Hakushaku to Yousei - Volume 15 - Chapter 3.2

Chapter 3 Part 2 ♦ A ribbon is the dress code for duels

(3)

“Hey Lydia, wake up, it’s already morning."
Nico’s tail was brushing against Lydia, causing her to suddenly open her eyes.
It was a dream.  She let out a sigh.  Nevertheless, her forehead was still sweating and her heart had not yet recovered.
“Did you have a nightmare? Your face looks pale."
“Um...yes."
“I’ll go get breakfast first. The Professor has already left, so if you want to go downstairs, dress up properly, Raven is there."
Raven?
Now that he mentioned it, that was how it was. Edgar thought that it would be bad if the armored man came again, so he left Raven here when he returned last night.
Even if her father and housekeeper were confused, Raven ought to have been standing at the bottom of the staircase leading to Lydia’s room all last night. Although Lydia told him that he could rest in the parlor, he shouldered Edgar’s orders, and probably hadn’t even closed his eyes.
After Lydia watched Nico leave the room, she got up from her bed.
She opened her wardrobe and sighed.
She dreamed of the captured princess again.
This time, she was planning to escape the castle with the young man.
But no matter how they escaped, they could not shake off their approaching pursuers. She was caught at last, and was forcibly separated from the young man.
Lydia, or perhaps it was the princess, helplessly watched as the young man was cut down.
Was the man who kicked her beloved person and headed towards her that sinister lord?
Lydia, who was absorbed in the dream, took out a hidden dagger from her dress and pointed it towards the lord.
She dashed over to him as if wanting an embrace. The lord had extended his arms and embraced her, letting his guard down. Perhaps he felt that he had saved her from the hands of the intruder.
At that moment, she glimpsed at the face of the lord under the moonlight.
Lydia was flabbergasted.
Edgar. Just as she whispered that, she woke up.
Lydia felt a chill and held her trembling shoulders.
The reason why she had that sort of thing in the dream was because the armored man considered Edgar as the lord. It was solely due to the similarities that she overlapped Edgar with the lord.
However, she always felt very uneasy. She felt anxious in her innermost heart of making a mistake in the engagement, and she felt guilt from the dream that was confusing her; she felt pained by these two emotions.
In the end, what on earth was going on?
She shook her head, trying to shake off the remnants of the dream out of her mind. Although she quickly changed into her ordinary clothes, she was unable to calm down before she went over to the dining room, so she sat on her dresser chair.
Was it really necessary to duel?
As long as Lydia thought of this matter, the armored man’s appearance would become that of the young man from the dream. Lydia only had a good impression of him, in being gentle and sincere.
That man might be killed by Edgar.
Just like the dream she saw.
No, compared to him, Edgar is more...
The person I am most worried about is clearly only Edgar.
She felt dizzy again.
“Miss Lydia, are you alright?”
She looked up immediately and saw Raven standing by the door.
“I’m sorry, you didn’t respond when I knocked on the door, so I just came in out of my own accord."
“……That's okay, I was just thinking about something."
Although Lydia said that, she looked away from Raven.
She was engaged to Edgar, and yet she was thinking about someone else. The indescribable emotions she felt in her heart seemed that it could be seen through, so she was afraid.
Lydia should be angry at the armored man who disrupted her smooth everyday life, but she did not know if she ought to be angry, and so she grew more and more anxious.
“Let’s go downstairs."
She tried to force this sentence out and walked out of the room.

When Lydia went downstairs to the dining room, Nico, who was stuffing himself with pancakes looked at her.
“You don’t look too good, you don’t have an appetite? ”
“Uh, yes."
“Then give me your pancakes."
Nico was not worried at all.  While he ate a mouthful of pancakes, he eyed Lydia’s pancakes.
Lydia who was silent, pushed her plate towards Nico.
“Oh, thank you."
Lydia sat down on a chair and watched Raven. He was standing by the dining room entrance and did not slack off at all in guarding Lydia.
“Raven, do you want to sit down?”
She called out to Raven.
“No, because I do not know when the despicable man who stole Miss Lydia’s undergarment will appear."
But his face was serious as he gave a firm answer.
.....It’s not an undergarment.
While Lydia wanted to correct him, it was quite humiliating to say that in front of men, so she could only blush and shut her mouth.
“It really isn’t normal, going as far as to fight over that piece of ripped cloth."
Nico wiped the corners of his mouth with a napkin.
“It was because Lydia sewed things like ribbons and embroidery on top that he mistook it as a handkerchief, and if it wasn’t for him being driven away by Kelpie, that guy probably wouldn’t have taken anything away."
“Y--you didn’t have to mention that matter again......”
She drank the housekeeper’s milk tea in dismay.
“All in all, dueling is really strange. Hey Raven, you think this kind of thing is silly too, right?”
He nodded in agreement after thinking about it.
“Yes, I believe that whether or not there are ribbons on it, after taking it off, it is all the same."
“Eh...What are you saying....”
What? Taking it off.....?
At Raven’s unexpected answer, Lydia was speechless and froze in place.
This wasn’t what I was asking.
“Raven, the focus wasn’t on the ribbons."
Nico intervened, helping her speak.
“Then, is it the embroidery?”
“Oh my, won’t you make Lydia more embarrassed like this?”
Seeing Lydia holding her cup and frozen, Raven seemed to discover that he had to pay attention to Lydia’s feelings.
Although his face was expressionless, his tone became a little anxious.
“Um, about that, Miss Lydia you do not need to worry about it, Lord Edgar likes both the ribbon and embroidery."
“You don't have to say any more."
Hearing Nico speak with a cold tone, Raven lowered his head.
Regardless of whether it was the lace, embroidery or perhaps what happened with the armored man, it was all because Lydia was childish and unaware of the affairs of life.
She was about to get married so this was absolutely unacceptable.
I have to come to my senses.
Lydia chose Edgar, she couldn’t cease to be faithful, moreover, the princess was not her.
She said this to herself while taking a deep breath, trying to calm down as much as possible.  Now is not the time to panic over pajamas.
“Raven, um, there’s no need for you to mind this, rather, is Edgar home?”
At any rate, I have to stop the duel.
Then, she needed to find a way to eliminate the feelings of not knowing who she is.
As long as she stood by Edgar’s side, she could definitely forget the dream.
I have to go and see him.
Lydia was very short-tempered as she thought this.

