Chương 346: Chapter : 346

Zinia laughed a deep, booming laugh. The strong earth mage shook her head.

"You would accidentally set the tablecloth on fire in five minutes, Laxmi."

"Exactly!" Laxmi agreed enthusiastically.

"I want to fight! I want to train! I want to roast bad guys! Any man who tries to tell me to calm down is going to get a fireball right to the face! I entirely reject their oppressive rules!" Zinia uncrossed her arms and nodded firmly. She flexed her powerful muscles.

"I feel the same way. The nobles in the Inner City expect women to be quiet and fragile. They want us to stand behind them. I am the vanguard shield of this unit. I stand in the front. I would much rather lift heavy rocks and defend my friends than sit in a parlor and listen to some arrogant lord brag about his money." Risa looked up from her sketchbook. She smiled a very sweet, innocent smile.

"I think people should only marry people who make them very happy. Like in the storybooks. You should not marry someone just because they have a fancy title." Ira stood near the wall. She stared blankly ahead. Her face remained a perfect, emotionless mask.

"Statistically speaking, marriages arranged purely for political leverage result in profound personal misery in ninety-two percent of recorded cases. It is a highly inefficient system for human happiness." Luna let out a sleepy, muffled sound from her bench. She did not open her eyes.

"Also, weddings are incredibly long. You have to stand up for hours. I would definitely fall asleep during the vows. Do not get married, Sayma. It sounds exhausting." The room was filled with a beautiful, fierce camaraderie. The girls completely supported Sayma. They rejected the strict, unfair traditions of their society. They believed in their own strength and their own choices. They were a family of warriors, and they stood united. Naomi watched her friends. A warm, genuine smile touched her lips.

She felt incredibly proud of her unit. She turned around and faced the center of the room. She stood up perfectly straight. She placed her hands firmly on her hips. Her bright red hair fell over her shoulders. Her green eyes sparked with intense, unyielding pride.

"You are all entirely correct," Naomi announced clearly. Her voice carried absolute confidence.

"We are elite fighters. We are not political bargaining chips. We do not owe these arrogant noblemen anything." Naomi took a slow breath. She thought about her own strict family. She thought about how they had disowned her for joining the 13th Unit. She thought about everything she had sacrificed to find true freedom.

"I will never let a family or a politician dictate my future," Naomi declared passionately.

"I will only ever consider marriage on my own exact terms. I will never settle for a superficial snob." She looked around the room, her voice softening just a little bit. It lost its sharp, bossy edge. It became very sincere and incredibly honest. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!

"If I ever marry someone," Naomi said quietly, her green eyes shining.

"It will be because I genuinely, personally respect him. It will be someone who treats me as an absolute equal. Someone who stands by my side when things get dangerous, even if he does not have to. Someone who makes me laugh, even when everything else is falling apart. Someone I truly like." The room went completely quiet. The girls listened to her words. They heard the soft, hidden meaning behind her speech. Sayma smiled a tiny, knowing smile. Laxmi bit her lip to stop herself from grinning too widely.

Zinia crossed her arms and looked at the ceiling, trying to hide her amusement. They all knew exactly what kind of person Naomi was describing. She was describing someone who was loyal, funny, and surprisingly brave when it counted. They all knew she was secretly describing Ken. But Ken Eliot was completely and totally oblivious. Ken slouched in his chair at the end of the table. He did not hear the romantic subtext. He did not notice the soft, sincere look in Naomi's eyes.

He just heard her talk about a guy she liked. Ken let out a loud, obnoxious, highly annoying laugh.

"Ha!" Ken cheered lazily. He slapped his hand on the wooden table. He pointed his finger directly at Naomi and gave her a massive, goofy, teasing grin.

"I knew it! I totally called it! You have a secret boyfriend!" Naomi froze. Her confident posture completely shattered.

"Are you hiding a handsome knight somewhere?" Ken joked happily. He wiggled his eyebrows in a completely ridiculous manner.

"Is there a secret guy sneaking around the estate? Does he have a shiny sword? You have to tell us, boss lady! What is his name? Does he bring you snacks?" Naomi's face turned pink. Then it turned red. In less than two seconds, her entire face became a bright, burning, vibrant shade of crimson. The blush reached all the way down her neck and up to the very tips of her ears. She looked like a human tomato.

"I DO NOT HAVE A SECRET BOYFRIEND!" Naomi shrieked at the absolute top of her lungs. Her voice cracked with pure, unadulterated panic. She threw her hands in the air. Her cool, proud vanguard leader persona completely vanished. She looked incredibly flustered and completely overwhelmed.

"Oh, come on, you can tell me," Ken continued to tease. He slouched lower in his chair and laughed again. He had absolutely zero clue that he was the person she was talking about. He just loved annoying her.

"I will not tell Grandmaster Finlay. I am very good at keeping secrets. Is he tall? Is he a prince? Did you meet him at the grocery store?"

"SHUT UP, KEN!" Naomi screamed defensively. She stomped her combat boot hard on the floorboards. She pointed a violently shaking finger at his nose.

"THERE IS NO HANDSOME KNIGHT! THERE IS NO BOYFRIEND! YOU ARE MAKING THINGS UP IN YOUR STUPID, EMPTY BRAIN!"

"You are blushing very hard for someone who does not have a boyfriend," Ken pointed out lazily. He took a bite of a leftover cracker from the table. He chewed it loudly.

"Your face is literally the color of a stop sign. That is very suspicious."

"I AM BLUSHING BECAUSE YOU ARE SO INCREDIBLY ANNOYING!" Naomi yelled aggressively. She took a threatening step toward his chair. She looked ready to grab him by his untucked collar and throw him into the hallway.

"IF YOU SAY ONE MORE WORD ABOUT A BOYFRIEND, I AM GOING TO MAKE YOU RUN FIFTY LAPS AROUND THE COURTYARD!" Laxmi had to cover her mouth with both hands to stop herself from bursting into hysterical laughter. Zinia turned completely around to face the wall, her shoulders shaking with silent amusement. Sayma pushed her glasses up and looked down at her notebook, completely failing to hide her massive smile. Princess Iris simply took a slow sip of her tea, her violet eyes sparkling with pure joy.

The entire room knew exactly what was going on. The entire room knew perfectly well that Naomi's exact, specific criteria were entirely modeled around the messy, goofy, snack-eating farm boy sitting at the end of the table. Everyone knew it, except for Ken.