Ch.80Chapter 80. I’ll Be Your Wings

I hurried to the royal palace’s audience chamber, where Yurie welcomed me warmly.

I knelt down and spoke in a respectful tone.

“I, Swen, have arrived at the royal palace as commanded by my lord.”

“Swen! Welcome. It’s been a while. Have you been well?”

“I’ve been doing well, thanks to you.”

“And Irene? Is she doing well? It’s been some time since I’ve seen her face.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“I see. Still no news yet?”

“…Pardon?”

Wondering what she was asking about, I looked up.

Yurie was giggling as if she found something amusing.

“Just joking, just joking. But I do hope to hear some good news soon.”

“…”

At that moment, I could somewhat guess what she was hinting at.

But I deliberately chose not to add anything to the conversation.

Fortunately, she soon moved on to the main topic.

“Good. I didn’t call you here for anything complicated—I need you to bring someone back.”

“Someone, you say?”

At my question, Yurie gave an awkward smile as if troubled.

“Well… you’re the only one I can ask right now. The other generals have their own duties… Of course, I’m not saying you’re doing nothing since you’re handling our requests.”

“That’s fine. I just want to know who I need to bring back.”

“One of our subordinate generals has gone on a spiritual journey.”

‘Spiritual journey?’

Hearing that, I had an idea of who she meant.

“I’d like you to find her and ask her to return. Tell her that I really miss her.”

“Could you… give me more detailed information?”

Yurie nodded at my request.

“Her name is Anima Ingram. She’s a truly valuable and appreciated person in our army.”

‘I thought so.’

Anima Ingram.

The strategist who had been in charge of state affairs for the original Aeshus army.

Ginor had mentioned that after she stepped down from her position as state strategist due to him, she went on a spiritual journey to improve her shortcomings.

‘But why are they looking for her now?’

If it hadn’t been a surprise attack, Ginor would have stepped down from his position as state strategist.

But since it was a surprise attack, he was still active as the current state strategist.

It was a bit concerning that he wasn’t by Yurie’s side right now, but at least he hadn’t been dismissed.

“I’ll tell you where she is. Find her and make sure to tell her that we need her strength to help us. Oh, and make sure to tell her this too.”

Yurie spoke in her most serious tone.

“Tell her I want to offer her the position of lord of Raclaine Castle, so she must return.”

‘I see.’

So the bait to lure her back is the position of castle lord.

While not as prestigious as state strategist, it’s still a position that someone who craves power wouldn’t want to miss.

Some might even consider it higher than state strategist in some ways, as it allows one to wield authority similar to a lord in the lord’s absence.

Though I didn’t know much about her character, I thought that if she was the type to disappear just because she was removed from the state strategist position, she might be tempted by the castle lord position.

“Is that all for my mission?”

“Yes. I’m sorry. You’re already busy with requests from me and Ginor… I’ll provide you with ample travel expenses and rewards.”

“It’s really fine, but I’ll accept what you offer as a matter of courtesy.”

“Hehe. Good.”

Yurie smiled slightly at my words.

She certainly wasn’t the type of ruler who emphasized her position and lorded over others.

While she might not fit the typical image of a ruler in this era… she would have made a pretty good boss in the dimension I came from.

Is this the irony of different eras?

“Well then, I’m counting on you, Swen.”

“Yes.”

I nodded to show proper respect, then left the royal palace.

* * *

After Swen left.

Yurie remained deep in thought for a long time, resting her chin on her hand.

‘Anima…’

“Yurie. We can do this. No, let me be precise. You can do this. And I’ll be your wings.”

“Don’t be afraid, Yurie. Epinel, Emma, Erinandorf—it’s only natural that they’ll follow your decisions. You’ll have to get used to it from now on.”

“Let’s definitely end this chaotic era with our own hands. Imagine red flags waving across the entire continent. Isn’t that magnificent?”

In her memories, Anima was a childhood friend who had instilled in her the mindset of a ruler when she lacked confidence—someone she could truly rely on.

That day.

The day the empire fell—Piviola Academy, where she and Anima had studied, also collapsed.

It was none other than Anima who saved her life when she was in mortal danger.

“I feel I still have many shortcomings, so I’d like to take this opportunity to go on a spiritual journey to reflect on myself.”

Shortcomings? Nonsense.

Even as she was, Anima was an indispensable person for the Aeshus army.

At least, that’s how Yurie felt.

She wanted to go find her personally.

In fact, she had gone several times.

But Anima never showed herself when Yurie came in person.

Epinel, Erinandorf, Emma—none of them had been able to meet her either.

Perhaps Swen, who had never had any contact with her before, might be able to meet her.

‘Please come back, Anima…’

Yurie let out a long sigh.

* * *

‘Is it around here?’

This was halfway up a mountain not far from Balhart territory.

It wasn’t too far from where I had taken Reika for meditation before.

Since I had come much deeper into the mountain than last time, I found myself panting heavily as I searched.

‘It should be somewhere around here.’

According to Yurie, there should be an old shack somewhere here.

But no matter how much I looked around, I couldn’t see even the silhouette of a person, let alone a house.

