Ch.27089. Inevitably, Winter Will Come (2)

Alesius, who had decorated his match with victory.

As he headed to the waiting room, he slowly soothed his blue mount.

“You did well.”

Looking at the tournament bracket, barring any accidents, his advancement to the main round seemed secure.

While mounts with red skin were rare, those with blue skin like this one were even more special.

Maintaining a long-term partnership with a mount on the battlefield was, in fact, extremely rare.

That’s why if a mount was truly precious and valuable, one would keep it as a riding companion rather than treating it as a warhorse.

However, Alesius, dispatched to the North as Rayus, was not in a position to afford such luxury.

“……”

He had been lucky.

There was no other way to explain it.

In this world, life and death were determined more by luck and misfortune than by skill.

There were countless exceptional individuals, talented people, and those lacking—but when one steps into the boundary between life and death, their differences and distinctions lose all meaning.

“Huff.”

Perhaps even this was a weak thought born from Alesius’s own weakness.

As he exited the circular arena early, he casually glanced sideways at the woman standing next to him.

“Aren’t you too conspicuous?”

“It’s fine. I won’t be recognized normally.”

Eras.

He wasn’t sure when she had entered the imperial territory, but she was walking beside him as if to show herself off.

“Have you found some method to evade the Empire’s eyes?”

“That’s impossible.”

“Then?”

“Because you never know what might happen in this world.”

Eras shrugged her shoulders.

Her blue bob hair swayed dramatically, though it seemed clearly longer than when he had last seen her.

“Are you going to cut your hair again?”

“…I don’t want to be treated the same as my sister.”

Though they were twins, the two had completely different appearances and atmospheres.

“If you win the mounted competition, it would make quite a story, wouldn’t it?”

“…Who knows.”

He didn’t trust himself enough to recite such hopeful statements.

His evaluation would not be determined by himself but solely by those around him.

What could be more shameful than praising oneself as great?

“And Kariel is probably somewhere around here by now.”

“……”

Kariel… is it?

“Did you meet him?”

“Briefly… I even accompanied him for a while.”

“…How is he?”

“A different person.”

An immediate answer.

“He’s completely different from before.”

“His personality? Or are you talking about his appearance?”

“Everything.”

Though he couldn’t tell how his appearance had changed since he was enclosed in armor.

“What’s certain is that he’s long surpassed human limitations. He can see the future and respond to it at will. He’s at a level where he could fight and win a war alone. That’s the current Kariel.”

“That description reminds me of a certain person.”

“Indeed…”

Eras’s blue eyes distorted.

“And he probably still hates us. By the way, have you noticed anyone similar participating in the mounted competition or martial tournament?”

“…I wouldn’t know about that.”

However, the preliminaries would end tomorrow and the main round participants would be determined, so it wouldn’t be too late to check then.

…At least from Alesius’s perspective, he hadn’t seen anyone similar.

“Do you expect him to defeat me in front of everyone?”

“Wouldn’t that be the cruelest revenge against you?”

“…What meaning would that have now for someone like me who already bears dishonor?”

“If that’s the case, isn’t your participation in the competition contradictory from the start?”

“……”

Yet he couldn’t give up walking the path of glory.

Beyond becoming Emperor or being recognized as a prince, he simply wanted to provide some comfort to his father and mother.

After all, no parent would dislike or feel uncomfortable seeing their child grow up admirably.

“Shouldn’t Kariel have been the one to participate instead?”

“…That’s why I find it strange too.”

Eras nodded in agreement with Alesius’s question.

“What is he thinking?”

“……”

“Now he’s truly someone I don’t know anymore.”

And knowingly or unknowingly, he seemed unwilling to forgive himself.

If so, why was he standing by like this?

The words that kept haunting him were those spoken by a child staying at a certain house back then.

[His message is this: If you take your own life now, you can escape that fate.]

“Ha.”

“…What is it now?”

“Nothing. Just something that came to mind.”

Eras snorted, swallowing her bubbling discontent and anxiety.

====

“…Who dares to show their face here so casually?”

After escorting Alesius to the imperial palace, Eras turned her steps.

Eventually, she visited the Esdina family’s mansion within the imperial territory.

Practically speaking, this was the true base of the Esdina family.

