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"Wow… As expected, Lily is strong…"

Beside me, Iris marveled.

I could only stare blankly at Lily and Ariel, with Iris by my side.

"This is… what in the world…"

…What just happened?

My mind couldn't process the sight before me, completely diverging from my expectations.

Robin, chosen as the hero in the original story.

And the sparring match between him and Ariel that took place in the novel.

In the story, Robin narrowly defeated Ariel by a very small margin.

At first, Ariel gained the upper hand with her bizarrely potent magic.

However, flustered by Robin's relentless determination, Ariel eventually left an opening.

Seizing that moment, Robin succeeded in striking Ariel with his sword, securing his victory in the sparring match.

But despite his win, Robin sustained much more severe injuries.

Had it been a real battle, who knows what might have happened? It was an intense and fierce contest.

Thanks to this, Ariel and Robin forged a strong rivalry.

So, I intended to use that information to gauge Lily's strength.

If she could fight evenly with Ariel, it would mean she was on par with Robin in terms of power.

If she lost to Ariel, I planned to explore ways to develop Lily accordingly.

But what in the world is this situation?

Lily's strength far exceeded my imagination.

Even I, who could be considered relatively strong, couldn't follow her sword strike with my eyes.

This meant that, at the very least, she had reached the level of a Master, even with the most conservative estimate.

The gap between her and Robin from the novel, who was at the mid-tier of Expert, was so vast it was almost laughable.

"This doesn't make any sense…."

Of course, I had expected Lily to grow stronger compared to her original self.

During our time together in Drax, we hunted monsters daily.

With all that real combat experience, she entered the academy with a solid foundation. I thought she might stand out to some extent.

But I never imagined it would be to this degree.

'What on earth happened…'

As I stood there in a daze, overwhelmed by confusion, Lily turned her gaze toward me.

And then, she began to walk in my direction.

"Huh…?"

With each step she took closer, my heart pounded more fiercely.

Finally, when she reached right in front of me, Lily sat down beside me.

While I looked at her with trembling eyes, she suddenly—

Snug—

"Yipe?!"

Pulled me into her embrace, burying her face deep against my neck.

Caught off guard by the sudden situation, I froze.

Sniff—

As if taking in my scent, Lily buried her nose into my neck, inhaling deeply a few times.

Startled by the strange tickling sensation from her breaths against my neck, I had no choice but to push her away.

As Lily was pushed out of my arms, her eyes—

They burned fiercely, hotter and more intense than anything, as if they could devour me whole.

While I stared at her in confusion, she spoke softly.

"Have we met before?"

Thud—

Her words made my heart sink.

A single bead of cold sweat rolled down the back of my neck, and my breathing gradually grew uneven.

No way.

No way she realized I'm in disguise…

However, I was able to immediately dismiss the thought.

'Ah… It can't be.'

I forced myself to calm my pounding heart.

It was an ability that could never be detected.

The appearance and even the unique mana one is born with could change with this ability.

No matter how perceptive someone might be, they wouldn't be able to tell.

Surely, she must be confusing me with someone else.

I spoke in the calmest voice I could muster.

"No…? This is my first time seeing you."

For a moment, something deep and sticky seemed to stir in her blazing eyes. But soon, Lily's gaze turned cold and emotionless.

"Li… Lily? What is this…?"

While the strange tension between Lily and me continued to grow, Iris, who was sitting next to us, called out to Lily in a flustered voice.

When I looked at her, for some reason, her face seemed slightly flushed.

"…I just have something I need to check."

But even as Lily responded to Iris, her gaze remained firmly fixed on me.

"What's your name?"

Lily asked me again, and I replied as calmly as I could, keeping my face neutral.

"It's Sera."

"…I'm Lily. I'd like to get closer to you, so how about we speak casually?"

She extended her hand to me with a bright smile.

Yet, despite her smiling expression, her gaze remained cold and calculating.

I couldn't shake the uncomfortable feeling, but I had no choice but to take her hand.

"Uh… Sure. Okay."

Don't be afraid.

Right now, I am Sera.

This is my first meeting with Lily.

I just need to build a new relationship with her from the beginning.

After all, I had to befriend Lily.

It was part of my plan to make everyone happy.

So, I shook her hand and slowly tried to pull mine away.

"…?"

But Lily's hand gripped mine tightly, refusing to let go.

When I looked at her with a puzzled expression, she finally gave me a bright smile and released my hand.

"Nice to meet you, Sera."