When Lydia arrived at Earl Ashenbert’s mansion and entered the lobby of the main entrance, a woman running down the stairs brushed past her.
The young woman appeared to be crying, but she just lowered her head and rushed out. Lydia saw a maid chasing behind in a hurry to leave. She couldn’t help but hate her own poor timing, and she also felt more anxious.
Her emotions seemed to be more chaotic than usual, why would she still encounter such a thing?
Since being engaged, she had often encountered such scenes. Because they suffered a blow from Edgar’s engagement, there seemed to be many women who came to question him or cry out.
For the time being, regardless of whether it was a while after the engagement was announced, things should have already settled down.
“Welcome, Miss Lydia."
The head butler Tomkins greeted Lydia with a subtle smile.
“Please don’t worry about it. That lady had returned from a long trip, so she had just found about Master’s engagement."
Since they knew that they would be driven away afterwards, it meant that things weren’t as simple as maidens being secretly in love.
Lydia sighed.
Recently, she had been able to display the behavior of a lover around Edgar, and even had the feeling of wanting to see him, furthermore, she began to become conscientious, and believed that even so, she would be welcomed here.
But when faced with this kind of thing, Lydia couldn’t help but flinch, and she would lose a lot of confidence standing by Edgar’s side.
“Master is in the library. Raven, bring Miss Lydia there."
Raven had returned to the mansion with Lydia; heard what Tomkins said and nodded, but Lydia immediately shook her head.
“No need, I want to go to the study room for a while...”
“Lydia, let’s talk before that."
Edgar appeared at the top of the staircase.
“I’m not familiar with that woman from just now, I really wanted to say this, I only escorted her to a party within the context of social etiquette."
He helped Lydia sit on a chair, while he explained and stood to justify himself.
“But she appeared to be crying."
“She probably wanted to check whether or not I really am engaged. Although I was a little surprised, I don’t remember doing anything to upset her."
“Even so, you must have sweet talked her suggesting that you looked forward to her every embrace. So she must have been badly hurt."
“I don’t know if she was looking forward to it, but I have not betrayed you, neither have I done anything to make you angry."
“It’s hard to say, I’ve also seen girls that have almost cried in front of you, could it be that they were all those who you took the initiative to be friendly to?”
Even if Lydia was unaware of the affairs of life, she at least knew that this was impossible.
“Well, that kind of momentary romance.... I won’t say I haven’t talked about that, but even with you, I promised to discuss the future with you and now you are refusing to forgive past relationships?”
Although Edgar said this, what if other women did not see it as the end?
Perhaps there was currently still someone who loved him in secret. When meeting with these kinds of people again, wouldn’t Edgar recall his former feelings?
Lydia was inexperienced in this so it was unclear.
The princess in the dream resurfaced in her mind.
Even if there was someone who remembered the princess now, would the princess have thoughts about this?
Would she have thought that it was all in the past?
Lydia did not think so. She felt that the princess would think of past matters, and would want to return to her lover’s side.
Lydia quickly dispersed this imagination.
Just by imagining past romantic relationships, she felt a wave of guilt towards Edgar, her heart was feeling very apologetic.
However, he was different.
Thinking this, Lydia felt upset.
“Well, what about you?”
Lydia lowered her head and said gently:
“Even if I see my former lover again, would you not care since it was in the past as well?”
Edgar frowned in surprise, but it was only for a moment as he flatly and immediately said:
“I am your only lover. That was the case and will always be the case."
Indeed, Edgar was the first person who had a favorable impression of Lydia.  But the tone of his voice was so conceited that it made Lydia very angry.
It was as if Lydia was an unpopular girl!  This was indeed true, however….
“How...how would you know? These things happened before we met.”
He stood beside her and put his hand on his chin in contemplation. Then, he suddenly had a grim expression, and stood in front of Lydia as if to intimidate her.
“Could it be that there were other men who have stolen your heart in the past? What kind of men? When and where did you meet?”
He clearly told Lydia to not be jealous of the past relationships that he spoke of, but now he was interrogating her in such a manner, it was indeed unfathomable.
“Lydia, we’re going to get married so there’s no need to hide things from each other."
Aren’t you the one hiding a lot of things from me!
However, when Edgar bent down and held Lydia’s hands, he had never looked at Lydia so confidently, she also began to feel that her impulses were a little stupid.
“Oh, how could there be that sort of person? I just don’t want you to demand a duel just because...... something mistaken as a handkerchief was stolen."
He loosened his hands in astonishment and ingeniously connected the two matters together.
“Could it be that man? He was unable to save you, so he appeared?”
“Ah! N--no! The man was captured by the fairies, and after returning to the human world, he discovered that several hundred years have passed. If it continues like this, as long as he touches the things of the world, his body will turn to ash. It’s just that he believes that if he were to take revenge for the defeat of his former lover being taken away, he will be able to turn back into a human....”
“Former enemy? He died several hundred years ago, no?”
“Yes, but he thinks there’s such thing as reincarnation... he firmly believed that I was his past lover out of his own accord."
“What did you say? Past lover? You heard him say that, and so you believe it?”
He fretfully said aloud.
“I don’t think so, I just don’t know.... I feel a little confused."
So she really wanted to see Edgar. She thought that as long as she stayed Edgar’s side, her confused heart would fade away.
However, he was angry at Lydia’s attitude.
She clearly did not want to argue about this.
“Then, the person that was forcing you to separate from that man was the past me?”
“I didn’t mean...”
“What if it was really like that? Would you pray for that man to win?”
“What I mean is that you mustn’t duel."
He suddenly pulled Lydia’s hand. Lydia could only stand up and was hugged by him.
“Edgar...”
“I won’t stop, the location and date appointed by him has already come."
How could this be?
“Fate will determine who your true lover is. From the past to the present, we all believe that duels were left to God to decide the outcome, it was the most proper judgment."
Lydia would choose Edgar, so there wasn’t a need for someone else to decide.
She obviously thought that, but she couldn’t say it.
She was afraid and unable to move. She was afraid that the knife, which the princess of the dream pointed towards  Edgar, no, the lord, would appear in her own hand.
Her hands were trembling, unable to wrap her arms around Edgar’s back, so Edgar was probably thinking that Lydia wasn’t accepting him.
He loosened his hands gently and let go of Lydia.
“The reason why I concluded that those relationships were of the past, was because I knew that even if I met with them, my feelings wouldn’t sway, but for you, would you be moved if you saw him...... even if it was a past lover who you’d never seen before?”
Although Lydia wanted to speak, her voice did not come out. Edgar painfully sighed at her.
“Your wish is for that man to win, to not turn into ash and live a normal life? In that case, you could return to his side. If it makes you happy, it’s an ordinary life that is merely comfortable.”
Lydia stood trembling in place, and Edgar left her as he went out of the room.

