Mia had never imagined that Etien would react so strongly. Even though she was someone who calculated everything, how could she have predicted something like this?
If someone moved out of their usual place without warning, it might cause confusion. But since it wasn't done secretly, anyone could have just questioned a passing subordinate to find out.
Mia couldn't understand why Etien would overreact like this—rushing out in the middle of training to find her. He definitely hadn't been like this in their past life.
Etien seemed to interpret Mia's confused expression in his own way and started nagging her.
"It's no use looking at me like that. You're still not fully recovered, and it's dangerous for you to leave your bed. I clearly remember telling you not to act recklessly—"
"Are you calling me coming to my own tent reckless? Sir, you're being unreasonable."
"At the very least, I need to observe your condition until you fully recover. There can be no exceptions."
"I already told you I'm completely fine. Please don't worry and go back. By tomorrow, even the scars will be fully healed."
Etien surely knew that. He was the one who had poured excessive divine power into her in the first place. And yet, he acted like someone who had decided not to believe a word she said about her health.
"If you're really that well, then staying one more day in my tent for observation shouldn't be a problem."
"Sir, what nonsense are you talking about now?"
"Nonsense? This is a very important—"
"Commander! Are you done with your business?"
A soldier's voice interrupted from outside the tent. Etien couldn't finish what he was saying.
Mia smiled with satisfaction. There were usually two reasons for a soldier to loudly interrupt their superior.
The first was if an important visitor had arrived. The second was if a subordinate disagreed with their superior's judgment or behavior.
Since the soldier had asked whether Etien was done, it probably wasn't an important guest. So, it was most likely the second case.
'Looks like someone else also isn't too fond of him.'
Mia didn't enjoy being disliked, but she did feel grateful toward the unknown subordinate who pulled her out of the situation.
Whatever had changed, it seemed this version of Etien cared more for his subordinates. So, there was no way he'd ignore one of them calling him like that.
Mia lowered her voice and asked him,
"Shouldn't you go? You look busy."
Without a word, Etien walked out of the tent.
Mia, thinking he was finally leaving, felt relieved. But before long, he returned—and from his expression, he was clearly annoyed.
"Commander!"
"I said I'm not going today! It's not even urgent, so handle it yourself!"
When the soldier called again, Etien snapped irritably.
That irritable, short-tempered, but secretly soft-hearted commander—that was the Etien she knew. He was supposed to be like that.
'He's been acting too different lately… but maybe he hasn't changed that much.'
Still, even if he looked familiar again, there was no reason for him to hang around in a low-ranking subordinate's tent. Mia still couldn't understand his intentions.
"At this hour, if someone went out of their way to find you, shouldn't you go?"
Mia hinted, essentially asking him to leave.
Etien looked at her silently. For some reason, he looked deeply hurt.
Thud.
Even though Mia had no romantic feelings for him, her heart skipped a beat. She felt like her heart had dropped.
That sad expression on such a handsome face… It was too powerful. Mia had never realized how dangerous that could be.
Etien clearly knew he had caught her attention. The corners of his lips twitched slightly, like he was holding back a smile. In a soft voice that seemed to cling to her ears, he said:
"Your Excellency, are you going to keep pushing me away like this?"
He really did look sad. Could a man that big really look like a puppy left out in the rain?
My god. She felt like a scumbag emperor who had just dumped his mistress.
Not knowing how to handle the unexpected situation, Mia stepped back. Even as she let her guard down in front of him, she didn't realize she had been completely won over by his charm.
In the end, after a desperate plea, Etien stayed by her side until she fell asleep. She might not have liked it, but Etien was secretly pleased. Mia had exhausted herself during the brief daytime battle, which helped him.
Also, her agreeing to stay by his side was mostly thanks to his insistence that she wasn't fully healed and needed treatment.
Or maybe she was just too tired to argue anymore. Either way, Etien was happy.
When he turned his head slightly, he saw her small head resting quietly. Her usually stern face was finally relaxed in sleep.
'So she can make a face like that…'
Etien stared at her for a long time, as if trying to memorize the unfamiliar expression. A word he never used hovered in his mouth before slipping out impulsively.
"Good night, Mia."
His soft voice brushed past her hair.
A white light spread from his fingertips, gently covering her body as if to protect her.
At least for one person, tonight would be a very peaceful night.
Midnight, behind Etien's tent.
The nightly check had ended, so the only people around were soldiers on watch.
The moon was especially bright that night, and crickets chirped in the nearby grass. The wind rustled the leaves and passed through the trees. If you looked up, the stars in the dark sky sparkled beautifully.
It was, truly, a romantic setting.
Right in the middle of that, Mia Elise Blanchard was learning the hard way that the world had many kinds of suffering—poisoning, overwork, serious injuries, false accusations—and now, this.
She never thought gaining strength would be easy, but wasn't this a bit too much?
"Two hundred twenty-one, two hundred twenty-two, two hundred twe—ugh…!"
"You can't give up yet. Stand up. You still have 800 more to go!"
"I'm not giving up—haah—you said earlier that doing 1,000 would be—haah—enough."
"Now you have 900 left."
"Oh, dear goddess…"
Mia clenched her teeth. Her resolve not to be a burden on the battlefield was no joke. So she had every intention of enduring whatever strange training Etien threw at her.
The fact that she hadn't given up even after swinging the practice sword over 200 times showed how serious she was.
But… wasn't this too much?
Every time Mia swung the wooden sword, Etien's face grew more serious. He circled her, checking her form, and added 100 extra swings for every ten that weren't perfect.
Who was it again that kept saying training should match your physical condition, and not push too far?
Mia had a talent for pushing through limits with pure willpower. If Etien had suggested giving up, she would've been the one refusing and calling him a coward.
But that only applied if the training was meant to help. Right now, it felt more like punishment.
The problem was… she had no idea what she was being punished for.