episode_0140

* * *

“Are you talking about the position of second-in-command of the occupying army? … ?”

On the red carpet of the throne room.

The red-haired female knight, Iren, asked with a somewhat disbelieving expression, but-

Serpina, who was sitting on the throne looking down at her, answered in a very stern tone.

“That’s right. Now is the time to consolidate internal affairs. I may not need you to do anything right now, but I plan to use you heavily when the time comes. Irene, I look forward to your performance.”

“… … .”

On a convocation day where several generals were gathered to announce new positions, a surprise appointment occurred.

Deputy commander of the occupying force.

For the Serpina Army, which is preparing for full-scale expansion into the Central Continent in the future, it was an important position that could make a huge military contribution.

Of course it’s a happy thing. Irene knew well from her past experience that it was not easy to find a master who recognized her value and treated her with great care.

But – is it really okay for you to receive this position?

It hasn’t been long since I came here, and on the surface, I’ve already changed masters twice.

Irene, who was more perceptive than anyone else, easily sensed the untrustworthy gaze being directed at her.

Since it is Master Serpina’s decision, I don’t even dare to say anything, but… … These eyes. It was an aggressive look in his eyes that made him unable to acknowledge himself.

So, that moment when I thought, would it be better to reject it on the grounds that I don’t have confidence in it?

“Irene Juliette.”

Serpina said the name quietly.

“There is only one reason why I put your name here. This is because you possess the abilities suitable for this position. So, I would like you to keep in mind that we cannot accept the words, ‘I want to decline because I lack the ability.’ Of course, I won’t force you.”

Irene was slightly taken aback by her words as if she had read his thoughts, but-

… Honestly, regardless of all the people around me, as Iren.

As a knight and subject, I felt grateful to Serpina, who gave me wings that allowed me to expand my abilities.

It goes without saying in Brans County, and even in Aishous County, he was unable to hold such an important position due to being overshadowed by founding contributors.

From Irene’s point of view, if I had to leave this place with Swen in the future – at least before that – I wanted to repay her by doing a little military service for her convenience.

Whether it was when he was in the separate building or when he accepted Reika, a civilian, into the quarters of his generals, everything was like receiving a favor in the end.

“… … All right. I will gratefully accept your command.”

After Serpina smiled with satisfaction-

Soon, Irene let out a cynical laugh at the gazes spread around her.

Then, he speaks in a very cold tone, the exact opposite of when he spoke to her.

“You too would do well to remember. In our country, the criteria for judging longevity are not things like length of service or family origin. How outstanding an ability do you have, and how active can you be in that position? Only these two criteria will be used. And the judgment on that will be made by Serpina von Eingart herself.”

Then, he slightly raises his head and looks down at his subjects.

guv.

The charisma felt by those who could inevitably become the leader strongly weighed down and overwhelmed the audience in the throne room.

“If you have any complaints, come directly to me and tell me. It doesn’t matter as long as you express your opinion. I will listen to it over and over again. If you bring logic that can break your will, there is no reason not to listen. He is generous enough to listen to your stories, but he is not merciful enough to forgive the defeated wild dogs grouping up and causing unnecessary trouble in unseen places. I think everyone knows what I mean.”

In other words, if you don’t like Irene being put in that position, don’t harm Iren for no reason and come to her and criticize her.

Serpina’s legitimacy and power served as Irene’s shield.

‘Master…’ … .’

Irene, who was looking at Serpina like that, had a slightly cheeky thought.

According to Swen’s words, the monarch who will unify the continent is Runarien, not Serpina… …

Assuming that is true, does that mean that such a woman will ultimately fall into history’s defeat without being able to hold hegemony?

My heart was shaken for a moment, but I soon put the situation back together again.

‘Serphina and Lord Lunarien… … No matter who I serve, I just follow Swen’s wishes. Keeping Swen safe by my side. All you have to do is think about that.’

