When I returned home, the first to greet me was Erika.

“Welcome back, my lord, and congratulations on your victory,” she said with a graceful yet adorable curtsey, holding the sides of her skirt and bowing her head slightly.

“How are you feeling?” she asked.

“Well, I wasn’t directly on the battlefield. I had no reason to get hurt or overly exhausted. At most, the only discomfort I faced was muscle pain from sitting on a horse for too long,” I replied.

Due to the nature of my role as a military supply officer, I accompanied the troops to the …