A month had passed since Fie’s entry into the Royal Knights.
And today was Saturday. It was the day when squires received individual instruction or participated in activities with their assigned platoons.
“Good morning!”
“Welcome Heathy. I’ll make some tea for you!”
The one who greeted Heath was the plain-faced Conrad, seated in the converted warehouse that housed the 18th Knights. He was brewing tea as usual, with today’s feature being cinnamon tea.
Although Fie was grateful for the warm reception each time she showed up, she could not help but wonder if Conrad engaged in training or assignments at all.
Ever since Fie had been assigned to the 18th Knights, she had noticed that Conrad was always there for one reason or another.
“Authentic tea from the Kingdom of Fenam. I had it delivered, you know. How is it? Is it good?”
“Yes, it’s delicious.”
The cinnamon tea that Conrad had prepared gave off a sweet aroma. Its fragrance matched its taste — the tea was indeed delicious.
Seated opposite Fie, Conrad had his face propped up on one hand, observing her silently with an obvious smile. As to what Conrad was smiling about, however, Fie was not quite sure.
(He really is an unfathomable person...)
It almost seemed like Conrad had no particular traits that made him stand out. His gentle nature reminded Fie of her friend, Remie, but something about Conrad was different.
In fact, he was very, very different.
After all, Remie never had an enigmatic smile on his face — one that prevents anyone from discerning what one’s intents or feelings really were.
(Come to think of it, what does Conrad specialize in again...?)
When everyone was introducing themselves, other than the mute Orbel, who required some assistance from Crow, Fie had learned all her fellow knights’ fields of expertise... except for Conrad’s.
“Hey Conrad, what do you specialize in again?”
“It’s a secret.” Conrad answered Fie’s straightforward question with a wink, his index finger placed over his lip in a teasing gesture.
(This guy... He’s impossible...)
And so, Fie gave up on her line of inquiry with regards to Conrad’s person.
After they had finished their tea, Captain Yore and Crow promptly made their entrance from beyond the sliding doors.
“Good morning, Captain! And Sir Crow!”
Fie quickly rose from her chair, assuming a salute that had already become second nature.
“I see you are well today, Heath.”
“Yes!”
“What, I’m just an add-on?”
“Well, that’s because I run into you more often...”
“Hey hey, you’re so blunt. You should know that I’ve been tasked with always looking out for you, you know?”
“I see! Thank you very much!”
“It’s weird to thank me only after I pointed that out...”
Although they were in the same unit, Captain Yore’s relatively busy schedule meant that Fie could not meet with him very often at all. As such, Fie assumed that Captain Yore carried out various assignments and tasks even on his off days.
“Leave the banter at that. We’re keeping Orbel waiting.”
Sure enough, Orbel was nowhere to be seen in their headquarters. That being said, this wasn’t all that strange. After all, amongst the 18th Knights, many of them were often absent due to being tasked (and hence out on) one assignment or another.
(But... we’re keeping Orbel waiting? I wonder what he’s doing...)
Fie had thought to inquire, but then suddenly remembered Captain Yore’s recent statement on banter — and so she could not find it in her to pose the question.
With his arms folded, Yore stood in front of Fie, and she raised her head to see why.
“Heath. For today, I’m having you participate in this assignment as well.”
“An a-assignment...!?”
For the month that Fie had joined the Royal Knights as a squire, she had trained daily, but had never been offered an assignment. Actually, she had no real memories of what really happened every Saturday.
For her part, Fie had dutifully carried out her personalized training regimen. However, her Saturdays were usually spent drinking tea with Conrad, listening to Crow’s tales of romance and flirting, botany with Orbel, glancing at Parwick’s archery training, or observing what Garuge was currently making... In addition to checking every now and then to see if Captain Yore would show up.
When he did show up, Fie would give him a report of the day, and hope to speak with him for a moment or two.
The other squires, however, took part in Saturday patrols of the town, and other simpler assignments along that vein. From that angle, Fie was a little envious of her friends.
However, on this day, Fie herself had been granted an assignment.
