Cassium’s voice—
the way he looked when he said he wouldn’t meet the Marju lady—
It strangely wouldn’t leave my mind.
And then, at that moment—
“Rize!”
I heard Cassium’s voice.
Why was he here at this hour?
I turned back at the sound—
And a huge wave was rushing toward me.
“…?!”
What? A wave during training?
For a moment, my body froze.
‘Ah… am I dreaming right now?’
The moment I thought that—
The massive wave swallowed me whole.
I couldn’t breathe.
My mind went blank.
I could only hear bubbling water and air passing my ears—
Then everything went quiet.
Even though it’s a dream… it feels so real…
My breath grew tighter.
My vision darkened.
I was sinking.
Then—
Something came toward me from afar.
‘My golden rabbit?’
I don’t know why I thought that—
But the one reaching out to me wasn’t the rabbit.
It was Cassium.
His hand reached me.
He pulled me with one arm and held me with the other.
I didn’t resist.
The surface was getting closer.
He dragged me onto land and pressed on my chest.
As a knight, he was trained in first aid.
My fading consciousness slowly returned.
My vision blurred, then cleared, again and again.
All I could see was Cassium.
And his expression—
“Rize!”
Why did he look like he was about to cry?
He held me and lightly slapped my cheek, trying to wake me.
‘This feels familiar… this way of tapping my cheek…’
I raised my hand and grabbed his wrist to stop him.
Then I murmured weakly,
“I’m alive…”
Cassium hugged me tightly.
There was something desperate in his arms.
‘He said he’d never marry…’
So he hates me enough to refuse marriage—
But not enough to watch me die?
“Cassium.”
He looked at me.
“If someone like you gets hurt like this, you should just walk away. Why get involved… Move. Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?”
His voice was full of anger—but shaking.
His eyes scanned me quickly for injuries.
“Cassium.”
I called him again, making him focus on me.
That wasn’t what mattered right now.
—
“He has no intention of getting married!”
—
“I feel the same.”
“…What?”
“I don’t want it either. I don’t want to marry you like that.”
“….”
“A marriage without choice won’t make anyone happy.”
Of course, many romance stories say the opposite.
But I didn’t want to correct myself.
That was fiction.
And it was true that Cassium didn’t want this marriage.
—
“I hope you marry the person you hate the most.”
—
His father’s words still bothered me.
I didn’t want a marriage that wouldn’t benefit him—
Or me.
“Are you serious, Rize?”
“Yes.”
“Is that really what you want?”
“Yes.”
At that moment—
Pop!
A strange sound echoed, and everything around me felt empty.
And then—
I lost consciousness again.
The sound of a whistle woke me.
It blew eight times.
That meant—
‘40 minutes have passed.’
Reality rushed back.
I opened my eyes.
I was lying half in the river, half on land.
No one was around.
Except—
“Pii!”
My golden rabbit.
It was sitting very close, staring at me.
The moment I opened my eyes, it leaned its head against my shoulder in relief.
I blinked slowly.
Was that… just a dream?
Did the rabbit save me—not Cassium?
‘Can a rabbit even do that?’
Then I looked at its solid muscles.
…Yeah. Maybe this rabbit can.
“Pii.”
As I tried to get up, it grabbed me with its front paws.
“Thank you. But I have to go. There’s no time.”
Only about 20 minutes remained.
At least I had fallen near the enemy base—
But losing consciousness had cost me time.
‘I can climb up from there.’
I found a slope covered in grass.
Holding onto tree roots, I climbed up, the rabbit following behind me.
“How did you even get here? I thought you were resting back at the knights’ quarters.”
“Pii.”
“Still, if you weren’t here, the match would’ve been over. Thanks.”
“Pii, pii.”
It almost sounded like it was asking,
“Is the match really that important?”
Given I had just nearly died, that was a fair question.
“…It is.”
I grabbed the final root and pulled myself up.
Then brushed off the dirt from my body.
“I’m the only division leader representing Erne. If I ruin this match with such talented knights, what would the others say?”
Maybe that’s why I imagined Cassium earlier—
Like he was grabbing me by the collar, telling me to get up.
“Let’s go!”
I sent a signal to Hedel and started running at full speed.
He must’ve been worried when he lost contact with me.
Soon, I reached the base.
Three defenders were surrounding Hedel.
‘Holding off three alone… not bad.’
But to win, we had to enter the tent and destroy the treasure.
The defenders were desperately holding Hedel back.
They looked exhausted—
But it would still take time for him to break through alone.
I moved quietly.
While he kept them busy, I would destroy the treasure.
The bell rang again.
10 minutes left.
That was enough—
But I had to act fast.
If they destroyed ours first, the match would end.
‘Though… I doubt Mars even reached our base.’
I carefully moved behind the tent and cut a small opening.
‘I just need to go in and finish it.’
But then—
One of the Vissel knights suddenly ran toward a rock.
He pulled out a hidden sword.
‘That’s…’
A real blade.
In this match, they were only allowed to use dulled practice swords.
To prevent serious injuries.
‘When did he hide that?’
The knight aimed it at Hedel.
And charged—
‘No!’
Beep—
I blew the signal whistle again.
“What?!”
“Artiela is nearby!”
The defenders were distracted.
Hedel broke free.
At the same time—
I swung my sword, knocking the real blade away—
Then struck the back of his neck, knocking him out.
“There!”
The remaining two knights spotted me.
“No! Protect the treasure!”
They ran into the tent.
The whistle blew again.
5 minutes left.
I rushed inside after them. Hedel followed.
No time to hesitate.
We charged.
A large knight named Jude roared and threw a punch at me.
“—Ah!”
I dodged, but it brushed my shoulder.
It hurt more than expected.
‘That’s just a bare fist?’
It didn’t feel normal.
But I had no time to think.
He turned and charged again.
Thud! Thud!
His heavy steps echoed.
A shadow fell over me—
Crash!
“…Huh?”
I turned.
The knight was rolling on the ground.
At his feet—
My golden rabbit sat calmly.
“Pii.”
Did it trip him…?
But if anything, the rabbit should’ve been the one sent flying.
“It tripped me! What is this thing?!”
The Vissel knights noticed it.
“Is that Erne’s summoned creature?!”
“You’re using summons?!”
It’s not a summon!
But they had already decided it was.
And now—
They were about to attack my innocent rabbit.
Hedel, who was about to strike the treasure, hesitated and turned.
His eyes widened.
“Don’t, Division Leader!”
