Chapter 46: Vain Hope
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 46: Vain Hope
Leaving Burnell standing there in a daze, Ferda turned to speak with Count Consilus.
"About the Grand Council..."
The topic was the Grand Council, a prestigious assembly attended by all high-ranking nobles.
"I received word that they wish for me to participate," Ferda said.
"Ah, that is wonderful news. To think a voice representing the Far East will finally be heard..."
A single tear rolled down from the corner of Consilus’s wrinkled eyes.
"Forgive me. As I age, the tears seem to come more easily."
"I don't mind. I heard that only those of Duke rank or higher may attend. Do you have any information on that?"
"I wouldn't say I know everything, but I shall rack my brain to answer your questions as best I can."
"What do you think my standing will be there?"
At that question, Consilus let out a slow breath and chose his words carefully. It was clearly not going to be a pleasant answer.
"To be perfectly honest, it will not be good. You have been Regent for less than a year, and you are young. Furthermore, your status is that of a proxy, not a co-ruler. To put it in perspective..."
Consilus toyed with his beard, mimicking the air of an arrogant noble as he replied.
"It would be like handing a live blade to a fledgling who should still be playing with wooden toys."
"Is that how you see it as well?" Ferda asked sharply.
Consilus gave a hollow laugh.
"How could I? You may be inexperienced in some regards, but seeing how you seek my counsel for the development of the Archduchess's territory, I know your desire for progress is sincere."
"I appreciate you saying so."
"At any rate, only five people, including attendants, are permitted to enter the White House—the neutral zone of Blancaros. They strictly forbid bringing an unnecessarily large retinue."
"There’s nothing more unsightly than someone trying to show off in front of those who truly hold power. Do most nobles fill those slots?"
"They do. They dress their attendants like attendants and their scions like scions to flaunt their prestige. If you wish, Regent, I can assign my knights as your escort and prepare you to enter with as much splendor as possible."
"That won't be necessary."
While a noble's public image was important, Ferda had no desire to compete with artificial smiles and empty decorations.
"It matters not if you already have people in mind, but... might I ask you to take just one of my boys with you? He will not bring shame to the Archduchess's name."
Ferda furrowed his brow. He was sick of the way nobles spoke—hiding their true intentions while trying to slide someone in.
"I dislike talking in circles. If you trust me and I trust you, then speak plainly. What is your goal? Are you asking me to take you?"
"What wealth or honor would an old man like me seek by showing his face at the Grand Council? Ahem..."
Ferda had thrown a straight pitch, and Consilus cleared his throat with an embarrassed expression.
"You know the knight named Arwen, do you not?"
"Your knight, you mean."
Ferda had encountered him many times, from their first meeting during the hunt for the bear monster to the time the knight had escorted him to the Empire.
"I wish for that boy to witness the Grand Council."
"You want to give a mere knight that kind of experience?"
"He may be a mere knight, but he is loyal and possesses a fine knightly spirit. Perhaps because he has spent his entire life serving only the Far East, his horizons are narrow, which is a pity. He has never seen the world as it truly is. I believe showing him the wider world at the Grand Council would serve as a great stimulus."
Count Consilus’s request was unusual even among nobles. To take a mere knight to the Grand Council just to broaden his horizons... Ferda wondered if they were perhaps related by blood.
"What exactly is your relationship with Arwen?"
"Haha, we are strangers, of course. He is simply someone I saw on a battlefield once—someone I had forgotten, but who never forgot me."
Count Consilus had no family. To be precise, they were all dead. After his wife passed and his son followed, he had given up on remarriage. Then, he had stepped into the Far East of his own accord. To the childless Consilus, Arwen must be like a son.
"Very well. I will take Arwen with me."
"Thank you for humoring an old man's useless stubbornness. Is there anything else you are curious about?"
"What do you think about me proposing an agenda at the Grand Council?"
"An agenda... Well, you have equal authority, so no one can technically object, but..."
Consilus’s expression was even grimmer than when Ferda had asked about his standing.
"It could go beyond being 'not good' and actually backfire. You are more likely to make enemies than allies."
"I don't care."
Ferda’s face was set with grim determination.
"Forgive me, but may I ask what that agenda is?"
"I intend to ask if it is truly right to label Valdrova an Evil Dragon."
"Valdrova..."
Consilus reflexively pressed his fingers to his temple.
"You know she isn't an Evil Dragon, don't you?"
"Of course. I cannot say I know her well, but I know her nature is nowhere near as wicked as the rumors suggest."
"The reason she was designated an Evil Dragon is that she cannot suppress her primal instincts. Is that not so?"
"According to what is known... yes."
"But what if she could suppress those boiling instincts?"
"If she can suppress her bloodlust and has no intent to harm humans, then the false charge of being an 'Evil Dragon' could easily be cleared. However, it would be best not to get your hopes up. There will be no one at the Grand Council who takes Valdrova's side."
"Then I'll just have to change that. Of course, if they insist on being stubborn even after my explanation..."
A murderous glint appeared in Ferda’s eyes.
"They will have to provide a fitting answer—or pay a fitting price."
Consilus’s Adam's apple bobbed heavily. It was that same suffocating sensation he had felt when they first met. It was the same look Ferda had when he killed Thesalos Wolcher without blinking an eye.
"The meeting hall is Blancaros territory. I pray there will be no incidents of violence."
"Don't worry. I'm not a fool."
Ferda leaned his chin on his hand. One month to go. Those attending the Grand Council would be nobles of Duke rank or higher, and Kings.
And Dragon Spawn.
The representatives of absolute beings who could flip an entire nation upside down. He was diving into human society and dragon society simultaneously. It would be a lie to say Ferda didn't feel the weight on his shoulders, having to handle both.
