episode_0297

Episode 297

“Princess, this is Philgret. I came to report to you.”

“Please come in.”

Philgret, who entered my room, handed me the documents and knelt down on one knee.

“You can relax. Let me take a look first.”

The plan is to form a convoy that will go to Nordrier together. I looked through the list carefully.

Pilgret was ordered to make up as many elites as possible. The list was actually composed only of outstanding knights.

But I noticed that one person’s name was missing from there.

“Pilgret, I think Rika’s name is missing.”

“Yes. I don’t plan on taking her. The reason is as the princess thinks.”

Philgret had a calm expression without any emotion. He has no intention of going against me or any ill will towards Rika. I could guess why he did that.

Rika has already passed through Wihart’s area and infiltrated the kingdom. That means there is a high possibility that you came into contact with them in some way at that time.

Moreover, Rika is a northern people. The view that it was not suitable to be taken to a group that targeted foreigners as their main enemy was not without reason.

But even taking all that into account, I was planning on taking Rika along.

“Then it is a command. Assign Rika to the escort group.”

“I understand. If you allow me, may I ask the reason?”

“This is because there is no female knight with the level of dancing skills that Rika has. As we have to go deep into enemy territory this time, the threat of assassination cannot be ruled out. I need troops to stick close to me and protect me.”

“After hearing it, it’s true. Then I will do that right away.”

Somehow I felt like Pilgret’s attitude was testing me. I spoke again to Pilgret, who seemed to be retreating.

“Pilgret. What is the reaction of the drivers?”

“There were many people who were puzzled. Why do we need so many troops for an ordinary inspection? As if we were going to war.”

The real reason for this inspection was not informed to general drivers. That’s natural. Wihart’s betrayal is still only a suspicion based on speculation. I couldn’t just spread it around.

“It’s not serious, right?”

“Yes. Because there are precedents from Laurencia and Sancerne. If we just tell them that the policy has been made to strengthen the escorts to the maximum level for the time being, they will understand without any problem.”

“What about you?”

Suddenly an arrow was pointed at him, but Pilgret’s expression didn’t change much.

“What do you mean?”

“I heard that there are many warriors who respect Margrave Wihart. Do you really think he betrayed me?”

The shield of the kingdom that protects the northern fortress, Nordrie.

While the kingdom is prospering in a rich land, the northern wolf silently protects the kingdom in a harsh land.

It is a position that can truly be considered a role model for knights. For generations, that position was considered a rare loyal subject. Fehat’s trust would have been based on that.

But it is clear that he betrayed.

Even in the novel, he was the first to betray Carmel’s temptation to make Nordrier independent.

Also, infiltrating Rika’s unit was a clear dereliction of duty and betrayal.

Philgret was silent for a moment. This was unusual considering that he gave immediate answers in most cases.

“For me… I can’t say anything. Because I don’t have the same insight as the princess. In this escort mission, the knights and I just want to be the princess’s sword.”

As always, I can sense his firm trust in me through Philgret’s answer. It was as if he thought I was the ideal king’s vessel.

“That’s a good answer. If he really betrayed me, I would have no mercy and tell you to cut off his head. Are you prepared to do that?”

“Yes. The sword has no eyes.”

The answer is immediate this time.

In fact, the likelihood of that happening is not very high. Even if he were truly a traitor, there would not be an all-out war between soldiers.

The escort forces, including Pilgret, are nothing more than a minimal deterrent to prevent the immediate use of force.

My job there is to find out the truth, his true feelings. The key is how much he understands and is wary of magic.

As he is a general leading a fortress, he will not be without any preparations. Among the northern tribes, there are those who practice magic like Eila. How to overcome it and bring out the truth is the deciding factor.

“I always believe in you. During this inspection, I will consider myself entrusting my life to you.”

“This is an excessive statement. I will definitely live up to your trust.”

I handed the documents back to Pilgret. Philgret bowed his head deeply and left my room.

“It is faith…”

I looked at the place where he sat and muttered bitterly. Thinking about how the weight of those words differs depending on the person.

* * *

The next few days passed quickly.

