Namgung Se-ga, the warrior, was reincarnated in Romance

The rest of October passed without any major events.

Calypso Agrigent’s health improved daily, and there was no longer any cause for concern.

Bivan Otif gave lectures on poisonous plants to be cautious of during outdoor activities with horses.

In the water magic class, Oliver Combine inexplicably avoided making eye contact with me several times, but I didn’t mind and left him alone.

Damien still limped.

The transparent golem still couldn’t form a lower dantian.

Lubert still couldn’t make any other friends and continued to follow me around.

Benjamin made efforts to inquire at the academy’s administration department about how to obtain the horse Viktor.

And then, on the fourth Friday of the month, I received an interesting letter from my family.

As soon as the second semester final exams were over, they asked if I would be interested in coming to the Duchy of Valentia.

Although it seemed like they were asking for my opinion, it appeared that an agreement had already been made with my maternal grandparents.

Since I had always disliked leaving the territory when I was a child, they said it would be my first visit to my maternal family after marriage.

Upon thinking about it, I realized that while my maternal family had visited the Ernhardt estate many times, I had never been to their place.

The letter was filled with excitement about wanting to show me the garden my mother loved when she was young, and to paint my portrait in the clothes I would wear.

I remembered how my mother blushed and was overjoyed like a young girl the last summer break, so I felt no intention of rejecting the offer. I wrote back with joy.

I mentioned that I was very curious about the land where my mother was born and raised, and I was looking forward to spending time with my blood relatives. I also expressed my desire to see my grandparents and uncle after a long time.

Though my maternal uncle already had several grandchildren, my maternal grandparents treated me with particular affection.

It was not out of formality but true sincerity, as it was natural to show respect for elders.

The Duchy of Valentia had the Fourth Magic Tower nearby, so it would surely be a fun place to visit. I was already looking forward to the break.

* * *

November arrived, and with the change of the month, the weather became much colder.

At this time, scarves and shawls of various colors began to appear around the necks of children who walked briskly.

Benjamin and I, along with a few other students from the swordsmanship department who boasted strong physiques, continued to wear autumn-like attire.

Unlike the uniform colors that were consistent, the cloaks and shawls worn on top were all different in color and embroidery, making them colorful and pleasant to the eye.

Shayden showed up wearing a dark brown leather cloak, and because the letters written with fingers on his back would leave a mark, many children used his back as a canvas for doodling.

Lubert wore a shiny, deep navy cloak that suited him well.

Around his neck, there was fluffy white fur attached, and when I asked, he explained that it was white rabbit fur.

It was soft and suited the child perfectly, so I complimented him, and he was very happy.

Marianne wore a thick pale pink cloak and would often make loud clacking noises as she moved.

When I asked if she didn’t use a warming spell, she explained that while creating an artifact with a magic inscription wasn’t difficult, it was hard to keep up with the cost of the mana stones used, so she didn’t use them.

Jenny came wearing a very stylish white cloak with detailed, colorful embroidery, and proudly showed it off, saying her mother had done the embroidery herself.

The way the child’s cheeks turned pink as she spoke was very cute.

However, seeing each other’s outfits and laughing brightly was something that happened at the beginning of the month.

As the final exam month arrived, everyone became much busier.

This month, Maelo Sanson announced that each of us would showcase our most proficient sword technique to mark the end of the year, which also made me busy.

He said that whether we would be able to take his intermediate swordsmanship class next year would be decided at this sword demonstration, and many students worked hard, struggling during every lesson.

Although this didn’t concern me much since I was already attending advanced swordsmanship classes, I couldn’t afford to slack off while the other students were putting in so much effort.

I also had the desire to show my swordsmanship to my diligent and kind peers.

Having practiced swords for nearly fifty years since my previous life, I felt it would be unreasonable if I couldn’t showcase a single sword technique in front of these students.

The sword form I was developing was still incomplete, so I hesitated to show it. Instead, whenever I had free time, I would choose the most impressive sword technique from the *Cheongcheon Muye Gyeom* and demonstrate it.

In the artifact class, we were to take a test on practical artifacts and how to acquire them. Since this was a memorization-based test, I wasn’t too worried.

The midterms had been easy because the names and effects of the offensive and medical artifacts were intuitive, but the practical artifacts often had different names and effects, which made them confusing.

The imperial history class was, as usual, substituted with a pop quiz. Since much of what we learned last semester had changed this semester, I had to pay attention, but it wasn’t particularly difficult.

After the first week, when the professors had informed us of the exam topics, all the seats in the academy library were occupied, leaving no space.

Of course, I could study in my personal study, but since I had many gaps in my knowledge, I had to get to the library early to secure a seat if I wanted to ask my friends questions and study.

