"Hey, have you heard?"(lmao tbhk reference)
Armin, one of the senior knights under Dame Ramune, leaned in, his voice lowered to a near whisper. The knights gathered at the training ground, waiting for the leader's command, their murmurs filling the space.
Louise, the newest recruit, furrowed his brow. "Heard what?"
Armin glanced around cautiously. "Today's knight meeting will be led by our head leader—Dame Ramune."
Louise blinked, confused. "Okay... so?"
Theo, another knight, immediately slapped his hand over Louise's mouth, his face pale. "Don't say that so casually!" he hissed. "You don't know her. No—scratch that—you don't want to know her!"
Armin nodded solemnly, adding, "She's... not like the others. No pleasantries, no team reshuffling. She walks in, gives the mission, and expects us to perform flawlessly. She doesn't waste time because she already knows what we're capable of."
"Isn't that a good thing?" Louise asked, his voice slightly muffled under Theo's hand. "It means she notices our hard work, right?"
Theo stared at him, gripping his shoulders. "That's not the po—"
"Enough."
A single word cut through the air, silencing every knight present. The voice carried a cold authority that froze the trio in place.
All heads turned to see Ramune standing atop the high ground, her presence as commanding as ever, with Lionel by her side. She glanced down at the trio, her sharp gaze zeroing in on Louise.
"You," she called out, pointing directly at him.
Louise straightened immediately, the color draining from his face as Theo and Armin looked like they'd just seen their lives flash before their eyes.
"Yes, Dame!" Louise responded, his voice unwavering despite the growing pit in his stomach.
Ramune was silent for a moment, her unreadable gaze fixed on him. Even Lionel looked surprised, clearly expecting something scathing or harsh to follow.
Instead, her voice, still cold but oddly measured, broke the silence. "You're the one who helped me in the archives the other day, aren't you?"
Louise blinked, taken aback. She remembers? I thought she'd forgotten about that entirely—it was just a small thing... Regaining his composure, he stammered, "Y-Yes, Dame!"
Ramune gave a slight nod, and for the briefest moment, there was something that could almost be called a smile—a faint, unrecognizable twitch of her lips.
"Thank you," she said, tossing a small cloth bag toward him.
Louise caught it, his curiosity piqued. As he opened the bag, everyone in the training ground leaned in, expecting something horrifying or bizarre—Theo and Armin even braced themselves for the worst.
"A human organ?!" Theo thought, sweating profusely.
But instead, out came neatly baked biscuits in cute shapes.
Louise took a cautious bite, his eyes lighting up as he tasted something unexpectedly luxurious. "This... this is delicious! Thank you, Dame Ramune!"
The entire training ground froze, stunned. Theo and Armin's jaws dropped. Even Lionel blinked several times, utterly baffled.
Ramune gave a small nod, her voice cutting through the stunned silence. "Let's move on. The mission is at the southern forest, near the old garden. Here's the strategy.."
And just like that, her demeanor shifted back to its usual commanding tone, leaving everyone dumbfounded as the meeting continued.
---
After the meeting ended, the knights swarmed around Louise, bombarding him with questions like a press conference. Faces full of shock and curiosity, they eyed him like he had just solved an unsolvable mystery.
Meanwhile, Louise couldn't stop smiling, practically glowing with pride. Being recognized by someone as revered (and terrifying) as Dame Ramune made his entire day.
"Man... how did you get on her good side?" one knight asked, wide-eyed.
Still basking in the afterglow of the moment, Louise replied honestly, "I don't really know... I just helped her find something in the archives, but I didn't even finish because I got called away after that..."
The group nodded in unison, murmuring to each other with curiosity while piecing together theories.
Louise, however, was too lost in his own joy to notice. Hugging the biscuit bag tightly to his chest, he continued, "Even though we barely interacted and the time was so short... she still remembered me! "
He clutched the bag closer, stars practically shining in his eyes. "Don't you think she's amazing?! So cool and considerate!" His mind drifted, imagining Ramune as a radiant goddess in golden armor, holy and approachable.
The others exchanged glances, their imaginations betraying them. Cool, yeah… cool, they thought, but their mental picture of Ramune was very different: the same goddess outfit, except drenched in blood, eyes cold and calculating, a sword in hand, striking down her enemies mercilessly.
"I'm going to meet her again to show my gratitude!" Louise declared with conviction, turning on his heel and heading toward Ramune.
The other knights, sensing more drama, followed him like moths to a flame.
---
Meanwhile, Lionel was in the middle of a meltdown.
"Ramune…" Lionel wailed as he hugged her from behind, clinging dramatically. "We've known each other for seventeen years! And yet you gave your first handmade cookies to some random rookie?!"
Ramune, completely unbothered, kept walking despite Lionel latched onto her like a koala. Her voice was calm and flat. "I don't see the problem."
"Well, I see the problem!" Lionel cried, tears streaming down his face, soaking into her hair. "This is betrayal! You've never given me any gift like that! Not once!"
Ramune sighed softly, already regretting her decision to humor him. "…I've given you a gift before."
"That's NOT a gift!" Lionel shouted, his grip tightening as he practically lifted her off the ground. "That was a dead body you slaughtered! That's horrifying, not sweet at all!"
Ramune stopped, letting out another, heavier sigh. She turned her head slightly toward him, her face impassive. "Do you want cookies too?"
Lionel's tears stopped instantly. His eyes sparkled with childlike joy. "Really?! You'll make me cookies?!"
"Bring me to the kitchen before I change my mind," she replied flatly, turning her head forward again.
"YES, DAME DEAR!!" Lionel shouted enthusiastically, lifting her completely off the ground as he sprinted toward the kitchen at full speed.
Ramune, her legs dangling, simply closed her eyes with a resigned expression. "You're hopeless."