The Villainess Will Not Bring Dishonor To Her Family

83 - The March - Part 1

I glance to the two young men next to me.

On one hand there's Asher who has suddenly gotten this happy look like a satisfied Lion with a full belly.

On the other hand there is a third year sizing me up with fascination. I can't tell if I am being perceived as amazing or a source of amusement. As for his identity, by his coat of arms I know that his father is a landed knight sworn loyalty to House Celeste. That might be why he is accepting this so easily. As for the specific knight... I think it was sir Norman... no... Njord? I take a moment to face my discomfort.

"We have not been introduced, sir."

I watch him quietly for his answer. I'll need to travel with these guys for at least a few weeks, and I'll need to face... my flaws. That includes getting properly attached to them and get to know them. Though they'll never be as good as my former subordinates.

"Sir Vitis Njord, my lord. Vitis is fine." He adds an extra little focus on the lord part. I decide to ignore it.

"Very well, Vitis. It is good to meet you, as you know I am-"

"The child of Scorog. Augustus."

Vitis gave a big bright smile at me. Again, I can't tell if he is saying this out of respect or because he wants a fun reaction out of me. I don't give a polite smile back. I don't know how to deal with this kind of ambiguous behavior. I'm leaving due to mixed signals.

"Let us leave it at that then."

I head back towards the entrance along with Asher and Vitis, where Eric is already waiting for me. He glances nervously towards the school buildings, and for good reason. The bell has just rung for lunch, so all of the remaining students will be noticing us. This includes Alstair and everyone else I have to deal with regularly. To avoid further trouble I ask Lumere to take the form of his mini-knight version and have him stand on my shoulder. The little variation should be enough for a while... hopefully...

"I've prepared a horse with your gear, including a plate armor in your size with helmet."

I cannot help but to raise an eyebrow for a moment at those news.

"You sound quite... prepared for this..." I gave a slightly suspicious sounding tone, but Eric just brushed it off like water over feathers.

"We always had a set prepared after the attack on Castle Celeste. Now, I know you hate the helmet style here, but it is safer and doesn't contain straw for decorations."

...

Indeed, their helmets weren't... up to par style-wise with the ones in my previous life... you cannot compete with the charm of a kabuto that reminds you of a lion mane, and a mempo of a snarling lion.

Their armor here was pretty much plainly steel grey. The biggest sources of color were their mantles and their individual coat of arms which you could use to identify them more closely... and eventually use to know where to send their things home... I shake off the thought spreading nausea through me.

"So, I got you an early birthday present to make up for your displeasure."

Eric tossed something light and metallic to me, and as I noted the shape I was overjoyed!... for about four seconds until I noticed a rather large design flaw...

"I don't have energy for your little ritual of saying no thank you three times," Eric warned me. Still...

"We skipped the overgrown wolf type feline design and went with a wolf instead since it already fits your reputation better."