Chapter 364: 𝐏𝐨𝐬𝐭-𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 (8)

How to Live as a Wandering Knight

“Are you already back?”

Johan looked at Gerdolf in surprise.

He had gone to the fiefdom with his soldiers, so he would have come back a little later after enjoying some rest, but he had returned too quickly.

“Did Sir Inno not treat you well? He has gone too far.”

“It wasn’t a big deal.”

“How could you say that? Even if Sir Inno is your father, shouldn’t the other nobles have treated you better?”

Johan frowned.

Sir Inno, as the knight was also his own son, he may not have been able to openly express his joy.

However, what were the other noble families in the area doing? Even if their relationships were usually not good, when a knight returns successfully from a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, by courtesy all should come out and congratulate him.

“It’s okay.”

“No, you’re a little naive, so there are times when you fails to take care of things you should be taking care of.”

“. . . . . .”

“. . . . . .”

The attendants following behind them flinched.

Who’s naive?

Gerdolf blushed with shame. It seemed he was considerably embarrassed by the duke’s words. The attendants trembled in fear at his unfamiliar appearance.

“First, send a message to Countess Abner. Then, ask the scribe to write a letter for the envoy to take. Tell the nearby nobles to properly entertain their guests.”

“Yes, I understand.”

The contents of the letter the scribe wrote were a very mild reproach, but the nobles would understand its meaning.

━𝐈𝐟 𝐚 𝐤𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐚 𝐩𝐢𝐥𝐠𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐨𝐥𝐲 𝐋𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲, 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐚 𝐬𝐚𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝𝐧’𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐡?

━>

━𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠. 𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐲, 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐨𝐫 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐩𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐲, 𝐚𝐜𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐲.

“This should be enough. Send it.”

“Yes!”

🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸

While the nobles of the western empire were in a state of confusion over the sudden arrival of the letter and exchanging opinions, the next fleet safely arrived at Coolia harbor.

Jyanina was also on board that fleet.

━𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐞𝐱𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐬, 𝐢𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐚 𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐬𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩? 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬?

━𝐈 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦!

━𝐈𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐨𝐤𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐬𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬? 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬?

━. . .𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬, 𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧’𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐬𝐡 𝐨𝐧 𝐡𝐞𝐫?

━𝐈’𝐦 𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐲. 𝐈 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥’𝐬 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐲, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬, 𝐰𝐞’𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐚 𝐬𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩.

━𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐨𝐤𝐚𝐲. 𝐈’𝐥𝐥 𝐠𝐨 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐞𝐭.

━𝐖𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭?

━𝐈𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐞, 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐚 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐰𝐨, 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐟 𝐈’𝐦 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞.

Jyanina had a reason for saying this.

Of course, it wasn’t bad to be on the duke’s ship. The ship would be the largest and strongest in the fleet, and the best sailors and captain would be sailing it.

However, Jyanina’s position there would be, at best, an apprentice wizard or a wizard’s disciple. There were so many high-ranking people.

Jyanina wanted to be the leader, even if it was a smaller ship. The saying, ‘𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘴𝘯𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘥𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘰𝘯,’ was true.

The other wizards also supported Jyanina’s opinion.

━𝐀𝐬 𝐚 𝐰𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐫𝐝, 𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬. 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐟 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞, 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐨𝐤𝐚𝐲 𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐉𝐲𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐚-𝐠𝐨𝐧𝐠’𝐬 𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞. 𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞.

━𝐈 𝐚𝐥𝐬𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞. 𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐞𝐥𝐬𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐰𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧? 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐟 𝐰𝐞 𝐚𝐬𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐧𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐛𝐲, 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐜 𝐰𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐰 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐥. . .

━. . . . . .

In fact, Jyanina wanted to show the exotic animals to the nobles and rip them off, rather than the desire to have the mysteries as a wizard.

When everyone else was carrying the fascinating treasures of the east, how discriminated would she be if she alone carried the animals of the east?

However, she couldn’t just sit still when the wizards said that. Jyanina nodded vigorously.

━𝐎𝐤𝐚𝐲. . . 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐛𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐟𝐮𝐥. 𝐃𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬.

━𝐎𝐟 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞!