Yore and company ended up bringing Fie to the suburbs outside the capital — particularly, to a large mansion where very rich individuals seemed to live. They made the journey by horse, but as Fie did not have any riding experience whatsoever, she was seated in the front of Crow’s saddle instead. Crow and Yore’s horseback skills were impressive, to say the least.
Conrad was notably absent from the expedition. He did, however, see Fie out to the door, waving and cheering her on with his ever-smiling face.
(I wonder what he really does...)
It seemed like the mystery of Conrad only deepened over time.
Around the mansion were stationed what appeared to be lookouts. Circling around to the back of the mansion under the cover of its surrounding foliage, the group came across Orbel, who had been keeping his horse and himself low to avoid detection.
Having skillfully hidden his large body in the shadows of foliage, Orbel raised his hand, to casually greet them with a silent “Hey.” Crow and Yore promptly led their own steeds away by the reins, presumably to hide them in a secure spot.
After the deed was done, it was finally time for Fie to receive her assignment briefing from Crow.
“This is the villa of a certain merchant by the name of Kanzarl. It is known that he’s involved in a continent-wide human trafficking organization. This villa is used as a sort of warehouse for hiding the kidnapped victims... At least, those are the rumors. If we were to conduct a regular investigation, news would no doubt reach him first, and he would hide all the evidence. And if we take too long, the victims may be sold into slavery. And that’s why we’re going straight in to gather evidence. We have to do this quickly.”
“I see...”
However, Fie thought that this was easier said than done. If these individuals were really involved in human trafficking, and by extension, the slave trade, there would be guards on the inside of the building as well. Fie did not understand how it was possible for a few knights to sneak in undetected.
“This is where you come in.”
“Am I going to pretend that I’ve been kidnapped? Sure, I don’t mind.”
Fie had thought that she would impress Captain Yore with her quick thinking — should she pretend to be kidnapped, she would be housed with the other victims, and as such obtain the needed evidence right away.
“No.”
“That’s not it. While it’s true that we’re going to have you infiltrate the place, we’re doing so from the top.”
“Huh?” Fie cocked her head at Crow’s words.
Leaving Captain Yore and Orbel behind, Fie followed behind Crow to an area close to the back of the villa. Right next to Fie’s and Crow’s hiding spots in the shadows were three guards. Without a word, Crow leapt out of the bushes, knocking out all three guards without a sound.
(Amazing...)
Crow had displayed immense strength in his ambush. Although the squires had practiced unarmed combat as part of their training regimen, Fie had not seen such power and speed even from an instructor.
(As I thought, Sir Crow is an amazing person...)
Fie was dazzled by this amazing display.
Receiving a hand signal from Crow, Fie quietly made her way into the villa via the back door. There were no windows — it was a blind spot in the building. Perhaps that was why as many as three guards had been stationed at that particular location, although they had all been knocked out by Crow.
“Let’s see... According to the information we received from the villa’s architects... it should be somewhere around here.”
Mumbling to himself softly, Crow searched the upper sections of the walls intently, as if looking for something hidden.
“Ah, yes. Here it is. Right here,” Crow said, and he pulled on a block-shaped section of the wall. As he did so, that specific part of the wall detached itself from its surroundings, revealing a square hole that was no more than 35 centimeters in width.
Holding Fie under the arms, Crow promptly boosted her upwards, and soon she was looking into the hole in question.
“How is it? Can you get in?” he asked.
According to Crow, this was a hole connected to a central air ventilation system, and from there one could access any ceiling across the villa.
Fie, for her part, slithered into the hole without too much effort.
Upon entering the hole, she found herself in a slightly bigger — but still somewhat cramped space. She was, however, able to turn around, and with a somewhat dissatisfied expression, stuck her head out of the ventilation hole.
“Don’t tell me that this was what I was hired to do...?”
It was indeed true that other than Fie, no member of the 18th Knights could possibly fit into this hole. The next smallest member after Fie was Conrad, but even he was of a relatively medium build, and as such would not have fit into the hole to begin with.
“Well... to tell the truth, a bit of it was that.” Crow nodded, smiling his usual wry smile.
“Well that’s all right. I can’t fight at all anyway, so if you tell me I’m needed, I can’t really complain about that,” Fie said, though she sulked while delivering that particular statement.