*

“Lord Edgar, Miss Lydia has returned home."
Edgar was sitting in his armchair angrily when Raven came to the study and did not approach him as he stood at the door and spoke to him.
“Raven, things have become troublesome."
Hearing Edgar’s mumbles, the expressionless attendant tilted his head slightly.
“I said a massive lie. No, as long as it is for Lydia, I will truly do anything, but how could I hand her over to other men?”
Even if Lydia hoped so, no, if a man who Lydia was more attracted to appeared, Edgar could only think of sending that guy to hell.
“And yet, I told Lydia to go to his side."
He clenched his fists.
“If she’s really gone, what am I going to do?”
Edgar tried to show his weak side a little, but Raven did not sympathize with him.
“Well.... I think there’s nothing you can do."
“Don’t joke around, I won’t let her go no matter what! ……Having said that, if I humiliate the man that she sympathizes with, the impression that I give her will seemingly worsen."
Sympathy? It would be nice if that was the case.
Lydia was particularly eager to stop the duel.
Edgar thought over this matter, but he didn’t expect that it was merely because he might die from the duel, as he thought that Lydia was worried about the opponent.
Having mentioned that, Lydia will not fall in love with a man so easily; even Edgar put a lot of effort in trying to make her love him.
However, having a favourable impression of the armored man, whose appearance cannot be seen and whom she had met for the first time, was this possible?
It was very unusual, he thought. However, he wasn’t very clear about something regarding Lydia.
Was she merely immersed in things like reincarnation, destined love and such affairs?
“Lord Edgar, even if it makes Miss Lydia upset, are you still going to duel?”
Raven wouldn’t be disturbed by trivial things, but he was very afraid that Lydia would be displeased. Perhaps for him, to make an upset woman happy was harder than single-handedly beating up dozens of people.
“If I don’t duel, the problem will worsen. The man seemed to have come from the fairy realm, he also spoke of reincarnation and such and pursued Lydia. If he gambled on the matter of whether or not he could become human again as a duel, then he shouldn’t merely be a ribbon thief. The situation seems to be more complicated."
“He is wearing armor, so guns are useless."
Edgar nodded while thinking.
Recent duels will often use guns, but that man probably won’t use weapons that he’s never seen before.
Moreover, if that man truly returned from the fairy realm as Lydia said, then he probably won’t agree to take off his armor.
Duels were carried out in a mutually agreed manner. What weapons to use, what conditions are allowed by one another in achieving fairness, these were the issues. But in Edgar’s view, that type of defense equipment would only make him unable to move freely, but even so, everything really wasn’t in his favor.
Was there any way to win?
“Do you intend to kill him?”
Edgar thought that if he depended on Raven’s skill, perhaps there was a possibility to sever the carotid artery through the small cracks in the armor, but this wasn’t the perfect choice.
If he were to just make that man disappear from the world, the bad rumors about him pursuing Lydia will still remain, which was troublesome. Not only that, if Lydia knew that it might be under Edgar’s hands, she would be more sympathetic towards the man, and he did not want that.
Because of this, Edgar believed that a fair duel was the best solution. Even if duels were illegal, one-on-one duels followed the spirit of chivalry nevertheless. This will not only preserve her reputation, she would only be able to accept the outcome as well.
“Raven, this fight is for Lydia, therefore I cannot do despicable things. Carrying out fair competition is the proud tradition of aristocrats."
Nevertheless, Edgar also thought that getting killed for the sake of reputations was foolish. He naturally understood the aesthetics of nobility, but he had to recklessly fight in order to survive in the past, and these experiences had made him not just any pure aristocrat.
Edgar actually didn’t hate doing despicable things, for him, what was more important was him not giving a despicable impression to others and nothing more.
“Ohh, I really wished she hoped for me to win instead of stopping me."
If that was the case, he felt that Lydia would understand him no matter what he did.
Edgar stood up while thinking.
“Sir William’s letter was sent this morning, the witness must be decided at once. Call Tomkins here."
Raven nodded solemnly.
“Do you need me to protect Miss Lydia for the time being?”
After considering it a little, Edgar shook his head.
“There’s no need today, I think Lydia won’t like it.”

(4)

