“Well, even so, I don’t think she’s helping me out of pure goodwill. Most likely, that mage approached me because she has her own goals too.”
But so what? From the beginning, the relationship between lord and vassal is much drier than it seems.
The knight offers his body and loyalty, and in exchange the lord promises fair treatment and promotion. That’s how the feudal system was born.
If even a traditional relationship is based on mutual benefit, why would a mage be any different? For Lucian, it wasn’t anything new.
“As long as it’s beneficial for both sides, I see no problem in being on the same boat, whatever her plans may be. If she has her own goal, let her pursue it. If I gain something in the process, that’s enough.”
“And what if that mage tries to betray you, Your Highness? What if she intends to accomplish her goal by sacrificing you?”
“Is that really something that needs to be said?”
Instead of answering, Lucian gave a cold smile and lightly tapped the sword hanging at his waist.
That gesture said far more than a hundred words. Raymond let out a bitter smile.
“I worried too much. After all, you’re not the type to let someone crafty live if they tried to play dirty.”
“As long as you understand. By the way, where’s Felicia? I wanted to give her the nectar, but I haven’t seen her anywhere.”
“She’s meditating on the north wall. She said she’s learned many things recently and needs to absorb them.”
“I see… if I go now, I’d just interrupt her.”
Felicia had inherited all the teachings of the Swordmaster. That meditation was part of the process to fully integrate those teachings into her body.
Interrupting her just to hand her a bottle of nectar could stall years of progress.
“No helping it. Tell her to take the nectar and then come to my office with Hugo. I’m going to call Colin.”
“Is this a summons? Should I call the others too?”
“No. This time, it’s something I need to say only to you all. It’s a matter that requires a certain level of discretion.”
After saying that, Lucian brought his index finger to his lips and left. Raymond watched his back with a confused expression, then smiled faintly.
He recalled the Lucian from their first meeting, when everything was a secret.
‘But too many things have changed now.’
The one who was once just the third son of House Valdeck was now a border marquis and duke, solidifying his position as ruler of the north.
He had also recruited Ian, a genius alchemist, and had Felicia, the future Swordmaster, as his closest ally.
To that, add the vast inheritance of the northern royal house and the legitimate right to free mages from their chains, granted by the emperor himself.
If he also obtained an army absolutely loyal to him, nothing would be able to stop him.
‘Perhaps this will be the last journey I take with my lord.’
The higher someone rises, the greater their power, the heavier their steps become.
From now on, every move Lucian made would shake armies.
It would no longer be possible to roam freely with just a handful of close companions. Raymond would no longer be just a knight; he’d be required to act as a commander.
“Then I’ll have to engrave the last great feat of the Black Lion, Raymond, into my lord’s eyes.”
Muttering that, Raymond drank the nectar in one gulp.
Immediately, a refreshing sensation enveloped his entire body, and he opened his eyes wide.
***
‘At last.’
Helen, who had come to the office after being summoned by Lucian, tightly clutched her sleeve, her face flushed.
After so much waiting, Lucian had finally decided to head beyond the tundra. For Helen, who had been growing impatient, it was cause for celebration.
‘Calm down. Now is when the real work begins.’
She placed a hand over her chest and held back her excitement. It wasn’t time to be happy just yet.
If she failed, all the trust she had built would crumble in an instant.
Having stepped forward with such confidence, she had to ensure that no matter what, she placed a real army in Lucian’s hands.
‘For that, first…’
“Hmm? Didn’t I just summon you? You’re here already?”
Lucian’s voice from the door startled Helen, who immediately stood up.
As she turned, she saw that not only Lucian entered the office, but also her older brother, Colin.
“My respects, Your Highness.”
“Good, have a seat. As you said, I called Colin and my close aides, but each of them had things to attend to, so they’ll take a while to arrive.”
“What? Did you say Helen summoned me? What’s going on?”
Colin, who had been called without warning, looked at Helen and Lucian in confusion.
It was clear Helen hadn’t told him anything.
Lucian gave a slight nod, signaling her to explain, and Helen smiled at her older brother before speaking.
“Calm down. Actually…”
As Helen explained, Colin’s eyes widened more and more.
The barbarian tribes beyond the tundra. Warriors who could immediately become an army. The true king of the north.
When Helen finished speaking and closed her mouth, Colin burst out shouting.
“What the hell are you trying to do!? Tribes beyond the tundra? Barbarians that can be used as an army? I’ve never heard of any of that!”
“Of course not. Because I never told you.”
“That’s not what I’m asking! Why did you decide all this in secret, on your own? Why didn’t you even tell me?”
“Because Master told me not to.”
“…What?”
“He’s suffered too much already; I’m sure he longs for comfort now. He said he would definitely try to convince his lord to retire peacefully, so better to leave him out of it.”
At the mention of their master, Colin was left speechless, his mind blank.
There was no trace of the anger from before; only total bewilderment remained on his face.
Leaving her older brother in that stunned state, Helen turned back to Lucian.
“Your Majesty, I’d like to ask if the people currently being gathered are the very ones I mentioned.”
“That’s right. It’s a small elite group that will head beyond the snowy plains. They said six was the maximum number to travel safely, so I prepared exactly that.”
“Then, excluding my older brother, Your Majesty, and myself, that makes three. Are they Sir Hugo, Sir Raymond, and Lady Felicia?”
“Why? Is there a problem?”
That those three were Lucian’s closest aides was something everyone knew.
There were no more suitable candidates to accompany him to such a dangerous place.
However, Helen, tense to her limit, spoke in a firm tone until the end.
