Chapter 38
Chapter 38
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: Flower of the North Sea (9)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
After sending off her only retainer, the butler, Adella quietly left the dormitory.
Her pockets were light. A spare pair of gloves and a handkerchief to give to her dance partner at the ball, and a small pair of earrings she hadn't worn yet.
Holding the hem of her long dress so it wouldn't drag on the ground, she began walking along the night streets.
South Street. Dehatan Salon.
The ball venue that Count William had told her about.
If she made it there, she wouldn't have to worry about the family's watchful eyes anymore.
Just dancing lightly with him under the splendid chandeliers and promising a deeper relationship would put her one step away from Roshiar's grasp.
And the moment she got engaged afterward and became a daughter-in-law of the Clove Count family, Roshiar would never be able to take her heart— she would have achieved the purpose of coming to the academy while pretending to be a fool her whole life. She would have survived.
The golden light from the gas lamps flowed over her blue dress, transforming it into a heavenly beauty.
Anyone watching her would inevitably let out a gasp of admiration; Adella's appearance was that of a perfect debutante.
"Haa... so far."
After walking for a while in her hard shoes, the academy's main gate came into view in the distance.
Beyond it, the dazzling city lights announced Pharenchia's night.
She reached out toward it for a moment, as if to touch something unattainable, then quietly turned away.
And in front of a three-story wooden building where all the lights were out, she smiled.
"I'm here."
Even though the door was locked, Adella hurried over and retrieved a key from under a palm-sized flowerpot in front of the main entrance.
A cactus with raised thorns was planted there, revealing Louis's personality— 'touch it and die'— making her chuckle involuntarily.
She unlocked the door with the key and entered the canteen.
The silent interior, devoid of customers or staff, evoked a strange nostalgia.
The floor, which must have seen countless people today, was spotlessly clean, and a few writing tools and notebooks that hadn't made it back to the shelves were on the counter.
The unsold bread was covered with large paper inside a glass lid, emitting a faint aroma, and one of Louis's outer coats hung on the back of a chair.
Swipe.
Adella slowly circled the canteen, taking in everything.
As her slender fingers brushed away the dust on the shelves, counter, and stairs, memories with Louis resurfaced.
With a light smile on her lips, she lifted the end of her dress in the moonlight.
Looking at her reflection in the mirror, she practiced noble greetings, and awkwardly danced this way and that.
Surely, Teacher would think she looked pretty too—
Adella wondered what expression Louis would make if he saw her like this when he returned.
Time passed, and the lights in the academy buildings finally went out after late-night experiments ended.
Left alone, Adella sat demurely at the counter. Hungry, she took out a few loaves of bread and ate them.
She had no intention of going to the ball. Even though meeting the count and marrying him would free her from Roshiar, she had no such plans.
Her heart belonged only to Louis. Even if they took her heart, she hoped the emotion she held onto until the end would be for him.
"Ah... Teacher."
Would she be able to convey these feelings one more time?
"I wish you'd come back soon."
Dawn broke. The apprentice priests who rose first at the Temple of Light washed their faces and rang the bells in the bell tower.
It was a morning when the morning star faintly shone. Street cleaners prepared for work, and the guards protecting the city yawned widely as shift change arrived, removing their helmets.
Spring had long arrived, yet today an unusually cold wind blew.
Pharenchia, central city of the Penheim Kingdom, West Gate.
A rookie guard who had just finished his shift spotted a group of figures approaching from afar.
Still half-asleep, he rubbed his eyes, thinking it was probably a merchant caravan coming from a nearby ranch for milk.
But upon closer look, there were no wagons or the winged-shoe insignia of a merchant alliance.
Instead, black military flags began to appear.
A Triangular Origin where three triangles intertwined geometrically.
The Four-Leaf Medal with four laurel leaves rising. Grand Officier.
"Th-th-that...!! Why, here of all places...!!"
The guard's eyes widened as if they would burst. Almost simultaneously with his trembling hand gripping the spear shaft and screaming at the top of his lungs, a massive cold wave enveloped Pharenchia.
"Roshiar—!!! Roshiar's knights have come—!!"
Senrir's nightmare. Guardian of the Frozen Lake.
The sharpest spear of the Penheim Kingdom, the blue-armored slayer comparable to the 12 Alliances of the Raviere Mountains in the Great Demon War.
Roshiar's Blue Rose Knights, who had frozen the North Sea for fifteen days to cross it undetected— had landed in Pharenchia.
Their numbers weren't large, but resistance was meaningless before their overwhelming power.
The knights entering through the West Gate without hesitation headed straight for Pharenchia Academy.
Reincarnation Duke Lehel Darad was absent. The lord of Pharenchia was not here either.
No one stood in the way of their near-bloodless entry.
"Who the hell are you!? Do you know where this... Gahk!!"
Mark Vauterval, who had drawn his sword upon seeing the knights suddenly arrive at the academy, was struck by the knight commander's blade and sent flying into the outer wall.
Ignoring the pale stares of the nobles watching them, Roshiar's knight commander— Siegfried Steiner— ordered his men.
