episode_0335

“Mr. Ioline?”

Ioline bowed towards Serpina and greeted her.

“His Majesty the Emperor.”

“Can you wait a moment before I begin my explanation?”

After saying that, he looked at me and Ioline in turn.

“I’m fine.”

“Why do you need to ask permission, Your Majesty the Emperor?”

“Thank you.”

Serpina turned her head and silently looked at the soldiers forming a line beyond the castle, then opened her mouth towards Irian, who was kneeling.

“Raise your head, Irian.”

“… … .”

“I ask you, do you also think that the rule of this body is false?”

“That can’t be true! That’s ridiculous! I-”

“That’s it.”

Serpina looked down at him with the eyes of the absolute without an inch of hesitation.

It was such a natural scene. Like water flowing from above to below, as if it were supposed to be that way, she was clearly looking down on Irian, but without looking down on him.

It was an appearance that only a ‘true absolute being’ like Serpina, not another leader, could possibly achieve. Anyone who was an ordinary human living in this era would naturally want to kneel down without even realizing it.

“The reason I hired you is not because you are the young head of the prestigious Al Kaski family. I hired you because I saw you as a person with outstanding abilities, who is capable of accomplishing what needs to be done and is not afraid to try new things even if it means failing. You will easily understand what I mean.”

“My lord… … !”

“So instead of making meaningless apologies, I think it would be better to focus on coming up with practical countermeasures for the current situation. What do you think about Yeo’s opinion?”

“Ma… … That’s right, my lord! Your words are correct. I, Irian, will never run away until I personally deal with the karma of my family!”

I carefully checked Serpina’s profile.

It was the same as usual. The one woman who had shown weakness in front of me was nowhere to be found, and now in front of me was the sole leader of the Serpina Army and the last legitimacy of the Eingart Imperial Family.

“Irian seems to have come to his senses, Miss Ioline. I would like to ask you to explain the rest. Would you mind answering Swen’s question?”

“That should be so.”

After saying that, Ioline let go of the dress she had been holding with her hands and only then looked at me.

“Are you here alone?”

“I was barely able to take care of just one body. It would have been better if I could have prepared something specific to help you… … .”

“No. Let’s listen to the story first.”

Iolini nodded slowly at my words.

“Before I say anything, I can’t tell you the exact reason because I’ve only heard it through rumors and haven’t seen it with my own eyes… …but considering that the family members responded so well, I think you should consider that it’s likely true and not a lie.”

“So… … .”

A very short silence followed.

Finally, she began to tell what she had heard.

* * *

Turn back time, to Eingart Castle.

In the mansion where both Irian and Janice were away, Iolin was having a very boring time.

‘It’ll be quite a while before I hear back from Swen, right?’

I’ve simulated it on my own a few times to convey my feelings to him, and I think I did pretty well, but-

Since I was doing something I had never done before in my life, I couldn’t hide my nervousness.

‘Surely four women haven’t already made a pact with Swen… … How can we possibly secure a seat?’

Ioline thought of the people who were supposed to be Swen’s women.

First up, the red-haired knight Irene Juliette.

The look they share when they are together with Swen is not ordinary. Above all, it is not hard for a woman to notice that she has a very special relationship with Swen because every time he looks at her, his eyes literally drip with honey.

Next is the wizard Reika Nighthart.

She owed her a lot to save her brother Janis. Aside from that, she didn’t seem to have a special relationship with Irene, but since she kept hanging out with Swen, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to assume that she was also quite close to Swen.

That is – at least as far as I know, there were definitely two people.

I hadn’t watched Swen closely for long, so I wasn’t sure how many more women he had – but it wasn’t hard to guess that one of the four seats was empty.

Swen, who had lived in the dorm with him for a short period of time, had never shown any signs of being womanizing, and considering his attitude when he happened to see her in her underwear, it is possible that he may not have any women he is romantically involved with other than the two of them.

‘Well, even if all four of them were there, then―’

That was the moment when Iolini was, in a way, letting her imagination run wild with sweet and sour thoughts.

“Miss! Miss Ioline!”

Someone rushed into her room.

The main character was Ioline’s maid and nanny, who had been especially fond of and cared for her since she was little.

If it were an ordinary nobleman, he would have been scolded for opening the door without even knowing what he was doing, or he would have gone further and punished him.

Even after her family, the Al Kaskis, had become the only surviving noble family and its power had grown to its peak, Ioline never once thought of using her bloodline to achieve anything.

“What’s going on?”

“Miss. We’re in trouble. You need to evacuate now!”

Looking at the nanny’s serious expression that could not be seen through acting, Ioline asked in confusion, but-

“Huh? Suddenly an evacuation? What is that… … .”

“Urgent! Hurry! There’s no other time! Quickly! Take my hand!”

I was a little embarrassed, but I didn’t think a nanny of this nature would do such a meaningless and troublesome prank.

Moreover, Ioline’s intuition as a woman was strongly insisting that she should trust her nanny even now.

“… … !”

Instead of answering, Ioline grabbed her hand and quickly ran out of the mansion.

* * *

After following the nanny out of the mansion and running for quite some time, we arrived at a place where a carriage was waiting, ready to leave at any moment.

“Get on this carriage!”

“Just a minute!”

Ioline followed along silently, holding the nanny’s hand, but she couldn’t help but ask a question here.

“Can you explain what happened now?”

The nanny gasped for breath for a long time, then placed both hands on Ioline’s shoulders.

“Lady, listen carefully. I’m only going to tell you this once. Nathan, that man is plotting treason.”

“Yes… … ?”

The nanny’s story was like this.

While I was working as usual, I happened to overhear a conversation between the influential members of the family, and heard that Nathan was planning to eliminate the current lord, Jenna.

In the process, he reassured Iolin, who was likely to become Irian’s collaborator, and then he seemed to have shared an incredibly shocking story about how he would take things slow.

“So, you need to run away right now! You need to go straight to where the master is, or you need to evacuate to a safe place!”

“Well… … Wait a minute. Treason… … Are you saying that the family agrees with your uncle’s words?”

That was nonsense.

At least according to the common sense that Ioline knows.

Nathan was their uncle, but he wasn’t really a significant figure in the family.

Wasn’t he just some eccentric old man who sat in a corner study doing research that he didn’t understand?

You’re going to attempt treason by risking the entire Al Kaski family just by listening to one order from such a person?

The nanny, noticing Ioline’s expression turning into one of shock, closed her eyes and spoke again with force in her voice.

“Miss. I’m illiterate, so to be honest, I don’t really know what they’re talking about… …but there’s a word I heard clearly.”

“They said this. This side will have an advantage because there are three of them.”

“Huh? What… What are three people?”

therefore–

* * *

――You said there were three wizards.

“Yes… … ?”

Because I heard something so hard to believe, I asked back in a voice full of helplessness without realizing it –

There was no change in the answers I heard.

Ioline looked at me seriously, with no playfulness at all in her eyes, and said the same sentence again.

“They have three wizards, so they have an overwhelming advantage over the occupying forces… … That’s what I heard.”