Perhaps Edgar hates me.
Thinking this, Lydia was sad as she bit her lips in front of her dresser.
She held back tears while she brushed her hair to distract herself. But while brushing her hair, she couldn’t help but think about it.
It was only natural that Edgar was angry. Clearly they were already engaged, but being called a lover by another man and nearly wavering, this should have been an unforgivable betrayal for him.   
No, my heart has not changed. The only person I love is Edgar.
I’m just feeling a little confused.
However, she couldn’t smoothly convey her own feelings, and she felt that Edgar seemed to have been very hurt as a result.
If it was the previous Edgar, he wouldn’t have told her to go to the armored man’s side. He would have urged her to stay.
However, Lydia’s feelings were not fixed, she blindly wished that he won’t let her go, which was too selfish.
She couldn’t even prevent Edgar from going to a duel, what was she going to do?
“It’s alright, he will save me soon."
Lydia suddenly heard a voice and was so shocked that the hand brushing her hair stopped.
Her own appearance was reflected in the mirror. Although she had a strange feeling, she felt that the sound came from the mirror, and yet it seemed to have emerged from her heart, but she had an intuition that it was what the princess said in the dream.
I’m waiting for that young man. This was what she said.
How strange, what’s going on with me?
Lydia dropped her brush and her hand touched her chest.
“Edgar."
She tried to whisper. While her emotions calmed a little, she soon felt a burst of confusion.
She went first full of confidence, but now she wasn’t sure whether Edgar was the only one.
Reflected in the mirror was her face full of tears, when she thought that, she felt the princess’ words again.
“For that man, it’s the same as getting married to anyone, he just wants to make girls who resist him obey him, nothing more."
Lydia began to panic and slapped the mirror.
“That’s not Edgar, he’s not that kind of person! He wants to protect me......"
Yes, this matter originally wasn’t serious enough to require a duel as a solution. If the problem lied merely with the pajamas, perhaps Edgar would have calmed down.
However, since the armored man claimed Lydia to be his lover, Edgar certainly wouldn’t back down.
Edgar said without hesitation that he was in love with Lydia. Recently, Lydia felt his sincerity as it wasn’t merely lip service.
In order to make Lydia a relative of the Earl household as for her to have a place where she belongs, he couldn’t act carelessly.
If at this sort of time, his fiancée’s past lover appeared, even if it was idle gossip, it would harm Lydia, whose status was originally lower, therefore he believed that he must use the form of a duel to strongly negate it......
After Lydia pondered on this, she realized something.
That is, since she decided to marry a noble, then she shouldn’t stop the duel, rather she should wish for Edgar’s victory.
Being concerned over her fiancé’s health or finding a way to reconcile are things to be dealt with after the duel.
However, Lydia’s calm was disrupted by the voice of the princess from the dream.
“If it weren’t for that lord....”
“Don’t say anymore, being unable to stop the duel is your fault!”
(Duel? The Blue Knight Earl is going to duel?)
This time, a voice came from around Lydia’s feet.
This wasn’t an illusion, it was a loud and rough voice.
Just as she thought that, coming out of a drilled hole from a section of the floor was a small fairy who wore a triangular hat.
(Ohh, daring to duel with our Blue Knight Earl, he truly is a reckless guy.)
After standing on the floor, he shook his shaggy beard as he puffed out his chest.
He was a mine goblin who had connections with the Ashenbert household.  He was also very familiar with Lydia and was a fairy who had often appeared in her surroundings.
Lydia let out a sigh.
If she was alone, she didn’t know how she would appear, but she was very grateful now that there was someone who had spoken.
“Coblynau, do you know anything about the duels of the past Blue Knight Earls?”
(I’ve heard ancestors say that the Earl was quite unyielding, and lightly hit the opponent with a spear, causing them to fall from the horse.)
“Spears? Spears were used to duel?”
(Of course, duels were on horseback, and spears were used to compete. If they don’t possess unyielding courage to challenge them from the front, then they wouldn’t win.)
Lydia had read this in a book, but this kind of horseback competition was from the medieval era.
Lydia wasn’t without doubt, but because she didn’t understand it very well, she believed Coblynau, who had been staying underground and whose views remained in the medieval ages.
Having said that, the so-called nobility that continued on from the medieval era and did not cease in history, had stretched down to the family and the system. Lydia thought to herself that since betting on the reputation of the duel, even now there were people consenting tacitly, which meant that following and carrying out the ways of orthodox competition weren’t unreasonable.
But if that was the case, the armored man belonged to the era with genuine horse competitions, nobles in the current nineteenth century were accustomed to riding horses or using weapons, it wasn’t like how people trained in the medieval times.
In that case, it was very unfavorable for Edgar...
“That sort of man being killed is only a matter of course."
Here we go again. Lydia frowned.
“Lydia, what happened? Do you have a stomachache?”
Another voice came. Kelpie forced his body through the narrow window and entered the room.
“Ugh, honestly, I’m really unlucky."
“Kelpie, what’s going on? What happened?”
“I found that guy wearing armor. He was lying in middle of the plains, so I was going to swoop in and bite him, but that guy’s body was too hard."
“That’s to be expected, he’s wearing armor."
Even for Kelpie, he was impossible to bite.
But Kelpie put his hands on his hips and looked down at Lydia, as if he wanted her to deny it.
Coblynau quickly got under the bed in order to dodge Kelpie.
“Come on, of course I know that iron is very strong, when I lunged at him at the time, he wasn’t wearing hand protectors. I wanted to take the chance to bite his wrist at first, but it turned out that his old-looking gloves resisted my teeth."
“Gloves?”
“That guy is wearing durable leather, it’s like his hands and feet are covered with powerful magic."
That’s right, she remembered that he seemed to have said that he was wearing magic deerskin clothing.
Carefully thinking about it, depending solely on the armor can’t cut off the effects of what several hundred years does to the body. Furthermore, the armor didn’t cover the palms, as well as the soles of the feet. Ordinary leather boots should be incapable of withstanding the forces of erosion.
“He should be human, right? Where did he get those magical gloves and shoes from?”
(I’ve heard this before.)
Coblynau spoke from a distance.
(I know there are fairies that can create that sort of special leather boots and clothing. Similar to how we are very good at making fine mineral handicrafts, they are unparalleled leather smiths.)
“Could it be leprechauns?”  
After Lydia said that, a voice came from the direction of the ceiling this time.
(That’s right, that guy stole our leprechaun boots, vest and gloves.)
A little fairy wearing a red hat poked his head out from a crack in the ceiling.
He jumped down, stood by Lydia’s feet and looked around. The fairy wore a leather apron and looked like a craftsman.
(I heard that you are a fairy doctor? Your partner said that you’ll help us, so he brought me over.)
“Is it Nico?”
“Yes, I was the one who found him. Lydia, I know the armored man’s true appearance!”
Nico jumped out from the window and proudly puffed out his chest in front of Lydia.
“His true appearance? What do you mean?”
(Wah! It’s a kelpie, a kelpie is here!)
The leprechaun suddenly realized that and jumped up, stuffed his head into the hole as if to flee, but because he was stuck, he kept twisting around. After Nico saw this, he laughed.
“Hahaha, you’re really cowardly. If you are afraid of the kelpie, stand behind me."
(Ohh, you’re not afraid of the kelpie? You are truly worthy of being a fairy doctor’s partner.)
Kelpie, who looked fed up, deliberately picked up Nico.
“Hey cat, even if it’s in front of Lydia, it’s not that I can’t taste your flavor.”
“Kelpie, don’t do that, I’d like to listen to the leprechaun speak."
“Hmph, I know, I’m not going to eat you guys."
After Kelpie threw Nico away, he sat on the bed where Coblynau was hidden.
Nico went to Lydia’s side while pretending to be calm and straightening his crooked necktie or fur, then as if nothing happened, he stuck out his chest once more and said:
“Alright, leprechaun, tell Lydia about it."
The small fairy that dodged Kelpie, then came to Lydia’s side again and nodded.
(The man was indeed a troublesome guy, a long time ago, he tricked the witch and obtained potions to control women’s hearts.)
“Potions?”
(As long as the concoction is seeped into a woman’s handkerchief or personal garment, she will be the man’s past lover, and have a good impression of the man.)
No way.....
Lydia suddenly felt a burst of palpitations, and held her chest in result.  She anxiously urged the fairy to continue.
“And then? What happened after?”
(He seems to use the potions on the ladies and enjoys himself as much as he likes. But one day, he saw a beautiful princess who was the lord’s fiancée.)
“He took the princess's handkerchief......”
(He tried to steal her handkerchief but was caught as a result.)
In that case, he didn’t make the princess change her heart?
Just because the armored man used magic to create those kinds of dreams on Lydia, she shouldn’t have anything to do with the princess.
(Although the man was very cunning, he escaped using the maid’s sympathy. He continued to flee to other countries, so the witch and Lord cooperated in order to trap in him the fairy realm,  because she resented him very much.)
“That man said the witch died, so he was able to leave, but......”
(Yes, the witch is dead, after her magic weakened, the imprisoned man came out of the forest, but he had been unable to return to the human world with his body, so he stole our treasure, that is, those fine leather boots, vest, and gloves.)
The leprechaun stopped there.
However, it was unknown whether it was because he recalled the thief and was furious, so he stood up as it was more than he could bear.
(We chased the stolen things to London, but because we couldn’t find the thief, we’ve been so troubled. I heard you were being targeted by that man? In that case, will that man come again? Seize him, take back our stolen boots, vests and gloves!)
Lydia’s held her troubled head.
She was actually deceived by the magic.
This was, of course, a big shock for her and didn’t want to believe what the leprechaun said.
However, Lydia was a fairy doctor, so she knew that she couldn’t be confused any more.
Fairies won’t lie.
The armored man was definitely lying.
“Hey, you guys, having your stuff stolen is your own carelessness, don’t create trouble for Lydia."
Kelpie said.
The leprechaun jolted in fright after being berated, and hurriedly ran to the corner of the room.
“It’s alright, Kelpie,  thanks to him I know the truth... However, I’m not sure if I can get your things back... because the man cannot take off his boots."
(The Blue Knight Earl should be able to settle things with the evil man, right?)
Coblynau said.
“Oh right, Lydia, isn’t this great? Wasn’t the Earl planning to fight that guy?”
Even Nico said such a thing.
Since she knew she was being tricked, Lydia didn’t want Edgar to be involved in danger even more.
Moreover, the man wore leprechaun leather, so it would be more difficult injuring him with ordinary weapons.
“But even if he were to duel, it’s impossible that he’d take off his helmet and boots, we’ll have to think of another way."
Lydia quickly pondered.
“Leprechaun, the man said that as long as he defeats the lord he hates in a duel, he can live in the human world, is this true?”
Lydia was crouching alongside the wall.
(Living in the human world? Is that a kind of magic? But who knows whether or not there is reincarnation in this world, oh, but that man has the book from the dead witch, he also stole our treasures, it appears that he deliberately risked entering the human world, so he should have a special purpose.)
Perhaps the armored man didn’t really believe in reincarnation, but he still insisted on dueling.
She didn’t know what he was actually trying to do. However, the magic that was advantageous him must have been associated with dueling.
In that case, he will also continue to find someone in the future to duel with. In order to conduct duels, the number of deceived women like Lydia will increase.
I cannot ignore this.
As soon Lydia recalled that she was deceived by magic, her chest pained at having hurt Edgar.
She felt a surge of anger at herself, and Lydia who had no choice and felt frustrated, stood up in determination.
“I will duel with him."

