With the steward following behind her, Annamaria advanced until she stood before Rosaria.
Rosaria dismounted her horse, and the knights behind her followed suit.
In Rosaria’s hand was a steel flagpole bearing the Romano family’s banner.
It was longer than Rosaria herself, heavy and unwieldy—no grown man could hold it aloft with one hand for long.
Yet Rosaria raised the steel flagpole effortlessly.
The sight of the young ladies of the Romano and Fullranet families facing each other drew a breath of admiration from the knights.
Someone whispered softly, “A beautiful pair, indeed.”
The Silver Knight Lady, Rosaria Romano.
The Black Magic Lady, Annamaria Fullranet.
The beautiful duo of silver and black—
In the Parsa State capital, they were often called by those very titles.
With a clear, dignified voice, Rosaria announced, “I have come with today’s report between the two families. No unfamiliar soldiers have crossed the Padova Mountains today.”
The usual phrase of the Romano family: “No abnormalities today.”
Annamaria responded with a voice low for a girl’s, which Galileo once said was alluring in its hoarseness.
“No unfamiliar sorcerers have crossed the Padova Mountains today. Tomorrow’s report between the two families will be delivered from the Fullranet side.”
“Very well, we will await it.”
The Fullranet and Romano families had been entrusted by the king to jointly govern this region for one hundred and fifty years.
Since then, this daily ritual has been faithfully carried out.
Beyond the Padova Mountains lay the Barth Kingdom, an enemy of the Trie Kingdom.
To guard against enemy forces crossing the mountains and swiftly defeat them, the Parsa Region of Karana Province had been entrusted to these two count families—known for their outstanding military and magical strength—to govern.
This daily ritual confirmed that the Parsa Region remained safe and that both families fulfilled their duties without issue.
After the formal exchange concluded, Annamaria and Rosaria locked eyes and smiled brightly.
“Thank you for your service, Rosaria Romano.”
With flawless grace, Annamaria bent her knee in a refined curtsey.
Rosaria returned the gesture with a teasing smile.
“Your kind words honor me. And today, you are especially beautiful, Annamaria Fullranet. That groanwood twig tangled atop your head suits you marvelously.”
Startled, Annamaria brought her hand to the top of her head.
The sensation of a twig was indeed there!
‘Damn it! How did this get here?’
She had certainly been hearing groaning noises all day, and had assumed it was just an echo lingering in her ears.
But no—it was a twig of groanwood, caught in her hair.
The steward, being shorter than Annamaria, must not have noticed it.
Rosaria, however, was taller.
When Annamaria plucked the groanwood twig free, it let out a tremendous “Woooooooon!”
The knights under Rosaria’s command recoiled in surprise.
“Oh my, whatever could this be? A familiar’s prank, perhaps? I’ll be sure to scold it later.”
Laughing softly to cover up the embarrassment, Annamaria tucked the groanwood branch neatly into the front of her dress.
Rosaria smirked, “As expected of the wild countess. Even your hair ornaments are different.”
Hearing the unpleasant nickname whispered about town, Annamaria’s eyes twitched.
Though called the Black Magic Lady, Annamaria was secretly known by another name—the Wild Countess.
While the cause was understandable, as a noble daughter of the prestigious Fullranet family, she refused to accept the label “wild.”
“Well, Rosaria, today you look particularly delicate and beautiful. Truly fitting for the slender, boyish countess.”
Rosaria’s lips twitched.
The slender, boyish countess was another secret nickname, separate from Silver Knight Lady.
It was quite literal, and Annamaria assumed it was only natural.
But Rosaria found it unbearable.
She hated being seen as weak.
The rumors about her slender waist were said to highlight her beauty, but to Rosaria, they were insults.
The steel flagpole in Rosaria’s hand creaked ominously.
The knights behind her stiffened.
“Commander, calm down, calm down.”
“The family’s flagpole, the banner—”
They whispered anxiously, but the steel pole began bending at the point where Rosaria gripped it.
Bending steel like this required grip strength akin to a vise—and she had it.
