A Few Days Later
Airen knelt before Serpina, who had co to visit them.
Serpina looked down at her without any hint of surprise and spoke in a detached tone.
"Swen has told the general details. You wish to serve under ?"
"Yes, Serpina-nim."
As she answered, Airen subtly studied Serpina’s face.
She was truly beautiful.
In fact, among all the won Airen had ever t, Serpina was by far the most stunning.
She had once thought Lyn Brans was a beauty, but compared to the woman standing before her now, Lyn was hardly worth ntioning.
"Airen Juliet… the red-haired knight, a specialist in siege warfare. I’ve heard of you. Having soone of your caliber would certainly be a great asset. I don’t even need to question your skills—you pass without a doubt."
"My reputation is undeserved, but I am honored that you recognize ."
"However."
Serpina’s voice turned noticeably colder.
"I heard that you betrayed the Brans Army and handed over an entire fortress to the Aishus Army. And now, you have abandoned the Aishus Army—your lord, Yuri—to serve . Wouldn’t that make this another betrayal?"
"…"
"Of course, Airen, I am not reprimanding you. In this age of chaos, every ruler besides myself is rely another warlord. The idea of unwavering loyalty to such figures is laughable. However, I am curious about the reasoning behind your decision to betray your masters twice."
Airen hesitated for a mont before looking directly into Serpina’s eyes.
There was no malice in them, no scheming intent to trap her.
Airen knew better than anyone what it felt like to be stared at with hatred.
She had endured such gazes her entire life.
In that case, there was no need to fabricate a story.
It would be better to simply be honest.
Parting her lips, she spoke carefully.
"My first lord, Lyn, abandoned . My second lord, Yuri, abandoned Swen. If you call it betrayal, I have no defense. But I simply cannot serve soone who so easily discards their own people. And—"
"And?"
"When I was abandoned, Swen willingly bore the stigma of betrayal alongside . Now that he has been abandoned, it is my turn to take on that stigma for him. That is all there is to it—there is no other reason."
Serpina listened quietly before a faint smile appeared on her lips.
For the first ti, Airen saw her expression change.
That alone surprised her.
And yet, at the sa ti, she found herself captivated.
How could a simple smile hold such an undeniable allure?
Even as a woman herself, she had to admit—Serpina’s beauty was flawless.
"I do not dislike those who remain true to their own sense of honor, even when unrecognized by others."
With precise, graceful movents, Serpina extended her pale hand toward the kneeling Airen.
"Airen Juliet, from this mont forward, I expect great things from you in my army."
"Yes!"
With that, Serpina turned to leave, instructing Airen to remain in the residence until further orders arrived.
But just as she was about to step out—
"U-uhm…!"
"…?"
A hesitant voice called out from the corner of the room.
It was Reika, who nervously raised her hand, clearly trying to ask a question.
Or rather, she was trying to, but she was stumbling over her words so much that it was impossible to understand her.
"Uh, uh, uh, uh, um!! Th-that, um, uh, S-Serpina-nim…! Uh, I-I, um, h-ha-ha-ha, I-I have, um, s-sothing to s-say…!"
"…"
Without a word, Serpina slowly approached her.
"Hiiik…!"
The closer she ca, the more Reika shrank away, looking exactly like a frightened mouse cornered by a cat.
"Calm yourself. I am not going to eat you."
"A-ah, I-I, um…!"
Serpina’s statent only seed to fluster Reika even further.
Seeing this, Airen sighed and lightly nudged Reika’s arm, snapping her out of her panic.
After taking several deep breaths, Reika finally managed to force out her words.
"…I-I… I w-would like to send… a letter…!"
"A letter?"
"Y-yes! Um, um… to my father…! I would like to send him a letter, but… I don’t know where to… um…"
In her mind, she had prepared a much more eloquent question—sothing like:
"I would like to send a letter to my father, but as this is my first ti here, I do not know where the postal facilities are located. If it is not too much trouble, could you kindly direct to the appropriate place?"
But in front of Serpina’s overwhelming presence, her words simply would not co out properly.
Fortunately, Serpina didn’t seem particularly bothered by the awkward delivery.
She responded in her usual composed tone.
"Bring it to ."
"Huh? W-wait, what…?"
"I said, bring the letter to ."
"A-ah! P-p-please wait a m-mont…!"
Ah.
She bit her tongue.
Even after that, she continued stumbling over herself, but sohow, she managed to retrieve the letter she had written and handed it to Serpina.
"I will deliver this on your behalf. That should be acceptable, yes?"
"Huh? Oh, no, you don’t have to—"
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
"It is no trouble. This is hardly a favor worth ntioning."
"A-ah… T-thank you very much…"
A Small Bow.
As Reika bowed in thanks, this ti, Serpina was the one to ask a question.
"You look surprised."
"…Huh? M-?"
"Yes."
Reika hesitated, unsure if she should say anything.
But for so reason, she felt that it might be okay to speak honestly.
Carefully, she opened her mouth.
"It’s just… Serpina-nim seems a bit different from what I heard."
"Oh?"
