Brothers? Who Said She's the First Wife?
The free period was over. From here on out, it was the main story.
The princess is one of the Imperial 10 Strongest. Yulika, the Fifth Princess, is one of the Imperial 10 Strongest….
No matter how hard he dug through his memories, he couldn’t recall a single comment saying anything close to that.
Not in the best comments, and certainly not in the regular ones—there had never been so much as a whisper about the princess.
If there had been, the readers would have gone feral screaming about another bait drop.
More than that, the Imperial 10 Strongest. The name alone sounded ridiculously strong.
Its members were probably Sword Masters, Archmages, people of that caliber.
He just never imagined a slender, beautiful princess would be sitting among them.
Literally an identity I never saw coming.
Kyle clenched and unclenched his fist over and over.
He could still feel the force Fifth Princess Yulika had unleashed, as if it were still pressed against his skin.
The moment he blocked her punch, his arm had buzzed and trembled.
It hadn’t been threatening merely because it was a surprise attack. She had the skill to back it up.
Power, speed—nothing was lacking.
If his reaction had been even a fraction slower, he would have taken a clean hit and gone rolling across the floor.
Yeah. Rolling around on the ground in front of a woman. Just picturing it was horrifying.
“Please, I’m begging you, Student Kyle. No more. The Minister of Education is having a full-blown meltdown. Her Highness the Princess’s sudden visit alone was enough to send everyone into a panic, and now the ministers of Finance, Special Affairs, and the Imperial Household are all lining up to see him.”
As they left the dean’s office, the dean was practically hanging off him and pleading.
From now on, please just live quietly. Stop attracting so much attention.
Listening to that, Kyle honestly felt wronged. Extremely wronged.
The only thing he had done was that duel a little while back. Just the one time.
And even that duel—he hadn’t started it, hadn’t suggested it. Someone else had.
From his perspective, he hadn’t created an incident; he’d simply gotten dragged into one.
Of course, there was also that time he’d smashed a desk during self-introductions, but they were going to skip past that.
I still have no idea what the situation even is. What the hell is about to happen….
Once again, not reading the main story had become a lifelong regret.
He’d thought he at least roughly knew the important characters.
Yet he had never even heard of Princess Yulika of the Imperial 10 Strongest.
In a situation like this, there was no guarantee someone else of princess-level importance wouldn’t just drop in.
His head throbbed. Irritation quietly climbed up his spine.
As far as he remembered, other novel protagonists got isekai’d and handled politics and everything else just fine.
But he had zero confidence in that sort of thing. And zero interest.
All he wanted was to live comfortably at the academy and try out that sweet romance everyone talked about.
He couldn’t exactly spend the rest of his life locked up on the family estate doing nothing but iron.
And he definitely didn’t want to keep living under a diet stricter than hell itself.
Suddenly I’m craving carbs like crazy.
After leaving the dean’s office, he hurried toward the plaza where Tisha and the Saintess would be.
Along the way, though, he received news that completely deflated him.
“Is the Saintess still giving her speech?”
“No. She finished a little while ago and left.”
“Ah… that’s a shame. I at least wanted to catch a glimpse of her.”
“You have no idea. I finally understood why the gods chose her as Saintess.”
Those guys were also admiring the Saintess’s beauty. Excellent taste!
How could he not feel good when a character he loved was getting such glowing reviews from others?
Of course, the fact that the Saintess already left is still a real shame.
He smacked his lips and continued toward the plaza.
Then someone came running—tap-tap-tap!—and with quick, nimble movements tried to snatch Kyle’s hand.
Tak!—
The problem was that after the sudden fight with the princess, Kyle’s body was still wound tight as a bowstring.
And his nerves were unconsciously on a razor’s edge.
“Eh?”
Whoosh!—
Kyle casually stepped aside, which of course left the other person diving forward at full speed.
What happened next was obvious. She went down in a perfect face-plant.
Thud!—
“Kyaa!”
What is this? An ambush? Kyle thought—until he recognized the familiar back.
No matter how many times he looked, it was the same back he had seen earlier in the indoor sparring hall.
And the same back that had climbed onto the platform set up in the plaza.
“Saintess?”
“Shh! Shh! Everyone can hear you!”
She must have hit the ground pretty hard; tears pricked at her eyes even as she waved her hands frantically.
Then she scrambled to her feet, looked at Kyle, and beamed. Hehe.
“To meet my benefactor again here. You’re the one who showed me the way earlier, right?”
“Ah… yes. That’s correct, Saintess.”
“And just a moment ago, you were one of the people watching me from the plaza.”
Huk. She knew that too? Good heavens, the Saintess saw me! She actually saw me!
“I-I’m honored. I never imagined you would remember even that.”
“Of course I would. You’re my benefactor, and the miracle that came to me today. If it hadn’t been for you, Brother, I would have gotten lost again, missed the time, and caused quite the mess. The escorts waiting outside would have been sighing and searching all over for me again!”
