Broken Engagement (2)
Ludmilla was currently in a difficult situation. The successor of the Red Dragon. One of the Seven Strongest of the Warring States. A great female knight who had protected the Valtaria Empire. Even though she was nearly invincible, there were things that were almost unavoidable. Moreover, the situation that had just arrived was a difficult problem that made her repeat heavy sighs and rack her brain.
“I hate it! I said it has to be Maximilian or no one!!”
“But….”
The Valtaria imperial family ordered the Hohenberg family, which had broken off the engagement, to pay a huge compensation, ending their long-standing relationship. And Emperor Barbarossa summoned the ministers and ordered them to find a new marriage partner. Was it because of the backlash against Maximilian? Or was it his will not to make his youngest daughter an old maid like his second daughter? He hastily decided without even asking the youngest daughter involved. Ludmilla stepped forward to deal with the discord in the Valtaria imperial family that arose from this.
“Forget about Maximilian. He’s already someone whose heart has left.”
“Are you telling me… to just accept defeat like this?!”
Ludmilla spoke in a calm voice, as if admonishing her. An angry response flew back.
“The woman who stole my fiancé is the problem! So why do I have to give up!”
Even after suffering the humiliation of being notified of the broken engagement, Elizabetta still held on to her unwavering feelings for Maximilian. She even threatened that she would never give up the engagement. My only partner is Maximilian! I could tell from her determined blue eyes.
The conflict between the stubborn father and the sister would soon lead to a clash. Worried about that, Ludmilla tried to find a compromise. More precisely, it was to persuade her sister who denied the broken engagement. Because she couldn’t go against the imperial order that had already decided on the broken engagement.
“First, take a look at the documents. I selected the empire’s most outstanding and brilliant young men.”
“No! I don’t need them!”
“You’re twenty now. You have to hurry before you miss your chance.”
“Hmph! That’s rich coming from a sister who’s turning twenty-seven this year! If he’s such a great groom, why don’t you marry him instead!”
She had touched the dragon’s reverse scale. She had violated a taboo that should never be mentioned. Creak-. As if to prove it, the sound of grinding molars could be heard.
“Ah, aaaah! I’m sorry, I was wrong, sister-!!”
The tomboyish younger sister who had been rude to her old maid sister was immediately put in a headlock. She was buried in her ample bosom. At the same time, a strong force pressed down on her head. If her head got crushed like this, wouldn’t it go from 0 to 8? The punishment from the old maid was so cruel that such a thought suddenly occurred. Elizabetta screamed and cried out for surrender.
“But… I really do love Maximilian. I know I’m being foolish.”
“…….”
I know. I know better than anyone. That he loves that damn woman, not me. And that he ran away with the saintess as soon as the broken engagement was declared. But even so, she couldn’t give up. Even knowing that stubbornly holding on would only make herself miserable in the end.
Ludmilla felt troubled by her younger sister’s firm will. Because she couldn’t bring herself to force a marriage on her beloved younger sister by talking about duty and responsibility as royalty.
‘Wh-what should I do…?’
Although Ludmilla was one of the Seven Strongest of the Warring States representing the continent, she was unfortunately almost completely ignorant when it came to romantic affairs between men and women. This year she was 27. She had never dated even once in her life. Because she had walked the path of martial arts with the sole goal of becoming stronger. It was an achievement so pure that even the nuns who had sworn celibacy would be shocked. It was impossible unless one had been exiled to a country where only women existed. It could be said that her very existence was forbidden to men.
‘I wish there was someone who could solve this difficult problem neatly….’
Someone skilled in romantic affairs. Someone with excellent wit and eloquence. And someone who could break her attachment to Maximilian. While tapping her cheek and pondering repeatedly, Ludmilla carefully recalled the person she had met in the east.
* * *
While the Valtaria imperial family was troubled by marriage proposals, the Hohenberg family, which had pulled the trigger of chaos, was facing a different problem.
“Damn it…! It dropped again!”
I had invested in steel-related stocks expecting the Second Industrial Revolution, but I recorded a 20% loss. This damn thing. A war broke out in the kingdom that imported iron ore. Was it because it was a petty trick to make unearned income by riding the tide of the times? Numerous bad news overlapped one after another, causing the stock price to fall. If I pulled out now, it would be like throwing away the investment money, so I chose to hold long-term.
[Imperial Ministry of Technology, development of special bolt-action.]
[Valois Kingdom’s knight order, defeated by black powder.]
[“Chicken and pizza are not sex.” A Royal Academy professor, scolding the audience in the lecture hall.]
The newspapers published in the imperial capital always had something in common. Praise to inspire patriotism. Telegrams from war correspondents covering battlefields in various countries. And trivial and clichéd stories happening throughout the empire. The subscription fee was a waste. I wanted to send a bomb to the newspaper company. Of course, it was very fortunate that there were no articles related to the saintess party.
