Chapter 2 (Part 4)

Although the talisman’s effect might not appear immediately, Reina headed to the training ground.

She thought it would be better to show her face even once rather than just sitting and waiting for the talisman’s effect to improve.

When she reached the lodge where the knights stayed, she saw Toby coming out with a pile of clothes. Reina immediately approached him.

“Toby, what are you carrying?”

Surprised by the sudden voice, Toby lost his balance and tripped over his own feet. He staggered but tried his best not to drop what he was holding.

However, in the end, Toby, who had tripped, fell onto Reina. She tried to avoid him, but she also stumbled, causing his hand to slap her butt as he fell to the ground.

“Oh my!”

Startled, Reina let out a scream without realizing it.

“M-My lady!”

Toby also shouted in shock, but it was already too late.

The pile of clothes in his hands fell onto her back, butt, and the ground. As a result, the previously clean knight’s uniforms got dirty in an instant.

“…”

Toby, who got up from the ground, looked like he was about to cry.

He had just cleaned the clothes, and now they were dirty again. It was only natural that he’d get scolded and have to wash them all over again. He felt unjustly wronged.

“I’m sorry.”

As Reina picked up the clothes and apologized, Toby said something unexpected.

“I-I have committed a grave sin.”

“What?”

Seeing him bowing deeply with his head on the ground, Reina couldn’t hide her confusion.

“P-Please kill me. I dared to…”

Startled by Toby’s continued strange behavior, Reina cut him off and asked.

“What on earth are you talking about?”

“My, my hand touched your b-butt, my lady. I have committed a grave sin.”

It was an accidental event, so there was no need for such an apology.

“It was an accident. Why apologize so much?”

“But… didn’t it upset you?”

Toby slightly raised his head, and his face was pale.

“N-no…”

His hand had touched her butt, but it was an unavoidable situation. She was disappointed by Toby’s excessive reaction.

I didn’t expect him to feel distant from me…

She thought they had been getting along well, even if not as equals, but it seemed that was just her own misconception.

Could it be that Commander Patrick feels the same way as Toby? Is it because I’m from the Lennox family that they don’t see me as a woman?

At that moment, Reina realized that thinking of the knights as family had been her own delusion.

How can I become closer with them?

“How about you hit my b*ttocks once, too, my lady?”

Seeing Reina’s serious expression, Toby lightly tapped his own b*ttocks with his hand. His firm b*ttocks jiggled slightly.

“T-that’s a bit… Do I really need to do that?”

She didn’t want to hit him, so she asked seriously, but Toby gave an absurd answer.

“I think that would make me feel better.”

Reina couldn’t help but chuckle at his answer. 

Feeling better after getting hit on the b*ttocks… Does that even make sense?

“Is this your way of forgiving me now? Thank you.”

But Toby misunderstood. He thought she had forgiven him because he asked her to hit him on the b*ttocks.

She had never been angry in the first place, so why?

“That’s great, Toby. The lady has forgiven you.”

Just then, Walker’s voice came from the lodge. He seemed to have overheard the conversation and was trying to suppress his laughter.

“I’m relieved.”

“Wait, I think there’s a misunderstanding.”

“Toby! The Deputy Commander Ford is urgently calling for you. Quickly tidy up the clothes and go.”

She wanted to clear up the misunderstanding, but there was no time. Just then, someone called for Toby.

“Since you’ve forgiven me, I’ll be going now.”

Toby hurriedly picked up the clothes and went back into the lodge without hearing Reina’s explanation.

“T-Toby!”

She called his name several times, but the closing door seemed to block her voice.

When he came out of the lodge again, it wasn’t the right moment to talk, so she had to let him go without clearing up the misunderstanding.

“Such a mess.”

Reina shook her head as she looked at the empty spot where Toby had disappeared from her sight.

* * *

Reina set out to find Toby around the time evening training ended. She was worried he might get scolded because of her and felt bad about the misunderstanding.

It was already dark, with the night sky deeply settled. She had to walk carefully, relying on the moonlight and lanterns.

“Where did Toby go?”

After arriving at the training ground and looking around, she couldn’t see Toby. Reina asked Tom, who was the closest person to her, about his whereabouts.

“He’s probably cleaning armor by himself. He made a mistake earlier and got punished. You can find him at the lodge.”

As expected, Toby seemed to be punished for dirtying the clothes.

He’s being punished because he fell because of me.

If she hadn’t spoken to him, Toby wouldn’t have fallen. She felt unnecessarily guilty. Reina headed to the lodge to help him.