The *Horse Appreciation* class was a little different.

On Wednesday afternoon of the second week of November, Professor Bivan Otif handed each of the children a square card.

I read the clearly written words. “Horse Purchase Student Discount Coupon, 20% off.”

Not sure what it was, I flipped the card and saw the large seal of the Otif Horse Auction House.

“…What is this?”

“It’s a horse purchase discount coupon. Now that you’ve all learned how to ride and take care of horses, it’s time to learn how to buy one,” Bivan Otif said.

He asserted that all the horses at this academy were well-bred and well-trained, so the students’ expectations had grown quite high.

The horses, despite the children’s clumsy hands, had guided them without a single accident.

I had thought all of Siren’s horses were like that, as I had only seen well-behaved, intelligent horses, but it seemed that wasn’t the case.

“Even if you don’t use it right away, this coupon is valid for the next five years. If you contact me in advance, I’ll help you when the time comes to buy a horse. However, horses are long-lived creatures, and finding one that you’ll spend your life with is an exciting process.”

“Ah…”

“There are no bad horses in this world. There are only horses that suit their owners and those that don’t. I want you to learn this by seeing many horses for yourselves,” Bivan Otif explained.

He said that until the end of the semester, he would take the students on field trips to look at horses as part of their outdoor lessons.

While there was no need to buy a horse before graduating from the academy, it was important to see as many horses as possible, and everyone cheered at this.

The horse market in Siren was much cleaner and more organized than those in the Central Plains.

While the people of Siren and the Central Plains looked very different from each other, the horses didn’t differ much in appearance. The draft horses were large and strong, and the warhorses for long journeys looked fierce. It was fun to look at the different types of horses grouped by appearance.

I wandered around, feeling like I was on a little outing.

The horses with shiny coats had distinct personalities. Some were curious and peeked around, others were too busy with food to care, and some enjoyed startling nervous children by suddenly sticking their heads in front of them.

Benjamin, who had been struggling to figure out how to acquire the academy’s horse, Viktor, also seemed intrigued.

He mentioned wanting to buy a young foal to raise and care for, but his mind changed more than ten times in a short period, from wanting to buy one immediately to deciding he should wait until after graduating from the academy.

Bivan Otif, reassuring Benjamin, said there would be more opportunities to look at horses in future lessons and finished the class.

The swordsmanship class was even stranger than the horse appreciation class.

Wilton Roberts stood in front of a target 20 meters away and instructed the students to throw daggers at him.

Everyone was stunned and unable to move. Wilton, as always, spoke calmly, looking over the students with a disapproving click of his tongue.

“Didn’t I tell you that I would test you on throwing daggers at a moving target for the final exam?”

“Uh? Y-yes, but…”

“Throwing daggers is a self-defense martial art. If you’re afraid of killing someone in a decisive moment and end up losing your own life, then what’s the use? Don’t waste the time I’ve spent teaching you.”

So, just like we practiced with the stationary target, each student took turns throwing daggers, three times for each.

The first two students hesitated, but from the third student onwards, no one hesitated.

By then, everyone knew that Wilton would catch every single dagger no matter where or how it was thrown.

When one student, nervous, threw a dagger completely off-target, Wilton leaped up and caught it midair.

The way he snatched the dagger was sharp and graceful, like a falcon catching prey, and it made everyone’s eyes widen in amazement.

I had worried for nothing, thinking that the professors at Siren Academy would act recklessly.

Wilton Roberts instructed us to aim for the eyes, neck, and heart with the daggers.

He also mentioned that for the final exam, the score would depend on how close we could get to hitting vital points.

I couldn’t imagine even a circus performer acting like that, and I was in awe of his skill.

I studied for exams, went to look at horses, practiced throwing daggers, studied some more, refined my sword form, and then studied again.

I couldn’t clearly remember who I had met or what I had eaten during that time.

As always, the month with exams flew by in the blink of an eye.

By the time I realized it, I was already sitting in a carriage heading toward the Duchy of Valentia.

I had been so busy that I didn’t realize it. I knew my parents would send the carriage after the exams, and since I was heading straight to the Duchy of Valentia, I didn’t need to coordinate with Shayden, and everything I needed was already prepared, so there was no need to pack.

But after traveling for half a day in the carriage, it hit me—oh no, I had completely forgotten that Lubert had insisted so earnestly on seeing me before the vacation started.

When I remembered his damp, dark eyes, I felt a little guilty and awkward, and my neck grew warm with embarrassment.

Once I arrived at my maternal family’s house, I decided I would at least write a letter to Lubert, calming my guilty feelings as I tried to dismiss them.