A week had passed since the rendouvouz just outside the Forest of Lost Spirits.
Trial and error. That's what the last week held for the Kingdom of Yondel. All over the capital city, soldiers and knights hurriedly moved to organize an expeditionary force to counter the Demon Lord's army. Reports were unusual, abnormal, and uncomforted, but the growing picture was that the Demon Lord was preparing an immediate strike within the kingdom.
Though life had suddenly picked up within the castle, life was still relatively mundane for the former members of Taskforce Spare. They had just finished a two-hour session of physical training, led by the sharp-tongued Captain Orwell, and his small collection of knights.
Unironically both PFC Green and Simon were not happy of sudden development of doing PT, and their frustration was redirected to Princess Lecca who observed the men as they performed their daily tasks.
Now, however, the seven men waited in a waiting room. Each man waited anxiously as a small group of butlers and maids prepared a warm bath. Sure, they were thankful for the chance to be clean after a week and two days, but Captain Thompson did not entertain the idea of letting their gear fall into 'enemy' hands, so he requested that each man brought their gear into the washroom.
Mike tapped his foot against the marble flooring. Small, almost miniscule pieces of dirt escaped his boots making him cringe at the thought of cleaning them afterword's. Yet this was not the main problem. The thought that remained in his mind was the worrisome thought that himself and the other Rangers were being held back. King Aldrecht had ordered him and the other six to form a taskforce made for special reconnaissance and sabotage, yet even with the taskforce being formed already, he and the others had yet been sent on a mission against the so called, "Demon Lord".
A cold sweat ran down the side of his head as the doors leading to the washroom opened. "Holy Knights!" Stepping into the waiting room, Princess Lecca's personal butler stepped out and folded his right hand over his heart as he gave a curt bow, "Your bath is ready."
"Uh, thanks…" Patterson said while walking inside of the room. The other men followed the Lieutenant's lead, and it wasn't long before the men all sat inside the large pool of water.
Finally finding the proper time to clean himself, Mike used the water to remove the blood that had dried on his hand. Wearing a pained expression, he took a nearby bar of soap provided by the butlers and lathered his arms and torso.
"Hey Sergeant, mind if I ask a question?" Simon suddenly spoke up. He sat across from mike, and his brunette hair was fully lathered in soap. After receiving a swift nod from Mike, he continued, "Just was wondering, but how did you get that scar on your neck?"
Lifting his clean left hand and covering the small scar that was on his neck, Mike let out a pained laugh, "It's about time someone asked me about it, though I would've thought the Princess would've asked about it first."
"C'mon just tell me!" Simon said mildly annoyed as he scooped up a bit of water and threw it at Mike who shielded his face with his arms.
"Alright! Alright!" The other men watched with cheeky smiles as Mike got Simon to settle down. Once the sudden 'firefight' had ended, Mike couched into his arm as he reminded the men how he had gained the scar, "When I was just a boot, I caught a bit of shrapnel." He said slightly embarrassed as Patterson suddenly shouted from the other side of the room.
"C'mon you bastard, don't lie to us, we all know it happened during Ranger School!"
"Hey shut it!" Mike said with a red hue over his facial cheeks. "I told you that grenade incident wasn't supposed to be mentioned!"
Sudden silence grew. Realizing his mistake, Mike lowered himself back in his submerged seat and covered his face with both of his hands. Patterson and Thompson snickered at the embarrassed Ranger, while the rest looked at him amused.
At the entrance of the room, the large wooden doors swung open. Alarmed at the sudden visitation, the men became alert as they steeled themselves for a possible confrontation, yet after several seconds of observing who the visitor was, the men with the exception of Thompson, Patterson, and Mike quickly turned around in embarrassment and fear.
Of all people, Princess Lecca and her butler entered the warm room fully clothed. Patterson's face contorted in confusion as he rose from his seat, his wet hair letting droplets onto the floor.
"Princess? Why are you here?" The first one to address the silver-haired woman was Mike. He received an unsure-puzzled look from the woman. "Isn't this a male bath? Should you really be in here?" He asked while covering his exposed chest.
"A male bath?" Lecca parroted. "What might you mean by that? It is normal for everyone to wash in the same room…" She said questioning why Mike had asked such a question. "Perhaps you mean strangers? Yet aren't we acquaintances?"
Dumbfounded, Mike could not find the words to answer. His mind was completely shocked, and he froze up. "Sergeant." From behind him, Thompson called out to him in a reassuring voice, "Remember Sergeant, different cultures."
Lowering his arms, Mike's chest became visible, and Lecca observed the man with unassuming eyes. She remained modest in her posture as Thompson once more directed the conversation to her, "So, Princess, what can we do for you? We are not necessarily in the best condition to anything right this moment." He said calmly while obviously stating that they were not prepared as they were dressed in nothing but towels around their waists.
"All of you need to report to the throne room within the hour. Your combat garbs have been taken for cleaning, so you all have been provided with the military's standard issue uniform." She said firmly turning on her heels.
In a flash the wooden door slammed shut and the men who turned away when the princess entered slowly faced Mike who was in a confused-frozen state. It seemed that the events that just occurred were still being processed in his mind.
"Alright!" Snapping him out of whatever thoughts kept his body locked up, Mike instantly faced the owner of the voice, Patterson. "Everyone wash yourselves off, then get your gear set!"