119 – promise
At Edgar’s suggestion, Ariel looked at him with an absurd expression.
“… Do you think I’ll allow that?”
“There is no right solution. Do you have any sharp tips?”
Edgar was right, of course.
Now was the time to try anything with the feeling of grabbing at least a straw, and it was the moment to gather my brains for it.
However, his request was so reckless and erratic that even Ariel, who knew this better than anyone else, rejected it at once.
“What you mean is like killing yourself to save your father.”
“I have no intention of dying. It means that I will step in to reduce the sacrifice of others.”
Even Edgar knows that if this goes wrong, his life will be ruined.
This isn’t a prank on the level of simply hiding somewhere and secretly stealing someone else’s snack.
However, that did not mean that he would give up his life.
He had promised Ariel that he would always be with him, and he had no intention of giving up on it.
I just thought this was the right thing to do to increase the possibility even a little more and make everyone take a safe direction.
“There must be someone more experienced in this kind of thing than I am. But there is not enough time to find such a person.”
It’s not just about taking out Yulken.
You don’t know what battles will happen in the process, and you don’t know what barriers or guards will greet you in the process.
Considering all these points, the number of people to go should be reduced as much as possible, and the person who can visit more secretly than anyone else should be.
In Edgar’s opinion, no one was better suited for the task under the present circumstances than he was.
“And I’ll have enough plans to come back alive. I intend to discuss it from now on.”
“Stop the bullsh*t. who discussed it? I have no intention of putting my head together for a suicide plan like that.”
Ariel’s clenched hands trembled and coldly looked up at Edgar, who was about a head taller than herself.
Of course, losing his father, Yulken, is scarier than anything else.
And the symbol of dominance is the treasure she needs more than anything else in Hespania, which she cherishes. can never give up
But perhaps more valuable to her than those two was a man named Edgar.
Without a doubt, if he were to come back as a cold corpse, or at least to hear the news that he was alive or dead, she would go crazy from that day on.
Perhaps he would slit his throat, saying he would follow as soon as he heard the news.
Even so, this man calmly tells us to make that choice.
Without even dreaming of how much she cares for him, he makes such a ruthless choice and smiles, asking for patience.
Ariel comforted herself, telling herself not to fall for that smile today.
It’s definitely an attractive proposition. If his words were correct, he might be able to obtain both Yulken and the symbol of dominance without shedding a single blood.
However, Holy Grails usually contain poison.
And that poison was more deadly and dangerous to Ariel than any deadly poison.
A tragedy and a miserable future that would be better off dead.
Even if it was a family, as long as there was such a possibility, Ariel would never allow it.
“Princess Edgar, I would like to ask you a question. How are you going to go through such a strict boundary? Unless it is confirmed, not only the lady, but also our retainers cannot be permitted.”
Gail, unable to observe the conversation between the two, intervened.
Since Edgar’s life was at stake, Ariel wouldn’t be able to judge calmly.
And since Edgar was well aware of this, there was a high possibility that Ariel’s words were just grumbling.
Then, in this situation, I needed someone who could mediate the two as neutrally as possible, because that third person was the vassal.
“Actually, I have the ability to pass through barriers. It’s a bit complicated to explain, but… Thanks to that, you can easily shoot around in the barriers of Loveheim Castle.”
“… With no restrictions on your actions?”
“Yes, it may be impossible to use magic, but… That level of restriction is fine.”
Edgar nodded nonchalantly to Gail, who asked back in disbelief.
Magic was just a very simple aid to him anyway.
In the first place, he learned a little magic from Ariel, but he didn’t learn enough to use it in battle as skillfully as she did, and he only knew healing magic to heal wounds from battle.
All of his fighting power came from hand-to-hand combat, that is, pure combat that assumed one-on-one combat.
In addition to that, when I came to Loveheim Castle, I learned from Creed, so I was able to learn one-on-one combat.
Above all, his battles were more suited to those of an assassin than that of a swordsman.
Because of his constitution, he can kill the flow of magical power, so he can not be detected by the opponent in advance, and he has learned how to fight by using this to aim for the opponent’s gap as much as possible.
With all of this in mind, he said he would do this mission.
Freedom from barriers, hand-to-hand combat skills required to be equipped with a small number of elites, and even secret combat methods.
All his advantages were telling him to accept this mission.
“And I’m not proud of it, but I have some confidence in my inaction. You can probably subdue ten to twenty guards and come back.”
“You have a lot of skill. I’ve heard from His Highness several times about him.”
To be precise, Yulken, who had heard about Edgar’s skills from Creed, was only bragging a few times, but anyway, with this, all the important things were passed.
The problem is that there is no such thing as a must.
In case of failure, Edgar’s life at the cost still held them back.
How can a vassal tell a person who corresponds to the owner’s daughter to give up her lover’s life for the family?
When everyone held their breath and looked at Ariel, Edgar took another step forward.
“I want you to know that this is not something I do without thinking. And I would like to ask for your cooperation if possible.”
“Cooperation means… … ?”
“I’d like to see someone who is quicker than anyone else in Whitewood and the surrounding geography. Then lead the soldiers and depart for Whitewood.”
At Edgar’s request, a question mark appeared above the heads of Ariel and other vassals.
That would be the case, and they are holding their breath so much because they do not know what will happen if they provoke them, but suddenly raise an army?
“If that happens, won’t they try to harm Your Highness?”
This time it was not Gale, but Raymon, a rather young man among the gathered vassals, raised his hand and asked a question.
