Early Morning.
Isaac stood in the garden, carrying a bag on his back.
The rose garden, hailed as the pride of Helmut, had yet to bloom; even the buds had not appeared.
By June, when the Sword Festival began, the roses would be in full bloom, spreading their enchanting fragrance everywhere.
Helmut's roses were a special breed, blooming until just before winter arrived.
"They were beautiful."
In this place called Helmut, which held nothing but hideous and bitter memories for him,
The rose garden was the only thing that could truly be described as beautiful.
In the corner of that garden—
There stood a single purple lilac, blooming out of season as if to get a head start.
"…"
Its presence was annoyingly out of place, and it furrowed Isaac's brow.
That lilac had been planted by none other than Isaac himself.
He didn't know why the meticulously diligent gardeners of Helmut hadn't uprooted it yet.
'I should just pull it out myself.'
The moment he approached to pluck it out—
A knight, slightly larger than Isaac and youthful enough to still look boyish, stood before him and saluted.
"Sir! I am Jonathan, tasked with escorting Isaac Helmut to the Malidan frontline! It is an honor to serve you, sir!"
"Ugh."
Isaac instinctively winced at the loud, booming voice that rang in his ears.
Jonathan, with an innocent smile like that of a child, wore the Helmut's heavy armor and carried a massive greatsword.
With his short, military-cut blonde hair and innocent face, he extended his hand for a handshake.
"I'm Isaac. Nice to meet you."
"Yes, sir! I swear I'll keep you safe until the Sword Festival!"
Jonathan was one of the conditions set by Arandel Helmut for sending Isaac to the Malidan frontline.
If Isaac were to die or escape there, it would cause problems, so Jonathan served as both escort and watchdog.
'They've sent a surprisingly incompetent one.'
It seemed the head of the family had merely issued an order to assign a knight, and after all the shuffling and delegation, someone like Jonathan had ended up being chosen.
After all, there was no need for an exceptional knight to guard someone like Isaac, who couldn't even wield a sword properly.
"Well then, let's head—"
"Ah! Isaac."
Just as they were about to leave, another interruption occurred.
When Isaac turned to see what it was this time, he spotted the eldest son, Lohengrin, approaching with a gentle smile.
His long red hair swayed as he moved, and a crimson aura radiated from his entire body.
It seemed he had been training until just now.
Lohengrin, the eldest son.
To sum him up, he was a psychopath.
An emotionally unstable lunatic who oscillated between extremes and had often beaten Isaac under the pretense of sparring or venting his frustrations.
For the first time, however, he was smiling at his brother-in-law.
"I heard you're leaving. How could you do this to me? Divorce, of all things. We've spent so much time and shared so many memories together."
'Crazy bastard.'
How could someone spout such nonsense so convincingly?
The so-called "memories" consisted of nothing but beating him up under the guise of sparring or toying with him in petty ways.
Lohengrin leaned in close, smiling, and whispered.
"Liana was the one who asked for the divorce, wasn't she? She's aiming for the family head's position! Father even gave her permission to have a child, yet she's choosing divorce instead. You know what that means, right?"
"…"
The eldest son and the eldest daughter.
Even with Lohengrin being a year older, this conversation made it clear why Arandel hesitated between the two.
"If she has a child, she won't be able to become the family head! That's why she's insisting on divorce. If she divorces you, she won't have to bear a child and still has a chance at becoming the family head!"
"Ah, I see."
Lohengrin chuckled as if he had made a groundbreaking discovery.
"Isaac, don't you want revenge? Don't you want to get back at Liana, who discarded you just for the family head's position?!"
"…"
"Then, grow stronger."
He then subtly pulled something from his coat and handed it to Isaac.
"This is…"
"You know what this is, right? Roselixir! The Helmut family's secret elixir, granted only to those of our bloodline."
Lohengrin smirked slyly, whispering in a low voice.
"As the eldest son, only I could give you something like this. Drink it, survive, grow stronger, and come back. I believe in you, brother."
With a playful wink, Lohengrin returned to his training.
'Brother, my ass.'
In this life, just a few days ago, he had forced Isaac to hold a sword, beating him up in frustration over his own slow progress in swordsmanship.
Now, watching him try so hard to backstab Liana for his own ambition of becoming the head of the family was almost pitiable.
"Um, Sir Isaac?"
"Pretend you didn't see anything."
Noticing Jonathan's awkward glance, Isaac sighed and opened the lid of the Roselixir Lohengrin had handed him.
The distinctive scent was faint.
"Tch."
Roselixir, my foot.
Judging by how diluted it was, it wasn't even close to the genuine article.
Judging by how diluted it was, it seemed Loengrin had given him an overly watered-down version.
"He probably plans to frame Liana for using the family's elixir on me as soon as I leave."
Isaac let out a deep sigh.
Most likely, as soon as he left, they'd notice a discrepancy between the ledger and the actual amount of Roselixir and use it as leverage against Liana.
'Pathetic.'
Frankly, Liana didn't seem like the type to be swayed by such petty schemes.
Isaac glanced back at the mansion.
Liana didn't appear.
She was likely still in a deep sleep after drinking last night.
[Take care.]
It was a pitifully brief farewell for someone leaving.
"Let's go, Jonathan."
Without looking back, Isaac left.
He couldn't bear to remain in that mansion any longer.
Together, Isaac and Jonathan headed for the frontlines.