In fact, it was more than grip strength.
Annamaria knew Rosaria’s superhuman arm and leg strength well.
Yet she still said: delicate.
“Delicate, am I?”
“Oh, forgive me. Delicate doesn’t suffice. With your silver hair, you are like a fragile, ephemeral snowflake fairy.”
“What?”
Rosaria’s pale cheeks flushed a rosy pink, perhaps from anger.
She looked utterly charming.
“Charming, Rosaria. Beyond compare.”
Another dull creak echoed from the flagpole.
‘There it goes, brute strength.’ Annamaria smirked.
She had successfully riled Rosaria.
‘It’s a hundred years too soon for you to try to win with sarcasm.’
Rosaria had no magical power.
Purely physical prowess.
The Romano family line, male and female alike, was born with monstrous endurance, athleticism, and strength.
That was why they led the knights as the military house.
“Are you implying I am weak, Annamaria?”
“Not at all. I merely spoke as I saw, with no other intention.”
“Then perhaps I should also speak plainly. You continue to have the wickedly beautiful appearance fitting for a spiteful sorceress.”
“Oh dear, isn’t that a direct insult?”
“Not an insult. Just the truth.”
The two winced, then laughed together—”Hohohoho,” “Hahaha.”
But immediately after, Annamaria growled in a low voice so only Rosaria could hear.
“Never utter ‘wild’ again, Rosaria Romano. Next time you insult me, I’ll send a venomous snake into your bed. That delicate body of yours will writhe in agony until you perish.”
“Snap!”
The flagpole in Rosaria’s hand broke, and the banner tumbled to the ground.
Ignoring the knights’ lamenting sighs—”Ah… our family’s flag”
Rosaria responded coolly, “Then I’ll be sure to push you off a cliff from behind when you’re out in the mountains. I’ll prepare a fitting grave for the wild countess.”
“Oh, did you say ‘wild’?”
“I did, yes.”
“Then please enjoy your evening. Watch your bed’s footboard carefully.”
“And you should be careful next time you go to the mountains.”
“Oh, there will be a venomous snake in your bed tonight, won’t there? You won’t have a tomorrow, so I needn’t worry.”
Rosaria faltered in her words.
‘I win!’ Inside, Annamaria clenched her fist.
If they were alone, Rosaria might have lunged at her, but she wouldn’t dare in front of the knights.
‘And if she did, I’d send her flying right back.’
Magic power versus superhuman physical strength.
They had never faced off directly.
Their powers were different in kind, but the odds of victory if they clashed were probably fifty-fifty.
That was why—Annamaria wanted to defeat her and make her kneel.
Beating a weaker opponent didn’t excite her.
Given the chance, she wanted to go all out in a serious, direct fight.
The knights and stewards averted their eyes, pretending not to notice the two locked in a steely glare.
This exchange was also a familiar routine when reports between the families were delivered.
Since their fallout at age ten, whenever the two met, they exchanged barbs and competed fiercely.
When invited to the town festival to jointly announce the event, Annamaria hated being shorter than Rosaria and prepared high-heeled shoes.
But Rosaria had spies among Annamaria’s maids and arrived wearing heels just as tall.
Both wobbled unsteadily while glaring at each other.
At a formal dinner arranged by their fathers, Rosaria began asking for seconds of bread and meat—perhaps annoyed that Annamaria had been praised for her appetite.
Annamaria also asked for seconds, and they both ate until their stomachs were full and uncomfortable the next day.
Rosaria looked pale, so she was likely unwell.
One evening, stepping out to cool off on the balcony, Annamaria found Rosaria on the neighboring Romano estate’s balcony.
They noticed each other at once and stuck out their tongues.
Rosaria made a sour face, so Annamaria twisted her own face with both hands.
They traded faces for nearly an hour until night fell.
The Romano and Fullranet families.
Guardians of this borderland by military and magical strength, their heirs were coincidentally both female countesses-in-waiting.
And yet—the two young countesses destined to lead their families could not be more at odds.
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