Episode 42. Hope in the Fallen Castle
Lady Renisha. That title tickled her ears anew.
Arriving in an unfamiliar land, she realized she had become a mere noblewoman.
But it was also pleasing to hear.
It felt as if Renisha, the Empress, had become human Renisha.
“What’s going on?”
Was there something else wrong with this castle besides the chaos it was in?
Lindy shook his head.
“This castle... This castle looks like it’s about to collapse! There’s no answer!”
“You’d be right to say that.”
And the next to run to Renisha after Lindy was Isabella.
“Renisha! Renisha!”
The girl, panting, ran, knelt before Renisha, her pale face flushed red. It was the result of running through the castle.
“What’s wrong, Isabella?”
“Here! It’s so much fun! Rats live in the castle, birds live! And deer live too!!”
Isabella stomped her feet.
She seemed ready to run off again at any moment.
It was a reaction that contrasted with Lindy's.
Renisha smiled and looked at Lindy.
"So that's true. Isabella is having so much fun here?"
"Lady Renisha..."
Renisha gestured to the gruff-faced maid.
"Helena. Take Isabella and see more of the castle. I'm glad she's having fun."
"Yes, Duchess."
Helena took Isabella's hand and hurried away.
She would protect the child from any harm.
Looking closely, she saw that the knights were also glancing at Isabella.
With everyone's attention on her, nothing could happen.
Watching the child chatter excitedly, Renisha opened her mouth.
"Lindy."
"Yes, Lady Renisha."
"You are a noblewoman from a distinguished family. You might have trouble adjusting to this situation. It'll be very difficult."
Renisha turned her head to Lindy.
“Lady Renisha! I don’t want to go back...!”
“But I need you. Lindy, I was able to run the inner palace so well because of you. Even when I had to take care of outside affairs, you were there for me. So, please stay by my side this time too.”
Lindy, who was about to say that she wouldn’t go, stopped short at Renisha’s words.
This was the first time Renisha had said something like that directly.
Lindy’s eyelashes fluttered.
Renisha was truly asking now.
“Lindy. Can you help me?”
Lindy nodded vigorously, her face as if she was about to cry.
“...Yes!! If Lady Renisha wishes, of course!”
Renisha smiled faintly.
Still, the fact that Lindy was staying felt like a blessing in disguise.
“Thank you.”
Those who had immediately gone down to the village to buy groceries and food as soon as they arrived at the castle returned after an hour.
“Was there anything to eat?”
“There was barely anything. It was mostly this dry rye bread. And what we could find was mainly beef jerky and other foods that kept well.”
“Still, it’s better than nothing,”
Renisha said softly, then checked the items Cassius and the knights had bought.
“Hmm. Good. This should last us a while.”
Renisha pulled out a piece of dried beef jerky as if to show him and chewed it.
Kassius, who had actually thought Renisha wouldn’t be able to eat it, looked at her with surprise.
Renisha swallowed the dry, chewy thing with water and filled her stomach, then said to Kassius,
“You have a lot of work to do, Kassius. You can’t stay in a place like this, can you?”
“...That’s right. The castle is a mess.”
“What’s there to fix? At least you said you’ve cleaned up our bedroom to some extent.”
“What should I do?”
Renisha stared into Kassius’s clear eyes.
“Do you trust me?”
Kassius nodded as if it were obvious.
"I'm on the edge of a cliff, and the only person I can trust is Renisha. I trust you."
It was a clean, definitive answer.
Kassius stepped closer to Renisha.
Then he grabbed her wrist. A blazing heat pierced through her.
Kassius bowed his head toward her.
“Isn’t it just me that Renisha trusts?”
Her voice was filled with a hopeful hope.
“Yes.”
Renisha smiled and stroked Kassius’s cheek.
“We’re alone. Romantically.”
Kassius pulled away from Renisha. He then grabbed her free wrist. Kassius let out a deep breath.
“Romantic? Renisha’s tastes are often a bit harsh.”
And so were her destructive remarks.
“Then what should I do now?”
Kassius asked again.
“Just like a puppy, I suppose.”
Renisha snickered. Renisha lightly shook Kassius off.
At least he didn’t hesitate to touch Renisha anymore. Perhaps it was thanks to the past week of sleeping rough, shielding himself from the dawn breeze.
“Lindy. Just go and bring me two pouches of gold.”
“Yes, Renisha.”
Lindy held out the pouch to Kassius again.
Kassius looked up, surprised at the number of gold coins in the pouch.
