Chapter 37

On that day, Reeve was lost in thought.

As he walked toward the office, his mind was preoccupied with the king he revered.

During the previous meeting, Reeve had been ordered to wait inside the castle.

He would have preferred to serve as a guard, but orders were orders. Along with Eltina, he handled internal affairs and waited for the king to return to the castle.

The courtyard guards were assigned to the royal guard and the magic armor soldiers.

Among the magic armor soldiers assigned to internal security, there were elite soldiers known as special troops. The elite special troops were the ones guarding the king in the courtyard.

Reeve thought he recognized one of the magic armor soldiers, so he decided to catch and interrogate... rather, ask him questions when he returned from his guard duty.

"First Legion Commander, I have a simple question. How did you manage to catch me so precisely? I am a standard magic armor soldier, and there should be no visible differences from the others."

"Your question confirms that you were the magic armor soldier guarding the king's bedroom that day. There's no need to hold back. I'll make you spill the beans, even though you're a special troop."

"I don't understand the situation at all. What do you mean by 'spill the beans'? ...First Legion Commander, I feel a bit of force in the hand you placed on my shoulder."

"Report in detail about the interaction between Herian and the Lateswood Kingdom envoy today. In detail, understand?"

"Yes... I don't understand, but I get that I won't be released until I report."

The reports given by the magic armor soldier, who seemed to have given up, were shocking to Reeve.

At some point during the report, there was a painful cry: "First Legion Commander, the grip on my shoulder is not just excessive but far beyond my endurance, and the armor is starting to dent in the shape of your fingers, aaaa cracks are forming aaaaaa!!" However, Reeve was so shocked that he didn't even have the presence of mind to process it as language.

According to the magic armor soldier, the two of them had deepened their bond through what seemed to be a game. Throughout, the atmosphere was harmonious, and at the end, the king even patted the envoy's head.

Upon hearing this, Reeve understood why the king's face had been so good when he returned from the banquet. It seemed that the interaction with Lilifa Lume Lateswood had provided a distraction.

But for Reeve, who had always served as a close aide to the king, this was hard to accept.

Of course, it was better for the king's mental state to be good.

If the king had found a distraction, that was a good thing.

It was an event to be welcomed with all his heart.

He should offer pure gratitude to Lilifa Lume Lateswood for providing the king with a distraction.

---But Reeve couldn't help feeling a jealousy-like emotion toward the young girl.

He had seen the king, who had been working tirelessly day and night, pushing his tired body to the limit.

He had been worried that the king would collapse if this continued.

He had tried to advise the king a few times, even at the risk of displeasing him, but to no avail.

He couldn't stop the king from being locked in the office, working tirelessly.

In front of such a king, Reeve could only watch helplessly.

But Lilifa Lume Lateswood had easily achieved what he couldn't. Not only did she manage to take the king out of the office after just a few minutes of conversation, but in just a few hours, the king was smiling brightly.

It was an expression he had seen many times before coming to this world.

It was an expression he had never seen since coming to this world.

This stark fact only fueled Reeve's anxiety.

"Perhaps I am not trusted by Herian."

As he walked down the corridor leading to the office, a weak whisper escaped his lips.

What came to mind was the incident from the recent rebellion.

On that day, Reeve, Eltina, and Gardi, who had failed in their guard duties, were held responsible.

However, Gardi was assigned to the facility's repair work and, due to his achievements in the previous war, his crime was forgiven.

Eltina, on the other hand, had her crimes offset by her service in post-war treatment and her handling of internal affairs, which were extremely demanding.

---But he had nothing to his name.

In the previous war, he had focused on guard duties and overall command support, achieving no notable results.

Currently, he was still performing the same duties as before the war, without being assigned any special tasks like Eltina.

He was the only one who had neither been punished nor achieved any notable results, living the same unchanging days.

This situation was putting a strain on Reeve's mental state.

Moreover, the strain was gradually, but surely, becoming heavier with each passing day. This was not something that could be solved with a punch.

"Opportunities to achieve results may not come for a while... At the very least, I should be able to receive some punishment..."

However, he had no concrete ideas on how to achieve this.

The best course of action in such situations would be to consult Eltina, but she was also swamped with work. As the commander of the integrated legions, he hesitated to burden her with his personal matters.

Without any good ideas of his own, he could only maintain the status quo for the time being. This must be what it means to feel heavy-hearted.

"..."

Glancing out the window, he saw his face reflected in the well-polished glass.

He stopped and looked at his face for a moment, then took a deep breath.

"Such an expression... I cannot show it to Herian."

He shook his head to clear his mind of unnecessary thoughts.

It wasn't a light matter that could be resolved by such an action, but at least he had to maintain a calm appearance on the surface.

Suppressing the smoldering emotions in his chest, he composed his usual calm and collected expression as he approached the office door.

He acknowledged the salute of the guard with a "Thank you for your hard work," then stopped in front of the door.

He checked his appearance with a hand mirror he had taken from a magic pouch, but found no issues. His expression was as composed as usual.

After confirming that his emotions were completely suppressed, Reeve knocked on the door.

