“Is it all gold?”
“Check it out yourself.”
At Klavis’ question, Lynn stepped aside silently.
The priests opened the sack. Gold and jewelry poured out. If the nobles who remained in the main palace saw it, their eyes would turn upside down because they couldn’t drool.
After checking the loot, Klavis moved his gaze to the North.
“All that’s left is the North.”
Klavis’ nomination made the Marquis’ heart fell.
“What did the North bring?”
“…The North followed the trail of the vanguard and reached the King’s castle, which swallowed the first cry.”
“So?”
“We fought a long battle, and we saw the castle fall. So we conducted a five-day search.”
“I asked you what you brought, Lord Rubel.”
Klavis smiled and questioned the Marquis as his words grew longer. At the cold tone, the Marquis poured out countless times.
“…Nothing was brought. There was only black swamp in front of us. We’ve been around the castle all the time, but never encountered the Eastern knights, and we didn’t see the Southern Duke’s agent entering the castle.”
“Hm, I don’t know what to say. Who’s lying?”
Klavis slyly threw the bait. The Marquis had no choice but to swallow it even though he knew it was a trap.
“I’d like to check the heart brought by the Southern Duke’s agent.”
It’s hard to believe Lena came back safely, but it’s even more unbelievable that she brought the King’s heart.
So the Marquis demanded verification, and Klavis gladly nodded.
“Please.”
When the Cardinal’s permission fell, a priest came up with something in silk. But there was no heart in it. All that was placed on the silk was a small, seal ring with a strange character instead of a jewel.
“This…”
“It’s the King’s heart brought by Dame Lena.”
Klavis explained when the Marquis looked puzzled.
Thanks to this, the Marquis was in a state of despair. He was wondering if they were trying to pull a King’s heart out, but turned out it’s a ring instead of a heart.
“This is the heart?”
“Lord Rubel didn’t read the biography of the Empress properly?”
The Cardinal laughed and teased, and then the Marquis echoed a passage of Niheal’s biography.
—A very small heart fell off a torn body.
—The King, who swallowed the first cry, put his heart on his finger and ran away.
Obviously there was such a passage. But wasn’t that a moderately constructed story?
The heart was a ring and that stupid nonsense was real.
The Marquis was now getting angry.
“….If the King’s heart is a ring, we need to make sure it’s that ring.”
“Good. Then I’ll show this ring to Her Majesty. Her Majesty surely will find out.”
As the Marquis persisted, the Cardinal sent a priest pretending not to be able to win.
The priest who went to the Empress with the ring soon returned. But in his hands, he had a silver key instead of the seal ring.
The returning priest said to the Cardinal, holding out the key.
“Her Majesty said the heart was right. She praised you for bringing it well, and told you to give the key to the one who brought the heart.”
The face of the Marquis hardened. Klavis scoffed at him, asking if it was done, and Ruvid shot him as if he wanted to devour the Marquis.
“Then it’s concluded. Go to the main palace and ring the victory bell. In the name of the South and Dame Lena.”
The first expedition was over with the Empress’ verdict, the Cardinal’s declaration, and the sound of the shaking bells that echoed through the whole Imperial Palace.
The results of the expedition were unexpected to everyone. Numerous suspicions crossed over the result of the reversal of common sense due to the failure to surpass predictions.
But Lena Rubel—the Empress’ knight and the Southern Duke’s agent—smiled innocently as if she knew nothing in the midst of rampant suspicion.
🍃🍃🍃
On the night of the first conquest of the tomb, the lake of the Imperial Palace had filled with shadows again.
The day before the expedition, they were busy and couldn’t come out to meet each other. So Lena had only two days of meeting with Lynn.
However, after ten days in the tomb, Lynn had a different situation.
Unlike Lena, who was the same as usual, he was somewhat anxious. And that feeling was clearly revealed the moment he met Lena.
“Can I touch you?”
Lena’s eyes quickly became cold at Lynn’s unfamiliar words. But Lynn continued without explanation.
“I heard you’re dead.”
“Who said such a terrible thing?”
“I thought you were really dead.”
Lena laughed lightly, but Lynn’s face was still serious. So she couldn’t laugh anymore.
“So, were you very surprised?”
