The gentle rays of the sun streamed through open patches of the high canopies, lighting up the compacted array of plant life on the ground.
The shade from the large trees covered Ansel as he constantly looked over his shoulders while he was busily collecting mushrooms sprouting near the roots of the large trees.
Although the day was beautiful and his favorite egg-shaped mushrooms were finally in season, Ansel's face was downcast and dispirited. He could not find the surprise and joy of plucking the tasty treasures from the ground. It was as if the gloom of yesterday's rain still lingered over his head.
The anger of the noble who was still in his home dawdled heavily upon his mind. He was so concentrated on the faults of upper society, he had ignored each noble as a person and stereotyped them all the same. However, no man was exactly the same.
Ansel understood the concept. Yet, because he dared not risk finding out the true character of each person and possibly hurting himself in the process, he labeled them all the same.
Thinking of the two knights in his comfy home made Ansel dissatisfied. While he was out in the dangers of the wilderness running away to avoid the awkward problems in his home, the two knights were safe in his home.
"It's my home! I shouldn't let them bother me! Even if I was wrong! They're guests damn it!" Ansel cursed out. The knight he thought that was higher ranking had actually turned out to be one of the potential heirs to the House of Phoenix.
That same noble had bursted out scolding him. It had been so long since he was so heavily reprimanded, Ansel was stunned unable to respond. However, as the man continued, Ansel could not argue back as the man had a point.
Though he never said anything to disrespect the man's fallen companions, he overlooked the situation and only showed his dislike for the noble and the situation.
Reflecting on his actions, he recalled that night days ago when he brought back the two bloody and grimy knights into his abode. It was not an easy night. Cleaning the two men who were both larger than him was a real struggle.
His tan face flushed with a tint of red as he recalled cleaning the naked bodies of the two knights.
Both of them outsized Ansel in both weight and height. He had to not only clean his damp home, but also clean up the two knights that late night.
Though he would soon find out he wouldn't mind.
Ansel's immediate decision upon returning home was to take priority in cleaning and drying his home first as he was still upset about being forced to take the two in. There was so much to dry and clean. Practically everything in the room was wet or damp. Ansel had to wipe down the excessive water on the floor and on the shelves before drying each item slowly. His top layer of his futon was soaked and he had to take out some spares. Luckily, he stored all his precious and important books and scrolls in his storage ring.
After completing the cleaning, he debated between which knight to clean first. Already exhausted, he decided to take the smaller of the two first, even though the knight was still much larger than himself.
The man without the stars on his chest plate was a head taller than Ansel, but the knight's arms were the size of Ansel's thighs. He was tempted to put off cleaning the knights until tomorrow, but they were smelling ripe and of iron. Ansel could not stand it.
Grabbing a pot off the shelf on his walls, Ansel pulled out a metal stand on the ground to hold up the pot. His eyes glowed as mana circulated in his body. A ball of water condensed in the air and slowly fell into the pot filling it up.
Satisfied, he placed a flat and wide piece of stone beneath the pot to protect the tree from the fire he would soon create. Again his eyes glowed as waved and moved his hand to direct and control the intensity of the flame to heat up the water.
Soon hot vapors rose from the pot, and Ansel discontinued his magic. He went to the knight and probed around his armor to figure out how to take it off. Ansel had never worn heavy armor before and had no idea how to take it off.
Examining piece by piece, with uncertainty he started with the most immediate item. Taking the hand of the knight, which was a size larger than his, he proceeded to pull off the gauntlets. With a tug, they came right of. Surprisingly, taking off the bloodied gauntlets was easier than Ansel expected.
Thinking the boots would be the most logical to take off next, Ansel would soon regret and underestimate the odor of wet feet that had been on the run all night.
"Oh my gods!!! What is that smell!" Ansel covered his nose. He was blind-sighted and punched in the face by the offending smell. Instantly, he was already feeling nauseous and keeping down his stomach. Holding his breath, he quickly grabbed a towel and soap to wash off the man's feet first. Running out of breath, Ansel frantically circulated his mana to quickly force the wind to push out the odor in the room.
After finishing the cleaning, Ansel had some resentment building inside. But with a deep breath, he continued and removed piece by piece the armor on the the knight's leg and thigh.
Though they were more difficult to slip off than the gauntlets, with slow twists he was eventually able to eventually yank them off. The most difficult and strenuous was the chest plate.
The big man was already heavy let alone adding on the chest armor. Ansel struggled to lift the man and his brawny arms up in order to attempt to pull off the chest piece over his head. The man was mumbling unconsciously in pain as Ansel forcefully twisted and turned to remove the armor.
"By the Gods! How do these people wear these things? There's another whole layer of chain mail and clothes too!" Flabbergasted, Ansel now detested the idea of getting armor. He had contemplated for a while now keeping a set in case he might really need it, but after this experience Ansel realized putting the ensemble on and taking it off would be a nightmare by himself.
After removing the chain mail, he realized really how much larger the knight was in comparison to him. The man's chiseled body was bulging out from underneath his tunic and trousers.
Undoing the buttons of the man's top, Ansel felt a bit like a pervert as he undressed the unconscious man.
"Stop thinking weird thoughts, brain!" Ansel protested to himself. The man had deep bruises and shallow cuts along throughout his body, but otherwise he was fine. Even damaged, the man's body was a work of art. Ansel gulped as he marveled at the chiseled torso.
The man's bare chest was bronze and hairless. His skin was tan and rough from his arduous training in the sun, giving him sexy and manly allure. His pecs were ripped and well supported by his defined abs. Ansel had a sudden desire to touch and explore the body of the man whose body was so different from his.
He quickly slapped his forehead and complained to himself, "what are you thinking? Focus!" With a gulp he began to take off the man's trousers.
Surprise!
He was shocked as he didn't expect the knight did not wear any underwear or garments down there.
Ansel had debated whether to help them clean down there, but decided to do so as he recalled the bad odor from the man's feet. If they were going to stay, Ansel could not stand living in a room smelling like the armpits of sweating men or feet fermenting in sealed in boots.
As they were all men and the two didn't know his sexual preferences, Ansel was going to do what was best for him and clean the two knights thoroughly. No strange or pungent smells were to be allowed.
Initially, Ansel prepared and braced himself by waiting for the cue in the form of underwear, but knight did not wear any. His manhood was displayed in all for Ansel to see. It took a while for Ansel to turn away. His isolated and aloof nature caused him to stay away from others, and it was a while since he last ventured for a one night stand.
With the knight fully naked, Ansel took his time to clean and he slowly rubbed and wiped off the dirt and smell off the man. When cleaning down below, Ansel shyly stared up at the ceiling while quickly washing around.
Ansel stole a couple of peeks before he dried and placed the man on his futon. Covering down below he, Ansel applied some salves at the man's unconscious grimace and bandaged the man into a partial mummy.
Stealing one last glance, Ansel covered the knight with his blanket.