Episode 70. Is it just a coincidence that they resemble each other?
Chaeng! Chaeng!
A brisk metallic sound was heard every time the shiny blades clashed.
“Pull your chin in a little more and don’t let your shoulders shake! If your shoulders shake, you’ll end up doing a lot of unnecessary movements!”
Chaeng!
“Look straight ahead and put strength in your stomach so that you don’t lose your balance.”
Finally, Adele stopped swinging her sword and said,
“Let’s take a break.”
After Isabelle left, she had been practicing swordsmanship for hours. She was wearing a white linen shirt and tight pants, and her hair was tied up high. Her bangs and shirt were soaked with sweat.
“Swordsmanship is like dancing. If you lose your natural elegance and just swing it around recklessly, it becomes a sword fight between street thugs.”
The white-haired knight who taught her swordsmanship did not spare advice. However, Adele could not accept that advice.
“Even if it’s a lowly sword fight, I want to learn something more useful in real combat.”
The white-haired knight looked incomprehensible.
“Are you planning on going to the battlefield any time soon?”
Adele smiled and shook her head.
“You’ve worked hard. Let’s stop for today.”
When the white-haired knight left, she stood in front of the mirror, holding her rapier and taking a stance.
She didn’t want elegant swordsmanship. She wanted to be able to protect herself from any threat.
She had forgotten while spending time with Christine.
In the end, she had to protect her own life.
Swish! Swish!
She began stabbing the air with her sharp blade again.
“Adele, that silver wolf that hurt your mother, you know, might be very close.”
“If the silver wolf were a person, wouldn’t it look like that... I often think about that.”
Those thoughts kept coming to her mind.
‘Nonsense!’
Her movements became quick and fierce, as if shattering useless thoughts. Her face turned red, and beads of sweat fell to the floor. Her shoulders shook, and her breathing became ragged.
“Ah...!”
In an instant, her feet slipped and she lost her balance and rolled around.
Clang!
Adele fell to the floor, unable to move for a while. Her whole body lost its strength, and her chest heaved as she exhaled rapidly without stopping.
‘Haa, this is ridiculous...’
Even as she thought that, the moment she heard Isabelle’s words, the silver wolf overlapped with Christine’s appearance.
When he appeared leading the pack of wolves, he looked like a wolf for a moment.
Silver hair, blue-gray eyes...
Was it just a coincidence?
However, the silver wolf she had seen in the bedroom a while ago was on her mind.
She had thought it was a dream she had while sleeping, but she had always thought it wasn’t a dream.
“Please understand our leader’s actions. The leader is a wolf.”
“What are you doing?”
***
Adele, who had been startled, raised her gaze and met the affectionate blue-gray eyes. Christine was standing by the bedside, looking down.
'Yeah, what a stupid idea. He's clearly a human... '
She decided to shake off the thought that he resembled a silver wolf.
"I fell over while practicing swordsmanship."
Adele held out her arm as if she were a spoiled brat.
"You want me to help you up?"
"Yeah. I can't get up by myself."
He looked bewildered, but grabbed her arm and helped her up obediently. Then he gave her a handkerchief to wipe away her sweat and took off his outerwear to keep her warm.
"When did you start learning swordsmanship?"
"Three days. The reason I didn't tell you was that you hadn't come in for a while."
"Oh, sorry."
"It's okay. You were busy."
"But why are you suddenly learning swordsmanship?"
"You said that one day. If you swing a sword without knowing how to use it, it's self-harming. I thought that I should at least protect my own life."
"With such a great guardian by your side?"
Adele glared at him.
“You’re back after four days, and you’re saying such things?”
“Ahem!”
He cleared his throat and tried to avoid the question.
“Did you come home early today? Or do you have to go out again?”
“I barely got away with telling you that if I didn't get in today, they'd kick me out, but I might have to go if I get called.”
“Until the culprit is caught.”
“If it’s the culprit, the silver wolf...”
He quickly cut off Adele's words.
"It's not the Silver Wolf."