“What are you planning to do with this?”
“First, Kassius. We need to take this money and hire people to repair the castle. And those who are weaker should buy necessities for the construction and food from the neighboring estates. This also includes the money to rent a wagon.”
“Is that enough?”
“First. What we’re trying to do now is like building a castle. We’ll start from scratch... one step at a time.”
Kassius gestured to the knights, gathering them together.
“Madam.”
“Sir Terion.”
Renisha held out the pouch of gold coins.
“It would certainly be better for you to lead the knights instead of Kassius leaving. We’ll rent a wagon to buy food, and even medicine. Would that be okay?”
“Perfect.”
Renisha smiled.
Fortunately, Terion seemed to understand, to some extent, what Renisha was trying to do and what she needed to do.
It was only natural that medicine was scarce here.
Furthermore, this was a climate and environment they were all experiencing for the first time.
No one knew what kind of disease might strike them unexpectedly. Terion bowed his head and set off with a few knights.
“What next?”
Renisha looked at Kassius.
“We need to finish repairing this massive castle before winter comes. There probably aren’t many residents left. It would be nice to be able to increase the number of new residents...”
Renisha lowered her eyes.
Perhaps it wouldn’t be so difficult.
If they learned that Lottera’s bloodline had returned, the original residents of Hiloshine might return. They had foolishly neglected and abandoned the territory, unaware of what was hidden within Hiloshine, and so everyone had simply moved elsewhere.
However, Renisha was a Lottera who understood the value of Hiloshine.
The Hiloshans have a strong attachment to their homeland, so most of them would likely return upon hearing news of Renisha's return.
"A territory without its people is as good as dead."
"The people... I have people I'll bring back."
"It's not that I didn't consider them. You're planning to bring the surviving tribesmen, right? It would be good to bring the tribesmen when Lord Terion returns."
Renisha smiled bitterly.
Kassius possessed a romanticism that Renisha lacked.
Perhaps it was because Kassius was stronger than Renisha.
It was the reason he was able to protect his heart and retain his humanity.
It seemed obvious why Kassius desired the territory.
Kassius felt a sense of responsibility to the tribesmen.
Kassius was a hero who saved the empire.
How sensitive were the social circles to such eloquent words?
Renisha already had all the basic information about Kassius in her head.
She held Kassius in high esteem.
So she had no intention of stopping him from pursuing his dream.
And as he said, if the number of people living in the area increases, it's actually beneficial.
However,
"They don't know much about Hiloshine. They can learn and practice, but they need someone to teach them."
"...What on earth is hidden in Hiloshine?"
“That will be revealed soon. How about we go to the village and bring back the villagers? Even bringing everyone here wouldn’t be enough to repair this castle.”
Kassius frowned.
The secret of Hiloshane.
He’d never heard of any other secrets, except that Hiloshane was a vast wasteland.
Kassius pulled off his cloak and wrapped Renisha’s body.
Kassius, who had been wrapping it without any tricks, grabbed Renisha’s hands and started to squeeze them.
Something had been bothering him for a while.
“Is it cold in here? Why is Renisha so cold?”
Renisha chuckled.
Kassius easily figured out something even the Emperor she’d lived with hadn’t noticed.
“...Please don’t be cold. It’s like an ice rink.”
Renisha nodded.
“Go ahead.”
Renisha smiled, watching her red hair sway.
“You’re a good person.”
Kassius smiled helplessly.
Kassius left the castle, accompanied by servants, maids, and knights to assist him.
Looking at the castle, now temporarily quiet, Renisha burst into laughter.
Kassius takes everything in stride.
He doesn't twist things.
The Emperor, on the other hand, was even higher up than Renisha, watching everything unfold, and he had quite a temper.
Kassius was a completely different person from Emperor Laxus.
Kassius listened intently to Renisha's story.
It was that way now, and it had been throughout the entire journey here.
Renisha smiled briefly at the thought of Kassius, then called out to Lindy.
"Lindy."
"Yes, ma'am."
"I think we should start with the urgent matters first. Still, if we search through, I'm sure we'll find at least a usable blanket."
"Yes!"
Lindy gestured to the Empress's household members who had come with her.
"Scatter and gather what you can. Our immediate needs are kitchen supplies, bedding, and curtains."
"Yes, Lady Lindy!"
The people answered briskly. Soon, they dispersed.
For some reason, their figures felt like an undying flame.
Renisha smiled faintly.
"I will not lose to you any longer, Laxus."
Emperor Laxus must have hoped for Renisha's annihilation here, along with Kassius.
