A few seconds later, a female voice came from inside the door: "Who's there?" The voice was exactly as Aurelio had expected.
"Malgano."
Footsteps could then be heard from within. After another few seconds, the sound of the latch being drawn back rang out, and the door opened a crack. Through the narrow opening, Gloria poked her head out. She was rubbing her eyes and smoothing down her somewhat tousled hair, looking every bit as if she hadn't fully awakened yet. After a brief silence, she said, "Why are you using my full name? It's so formal." The two of them had only known each other for two days, yet they had already faced life-and-death situations together and fought side by side on several occasions. The female knight felt that, at the very least, they could be considered friends, so perhaps such formality was unnecessary.
"You didn't tell me which room was yours. Just using your first name might seem overly familiar. It would be rather awkward if I knocked on the wrong door."
"I see," Gloria nodded. "But you didn't make a mistake anyway."
"I was just lucky with my guess," Aurelio said.
"You guessed pretty accurately. Do you want to come in?"
"No, I just have two things to say. Hurry up and go have breakfast." With that, he took out his pocket watch and showed it to her. "If you don't go soon, you'll miss the time."
"I understand! I'm sorry for oversleeping by accident!" The female knight replied. "I'll get dressed right away."
"You'd better be quick about it," Aurelio reminded her. He was well aware of how long women usually took to dress. "Also, it's really sweltering today. Since it's just practice, don't wear your armor. You can dress more comfortably." He added as he was about to leave.
Gloria closed the door, and Aurelio returned to his own room. He picked up the unfinished copy of "Gatheria" and took his staff before making his way to the hall on the first floor. Breakfast time was nearly over, and the hall was becoming less crowded. These past few days had been almost like a holiday, with the soldiers having no training duties. They had mostly been idle, so once they'd finished their breakfast, they'd gone back to their rooms.
Aurelio took his seat in the corner and began reading the book he'd brought. This seat faced the stairs and was actually rather conspicuous. He'd barely read a few pages when a creaking sound came from the stairs. Looking up, he saw Gloria descending the steps. He hadn't expected the female knight to be so quick about getting dressed and looking presentable.
She was wearing a sky-blue short-sleeved dress. The hem of the dress just reached past her knees. The dress had a simple appearance, with neither its color nor its adornments being overly showy. However, its fabric was an expensive silk georgette. On the continent of Liparia, silk was extremely scarce. Fabrics made from silk were naturally reserved for the nobility. It was rather unusual, though, to design such high-quality fabric in such an understated and elegant way.
"Most noble ladies are rather tacky," Aurelio thought to himself. The noblewomen and young ladies in Serenia, when using expensive fabrics to make clothes, would invariably demand that they be elaborate and ostentatious. The garments had to be bedecked with intricate ornaments, and the colors had to be bright and flamboyant.
Men, on the other hand, had a different aesthetic sensibility. They typically wore single-colored robes. Although the materials of these robes weren't necessarily inexpensive, they didn't draw much attention. Perhaps when they were still minors, they might dress in more colorful attire, but once they reached twenty or twenty-five years of age, they would promptly switch to these plain robes.
Among the adult men in the entire country, only the head of state would dress more elaborately to showcase the "national dignity." When appearing in public or before people from other countries, he would don a black robe embroidered with gold threads, wear a crown studded with dozens of jewels on his head, and hold a golden scepter in his hand.
Aurelio could scarcely take his eyes off the female knight – this dress had made a deep impression on him. This simply designed piece of clothing had a more appealing look than those overly elaborate ones.
Gloria walked slowly down the stairs, her movements light and graceful, giving him a different impression from before. The upper part of the dress hugged her figure nicely, highlighting the curves that had been hidden beneath her armor. The shoulders, arms, and hem of the dress consisted of a single layer of fabric, which was more translucent than the double-layered sections, as if a delicate mist had enfolded her.
This ethereal beauty, like the moon half-hidden in the clouds, lasted only for a few seconds before she disrupted it. As soon as she stepped onto the level ground at the bottom of the stairs, she swiftly resumed her usual gait. She held her head high and strode towards Aurelio with a purposeful step. When she'd been wearing armor before, such movements had seemed fitting, but now the contrast was so stark that it appeared rather comical. Aurelio couldn't help but smile faintly at the sight.
"What are you smiling at?" Gloria walked over to him, pulled out a chair, and sat down. Her action of pulling the chair was anything but delicate. Her manner was just like that of a man, indistinguishable from that of an ordinary soldier.
Seeing her assertive actions, Aurelio couldn't hold back and broke into the broadest smile he'd shown in years. She was like a man masquerading as a woman. While her appearance was flawless, her true nature was revealed the moment she moved.
"I didn't think you were capable of smiling," Gloria sat down, looking thoroughly puzzled, having no idea what had prompted his smile. "Stop smiling!!"
"Sorry," Aurelio said. He was also wondering to himself why he'd smiled so heartily upon seeing her.
"Do you think I'm strange?" Gloria asked. "I know I'm always surrounded by a bunch of men all day long... but I am a woman, after all."
"Not at all," Aurelio replied. Meanwhile, he thought to himself, "You're different from other women. At least you have much better taste. Elaborate adornments on a beautiful woman can overshadow her natural beauty, and on someone less attractive, they can cheapen the overall look."
Gloria asked, "Have you eaten?"
"Of course," Aurelio said, and then continued...
Gloria got herself a breakfast and ate quickly. She didn't want to keep others waiting for long because she knew all too well the discomfort of waiting. She deliberately ate at a faster pace and finished her meal within ten minutes.
Aurelio opened the courtyard gate beside the kitchen for his companion, and they entered the courtyard. This inn had two courtyards, and they made their way to the smaller one. There were several knights doing additional training in the larger courtyard, but the small one was currently empty.
Today's weather was truly oppressive. Fortunately, there were quite a number of clouds in the sky. From time to time, several large clouds would block the sun, making the heat somewhat bearable. The female knight took a few deep breaths and said with a smile, "I had a headache just now, but it's much better now."
"You drank too much wine," Aurelio said with a slight frown. "It's bound to affect your learning speed."
"No way!" Gloria replied firmly. "I'll work hard."
"Alright," Aurelio gazed into the female knight's eyes and saw that they were crystal clear and bright, without any sign of drunkenness. He nodded and began to introduce the content of today's lesson to her.