Fie had hoped that if she were chosen, it would be for a more impressive reason. She was dissatisfied — and thought that anyone else would have felt the same way.
“Okay then, please search for the kidnapped victims. If possible, ascertain their positions somehow. If we can find out where they’re being kept, it would be a great help.” Crow handed her what seemed to be a map and a flute. “Oh, and don’t leave the ceiling beams. You’re not allowed to fight — it’s still too soon for you. Get the relevant information and come back. Once you have the location marked, we’ll storm the place and take care of things. Also, if you make a mistake, or if you find yourself in a pinch, blow on that flute.”
“Yes, I understand.”
After Crow’s final briefing and warnings, Fie disappeared into the narrow ventilation shaft. She moved quickly and quietly, soon fading from Crow’s field of view.
It wasn’t just a small body that was needed for a feat such as this — a flexible one was required as well. Fie moved like a cat. She had perhaps not realized it, but in the entire Royal Knights of Orstoll, only she had this particular set of skills. It could be said that this was her talent.
“Roy’s eyes were right after all, huh.” Crow nodded as he watched the little squire disappear into the dark, feeling like he was sending off his little brother.
As Fie moved along the ventilation shaft, she could catch glimpses of rays of light from below. From there, she peeked down at one of the villa’s corridors. In that corridor, a few armed men were patrolling. They had a decidedly mean look about them.
No matter what one said, this did not look like a rich merchant’s holiday villa at all.
(As Crow said... this is a hideout for a human trafficking organization... I’d better find the victims quickly...)
Fie silently continued along the shaft.
To begin with, the shaft wasn’t quite made for humans to pass through. To safely maneuver within it, flexible body movements were required. Fie just happened to have this sprightliness and flexibility from birth — in addition to that, Captain Yore’s training had further enhanced those traits, allowing for Fie to now slink though the shaft without a sound.
Normally, people would be afraid of narrow and dark places, but Fie had been born in the shadow of her sister and lived her life in it, so she was not scared at all. Fie resolved not to think about such things — they were sad thoughts.
Above all else, Fie wanted to be useful to Captain Yore. This devotion was what kept Fie going.
Unnoticed by anyone, Fie explored the villa from above, on the ceiling beams — and she quickly came to a conclusion.
(They’re not on the first floor...)
Fie had observed suspicious-seeming rooms from the ceiling, but she was not able to find any traces of anyone being kept captive against their will.
Making a 180 degree turn within the shaft, Fie laid on her back, looking up at the map provided to her with light that streamed up from below. There was no basement.
(Then... the second floor.)
Fie had visual confirmation of where she could move up to the second floor with the aid of the map. After planning out a route, she promptly made her way up to the second floor.
However, there was an unprecedented error in this entire operation: in reality, this assignment was a bit of a trial run for Fie.
If Fie was unable to enter the ventilation shaft, then that would have been that. If she was unable to find the victims on the first floor, then that would have been that. That was what Yore and Crow had thought.
That was why they had specifically told Fie not to leave the safety of the ceiling beams. Neither Roy nor Crow had thought it was possible to enter the second floor from the ventilation shaft.
However, that was exactly what Fie did — having been born with a light body, she braced herself against the shaft with her limbs, slowly climbing up despite never having been taught how to do so.
More than anything else, strong thoughts of devotion kept Fie’s body moving.
(For Captain Yore!)
Emerging from the ventilation shaft’s darkness, Fie’s sneezed slightly, having kicked up clouds of dust via her unorthodox form of entry. And so Fie began her search of the second floor.
(I’ve found them...)
Fie found it at last — a room housing the victims kidnapped by the human trafficking organization.
Peeking into the room, Fie could make out the forms of about ten women and children with their arms and legs bound. They were all dressed similarly — and they all had dark expressions on their faces. Their eyes were red from crying.
(I’ll definitely save you...)
Making up her mind, Fie marked the location on her map, and began making her way back to the entrance.
However, at that moment, the room’s door opened with an audible click, and two men stepped in from the corridor beyond.
One man had a somewhat merchant-like air about him. The other was presumably his bodyguard, a suitably armed man. It occurred to Fie that perhaps this was who they were looking for to begin with — the owner of this villa, the merchant Kanzarl.
