Eshyk County

The carriage rolled leisurely down the road. With every bump and sway of the cabin, Sirien's arm brushed against mine. I would have found it impossible to read in a moving carriage like this, but Sirien turned the pages of her documents one by one, completely unfazed.

The dwarf. I later learned his name was Habit, and he had left behind a single report as his final legacy. It was a detailed list of nobles who had recently grown close to Marquis Eloran. The most notable entries were families whose spending had skyrocketed immediately after contacting the Marquis. He had filtered out individuals who seemed unremarkable on paper but had been offered exceptionally lucrative deals. Stripping away the extraneous details—likely Habit's own raw deductive process—the core of the report was clear: Marquis Eloran was backing a specific noble.

Sirien finally pulled her eyes away from the report. Her head tilted back slightly. Sensing she wanted a brief respite, I spoke up.

"Doesn't reading in a rattling carriage make you dizzy?"

"This much is manageable. I learned a trick for it when I was young."

"There's a trick to that?"

"Yes. You just have to avoid staring too intently. Every time you need to think, you look away for a moment."

With those words, Sirien leaned her head against my shoulder. Her eyes closed as if she were drifting off to sleep, the tips of her long eyelashes catching the faint light.

Without opening her eyes, she asked, "Rajen. I have a question."

"What is it?"

"Do you ever want to... fool around with other women?"

"Wh-What...?"

She had lobbed an absolute bombshell of a question with a completely straight face. What on earth could have prompted such a thought? Had I done something to invite misunderstanding? No, that was impossible. My daily routine consisted almost entirely of swinging a sword in training or accompanying Sirien. There couldn't be smoke without fire, and I hadn't even gathered any kindling.

Yet Sirien, the one who had dropped the bomb, looked perfectly serene with her eyes still closed. In the end, I had no choice but to ask, "Why are you asking that all of a sudden?"

"The papers mentioned various luxury expenses," she murmured. "Expensive jewels, rare wines, things like that. And it made me realize that playing around with women is always a part of those circles."

"Other men might care, but I have absolutely no interest in that."

Looking closely, I noticed a few strands of Sirien's bangs were slightly out of place. I gently brushed them back with my fingers.

"Besides, I already have you by my side. When the most beautiful woman in the world is my lover, any other woman would just be a nuisance."

"Is that so? Mmh. Fufu. If you say so, then that's fine. Just so you know, I wasn't doubting you. I just thought... since you're a man, Rajen, you might have eyes for other things."

Fortunately, my intentions seemed to have gotten through perfectly. Sirien's lips curled upward as she wrapped her arms around mine.

"Great. Now that I've recharged, I should get back to work."

Her mood visibly lifted, Sirien opened her eyes. She stretched her arms out wide, letting out a small yawn, before pressing herself close to me again to resume reading the documents. Having already read them once, I merely checked which section she was on. It was the part mentioning Baron Iklan. He was a minor military noble from the North. The report went into great detail about how this impoverished baron had suddenly begun living far beyond his means.

However, even Habit didn't seem entirely certain. Nobles forming factions was a common occurrence, and he had lacked the manpower to track every single one of them. He likely felt the evidence was still too circumstantial.

Furthermore, the territories of the two families were located quite close to each other. Even if Marquis Eloran had lost much of his influence, he was still the nominal leader of the North. Suspecting them simply because they had grown closer recently would have been a leap in logic.

Sirien's brow furrowed. "Rajen, do you have a map?"

"In my pack. I'll get it for you."

"Thank you."

I unfolded the map across our laps. Sirien began cross-referencing the names in the documents one by one. Soon, she drew a conclusion that Habit had failed to reach.

"These nobles are all situated along the supply lines."

"Leading to the Northern Front?"

"Not quite. Even if you connect all their territories, it doesn't reach the front line. I suspect... these are the routes that would become supply lines if the Northern Garrison were to collapse."

The nobles Habit had filtered out were those who would form Marquis Eloran's new Northern Front—though whether the nobles themselves realized this was another matter entirely.

