— Camilia wind ranger —
[Physique: 30]
[Defense: 35]
[Mana : 26]
[Mind : 18]
[Beast of wind : 28]
— Zark Rothenmore —
[Physique : 10]
[Defense: 10]
[Mana : 25]
[Mind : 22]
[Dark arts of the Rothenmore house : 25]
Donk.
Ria's forehead drops onto her table.
Stacks of paperwork crowded her table, leaving just enough room for her to rest her head.
All of the logistics of running a war.
The cult of Eon has overrun the territory of Carla north of the RazenHeir estate.
The RazenHeir house will march on Carla under the Moradale coalition.
Knights and soldiers were recalled from the orc front.
Is it morning or night? She can't remember.
The sunlight shines through her balcony window.
It's morning.
She still had another stack to go through, but her hand could no longer move the quill.
She walked onto the balcony; the sunlight briefly blinded her.
From her balcony, she had a clear view of the estate.
It was preparing to march.
The Razenheir knights were drilling in the courtyard.
The scouts ran rounds around their barracks to build their stamina.
The sound of musket fire as the infantry shot.
The workers were hauling stockpiles of supplies
A sudden wall of silver hair appeared and blocked her view.
"My lady."
"Good morning, Hikari. Are you drilling today?"
The giantess knight was in her full wyvern skin.
Her claymore was strapped to her back.
Her chest was level with Ria's balcony on the second floor.
Ria had a close-up view of her face.
Her hair was still wet from the shower after her morning run.
"Yes, my lady."
"How are you feeling? You'll be marching for the front in a few days. Are you nervous? How is your armour holding up?"
"Good."
"Too bad I can't march with you. My combat skills are just not up to scratch. Maybe after more of your training… I can't slay a troll, but maybe I can win a duel?"
"Yes."
"I apologize for not being able to join you for the past few days. I still have some paperwork to do. But I'll join you later for a workout. I'm sick of sitting at my desk anyway."
"Yes."
"Let me guess, you'll be doing some formation drilling? You have never marched in formation with the house. Neither are we accustomed to having a giantess on the line. Carry on now. I'll be watching from here."
Hikari let out a faint smile.
With her face just above the balcony, Ria could see every minute movement she made.
She marched to the courtyard.
It took her less than a dozen strides.
The drill master was already waiting.
Hikari took her position.
A standard bearer stood beside her.
The fully grown man was just above knee height.
The drill master shouted a command.
The infantry formed up around her in a loose formation.
Large gaps between them for Hikari to move through.
Ria watched from the balcony as they marched in formation.
The giantess took long pauses between steps to keep pace with the infantry.
Then they did their ambush drills.
They marched in a straight column to fit the narrow roads in Carla.
"Ambush left!" The drill master shouted.
The infantry unsling their muskets and formed a fire line facing left.
Hikari drew her handcannon and aimed.
Her arm straightened, her eyes focused.
Ria could feel her deadly aim from atop her balcony.
She leaned on the parapet.
Her knees trembled as she watched Hikari execute each drill with perfect precision.
The drill master gave a command.
The infantry opened up a large gap between them.
Hikari drew her claymore.
Ria's heart pounded in her chest.
The giantess charged;
She leaped high into the air and smashed a boulder into pieces with her claymore.
Ria fell to the ground.
She was breathing heavily.
It happened so fast.
Her hand went under her skirt.
"Ahh…!"
She touched herself.
"Ah!"
She slapped herself.
"What am I doing…"
She couldn't think straight.
Her mind replayed the scene of Hikari dashing through the training ground.
Her hand went under her skirt again.
She slapped herself.
"I guess I can't help myself. At least do it in my room."
She picked herself up.
Her queen-sized bed was big enough for her to roll from side to side.
It allowed her to relieve stress.
She glanced at the untouched stack of paperwork.
"I'll do that after a break."
She landed on her bed.
The soft bedding caves in under her weight.
"Ahh…!"
She touches herself.
The giantess knight was all she could think of.
"Ahh…!"
Her massive body.
So big. So strong.
Yet so graceful.
Her perfect proportions.
Her perfect skin.
Unlike her, so frail and skinny.
Every inch of her was so superior to her.
"Ahh…!"
She keeps touching herself.
It was so unladylike of her, but she couldn't stop.
Seeing her knight in her full wyvern skin turns her on so much.
"Ahh…!"
Clack! Clack!
Her high heels echo through the ground with every step.
"Ah…!"
The men on their knees at her feet.
"Ah…! "
Begging, groveling before her.
"Ah…!!!"
Ria moaned loudly.
"No!"
She slapped herself.
She was all sweaty.
"What am I thinking about? She's my knight. I shouldn't."
She got up.
The paperwork was waiting, but she wasn't in the mood.
She washed up and changed into fresh attire.
She heard voices coming from outside.
It was the maids.
"Did you hear? Our lady is out of luck again."
"Really? But I spent the afternoon doing her makeup."
"It's not really your fault. It's her- how should I put it?"
