However, Erica’s only exercise had ever been dancing at parties. Her breath reached her chin and her legs felt like they would cramp. Around the third lap, she lost her place in the formation and had to run alone, staggering.

‘This is hard!’

“Huff, huff, ack…!”

Her vision spun. When she looked to see what Duke Felix was doing, he was busy talking with his aide Freddy and not paying any attention to her. That made her feel somewhat disappointed.

The others, already on their fifth lap, passed by Erica. Her face turned red at the sound of their snickering mockery. But there was nothing she could do. This was her first time doing such exercise.

“I don’t know how you became an apprentice knight, but you’d better give up. Tsk tsk.”

“She looks like a noble lady, is she trying to get close to the Duke this way? It’s quite an innovative method, but a pr*stitute would have easier access than a lady. Heheh.”

Erica bit her lip firmly at the sound of them giggling among themselves.

‘That’s not it! I’m doing this because I don’t want to die!’

With a more desperate mindset than anyone, Erica shouted inwardly and rejoined the formation. Her heart felt like it would jump out, but she couldn’t give up here.

‘I can do this.’

Erica silently began running again, and some of them quietly observed her.

Looking at the slowly rising sun, Erica thought about how unfair it had been to die at the hands of that nameless soldier. In her current state, she would likely die again if the same situation arose.

She could feel to her bones how much weaker she was than that soldier. From a distance, other people’s strength hadn’t seemed impressive, but up close, the difference between them and herself was enormous. It seemed she couldn’t beat them with anything.

In the end, while the men ran 20 laps, Erica only managed 5.

The men reeked of sweat. Normally Erica would have hated such a smell, but now it was different. Perhaps because she smelled of sweat herself, it wasn’t repulsive.

“Miss Erica. Shall we go eat together?”

Someone spoke to her then. He was a man with striking golden hair, even among the commoners. When he approached her kindly, other men tried to join in.

“Huh?”

Erica was confused as to why these commoners, who had been sarcastic until just now, were suddenly acting friendly.

“I want to go eat with Miss Erica too.”

“Me too!”

Erica nodded at the man with the brilliant golden hair. Being in the same training situation, she couldn’t eat separately from them. She was also curious about what they ate.

‘The commoners training here must be the Duke’s personal soldiers?’

They seemed to be treated better than the ordinary commoners she knew. At least there were no hungry people to be found.

Erica looked around but couldn’t see Duke Felix. Since his aide was also gone, they must have gone into the mansion together. Erica followed the men into the annex. There was a sweet smell, suggesting food was being prepared.

The golden-haired man said:

“I’m Jamie, 20 years old. Oh, please sit down, I’ll bring you food.”

Erica was used to having maids bring her food and was about to call for one, but realizing her situation was not much different from theirs, she shook her head.

“No. I’ll get it myself.”

Erica and Jamie stood behind a rather long line. Other men glanced at Erica and blushed. Jamie smiled and said:

“You’re truly beautiful.”

“…Really?”

Normally, she would feel good hearing compliments about her beauty, but right now she was just hungry. Her stomach rumbled like thunder after not eating since yesterday evening. Erica took in Jamie’s face.

“You’re handsome too.”

She had once seen friends picking handsome servants to accompany them, and his face was better than those servants’. 

Though a commoner, he was beautiful enough to keep around.

Back then she hadn’t paid much attention as she wasn’t interested in romance, but her friends would probably hire Jamie immediately if they saw him.

Jamie’s face turned completely red at Erica’s words.

He looked down at his shoe tips shyly. Following his gaze, Erica looked there too and saw his shoes were quite worn from long use. Gradually raising her gaze upward, she saw his tattered pants and shirt.

Perhaps due to sweat, Jamie’s bare skin was visible through his clothes. Erica blinked at the sight of his firm, sturdy chest.

‘His face and body are nice… No, what am I thinking!’

Jamie was smaller than Duke Felix, but he was prettily built with delicate features. With his deep golden hair and blue eyes of unfathomable depth, he could pass for a noble if properly dressed. Moreover, he was kind, which made him easily likable.

After receiving a bowl of food and a spoon, Erica followed closely behind Jamie. When he sat at the table, Erica sat across from him.

The soup, filled with meat and potatoes, was quite substantial. Usually she had tea and simple bread for breakfast, but having exercised since dawn, that wouldn’t be enough to fill her stomach.

‘That’s good.’

Normally she would have restrained herself for the sake of dieting, but Erica finished all of the meat soup. Those who trained with her seemed to be getting second and third helpings. Jamie, though smaller than the other soldiers, brought a second bowl of soup and finished it in the blink of an eye.

“Isn’t there a shortage of food if everyone eats extra like this?”

“No. There’s plenty, so it’s fine. When it comes to meals, Duke Felix is quite generous.”

“I see.”

The Mills Count household always provided servants with an appropriate amount of food. There was never a case of additional servings like this. Erica had always thought that was normal. Because everyone did it that way. However, whether it was because these men were soldiers, Duke Felix seemed to give quite generously to those beneath him.

“We’re all receiving knight training.”

“Knight training?”

“Yes.”

Though he didn’t take disciples, he had soldiers and gave them knight training. To become an official knight, one had to be a noble first and have a lot of money. However, these men were commoners and didn’t look wealthy.

Of course, it wasn’t impossible for commoners to become official knights. They could if they achieved great merits in war. But only a very small number could do so.

‘What is Duke Felix thinking?’

For the first time, Erica became curious about his thoughts.

After the meal, while following Jamie, someone grabbed Erica by the scruff of her neck. Her feet dangled in the air. Duke Felix, who had appeared from nowhere, spoke with disapproval:

“Didn’t I tell you that an apprentice knight should always follow me?”

“Ah…”

Only then did Erica remember what he had said. She tried to make an excuse.

“I couldn’t see you, Your Grace…”

No. If left like this, she would continue to be treated coldly by the commoners, so she had tried to befriend them. Since she would likely train longer with the commoner soldiers nearby than with the distant Duke Felix, she wanted to leave a good impression. A kind of social tact?

Seeing through her intentions, Duke Felix’s mouth corners slowly turned downward.

“Come here.”

Duke Felix put Erica down on the floor, grabbed her wrist, and headed toward the main building. Jamie, who was in the annex, had no choice but to wave goodbye. Erica showed an apologetic expression to Jamie and followed Duke Felix.

Being right behind him, his back looked tremendously large. She wondered with curiosity if all Sword Masters were this big.

“I heard you only ran 5 laps?”

“Ugh. …Yes.”

Erica felt intimidated. Fearing the soldiers might not include her in training anymore, she had deliberately followed them.

“Then you should train more in the remaining time, were you just flirting with the men?”

“…Flirting?”

Duke Felix stopped and looked Erica’s body up and down with a displeased expression.

“Everything is showing through your sweat-soaked clothes.”

“…What?”

His finger pressed firmly on Erica’s neck, then caressed her protruding chest, navel, and thighs.

“You fearlessly follow men into a place teeming with them, dressed like this?”

“Oh.”

Only then did Erica see her reflection in the mirror. Wet with sweat, everything was clearly visible. Even with an extra thin top, the color of her protruding n*pples was clearly revealed.