The merchant-like man grinned poisonously at the kidnapped victims, nodding as he did so.
“It seems like we have some pretty good material here... And more than ten of them too. They’ll fetch a good price...”
At that moment, a small shadow moved from somewhere behind the grinning merchant.
One of the kidnapped children was trying to escape. The ropes binding his limbs had either fallen off on their own, or he had somehow removed them — Fie wasn’t quite sure.
It was probably because he had seen the open door, and thought to escape there and then.
(No...!)
Fie shouted out in her heart.
The armed man had the child in his sights all along, and soon, the boy was easily caught. The man violently lifted the child off the ground by his arm.
“Uwaaaaaaaaahh!” The pain caused the child to cry out loudly.
“You fool. Did you really think you could escape? Master Kanzarl, what should we do with this one?”
Kanzarl stared at the child for about three seconds, before responding in a markedly uninterested tone.
“Make an example of him. Hurt him. I don’t care if he dies. It’s a boy, and he isn’t very good material-wise, either. He won’t sell for much.”
“Understood. Heh heh. Don’t blame me if you die, kid. This is all your fault.” The armed man raised a fist, preparing to strike the still-suspended child.
(Don’t you dare!)
A sudden heat washed over Fie’s body.
Reacting before she knew it, Fie had located a place where she could alight from the ceiling beams, and promptly launched herself at the armed man.
“W-What!?”
“Hnn...?”
Kanzarl raised his voice in alarm in response to the unidentified object descending from the ceiling.
Fie came down right above the man’s blind spot — and he had reacted too slowly.
Wielding the sword gifted to her by Garuge, Fie brought it down over the man’s head, scabbard and all. Although he shook, the man did not fall over.
(That’s fine, it’s as I planned!)
Fie had quickly readied herself for a second strike.
In her bout with Gormus, Fie had come to understand her own weakness when it came to strength. And so, to supplement that, Fie had engaged in sword training.
“HA!”
Upon the second blow, the man fell, having been cleanly knocked out.
“Wh-Who the hell are y— Ugh!?”
And so Fie bludgeoned Kanzarl with her sheathed blade before the latter could finish his sentence.
This time, it only took one blow.
Although she had defeated them both, loud sounds could be heard from outside the room.
“I heard something strange!”
“It’s coming from the room where the goods are kept!”
The sound of steadily approaching footsteps came from outside the room.
(This is bad...)
Fie quickly cut the ropes of some of the victims, pleading with them in the process.
“I’ve come to save you! Please, you must help me!”
With the combined strength of the kidnapped victims and Fie, they moved a nearby shelf to act as a barricade against the door.
“Hey, what’s this!?”
“Shit, it won’t open! Master Kanzarl!?”
The men outside began ramming on the door with all their might.
“Something’s blocking it from the inside!”
“Break it down!”
(Kuh... Is this it?)
As this was a usually unused room, the shelf was relatively light — it did not have very much stability to begin with. Those who had their ropes cut were exerting what force they could on the shelf, but Fie was light, and the women were of similar build, in addition to being deprived of their strength from being locked up for an extended period of time.
The force from the other side of the door began to increase. It seemed like the villa’s armed thugs had received reinforcements.
At that moment, the light reflected off the flute that Crow had given Fie.
(I’m sorry, Captain Yore, Sir Crow! Please save us!)
Fie brought the flute to her lips, and blew with all her might.
After hiding the unconscious guards, Crow had been monitoring the surroundings, while waiting for Heath to return.
While Crow was normally very relaxed on assignments, he could not help but be nervous — Heath had still not returned.
“Is he going to be all right...? It was just one floor, so he should have already come back.”
Crow eventually became worried in spite of himself.
Perhaps it was his imagination, but the steady stomping of footsteps could be heard from within the villa. Just as Crow was about to step in to intervene...
A high-pitched sound rose from with the villa — a high and long flute note.
(The flute I gave to him!)
Crow immediately set out to find the source of the sound — it didn’t take him very long to realize that it was coming from the second floor, of all places.
(That idiot...! Why the hell is he up there...!)
