After leaving the clearing, I headed straight to the barracks to submit my forest patrol report and update the garrison on the local situation.
That was when I ran into her—the Vice-Commander of the Imperial Army's 10th Brigade. My absolute idol. The person I admired more than anyone in the world.
"Report submitted, Vice-Commander!" I stood at attention, saluting stiffly.
The Vice-Commander chuckled softly and reached out, gently brushing a stray lock of hair behind my ear. "Relax, Tixi. You've grown so much since I last saw you—and turned into quite the lovely young lady, too."
My cheeks flared bright pink, and I felt my eyes shine like freshly polished gems. Getting praise from her was better than winning a dragon-taming tournament.
"Though," the Vice-Commander added with a mischievous tilt of her head, "our sweet Tixi might want to wash up. A change of clothes would be a wise choice after all the fighting."
The blush on my face instantly turned from bashful pride to agonizing, full-blown embarrassment. The young maiden through her idol knew. Everyone knew.
"Y-Yes, ma'am! Excusing myself!"
I spun on my heel and practically power-walked to my quarters, cursing myself with every step.
The moment I shut the door to my room, I collapsed onto the couch and buried my face in a pillow, letting out a muffled scream.
"I am such an idiot!" I groaned to the empty room, kicking my feet in frustration. "Why did I punch him like that?! Sure, if he wasn't my childhood friend—no, wait! I only hit him because he's my childhood friend! Aaargh! I feel terrible. He looked so pale... Should I go apologize?"
I sat up, hugging a cushion tightly to my chest.
"No! Why should I apologize?! That shameless bastard grabbed me out of nowhere in front of the entire squad! And what was that whole 'never leave my side' nonsense?! He's the one who refused to team up with me for ever! Is his terrible luck starting to rub off on me now?!"
After ten minutes of intense self-reflection, chaotic inner turmoil, and pacing back and forth, the dragon-riding knight finally swallowed her pride and headed toward the infirmary.
As the maiden approached the clinic wing, she spotted two identical figures walking up the corridor ahead of her—Arog and Ladab. The twin nerds.
Knowing how overly analytical and chatty those two were, she panicked. If they caught me here, they'd never let me live it down. Acting on pure knight-trainee instinct, I executed a sharp side-dash and crouched behind a nearby storage table, holding my breath until the twins slipped into the recovery ward.
Once the coast was clear, I crept up to the door on tiptoes, pressing my ear against the wood.
To my utter shock, the insipid son of our Chief was already awake!
Suddenly, I heard Arog's voice spike in panic—followed by the sharp clatter of knocked-over medicine bottles and the rustle of bedsheets!
I risked a quick peek through the door gap. Both twins were frantically trying to pin Purna back down onto the mattress. My chest twinged with guilt. I did hit him without holding back out of pure embarrassment. (Sure, it was ninety percent his fault for wailing into my tunic like a toddler, but still...)
From my vantage point, I watched as the twins began lecturing Purna in the stern, disappointed tone of overworked parents. I was just about to step inside to offer a stiff, formal apology—when Purna's soft, dreamy voice floated through the door.
"She's totally into me."
Crack.
The sound of my remaining guilt shattering into a thousand pieces.
I slid down against the wooden wall, dropping to my knees right outside the door. Betrayed. Utterly, completely backstabbed by the guy I'd known since childhood, who was casually ruining my reputation while lying in a hospital bed!
"Excuse me, dear?"
A gentle voice broke my trance. I looked up to see a wet nurse standing over me, holding a tray of clean linens and staring down at me in confusion.
"Oh! Um!" I scrambled to my feet, clearing my throat and straightening my armor with as much dignity as a flustered seventeen-year-old could muster. "I... I just stumbled upon someone familiar! Could you tell me where I can find the head apothecary?"
Muttering a hurried excuse, I turned around and fled the building for the second time that day—leaving behind a wake of lingering guilt, burning embarrassment, and a burning desire to punch Purna a second time.