*

Kelpie transformed into his horse form, carried Lydia and galloped forward.  No matter how fast he was, he found ways to not make Lydia fall off while running.
Although kelpies would generally never let humans sit on their back, Kelpie only allowed Lydia to do so.
They proceeded to the outskirts of the plains where the duel between Edgar and the armored man was going to take place.
The time and location was secretly investigated by Nico in the Earl’s mansion.
Having heard Lydia threatening to duel him, Nico was of course, against it, but after having been tempted by food, he agreed to help.
“Lydia, are you sure you want to duel? Shouldn’t you reconsider?”
However, even Kelpie didn’t really agree with this either.
“Kelpie, please, if you don’t help me, I can’t fight on my own."
Coblynau said that duels were conducted on horseback. Although Lydia never learned to ride a horse, she felt that she might be able to do it because she recalled that Kelpie was here.
“Well, if you ask me, dragging that guy down from the horse and making him surrender is very simple."
He snorted, as if he felt little motivation.
“Then again, will it be alright using that kind of decorative spear as a weapon? ”
There’s something else that has to be used in a duel. After Lydia pondered about it, she took the decorative spear.
The fairies and the leprechaun worked together to take it out of Edgar’s mansion.
Mansions of aristocrats usually had gorgeous decorative weapons which actually couldn’t be used.
As a matter of fact, Lydia couldn’t use weapons, so even if she took a decorative one, it didn’t matter.
However, it was unexpectedly heavy. Lydia had to use both hands to hold the spear, but even this was very difficult. If the horse she was riding wasn’t Kelpie, then she wouldn’t be able to gallop with him like this.
However, when Lydia sat on Kelpie’s back, regardless of how violent the swaying was, she felt as if she were sitting silently on a sturdy chair.
“Holding an ornament, the opponent will probably slack off as a result."
Lydia did not intend to wield this kind of thing.
“Kelpie, I’m really sorry, it was a difficult request for you to carry me and provoke the opponent’s horse."
“You have to sit on my back, right?”
“Because if I don’t pretend to be dueling, I feel like he wouldn’t agree."
Yes, this duel was only a pretense.
“As soon as he falls from the horse, Coblynau will take off his armor. Since he’s a mine fairy, he’ll able to use iron as he wishes. Next, the leprechauns will take off his boots quickly."
“This way, he will turn into dust."
“If he can return all the stolen things, he’ll be able to return to the fairy realm. He will definitely choose to do so."
In reality, duels were a sacred matter, and needed to be one-on-one.
But the armored man had been deceiving women and was a thief. Lydia planned to finish the job as a fairy doctor.
This was in order to retrieve the leprechaun’s treasures and to make the man return to where he came from.
This man practically wasn’t worth dueling with. She just didn’t want Edgar to be killed by such a person.
The reason why the pajamas were stolen was because Lydia was careless, but she was also bewitched, displaying an attitude of having a crush towards another man other than Edgar.  Because she felt so much remorse from this, she was desperate.

