.jpg)
“Suddenly? But... just because we haven't had our first night, does that mean I can't treat your wound?”
“No, it's not that...”
The soft sensation touching his forearm. Even though it was through clothes, it was excessively explicit.
What Millie and the Tullie sisters had dressed Iris in was an under-tunic that was much thinner and flutterier than usual.
Naturally, the sisters' intention worked surprisingly effectively on Rahan. Soft and warm...
...How could I tell her that the problem is this touching my arm? Or that the problem is you walking around with bare legs under your skirt...
‘...I can't say that.’
Breasts and legs were things people naturally had.
Ultimately, the problem was Rahan himself. He didn't understand. There had been countless female soldiers during the expedition.
With Riet, it was often difficult to divide the tents by gender, so they frequently slept mixed together.
But with Riet, nothing like this ever happened.
His face flushed, and his chest felt tight.
Was it called an involuntary muscle?
Rahan Norwich had always been a man confident in using his body, but he didn't know there were muscles that wouldn't listen to him like this.
‘I'm going crazy.’
“That...”
Just as he was about to say that the problem was that he wanted to act like a dog toward her...
“That means the two of you haven't had your first night yet, then?”
At the unfamiliar voice, Rahan instinctively drew the sword from his waist and spun around. He didn't forget to push Iris behind him.
The person who emerged from behind the raspberry thicket was a suspicious man. He looked filthy, as if he had been camping in the forest for days, with messy hair and the smell of sweat.
At a glance, he could be seen as a mere beggar or a traveler.
However, Rahan's sharp eye discerned the man's educated manner of speaking and sturdy build.
“Who are you?”
Of course, while asking, he had already guessed who the opponent was. He must be a spy for House Achen.
“Me? I am a knight of the glorious House Achen. I have no name to give you.”
As expected.
“A dog of Achen, then.”
“Watch your tongue!”
The man who identified himself as a knight drew his sword and pointed it at them.
“You are the dog who kidnapped the rightful heir of House Achen under the guise of an abduction and ruined a sacred marriage. No, are you the child of a demon?”
The one who shouted this was, surprisingly, Iris.
“Watch your language! Who are you to say such things while looking like a beggar!”
“Iris, get back!”
Of course, the knight was not deterred and became even more enraged.
“Iris Achen! As a knight of House Achen, I have the duty to take you back to House Achen! Be ashamed of yourself for playing along with this bastard's trickery!”
“I...”
Iris tried to say something, but the knight didn't listen. Not only that.
“And this man secretly offered a sacrifice to a demon while you were sleeping! At dawn, he fed blood to a snake while listening to the cry of a goat!”
At those words, Rahan's expression changed.
The knight scoffed and thrust his sword forward.
Rahan quickly pushed Iris back again and parried the knight's sword.
Clang!
Two blades collided. The knight, excited that the moment he had been waiting for had arrived, lunged with his sword wildly.
The knight's specialty was a fast sword. While somewhat light, he used rapid attacks to leave the opponent disoriented.
That was how he had become an official knight of House Achen. Thus, the knight was overflowing with confidence.
And just as he thought, Rahan Norwich was pushed back helplessly by his rapid attacks.
He looked as if he were struggling just to block the sword.
Ssh, a trajectory of the sword left a mark on Rahan's face.
Ha!
The knight shouted in excitement.
“They called you the child of a demon, but your skill is pathetic! You dimwit! Today, I, Weber, shall end that vain reputation!”
But why was it that, even while being pushed into a defensive position, Rahan Norwich gave a small smirk?
“You said you had no name to give me?”
The knight blinked unconsciously.
Eh?
And in the blink of an eye, the situation reversed.
Clang!
The man suddenly closed the distance with a large stride and pushed the knight away.
The knight was pushed back by that tremendous force and grit his teeth to deflect the sword.
And just as he tried to swing the sword upward from below...
‘Huh?’
Surprisingly, the opponent's sword was blocking the trajectory faster than the knight's own sword.
Clang!
“Weber, is it. Shall I see the skill of a knight from the great House Achen? To see if you have the skill to protect my wife?”
My wife.
At those words, the knight unconsciously glanced at Iris Achen.
And he realized. Although the man had surged very close to Iris Achen a moment ago, he had already pushed the knight quite far away from her.
Only then did the knight realize that Rahan Norwich had pretended to be on the defensive to lure him in a different direction.
“Ghh!”
The knight grit his teeth and swung his sword. But none of the attacks worked on the opponent.
As soon as Rahan had put distance between himself and Iris, he thrust his sword straight forward without a shred of hesitation.
The attack was extremely simple, but immense power was loaded into every single strike.
“Ugh!”
Not only that, the man possessed technique. The seemingly simple attacks pressed the knight like flowing water.
The knight attempted to find a way out, but it was already too late.
“No!”
Rahan's sword had already aimed for his flank and tore through the flesh like a bolt of lightning.
“Aaaagh!”
The knight eventually collapsed, bleeding from his side. But Rahan was merciless.
“How many knights does House Achen have?”
As he spoke, Rahan drove his sword straight through the knight's thigh.
It was a very ordinary attack, intended to prevent him from escaping.
“Aaaaargh!”
The knight wailed.
To scream this loudly over a single attack like this—what criteria does House Achen use to pick their knights?
Rahan wondered internally as he plunged the sword into the opposite thigh.
“Guh! T-twenty-one!”
“Ah.”
The man smiled casually.
“From today, it'll be twenty.”
The meaning was obvious. The knight trembled, bleeding.
“P-please spare me...”
But Rahan had no intention of letting the opponent live.
Though the two of them had been careless, the knight had heard too much.
‘How stupid.’
Rahan blamed himself. He had been so captivated by the girl blinking her eyes in front of him that he hadn't noticed such a scrub was right nearby and had let out stupid remarks.
“I-I'll keep the secret! I've been abandoned by House Achen anyway!”
“Yeah, I'm going to abandon you too. Too bad.”
It was just as Rahan raised his sword toward the collapsed knight.
“W-wait. Wait a moment...”
Someone suddenly hugged him tightly from behind. Rahan felt the strength leave his hand unconsciously.
A soft and warm body temperature felt against his back.
It was Iris.
“R-Rahan. Are you going to kill this person?”
The light green eyes looking up at him were filled with fear.
Only then did Rahan remember that the woman hugging him was an apprentice priest... who wouldn't know much about killing people.
He smiled bitterly.
“Iris. Turn around for a moment.”
“He says he'll keep the secret. Still, at least his life...”
“Iris.”
Come to think of it, the girl had also blocked his hand when he had tried to draw his sword in front of Philod Ahen.
Hands that were infinitely fragile and soft.
Rahan didn't want to criticize Iris for being too naive. However, he couldn't grant her request.
“Secrets are only kept when no one knows them.”
“That...”
“This guy tried to kill me and take you back to the Achen Ducal House.”
Iris looked back and forth between Rahan and the fallen knight with eyes full of terror.
Why was it? If someone did this on the battlefield, the opponent would be executed on the spot. Or they would be showered with immense curses.
But Rahan simply didn't want to do that to this woman. Why?
Rahan whispered to her kindly and slowly.
“If I do that, this guy will run straight to the Ducal House and tell the whole world that you and I aren't properly a couple yet. That way, he could get enough money to live on even as a cripple.”
“...”
Others would criticize it as a stupid thing to do.
The correct order would be to quickly push Iris away, turn around, and cut the knight's throat.
But the knight's blood was splattered on Rahan's face and body, and he hoped that the woman hugging him wouldn't be frightened by his appearance.
Thus, speaking kindly was the best he could do.
“Is that still okay?”
.jpg)