Chapter 1
The Flower That Bears a Sword - Chapter 1
Translation: godsn
Prologue I.
Strictly speaking, calling the Agenka Military Academy a "school" would be a stretch. There were no classes or lectures. Nor was there any formal training program.
Naturally, there were no instructors or teachers either. The only things provided to the officer cadets were room and board—and the status of being a cadet itself.
"But that status carries tremendous weight. Being a candidate squire for the Azure Sky Knights—no wonder so many applicants flock here," murmured a new administrative officer as he gazed out the academy's window.
His senior colleague, buried under mountains of application documents at his desk, frowned. "What brought this on all of a sudden?"
"Just... it suddenly hit me how proud I am to be affiliated with the Azure Sky Knights, even as mere administrative staff."
"How trite."
The city of Agenka, where the academy stood, was governed by the Azure Sky Knights and belonged to no nation—because the Azure Sky Knights transcended national boundaries.
"How many of them do you think will become Azure Sky Knights?"
"Maybe none at all."
"You can't be serious."
"Only Masters can become full-fledged Azure Sky Knights. Do you think achieving Mastery is easy?"
"...Wait, aren't all knights Masters?"
"Listen to this kid—terrifying. You're from Agenka, right? Lived here your whole life?"
"Yes. Why?"
"Damn, it's the Azure Sky Knights being entirely composed of Masters that's abnormal. You think they're called the strongest for nothing?"
"So... other knight orders accept non-Masters as knights?"
"Most countries don't even have more than a handful of Masters to begin with. But here? Where even the average knight can channel mana through their sword to release sword energy as a Master, and above them stand the Giosa Owners—"
"Uh, what's with her?"
The rookie cut off his senior with a baffled tone. The woman, mid-explanation, scowled.
"You little—were you even listening?"
"Se-senior, look at her!"
The flustered rookie pointed outside where a commotion was growing. The irritated senior finally approached the window to see.
"What's all the—...what in the world?"
As her jaw dropped at the sight, the rookie pressed, "Senior, how many years have you worked here?"
"Seven..."
"...Have you ever seen an applicant like that before?"
"Are you kidding?"
"Didn't think so..."
"I've seen all sorts, but this is a first."
All eyes were drawn to one particular young woman.
Not because she was female—while male applicants outnumbered females, there were still many women among them, and the Azure Sky Knights had female members too.
Because she was beautiful? She certainly was. Perhaps barely twenty.
Her skin was milky white, her hair—half pinned up, half cascading down—a pale pink, and her large, youthful eyes shone like ripe grapes with their violet hue. Her plump, petite lips were petal-pink. She looked so delicate and lovely that touching her might leave one's fingers dusted with flower pollen.
Yet even such beauty wasn't the cause of the commotion. With applicants numbering in the thousands, there were plenty of women more strikingly beautiful than her.
The reason for the attention was her attire.
White lace gloves. A dress complete with petticoats. High-heeled women's shoes. Earrings. A necklace. A brooch. Light makeup. Ribbons, ruffles, frills, and jewels.
This wasn't the outfit for a martial training ground packed with knight aspirants—it belonged at a noblewoman's tea party.
"She must be insane..."
The rookie's mutter spoke for every onlooker. The senior replied in an equally dazed voice:
"Indeed. Whatever noble house she's from, she's not just immature—she's completely lost touch with reality."
"Do you think she even knows this is a swordsmanship examination?"
"It'd be better if she came here unknowingly. If she showed up looking like that knowing full well this is the Agenka Officer Cadet selection exam, where geniuses from across the continent give their all to compete..."
"Do you think she's ever even held a sword before?"
"The most plausible scenario is some noble girl who read too many romance novels and ran away from home—what does she know about swords? Wanna bet? I'll put 1 silver on her dropping it while drawing."
"No way, that's not a fair bet! I'd take that wager too!"
"Then bet on her dropping it while swinging."
"What's there to swing with those arms! She probably can't even lift it!"
Swords were considerably heavy weapons. Unless it was a lightweight rapier, untrained women would struggle not just to swing one, but even to lift it with a single hand.
"What's going on here?"
A cool baritone voice came from behind the chattering group. Recognizing the voice, the senior cadet spun around in surprise and hastily saluted.
"Captain, sir!"
"Huh? Th-the Captain?"
In Agenka, there was only one person who could be called "Captain"—the Captain of the Azure Sky Knights.
The Azure Sky operated strictly on meritocracy, so being Captain of the Azure Sky Knights was synonymous with being the greatest knight.
The new cadet, who had only recently joined the administrative staff and had never met the Captain before, stared at the man in shock.
He looked as delicate as a glass flower. Long silver hair loosely tied and draped over one shoulder, eyes as blue as the clearest sky. His face resembled a poet's more than a knight's.
Yet contrary to appearances, his body beneath the uniform was perfectly honed. And then there was his aura. No matter how beautiful, a sword was still a sword. The sharp, cold essence unique to objects created solely for cutting and stabbing emanated from him as well. Perhaps it was the mark of a life lived constantly alongside blades.
This man was Yurien de Harden Kyrie—the youngest Master in history, youngest Captain of the Azure Sky Knights, and wielder of the Holy Sword Langiosa. A man destined to become the protagonist of epics sung by bards in later generations.
The new cadet unconsciously gulped.
"Ah, it's nothing."
"I heard talk of a wager."
"Well..."
