Ch.79Chapter 79. Tectonic Shift (4)

* * *

“Then that’s all for today.”

“Yes! Thank you so much for your hard work today!”

After saying goodbye to Swen.

Reika quietly returned to her room and recalled the time she had spent with him over the past few days.

‘It was really amazing! The small waterfall.’

Though it wasn’t particularly large, it was still a waterfall beautiful enough to capture with one’s eyes.

She seemed to remember reading in a novel about someone meditating on rocks where waterfall water cascaded down… but Swen had told her that was just fiction.

For the past few days, she had been able to spend time outside the castle, continuously exploring nature.

As Swen had said, nature contained an abundance of mana.

After all, all the energy surrounding her body was mana.

Reika was born with the ability to detect air and the mana mixed within it, but she had never felt mana this clearly before.

It felt as though the results of her consistent training were finally beginning to bloom.

As for magic, it continued to develop smoothly.

She could now create larger fireballs, maintain them for longer periods, and control them more freely.

She recalled Swen’s words about trying to imagine an “ice spear” instead of a fireball next time.

Though she didn’t quite grasp what he meant yet… somehow she felt she could do it.

Following his instructions had genuinely improved her magical abilities!

Swen was a peculiar man.

He clearly stated that “he was not a magician or anything like that.”

Yet whether it was about ice spears or other things, he often spoke as if he had known about magic all along.

These were concepts she had never even imagined before, but after hearing them from Swen, she felt she could actually try them.

‘Could Swen… actually be a magician like me, but hiding his identity for some reason?’

She had heard that Swen once performed a miracle by opening the sky and dropping a massive boulder.

To Reika, who could only create a ball of fire in her palm, that seemed like something beyond magic.

If she continued her training, could she eventually perform such impossible miracles too?

As she continued these various thoughts, Reika arrived at a more fundamental question.

If Swen was indeed hiding his identity as a magician… was this an ability that shouldn’t be revealed to the outside world?

Was the reason her father wouldn’t let her go outside related to the need to hide her identity as a magician?

At that moment.

“Reika.”

“…!!”

From beyond the door, she heard the voice of her father, Ginor.

Reika couldn’t help but be startled.

Her father rarely came to her room.

The only times her father sought her out were to check on her progress with magic training.

And since Swen had begun teaching her, even those visits had stopped.

The position of State Advisor must surely involve many busy tasks.

Since Reika had never particularly sought paternal affection from Ginor, she didn’t feel much regret about him not visiting her.

‘What could he want?’

As Reika tensed up, unable to respond, Ginor’s voice came through once more.

“Are you there?”

“Ah, yes…! I-I’m here.”

“May I come in?”

“Y-yes…!”

And so, Ginor entered Reika’s room.

Reika hurriedly stood up and bowed to him.

“W… welcome, Father.”

Ginor naturally took a seat in one of the chairs in her room.

“So. How is your training progressing?”

“It has improved significantly compared to before.”

“Is that so?”

Reika briefly demonstrated her progress to Ginor.

Ginor nodded with satisfaction as he watched Reika control a ball of flame in various ways for quite some time without panting.

“You seem to have worked hard. How is the learning experience?”

“Swen has been explaining things in a very easy-to-understand way. Ah, um, I…”

“Go ahead and speak.”

“I… thank you for allowing me to go outside.”

Reika bowed in gratitude.

No matter how abundant the mana was outside, she wouldn’t have had the chance to experience it if her father, Ginor, hadn’t permitted her to go out.

“…”

Ginor looked at Reika as she offered her thanks and spoke in a serious tone.

“Do you truly feel grateful to me?”

It was a somewhat ambiguous question, but Reika answered without hesitation.

Although he had kept her from leaving the house, it was true that he had taken her in when she was an orphan.

“I have never forgotten your kindness, Father. I am always grateful that you took me in and cared for me. This is sincere.”

“…Hmm.”

Ginor rested his chin on his hand, lost in thought for a moment—

Then once again looked at her with a very serious expression.

Reika momentarily shrank back, wondering if she had done something wrong.

“Um, well… that…”

“I didn’t come to scold you. Relax.”

“Th-then…?”

“What do you think of Swen?”

“What…?”

What do I think about Swen?

Does he mean… Swen as a teacher?

After all, it was her father, Ginor, who had appointed Swen as her instructor.

“Well… he has taught me very clearly about how to strengthen my ability to read mana. Following his teachings has actually helped me develop quite a bit—”

“That’s not what I’m asking.”

“…?”

“What do you think of him as a husband?”

“…What…??”

What?

Husband?

By husband, does he mean… a marriage partner?

Suddenly?

She couldn’t answer, completely taken aback by this question from her father, who had never asked such an ordinary question before.

“Um… s-suddenly, what do you mean by that…?”

“I mean exactly what I said. How would you feel if Swen became your husband?”

“…I, I, w-well…”

Reika bowed her head deeply, her face completely flushed.

She had never once thought of him that way.

Was it because she didn’t see Swen as a man?

No. The reason she hadn’t thought that way was exactly the opposite.

She feared it would be an imposition for someone like her to view someone of Swen’s caliber as a potential partner.

His well-groomed white hair and pale skin gave him a mysterious aura unlike other men her age.

Whenever he smiled and said “You can do it,” it felt like wonderful encouragement to someone like her who always wanted something to lean on.