Lena asked, looking at Lynn’s white face.
Lynn nodded silently as he looked at Lena. In fact, he nodded and belatedly realized that he was surprised.
When he rejoined Deca at the camp, Lynn heard of Lena’s death through him.
He said that the Marquis had been pushed from the wall. Dame Lena rescued him from the fall, but the Marquis pushed her to death.
Deca didn’t know Lena, but nevertheless mourned the death and was angry with the Marquis.
However, Lynn didn’t feel that normal feeling. All he felt was unknown confusion.
Lynn tried to connect the two words, Lena and death, in dizziness. But they kept floating in his head, hardly digested.1
When he returned to the Palace, something was dense the moment he saw the Marquis. And when he found Lena, his heart sank.
He continued to feel so until night.
Lynn didn’t know what this wave of emotion struck. However, through Lena’s expression, he barely learned. That when he heard of the news of Lena, he was very surprised.
Lena read Lynn’s expression carefully, then weighed his feelings and said playfully.
“If you really need confirmation, how can you be relieved?”
When he wanted to check life and death, he usually heard the sound of the heart. But Lynn couldn’t do that, so he quietly compromised.
“….Hand.”
“Here you are, hand.”
Lena reached out her hand, raising her palms. Lynn hesitated and gently laid his hands on it.
Lena asked with a smile on her face, reminiscent of something.
“Do you want to take a walk?”
Lynn smiled weakly and clasped Lena’s hand in his.
They often took a walk together, but it was their first time holding hands. And Lena’s hand was surprisingly small when he first held it.
Lynn curled Lena’s fingers and moved her thumb slowly. His fingertips came down from her palm to her wrist, and then he carefully wrapped it with his hand. (I can’t)3
As he held her wrist, he felt a pulse. It was proof that Lena was alive. After confirming the warmth, Lynn asked.
“What happened?”
“Tell me about Sir Lynn first.”
Lena casually asked back. Her hands were still held.
“I’m going to talk to people anyway. So now I’d love to hear about Sir Lynn.”
They didn’t know each other’s movements after they were greeted by the dead.
In particular, Lena wondered how Lynn interpreted her advice.
“I thought you didn’t listen to me after I saw the number of knights.”
“Because it was too vague to follow.”
So when asked, Lynn replied, without a hitch.
“We needed safeguards to get things directly related to survival.”
“That’s safety device.”
“…In the sense of being careful.”
“You needed safety devices.”
“That’s right.”
“Safety device…”
“Get over it, please…”
Lynn was distressed with shame when Lena persistently teased him about ‘safety device’.
Lena smiled and apologized only after Lynn’s face changed, and Lynn cursed his past remarks and spoke again.
🍃🍃🍃
Lena declared. She was the only one who could conquer the King’s castle that swallowed the first cry.
Instead, she told Lynn the location of the treasure.
If she conquered it, the castle would collapse, so she told him to dig inside and get the treasure. Lynn followed Lena’s words, thinking it was the main battle.
In fact, a day earlier, the castle collapsed, and a cave-like underground road beneath it appeared.
The process of going down to the underground road was rough. It took three days just to go down to the end, and a week to scoop out the treasure.
While pretending to be a robber, he ate only salt, as Lena said. And for comparison, some of the knights had to eat dry food.
The difference soon appeared as a result. Those who had salt didn’t feel fatigue. He didn’t fall asleep, he didn’t need water.
On the other hand, those who consumed food needed rest. They had to sleep and drink water, and had to do as much work as they ate.
For those who ate salt, such annoying physiological phenomena disappeared. In terms of efficiency, it was definitely advantageous, but it was difficult to say that it was just as good.
Day and night under the red sky, the tireless body forgot the time. A strange languor covered his body and he felt kindly suffocated.
Lynn had to keep his consciousness several times in order not to be drowned in that mood.
After such a process, the East returned with enormous wealth. The victory of the conquest of the tomb had passed to the South, but this was a face-saving gesture for the East.
“I’ve come to understand everything you said. I still don’t know how you know that.”
Lynn looked at the small hands in his hands. Then, he smiled and asked.
“Isn’t it useless to ask?”
Lena smiled instead of answering. Lynn nodded as if he knew she would do so.
