Ten days later, the results of the knight recruitment exam were announced.
I cautiously peeked at the list of successful candidates and, when I found my number, a sigh of relief escaped from the depths of my heart.
It was only after the day of the exam that I belatedly remembered that the third test was judged not by victory or defeat, but by the manner of the fight.
I had been worried that my fighting style, which could be seen as cowardly and outside the code of chivalry, would lead to disqualification.
Having experienced many real battles in my previous life, I had always focused on survival and never considered the method of victory. However, I resolved to take it into account from now on.
In the first place, since I had enchanted the sword and magic stones myself, I had considered the sword's power as my own. But upon calm reflection, the third test was won solely by the sword's effectiveness, and my skills had nothing to do with it...
A dry laugh escaped my lips as I stopped in front of the team assignment board.
The allocation results were announced along with the successful candidates, but unfortunately, all the knight aspirants were tall and formed a formidable barrier, making it impossible to see the crucial information.
Deciding to wait until the crowd thinned, I stepped aside and was approached by someone.
"Hello."
Turning around, I saw the silver-haired handsome guy from the same F group in the knight recruitment exam.
"Since you're here to check the team assignment, I assume you passed, right?"
He smiled and extended his right hand.
Wow, he's so shiny and princely.
"Can I introduce myself? I'm Fabian, the heir of the Vainer Marquis family, 17 years old."
"…Huh?"
…Did he say Marquis family?
One of the top nobles in the country, of which there are only about ten?
And he said he's the heir. So, the next Marquis?
"…Eh? Isn't the Marquis just a legend? Do they really exist??"
In my previous life, I was a princess, but I either stayed in the castle or went on monster hunts, so I rarely met nobles. In this life, the social gap is too wide for me to meet them.
Surprised by my words, he chuckled.
"Well, my father is actually the Marquis, but I assure you, I'm neither a ghost nor a monster."
"Ah, no, that's not what I meant. I'm Fia, the second daughter of the Rude Knight family, 15 years old."
"Sure, I thought you might be Fia. You're the only female candidate in Group F. Can I call you Fia? And you can call me Fab."
"Huh? Um…"
"I wanted to thank you, Fia. During the third test, you picked up my sword, and when I gripped it, the pain in my arm, which I had injured during the test, disappeared as if by magic."
Fabian slowly enveloped my stiff right hand in both of his and looked at me seriously.
...Yeah, he doesn't seem to realize I cast a healing spell. Of course, he wouldn't. A saint is not something you meet easily, and there's no way one would be in the knight corps. He probably thinks the pain just went away by chance...
I stared at his right arm, which he was holding... and was surprised.
What?! The broken arm that should have taken 10 days to heal is completely fine!
"Um... You said you were injured, but it's healed, right?"
"Yeah, it wouldn't look good for a new recruit to join with a broken arm. I drank a lot of healing potions and writhed in agony, and finally, a saint cast a healing spell on me."
I've heard that it's difficult for non-knight corps members to use a saint's power. So, the Marquis family must have a lot of influence. I wondered why he was injured in the first place. Seemingly reading my expression, Fabian explained with a wry smile.
"My pet cat jumped from the fourth-floor balcony to a tree and couldn't get down. I climbed the tree to help it, but lost my balance and fell, breaking my arm."
"Ah..."
I thought he was a perfect, shiny prince, but he's quite silly...
"That happened on the day of the knight recruitment exam for graduates of the knight training school. I had to give up on the exam that day and retake it as a general candidate. At the time, I thought it was just bad luck, but in the end, meeting Fia was fortunate."
"Ah..."
Oh no, he's one of those charming nobles.
As I pulled back, my face twitching, Fabian gripped my arm and dropped a bomb with a smile.
"Fia, your assigned unit is the First Knight Corps. I'm in the same unit."
"………………………Huh?"
The First Knight Corps??
No way.
There are 20 knight corps in total, but the First Knight Corps is a super-elite group, and there's no way a new recruit would be assigned there.
"The First Knight Corps, which guards the royal family, and the Second Knight Corps, which guards the royal castle, are usually only assigned to knights who have served for over 10 years. It seems that assigning new recruits is unprecedented. This time, it's just the two of us."
I froze as Fabian explained with a smile.
"Except for the Third Magic Knight Corps, where mages are assigned, and the Fourth Monster Knight Corps, where monster handlers are assigned, all other new recruits have been assigned to the Fifth Knight Corps, which guards the capital, the Sixth to Tenth Knight Corps, which hunt monsters, and the Eleventh to Twentieth Knight Corps, which guard the borders."
"……"
I no longer had the energy to nod, and my mind kept circling the same thoughts.
The royal family... one of the three brothers who let me die in my previous life, I guess...
Oh no, I have to protect them with all my might...
Can I do it? Will I get so annoyed that I let them die?
"…Fia?"
"Um, I was just thinking about who is in the royal family…"
To cover up, I said something random, and Fabian explained politely.
"There are only two members of the royal family now: His Majesty the King and His Royal Highness the Prince. The king himself has stated that he cannot love women, so he has publicly declared that the next heir will be the prince."
"Wh-what..."
I was taken aback by the unexpected news.
"By the way, as you may know, His Royal Highness the Prince is the Grand Commander of the 20 knight corps."
"Grand Commander!!"
"…You didn't know?"
Of course not. I had heard many rumors about the Grand Commander, who had single-handedly nearly killed all the corps commanders and was a living legend, but I didn't know he was part of the royal family.
"Having spent 15 years in a rural domain without stepping out, I've become a bit of an information novice..."
Seeing my dejected mutter, Fabian tilted his head in confusion and added more information.
"You'll have the chance to meet him tomorrow at the knight induction ceremony. It's a classic case of 'seeing is believing.' ...Come, let's go get our knight corps uniforms. The collar badges differ by unit, so we need to be careful not to get the wrong one. And it's best to get some rest early tonight to prepare for tomorrow."
I was dragged along by Fabian to the uniform distribution center, mumbling about my assigned unit, and realized I hadn't checked the team assignment board myself.
...Ah, wait. Am I really in the First Knight Corps?
I have a strong feeling that Fabian might have made a mistake.
Ughhhh. I don't want to be sent back because I'm in the wrong unit!