I noticed two little girls had been secretly watching us for several minutes. Judging from their clothes, they were probably the young ladies of the house.
Interestingly, they weren't just watching us practice with curiosity; the young one of the two seemed to be harboring a slight hostility towards me while the old one had a more complex gaze when she looked at Robert.
I have absolutely no idea what kids these days are thinking.
"Lia? Aisha"
Hearing Robert call her name, the girls knew they had been discovered. Lia immediately ran over but Aisha slowly walked up slowly, with faint smile.
"Master Belius, let me introduce you. These are sisters. Lia is my younger sister and Aisha is my Older Sister."
"Lia, Sister Aisha, this is Master Belius, my swordsmanship teacher. Please say hello to him."
Oh, so they really are Marquis Bahod's child.
But little one, why is she so sticky to her brother. After running over, she immediately hid behind Robert, peeking out half of her head to look at me.
As for the old one, she stood silently next to Robert but there was always a hint of timidity and fear yet there is also affection and pride in her eyes. I have never seen a gaze so complex in a child before. Are children's these days truly so complex.
"Hello, Master Belius!" Aisha politely greeted him.
But Lia was complete opposite, "I hate this old man."
"Hey, Lia? How dare you speak to Master Belius like that?"
Huh? The old one is so polite but why am I being disliked by a little girl I just met? What did I do?
Although I'm this old and have seen a lot of the world, it still hurts a little to be suddenly told I was hated by such a young child for no reason.
"Because I saw him bullying his Brother Robert."
"That...that wasn't bullying me, it was just training, swordsmanship training."
"But he clearly hit you and bullied you..."
"But that's —" Robert clearly couldn't explain it well and I could see the matters getting worse.
"Sister Aisha..." The younger one hugged the older one.
"Stop Quibbling, Robert. Lia is right about this one. Master Belius is famous Grand Master. His hits aren't something anyone can take. Look at you with so many bruises and marks. Isn't this bullying." Gone was her Timidity. After giving Robert a glare, Aisha turned to stare at Belius with cold eyes.
"Yes, yes, Sister Aisha is totally right!" Lia's eyes were also cold.
Holy shit, as the Grand Master of the Knights of Antasia Empire, I am being scolded by two little girls, to my face.
If anyone in the Empire nobles knew this, they would be shocked and speechless by now because Belius's name was simply too extraordinary.
But I don't really care about my fame. From their cold gazes, I could tell that both sisters genuinely cared for Robert.
"You siblings have a really good relationship."
I exclaimed this from the bottom of my heart.
I've seen many examples of sibling rivalry in aristocratic families, and it's great that the Anglus family doesn't seem to be like that. I don't want to witness any ugly family feuds in just three short days.
"...Yes, Lia and Aisha are my most important family."
"Whee." Lia seemed to enjoy being gently patted on the head by Geno, and hugged her brother even tighter, looking very cute.
"Hmph!" Aisha turned her head, but the tips of her ears had turned red. Clearly, she was also happy. There was even a hint of longing in her eyes when she looked at Lia recieving head pat but it quickly vanished.
While Robert presented himself as a gentle older brother, there was a hint of complex emotion in his expression. He seemed far too mature for his age, and it felt as if he was thinking about things inappropriate for his age.
"I'm sweating a lot right now, so it's best not to come near me."
"I don't mind Brother Robert's sweat, and it even smells nice."
"Smells good? I mean, you..."
Hmm... are they really just a brother and sister with a good relationship?
Aisha couldn't take Lia's obvious filtering, saying, "What kind of words are those Lia? As a lady, you must have Modesty!"
"What kind of Modesty. I like Brother Robert. What else is there to say? Don't you also like him!" Lia snorted.
Aisha's cheeks turned visibly red and vaguely, I saw steam blowing from her head, clearly sign of magic disorder.
Now, I wasn't sure whether they were normal siblings anymore.
I had only heard of the Chaos in Aristocratic circle before but now it seems even more chaotic than I thought.
"I'm learning swordsmanship. Lia, can you watch from the side for now?"
"No, I want to learn too."
"Lia, this is not something a girl should learn."
No, that's not the case.
Many people believe that swordsmanship is not something girls should learn, but looking at the whole country, you will find that this situation is actually quite common.
"In some noble families that value martial arts, regardless of whether their offspring are male or female, they are all trained as swordsmen from a young age. There are also many female warriors among the common people who work as adventurers, so the idea that girls shouldn't learn swordsmanship is just a prejudice."
"In fact, although women may not be as strong as men, they can use their flexibility to learn many moves and techniques that are difficult for men to do, and this alone is enough to make up for the difference in training conditions."
"is that so?"
Compared to the confused Robert, Lia behind him was clearly looking at me with gratitude after hearing the good news and even Aisha looked over from the side.
No, no, no, it's too early to thank me.
"However, as children of noble families, they certainly need their parents' permission to learn swordsmanship, which could potentially lead to injury. Robert only began learning swordsmanship with Marquis Bahod's permission, so Lia must also obtain Marquis Bahod's permission to learn swordsmanship. So, did you get his permission beforehand?"
Hearing my words, Lia visibly became dejected. She probably knew that even if she applied, it would be impossible to get approval; the Anglus family was not a noble family that revered martial arts, which was to be expected.
Of course, it's too early to be discouraged.
"Of course, I can't teach you swordsmanship without your parents' permission, but if your older brother, Robert, wants to teach you, his younger sister, we adults don't need to agree. You understand what I mean?"
"Master Belius?"
Lia's dim eyes instantly brightened and even Aisha next to her clenched her fist. They nodded at me in perfect unison.
Looking at it this way, they probably preferred her brother Robert to teach her, rather than me. Of course, I wasn't disappointed at all.
Robert's complicated expression clearly showed that he was blaming me for pushing the troublesome matter onto him. I had no choice; it was the best solution at the moment.
"So? Do you still hate this old man?"
Lia, hiding behind Robedt, blushed and buried her head even deeper.
"...just a little bit left."
Oh dear, they're really strict with