Chapter 1 – Part 4

The Lennox family was Madam Emma’s top VIP client. She visited the Lennox family whenever she had new clothes, and the Duchess and the three daughters of the Lennox family always bought her new arrivals.

It was convenient because Madam tailored the clothes to each person’s style and size, and the clothes were beautiful.

“You should wash up first and then change into the new dress.”

After helping Reina take off her clothes, Madam and the employee led her to the shop’s bath.

Seeing the n*ked men had made Reina feel ashamed of even seeing her own body. So, she meticulously washed only the parts stained with blood, dust, and dirt, and quickly finished the rest.

Though it was unsettling, Reina could tolerate it since she planned to wash again once she returned to the mansion.

When Reina emerged from the bathroom, an employee approached to help her change into a new dress. Afterward, Madam came over to tidy her hair.

“What on earth happened? You don’t seem injured, so why is there blood on your clothes?”

Ever since realizing that the ghost was Reina, Madam had been curious, and now she finally asked her question.

“It’s nothing serious. I’ve been a bit tired lately and had a nosebleed. I didn’t want anyone to see me covered in blood, so I came to the shop looking like a ghost on purpose.”

Reina couldn’t possibly say that she had a nosebleed twice from seeing muscular men n*ked, so she made up an excuse.

“Oh dear! You need to get enough sleep. But you really scared me. I didn’t think it was you, Lady Reina, and thought a ghost had entered my shop. My heart nearly stopped.”

“Haha.”

Feeling embarrassed again, Reina let out a small laugh instead of answering.

“But did you go out alone without a maid or a knight? You came by carriage, right? You didn’t walk, did you?”

“I went for a short walk and ended up walking to the square….”

In reality, she hadn’t walked all the way from the Lennox mansion, but she couldn’t say where she had been, so she didn’t deny it.

“What?”

Since the distance from the Lennox mansion to the shop was quite far, Madam asked in disbelief.

“Can you keep today’s events a secret?”

Reina asked with an embarrassed smile, as if to say not to ask any more questions.

“Of course, Lady Reina. I’ll make sure the employees keep quiet too.”

The Madam winked and sealed her lips.

“Thank you.”

After finishing her preparations, Reina was able to return comfortably to the Lennox mansion in a carriage lent by the Madam. However, her mind was far from at ease during the entire ride.

The scene she had witnessed in the forest kept replaying vividly in her mind.

It was strange.

Normally, feelings of guilt and self-reproach would make one forget about secretly peeping, but that wasn’t the case. She keeps thinking about it.

Even though she had seen many people, only one person’s image was etched in her mind and dominated her thoughts.

No matter how much she shook her head, tried to erase the image with her hands, or stomped her feet, it was useless.

Why am I like this?

It would have been better if she could remember a face. But the problem was that what she recalled wasn’t a face.

A heavy club….

The shocking object wouldn’t leave her mind, and just thinking about it made her feel heat rising inside her body.

Reina had never spent the night with anyone, nor had she ever touched her private area. But now, just thinking about that thing made her body excited on its own.

A huge object attached to a firm and sleek body….

As that shape kept lingering before her eyes, she nodded unconsciously.

The commander is still a man, after all.

Since she trained with the knights daily, Reina had never considered them as the opposite s*x. She just thought of them as her goal and comrades to follow.

Thus, she had only seen Patrick as a superior who monitored her. He had looked after her even before becoming the knight commander under Duke Lennox’s order, so it was natural for her to view him that way.

But why do I feel differently now?

She did like Patrick, but it was more admiration than love. She was just fascinated by his excellent swordsmanship.

Then why? Why do I keep thinking about him and getting bothered by it?

In the shaking carriage, Reina shook her head vigorously, trying to rid herself of these thoughts.

But even after returning to the mansion, her mind was still filled with Patrick, and that night she dreamt of being crushed under a giant club, flailing her limbs.

“S-save me!”

She tried to escape from the club several times, but she couldn’t. Just when she thought she had escaped, the club rolled over and crushed her again, making her struggle once more.

It felt like an inescapable cycle.

“Aaah!”

Tormented by nightmares all night, Reina woke up with a loud scream and was in a disheveled state.

Her body felt heavy, and her heart kept pounding so much that she couldn’t even attend the early morning training.

“What did I do to deserve being tormented even in my dreams?”

It was natural to be curious about the differences between a woman’s and a man’s body. But she didn’t want to know so much that it would appear in her dreams. What good would it do to be curious about someone else’s body?

As she sat on her bed, hesitating whether to go to training or not, Reina threw her head back and lay flat on her bed.

“Oh, forget it. I won’t go today.”

During early morning training, the knights lined up in rows, and the knight commander stood on the platform to instruct them on the day’s training.

Reina had to stand at the far end and follow the knights’ movements, while the commander and vice-commander corrected their postures.

So, if she went to training now, she would inevitably have to see Patrick’s face.

“Can I even look at the commander’s face properly?”

No matter how much she thought about it, she didn’t have the confidence to do so. After being tormented by the club all night, just seeing his face was embarrassing.

Especially since her gaze would likely drift to his lower body instead of his face, she felt even more that she had to avoid him today.

If only a day had passed, she would forget about it naturally.

“Besides, no one would care if I skipped training….”

Reina mumbled to herself as she tossed and turned.

Wanting to forget what she had seen yesterday, she shook her head violently. When that didn’t work, she banged her head against the wall.

Even though she hit it quite hard, the image of the club still lingered in her mind.

“I’ve seen them shirtless countless times and felt nothing, so why does that keep coming to mind? And why is my heart pounding again?”

I thought I had let go of my curiosity, but why does his thing keep popping up in my mind? Is it because I’m suppressing my instincts?

Trying various methods to forget the forcibly resurfacing memory in her mind, she soon realized it was time for breakfast.

Her 8-year-old sister, Lilith, burst into the room without knocking and ran towards her.

“Sister! It’s time to eat! Huh? You didn’t go to training today?”

Lilith usually opened her door at that time after Reina returned from training and washed up, so they could have breakfast together.

Seeing Reina’s hair not wet, Lilith seemed to realize that she had skipped training.

“What’s wrong with your face, Sis?”

Lilith asked wide-eyed as she came closer. Apparently, Reina’s face didn’t look good even to her.

“It’s nothing. I just didn’t sleep well last night.”

Reina answered as she got up from the bed.

“What do you mean by ‘didn’t sleep well’?”

Lilith tilted her head and ran ahead to the dining room. When Reina followed and arrived at the dining room, her older sister Richelle was already there waiting for them.

Soup, bread, and meat were placed at each of their seats on the table.

“Reina, what’s wrong with your face? Didn’t sleep well last night?”

Richelle asked the same question as Lilith.

Is my face really that bad?

Reina touched her cheek and felt her skin was rough.

“Did you also have trouble sleeping because of the ghost story, Sis?”

Lilith asked, chewing on a piece of meat she had put into her mouth.

“What ghost?”

Ghost, out of nowhere? 

Reina was taken aback by Lilith’s absurd story and chuckled as she picked up the bread in front of her.

“They say a ghost appeared in the square in broad daylight yesterday. Quite a few people saw it.”

Lilith’s eyes sparkled with interest.

“A ghost? That’s ridiculous.”

At Reina’s comment, Richelle also laughed in disbelief, just like her.

“They say a ghost with disheveled hair, wearing blood-soaked clothes, entered a clothing store. Isn’t that scary?”

Why does this sound familiar…?

Hearing Lilith’s words, Reina tilted her head as she cut the bread into small pieces and put it in her mouth.

“The most surprising thing is, the ghost’s hair color was pink.”