Chapter 40. Suspended Between Two Girlfriends Like a Bag of Laundry

Chapter 40: 40. Suspended Between Two Girlfriends Like a Bag of Laundry

I looked up at the sky and wondered if the universe was doing this on purpose.

But then I glanced over at the two of them, arguing happily about whether I should be allowed to carry my own sword, and I found that I didn’t mind at all...

If my future was going to be full of people who worried about me, I could think of worse problems.

Sharon found us near the stairs to the training hall.

I think she’d meant to ask whether the new knights were going to cause trouble before supper, but what she saw seemed to stop her in her tracks.

Alicia had hold of my left arm and was lecturing me about something with great energy. Laura, who had once refused to stand within ten feet of anyone who wasn’t on duty, was at my right side with a hand hovering near my elbow, just in case.

On the third step, my foot caught on a worn edge, and the two of them reacted at once.

"Roland!"

Alicia grabbed my arm. Laura caught my other side.

I ended up standing very straight and slightly off the ground, suspended between them like a bag of laundry.

"Sorry about that... I tripped," I said. "That’s all."

But nah... that’s not what happened. I just wanted to see their reaction, and wow... they’re fast.

Thank the gods that I got two protective girlfriends, but of course... it IS my job to protect them since they’re going to carry my children in the future.

Oh wow... why did I think of this that fast?!

"You’re not fully healed," Laura said.

"And you’re not supposed to push yourself," added Alicia.

Sharon started laughing. "AHAHAHA~!"

She didn’t try to hide it. It was a big, honest roar that echoed off the stone, and a few knights at the far end of the yard actually turned their heads.

I set my feet down properly and gave her a wounded look.

"Something funny, Lady Sanford?"

She wiped her eyes with her knuckle. "No... I just realized something."

"What?"

"On the night of the attack, I assumed you were the kind of person who only thought about fighting and protecting strangers." She folded her arms and looked me up and down. "But it turns out... you also have an uncanny ability to make talented women worry about you."

"Is that a... bad assessment?"

"Not necessarily."

Alicia broke into a wide grin. "Lady Sanford, you’ve only seen the beginning."

"Alicia," I said sharply.

"What? I’m just telling the truth."

Sharon looked from Alicia to Laura and then back to me, and a slow dawning look crept across her face. "Wait... Are the three of you... really...?"

"It’s not what you think!" Laura blurted, turning red from collar to hairline.

"I haven’t said what I think, Laura."

"That’s what Alicia said earlier...!"

Alicia was laughing again. Sharon shook her head and held up both hands.

"All right, all right... I won’t pry into your personal lives."

She paused, and her expression changed. The teasing went out of it, and what was left was something quieter and more serious.

"But I do want to say something to you, Ravenshield."

I straightened. "Y-yes?"

"You’ve got a remarkable talent, but talent alone doesn’t make a good knight..."

"What impressed me about you wasn’t how you fought Garrick, but it was that you kept trying to save people when you could barely stand up."

I didn’t know what to say to that because I swear I hear the same thing many times before.

"I’ve trained a lot of knights," she went on. "Some were gifted, some were strong, and some were ambitious."

"But... Very few of them kept thinking about other people while they were falling apart."

Her voice softened. "Don’t lose that... But learn to stay alive while you do it."

"The world needs knights like you, and not... heroic corpses."

"Thank you..." I nodded slowly. "I’ll remember that."

"Good." She smiled, satisfied. "Which is why, once you’re healthy, you’re going to attend additional training under my personal supervision!"

"Say what now...?" My smile froze in place. "A-additional training?"

"Yes."

"How h-hard?"

Sharon grinned with every one of her teeth, and I felt the cold sweat on my back.

"Hard enough that you won’t pass out the next time you save a city, hahaha!"

Alicia laughed so hard that she had to hold onto a pillar. Laura covered her mouth with her hand, but her shoulders were shaking.

I looked at both of them with the wounded dignity of a man who has been betrayed by everyone he loves.

’Bloody hell... So this is the price of being a Royal Knight,’ I thought.

Sharon went off to confirm the training schedule, and I was left with two women who were both smiling in a way that made me nervous.

Alicia waited until Sharon was out of earshot, and then she leaned in close and spoke in a stage whisper that could have been heard in the next building.

"Roland."

"Hm?"

"I was thinking about something."