“This is a staff that shoots lightning, isn’t it. It was so loud it could make your ears fall off.”
“That’s right.”
Lue, who was looking at the newspaper placed on the desk, tilted her head and said. A staff that shoots lightning. To a child’s eyes, firearms looked like that.
“There was something similar in Edan’s drawer too! But it was much smaller….”
“I told you not to open it secretly. There’s no Nong-jjuk Candy in the office drawer that you’re looking for.”
3 PM. It was teatime. When I left the office, the girl in a tailcoat followed behind. The gazes of the servants who had been engaged in housework and chores were focused. A warm atmosphere flowed as if they had completely accepted the girl who had visited the count’s territory carrying a heavy suitcase as one of their own.
“I specially prepared chocolate cake, fairy young lady!”
“Ooh! I’m really looking forward to it!”
The short girl with bright light green hair had become the mascot of the saintess party and the mascot representing the Hohenberg family. Like a panda making its first appearance at a zoo, she gained immense popularity from numerous servants. It was truly enormous popularity. At this rate, wouldn’t this kid steal the family from me? It seemed like the popularity had already been stolen.
“Eat a lot. You have to work until dawn.”
“Huek…! Edan is a total evil boss!”
I was preparing countermeasures to repay the enormous compensation demanded by the Valtaria imperial family. 7.8 billion Rashel. It was truly a terrifying amount. It must be with the intention of tormenting the Hohenberg family for a long time. Still, I didn’t complain to the imperial family. Even though we had committed the crime of disrespect that wouldn’t be strange to receive extermination, hadn’t it been concluded with just paying the compensation? I could only be grateful for His Majesty the Emperor’s generosity.
‘There were a few incidents in the newspaper I just saw that caught my attention.’
Bomb terrorism in the Savoy Duchy. A mysterious fire in the Alond Kingdom. I couldn’t tell if it was a coincidence, but the Savoy Duchy and the Alond Kingdom were the hometowns of the mercenary king and the sword saint, members of the saintess party. Also, the places where the terrorism and fire occurred were close to their hometowns. Was it an accident? Or an intentional attack? I couldn’t help but be sensitive to the casualties that occurred along with the disappearance of the saintess party. Because if an unidentified force was plotting revenge against the members of the saintess party, they would definitely target the Hohenberg County.
Realizing that, I felt concerned.
“Eat slowly. And don’t eat my cake too, obviously.”
“Su-surely you wouldn’t do that yourself?!”
I picked up a napkin and wiped the chocolate smeared around her mouth. It felt like taking care of a niece. Since that damn brother had entrusted her to me, she was no different from a niece. While staring at Lue’s awkwardly smiling face, I picked up a fork.
* * *
Originally, the desire for revenge extends to the target’s blood relatives as well. I had expected it. To the villains, the hero Maximilian was no different from an archenemy. He had executed the evils hostile to the saintess with merciless slaughter. Since he had repeatedly executed them without a shred of sympathy, the karma directed at the iron-blooded hero was bound to grow. Someday that karma would be directed at the Hohenberg family. Maybe today would be that day.
Thinking so, I waited for the karma that would attack the hero’s family.
‘If they do attack… it would be around dawn when the security is loose.’
The late night covered in pitch black was darker than any curtain. It would be an obstacle for both those hiding and those trying to catch them. Then, what would happen if the two sides faced each other in a space filled with pitch black? Without a doubt, the side accustomed to the dark pitch black would seize the initiative.
“Edanant von Hohenberg…! I heard you’re the blood relative of the hero Maximilian.”
“Did you come to vent your anger? How petty.”
When I came out of the office leaving the fairy who had been dozing off like a chick, I faced a black shadow while holding documents in both hands. A mask covering the face. A sharp sword tip hanging down. Black leather armor storing numerous blades. Was it the assassin that appeared in the newspaper? Or perhaps a new assassin deployed this time. Either way, what mattered now was that there was an intruder with a longsword in front of me.
“Draw your sword. I won’t kill an enemy’s blood relative with empty hands… or rather, I don’t kill with empty hands.”
“Quite kind for an assassin.”
Was he valuing honor even as an assassin? How peculiar. I gladly accepted the favor. And to repay the favor, instead of drawing the sword hilt, I drew the gun hilt and fired.
Bang-!!
The bullet accurately hit the assassin’s forehead. Along with the sharp gunshot, the pile of documents I was holding fluttered and scattered. The man who had planned an assassination yet shown a meager favor died instantly with his head pierced by the fierce gunshot. He collapsed with his eyes wide open, as if he hadn’t expected it at all.
“Why today of all days, tomorrow’s the weekend…. Because of that damn kid who ran away from home, several people are going to lose sleep tonight.”
I muttered while putting away the smoking pistol.