The Audience Chamber / Anel Castle (2)

A few hours earlier.

Inside the royal castle, before Kalintz and his party had arrived.

"……"

Lin sat upon the throne, reading and rereading the letter from Parfalle that a messenger had delivered.

Its contents could be summarized as follows.

Parfalle was not an arrogant person, but neither was she the type to deny her own exceptional abilities and put on a show of humility.

Confident as she was, she rarely cared to listen carefully to the opinions of others, and she thoroughly disliked having anyone else step in to revise her own.

And yet that very woman was telling her lord, for the first time in her life, that even when his opinions did not match hers, they were still worth trusting.

Not someone like Irene, whose talent lay in a completely different domain from her own—but someone like Swen, who competed in the same waters she did.

By this point, Lin's heart was a tangled, unmanageable mess.

An extraordinary talent had clearly entered her service…… and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠yet her heart was anything but at ease.

How could his words keep proving right to such an unreal degree?

When she had a general who could get everything right like that…… why was the emotion she felt not reassurance or reliability, but fear?

Lin Brans, at her core, did not trust other people.

The greatest reason she had been able to claim the seat of heir was precisely that she trusted no one.

That her father, Orlando Brans, had chosen Lin as his successor over Chel and Kalintz because of that absolute refusal to rely on or believe in anyone was already common knowledge among the three siblings.

Honestly speaking—

She knew that while Parfalle was among the cleverer minds of the central continent, she was not so outstanding when measured against the strategists of other nations.

But that was exactly why Lin could employ her without anxiety.

In the end, she believed she could keep her under control. She used her heavily, and at the same time never trusted her one hundred percent.

Her habit of scouring minor states for buried talent was part of the same design.

Instead of placing absolute faith in any single person, she collected as many people as possible who could offer her opinions—gathering them the way one gathers options.

That way, the range of choices available to her would only grow wider.

But then—

That comfortable plan for running the Brans Army began to come apart, little by little, because of the man named Swen.

The one who had recruited him was none other than Lin herself.

For a strategist from a minor state, he had seemed to have a reasonably sharp mind.

The occasional spine-chilling piece of counsel would have been more than enough.

Yes. That was all she had expected of him. Advice on the state of the continent, discussions of strategy—nothing more.

But then—

He kept making claims so absurd they were nearly impossible to accept.

And those absurd claims, after enough time had passed, always turned out to be the ones that were right.

And that was not all.

Now he had gone so far as to defy her orders, remain at a fortress, and—in a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠battle everyone believed unwinnable—perform a ritual to the heavens and summon boulders from the sky.

Lin knew it by instinct.

Swen was not a man who existed within the sphere of what she could control.

And so she feared him.

A subordinate general who seemed impossible to handle as she pleased, who kept being right no matter what—and she, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠his sovereign, was afraid of him.

At first, she had tried not to let it show.

After all, Swen's lord was still her.

If she ever saw a chance that he might slip from her grasp, she had believed she could deal with him somehow.

Even when he had entered the audience chamber with Kalintz, she had not been trembling that badly.

Yes. It would be nothing serious.

Even in the moment she had just dismissed Kalintz and Irene and begun her private audience with him…… she had still been fine.

But then—

The more she spoke with him, the more the fear of him rose again.

A conviction had begun to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠creep up on her: that no matter what measures she took, she would never be able to steer him the way she wanted.

Without meaning to, her voice had started to shake.

Without meaning to, a chill had settled into her body.

She was the sovereign. She could, this very instant, order him thrown into a dungeon for no reason at all—or go further still, frame him, and have his head taken.

And yet—the man kneeling before her, calmly murmuring things no ordinary person could say, about reading the stars in the heavens and reading the actions of men—his mere presence filled her with a maddening fear.

"Swen…… what are you……?"

She forced the words out, asking him what he was.

What are you?

How much do you know?

Do you know that I am afraid of you, too?

As she was turning those words she had let slip over again in her mouth—

Swen slowly smiled and spoke.

"My lady Lin. It is all right."

"All right……?"

"My talents belong entirely to you, my lady. There is no need for you to be afraid."

……!!!

Yes.

As expected—this man had seen straight through even the fact that she feared him.

And yet, at the same time……

He kept his waist bent low, speaking to her almost as if he were pleading.

"Use me as your compass, my lady Lin. I will gladly answer."

……?

She was a little taken aback by Swen's sudden show of deference.

Still, she managed to recover her composure enough to ask.

"……And by that you mean……"

"Exactly what I said, my lord."

Swen looked up at Lin and spoke in a respectful tone.

"It is a meager talent, but because you valued it highly enough to take me into the Brans Army, I was able to come here. I believe this place is an excellent stage on which to pursue my dream. My dream is not to take the world into my own hands. My dream is to serve the one who will."

"The one who will take the world……"

"Yes."

To the faintly trembling Lin, Swen spoke with quiet confidence.

"I am speaking of you, my lady Lin."

"……!"

"My purpose is advancement and renown. I ask for nothing special. Grant me what I desire, and I will grant you what you desire."

Having said that, Swen……

bowed his head even lower toward the floor and spoke again.

"Please—give me wings, my lord."

After Swen had withdrawn as well—

Lin, left alone at last in the audience chamber, let time melt away until she finally recovered her composure.

