Crow crossed his arms, pretending to listen critically as Penelope told her story. He did smile at the mention of the plan involving a dress, however. It was somehow difficult to imagine her wearing something ‘fit for a princess,’ and, come to think of it, he had never seen the knight wear anything even remotely feminine. He tilted his head and knit his brow slightly, attempting to picture her in the clothing of a noblewoman. Now that he thought about it, she wouldn’t look half bad in a fancy dress. If she let her hair down and sat a bit more regally, she could actually pull it off. He could see why her old comrade would have wanted to try a plan like that.

Penelope went on to describe how the other knight, Jonathan, wound up wearing the dress in the end, and Crow laughed. He would have liked to see a knight dress like a woman and flirt with a nobleman. The members of the king’s army were always so arrogant. It would have been quite a sight to watch one of them do something so embarrassing.

Crow clapped when Penelope finished her story, “I must admit: I never expected you to come up with a tale like that. It was quite entertaining.” He wasn’t even lying. It was amusing to hear about a knight getting publicly humiliated by his own comrades.

He clicked his tongue, “I suppose this means I’ll have to hold up my end of the bargain and tell you something about myself now, huh? You said you’re not interested in learning about me, but I think I can change your mind. All it takes is one simple, little detail.” He smirked at the knight, his eyes glittering with amusement, and moved closer to her, dropping his voice to a whisper. “My real name isn’t Crow.”