Chapter 13 — Sir Crow’s Worries

Fie, the first princess of the Kingdom of Daeman, had been unceremoniously sent to the Kingdom of Orstoll as an add-on bride to her sister’s wedding to Orstoll’s king. Now, a few months had passed since she had escaped that existence and become a squire.

For the most part, she had gotten used to life in Orstoll. Fie now had many friends.

And so it came to be that Fie, on one of her visits to the 18th Knight’s headquarters...

“Unn...”

...came face to face with Sir Crow, who was seated upon the warehouse’s sofa with a troubled expression on his face.

Thinking that this was rare, especially for Crow, Fie approached her mentor.

“Is something troubling you, Sir Crow? It’s rare to see you worry about anything at all.”

Sneaking a peek at Crow from the side, Fie realized that her words had caused him to snap, resulting in Crow’s hand landing on Fie’s head in a clean chopping motion.

“Ouch!”

“You think I’m the kind of person who worries about nothing, huh... I see how it is...”

“Am I wrong? You’re always casually flirting with girls somewhere, aren’t you?”

“While I won’t deny that, you’re one to talk, with how carefree you are!”

“How mean! I’m not without troubles of my own, you know!”

“I don’t want to hear it from you!”

Upon being called “carefree” by Crow, Fie’s brow furrowed, and she said:

“I’ll have you know, as of late, there probably isn’t another person in the world who has had as much to worry about as me!”

“Hmm. Is that right? Why don’t you tell me about those terrible worries of yours then?”

Fie’s declaration of herself as a troubled individual was only met with a look of disbelief from Crow. To that, however, Fie decided to share her worries with Crow, a somewhat satisfied expression on her face.

“Haha. So be it then. I shall tell you of how worrisome my worries are, and just how much they worry me! For example... what side dishes to choose for today’s dinner, if I should have my bread with or without dipping it in soup, if I should instead butter up my bread, or butter it up AND have it with soup... If I would gain weight from eating a cake for dessert at night, what to give to Queen as a reward... Stuff like that.”

“Isn’t half of that just your thoughts on food?” Crow could only offer yet another sigh upon hearing Fie’s relatively fortunate worries.

It was perhaps also worth noting that Queen’s so-called reward was, without a doubt, food. In fact, Fie’s worries were more or less entirely about food.

“Well, jokes aside,” Fie said, “if you really are worried about something, I’ll talk it out with you.”

“Even if I discuss it with you, Heath, you’re just a kid...”

Crow seemed to have no expectations of Heath whatsoever. Fie, for her part, was slightly offended by this.

“Hmph. Just let me hear it already. Maybe I could even fix it for you off the bat!”

“Well, I guess I could tell you. In a few days’ time, I have a date at a restaurant with a certain lady, you see. However, I don’t know this new place too well. I wanted to go check it out and see what it’s like, but it’s not the kind of restaurant that you can go to alone.”

“I see. I was a fool for asking. Well then, I’m going to visit Sir Cain... Guh!”

Having finally understood the nature of Crow’s worries, Fie motioned to make her escape in the general direction of her other mentor. Crow, however, thought otherwise, grabbing onto her collar from behind.

“Ugh. This is why I didn’t expect you to fix anything for me. I was a fool to have told you to begin with. However... your dispirited answer is offensive to say the least...”

Still trying to escape despite her collar being stuck, Fie rapidly shook her head, turning back to offer Crow her thoughts on the matter.

“But then I can’t help you with this anyway! Let me go! I’d rather waste my time at Sir Cain’s! I am very busy you know!”

“And there you have it. That’s why I said this isn’t solvable by a mere kid.”

Fie’s dispirited answer had apparently struck one of Crow’s nerves — granted, she was the one who had offered to listen to him in the first place. As punishment, Crow slowly stood up, holding Fie up by the collar like one would hold up a cat by the scruff of its neck.

Fie, for her part, struggled with all her might to break free. For all her flexibility, however, she found it difficult to free herself from Crow’s grip — being held from her collar from the back was an appropriately disadvantageous position.

Sensing that Fie had finally given up, Crow slowly lowered his right arm.

“Can’t you just find someone else to go with you...?”

“You know I can’t just go do something like that, right? Who invites a girl out under the pretext of reviewing an unknown restaurant? No one would feel good at such an invitation.”

Upon hearing that, Fie blinked a few times in disbelief.

“Oh, so you did have a sense of decency after all, Sir Crow...”

“Who the hell did you think I was...” Rapping Fie’s head with a free hand, Crow sighed once more. “Ugh... I guess I can’t do anything but hope it all works out that night. I can at the very least check the menu for dishes that she might like...”

A familiar voice soon wafted through the air, directed at the troubled Crow.

“Oh, if that’s the case, I have the perfect solution...”

It was Conrad, with an eager smile on his face. If Conrad had simply crossdressed, he would be able to accompany Crow to the venue unquestioned. Upon seeing that, however, Crow’s expression twisted into one of disgust.

“Don’t tell me you think I’d go together with you, Conrad. Please, spare me.”

Raising a single finger to his lips, Conrad pursed them mischievously, his features lighting up with his trademark bewitching smile once more.

“Well, of course there’s that, but there’s one more person here who can help you...” Conrad said as he cast his glance in Fie’s general direction.

As Fie’s eyes met Conrad’s, she felt herself unwittingly cocking her head, unsure of what would happen next.

With a surprised expression, Crow’s eyes scrutinized every inch of Conrad’s face.

“Another person? Who do you mean?”

Conrad, however, did not answer, instead continuing to smile. Fie couldn’t figure out who this mystery figure was either, and turned her head this way and that, looking for another person in the room.

To the two clueless knights before him, Conrad finally revealed what he was thinking—

“Don’t be silly. It’s Heathy, of course.”

Both Crow and Fie responded to Conrad’s declaration with surprised expressions. Crow’s brow furrowed.

“You know... although he has a cute face, he’s still a boy.”

“Y-Y-Yeah that’s right! I’m a boyyyy!”

Crow showed visible distaste for dating his junior, even if he did have a face like a young girl. Fie, meanwhile, was visibly shaken, and currently preoccupied with reiterating her status as a boy.

