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Jean looked into the basin. The clear water inside was calm.

‘Water Spirit, Water Spirit.’

He tried to gently touch the surface of the water with the palm of his hand and soon after tried to slap it because he thought it was foolish.

‘If it’s the spirit of water.’

“Eh, um, so… beautiful and cheerful water spirit?”

Are you beautiful and cheerful?

“Oh really.”

As he tried to speak, his poor vocabulary caught on, and Jean scratched his head. His red hair remained spiked and strong in any situation.

“Should I ask Nina to write something down? She’s good at things like this.”

It sounded plausible and cool when Nina chanted, but when he actually tried to do it himself, he was going crazy because he tickled all over.

It felt like his hands and feet were shriveling.

“Ahh!!”

There was a knock on the door as he ruffled his hair.

“Jean? Are you inside?”

“Huh? Yes!”

Jean hurriedly dropped the basin of water at his feet and told Nina to come in. She opened the door and came in. At a glance, one could see that Jean’s room was neat. It was thanks to the servant who cleans in the morning and evening.

“What’s up?”

“Sir Louis is calling.”

“Sir Louis?”

“Yes.”

Nina laughed lightly.

“I think it’s something that requires Nina and Jean.”

“Ah!”

When he realized what Nina was talking about, Jean jumped up from his seat, moved, and kicked the basin settled on the floor.

Gang!

Water poured on the floor with a sharp sound of metal. Nina was confused seeing Jean grunt while grabbing his feet.

“!”

“Jean, are you okay?”

“I’m perfectly fine. Damn this.”

“Why did you leave the basin at your feet?”

“Just because…….”

Seeing him mumble, Nina blinked her eyes and said “Ahhh~” and she slyly laughed.

“Did you mean to summon a spirit? The Water spirit? Huh? Huh?”

“Noisy.”

Jean opened his closet door, beckoning her to go away. He tossed off his vest and shirt, revealing his tight body. A thick side, strong arms, broad shoulders, and stamina that could even compete with a bear.

And scars.

“Why you didn’t ask me.”

“Ask what?”

Nina shrugged her shoulders at Jean’s stinging words. If he hated it that much, she didn’t mean to dig into it.

Instead, she just started chatting away.

“Jean talked about the spirit of water before. So while I was thinking about The Water spirit, somehow words came to mind.”

Was it because of The Lord of the Rings?

Or because of the kelpie 2?

_{(Note: A water nymph in the form of a horse from a Scottish legend)}

“Word? Something came to mind?”

Wearing a cotton-woven tunic, Jean made an outrageous face.

“Well. Strong, fast, and unstoppable. Can calm everything down and at the same time obstacles are not a problem.”

Nina pinched her finger.

“From high to low, from blunt to sharp, from hard to powder.”

“Hmm…”

His hands were slow because he seemed to answer half-heartedly while listening carefully. Nina came over with a giggle and started to button his shirt instead of Jean who was not moving properly.

“It is said that clear water purifies anything and is a source of nurturing life, but in fact, many lives cannot live in water.”

It goes without saying that the symbol of separation is also the symbol of purification. Because there’s a need to separate dirty things.

Nina tapped Jean’s chest announcing that it was done and said.

“Take care of your pants and shoes.”

“Who asked you to do it?”

As Jean grumbled and looked for his belt, when he saw Nina he squinted his eyes.

“Go away, please.”

“Can’t I just turn around?”

“No. Get out, get out, get out.”

“Hing-.”

After being pushed out by Jean, Nina waited in front of his room until he was ready.

Nina looked back on her dream last night. It wasn’t much of a dream.

She could only hear voices in a pure white space, her own and someone else’s. She was very familiar with the other voice, like a dream she had before.

– I will give you my blessing. When you preach the truth it will be sincerely heard by everyone and in any circumstance.

– I don’t think that will be enough.

-People who receive the blessing of the Great Spirit are favored by living things, so-.

The back story sounded like it was cut off, and the dream ended with that.

‘Great Spirit.’

Suddenly the opponent grew too big.

The Great Spirit and Me?

Blessing?

They will hear me with an open heart.

‘Ugh. Well, it’s a good thing but…’

The problem is that I don’t know if the dream is real or not.

‘Let’s just think it’s a good thing.’

Rather, I am more concerned about the fact that the Great Spirit was the conversation partner.

At that time, Jean, who was lightly armed, immediately came out. He frowned at Nina’s outfit.

“Is that all you are going to use?”

“Yes, that’s all.”

“At least use a shoulder and chest protector. Even you when pierced through, it’s done, so why are you like this?”

“I like light things. Even if I did get stronger, my stamina remains the same.”

“You are making me anxious.”

“I also have the spirits.”

Nina showed her wrist. Jean said, “But.” with a face laid with worries. Because of that, she offered a compromise.

“Then I’ll wear the knight’s uniform vest underneath.”

“Good.”

In the meantime, the fabric for making uniforms for the Knights was developed and evolved repeatedly, acquiring fire protection and Kevlar-like functions that could block most blades. Of course, no matter how hard it was, there were times when it could be torn apart with Sage Steel or high-quality iron swords mixed with Lency Steel. However, it was not torn by ordinary weapons or the claws of a B-class or lesser bellac.

It does not absorb the shock but mitigates the impact to the extent of being hit with a stick instead of a sword.

Nina wore her vest on her underside and put the tunic over it. At the sight of a loose outfit, Jean said.

“It looks like you’re wearing something inside.”

“I am wearing something inside.”

She said, “What are you even talking about?” and while they were waiting in the meeting place, Louis called the two of them.

“You two are here. Are you feeling better, Dame Nina?”

He asked with a smile. Jean and Nina looked at Louis’s outfit and then turned their gaze back to his face.

Nina nodded her head.

“I am fully recovered.”

Jean sighed and got up from his seat. He pondered a little whether or not to salute, he said.

“What are the orders?”

Louis lightly smiled at their reaction.

“Are you that surprised?”

“Hey, it’s been a long time since I’ve seen Sir Louis in a knight outfit. And it’s even a dark knight uniform. What are you plotting to do without your leader’s permission?” (Nina)

As Nina said it like teasing, Louis shrugged his shoulders.

“I bought one to make it easier to move around.”

“So do you need Nina and Jean? Or do you need the Dark Knights Commander and Vice Commander?”

I know, but let’s check it again.

Louis smiled a little.

“Nina and Jean are enough.”

────── •❆• ──────

Jean whistled.

“That’s amazing.”

His voice resonated in a large underground waterway. Nina was also impressed.

“I had no idea that something like this was under my feet.”

“I don’t know who made it, but it’s an underground waterway that’s not in use now.”

Louis’s purple eyes slowly looked at the two.

“From now on, there’s no need to keep a single person alive.”

Nina and Jean looked at each other once and nodded to Louis.

The floor was filled with shallow water, so it could make a splashing sound, but the waterway where the three people walked was quiet.

Louis had no hesitation on how to memorize the increasingly narrow waterways and forked ways that came in and out of the road.

‘Ah.’

Nina found her first enemy. She took out the dagger since it was more comfortable in narrow waterways than a sword.

She tapped her fingers lightly giving a hand signal that she would get rid of it. Nina ran as swiftly as a cat and cut off her prey’s breath.

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