Everyone else agreed with this, so as I nodded one after another, Edgar added an additional explanation.
“I don’t think so. First of all, if the purpose of their downfall of Whitewood is itself a symbol of domination, even killing Her Highness would be a burden.”
“But from their point of view, aren’t they the heads of their enemies? It wouldn’t be strange if I did it any time.”
Edgar gave a small nod and affirmed that there was a point.
At the same time, however, this was, in his opinion, a very peripheral point of view.
First of all, it was not an accident that Yulken was used as collateral to demand the symbol of domination.
Read at noblemtl.com
Looking back on the situation, it should be seen that the idea of suddenly destroying a city, rather than the simple plundering that was always done, had a bigger goal.
If it ended up killing Yulken, the purpose would have been the supply and demand of Yulken, but it was meaningful to ask for an exchange even while sending Gale and the soldiers who arrived in Whitewood intact.
In the first place, their purpose must have been a symbol of domination, and they must have thought that in order to obtain that precious treasure, there must be a corresponding collateral.
And if it was Yulken who was decided as collateral for this, and if he said that he had caused a commotion in Whitewood in advance and called him in for that purpose, the front and back fell into place.
“Perhaps the symbol of dominance takes precedence over the supply and demand of His Highness. Besides, the other side can’t harm Her Highness recklessly, because if that happens, it’s like throwing away valuable hostages on their own.”
“indeed… In other words, what the other side wants is to use Your Highness as an excuse to obtain the symbol of domination, not to return without obtaining anything.”
When Raymon nodded and agreed, the vassals who heard this nodded one after another.
That’s certainly true.
Above all, the reason they can seize the initiative now is because Yulken is in their hands, not because they have superiority in force.
If the news of the murder of Yulken spreads, or if there is a threat to his safety, the anger of the Loveheim family will be directed towards them.
At that time, blocking them with their power is virtually incompetent. That’s why they’re doing this hostage play.
“So all you have to do is pretend to be armed. However, they won’t be fooled in the slightest, so it would be better to decorate it with the momentum to start a real war.”
“You mean sit-in in front of Whitewood. Certainly, drawing attention from the front and doing it secretly from behind is a basic tactic, but… … .”
It is also a tactic with a high success rate as it is basic.
Especially if you can’t think of the background from the opponent’s point of view.
“What do you think, lady?”
“… … .”
Gail, who had been listening to Edgar and Raymon’s conversation from the side, turned her head and asked Ariel, who could be said to be the final decision maker in the current situation, but there was no answer.
It wasn’t because the answer wasn’t worthwhile, but because it sounded plausible, so I didn’t want to go over it, so I kept my mouth shut.
‘Who doesn’t know?’
She knew too. The fact that he wasn’t the type to commit something without a countermeasure.
In the end, to protect Yulken and Hespania, he had to make a choice.
But she couldn’t bring herself to tell Edgar to do this mission.
Even if I had to do it as the next family head, as his lover, I couldn’t bear to leave.
It’s not just a question of whether the success rate is high or low.
This case was unacceptable simply because there were a number of ways he could be wrong.
“Ariel.”
“… don’t call Don’t even come this way.”
As Edgar sneaked up to her and smiled, Ariel deliberately pushed him away and turned away.
It will definitely collapse. I will definitely allow it.
She had never won against Edgar in a situation like this before, and in the end she always gave in to his demands.
In order not to create such a situation, the first thing to do was to cover your ears and close your eyes.
If he persists in ignorance like this, he won’t be able to go in the end.
I wanted to stop it even if it was forced like that.
tight.
Something wrapped around her shoulder as she acted as coldly as possible and averted her gaze.
Ariel couldn’t even see the source, but she could quickly recognize what it was.
That would be the case, because it was the touch of her arms that she had felt many times before.
“don’t worry. I will definitely come back alive. So trust me and let me go just this once.”
“… … .”
Ariel quietly raised her hand and grabbed his arm, which wrapped around her body.
Somehow, it felt like his determination was conveyed through the arm he was holding.
And the fact that even if he didn’t allow this, he would definitely leave alone and somehow end up in Whitewood.
“… You know, right?”
“What?”
Her red lips, which had been clenched together as she decided not to separate them, fell, and a trembling voice came out of her mouth.
It was a voice that Edgar could clearly hear, but he didn’t bother to point it out.
“I’m not patient… And the fact that I hate waiting… … .”
“… I know.”
Ariel tried to continue talking as calmly as possible, just like before setting up the next appointment, but it seldom worked.
Tears trickled down her lips and trickled down her chin, but she couldn’t afford to wipe them away.
For now, I just had to get a confirmation from this stupid man that he would do anything to keep his promise.
“If it’s late… I will kill you.”
“… Seriously, I would have already died by then?”
“If you die, I will die too. Know that and go.”
It is a truly vicious threat.
A blackmail attempt while holding nothing else but Ariel’s own life hostage.
That’s why it worked better for Edgar.
“okay. I can’t let the grand duke’s daughter die, so I’ll definitely come alive.”
“Promise.”
A promise that I rarely made when I was young, swearing by the little finger.
Ariel asked for it, wiping away her tears, and Edgar smiled softly and hooked his fingers.
I know it’s a promise I shouldn’t make, but this is the only way to reassure her.
Even if she didn’t come back alive, she made a vague oath, thinking that she was a woman who would live a strong life.
The next day arrived, and just before the news spread that a large army had departed from Hespania, a pair of horses headed for Whitewood separately.
The ploy to find Yulken was done like that.