The long-awaited contact from Barunen came. It was the news that the parts for K01 were finally complete.

I immediately headed to Barunen’s laboratory. I had planned to go alone, but Ascan wanted to come along, so we went together.

With a bang, as I flung open the laboratory door, Barunen approached as if he had been waiting.

“Hey—has my apprentice arrived?”

“Where are they?”

I barely acknowledged his greeting, searching for the completed K01 parts first.

Barunen scoffed at my attitude, snorting, but as if understanding my eagerness, he immediately showed me the parts.

The unassembled parts of K01 were laid out on the laboratory table.

My heart pounded so hard I could feel it.

Barunen, noticing Ascan who came with me, gave a friendly smile and said,

“Hey—we met once before, didn’t we?”

“Yes.”

Despite Barunen’s warm welcome, Ascan only bowed politely, maintaining a cold, distant demeanor.

Barunen looked back and forth between me and Ascan, shaking his head.

“Master and servant, how are you so alike…?”

I ignored Barunen’s comment and began assembling the K01 parts on the table one by one.

Click, click.

There was a strange satisfaction in how precisely they fit together.

Since the blueprint was already in my head, I assembled the K01 parts in the blink of an eye.

Finally, a revolver-shaped gun rested in my hand.

Near the safety mechanism, a red fire-attribute magic stone and a light blue wind-attribute magic stone were embedded together.

Holding the weapon I created for the first time, I was overwhelmed with emotion.

Feeling a strange excitement, I stared blankly at K01, and Barunen, standing beside me, clapped as if to congratulate me.

“Your first weapon. Congratulations.”

Only then did I realize Barunen had waited for me to assemble it myself.

“Thank you. I could complete it thanks to you, Master.”

“Oh, enough with the formalities.”

Barunen waved off my thanks as if he didn’t want to hear it, but he didn’t seem displeased.

I knew from the start that K01 couldn’t load magic orbs like bullets, so it could only fire three shots.

With a serious voice, I placed my finger on the trigger and said,

“Now all that’s left is to see the results with my own eyes.”

I had built K01 based on theory and completed it. All that remained was to pull the trigger and see how much power it had.

As if expecting my words, Barunen nodded and replied,

“I prepared a clearing for you before you arrived. I made sure no one would pass by, so let’s go.”

“Yes.”

I nodded firmly. I couldn’t help but feel nervous as the moment to see the results of my work approached.

As Barunen said, there wasn’t a single soul in the clearing.

I aimed at the iron target hanging for the firepower test.

At that moment,

Ascan, who had been quietly watching, stepped forward and said,

“I’ll do it, my lady.”

“You?”

“It’s your first experiment. It might misfire, or there could be unexpected dangers, so it’s better if I test it first.”

Ascan’s body was special. In dangerous situations, it would turn to steel, making him far less likely to get hurt than an ordinary person.

After a moment’s thought, I handed K01 to Ascan. His reasoning seemed sound.

“You need to draw blood and imprint on the magic stones first.”

“Understood.”

With an expressionless face, Ascan drew blood from his finger and let it drip onto the fire and wind-attribute magic stones.

The magic stones glowed red briefly before returning to their original color, indicating the imprint was complete without needing to be said.

Holding K01, Ascan glanced at me nearby and said,

“Step back further.”

“Oh, got it.”

I moved farther back with Barunen, watching Ascan.

Ascan seemed to measure the distance between us, and, judging it safe, turned to face the iron target.

“I’m firing.”

I clenched my sweaty hands and nodded without realizing it.

Click, and then Ascan pulled the trigger toward the target.

Fwoosh—!

In an instant, a massive flame struck the target like a whirlwind.

The power was so great that the iron target rattled, shaking as if it might fly into the sky.

I could only stare, mouth agape, at the sheer force.

It was a good thing the target was made of iron; if it had been wood or something flammable, it might have caused a massive fire.

After the single shot, only scorching heat remained.

The blackened scorch marks on the target proved the power from moments before.

A brief silence fell over the clearing.

Barunen’s hearty laughter snapped me out of my daze.

“Hahaha! I knew it! Anyone who sees this would faint.”

The K01 was a resounding success. To draw such power from a small weapon, even if it could only fire three shots, it was more than valuable as a weapon.

Snapping back to reality, I quickly approached Ascan, who had fired K01.

“Are you okay?”

I quickly checked him for injuries. He looked fine, but I couldn’t help but worry.

“I’m fine.”

Ascan’s face remained expressionless, but he seemed slightly stunned.

He was likely surprised by K01’s power, which was greater than expected.

“I didn’t expect it to have this much power.”

“Same here. I didn’t think it would meet my expectations so well.”

“For you to make something like this, my lady, it’s truly impressive.”

Ascan never gave empty compliments. Hearing such praise from him made me feel oddly embarrassed.

“Well, it just… happened.”

As I scratched my cheek and looked away, Barunen, who had been standing alone in awe, approached me.

“My dear apprentice, my brilliant apprentice.”

He spread his arms wide, looking as if he was about to hug me.

Normally, I might have accepted it without thinking. But then I recalled what Ascan had said before.

—“Don’t let others whisper to you like that. Don’t let anyone else pat your head either.”

