Chapter 1 – Part 1

Reina Lennox, the second daughter of Duke Lennox.

She thought of herself as an ordinary woman, with the only flaw being her stronger curiosity than others.

She thought it was natural to believe that curiosity wouldn’t be a problem since it had never put her in a difficult situation before.

But for the first time in 20 years, she realized it was a huge misconception.

Because now, due to that curiosity, she was witnessing a scene she couldn’t believe even though it was right in front of her eyes.

It was the sight of men washing their bodies without a single thread on. Seeing the n*ked bodies of men she knew filled her vision, making Reina’s face turn as red as if it were on fire.

It wasn’t intentional that she ended up peeping at them. She had no malice or particular intention. She just wanted to know where the knights, who trained with her daily, were going without her.

But as a result of not being able to suppress her curiosity, she ended up witnessing something completely unexpected, and Reina couldn’t help but be shocked.

If she had known this would happen, she wouldn’t have followed them secretly.

‘My lady, this is absolutely not a place you should come to, so don’t even think about coming with us.’

There was always a reason when people told her not to come. Many people had tried to stop her.

Yet, she insisted on seeing because the knights teased her, saying she could never come.

‘It would be fun if you came, my lady.’

Some even egged her on jokingly.

As a result, Reina’s curiosity grew more and more, and despite having several chances to avoid it, she kicked those opportunities away with her own feet.

She regretted it, but it was already too late.

* * *

Reina, who was very curious, liked to see and try many things herself.

Even after raising her basic knowledge, embroidery, dance, singing, piano, horse riding, and other skills that typical noble ladies learned to a certain level, she still had many things she wanted to do.

So, she even did household chores, which were the duties of the maids working at the Lennox household. Cleaning, laundry, and even cooking.

It was no use trying to stop her. Reina wouldn’t back down, and the maids had no choice but to comply with her wishes.

“Reina! Are you doing this here again? Didn’t I tell you not to disturb those who are working hard?”

The Duchess of Lennox would search for her daughter every day to try to stop most of her actions.

Usually, by the time she found her, Reina had already done something, and the Duchess had to pull her by the earlobe and drag her back to her room.

“You troublemaker! Who on earth do you take after to be like this?”

The Duchess’s worries grew day by day because of her second daughter, who was unpredictable.

Her son Louis was relatively calm, resembling her, but the three daughters were all troublemakers, taking after the Duke of Lennox.

All three were troublesome, but Reina was especially problematic.

She couldn’t even blame her husband, the Duke of Lennox, who played a big role in producing these troublemakers…. The Duchess could only wait for Reina to grow up and mature quickly.

Fortunately, at the age of 15, there was an end to her desire for learning. But that also gave the Duchess a headache.

“I want to learn how to use a sword too!”

After watching the knights of the Lennox household’s practice match, Reina suddenly started begging to learn swordsmanship.

“No! What did the knights do wrong? They would lose time teaching you.”

At first, the Duchess opposed it. She wanted to prevent all mishaps in advance because she was afraid of what trouble Reina might cause next.

The person who helped change the Duchess’s mind was the Duke of Lennox. He gave a plausible reason, saying that if Reina underwent training, she would be too exhausted to cause any trouble.

Thinking about it, she realized it wasn’t entirely wrong. It was also good to learn self-defense.

Eventually, persuaded by her husband, the Duchess allowed Reina to learn swordsmanship with the apprentice knights of the order.

“I allow it, but you must attend training every dawn. You must not skip! And you can’t quit halfway. Can you do that?”

“Yes, of course!”

Allowing her to learn swordsmanship was a brilliant decision. Fortunately, Reina had no talent for swordsmanship.

As a result, she had no time to learn anything new until her swordsmanship skills reached a certain level.

With as much curiosity as she had, she also had great perseverance, so Reina devoted herself to swordsmanship practice until she was satisfied, and the Duchess no longer had to anxiously chase after her daughter.

So, she thought Reina wouldn’t cause any more trouble and felt relieved. But then….

