Ch.331Chapter 331. Grasp That Thing

“……Uh……?”

More than the pain in her stomach, what struck Jenna’s mind was the bewilderment at the sudden situation unfolding.

What on earth is happening?

Her mind, cooled to a surprising degree, quickly began to assess the current situation before her breath could be cut off.

As a result, she easily realized that the tip of the sword belonging to the soldier who always guarded her had pierced her.

Unlike the confused Jenna, Mary in front of her simply bowed her head with closed eyes and spoke in a calm tone.

“I will not forget your final teaching, Lady Jenna, that seizing opportunities is important.”

“What… are…”

Words wouldn’t flow properly.

Instead, what burst from her mouth was red blood, trickling out little by little.

“Isn’t the best timing to occupy Einhart Castle, the capital, when the ruler is away?”

Hearing those words, Jenna’s mind began to race rapidly as if experiencing a life review.

The patrol route. The soldiers assigned to patrol.

Come to think of it, Mary had prepared everything.

Naturally, she had never doubted her for a moment.

Just like Lady Serpina who nearly lost her life to her knight, she had never doubted. No, she hadn’t even thought to doubt.

Mary had always followed her. Even after she stepped down from her position as advisor, even after the situation changed where she might not be able to return what she had promised.

Being betrayed by someone you trust completely… At that moment, Jenna truly understood for the first time the anguish Serpina must have experienced.

Having someone who always smiled and showed goodwill to you stab you in the back… It was more terrible, painful, and agonizing than she had imagined.

“Mary… you, could it be, betrayal…?”

“Betrayal, Lady Jenna? I merely seized an opportunity. Rather than becoming a loser of the era like Karelia, I decided to be someone who doesn’t miss opportunities, like Lunarian.”

“No, oppor… tunity… you…”

This is an opportunity?

How could she possibly defeat Serpina in this situation?

Even if she takes the capital, with the asymmetric warfare mage Reika, elite soldiers, excellent generals, and decisively, Swen by her side?

Even if she starts a rebellion in this situation, she could only maintain power for a very short time before facing a miserable death—did she really not know this?

Or did she have some reliable backing?

Mary wasn’t that stupid. She must have had something that made her commit such an act despite knowing the difficulties.

The most likely possibility was that she had someone to rely on. In other words, someone existed above her.

However, no matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t imagine any backing that could overwhelm even Swen’s existence.

This meant that this attempt was doomed to fail no matter what.

She could have explained everything to her one by one—

Unfortunately, as the sword was pulled from her stomach… blood gushed out like a waterfall, too much to stop the bleeding.

“I will never forget Lady Jenna’s final teaching.”

“Ma…ry…”

Did I misjudge her?

To think she could be this foolish.

If she truly wanted a successful rebellion, rather than fixating on situations where the ruler is away or occupying the capital, or clinging to meaningless backing, she should have prioritized recruiting Swen, the man who was practically leading this country…

In Jenna’s view, the rebellion with the highest chance of success would be one with Swen’s participation. This meant that any rebellion without Swen would inevitably be suppressed.

But with her consciousness fading, all she could do was murmur the most crucial keyword as her life’s flame flickered out.

“S…wen…”

“You’re referring to the new advisor? You always highly regarded that man, Lady Jenna. Well, come to think of it, you were also someone who was pushed aside by Swen… Perhaps I’ve already received all the teachings I needed to get from you.”

Mary said this while raising her head to check the soldier’s reaction.

As if understanding what she meant, the soldier raised his blood-stained blade again toward Jenna, who had collapsed and was bleeding.

“Farewell.”

The blade pierced Jenna’s body several more times.

Two times became three, then four… the floor became red, deeply red.

The dream she had cherished, the eyes that had read possibilities in the blood smeared on Serpina’s body, all came to an end.

The final moment of this talented woman, who had willingly entered under the notorious villainess with the belief that blood could change the continent, was utterly miserable and wretched.

* * *

A small villa connected to the royal palace of Valhalart Castle.

Originally used as a storage area, it had been lightly renovated to become a place where Serpina spent her time after finishing her duties, as there was no suitable place for the ruler to stay.

