Chapter 52: Finding The Star Girl

“Ah… Yes…?”

“I asked if you’re really a man. Answer me.”

“That is…”

His body stiffened as if turned to stone.

His starry eyes wavered, unable to grasp the situation.

I stared down at Luke, who couldn’t easily answer the question.

‘If he were a man, he wouldn’t react like this… So, is he really a woman?’

Feeling confused, I let out a sigh.

In the original story, Luke’s gender was male.

There weren’t any scenes of him naked or direct descriptions of his anatomy, but since the setting was male, I naturally assumed he was a man.

But, oh my.

Turns out, he’s a girl.

While I was standing there dumbfounded, Cheonryeo spoke up triumphantly.

[See? I was right, wasn’t I? I knew something was off from the moment we entered. This kid was desperate to cling to you.]

‘Wait a minute. Is that all the evidence you have to assume Luke is a girl?’

[Yeah. If a guy wants to cling to another guy, isn’t it obvious he’s actually a girl?]

‘…Right. You’re correct.’

I quietly agreed with the naive, perverted fox who knew nothing of camaraderie.

But what should I do about this?

If the protagonist of the original story, Luke, is a girl, will it cause problems for my future plans?

No. First of all, is “Luke” even his real name?

These thoughts tangled in my head, making things more complicated.

In the silent training ground.

In a situation where neither of us knew what to do, Luke was the first to speak.

“Um… I am a man. I don’t know why you think I’m a woman, Your Grace, but it seems you’ve misunderstood.”

“Hmm. Are you really a man?”

“Yes.”

“Is that your final answer after all that hesitation?”

“…Yes.”

“I see. I’m disappointed that you’d lie to me.”

“!”

At the word “disappointed,” Luke flinched.

His starry eyes widened, and his lips trembled as if he were about to cry.

‘Look at his reaction.’

Perhaps because I’ve taught him and grown closer to him.

He seemed to respect me quite a bit, as he was visibly shaken by my words of disappointment.

But why hadn’t I noticed until now?

Most of the time when I met Luke, we were clashing swords, but…

Now that I thought of him as a girl, his makeup-free face and shy behavior seemed so feminine.

‘Wait. Is he wearing a chest binder?’

A chest binder is a must for any girl disguising herself as a man.

As this thought flowed naturally, my gaze drifted downward, and I noticed Luke’s slightly protruding chest.

Hmm. It’s modest.

If that’s without a binder, it’s a bit disappointing.

[Hey, Master. You’re not checking out his chest right after finding out he’s a girl, are you?]

‘What are you talking about? I was just thinking for a moment.’

[Heh. Alright. You can be honest with me. I understand.]

‘Shut up.’

I silenced the snickering Cheonryeo.

This fox. Since she’s directly bound to me, she seems to know exactly what I’m thinking.

I need to come up with a plan to protect my privacy soon.

“Um, so…”

“Hmm?”

“Ugh… I’m sorry!”

Thud-

At that moment, the restless Luke bolted out of the training ground.

He chose to run away, after all.

Well, it’s not easy to face me after his secret was exposed.

But since I’ll be starting the knight academy lectures soon, I’ll see him again.

I’ll find out why he’s been pretending to be a man at the academy then.

Recalling the flustered starry girl.

I slowly made my way back to my quarters.

***

After returning to my quarters.

On a summer dawn with a sky full of stars.

I had a dream.

In the dream, I was lying on a bed, fast asleep.

In the quiet bedroom.

Liliana sat beside me, gently stroking my head.

“Behirit. Are you still asleep…?”

In the dream, Liliana whispered softly, like an ASMR I had heard before being possessed.

A warm, comforting sensation enveloped my body.

Perhaps because of her delicate voice.

It was so pleasant that I got goosebumps.

And then I realized.

‘Ah… This isn’t a dream.’

No wonder it felt so real.

Realizing it was reality, I wondered why Liliana had come so early in the morning.

What was she planning?

Surely, she wasn’t up to something strange.

No way.

Though these thoughts crossed my mind, I didn’t pretend to wake up.

Honestly, it felt nice and comfortable.

While being gently stroked by Liliana.

She slowly leaned over and.

Gently kissed my forehead.

Peck-

“…”

“I forgot to tell you. Thank you for helping me graduate from the academy.”

“…”

“I often think about it. It’s truly a blessing that the person I told my soul’s name to is you, Behirith. I hope you have sweet dreams today. Goodnight.”