Besides, though this thought might be somewhat improper… wasn’t he extremely handsome?

That’s why she couldn’t even dare to think there might be a place for her by his side.

She was old enough to know not to covet something completely beyond her reach.

“Do you dislike the idea?”

“What? No, no! I-it’s not that I dislike it…”

“Then that’s good.”

Unlike the flustered Reika who didn’t know what to do, Ginor was extremely calm.

“Um… Father. I, I… can’t follow the conversation.”

“Hmm? You can’t follow even this much? I thought you were quite perceptive.”

“No, it’s just, I…”

Ignoring Reika’s response, Ginor immediately got to the point.

“I’m thinking of proposing a marriage arrangement to him.”

“Marriage… arrangement, you say?”

“Yes. He is an extraordinary individual, so we need to establish a deeper relationship with him.”

Having said that, Ginor continued in a very businesslike tone.

To a third party, it wouldn’t appear to be a normal father-daughter relationship at all.

“If you haven’t forgotten your gratitude to me, please marry him quietly. Of course, that’s assuming he agrees.”

“…”

Reika couldn’t say anything and just kept her head bowed.

Marriage to Swen.

It wasn’t that she disliked the idea. Absolutely not. But… everything was too sudden.

“…If you really dislike it, I can’t force you, but I would appreciate it if you could think positively about it. Think it over.”

Ginor stood up and quietly left the room.

Though she wasn’t sure what to do right away—

Her father’s final words remained clearly etched in her mind.

‘If he agrees… does that mean Swen’s thoughts on this are still unknown?’

If so, there was no need to make a fuss prematurely.

Reika let out a long sigh.

‘Marriage…’

Naturally, from the position of someone who would have to marry whoever Ginor directly told her to marry, regardless of who it was.

Swen wasn’t really a bad match.

No, perhaps there couldn’t be a better match. While it was common to see daughters move according to family interests, Ginor was at least trying to respect her opinion by saying she could refuse if she really disliked the idea.

‘But… is Swen not married yet…?’

She thought a man like Swen would already have a wife or two.

At the same time… she recalled the red-haired female knight who had been beside him when she first met Swen.

She was very strong and dependable, but at the same time, very beautiful with feminine curves.

‘Who was that person? Just a bodyguard…?’

If I were to marry Swen, would that female knight guard me as well…?

Foolishly, those were the thoughts she was having.

* * *

“Achoo!”

“Are you alright, Irene?”

“Uh… yes. I’m fine. Just suddenly sneezed.”

Irene said that as she took a bite of cake from the table.

And then—

“Ohhh…!”

With her purple eyes sparkling, she placed a hand on her cheek and genuinely exclaimed in admiration.

“This is really delicious!”

“I’m glad you like it.”

“Hmm. You said this was made by the child you’re teaching?”

“Yes. I thought it would go well with tea, so I brought some.”

What I was doing was—

Having tea time with Irene.

I had thought Reika’s cake would go very well with the tea Irene brewed, and it seemed I was right.

Seeing Irene’s delighted expression, I almost wished I had brought some cookies too.

“It’s an amazing flavor. There wasn’t cake this delicious even in Anel Castle.”

“How would you know?”

“Well, that’s… oh.”

“You must have tried them all.”

“…”

At my words, Irene suddenly closed her mouth and blushed, putting on a serious face.

“…Th-that’s not the important issue right now. Hmm.”

Seeing Irene like that, I couldn’t help but smile.

How peaceful.

I thought this peace wouldn’t last long.

Still, I immersed myself fully in this moment like a sea.

So I wouldn’t regret it later.

*

And so I spent my days with Reika during the day and with Irene at home in the evenings.

While my daily life itself was more peaceful than ever, the continental situation was exactly the opposite.

The first shocking news to arrive:

The northern Kelstein Castle had fallen.

This was undoubtedly a historic moment worthy of the history books, as Serpina’s army finally advanced into the central continent.

Although only the Brans army was effectively facing the border for now.

With Kelstein Castle, which had been blocking the northern entry like a fortress, now fallen, it was a foregone conclusion that the defense line behind it would be breached.

Whether they liked it or not, the continental lords would now have to find their own way to survive in the face of the massive wave that was Serpina’s army.

And almost simultaneously…

The sky-blue flag of Laclaine Castle was lowered.

And atop its tall spire, the red flag of the Aeshus army was raised.

Laclaine Castle at the easternmost point of Brans territory.

And Kelstein Castle at the northernmost point had fallen almost simultaneously.

It was truly a massive tectonic shift.

If there was any consolation for the Brans army—

It was that the southern Rolland and Hesna armies, which shared borders with them, were staying quiet without invading Brans territory.

It seemed they were reluctant to move forward, watching the situation, probably thinking that the moment they withdrew troops to invade Brans territory, their home base could be attacked.

Regardless.

With both the northern and eastern important border lines already breached—

‘The Brans army is finished now.’

Far from continental unification, they would have to consider the possibility of becoming a minor nation.

As the world situation was rapidly changing like a massive tsunami had passed through, one day.

“Excuse me. Are you Swen?”

“Yes, I am…”

As I was heading to the Nighthart family mansion as usual, a soldier from the Aeshus army approached me.

“My lord is looking for you.”

“Your lord?”

He’s calling for me?

I can’t think of any particular reason why…

‘Well, there must be a reason.’

I immediately made my way to the royal castle of Valhalat.