‘Let me rest a bit…’

I sat down on a rock.

Reika had also mentioned feeling an enormous amount of mana in this area. As I was taking a break and thinking absently about whether this place was some kind of spiritual training ground or something—

‘Huh?’

Beyond the trees, I spotted a small shack that had been hidden from view.

It was so well camouflaged that I could believe it was deliberately hidden in the middle of the mountain.

‘No wonder I couldn’t find it…’

I had thought about resting a bit more, but since I’d found it, I couldn’t waste any more time.

I immediately got up and headed toward the shack.

Rustle, rustle.

As I walked through the grass, I soon found myself at the door.

I knocked slowly.

“Is anyone there?”

Feeling somewhat like a tax collector, I waited.

From beyond the door came a very fragile voice, like thin glass that would easily shatter if touched.

“…Who is it?”

“Are you perhaps Anima Ingram?”

At my words, there was a moment of silence.

“…Yes, I am?”

“I’ve come here by the order of Lord Yurie. I have a message for you, Anima.”

“…”

After another long silence.

Finally, a small voice barely audible through the birdsong reached me.

“Please wait a moment.”

A few minutes later.

The door finally opened.

And before me—Anima Ingram revealed herself.

Her brown bob hair seemed somewhat disheveled.

Her eyes, though generally giving a haggard impression, had a certain clarity to them.

Her attire wasn’t particularly unusual except for one part.

The exception was that her right arm was completely covered with something like a cloak.

“Were you sent by Yurie?”

“Yes.”

“I don’t recognize your face… May I ask your name?”

“I’m Swen. I haven’t been with the Aeshus army for long.”

“…I see.”

She closed her eyes, then nodded and said:

“It’s humble, but please come in.”

*

The inside of her dwelling felt quite familiar to me.

On the worn-out floor of the nearly empty room, there was just a single blanket.

It reminded me of where I stayed at Zeilant Castle. Definitely.

“You’ve come a long way, but I have nothing to offer you. I apologize.”

“It’s fine.”

I calmly observed her face.

Though she wore a faint smile as she looked at me… she was clearly somewhat guarded.

Since my clothes bore the emblem of the Aeshus army, she seemed to believe that I had been sent by Yurie…

“Is Yurie doing well?”

So she also speaks casually to her.

Well, since she seems to be one of the founding contributors, perhaps it’s only natural.

“Yes. For now.”

“So, what did she tell Swen?”

“She said she would like Anima to help her again.”

“I see.”

Hearing this, Anima let out a small sigh and asked:

“How is our army doing?”

“We recently succeeded in capturing Raclaine Castle.”

“Is that so? It seems things are going well even without me.”

I could read a strange emotion in her expression.

At first, I thought she might be doing something like insubordination because she had been removed from her position as state strategist—

But perhaps it wasn’t that… she seemed to think she had lost her place. And that place wasn’t about power or being in the leadership, but something deeper and more personal.

Though I couldn’t summarize it in a single sentence, I couldn’t read any desire for power in those empty eyes.

Given the Aeshus army’s emphasis on its founding contributors, it was obvious that they would send someone else to bring her back even if I failed.

Climbing this mountain was quite challenging for me. I wanted to complete the mission in one go if possible.

I carefully began to speak.

“I don’t think that’s entirely true.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. Both our lord and Generals Epinel, Emma, and Erinandorf—many people miss you. Though I haven’t been here long enough to know exactly, it seems you played a crucial role in the Aeshus army.”

“Why do you think so?”

“That much is easy to notice even after a short stay. Your name comes up constantly.”

Of course, I hadn’t actually heard it; it was just MSG I was sprinkling to make my case more convincing.

But I was confident that the founding members of the Aeshus army, including Yurie, would be pleased if I could bring her back.

“…”

Anima closed her eyes again after hearing my words.

“Everyone who has worked with you is eagerly waiting to work with you again. Won’t you return with me?”

She remained silent once more.

This time, I didn’t press her and quietly observed her face, waiting for her to speak.

After what felt like a long time,

She finally parted her heavy lips.

“Swen. This may seem sudden, but do you know why I wear this cloak?”

“The cloak?”

It seemed a bit out of nowhere—

But sensing she was about to say something important, I responded in a serious tone.

“I’m not sure.”

“It’s nothing special.”

She said that, then used her left hand to let the cloak covering her right arm fall to the floor.

And what entered my vision was—

“…!!”

Where her right arm should have been… there was nothing.

‘She’s one-armed?’

“If I startled you, I sincerely apologize.”

“No, rather… how did this happen to you?”

“…”

Anima slowly opened her eyes.

Her light brown eyes were much clearer than before.

“It’s nothing special. Just… our story, I suppose.”

By “our,” does she mean the Aeshus army?

Come to think of it—the Aeshus army did have an unusually strong bond between Yurie and the founding contributors.

Why did they act that way?

Perhaps this was an opportunity to find out.

Even though I planned to leave eventually, it wouldn’t hurt to hear the story while I was still part of the army.

“Would you like to hear it?”

“As much as you’d like to share.”

“…”

Anima looked at me, nodded once.

And finally, she began to tell me about ‘what had happened.’