Creak-

Thud…

Liliana whispered in a barely audible voice and then disappeared from the bedroom.

Her cautious footsteps faded away.

Left alone in the room, I slowly sat up.

“Phew. Shouldn’t you say that directly?”

Thanking someone who’s fast asleep.

It was romantic, but if I had really been asleep, I would have missed Liliana’s lovely words.

“Here, perhaps.”

I fumbled with the rustling bedsheet and placed my hand where Liliana had been sitting.

A gentle warmth rose through my hand.

Occasionally feeling the warmth of Lucy or Liliana like this provided comfort and encouragement amidst my busy days.

Speaking of which, how is Lucy doing now?

She had to stay in the capital to handle some business, but I couldn’t help feeling guilty for not bringing her along.

‘It’s the first time I haven’t seen Lucy in over a month.’

I’ll have to pamper her a lot when I return to the capital.

But as I thought of Lucy while looking at the dim dawn outside, I couldn’t sleep at all.

Unintentionally, I had become a morning person.

What should I do?

After lying down with my eyes closed for a while.

I gave up on falling back asleep and got up, folding the thin summer blanket.

“Alright. Let’s organize my plans for a bit.”

I sat on the chair by the window and stroked my chin.

The immediate issue to think about was one thing.

Luke’s gender being female.

Although he hadn’t admitted it himself, his reaction practically confirmed it.

I needed to seriously consider this issue.

Would him being a girl affect my plans?

Would it interfere with helping the heroines and achieving a peaceful life?

“…”

Honestly, there didn’t seem to be any major problems.

Perhaps because I had been teaching him carefully, Luke’s growth rate didn’t seem slower than in the original.

However, I had to avoid ruining our relationship over this.

“Let’s see. I’ll head to the training ground early in the morning. I’ll talk to him then.”

My relationship with Luke, the protagonist of the original story, was crucial.

Here, I should approach him with an adult’s generosity.

After spending the dawn at the window with these thoughts.

As the sun rose.

I told Liliana I’d be back soon and headed out.

Clop clop-

Passing through the garden in front of my quarters, I headed towards the training ground.

The warm summer morning breeze brushed against my cheeks.

At this hour, most students would still be asleep or having an early breakfast.

But for a hard worker like Luke, it was time for his usual training.

He would definitely be at the training ground now.

A talented individual blessed by the stars, yet more diligent in training than anyone.

That’s Luke Starlight.

With that thought, I entered the training ground.

Under the morning sunlight, Elda was swinging her sword alone.

‘Hmm?’

But something felt off.

Looking around the training ground, Luke was nowhere to be seen.

The person I expected to be here was missing, and a faint sense of unease crept in.

Could it be because of what happened yesterday that he didn’t come to the training ground?

Or maybe he came earlier…

Swallowing my doubts, I entered the training ground, and Elda noticed my presence.

“Phew. Phew. Huh? Master?”

“You’re working hard early in the morning, Elda.”

“This is normal for me. Did you come to train?”

Elda wiped the sweat from her neck and asked.

She was wearing light training clothes instead of her usual black leather armor, and her white sleeveless top accentuated her slightly plump armpits and ample chest.

Moreover, the sweat made her look healthily alluring.

This is no time for that.

I struggled to tear my gaze away from her sexy body and spoke.

“Yeah. I came to move my body a bit before breakfast. Are you alone?”

“Yes. Are you looking for someone?”

“Ah, it’s nothing. I just wanted to talk to Luke Starlight for a bit.”

“Luke? He went back to his family a little while ago.”

“…What?”

“I ran into him while jogging, and he said he had to go back to his family. But he had a lot of luggage loaded on the carriage-.”

“Thanks for letting me know! I’ll go ahead!”

“Ah. Are you leaving already?”

Elda’s voice trailed behind me.

I turned back and waved at her, then quickly left the training ground.

I ran towards the academy entrance without stopping.

‘Damn it. What are you thinking, Luke…!’

Even if his important secret was exposed, suddenly going back to his family?

And with so much luggage, it was clear he planned to stay for a while.

Worst case, he might not come back.

Could there be something else I don’t know about?

‘Things are taking an unusual turn.’

My intuition was screaming at me.

I can’t let this go.

I need to find him now.

Luke Starlight.

The protagonist of the original story, an indispensable figure in my plans.

And now, not the starry boy.

But the starry girl.

To meet her, I hurriedly moved.