But he had to do it. That was the very reason for his existence here.
* * *
Ferda decided on his companions. First was the knight Arwen, as Count Consilus had requested. Then there was Jed Swallow, who was excellent at serving as the group's public face.
With me, that makes three. That should be enough.
While it was customary for nobles attending the Grand Council to bring a full retinue of six, Ferda didn't feel the need to fill the slots. He didn't care to bring other lords along, and none of them dared to ask.
Just as he was thinking the three of them would go, an unexpected person approached him with a request.
"I shall accompany you to the Grand Council as well."
It was Ruri.
Ferda looked at her and said, "There won't be anything good to eat there."
"Do you take me for some kind of glutton?"
"A pig—"
"If you say anything strange, I will scrub you raw again."
Ferda shut his mouth. She was a woman of her word.
"At the very least, I will not do anything to hinder your dignity, Lord Ferda. So, will you permit it?"
"I'll say it again: nothing good will come of you going there. I heard Silverwind participates regularly."
The Silver Dragon, Silverwind. Ruri was not a spawn of Valdrova, but a Silver Dragon who carried the blood of Silverwind. The Silver Dragon Spawn loathed Valdrova because she had killed Silverwind. If they already looked unfavorably upon the Regent, how would they view Ruri, a Silver Dragon Spawn? To them, Ruri was nothing short of a traitor. There was no reason for her to put herself in a position where she would hear nothing but vitriol.
Contrary to Ferda’s expectation that she would understand, Ruri reacted differently.
"That is exactly why I am going."
Hearing this, Ferda’s expression became even more serious.
"Then tell me clearly what your purpose is. Don't try to hide it from me."
Ferda’s voice grew harsh.
"...I simply wish to exchange information," Ruri mumbled under her breath before answering. "I have lived too long in isolation from the Silverwinds. I need to find out if they still harbor a grudge against my Master."
"Is that even something you need to find out?"
Ruri was a Dragon Spawn. A Silver Dragon Spawn, at that. That meant she understood the way Silver Dragons thought better than anyone.
"They will never harbor goodwill toward Valdrova."
"A long time has passed. Perhaps that hatred has subsided."
"A dragon's grudge does not end. You know that, don't you?"
Dragons do not give up on revenge. Even if the original target of the grudge dies, the target simply shifts to the next generation. Silverwind would never forgive Valdrova. A Dragon Spawn as skilled as Ruri couldn't possibly be ignorant of this.
"That is why I simply wish to speak with them."
Ferda looked into Ruri’s eyes. She, too, wanted to bet on a hope called 'maybe.'
"No."
Ferda’s eyes drew a cold line. That was exactly why she couldn't go. Because he knew that hope was futile.
"The three of us will go. You stay here and guard this place quietly."
Ruri’s body wavered visibly. She tried to hide her feelings behind an expressionless mask, but a deep resentment leaked through.
"...Understood."
Ruri turned and left without even a goodbye.
* * *
Ferda occasionally attempted his mana cultivation method again. Entering a state of concentration and reaching awakening was perfect. However, the rotation of the Red Circle that was supposed to support it was missing.
What am I lacking?
If it was a lack of vengefulness, he could fill that. To do so, Ferda had envied those stronger than him and worked tirelessly to challenge their status and power. But how was he supposed to fill this heart? Did he have to look only at her every year, every month, every day, every hour, every minute, and every second to be satisfied?
Satisfied...
It was a ridiculous thought. Greed is not a thirst. When one thirst is quenched, an even greater thirst simply takes its place. If one keeps trying to fill that thirst over and over, eventually, reason becomes nothing more than a tool to satisfy that desire.
Ferda had sought revenge for the sake of revenge and killed countless people. Emotions were something that stemmed purely from his own heart. That was why the more he rushed to resolve this feeling, the more likely he was to stray onto the wrong path.
What could possibly be missing?
He closed his eyes and quietly entered his mental world. Her face. His greatest desire was to see the face he had only glimpsed once. But Valdrova would not show her face. She suffered from social phobia. So, he cleared that thought from his mind. Such thoughts would eventually consume him.
"...As I thought, meditation isn't for me."
He was a man more accustomed to filling his heart than emptying it. It was better to fill his mind with other distractions through a walk than to sit and indulge in delusions.
Ferda stood up. It was late at night, and the moon was tilting toward the west. The silent hallway was filled with blue moonlight. Ferda stood by the window and looked up at the moon. It was a full moon.
"Anna Rosnova."
The name escaped him like a breath. It was his mother's name. On nights when the full moon rose, he always thought of her.
When Ferda was young, he hated the night. He used to imagine monsters lurking in the dark shadows, waiting to pounce on him. Even now, he didn't particularly like the night. It seemed that whenever Ferda found himself in danger, it was always at night.
Yet, despite his dislike for the night, looking up at the moon brought him one of his few comforts. That brightly shining object in the darkest of places was the only way he could recall his mother's faint smile. Until the moment he was consumed by his obsession with revenge, he had found his solace there.
Mother...
A beautiful mother with blonde hair and blue eyes. Ferda filled his mind with thoughts of her. He filled himself with her presence so that he could distance himself from his obsessions and view himself objectively.
It was then. The sound of footsteps began to echo down the long hallway.
Clank, clank.
In any other castle, one might think it was a guard or a knight on patrol. But the only one who could patrol Valdrova Castle was Ruri. And Ruri wore a maid uniform instead of armor.
Which means...
Ferda doubted his own thoughts. There was no way such an impossible thing could happen at a time like this. However, the sound drawing nearer and the silhouette coming into view made Ferda certain.
Emerging from the darkness was the armor of a Dragon Dragoon. There was only one person who could walk this castle wearing that.
My fiancée.
Valdrova.
She was standing right before his eyes.