“Princess, why have you come here?”
The armored man was sitting in the plains; it seemed that he was waiting there for several hours. Although there was a long time before Edgar would appear, perhaps he had nothing else to do.
He saw Lydia appear, then asked in a puzzled tone.
“I demand a duel with you.”
“......I’m confused. I want to save you from the hands of the evil man.”
“The leprechaun has told me the truth.”
His armor made an clinking sounds  as the man stood up on alert.
“Leprechaun? You can talk to fairies?”
He seemingly still didn’t believe it. Indeed, leprechauns were regarded as a race among fairies that wouldn’t interact with humans, moreover, it was unlikely that they would group together.
“I am a fairy doctor after all.”
“Oh... is that so? I found it quite strange that you weren’t scared of a kelpie at all, so it turns out that the princess’ reincarnation is a witch.”
Sure enough, tied to the armored man’s arm was a strip of Lydia’s ribboned linen.
“But princess, regardless of who you are in this world, you are still my princess.”
Was the magic still binding Lydia? When he called her princess, there was suddenly a disturbance in her chest, and her heartbeat went into a frenzy.
She took a deep breath.
I cannot be confused by magic.
It’ll be alright as long as I persevere with my own thoughts.
“I am Lydia Carlton, I am neither the princess you loved at first sight nor a witch. Therefore, I cannot forgive the things that you’ve done. I should have the right to duel you!”
After Lydia said it in one breath, he seemed to burst into laughter from deep within the armor.
“Indeed, having both the horse and spear, this appearance seems to be quite impressive, but are there people who still duel in this way nowadays?”
Eh...... there isn’t?
“But it doesn’t matter, this is the way that I’m accustomed to in any case.”
He whistled, and a horse appeared from nowhere. At first glance, it appeared to be an ordinary chestnut-colored horse, but it probably wasn’t a horse of this world.
In the fairy realm, there were many animals raised by fairies as livestock. This horse was probably raised by fairies.
“But princess, your horse is a kelpie, so it can’t be considered as a fair competition, right?”
The armored man stroked the fairy horse’s nose, while glaring at Kelpie.
“There is a fairy horse on your side as well. Regardless of speed or strength, it cannot be compared to the horses of the human world."
“Hmph, but it can’t be compared to me either."
Kelpie quietly murmured.
“Or is it that even if the opponent is a woman, you’re unwilling to use a small handicap?”
“Do you really want to duel?”
“You returned to this world for a duel, did you not? Even if the opponent isn’t the reincarnation of the lord that you detest, it actually doesn't matter, right? Do you have reason to deny my request?”
Lydia thought that he likely wouldn’t refuse.
However, he worriedly fell silent.
Then, he thoughtfully reached out and touched Lydia’s cloth of ribbons tied to his arm.
“Perhaps you don’t understand, but I truly love you, princess. I’m not playing mind games to get closer to you."
“I am someone else."
Saying those words to me is meaningless.
“The princess is no longer in this world, but I don’t want to accept this fact, as long as I can use magic to make other women believe themselves to be the reincarnation of the princess, I thought that I might be able to find a substitute."
“You are too selfish.”
“Indeed, I also know that you won’t forgive me. So, what I’m saying for you now perhaps isn’t appropriate, but you really do resemble the princess, with your hair color and your unyielding stubborn disposition. Just for now, could you please be my princess?”
“Wha--what do you mean?”
The subject went in an unexpected direction, making Lydia panic.
But without knowing why, when Lydia listened to his comforting voice, her feelings of doubt and being unable to forgive him gradually diminished.
Even if she felt that it was due to the effects of magic, she couldn’t think.
He slowly raised his hands to take off the helmet in front of Lydia, then he lifted his leather headscarf, revealing his shoulder length hair swaying in the wind.
Lydia had seen this in her dream; a plain-looking youth’s face, smiling sadly.
Seeing his face again, Lydia’s heart was disturbed once more.
“Can you forgive me as the princess…? Please kiss my forehead as proof."
“What? If you do this, you will be turned into ash.”
“In the past, my wish was to win against the Lord in a match and obtain the princess, even if that desire is now impossible to achieve, and I still hoped to battle for the princess….I wanted to bet on my life, and let the princess, who no longer exists, know that my feelings toward her weren’t a joke. So, if you are willing to forgive me for my crimes committed as the princess, I will no longer have regrets in this world."
Although Lydia was at a loss, she still climbed down from Kelpie’s back.
“Do you really think so?”
“I vow to the Princess."
“Lydia, don’t go to him."
Kelpie muttered.
“But he took the initiative to admit his sins and asked me to forgive him."
“Don’t believe him, he might be plotting something."
“As long as my hand touches him, he will turn to ashes, so he shouldn’t be able to do anything."
He took off his helmet and revealed his head, defenseless. Lydia thought, and was convinced that it should be alright.
If he wanted to atone for his sins, she hoped to show respect.
Nevertheless, Lydia still thought that, but was it because of the effects of magic that she was unable to make a proper judgement?
The man kneeled down, waiting for Lydia to come over, and she completely sensed that he had no will to fight.
“Kelpie, stay here."
She cautiously stepped forward, left Kelpie’s side, and faced the man one-on-one.
(Hey, Lydia!)
Nico’s voice rode the wind from somewhere.
(If the Earl finds out you kissed him on the forehead, things will be disastrous.)
“I just want to forgive him, be quiet."
(Ugh, it’s too late. After speaking of it, Raven immediately reported this to the Earl.)
What?
Where on earth was Nico? Lydia turned around and heard the sound of hooves.
Someone riding a horse was coming towards here.
The group had three horses, riding the horse in front was someone with conspicuous blonde hair that could be seen in the distance.
“Edgar?”
There should have still been some time left before the duel.
Ugh, really, Nico must’ve tattled.
Just when she thought that, the armored man stood up.
“Lydia, hurry up and come back! Leave that guy!”
The moment Edgar’s voice passed through her ears, the man picked up the spear.
The spear flew towards Lydia, but she was unable to move.
Kelpie ran.
However, the spear approached Lydia’s eyes faster than Kelpie.
There wasn’t enough time to close her eyes as the spear suddenly issued a strong glare; it appeared to have shot above Lydia and emitted light, then disappeared.
“Lydia, are you alright?”
Lydia was relieved and just when she tried to turn around, she hit an invisible wall.
She hastily went around in a circle to confirm her other directions, but it was clear that she was surrounded in all directions.
“What’s going on......?”
She couldn’t sense the wind blowing across the field at all, and could only hear the man’s voice.
“The dead witch collected a lot of magical supplies, which among those, some could also be used by amateurs."
Edgar came running.
He tried to reach out to touch Lydia, but he was blocked by the invisible walls.
“It’s best not to force your hand past it, otherwise she will collapse along with that wall."
The man said while picking up his helmet.
“Hey, to go as far as to lock me up as well, this bastard!”
The magic spear had probably shined on Kelpie too, as he seemed to be surrounded by invisible walls. Since he he was unable to smoothly turn his body around in his horse form, he transformed into his human form and incessantly went in circles around the narrow space.
Nevertheless, he was still different from Lydia, as he was a powerful fairy; he constantly shook the invisible walls from the inside.
“Before that kelpie destroys the magic, this could probably be settled. Let’s duel.”
The armored man faintly said.
“The winner can obtain her, that isn’t a problem, right?”
“Respect for a woman’s will is chivalrous. Regardless of whether you win or lose, Lydia will not choose you.”
“It’s hard to say.”
He touched the strip of linen tied onto his arm once more.
“The magic I casted will be completed when I win. She likely wouldn’t hesitate to fall in love with me, and promise to go to the fairy realm with me.”
How was that possible? Lydia muttered.
This was the true motive of that man.
He did not insist in dueling for the princess’ feelings, nor did he have any intention to apologize nor make amends, he just trying to find a girl who could replace her.
He wanted to use magic to bind their mind and body, and then replace the imprisoned princess.
Because he couldn’t return to the human world, he came to find a replacement for the princess to stay by his side.
He not only stole Lydia’s pajamas, he had to duel with Edgar; this was all in order to complete the spell.
Therefore, the duel with Lydia had no meaning at all to him, and Lydia forgiving him as the princess was also insignificant.
However, it was already too late when she found out.
Lydia was like a hostage. Edgar was already incapable of stopping the duel.
I cannot reconcile with him and at the same time, I feel so humiliated. Lydia trembled as she looked up at Edgar.
Edgar moved his hand, stroking the invisible wall.
Lydia’s ribbon was tied to his wrist.
The olive green ribbon that he untied out of his own accord at the opera house was an item directly worn by Lydia.
It was said that knights who fought for a lady would carry her handkerchief on their body.
Therefore, this was proof that Edgar was dueling for Lydia.
“Lydia, actually even if you do cease to be faithful, I do not intend to obediently back down... you know that."
“Edgar, I...”
Was he not angry?
“So, after I listened to Nico, I felt relieved. He said that the reason why you acted very strangely was all because of the effects of the spell, so your heart hasn’t changed, has it?”
“I’m sorry...”
"I am the one to blame, I was not calm. I should’ve listened to you properly, then thought of ways to deal with the situation. Just because you might have been taken away by another man, my mind was in a mess."
He narrowed his eyes sadly.
“However, you don’t have to worry, I won't let you change your heart."
“......Don’t lose."
Lydia said.
She just simply hoped that Edgar would win.
Because it was dangerous to duel, instead of saving her, it was better for him to protect himself, compared to these thoughts, Lydia more so hoped that he would win.
She was Edgar’s fiancée, all of her belonged to him. If this point could be proven, Lydia felt that even if her heart was distorted by magic, she would definitely love only Edgar in the future.