The way she so cheerfully admitted she got lost and that others had to hunt for her…
Listening to that, Kyle became absolutely certain of one fact.
Our Saintess. Whatever you imagined, her sense of direction was catastrophically worse.
Meanwhile the Saintess kept smiling brightly and gently lowered her hood.
She was probably trying to show Kyle that she really was the Saintess.
“Wait, just a moment, Saintess. Not here.”
“Eh?”
Kyle grabbed her hand and pulled her toward a quieter spot with fewer passersby.
His favorite character was right in front of him—he absolutely refused to let other humans interrupt this moment.
Do not misunderstand. He harbored absolutely, absolutely no impure intentions.
He rejected any nonsense about “she’s like a daughter” or “she’s like a little sister.”
He simply wanted to receive the Saintess properly without interference. That was his greatest wish.
“Anyway, allow me to introduce myself properly. I am Hildegarde Dominica de Agatha Seraphim, the one who bears the embarrassing title of Saintess in the Holy Order. Please just call me Hilde!”
After finishing her introduction she even added her own sound effect—Ta-da!
Kyle almost clutched his chest with a dramatic kuh! to match the energy, but managed to hold it in.
Call her casually? Of course he was going to address her as Saintess!
The name Hildegarde was lovely, and the nickname Hilde was wonderful too.
But a Saintess had to be called Saintess for the full effect to hit properly, didn’t she?
“Come to think of it, I got so excited I never even asked my benefactor’s name!”
“It’s nothing so grand as a ‘name,’ Saintess. Please take that word back.”
“No! If I can’t even use proper respect toward my benefactor, that would be rude!”
Aaaah. He was being purified. Every bit of stress and worldly clutter that had piled up was vanishing.
So this was the presence of a woman loved by the gods—the Saintess herself.
Tisha always trying to drag him into debates about shamanism, Elga constantly watching him like a hawk…
And now Fifth Princess Yulika, who threw a punch the moment they met.
To Kyle, who had been suffering under a siege of women, she was practically a ray of salvation.
“I am Kyle, second son of the John Nassen barony.”
“Kyle John Nassen… John Nassen… Ah! Ahhh!!”
The Saintess suddenly clapped her hands in realization and broke into a brilliant smile.
Then she cried, “I know you!” and immediately clenched her fist and made little whoosh-whoosh sound effects.
“Like this! You shattered a sword with your bare hands in a duel not long ago, didn’t you?!”
“Ah… yes. Well, that’s… essentially correct.”
“Amazing! You’re truly strong! And yet you remain so humble—I am simply overflowing with joy and gratitude. May the gods look kindly upon Young Master Kyle.”
Watching her press her hands together and offer a sincere prayer…
He had gone past purification and was now teetering on the edge of actual enlightenment.
Thankfully the Saintess reeled him back before he truly ascended.
“Well then, Brother Kyle. Since I have received a favor, I naturally wish to repay it.”
“Ahh! It’s fine. I’m truly fine, Saintess. Just for showing you the way….”
“If no one had shown the way, a child might have become an orphan, and a good person might have fallen onto an evil path. If even one person along the road we walk teaches another the right way—then that person is a saint, a proxy of the gods, and ultimately the highest good.”
So please, let me repay this debt! she declared, her mysterious silver eyes sparkling with light she could never fully put into words.
With that pure, unwavering gaze fixed on him, Kyle found he simply could not refuse any longer.
“Th-then… then, Saintess….”
Could I maybe get just one autograph? Ah, an autograph means a signature, a signature.
In handwriting as pretty as your kind heart, written with care.
And while you’re at it, if you write “To Kim—” no, wait, “To Kyle,” that would be even better.
And if you put “My wonderful benefactor” in front of it, that would be the cherry on top….
“Could I take a look at your arm just once?”
While his mind spun wild fantasies, his mouth spat out something completely unrelated.
“My arm?”
The Saintess tilted her head, clearly wondering what kind of request this was.
But she soon decided it was no trouble at all, rolled up her sleeve, and presented her arm.
Dazzlingly white skin, a woman’s fragrance as fresh and sweet as spring air.
It was more than enough to seize any man’s heart in an instant.
“Hmm.”
Kyle, however, was focusing on something entirely different.
“Saintess.”
“Yes, Brother Kyle.”
“Do you… by any chance not exercise?”
If anyone else had seen Kyle’s reaction, they would have screamed, “You insane bastard!”
The Saintess had gone so far as to bare her pure white skin for him.
And instead of admiring it, he was suddenly spouting bizarre nonsense.
But this was a genuinely important matter.
At least, it was for Kyle, who carried John Nassen blood.
This is thin. Way too thin. She couldn’t even pick up a bar like this.
He clicked his tongue inwardly and kept checking her muscle condition.
— Brothers? Who said anything about a principal wife? —