While Conrad may have proposed the solution knowing that Fie was a woman, it would be a big problem if Crow and the others, who did not know of this fact, found out about it. Crossdressing as a girl and accompanying Crow out on his reconnaissance trip was a risk she was not prepared to take — in fact, she would never agree to do anything of the sort.

As such, Fie had decided that it was appropriate at this specific point in time to declare that she was a man. She was a man — no, not just any man, but a man amongst men.

To the two flustered individuals, Conrad smiled.

“You know, my infiltration missions sometimes do require female disguises. You can’t just be dressed up as a boy all the time for every single mission, right? Think of it as practice for such an occasion.”

Making his way to the two of them, Conrad then whispered soft words in each of their ears.

Conrad’s first target was Crow.

“After all, you don’t have any other companions for this reconnaissance trip, do you? Since you’re always playing around with women, none of them will help you when you really need them to. Then, in this case, isn’t it better to rely on your junior, whom you know so well? Since he’s a boy anyway, there won’t be any jealousy issues afterward, no?”

And then to Fie, Conrad had the following to say:

“Think of it as hiding a tree in the forest, my dear. If you crossdress in front of Crow, he won’t even think of you as a woman to begin with. Also, the place he would be bringing you to would surely serve delicious food — and you would get to eat there for free...”

The two promptly fell silent.

Although Fie was thoroughly sick of Crow’s womanizing talk, and had eventually taken to berating him for it, Crow was still Fie’s savior and her respected senior. He had helped her at various junctions of her life as a squire, and it was natural for her to want to somehow repay those favors.

So Fie changed her mind — if her status as a woman would not be discovered, then perhaps it was all right to follow Crow on his little reconnaissance trip after all.

As an afterthought, Fie gave her lips a quick slurp with her tongue, hiding a stray line of drool that had made its way down one side of her face.

Crow, for his part, did indeed want to conduct a reconnaissance trip before his actual date. So he sighed in a poor pretense of having no other choice.

“Well, is that all right with you? Even if it is required for an assignment, men don’t normally like dressing up as women, right?”

“It’s fine with me,” Fie said, looking relatively unperturbed. After all, she was a woman to begin with.

Crow seemed lost in thought for a few moments.

“I see. I think I definitely have to check out the restaurant. Can you help me with this, Heath?”

“Yes. Please leave it to me,” Fie said, pounding her chest with a fist for effect.

With that settled, Conrad, with an eager and somewhat excited expression, picked Fie off her feet and began transporting her to a yet unknown location.

“Well then, we’ll have to doll you up really good...”

“Eh? Can’t you just take a passing stab at it?”

Upon seeing Fie being dragged away to a spare room by Conrad, Crow only had this to say:

“Well, just make sure that we don’t get chased out of the restaurant, you hear?”

Crow was waiting. To be precise, he was waiting for Heath and Conrad, who were currently in another room. Conrad, however, was the first person to exit its doors.

“Eh? What happened to Heath?”

Crow, who had expected them to come out of the room at the same time, could not help but raise his question to Conrad.

“Although I’ve chosen the clothes for him, he can do the changing himself. After all, if he doesn’t do it himself, it wouldn’t be much of a practice.”

“He can do it himself? Aren’t those women’s clothes?”

“Oh it’ll be fine. He is my number one disciple after all.”

Conrad’s mischievously bewitching smile seemed to trigger something in Crow, and he once again scrunched up his face in distaste.

“I really hope that Heath doesn’t end up like you...”

“Oh, you prefer him without the makeup?”

“That’s not what I mean. I mean that Heath should be brought up correctly and honestly!”

“Hmm. So you do care after all.”

“Of course. He’s my little brother, you know?”

To those words, Conrad smiled, the slight curl in his lips loaded with meaning.

According to Conrad’s memories, Crow was indeed social, and often played around with various women. However, to fixate upon a single squire was a first — at least as far as he had observed. Even though Crow did not know of Fie’s actual status as a girl, and he himself had not noticed it.

(He has a nice face, good social etiquette and knows how to treat women well — and that is why he is popular. However... he’s still very conservative and rigid on the inside, isn’t he?)

Shooting a sideways glance at Crow, Conrad rested his face against a free hand, smiling.

“Ufufu. Then... shall we wait for the debut of your important little brother?”

Crow and Conrad waited for the changing Heath — but not for long. Soon, faint footsteps could be heard from the other side of the door.

Upon hearing those footsteps, Crow felt strangely reassured — they were the footsteps of his junior, Heath of the 18th Knights, who could never keep still and was always jumping and pirouetting around.

“Sorry to keep you waiting!”

However, as the door opened, Crow’s eyes followed, opening wider than they should have.

The figure standing in the doorway was unmistakably a woman.

Fie was clad in a red, one-piece dress that gave off a slightly sophisticated aura — and a matching pair of black high-heels. Her long, brown hair was tied back into a neat bun, and her facial features were accentuated by light touches of makeup.

Bits of her immature stature did remain, but certain parts of her red dress helped to make her look taller than she was. Such was the woman that Fie presented herself as.

Looking at the stunned Crow, Conrad could not help but laugh from the bottom of his heart.

After checking her appearance with a series of strange poses to ascertain her femininity, Fie looked at Crow, who was still very much stunned.

“What do you think, Sir Crow? Does anything look out of place?”

It was only upon hearing that voice that Crow could finally identify the woman before him as the Heath he knew.

Crow frankly thought that he had let his guard down. After all, the person before him was indeed his junior squire, with his girly features and lithe body — he had made fun of the boy many times for these traits. It was reasonable to assume that even if he did dress up as a woman, the femininity of those traits would not just suddenly disappear. However...

(No matter how you look at it, he looks like a girl...)

Crow also knew of Conrad’s rule-breaking transformative techniques. A made-up Conrad could not be differentiated from any real woman.

However, Crow was aware of his existence as Conrad, so he did not think too deeply about it. Perhaps it was more accurate to say that Crow did not want to think about it at all.

Heath was different — the crossdressed Heath was nothing BUT a woman in Crow’s eyes.

(Is this also a part of the techniques that Conrad taught him...?)

Everything from his hair and the clothes he wore to the makeup on his face, seemed to alter Crow’s image of Heath. Crow, who was used to Conrad’s transformed appearance, could not help but react differently to Heath’s new look. If Conrad was indeed responsible for the latter’s transformation, he had done a great job.