This time, too, he reacted sensitively.
"Then, do you have any idea who the culprit is?"
"The culprit is a monster who wants to blame the Silver Wolf."
"A monster?"
"If it can kill a person so cruelly, it's a monster even if it's in human form. And the reason that monster has been quiet until now is because it wasn't here."
At that moment, Adele thought of Stone.
Now that she thought about it, these horrible incidents had happened since he returned. And the way the corpses were disposed of seemed like something Stone could do.
"I found out that there had been similar incidents in the Orbis Kingdom for the past eight years. We'll be able to find out more details when the investigator we dispatched returns."
"Is it really Stone?"
"First of all, it's a suspicion."
Adele felt goosebumps all over her body.
At the same time, she didn't know why she felt fortunate.
***
Christine and Adele, who had returned home after four days, had dinner and drank tea together for the first time in a while.
"You're not angry because I haven't been here for so long?"
"Huh?"
Adele looked at Christine in surprise.
“You haven’t looked at my face since earlier.”
Adele awkwardly answered, putting down her almost cold teacup.
“Sorry. I was thinking about something.”
“What?”
“Stone Oswald.”
Christine’s brow furrowed.
“So you were thinking about someone else while you were with me?”
“Come to think of it, it was actually he who made me suspect the nobles who killed my mother. But if your guess is right, Stone was the real culprit who killed my mother. I didn’t even know that...”
Adele bit her lip, angry that she hadn’t suspected him until now.
“Don’t blame yourself, Adele. We can catch him now.”
She muttered after thinking about something for a moment.
“So did he commit the crime while dragging a silver wolf around?”
“Pfft!”
Christine ended up spitting out the tea.
“Are you okay?”
“Gulp, gulp! I suddenly felt a pang.”
He quickly wiped his mouth with a handkerchief and corrected Adele's thoughts.
"Adele, isn't the silver wolf something that someone can drag around or tame?"
Why?
Adele looked at him with an innocent face.
"I just think that's the case."
"I see..."
"Of course it would be. It's a different kind of wolf from ordinary wolves."
"Then Stone and the silver wolf are in league?"
"I don't think so."
"Then Stone is the silver wolf? No, that doesn't make sense."
Christine shook her head.
Adele muttered again with a thoughtful face.
"Then, if Stone is the culprit, who killed the previous Emperor? He must have been in Orbis at that time."
Christine's expression hardened.
Adele hesitated and lowered her voice, saying again.
"Actually, the Empress Dowager Isabella wants to join hands with you."
"What?"
"I said I'd think about it, but I'm in favor."
"Adele!"
“What do you think will happen if Stone becomes the Emperor's son-in-law? For example, even if you find out that all these crimes were Stone’s doing, will you be punished? It turned out that he killed his father, but it was ultimately concluded as a heart attack.”
Christine’s face also looked thoughtful at Adele’s words.
So Adele brought up a more cautious topic.
“Even if you were involved in the affairs of the former Emperor, the Empress said she wouldn’t hold you accountable. She also said she would grant your territory autonomy.”
Knock!
Christine put down her teacup with a loud noise.
“You’ve been doing some pretty dangerous things.”
“No, I’m going to do some dangerous things now. Since the Emperor and Stone have joined hands, I have to get you on my side.”
Christine sighed.
“Don’t worry, Adele. I can take care of myself.”
Adele flared up.
“You said you’d protect me! But you’re telling me not to do anything for you? Just bake some pies and wait in the bedroom?”
“I’m saying that because I’m worried.”
“But I can take care of myself. I’m not so stupid as to not be able to grasp the situation.”
“So you’re suddenly learning swordsmanship?”
Adele felt a sting.
“Well, the times are really chaotic.”
“How many years would it take to learn that and protect yourself?”
Adele was also dissatisfied with that. Her master seemed to think of swordsmanship as an art.
“Then why don’t you teach me some real-life techniques?”
Adele approached her with her eyes sparkling.
“Yes, Chris, you can teach me.”
