[Arthur heard your question.]
[His expression was one of pure shock.]
[You could feel the impact your words had on him.]
[You realized you had touched upon a hidden secret.]
"Sir Rei, that's not true!"
Arthur waved his hands frantically, his golden locks swaying with the motion, rippling like tiny ocean waves.
"How could I possibly be a girl?! You must be mistaken!"
"..."
Rei didn't believe a single word.
Arthur not only refused to meet his gaze but was also trembling slightly.
The meaning behind such behavior was obvious—it was the telltale sign of someone struggling to conceal the truth.
Rei decided to push further.
He was never one to uphold lofty morals, nor did he feel the need to exercise restraint in such a situation.
The only thing that mattered now was uncovering the truth about Arthur.
"You say I'm mistaken?"
Rei reached out, placing a hand on Arthur's body.
"Arthur, is that truly what you believe?"
"..."
[Arthur didn't answer you.]
[But thanks to your experiences with Morgan, you immediately noticed the subtle shifts in his body.]
[You could tell—he wasn't rejecting your touch.]
[You realized this was an opportunity to push even further.]
"Not going to answer me?"
Rei's gaze slowly trailed up Arthur's slender waist, finally resting on his chest.
He recalled the sensation from their previous encounter—when he had used the excuse of a body search. Back then, it had been truly indistinguishable.
Would it be the same now?
Rei silently analyzed Arthur for a moment.
Yes, he could feel it—
Though subtle, the curves were unmistakably there, faint but present. They had been carefully suppressed beneath tight clothing.
This wasn't the firmness of muscle—it was something far softer, something that only belonged to youth in its prime.
There was no mistaking it.
Rei was now one hundred percent certain—Arthur was, without a doubt, a girl.
She had merely hidden it well.
He needed to make her admit it.
"Arthur."
Rei's voice was low yet firm, carrying a weight of seriousness that was impossible to ignore.
"You don't need to deny your identity."
"You, as a girl, are a truly beautiful existence."
Something in his words seemed to strike a nerve. Arthur, who had been silent moments ago, suddenly began shaking his head in denial.
"No… Sir Rei… I am not a girl… I am Arthur, son of Ector."
Rei had to admit—Arthur was incredibly stubborn.
But rather than frustrating him, it only fueled his determination—the satisfaction of breaking down such unwavering resistance.
The more one fought against reality, the harder they would fall when they finally succumbed to the truth.
"No, you are not the son of Ector."
"You are a beautiful girl."
As Rei spoke, his eyes wandered toward Arthur's outfit.
Clearly, Arthur had deliberately chosen clothing that concealed his figure, trying to hide any evidence of his true identity.
Rei reached out, taking hold of Arthur's hand, his fingers lightly brushing against the smooth surface of his skin.
Arthur's skin was well cared for.
Touching it was like gliding over the surface of cool, rich milk, soft like a gently rising hill—pressing it elicited a delicate resistance, like the bounce of a tender piece of mochi.
"This is proof of your womanhood. And now, I hold that proof in my hand."
"No… That's not… true…"
Arthur tried to deny it, but his voice lacked conviction.
"Sir Rei… I am not a girl."
[You found this incomprehensible.]
[Even now, after everything, Arthur still refused to acknowledge the truth.]
[You began to suspect that there was an even deeper secret behind all of this.]
[But that didn't mean you were going to stop.]
[After all, persuasion was far from your only means of uncovering the truth.]
"Arthur, don't make this difficult for me."
"You're clearly a lovely girl, yet you refuse to acknowledge your own charm. What a waste of such a gift."
Rei's fingers curled slightly, tightening his grip around Arthur's delicate hand, just a little more than before.
His touch, however, was anything but forceful—just a slow, deliberate caress, void of any overt intent.
His fingertips traced along skin as pale as jade, as smooth as fresh cream.
"Arthur, just admit it, for once."
She was no match for Rei in this battle.
Under his relentless approach, her body gradually weakened, tilting backward until she rested against his chest.
Her arms slowly dropped to her sides, like a marionette whose strings had been cut.
She tilted her head, her lips paling slightly, her entire demeanor a picture of helpless vulnerability.
Yet still, she clung stubbornly to her denial.
"No… I'm not a girl… that person said… at least not now."
That person?
Rei's eyes darkened.
He had just grazed the surface of something deeper, something hidden beneath Arthur's carefully constructed façade.
He knew he had to push further.
"Forgive my blasphemy, my lady princess."
Rei offered the silent prayer in his heart.
Like a scout mapping unknown terrain, his gaze followed the curve of her waist, traveling downward.
A closer look.
A tentative touch—
As expected, nothing stood in the way.
Structurally, undeniably, this was the body of a woman.
Rei's fingertips had confirmed the truth with undeniable certainty.
His free hand did not remain idle, carefully adjusting Arthur's position to ensure she wouldn't slip from the horse.
A truth once set in stone had been unearthed and overturned—again and again, with no reprieve.
She had been completely captured.
Arthur lay limp in his arms, a dazed expression overtaking her face as she surrendered to the moment.
Her small frame trembled with a fragile, unspoken emotion. The rhythm and intensity of her shivers were dictated by how tightly Rei held her.
Soft, indistinct sounds escaped her lips—mere fragments of words, never forming a full sentence.
Rei, a seasoned player of this game, had taken full control.
Now, he was the puppeteer, and she, his marionette.
"Arthur, can you admit it now?"
"You are—without a doubt—a woman."
He pulled her closer, tightening his embrace.
"Arthur, am I wrong?"
Yet—
Though she had completely succumbed to Rei's hold, she still clung desperately to her earlier denial.
She murmured, her voice like a silken thread unraveling, "No… Sir Rei… I'm not like that… I'm really not like that…"
But Rei did not feel triumph.
Something was wrong.
Deeply wrong.
Arthur was too resistant.
The hesitation in her voice was not mere embarrassment, nor was it simple denial.
No matter the consequences, he had to act now.
Without a word, Rei withdrew one hand, his fingers ghosting down to the hilt of his sword.
[You intend to kill Arthur at the height of her ecstasy.]
[But just then, a handful of petals drifted into the air.]
[And in the next moment, you felt a surge of warning magic flare from Arthur's body.]