I saw Ascan’s expression turn cold in an instant.

With no other choice, I ignored the approaching Barunen, grabbed Ascan’s wrist, and quickly left the clearing.

Barunen, left alone, shouted in a frustrated voice,

“What’s this? The experiment succeeds, and you leave me behind?!”

“How old do you think I am? Did you think I’d hug you and celebrate, Master?”

“Hmph! Hmph!”

Barunen seemed genuinely upset, but there was nothing I could do.

My promise with Ascan came first, and I planned to avoid upsetting him until he could better control his strength.

I looked up at Ascan, who was following me, and grinned.

“Did I do well?”

At first, he looked slightly confused, but after hearing me, he furrowed his brow. Then, unable to hold back, he covered his forehead with one hand and laughed.

“You’re driving me crazy.”

“What?”

I didn’t understand what he meant and asked again.

As I looked at him with a puzzled expression, Ascan placed his large hand on my head and gave it a light pat.

I was confused for a moment but soon realized he had gently stroked my head.

Huh? What?

I looked at Ascan with a startled expression, and he gazed down at me with a smile, slowly lowering his head.

As his lips reached my ear, he whispered in a low voice,

“You did very well.”

Just like before, Ascan’s whisper sent shivers down my spine.

I reflexively covered my ears and shouted at him,

“I said I’d think about it! I didn’t say it was okay just for you!”

Ascan looked at me with softly crinkled eyes, clearly amused.

I felt like I was being teased.

I reached out to grab him, intending to give him a piece of my mind, but somehow he sensed it and quickly stepped away to avoid me.

“Don’t forget, my lady. I’m holding K01 right now.”

I officially joined the academic festival.

K01’s power wasn’t revealed yet, as it would be showcased there, but with Barunen’s full support, I earned the qualification to participate.

Upon hearing the news, Orland arranged another family dinner, and Noxia, looking surprised but happy, offered her congratulations.

“Congratulations, sis. So you’re joining the academic festival with me?”

“Since our fields are different, we’ll be apart for much of it, but yes, we’re both attending the festival.”

Not just anyone could participate in the academic festival.

It was a place reserved for those recognized for their special talents, so participating alone was a matter of pride for the family.

In the novel The Beloved Saintess, it was a place Tanashia desperately wanted to attend but couldn’t. Somehow, as the original story changed, I ended up participating.

“Both my daughters are joining the festival; I’m thrilled. You’re already doing so well, so don’t worry about rankings and just enjoy it.”

Orland’s words seemed directed at me, but I didn’t mind.

My goal wasn’t to stand out at the festival. It was to prevent further disruption of the original story.

Even if I couldn’t stop it, I needed to at least observe how things unfolded to prepare for what was to come.

“Don’t worry, Father. I’m already satisfied just participating.”

Orland gave a faint smile and replied,

“I heard from Martella that you developed a new magical engineering weapon.”

“You’ve already heard? I’m saving it for the festival.”

“I’m attending the festival as an observer, so I’ll see it for myself.”

“What?”

I hadn’t expected Orland to attend, so I was taken aback.

As Noxia and I stared at him in surprise, Orland smiled warmly and said,

“Didn’t I mention? I’m a sponsor of the festival.”

I had no idea. The Brellof family, with its vast wealth, was involved in countless things, but I never imagined the festival was one of them.

“Really? So, Father, you’re…”

“As the biggest donor to the festival each year, I have the right to observe in person.”

Noxia, who had been too shocked to speak, asked,

“Then why haven’t you attended before?”

“Even though it’s a sponsor’s privilege, it’s still a form of power abuse. But with both my daughters participating, how could I not go? If not now, when would I?”

In The Beloved Saintess, there was no mention of Orland attending the festival.

I didn’t know what caused this change in his heart, but the fact that he was coming to see me didn’t feel bad.

“Knowing Father’s coming makes me feel oddly motivated.”

In my past life, I was an orphan, so the idea of a parent attending an event was unthinkable.

I remembered always gritting my teeth, working hard alone to keep up with other kids who had their parents’ support.

Noxia, beside me, nodded in agreement.

“I didn’t know Father would come, but I’m really happy.”

Orland looked at me and Noxia with warm eyes and smiled. His kindness felt so comforting, it was as if my frozen heart from the past was melting.

“I want to be a proper father before it’s too late. I don’t want to have regrets later.”

Noxia might not know, but having read The Beloved Saintess, I knew Orland was consumed with finding Charles’s killer.

In the original story, Orland was more Charles’s husband than Tanashia and Noxia’s father.

He wasn’t heartless, but he didn’t pay much attention to his daughters. Seeing him change like this wasn’t bad—it was actually nice.

It was the parental love I had never experienced. It felt like being cared for under Orland’s protection, and my heart felt secure.

“I hope my new weapon impresses Father. I’m feeling a bit nervous.”

Noxia nodded and chimed in,

“Exactly. I’ll work harder to show Father something great.”

Orland shook his head as if to say that wasn’t necessary.

“Just relax. I’ll be there to watch you both enjoy yourselves.”

His warm words made me smile unconsciously. I hoped we could continue living such peaceful days…

The academic festival was a night filled with both anticipation and worry.