***
[Isaac, the Grandmaster said it himself: if your legs were intact, you would've become a great swordsman.]
In a vivid memory, a woman with flowing white hair smiled at him as she spoke.
"Just empty words of comfort."
When Isaac responded with a bitter smile, the woman frowned and shot back.
[The Grandmaster doesn't say words of comfort. I think the same. If only your legs were fine. If only you hadn't become that damned Helmut's son-in-law…]
"Don't get worked up. That's your flaw."
[Those muscle-brained fools in Helmut couldn't even recognize your talent.]
"You're not listening, are you?"
[Isaac, the Silent sword! The man who wields the sword with words and knowledge. Everyone knows how invaluable your manuals and guides have been. My spear has evolved several levels thanks to you.]
"Alright, I get it. How many times are you going to repeat this?"
[I mean it, Isaac.]
[I'm truly grateful.]
[I just wish I had met you earlier.]
"Have you been drinking?"
[I suppose it's because the decisive battle with the Transcendent Tribe is so close. There's no way we're making it out alive, is there?]
"…."
Isaac fell silent.
[If only I had met you sooner, perhaps my family wouldn't have been wiped out so pointlessly.]
"That's an overestimation."
[Oh? Is that what you think? Not me.]
She chuckled bitterly.
[It's late, Isaac. Go get some rest.]
"Alright. Don't overdo it either, Caldias."
After a brief pause, she hesitated and spoke again.
[Hey, you know…]
"Hm?"
[Silverna.]
Isaac froze.
[The name I abandoned for the sake of my family.]
[Silverna Caldias.]
[That's my true name, Isaac.]
***
"Sir Isaac!"
"Hmm?"
Isaac slowly opened his eyes at Jonathan's call.
Several days had already passed. Riding in a carriage for so long had left his body aching all over.
Still, youth has its perks.
As he stretched his right foot, which he still found miraculous to move, he listened to Jonathan's exited voice.
"We're almost there! Even though it's the front lines, the roads were cleared well, so we arrived quickly!"
"Yawn, yeah, seems like it."
A yawn escaped him, along with visible puffs of white breath.
Even under a blanket, the chilly air that seeped into the carriage managed to penetrate his entire body.
This was the northern part of the kingdom.
The great Malidan Wall, built to hold back the rampaging beasts.
And guarding that wall—
"We need to be careful now. We're entering enemy territory."
"Enemy territory? They're nobles of the same kingdom."
After spending a few days camping out with Jonathan, Isaac realized something about him.
To put it nicely, Jonathan was pure-hearted.
To put it bluntly, he was an idiot.
He even seemed to be somewhat of an outcast. He'd told me about being subjected to bizarre training: restricted sleep, food, movement, even bathroom access.
Apparently, there was a time he wet his pants because of it…
"This is the territory of the Caldias family, isn't it? The rivals of the Helmut family! The sword of Helmut and the spear of Caldias!"
Jonathan spoke in a grandiose manner, as if narrating a heroic tale, but in the end, it was just a prideful squabble between noble houses.
That said, the Helmut and Caldias families indeed didn't get along.
This was precisely why Liana had been worried.
Once they learned Isaac was from Helmut, they were bound to give him a hard time.
"What if they hit us? I've been wrapped in blankets and beaten before, but they might really hurt us here, don't you think?"
"Don't worry; at least both of us are experienced in taking hits."
"Sir Isaac! Have you also been hit before?"
"Haven't you seen Helmut's training for its direct descendants?"
He'd been beaten all day there.
Any knight of Helmut wouldn't be unaware of that.
"Oh, I don't participate in training. I've only been a knight of Helmut for a year."
"Then what do you even do?"
"Recently, I've been training to mimic a horse because they say knights need to understand their horses better!"
"You mor— Ahem, Jonathan? Honestly, you should just quit being a knight. Why not join somewhere else, at least not Helmut?"
"My heart is made of roses!"
"Then you'd already be dead."
Sighing, Isaac gazed up at the looming Malidan Wall, which drew closer.
Though he hadn't seen it personally in his past life, it was exactly as described in the stories.
'Now I understand why northern residents revere the Malidan Wall.'
It truly was a monumental protector of humanity.
The traces of time etched onto its surface served as evidence of how long the wall had safeguarded their lands.
That's why, when the Malidan Wall fell in his past life—
The kingdom could do nothing as the front lines began to collapse.
If it hadn't been for Helmut's great sword holding the line, the capital would've been quickly overrun.
As they neared the wall—
"So it was that foul honeyed scent making my stomach turn!"
A woman's thunderous voice echoed across the sky.
At the same time, laughter rang out from atop the wall.
"Someone dares carry such a dainty floral fragrance here in the north? It's so nauseating I feel like throwing up the bear meat I ate today!"
"Uh, uh, Sir Isaac?"
"Stop the carriage, Jonathan."
"Y-yes!"
Jonathan halted the carriage with a squeak.
As Isaac stepped out, a woman peered down from the top of the wall, her expression souring.
"Hah! I am the spear and shield of the Malidan Wall!"
Though he hadn't said a word, she boldly introduced herself.
"Silverna Caldias! State your name!"
Isaac couldn't help but laugh faintly.
So this was a time when she hadn't yet abandoned the name Silverna.
'That's right, Silverna.'
As the wind carried her voice, I thought:
I've come to meet you.
"Who are you, you scrawny little thing!?"
"..."