I Became a Swordsmanship Instructor in a Romance Novel

“I-Instructor! Please, I beg you!!”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t.”

Rosnante desperately pleaded with Zeke, but the only response he received was a cold rejection.

“…Why… As expected… Am I not your student, Instructor…?”

“Hmm.”

Rosnante lowered his head with a mournful voice.

Zeke subtly turned his head away.

‘Well, it’s true that I’ve discriminated against him unknowingly, and it’s true that he’s been treated unfairly for being the only male student.’

It couldn’t have been easy for Rosnante to keep up with the other students without any mana.

On top of that, Zeke had completely forgotten about Rosnante during the battle against the Demon King, while he had remembered all the other students.

He felt a little guilty.

‘No, it’s not that I didn’t want to remember… It just sort of happened…’

Ahem.

Zeke coughed lightly and spoke.

“It’s not that I won’t give it to you, but I can’t. I don’t have any mana stones right now.”

Even if he wanted to help Rosnante, he couldn’t.

He had been using up his mana stones little by little, and he had used up even the ones Duke Yohaiden had given him during the battle against Lost Hope.

‘I used them all up making bread with Soi.’

She made hundreds of loaves of bread a day, and even if he left the kneading to Soi, Zeke still had to handle the rest of the process alone.

It was inevitable, as he couldn’t recklessly waste mana on the eve of the battle against the Demon King.

“However, I’ve made some progress during my recent travels. You won’t need the 40 mana stones I initially asked for. 20 should be enough. Think of it as me giving you 20.”

‘That’s right, kid. I’m being generous! I won’t charge you the 20 I was going to charge as a commission fee. I’ll just do it for free!’

Only then did Rosnante’s lifeless eyes begin to glimmer with hope.

The number of mana stones he had to collect had been cut in half!

“Then, I’ll just have to gather 20 mana stones…”

As Zeke was talking with Rosnante, a question suddenly occurred to him.

He had clearly told the Imperial Family that they would need to use mana stones when dealing with Lost Hope.

Although Yohaiden and Zeke had used up a lot of their mana stones while confronting Lost Hope, the Imperial Family should still have plenty in their possession.

“Hmm, but… Does the Imperial Family not have any mana stones?”

When you need a large sum of money, the first thing you should do is ask your dad, right?

“…No. That’s not possible.”

Rosnante shook his head with a firm expression at Zeke’s question.

“Hmm?”

“Instructor… It’s a little embarrassing to say this out loud, but… To be honest, I’ve never once defeated First Prince Ilios.”

Rosnante spoke with a serious tone, but Zeke simply nodded without any change in expression.

‘Oh… Hmm. Not really surprising… Well, that’s to be expected.’

“Of course, I’m superior in terms of appearance and pure strength… but… In reality, those things aren’t important for a prince.”

Rosnante muttered as he looked up at the sky.

‘I don’t think appearance is his strong suit either.’

“That’s why I acted more like a scoundrel and wreaked havoc like a wild dog. But after meeting you, Instructor… I’ve finally opened my eyes… and I’m finally starting to be recognized. The evaluations are changing.”

‘Are you sure you’ve opened your eyes?’

“…They say I’ve reduced my extravagance, learned humility, and possess the qualities of a wise ruler… Ahem…!”

Rosnante turned his head away, seemingly embarrassed as he spoke.

However, Zeke’s face had hardened.

‘He’s just poor from collecting mana stones… I have to hand it to him, he’s good at putting a positive spin on things… But he needs to learn how to filter what people say to him. That was clearly just lip service.’

“Anyway, what do you think will happen if I ask for a fortune of 20 mana stones in this situation?”

“Hmm, I suppose you have a point.”

Zeke had no choice but to nod at those words.

Rosnante, the once-infamous Second Prince.

If what he said was even partially true…

Now might be the perfect time to change Rosnante’s image.

Now that he had taken care of First Prince Ilios, Rosnante could gain an advantage in the race for the throne.

However, there would still be those who remembered his past and viewed him with suspicion.

‘Once an image is set, it’s hard to change.’

Zeke scratched his head.

Then, he suddenly remembered two families that were as wealthy as the Imperial Family, if not more so.

“Rosnante, did you know that Yohaiden and Eustia are here?”

“…If you’re talking about Selena and Iriel… Even they don’t have the kind of wealth to be throwing mana stones around…”

“No, the Dukes of both families are here, Rosnante.”

“….!”

Rosnante’s eyes widened.

“…Duke Yohaiden and Duke Eustia are here right now!?”

“Yes. They’re probably spending time with their families, here to see their daughters. If you explain the situation to them well, 20 mana stones should be…”

Before Zeke could even finish his sentence, Rosnante quickly bowed his head.

“…Then, I’ll go see them right away!!!”

