Namgung Se-ga, the warrior, was reincarnated in Romance

The moment Boulder sprang up from his seat, his clothes were damp. I guessed that his shock was due to that, so I tried to calm him down in a gentle tone.

“Expelling waste through the skin during breathwork is a natural phenomenon. Just wash it off…”

“No! No, no! How is this possible? How is this happening?”

“…What’s wrong?”

“How is the mana still alive? How?”

“…So, is it supposed to be dead?”

You can’t reason with someone who isn’t making sense.

I must have been looking at him with an extremely frustrated expression, because Boulder, with trembling hands, quickly reached down to grab a notebook and pen.

“I need to write this down before I forget, don’t talk to me!”

“Who’s the one talking to you…?”

I glanced at the scribbled words and drawings in his notebook and could immediately tell they matched the flow of the meridians I had guided him through.

I had to admit, magic users do have extraordinary memories, and as I nodded in acknowledgment, I noticed Douglas Mustang standing beside me, asking in a shaky voice if he could also undergo this “energy guidance” process.

I quickly checked his wrist, felt his pulse, and replied after a brief evaluation.

“You’re fine. But with my current abilities, I can’t handle two in one day… How about next week at this time?”

“Of course, that sounds great! Should I prepare anything in advance?”

“Hmm… Ah.”

I asked an important question.

“Can you sit cross-legged? I mean, like I do.”

After a few failed attempts at sitting cross-legged, Douglas Mustang promised to manage it by next week, and I cheered him on enthusiastically.

* * *

Today, I headed to the stable again for Benjamin.

As I arrived in front of the stable, I noticed three people standing there. Upon a closer look, in addition to the expected Shayden and Benjamin, there was a small girl attached to them.

Marianne Philodendore, the second daughter of the energetic and lively Philodendore family.

We were bound to see each other again during the Friday camping class, but I greeted her warmly. When I asked why she was here, she boldly blurted out that she couldn’t be left out of such a fun event, which made me smile.

So, the four of us entered the stable together.

Marianne giggled and scolded Benjamin for trying to feed the horse hay, while Benjamin, usually so serious and reserved, had become somewhat mischievous, pulling out carrots as a secret weapon, which, of course, was useless.

As we settled in the comfortable spots near the hay, I finally understood why Marianne had joined us.

“Well, I just don’t understand boys’ hearts.”

Lately, whenever she had time, she had been meeting with Glothin Tannor Youngshik, and she was worried about his actions, which seemed shy and uncertain, but she couldn’t figure him out. She mentioned that the boys she knew, like Ivan, wouldn’t understand, while Damian was too friendly with other girls. So, she picked Benjamin and me because we were, in her view, the most reserved. She wanted to understand Glothin’s true feelings, and when I heard this, I couldn’t help but sigh.

After finishing her story, Marianne carelessly swept her hair behind her ear, and only then did I notice the ribbon in her hair.

I hesitated to comment on her appearance, as I didn’t usually make remarks about the girls’ attire.

Shayden, watching from the side, suddenly asked, “What about me?”

“Well, I think you know girls’ hearts too well. You must be quite the playboy.”

“What?”

“Oh, never mind. So, what about Michael? What would you do if the girl you started dating kept coming to see you first? Wouldn’t that be too much? Should I wait and act shy? But I want a sincere relationship!”

I, too, wanted to offer her advice, but the only answer I could think of was:

“…I don’t really know, as I’ve never had a lover.”

“So, that’s why I’m asking. Glothin said he’d never had a girlfriend before me, but if I think about it, he’s calm and reserved, so it might work better if someone like me, who’s more lively, takes the initiative.”

“…Glothin?”

“It’s a nickname I gave him! I came up with Glothin—so Glothin becomes Glee! In his family, they never used nicknames, always calling people by their full names. I thought it sounded too cold, so I gave him a nickname.”

I turned to look at Benjamin, who, like me, appeared surprised. However, Benjamin Claudia, after a long pause, came up with an unexpectedly good answer.

“I… I think it would be nice. Seeing the person you like often is a happy thing. If I were in the same position… I wouldn’t be able to take the first step. I’d be worried I’d be a burden. So, if the other person thought of me often and wanted to see me a lot… I think I’d be happy.”

“Exactly, right? Ah, it’s so cute. What do we do now?”

Marianne’s face lit up with a dreamy expression.

Though Benjamin was the one speaking, he seemed just as happy as Glothin would be to hear that. I, too, felt a sense of joy hearing her speak of her budding feelings.

