TGS - Chapter 31
Chapter 31: A Certain Bearing
When Lotus awoke, she felt as if she were being coiled by a warm python. It was wrapped quite tightly, as if afraid its prey would escape. A little looser and it might slip off; a little tighter and it might make it hard to breathe. The pressure was just right.
It was early morning. The material of the tent wasn't very translucent, so even though it was bright daylight outside, the inside of the tent was still as dim as dusk.
In this dim light, Lotus turned her head and saw Alyuin's profile, her eyes closed in peaceful sleep.
Oh, not a snake.
It was the princess, clinging to a god as if she were a bolster pillow.
Lotus remembered that Alyuin's sleeping posture hadn't been this bad before. At most, she would nestle close, pressing against her arm. She'd never had a habit of clinging to someone so tightly and not letting go.
Was it because she felt so insecure?
Lotus thought for a moment, then closed her eyes and feigned sleep. They had talked too late last night, and she selfishly wanted to let Alyuin sleep a little longer.
Not long after she closed her eyes, the princess beside her quietly opened hers a sliver. Squinting to see that Lotus was still and quiet, she then continued to feign sleep with a clear conscience.
When they weren't actually touching, the desire to encroach traveled from her heart to her fingertips, requiring all her effort to suppress and restrain. But when they were truly touching, holding each other close, she just wanted to lean against her without moving, to make this tranquility last as long as possible.
This feeling was truly wonderful.
Basking in the peaceful morning light after having regained what was lost, Alyuin felt a little giddy.
A blurry human figure suddenly appeared on the tent flap.
"Your Highness, Your Highness, are you awake?"
"One of the new guys is unconvinced. He's already beaten several veterans. Are you going to come out and teach him a lesson?"
It was the voice of Deputy Commander Lena.
Hearing the voice, Lotus opened her eyes and saw the princess sluggishly and reluctantly open hers—with such a commotion, it would be too fake not to wake up.
The two of them sat up.
"Did you sleep well last night?" Lotus asked softly.
Alyuin's expression was normal as she whispered back, "It was alright."
In truth, she had tossed and turned for half the night, unable to sleep.
Lotus carefully examined her face. The round, cat-like eyes of her youth were now slightly more elongated. There were no dark circles under her eyes to indicate fatigue; she was full of energy, but her hair was a bit messy from sleep.
The goddess personally straightened the princess's hair. The latter lowered her eyelashes, wanting to take the opportunity to act spoiled.
Just then, the person outside the tent, having received no response, muttered to herself, "Her Highness isn't awake yet? That can't be right, even Motis is awake."
The deputy commander's voice was loud; even her muttering through the tent flap sounded like normal speech.
Alyuin couldn't take it anymore. "Lena."
Lena: "I'm here. What are your orders?"
Alyuin said mercilessly, "Wait. When I come out, I'll teach you a lesson first."
Lena: "...Eh?"
Wait, wasn't that the kind of treatment usually reserved for the oblivious Motis?
It wasn't until the two had tidied themselves up and walked out of the tent that Lena, standing stiffly outside, noticed the young woman in cavalry attire following the princess. She couldn't help but be stunned for a moment. "Lorja?"
Lotus nodded. "Long time no see, Lena."
The deputy commander exchanged greetings, then turned to see the princess with a smile playing on her lips, her gaze following the woman's profile. Her expression was gentle and soft, a world of difference from the unchanging smile and emotionless, frozen face of the past three years. She was like a completely different person.
Lena averted her gaze, expertly reading the room and lowering her head, saying no more.
No wonder Her Highness treated her like Motis just now. Turns out her information was out of date.
Alyuin's threat to teach Lena a lesson first was, of course, said in anger and not to be taken seriously. But teaching the new recruit a lesson was real.
The group walked towards the training grounds. As they went, Lena said, "This new recruit has some skill, but he's too arrogant. After fighting just a few veterans, he's clamoring to test your strength. If you don't teach him a lesson, I'm afraid he'll cause trouble later."
Alyuin: "Didn't Motis fight him?"
"He did. Motis won, though it was a decent back-and-forth fight." Lena shrugged. "But he's still not convinced. He insists that you could just use your status to make Motis obey you. Until he experiences your power for himself, he refuses to submit."
Alyuin raised an eyebrow. "He didn't lose too badly to Motis? At least teaching him a lesson won't be boring."
After speaking, the princess turned an expectant gaze to Lotus. "I've improved a lot while you were away. You have to watch me later."
Lotus: "Mm, I'll be watching closely."
Alyuin's eyes filled with light as she smiled happily. The smile was genuine and radiant, revealing two slightly sharp, white teeth.
In the center of the training grounds, a young man with messy hair like a clump of straw stood stubbornly. He was injured, but no matter what anyone said, he refused to move.
Motis, still unreliable despite being over forty, stood opposite him, trying to persuade him earnestly. "Brother, I'll call you brother, alright? I've already beaten you this badly, and you still won't submit?"
The young man said loudly, "I submit to you, but not to your master!"
Motis was at his wit's end. "So what are you so hung up on? We already told you, Princess Alyuin could take on two of me."
The straw-haired youth: "I only believe what I see with my own eyes. What's that saying? Hearing is deceptive, seeing is believing."
