episode_0025

When a sudden situation arises while wearing a dress, it can only lead to discomfort…

For example, getting caught in the hem or tripping over the skirt.

But if Lady Gongnyeo’s command is to wear it, there’s no way I can refuse.

Even if I have to fight and tear the dress due to discomfort, I have to wear it.

“You must wear it!”

I was firmly instructed, so there’s no way I can’t wear it.

Can I really rebel against Lady Gongnyeo’s command to wear it?

In the end, I wore the dress Lady Gongnyeo gave me instead of pants and a shirt.

Creak, creak.

So, I wore the dress tailored to fit my chest that the maids of the Flondor Duke had worked on all night and got into the carriage.

Due to the process of making the fabric, my collarbone was prominently visible, but it didn’t matter since it was the same as before.

However… the problem was that Lady Flondor kept glaring at my chest with a dissatisfied expression, and others kept staring at my chest.

“How can this be?”

Lady Flondor glanced at my chest and muttered in frustration.

“Even though it’s my dress, can my chest be like this? Really… it’s unfair, really…”

I wish they would let me ride in the carriage because it’s too uncomfortable here.

I tried to compose myself as much as possible and sat up straight on the carriage, looking out the window.

Around the carriages, about a hundred soldiers armed with guns and swords were escorting us.

It was rather strange that there were only this many guards when Lady Flondor, or whoever she is, is passing through the Elzen Forest full of elves.

“What is Flondor Duke thinking…? Abandoning his own child?”

“W-what! Why!”

When I stared at Lady Flondor, she blushed and shouted at me.

“No, it’s nothing.”

Being with Lady Flondor, who looked at my chest with a gloomy expression, made me have inappropriate thoughts.

Like wanting to grab her head and shake it… that kind of thing.

I shook my head and looked out the window again.

Passing through oak trees, the forest path was filled with nothing but oak trees.

The procession that had been passing through the Elzen Forest for a while came to a stop.

“We will take a short break!”

At Romel’s voice, everyone got off the horses and carriages.

I quickly got off the carriage and distanced myself from Lady Flondor.

I didn’t want to be close to her in case something happened.

I wandered around the resting procession and approached Laurent, who was resting.

“It must be nice.”

“What?”

“It must be nice to be comfortable.”

“???”

Laurent looked at me with a puzzled expression.

“It must be nice… to not have to see Lady Gongnyeo who talks to herself and feels inferior… to not have to be in the same space as her… I envy you.”

After teasing Laurent for no reason, I wandered around the procession again.

I saw Rotos and Aramis chatting while sitting on a rock.

“Well, didn’t you ask me to buy tulips?”

“You bought a flower you can’t even eat?”

“They said it’s an investment if you have the seeds or something.”

“That’s a rare breed.”

“It does look pretty, with blue and spotted patterns, the more colorful, the more expensive.”

“Even so, spending so much money on flowers?”

“What are you talking about?”

I approached them and joined in their conversation.

“Oh, Mari is here.”

“Well, Flondor people spend money on that flower they can’t even eat.”

“Flower?”

“Have you not seen a lot of windmills and tulips while coming here?”

“Well… I was in a hurry, so I didn’t really pay attention, but was it like that?”

“They say the more colorful and flashy the pattern or color, the more expensive it sells.”

“Those people are really strange.”

“I know.”

In response to my words, Lotos nodded and looked at the people from Flanders.

It seemed absurd that people who looked perfectly fine were spending so much money on flowers… It didn’t seem right.

If gambling can bring profit, what do flowers really gain?

“Instead of that, why not buy an old bottle of Brogniogne wine and store it? It’s a win-win situation, high value and great taste when you drink it!”

Lotos, who saw everything through the lens of alcohol, couldn’t help but wonder what was different between them and those people.

“Alright, alright! Let’s get going now!”

At Romel’s shout, everyone started preparing to depart in a flurry.

“Sigh…”

I let out a deep sigh as I watched the carriage carrying the Flanders princess.

“Why are you sighing like that?”

“Give me a break.”

At Aramis’ question, I made a desperate expression.

“The princess gave me this dress, but the front doesn’t fit properly, so I had to alter it. But why does she keep glaring at me as if my chest is too big?”

“Ahaha!”

In response to my words, Aramis laughed cheerfully.

“What can you do? God made you that way. Instead of foolishly trying to hide it, just serve the princess well by her side.”

Aramis patted my shoulder and then climbed onto the horse.

“No… Sigh…”

I sighed and headed towards the carriage where the princess was.

Carefully peeking inside the carriage, I saw the princess leaning her head against the window, asleep.

“Phew… Thank goodness.”

I smiled softly and climbed into the carriage.

As the carriage started moving, the Flanders princess, who was jolted by the movement, furrowed her brows slightly as if she was about to wake up, but soon fell back asleep.

The procession of Flanders envoys began to pass through the forest without any issues.

As the road became rougher, the carriage started to jolt more frequently.

It was pitiful to see the princess hitting her head on the window every time she jolted in her sleep.

“Ugh…”

I sat next to the princess and rested her head on my thigh.

She seemed to be more comfortable, as she made a relaxed expression and continued to sleep.

As I sat quietly in the carriage, my mind started to wander.

As someone who was once a man and became a woman through the blessing of God, what am I really?

Am I a man or a woman?

My mind is that of a man, so should I live as a man?