━𝐃𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐜 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐬𝐮𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐲, 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞. 𝐃𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐠𝐨 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐚. . .

━. . . . . .

Jyanina was upset, but she endured it. Because the other party was the duke.

And now.

The fleet escorting Jyanina was anchored in the harbor.

“Long live His Highness the Duke!! Long live His Highness the Duke!!”

The people of the city and the lower nobles who had gathered shouted. In the Coolia fiefdom, the duke’s name was already something of a legend.

His fame reached the heavens even in the empire, so the Coolia fiefdom, which had directly benefited from it, had nothing more to say.

No wonder the minstrels went around saying, ‘𝘐𝘯 𝘊𝘰𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘢, 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘨𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘸 𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘢𝘭𝘤𝘰𝘩𝘰𝘭.’

Coolia was a fiefdom that had become wealthy with the merchant ships and treasures coming in from the East.

Even without that, everyone flocked to the harbor without being told, since the duke was finally returning after finishing his expedition.

Just to see the duke in person and receive even a little bit of his divine presence!

“. . .???”

“Is that His Highness the Duke?”

“No, you idiot. It’s a centaur.”

“Where is he?”

Of course, there was no way Johan, who wasn’t even there, would disembark. The people of the fiefdom waited in disappointment before dispersing.

And the one who was the most bewildered was Jyanina. As soon as she disembarked, Jyanina grabbed the scribe by the collar and questioned him.

“Why isn’t His Highness the Duke here!?”

“H-How would I know that!?”

Jyanina sat down in the courtyard in front of the inner palace with a look of despair. She had finally come to collect her share, but her strong backer had disappeared.

It wasn’t like such a large fleet had sunk in a typhoon. . .

Did he receive a demon’s curse?

‘. . .𝘕𝘰, 𝘯𝘰, 𝘯𝘰. 𝘚𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘯𝘰𝘵.’

Although the pagans had spread rumors that ‘𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘶𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳,’ not many people believed it seriously. He was too devout to be considered to have made a pact with a demon.

However, his power was certainly demonic. Jyanina had also asked Suetlg furtively, ‘𝘊𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘢 𝘥-𝘥. . .?’

She was hit with a bucket of water and chased away. . .

‘𝘊𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘯?’

Not knowing what was going on, the lower nobles in the fiefdom came to Jyanina to ask for her opinion. She was a wizard who had participated in the expedition.

“When will His Highness the Duke return?”

“. . .He will probably arrive when the next fleet arrives.”

“Is that so. . . Did something happen in the battle by any chance?”

“What nonsense are you talking about. . .?”

Jyanina was speechless. She realized what the nobles were suspicious of.

They were worried that the duke had died in battle in the east or had collapsed with serious injuries.

“Stop talking nonsense! Does that make sense? His Highness the Duke is protected by God!”

“Ah. I’m sorry.”

‘𝘞𝘢𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘻𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯?’

One of the nobles tilted his head. Wizards were often suspected of being non-religious, and Jyanina had more of those cases because of her usual conduct.

Thanks to that, the nobles only had more unnecessary thoughts. Jyanina gave a detailed explanation to appease their suspicions.

“I’ll tell you about the battle that took place in the Holy Land. Now, listen carefully!”

“Yes, Wizard.”

“The number of enemies was two to three times ours. Maybe even four times. . . It was that big of a difference because all the pagans nearby flocked to us.”

“Despite that, did you win? Were the enemy soldiers all conscripts?”

“The knights filled the front and there were over a hundred noble flags, so that wasn’t it.”

“. . . . . .”

Jyanina was only relaying what had actually happened, but a suspicious light gradually began to appear in the nobles’ eyes. Jyanina didn’t notice that and continued her explanation.

“So how did His Highness the Duke win and reclaim the Holy Land. . .?”

With two to three times the number of soldiers and a higher level, there seemed to be no way to win in reality.

Jyanina nodded as if she had been waiting for that question.

“The pagan chiefs came to His Highness the Duke at night. It was because they wanted to serve His Highness the Duke.”

“. . .Why did the pagan chiefs. . .?”

“Ah. That’s. . . His Highness the Duke had obtained a crown in the forest before. It was a crown that had disappeared from the Holy Land in the past. . .”

