Episode 60. Transferring to Aeshers’ Forces (1)
*
Taking control of the fortress proceeded much faster than I had anticipated.
It seemed that Ephinel was to manage the new fortress.
That appeared to be her reason for coming here in the first place.
Placing one of Aeshers’ top generals at the forefront must have felt like a bolt out of the blue for Brans’ forces.
It couldn’t be helped. Having incurred their enmity, we had no choice but to continue shaking Brans’ forces.
Considering Lynn’s character, she wouldn’t have quietly allowed us to resign, and having moved to another force, it was inevitable that we’d be held in contempt in some form.
In that case, taking soldiers with us was a much better decision. There was also the desire to repay Airen for what she had endured.
Moreover, stripping Brans’ forces of the central command and balancing power was crucial for me personally.
When Lunarien’s forces eventually mobilize, it would be much easier to face two balanced nations than one giant state.
After she took control of our side of the fortress,
Airen and I followed our new lord towards Valhalla Castle.
On the way to Valhalla, I found myself lost in thought.
‘It seems like I’ve only gotten better at lying.’
I promised to make a decision she would never regret.
Eventually, Airen and I will have to leave Aeshers’ forces.
Although it’s likely we’ll simply resign without betraying them as we did with Brans’ forces—
The future was uncertain.
And another lie.
‘Oh? So, you think I can be the unifying monarch?’
‘Can Baranka Yuri Aeshers be the monarch to unify the continent?’
[No.]
Despite that prediction, I brazenly affirmed immediately.
Well, the reasons she couldn’t be the destined unifying monarch—those would become clear as we spent time here.
As I was engrossed in such trivial thoughts,
“Um… Swen.”
“Yes?”
Airen grasped my sleeve and said,
“That situation… what was it again?”
“Which situation are you referring to?”
“That… in front of Yuri, the last thing you said… why did you suddenly bring that up?”
Ah.
I immediately knew what she was referring to.
“It seems Yuri has quite a playful side.”
I said, recalling the recent events.
It appeared our new lord wasn’t as serious as I had thought.
The gaze she had while taking an excessive interest in our joint defection was more akin to that of a girl filled with girlish whims than a sovereign.
“The lord probably thinks I’m abandoning everything to elope with Airen in some kind of love escape.”
“What…!”
Airen’s eyes widened in shock, and her face flushed red.
“Well, if that’s what she thinks, there’s no harm in playing along. Thanks to that, it seems our surrender was graciously accepted.”
Hearing my words, Airen sighed shortly and finally regained her composure.
“So… that was… just playing along?”
“Well, not entirely. After all, my desire to protect Airen is genuine. Didn’t I tell you that night?”
As Airen looked at me in slight surprise again,
She then smiled with her flushed face and nodded.
“Okay.”
I momentarily lost myself in that smile.
She was truly a lovely woman. Her beauty was stunning, and her figure was enough to captivate any man’s gaze.
Just her appearance made it seem like selling a country for her wouldn’t be regrettable.
However, I didn’t intend to say she was ‘beautiful.’
As I mentioned before, she was ‘lovely.’ That was the crucial difference from Yuri, who was merely beautiful.
Now that we were in a new nation, I hoped she could regain her self-esteem.
Having spent days under Brans’ forces without recognition, her self-esteem must have been thoroughly crushed.
“Everything will be okay later. Tell me then. I’ll be waiting.”
“Everything will be okay later, huh.”
I didn’t plan to wait until then.
As I pondered her words, I stepped towards Valhalla Castle.
*
Valhalla Castle exuded a different atmosphere than Anel Castle or Kelstein Castle.
Firstly, the attire of the people was subtly different. There was a clear distinction from the first place I settled, Jeilant Castle, Anel Castle, and Kelstein Castle on the way north.
The atmosphere among the territory’s people… if I had to compare, it was closer to the slightly tense atmosphere of Jeilant Castle than the peaceful ambiance of Anel Castle, yet there was a sense of peace.
The walls were impressively high, and well-trained soldiers were maintaining order within the castle.
To summarize, it was a situation where ‘tension from war existed, but every resident clearly felt safe.’
After sending all the soldiers back,
Yuri approached us and said,
“You both have worked hard coming here. Once again, I’m grateful you’ve become part of our family. It wasn’t an easy decision to join a smaller nation.”