Motis was helpless and could only curse in frustration, "Where did this stubborn mule come from? He's driving me crazy."
The straw-haired youth replied very seriously, "I'm not a mule, but you can beat me, so I'll allow you to call me a stubborn mule."
Motis: "..."
Just then, Alyuin's group arrived at the edge of the training grounds. The soldiers who had gathered to watch the spectacle saw the princess and uniformly cleared a path. The princess walked through with calm composure and entered the field.
Motis looked up as if he'd seen his savior. "Your Highness, you're finally here."
Alyuin glanced at the straw-haired youth. He was looking at her, boiling with fighting spirit, his left cheek practically screaming "come at me" and his right cheek "beat me up."
Alyuin had already heard the whole story from Lena. "Alright, I'll teach him a lesson."
Motis, getting his wish to get away from the fool, was so moved he was on the verge of tears. He didn't even bother retorting to Lena's sarcastic remarks, only wanting to see the princess teach the stubborn mule a lesson.
The straw-haired youth was quite polite when facing Alyuin herself.
"Please, make your move, Your Highness," he said. "Anyone who cannot defeat me is not qualified to be my superior."
Alyuin stretched her shoulders and said nonchalantly, "Seeing as you're injured... three moves. If you can block them, you win."
The straw-haired youth's expression changed. "Are you showing me contempt?"
The princess said in surprise, "So you're not an idiot after all."
The straw-haired youth gritted his teeth and stood his ground without moving.
Alyuin turned her head, precisely located Lotus in the crowd, and mouthed "wait for me to finish" to her before turning back to the youth and saying coldly, "Ready?"
The straw-haired youth nodded, holding his wooden sword horizontally across his chest in a defensive stance.
I'll defend, then, he thought. I don't care about winning just by blocking three moves. I'll block the three strikes, then take the initiative and defeat her fair and square.
Just as this thought crossed his mind, Alyuin drew her wooden training sword and brought it down in an unadorned strike.
The blade struck his blocking sword. The straw-haired youth's pupils contracted as the sudden, immense force pushed him back half a step, nearly knocking the wooden sword from his grasp.
I blocked it? That strength is just too—
The thought had barely formed when Alyuin swung again with a backhand stroke. This time she used a clever technique, and the straw-haired youth's sword was sent flying uncontrollably. The web of his thumb was both numb and aching from the shock.
The third strike was a tap at the youth's throat. He didn't even have time to react.
Alyuin withdrew her hand and commented:
"You managed to block the first strike. You have some strength."
The straw-haired youth stood there, stunned speechless. He looked at his disarmed sword, then at the princess, and couldn't utter a word for a long time.
Alyuin's attention was no longer on her defeated opponent. She looked off the field again and saw the goddess standing amidst a crowd of cheering people, smiling and clapping softly. A sense of deep satisfaction washed over her.
She turned to walk towards Lotus, and just as she was about to take the goddess's hand, she heard a dull thud from behind.
Natural alertness made the princess turn around quickly. She saw the straw-haired youth kneeling on one knee, blurting out loudly and somewhat foolishly, "Your Highness! Please let me follow you!"
Alyuin: "..."
The onlookers: "..."
The cheers and applause came to an abrupt halt. Everyone stared at that messy straw head, and the confusion in the air was so thick it could almost coalesce into a giant question mark.
Was pledging fealty at the drop of a hat the new trend?
A moment later, in an open space next to the training grounds.
Motis glared warily at the straw-haired youth. "Hey, kid, are you trying to steal my position as Her Highness's confidant?"
Lena: "He's trying to steal it from me, Motis."
The straw-haired youth looked bewildered. "No, I have no such intention. I just want to follow Her Highness."
"Impossible! Who would want to follow someone just because they had a fight!"
"I'm not willing to pledge loyalty because I lost the spar," the youth corrected seriously. "It was her bearing. Her Highness's bearing conquered me."
"Who are you kidding? Before the spar even started, you were dead set on demanding that Her Highness fight you—"
"Her Highness's bearing hadn't been revealed at that time!"
Alyuin and the goddess sat off to one side, peacefully distant from the fray. Hearing this, Alyuin didn't even look up as she said, "It doesn't matter. He's been assigned to our corps, so isn't he already following me?"
The straw-haired youth said anxiously, "It's not the same! I want to follow you, not just as a soldier under your command..."
Motis muttered, "So blatant, and he still says he's not trying to steal the position of Her Highness's confidant."
Alyuin was in a good mood today. Nothing could break the joy she felt after reuniting with Lotus, so she asked with rare pleasantness, "Explain in detail. How was my bearing revealed?"
The straw-haired youth was instantly energized. "After you defeated me, you didn't continue to watch my sorry state, but quickly turned your gaze away. That's the first thing."
"Faced with the cheers of the crowd, you showed no pride or complacency, your smile was calm. That's the second."
"Most importantly, that person—" he suddenly pointed at Lotus and declared passionately, "—she must be your subordinate, right? The way you look at her is so considerate of your subordinates! This is the kind of bearing only someone destined for greatness possesses!"
"Aren't these things enough?"
The subordinate, Lotus: "..."
The considerate-of-her-subordinates Alyuin: "..."
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