Chapter 123
Chapter 123
Translation: godsn
The Royal Castle of Valdina.
The fortress, built with sturdy white stone walls, stood as the steadfast guardian protecting the royal castle without a single gap.
From atop the walls, soldiers still busily—and fiercely—gazed down at the scene below.
"The rebels are retreating."
The guards let out a sigh of relief as they watched the rebel forces take a step back.
"If it weren't for you all, the castle would have been breached before the day was over."
The captain of the guard wiped the sweat from his brow and expressed his gratitude to the retired soldiers who had stood beside them on the walls, weapons in hand.
When they had first arrived, the captain hadn't believed them.
Neither the news of the rebellion nor the warning that the rebels would soon arrive to attack the royal castle.
Most of the kingdom's forces were away from the capital due to the prolonged war.
Had they faced the rebels unprepared, the banners of those insurgents would already be flying over these walls.
An old soldier shook his head.
"It's too early to relax. Look, they haven't given up completely."
Even if they were a hastily assembled rebel force, their numbers were vast enough to darken the horizon.
The rebels maintained their battle lines as if poised to clash with the castle walls, their determination to bring down the royal castle palpable.
The captain sighed.
"To think there were so many in this small kingdom who harbored such rage..."
The flames that had always seemed ready to erupt had finally done so.
He had thought Princess Medeia had somewhat quelled that anger, but perhaps it hadn't been enough.
Swallowing his bitterness, the captain tightened his grip on his sword.
"Her Majesty the Queen Dowager!"
At that moment, an elderly woman appeared, supported as she ascended the castle steps. Behind her followed Valdina's military officials.
"Good heavens, they've already pushed this far!"
"Look at them. There's no end in sight. Just how many have gathered...?"
From their vantage point atop the walls, where the enemy was clearly visible, most of the military officials couldn't hide their shock and terror at the sight of the rebels blotting out the horizon.
But not all of them reacted the same way.
Margrave Montega, hardened from battling magic beasts in the borderlands, swiftly surveyed the battlefield, while Chancellor Siseo remained steadfast at the Queen Dowager's side.
"Your Majesty, this place is dangerous. Why have you not taken shelter?"
Despite the captain's plea, the Queen Dowager remained resolute.
"What use is an old woman clinging to life? What of the people? Are there no wounded? How fares the situation?"
The Queen Dowager turned her gaze toward the city below the walls.
From the high vantage point, she could see the panicked citizens rushing frantically through the streets.
"Yes, Your Majesty. Fortunately, Marquess Gilifos prevented their advance, sparing the royal castle from falling. For now, we've reached a stalemate. With the support of the retired soldiers, we've been able to repel their attacks from these walls with relative ease."
The Queen Dowager turned her head toward where the captain pointed.
"W-We are honored by your presence."
"Your Majesty, I— Your Highness? Your Grace?"
The retired soldiers, unsure of how to address her, stood awkwardly before bowing clumsily.
Most of them were men of little education, unfamiliar with the proper way to address the grandmother of the current king.
The Queen Dowager's eyes swept over them.
She quickly noticed their battered armor, their weapons, and the injuries that marked their bodies.
These were retired soldiers who had been wounded in battle, left without proper care, yet they had stepped forward once more to defend the royal castle.
Her wrinkled eyes glistened with emotion.
"Truly, truly, I thank you. On behalf of the royal family, I express my deepest gratitude. Once this crisis is over, you shall be rewarded."
She did not hesitate to clasp their rough hands in hers.
"Though I understand the grievances of those who are weary from hunger and hardship, I cannot stand by while they recklessly attack the royal castle and harm innocent citizens."
"We merely wished to repay the kindness of Her Highness the Princess, who took us in and gave us a place to live and work."
The retired soldiers bowed awkwardly, humbled by her words.
"Medeia?"
The Queen Dowager's eyebrows rose.
At this, Siseo leaned in to whisper to her.
The message conveyed that Medeia had spent her own funds to establish relief efforts for the retired soldiers wandering and abandoned outside.
'While that child was tending to the pain of these soldiers, I was holed up in the back chambers, drowning in my own sorrow.'
Suppressing the resurgence of regret and self-reproach, the Queen Dowager hesitated.
"Where is Medeia now?"
In the heat of battle, she had been too tense to notice.
Only now did she realize her granddaughter was nowhere in sight.
'It's taking too long!'
Before hastily making her way here, she had sent someone to the princess's palace to fetch Medeia.
Yet, she still hadn't arrived—her absence made the Queen Dowager's heart sink heavily.
"Surely nothing has happened to her, has it?"
Only then did people glance around, but the princess was nowhere to be seen.
"Too busy with their own wretched lives to even look after the princess! Useless fools!"
The Queen Dowager's fury erupted.
"Mother! Joaquin has arrived!"
Just then, a booming shout echoed. The Regent's faction had arrived at the castle walls.
Dismounting his horse, the Regent—resplendent in dazzling armor—hurried over with his knights in tow.
The silver-plated armor he wore reflected the sunlight painfully into the eyes of onlookers. It seemed more suited for a triumphal parade than actual combat.
"Are you unharmed?! Why have you come to such a dangerous place?! I went to the palace, only to hear you had come here—I was beside myself with shock!"
The Regent continued smoothly.
"Ah, a rebellion, no less. And to think mere rebels dared to assault the royal castle. A disgrace never before seen in our thousand-year history. To think Valdina has fallen to such a state..."
His voice, laced with shock and lamentation, carried a somber weight.
"You went to the palace? Then, Joaquin—did you not see Medeia?"
But the Queen Dowager had no patience for his theatrics.
"Did you go to the princess's palace? I sent my knights to bring Dea back safely—why hasn't she arrived yet?"
What if the rebels had infiltrated the palace and harmed her granddaughter? Her worry was unbearable.
The cane in her grip trembled aimlessly.
"...Mother, please do not be alarmed."
The Regent shook his head mournfully.
His grief-stricken eyes and sighing lips were unnervingly natural.
"It seems... Medeia has fled."
"What did you say?"
The Queen Dowager could not believe her ears.
"I, too, went to the princess's palace to confirm her safety. But there was no one there. Worried beyond measure, I interrogated every maid I could find—and at last, I learned that Medeia had slipped out of the castle through a secret passage."
The assembly erupted in murmurs.
As the Queen Dowager froze, the Regent inwardly rejoiced.
"Likely, the King had informed her of the passage. A contingency in case the castle fell. Whether it's fortunate or not, I cannot say. But at least Medeia will surely survive... Once this matter is resolved, we can retrieve her safely."
His words insinuated that King Pelleus had abandoned the rest of Valdina, caring only for his sister's safety.
The Queen Dowager's face paled.
"Fled?! Nonsense! Medeia would never do such a thing."
She refused to believe her son.
'That child stood against even the Empire for the sake of the royal family's honor. Knowing full well the people would waver if she left—how could she flee so irresponsibly?'
Though they had not spent much time together, she had come to know firsthand that her granddaughter's sense of duty was unmatched.
"Admittedly, Medeia's recent achievements have been remarkable. But she is still but a naive, immature girl, is she not?"
Yet the Regent shook his head as if pitying his mother's misplaced faith.
"Word spread that the rebels had gathered before the castle. They shouted for the witch's execution—that this kingdom had been ruined by the fallen princess. How could Medeia possibly overcome such fear?"
"......"
"Mother, I beg you—do not search for Medeia. If word spreads that the princess has fled, the soldiers' morale will collapse entirely."