As the new cadet faltered and broke into a sweat, the senior cadet shut his eyes tightly and explained.
"There's an unusual examinee, so we were just joking around!"
"Unusual?"
Yurien raised his eyebrows slightly. The administrators quickly stepped aside and pointed toward the window.
"Over there... You'll understand immediately when you see her."
Yurien approached the window and narrowed his eyes as he looked outside. He instantly spotted the pink-haired woman among the examinees.
He recognized her at a glance. He knew her. How could he not? He would have recognized her even if she were wearing a burlap sack.
His eyes widened momentarily before wavering. His hand gripping the windowsill unconsciously tightened. Countless memories flooded his mind, making his stomach churn. Yet he revealed none of this inner turmoil. None of the administrators beside him noticed his agitation.
The senior administrator let out a sigh.
"I never thought I'd see an examinee in a dress at the Agenka cadet selection exam."
"...An examinee?"
Yurien reacted as if he'd heard something absurd.
"Yes. Who does she think the military academy is...? Seems like a spoiled young lady."
The senior assumed the Captain's surprise was a natural reaction. After all, an examinee in high heels and a dress was downright astonishing. This prejudice prevented her from noticing the strange nuance in Yurien's question.
The new cadet, however, caught it. Somehow, his tone felt off. The Knight Captain's words didn't sound like "How dare she be an examinee?" but rather "There's no way she's just an examinee." Had he misheard? As he tilted his head in confusion, Yurien's expression returned to its usual calm.
"Do you believe she'll fail?"
"Huh? Well... Isn't that obvious?"
Meanwhile, it seemed the woman in the dress was now up for the preliminary round. Clutching an unadorned longsword that clashed horribly with her attire, she stepped forward.
The preliminary test was simple—cutting through a log with a sword.
The log was harder than one might expect, and cleaving through it in one stroke—not with an axe, but with a sword—required both skill and strength beyond most. Experienced knights could gauge an opponent's level just by their stance, the cut surface, and their speed.
Outside the window, the woman standing before the log drew her sword. Yurien never took his eyes off the way she held the blade. He murmured as if speaking to himself.
"If it were me, I'd wager she'd pass the exam as the top scorer."
The woman swung her sword. The fluttering sleeves of her dress billowed like clouds. Neither her shoe-clad feet nor her slender arms wavered in the slightest. The log split cleanly in two. Even to the untrained eyes of the clerks, it was a flawless motion.
A heavy silence filled the training grounds. Only after the shing of the sword returning to its scabbard did the examiner snap out of his daze. He mechanically inspected the log's cross-section before stammering out:
"E-Echinacea Roaz, preliminary round—passed!"
Yurien turned away without watching further. There was no need. She would effortlessly clear the remaining tests too. He commanded the clerk:
"Bring me her application."
"P-Pardon?"
The clerk, still dazed by the unexpected turn of events, startled at the order. Yurien jerked his chin.
"That examinee's application."
"Ah! Y-Yes, right away!"
Two clerks scrambled through piles of documents. Moments later, a single sheet was placed in Yurien's hands. He skimmed it swiftly on the spot.
—Echinacea Roaz, female, 20 years old, born in the Kyrie Empire, eldest daughter of Count Roaz.
Echinacea—the name of a pink flower. She'd likely been given that name because of her unusually colored hair. It suited her well. The kind of name you wouldn't forget once heard.
"Echinacea......"
Yurien quietly mouthed the name. It was unfamiliar. Yet it was a name he'd longed to know. He had known her, but never her name.
In the 'future' he knew, she had never been a cadet. But this time, she would become one.
"Things have changed."
"Sir?"
"Never mind. Carry on."
Yurien returned the application to the clerks and left the administrative office.
At the same time, Echinacea ignored the barrage of stares as she exited the preliminary exam grounds.
She glanced down at her right palm. Hidden beneath an ornate glove was a black sigil that must never be discovered.
[Thinking of abandoning me again, heartless master?]
Though no one was around, the complaining voice echoed directly in her mind—the entity within the sigil on her palm speaking to her soul. Eki smirked.
"Obviously. Why else would I come this far? I'm here to ditch you."
[Hey! You only learned how to turn back time because of me!]
"If not for you, I wouldn't have needed to in the first place."
[Ah, let bygones be bygones. It's all in the erased past now, right? No use dwelling, yeah?]
"Shut up, you damned magic sword."
Eki snapped back in a tone far too vicious for her delicate voice. Ignoring the sword's grumbling in her head, she headed toward the first-round exam site.
The venue wasn't far. Those who'd passed the preliminaries were already gathered there. Echinacea paused at the entrance, clenching her right fist as if to hide the sigil, and took a deep breath.
This is where it begins.
She intended to become an official Azure Sky Knight. To stand out—but not enough to arouse suspicion. She'd inevitably set the record for fastest knighting, yet appear nothing more than a 'normal' prodigy.
She had to achieve her goals while maintaining that balance. Above all, she must never entangle herself with that noble Order Master—no matter how much she wanted to meet him. This new life, hard-won, couldn't be ruined by sentimentality.
Even if Yurien somehow remembers... I look nothing like before.
Eki looked down at her extravagant attire. There was a reason she'd come dressed and adorned like this.
Echinacea Roaz was living her second life.
At thirty-five, she'd turned time back fifteen years. She'd erased the past she loathed with her own hands. This second chance at twenty wasn't freely given luck—it was a miracle she'd seized for herself.