Lydia absentmindedly pondered over this contradictory matter.
“Yes, I won’t lose."
His expression relaxed, and he seemed to feel relieved already.
He smiled softly, as if he wasn’t going to duel at all.
“Lydia, as long as you are willing to say so, I can do anything."
Then, Edgar turned back towards the armored man.
“Alright Sir William, our witness is Sir Steven."
The young man that Lydia had seen at the opera had gotten off his horse.
He had a bewildered look on his face as he saw Lydia and Kelpie, but he didn’t seem to be very surprised.
Was it because he said that he wanted to see magic before that Edgar chosen him as a witness?
Sir Steven looked around and calmly said to the armored man:
“What about your witness? It appears that you are alone."
“I was going to say that I didn’t need a witness, but because she came, I’ll make my lover witness everything."
He pointed in Lydia’s direction. Edgar moved his eyebrows slightly, but did not speak.
Raven took the harness down from the horse and handed the sword to Edgar.
It was the Earl family’s heirloom, the Merrow sword.
“The weapons will be swords. This is your request, I will comply with it."
The sword that had the power to kill fairies, perhaps it could cut off the leather garments made by the leprechauns. However, what about an armor made of steel? In the face of real power, the Merrow sword was but an iron-forged sword.
Edgar took the sword out from the scabbard.
“Before we begin, I would like to make a request."
“What is your request?”
“Because this is a duel, if it is not conducted according to rules, it will be very troublesome."
“Of course."
“So, I want to request a duel with you once again."
So that was it. The armored man nodded and took off his gauntlets.
If both sides followed the rules of a one-on-one battle, then no one would stop them. 
So when Edgar walked over slowly, the man was hardly on guard. As a matter of course, Edgar had no desire to draw his sword.
He merely stared at the man’s movements.
When one party picks up the glove that their opponent took off, the duel was officially established. Lydia had read about such rules in the books.
Next, in accordance to the rules, the man had taken off the leprechauns’ glove and threw it on the ground.
Edgar bent down and was going to pick up the glove from the grass.
At that moment, Edgar took a sudden big stride forward, reached out and grabbed the armored man’s hand which didn’t have a glove.
The man was shocked and tried to shake off Edgar’s grip but it was already too late.
A gust of wind sprung up.
Fine ashes poured out from the gaps of the man’s armor.
In a relatively short process, the body disappeared due to the weight of time.
The armor lost support and collapsed onto the ground just like that.  Lydia was watching this scene and fell forward when the walls that she leaned on suddenly disappeared. 
“Lydia!”
Edgar turned and ran.
He sat on the ground and embraced Lydia. 
What a relief. Lydia murmured.
I’m so relieved that Edgar is okay.
She did not hesitate in clinging to Edgar, this was probably because the effects of the magic on the stolen ribbon was gone.
She put distance between her and Edgar’s shoulders, and saw dust flying up in the sky along with the handkerchief.
The handkerchief decorated with delicate lace also couldn’t bear the powerful current of time, as it suddenly collapsed and disappeared into the wind.
Was that something the man carried close to his body?
If it truly was, then would it have been the princess’......
He said his feelings for the Princess were not false. If what he said was true, than the handkerchief may not have been stolen.
However, this was a matter of the past.
“You’re not angry?”
Edgar whispered to Lydia who was beside him.
“Angry?”
“Ultimately, I had no choice but to use despicable means......”
Because he fooled the armored man?
“No, the duel had not yet been established."
Sir Steven said.
“The glove was not picked up… furthermore, the opponent who requested a duel suddenly disappeared, so it’s the opponent who was despicable, Edgar is without fault."
“Huh, you planned it from the start."
Kelpie muttered with disdain.
“Earl, you were originally a foul guy, what is with this ‘fair’ victory, with Lydia involved, it’s impossible for you to do so."
Edgar stood up, pretending not to hear. He took Lydia’s hand and helped her up, then turned to his friend.
“Steven, thank you for coming."
Steven glanced at the direction of the armor.
Leprechauns were pulling the leather gloves, boots, and vest from underneath the armor. Nico and Coblynau were helping as well.
It was unknown what this scene was in Steven’s eyes in the end.
“Ahh, Edgar, it was quite an entertaining show. Though I said I wanted to see fairies, magic and such things with my own eyes. Well, because your personality is like that, I considered before to be a trick done by you, on me.”
The small fairies found it difficult to move the armor, and Raven, who couldn’t stand by and watch, helped pick up the armor.
Then he picked up something, and walked towards Lydia.
“Miss Lydia, this is your stolen undergarment."
“Ahhhhhh thank you, Raven!”
It’s not an undergarment!
Lydia quickly grabbed it, and her face flushed red as she hid it behind her.

