"Hey you! Stop right there!" A familiar voice shouted.
Huh?
I looked up and saw a guy in navy blue armor and had a cursed sword on his belt. And he had two female party members on his side.
"We meet again, Magic Swordmaster." The sword guy said with an arrogant smile on his face. "Today, we are going to have a rematch!" He said as he pulled his cursed sword,
Gram.
"I will show you my true power, and show you how strong the one who will save the world." That guy said. During that, I just stood in front of him and did nothing.
Of course, I ran out of patience after a few minutes, so I ignored them and headed to the palace in the end.
"So... Let's fight! Ehh, wait, where did he go?" He asked as he looked around.
Meanwhile, somewhere near the palace...
"Well, it's a good time to test the Core Outfits." I thought.
"Core change. Pegasus to Wolf!" I muttered. The outfit I was wearing turned into the black and purple ninja outfit.
I channeled my mana into the outfit and chanted Lurk. Sure enough, it actually worked. I entered the palace through the main gate without being seen.
Just when I thought the Core Outfit worked, I was visible to the guards apparently, since they were walking towards me. As expected, I ran away in response to their approach.
And unfortunately, they alerted the nearby guards and sounded the alarm.
In a few seconds, a whole platoon, or even a whole company of knights were hot on my tail as a result.
During the chase, it seems like the King, the Prince and Iris were strolling nearby. Claire and Rain were there as well. Before I realized what was happening, the four drew their weapons to protect Iris.
The four surrounded Iris, thinking I was going after her, even though I was actually looking for her.
Iris looked towards me and started to ponder.
'Who is he...? His eyes are the same as Onii-chan's... The look in his eyes is the same as well, clear, determined but gentle. Wait... Don't tell me...?!'
Iris put a shocked, yet excited expression as she realized the masked man was me.
"I don't know who you are, but I will not let you harm Iris-sama!" Claire shouted as she lunged towards me.
However, since I was too focused on getting the guards off my trail, I didn't notice Claire until she stabbed me in the stomach.
"I did it!" Claire cheered as she put on a triumphant look.
"Onii-chan!" Iris cried, which the King and the Prince looked at her with suspicion.
"Seriously, where were you looking at, white-suit? You missed!" I said.
They turned around and see me in the same Core Outfit. Iris looked happy as she put the same beautiful smile. And the rest of them looked at me with disbelief and shock.
Their expression just said 'How TF is he still alive?!'
"Core change. Wolf to Pegasus!" I muttered as the Core Outfit turned back into the previous outfit I wore.
"What you just hit is... a Shadow Clone! (Kage Bunshin)" I said dramatically as I pointed at the shadow clone on Claire's sword, which turned into a smoke cloud instantly and blinded them.
At the same time, I moved forward and knelt with one knee in front of Iris before the smoke cloud disappeared.
"Greetings, Iris-sama." I looked up and greeted her formally, despite I remembered her telling me to call her casually.
Meanwhile, Claire seemed pissed as she pointed the tip of her sword an inch above the back of my neck.
Even though I was freaked out by that, I managed to pull myself together and didn't flinch even a little bit.
"Good afternoon, Your Majesty and the Crown Prince. It is also a pleasure to meet you." I forced myself to ignore Claire's sword as I greeted the King and the Prince.
"Put your sword away, Claire." Iris ordered calmly.
Claire glared at me as hard as she could as she sheathed her sword reluctantly.
Iris then turned her attention to me.
"Please rise, Magic Swordmaster, Guardian-san." Iris said gently as she helped me up.
Even after Iris helped me up, she still held my hand with her hands with zero intention of letting it go, which further pissed Claire off.
"Pardon me for the intrusion, Your Highness." I apologized to Iris with a warm smile on my face.
Iris simply shook her head with a smile, as if she was saying "It's okay".
"After all, I knew you would come for me." Iris said in a voice only audible to me.
"Ahem." The King didn't seem that happy to see me. "Nevertheless, you still intruded into this palace. Are you ready to face the consequences?" He asked.
"My sincerest apologies for the intrusion, Your Majesty. But I could no longer contain my desire of protecting Your Highness Iris. I would like to become a bodyguard and a teacher of Your Highness Iris."
"You... You think you are worthy of that?!" Unable to contain her anger, Claire yelled at me.
"Excuse me, but please refrain from acting impolitely in front of Your Highness Iris, Claire-san." I said politely as I smiled gently.
"You (kisama)...!"
The Crown Prince whispered a few words to his father, who then nodded in response.
"You are Guardian, right? I am Belzerg Stylish Sword Jatis. His Majesty said you would have to go through a few trials before doing so." Jatis looked at me like I was some sort of weakling. "Are you ready for that?"
"Anytime, Your Majesty." I replied with determination in my eyes.
"But... You have to be a noble before you can actually be one." He sneered with a smirk on his face.
A/N: Hope you all are enjoying the story! Positive critiques are appreciated anytime.