Scheme – 2

Following Rakshia out of the castle, I found someone beyond the knights standing with troubled expressions and made the same face.

As soon as the members confirmed my arrival, they all moved aside to the left and right as if it was perfect timing. In the center stood someone I had never expected.

‘……Aurora?’

It was Aurora.

She was wearing a wide-brimmed beige hat pulled low and a black mask covering two-thirds of her face, but her long black hair flowing down her back and the golden pupils shining through it were enough to identify her.

It was already absurd enough that Aurora, who should have been at the mansion, had unexpectedly come to the castle with her face covered, but the clothes she was wearing were even more of a sight.

For her top, she was only wearing a single white shirt, and with about three buttons undone, her bare skin was visible. Through the white shirt, the black lingerie covering her chest was clearly visible.

She wore nothing on the bottom. The hem of the white shirt, barely covering her buttocks, was the end of it. In other words, she was wearing a bra but no panties.

I wondered what kind of outfit that was supposed to be.

If she had completely excluded underwear, like with the dresses she usually wore, that would be one thing, but wearing a bra and no panties? What kind of situation was this?

‘Why is she here?’

Even setting aside the fact that women in this world commonly wear such clothes, there was no particular reason I could think of for Aurora to specifically come here.

‘I don’t know why she’s disguised. Is she doing this on purpose so I’ll recognize her?’

Before that, I wondered if she even intended to properly hide her identity. The Vice Knight Commanders and regular members had already noticed, and I, too, instinctively recognized her as soon as I saw her.

I also understood why Rakshia had used the word ‘guest’ and made an ambiguous expression.

It seemed like she was trying to hide her identity in her own way, but since the disguise was useless, Rakshia probably wondered if she had dressed like that on purpose to be recognized.

I subtly whispered to Rakshia beside me.

“Rakshia. What do you think of that outfit?”

“Are you saying the clothes Lady-nim is wearing? I think they are ordinary women’s outdoor attire. She chose quite ordinary clothes, it seems. Although it doesn’t seem to have much meaning.”

‘Ordinary?’

I re-examined Aurora’s outfit.

A white shirt with three buttons undone, fully exposing her black lingerie, cleavage, and upper chest, and the material was so thin that even the pattern of the lingerie was visible.

The hem of the white shirt barely covering her crotch and buttocks. Her thighs and calves fully exposed since she wore nothing underneath. Even high-heeled black shoes.

That kind of attire is ordinary outdoor wear?

‘……Ah. Could it be that the original modeling was that?’

If the most common female cloth armor worn by female NPCs on the street had been changed into a naked white shirt by a mod, then Rakshia’s reaction would be perfectly understandable.

Because she would perceive it as ordinary outdoor clothes, not a naked white shirt. Just like how she chose bunny girl outfits for the Knight Order’s uniforms.

I sighed deeply and approached Aurora.

“What are you doing here, Lady-nim?”

“Who is this ‘Lord’? I don’t know anyone like that?”

“If you’re going to pretend to be someone else, you should at least try to change your voice. Did you really think I wouldn’t recognize Lady-nim’s voice?”

“…….”

Aurora stood there shamelessly. It seemed she had no intention of revealing her identity. I wasn’t sure if she genuinely believed her disguise was effective, or if she was just being brazen.

It was probably closer to the latter.

“Alright. If that’s truly the case, then there’s nothing I can do.”

“That’s riㅡ”

“By the way, why are you speaking informally to me?”

As I instantly changed my stance, not only Aurora but also the Vice Knight Commanders and regular members who had recognized the guest’s identity flinched.

“I’m the second most powerful person in this territory after Lady Aurora-nim, so you shouldn’t speak informally to me when you’ve just arrived. Or, reveal who you are.”

I calmly forced her to choose between revealing her identity or speaking formally to me. It’s always best to be just as brazen with brazen people.

No matter which option she chose, I had nothing to lose. If she revealed her identity, my goal would be achieved, and if she didn’t, I’d get to hear Aurora speak formally to me.

After a long period of contemplation, Aurora seemed to make up her mind and cautiously opened her mouth.

“……I’m sorry, Knight Commander-nim.”

In the end, it seemed she intended to feign ignorance until the very end.

Since she was going to such lengths, I didn’t particularly want to press her for her identity. She must have had some kind of plan or reason of her own.

“Good, you know now. So, who are you? You probably know who I am, so there’s no need to say it.”

“Orora……ra.”

‘Orora?’

Is she really doing this so I’ll recognize her identity?

“Alright. Auro…… Orora. Why are you here?”

“Lady-nim gave an order to Delta-nim.”

Aurora, no, Orora, put her hand between her bra.

Startled by her sudden movement, I glanced around at the others, but they all reacted calmly. I was the only one surprised.

While I was flustered, Orora pulled out a neatly folded piece of paper from between her bra and held it out. As I took the paper, a warm sensation spread to my hand.

I unfolded the paper. A short letter from Aurora was written on it: ‘Play with that child for the day. Lord’s order.’ Judging by the handwriting, it was indeed written by Aurora herself.

Or perhaps Orora wrote it herself.

“Alright. At least it’s definitely Lady-nim’s handwriting.”

I folded the paper along its creases again and subtly glanced at Orora.