"Squad 1 to the dormitories, Squad 2 to the Privy Hall. No killing. Subdue only."
"““Yes, sir!!!””"
After splitting his forces to search for Adella, he walked toward the suspicious building in the middle of the canteen.
When his eyes met the person waiting inside, he shattered the glass door without hesitation and entered.
Crash!!
The flower of the North Sea in her beautiful dress.
Adella gave a bitter smile to the unwelcome guest who had arrived with the dawn.
'So it ended up like this after all.'
It might even be a relief. No matter how strong Teacher was, he couldn't take on the colossal Roshiar family.
"It's been a while, little miss."
"It's been a while, Sir Siegfried."
Adella greeted the middle-aged knight, who had politely bowed, with an equally elegant posture.
"Impressive. To have fooled the family head until now."
"Sister doesn't care much about me anyway. It wasn't hard."
"Things might change from now on. You'll come to understand the family head's will. Then..."
Understand?
I have no desire to understand the thoughts of someone without a heart.
But Adella could no longer run or keep up the act.
A large hand raised above her head.
The pommel at the end of the sword hilt fell toward her.
—Damage report?
—No fatalities. However, the guards at the West Gate have severe frostbite and will need treatment at the temple.
—Frost from the nearby pastures has killed all the crops. The same for Aldran beyond the western forest.
—Academy security captain, Sir Mark, is seriously injured and unconscious.
—Record all property damage from the frost and lists of the injured without omission. Send a formal protest to the capital against Roshiar and lock all city gates.
By the time we arrived, the academy was already a battlefield.
Leaving Darling's voice handling the aftermath behind, I headed to the canteen. My home, which I'd returned to after days away, was utterly trashed.
"Boss! The canteen... Eek!"
Liv, who had come to open the canteen on the holiday with no classes, flinched upon seeing me.
I said nothing and brushed past her into the canteen. The interior was a total mess, with dirt from the melted snow leaving muddy footprints everywhere.
The curtains were torn to shreds, and not a single shelf or counter was intact.
Bloodstains everywhere spoke of fierce resistance.
In a particularly large pool of blood, I found a single earring embedded with a blue sapphire.
"......"
My blood ran cold. I went behind the counter and headed to the basement.
Clearing away the miscellaneous items piled on the floor, I spotted an old pickaxe. Picking it up, I went to the small room inside the basement and stood before the gravestone I'd placed here when I first arrived.
Clang!!!
Striking the floor produced the sound of sharp stone cracking.
Clang! Clang!!
After a few more strikes, the ground began to give way.
Cliiing—!!!
"Boss!!!"
As I was about to really get to work, Liv shouted from behind. She desperately grabbed my collar, her hands trembling.
"You can't do this."
"Let go."
"Put that down first. Hurry!"
"I said let go."
"There's someone precious buried there!! Ah, no matter how angry you are, you can't...!!"
"Buried? Who said anything's buried?"
"Huh?"
I pointed at the gravestone and said to her, standing there dazed.
"Buried? Who'd I bury? I'm not a murderer. Why would I bury someone in the basement floor?"
"Th-then this is......"
"Old gear I used to use. Here to dig it up again."
"No, uh, yes, old comrades......"
What the hell was that?
"Comrades? I told you, they're off traveling well. Here to get my sword and shield."
Right. What does a summoned hero in another world absolutely need? A holy sword to slay the demon king, obviously.
Since I hadn't returned my weapons after chopping off the demon king's head, my gear was still slumbering here.
And now was the time to retrieve it.
"Step back, rocks are flying."
I swung the pickaxe vigorously again. Clang, clang— the sound of breaking stone echoed through the basement.
How much time passed? Finally, the pickaxe tip hit something hard inside.
Just a bit more digging, I thought— then a massive shock sent my arm reeling back.
Rumble—!!
"Huh?"
Turning, I saw the pickaxe had bounced off the wall and turned to powder.
I confirmed the brilliant glow seeping from the last strike spot and pondered for a moment.
"What's wrong?"
"We're screwed."
"Huh?"
"Buried it too deep, I guess."
"......"
"No, I put the sword at the bottom and the shield on top, you see? Didn't realize when burying, but it's sealed tight like a lid."
Liv's expression turned icy for a moment.
Trouble. The sword and shield are one of the hero's three divine treasures. Nearly a third of my power, and now completely embedded in the ground— digging them out barehanded would be extremely difficult.
"Want to try magic?"
"Magic resistance is no joke, won't work. Unless I blow up the whole canteen... Ha, damn... Shouldn't have watched John Wick as a kid."
"What's that?"
"It's a thing. A movie perfect for this situation."
No choice, I dusted myself off and stood. If no teeth, use gums.
Weapons aren't strictly necessary. Besides, they're holy relics the Holy Kingdom's been hunting with fire in their eyes— might be better to leave them buried.
"Gonna take a quick trip to the North Sea."
"North Sea...?"
"Yeah."
I went up to the first floor. Looking at the empty bread basket, I said,
"I told her if she stole bread one more time, I'd definitely come catch her."