Chapter 181. Childhood Friend – Unwanted Relationship
The inside of the carriage was quiet.
On the way to the Marquis of Guidan, Aeton and Prince Algeo were reading books inside the carriage.
The only sound was the rustling of pages as they turned, and neither of the princes spoke a word. It wasn’t until the carriage stopped that they opened their mouths.
“What do you think the Marquis of Guidan is planning?”
It was Algeo, the younger brother, who asked the question. He hid the book he was reading under the seat as he spoke.
Aeton did the same. He shrugged as he placed his book in the carriage’s cabinet.
“Who knows,” he said.
The Marquis of Guidan, Harvey, had refused to marry off his daughter. He had used her unstable mental state as an excuse but shamelessly held a banquet to announce the recovery of the marchioness.
The two princes stepped out of the carriage.
Straightening their clothes and wondering what the marquis was up to, they entered the Guidan household.
“Haha! You are all gathered here! Nice to see everyone!”
Algeo shouted. Flashing a frivolous smile to ease the nobles’ wariness, he lightly greeted the bewildered marchioness, who was taken aback by the sudden uninvited guests.
At that moment,
“Brother.”
An extremely beautiful woman appeared.
However, what caught the two princes’ attention more than her appearance was her bright blonde hair and shining golden eyes.
Though fallen, they were still symbols of the once-great empire.
The two princes with black hair approached her as if enchanted. Ignoring the nobles who were trying to greet them, they walked straight ahead, and before they knew it, they were standing in front of the ancient royalty.
“We are honored to meet the ‘Guardian’ of the Lognum Mountains.”
Viscount Bakari bowed his head. Although he was a significant figure, as the father-in-law of Count Ogerton, Algeo of Lognum tenaciously probed into what he intended to pass off lightly.
“And who is the lady beside you? Could you honor me with an introduction?”
“…She is…”
“I am Lena de Yeriel. It is a pleasure to meet you, Prince Aeton and Prince Algeo of Lognum.”
Lena bowed slightly.
Without bending her back or moving her legs, it was the etiquette a royal would show to the royalty of another country.
Aeton of Lognum raised his eyebrows.
“You said Lena de Yeriel? From the Kingdom of Conrad? I heard that you had passed away…”
“Does it displease you?”
A bold response.
Prince Aeton of Lognum indicated with his gestures that he had been quite rude.
“Of course not. I am pleased to see that the noble princess is in good health. Let me introduce myself formally. I am Aeton de Lognum, and this is my brother, Algeo de Lognum.”
The greetings of royalty were exchanged once more, and Prince Aeton turned to Viscount Bakari.
“May I have a moment alone with the princess?”
Although his words were polite, his meaning was clear: this was not a place for him, so he should leave.
Viscount Bakari hesitated. While he was eager to leave, he was also reluctant to leave the delicate princess alone.
But the princess eased his concern by letting go of his hand. Viscount Bakari stared at the composed princess as she thanked him for his escort before leaving the place.
Soon, the three of them sat around a nearby table. Even before the drinks arrived, Algeo asked,
“What brings the princess to this kingdom?”
“Traveling.”
Lena replied briefly. Noticing Algeo’s impatience, she realized she had the upper hand and spoke to Aeton instead.
“I am very pleased by your warm welcome.”
“I am pleased as well. When did you arrive? Had you informed us, we would have sent knights to the border.”
“Such hospitality is excessive for a wandering royal. But I appreciate your words. I will not forget your kindness.”
Lena extended her arm. Just as the drinks arrived, instead of reaching for one, she took a wine glass and proposed a toast to Algeo, changing the atmosphere.
It wasn’t for any particular reason.
She just felt it would be good.
“Do you have any plans to visit the royal palace? If you do, I would be happy to give you a tour.”
“Are you inviting me? It’s an honor, Prince Algeo. But…”
Lena trailed off. After maintaining an appropriate silence, she spoke in a regretful tone.
“It’s not possible.”
Then, before they could ask why, she cut in.
“Instead, could you enlighten me? What is Nevis Royal Castle like? It must be grand and splendid, I’ve heard there is no other structure on the continent with as much metal.”
“Haha. Indeed. The construction of Nevis Royal Castle used up so much brass that it caused a shortage across the continent. In fact, the coins in circulation back then weren’t just copper like they are now. They contained brass with a mixture of zinc. But constructing Nevis Castle made brass so scarce that the Tatian family, who were in charge of minting coins at the time, had to create new copper coins. This also led to the Tatian family stepping down from minting coins, despite their efforts to retain the right to issue currency after the fall of the Archean Empire.”
Aeton of Lognum coughed. He urged his verbose younger brother to restrain himself, but Algeo didn’t stop.
Tiny cracks.
Lena smiled faintly. Her heart was urging her to poke her finger into that spot.
What will happen then? It felt suffocatingly intriguing.
Shadows fell beneath Lena’s eyes. “Prince Algeo, you are very knowledgeable. You must have read a lot. I’m envious…” She muttered, nervously munching on her lips in preparation for the next turn.
“Lena.”
Her brother appeared. Lena became instantly innocent, like a guilty child, and Leo bowed.
“I’m sorry. My sister didn’t cause any trouble, did she? Lena, let’s go. It’s getting late.”
“Sister? Then you are…”
“A mere wanderer. I don’t want to soil the princes’ ears with my dishonorable name.”
Lena stood up. “It was an honor to meet you, Prince Aeton.” She greeted one person and secretly winked at Prince Algeo.
Interesting.
She even pretended to be innocent in front of her brother. “I didn’t say anything. Honestly.” She said, feeling the guilt and excitement of lying to her brother nudging her back. The blood of the royals, who ruled over a history of thousands of years, breathed faintly.
“…Algeo.”