Sirien pointed to a section of the map. Her finger started at the current Northern Front, then dragged straight down before coming to a stop.

"Marquis Eloran's envisioned front line is likely around here. I can see what he's planning."

Her pale index finger drew a line. Below that line lay several of the territories mentioned in the report. It was a layout designed to use those nobles as shields against the demons. And standing at the very vanguard of that line was the Iklan Barony.

If the demons pushed south to that point, the new Northern Front would become entirely dependent on Marquis Eloran. If the Marquis failed to support them properly, those lords would lose not just their lands, but their lives.

"So he has no intention of clashing swords with the demons himself, and instead chose lords who would be forced to obey him unconditionally?"

"My knight is always so sharp when it comes to these things. Is it because it involves fighting?"

"I've always been quick-witted."

"...Never mind. I'm in a good mood, so I'll let it slide."

For some reason, Sirien let out a soft sigh. Had I said something wrong? I didn't think so. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠It was probably just because of Marquis Eloran. His scheme was certainly pathetic enough to warrant a sigh.

"Sigh. I see what he's trying to do, but his thinking is incredibly shallow. He's a typical noble who only knows politics. As expected, that man is utterly useless."

There was a reason front lines held for as long as they did. An army could not march indefinitely, nor ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠could a defense be mounted just anywhere. You couldn't simply draw a line on a map and expect it to hold. In that regard, the Marquis's chosen line was only half-convincing. The Iklan Barony looked like a strategic choke point at first glance, but it was a nightmare to defend in a prolonged war. The terrain was relatively low-lying, and there were far too many avenues of approach. While it might serve to temporarily halt an enemy advance, a drawn-out conflict would only result in them being slowly whittled away.

"They say the current Marquis Eloran's competence can't keep up with his greed, and that assessment is spot on. If he was going to collude with the demons, he should have at least cleaned up after himself properly."

"Well, even I've heard some nasty rumors about him."

The previous Marquis Eloran had been highly respected. In fact, when we were in danger, he was the very first person Sirien had thought of turning to for help. But after his death, his successor took over the family, and things quickly went downhill. The current Marquis was a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠man consumed by insecurity. He constantly caused trouble wherever he went, leading to endless comparisons with his predecessor. I had heard he was practically ostracized from high society now, though people only whispered about it out of fear of his family's immense power.

"In any case, Baron Iklan is definitely worth investigating," Sirien said. "Since you and I stand out too much, we're out of the question. Should we ask Russell?"

"He's probably just as busy as we are. Why not Isha? She's probably holed up in some training ground swinging her sword right now anyway."

"Are you serious? You want to send that young girl on a dangerous mission?"

"Young? You don't know her like I do. She's not the same Isha we first met. I can guarantee you, she possessed an almost absurd amount of talent from the very beginning."

"Is... that so?"

Sirien tilted her head in doubt. It was understandable. Back in Requitas, Isha ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠had been nothing more than an average swordsman. To the soft-hearted Sirien, she still looked like a mere child. But recently, Isha's growth had been nothing short of monstrous. Her achievements were explosive, as if proving that her legendary reputation in the original novel was no exaggeration. Until now, it was as if a dam had blocked her potential due to the lack of a decisive catalyst. But with all the groundwork already laid, even a tiny spark had caused her skills to burst forth like a flood.

There was a reason Isha had been so obsessed with the sword lately. If my skills were improving at that rate, I would have spent all day swinging a sword too. Even now, as we traveled to Eshyk County, she had insisted on riding atop the carriage to act as our lookout. At this rate, we would see the rise of the 'Shadow Moon' within two years at the latest.

As I pushed my point with absolute confidence, Sirien finally relented.

"To truly hone her skills, she needs real combat experience. Right now, Isha probably wants that more than anyone else. As a fellow swordsman, I'm sure of it."

"Yes, you're right. I'll ask her. I should probably let Russell know as well."

The dark divinity of Hibras swallowed the stack of documents. With that, our tedious meeting was over. All that was left was to rest until we reached our destination.

Our destination was Eshyk County.