And there, whether by good or bad luck, Eras was firmly facing a woman with the exact same face as hers.

Perhaps it was her imagination, but the other seemed more weathered on the outside.

“Is excommunication just child’s play to you?”

“Yet I’m still giving you an audience, aren’t I?”

“…If it weren’t for me, they’d have a hard time driving you away.”

The two sat facing each other in the reception room.

Moreover, since this wasn’t even the formal reception room, the interior wasn’t very spacious.

Being guided to a reception room meant being received as a guest.

At that moment, there was a risk of raising suspicion by contradicting the judgment previously passed on Eras.

Therefore, they had no choice but to bring her to the nominal reception room, which was actually a multipurpose room that also served as a group rest area for servants.

“Even if you hold a grudge, do you think they can handle it?”

Above all, how many family members could treat her casually?

It wasn’t because Eras had once belonged to the Esdina family or because of blood ties.

She had already amassed considerable wealth externally and had quite a reputation.

While she might be considered non-existent or someone to be avoided within Irenis’s domain simply because of her excommunication, apart from that, she was undoubtedly a capable wealthy person who had succeeded at a young age, essentially a self-made millionaire and famous inventor.

However, within the Empire, her existence was marked by the fact that she had been Alesius’s intended partner.

Though it’s an old saying, you truly never know what might happen in this world.

“Moreover, if this fact becomes known, do you not understand what impact it would have on the family? Did you really act so rashly without knowing?”

“…It’s sad. Aren’t you my only sister? Can’t you give me one honest greeting?”

“…Thanks to that sister, the family almost collapsed.”

“That was Elhermina’s plot, wasn’t it?”

“Perhaps it was paying for accumulated sins all at once.”

“Then grandfather was wrong too, right? That’s what you’re saying?”

“Obviously.”

“……”

Eras’s gaze darkened.

“I think you’ve become too arrogant since the family became yours, sister.”

“…It’s the opposite.”

“The opposite?”

Seras sighed and swept her long flowing hair completely behind her shoulders.

“Before becoming the head of the family, I would formally say I was working for the family’s benefit. But directly shouldering the responsibility for the members and constituents began right after I became the head.”

She had to understand and accept everything on her own, without even proper handover from her grandfather.

…No wonder Elhermina rolled up her sleeves to help.

“If the family wavers, it directly affects the numerous people affiliated with it. Even my thoughtless actions and statements can cause problems.”

“Isn’t it tiring to consider all that? If it’s really an issue, can’t you just solve it with money?”

“…Yes, we have plenty of money. Why do you think we’ve been accumulating wealth so desperately? But do you know what? Even that accumulation is part of a resistance to prevent bankruptcy due to expenditure.”

“Resistance? What are you talking about? What bankruptcy?”

The Esdina family is one of the Empire’s powers. How many vested interests are in their grasp…

“Ah, is it because of me? Grandfather’s downfall must have had an impact too.”

“…I’m glad you understand.”

Thus, Seras had to face pressure in every aspect from the beginning.

First, isolation in noble society.

And the fall from power meant settling old grudges that had been accumulated.

To defend against and respond to this, Seras hadn’t slept more than three hours a day for a year.

If she hadn’t entered under Elhermina’s command, she might not have been able to hold her head high like this now.

Additionally.

Proving that the family was still intact.

This in itself meant a complex and difficult, unclear battle of endurance, and an endless, indefinite war of attrition.

“Just for mansion maintenance, we employ dozens of people. Add to that ten family knights, and including private soldiers, forty. What do you think the cost is to feed them all?”

“If it’s burdensome, can’t you just dismiss them?”

This was a statement Eras could make because of the resentment she harbored from being ostracized and neglected by the family.

“…In our position, even employing servants is a matter of dignity. Dismissing them without proper cause would only bring dishonor to the family.”

Moreover, if it’s because finances are tight?

…Rumors would spread everywhere that the Esdina family has fallen.

“Then there’s church donations, various dignity maintenance costs, and investments in various guilds and businesses.”

Above all, if they were to reduce regular donations and investment costs, or reduce product purchases and expenditures?

Even this would spread rumors.

Saying that circumstances have clearly changed from before.

Then visitors would take this into account… which would cause various problems.

It’s not that a major problem would occur.