"Uh… Yeah, same here."

As the strange atmosphere lingered between Lily and me—

"Will the last group, Group 3, please proceed to the training ground!"

Professor Calvin's booming voice rang out.

Group 3—my group with Robin.

I carefully stood up and spoke to Lily and Iris.

"I… I'll be going now…"

The two girls replied to me.

"Good luck, Miss Sera!"

"Take care."

Encouraged by their responses, I headed toward the training ground.

"Could you spar with me?"

The red-haired boy, Robin, spoke to me.

"…Sure, me too,"

I replied without much thought.

But honestly, I wasn't in the right mindset for a duel right now.

Thanks to Lily, my thoughts were all jumbled.

How could she possibly possess such power?

From the start, it was strange that Lily became a hero at all.

The holy sword only reveals itself to someone righteous and virtuous.

Lily is kind and beautiful, but frankly, I don't remember her being passionate enough to qualify as a hero.

What could have happened to her in the meantime?

'…No, let's think positively.'

Right. The important thing now is that Lily possesses immense power.

Although it's unexpected and bewildering, this is undeniably a good situation.

Perhaps, in a very short time, we could achieve a happy ending.

If worst came to worst, we could just immediately defeat the Demon King—

"That's quite rude."

Whoosh—

Instinctively, I twisted my body sharply.

A wooden sword swung wide, just barely missing my side.

I adjusted my stance and addressed the wielder of the wooden sword.

"…Sneak attacks are a bit cowardly, aren't they?"

"A sneak attack? It was merely a warning for you to focus."

"It seemed like you were aiming for my head, though."

"If you're someone recommended by the chairman, I assumed you'd be able to dodge it."

Robin spoke casually, shrugging his shoulders, and I felt my irritation rise slightly.

Sure, it's true I wasn't fully paying attention, but—

'That doesn't justify swinging a sword like that!'

Pouting, I shot him a glare.

Sparring with Robin.

Though it feels a bit conceited to say so myself, I'm not weak.

Sure, I'm overshadowed by people like Athena and Marie, but in terms of pure strength, I'm definitely not on the weaker side.

Not only do I have a unique ability, but I also wield the power of a general and even dragon mana.

To be honest, defeating a student like Robin should be easy.

But winning wouldn't particularly benefit me.

Not that I had any reason to lose, either.

Either way, it's a pointless fight.

But this time, I plan to win.

No, not just win—I'm going to teach Robin a little lesson.

Because Robin was being utterly exasperating.

'After all I've done for you… and you couldn't even become the hero!'

It was infuriating.

The Indomitable Hero was supposed to be the story of Robin defeating enemies and achieving a happy ending.

I planned to let him handle everything while I relaxed, but it all fell apart.

And to make matters worse, the one chosen as the hero was none other than my precious little sister, Lily.

Now, all the burdens that come with being a hero would fall squarely on her shoulders.

Even though I knew it wasn't Robin's fault, I couldn't help but be angry with him.

So, as a petty act of revenge, I decided to gift him a small dose of humiliation.

Not that I was planning a fierce fight or anything.

Robin was already rumored to be a rising star at the academy, and I didn't want to attract any unnecessary attention.

How would I humiliate him, you ask?

It wasn't hard.

For some reason, I had one absurdly overpowered ability that worked just for me.

"Let's exchange greetings before we spar."

I reached out my hand to him and spoke. Robin, with a cheerful smile, clasped my hand for a handshake.

"Of course, you're welcome. Looking forward to working with you."

"Please pass out by tripping over yourself."

I closed my eyes for a moment to concentrate. Then, staring straight into Robin's eyes, I whispered softly to him.

"I…"

For a fleeting moment, Robin stood there dazed.

When I pushed his body back again, he seemed to snap out of it. Shaking his head a few times, Robin smiled once more.

"Hmm. I guess I got lost in thought for a moment. Well then, shall we begin?"

"Alright."

Robin and I created some distance between us and assumed combat stances.

Robin gripped a wooden sword with both hands, ready to swing it forcefully.

I raised my fists, taking a stance to match him.

"Here I come!"

Shouting his intent to attack, Robin kicked off the ground and charged at me.

He rushed forward with the ferocity of a warrior.

However…

"Huh?"

As he dashed forward, his feet accidentally got tangled.

Thud—

With all the momentum from his fierce charge, Robin's face slammed forcefully into the ground.

And just like that, Robin fainted without a sound.

The sparring match ended anticlimactically.