About the time I was picked up and adopted by Tallulah

Li was once a slave at the lowest level. She has seen all kinds of people, some good, but mostly bad.

She had seen too many people who said they wanted to "strengthen their relationship" with her, and it took Li a long, long time to finally bury the things those guys had done to her in the deepest part of her heart.

puff--

A warm and itchy feeling came over my head.

"...?"

Li didn't understand what was happening at first. It was only after he felt the slightly warm touch slowly moving back and forth on his head that he realized - Orson was touching his head.

"How's it going, Ms. Senomi! My head-patting skills have earned five-star praise from Amiya, Rosemary, and the others!"

Orson said this with confidence, while Li raised his head and stared at Orson, stunned for a long time.

"Is this... what you think of as 'cultivating relationships', Orson?"

"Hmm? Yeah, I think it's great to start cultivating feelings by patting the head!"

Orson nodded seriously, while Li blinked and then smiled.

"Really... you're right, little knight~ This is the best way."

Li rubbed Orson's chin with her hair, then walked aside with great satisfaction, looking happier than usual.

"So what's next—Maria?"

After brushing the gravel, Orson turned his attention to Maria again. The latter trembled all over after their eyes met.

"Eh!? This...rubbing my hair in front of so many people...well, I'll do it! I'll do it!"

Unlike Li, Maria hesitated at first, but after seeing Li's expression that seemed to be mocking but also smiling, she immediately blushed and mustered up the courage to move forward. It didn't look like she wanted to pat his head, but more like she wanted to knock on the city gate.

"In front of so many people... what am I doing... this is just... uh, so fuzzy~~"

Maria was muttering to herself at first, thinking that there was something wrong with her decision, but soon her sighs of relief turned into a sigh of relief, and her rosy cheeks turned into a pool of slime.

Apart from anything else, Orson did not lie about his "excellent skills in hair removal".

“Hey hey hey…”

A minute or two later, Maria walked out of Orson's hands with a silly smile on her face. The shyness and embarrassment from before were no longer visible on her face. Instead, she felt as comfortable as if she was wearing new underwear on New Year's Day.

"So what's next—"

"Don't look at me... I'm not like that idiot and the Seqin maniac."

Orson, who had already entered the "100% hair-pulling" mode, looked at the remaining Platinum, while Platinum turned his head aside and said in a somewhat panicked tone that he would not be as embarrassed as those two people.

"Come on, come on, Miss Platinum~"

"Even if you act like an idiot, I won't—Ugh! W-What are you doing, Li!?"

Orson chuckled and moved closer to Platinum. Platinum tried to distance himself from him at first, but before he had taken two steps back, Li grabbed his arm.

"There's nothing to be shy about. This is about cultivating feelings, cultivating feelings~"

"I won't do anything stupid with you guys... Hey, Lin Guang family!!"

"Come and try it, try it, Miss Platinum!"

Maria also controlled Platinum. The two of them clamped the "shooter on the chessboard" on the left and right, and escorted her to Orson, who stretched out a hand like a mass.

"Don't resist, Miss Platinum. For our future and your own well-being, accept it—"

“I refuse—!!”

——A few minutes later

“…Not bad.”

Bai Jin fixed his gaze on the sports field in the distance, his cheeks slightly flushed as he spoke softly.

Although the relationship among the "Chimera Squad" did not develop a better understanding because of Orson's actions, the custom of "touching each other on the head when meeting" as a greeting was established in Casimir for a long time.

14. All the efforts...

Although the contract was signed and the "first emotional cultivation activity (commonly known as patting the head)" was carried out, Orson was still confused about what the trainer should do. Therefore, after watching the game, Orson and his party returned to the Linguang Mansion.

"Hmm... Hmm, I see. Different training intensities lead to different results, and mood is also a very important factor. And it would be better to do different types of training appropriately... Victory suit? There's also this kind—"

After returning, Orson looked up information and took notes seriously, while Bai Jin and Li looked at each other, not knowing what to say.

"It's decided! Let's start with the physical fitness test!"

"Oh!"

“…Ah?” “Eh?”

After studying for half a day, Orson finally made a plan. He stood up and announced it loudly, and Maria also stood up and raised her hand.

"Ah... no need to go to so much trouble, Orson?"

When he heard about the physical test, Bai Jin responded somewhat casually.

"Should we skip the warm-up phase and go straight to the part everyone's looking forward to~?"

Li put one hand on her dimple and said with a smile.

The goal of these two people is so clear that even Maria is more or less too lazy to complain.

If it were normal, Orson would probably just pass by, but this time it was different——

"That won't do, Platinum, Senomi!"

"Uh?"