“I got a lot of help anyway.”
The result of the expedition was ideal. However, Lynn acknowledged it, not after the expedition, but after confirming Lena’s survival.
Lynn expressed his gratitude, understanding his mind.
“Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.”
Even the answer that came back was appreciated.
Lynn was grateful, but he thought he shouldn’t just end up thanking. So he changed the tone of his voice and said it again.
“So I have a suggestion.”
“Suggestion?”
“I want to form an alliance.”
“If it’s an alliance…”
“I want to formally cooperate to conquer the tomb. As the owner of the East.”
Lena’s eyes widened by the unexpected words. She brooded over Lynn’s words with a puzzled look on her face, and soon tilted her head and answered.
“I appreciate the suggestion, but isn’t it enough to help each other as little as we do now?”
“It’s not good enough.”
“What’s not good enough?”
“To both of us.”
Lena smiled embarrassedly at Lynn’s answer.
“Well, I wonder if I’ll get any help from the East.”
Lena didn’t deliberately say euphemism.
She knew more about the tomb than everyone else. And she was well aware of the value of the secrets she had monopolized.
She liked Lynn quite a bit, but she didn’t want to share it for nothing. In the beginning, it was just her unplanned whim to tell him about the first expedition.
So she drew the line implicitly, but Lynn didn’t back down.
“There won’t be much help in the tomb. But it will be different outside.”
Not only did he not back down, but he continued to speak as if he had prepared beforehand.
“The Imperial Palace is a battleground like the tomb, and you’re against the real power of the North, and the Southern Duke is powerless. The Southern knights are not worth mentioning.”
In a different voice than usual, Lynn listed Lena’s weaknesses one by one. She was puzzled by his resoluteness. However, Lynn rather pulled Lena’s hand and whispered.
“So no matter how impressive you are in the tomb, you’re a stranger when you come out.”1
“…Isn’t that the same for Sir Lynn?”
“I have power.”
“Even so…”
“The only non-mainstream thing that capable of confronting the mainstream of the Empire.”
Lynn’s voice was low and subtle. So it was like smearing on her skin.
“If you think so, is there any help you can get in the East?”
Lynn asked the same thing, using Lena’s previous words. But his words sounded even more disrespectful and provocative.
So Lena blinked and then laughed.
“Of course it will help, but shouldn’t we consider whether it’s a fair deal?”
“Do you think it’s unfair?”
“Rather than being so, I wonder if I really need it.”
“Well, you’re the one who can do it on your own.”
Lynn accepted Lena’s argument obediently. However, he added.
“But that doesn’t mean being alone is the best. If that’s really the case, you wouldn’t have had a meeting with the knights from the beginning.”
Lynn’s words were correct without anything wrong. So Lena was speechless for a moment.
When Lena was silent, Lynn pulled Lena’s hand and whispered.
“I’ll be honest. I need your help. And I want to help you that much.”
The gentle pressing touch on her hand made her feel comfortable.
“I don’t want to just watch you do it alone.”2
His voice was sweet.
“Let’s fight together.”
Lena looked at Lynn’s face, which was closer than it had been before.
‘What is this….’1
Although she didn’t show it, Lena was quite embarrassed.
It was strange to see him making a subtle appeal. She thought he was a cute puppy, but the way he pushed in was quite cunning.
If they stayed like this, she would fall for it.
Thinking that way, Lena had a slight feeling of nausea. Lynn doesn’t know yet, but she didn’t like to lose the initiative.
She thought about it for a moment and opened her mouth.
“Are you serious about wanting to help me?”
“I’m serious.”
“Then how far can you help?”
“Whatever you want, I’ll give you the best answer.”
Lena’s eyes narrowed at the sweet and sober answer.
He would give her the best answer. She thought he would hear everything, but his words left a corner for her to slip.
Well, he did. Lena thought he was a terrible guy.
“Then…”
“Then?”
Lynn asked like an echo.
So Lena whispered in her sweetest voice with her best smile.
“Can we get engaged?”6
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lynn held Lena’s hands…
Lena proposed an engagement….
The damage tho!!!!!
The author knows we’re all thirsty for romance and lovey-dovey moments of these two.