The Sword and The Dress - V3C2 PART6

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Translator: iveyra | Editor: Ms. Sheepnn
If he’s a shop owner in a back alley, nine times out of ten he’s a commoner, while I’m a young noble lady. Meanwhile, the clergy basically disregards someone’s status and treats them equally with respect. Even so, there are many people who don’t adhere to this principle, hence there has been a campaign saying ‘As the Goddess’ servants, we must treat the young lambs who follow the Goddess with kindness and compassion’. And yet, when we’re invited to the Imperial Palace or other places, we treated others based on their status in a befitting manner. Even in my case, I received the same treatment as any other knight commander at the Imperial Palace and acted accordingly. Furthermore, there was status discrimination within the Church as well.

The shop owner got up from his seat while scratching his head.

“Do you have any…. romance books for men?”

“It’s called porn books, you know.”

(T/N: in ch2 part 3 I’ve explained that the Korean word for porn book can also be translated as painting book)

I remember Ortzen certainly called it like that. The owner was flustered by my words and looked around the surroundings. He looked like he was checking whether there was anyone accompanying me.

“Oh my, why is a young lady in a place like this… You look like a noble, but it’s past the closing time.”

“I think it’s time to open the store, though?”

“This alley usually opens at night and closes at dawn. I fell asleep for a while…..”

The shop owner checked outside as he said so. After confirming that there was no one else except a horse, he cleared his throat.

“Good gracious! What a bold woman. No matter how bright the day is, but you alone–“

“I asked whether you sell any painting books.”

The shop owner looked at me once and glanced outside before clearing his throat once again.

“Most of the books here are those kinds of books, so look for them yourself. We’ll close soon, so quickly pick one then leave.”

He was ready to pick a fight because he knew I was alone, but he just seemed to have given up. Because he’s not a hooligan without a future, but someone with his own store and doing good business. Besides, there’s nothing good about getting on a noble’s bad side. I nodded my head and looked around. How come all the books have a plain cover? There’s also no title. You couldn’t tell anything about the contents just by looking at the outside, so I picked up a book that was placed nearby and opened it.

I didn’t know there would be illustrations.

It’s even colored. This would be pretty expensive. Not only because the paint is expensive, but the panel also can’t be printed out, and you’ll have to manually draw each and every book. The picture that appeared as soon as I turned the cover was a naked woman. A beautiful woman with big breasts and a slender waist was twisting her body with a weird expression. I’m not bothered by it because I’m a woman too, but it’s a bit too much to show it to Captain Jullius. When I turned one more page, there’s a text on the back. All would be well if I could just tear off the illustration.n
When I skimmed through the story, perhaps because this book was for men, the protagonist was a man, unlike the book Sofia gave me. In the middle of the night, the protagonist sneaked into the bedroom of a slender beauty who was sold as a mistress to an evil lord.

This is a crime.

Even if she was forced to be a mistress, she’d still be charged with adultery. Even though I try to think positively that maybe he wanted to rescue her, it seems like based on the description of the protagonist’s mind, he’s about to secretly sleep with the beauty behind the Lord’s back! I’m screaming inside. Anyway, the protagonist entered the beauty’s bedroom and ran into a beautiful woman dressed in a thin negligee lying on the bed. Somehow or other, the beauty wasn’t wearing any underwear under her negligee. Isn’t it cold? Furthermore, her negligee was so loose that her breasts were all exposed. Did the Lord not even buy her a proper nightdress? The protagonist was excited by the sight of the half-naked beauty and jumped onto the bed. And then he began to grab and fondle her voluptuous breasts with his big hands. Under his rough hands, her breasts surged up and became contorted and the protagonist’s put his tongue to the pink nipple–

“Miss!”

“Eek!”

Gosh, my goodness! Being surprised, I turned around and saw adjutant Sieg, no, the butler, standing there before I knew it. When did he come? I didn’t know because I was reading a book. Rather, how did he know I was here? He was so dumbfounded that he was frowning heavily then he shouted.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

“… I’m buying some painting books. You said there was none!”

“Don’t buy it! Let’s go home now!”

“Ah, wait a minute! Let me finish this!”

I think the important part will begin soon! But Butler Sieg grabbed me by the wrist and ruthlessly pulled me.

“Don’t ever think of coming here again! The shop owner over there! If you let the young lady enter one more time, I will demolish the whole back alley.”

At the threat of the prince who was fully capable of acting on it, the frightened shop owner turned deadly pale then bowed his head. This is too much!

“Don’t be so mean just because of a book!”

“If you go looking into the painting books again, I will make it so that you’re banned from entering the Special Task Squad.”

“That’s too much!”

Even now, he hasn’t let me go out for a long time, but I can’t believe it that he won’t let me go out at all! In the end I couldn’t read the latter part of the book because I was caught by Sieg and he dragged me out of the store. After I was pushed into the carriage that was waiting outside the alley, I sat facing him while glowering at him with eyes full of discontentment.

“… How did you know I was here?”

“Ortzen told me.”

Whoa, that tattletale!

“Does that man tell you everything?”

“That’s not it. It’s kind of a deal.”

A deal. Well, given that the butler in front of me hasn’t said much yet, I think he kept the mess I did at the Special Task Squad yesterday a secret. Still, he asked me not to tell anyone that he’s the one who told me about this, but then he snitched on me first. How cheap. In the first place, didn’t he then tell me in order to snitch on me?