“Yes, brother.”
“Get a grip.”
“…On what?”
Aeton de Lognum took a deep breath. He rubbed his face with both hands, as if thinking a beast clawed at him, and opened his eyes wide.
“Look over there.”
Prince Aeton pointed. At the second-floor stairs, where Leo and Lena stood with Marquis Guidan.
“I understand what Marquis Guidan is thinking. He’s brought a thorny fruit.”
“Still, she’s charming.”
“…Algeo. Come here. Closer.”
Prince Aeton wrapped his arm around his still-dazed brother’s neck.
“Who would’ve thought a woman could cause trouble between us. You can have that woman. I won’t get involved. But our promise must be kept.”
The House of Lognum. The appointed guardians of the southwestern mountains by the Achaean imperial family.
Disturbed by the ancient scheming of their former masters, Prince Algeo de Lognum steadied himself. “You can let go now,” he said, reassuring his brother.
The two princes left the Guidan Marquisate unceremoniously. Knowing the marquis’s ploy, there was no longer any reason to stay.
Just before boarding their carriage, Prince Algeo de Lognum turned back, taking in the Guidan Marquisate and smiling cruelly.
“She will become a duchess. As the legitimate heir to the Kingdom of Conrad, she will gift me the kingdom. Brother. We no longer need to spare our spears.”
Prince Aeton nodded.
Acknowledging the justification to strike the Kingdom of Conrad, he offered counsel as a “shield.”
“First, we must capture that witch.”
* * *
Having secured cooperation from the Norang tribe, Lev was on his way to the next barbarian tribe.
The Norang tribe, practicing polyandry, had quite unique customs, like gathering the entire tribe at the end of the month for a festival and going out to the sea en masse to fish.
Lev almost arrived at an empty village, as the dates he knew were wrong, but fortunately, he arrived on the festival day.
Emboldened by the festive atmosphere, Lev successfully completed his negotiations. The tribe’s female chief took quite a liking to his sturdy lower body and made a proposition that seemed both a temptation and a threat, leading Lev to a frenzied night.
“Phew.”
And then came the overwhelming guilt.
Travelling on Kuss, Lev couldn’t tell if he should be happy or sad about his {Bedroom Skills}. He felt unjustly guilty towards Leah, whom he had vowed to keep as a friend.
“Damn it.” — Lev muttered, turning to the northwest. On his way over the Lognum mountains, he met a man.
He wasn’t a common peddler, and even if he wasn’t one by trade, he was a striking figure.
Actually, more than the man, it was the bird of prey he carried that stood out.
“Ha ha. Cute, isn’t it? We’ve been friends for half a lifetime.”
It was a ‘Sinis.’
A Sinis is a type of eagle. Being a feathered bird with two legs and wings, calling it an eagle was apt.
But unlike typical eagles, it had a distinct head. From just in front of its hyena-like short and pointy fur to its sharp, hooked beak, the front was covered in a hard bony shell.
A very vivid orange color made it look more terrifying than cute, but the peddler, who introduced himself as ‘Cesar,’ affectionately stroked its grey feathers.
“Is it a male?”
“Yes, you see the red at the wing tips and tail end? Only males have this. Females have no distinguishing marks. Go, Sinis. Which way?”
With a simple species name, the peddler sent Sinis flying.
The eagle soared high, surveying a circle around the mountain, and returned to its master. The peddler chose a direction, and Lev trusted him.
Sinis had paused mid-flight to flap in a particular direction. Heading there would undoubtedly lead to a village. Last time it was an ordinary village; this time, in the rugged terrain, it was almost certainly a barbarian settlement.
There remained a few barbarian tribes whose locations Lev remembered, but he decided to follow the peddler. After all, it was the way northwest; one more visit couldn’t hurt.
The village they arrived at after spending a night in the mountains due to the longer-than-expected distance was indeed a barbarian settlement. Leo cleared his throat, straightened his posture, and tried to enter solemnly, but…
“Brdan!”
The merchant, Cesar, shouted.
A young man guarding the front gate clapped his hands in delight, saying, “Ahhh~ how delightful!”
“Haha. It’s been a while. That… oh, apologies. I’ve forgotten your name. Could you tell me again?”
“Hehe~ I forgot your name too, so we’re even. It’s Hatou. What was your name, sir?”
“Ah, right. Hatou. It seems like just yesterday when you begged to trade some shabby leather scraps and a bracelet, but you’ve grown a lot. I’m Cesar.”
“What! You remember that?”
“Of course~ I even remember you begged to give it to your girlfriend. So, how did it go?”
The young man smiled broadly, patting his shoulder.
“I got married. Had a son last year too.”
“Whoa- look at that. Sir here hasn’t even married yet, but this little rascal became an adult first. But… what’s with this village? Is it new?”
“Yes. About two years ago, there were too many people, so we split it into two. Come in. You’ll probably know quite a few people. Is that your party behind you?”
“Yes. They’re my party, but I don’t really know why we came…”
“I came to see the chief.”
Lev spoke up. There had been a moment of confusion as the merchant was being friendly with the young man from the village, but he regained control of his emotions. Proudly raising his head, he ordered them to clear the way,
‘What is that young knight up to?’
The merchant looked on in astonishment, and Lev’s face reddened. It was easier to deal with relatively straightforward and respectful barbarians, but he still felt embarrassed in front of so-called civilized people.
And that embarrassment soon hit its peak.
“I… am the one who will become your general.”
In whose dream?
The shocked merchant made an ‘O’ with his mouth, marking the beginning of Lev and Cesar’s ill-fated relationship.
Even after pledging loyalty later, he sarcastically remarked, “Boss. Do you know you always raise your head proudly whenever you try to act cool?” and became Lev’s subordinate, teasing him often.
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