episode_0186

*

After that day.

By Serpina’s order, about 13,000 capital defense troops were summoned to march to Roger Castle, where Irene was stationed.

The commander in chief is Serpina herself. I participated as one of the lieutenants, and it was the responsibility of Xena, the national counselor, to temporarily manage Eingart Castle.

Because Xena had basic abilities as a national strategist and because she had experience overseeing Eingart Castle even when Serpina came down to the central part of the continent with the occupation force, there was no one better suited than her here.

I heard that he directly said to Serpina, ‘The troops at Rose Castle are enough. It seems like very logical advice given in the current situation, ‘Sending additional troops may just be a waste of military supplies.’ …

It seemed that the monarch, Serpina, had dismissed the advice and took action.

One way or another, she trusted me more than any government agent. I’m not sure if I should be thankful or sorry for this.

And so the day of sortie dawns.

“I’ll have a nice trip. It’s a bit weird that I’m going to be away, but… … .”

“Oh, no… … ! Please say hello to Irene, Swen… … !”

After being seen off by the Reikawa maids and joining the unit, they immediately began marching towards Rose Castle.

After leaving the castle gate for some time, I turn my head and look at Eingart Castle.

At the tip of the spire high in the sky, a bright yellow, almost golden flag symbolizing Serpina County was fluttering in the wind.

Looking at the overwhelming building built on the load island, which, at least in appearance, still boasts the appearance of the largest and most prosperous castle of the empire, or even the continent, reminds me of the prediction again.

how.

Was Serpina’s life in danger because something was going to happen if she didn’t leave?

and.

Why does it take for her to die for the fate of unification to come to this country?

Naturally, I think about a person I met named Serpina.

Regardless of one’s likes or dislikes about her, one thing everyone can acknowledge is that she is a very capable person.

A monarch who does not look down on his subordinates, takes thorough care of those on his side, has a keen eye for the situation, makes the right decisions in most cases, and knows how to listen to the stories of new people without being swayed by public servants.

I didn’t understand that a monarch like that was destined to be unable to achieve unification, but-

It was a very big question mark that the fate of this country would only be resolved if she disappeared, that is, if she came down from the throne.

‘Something… … ‘Is there something I’m missing?’

My prediction is absolute. I was able to feel this most keenly when I was working as a strategist under Luna.

Tifa found the treasure chest and gave away the money, and when the mercenaries came in, it was enough to give you goosebumps.

If so, there must be a good reason why she can’t unify… … What on earth is that?

little bit more.

I think I can figure it out if I just think about it one more step… … Right now, it felt like a few pieces of the puzzle were missing.

‘it’s okay. Let’s sort this out later.’

Anyway, Serpina’s fate changed again due to my intervention.

She will survive. I feel sorry for her country, but it will miss yet another opportunity to become a unified empire.

However, I didn’t feel guilty or heavy. Honestly, for me, whether a country becomes a unified country is the second problem.

The important thing was that I wanted to save Serpina.

How many days have passed like that?

We were able to arrive at Roger Castle, a castle that was extremely small compared to the size of Eingart Castle.

“Are you here, my lord?”

When we arrived, Irene was greeting us.

Seeing various military officers, including Irene, standing side by side on both sides, it occurred to me once again that Irene had achieved success.

“Thank you for your hard work, Irene.”

“No. I’m just doing what I’m supposed to do.”

The sight of Irene looking at me from afar was both familiar and unfamiliar to me.

What does this mean? It would be accurate to say that her restrained appearance now feels a little awkward.

That’s right, Irene next to me is-

“I would like to receive a detailed report on the current situation.”

“Yes. I’ll go to the watchtower and tell you more. I will practice from now on, so this way-”

“Before that, how about saying hello for a moment?”

“… … ?”

Serpina smiled and gently tilted her head back.

I cautiously said hello to Iren, who was squinting, wondering what was going on.

“Hello.”

“Ah… … S, Swen?”

“You will be in first, so please talk slowly before coming.”

After saying that, Serpina passed by Iren and moved forward.

It didn’t feel that bad. I think I now understand that this is Serpina’s own consideration.

Even if it wasn’t Irene who would accompany her anyway, there were plenty of other military officers, including Irian… … It would be best not to refuse consideration here.

I walked closer to Irene, who was dumbfounded and didn’t know what to do.

“How was it?”

“Huh? I’m doing well… … .”

When Iren saw me, she blushed and lowered her head as if she didn’t know what to do.

… … under.

