Chapter 1 – Part 3

While Reina worried about her condition, fortunately, the amount of blood flowing started to decrease. As her tense body relaxed, she began to hear the knights’ conversation.

“Commander, you’re exceptional today as well. It’s always amazing to see.”

“Shut up!”

The other knights seemed to feel the same way as Reina. It was only natural since he stood out so much.

Honestly, he did stand out compared to the others.

“Man, what a waste. Having something that good and not using it.”

“Commander, you still haven’t used it? I’ve told you so many times to use it. If you save it too much, you might end up losing it.”

“Shut up.”

The knights were teasing their relatively young commander, and Patrick didn’t deny their words.

What? Not used it? Could it be… he’s really a… virgin?

Shocked by their conversation, Reina tightened her grip on her nose and mouth.

With such an impressive member, and being a virgin… If women knew, they wouldn’t leave him alone….

What’s the point of having something that good if it’s useless?!

Reina unconsciously nodded in agreement with the knights’ opinions.

“Just looking at his face, you can tell he’s a celibate man. What do you expect?”

“Come on. The commander just doesn’t know yet. Once he tastes it, he won’t be able to stop. No, I bet women won’t be able to leave him alone.”

The knights laughed heartily.

“I told you to shut up.”

“If mine were like the commander’s, I would have dated one woman after another…. Don’t you think it’s a waste?”

“Hey, don’t blame your lack of popularity on your inadequate equipment.”

“Shut your mouth!”

“Aw, feeling shy?”

The surrounding knights teased, but Patrick continued to try to stop their conversation. When their mischievous banter didn’t cease, Patrick finally grabbed his sword.

“If you’re done washing, get out. If you have enough energy to joke around, maybe you need another round of training tonight to come to your senses.?”

“Eek. No, sir.”

The knights hurriedly got out of the hot spring, dried themselves off, and began to put on their clothes.

Reina listened to all this with her eyes closed. If she had seen it with her own eyes, she might have died from excessive bleeding due to the unstoppable nosebleed.

I should have left quickly, but the timing was just….

In fact, she hadn’t intended to listen to their conversation until the end. She had planned to leave after confirming the owner of the big member, but she couldn’t because she had witnessed them just as their bath was ending.

If she stood up now and ran into them, she might be branded as a pervert who secretly watched n*ked men.

That can’t happen!

Reina lay as flat as possible. She intended to wait until their footsteps completely disappeared. She hoped they would pass by without noticing her.

She even had to hold her breath. Even a shallow breath might give away her presence.

Only when the footsteps completely vanished did Reina stand up. After confirming that no one was around, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Then she looked down to check her condition. Fortunately, the nosebleed had stopped, but the blood had soaked her chest and left small stains down to her toes.

Her dress was stained green, brown, and red from the blood, grass, and dirt. In other words, she was a complete mess.

Just as Reina was dusting off her clothes and tidying herself up, she felt a chilling gaze from the direction where the knights had disappeared.

Reina turned her head to look in the direction of the gaze.

Huh?

Luckily, she didn’t see anything, but a small sense of unease crept in.

Could someone have seen me?

They were the knights of the Lennox family and the third royal knight order, and even the apprentice knights were quite skilled.

So, even if Reina couldn’t see them, it was possible that one of the knights had sensed her presence from afar.

No way…. It can’t be, right? I’m so far away.

Reina tried to dismiss her feelings. If they had sensed her presence, someone would have found her by now.

Even though she repeatedly told herself, ‘It can’t be,’ a part of her grew increasingly uneasy. But she wanted to suppress this feeling, so she opted to interpret it in a way that suited her.

Wait…. If they’re the knights of the Lennox family, wouldn’t they pretend not to notice?

Who would dare spread rumors that the second daughter of the Lennox family was a pervert peeping at n*ked knights?

If they did, they could fall out of favor with Duke Lennox, so no one would dare do such a bold thing. So Reina thought complacently, unaware that this would become a significant concern for her in the future.

After getting up, Reina checked her condition again.

“Anyway. I can’t go home looking like this….”

If she returned to the mansion like this, they might misunderstand and think she was injured. After some thought, she decided it would be better to go to her favorite store and buy new clothes.

It was fortunate that there was a square within walking distance from the forest.

However, if she went there looking like this, rumors might spread that the Lennox family’s lady was wandering around covered in blood.

Pink hair was rare, only seen among the Lennox family and His Majesty the Emperor. So, most people in society knew that a pink-haired woman was one of the three daughters of the Lennox family.

“Maybe I should just act crazy?”

If she acted like a madwoman until she reached the store, people might not think she was from the Lennox family.

Moreover, if she entered the store looking crazy but came out looking normal, people might think they had seen wrong.

“Yes!”

Concluding that it was better to act crazy than get scolded by her father, Reina untied the ribbon holding her hair and messed it up with her hands.

She then pulled her hair forward to cover her face. She also tore her dress slightly for a more dramatic effect.

After preparing, Reina limped toward the street.

“Eek!”

“Ah!”

She felt strange gazes and heard screams directed at her as she walked to the square, but she ignored them and entered her regular dress shop.

* * *

“Get out!”

Fortunately, there were no customers in the shop, but Madam Emma turned pale and screamed while covering her ears when she saw Reina.

She seemed to mistake her for a ghost.

“Um….”

“Eek, stay back!”

When Reina tried to speak, Madam screamed even louder, almost foaming at the mouth.

“Madam!”

The staff nearby also turned pale and ran to the madame, trembling so much that Reina could feel their bodies shaking.

“Don’t be scared. It’s me, Reina.”

Feeling sorry for scaring everyone in the shop, Reina immediately pulled her hair back to reveal her face.

“L-Lady Reina?!”

Madam sighed in relief and slumped to the floor upon recognizing Reina’s face. An employee beside her quickly wiped the tears from her eyes and smiled in relief.

“Why on earth did you show up looking like that….”

The madame, trying to get up, suddenly stopped mid-sentence.

“Eek! Blood? Are you hurt? Are you okay? Shouldn’t you go to a doctor instead of here?”

Now that the tension had eased, Madam noticed the blood on Reina’s dress and anxiously ran over to check her all over.

“I’m not hurt.”

Reina replied with an embarrassed expression.

“It’s a relief you’re not hurt, but why do you look like this?”

The madam, flustered, almost said ‘look like a mess’ but quickly corrected herself.

“Ahaha. I had a nosebleed. I thought it would cause a commotion if I went home like this, so I came to the shop first… Do you have any clothes I could wear?”

Feeling embarrassed, Reina laughed and changed the subject.

“Of course!”

The Madam hurriedly went into the storage and came out with a yellow silk dress adorned with elaborate floral embroidery.

“How about this? It’s a new arrival. I was planning to bring the new items to the Lennox mansion soon, so this is perfect timing.”