Roy and Orbel dashed out of the forest, with the former promptly raising a question of his own.
“Where is Heath?”
“Probably there!” Crow’s finger stabbed at a room on the second floor where the note had originated from.
“The second floor...” Even Roy made a face at this revelation.
At this point, even the guards and lookouts from outside the villa had begun to stream in. If this went on any longer, Heath would be in considerable danger — and so Roy made a snap decision.
“Orbel. Springboard me up to the second floor.” Upon hearing Roy’s words, Orbel nodded, fully understanding his intent.
As Orbel positioned himself near the room that Heath was thought to be in, Roy broke into a run, promptly jumping in Orbel’s direction with all his strength, springing off Orbel’s thick arms and up into the air.
Fie, meanwhile, was holding up the barricade as best as she could. However, she was reaching her limit.
The force from the other side was slowly increasing. They appeared to have a heavy hammer of some sort — both the door and the shelf were in tatters, having absorbed one blow too many.
(They’re going to break through...!)
With a few more thumps, the door that Fie and the women had fought to keep shut was now thrown open.
Although Fie was thrown back, she was ready for it — rolling back into a standing position once more. Assessing the situation, she realized that there were now about five men in the room. It was a number that Fie had no hopes of handling on her own.
(But... I have to do this...!)
In the room, there was no one who could fight other than Fie. And so she gritted her teeth, sword in hand.
What Fie was not prepared for, however, was the sudden sound of crashing glass from a window behind her.
A single man had somehow flown into the room. A single instant was all it took for Fie to recognize him.
“Captain Yore!”
“Heath. Fall back.”
Upon making landfall and giving his orders to Fie, Yore lowered his body like that of a panther, immediately striking the five surprised men with a single motion of his blade. The men, caught unawares, were promptly felled. Swordplay that someone could fall in love with in an instant — even in this precarious situation.
Seconds later, Crow also flew into the room by the same method.
“Hey hey! Damn it, you sure make us do some crazy things, Heath! Yore! What do we do? Do we run?”
“No. There’s the matter of Heath, along with the women and children. We won’t be able to shake them off. We’ll simply take them down right here instead.”
“Ahh, I thought you would say that!”
“Let’s go.”
Although he was a little shaken by the rough landing, Yore cut an intimidating figure with his drawn sword and unwavering expression. Crow and Yore stood a short diagonal distance away from the door, striking down the enemies the moment they entered the room in a calculated ambush.
Their swordplay was the stuff of legend.
(Amazing... I should do something to help...)
As that thought crossed her mind, Fie tried to take up a position alongside her seniors.
“HEATH! Stay where you are!!”
Without as much as a glance in her direction, the two knights shouted out their simultaneous directions to Heath. And so Fie obeyed her orders, busying herself by cutting the ropes of those still bound by them.
Although the thugs hired by Kanzarl tried their best to defeat Crow and Yore, their large numbers in the narrow surroundings worked against them. A few of the armed men had tried to break through Yore and Crow’s defenses, but even two of them couldn’t take either knight down.
“Kuh, it’s impossible! We can’t break through!”
Right then, a loud boom resonated throughout the building.
“I-Is that a CANNON? Are there other soldiers coming!?”
The armed thugs who had not been defeated by Yore and Crow began to turn tail upon hearing the sound, apparently terrified by it. Seizing their chance, Crow and Yore took one big lunge forwards.
Upon exiting the door, the two of them took down a dozen men simultaneously with their blades.
“Agh! R-Run!”
“These guys are god damn monsters!”
The first thug to turn and run away had barely made it as far as the first corner when he was promptly blown away and into the wall — by what seemed to be a lump of steel.
Slowly but steadily, Orbel emerged from the shadows of the corridor — and in his large arms was an even larger cannon.
Although some of them had gotten away, the three knights alone had taken out almost all the villa’s hired thugs. Advancing in Heath’s general direction, Orbel smiled ever so slightly, raising his thumb as he did so.
Once they had defeated all the enemies in their immediate vicinity, Crow and Yore turned to face Heath.
“Captain... Sir Crow...” Fie approached the two of them out of gratitude.
However, in the very next moment, Crow’s knuckles rapped across her head.