But my body is that of a woman, so should I live as a woman?

But even if I forget that I was once a man and keep whining like this, can I still be considered a man?

There is no trace left of the man I used to be.

There is no way to prove to others that I am a man.

Even if I look at myself or others look at me, it’s clear that I appear as a woman.

As these thoughts filled my mind, it felt like my thoughts were being dragged into a sticky swamp of negativity.

However, if this is the grace that God has given me, I must accept it.

Even if I don’t like it, even if I find it terribly unpleasant, I must not reject it.

Because it is the trial given to me, and enduring it is the only correct answer.

Didn’t Master Chugyik tell me that this is a blessing? Let’s try to think of it as positively as possible.

“Sigh…”

With a frustrated heart, I gazed blankly at the view of the forest outside the window.

The sight of the dense forest full of large trees remained unchanged.

Oak trees, chestnut trees, pine trees, and so on.

A forest full of various trees… but it seemed like something was passing through the trees.

“What is it?”

I narrowed my eyes and watched the busy movements through the trees.

The size is human-like, but there shouldn’t be bandits in a place like this, right?

“Elves!!!”

I opened the window and shouted.

Thwack!

“Ugh!”

As soon as I shouted, an elf shot an arrow, and one of the bandits lost his life.

“Prepare for battle!!!”

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

The soldiers shouted loudly as the bells rang.

The sound woke up Princess Flandre.

“Huh…?”

She looked at me with sleepy eyes.

“Princess, it’s dangerous outside. Please stay inside the carriage.”

“Is it really dangerous?”

“That’s why we’re here.”

I patted her head and went outside the carriage.

The soldiers had already formed a shield wall around the carriages for defense.

The musketeers climbed on top of the carriages or hid behind shields to snipe the elves.

Bang! Bang!

Every time the muskets fired, smoke rose with flashes of flame from the barrels.

The elves were quickly taken down by the musket bullets.

“Fire! Keep firing!”

Under Romel’s command, the soldiers fought together.

I climbed onto Princess Flandre’s carriage and loaded gunpowder into the gun.

I tore the cartridge paper with my teeth, poured gunpowder into the pan, and then loaded the rest of the gunpowder and bullet into the barrel.

Tap! Tap!

There was no time to waste, so I quickly loaded the bullets by tapping them on the carriage floor.

I aimed at the elf, thanking my dear friend Blytham for teaching me this loading method.

In less than 30 seconds, I was ready to fire, and I pulled the trigger.

Click!

The flint sparked, igniting the gunpowder in the pan.

Bang!

The musket fired, sending a bullet flying towards the elf.

“Ugh?!”

The elf hit in the chest by the bullet dropped his arrow and fell.

“Ugh… that’s right…”

I shivered as I smelled the gunpowder smoke rising from the barrel.

The smell of gunpowder… it drives people crazy.

I loved the smell of gunpowder.

I didn’t have much experience with guns, but every time I fired in battle, the smell of gunpowder made my heart race.

It was a different kind of pleasure, similar to the thrill of sex.

“Hehe… hehehe…”

I couldn’t help but smile as I felt the rush of excitement.

No matter where I am, this place is truly nostalgic.

Welcome, to my homeland battlefield…!

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The continuous gunfire caused the elves to fall like autumn leaves.

Due to the dense trees, the elves couldn’t snipe from afar and had to come closer to shoot arrows, but they were overwhelmed by the firepower of the guns and started to falter.

“□□! □□ □□□□!!!”

“□□, □□ □□□ □□□□!”

The elves shouted in their own language, communicating with each other.

I aimed my gun at the elf on the left.

Bang!

The elf on the left was shot in the chest and fell dead.

The elf, whose skull was completely shattered by the impact of the lead bullet, had both eyeballs bulging out as sticky blood and brain matter oozed out.

“Ah… Aaah!!”

Upon witnessing the gruesome death of the elf beside them, another elf screamed in horror.

Thwang!

Not long after, that elf too was pierced through the side and followed their comrade in death.

“What a fool…”

Instead of retaliating to avenge their comrade’s death, the elf just sat there, screaming, hoping the enemy would spare them.

“Phew… Hoo…”

I deeply inhaled the gunpowder smoke, swiftly reloaded my gun, and aimed for the next target.

This time, it was an elf with red feather decorations on their head.

Since the distance was a bit far, I aimed with the scope at her head.

I thought if I fired, I might hit her legs or abdomen.

Securing the buttstock firmly against my shoulder, as the elf’s head was obscured under the scope,

Thwang!

The lead bullet was fired along with a tearing sound like an explosion.

“Ugh!”

It would have been a serious injury if it hit the abdomen, but unfortunately, it only caused bleeding in the thigh.

The elf clutched their thigh and rolled on the ground.

“Tsk.”

I bit off another cartridge with my mouth.

In less than 20 seconds, I finished reloading and aimed at another elf.

They looked like a rookie, barely holding the arrow with trembling hands and pulling the bowstring.

Where should I aim this time?

Should I kill the one coming to help by targeting their shoulder?

Or should I blow their head off in one shot?

It’s a happy dilemma.

I aimed at the elf who would be the sacrificial lamb.

“Adieu, chérie. (Goodbye, darling.)”

Thwang!

As the gun fired and the lead bullet hit the elf’s head, it exploded, leaving only the body as a lump of flesh on the cold ground.