Curious, I slyly asked how often they met, what they talked about, and what they did.

Hearing about my granddaughter’s romantic story was both fun and lighthearted. However, if she started acting recklessly like Danbi, I’d make sure to lecture her.

Luckily, Marianne shyly twisted her shoulder and body, smiling awkwardly as she answered.

“Uhh… we haven’t even held hands yet.”

“Good decision. It’s always best to be cautious before marriage.”

“Huh? Is that really a thing?”

“It is.”

At that, Shayden laughed loudly and chimed in.

“Sounds like Ernhardt family traditions. But I agree with the no-easy-touching rule. Marianne gets all fluttery and nervous just from holding hands. I think that’s the kind of romantic love she wants. And when that happens, the other person will give some sign to show they’re ready.”

“Signs?”

“Like when you’re walking side by side, and their fingertips twitch, or you keep making eye contact, or they seem thirsty.”

“Oh my! Oh my!”

“So, it’s better to wait until then.”

“Wow, Shayden, you really know your stuff. Come on, admit it. You’ve dated a lot of girls, haven’t you?”

“What are you talking about? I just have a lot of female friends,” Shayden said, trying to dismiss the teasing.

But I, too, couldn’t help but notice that Shayden seemed just as new to this as the rest of us.

Shayden continued for a while, insisting that he wasn’t the type of person people assumed him to be, and that he had only studied theories about relationships because, once he found someone to marry, he wanted to do well. He said love also required study, among other things.

Perhaps because there were so few people around, or maybe because he felt overwhelmed and desperate to share his thoughts, Marianne’s stories about her emotions and love life were both unfamiliar and fascinating to me.

The only person I had seen pour out their emotions like this before was that wretched Zhuge something or another.

Even he, following the laws of the Central Plains, tried hard to maintain a noble and elegant image, but he often mumbled nonsense about betrayal whenever I had a conversation with Mo Yong-hwa. He was always whining that there wasn’t anyone trustworthy.

His outbursts, like a rooster flapping or a duck squawking while guarding its home, were laughable and petty.

Like many scholars from the Central Plains, he would often write poems comparing his feelings to the moon and a well, or to flowers and butterflies, speaking of his love in flowery terms, but that was the extent of it.

He never once described in detail what his beloved looked like through his eyes.

Marianne, however, said that when she looked at Glothin, a halo seemed to shine behind his face, making it hard to remember what he truly looked like. She said that when he blinked, it felt like watching stars flicker, and when he slightly parted his lips to speak, she felt dizzy from the rush of his breath.

Every time they met, she couldn’t help but blurt out that he was handsome, and she struggled to keep herself from saying it.

Shayden, playfully teasing, asked, “But Michael’s famous for being handsome, isn’t he? Are you still not immune?”

“Michael’s younger than me. I prefer older men. They need to be calm, serious, sexy, a bit distant, and handsome with glasses. Besides, Michael is too strong and rigid. If I pushed him, I don’t think he’d give in.”

“Well, if he’s a man, I doubt he’d ever be pushed by you, Marianne.”

“Don’t you think Glee oppa would give in if I pushed him?”

Since I had never seen that guy’s face, I couldn’t know for sure. But Shayden thought for a moment and then nodded.

“…Honestly, if it were Tannor Youngshik… I think he might just go along with whatever Marianne wanted.”

“Michael would never let me push him.”

“That’s true.”

Listening to Shayden and Marianne banter back and forth was bewildering. Looking for someone to take my side, I turned to Benjamin. After a brief pause, he opened his mouth and said:

“I’m the type who would give in easily.”

“And what am I supposed to do with that?”

“Well, just spread the word.”

At Benjamin’s quiet comment, Marianne burst into a fit of giggles, punching his muscular arm playfully.

It was the same arm that had remained rock-solid when Shayden had tapped it before, yet Benjamin, pretending to be hurt by her soft punch, staggered back, which I found utterly baffling.

“Ha.”

“See, Mikah? Sometimes, you’ve got to give in like this.”

“I have no idea.”

“Well, Mikah, maybe you don’t need to know just yet. As long as you grow up like this, you’ll be fine.”

Laughter filled the stable.

While the horses were sniffing around, we lost track of time, chatting away for quite a while. Only when it was almost time for dinner did we hurriedly stand up and move to the dining area. On our way back, Marianne continued talking about various things, and it was all quite interesting.

Love… It was still a difficult topic for me to grasp.