“Didn’t the crown of the Holy Land belong to the guardian of the Holy Land? It’s a crown that has been passed down from generation to generation, so why?”

“That’s because it was a fake! It was a fake, and in reality, the pagans had taken it, but it was revealed to be a fake. . .”

“T-That’s right.”

Their suspicions were gradually rising to a medium level. Jyanina continued to diligently list the events that had happened.

“The battle became advantageous thanks to the pagan chiefs turning to His Highness the Duke. But the enemies held on tenaciously.”

“Oh. . . That’s right.”

“So His Highness the Duke charged into the enemy camp at night.”

“That’s right.”

“That’s how he won the battle. Got it?”

“. . . . . .”

“. . . . . .”

The nobles looked at Jyanina with bewilderment and embarrassment. No matter how much of a wizard she was, this was a bit too much to just let go.

“D-Did you just win? Did the enemies all turn into scarecrows overnight?”

“No. . .! How stupid! That’s why, when His Highness the Duke went in at night and cut down everything he could reach, the enemies were so scared that they all ran away, and their camp collapsed because of it!”

“What did the enemy commander do?”

“The enemies would also have knights, right?”

“They wouldn’t go out in person like you guys, but they would have asked questions!”

When Jyanina got angry, the nobles flinched. There was nothing good about provoking a wizard.

“I-I’m sorry, Wizard. It’s such a dramatic and ridiculous story. . .”

“What?”

“Ah, no! I’m not doubting you. I believe you.”

One of the nobles opened his mouth to change the atmosphere.

“How did you defeat the Sultan? I’m curious about that!”

“Ah. That’s because. . . The army gathered across the river tried to cross it by doing this and that. . .”

“Yes, I heard.”

“The Sultan’s fleet sank. . .”

“I heard that the Elf King was rescued!”

“Didn’t the Sultan, enraged by that, fill up the river with magic and launch an all-out attack? I heard that His Highness the Duke fought against that!”

“It wasn’t filled with magic, it was because of the cold.”

“But I heard that it’s a river that never freezes.”

“. . .In any case, the Sultan’s large army crossed the frozen river. They were more elite than the pagan army in the Holy Land, and their size must have been three or four times ours. Our expeditionary force also got into formation to match them.”

At Jyanina’s words, the nobles made expectant expressions again.

“The left wing was made up of the feudal lords nearby, so they collapsed quickly. They ran away not long after the battle started.”

“Hmph. . .!”

“How could that be. . .!”

“So His Highness the Duke charged.”

The nobles nodded in sympathy.

The heroic charge of a knight always inspired his allies.

Surely there would have been an honorable duel between the knights, and the fleeing feudal lords would have returned, feeling ashamed.

“Did the enemy knights come out and face His Highness the Duke?”

“Ah. That was before the left wing ran away. He didn’t have any more duels after that.”

“Then?”

“His Highness the Duke just charged in, kept pushing forward, reached the Sultan’s tent, cut off his head, completely broke through the center, and split it apart. . .”

Jyanina also began to notice the nobles’ expressions. Even as she spoke, it sounded a bit too exaggerated.

‘. . .𝘞𝘢𝘴 𝘐 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘪𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘥. . .?’

She could say she heard the voice of God or that an earthquake occurred. . .

“And so the battle was over.”

“. . . . . .”

“. . . . . .”

The nobles just blinked at each other and said nothing. They thanked Jyanina and walked out the door with slumped shoulders.

After everyone had left, Jyanina quickly went up to the window and listened.

“Waaah. . .! Something must have happened to the Duke!”

“Oh, come on. . .! How could that be! He must be recuperating from his injuries. He’ll be back soon!”

“If it was a minor injury, why would she tell such ridiculous lies! Waaahhhh!”

“. . . . . .”

Fortunately, not long after, a messenger came running from the west. It was a message saying that the duke had landed in the west. Jyanina let out a sigh of relief.

“Wait. . .could it be that the wizard made a fake letter? She’s a snakekin afterall. . .”

“And I heard she also worked in the emperor’s court so. . .”

