Coup (3)
"Move quickly!"
The lord's castle in Bicken Territory was bustling with an unexpected training session. Knights led soldiers out of the castle grounds. The security might have grown lax because of it, but Wellington paid it little mind. After all, two Sword Masters—Leona Montmartre and Airen Jember—were currently stationed inside the castle. Even if assassins suddenly stormed in, there would be no problem.
"How would you rate our soldiers' level?"
"They appear well-trained. They wouldn't look out of place against troops from other territories."
Wellington began subtly boasting about the soldiers stationed at the castle to Luimina.
"With this level of quality, they should be more than sufficient to escort Lady Elisa."
"I see."
Luimina answered without the slightest change in expression, even at Wellington's ingratiating words.
'Hah! He must think our house is a joke…'
Clearly, the Bicken Baron family was no lesser house than the Soryu County. Even accounting for the difference in titles, their territory was far wealthier than a typical barony, giving them enough standing to voice opinions to the Soryu County. In that sense, Wellington's subtle hints about a political marriage with Elisa weren't entirely unreasonable.
But the moment Luimina learned that Wellington intended to hand the territory over to Baron Kerens out of revenge against Melania, his actions became nothing short of deception in her eyes. Once he married Elisa and transferred the territory, the entire Bicken Baron family—now reduced to an ordinary barony—would surely cling to the Soryu County. Elisa might not be the head of the county, but she was a direct descendant of the current head. Refusing to accept Wellington and the Bicken retainers after such a marriage would be seen as a breach of trust in noble society.
Wellington's actions bordered on betrayal toward the Soryu County… though he hadn't actually betrayed them yet. Even if it became known that he had deliberately surrendered the territory, it wouldn't change the fact that he hadn't crossed that final line. That was why political marriages were always handled with extreme caution. Unless the other party had actually betrayed them, nobles were obligated to provide full support even if their counterpart fell from power. That was the honor and duty of the aristocracy.
Of course, behind the scenes, most nobles would send assassins or subject their former allies to humiliating treatment until they left of their own accord. Still, Luimina felt relieved that she had only discussed the matter with Wellington so far and had not yet sent her daughter into a political marriage.
After spending time forcing meaningless smiles in front of Wellington, Luimina met with Leona and cautiously asked her,
"How long do you think it will take to send out all the soldiers and knights?"
"At least a week, possibly two."
"…"
Luimina wanted things to move faster, but she knew it was impossible and closed her mouth. Recruiting knights and pressuring mages wasn't something that could be done overnight. If Wellington realized what was happening and struck first, they would be the ones in danger. With Airen present, escaping wouldn't be difficult for Luimina… but they would completely lose control over Bicken Territory. Other vassal families might even declare independence, believing the Soryu County had overstepped by interfering too deeply in a vassal's domain.
This coup had to be carried out under Ertiya's leadership, with Wellington's removal as the clear goal. That was why Luimina decided to wait. After all, the Knight Commander Leona—the person who should have been Wellington's greatest ally—had already joined their side. Time was not on Wellington's side either. In the end, victory would go not to the one favored by time, but to the one favored by luck.
*
Unaware that Luimina was anxiously tapping her feet, Airen was humming to herself.
"Hm~ Hm~ Hmmm~!"
After donning her armor and removing her clothes, Airen headed straight for the bath. Normally she would have changed into something easier to move in before leaving, but not today. She knew she would only get sweaty again during training, so why bother washing beforehand? That had been Airen's thinking until now.
But after meeting the man called Jaimer yesterday, a sudden realization struck her while showering.
'Did I… smell?!'
While scrubbing away the sweat odor that clung to her body with soap, the thought suddenly occurred to her. She had pressed her chest against his firm back and held his hand while correcting his posture.
"I'm crazy! I'm out of my mind!"
The thought that her beastkin scent—sweat mixed with fur—must have been obvious made Airen burn with embarrassment. From today onward, she decided she would wash thoroughly after finishing her duties before heading out.
"This is five gold…?"
She had even asked Ertiya, who had considerable knowledge of perfumes, for an outrageously expensive bottle and sprayed it on before arriving at the training grounds. When she stepped inside, she didn't see the perfectly toned body she had come to expect—even on her second visit. Perhaps because he knew she was coming, or simply because he was wearing a shirt, she couldn't see his solid chest. It was truly a shame.
'Still, the fact that he's wearing a shirt means he's conscious of me, right? Hehe.'
