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Chapter 11
The weather had warmed and the sunlight had turned gentle.
But the faces of the rookie knights were far from bright. Their expressions were grim as they walked around with brooms and mops.
It was spring cleaning week—and the cleanliness of the knight order’s headquarters was, naturally, the responsibility of the trainee knights. Among them, the most undesirable tasks always fell to the rookies.
Arthur, a sixth-year trainee knight, glanced toward Kata as she mopped in a corner.
For a moment, Lea’s gloomy face came to mind.
“We misjudged her.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yeah. She’s not like an ordinary first-awakened.”
Watching Kata repeatedly dunk the mop into the bucket, Arthur narrowed his eyes.
All he had observed while “training” her under Soran’s orders was an absurdly strong lung capacity and an overly friendly personality.
“There’s no better endurance training than swimming. Swim to the end of the lake and back.”
That dawn, at his command, Kata had jumped into the lake—and didn’t resurface for several minutes. Even for someone skilled in underwater swimming, it was far too long.
Arthur, calmly watching, quickly sensed something was wrong. He had genuinely thought the clueless rookie had drowned.
“Damn it!”
His heart dropped. If an accident had truly happened, the responsibility would fall entirely on him.
Arthur sprang up, kicked off his shoes, and tore off his golden tunic like it was shedding skin. He was halfway through ripping off his stiff shirt when Kata resurfaced with a bright, refreshed breath.
“……”
A button flew off.
Ping. Ping. It bounced across the stone floor and rolled to a stop.
A gust of air slipped through the wide-open shirt.
Kata, seeing his bare chest, looked startled.
“Were you planning to enter the water?”
“Y-you…!”
Arthur flushed deep red. He quickly covered himself and shouted:
“Why are you showing off breath-holding tricks here?!”
“Pardon? But swimming requires lung capacity—”
“Shut up!”
Still fastening his shirt, he pointed at her furiously.
“I thought you drowned! Do you have any sense or not?!”
“Ah… I’m sorry. I didn’t think you’d be that surprised.”
Kata bowed awkwardly, but Arthur couldn’t calm down easily.
Though he never brought it up again, he maintained a cold demeanor, clearly still offended.
The problem was that Kata was far too friendly.
“Do you like tea? I like bergamot too!”
“It’s chilly—should I bring you a cloak?”
Even yelling didn’t stop her.
And more than anything, Arthur hadn’t met someone genuinely curious about him in a long time.
With each conversation, his impression of her subtly shifted.
“Not skilled, but… not a bad kid.”
He would never admit it, but sometimes he even looked forward to seeing her.
But after Soran was disciplined and Kata was hospitalized, the dawn training was indefinitely postponed.
So meeting her again during spring cleaning brought an unexpected feeling.
Relief.
“Lady Katarenia Donovan. It’s been a while.”
Kata turned and smiled brightly.
“Sir Arthur! Long time no see!”
Those clear green eyes made his chest tighten for a moment.
“…A-are you feeling better?”
“Yes! I’m completely fine now. I could even start special training again!”
“…I see. Don’t slack off—finish your cleaning properly. I’ll check again before the inspection.”
“Yes, sir!”
Arthur wanted to say more, but she had already turned away.
As he walked off reluctantly, he met eyes with Xenon, who was cleaning the fireplace.
“……”
Xenon calmly looked away.
His scrubbing became noticeably harsher.
Luna genuinely wanted to throw her mop away.
Her body felt heavy due to her cycle, and the cramps were unbearable.
Healing magic was useless at times like this.
Because war never ceased on the continent, healing arts had focused almost entirely on treating injuries. Other illnesses were barely studied.
“It’s ridiculous! They can reattach a severed limb perfectly, but can’t cure hair loss in young people!”
Thus, healers were treated more like military assets owned by nobles than physicians.
“Pathetic.”
Ern, a seventh-year trainee knight, glared at her. He was particularly harsh toward rookies.
After inspecting the window frame, he shook his head.
“I told you to clean every corner.”
“…I’m sorry.”
“If I find even a speck of dust when I return, you’ll regret it.”
He left after ordering her to redo the entire window cleaning.
Just as Luna swallowed curses rising in her throat—
“Hey, it’s your turn to fetch new water.”
A large bucket was thrust toward her.
Red-haired, broad-shouldered Monia—the second-ranked newcomer—stood there.
Luna reluctantly accepted it. The half-filled metal bucket was heavy and cold.
As she descended the stairs, someone called from below.
“Luna!”
It was her overly friendly roommate.
Kata bounded up the stairs like a gust of wind, not spilling a single drop despite carrying two buckets—almost acrobatic.
“Going to change the water?”
A breeze came through the open window, lifting pale curtains and scattering her light hair.
Luna stared at the faint freckles across her nose.
Kata had missed training for days. Rumor said she had been hospitalized after sparring with Soran.
But Luna didn’t bother asking if she was okay.
She figured it was obvious—Kata must have provoked Soran and gotten beaten for it. Her own fault.
“Huh? Luna, are you sick?”
Luna frowned.
“Mind your own business.”
She walked past her coldly.
The room untouched by Kata for days was practically a pigsty.
Luna leaned back, exhaling smoke-like breath.
Then she heard a click—the sound of a key turning.
Yellow hallway light seeped into the dark room, outlining a silhouette through the haze.
“Luna.”
Kata looked around the room and sighed.
She seemed slightly angry.
“How many cigarettes did you hide in here?”
She lit a flame immediately upon entering. The room was filthy—worse than an orphanage.
Kata strode over and snatched what was in Luna’s hand.
“Give it here.”
“Where did you hide them all? You’re smoking every time I turn around!”
“Give it. I’m not in the mood to argue.”
“What is this room anyway? Luna, it’s spring cleaning week. Our room is the most urgent case.”
“Then you clean it.”
Cold sweat ran down Luna’s back from the pain in her abdomen.
“I can live like this. Do whatever you want.”
Her irritation rose.
“You just want everyone’s approval, don’t you? That’s why you grind your teeth through horrible training.”
The candle flickered dangerously.
“But what a shame. No matter how hard you try, you’ll never surpass people like the top or second-ranked. You’ll always live in their shadow.”
Silence fell.
“Luna.”
“What.”
“Don’t say that.”
Kata sat on the edge of the opposite bed. Her eyes, lit by the flame, were a warm green.
She said firmly:
“For at least a year, we’ll be living here together.”
She emphasized “together.”
“Until then, this is basically our home.”
“….”
“If you’re not planning to leave the knight order, at least show some respect for our home.”
“Home, my ass.”
Just as Luna sneered, Kata placed something into her arms.
A warm hot-water pouch.
The dull, distant numbness in her body was suddenly replaced by sharp warmth.
“It’ll hurt less if you hold it.”
Luna looked up as if struck.
Kata’s voice remained gentle.
“Go to sleep first. I’ll shower.”
Luna didn’t know what to say.
The bathroom door closed.
She sat there blankly, hugging the warm pouch, blinking slowly.