Even the very act of laying down this dilapidated castle was a testament to this.
This was a mockery of Renisha.
The Emperor may have taken the title of Empress from Renisha, but he could not take away the name Lottera.
That was the value and name Renisha would protect for the rest of her life.
Renisha Lottera.
The Lottera family would rise again, based on Hiloshine in the northwest.
The next place the Lottera family's sword would be aimed was the Imperial Castle.
Laxus would pay the price for all this.
"Ah, Empress. Have you come? Look at this! A gift from the enemy. What a disgrace."
Laxus and the salt chest, staggering with their glasses in hand.
The two heads inside.
The atmosphere of that day, the stinging smell, the feeling of the floor collapsing.
Finally, the sadness and pain that surged towards death could never be erased.
Laxus smiled before the trembling Renisha.
As if he had been waiting for such a moment.
'Don't be so sad. The Duke and Duchess of Lottera sacrificed themselves for this country. What a noble death!'
Bullshit.
It was all bullshit.
If it weren't for that damned bastard, the Duke and Duchess of Lottera wouldn't have died. After all, they had been driven into this battlefield with the sole purpose of killing them.
It was a battle with zero chance of victory.
Everyone predicted an ambush and suggested they take another route.
The Duke and Duchess of Lottera shared that view.
But the Emperor had driven the Duke and Duchess back that way, sending the knights they were leading into the fire with a single blow.
Renisha's pink eyes sparkled as if covered with a gleaming curtain.
The Emperor poured wine over the corpses of those who had suffered such unjust deaths.
"Now, did you say the Duchess enjoyed wine?"
Emperor Laxus burst into laughter.
The sour smell of wine filled the room.
The Lottera family was founding family.
They had existed as Dukes since the very beginning of this empire, protecting it and its royal family.
That was the price they paid!
It felt unreal.
Emperor Laxus revealed his true colors as he watched Renisha tremble, unable to cry.
"Next is your brother. I will kill your brother and his wife and bring them before you."
Renisha would never forget those sharp eyes and the contempt hidden within.
She realized that this was the Emperor's ulterior motive for making Renisha his Empress from the very beginning.
The Emperor's hatred and rage had a long history.
Renisha knew the Emperor would not stop.
"Then I must stop him."
Lady Renisha. That title tickled her ears anew.
Arriving in an unfamiliar land, she realized she had become a mere noblewoman.
But it was also pleasing to hear.
It felt as if Renisha, the Empress, had become human Renisha.
“What’s going on?”
Was there something else wrong with this castle besides the chaos it was in?
Lindy shook his head.
“This castle... This castle looks like it’s about to collapse! There’s no answer!”
“You’d be right to say that.”
And the next to run to Renisha after Lindy was Isabella.
“Renisha! Renisha!”
The girl, panting, ran, knelt before Renisha, her pale face flushed red. It was the result of running through the castle.
“What’s wrong, Isabella?”
“Here! It’s so much fun! Rats live in the castle, birds live! And deer live too!!”
Isabella stomped her feet.
She seemed ready to run off again at any moment.
It was a reaction that contrasted with Lindy's.
Renisha smiled and looked at Lindy.
"So that's true. Isabella is having so much fun here?"
"Lady Renisha..."
Renisha gestured to the gruff-faced maid.
"Helena. Take Isabella and see more of the castle. I'm glad she's having fun."
"Yes, Duchess."
Helena took Isabella's hand and hurried away.
She would protect the child from any harm.
Looking closely, she saw that the knights were also glancing at Isabella.
With everyone's attention on her, nothing could happen.
Watching the child chatter excitedly, Renisha opened her mouth.
"Lindy."
"Yes, Lady Renisha."
"You are a noblewoman from a distinguished family. You might have trouble adjusting to this situation. It'll be very difficult."
Renisha turned her head to Lindy.
“Lady Renisha! I don’t want to go back...!”
“But I need you. Lindy, I was able to run the inner palace so well because of you. Even when I had to take care of outside affairs, you were there for me. So, please stay by my side this time too.”
Lindy, who was about to say that she wouldn’t go, stopped short at Renisha’s words.
This was the first time Renisha had said something like that directly.
Lindy’s eyelashes fluttered.
Renisha was truly asking now.
“Lindy. Can you help me?”
Lindy nodded vigorously, her face as if she was about to cry.
“...Yes!! If Lady Renisha wishes, of course!”
Renisha smiled faintly.
Still, the fact that Lindy was staying felt like a blessing in disguise.
