Lionel pointed to the stand lying on the floor with the tip of his chin.

“That thing on the floor. Did you do some physical exercise with that thing this time?”

Even as he spoke, there was a disbelieving snort in his voice as if he was dumbfounded.

But thanks to that, I have an excuse.

“I did some arm exercises today.”

I was thinking about what excuse to make for today, but thanks to Lionel, I had an excuse. 

“Are you kidding me?” 

“I can’t practice swordsmanship indoors. There’s nothing better than a stand to swing.” 

Lionel’s face became cold, but I smiled innocently, pretending to feel nothing.

Like this, our battle has been going on these days.

This started with Lionel saying something strange to me, who was still determined to resolve the misunderstanding.

There was a minor problem as my entire body gave out and I fell to the floor.

First, the objects I was holding or nearby fell and broke, causing a mess in the room. Second, when I fell, small wounds began to appear on my body.

Lionel saw this and had a strange misunderstanding.

“Did someone attack you?!”

When I first heard that, I was completely dumbfounded.

There was no sign of anyone breaking in, but he suddenly wondered if it was an attack. Lionel cited the disheveled room and the wounds on my body as reasons.

“If it wasn’t an attack, why would you hold the sword that was hanging on the wall?”

At the time, I took the sword that decorated the bedroom wall to check my aura.

I didn’t know for sure that it would collapse right away then. So I planned to simply check and then put it back in place.

Of course, I vomited blood, lost all strength, and fell onto the ground on my back.

The sword that fell on the floor, the furniture that was disheveled from falling, the bruises that came from hitting the furniture, and finally, the blood from my mouth.

Lionel thought that this was because I was attacked and fought.

“I just wanted to try holding a sword for the first time in a while!”

Having no proper excuse, I answered with a little bit of honesty, which escalated the situation. 

We had a small argument about the ‘attack’. 

Of course, that misunderstanding was dismissed as there was no sign of a break-in. Additionally, the two senior knights were guarding the door, but they knew nothing. 

Still, the incident was easy to brush off that day because it was the first time. The problem came later.

In order not to repeat the same mistake, I no longer used a real sword for practice. 

Nevertheless, in the end, dropping the objects I was holding on the floor and collapsing in a disastrous manner remained unchanged. 

Thanks to this, the misunderstanding of an attack grew day by day. 

When I made the excuse that I had just fallen, he started pointing out the location where I had fallen.

“You were always near the bed or couch, so why did you go in front of the bookshelf?”

After hiding the glass bottle that Laroque gave me, I found an ornament next to the bookshelf and practiced aura with it. Thanks to that, I was found collapsed right in front of the bookshelf that day.

“I read some books.”

“Lindel, you read ‘The Station Librarian’ and nothing else? Say something that makes sense!”

Thinking about that time, I got emotional again. A person can read some liberal arts books. How can you point it out like that? 

Of course, I didn’t even look at history books after graduating from the academy, but it was unfair. 

Anyway, because of my not answering properly, Lionel’s doubts grew day by day, and I also gave up solving the misunderstanding and began to pick up any excuses out of defiance. 

Our war has continued so far. 

“From windows, ceilings, even behind the furniture. There’s nothing wrong.”

As always, the knight searched the entire room for signs of intrusion and reported to Lionel after finding nothing.

“There are no signs of someone breaking in.”

How could an intruder break through this tight security in the first place?!

The number of knights guarding the outer walls of the palace, as well as at the gate, had increased significantly, and the barrier magic had also become stronger, making it impossible for even a single ant to enter.

Nevertheless, they still suspected an intruder attack.

Lionel’s face became so grim that it couldn’t be any more dreadful.

On the contrary, I smiled proudly.

“Ahh~ It’s the perfect weather to work out.”

I was filled with rebelliousness due to the continued doubts. Lionel sighed heavily as I spoke like I was teasing him. 

“No more. From now on, let the maids guard the room.” 

“I’ve been telling you, but I don’t like it. I’m already stuck in my room, I don’t want to be monitored every moment. In that sense, It is absolutely forbidden to plant shadows.” 

Lionel brushed away his flowing blonde hair in annoyance. 

To confirm that it was not an attack, Lionel repeatedly tried to keep the maids, shadows, and the ambushed knights, by my side every moment. 

Of course, I cried out against it.

I didn’t like the feeling of being watched, but it was because I couldn’t practice in front of them. 

“Okay. Then it’s your last chance.”

Lionel’s eyes flickered. 

“The reason why you keep walking around the room even though you often collapse these days. The reason why only objects that are especially good to swing are on the floor. Explain it properly.” 

“I’m improving my physical strength to live a healthy lifestyle.” 

“Lindel!”

I felt sorry for Lionel, who kept running towards me even though I was busy, but I had no intention of losing to him.

If my smiling face looked a little evil in the eyes of others, it would be because of my mood.