Though the furnishings and furniture were quite modest for a place where a nation’s ruler stayed, Serpina wasn’t the type to be fixated on such conventions, luxury, or formalities, so she spent her time there without much complaint.

‘Sigh.’

Having finished her bath, she was ending her long day with rest, wearing a see-through negligee.

After destroying the Aeshus army, there had been a fairly peaceful period without battles for a while… but the absence of battle didn’t mean the absence of work.

Rather, from a ruler’s perspective, she had to take on far more tasks than simply commanding a war.

First, securing the hearts of the people in the territory formerly ruled by the Aeshus army. Based on Swen’s advice, she was managing this relatively well somehow.

Moreover, this area had been strongly swept by a plague once. Unlike other places, even though Valhalart Castle itself hadn’t been devastated due to its rank, they couldn’t just ignore it as if not even a scratch had been made. Naturally, a lot of resources were consumed for the development of the central continent, and in the process, there was a mountain of work to be handled.

She was used to having so much to do.

The problem was that her mind was wandering these days.

‘……’

Serpina looked at the empty wine glass with a slightly flushed face from the alcohol.

What does Swen think of me?

If I were truly just a passing ruler to him, he wouldn’t have worked for me for such a long time.

Then, having a ruler to serve, is it a disguise to hide his true purpose?

Even with such an assumption, there was no clear conclusion, and decisively, he didn’t seem to be lying to her.

Serpina knew well.

That her one-sided and blind faith had stranded several times without being rewarded.

Nevertheless, she couldn’t think that Swen’s eyes looking at her, his trembling voice when speaking to her, or his crying together with her in resonance with her sadness were lies.

If even those were close to lies, what reason would she have to live?

Anyway, assuming all of Swen’s words were true, the fact that he still hadn’t left her side—

‘Staying by my side… is it because it helps him, helps the ruler he serves…?’

Swen was a man with the ability of the mind’s eye. It meant he could see through which decision would be most efficient in any situation.

Of course, he couldn’t predict without being asked, and even then, he didn’t seem to provide answers to all existing questions—

Even so, the fact remained that logically, if there was a definite reason, there was no reason for him to be by her side rather than the ruler he held in his heart.

What should I do here?

Use power to forcibly take Swen? It wouldn’t be impossible if she used her position, but she didn’t want to do that. Especially since she wanted Swen the person himself, not just his abilities.

Honestly confess to him and urge him to make a choice? She was afraid of provoking him and causing something bad to happen.

With a gurgling sound, the empty wine glass was filled again.

By taking a few sips, Serpina washed away her complicated thoughts.

‘What I want…’

What I truly want.

To reunify the world as before and continue the Einhart Empire.

To carry on the will that Algot entrusted to her before his death.

To atone for Einhart’s original sin to all the territory’s people by ending the war and governing wisely…

…No.

What I really want to do is to give up all of that and walk alongside the man I love.

To stay by the side of the man who was the only one who didn’t abandon me when everyone else did, who faced the fearful and anxious truth with me instead of giving false hope, even if it was arduous.

I don’t need to gain the world.

I don’t mind bearing all the responsibility.

If I can be by your side. If I can stand hand in hand with you in the scenery you capture…

As she was increasingly having such audacious thoughts that a ruler of a nation should never harbor, while tilting her wine glass alone—

Knock knock knock!

At the sound of someone strongly knocking on the door, Serpina stopped her thoughts and, after putting on a light coat to cover her negligee, called out toward the door.

“What is it?”

“My lord! It’s an emergency!”

“Come in.”

The door opened, and there stood a soldier with an unprecedentedly urgent expression looking at her.

Serpina, holding the wine glass, looked at him and asked.

“Calm down. What on earth is happening in the middle of the night?”

“Th-that…”

And the ‘news’ that the soldier brought to Serpina—

—Crash!

“What… did you say?”

To Serpina, who had turned pale and was trembling, the soldier bowed his head as if not knowing what to do and cried out like a criminal.

“A rebellion has broken out at Einhart Castle…!!”