Chapter 3 (Part 7)

Even though she had defended her chastity by beating up the man, she felt like she had crossed an irreversible line. It seemed impossible for Patrick to see her as a woman in this lifetime.

“If you’re not hurt, let’s head back.”

Reina wanted to hold onto him and delay their departure, but she couldn’t think of any excuse.

“…Alright.”

She couldn’t hide her disappointment as she prepared to follow him out. But as soon as she opened the door, a strong wind blew in, and Patrick quickly shut the door again.

“What’s wrong?”

Reina tilted her head in confusion at his strange behavior. 

Why did the person who said we should leave suddenly close the door? Did an enemy suddenly appear? Didn’t he say they had just cleared the area?

“I’m sorry, Lady Reina. It seems we can’t leave right now.”

“What?”

Reina was happy at his unexpected words but pretended to be surprised.

“There’s a storm outside. It’s too dangerous to leave now. I’ve put the horse in the stable, so it’s best to wait until the weather clears.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the sky outside flashed bright and darkened again, followed by the sound of thunder and lightning.

Soon, a fierce wind and rain began to howl, threatening to break the windows. Reina looked out the window and cheered internally.

The two of them sat side by side in front of the fireplace. It was warm in front, but the back was cold, making Reina shiver involuntarily. Seeing this, Patrick got up and handed her a blanket from the bed.

“You must be cold. Please cover yourself with this. If it reminds you of unpleasant memories, I’ll take it away immediately.”

Unpleasant memories? Oh….

Reina suddenly remembered the bad guy trying to undress her. She was so tense about being alone with Patrick that she had forgotten everything that happened today.

She felt uneasy about showing her chest to that guy and got angry again, recalling how he had subtly mocked her for its size.

“It must have been very unpleasant. I’m sorry for bringing it up.”

Patrick apologized with a regretful expression when she frowned. He seemed to misunderstand her reaction.

She was angry because the kidnapper had mocked her for having a small chest, but Patrick thought she was upset about being humiliated by a stranger.

“Can you hold my hand? It might make me feel less unpleasant.”

Reina said casually as she covered herself with the blanket. She was half serious and half joking. But suddenly, she felt a heavy sensation in her hand.

His hand, which she thought would be cold, was surprisingly warm. The warmth seemed to spread to her hand.

When Reina looked at Patrick in surprise, she saw his slightly shy face.

“Is this okay?”

Patrick asked, unable to look at her directly, probably feeling embarrassed and shy.

“Yes? Yes, it’s fine.”

She could have answered calmly, but she ended up stuttering. It felt like she was giving away that she had been waiting for him to hold her hand, which made her embarrassed.

But when she felt his hand trembling slightly, her embarrassment quickly vanished.

“Is this your first time holding a woman’s hand… or not?”

Seeing him so shy, Reina wondered and asked.

“Of course not. I do kiss the back of a lady’s hand when greeting them.”

Patrick replied with a flustered face. Feeling strange, she intertwined their fingers. He looked bewildered.

Seeing his ears turn red, she realized he had never held hands like this before.

Is it true that he has a fiancée?

It was surprising enough that he was a virgin, but seeing him this shy made her doubt if he really had a fiancée.

It doesn’t seem like it.

Reina concluded that the rumor about Patrick having a fiancée was false. She then tightly held his hand.

She didn’t let go until the rain stopped. Even when they were about to ride their horses, she continued holding his hand.

* * *

“Reina! Are you alright?”

After the rain stopped, when they returned to the mansion with Patrick, Duke Lennox was waiting for her with a stern face.

“As you can see.”

Reina shrugged her shoulders to show that she was fine.

“You troublemaker! How long do you plan to keep worrying me?”

“Do you have the right to say that to me? You knew I’d get involved, yet you let the Commander use me. Thanks to me, you were able to wipe out that Scorpion Gang or whatever.”

