“I-I-I’m sorry, I… I went too far…!”

Lotte blurted out an apology in a panic —but it might have been too late.
Alisha slowly sat up, but didn’t reply immediately.

(Why did I do this?)

It was what Alisha had wanted —but she had said she wanted to wash off the sweat first.
Which meant this current situation might not be what Alisha had wanted after all.
Had she simply done something Alisha disliked?
That anxiety began to gnaw at her.
Alisha was trying to steady her ragged breathing —but Lotte, unable to wait for her, started to leave the room.

“Wait.”

—It was Alisha, still catching her breath, who stopped Lotte.
Turning back, Lotte saw Alisha wearing a satisfied expression.
—How could she possibly look like that?
She’d been so clearly against it.

“…Turns out asking you was the right decision after all.”

What was the right decision? Lotte couldn’t tell.
　After all, Alisha had been crying.
It had ended up feeling like forcing her down against her will —something Lotte couldn’t believe she’d actually done.
She should have been scolded, not thanked.

“I want you to grant my requests in future too.”

Alisha pleaded with Lotte.
But Lotte shook her head.

“…I have no right to. I made you cry, Alisha-sama…”
“I asked you to.”
“But…”
“Besides, you didn’t seem entirely displeased, did you?”
“——”

Alisha’s words left Lotte speechless.
Not entirely displeased —her gaze drifted involuntarily to a mirror some distance away.
　Her current expression was, if anything, one of confusion.
It was likely a reaction to Alisha’s words.
Yet, she had been wearing an expression that wasn’t entirely displeased just moments ago —something Lotte couldn’t even begin to imagine.

(…Me, pushing Lady Alisha down and making her look like that…?)

Impossible, unbelievable —Lotte left Alisha’s room without another word.
　Closing the door, she walked down the corridor for a while before collapsing, utterly drained.
Lotte recalled what had just happened.
The person she had always admired needed her —and had revealed such a provocative side.
A shiver ran down her spine, an indescribable sensation.
Was this unspeakable feeling what they called immorality? Lotte couldn’t lift her face.
　For she might well be wearing the expression Alisha had mentioned, not entirely displeased.
She couldn’t let anyone see her like this.
She ought to leave here quickly, yet Lotte couldn’t bring herself to move.

＊＊＊

After Lotte departed, Alisha, left alone in the room, lay down on the bed, utterly drained.
　Even though she hadn’t finished changing yet, she couldn’t bring herself to move just now.
She felt her heart pounding repeatedly.
It still wouldn’t stop —it was a sensation she’d never experienced before.

“…That was incredible.”

She couldn’t help but let slip such a childish remark.
From a young age —she had honed her swordsmanship.
　Alisha possessed talent, and by the time she was over ten, she was competing in sword tournaments alongside adults, achieving notable results.
As time passed, Alisha eventually reached a point where she no longer lost.
To be perfectly honest, she hadn’t tasted defeat in several years.
Since becoming a knight, failure was simply not an option in her work, and she had never lost in the field of combat.
　No, it was the same in all other respects too —Alisha was the universally acknowledged perfect Princess Knight.
Precisely because such conduct was demanded of her, defeat was simply not an option for Alisha.
—And yet, she had been pinned down by a single maid. Despite struggling, she couldn’t even get back up.
She had lost. To a maid.

—A Princess Knight… yet to be overpowered by a mere maid —aren’t you ashamed?

“…!”

Recalling Lotte’s earlier words, Alisha writhed in agony.
Her expression back then had been somehow cold, not quite contempt —yet it felt like she was being mocked.
True to those words, Alisha had been overpowered by a mere maid.
She had faced numerous criminals larger than herself and never once lost.
　It was utterly humiliating, a frustration so intense it brought tears to her eyes —yet simultaneously, she felt exhilarated.
By the very fact she was doing something utterly unforgivable as a Princess Knight.
Lotte had stopped abruptly, but Alisha found herself hoping it would continue.
She should chase after Lotte, who had left the room, but she was too lost in the afterglow to move —when had she become such a wretched person?
　Still, that knot that had been lodged in her chest for so long felt slightly less burdensome now.
She felt lighter —having realised something she’d long wanted to do.
For Alisha, this was truly joyful, and she couldn’t help but let a small smile escape her lips.

“—But, this isn’t the time for this.”

Yet, she snapped back to her senses immediately —Alisha rose from the bed.
She couldn’t just leave Lotte like that.

“Ah, change of clothes…”

Then she realised she was still dressed in her princess’s formal attire.
She also remembered Lotte pointing out the smell of sweat, and instinctively checked her own clothes.

“…It can’t smell that bad, can it? —Anyway, I have to chase after Lotte.”

There was no time to worry about such things now — Alisha hurriedly dashed out of the room.