“Thank you.”
***
Those who had immediately gone down to the village to buy groceries and food as soon as they arrived at the castle returned after an hour.
“Was there anything to eat?”
“There was barely anything. It was mostly this dry rye bread. And what we could find was mainly beef jerky and other foods that kept well.”
“Still, it’s better than nothing,”
Renisha said softly, then checked the items Cassius and the knights had bought.
“Hmm. Good. This should last us a while.”
Renisha pulled out a piece of dried beef jerky as if to show him and chewed it.
Kassius, who had actually thought Renisha wouldn’t be able to eat it, looked at her with surprise.
Renisha swallowed the dry, chewy thing with water and filled her stomach, then said to Kassius,
“You have a lot of work to do, Kassius. You can’t stay in a place like this, can you?”
“...That’s right. The castle is a mess.”
“What’s there to fix? At least you said you’ve cleaned up our bedroom to some extent.”
“What should I do?”
Renisha stared into Kassius’s clear eyes.
“Do you trust me?”
Kassius nodded as if it were obvious.
"I'm on the edge of a cliff, and the only person I can trust is Renisha. I trust you."
It was a clean, definitive answer.
Kassius stepped closer to Renisha.
Then he grabbed her wrist. A blazing heat pierced through her.
Kassius bowed his head toward her.
“Isn’t it just me that Renisha trusts?”
Her voice was filled with a hopeful hope.
“Yes.”
Renisha smiled and stroked Kassius’s cheek.
“We’re alone. Romantically.”
Kassius pulled away from Renisha. He then grabbed her free wrist. Kassius let out a deep breath.
“Romantic? Renisha’s tastes are often a bit harsh.”
And so were her destructive remarks.
“Then what should I do now?”
Kassius asked again.
“Just like a puppy, I suppose.”
Renisha snickered. Renisha lightly shook Kassius off.
At least he didn’t hesitate to touch Renisha anymore. Perhaps it was thanks to the past week of sleeping rough, shielding himself from the dawn breeze.
“Lindy. Just go and bring me two pouches of gold.”
“Yes, Renisha.”
Lindy held out the pouch to Kassius again.
Kassius looked up, surprised at the number of gold coins in the pouch.
“What are you planning to do with this?”
“First, Kassius. We need to take this money and hire people to repair the castle. And those who are weaker should buy necessities for the construction and food from the neighboring estates. This also includes the money to rent a wagon.”
“Is that enough?”
“First. What we’re trying to do now is like building a castle. We’ll start from scratch... one step at a time.”
Kassius gestured to the knights, gathering them together.
“Madam.”
“Sir Terion.”
Renisha held out the pouch of gold coins.
“It would certainly be better for you to lead the knights instead of Kassius leaving. We’ll rent a wagon to buy food, and even medicine. Would that be okay?”
“Perfect.”
Renisha smiled.
Fortunately, Terion seemed to understand, to some extent, what Renisha was trying to do and what she needed to do.
It was only natural that medicine was scarce here.
Furthermore, this was a climate and environment they were all experiencing for the first time.
No one knew what kind of disease might strike them unexpectedly. Terion bowed his head and set off with a few knights.
“What next?”
Renisha looked at Kassius.
“We need to finish repairing this massive castle before winter comes. There probably aren’t many residents left. It would be nice to be able to increase the number of new residents...”
Renisha lowered her eyes.
Perhaps it wouldn’t be so difficult.
If they learned that Lottera’s bloodline had returned, the original residents of Hiloshine might return. They had foolishly neglected and abandoned the territory, unaware of what was hidden within Hiloshine, and so everyone had simply moved elsewhere.
However, Renisha was a Lottera who understood the value of Hiloshine.
The Hiloshans have a strong attachment to their homeland, so most of them would likely return upon hearing news of Renisha's return.
"A territory without its people is as good as dead."
"The people... I have people I'll bring back."
"It's not that I didn't consider them. You're planning to bring the surviving tribesmen, right? It would be good to bring the tribesmen when Lord Terion returns."
Renisha smiled bitterly.
Kassius possessed a romanticism that Renisha lacked.
Perhaps it was because Kassius was stronger than Renisha.
It was the reason he was able to protect his heart and retain his humanity.
It seemed obvious why Kassius desired the territory.
Kassius felt a sense of responsibility to the tribesmen.
Kassius was a hero who saved the empire.
How sensitive were the social circles to such eloquent words?
Renisha already had all the basic information about Kassius in her head.
