"Don't worry, as long as the Facade headquarters doesn't find out, that's all that matters. No matter how many comrades he brought, they are no match for the regular forces of Barmia we currently command."
Joachim coldly threw the knight by the collar and glared at the city outside the window.
If reliable reinforcements had been waiting, the masked man would not have committed the reckless act of barging into the lord's chambers all alone.
"If he doesn't leave a trace... we just need to attack the other side."
Tap tap. Joachim's index finger tapped the chair's armrest nervously.
"There are quite a few survivors this time, aren't there?"
"Huh? Yes, in addition to the nobles who attended the banquet, dozens of Osric's retainers and estateholders are being held in the dungeon."
Joachim's lips twisted into a vile arc.
"Alright. Starting tomorrow, we will carry out executions in the square outside the castle. We will begin with the nobles, one by one."
The knight swallowed hard.
"What should we do about that guy who looked like a colleague and the woman in a coma?"
"Those two are the very last. I have to wait for the climax."
Joachim smiled wickedly.
"Ring the bell every half-day and proclaim the name of the executioner. If no one crawls out voluntarily, one person a day will come, and finally, it will be the turn of those comrades you cherish more than your own life."
Joachim murmured, flashing his snake-like eyes.
"Ring the bell loudly so that everyone on the street can see the execution."
"..."
"So that the screams and the smell of blood can reach these rats wherever they are hiding."
"The opponents are Facade mercenaries. Do you think they would even bat an eye at mere hostage threats?"
At the adjutant's cautious retort, Joachim's lips twisted vilely.
"I don't know about that mercenary from Facade, but that bitch Rosien will never be able to stand it."
Joachim murmured ominously.
They surely haven't been able to get out of the Karkan interior yet.
Joachim was more certain than anyone that Rosien would not leave her comrades behind in a death trap and go alone.
"He seemed to be deeply affectionate enough to take an arrow for someone else, so there is no way he would refuse the request."
He will make him crawl out of her own accord, and then he will cut off their limbs in front of that arrogant woman's eyes and make her kneel before him.
Joachim glared at the forest beyond the broken window, where the cold dawn wind was blowing, and steeled his murderous intent.
"Go and post notices all over the streets stating that if Rosien does not appear, every day will be a day of sacrifice for the people of Karkan."
***
Boom.
Lou stepped onto the summit of the iceberg.
The dawn fog began to lift. Lord Osric Castle lay below her feet like a toy.
However, the scenery was far from peaceful.
Lou's brow furrowed.
It was a few days after hiding in the iceberg.
She was relieved just when she confirmed that the Barmia soldiers, who had been searching densely from the reservoir, turned back at the entrance of the iceberg, but
"It's already the third day."
Smoke was billowing up in the city.
It seems Joachim has found another way to drive her.
Ominous black smoke streaked across the blue sky.
Lou entered the cave.
She held herbs in one hand and a grimy scrap of paper in the other.
It had rolled around in the streets and was carried by the wind to the edge of the iceberg.
It was scorched and torn here and there, but it was not difficult to read the contents.
'Maya and Eric are still alive.'
Lou clenched her fist tightly.
“Uhm.”
As soon as she heard footsteps, Lou quickly looked at Less.
He barely regained consciousness, but his injuries were still deep.
It was a situation where proper medicine could not be obtained because the Knights of Barmia had occupied the city.
He survived on medicinal herbs found in the mountains, and because she could not find enough food and drink in the barren iceberg, the speed of his recovery was incredibly slow.
"In this condition, let alone dealing with the soldiers, it's impossible to even walk."
Besides, hadn't Les even been hit by an arrow while trying to protect her? He is in this dangerous situation solely because of her.
Les was letting out shallow breaths with his eyes closed.
'I wonder why just looking at it makes my heart ache for some reason.'
Lou, who had carefully bandaged him so as not to wake him, lightly kissed his cheek.
Her eyes seemed to tremble for a moment, then her pupils immediately became determined.
Click. The shallow metallic sound of a dagger being secured to the waist echoed.
It was just as Lou was about to step into the darkness.
A cold hand suddenly snatched her wrist.
Less, whom she thought was asleep, stared at Lou.
"Where are you going?'
At the sight of those cool blue eyes, her tension tightened in an instant.
"W-were you awake? How is your wound? You weren't eating well at all yesterday—"
"Answer me, Lou. I asked where you intend to go alone with that dagger."
While Lou stood frozen, unable to bring herself to turn her head, his blue eyes looked down at her hand.
She tried to hide the scrap of paper under her sleeve, but he had already realized everything.
