Chapter 8: There are cows! There are cows!

Become hers!

Was this an invitation to start a game?

Cecilia’s fingertip traced circles at the small of Rita’s back, as if hinting something, and countless pixelated images flashed through Rita’s mind.

Since she had already been pinned down once, closing her eyes and kicking with her calves was all it took to get through it; besides, whoever initiated it didn’t affect the Incubus’s energy intake, so she might as well just go with it.

Or rather, did she even have the option to refuse?

But Rita couldn’t just agree outright; she had to keep some dignity.

“Your Highness, isn’t this inappropriate…?”

“If you obey, I won’t hold past events against you, and I’m the chief examiner for the Holy Knight trials. Otherwise, have you thought about the consequences if you refuse me?”

Blackmail and seduction, huh? No more acting, then!

If she agreed, would she be becoming a Holy Knight or just a bedwarmer maid?!

“Hm?” The princess snorted softly and patted Rita’s shoulder, as if delivering a final ultimatum.

“Eek—” Rita let out a startled cry, then shut her eyes and steeled herself. “I agree! Come, come on!”

The princess’s hand slid off Rita’s body.

There was a soft rustling sound again, but after waiting for a long while, Rita felt none of the anticipated contact.

She sneaked open one eye just a crack and was surprised to see Cecilia had sat back down across from her.

“N-no? Not coming? Or do you want me to go to the bed myself?” Rita asked timidly.

“To the bed?”

“Isn’t it that you want me to become yours?”

“That’s right.”

Cecilia answered promptly, but the latter half of the sentence, which should have naturally followed, got stuck in her throat.

Her delicate face visibly flushed, and her usually confident tone turned into a stammer:

“W-w-what? Who said anything about doing that with you?!”

Cecilia’s reaction left Rita momentarily confused.

But this was the first time she had seen her so flustered.

Well, she had always thought of her as a doll-like figure, but even dolls could have such weak and adorable moments, huh?

Clearing her throat to cover her embarrassment, Cecilia’s cheeks remained tinged with red.

“Someone has sinister designs on me. The guards who let you in, the lord of the city, even Dorothy from your entourage cannot be trusted.”

Dorothy—that should be the mage, right?

Yet this only deepened Rita’s confusion.

“Then am I really that trustworthy?”

Cecilia adjusted her posture and chuckled softly, like a feather brushing the heart’s edge: “Yes.”

Amid Rita’s puzzled gaze, Cecilia continued.

“Someone who’s been in my room without taking anything or making any moves against me then appears at the examination site—either they don’t know my identity, or they’re doing it on purpose. And your attempt to leave the plaza already gave me the answer.”

So she had seen it then!

“Your departure became the trigger for the assassination to start. You, as the fuse, chose to stay, which means you have the ability to assess the situation and the courage to act.”

“As for courage, the fact that you could sleep peacefully under the shadow of death shows you understand panic and anxiety won’t solve anything. Yet from the moment I entered the room, you never held the initiative—whether it was me making unreasonable demands, exposing your lies, or even asking you to serve me, the first thing you thought of was… ahem.”

Hmm, so clumsy, so cute.

Cecilia’s reaction nearly confirmed to Rita that she had no memory of pinning her down the previous night.

So, she probably didn’t know Rita’s identity as an Incubus either.

“You changed into your work clothes obediently, which means you had no weapons and no intention to resist. Also, you’re swayed by my topics every time, meaning you don’t overthink things. There are many such small details. Either you have the power to turn everything around despite your clumsiness, or you have no other choice under these circumstances.”

In fact, both were true.

Rita had escaped the demon clan’s territory through more than just luck, but she really didn’t want to rock the boat here.

Cecilia finally let out a long breath. “So, someone with no background, no employer, not particularly smart, genuinely wanting to become a Holy Knight, and capable of getting past the guards into my room—that’s exactly who I need right now.”

In the end, Rita agreed to the princess’s terms.

She had no real reason to refuse; refusing now would be tantamount to tearing apart their relationship, while agreeing could buy her more time.

Before leaving, the princess even lifted Rita’s chin and pecked her cheek lightly like a bird, leaving behind one final sentence.

“Rita, I understand your desire for me and know your life is difficult, but now you must focus on becoming a Holy Knight. Don’t do those disreputable jobs that harm the royal reputation anymore.”

Did she really think Rita was some kind of courtesan?!

If she’d known this, she might as well have said she was an adventurer who fights monsters by day and works by night.

Although Rita was indeed short on money—the proof she pulled from the crashed carriage wasn’t much, and after buying a set of equipment she didn’t really need, there wasn’t much left.

Since Cecilia had sent people to check her room, this assumption was understandable.

Not once did Cecilia ask why Rita had appeared in such attire on her bed last night.

After all, it concerned Cecilia’s reputation and helped Rita keep her identity as an Incubus secret.

Both tacitly kept these little secrets from each other.

While Cecilia tested Rita, Rita could sense some traits of Cecilia’s true self.

Now that she thought about it, much of Cecilia’s composed demeanor was likely for Rita’s benefit.

If she truly had everything under control, she wouldn’t have chosen to make Rita her companion, nor would she be so distrustful of others.

The proud princess had no one she truly trusted by her side.

Reality was even more complicated than Rita had imagined.

Because of the assassination attempt, the princess could no longer stay at the inn and had moved into another guest room in the city lord’s manor.

Rita, once a suspect and now cleared because of the princess, was formally granted the right to use the room where she had been confined.

Not only were her belongings returned, but she was also treated to delicious food and a soft bed.

So, working with the princess wasn’t so bad after all…

Not really!

Agreeing with the princess was only a delaying tactic.

Now that night was deep and silent, if she didn’t leave now, then when?

Like a shadow, Rita slipped out through the window, fluttered her small wings, and ascended vertically, landing on the roof of the city lord’s manor.

There were soldiers patrolling the perimeter, but surely their vision didn’t extend this high up?

Just as Rita prepared to survey her surroundings, a gust of wind rushed past her side.

Without thinking, she rolled aside just in time to let a massive horn miss her by inches.

That’s when she finally saw what was attacking her.

There was a bull on the city lord’s roof! A bull!