“HEATH! I TOLD you not to stray from the ceiling beams!” Crow was really angry. To see someone as flighty and handsome as Crow this angry was truly a fearsome sight.
“I, I’m sorry... But a child was in danger, and I had to do something about it...”
“Don’t bully him! He saved me!” The rescued children formed a small ring around Fie, as if to protect her.
However, Crow’s anger did not subside.
“What you did was go AGAINST ORDERS! Do you know what kind of a situation you put yourself in? Obeying your superior’s commands is a BASIC TENET of being in a platoon! SURELY your instructors taught you that?!”
“Yes...”
What Crow said was true. Fie’s voice was now soft. Now that she had calmed down, Fie realized that she had not only put her own life in danger, but also the lives of Yore and the others who had come to her aid. With this realization, her body froze.
However, at the same time, she could not exactly just leave the child to die... What should she have done? Doubts and questions rose up from within Fie’s chest.
Orbel made his way to the angered Crow’s side, placing a hand on the latter’s shoulder and shaking his head.
The paper he held up said: “It is not uncommon for newbies to get ahead of themselves. You’re being a bit harsh. Heath has a point too.”
However, Crow’s anger still did not subside.
“But then you see! If we hadn’t made it in time, he would have been KILLED!”
Crow’s anger stemmed from his concern for Fie — that much was evident. In reality, it really was a dangerous situation. If Yore had been a second too late, she would undoubtedly have been killed.
Having been silent up until now, Yore stepped forward, drawing the attention and eyes of all those in the room to him.
“Heath.”
“Yes...” Upon hearing Yore’s call, Fie managed to respond.
“When we move as a platoon, there are times when the correct course of action is not the right thing to do. If you do not have enough strength, you have to put aside your sense of justice... And for you to obtain said strength, time is required, as I have told you before.”
Fie nodded at Yore’s words.
“I am sure you were troubled as to what choice to make at that point in time.”
“Yes...”
That was the truth of the matter, whether Fie liked it or not. She had wanted to help them. That was what she had thought, but her own strength was hardly enough to do so. Instead, she had involved innocents around her, and then gotten into a situation she could not get herself out of.
“For you to have an answer, you need to know the exact measure of your own strength. With your ability as you are now, I’m afraid you don’t have the luxury of choosing to save them. Putting your own life in danger, allowing your fellow knights to shoulder risks, saving these children and these kidnapped people — all these things are the results of your actions today. Don’t forget any of it. The path ahead of you is still long. You don’t have to give yourself, or anyone, an answer today. My goal is to train you into a knight with experience and skill — you can seek out the correct answers for yourself then. Until then, we will support you and follow up on your actions as much as we can.”
“I understand.”
The question that had been posed to Fie was one that was posed to all knights of the 18th present that day. Crow, Yore, and Orbel had all had similar thoughts and worries in the past — it was from that point that they had thought about and sought out power with their own strength. To some extent, the answer to that question was personal — more often than not it was the very reason why they were knights to begin with.
Fie nodded at Yore’s words, etching them into her heart lest she would one day forget.
Crow’s rage had also finally subsided, and thus the event was brought to an end — or so it seemed. There was one thing that Captain Yore still had to say.
“However... going against orders is still an offense. You will have to be suitably punished.”
“Ehh!?”
While Fie had no issues receiving some form of punishment for her actions, she had thought that Captain Yore was done with his speech, and the following statement caused her to emit an almost pathetic wail.
Standing next to Yore was Crow with his arms folded, nodding as he listened to every word.
“Also, the punishment will be for all knights involved. Not only Heath.”
“Ehhh!?” This time, it was Crow who had his eyes wide open in surprise. “Why!?”
“That is because we, as well, have committed a mistake this time. We underestimated Heath. We failed to adequately brief Heath on the mental preparation he would have to undertake for a rescue operation like this one. That is a shared responsibility of the platoon, and it will be shouldered as such.”
“Kuh...”
That was indeed true, however. The appropriate precautions had not been taken because the operation had been thought of as a trial run for their new squire. Looking back on it, it could be easily seen that the briefing provided to Fie was way too simple.