"Lou, acting this foolishly is unlike you. There is no way you wouldn't realize that this is a ploy the Governor of Barmia used to lure you out."
Peleus's voice sounded quite cold.
Just as Lou had secretly left her post occasionally over the past few days, Peleus was no different.
He returned and contacted his subordinates, and thus was actually better aware of the precarious situation within the lord's castle.
How Joachim Lanz struggles to turn all these targets onto Lou.
"... So Les knew, too. Then it will be a bit easier to talk about."
Lou’s voice trembled.
"I have to go back to the castle."
Peleus stood in front of Lou as if blocking her.
"Do you really think I would let you go so easily?"
"These are the children who ended up getting involved in this dangerous situation because of me in the first place. I cannot abandon them just to save myself. Nor can I stand by and watch the Karkan people be executed indiscriminately forever."
Eric and Maya are alive.
While she felt relieved by that fact, she also felt guilty.
"Unless Joachim Lanz is put to the death, he won't stop."
"..."
"Les, I'm just like you. I have things to take responsibility for, things to tie up."
Lou placed her hand on Les's shoulder, which was still warm.
Unwavering determination was reflected in the amber eyes.
"I like you. This short time we spent together was the happiest of my life, but... that doesn't mean I can put off what I have to do."
Peleus stared intently at Lou.
They say people are instinctively drawn to those who resemble them.
That image of clearly separating public and private matters, and willingly throwing herself into a great cause, was something terribly familiar even to Peleus himself.
He became even angrier at that stubbornness, which felt like looking in a mirror, and at the same time, his heart leaned even more helplessly because of it.
"...Just wait a moment. My colleagues will arrive soon.
Lou opened her eyes wide at the low, subdued voice.
"In Valdina? This early?"
Peleus nodded heavily. Lou could not help but admire him inwardly.
The mobility of the Valdina Imperial Household far exceeded her expectations.
"In the end, an all-out war became inevitable."
"..."
"Lou, I won't stop you."
Now that Barmia had seized control of the territory and begun massacring the Karkans, it was indeed time for Valdina to intervene as well.
The flames rising in his heart as a man sending his lover into the jaws of death clashed fiercely with the reason of an Emperor knowing that now was the opportune moment to intervene.
And he accepted it.
Instead of blocking Lou's path, all he can do is make her path a little safer.
"However, if you are going to return to the castle, I cannot send you off in this state."
He moved his hand.
"You didn't intend to face him all alone without the necessary skills, did you?"
It was an instant.
The dagger that had been tightly strapped to Lou's waist was flashing in Les's hand.
"Uh. When...!"
Lou opened her eyes wide.
Even though she was clearly watching, she couldn't stop that hand movement.
Les's prowess, which no longer needed to be hidden, felt distant even to her, who had gone through countless battles as an information broker.
"Lou, if you had awakened your Aura, no matter what variables arose, you could have ended Joachim Lantz's life."
As Les sharpened the blade of the dagger, a long beam of light shot out.
A sharp blue light in the shape of a blade stretched out along the sword blade.
Thud!
A branch of a tree far beyond the cave entrance was instantly severed and fell to the ground.
Speed, detail, and power.
She was so overwhelming that it was hard to believe he was a man weakened by an injury.
"Is, is this an aura?"
Lou asked in a voice mixed with admiration.
Her heart raced at the surreal sight unfolding before her eyes.
She can count on one hand the number of times she has seen an Aura Knight, but this was also the first time in her life she had seen an Aura color this vivid.
However, as reality soon came to mind, she shook her head.
"But there is no time. I have to go to the castle right now."
She knows that the continent is full of knights who, despite training with blood and sweat for decades, cannot even catch a glimpse of the aura.
Moreover, there was no way she could perform a miracle in such a short time, having learned nothing but how to make do with her hands while rolling around in the rough at the bottom of society, let alone receiving a formal education.
"You have talent. Unfortunately, in the realm of nothingness, talent is more often than effort or time."
Peleus cut her off firmly.
Lou clearly had talent.
It was just that it was not yet refined, like a freshly mined, rough, raw stone.
And Peleus was determined to make that light shine with all his might.
"...Is, is that so?"
Lou had no way of knowing that Peleus was one of the continent's top powerhouses, a man who had glimpsed beyond the Ten Demonic Stars.
She wore an expression that showed she could not tell whether his words were the truth or just empty promises to keep her.
"Trust me, Lou. You can reach far enough to at least cut off his neck."
Lantz is merely a stepping stone for Lou's talent to blossom.
Peleus's calm voice, which would have indignantly angered Joachim Lanz if he had heard it, rang out.
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