Orson suddenly scolded the two of them loudly in a serious voice, without even adding "Miss".

"If we are just spectators, then there is no need to be critical or demand rigor, because we just need to experience the excitement and passion brought by the athletes on the field."

"But we're participating in this competition! Since we've decided to step onto the stage, we only have one goal at this moment - to be the champion!"

Orson gave a passionate speech. It seemed that the extremely pure physical competition in the game (putting aside the props game) really infected Orson thoroughly.

"Haha... This is getting more and more troublesome. I get it. I'll just try my best, without having to work overtime."

Bai Jin sighed and said that he would try his best. After all, it was the first time that Bai Jin saw Orson so excited and serious.

"I can't help it, since the little knight said so~"

Li also followed the trend and agreed to be serious.

"Alright! From now on, let's work towards the top together!"

"oh--!"

This time, the voices of three people were more unified and loud.

----

"Tighten your abdomen! Lean forward a little more, and don't let your breathing become disordered!"

"Ha...ha...how many seconds?"

"12 seconds, not the best speed yet... But you should take a break now, Platinum."

“…Again!”

In Zofia's garden, Platinum, who had just finished a sprint, gritted his teeth and stood up again unwillingly after hearing the time reported by Orson.

----

"Left, right, left, right!"

"Well……!"

"Ms. Senomi, are you okay?"

"Don't worry, little Knight-kun—keep going!"

Li accidentally fell while training with Orson on cross-country terrain. Facing Orson's concerned questions, Li smiled and shook his head, then stood up again to start the challenge.

----

"Maria, one minute left!"

"Uuuuuuu——!!"

Maria, doing long distance weightlifting on the treadmill, was filled with pain. However, when she thought of Orson, who was by her side and constantly cheering her on, strength surged through her body again.

Well, actually, Maria was so motivated because she was thinking about getting a muscle relaxation massage from Orson after the training.

----

"Trust me, Maria. My arrow will hit its target."

"So who's the target?! Damn it, never mind— waaaaaaa!"

Maria jumped down from the rooftop while yelling, holding an apple in both hands, and the apple was accurately pierced by an arrow in mid-air.

Just before Maria was about to fall to the ground, Li, who was standing on the roof, clenched his arms and stretched the rests tied to Maria's feet so hard that Maria just stopped on the air mattress.

Maria, who fell lightly onto the air mattress, immediately pounced on Platinum, and the two horses hugged each other tightly. Gravel, who arrived later, also joined in the celebration of the successful completion of this "cooperation training" that transcended anxiety and speculation.

"keep it up!"

“We can definitely win the championship!”

"You're right!"

"You...are all my precious treasures..."

The three of them hugged each other tightly, and Orson wiped away his tears secretly.

"By the way...did you forget something?" "..."

Halfway through his motivational speech, Li blinked and looked at Bai Jin, and Bai Jin gently rubbed his hair.

----

After a day of training, everyone rested at Lin Guang's residence nearby because tomorrow was the team's first game.

However, even so, some people still remember their original intention:

Li secretly climbed in through the window outside the Linguang Mansion, aiming directly at Orsen's room on the second floor.

"Hey--"

As Li's hand rested on the handle, Bai Jin's voice came from the shadow in the corner.

"Hmm? Are you here for a walk too?"

Li looked at Bai Jin and asked with a smile.

"What the hell...are you really going to do that?"

Bai Jin asked with a frown, she knew this man's tone too well.

"Hmm? What if my answer is yes?"

"Then I'll kick Orson up."

Bai Jin responded unhappily.

"Is this really okay? How about we change our thinking—we do this together?"

"You...what are you talking about!"

After hearing Li's outrageous "suggestion", Platinum, who seemed to be at a high level but was actually easily broken by a touch, instantly lost his composure.

"If you were alone, unless the little knight took the initiative to push you down, the most you would do is just snuggle into my arms and sleep with me, right? In that case, why don't you take this opportunity to join me..."

"Um... Orson, Orson's perception is very sharp. He once crossed half of Casimir to find me."

Li's suggestion really touched Bai Jin's heart. She thought about it with some confusion, and then tried to stop Li in a different way.

Platinum was referring to the time he was abducted by Qingjin's attack. Orson had traversed countless city districts to accurately locate and rescue Platinum. That was also the day when the "Knight Killer" truly believed in the existence of "Knights."

"Heh heh, little Knight-kun's passive perception ability against his own people is quite poor, you know? I did a lot of research to bring you down."

Li hummed twice, looking determined to win.

"This is already a somewhat terrifying range—well... never mind, I get it."

Bai Jin complained, and then after a brief silence, he agreed with Li's suggestion.