"If this is about the training schedule... I don’t want to hear it, especially from you."

"It isn’t."

She was grinning ear to ear.

"Don’t you think Lady Sharon would make a really good next... candidate?"

I stopped walking.

And Laura stopped too.

We both turned to Alicia at the same time.

"What...?" I said.

"Alicia!" Laura exclaimed. "That’s inappropriate!"

Alicia held up her hands with all the innocence she had on her face. "Whataaa?~ She’s strong, she’s beautiful, she’s experienced, and she’s an SSS-Rank knight!"

"If she joined us... our team would get a huge upgrade!"

I stared at her as if she’d just suggested that we storm the royal palace. "And besides... She’s Laura’s teacher! I bet the chemistry is still fit."

"And she’s also an excellent knight."

"Fuck no! She could break my spine with one hand!" I gulped. "Don’t you see her muscles and how different our age is?!"

"I don’t see anything wrong with that... you once said that you’re interested in an older woman."

Fuck... she fucking remembers anything that I said about women. She should’ve just forgotten about all of that because I said it when we were kids!

"As for the muscular thing..." Alicia thought about that. "Then I guess... you’ll just have to get stronger, but you’re also muscular."

"Laura probably knows that too." She smiled in such a mischievous way at Laura.

Laura then looked away.

"Don’t you think this is a good idea, Laura?" She patted her shoulder.

"No! That isn’t the point!" Laura said while looking back at her.

Laura had put both hands over her face. "I can’t believe you’re saying this out loud, in the middle of the Order’s courtyard..."

Alicia tilted her head toward me. "Besides, your curse needs new bonds in order to keep growing, doesn’t it?"

I went still. And can’t see, just shut the fuck up for a minute so that I can get a little breather?!

She narrowed her eyes. "I’m not saying you should chase anyone... But I’ve seen how much it takes out of you when you’re fighting at your limit."

"I don’t want you going into the next battle with your reserves almost empty... I want you stronger, and I want Laura to get stronger too!"

"And if Lady Sharon turns out to be a good match... I don’t see why we should close the door on it."

For a few seconds, I couldn’t find an answer. Even if I tried to answer it, the words would just be stuck in my throat.

Alicia smiled again, a little more gently. "And of course... take it as if it’s only a possibility."

"Nobody’s going to be pressured around here."

Laura lowered her hands. "Hahhh... can’t believe I have to say this, but..."

She was still blushing, but her voice was steady. "She’s right about one thing, though... If Sharon’s interested, she’ll be the one to decide that."

I looked at Laura, and then at Alicia. They were both completely serious about this... if I ignored the mischief tugging at the corners of Alicia’s mouth.

’Two of the most important people in my life,’ I thought, ’have just calmly discussed a third partner like they’re planning a seating chart.’

"Gahhh..." I sighed. "Fine..."

"For now, I’m going to focus on recovering and on the Order’s investigation."

"Of course," Alicia said sweetly.

And then, in a whisper I definitely wasn’t supposed to hear, she added, "But I’m going to be watching her reactions."

"Alicia!" Laura gasped, and then, to my total surprise, she laughed.

I’d lost that argument before it even started.

...

That night, I sat alone in the quarters the Order had given me.

It was a small, plain room with a narrow bed and a desk and a window that looked out over the practice yard.

On the desk lay the new badge of a Royal Knight, my kingsteel sword in its scabbard, and a copy of the Site Nine papers I’d been reading for the past two hours until the words had started to swim.

I opened the panel.

[CLASS STATUS: THE BREEDING KNIGHT]

[Established Mutual Bonds: 2]

[Current Lust Threshold: 100%]

[Next Milestone: 5 Additional Stable Bonds]

[Potential Threshold Unlock: 200%]

[Abilities Acquired: Knight’s Sovereignty, Aether Manipulation, Combat Instinct, Valkyrie’s Grace]

[Warning: Further evolution requires compatible bonds, combat experience, and class progression.]

I went over the screen carefully. I had two women who trusted me, a title I’d only dared to dream about, and a chance to grow stronger than I’d ever thought possible.

But I also had a problem that wasn’t going to solve itself...

Garrick was in a cell, but whoever had armed him was still free.

Site Nine was still a mystery. And someone in this kingdom had enough power to forge a garrison warrant and make a knight disappear from the roster.

I closed the panel and leaned back in the chair.