“Even if it wasn’t this method, if you had asked me to play, I would have gladly played with you.”

As if she had caught on to why I was deliberately using formal language, Orora’s body flinched for a moment. But she immediately returned to her original brazen demeanor. It was typical Aurora behavior.

As the Lady, she must have been very stressed dealing with the messes that guy made, so she probably needed a way to relieve it. Moreover, she had recently been to the Imperial Palace, so it must have been even harder.

Though I don’t know why she chose this method to relieve stress.

“Rakshia.”

“Yes, Captain-nim. Please speak.”

“While I’m gone, you’ll take command. If it’s too much to handle alone, divide the tasks appropriately with the other Vice Commanders. Not just now, but from now on, whenever I’m away, you can take command in my place.”

“……I understand.”

Rakshia, who had tilted her head at my words to continue doing so in the future, looked back and forth between Aurora and me, then nodded with an understanding expression.

It seems she misunderstood something.

“It’s not what you’re thinking, Rakshia.”

“I fully understand.”

Rakshia smiled and nodded. What did she fully understand?

Feeling uneasy, I returned the paper. Orora took the paper and tucked it back between her bra and chest.

I became extremely curious as to where the pocket was originally located on her clothes that her bra was serving as a substitute.

“Lady-nim said she wanted you to play with her for the day, is there anywhere you want to go?”

“Hmm…… not really.”

“Oh? Then let’s stop by somewhere first. Is that okay?”

“Yes. You may.”

By then, Orora seemed to have perfectly adapted to formal language. There wasn’t an ounce of hesitation in her using honorifics towards me.

I checked the gold coin pouch hanging at my waist, left a word of request to Rakshia, and then exited the castle. Orora quietly followed behind me.

As the two of us left the castle, I heard faint whispers behind us. I couldn’t make out the exact content, but the speculation wasn’t hard.

It was probably about the relationship between Aurora and me, with people going back and forth.

‘My image is ruined.’

At the Imperial Palace, I even postponed the assembly time from evening to the next morning because I was having sex with Rije, and now I’m doing this with Aurora after returning.

Rakshia’s expression wasn’t particularly bad, but it was unclear if the other knights thought the same.

“Knight Commander-nim. Where are we going now?”

“The blacksmith.”

“Why there?”

“Weapon enha…… I have some weapons to take care of.”

I was about to say ‘because of weapon enhancement,’ but quickly changed my words.

Recalling how Iris understood when I said ‘stamina’ while explaining the vitality enhancement rune, the concept of weapon enhancement probably exists too, but just in case.

I walked down the street, conversing about various future plans with Aurora, who claimed to be Orora.

However, people’s gazes were unusual. Overall, the way they looked at me was quite different from before. It felt like much more attention was focused on me.

I wondered if it was just my imagination, but then I saw women looking at me with eyes full of awe or turning their heads with flushed cheeks every time I turned my head, so it definitely wasn’t just my imagination.

Ignoring the uneasy feeling, we arrived in front of the blacksmith building just as I finished talking about the monster subjugation plan.

‘It’s much bigger than in the game.’

I opened the door and went inside. Orora immediately followed behind me.

As soon as we stepped inside, a scorching heat greeted us. It was a level of heat slightly less than a sauna. One more step and it would feel ‘hot’ rather than just ‘warm’.

Not only were there walls covered with all sorts of weapons, but also a red-hot forge burning fiercely in the back. It was the exact same scene I had seen in the game.

Beyond a wide shelf separating the customer area from the workspace, someone was sitting with their chin propped up.

‘It’s a woman.’

In the game, it was a muscular old man, but here, it was naturally a woman. Perhaps because it was a profession that dealt with fire, her hair was very short, barely reaching her neck. The color was ordinary black.

She had completely removed her top and bound her chest tightly with bandages. It seemed to be due to the stifling heat. What she wore on her lower body was hidden by the shelf, so I couldn’t see it.

The woman, who had been biting her nails with a bored expression, raised her upper body when she saw me.

“Wow, a big shot on the first day of business. What brings you here?”

“I came to enhance…… a weapon.”

I answered cautiously.

“Oh? Give me the weapon.”

The woman held out her hand. Fortunately, it seemed the concept of weapon enhancement did exist. I unfastened the Wingless Nightmare from my waist and placed it in her hand.

As soon as the woman took the weapon, she let out an exclamation of ‘Oh!’

“So this is what it means to be the Knight Commander, huh? You’re using a really good weapon. I can tell just by looking.”

The woman, who had been fiddling with the Wingless Nightmare for a while, spoke again.

“Alright, how much do you want to enhance it?”

“As far as you can.”

For now, it could probably only be enhanced up to +10. To increase the enhancement value beyond +11, I had to progress through the game to some extent.

The method was to obtain clues while progressing through the story, clear dungeons following those clues to find forgotten ancient texts about weapon enhancement materials, and then deliver them to any blacksmith to unlock additional enhancements.

After +10, the weapon UI would display ‘Knowledge of special materials is required for additional enhancement,’ so there was no way to miss it. Unless it was someone who didn’t read explanations at all.

“The moneyㅡ”

“Ah, wait, wait. The money’s fine.”

“What? What are you saying?”

“If you grant me one favor, I’ll do what you ask for free. How about it?”