Fie could only cock her head and stare at the wordless Crow.

(What’s wrong with Sir Crow? He usually makes fun of me. Maybe I look really strange dressed as a woman? Well, that can’t be right. I am a woman to begin with — I probably look the same even in this outfit. Well... there are only male squires, so maybe some parts of squire life have latched onto my appearance? Hmm... I’m not sure if I should be happy or sad in that case...)

Checking her physical appearance with a strange series of poses once more, Fie lost herself in thought. Eventually she was happy with the result.

(In other words, I am one step closer to becoming a true knight! Yay!)

Upon seeing his silly expression, Crow finally came to terms with the fact that the person standing before him was, indeed, Heath.

“Oh, no, there’s nothing out of place. For a moment there I couldn’t see you as anything but a girl. So... please don’t make any weird poses. If you did that outside even I would be looked at strangely...”

“Is that so! Well, if the womanizing Sir Crow has this to say, then my female disguise technique is perfect!”

Fie, seemingly unaware that half of Crow’s praises were not actual praises to begin with, was very pleased with herself and flexed her muscles in yet another weird pose to celebrate.

(Yeah... no matter how you look at it, it’s Heath...)

Crow was actually more relieved by the fact that Heath’s personality and mannerisms had not changed very much at all.

On the other hand, Conrad, who was observing the two all this time, could only think of one thing in his mind.

(The things I taught her weren’t female disguise techniques in the first place...)

What Conrad had taught Fie were normal techniques on how to emphasize certain mannerisms and behaviors so as to look girlish and cute. Conrad also taught her other factors, such as how to do her hair right, how to wear the right clothing, and how to increase her charm and appeal with the light use of makeup.

Although Conrad felt that some of her mannerisms did need work, they were mostly points that could be improved on with practice, so he was content with her progress at this point in time. However, he was still somewhat concerned about Fie letting her guard down around Crow and the other knights.

“Well then, have fun, you two.”

“Yeah, we will. Let’s go, uh... Heath.”

“Yes!”

Although Crow’s response was indicative of him not exactly being his usual self, Fie did not seem to mind at all, answering him with her usual enthusiasm.

Conrad was the only one who had picked up on this cue, and he could not help but think to himself that things had taken an interesting turn.

Conrad’s interest in this incident was half because he wanted to contribute to Fie’s training. Although he had taken great pains to teach Fie the correct ways of applying makeup, she would not have many opportunities to use it in her life as Heath. If that were the case, however, he would have wasted his time and effort teaching her those techniques.

However, even Conrad was aware that he was in for self-satisfaction — his ongoing interest in what Fie would do with her life was the other half of the equation.

(On the topic of rigid people... I should test King Roy sometime...) Conrad thought, a familiar smile creeping onto his features once more.

Crow and Heath made their way out of the castle and into town, having ended up here due to a variety of circumstances in both their lives.

The setting sun painted the town with an orange-red glow, staining the evening sky and clouds with its hue. For a while the two of them stood, gazing out at the sunset-colored streets.

(Come to think of it, this isn’t the first time I’ve been out in town with a man. Although... this time, it’s with Sir Crow...)

Although Fie had gone out to town with Gormus and the others on supply trips many times, going out with this appearance was a first for her.

For the love interests of royalty or nobility, it was normal for a few servants and bodyguards to follow them on their dates and excursions, all the while taking care to remain unseen so as not to disturb the private space of the individuals in question.

However, Fie herself did not have any experiences of the sort. Fie, having only socially debuted for a short period of a little less than a year, was left alone and allowed to wander around as part of Fielle’s entourage. Without any social experience at all, Fie was reduced to little more than a wallflower.

In addition, even at social party settings, the belle of the ball was undoubtedly Fielle. No one took the effort to speak to Fie, who was seen as nothing more than a poor-quality add-on to her more beautiful sister.

Perhaps it could be said that for Fie, that was a more painful part of her life. She had no hopes or ambitions for the future, no idea what she wanted to do. Once the party had started, she would simply find a corner and wait until it was over — those were the days.

Fie had thought that she would probably be left alone, unable to find a partner for herself. Her parents, then, would unreasonably and forcibly marry her off to some nameless noble in Daeman.

However, Fie had perhaps wished for it, just a little, in the depths of her heart. Even if they did not love her and it was a purely political marriage, at the very least, she would be living with someone who would only look at her.

As such, although the socially inexperienced Fie had agreed to help Crow out on his venture, she had no idea what she should be doing at all.

Meanwhile, Crow was considerably troubled with regards to his crossdressing junior.

(How am I supposed to treat him? Should I just treat Heath as I normally do, although he is dressed up as a woman? But then... no. If this is an exercise, one of Conrad’s practice runs, shouldn’t I be taking this seriously and treating him as a woman? No matter how you look at it, he really looks like a woman...)

Crow, who was still looking out at the street, snuck a sideways glance at Fie.

Those sunset-tinted cheeks and eyes, the latter of which seemed to reflect the sunset itself, looked almost translucently beautiful to Crow — although Heath was still, for all intents and purposes, Heath. If she had not said a word and continued to stand at her spot, Crow might have mistaken her for a stranger.

Slowly, those eyes shifted in Crow’s direction. For a while, the two looked at each other, neither one saying a thing.

“Sir Crow, is it okay if we go get some soap? The bar I got a while ago has been used up,” Fie said to Crow.

Fie’s thoughts on her date had apparently led to this conclusion.

In fact, she had never gone on a date before, and she was unsure if this was how dates usually went. The one thing she did remember was how she had used up her bar of soap in the baths a while ago.

She had thought of borrowing some from Queen, but for some reason, he seemed to intensely dislike approaching Fie when she was bathing. In the end, she borrowed a bar from Gormus, as usual.

However, Fie’s soap tab had come to a point where she had to start returning some bars to Gormus — and as she was finally in town, this was a good chance.

“Ah, there is time until dinner after all. Might as well use that time buying what you need to buy.”

Upon hearing Crow’s response, Fie nodded her head.

Although Crow was well-versed in escorting women and improving their mood, he was unsure of how to treat a crossdressed Heath.