***

Including the matter of the opponent suddenly disappearing before the duel, everything was concealed deep within the minds of the parties involved, and no one would speak of it.
After spending three days in peace, Lydia was troubled over what reasons are necessary to order new pajamas. 
She swore in her heart that she would never sew ribbons onto pajamas again while staring at the linen cloth at home. At that moment, a voice came from somewhere.
(Fairy doctor.)
Lydia turned and saw a fairy wearing a red hat appear from the window.
(We received your help from last time, thanks to you, our treasures have been returned to us.)
“That’s great, did you come here specifically to express thanks?”
(Um, yes. Also, this is proof of the leprechauns’ gratitude, please accept this.)
After he finished speaking, Lydia was gently covered by what he threw in from the window.
“Wh--what is this......?”
She lifted it up with both hands, and it turned out to be pure white pajamas. Furthermore, they were French-style pajamas with ribboned edges sewn with ruffles and delicate embroidery.
(This is what Earl-sama had ordered, he wanted us make the same thing as this.)
“What, Edgar did?”
There was also a magazine page that floated gently towards Lydia’s hand. The magazine should have been already thrown away.
Did Edgar find the same magazine?
(Well, we will go now, we wish you both happiness.)
“Hey, wait a minute, leprechaun......!”
However, the red hatted fairy had disappeared already.
Instead, there was the housekeeper’s knock on the door.
“Madam, Earl Ashenbert has come."
“What!?”
Edgar did not wait for someone to guide him there, and entered the Carlton family’s parlor on his own. Even if he was like this usually, Lydia at present had to urgently stuff the pajamas between herself and the chair.
“Hey Lydia, what did you put away just now?”
“N--nothing."
He leaned very close, he must’ve caught sight of the embroidered pajamas exposed from behind Lydia’s back.
He laughed happily.
“Leprechauns really are fairies that can do things. The shoes and gloves that they made are very fine, you’ve seen it, right? I asked them whether or not they could make clothes apart from leather goods, and as a result, they said that even if it was very delicate embroidery, they could complete it in a short while. It turns out that it was already finished, they truly act fast."
“Edgar, wh...what are you thinking about?”
“Our first night, of course."
“Wha......”
“It’s fine, isn’t it? This is the fairies’ gift, there is nothing compared to this that is more suitable for you to wear.  Moreover, you wanted to try hard to become cuter for me, that is really tempting."
Lydia was too shy to say anything.
“Was it this kind of clothing? Didn’t you show me this one?”
Her whole face was red as she shook her head.
“It doesn’t matter, I’ll look forward to it."
He believed Lydia’s reaction to be that of delight, and revealed a satisfied smile.
Why do I like this person?
The armored man’s magic had already disappeared, but Lydia couldn’t help but be puzzled.