One thing that Yerin has gotten used to in her time as a knight of their kingdom is the daily morning training that comes along with it. No matter how much of a lazy person she is, her training was not one she would be lazy about and so, like every waking morning before the sun even rose, she and Yuna were out on their daily run. Under normal circumstances, they would just run around the training grounds but they were currently in the countryside and so they had the freedom to run wherever they wished. At the moment, they both agreed not to stray too far from the noble’s residence and opted to explore the surroundings instead, thinking they may as well search for any location that the Black Rose may use to sneak into the grounds without them noticing.

Yerin huffs as she keeps up with Yuna. The younger knight has always been the better runner between them, not to mention more athletic than she is. She could tell with the way she moves just the amount of training and effort she poured into being the skilled knight that she is now. It was impressive, to say the least, and she had no qualms in accepting the fact that she has no chance against her if they were ever to engage in a swordfight.

Right after their run they went straight to practicing their sword skills at the spacious front courtyard of the estate and that of course means sparring with the other.

“Take it easy on me.” Yerin almost begs as Yuna brandishes her rapier and gets into position.

Yuna just smiles, but Yerin felt her blood run cold with that smile. She didn’t reply to her words either. Yuna was definitely taking her seriously.

Just as she expected, she was barely able to parry her first attack. Without a single word spoken between the two, Yuna has already managed to close the distance between them with quick and light steps, but her sword didn’t waver from its intended mark.

A small lean to the side and Yuna managed to maneuver her parried sword and was already aiming at her torso in a second. Yerin shifts her footing, making it so that she can maneuver her sword as well and make Yuna miss her mark. Normally, Yerin would have done something to counter attack, but at this point she can only focus on defending herself.

Yuna takes a few strides back, “You should practice more Yerin.”

“You need to take it easy once in a while.” Yerin responds.

Yuna laughs, “Alright, alright, I’ll slow down a bit.”

“No. I want you to slow down a lot.”

“But then I’d get hit?”

“Let me hit you for once!”

“But it’ll hurt…”

“What do you think I feel?”

Yuna just grins and raises her rapier once more before getting into her usual stance, “Alright, I’ll slow down moderately.”

Yerin just sighs and gets into position as well, “I’m sorry I’m not a worthy enough opponent for you.” she grumbles.

“Don’t say that.” she smiles, “As of the moment, you and Sojung are the only worthy opponents for me.”

That assures Yerin somewhat.

The two continue with their bout, with Yerin starting to get used to Yuna’s movements, and after a half an hour or so of dueling, the two finally decide that they’ve had enough training for that morning and proceed to finally take a quick rest before they freshened up.

Unknown to them, they actually had an audience during their duel and when the two finally lay their swords down and take a seat on the freshly cut grass, a round of applause interrupts their silent morning and looking to the source, they saw Yewon and Eunbi right at the balcony of their room which overlooked the courtyard with the latter falling back a little right by the balcony doors.

“That was amazing!” Yewon cheered with both knights expressing their thanks, though of course Yerin couldn’t help but give her a low bow because she likes being flashy.

Yerin’s gaze then turns to Eunbi who said nothing but with the way her eyes shone despite her blank expression, it was more than enough proof that she agrees with Yewon’s sentiments.

“What was that flimsy swordplay?” a new voice interrupts at the same time the viscount’s son, Alfred, trots over to their resting spot atop his stallion. He was, in a sense, looking down at them literally and figuratively, “You weren’t even able to land a single hit on her? All you did was run around and hope to land a hit! Such actions just show you don’t even deserve to be holding that sword!”

“Brother!” Yewon turns to him in disbelief.

“And you, commoner, stop trying hard playing knight. A person of your statute doesn’t deserve to be one in the first place.” he glares at Yuna.

“You—!” Yerin begins to say but stops in her tracks upon feeling Yuna place a hand on her shoulder, keeping her from doing anything that she may regret.

“You’re just bitter because these women get to be knights, but not you.”

Eunbi finally steps out in full view, looking down at the people at the courtyard. At that point, some of the servants have already sensed that a commotion was brewing between their guest and their master and was looking for ways to stop it.

Alfred looks back at her, a scowl on his face.

“What did you say?”

“It’s the truth isn’t it?” Eunbi challenges, “If you’re so confident then why don’t you see for yourself if their skills are as half-baked as you claim them to be?”

Alfred lets out a sarcastic laugh, “As if I would even spend time with such mongrels!”

“Are you scared?” his sister asks.

“Wh—“

“You talk big but in the end you’re all bark after all. I wonder who the mongrel really is.” she taunts, a sly smirk on her face as she stares down at him.

