Ch.209Chapter 209. Return of the King (3)

When Violet arrived at the mansion with Tifa and Francis, most of the key figures were already gathered.

“Brother, you’re late.”

In response to the words of the second daughter Charlotte, who had arrived first and was waiting, the eldest son Francis bowed his head awkwardly and asked.

“What’s going on?”

“Lady Luna says she has something important to tell us.”

“Lady Luna?”

A nod.

Due to the rather solemn atmosphere, Francis didn’t inquire further and quietly waited for Luna to appear.

And, a moment later—

“Have you all been waiting?”

Along with a woman’s gentle voice, the sound of footsteps could be heard.

Hair as bright yellow as a cream puff.

Her ruby-red eyes caught one’s attention like strawberries placed atop a cake.

Once a weak margrave without name or power who set out to save the continent, but now showing remarkable achievements as the lord of Tepelo Castle, a crucial stronghold of Karelia, one of the prominent middle powers of the south—

Lunarian Ineanne revealed herself before everyone.

“I apologize for being late. I had something to check…”

“That’s quite alright. What’s going on that you called everyone here?”

Everyone who could be called the “Lunarian faction” was gathered here.

First, Tifa and Cain, who had been with her since her days as a margrave.

The three talented siblings whom Cain had requested she take in: Francis, Charlotte, and Violet.

And several generals from Karelia who deeply followed Luna, impressed by her character during her time as the lord of Tepelo Castle…

These people harbored great dissatisfaction with Vanessa’s unilateral actions, and thus tended to follow Luna, the only figure who had stood against Vanessa rather than their sovereign, Karelia.

Considering that Luna had never gathered them all in one place before, today’s meeting was certainly a rare situation.

“The matter at hand is that a very important order has come down from our lord, Lady Karelia.”

“An order…”

“It’s war, isn’t it?”

Cain, who had been quietly listening beside her, asked with a twitch of his eyebrow.

Luna looked into Cain’s eyes and slowly nodded.

“It seems about 93,000 troops will be stationed at Tepelo Castle in preparation for battle against Ohana. Generals Eston, Gail, and Medea will likely be transferred here. The commander-in-chief will be… me, as the castle lord.”

“Does that mean…?”

Luna nodded at the words of one of her following generals.

“Yes. Everyone should prepare for battle. This will be the first major battle for our Karelia forces in a very long time, so mental preparation is necessary… I thought it would be good to discuss various matters with everyone here before the upcoming battle.”

Luna said this while unfolding a map.

It was a detailed map of the southern continent around Tepelo Castle.

“First, I’d like to discuss which of the three adjacent castles we should attack… If anyone has a good opinion, please feel free to raise your hand and speak.”

Just as she was about to start what seemed like an ordinary “pre-battle military council”—

“Just a moment.”

The one who raised her hand was Violet, the youngest but most sharp-minded budding strategist in the room.

Though someone might have scolded her for interjecting in a matter beyond a girl still in training, Luna asked in a very serious tone, as if addressing a general.

“Violet, do you have a good suggestion?”

“I’m not sure if it should be called a good suggestion.”

Violet sighed briefly, then raised her head to look directly at Luna’s face—

And brought up something Luna had never considered.

“Are you really… planning to prepare for battle?”

“…Pardon?”

“Literally, I’m asking if Your Ladyship truly intends to prepare for battle.”

Luna tilted her head in confusion at Violet’s puzzling words.

“Of course I should, shouldn’t I? That’s what our lord has commanded—”

“Is Lady Karelia truly your lord?”

“…What?”

Momentarily speechless at those words, Luna was asked again by Violet with clear eyes.

“Is Lady Karelia truly the lord of us all, and is it really your intention to help Lady Karelia unify the continent?”

By this point.

Even Luna couldn’t help but understand what she was talking about.

“…What exactly are you saying, Violet?”

“I’m asking if helping Lady Karelia is truly the right answer.”

Luna placed her hand on her forehead, sighed, and then asked.

“I’ll listen to whatever you have to say… Please tell me clearly what you’re thinking.”

“Betray Karelia.”

“!!!”

“About 90,000 troops are rolling right into our hands. If your intentions, which you’ve always spoken of, are not small, I can assert that there will never be a better opportunity than now.”