Although squires are taught in their studies to operate as a single platoon, the concept should have been reinforced on this occasion. It was assumed that Fie would automatically withdraw if there were signs of trouble or danger. However, precisely because it went unexpectedly well, Fie was assumed to be able to handle the entire scouting operation on her own, and this was the result.
In addition, what exacerbated this series of mistakes was that Fie had performed over and above their expectations.
Scratching his head, Crow offered an apology to Fie.
“That’s true. We were too naïve with our assumptions. I apologize for getting so angry with you, Heath.”
“No... Of course not. It isn’t your fault.” Fie shook her head at Crow.
“Then, I shall announce our collective punishment—”
“EEEEEEEEHHHHHH!?”
Although Fie had prepared herself mentally for any punishment to come, what she heard caused her to give out a truly sorrowful wail.
And so it came to be that at dinnertime, Fie had her head on the table, tears in her eyes.
“Huh? Heath, you aren’t eating?”
Remie, who had returned to his seat at the table after filling his plate, was the first to ask Fie this question. After all, it was rare for Fie, who had enjoyed eating more than anyone else, to not be having her meals.
“Apparently, he went against his platoon’s orders, and so he can’t eat dinner for three days as punishment...” Gees responded for Fie, who hardly had any energy to talk.
The punishment that Captain Yore had handed out to the platoon was indeed to not eat dinner for three days. And as she sat amongst the squires of the northern dormitory, it had hit Fie, who loved to eat the most, the hardest.
“For three days, no one in the platoon is allowed to have any dinner. In exchange, eat a hearty meal at breakfast.”
Those were Captain Yore’s words.
Fie looked at the stew that Remie was eating enviously.
“You w-want some...? Just one bite is fine, right? No one will know...”
Fie looked like she could even eat Remie himself whole. Remie slowly offered a spoon to Fie as sweat drops began to cluster on his cheek.
However, Fie shook her head.
“No, it’s fine. I can’t break a promise with Captain Yore.”
However, when Slad returned to the table and began eating his hamburger steak, Fie wore her familiar expression of envy once more, gazing upon it longingly as tears flowed freely from her eyes.
“Uwah... I’m so hungry... I’m so envious...”
(Then don’t come to the canteen...)
That was what everyone in the room thought.
On one of Orstoll’s streets at night, Crow had his palms together, apologizing to a beautiful woman with a somewhat forceful aura about her.
“I’m sorry, I can’t go for dinner tonight!”
“Huh!? Didn’t you promise to take me to a restaurant for a delicious dinner? If you’re here, doesn’t that mean that you have time as well? So why!?”
The woman’s face promptly turned red upon Crow’s words.
“Well, I just don’t have an appetite right now... The reservation has been made, maybe you could go on your own...?”
With that—
“Don’t fuck with me! I’ll never go on a date with you again!”
And so the woman stormed away, the steady click of her high heels fading into the distance.
To Crow, she was headstrong and beautiful, as well as a great conversationalist — she was just the kind of woman he would be interested in. However, she had her pride as well. She would probably never entertain any of Crow’s requests ever again, following an incident like this.
“Well, I guess there’s nothing to be done...”
Sighing as he saw her off into the distance, Crow’s usual wry smile crept across his features.
Orbel was pouring water into the planters at the 18th Knights’ headquarters. The flowers were blooming beautifully, and today, too, he seemed happy.
That night, Roy was still at his desk, deeply engrossed in his work, when one of his officials approached him.
“Your Highness... It will soon be time for you to have dinner with Queen Fielle...”
Upon hearing that, Roy promptly responded.
“Ah. Apologies, I had forgotten to tell you. Please cancel dinner for tonight.”
“Sire!?” Unable to believe the King’s words, the official posed his question once again. To that specific official, Roy thought for a short while, being delivering unto him the following statement:
“You may distribute my portion of the meal today amongst the kitchen staff. Also, do send my apologies to Queen Fielle. In addition, for the next two days, please tell the kitchen not to prepare my share.”
“Y-Yes...”
Although the official was roundly confused and did not understand the King’s intent, he nodded in deference.
And so, with only those words to the official, Roy picked up his pen, and began writing once more.
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