Perhaps Crow’s hesitation should not be too aggressively faulted — after all, his junior was a boy, even when crossdressed. At least, that was what Crow thought.

For one reason or another, Crow felt strangely reassured by the squire’s familiar voice.

“Yes!”

Fie responded to Crow with a smile and affirmation of her own, and the two set off into the sunset-lit town below.

Following Crow’s directions, the two of them had arrived in the town’s high street.

As to be expected of a place like Orstoll — its streets were filled with people in the evening. Passer-by after passer-by bumped into Fie as they went, causing her lithe body to shake and quiver.

“Whoa!”

Fie, who was still unused to high heels, looked like she was about to trip at any moment. However, a reassuring hand on her shoulder soon restored her balance — Crow had saved her from an unfortunate fall.

“Thank you very much, Sir Crow.”

“Be careful, sheesh.”

Fie, having somehow regained her balance with Crow’s help, could not help but frown.

“It’s so hard to walk in these shoes... Can I take them off?”

“Aren’t you giving up a little too quickly for a training exercise...? Also, what exactly do you intend to do by taking your shoes off? Here, walk slightly behind me. It should make things a lot easier.”

Saying so, Crow held Fie’s hand with one of his own, allowing her to follow behind him as he started walking at a somewhat slower pace.

(Oh...!)

Fie found herself genuinely grateful for Crow leading her through the crowd. Crow’s large shoulders seemed to deflect pedestrians, serving as a large shield before Fie. Now she found it a lot easier to walk, with or without high heels.

Fie could not help but be grateful for Crow’s miraculous technique.

“This is how you net women, isn’t it? I guess your womanizing reputation isn’t just for show, huh?”

Upon hearing Fie’s loaded praise, Crow’s hand swiftly landed on her head again in a familiar chopping motion.

“You fool. I’m doing this for you because you’re having a hard time!”

Crow had decided that he would treat Fie like his junior — as he usually did. After all, Fie’s attitude was more or less what it usually was.

Although Crow had doubts about if this would really count as a training exercise at all, it wasn’t exactly a bad feeling.

Upon entering the local high street’s provisions shop, Fie purchased three bars of soap.

One was for Gormus, as she had borrowed his soap bar on many occasions.

Suddenly, Fie became aware of a strangely-shaped cup in the shop. It appeared to be made of porcelain, but was of a somewhat bizarre design. The cup’s handles were strangely elongated, tapering in a sharp end.

It would also appear that many of them have sold. Although many had been originally put on display, only a few copies remained.

Noticing that she had been looking at it for a while, the shopkeeper made his way over to Fie, calling out to her as he did so.

“You’ve got good eyes, little miss. This is porcelain from the Kingdom of Carand. Its shape was proposed by the Divine Maiden of Light, Lady Fielle. It is said that its shape is meant to suggest the hands of God, clasped together in prayer for world peace and prosperity. A truly fitting design from the Divine Maiden, bringing prosperity to Orstoll. It’s really popular.”

Fie tipped her head to the side at those words.

(Divine Maiden of Light...? Prosperity to Orstoll...?)

The religious sect in Fie’s ancestral home, Daeman, focused mostly on worshiping nature. It was true that some there called Fielle a priestess, on account of her mysterious power to heal ailments. However, there was no mention of bringing prosperity at all in any of the religious sect’s teachings.

Although Fielle’s power to heal was a rare and useful thing to have, it wasn’t remarkable to the point where an entire kingdom would expect something of her powers. In fact, such legends and traditions did not exist anywhere at all.

In fact, the religious beliefs and outlook of those in Orstoll were more or less the same — no one was expecting miracles of Queen Fielle.

In fact, mythology of a Divine Maiden that would bring prosperity to her country originated from the Holy Kingdom of Luciana, located far away from Orstoll.

(The country isn’t right... and the beliefs aren’t right either...)

Fie, who had never left her ancestral home of Daeman, did not know much about the religious beliefs of the people of Orstoll.

While staring at the strangely-shaped cup in her hands, the image of her younger twin’s face floated into her mind.

(I wonder if Fielle is doing well...)

“Although Queen Fielle hardly leaves the royal palace due to her work, that can also be said to be proof that the King loves her! According to the rumors of those who said they have met her, she is truly beautiful and filled with compassion. Of course the King would not want to parade her before the masses often. Oh, we are so blessed to have such a queen in our kingdom!”

The shopkeeper continued prattling on, unaware of Fie’s thoughts.

(I hope she is living her new life happily...)

According to her last interaction with Lynette, everything seemed fine.

Although Fie did not have a very good opinion of Orstoll’s king, she had hoped, for Fielle’s sake, that the two of them got along well. After all, they had fallen in love and married each other. Fie wished only the best for her younger sister.

After staring at the cup and thinking about Fielle for a little longer, Fie set it down, walking out of the shop.

“Oh, aren’t you going to buy one? Everyone has one!”

Ignoring the shopkeeper’s frantic protests, Crow walked out of the shop with Fie. Crow was very good at excusing himself — after all, his title as the playboy of the Royal Knights wasn’t just for show.

Leaving the fading voice of the shopkeeper behind, Fie could not help but think about one thing — that no matter how one spun it, that teacup was not exactly practical to drink from.

After her trip to the store, Crow and Fie made a trip to a crêpe shop, where Crow treated his junior to some fresh desserts. After that, the two stopped by a furniture shop, and after some window shopping, finally arrived at their destination. By then, night had enveloped the town, and it was time to head to their destination.

The place Fie had followed Crow to was what appeared to be a high-class commercial district.

Light leaking through the countless shop windows punctuated the darkness of the night sky, lighting up the street along with countless oil-lit lamps — a soft, radiant glow.

“Wow...” Fie could not help but gasp, stunned at the beautiful sight.

As she was a princess and had lived in a castle, she was used to well-lit surroundings even at night. But a sight as beautiful as this was a first for Fie.

Although Orstoll was lit by oil lamps, they were not deployed in every single area of the Kingdom. The downtown districts that Fie and Gormus were fond of frequenting, for example, did not have lamps of any kind.

In other words, this was a high-class and expensive commercial district — even amongst the other many well-off districts in the capital.

The faint lights from various shop windows leaked out and intermingled with each other, painting the street’s walls and cobblestones in a myriad display of soft, flickering light. The streams of light cast various shadows on the ground, carving patterns into the dark.

