recently ive been thinking a lot about an au where aymeric ends up in the first as well as the scions, before wol gets there. and i had a few ideas for comics but i just chose to do this one. I did decide to color it but i decided not to line it properly since i didnt want to put too much effort into it.
The Story of Joel Who Fell In Love With His Junior Knight
This is a bonus short story written by Touko Amekawa with for 7th Time Loop Volume 6! It’s set on Rishe's 6th loop, when she was still a knight, and her senior, Joel, who fell in love with her during that life.
Disclaimer: This translation is made by me for fandom purposes only. This unofficial translation is not affiliated with the official 7th Time Loop franchise. All rights reserved for 7th Time Loop to its respective committees, committee members, staff, author and rights holders.
The bonus short story can be found in Touko Amekawa's 7th Time Loop Shousetsuka ni Narou blog!
I’m posting my Ko-Fi here as currently, I’ve been having financial troubles, so if anyone can donate, I would be much grateful for the help, thank you very much.
***
"Joel?"
That day, Joel, who went silent after realizing an outrageous truth, was called by Lucius, who was with him in the same room.
"......"
This was Joel's junior knight, who joined their order six months ago.
Joel, the youngest child of a family with an older brother and an older sister, had joined the knights' order earlier than was customary. For as long as he could remember, he was surrounded by people usually older than him, and this junior is the only 'junior who was close to him in age'.
"Lucius. You."
"?"
Sitting on the bed, Lucius' head tilted in confusion, that short coral hair swaying.
Lucius' round eyes were fringed by long eyelashes, those very eyes tinted emerald, akin to wet glass beads. Those were similar to the color of the eyes of the neighborhood cat Joel used to nap with.
"......"
Putting down everything he wanted to say at first, in the meantime, Joel continued to talk.
"It's fine if you're taking over cleaning the baths every day, but after this, you're not allowed to go there this late. Got it?"
"Huh?! Oh, I'm sorry! Since I was about to take a bath, too, and cleaning would take some time... am I too noisy every time I go back here?"
"Yeah. Right. That disturbs me while I'm sleeping, so go there when I'm awake."
"Yes! I'll pay attention from now on!"
Lucius nodded vigorously while Joel nodded back in assent.
"You can go there right now as all our seniors should have finished bathing already. Also, any individual sword practice shouldn't be done at night, but at mornings."
"Understood! Joel, let's do our best getting up early tomorrow, too!"
"Huh. Don't want that."
"Hehe."
As Joel clearly expressed his refusal, Lucius laughed amusedly for some reason. Just like that, while they were talking, Lucius briskly moved, getting a towel and a change of clothes.
"Well, then, I'll go take a bath and clean up!"
Leaving the room, Lucius' footsteps and presence slowly faded away.
Sitting on the chair next to their bunk beds with a thud, Joel pondered over understanding his current situation.
(―――That person is a girl, huh.)
He planned to erase from memory all the events leading to this conclusion.
Instead of sitting upright on the chair, Joel's body slid sideways, his head resting against the wall, his eyes now closed.
(Even though cleaning the baths was supposedly a rostered task. I now understand why Lucius kept saying incomprehensible things like, "It's part of my training!" and volunteering to do that alone every day...)
She would go to their training grounds and practice very early in the morning, and would prepare for missions faster than anyone else. However, that would be the best possible way to cover up her changing clothes in the dressing room.
"Ah―――..."
For the first time in his life, Joel let out what would call a "sigh". Up to that point in his life, such worries were previously irrelevant to him.
(...I don't really care whether she's a man or a woman...)
Even though he thought like that, the moment he realized Lucius was a girl, he broke into a cold sweat underneath his clothes.
His heart thundered greatly, beating louder than it usually did after battles.
(Damn you, Captain. You knew all along yet you placed her in the same room as me, you bastard.)
Before Lucius joined their knights' order, Joel stayed in that room alone.
Then enter the newcomer, the delicate-looking and small Lucius.
Six months have passed since then, and as his new junior never showed signs of building muscle nor growing taller, he felt he finally solved that mystery.
(Lucius said she was originally a noble, but she got exiled by her family due to various reasons. If that was the case, because she couldn't travel easily due to her being a young woman, she disguised herself as a young man? ...Even so, why become a knight? I don't get it.)
She's really a big enigma, he thought.
Joel's only junior is someone whose thoughts and behavior are completely unreadable.
("Lucius" is probably not her real name.)
He was sure she was known with a different name as a girl.
(It's odd things like this make my heart flutter. It doesn't matter whatever her name is.)
Unsure of what he was thinking, Joel continued sulking alone.
(She should call herself the name she wants to be called with. It's likely her alias is similar to her real name, too...)
While he was thinking of whimsical things like that, it seemed like some time has passed.