Even so, the sight of him trying to hide his embarrassment by putting on a shirt was rather cute.
"You're working hard again today."
"Ah, Lady Airen. I've been doing the warm-up exercises you taught me yesterday before practicing. My muscles definitely feel like they're moving better now."
"Of course. This exercise routine is something any ordinary knight would do as a warm-up!"
'It's not exactly a family secret technique, so this should be fine.'
While teaching him swordsmanship posture yesterday, Airen had also explained the importance of proper warm-up exercises before swinging a sword. The routine she taught him was different from what ordinary knights learned. It was a special method developed over many years by the Jember family—one that awakened and circulated mana within the body.
It wasn't exactly a closely guarded secret, but it wasn't something shared with just anyone either. Airen caught herself before she could say more. She had almost admitted to teaching him one of her family's training methods…! It would look like she was interested in him!
'W-well… if Jaimer has those kinds of feelings, then I… no, no. I'm only drawn to his talent.'
Thinking that she should ask Leona tomorrow whether she could hand this attendant over to her, Airen raised her sword. Then she tossed a necklace to Jaimer. It was a defensive artifact used when knights sparred with wooden swords.
"Today, I'll be teaching you swordsmanship. But first, we'll have a match to check if you have any bad habits."
"Yes."
In her eyes, Jaimer's basic sword stance was already perfect, so all that remained was teaching him actual techniques. She planned to use this match to identify any of his habits or improvisational tendencies, then select a suitable style to teach him. She couldn't teach him her family's swordsmanship, but Airen knew several ordinary styles. She could simply pick one that suited him.
'And hehe…'
With a hidden smile and strange thoughts swirling in her mind, Airen immediately began the match.
"Here I come!"
Thwack! Thwack!
'Huh?'
From the very first exchange, Airen's strikes were blocked far too easily. Jaimer even launched a counterattack. A bead of sweat rolled down her forehead.
'He's incredible.'
Her original plan had been to catch the supposedly inexperienced Jaimer off guard, knock him down, then pretend to fall with him so their chests would press together. But his skill was so overwhelming that Airen found herself genuinely impressed.
"Excellent!"
Unable to use aura during training, Airen wrapped mana around her body to increase her speed. Jaimer was becoming even more appealing to her.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwaaack!!
"You're blocking this too?"
Watching Jaimer fend off her family's secret swordsmanship—executed at a level between low and mid-tier aura user—using nothing but raw instinct and without any proper technique, Airen was shocked. Once could be luck. Twice, maybe. Three times was surprising. But four, five, six times… the number of clashes kept increasing.
Was he truly a genius? Was this what the emperor's talent had been like—the man who had once risen from slavery with nothing but a single sword to unify the empire?
Airen, still reeling from the revelation, gradually increased her speed further. She wanted to see just how far Jaimer's abilities extended. To think she was the only one who knew about such monstrous talent…!! If she bore a child with a man of such extraordinary gifts, that child might reach Sword Master before even coming of age…
She absolutely had to ask Leona for this attendant tomorrow.
*
Flames of excitement burned in Airen's eyes. Deliberately holding back was no easy task. Suppressing her mana and intentionally moving slower felt like holding her breath while running—it left her feeling constantly frustrated.
"Try blocking this as well!"
Airen accelerated again, clearly enjoying herself. She had probably reached an ambiguous level between mid and high-tier aura user by now. This should be enough. She could afford to lose on purpose. There was no need to display such overwhelming talent.
Whoosh!
"I lost."
"You're truly remarkable."
Seeing the wooden sword at my neck, I immediately admitted defeat. Even now, I wanted to reveal my true strength and take her, but I held back. If I had as much time as I did with Helen, I would have spent the entire night until sunrise carving my name into Airen's body. But that was impossible right now. If she didn't return after coming to the training grounds, others would come looking for her. Then I would be dragged away and executed.
Beastkin might submit to those who defeated them, but even Leona hadn't come to me of her own accord until I sought her out. She must have been conflicted until then. Until I understood beastkin better, I needed to proceed carefully.
Well, it wouldn't even take a week. So for now, I would continue building her affection while I waited. Once she truly wanted me, I could reveal my identity and show her who her master was. It wouldn't even take two hours.
"Any swordsmanship would suit you. A style that emphasizes speed would work well, or perhaps a heavier blade…"
Until then, I was still Jaimer. Seeing Airen smile at my nodding figure, I smiled back.