Fie, seeing this scenery for the first time in her life, was adequately stunned and at a loss for words. Seeing this, Crow smiled, ever so slightly.

“Is this your first time at a place like this?”

“Yes, my salary as a squire isn’t enough after all. But then, you don’t come here too often either, do you Sir Crow?”

“Well, I prefer casually walking past them and taking in the sights. More importantly, don’t stray far from this area. This is a relatively safe area, but you could get into trouble if you get lost.”

Saying so, Crow held Fie’s hand once more, escorting her to the restaurant, and Fie sheepishly followed.

After walking side by side for a short while, the two came to a stop outside a restaurant.

A hanging lamp at the shopfront illuminated its signage — the shop’s name was famous to the point where even Fie had heard of it.

“Welcome to our humble establishment.” Upon entering the restaurant, they were greeted by a refined and polite waiter.

Fie started to feel nervous.

After all, a high-class restaurant like this one was probably also very expensive.

Having gotten used to living simply but comfortably with the rest of her friends, Fie was suddenly worried that her newfound peasant sensibilities would see her chased out of the restaurant. In spite of herself, her heart began beating faster, and she tightened her grip around Crow’s hand without realizing it.

Sensing Fie’s nervousness, Crow smiled wryly, allowing her to continue gripping his hand.

“Would you happen to have a table for two?”

“Yes, would you and the lady prefer a table with a view?”

“That will do. Much obliged.”

“Then, this way, if you please.”

Fie, still holding Crow’s hand, walked through the calm atmosphere of the restaurant. Although she had lived in Orstoll for a fair amount of time, she had not experienced anything like this before.

(Well, not even in Daeman...)

Although it was a training exercise with Crow, she couldn’t believe she had managed to enter such a place. Although there was a first for everything, Fie was undoubtedly nervous.

After leading the pair to a table with an adequately beautiful night view, the waiter left. It was only then that Fie breathed a sigh of relief, placing a hand on her chest and exhaling deeply.

Crow watched on, a gentle expression on his face.

“Sorry for making you come with me to a place like this.”

“No, you have always taken care of me, Sir Crow. And...”

Opening the menu, Fie returned to her usual self, licking her lips in anticipation.

“...You’re treating me to such delicious food, too.”

To be precise, Fie was being treated to high-class food at a famous restaurant. This was a once-in-a-lifetime event, well worth the anticipation.

(Ahh... This fillet steak seems good... The butter-roasted mutton looks delicious, too... So, so many things I have never seen before on the menu... Caviar... It’s expensive, but I would like to try it... Maybe I should ask Sir Crow...)

Peeking at the other tables around her, Fie became aware of the delicious dishes, neatly arranged for the diners’ convenience. She could barely stop herself from drooling as she continued to look at the menu.

Glancing at Crow, Fie noticed that he had an uncharacteristically serious expression and was almost glaring at the menu.

“Hmm... Would hamburger steak be good? But no, perhaps a gratin is better...” Crow mumbled.

Fie tipped her head to the side in confusion at those words. If memory served, Crow’s favorites were fish-based entrees. Fie distinctly remembered discussing it during one of their conversations, so she was confident that she did not get it wrong.

“Are you trying to predict what your date would order, and taste those dishes instead?”

“Well, something like that.” Crow scratched his head, embarrassed.

Closing the menu with a flourish, Fie smiled.

“Then I’ll help too! Please order something she would like.”

For Crow to go this far — whoever he was dating was probably quite important to him. As such, Fie felt that it was part of her duties to assist Crow in his endeavor.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes!”

In the end, Fie ordered a hamburger steak and a pot pie. Crow, on the other hand, ordered a gratin. After waiting for a short while, their dishes were served.

Hamburger steak, served with hot demi-glace sauce and a fluffy pot pie soon filled Fie’s field of vision. Crow’s end of the table was in turn graced by the rich smell of cheese gratin, broiled to perfection.

“Wow, it looks delicious!” Fie exclaimed.

Crow could not help but smile upon seeing the twinkle in Fie’s eyes.

“I feel bad, having you eat these instead of the dishes that you really like.”

“Oh, no, don’t worry about it! I really love hamburger steak and pot pies too!” Fie returned Crow’s words with a wide smile of her own.

Upon seeing her satisfied expression, Crow felt reassured — this was the Heath he knew.

If it were any of the girls Crow had dated, they would probably be really upset, or feel disappointed. Some would get flat-out angry, and others would hide their distaste with a smile — Crow had seen it all.

However, Heath seemed happy from the bottom of his heart. This was a reaction that Crow had never seen in any other woman before.

However, Crow quickly shook his head, as if to correct himself.

(No, Heath is not a woman to begin with, Heath is a man...!)

However, in spite of the above observation, he had begun to compare Heath to the women he had dated — if only because Heath naturally looked feminine to a fault.

“Sir Crow! May I start eating?”

“Yeah, that’s fine.”

With Crow’s encouragement, Fie eagerly picked up her fork and knife, starting on her steak. Slicing a small portion of it with her fork, she placed it into her mouth.

Its taste was distinctively different than the same dish served by the dormitory canteen — a fragrant smell accompanied its soft texture. The exquisite taste of the steak’s accompanying sauce filled Fie’s mouth.

“It’s delicious!”

As expected of a famous shop.

Although Fie loved the hamburger steaks served by the canteens as well, there was indeed something different about the taste of this restaurant’s offering.

Perhaps Fie might have tasted something similar back in her party-attending days — but to her, this was the first time she had eaten such expensive, high-quality food in person. In addition, she had always been alone when she was eating at said parties in the past.

However, Crow was now seated before her.

“Is the sauce too bitter or too sweet because of the wine?” asked Crow, all the while observing Fie eating her seemingly delicious steak.

“No, it’s good!”

The sauce accompanying the steak had a small dash of alcohol mixed in — it offered a mere hint of flavor, instead of overpowering the steak’s taste.

After finishing her steak, Fie happily moved on to her pot pie. Upon breaking open the crisp and still-steaming crust, Fie’s fork exposed a delicate, milky-white stew.

Crow once again waited for Fie to start eating before asking questions.

“Are there green peppers in the stew?”

