Chapter 85

It has been a few days since Rekka and Gregorio sparred during training, and Rekka has become quite accustomed to the fortress.

She seems to come from a noble family, but having served in the knights for years, her spirit is athletic. Her hobby seems to be weightlifting, and in some ways, she overlaps with the one-eyed knight, earning her the nickname "Iron Lady" in private.

Perhaps it is because of her character that she fits in well with this northern fortress.

The serious Rekka occasionally scolds the less serious members like Kicks and Jild, taking on the role of a reliable older sister.

Kicks and the others, when scolded by Rekka, pretend to reflect or hastily escape, just as they do when scolded by the sub-commander or the one-eyed knight.

The fortress remains as peaceful as ever, even with the new member, and I am quite satisfied.

Today, during the free time in the evening when everyone is enjoying themselves, I decided to visit the fortress to check on Rekka.

I know how she is during the day, but I was curious if she was getting along well with everyone at night.

After all, compared to Rekka, I have been staying at the fortress for a longer time, making me a senior here. As a senior, I should take care of the juniors.

I arrived at the common room using a movement technique, where the one-eyed knight was already present.

It's cold at night this season, so the fireplace was burning brightly. I should avoid getting too close to it.

"Mil, what are you doing at this hour? It's time to go to bed."

The one-eyed knight put the book he was reading on the sofa and placed me on his lap. He smelled faintly of alcohol, so he must have had a little.

"I'm not going to bed yet."

After all, it's just past eight. I wish he would stop treating me like a child. The night is just beginning!

Coming here at night is rare, so I get excited, like staying up late with friends during a school trip.

The common room was full of many knights, some drinking what looked like alcohol, playing games, or just chatting.

In a corner, a drunk Jild was strumming a guitar-like instrument and singing passionately, but no one was listening.

The sub-commander wasn't there, but Kicks, Rekka, and Tina were chatting by the fireplace. They seemed to be talking about Rekka.

"Rekka seems to have gotten quite used to this place."

"The northern fortress isn't so bad once you come and see it, right? It's a bit rural, but—"

"Yeah, it's better than I thought."

Rekka laughed at the joke but then looked a bit worried.

"However, the harshness of this region really shows in the winter. I'm a bit concerned about what it will be like. The nights get longer too..."

Rekka seemed worried that the sun wouldn't rise for days, but Tina explained that it wouldn't happen here.

"That's a relief."

Rekka looked visibly relieved. Well, being in the dark all day would be depressing.

Then, Kicks looked at Rekka and said,

"By the way, Rekka, are you going to bed soon?"

"What, all of a sudden?"

"Because you have slight dark circles under your eyes."

When pointed out, Rekka muttered, "Is that so...?" and traced her eyes with her fingers.

"Maybe it's because the bed and pillow are different. I might not be getting a good night's sleep."

"You're sensitive. The bed here might not be as comfortable as the one at your home, but you used the same kind of bed at the main quarters, right?"

"Maybe it's because I haven't fully relaxed yet. I might not sleep well for a while when the environment changes."

Tina defended Rekka against Kicks, saying, "That's not the case with Tina."

"Are you saying I'm not sensitive?"

Tina said it angrily, but it didn't seem too scary.

"You slept soundly the first night you came here, didn't you? The next morning, you came to the dining hall looking like you had a good night's sleep."

"I didn't look like that! ...I've always been a good sleeper, though."

Tina blushed, and Rekka smiled.

"Hehe, even now, you fall asleep within five minutes of the lights going out. Once you're asleep, you don't wake up even if I make some noise. It's good that you can sleep well."

Rekka praised her, but Tina was embarrassed.

Rekka then continued the conversation.

"Anyway, I think I'll go to bed early. But what about the bath? Our bathing time is the last today, right?"

"Yes. It will take some time before it's free, so how about wiping your body and taking a bath in the morning?"

"Okay, I'll do that."

"Then, I'll go to bed too."

Tina stood up after Rekka.

"You don't have to adjust to me."

"No, I'm sleepy too..."

She said with a shy smile. "You sleep well," Kicks muttered, and Tina pulled his ear lightly before leaving with Rekka.

"Did you come to check on Rekka, Mil?"

The one-eyed knight seemed to have noticed my purpose as I was standing on his lap, looking at Rekka and the others. He asked while petting my tail, so I turned to answer.

"Yes!"

My tail automatically wags when I make eye contact with the one-eyed knight, so it started wagging again.

However, since the one-eyed knight was holding the base of my tail, only the tip was wagging.

Noticing this, he gradually moved his grip up, enjoying the strange movement of my tail.

What are you doing?

(Rekka is getting along well with everyone, and even though she just arrived, I think I'll go back to Mother.)

I was still like a child and was starting to feel sleepy, just like Rekka and the others.

However, just as I was about to say goodnight to the one-eyed knight, I saw something black at the edge of my vision.

It was a small hole in the wall of the common room.

I think there's a mouse nest in that hole, which is near the floor. When I tried to peek into it when I first arrived at the fortress, a mouse came out, and I screamed. It was a traumatic hole.

Soon after, Tina, who also dislikes mice, nailed a board over the hole, but the mouse chewed through it and opened the hole again. Tina then nailed another board over it.

Finally, the mouse seemed to give up or found another entrance and became quiet. The hole in the wall disappeared, and there were no more sounds or squeaks.

It seemed the battle between the mouse, me, and Tina was over.

However, it wasn't over.

Recently, the hole had been opened again.

I don't know if it was the original mouse or a new one, but it seemed to have made a nest there again.

The other day, I had a terrifying experience.

Everyone was busy, so I was lying on the sofa in the common room, taking a nap. Suddenly, something touched my feet.

When I woke up and looked, there was a brown mouse! It had come out of the nest and was trying to bite my foot!

I screamed and immediately jumped up, rolled off the sofa, and escaped to the hallway by headbutting the half-open door. I ran to the one-eyed knight in a panic and had him check my feet, but there were no missing paw pads, so I was fine.

Kicks and the others laughed at my panic, but it was really scary.

Can you guarantee that mice won't eat a fox's paw pads? Mine are light pink and soft, so they might have mistaken them for food.

"Oneyed knight, I asked you to seal that hole."

I looked up at the one-eyed knight.

But he just muttered, "A hole?" while petting my tail continuously.

His voice was weak, and he seemed a bit off.

(Maybe he's drunk?)

The one-eyed knight is surprisingly weak against alcohol, so even a little can make him feel good.

However, his face doesn't change much, so it's hard to tell from the outside.

"Hey, seal the hole!"

"Sure, I'll seal it."

The one-eyed knight tried to cover my ears with both hands.

No, not my ears. I didn't want him to cover my ears.

"No, the mouse hole."

"You're not a mouse, Mil."

I know that!

We weren't communicating. Realizing it was no use, I decided to leave before the one-eyed knight turned into a kiss monster.

I'll ask him to seal the mouse hole again when he's not drunk.