“. . . . . .”

“Are you already back?”

Johan looked at Gerdolf in surprise.

He had gone to the fiefdom with his soldiers, so he would have come back a little later after enjoying some rest, but he had returned too quickly.

“Did Sir Inno not treat you well? He has gone too far.”

“It wasn’t a big deal.”

“How could you say that? Even if Sir Inno is your father, shouldn’t the other nobles have treated you better?”

Johan frowned.

Sir Inno, as the knight was also his own son, he may not have been able to openly express his joy.

However, what were the other noble families in the area doing? Even if their relationships were usually not good, when a knight returns successfully from a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, by courtesy all should come out and congratulate him.

“I should tell the countess.”

“It’s okay.”

“No, you’re a little naive, so there are times when you fails to take care of things you should be taking care of.”

“. . . . . .”

“. . . . . .”

The attendants following behind them flinched.

Who’s naive?

Gerdolf blushed with shame. It seemed he was considerably embarrassed by the duke’s words. The attendants trembled in fear at his unfamiliar appearance.

“First, send a message to Countess Abner. Then, ask the scribe to write a letter for the envoy to take. Tell the nearby nobles to properly entertain their guests.”

“Yes, I understand.”

The contents of the letter the scribe wrote were a very mild reproach, but the nobles would understand its meaning.

━𝐈𝐟 𝐚 𝐤𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐚 𝐩𝐢𝐥𝐠𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐨𝐥𝐲 𝐋𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲, 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐚 𝐬𝐚𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝𝐧’𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐡?

━>

━𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠. 𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐲, 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐨𝐫 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐩𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐲, 𝐚𝐜𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐲.

“This should be enough. Send it.”

“Yes!”

🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸

While the nobles of the western empire were in a state of confusion over the sudden arrival of the letter and exchanging opinions, the next fleet safely arrived at Coolia harbor.

Jyanina was also on board that fleet.

━𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐞𝐱𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐬, 𝐢𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐚 𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐬𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩? 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬?

━𝐈 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦!

━𝐈𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐨𝐤𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐬𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬? 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬?

━. . .𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬, 𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧’𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐬𝐡 𝐨𝐧 𝐡𝐞𝐫?

━𝐈’𝐦 𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐲. 𝐈 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥’𝐬 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐲, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬, 𝐰𝐞’𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐚 𝐬𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩.

━𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐨𝐤𝐚𝐲. 𝐈’𝐥𝐥 𝐠𝐨 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐞𝐭.

━𝐖𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭?

━𝐈𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐞, 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐚 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐰𝐨, 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐟 𝐈’𝐦 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞.

Jyanina had a reason for saying this.

Of course, it wasn’t bad to be on the duke’s ship. The ship would be the largest and strongest in the fleet, and the best sailors and captain would be sailing it.

However, Jyanina’s position there would be, at best, an apprentice wizard or a wizard’s disciple. There were so many high-ranking people.

Jyanina wanted to be the leader, even if it was a smaller ship. The saying, ‘𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘴𝘯𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘥𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘰𝘯,’ was true.

The other wizards also supported Jyanina’s opinion.

━𝐀𝐬 𝐚 𝐰𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐫𝐝, 𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬. 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐟 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞, 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐨𝐤𝐚𝐲 𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐉𝐲𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐚-𝐠𝐨𝐧𝐠’𝐬 𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞. 𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞.

━𝐈 𝐚𝐥𝐬𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞. 𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐞𝐥𝐬𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐰𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧? 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐟 𝐰𝐞 𝐚𝐬𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐧𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐛𝐲, 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐜 𝐰𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐰 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐥. . .

━. . . . . .

In fact, Jyanina wanted to show the exotic animals to the nobles and rip them off, rather than the desire to have the mysteries as a wizard.

When everyone else was carrying the fascinating treasures of the east, how discriminated would she be if she alone carried the animals of the east?

However, she couldn’t just sit still when the wizards said that. Jyanina nodded vigorously.

━𝐎𝐤𝐚𝐲. . . 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐛𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐟𝐮𝐥. 𝐃𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬.

━𝐎𝐟 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞!

━𝐃𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐜 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐬𝐮𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐲, 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞. 𝐃𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐠𝐨 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐚. . .

━. . . . . .

Jyanina was upset, but she endured it. Because the other party was the duke.

And now.

The fleet escorting Jyanina was anchored in the harbor.

“Long live His Highness the Duke!! Long live His Highness the Duke!!”

The people of the city and the lower nobles who had gathered shouted. In the Coolia fiefdom, the duke’s name was already something of a legend.

His fame reached the heavens even in the empire, so the Coolia fiefdom, which had directly benefited from it, had nothing more to say.

No wonder the minstrels went around saying, ‘𝘐𝘯 𝘊𝘰𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘢, 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘨𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘸 𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘢𝘭𝘤𝘰𝘩𝘰𝘭.’

Coolia was a fiefdom that had become wealthy with the merchant ships and treasures coming in from the East.

Even without that, everyone flocked to the harbor without being told, since the duke was finally returning after finishing his expedition.

Just to see the duke in person and receive even a little bit of his divine presence!

“. . .???”

“Is that His Highness the Duke?”

“No, you idiot. It’s a centaur.”

“Where is he?”

Of course, there was no way Johan, who wasn’t even there, would disembark. The people of the fiefdom waited in disappointment before dispersing.

And the one who was the most bewildered was Jyanina. As soon as she disembarked, Jyanina grabbed the scribe by the collar and questioned him.

“Why isn’t His Highness the Duke here!?”

“H-How would I know that!?”

Jyanina sat down in the courtyard in front of the inner palace with a look of despair. She had finally come to collect her share, but her strong backer had disappeared.

It wasn’t like such a large fleet had sunk in a typhoon. . .

Did he receive a demon’s curse?

‘. . .𝘕𝘰, 𝘯𝘰, 𝘯𝘰. 𝘚𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘯𝘰𝘵.’

Although the pagans had spread rumors that ‘𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘶𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳,’ not many people believed it seriously. He was too devout to be considered to have made a pact with a demon.

However, his power was certainly demonic. Jyanina had also asked Suetlg furtively, ‘𝘊𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘢 𝘥-𝘥. . .?’

She was hit with a bucket of water and chased away. . .

‘𝘊𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘯?’

Not knowing what was going on, the lower nobles in the fiefdom came to Jyanina to ask for her opinion. She was a wizard who had participated in the expedition.

“When will His Highness the Duke return?”

“. . .He will probably arrive when the next fleet arrives.”

“Is that so. . . Did something happen in the battle by any chance?”

“What nonsense are you talking about. . .?”

Jyanina was speechless. She realized what the nobles were suspicious of.

They were worried that the duke had died in battle in the east or had collapsed with serious injuries.

“Stop talking nonsense! Does that make sense? His Highness the Duke is protected by God!”

“Ah. I’m sorry.”

‘𝘞𝘢𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘻𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯?’

One of the nobles tilted his head. Wizards were often suspected of being non-religious, and Jyanina had more of those cases because of her usual conduct.

Thanks to that, the nobles only had more unnecessary thoughts. Jyanina gave a detailed explanation to appease their suspicions.

“I’ll tell you about the battle that took place in the Holy Land. Now, listen carefully!”

“Yes, Wizard.”

“The number of enemies was two to three times ours. Maybe even four times. . . It was that big of a difference because all the pagans nearby flocked to us.”

“Despite that, did you win? Were the enemy soldiers all conscripts?”

“The knights filled the front and there were over a hundred noble flags, so that wasn’t it.”

“. . . . . .”

Jyanina was only relaying what had actually happened, but a suspicious light gradually began to appear in the nobles’ eyes. Jyanina didn’t notice that and continued her explanation.

“So how did His Highness the Duke win and reclaim the Holy Land. . .?”

With two to three times the number of soldiers and a higher level, there seemed to be no way to win in reality.

Jyanina nodded as if she had been waiting for that question.

“The pagan chiefs came to His Highness the Duke at night. It was because they wanted to serve His Highness the Duke.”

“. . .Why did the pagan chiefs. . .?”

“Ah. That’s. . . His Highness the Duke had obtained a crown in the forest before. It was a crown that had disappeared from the Holy Land in the past. . .”