“…Violet. Though these may be turbulent times, Lady Karelia has bestowed great favor upon me. In fact, there’s something I haven’t told you all, but within Madeleine Castle, many opposed an outsider like me taking on the authority of commander-in-chief. However, Lady Karelia believed in me. Therefore, isn’t it human duty to repay that trust?”

“That’s precisely why there’s no other opportunity but now. If even now, more than half the people in the capital city are trying to check your power, the position of commander-in-chief could be transferred to someone else at any time. Moreover, you don’t seem to get along well with Lady Vanessa, and isn’t she the de facto ruler of this country?”

Violet was the only person who had directly witnessed the verbal battle between Vanessa and Luna.

She was precocious and intelligent beyond her young age. There was no way she couldn’t have read the hostility that Vanessa openly displayed toward Luna in that place.

Even Luna herself had easily noticed that Vanessa was fiercely checking her.

“So, if you truly intend to reappear as a margrave again, now is the perfect opportunity. Therefore, betray Karelia. That is all I wanted to say.”

Surely when they first met, she was just a shy young girl.

But now, with the passage of time, she was so adept at uttering such cunning words, sentences that only a seasoned strategist would speak.

Perhaps I gave her too many books on military tactics.

Though no more words came from Violet, Luna could feel it.

The fact that the air in this room had become extremely strange.

Looking around, she noticed that no one showed any surprise at Violet’s audacious statement.

No.

Rather, the situation began to take a strange turn.

“Lady Luna!”

Metz, one of the warriors from Karelia who had come to follow Luna at Tepelo Castle, suddenly knelt down.

“I know well that Lady Luna originally had grand ambitions as a margrave. The people of Karelia’s territory are groaning in pain under Vanessa’s tyranny, backed by our lord. If the premise is to serve the people of the territory, isn’t who achieves that not such an important issue?”

“Lord Metz, what are you saying…!”

“Lord Metz is right, Lady Luna.”

Charlotte, who was next to Metz, bowed her head and said.

“I too know well from my uncle that Lady Luna has great ambitions. I am not as versed in reasoning as Violet, but I can sense that there will be no better opportunity than our current situation as part of Karelia’s forces.”

Several others also supported Violet’s words.

So, everyone gathered here—

—sincerely wished for Lunarian to stab Karelia in the back.

“…But…”

How could one do such a thing as a subject?

Although it was true that she was temporarily relying on them and looking for an opportunity, she never intended to obtain what she wanted in such a vile way.

Moreover, in the letter that came to Cecile along with the news of her appointment as commander-in-chief, Luna could understand the entire process of how she was appointed to this position.

To shatter the trust of Lady Karelia, who broke even Vanessa’s opposition purely because she believed in her… with her own hands?

No matter what, that’s not something a person should do.

Her ruby-colored eyes trembled more than at any other moment.

Until that moment, Luna had not thought about betrayal at all.

She was just wondering how to calm this strangely heated atmosphere.

Luna had worked with these people continuously. And she knew well what Vanessa had been doing, how unjust her actions were, and how much resentment her colleagues harbored against her.

But still, Karelia was not at fault, was she? She couldn’t possibly betray Lady Karelia who had placed her trust in her, so she needed to somehow persuade them.

But.

“You know, Luna.”

Tifa, who had been with Luna longer than anyone else gathered here—

Saw right through Luna’s thoughts before she could even speak.

“Huh…?”

“I understand what you’re thinking.”

Tifa sighed briefly with an “ehyu” and scratched her head as she spoke.

“How long are we going to keep playing house under someone else?”

“B-But…”

“I know. I understand. You’re right, actually. Despite these turbulent times, betrayal isn’t exactly a pleasant thing. There’s such a thing as human duty. I’ve been watching from the side, so I know well how much our lord has cherished you. And both you and Lady Karelia are people who uphold that duty. I know that. But you see.”

At that moment.

Tifa, in a voice more serious than ever before, not her usual playful tone—

“But we made a promise. With him.”

“!!!!!!”

Carefully, she touched the reverse scale of the human known as Lunarian.

“He must be waiting, and we can’t keep dragging our feet forever, can we?”

That’s right.

As Tifa said… he.

That man.

‘Lord Swen…!!!’

Swen, the first and rightfully eternal national strategist of Lunarian’s forces, who had been sold to Brans in their stead, was waiting for them.