Chapter 69
Chapter 69
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 69
Chapter Title: 19-3. The Difference Between a Guide Dog and a Wolf.
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In her room at the imperial palace, Pine Granasia let out a sigh.
"How in the world did he figure it out...?"
She tilted her head in puzzlement as she removed her helmet. How had Licht seen through her masterpiece?
"Maybe he has eyes as sharp as mine."
Placing a hand on her chest to release the glass armor, her long white hair cascaded down to her waist, and her wolf ears and tail emerged.
She gazed at her reflection in the mirror. Her height had shrunk, her frame now petite. Only the sorrowful eyes of a golden wolf gleamed back at her.
"It's a masterpiece, after all. There's no way he could tell my gender..."
Ever since Magic Hat's assault, she'd hidden her femininity. With her younger brother Lupus's status at her disposal, she'd used it as a proxy and done everything possible to keep the Demon King from getting entangled.
"..."
As a child, she'd been powerless. She'd watched with wide eyes as her mother was taken from her and those close to her were slain, utterly helpless to stop it.
"He seemed scared of women."
Was it women in general that frightened him? Or was it something about her being a princess? That man named Licht had been far too hasty in asking about her gender.
Her ears and tail drooped limply. He'd already known she was from the imperial family, after all. Maybe he'd mistaken her for Lupus and treated her so casually because of it.
'Come to think of it, aside from that "Nameless Saintess" or whatever, he didn't seem to have anything to do with women.'
Whenever Ariel and Kainel shared those budding moments of romance, the helmeted Black Knight would either steer the situation or step back entirely.
As if it wasn't his place to intrude, he'd even pulled her aside to give them space.
Maybe he just disliked getting involved with other women.
"If you truly love someone, real love means you can set aside your own feelings for their sake."
He'd said something like that before, mentioning he had someone he liked. If that made him sensitive, it made sense.
Pine had grabbed his hand without asking or hugged him, being a nuisance in her own ways. She'd even pressed her ear to his chest to check if he was alive. She had her reasons, of course.
'Those words back then... They were the truth.'
When he'd asked her to look after the Saintess, every word had dripped with sincerity.
No one would entrust someone precious to another unless they thought they couldn't be there themselves. Who on earth would be happy about that?
He was always the type to handle everything alone. Even when he'd fallen to Demon King corruption, he'd taken on the form of a knight in black armor. Fitting for the Black Knight, she supposed.
"...I'm a little jealous."
Whoever this person was and wherever they lived, how could they let a man like Licht hone his strength and skill to that degree without showing up?
An unfamiliar pang of envy stirred in her. He was at the Sword Master level, conjuring sword auras with sheer air pressure alone—a man who'd felled even Magic Hat, whom she and Kainel together couldn't repel.
"And he got your mother back, too. So the trap story must be true as well."
Her gaze shifted to the framed Queen of Hearts on the wall. Bringing that back was proof he'd defeated the Truth Demon King.
"Maybe he's a hero from another world...?"
Pine recalled Licht from the grade exam. He'd countered the blond hero's attacks and wielded a new sword he'd forged on the spot.
Overwhelming the Light Hero Kainel didn't make sense. The gods of this world divided heroes into two classes.
"Kainel's not the strongest, but he's blessed by the highest light god among them."
Pine had inherited the blood of Emperor Locke, the top of the Ten Heroes, and her mother had been a prodigy mage. She had every reason to be stronger than Kainel. Her masterpiece helped, too.
But Licht was likely the only one who'd trained to Sword Master level for the sake of someone he loved. Even if his master was Drake of the Ten Heroes.
"...So that's what pure effort looks like."
He'd started from nothing, that much was clear. To her expert eye, Licht had a constitution that screamed zero talent.
"Low mana, twisted circuits... Swinging that sword so recklessly left no part of him unscathed."
She remembered the rough, callused hand she'd grasped. Thick with calluses from relentless training. The scars on his arms were unmistakably from a wolf.
"...Holding it makes me feel safe."
That was why she'd kept interlacing her fingers with his. It was cold to the touch, but reassuring. It made her feel like he wasn't trembling in anxiety just to grow strong alone—that she had a comrade.