"I-I an! I-I don’t an anything by it…! I just… um, my father told you were… very scary… But now that I see you, um…"
"I see. So I am currently holding a letter from your father, the sa man who described as a terrifying person?"
"Huh? Ah, n-no, that’s not what I ant…! I-I an, you’re not a… d-devil or anything…!"
Serpina let out a quiet chuckle, the corners of her lips curling up slightly.
"I do not concern myself with what others say about . A person who cannot endure such rumors has no right to wear a crown."
With that, she lightly raised the letter in her hand.
"I will ensure it is delivered. You need not worry."
And with those final words, she quietly left the room.
Airen and Reika stared at the door she had walked through for a long while.
Like Swen, they too were starting to realize—
Serpina was different from the rumors.
Valharat Castle, Nighhardt Estate
After Reika had left, the estate had beco quieter than usual.
Jinor found himself spending his days in idleness—a rare occurrence.
Anima had returned.
But there had been no tearful reunion.
The mont she learned that Yuri had traded Swen in exchange for her freedom, she had lashed out at her.
She had been furious, demanding to know if Yuri had lost her mind.
As the most intelligent strategist in the Aishus Army, Anima fully understood the long-term consequences of such an action.
However.
With Epinnel and the founding retainers diating the situation—and with Anima ultimately at fault for miscalculating in the first place—the matter had entered a temporary lull.
In the end, she would likely accept it.
They were fated to stand together, even in the face of death.
And from that mont—
"You’re resigning from your position as National Strategist?"
"Yes."
Jinor bowed deeply before Yuri.
"I have grown old, and my mind no longer functions as sharply as before. I would like to spend my remaining years writing. Please allow this old man to have this final request."
"But Jinor, if you leave—"
"Anima-nim is still here, is she not?"
Jinor smiled kindly.
"As long as Anima-nim is here, I can step down with peace of mind."
Jinor had stepped down from his position as National Strategist.
With his heart no longer aligned with the Aishus Army, there was no reason for him to continue exhausting his intellect for their benefit.
Yuri seed reluctant, but there was nothing she could do to stop him.
The mont Airen defected, twenty thousand soldiers abandoned the army alongside her.
Yuri could technically punish them, but doing so would only destroy her people's morale.
She was caught in a dilemma.
Even though Epinnel had managed to contain the flas, the damage had already been done.
It was only a matter of ti before other officers also left her side.
This was the price Yuri had to pay for saving Anima.
And then—
"Jinor-nim."
A maid entered the study where Jinor was seated.
"What is it?"
"A letter has arrived."
"A letter?"
"Yes. It’s from Lady Reika."
So, she was safe.
He had expected as much, but hearing it confird still brought a sense of relief.
He had only taken her in because of her magical talent, yet sohow, he had grown fond of her.
Perhaps he truly was getting old.
Opening the letter, he read its contents.
It was brief.
[I'm doing well.
I will be staying with Swen-nim and Airen-nim.
Please don’t worry about .
I wish to remain with them, so I hope you will grant permission.]
"Permission, huh."
What an amusing request.
Permission had nothing to do with it.
This was exactly what Jinor had anticipated from the very beginning.
If Serpina was willing to send a letter, that ant the situation wasn’t as dire as it could have been.
Even Serpina wouldn’t want to provoke Swen unnecessarily.
In that case, he might as well ask.
Jinor imdiately drafted a reply.
It wasn’t so much a letter to Reika.
Rather, it was a ssage directed at Swen.
A Few Days Later, Serpina’s Army
It had been several days since they joined Serpina’s forces.
She was busy managing the front lines near Hisphil Castle.
She had said she would summon them soon, so in the anti, Swen was enjoying a rare mont of free ti.
Knock, knock, knock.
Hearing the knock, Swen thought it might be Serpina.
But when he opened the door—
"A-ah, hello… Swen-nim…!"
"Reika?"
The visitor was Reika.
After seating her on the sofa, Swen prepared a small tray of refreshnts.
"Th-thank you…!"
"It’s nothing. I don’t have much to offer, though. I wish I could at least make so tea. But aren’t you eating the sa things as I am?"
"Huh? Well… yeah, but this is from you, Swen-nim, so… yum."
Since they were living in the sa residence, they obviously had the sa refreshnts.
Still, seeing her munch on the snacks so cutely, Swen found himself watching her for a mont before asking—
"What’s the matter?"
"Ah! Well… I, um, received a letter."
"A letter?"
Reika nodded.
Apparently, she had exchanged ssages with Jinor.
That was fine, of course.
But there was sothing in the letter that she needed to show Swen.
"For ?"
"Yes. It seems… my father wants to ask you sothing."
Swen had initially thought it might be about the marriage proposal.
But if that were the case, Reika would have been much more flustered.
"Alright. What’s the question?"
"Ah, here…!"
She handed him the letter.
Most of it contained advice for Reika, reminding her to be mindful of her actions around Swen.
But at the very end, there was a clear question directed at him.
[Is Serpina the lord you have chosen to serve?]
"Oh?"
As expected from soone with 99 Intelligence.
Jinor truly was an old man with an exceptionally sharp mind.
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