Why is this woman so lovely?

I thought it was so cute that a person who was stronger than anything else in my absence became softer than any woman in front of me.

Instead of hiding my overflowing heart, I revealed it as it was.

“I missed you.”

“Huh?! Ah, ah, yes… … Me too.”

“I’m glad you’re healthy. I was worried that you might be overdoing it again.”

“It’s okay. Swen, the promise I made to you. I didn’t forget even a single moment. Because I decided never to do anything dangerous… … .”

“Well done.”

I felt so proud that I slowly raised my hand and lightly stroked her head.

Irene did not reject my touch, but reacted to it as if she were a puppy, shaking her head little by little.

cute.

Irene, who had been enjoying my touch for a while, seemed to have finally realized the situation again, cleared her throat a few times, and asked me in her usual polite tone.

“But… … Do you mind if I ask you just one question?”

“What is it?”

“The rebel force wasn’t that big anyway, and they would have been able to win even if they hadn’t come like this, so why did they reinforce additional troops? In fact, there are voices expressing concern that the operation may have been pushed back from our perspective.”

Her words were correct.

The number of occupation forces dispatched was sufficient, and since the elite units of the Serpina army were the occupation forces, it was easy to attack rebels who had only captured a castle with the troops that already existed.

This decision was made solely to protect Serpina’s life, nothing less or more.

To a third party, it would probably seem like a waste of supplies.

I thought about persuading him with logic, but I didn’t think there was any need to put in complicated logic here.

Even more so since the opponent is Airen.

“I suggested it.”

“Really?”

“Yes. I decided that was right.”

Irene listened to me and nodded and said.

“If it is your suggestion, Swen, it will definitely be meaningful. I understand. Let’s cooperate. I will explain it well to my subordinates.”

After the day that seemed like a meteorite fall, Irene trusted me implicitly.

Perhaps, if she were a monarch, she would have been able to easily choose only the best choices.

‘… … .’

If she trusts me deeply… … It might be good to say something.

Because it is more reassuring to share it with someone you can trust, rather than thinking about it to yourself and making your own conclusions.

The opponent is Irene. I couldn’t and didn’t want to think about her betraying me.

In the first place, I didn’t want to make her trust or not a variable. If I were to even think about such things, I would have rather died standing up.

“Irene.”

“Huh?”

“I have something to tell you. Would you mind taking a moment?”

Iren sees my serious expression and looks around.

Since everyone was far away from Serpina, I felt like Irene and I could have a confidential conversation.

“What’s going on?”

“Anyway, my lord… … I think Serpina is in danger.”

“… … !!!”

okay.

The thought that dominated my mind the entire time I passed Eingart Castle and came here was ‘Serpina will be in danger if she stays in Eingart Castle.’

Becoming a unified empire meant that she would die. The fate of becoming a unified monarch did not come to her. This is the same situation as before.

So why does she die?

What kind of death could be avoided simply by marching here?

One of those possibilities was that an earthquake occurred at Eyngart Castle.

If the royal castle were to fall, it would not have been strange for the woman who was serving in the castle to die.

Considering that nothing much had happened on the way here, the possibility was quite high, but the possibility that there would be an earthquake on the way back and the castle would collapse could never be ruled out.

Broadly speaking, it would be good to think of it as a case similar to the previous landslide.

Of course, it was just one of the possibilities, and the probability was ridiculously low. It wasn’t called a natural disaster for nothing.

Meteorites and landslides – I was able to use and avoid natural disasters at the right time and at the right time to the point where I naturally pictured the situation in my head, but I couldn’t forget that the probability was extremely low.

Moreover, in this case, since the castle would collapse anyway, not only Serpina would die, and the aftermath of the damage was bound to be enormous.

Therefore, the possibility that the prediction came out differently could never be ruled out.

It is not a sudden illness or epidemic. So even if we were dispatched here, we couldn’t avoid our fate.

If we were to factor in the disease situation in the prediction, it would be something like ‘After we leave, an epidemic will suddenly break out in Eingart Castle’… … Like the earthquake, this was not only an issue that needed to be watched further, but the probability was as low as that of the earthquake.

So what is the most likely conclusion at the moment and what is the plausible conclusion considering the circumstances?

“I’m not sure, but I think there is a group inside the castle that wants to assassinate Serpina.”

Irene, who heard what I said, was startled and looked at me with wide eyes.

“What… … What?”

The conclusion I came to.

That was ‘Serpina, who was staying in the royal castle, is assassinated.’