"I can't believe he invited us over and he's late." Caesar Whitelocke, the clan head of the illustrious Whitelocke line crossed his arms as he stared at the misty scenery of Pagoda Waterfalls.
His voice sounded through the steam-filled valley.
The man was tall, stern, and always wearing a permanent expression of "I'm judging everyone here."
The Pagoda Waterfalls region was breathtaking: massive cliffs, stone steps carved into natural terraces, and a steaming cascade that created veils of warm mist.
Pools of naturally heated water were scattered across the land… it was a completely perfect place to sit back and relax.
However, it was priced so high commoners would faint at the entrance.
Jeremiah Morcant stroked his beard and scoffed.
"Can you blame him…? He has that bastard of a son. Even though he's talented, he's still chasing after the skirts of the Saintess. Could never be my son."
The other clan heads grumbled in agreement.
There were ten high noble clans in total, and all the heads had arrived.
Each man wore the same enchanted water-resistant robes Rowan was wearing: stylish, expensive, and color-coded to their house crest.
All of them had come for the same reason:
Pretend there was a Unique Item to find.
Use their sons as free labor.
Relax in the spa.
"Oi… is that man going to show up? I brought the Infinite Beer Cup," boomed the Evermere clan head from the edge of the springs.
The man was extremely round like a noble who had conquered every buffet in the empire and held a glittering goblet.
The Evermere clan specialized in Expansion Magic, a spellcraft that allowed a mage to extend certain body parts.
Most clans had amazing combat applications for their magic lineage.
Evermere?
They mostly used it to get fatter.
The noble sons all sat far away from their fathers near a patch of grassy terrain, talking amongst themselves.
Some were chatting, others comparing magic and a few pretending not to stare at their rivals.
Just then, the sound of flapping wings echoed across the valley.
Two majestic griffins descended with feathers shimmering under the early sunlight.
Their wings beat the air in powerful gusts as they landed on the warm stone ground.
The clan heads straightened slightly.
Rowan Crowhurst had finally arrived.
And he brought both his son and… daughter?
Ren hopped off Reo and helped Alina down gently, his hand staying protectively on her back as she steadied herself.
"Thanks, Reo. You can go rest with the others."
Reo nodded proudly… quite proud of himself after receiving actual affection from his master and trotted away.
Eli followed suit, joining the other griffins by the terraces.
Alina's golden eyes sparkled as she looked around. "This looks so beautiful…" Her fingers twitched.
She clearly wanted to draw everything in sight: the waterfalls, the steam, the rocks, the people.
Meanwhile, Rowan rejoined the group of clan heads who immediately wore suspiciously mischievous smiles.
"So you managed to bring your son somewhere else apart from the Church… nice," Evermere's head said, raising his bottle. "Let's host a cheer to these kids wa—"
BANG.
A chunk of ice smacked him straight in the forehead.
The fat man froze mid-toast before tipping forward like a falling tree, plunging into the steaming spring with an enormous splash.
All heads turned sharply.
The Dawnlarke family head with flowing silver hair and cold blue eyes cleared his throat. "What…? He was going to ruin the quality time."
No one argued.
Ren walked over to the other noble kids, who immediately tensed as if a wolf had wandered into a puppy pen.
They stared at him in silence and avoided eye contact.
'Isn't this the time when they try to bully me?' Ren thought.
Ren scanned the group.
His eyes landed on someone that made his eyelid twitch.
A silver-haired "boy" from the Dawnlarke clan stood rigidly near a rock.
He was not too tall but not short either and muscular enough to pass for a noble son, but…
Something was off.
『You have encountered a Heroine』
『Character is being analyzed…』
A purple bar unfolded in front of Ren.
『 Name: Randy (Reina) Dawnlarke 』
『 Age: 18 』
『 Race: Human 』
『 Relationship: None 』
『 Affection Points: 0 / 100 』
『 Hearts: 0 』
『 Emotional State: Nervous, Doesn't Want To Be Here 』
『 Likes: Drawing, Warm coats, Sword maintenance, Dressing like boys, Cool accessories, Night walks, Biology 』
『 Dislikes: Loud scolding, Being forced into dresses, Bright sunlight, Flirty nobles, People who touch her hair without asking 』
『 Special Notes: First daughter of the Dawnlarke household. Forced to act like a boy due to lacking a male heir. Crossdressing is currently her lifestyle. 』
『Note: Since when were you into tomboys, huh?』
Ren grumbled in his mind. 'Oh, I nearly forgot about her…'
Reina Dawnlarke… the crossdressing heroine.
The original protagonist had discovered her secret by accident after a major fight.
She was a beauty under the uniform… the "mysterious tomboy type."
Ren did like tomboys.
But not ones who looked exactly like a man unless you stared suspiciously long at their eyelashes.
He spotted a long stick on the ground.
'This should be nice,' he thought, picking it up. With a bit of sword aura, it would serve as a perfectly humiliating weapon… He had forgot to pack a sword.
Rowan cleared his throat loudly.
"As your fathers have told you," he began, pacing before the sons, "we received information that there is a Unique Item in the forest above the waterfall."
Several nobles side-eyed each other and even the sons raised eyebrows.
Rowan continued proudly, "Your jobs are to find it and bring it back for Appraisal. It's friendly competition, but that doesn't mean you can't put down other competitors."
Friendly… sure… Everyone knew Rowan's definition of friendly usually involved broken bones.
He pointed upwards dramatically. "Now go!"
The noble sons moved instantly and they ran toward the jagged rocky wall leading up the waterfall's cliff.
Ren rolled his shoulders and walked forward casually.
But one heir stopped.
Turned.
And insulted not only Ren's pride but Ren's morning peace.
"Eat this!" the heir of the Briarhallow clan yelled, drawing back his fist.
A swirl of dark mana coated his knuckles. It was a punch meant to send someone into a week-long coma or at least into the waterfall below.
He dashed at Ren with the momentum of a charging bull.
Ren didn't even flinch.
He raised the stick lazily… and poured sword aura into it.
Blue aura surrounded the wooden stick as it hardened with destructive intent.
Crack!
Ren blocked the punch effortlessly. The Briarhallow kid's eyes widened as his fist slammed into the stick instead of Ren's face.
'It really is nice being an overpowered Villain,' Ren thought calmly.
Then he swung.
The stick slashed sideways, tracing a clean arc of power.
THWACK.
The heir's head snapped to the side, mana dispersing instantly as the blow caught him right across the face.
The impact launched him straight off his feet.
He flew with his arms flailing as he screamed something unintelligible before plunging into the steaming waterfall pool below.
SPLOOSH.
Silence followed.
Even the other sons froze in shock.
Ren inspected the stick casually, spinning it with a flick of his wrist.
"That was satisfying," he whispered.