No matter what anyone says, his sword and his shield belonged to Swen.

The wolf, raised only to protect someone, had no intention of betraying the owner who saved it.

*

After the audience is over.

Someone grabbed Irene’s shoulder as she tried to leave the castle.

“Irene.”

“… … Master?”

“Take care of this.”

When I checked what Serpina handed over… … It was a small golden key.

“There is a separate building at the back of the barracks. It’s a building owned by the imperial family. There is an emblem of the royal family on the entrance door, so you will not have a hard time finding it.”

“Yes? Why is this… … ?”

“I will give that place to you. I will assign about twenty maids to manage it.”

“What do you mean by giving it away?”

“The second-in-command of the occupying army cannot live in a dormitory, right? The girl you’re with will also notice.”

“Ah… !”

You were thinking about all of those things one by one?

Everything else aside, I honestly felt grateful to her.

“Thank you so much for your concern.”

“Please express your gratitude to military personnel.”

“Yes!”

The answering voice naturally gained strength.

‘With this, I can live separately… … !’

It’s a little sad to break up with Silin, but we haven’t seen each other for that long.

If our relationship continues, we will meet again just as we did this time.

Reika, who always had trouble knowing how to introduce herself whenever she met people, will be able to live a little more comfortably.

And crucially… …

‘Swen… … Maybe I can bring it… … ?’

Maybe we could bring him back and live together.

Aside from everything else, I felt grateful to Serpina for just that.

After St. Valentino’s Day, I got so busy again that I couldn’t see his face.

Before coming to Serpina County, it was Swen’s face that I saw every day, but after spending time apart, I could feel it.

I missed you every day. I realized that my body was lacking the ingredients for Swen. I wanted to spend forever with him, from morning to night.

If it were a separate building, of course I would be able to offer a room… …

Wouldn’t it be possible to live with him again?

‘Let’s talk about it… … ?’

at that time.

“You look happy, Irene.”

“Oh, yes, four?!”

As Serpina’s voice was heard, Irene looked very girlish, as if the serious look from just a moment ago had disappeared.

that’s right. It was in front of Serpina. What should I do now… … !

“I, I, am sorry. That’s-”

“No. Because it’s not something to be sorry about. It’s a beautiful smile that makes even those who see it happy. If it’s okay, can you tell me what you were thinking?”

“… … .”

“If you don’t want to talk, it’s okay if you don’t, so there’s no pressure. I don’t want to ask you any questions.”

Serpina’s words could not help but be truly fortunate for Irene.

How could she say in front of the monarch that she was excited about living with a man?

And then-

“… … I’m jealous.”

“Yes?”

“When was the last time I smiled with happiness like you did? … I don’t even remember opening it.”

Irene read images of her past self from Serphina’s profile.

Such a pitiful sight, unable to take root in the earth, as if it would break at any moment if shaken even slightly… …

It was as if my self from the time when I had not been able to find someone called Swen to embrace me was standing before my eyes wearing the armor of the Absolute.

“… … It’s a long, useless story. Please take care of me in the future, Irene.”

“Yes. We will make sure to achieve results as much as you trust us.”

Irene turned her back and looked at Serpina walking away.

For some reason… … The sight of her back felt so lonely.

* * *

A few days after my last audience with her.

Serpina called me again, so I headed straight to the throne room.

‘Has there been another request for alliance?’

Because there is nothing else to call yourself.

After I spoke to her last time-

Swen thought that next time, if conditions that seemed good came up, it would be a good idea to just say why not form an alliance?

Since I was going to leave this place anyway, there was no need to always give effective advice.

There’s no reason to feel guilty because a moderate gain doesn’t mean a huge loss, right?

‘The problem is that Serpina is quite perceptive… … .’

She had always been strangely good at reading facial expressions, so if she made a mistake, there was a high chance she would get caught up in something unnecessary.

If you notice that I am answering appropriately… … ?

