that I would enter the Marquis of Abedes after the paternity test.

But I was going to cash everything in and build an independent life once I got the inheritance.

'It's the property of the Marquis. Most of the lands are mines, so it's going to be a little difficult to turn into cash quickly... Considering that, it would be better to find a property with a generous balance date.'

I had been wandering around all day today, and it had already become the afternoon.

Finally, I looked around the place recommended by the real estate agent and nodded slowly.

'It's nice here. It's not that far from the main street, and the buildings are all clean because it's a rich village.'

The only thing that bothered me was that the Duke of Wade's residence was too close to here...

'That's enough. I'm completely irrelevant to the Duke of Wade.'

There was nothing more to do with Ian. So it was funny to be so conscious.

'Let's decide here. I like them all. Tomorrow is the paternity test, so I can't go around anymore.'

The real estate agent said that this was a place where wealthy commoners lived because the price range is very high.

All the houses were luxurious and the roads were clean, so it felt very good to paint the future.

'Now I need to look for a job.'

I was going to have money to play and eat for the rest of my life, but it was kind of hard to just play and eat.

I had no family or friends, and my reputation was a mess because I was too young to spend time alone with money.

Now that I was free from the desire to beat Ian, I wanted to make a fresh start.

I would have a drink with my colleagues, make friends, enjoy tea time, and then have a relationship...

I was about to leave while imagining my future life.

"Thief!"

Suddenly, I heard an ear-splitting sound from the mansion next to me. It was the biggest and best place in the area.

"A thief, a thief! Get him!"

Someone jumped onto the street as I heard a second-floor window crack.

He ran past me into an alley and disappeared.

I could hear a familiar voice through the broken window without a chance to grasp it with reflexes.

"That's the way to hell and you're a jerk XXX who's gonna die XXX twice! You XX little XX brat!"

I blankly looked up and blinked.

It was Marilyn with her purple hair, dark makeup, and a spectacular dress.

Maybe it hadn't been long since she got off work.

'So... That luxury mansion is the Rainfield Mansion?'

Come to think of it, many successful commoners lived here. There was nothing wrong with the presence of the Rainfield Mansion.

"Was that a lie to be a member of the Wade Knights? This XX is XX!"

Marilyn shouted as she poked more than half of her body out of her window and clutched her cutting knife in her hand.

Her knife shone in the afternoon sunlight, scattering flashes of light across the alleyway.

Although she was the most calm and the best craftsmanship person in the dressing room, it was very surprising to see her swear.

Of course, I was surprised by the difference for a short time, and I immediately jumped and ran after the person who had disappeared into the alleyway.

After someone broke into Rainfield's mansion saying he was a member of the Wade Knights, it must have been that he stole something and ran away.

Even though I am not a person of great justice, someone I knew had something stolen from them, and I wasn't about to act ignorant of that.

Besides, Marilyn had shown me refined kindness, and she was the one who adorned me with all her zeal and sincerity at every event.

As soon as he jumped off the second floor, he seemed to be quite agile and fast enough to easily disappear across the alleyway, but catching a thief like that was like a piece of cake for me.

Not long after that, I was able to enter Rainfield Manor with a sword around the neck of a handsome thief.

"Oh, Miss Annabelle?"

Marilyn greeted me with a bewildered expression. It was the first time we had met like this without Leslie.

"How did you get here?"

The tone of voice exuding the bloody swearing from earlier was nowhere and suddenly a voice full of modesty was heard.

Of course, after checking the face of the thief I had brought, I opened my eyes wide and took a deep breath.

"No, how the hell did Miss Annabelle do this XX XX..."

"I was on the way and picked him up."

I grinned once more, holding the sword to the thief's neck while cutting his sentence off. And jokingly added.

"I think I found a little thief."