Surviving As The Villainess's Attendant

I let out a shaky breath, steadying myself.

"A bug, huh?" I muttered, voice low. "Guess I should thank you, then. You’re the first knight I’ve met who looks so proud after struggling against an insect."

Aleck didn’t flinch.

But I saw it—the slight twitch in his gauntlet. A pause. Like I’d struck a nerve.

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Good.

He wanted to throw jabs? I could return the favor.

"Or maybe," I continued, stepping forward with a lopsided grin, "you’re not as untouchable as you like to pretend. You’ve been guarding this position like some immovable wall, but here I am... and you’re bleeding."

His hand reflexively moved to his side, where a thin crack in the armor glinted faintly under the torchlight. Not deep. Not fatal.

But it was there.

And it was mine.

Aleck slowly raised his blade again, the tension rising between us like a taut wire.