When the news of the princess’s visit was announced, Wihart expressed their intention to welcome it.

This would prepare them in their own way, but they would not know my true intentions. You probably wouldn’t expect the princess herself to ask for her doctor directly using mental magic.

There seemed to be a mountain of other things to do. There were a lot of documents to check and process. We also discussed several times with Carmel and Juliana about the defensive measures Wihart was expected to take.

However, no matter how busy you were, there was one issue that could not be forgotten. On the 7th day after sentencing Aila, I visited Changgwan in the forest again.

With my hood pulled down, I entered the wooden door. I briefly greeted the master and was about to go up the stairs when he spoke to me.

“Wait a moment, I’ll be better.”

“Yes?”

“It’s about the woman you entrusted to me… Since yesterday, she suddenly started screaming and singing an unknown song, so I covered her mouth. I’m telling you just in case.”

Eila was ordered not to harm other humans. However, simple shouting did not seem to be considered harmful.

As long as it did not harm her body, the Master had been given permission to intervene if Aela caused trouble. If I screamed like that, it would have been a big hindrance to my job.

“Screaming and singing… What else?”

“It seemed like he was very afraid of something. It seemed as if he was carrying all the frustrations of the world. He muttered like he was crazy and that this was all a dream. As you asked, I didn’t say anything and just kept my mouth shut.”

I’m afraid…

That might be a positive thing from my perspective. There is only one thing that Aela fears. To obey me forever. If you were that afraid, you could see that you had found a way.

I handed the master a gold coin and went up the stairs. When I entered the room where Aela was locked up, I was a little startled.

Ayla was completely confined to the darkest corner of the room. When Aila saw me, her mouth was covered, so she made an ooh sound and pushed herself further into the corner. Just as the Master said, he looks like he’s truly lost his mind.

I walked over to Aila and removed the gag covering her mouth. Eila’s eyes were wide and scary and she clung to me.

“Please, please, please…! Please don’t do it…! Just that, please… I will obey! I will obey voluntarily! I’ll do anything, whether it’s asking you to lick your shoes or being fucked by a pig in front of the public, so please…!”

“Get off, Aila.”

Aila, who was holding my shoulder, followed my orders and retreated to the wall. Even at first glance, he looked very anxious. I was pressing my body against the wall as if I could see a scary ghost next to me.

With a response like this, I couldn’t help but ask, even if it was just out of curiosity. The moment my mouth opened, Aila desperately shook her head. But I asked regardless.

“Answer me, Aila. How can I get complete submission from you?”

Two streams of tears flow from two despairing eyes. But the mouth that wasn’t hers was already starting to say things she didn’t want to say to me.

“Wow, there is only one way to make me completely obey the princess… If I erase my personality from my head with the magic power the princess possesses… and rebuild it from scratch… .”

“Rebuilding personality…?”

I think I understand why Aila was so afraid. That’s no different from death. No, it might be worse than death, considering that everything Aila had achieved, including the song praising life, would be taken away by something completely different.

In the end, Aila had no choice. Either the body dies because it cannot come up with this method, or the personality dies by this method.

Still cheap considering what she did.

“It’s definitely a good idea. However, the Book of Enekra did not contain any magic for rebuilding one’s personality. Is that really possible?”

Le Giagia cannot force a state of mind. What can be ordered is limited to ‘action’. Personality cannot be changed even with absolute obedience spells.

“It is possible… If you can create a new magic that is not written in the Book of Enekra… It will be easier if you touch your brain with my ‘Song in Praise of Life’…◦# ◦

Ayla was now completely sobbing. Seeing her, who never lost her smile in the face of the death of others, cry so mournfully in the face of her own death, I felt no pity.

“Creation of a new magic…”

Aila said it was easy, but is that really possible for me? It occurred to me that learning and using the spells written in the book was very simple, but creating new spells was on another level.

Well, luckily I have a lot of people I can consult with. They are all excellent magicians.

“I understand. I will reserve your disposition a little longer. It will probably take a few days.”

I put the gag back on Aila’s mouth as she shook her head vigorously. Aila collapsed on the floor, sobbing through her stuffed mouth.