And with that, he turned and ran off.

“Hmm, I was going to tell him to go to Eustia… Duke Yohaiden probably doesn’t have many mana stones left… Well, he’ll figure it out.”

Zeke watched Rosnante disappear, then turned his gaze to Yuri.

“….”

Yuri was smiling faintly, but it was a chilling smile.

* * *

“F-Father… O-Older brother…”

Duke Yohaiden and Sedan seemed deeply hurt.

Selena finally realized the gravity of the situation and approached her father and brother.

“Hmph!”

“Tsk!”

As Selena approached, they both turned their backs on her completely.

“Sedan, my son. Did you hear something just now?”

“Hmm. That very lovely… Hmm. Ah, no, I didn’t hear anything.”

Sedan responded absentmindedly, but quickly changed his tune after catching the Duke’s sharp glare.

The Duke then gazed into the distance, his voice filled with sorrow as he muttered.

“Right. You didn’t hear anything… It seems my daughter has already left for Zeke Clayman…”

Of course, he was speaking loudly enough for Selena to hear.

“Haah, yes. How utterly futile. Father. To think that a man she’s known for less than a year, a man born out of wedlock no less, is more precious to her than her own family who has been by her side for 20 years… How preposterous.”

The Duke and Sedan played along, expressing their hurt feelings to the fullest.

Selena’s eyes darted back and forth.

In truth, she wanted to run straight to Zeke, but Selena wasn’t completely clueless.

If she really left right now, her father and brother would be deeply offended.

‘But seriously, what are those two grown men even doing…’

If they hadn’t chosen such a childish way to express their displeasure, Selena would have apologized already.

“F-Father… O-Older brother…”

She drew out her words, adding a slight whine to her voice, but they remained unmoved.

The corners of Selena’s lips, which she had forced into a smile, trembled.

“Sedan, my son. What would you do if you fell in love with someone?”

“Well, my esteemed father, I would introduce them to our family first.”

“Introduce them to the family? Why would you make such a foolish choice? If you love them, why would you care about something trivial like family? You could just run away with them and no one would say a word. It’s love! Ah, for goodness sake!”

“But it was Yohaiden that raised me and showered me with love. I, Sedan Yohaiden! My body and soul were nurtured here! How could I ever forget Yohaiden?!”

“Oooooh!! My son!!”

‘Seriously, these two!’

Selena was speechless as she watched her family act out a scene as if they had rehearsed it beforehand.

She really felt like she had to play along with this charade.

This time, she decided to appease them.

‘That way, there will be less trouble when I bring Instructor Zeke in as a son-in-law later…’

It seemed like her family already knew about her feelings for the Instructor.

They had also accepted the fact that he was Yohaiden’s benefactor.

But could a person’s heart be easily swayed with just a title?

Although she hadn’t even mentioned it to Zeke, Selena had already gone as far as fantasizing about bringing him in as her husband.

She took a deep breath.

‘Sigh… I really don’t want to do this…’

Selena squeezed her eyes shut and forced out some tears, just enough to make her eyes glisten.

Then, she clung to her father and Sedan’s clothes.

“Father… Brother…”

Selena called out in a tearful voice.

Startled, the two fools turned to look at her.

Selena looked up at Duke Yohaiden and Sedan with those eyes.

Like a kitten looking up with its big, moist eyes.

“C-Cough!!”

“Uh…!”

They flinched.

The Duke and his son trembled as they met Selena’s gaze.

‘My daughter is so adorable!! I can’t believe we don’t have a recording crystal for this!’

‘I have to sear this image into my memory forever…! She’s my little sister, but… She’s so captivating I feel like challenging Zeke Clayman to a duel…!’

Sensing their wavering, Selena began to turn on the waterworks.

“Dadddyyy… Big brother…”

“Oh… Oh… S-Selena! My daughter! I’m sorry!!”

“I-I’m sorry! S-Selena…! Please forgive me!”

The two men panicked and apologized to Selena, who had begun to sob.

Just then.

“Duke Yohaiden!”

Rosnante appeared from behind them.

Selena’s face stiffened.

She blushed crimson with shame, realizing that Rosnante had witnessed her little act.

She quickly turned and sprinted away.

Fwoosh—!!!!

“Selena!!!”

“Selena!!!”

Her father and brother reached out for her, but they couldn’t catch Selena, who had even used mana to escape.

“…Uh… Um…”

“How dare… Take Selena away from us… That… Prince…”

“So, it was the Second Prince who chased my little sister away… Zeke Clayman would be one thing, but… The Second Prince…”

Their chilling voices pressed down on him.

Rosnante awkwardly scratched his cheek and looked away.

‘Yeah, I think I’m screwed… Maybe I should’ve gone to Eustia.’