Chương 308: Chapter : 308

"Strawberry muffins?" Ken cheered. He reached his hands out.

"You are an absolute angel, Elma. Bring them over here. I have a whole separate stomach just for dessert." Elma's face turned even redder. She walked quickly to the table. She practically shoved the pink box into Ken's hands. She still refused to make eye contact with him.

"Just take them," Elma stammered quickly.

"Do not get crumbs on your suit. And do not think this means anything! We are still rivals! I just... I had extra!"

"Thank you!" Ken smiled goofily. He opened the box immediately.

"You are my favorite rival." Elma let out a small, embarrassed squeak. She spun around on her heel. She marched out of the dining room as fast as her polished boots could carry her. The front gate clicked shut a moment later. Laxmi burst out laughing. She pointed at the door.

"She is totally obsessed with you, Ken. She basically ran away."

"I am very popular," Ken agreed. He took a huge bite of a pink muffin.

"And these are delicious." The room shared a small laugh. The muffins brought a brief moment of happiness. But the shadow of the investigation quickly returned. Sayma looked back at her notebook. She sighed.

"We still need a plan. How do we find ironclad evidence against a politician? They hide everything behind lawyers and red tape." Naomi pushed her plate away. She stared at her untouched eggs. The laughter faded from her face. She looked down at her hands.

"I hate this," Naomi muttered. Her voice was quiet but full of sharp frustration. Princess Iris looked at her.

"What is wrong, Naomi?"

"I hate this political game," Naomi answered. She stood up from the table. She grabbed her twin daggers from the back of her chair. She strapped them to her belt.

"I know how to fight monsters. I know how to block swords. But I cannot fight paperwork. I cannot stab a secret bank account. I feel totally useless sitting around a table guessing names."

"You are not useless," Zinia said firmly.

"You lead the vanguard."

"A vanguard cannot fight an invisible enemy," Naomi snapped back. She did not look angry at Zinia. She just looked incredibly stressed. She shook her head.

"I need to clear my mind. I need to move. I am going outside." Naomi turned and walked quickly out of the dining room. She headed straight for the courtyard. The dining room went quiet again. Princess Iris looked sad. She knew her vanguard leader felt trapped by the complex rules of the capital. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. Ken finished his muffin. He wiped his hands on a napkin. He did not say anything. He just stood up from his chair.

He shoved his hands deep into his pockets. He slouched his shoulders and slowly shuffled out of the room, following Naomi outside.

The morning air was cool. The sun shined brightly over the stone walls of the estate. The courtyard was usually a quiet place. Today, it was filled with the sharp, rapid sound of slicing metal. Swoosh. Swoosh. Crack. Naomi moved across the stone pavement like a red blur. She held a dagger in each hand. She attacked a sturdy wooden training dummy with relentless speed. She did not use her wind magic. She just used pure physical effort. She slashed the dummy's wooden arms. She spun and kicked the base.

She struck the chest target again and again. Sweat poured down her face. Her red hair stuck to her forehead. She was breathing very fast. She did not stop. She swung harder. She pushed her muscles to the absolute limit. She wanted to exhaust herself. She wanted to stop thinking about corrupt politicians and secret laboratories. Ken walked out of the house. He dragged his cheap shoes on the stones. Scuff. Scuff. He did not yell a funny joke. He did not complain about the noise.

He just walked over to a low stone wall and sat down. He slouched forward, resting his elbows on his knees. He watched her train. Naomi noticed him sitting there. She ignored him for a full minute. She kept attacking the dummy. Wood splinters flew into the air. Finally, she stopped. She dropped her arms to her sides. She gasped for breath. Her chest heaved up and down. She stared at the battered wooden dummy.

"You are going to completely destroy that piece of wood," Ken said quietly. His voice was calm. It did not have his usual whiny, lazy tone. Naomi wiped the sweat from her eyes with the back of her wrist. She turned around to look at him. She expected him to make a silly comment about breakfast. But he just looked at her with steady, dark eyes. She let out a long, exhausted sigh. She walked over and sat down on the stone wall next to him. She left a small gap between them. She stared down at her combat boots.

"I cannot stand this part of the job," Naomi confessed softly. She did not sound strict. She sounded completely worn out. Ken looked at the sky.

"The waiting part?"

"The lying part," Naomi corrected him. She looked at her daggers.

"I grew up in an elite noble house. I watched my parents smile at people they secretly despised. I watched them trade favors and hide secrets. They played the high-society game. It made me sick to my stomach." Ken listened carefully. He did not interrupt.

"That is why I left them," Naomi continued. Her voice trembled just a little bit.

"I chose the sword. A sword is honest. A battle is straightforward. You face your enemy. You fight. You win or you lose. There are no hidden traps. There are no fake smiles." She sheathed her daggers with two sharp clicks. She crossed her arms over her chest.

"But now we are stuck in a conspiracy," Naomi muttered.

"We are hunting a politician. We are digging through financial records. I feel completely out of my element, Ken. I am the vanguard leader, but I cannot protect Princess Iris from a legal document. I feel entirely useless." Ken turned his head to look at her. The goofy, slacker mask completely vanished from his face. He looked surprisingly mature. He looked like someone who truly understood how the world worked.

"You are not useless, Naomi," Ken said simply. Naomi offered a bitter, tired smile.

"I can swing a knife really fast. That does not solve a murder."

"You are looking at it wrong," Ken explained. He leaned back against the wall. He stretched his legs out.

"You are the shield. You keep the monsters away. You keep the assassins away. If you did not protect us, Sayma could never read those books. Princess Iris could never make those plans. You give everyone else the safety to do their jobs." Naomi looked at him. She blinked her green eyes. She felt a strange warmth in her chest.