“Sir Hugo is fine. But I believe it would be better to replace Sir Raymond and Lady Felicia with others.”
“You… what are you saying…?”
Colin, still half-dazed, shouted in alarm. Not only was she suggesting reversing a sovereign’s decision without even being a formal vassal yet, she was also asking to remove his closest companions.
Even if she had several heads, they wouldn’t be enough for such boldness.
Even so, Lucian looked at Helen with interest.
“The reason?”
“In Sir Raymond’s case, the problem is his mana. In Lady Felicia’s case, her gender.”
“I didn’t think you’d consider gender a problem.”
“Mages and knights carry different expectations; therefore, their problems are also different.”
“Very well. Let’s start with Raymond. What do you mean by his mana being a problem?”
“Exactly what it sounds like. Sir Raymond lacks a sufficient absolute quantity of mana.”
Beyond the snowy plain lies eternal permafrost. It’s frozen all year round, so surviving the cold is no easy feat.
Of course, the warriors of the barbarian tribes must possess enormous amounts of mana.
If they don’t constantly reinforce their bodies with mana, they quickly become exhausted and die.
“The barbarian tribes’ techniques are mediocre. That’s why they don’t even compare technical superiority. When they fight, brute strength is all that matters.”
“I see. No matter how good your technique is, if your mana is lacking, they’ll treat you like a weakling. Seems they value raw power over swordsmanship.”
“That’s right. Sir Raymond is undoubtedly an excellent knight, and his swordsmanship is at a high level, but his amount of mana is not enough…”
“Your Majesty. Sir Hugo and Sir Raymond have arrived.”
As if deliberately interrupting Helen’s words, the guard’s voice came from outside. With Lucian’s permission, the office door opened.
Helen turned her head without thinking—and immediately opened her eyes wide.
‘What is this? His mana just shot up out of nowhere!’
Hugo was the same as always—a colossal amount of mana that would take an average knight decades, if ever, to accumulate.
What had changed was Raymond, whose mana had barely reached decent levels yesterday.
She had checked it multiple times, but in just one day, it had increased to rival Hugo’s. It was shocking enough to make her fall over.
“Were we interrupting a meeting?”
“More than a meeting, Helen was saying she wanted to change a directive that was recently decided. Specifically, she wanted to exclude Raymond and Felicia.”
“…”
Raymond looked at Helen with an ambiguous expression. It wasn’t anger, but the kind of look one gives a child who doesn’t know when to speak and when to stay silent.
Faced with that look, Helen blushed and bowed in apology.
“I’m sorry. That was thoughtless of me.”
“Weren’t you so firm in your stance, and now you’re taking it back just because I arrived?”
“It’s not that. The reason I proposed replacing Sir Raymond was solely because of his amount of mana. But now that I see him…”
“He has a quantity that doesn’t fall short even compared to Hugo’s?”
Seeing Lucian let out a hearty laugh, Helen felt a chill run down her spine.
It was obvious that Raymond’s sudden increase in mana was due to something Lucian had done.
‘What exactly did he do? Did he already have some elixir prepared? Or if not…?’
Helen forcefully shook off those chained thoughts. Unnecessary speculation wouldn’t help at all.
The only thing that was certain was that, even in a situation where contact with the outside was so difficult, Lucian had the capacity to acquire an elixir and give it to a vassal.
Just from that, Helen found it impossible to truly gauge the extent of his abilities.
“Well, I’m glad you changed your mind. Now then, explain why I should exclude Felicia.”
At Lucian’s words, spoken with a slight smile, Helen swallowed hard and lowered her head.
“Lady Felicia is, without a doubt, a knight with few rivals. But, as I said earlier, the problem is her gender. Just because she’s a woman, the barbarian tribes will oppose her in every way and won’t acknowledge her.”
“Do they really treat women that harshly? From what I’ve seen, those who live in such harsh lands usually need women’s strength as well, so their voices tend to carry weight.”
“Actually, it’s quite the opposite. It’s such a dangerous land that they can’t even imagine a woman doing work that risks her life. To them, a woman can be a prophetess, an advisor, or a shaman—but not a warrior.”
It’s a land where the bodies of those who died frozen form hills. It’s natural they are extremely sensitive about population, and that they value even more the women who can give birth.
Even if many men die, as long as the survivors take multiple wives, they can always increase their numbers.
In other words, there the division of roles between men and women is even stricter than in places where a female knight is seen as something out of a fairytale.
“I’m a mage, so they won’t find that strange. But for a woman, with that body, to call herself a warrior would be a direct rejection of their common sense and traditions.”
“Then let’s use this opportunity to change that common sense entirely. If it’s broken head-on, they’ll change their thinking too.”
“These are prejudices that have lasted more than a thousand years. Winning a few times won’t be nearly enough. It would take an impact on the level of heaven and earth turning upside down. Maybe Sir Eisen could do it, but with Lady Felicia’s current strength…”
“Your Majesty. The lady has arrived.”
Once again, the guard’s voice came as if perfectly timed. With Lucian’s permission, the door opened in silence.
Determined not to back down this time, Helen turned her head.
And in that instant, she was left speechless.
‘…What is this?’
Helen knew Felicia was strong. Excluding Swordmaster Eisen, Felicia was the strongest knight she had ever seen.
But the Felicia she now saw was different. Before, her strength was within the realm of what could be measured as human; now, however, it was impossible even to glimpse her limits.
Felicia entered, bowed deeply to Lucian, then looked at Helen with icy eyes.
“Is my skill so lacking?”
At that icy voice, Helen couldn’t say anything; she only lowered her head in silence.
____
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