“No, none that I can see.”

“The carrots are thinly sliced, so that seems fine too.”

“Yeah. The carrots have been carefully steamed and lightly sautéed; they’re delicious!”

Crow began confirming the contents of his gratin while asking after Fie’s stew.

“Hmm... There are mussels in this, perhaps that’s no good...”

Crow’s effort, combined with this serious expression, more than adequately communicated to Fie the significance of this date.

However, Fie had her doubts.

(Is it just me, or does Sir Crow’s date seem a little... childish in her tastes?)

After all, the only customers who would order hamburger steaks and gratins in such an upmarket establishment could only be children. Adult diners would certainly prefer dishes of a more complex nature. In addition, the fact that Crow made a fuss about peas and carrots strongly indicated that his companion was, indeed, a child.

After their meal, the pair window shopped in certain expensive-looking stores, before finally setting off on their way back to the royal castle.

Soon after leaving the gas-lit streets of the high-class commercial district from before, the only light that illuminated the pair was the moon and the faint flicker of lights and lamps from residential homes.

In the distance, the various lighted areas of the royal castle seemed to be stars, floating slowly in the moonlight.

In the end, due to poor visibility, Fie once again held Crow’s hand, allowing him to escort her on her path. And so the two of them walked, side by side, through the dark, unlit streets.

With Crow and Fie acting like how they usually did, Conrad’s strange training exercise finally came to an end, and the air was filled with a strange silence.

Holding hands as they walked, with Fie occasionally talking about events back in her dormitory, the two looked like a typical couple making their way back to the royal castle.

However, their cheerful conversation soon stopped as they sensed a presence before them.

“It’s an ambush, isn’t it?”

“Yeah.”

Whispering, the two confirmed their suspicions.

The area that they were currently walking through was somewhat close to a district notorious for its crime.

Although they were not exactly in the district, it was not uncommon for more unsavory elements to make their way out onto nearby roads under the cover of darkness.

“Hey buddy. Isn’t this cute? On a date with the little lady? I’m jealous.”

“Oh, she’s quite the looker. Thought we’d just take the money and go, but I guess we can take her too, eh?”

“So... as they said, hand the money and woman over, and we’ll let you go without hurting you... Buddy.”

Three evidently nefarious individuals stepped out before Fie and Crow, intent on blocking their path.

Without a word, Fie lowered her stance, intending to strike first with a flying kick. However, Crow’s large hands clasped themselves over her small body, holding her back.

“Sir Crow?!” Fie widened her eyes in shock.

Crow, however, smiled in response.

“You stay put this time. I can’t possibly let my princess, who has been stuck with me for this entire day, fight on my behalf, no? My knightly title would be laid to waste. Also... if you fight in those heels, you’ll probably trip and hurt yourself.”

It was as Crow said. Fie, who was not used to wearing or moving around in high heels at all, would have easily tripped.

(Ugh...)

Without much of a choice, Fie decided to stay put.

“Huh. Are you nuts? You want to fight us three on one?”

“So you got some guts, acting all cool. Don’t blame us if you get hurt.”

Upon hearing those words, Fie sighed, exasperated.

(You are the ones who are going to get hurt...)

In a flash, Crow struck the men, pummeling them into the ground.

The men, sprawled face-first on the ground, were summarily knocked out and could no longer move, let alone say anything.

Fie, who was already aware of Crow’s physical prowess, was not exactly surprised — this was more or less the expected outcome.

Even if Fie were armed with a sword and Crow not, she did not think that it was possible to win in a duel with him. Compared to that, three street punks did not have very much of a chance at all.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, my princess.”

Crow delivered his lines under the moonlight, a mischievous look on his face. However, at this point in time, Crow really looked like a knight who had stepped out of a fairy tale.

“Thank you for your hard work. In recognition of your efforts, I will permit you to continue escorting me to the royal castle, Sir Knight.”

Looking at each other, the two eventually burst into laughter, holding hands once again as they made their way back to the castle.

“It seems like going on a date with you is all sorts of trouble! Never a boring moment.”

“Is this even a date?”

“Well... to be honest it’s a bit weird. I mean, you’re a man, so.”

“That’s right. I guess men don’t date men.” Fie giggled at Crow’s answer.

And so, for the rest of the night, the two of them exchanged cheerful words as they finally returned to the castle.

In the morning of the day after the next, Fie and Conrad found themselves on the roof of a residential dwelling.

“Peeking is bad, you know? If Sir Crow finds out, he’ll be mad, right?”

Although that was what Fie said, she was also lying in wait in a hidden spot, taking care to not be spotted by passers-by. In her hands, she held a pair of binoculars that Garuge had made on her request.

“You want to know, right? After all, that man always plays around with so many women... And yet, he is taking such great lengths for this one mysterious lady — that’s a first.”

Without even attempting to hide his curiosity, Conrad remained perched on the roof, having even prepared a rug ahead of time so that he would not get dirty. In his hands he held yet another pair of binoculars.

Fortunately for the two of them, there were currently no good samaritans to stop them.

For the sake of accuracy, however, it should be noted that there was one person who saw them.

(Princess Fie. I did not teach you the ways of the Grass for such voyeuristic purposes!)

Although those were the words he had in his heart, the opportunity for him to show himself had not yet arisen, so he remained hidden for now.

Crow had exited the headquarters of the 18th Knights dressed in ceremonial garb that was usually only used for the king’s processions. To be exact, Crow was clad in official ceremonial knight attire.

Crow’s jacket, weaved from fabric of bright azure, was adorned with golden thread. He wore long pants of the same azure hue. At his waist was a ceremonial saber.

Normally, Crow would refuse to wear such fancy livery, complaining about one troublesome aspect or another. As such, seeing Crow actually dressed up in formal knight attire was a first for Fie.

If Fie had not noticed this and found it strange, she would have been the strange one — right?

Fie brought her concerns to Conrad, and this was how the two of them ended up observing Crow, who was currently waiting for his date.

“Seems like no one’s coming...”

“Yes. How boring.”

In a high-class commercial district stood Crow, who was waiting for his date by a large clock tower, his features illuminated by the sunset.

His golden hair, hazel eyes, and striking blue uniform did not fail to draw the eyes of countless passers-by. This was especially true for young women, who became so engrossed in staring at Crow that they would stop walking altogether.