‘For now, I’ll have to take action while looking at the situation.’

So, when I arrived in front of the throne room door.

‘It’s a little open?’

A woman’s voice was heard from beyond the unlocked door of the throne room.

I stood close to the door and focused as much as I could on the sound coming from it.

Serpina… … A female servant was talking.

“I am not saying that my lord’s intentions are wrong. However, I just think we need to adjust the speed.”

“Erin. The result doesn’t change anyway. I think it would be wiser to convince the subjects as quickly as possible.”

“However, there are many who have not yet accepted that woman as a member of our military. Don’t you know her history, my lord?”

“Are you going to argue that it wasn’t enough for me to accept her as a member of our military?”

“That’s not true.”

Serpina was speaking in a quite aggressive tone, but the person speaking to her was also responding quite clearly.

Being able to express one’s opinion to the monarch like that… … Wouldn’t it be safe to say that Serpina-kun is less rigid than you think?

“Many of my subordinates are questioning the fact that Irian, who made numerous military achievements in the conquest of the central continent, was pushed out. I also had no choice but to take heavy steps. Please consider this. A society in which merit is not properly rewarded can never be maintained in a healthy manner.”

I swallowed my saliva and held my breath.

I’m so nervous about this… …

“Okay. In that case, I’ll just leave everything aside and focus on each character. I guess you’re claiming that Irian, who has just passed the legal age, is so great that he surpasses the general who was called a ‘siege specialist’?”

‘uh?’

Siege specialist?

That’s a title I’ve heard a lot about… … ?

‘Iren… … ?’

“Of course, he may be more capable than Irian, but-”

“Erin. I will personally tell you again. The standard for selecting generals to be assigned to key positions in our military is whether the person is capable. And how active he can be – there are only those two. If you have made a contribution, the reward should be sufficient money or treasure, and should not be an important position. Because stagnant water tends to rot. Although Irian is certainly talented, he still has many shortcomings to serve as second-in-command. It means that it is time to learn more.”

“… … .”

“He was merely in charge of patrol duties. However, her name is already being talked about among the residents of the territory and the soldiers working with her.”

Serpina spoke in a stern tone.

“If you look at the trajectory she has taken, her qualifications become even clearer. In the past, who was the defense commander of the fortress belonging to the Brans Army located on the central road that we could not penetrate? Who was the red-haired female general who was rapidly increasing her territory with Chell Brans in Brans County, which was just one of the warlords in the central continent? Erin, don’t you know that well?”

“But that’s… … .”

“I’m sorry for interrupting the conversation, but even if I wanted to persuade her, I couldn’t because ‘there are a lot of people who can’t accept her’. If you have prepared a different logic, I’ll listen, so let’s talk about it.”

“No… … Thank you for listening.”

Soon I heard footsteps, so I quickly took refuge in a dark place to the side.

It wasn’t until a purple-haired woman came out the door and moved further away that I began to understand the situation little by little.

‘What happened?’

In context, the ‘woman’ that the person named Erin was referring to would be Irene.

Since there was talk of an important position, it seemed like Irene had taken on some important position.

However, the subjects are dissatisfied with the picture of the stone that came rolling in and ascending to an important position –

‘Is Serpina covering it herself…? … ?’

If you think about it that way, the context of the conversation just happened to fit perfectly.

And, at the same time as I realized that, I felt grateful to her.

Because Irene was a lonely general who longed for the approval of others.

Recognizing her abilities and being given an important position must have been a very happy experience for her.

The only monarch who recognized her value as she always directly nursed each soldier on the battlefield, even if no one recognized her.

Serphina did something that neither Rin, who raised her, nor Yuuri, who had her for a moment, could do.

‘For some reason, I feel more grateful when he is nice to Irene than when he is nice to me… … .’

Well, I guess I can talk about this with Irene later.

I already wanted to see his face, but talking to him would be a good excuse.

I took a deep breath and walked into the throne room.