Patrick wouldn’t have decided that on his own. It was all possible because Duke Lennox had given his permission. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have used his daughter, Reina, as bait.

“Well, who told you to go to a deserted place alone?”

Duke Lennox’s expression quickly shifted from guilt to astonishment.

“I was just helping a young girl who asked for help. And I wasn’t alone. Toby was with me.”

“I’ve already heard that. Impressive. I never thought you, who always caused trouble, would be helpful in this way.”

Duke Lennox patted Reina’s head with a proud expression. Despite putting his daughter in a dangerous situation, he acted as if he hadn’t done such a thing.

It was a bit disconcerting, but it didn’t feel bad.

Despite causing trouble, she helped solve the incident, got praised by her father, and felt closer to Patrick….

The worries she had until this morning seemed trivial and forgotten, and she felt she could sleep peacefully for the first time in a while.

* * *

The next morning, after the dawn training, Knox was pacing nervously in place.

“You’re being a distraction. Sit down.”

Deputy Commander Ford, who was next to him, scolded him, annoyed by his behavior.

“I’m contemplating something important right now. Just wait a bit.”

Knox replied with an aggrieved expression.

“What’s going on?”

Ferguson approached and put Knox in a headlock.

“Ow! I was just about to make a firm decision to do something no one else would.”

“What’s it about?”

Ferguson asked again, but Knox pushed him away without answering. Then, with a determined look, he approached Patrick.

“Commander, is it true that you have a fiancée?”

No one had the courage to ask about his personal life, but Knox was the first to muster the courage.

They had been too busy catching the human traffickers from the neighboring empire yesterday to confirm, so he decided to ask directly.

At Knox’s question, Patrick sighed deeply, as if anticipating another troublesome situation.

“Yes.”

He answered calmly.

What?

Reina’s body trembled slightly as she listened in disbelief. The word “yes” pierced her heart, making it feel like it was being torn apart.

Fortunately, she was sitting; otherwise, she might have collapsed.

Why yesterday….

Yesterday, didn’t he hold my hand? Why would he hold my hand if he had a fiancée? Why would he do something so misleading?

Did he intend to follow any order I gave?

The more she thought about yesterday, the more she couldn’t understand Patrick’s actions.

“Wow… that’s betrayal.”

While she stared blankly at Patrick, Knox looked incredulous.

“What is?”

Patrick tilted his head slightly, not understanding the word betrayal.

“Why didn’t you tell us all this time? Some of us don’t even have time to meet women because of your intense training, and you have a fiancée!”

“That’s right! I feel wronged too.”

Other knights began to chime in with Knox’s words. They shouted in voices choked with emotion, genuinely feeling wronged.

“Hey, hey. That’s not the Commander’s fault. Look at your faces.”

Walker answered for Patrick. His words were annoying, but it was true that Patrick was exceptionally handsome among the knights.

“What’s wrong with my face? I can get a girlfriend too!”

Knox retorted with an aggrieved expression.

“Then go get one.”

Walker teased.

“Give us some time to date, then! Or at least reduce the training!”

“That’s right. Or introduce us to some women.”

The knights began to complain to Patrick.

“Blaming the Commander for not having a girlfriend. Tsk.”

Ford, who had been listening quietly, looked at the complaining knights with disdain.

Unlike his previous sulking face, he seemed relaxed this time. Judging by his expression, he seemed to have already asked Patrick about the fiancée.

“We don’t want to hear that from an old bachelor like you.”

“….”

Knox’s bold remark made Ford fall silent. It seemed he had touched a sore spot.

“Did you keep it a secret because you’ve only been engaged for a short time? If you had told us, we would have sent engagement gifts.”

Jake, who was the most polite among the knights, asked Patrick. He was genuinely the type to send gifts.

“It’s been quite a while.”

“How long has it been?”

“Five years.”

Five years ago was around the time Reina started her training. 

How could it be that he had been engaged for so long and yet so few people knew about it?