Christine shook his head as if he had lost after Adele pressed him several times.
“Get dressed properly and come out to the garden.”
“Yes, Count!”
Adele quickly got up.
If what he said was true, Stone was the culprit behind all these terrible incidents.
She had never realized how heavy her heart had been at the thought that Christine might have something to do with this incident.
But now she felt very relieved.
And if Stone was the culprit, she would kill him with her own hands!
***
“Where’s the sword?”
Adele looked around outside.
Thinking that he was going to teach her swordsmanship, she put on pants and boots and tied her hair up. But his hands were empty.
Instead, his slender steed stood beside him.
“Take it. I have a place to go.”
Christine quickly climbed onto the horse and held out her hand.
“At this hour?”
It was already dark outside.
With Adele in front, he left the Marvel Palace.
As he left the bustling city and entered a deserted town, there was no light, and everything was dark.
The moonlight was dim, so Adele couldn’t see anything, but he ran without slowing down as if he could see through the darkness.
Then he stopped in front of a large mansion surrounded by a high wall.
Squeak!
The large iron gate opened as if it had been waiting.
Adele, who went inside with Christine, was startled.
In front of the spacious mansion garden, about a hundred men were training with spears and swords.
Flags with white wolves fluttering at the entrance and windows of the mansion. They were the flags of the White Ghost Knights belonging to the Count of Weiss.
This place, which looked like a mansion from the outside, was actually the training ground of the White Ghost Knights.
“Are you here, Commander!”
“Hello, sir!”
Adele looked around outside.
Thinking that he was going to teach her swordsmanship, she put on pants and boots and tied her hair up. But his hands were empty.
Instead, his slender steed stood beside him.
“Take it. I have a place to go.”
Christine quickly climbed onto the horse and held out her hand.
“At this hour?”
It was already dark outside.
With Adele in front, he left the Marvel Palace.
As he left the bustling city and entered a deserted town, there was no light, and everything was dark.
The moonlight was dim, so Adele couldn’t see anything, but he ran without slowing down as if he could see through the darkness.
Then he stopped in front of a large mansion surrounded by a high wall.
Squeak!
The large iron gate opened as if it had been waiting.
Adele, who went inside with Christine, was startled.
In front of the spacious mansion garden, about a hundred men were training with spears and swords.
Flags with white wolves fluttering at the entrance and windows of the mansion. They were the flags of the White Ghost Knights belonging to the Count of Weiss.
This place, which looked like a mansion from the outside, was actually the training ground of the White Ghost Knights.
“Are you here, Commander!”
“Hello, sir!”
The knights who were training greeted him happily and pretended to know him. Then, as if they had guessed, they all stared at Adele.
They guessed who Adele was and who rode with Christine.
“Is this the rumored...”
A large man with a bushy golden beard asked, looking at Adele blatantly.
Christine introduced her.
“Yes, my fiancée. Say hello, Adele. He's Jennifer, the leader of the WG 1st Division.”
WG was the abbreviation for the White Ghost Knights.
“Pfft!”
And the moment she saw him, Adele burst into laughter without realizing it.
“I’m sorry, it’s such a beautiful name...”
When Adele got off her horse and quickly apologized, Jennifer winked and replied.
“I understand. Miss Adele is as beautiful as my name.”
“Thank you.”
“And if calling me Jennifer is weird, you can call me ‘Blonde Jenny.’ That’s what everyone here calls me.”
“Pfft!”
Adele burst into laughter again.
Christine looked displeased that the two had been overly friendly since their first meeting.
“I told you not to use your name to try to curry favor.”
Jennifer leaned toward Adele and whispered.
“By the way, the captain is called ‘Silver-Haired Christine.’ He and I are a match made in heaven. You could call us the two-headed horse of WG.”
“Shut up, Jennifer.”
“Oh, our Christine is so sassy.”
When Christine finally drew his rapier, Jennifer quickly turned serious and solemn.
“And the item?”
“It came out very well. Would you like to see it?”
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