Hearing the master's "Come in," he pushed the door open.

"I'm sorry to intrude."

With these words, Reeve stepped into the office.

Though he maintained his usual composed expression, to Herian, today's Reeve seemed a bit off.

"..."

The difference from the usual Reeve was clear.

His ears and tail lacked their usual energy.

"Reeve, is something wrong?"

"...No, nothing in particular has changed."

"Hmm, is that so? I thought a new problem or trouble had arisen."

His tail, which hung limply, was slightly trembling.

This was definitely a sign of unease, as he recalled from a friend who had a dog. Reeve was a wolf, but the signs were probably the same. Probably.

"There are no issues that would concern Herian."

"...I see."

If Reeve said so, then it must be true.

He had no intention of doubting Reeve's words now.

But if that was the case, why was he not in high spirits? Considering the content of what he was about to ask, perhaps it would be better to reschedule.

"Are you feeling unwell? I know I've been piling work on you, but you've been working non-stop lately. If you need a break, you can take a day off today."

"Thank you for your concern, but my health is fine."

Reeve insisted he was in perfect health.

Given his character trait of "Resilient," it was possible he was hiding an illness, but... no, digging deeper into this topic wouldn't lead to anything pleasant. If he still seemed off tomorrow, he would adjust Reeve's workload.

"More importantly, the reason I called you here is—"

"Ah. There's something I need to ask you. It's a continuation of what Lilifa helped with, but it's not particularly difficult."

Reeve's wolf ears perked up.

They snapped up, forming two triangles on the top of his head.

Was he nervous? He had just explained that it wasn't a difficult request.

"Is it a continuation of what Lilifa helped with?"

"Yes. Don't worry, it won't be much trouble."

It was a continuation of the ability verification.

An experiment to verify whether the king, as "Herian," had any offensive capabilities.

In the game [Tactics Chronicle], the king's attack power was set to zero, and no matter how much he kicked or punched, he couldn't deal damage to monsters.

However, this world didn't strictly adhere to [Tactics Chronicle]. While it generally followed the game's abilities, several differences had been discovered. Therefore, it was necessary to verify the offensive capabilities.

Most of the king's basic abilities had been tested with Lilifa, but the presence or absence of offensive capabilities couldn't be tested.

To verify this, it would be necessary to confirm whether damage could be dealt to others, but it was out of the question to test this on a foreign princess, especially a child like Lilifa.

It was out of the question diplomatically, ethically, and by his own standards.

Moreover, it was impossible to catch a subordinate and ask them to "let me attack you."

A king who suddenly told his citizens to "hit me" would be nothing more than a tyrant.

No, a real tyrant would probably act before saying such a ridiculous thing, but he didn't want to act cruelly. He needed to choose the right person.

Therefore.

"Reeve"

"Huh"

"Can you let me hit you a little?"

...Hmm.

I think I chose the wrong words.

"Ah, no, I phrased it poorly. I mean, I want to test it on your body. I can only ask you to do this."

"...Only me, you say?"

"Yes."

He could only ask this of Reeve. No other subordinate could be trusted with this task.

The only one who could be asked to verify the king's offensive capabilities was someone who had shown the utmost loyalty and was the only one he had decided to trust completely.

"Specifically—"

"No, I understand. There's no need for an explanation. Please proceed without hesitation."

He received permission before he could explain in detail.

Well, that's fine. He had been hesitant about making such a request, so he decided to go along with it. He would get it over with quickly.

However, he had no intention of slapping Reeve.

All he needed to do was confirm whether damage could be dealt.

He took Reeve's arm, thinking he could do it like a light tap.

"..."

The touch was surprisingly smooth.

So this is what fine skin feels like.

And the skin was very white.

As he got closer to Reeve, a sweet, feminine scent tickled his nose.

...Was he really about to tap this skin?

Wasn't that a sinful act? He had braced himself, but a vague sense of guilt still lingered.

Moreover, touching a woman's skin naturally... Was this sexual harassment? He realized he had never held a woman's arm before. What should he do? He felt embarrassed and couldn't look at Reeve's face. But he couldn't stop now. If he just held her arm and stared at it, that would be even more sexual harassment. He steeled himself. Why was he being asked to do this? Thinking calmly about it would be a loss.

"I, I'm going to do it."

His voice was a bit high-pitched, but he hoped it would be overlooked.

He snapped his fingers and struck the white skin.

A small, dry sound echoed.

"...How is it?"

He asked cautiously, trying not to let his unease show.

"How is what?"

He was asked to repeat himself.

"Did you feel any pain?"

"No, not really."

"...Hmm."

So, no damage was dealt.

He looked at the skin where he had snapped his fingers, but it wasn't even red. The smooth, white skin was unblemished. If he looked away, he wouldn't even know where he had hit.

This time, he slapped her arm with his palm.

The force was a bit stronger than a clap. This was his limit.

However, the moment he slapped her, Reeve's body trembled.

He still couldn't look at her face, but he asked with renewed hope.

"How about this?"

"It, it doesn't hurt. Really, please don't hold back