Alfred looks up menacingly at her, not even bothering to hide his dislike for the woman. Yerin had a vague feeling during dinner last night that the two didn’t have the most stellar of relationships as siblings, but she didn’t expect it to be this bad. From the looks of it, it was more of Alfred just hating Eunbi in general and the latter just talking back to him every chance she gets. With the way she taunts the heir, it was like she knew exactly which buttons to push and the moment Alfred gets off his stallion and commands one of their servants to fetch his sword for him, she knew she’s won.

“You, commoner, I will do you the honor of challenging me.” he tells Yuna who just shrugs and was about to stand up but this time, she was stopped by Yerin who pushed her back down and stood up in her stead, “Didn’t you hear me? I said I will challenge the c—“

“I heard you, but who do you think you are to even have the right to challenge Yuna when you haven’t even proven your worth?” Yerin tells him, walking over to her rapier resting underneath a tree, “You’re a hundred years too early to even cross swords with her.”

“Wh— How dare you talk back to me that way!”

“May I remind you that the King’s Guard holds the title of viscount which is the same title as your father?” Yerin draws out the weapon and points it straight at his face without a hint of hesitation, the sudden animosity emanating from her causes him to take a step back, “And the person you call a commoner is now a noble with a higher position than you. I would let slip the slander to my name, but to look down on our pride as knights, to look down on all of the blood and sweat we poured just to get to where we are now, I wouldn’t let you trample on all of that and I won’t let slip the insult to Yuna. As far as I can see, she’s a thousand times worth more than you are. If you fail to defeat me here, then I’m more than certain you won’t even hold a candle against her.”

The servant finally returns, carrying the sword carefully in his arms as he rushes to Alfred’s side and hands him the weapon. Yerin waits patiently as the noble draws out the weapon and upon seeing its make, Yerin feels herself freeze on the spot.

Though, the noble took this as her becoming intimidated and immediately regains his confidence at seeing her shocked look.

“Scared now?” he taunts, raising the sword.

“Where did you get that sword?” Yerin asks in a serious tone. If anyone were to listen carefully, they would even think that she was angry.

“What? Oh this?” he smirks, “I had the most skilled craftsman make it for me. I’m sure this will fare well against that flimsy weapon of yours. Now, en guarde chevalière.”

Yerin doesn’t reply but gets in position, her eyes not leaving the sword for even one second. The uncharacteristic silence somehow unnerves her opponent who could see the way she was looking at him with murder in her eyes. It was as if she holds a grudge against him for something he’s done that he doesn’t even know about.

For Yerin, the mere act of holding that sword was already a sin in and of itself. A sin she cannot easily forgive.

When Alfred makes the first move, Yerin had anticipated it way before he even took the first step. His stance was all wrong, his sword was positioned in a way that gave her the perfect idea on how he would attack and his sword was wobbly and unstable, showing how wrong he was in distributing his weight all over. Suffice it is to say, Yerin won the duel without even needing to use her weapon. She takes a quick step back, just enough for the weapon to slip by her easily and kicks his foot out from underneath him.

With a yelp, Alfred falls down unceremoniously on his back with a loud grunt of pain, his grip on his weapon loosening until he completely loses hold of it, and as he tries to clamber back up to his feet, the blade pointed right in between his eyes and Yerin’s imposing figure standing atop him made him freeze in place.

“S-Such an unorthodox way of fighting!” he quickly accuses, doing his best to save face.

“At this point, I would be besmirching my sword if I were to use it against you.” Yerin tells him coldly, “And that beautiful sword is going to waste in those hands of yours. You don’t even deserve to stare at it, much less wield it.”

She then walks off, heading towards said weapon which was thrown to the side at their sorry excuse of a duel and picks it up carefully, raking in the entire appearance of the weapon.

There was no mistake. This was the Black Rose’s sword. She would recognize that hilt and that beautiful blade anywhere.

But what was it doing here?

Just from a glance, she already knows that Alfred cannot be the thief they’re looking for. Forget about him being a male, even if he is a woman, the swordplay of his was a complete laughingstock. It wouldn’t compare to the swordplay that the Black Rose displayed during their duel.

Gently sheathing the weapon, she then looks up to see Eunbi staring right back at her with an unreadable expression.

“What’s wrong?”

She was shaken out of her thoughts when Yuna approaches, noticing that she’s spaced out longer than normal and finally decides to check on her. Yerin didn’t exactly know what to say. If the sword was here, then that already means that the Black Rose was in their midst, wasn’t it?

Alfred had said it himself, that he had the sword made from a blacksmith and craftsman which means there would be only one of its kind. But something didn’t quite settle well with her. There was no way she would give away her identity that easily, would she?

Yerin feels herself getting confused. Looking up at the balcony once more, she notices that the sisters were gone.

“Yerin?”

Said knight turns to her companion and just offers her an assuring smile, “I’ll tell you later.”

The blonde hair and the sword… everything was pointing to Eunbi, wasn’t it?

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A/N

now what to do from here...