"...In the grade exam, can I win?"
A little over a month. He'd returned even stronger. She needed to grow, too. Her fist clenched as resolve filled her.
"Anything less than first place is meaningless..."
She'd already lost once to Magic Hat and once to Licht. Her record couldn't afford two losses.
Pine wouldn't tolerate any more weakness. That's why she'd fight him with everything she had. Last time against Magic Hat, she'd held back to avoid collateral damage.
"...I'm looking forward to it."
Imagining a fight with Licht set her heart racing. He was someone she wouldn't have to hold back against. Placing her hand on her chest, Pine prepared to don the glass armor again.
"This thing was a nightmare to make at first, too."
She murmured softly, eyeing her reflection in the massive heavy plate armor. How had that man pierced the veil of this armor?
"But how could he possibly tell...?"
Closing her eyes, she reviewed her memories. Pine needed to check if she'd missed anything.
Pine Granasia's glass armor was an item refined bit by bit each year. The reason it became heavy plate mismatched to her build was...
"We can't make the armor Princess Pine wants!"
"Why...?"
It stemmed from debates among the dwarves crafting her initial suit. Dwarves with beards of every color had explained it to her as a child.
"Nullify all magic while making it a masterpiece with top-tier durability?"
"Heavy plate, maybe! But light armor? Impossible!"
"Then make it heavy plate."
"Got it!"
To nullify the spells of a Demon King like Magic Hat, they couldn't tailor it thinly to her body.
Thus, full plate armor covering her entirely was born. One dwarf who claimed more exposure boosted defense spent days in a cell.
And as time passed, the reason her height and bulk visibly grew each time she donned it was...
"Your bust is too big—the proportions are all wrong!"
"This sullies the name of 'masterpiece'!"
"..."
Her disproportionately ample chest threw off the entire balance, so the dwarves marched to the forge, locked it, and demanded changes.
"Make the gear bigger, Your Majesty!"
"Right! Right! This won't do!"
"Too ferocious! Proportions off!"
With their stubborn hearts, Emperor Locke had no choice but to yield. He was swayed by talk of making it safer, too.
As a result, the moment she equipped it, her height matched Licht's, and her frame ballooned like a giant crystal.
"Princess, what about the helmet?"
"...Whatever."
"You said that Demon King Magic Hat mentioned women being the issue?"
"Yeah."
The Truth Demon King's words as he slew maids. His chilling laugh and nonsense were still vivid.
"Hide your identity! Muffle the voice!"
"Separate from the armor!"
"...Fine."
"Lads! Orders in! Prep!"
The glass helmet's resonant voice concealed her identity because of Magic Hat's behavior during the assault.
"This'll keep you safe! We swear on the immovable mountain!"
With every detail settled, hammers and grindstones rang out as her armor's forging began.
These three elements combined meant that no detection skill or spell should have revealed Pine's gender or face.
The gleaming white glass-like armor resembled a walking crystal. Anyone seeing it might call her the Glass Knight or White Knight. That's how her current form came to be.
Pine slowly opened her eyes. The dwarves' design was flawless, so had he figured it out from contact with Lupus?
Well, he knew her mother was Bellin Granasia. That left only one possibility, and mistaking her for her brother explained his reaction.
"Mm."
Just then, Pine held her breath slightly, feeling stifled. Having removed the armor again, she examined her body in the mirror, twisting this way and that.
"...My chest feels so tight lately."
She tried ignoring the constriction around her bust when suited up, but failed. It seemed to be growing even more recently.
"It won't get in the way fighting Licht, will it...?"
She'd thought her growth had stopped after last year's coming-of-age rite, but she'd been wrong. She hated the plump, ripening mass swelling like forbidden fruit.
Its seductive, flowing curves would surely draw leers from academy boys. It was one reason she hid her gender.
'How much bigger is it going to get...?'
She bit her lip. It surpassed even Ariel, the famously beautiful elf, and she'd seen no larger in all her academy days.
Worried someone might call her vulgar for it, she sighed and picked up the glass helmet beside her, slipping it on.