* * *

It had been five years since Reina started training with the knights. Although she still couldn’t completely keep up with the knights, she had grown to a level similar to the apprentice knights.

“Phew.”

After the dawn training ended, her body was drenched in sweat.

“My lady, you’ve worked hard today as well.”

Toby, the youngest m*mber of the knights, handed her some water as she sat on the ground, exhausted.

At 18 years old, he was a rookie apprentice knight who had recently joined the third royal knight order and belonged to the Lennox household.

Since they were close in age and had similar swordsmanship skills, they quickly became friends.

“Thank you.”

After receiving the water bottle, Reina drank it down, quenching her parched throat.

“Then go in and rest. I have something to prepare, so I’ll be off.”

Usually, after training, Toby would chat with Reina for a bit before parting ways. But today, he seemed busy.

“Is it that day again today?”

“…Yes.”

Toby answered with a sorry expression.

“Where do you all go every two months, leaving me out?”

Every two months, right after the dawn training, all the knights except Reina would head to a secret location.

They said it was for a sacred ritual, but they never wanted to take her along. No matter how much she begged, it was no use.

“Well….”

Toby hesitated to answer.

“What kind of ritual is it that you even hesitate to answer?”

Reina felt frustrated by his behavior.

“Do you want to come with us? You’ll be surprised.”

At that moment, a voice tempting her suddenly came out. It was Walker, one of the knights she trained with, and his tone was full of mischief.

“Really? Can I go?”

Reina’s face brightened at his suggestion. She was delighted, thinking she had finally been granted permission to go.

“Hey, stop teasing the lady!”

Another knight, Frank, approached and scolded Walker, who grinned mischievously while wrapping an arm around Toby’s neck.

She had been expecting permission, but it turned out to be a joke…. Her high hopes quickly deflated.

“Why? You said you’d take me with you.”

Reina gave them the most pitiful look she could muster, hoping to evoke sympathy and get them to take her along.

“No, you can’t.”

But Frank’s answer was firm.

“Is it a place forbidden to women?”

“It’s not that, but….”

“That’s so unfair. Don’t just go by yourselves; take me too!”

No matter how much Reina whined, the knights seemed determined not to take her.

“If you want to come, get permission from Duke Lennox.”

Leaving her with those words, they walked away. She noticed Toby glancing back at her, but even he soon disappeared.

“Ugh, why won’t they take me too?”

Reina, left alone in the training ground, wore a dissatisfied expression.

Of course, she had begged her father before. But the usually smiling man suddenly turned stern and firmly said, “No.”

He didn’t even want to tell her where they were going.

Is there a reason to keep it such a secret?

The more they hid it, the more Reina’s curiosity grew over time. So, it was only natural that after five years, her patience had run out.

Unable to suppress her burning curiosity any longer, she finally decided to take action. She planned to follow them.

“I know roughly where it is, so today I’ll see it with my own eyes!”

Last time, when they went for the sacred ritual, she had her servant Olive find out the general direction they went. It was impossible to tail the knights directly, so this was the best she could do.

And today, Reina would slowly follow them based on the information she had gathered. She decided to go alone since taking Olive might alert them to her presence.

She wasn’t worried about getting lost. Since they were heading into the forest, she could find them by following the loud voices of the knights.

“They say it’s a sacred ritual, so why do they do it alone? What about me?”

Reina grumbled to Olive, who was sitting across from her in the carriage.

“Since it’s a place only men go, maybe it’s better not to follow them?”

Olive spoke with a troubled expression, but his words fell on deaf ears.

“I’ll come straight back home once I find out why they always leave me behind.”

She spoke fearlessly, unaware of what lay ahead.

“Go back first.”

After Reina got off the carriage, Olive tried to follow her, but she stopped him.

“How will you return alone, my lady?”

Olive asked worriedly.

“If I’m too late, come back here when it gets dark. But make sure the knights don’t notice. If the carriage is here, they’ll know I followed them.”

“But….”

“It’s fine. Besides, we’re close to the square. If I finish earlier than expected, I’ll go there. I can hire a carriage from there, so don’t worry.”