She held Kassius in high esteem.
So she had no intention of stopping him from pursuing his dream.
And as he said, if the number of people living in the area increases, it's actually beneficial.
However,
"They don't know much about Hiloshine. They can learn and practice, but they need someone to teach them."
"...What on earth is hidden in Hiloshine?"
“That will be revealed soon. How about we go to the village and bring back the villagers? Even bringing everyone here wouldn’t be enough to repair this castle.”
Kassius frowned.
The secret of Hiloshane.
He’d never heard of any other secrets, except that Hiloshane was a vast wasteland.
Kassius pulled off his cloak and wrapped Renisha’s body.
Kassius, who had been wrapping it without any tricks, grabbed Renisha’s hands and started to squeeze them.
Something had been bothering him for a while.
“Is it cold in here? Why is Renisha so cold?”
Renisha chuckled.
Kassius easily figured out something even the Emperor she’d lived with hadn’t noticed.
“...Please don’t be cold. It’s like an ice rink.”
Renisha nodded.
“Go ahead.”
Renisha smiled, watching her red hair sway.
“You’re a good person.”
Kassius smiled helplessly.
Kassius left the castle, accompanied by servants, maids, and knights to assist him.
Looking at the castle, now temporarily quiet, Renisha burst into laughter.
Kassius takes everything in stride.
He doesn't twist things.
The Emperor, on the other hand, was even higher up than Renisha, watching everything unfold, and he had quite a temper.
Kassius was a completely different person from Emperor Laxus.
Kassius listened intently to Renisha's story.
It was that way now, and it had been throughout the entire journey here.
Renisha smiled briefly at the thought of Kassius, then called out to Lindy.
"Lindy."
"Yes, ma'am."
"I think we should start with the urgent matters first. Still, if we search through, I'm sure we'll find at least a usable blanket."
"Yes!"
Lindy gestured to the Empress's household members who had come with her.
"Scatter and gather what you can. Our immediate needs are kitchen supplies, bedding, and curtains."
"Yes, Lady Lindy!"
The people answered briskly. Soon, they dispersed.
For some reason, their figures felt like an undying flame.
Renisha smiled faintly.
"I will not lose to you any longer, Laxus."
Emperor Laxus must have hoped for Renisha's annihilation here, along with Kassius.
Even the very act of laying down this dilapidated castle was a testament to this.
This was a mockery of Renisha.
The Emperor may have taken the title of Empress from Renisha, but he could not take away the name Lottera.
That was the value and name Renisha would protect for the rest of her life.
Renisha Lottera.
The Lottera family would rise again, based on Hiloshine in the northwest.
The next place the Lottera family's sword would be aimed was the Imperial Castle.
Laxus would pay the price for all this.
"Ah, Empress. Have you come? Look at this! A gift from the enemy. What a disgrace."
Laxus and the salt chest, staggering with their glasses in hand.
The two heads inside.
The atmosphere of that day, the stinging smell, the feeling of the floor collapsing.
Finally, the sadness and pain that surged towards death could never be erased.
Laxus smiled before the trembling Renisha.
As if he had been waiting for such a moment.
'Don't be so sad. The Duke and Duchess of Lottera sacrificed themselves for this country. What a noble death!'
Bullshit.
It was all bullshit.
If it weren't for that damned bastard, the Duke and Duchess of Lottera wouldn't have died. After all, they had been driven into this battlefield with the sole purpose of killing them.
It was a battle with zero chance of victory.
Everyone predicted an ambush and suggested they take another route.
The Duke and Duchess of Lottera shared that view.
But the Emperor had driven the Duke and Duchess back that way, sending the knights they were leading into the fire with a single blow.
Renisha's pink eyes sparkled as if covered with a gleaming curtain.
The Emperor poured wine over the corpses of those who had suffered such unjust deaths.
"Now, did you say the Duchess enjoyed wine?"
Emperor Laxus burst into laughter.
The sour smell of wine filled the room.
The Lottera family was founding family.
They had existed as Dukes since the very beginning of this empire, protecting it and its royal family.
That was the price they paid!
It felt unreal.
Emperor Laxus revealed his true colors as he watched Renisha tremble, unable to cry.
"Next is your brother. I will kill your brother and his wife and bring them before you."
Renisha would never forget those sharp eyes and the contempt hidden within.
She realized that this was the Emperor's ulterior motive for making Renisha his Empress from the very beginning.
The Emperor's hatred and rage had a long history.
Renisha knew the Emperor would not stop.
"Then I must stop him."
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