Airen bowed and responded,
“Not at all, my lord. We’re grateful you’ve taken us in.”
“Thank you.”
Hearing our gratitude, she nodded and looked up at the sky.
Night had fallen, stars filling the sky.
“There’s no need to come to the royal quarters and do anything tonight. We’ve completed all necessary rituals. Our army’s next regular meeting is in three weeks. If something comes up, I’ll call you, but unless there’s an emergency, there’s no need to assign any tasks until then.”
Three weeks.
More downtime than expected.
If there was an urgent matter, she would have issued commands immediately, but perhaps the internal situation was stable enough not to necessitate that.
It would be good to familiarize myself with Valhalla Castle during this free time.
“Understood.”
“Right. More importantly, you’ll need a place to stay, won’t you?”
Yuri put her index finger to her lips, pondering.
“Let’s see… there’s a newly built place… yeah, that should work. Airen?”
“Yes, please go ahead.”
“The street leading southeast from the square is Shaman Street. Go to number 9 on Shaman Street. It’s a newly built building, so it should be clean, though there might be some dust.”
“That’s fine. I’ll manage the rest. Providing us with a place to stay is more than enough for us to be grateful.”
“Is that so? Then that’s good.”
Yuri smiled.
“Well, I’ll be going then. You both have had a long day. If nothing comes up, I’ll see you at the next meeting.”
Then,
I called out to Yuri as she was about to leave.
“Excuse me… my lord.”
“Hm?”
“Where should I go?”
Airen was going to Shaman Street’s number 9.
So where should I go?
Given the talk of family and such, it seemed unlikely she’d treat Airen and me differently.
However,
Yuri responded as if wondering why I even asked.
“Eh? I told you. Shaman Street, number 9. That’s where you’ll go.”
“Then, I should go there?”
“?!”
At that moment, when our conversation seemed misaligned-
I realized something.
“Could it be…”
“Ahaha.”
Yuri covered her mouth and laughed again.
To an outsider, it might
seem elegant and dignified… but it was unmistakably the laughter of a girl fond of mischief.
“Both of you should live together. Naturally.”
“!!!”
“No… that’s…”
Airen, flustered, tried to say something, but Yuri cut her off as if she had no intention of listening.
“I’m not that oblivious. That place is just right for two people, so live there. Got it?”
“…”
Well, thinking about it, hadn’t we already been living together?
I nodded.
“Understood.”
“Good. I’m looking forward to hearing good news. Bye.”
After Yuri left,
Airen and I stood silently in that place for a while.
It was strange.
Until just a moment ago, thinking, “Hadn’t we already been living together?” allowed me to maintain my calm.
Why did it feel so hot all of a sudden?
And it seemed, Airen standing beside me felt no different.
Her face was completely red… she hesitated, glancing at me.
Though slightly awkward, just as I thought before, cohabitation with her wasn’t new.
In such cases, dragging on the conversation only made the atmosphere weirder.
“Let’s go, Airen.”
“Ah?! Oh… uh, yes. That, that’s right.”
So, Airen and I headed to our new home.
*
Arriving at our new residence, we lit the lanterns.
It was indeed a neat and nice house, newly built.
It felt larger than the one in East Anel, with a more sophisticated kitchen and overall better facilities.
Crucially… the bed was larger. Enough for a double bed.
I didn’t know why the bed size was so significant.
“We’ve arrived…”
Airen lightly unpacked and then fell silent again.
It seemed I needed to take the lead here.
“Shall we start with cleaning? It seems a bit dusty.”
“Cleaning, huh…”
Although it was getting dark, it wasn’t late yet.
People were still walking around the streets.
Actually, that didn’t matter much. Honestly, I just wanted to escape the awkward atmosphere quickly.
“Let’s do that. We should start with cleaning. Yes.”
Airen, seemingly eager to move, agreed to my suggestion.
Thus, we cleaned our future home thoroughly.
Cleaning indeed made time pass more pleasantly.
Moving around to clean every corner made the distracting thoughts fly away too.
After finishing the cleaning,
Silence greeted us again.
It seemed the night had deepened.
Once again faced with silence,
This time, Airen spoke to me first.
“Swen.”
“Yes?”
Her face flushed, she looked at me and, with a slightly trembling voice, moved her small lips.
“Shall we sleep together?”