“Didn’t the crown of the Holy Land belong to the guardian of the Holy Land? It’s a crown that has been passed down from generation to generation, so why?”

“That’s because it was a fake! It was a fake, and in reality, the pagans had taken it, but it was revealed to be a fake. . .”

“T-That’s right.”

Their suspicions were gradually rising to a medium level. Jyanina continued to diligently list the events that had happened.

“The battle became advantageous thanks to the pagan chiefs turning to His Highness the Duke. But the enemies held on tenaciously.”

“Oh. . . That’s right.”

“So His Highness the Duke charged into the enemy camp at night.”

“That’s right.”

“That’s how he won the battle. Got it?”

“. . . . . .”

“. . . . . .”

The nobles looked at Jyanina with bewilderment and embarrassment. No matter how much of a wizard she was, this was a bit too much to just let go.

“D-Did you just win? Did the enemies all turn into scarecrows overnight?”

“No. . .! How stupid! That’s why, when His Highness the Duke went in at night and cut down everything he could reach, the enemies were so scared that they all ran away, and their camp collapsed because of it!”

“What did the enemy commander do?”

“The enemies would also have knights, right?”

“They wouldn’t go out in person like you guys, but they would have asked questions!”

When Jyanina got angry, the nobles flinched. There was nothing good about provoking a wizard.

“I-I’m sorry, Wizard. It’s such a dramatic and ridiculous story. . .”

“What?”

“Ah, no! I’m not doubting you. I believe you.”

One of the nobles opened his mouth to change the atmosphere.

“How did you defeat the Sultan? I’m curious about that!”

“Ah. That’s because. . . The army gathered across the river tried to cross it by doing this and that. . .”

“Yes, I heard.”

“The Sultan’s fleet sank. . .”

“I heard that the Elf King was rescued!”

“Didn’t the Sultan, enraged by that, fill up the river with magic and launch an all-out attack? I heard that His Highness the Duke fought against that!”

“It wasn’t filled with magic, it was because of the cold.”

“But I heard that it’s a river that never freezes.”

“. . .In any case, the Sultan’s large army crossed the frozen river. They were more elite than the pagan army in the Holy Land, and their size must have been three or four times ours. Our expeditionary force also got into formation to match them.”

At Jyanina’s words, the nobles made expectant expressions again.

“The left wing was made up of the feudal lords nearby, so they collapsed quickly. They ran away not long after the battle started.”

“Hmph. . .!”

“How could that be. . .!”

“So His Highness the Duke charged.”

The nobles nodded in sympathy.

The heroic charge of a knight always inspired his allies.

Surely there would have been an honorable duel between the knights, and the fleeing feudal lords would have returned, feeling ashamed.

“Did the enemy knights come out and face His Highness the Duke?”

“Ah. That was before the left wing ran away. He didn’t have any more duels after that.”

“Then?”

“His Highness the Duke just charged in, kept pushing forward, reached the Sultan’s tent, cut off his head, completely broke through the center, and split it apart. . .”

Jyanina also began to notice the nobles’ expressions. Even as she spoke, it sounded a bit too exaggerated.

‘. . .𝘞𝘢𝘴 𝘐 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘪𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘥. . .?’

She could say she heard the voice of God or that an earthquake occurred. . .

“And so the battle was over.”

“. . . . . .”

“. . . . . .”

The nobles just blinked at each other and said nothing. They thanked Jyanina and walked out the door with slumped shoulders.

After everyone had left, Jyanina quickly went up to the window and listened.

“Waaah. . .! Something must have happened to the Duke!”

“Oh, come on. . .! How could that be! He must be recuperating from his injuries. He’ll be back soon!”

“If it was a minor injury, why would she tell such ridiculous lies! Waaahhhh!”

“. . . . . .”

Fortunately, not long after, a messenger came running from the west. It was a message saying that the duke had landed in the west. Jyanina let out a sigh of relief.

“Wait. . .could it be that the wizard made a fake letter? She’s a snakekin afterall. . .”

“And I heard she also worked in the emperor’s court so. . .”

“. . . . . .”