The moment she could think with some measure of reason again, the first thing she did was turn Swen's words over in her mind.

Use him as my compass…… is that it.

In other words—was he asking to be made state strategist?

Even if it was not quite that, it was clearly a request to be used with importance.

He had said he wanted advancement and renown. And he had said that the one who would take the world was not someone else, but Lin Brans herself.

So, put simply—he was telling her not to fear him, and to please make use of him.

……

Honestly—

When she had heard that his goal was advancement and renown, she had felt a little deflated.

With ability like that, and his ambition amounted to no more than that?

On top of which, he had boldly told Lin herself that she was the one who would take the world.

She thought so herself, of course—but hearing it from someone else's mouth was a different matter.

Rather than truly believing it…… it felt more like flattery, meant to curry favor with his sovereign.

Lin could not erase that thought from her mind.

Have I…… overestimated him?

She twisted a finger through her hair as she thought.

Swen had clearly noticed that she, his lord, was afraid of him.

That was why he had said there was no need to be afraid.

So even knowing she had felt fear of him, he still prostrated himself like that and offered to put his abilities at her service?

Seeing Swen take such an excessively low posture only made her thoughts more tangled still.

Thinking that far, her first meeting with him rose naturally to mind.

He said his former lord, Lunarien Iniang, had believed he was a traitor colluding with the Brans Army.

Clearly, his previous lord Lunarien had also feared Swen's ability enough to deal with him that way.

How broad could the vessel of a frail sovereign from a minor state possibly be, just by looking at her?

If, after going through something like that, he had chosen self-preservation over grand ambition, it would not have been hard to understand.

I may have valued Swen's ability so highly that I ended up overvaluing Swen the person as well.

Extraordinary ability and a bold character did not necessarily go hand in hand.

Come to think of it, the reason he had defied orders had been simple enough.

To earn merit.

He had probably been trying to attach himself to Kalintz's line. With Parfalle and the meritorious retainers entrenched around Lin herself, it would have been hard for a newly arrived general to find a foothold.

The very fact that he had defied orders to hold a fortress that, with a little thought, was meaningless—just to climb the ladder—made his hunger for advancement and renown feel anything but false.

Thinking of it that way, she felt a little more at ease.

Of course, Swen's real reason for remaining at that fortress had been something else entirely—but there was no way for Lin to know that.

……In fact, that level is just right. If his desires are clear……

Lin let a thin smile curl her lips.

Yes.

Give him what he wants, never trust him one hundred percent, and take from him only what was worth taking.

Perhaps that was how a win-win relationship between herself and Swen could take shape.

If Swen's true purpose really was advancement and renown, she was confident she could provide it.

Make him dependent on her and loyal to her that way—and from then on, she was sure she could handle him however she pleased.

No one was easier to manage than a person whose desires were clear.

"Heh heh heh."

Lin's laughter filled the quiet audience chamber.

Yes.

There was no need to be afraid. Whatever anyone said, the absolute power here was hers.

Swen…… shall you slowly prove your ability for me? Do that much, and I will make you into someone who cannot live without me……

Thinking that, she kept turning her finger, twisting her hair round and round.

She only stopped that motion another thirty minutes later.

When the audience was over and I stepped outside the castle, Irene was waiting for me.

"Swen."

"You could have gone home ahead of me."

"How could I leave you behind and go first? We are headed to the same place."

Having said that, she suddenly dipped her head a little—

and, face flushed, looked up at me as she spoke.

"And…… it has been a long time since we returned to that house. I wanted to go in together with you."

"I see. I feel the same."

At my words, Irene broke into a shy smile.

Lately, I had been seeing her smile more often.

"……I'm glad."

On the road home from the royal castle, she put a few questions to me.

"Did your talk with our lord go well?"

"It did."

"What did you discuss?"

"Nothing much. I planted an illusion and came back."

At that, Irene tilted her head.

"Planted an illusion?"

"Yes."

I grinned as I answered.

"I gave her the confidence that she might be able to control me as she pleases."

"You gave her confidence…… but why?"

"Because people are far more easily deceived by someone they think they can handle than by someone they fear."

"The part about her being afraid bothers me as well—but what do you mean by 'deceived'?"

"Because it is about time we left."

"……!!"

At my words, Irene's pupils shrank sharply.

"Before we go, we should take everything worth taking. Otherwise the books will not balance, will they?"

She glanced carefully around, then asked in a cautious tone.

"When you say it is time to leave……"

"Yes. Please prepare yourself as well, Lady Irene. Before long, we will be going to serve a new lord."

Yes.

Even before myself—for Irene's safety as well—

we had to leave this place soon.

Irene heard me out without a word—

then, after a moment, spoke with a faint smile.

"……All right. Swen—if that is what you intend, I will follow you wherever it leads."

"That is more than enough."

I smiled with her.

Between us, a bond tighter than ever before stood out with perfect clarity.

"Shall we go back now? To our home."

"Our home……"

Irene repeated the word our several times, then looked at me and smiled softly.

Her face, catching the sunlight, seemed more radiant than it ever had before.

"Yes. Let us go back, Swen. Together with me. To our home."

The place where our story had begun.

It was time to return to 32 East Anel Street.