When she reached the lodge, she saw a pile of armor in front of it and Toby’s figure bent over.

He really is cleaning the armor by himself.

The first thing that caught Reina’s eye was his deep blue hair. Next, her eyes were drawn to Toby’s b*ttocks.

She had no desire to hit him, but his b*ttocks looked so tempting that she wanted to playfully tap them.

‘How about you hit my b*ttocks once, too, my lady?’

Suddenly, Toby’s words came to mind. His suggestion was odd, but it also sounded like a devil’s whisper. Normally, she wouldn’t touch another man’s b*ttocks, but she felt it would be okay with Toby.

Since he seemed distant from her, she wanted to close the gap, even with a small prank.

“Toby, what are you doing here?”

She lightly tapped his b*ttocks twice, as if patting them, but they were firm, not bouncy.

Huh? Firm? Toby’s b*ttocks looked bouncy earlier. Did he build up muscle in that short time?

As she tilted her head in confusion, Toby stood up.

“Aaah!”

Seeing his face, Reina was so startled that she fell back onto her butt. Her gaze, which had been downward, now moved upward.

It wasn’t Toby. Under the soft moonlight, the revealed face showed Patrick’s startled expression.

Oh no!

She had mistaken the blue hair for Toby’s, but up close, it was a lighter, sky-blue color. In the dark night, relying on the moonlight and lanterns, she had mistaken the color.

Why did I mistake the hair color? And their builds are different, so why did I confuse them?

Patrick was tall, lean, and had a muscular body that seemed like it wouldn’t bleed even if stabbed.

In contrast, Toby was short and lean. He had some muscles, but they were only slightly noticeable under his clothes. It made no sense to confuse the two.

Why did I…

As she stared blankly at Patrick, he extended his hand.

“What?”

Startled by his unexpected action, Reina looked at him with a confused face.

“You need to get up.”

Although he looked puzzled, Patrick’s tone was calm.

“Oh…”

Only then did Reina realize she had fallen. She took his hand and stood up, then brushed the dust and dirt off her b*ttocks.

An awkward silence fell between them until the dust settled.

What if he misunderstands? Won’t he think I’m weird?

Reina glanced at Patrick, wondering what to say.

“I…”

Just as she was about to explain it was a mistake, Patrick spoke first.

“Are you and Sir Toby close enough to hit each other on the b*ttocks?”

His disapproving voice made it seem like he misunderstood the relationship between her and Toby.

“N-no. There’s a reason…”

She tried to explain urgently, but Patrick’s gaze, which met hers, felt cold, as if it were seeping into her body.

Huh?

She was taken aback by the expression he showed her for the first time.

How should I interpret his actions?

As she hesitated, unable to speak, Patrick asked again in a blunt, emotionless tone.

“What circumstances led to such behavior?”

“Toby accidentally touched my b….”

Trying to speak calmly, Reina started to explain but stopped. Explaining might make it sound even stranger.

Thinking about it, touching Toby’s butt in retaliation for him accidentally touching hers wasn’t normal.

If she wasn’t careful, she might be mistaken for a woman who casually touches men’s butts.

As she stopped mid-sentence, Patrick asked again, as if he hadn’t heard her.

“What were you going to say?”

“…Oh, nothing. It just happened? Haha.”

After a brief pause, Reina brushed it off.

She scolded herself for her previous actions. It might be a joke with other knights, but it was incomprehensible to Patrick.

Why did I even think of patting his butt!

The problem was that what others might laugh off was not easy for him.

Reina glanced at Patrick. His expression was so serious that she felt she needed to change the subject naturally before things got worse.

“By the way, Commander, why are you wearing the same clothes as Toby?”

But suddenly, she blurted out something unrelated.

“All the knights’ uniforms are the same…?”

Patrick raised an eyebrow, looking puzzled.

The knights’ training uniforms were mostly the same, with only the emblem differing by rank.

Moreover, Patrick was wearing the clothes Toby had dirtied earlier.

“Then why are you cleaning alone, Commander? I heard Toby was supposed to be polishing armor?”

“I was supervising.”

The more she asked, the more peculiar Patrick’s expression became. His eyes showed increasing confusion as if he couldn’t understand her questions.

“Why aren’t the other knights doing it? Why are you doing it yourself?”

Reina stammered without realizing it.

“Indeed. I came to check, and no one was supervising Sir Toby, which surprised me. So, I’m planning to give the slackers rigorous training as punishment.”

At that moment, Patrick’s eyes gleamed.

The knights are doomed today…