Although Crow kept waiting, his date did not show up.

After watching for about thirty minutes, the bored Fie and Conrad found themselves using chalk (originally intended for silent communication on rooftops) to play games of tic-tac-toe. As the chalk in question was soluble and would be easily washed away by the rain, they continued their game in earnest.

Roughly twenty minutes after the commencement of their first game, a single horse-drawn carriage stopped at the plaza in which Crow was waiting.

With a gentle smile that was not often seen on Crow’s face, the knight began to approach the carriage. The carriage’s passenger was no doubt Crow’s date.

Fie and Conrad promptly abandoned their 121st game, craning their necks up for a better look.

“They’re here!”

“Here indeed.”

And so, Fie and Conrad finally stopped playing tic-tac-toe with the general public’s roof tiles, instead focusing their attention on the carriage.

The doors of the carriage slowly opened, and Crow’s date finally stepped out.

However, upon seeing who exited the carriage, both Conrad and Fie let out a cry, in spite of themselves.

“S-Someone’s wife?!”

“A ch-child?!”

Fie and Conrad immediately knew from their differing observations that there was more than one passenger in the carriage.

More accurately, the carriage’s passengers were a young girl no older than the age of ten, and a woman who seemed to be the girl’s mother. The two alighted from the carriage at the same time, and their eyes promptly met Crow’s.

(W-Which one?! Don’t tell me... B-Both?!)

The same thought crossed Fie and Conrad’s minds at the same time... And then, they came to the same conclusion.

(BOTH OPTIONS ARE BAD!)

Not much had to be said about the young girl.

As for the older woman, she was either a widow, or she was already married, and was decidedly unfaithful. Adultery!

(W-W-W-What should we do? We have to stop Sir Crow!)

Crow, who was dressed as an ideal knight, was currently in danger of stepping wildly outside the knightly path. Upon realizing this, Fie flew into a panic.

However, at that point, a voice rang out from behind Fie.

“What are you two doing?”

“Hyah!” Fie, surprised by the sudden voice from behind, could not contain her shock.

It did not take long for Fie to recognize who the voice belonged to, whereupon she was unpleasantly surprised yet again.

“C-Captain Yore?!”

Turning around, Fie came face to face with Yore, who was standing on the same roof with his arms folded. From behind his familiar mask, Yore’s blue-gray eyes were colored with a tinge of suspicion.

“Ah... Uh... Um. Captain... Why are you here...?!”

“Since no one was at headquarters, I asked one of the guardsmen, and he told me that the three of you had left the castle. After a bit of reconnaissance, I found the two of you acting suspiciously on a residential dwelling’s roof.”

It would seem that Yore possessed a particularly keen sense of perception, being able to detect the hidden Fie and Conrad so easily. A bead of sweat dropped from Fie’s forehead.

Conrad, who was standing next to Fie, was apparently trying to sneak away.

“Sir Conrad! Don’t just leave me here on my own!”

“Ahn, no, bad Heathy!”

Fie, however, had anticipated this, and held on tight to his sleeve.

If they were going to die, they would die together. Fie, for her part, did not want to face Yore’s fury alone. After all, Conrad was the one who had invited her... Although Fie was the one who suggested using Garuge’s binoculars, which had conveniently been made a while ago.

Yore looked at his knights with an exasperated expression.

“What are you two doing then... Hm?”

Yore, now apparently having seen Crow in the distance, looked past Fie and Conrad.

“That’s Persiol’s wife and daughter...” said Yore, looking at the woman, who was smiling and engaged in conversation with Crow.

“Persiol...?” Fie couldn’t help but ask.

“A knight from the 5th Knights Platoon. He sustained heavy injuries on a recent mission, and is currently receiving treatment at the capital’s main hospital. Although his injuries are healing and he is actively engaged in rehabilitation to eventually return to his duties, his daughter has been in poor spirits ever since the incident, and has become withdrawn... That was what I have heard.”

Looking through the binoculars, the young girl did, in fact, have a relatively dark expression on her face.

After saying something to Persiol’s wife, Crow took a knee and began speaking to the young girl, after which he presented her with a soft toy that he was hiding behind his back, all the while maintaining the highest standards of knightly behavior.

“Fret not, my cute princess, your father will surely recover from his wounds. So, let’s put a smile back on your face. For today, I, Sir Crow, will escort you as part of my knightly calling.”

Although they were at a distance where Fie could not hear her words, Fie clearly heard Crow’s words in her mind.

Crow, much like a knight from a fable, promptly lit up the little girl’s face with his actions.

After giving a ceremonial knight’s bow to Lady Persiol, Crow gently took the young girl’s hand in his own and set off in the direction of the restaurant. Lady Persiol, lowering her head to Crow in a gesture of respect, set off in the general direction of the capital’s hospital.

“I see...”

(So Crow did all that investigation for this...)

If Crow had gone to one of his usual restaurants, he would surely have encountered some sort of trouble in the darkened streets, even if the restaurants themselves were not dangerous.

For an outing with a child, the lamp-lit streets of the high-class commercial districts were undoubtedly the safest.

However, in restaurants like the one Fie and Crow had been to, most of its menu offerings would have been catered towards adults.

It further goes without saying that many of these dishes used alcohol, wine, or harbored other ingredients and complexities that children would not find palatable. This was the reason why Crow had to make sure the dishes were suitable before this excursion.

And so, the little princess, led by the hand by her knight, made her way to the restaurant, amidst the glittering lights.

Crow’s gentle expression seemed to shine as he continued talking to the young girl, smiling.

“Hmm... I guess it was a bit different from what we were expecting.” Conrad’s non-committal, but not exactly disappointed tone of voice, was equally matched by his ambivalent expression.

“I guess in the end, Sir Crow is kind of cool,” said Fie, her expression promptly turning into one of respect.

It turned out that Crow really was the ideal knight — although his day-to-day habit of flirting left much to be desired.

“He’s good at following up with these things. He often helps me out as well. So, as I was saying... what were you two doing up here again?”

“...”

“...”

As the conversation shifted back to Fie and Conrad, the two looked away from Yore, remaining absolutely silent.

“Ah!” At that moment, Fie’s eyes caught something in the distance.