There was a knock on the door, and Joel's eyes widened.
"It's me, Lucius!"
"...What?"
He stood up to open the door and found Lucius standing there, out of breath, her hair so wet that it looked like water was still dripping from there.
"...Too fast. What's the matter? You usually take longer to...?"
"If I bath too late, you'll have less time to sleep, Joel..."
"......"
That "sleep disturbance" he told Lucius earlier wasn't actually a big deal at all.
The building where Joel and the other lower-ranked knights lived in was far from where the baths were located. Just when lights are put out, the area on the way gets pitch black with no people around.
(I know she is a girl, so I lied to her as I didn't want her walking in the dark after taking a bath. That's all.)
Lucius turned to Joel with a very serious look on her face, then said,
"I've finished cleaning the baths completely! From now on, I won't be too noisy, so please, sleep well, Joel!"
(She went in a rush for my sake...)
Joel thought for a moment, then prompted Lucius to enter the room.
"...I'll dry your hair occasionally, so come here, 'Lu'."
"Joel? 'Lu', you say... perhaps..."
The junior he had been calling "Lucius" up to now widened her eyes in shock.
"Your name. 'Lucius' is too long, and it's tricky to pronounce."
It was another lie.
However, Joel didn't let it show on on his face and continued.
"From now on, I'll call you Lu. That's your nickname."
"A nickname..."
"All right? I won't call you anything other than that."
As he can't call her by her real name, it's better to use the nickname Joel came up with.
(Because this girl is)
Joel then grabbed a towel and placed it on her wet, coral-haired head.
"...Because you're my one and only junior."
"...!"
At that moment, Lu's eyes sparkled with joy, just like the color of a treasure left under the sun.
"Yes! I'm very glad, Joel!"
"...Mm. Good kid."
In the days that followed, Joel's life got wrapped around Lou's finger.
After all, Lu was a person who would try anything. Not only did she put everything into her training, she also worked hard to help people in need even outside of her knight duties, and she even joined in drinking parties of the other units.
Every time she experienced something new, she smiled brightly and happily.
"Hey, Leo. Do you know where Lu is?"
"...If you're talking about Lucius, he's been summoned by some beautiful women earlier."
"Hmm."
It was probably because she was actually a girl, but she was more attentive and friendly to other women than anyone else, and her knightly conduct made her very popular. Nevertheless, this interaction with others never led to disputes, and their senior knights could only look at the situation with wonder.
"Joel, good morning, rise and shine!"
"...Today, I'll be training in my dreams. It's praiseworthy training, so it's all right..."
"I won't be able to participate if that's the case! As my senior, please guide me in training, and I'll dry your hair for you tonight!"
Joel was watching nearby this whole time.
"――The Crown Prince of Galkhein killed his father and usurped the throne."
"......"
When he told Lu about this fact, her face turned really sad.
Even though her hands clutched the hem of her clothes tightly, and those hands were covered with blisters from continuing to hold the sword, those hands still looked frail and dainty.
(...I hope this girl won't come to the battlefield.)
He thought to himself as he patted Lu's head, her eyes downcast.
(As I can't fully protect you...... No matter how everyone told me I'm worthless at everything except swordsmanship, I'm just a knight.)
Such selfish wishes kept appearing in his head.
Her short, coral hair was so silky smooth, it was hard to think of her using the same soap as Joel and the other knights.
(I need to protect this country, His Majesty, and the princes. A mere knight like me can't look back.)
Even though she knew of the future to come, she couldn't say anything.
As Joel was her fellow knight and her 'senior'.
(――Such is the life Lu and I chose.)
He had seen more than anyone else how much effort she put in to be a knight.
"...Become even stronger, Lu."
"Joel..."
"Hey."
Joel crouched down in front of Lu, rested his chin on his lap, and smiled.
"...I'll help you train every day, then. I'm your senior, after all."
"...!"
As he was her senior, he couldn't tell her he didn't want her to die.
But as he was precisely her senior, Joel could give Lu hope in the way he only could.
"...Thank you, Joel!"
(...Truly, I fell in love with such a troublesome girl...)
As Lu smiled, her eyes held the same sunny emerald color.
discord's new terms of service DO have a mandatory arbitration clause for the United States and Canada, you have 30 days to opt out by emailing an opt out notice to [email protected]. this has been your standard "for the love of god do not waive your right to a jury trial under any circumstances" notice
Here is a quick link to the new (Sept 29, 2025) arbitration clause and informal dispute resolution info. When they originally began implementing in 2018 Discord clarified your opt-out email doesn't need to follow any kind of template, but there are several options in the notes of this post. One thing I haven't seen anyone add is to make sure you're emailing from the email linked to your discord account. If you've already agreed to the terms of service you can still do this, and you've already opted out you probably should do it again just to err on the side of caution.