Small issues would gradually widen like cracks, eventually leading to the collapse of the family itself.

Then, instead of loyalty, retainers would seek to sell secrets and confidential information they’ve been holding to enhance their own value, looking for opportunities for self-preservation.

“And unless you’re only looking at the present… you need to invest looking ahead, whether it’s a few years or as long as 10 or 20 years. For me, that’s impossible, so I’m just trying to maintain what grandfather had invested in without letting it go to waste.”

The reason nobles easily go bankrupt is because they lack investment insight.

Also, they fall for various temptations spread around, or engage in gambling and speculation.

Earning, protecting, and growing wealth were all separate issues of different magnitudes.

Seras realized this acutely only after becoming the head of the family.

Grandfather wasn’t a malicious person; he became malicious because he was capable.

That’s why no one dared to disrespect them, and it was natural for others to bow and flatter them.

For that, how much evil had he willingly planned and executed?

“Haah.”

If you dislike that, the only option is to have backing.

Like how she entered under Elhermina’s command.

But grandfather, conversely, tried to bring numerous nobles under his command.

In other words, becoming someone’s backing… that’s what it means.

A position where competence is not just essential but basic.

…Unless you’re an exception like the Hero Emperor or Elhermina, he would surely have been a power among powers, gripping the heart of the Empire.

“Grandfather’s biggest mistake and lingering attachment… was resenting the heroes.”

For not saving his son.

How much would his proud son, who should have enjoyed all the glory as a hero, equal to the Emperor and the Knight of Radiance, be wailing and crying in the afterlife?

…The previous head of the Esdina family might have been engulfed in such delusions and obsessions.

“That’s why he plotted against Kariel… and made him like that.”

“……”

In that sense, Eras could be seen as a victim of the previous family head.

“You’re making it sound like I did something wrong.”

But she, Eras, could never admit that fact.

Isn’t it simple not to do wrong in the first place?

But if you’ve already done it?

You must never admit it was wrong.

Rather die than admit it. No, it wasn’t wrong.

“……”

Eras probably became twisted from that point.

She would shut herself in a room, obsessing over old promises that had lost their meaning, and sometimes showed symptoms of memory disorders.

The reason she could stay secluded in the mansion was because she was Alesius’s fiancée, she had exceptional talent in alchemy, and her grandfather, the previous head, actively supported her.

…Thus, a reclusive genius alchemist was born.

Misfortune and bad luck.

A crystallization of innate talent and rare aptitude mixed with misfortune.

“Are you short on money? Should I throw some your way?”

“…Accepting sponsorship carelessly would go against maintaining dignity.”

And if it were sponsorship from an excommunicated sister?

…The family’s prestige would immediately plummet.

“Nobles are really tiresome.”

“I feel it acutely.”

Seras was dreaming of retirement right now.

She felt she wasn’t suited for this position.

“……”

“I’m going to stay here for a while.”

With those words, Eras left the reception room without lingering.

“I’ll leave without saying anything when winter comes. I don’t have much attachment to this family either. Same with the Empire.”

She said that as she left, but if one noticed her steps faltering slightly.

It wasn’t just imagination.

Perhaps she… had hoped a little.

That her sister, Seras, would welcome her more warmly.

But the current Seras…

“Sister has also become a dog of power. Or maybe she’s becoming a monster like grandfather.”

“…If only I could become like that.”

Seras didn’t see her off.

If someone were to spy on this scene, even the act of seeing her off could potentially be problematic.

“Take care.”

“……”

Seras remained like that for a long time with her eyes closed.

……

……….

How much time had passed?

“Haah.”

Seras sighed briefly.

After leaving that place, walking down the corridor, and climbing the stairs.

She entered her room without wandering.

Click!

After locking the door and leaning against it, taking a deep breath for a moment.

Rustle!

“……”

Seeing someone sitting cross-legged in a chair, examining a book.

“…How nice for some to have it so easy.”

She couldn’t help but shoot out a remark.

“……”

A young man in comfortable-looking indoor clothes woven in black.

The black-haired young man with eyes resembling gold finally turned his gaze toward her.

“Is there a problem?”

“…Forget it. Let’s not talk about it.”

Seras let out a hollow laugh.

“So, Kariel. How long do you plan to stay holed up here?”