“What? What? What is it?” Conrad followed up on her cue perfectly.

Fie pointed at a crowd of about 15 rough-looking men, hiding in the alleyways. They were obviously looking in Crow’s direction. At least, they certainly did not look like wealthy patrons of the high-class commercial district they were in. If anything, they were terribly out of place.

“Those men are the ones who tried to attack us during my training exercise with Sir Crow! There’s no mistaking it!”

Amidst the men, Fie made out three familiar faces — namely, the three men who were beaten up by Crow that night.

“They couldn’t win with three people, and so they’ve gathered more for revenge. Hmph. Typical of small-time criminals. What shall we do?”

Even with those numbers, it was highly unlikely that Crow would lose. After all, Crow had a saber with him as it was a special occasion — a few punks could not even hope to scratch him.

However, next to Crow was a little girl, and to make matters worse, it was her date with Sir Knight. It would not be fitting to leave the little princess with fearful memories of this occasion — on account of them being knights themselves.

Fie answered with the only answer she had in mind, and the only one she knew.

“Well then, we will deal with them!”

The punks had gathered their comrades for the express purpose of revenge and roved around the alleyways searching for their target: a long, golden-haired pretty-boy.

Finally, they found their prey. Although seeing him dressed as a knight struck fear into them, the punks did not think it would be a problem. After all, they had fifteen people on their side.

Hiding in the alleyways near the high-class commercial district, they laid in wait, their minds fixed on revenge. Although they stood out somewhat, as long as they were not discovered by their target, everything would go smoothly.

The fact that he had a little girl with him also worked in their favor. If they succeeded in taking her as a hostage, they would have already won.

“Is it time?”

“Soon. I will give the signal — then we will charge out together.”

Once their target passed the alleyway they were hiding in, they would jump out all at once — all fifteen of them. With those numbers, even if that pretty-boy were a strong knight, they would surely be able to beat him up.

“Heh heh heh. I don’t care if you’re a knight or whatever, but if you go against the great Gydda, you’re gonna regret it...”

“Oh, that’s interesting. Who’s going to regret what?”

“Interesting talk indeed.”

“Did you think that the likes of you could go up against a knight?”

With those voices, the three shadows leapt down from the rooftops.

One was a beautiful woman, bewitchingly so. If they had not met in such a way, the punks would surely have stopped to look at her beauty.

The next one was a youth of small build, dressed in what appeared to be a squire uniform.

The last one was a masked knight.

As if to surround their prey, the three of them landed in the alleyway the punks had staked out in.

“W-What is up with you guys?!” wheezed the punk’s leader, going by the name of Gydda, upon witnessing the three strangely dressed individuals before him.

“We’re the 5th Knights.”

“Those who are uncouth enough to get in the way of another’s date...”

“Will be taken care of by us!”

Due to the fact that the 18th Knights were not an official platoon, they had decided to randomly pick a platoon to represent.

Yore’s expression was unchanging — a stark contrast to the smiles on Fie and Conrad’s faces.

“K-Knights?!”

“It doesn’t matter! There’s only three of them! Get them!”

“The only one who can fight is the masked man! If we take him down, we win!”

Upon Gydda’s signal, the punks all flew towards Yore.

Yore, however, simply swung his sword in a flashing arc, his weapon still sheathed. In that single moment, five of the punks fell to the ground.

Having witnessed Yore’s skill with the sword, the punks could not help but feel a deep sense of fear in their hearts.

“Th-This guy is strong...”

“We can only run, then...”

“The woman! Get the woman!”

Thinking Conrad to be an easy target, the punks converged on him, seeking an escape route. However, in the next moment, the woman was nowhere to be seen.

“Huh? She disappeared?”

“W-Where?!”

By the time they had finished uttering those words, Conrad was already behind the punks in question. Before they even noticed that he was there, Conrad effortlessly lifted one of them with a single arm.

The sight of Conrad’s thin arms holding up a large-built man was a visual joke in and of itself. Conrad promptly disposed of the man by throwing him at his compatriots, smashing three of them into the alleyway wall. Unrelenting in his assault, Conrad’s arms, darting out like twin snakes, firmly grasped the necks of two remaining punks and rendered them unconscious in seconds.

Upon seeing that, three of the punks tried to flee, but were mercilessly beaten down by flurries of palm strikes, precision attacks to the neck, and a variety of blows by Conrad. In a few moments, eight of them had fallen by Conrad’s hand.

All that was left was Gydda and one of his flunkies.

“Augh...! M-Monsters!”

“The kid! Get the kid!”

Gydda and his last flunky chose to rush the path that Fie was blocking.

From inside her robes, Fie retrieved a stringy object. The object was comprised of three knotted strings, each splitting into three ends, with each end connected to a heavy-looking rubber ball. It was a throwing weapon known as a bolas.

Upon seeing the punks running in her direction, Fie began spinning the bolas above her head, quickly picking up its speed. Even Fie, who did not have much physical strength, was able to harness a significant amount of force from the high-speed rotation of the bolas.

Sensing an opportunity, she released the bolas, aiming for the punks’ legs. The weighted weapon promptly deployed after being thrown, neatly catching the running punks by the legs, robbing them of their mobility.

“Eeee?!”

“Augh!”

The combination of the ropes and the blunt impacts from the weighted rubber balls caused the punks to fall to the ground.

“Take this!”

As if she had waited for this timing, Fie ran up to the fallen punk, giving his face a solid, merciless kick. Fie’s assault was enough to make the group’s leader pass out, the whites of his eyes clearly visible.

After this, the three of them handed their quarry over to another knight platoon.

And so, Crow and his little princess’ date finished, and the light returned to her face.

As for Persiol, he was readily participating in rehabilitation, and was on course to returning to active duty soon.

And so...

“I’m hungry. This is all Sir Conrad’s fault.”

“You’re hungry, yes... But it’s no good to blame others, you know?”

Fie and Conrad were summarily punished, once again stripped of their dinner rights.

Although it was still somewhat acceptable for the two of them to watch over Crow’s date, writing on public roofs with chalk was what did them in. Of course, they could see this coming.

They were also prohibited from having tea or snacks either. So the two of them were currently slumped over the main table at the 18th Knight’s headquarters.