Patting sounds.
"Oh, I see."
"Did you hear? The knight Hikari went to the ball."
"Yes, we all can see that. She looked absolutely stunning in that dress."
"The rumours are that the young men at the ball even kissed her feet in public."
"You're pulling my leg!"
"Shh… we are approaching her room."
Knocks on her door.
"My lady."
"Yes? Whose there?"
"Letters from Moradale."
"Ah, more of them. Come in."
Several maids walked in, carrying bag after bag of letters.
Ria churned at the sight.
She had been working through them.
And now she has several more bagfuls being dumped on her.
"What are these for?"
"Oh, they are for Knight Hikari, actually. But she never takes letters, so we brought them to you first."
"Letters for Hikari?"
"Yes, my lady."
"Come along then; I'll be paying her a visit. I'll need some help carrying these."
"Yes, my lady."
…
Ria entered Hikari's room.
The giantess sat in the magic circle in the middle.
Meditating, practicing her mana flow.
The intense mana pierced Ria's skin like needles.
The maids following her started feeling nauseous.
"Leave it here."
The maids dropped the mail bags and left.
Ria stood at the door and waited.
Before long, the mana levels went down.
"My lady."
"Oh, don't mind me. I hope I'm not disturbing your training. Some letters came for you. Maybe we can read them together after our workout?"
Hikari stood up and walked to her exercise area.
…
"Huff* Huff*"
Ria lay flat on the ground.
Her arms and legs were so sore that she couldn't move.
"My lady."
Hikari pushed a bowl full of clean water in front of her.
Ria sat upright.
Her arms trembling, she unbuttoned her shirt.
She submerged herself in the cold water.
Suddenly, the water floated into the air, leaving her sitting in the bowl.
The stream of water splashed into the drain.
Viscous soup covered Ria.
It smelled funny, but it cleaned well enough.
Another splash of water rinsed her.
Hikari pinched her towel and dropped it on her.
"Letter?"
With a wave of her hand, the bags of letters floated to her.
"Yes, a whole bunch of them just came. I'm curious as to what they are. Your appearance at the ball must have impressed some people. "
"People?"
"Yes, when your renown grows, more people will want to work with you. If you take on a raid, there will be investors willing to pitch in. When a new piece of rare armour appears, you will hear of it. When a new area is cleared, you will have more business opportunities. These are the benefits that come with having a network."
"Uh."
Hikari scratches her cheek, unable to understand what her lady just said.
"Don't worry, you'll get used to it. For now, I'll do the talking."
Ria dries herself and changes into a fresh outfit, the third one for the day.
She reaches for a mail bag.
"Look at this one, Hikari. The seal of the Pikurus house. They own a Zeppelin Lane, warehouses in Moradale, and along the trading posts between Moradale and the spire city. Having favor with them may get us good deals on magical items from the spire city. Now let's see what we have here."
Ria opens the letter and places it on the ground.
"Here we go. Ahem! To the knight Hikari."
She reads it aloud.
"You are a masterpiece painted by the finest artists of the cosmos. Your beauty is unmatched by the rarest jewels. I want to worship you… grovel at your… Eh?"
Ria stopped.
She skimmed the rest of the letter.
Her face turned red.
Hikari leaned over her and read along.
"Step on me…"
Ria swallowed as Hikari's booming voice read the letter aloud.
"I can't breathe…"
"Ok! Never mind that. Let's read another one."
Ria stuffed the letter back into the mail bag.
She pulled out another one.
"Ok, look at this. The seal of the Horfarian house. A workshop of the spire city. Their house specializes in building materials such as the one used to build your new room. If we gain favor with them, I might be able to get better deals to expand your living space."
Ria flips open the letter.
"Ahem! To the knight Hikari. Your eyes are like jewels in the night sky. Your skin shines brighter than the most polished silver in all of the spire city. Your feet…"
Ria shakes her head and rubs her eyes.
"Your feet…" She couldn't believe what she just read.
"Smother me…"
Hikari reads aloud.
"The sweat on the bottom…"
"Ah! Nevermind. It's just two random people who had a bit too much to drink at the ball. I'll raise the issue to reduce the strength of the booze next time. Let's just move on for now."
She pulls out the letter.
"Ok! This one is from the Arcanlium house. They are one of the best houses for harnessing the power of the spire city to perform incredible magic. To think you'll get attention from them. Your strength must have really stood out from the crowd."
Ria flips open the letter.
"I hope there's nothing naughty in this one."
This time, she scans the letter before reading it aloud.
Her brow furrows.
"Drown me…"
Ria's face was red.
"In the milk from your blossoms…"
The letter flared in Razenheir flame.
"My lady?"
Hikari held up her palm over the bags of mail.
Ria hugged the mail bags, stopping her from incinerating them.
"No! Don't! They are still letters from the prestigious houses. I'm going to have to reply to them regardless of their… contents…"
She composes herself.
"Just ignore them and focus on your training. Nothing good will come of it."
"Yes, my lady."