In the end, I couldn’t even buy a romance book for men. Well, I was a bit uncomfortable about giving that book earlier as a gift to Captain Jullius, but… I want to read it.

“Why isn’t there such a book in the library? There’s nothing but boring things there.”

“There’s none because that’s something you’re not supposed to see.”

“Don’t they sell it to be read by others?”

“Aren’t they doing business in such back alley because people can’t hold their head high when they read it?”

Mmm, is that so? However, up to the part I’ve read, there didn’t seem to be anything particularly wrong with it. I’m even more curious about the latter part. It’s not a crime, so I must get it secretly no matter what.n
When I returned home grumblingly, there was an unexpected person waiting there. Inertia, the girl whose long white hair flowed down her back, was sitting modestly on the sofa in the living room. What made the Saintess come out of the Church? There’s still a long time left until we go to catch the Demon King, though.

“Lord Roel.”

Iner, who requested for a private meeting, put the teacup that she was holding with both of her hands on the table and looked at it.

“I paid a visit to train the Lord at the request of the High Priest.”

“Uh, training?”

“Yes.”

She slowly sat upright and continued to speak.

“Rather than the Holy Knight’s combat style, my method would be more suitable for the current Lord Roel.”

Iner who was in front of me, was coming closer, then held my hand and fiddled it.

“You seem to have trained a bit. But this much isn’t enough.”

Well, that’s true. Although it’s possible to temporarily strengthen my body using holy power, the lack of basic foundation decreases the efficiency. If in my past body, my power was normally 5 and 10 after strengthening, I think my power is 1 normally and around 4 after pouring in holy power for my current body. Without a solid vessel, there’s also a limit in pushing it. If I strain myself, it’s possible to do up to 7 or 8, but after that, I’ll be sick for a week at best.

“Nonetheless, it can’t be done in a short time.”

In the past, I trained my stamina by swinging a wooden sword at an early age. Like that, it was honestly impossible to catch up with over a decade’s worth of results in a late teens’ slender body. Iner nodded briefly at my words.

“I know. That’s why Lord Roel wants to leave the Church.”

“What? No, that’s……”

“The High Priest told me so. With Lord Roel’s personality, you wouldn’t try to stay in your position that’s beyond your ability.”

“……”

It felt like I was caught off guard. It’s because while I didn’t have any of the thoughts she had just said, she wasn’t wrong either. If only I hadn’t been put into a body like this, but one that was on a similar level of ability to my original body. If I were, I wouldn’t have to worry and I would have returned to the Church right away. No matter what kind of bullshit those bastards said, I could have stopped and fended them off by beating them up properly and proving my skills. And then, without hiding anything like now, even though my body had changed slightly, the Captain of the Holy Knight Squad could have come back alive, hahaha.

But, even if I work myself to death right now, I can’t go back to what I used to be. Therefore, I’d rather leave completely than stay in an ambiguous position, and that kind of thought certainly exists inside my heart. Even now, didn’t Vice-captain Testa refuse to take the captain position because I’m still alive? Unless I were to hide my identity until the end, it was right to leave.

I let out a short sigh and scratched my cheek.

“That’s right. So please tell Vice-captain Testa to assume the captain position quickly.”

“It’s true that the reason Vice-captain Testa refused to take on the captain position was because Lord Roel is still alive, but it’s not so that you return to your position.”

“Then what?”

“It’s because of your ongoing promise with him.”

If it’s about a promise… Are you talking about the bet where the one who loses the fight is the one who will become the subordinate of the winner?

“Uh… if Vice-captain Testa wants to become my subordinate now…….”

“He said he’s going to be the captain of Count Epheria’s knights, so he was begging and asking the High Priest to let him leave the priesthood, and after getting scolded by the High Priest, he was placed under probation.”

… He truly deserved to be scolded. Not only a prince, but even a Duke wants to be hired too. This is too much.

“Why did he let go of adjutant Sieg easily? He should have put them in probation together.”n
“That’s because he felt uneasy about leaving Lord Roel alone. With that chap, Sieg, alone, it makes the Count Epheria household look suspicious, but if even Vice-captain Testa meddles in, it’ll be way too dangerous.”

At the mention of that dude Sieg’s name, my eyes unconsciously looked around the surroundings. I know that Saintess Inertia hates Siegfred, but she’s one of the higher-ups in the church, while he has already left the priesthood now, so can she just call him like that? If someone who knows the prince’s identity enters, they might begin a protest against the Church.

“Anyway, now I only have to take care of this one body of mine, so I’m just training my stamina moderately.”

I’m making my hands familiar with weapons that can be handled with less force than a long sword and shield, but that’s it. Thinking that I had retired, I spent my time leisurely.

“You’re lacking in getting a proper physical training.”

Inertia said firmly.

“No matter what, you certainly have to be able to dodge and escape. Also, unlike the Holy Knights where you faced the enemy head on, now you’ll have to learn how to approach the enemies quietly and deal with them swiftly.”

“That’s undoubtedly assassin–“

“It’s an old story. Now I don’t kill anymore.”

… I wonder if the back alley gang was like an assassin syndicate. Sieg and also the Elders had better look after their neck.

“I don’t know if I can do well.”

“Don’t worry. Anyone who has real fighting experience and holy power like Lord Roel will be able to learn it easily unless he’s a fool.”

No, contrary to all kinds of things we’ve been doing until now, it can’t be easy. I had a sad hunch that I’d have to hear her saying ‘stupid’ many times for a while.
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