"Sister?"
Early morning.
Alois, the third son, who was in the middle of training, discovered his sister kneeling alone in the garden.
'How can she be so beautiful?'
Even her back radiated elegance, and her red hair exuded a sense of nobility, unlike theirs.
Alois truly loved his sister.
Just walking toward her made his heart race with excitement.
'If the roses had bloomed, it would have been a much better scene.'
Smiling slyly, Alois softly walked toward her.
"Sister, slacking off this early in the morning?"
He whispered quietly to ensure no one overheard their private conversation.
However, Liana didn't respond and kept her head lowered.
"Hmm?"
In front of her, a single lilac bloomed.
The moment he saw it, Alois frowned and sighed.
"What are the gardeners even doing?"
As if he had figured out why Liana was there, Alois muttered in irritation.
"Sister, I'll make sure to tell the gardeners to manage the garden properly. You don't need to worry so much—"
"Alois."
Alois instinctively stepped back.
The strange chill in Liana's voice made him feel a brief moment of fear.
"Y-Yes? Sister? What's wrong?"
"I'm the one taking care of that flower."
"…You, Sister?"
"Yes, so don't touch it carelessly."
"A-Alright."
Even as he answered, Alois tilted his head in confusion.
The Liana he knew wouldn't grow something like lilacs, let alone plant them in the family garden.
"Sigh."
Liana slowly stood up and turned around.
"I should get back to training."
As she passed by Alois, he noticed her eyes were red and swollen.
At that moment, Alois felt as if a bolt of lightning had struck him, his entire body bristling with shock.
'Sister… cried?'
It was a sight he had never witnessed before in his life.
The shock was so immense that he couldn't believe the person he saw was truly Liana.
"Heh."
Alois unconsciously let out a long smile, which he quickly covered with his hand.
Excitement welled up.
The tears of his sister, who was like an unbreakable fortress.
Seeing her buried in sorrow and anguish.
For the first time, it gave him an electrifying thrill.
'Is it because of Isaac?'
Alois quickly pieced the situation together with his sharp intuition.
That lilac must also be connected to Isaac somehow.
'I can just ask the gardener to confirm.'
But that wasn't important right now.
Alois deliberately followed Liana with brisk steps, pretending to be oblivious.
"Sister, have you decided on your next marriage partner?"
Liana stopped in her tracks.
Her cold gaze was tinged with faint anger and murderous intent.
'She's about to snap.'
Alois fought to suppress the bulge forming in his lower body, keeping a cheerful smile on his face.
"Staying divorced for too long might not be ideal, you know. Of course, rushing into another marriage doesn't seem great either, but—"
He continued to provoke her on purpose.
It was the first time his sister had shown such emotional reactions.
Alois was curious to see how Liana would respond.
"Someone like Sister has countless suitors lined up. So just forget about Isaac."
There was no justification for anger.
Would she instead show sadness?
Would she run away, saying she didn't want to hear it?
"After all, he wasn't worthy of you. In fact, divorcing him might be the best thing for Isaac."
This was the truth.
If Isaac hadn't asked for a divorce, things would have gone terribly wrong.
After all, the family head had given permission for Liana to have a child.
'For my sister to bear that bastard's child is just…'
Unable to bear the thought, Alois had even come up with a plan to drop a chandelier on him.
Though it ultimately failed, things had turned out better since Isaac had left on his own.
"Honestly, it must've been tough for a commoner like him to hold out in our household—"
"Alois."
A flat voice.
Liana, who had now returned to her usual expression.
As Alois felt a twinge of disappointment internally, Liana nonchalantly suggested:
"Let's spar."
"…Pardon?"
"Morning training. Spar with me. Come to think of it, it's been a while since I've fought you."
"…."
"Let me see how much you've improved."
"W-Wait a moment, Sister."
Alois called out to her in panic.
If they sparred now, he didn't know what kind of disaster might befall him.
The idea that she would vent her anger this way hadn't even crossed his mind. Alois was about to say something, but—
By then, Liana had already unsheathed her crimson greatsword, Ragnavel.
"Follow me, Alois."
The red aura emanating from Liana's entire body was the unique sword aura of Helmut, known as "Crimson Descent."
Although it was called sword aura, the crimson energy enveloping her body was more akin to armor.
Her long hair flowed as though it were dancing in the air.
"…."
Realizing he had crossed the line in his excitement, Alois couldn't help but grimace as he reluctantly grabbed his sword and followed her to the training ground.
***
'What a crazy father-daughter duo of heavy drinkers.'
Isaac, clutching his throbbing head, stepped onto the training ground with great reluctance.
The cold northern morning air pierced his lungs, helping alleviate the lingering effects of the strong liquor he had consumed the night before.
"Sir Isaac, are you alright?"
Jonathan approached him with a worried expression.
It seemed Isaac's face was in worse shape than he had realized.
"I'm fine. But Jonathan, how did I get back to my room last night?"
He wasn't joking—he really couldn't remember.
He distinctly recalled having an intense discussion about spear techniques with the father-daughter duo of the Caldias family, and the atmosphere had been pleasant.
But as Anna kept pouring him drinks, at some point, his memory had gone blank.
"You startled me last night, truly. Miss Silverna helped support you back to your room. I stayed up, worried about you."
"…She did? I'm sorry."
Isaac sighed, smacking his forehead with the palm of his hand.
Even his sigh reeked faintly of alcohol, making him wrinkle his nose.
"I got carried away, reminiscing about the times I used to drink with my master."
Still, Isaac had to admit he had genuinely enjoyed himself.
Uldren Caldias was a hero he hadn't had the chance to meet in his previous life.
A great general who had held off the invasion of the Transcendents for a month without any support from the kingdom.
Drinking with someone of such stature had left Isaac far more exhilarated than he'd anticipated.
"I'll have to apologize to Silverna too."
He also intended to ask her if he'd said anything inappropriate the night before.
"Excuse me, Sir Isaac."
"Hmm?"
"Pardon me for saying this… I know it might come across as presumptuous."
Jonathan hesitated, nervously gauging Isaac's reaction. With his hands neatly clasped and head slightly bowed, he cautiously offered his advice.
"Sir Isaac, you are Lady Liana's husband. Therefore, I think it would be best to… minimize interactions with women outside your marriage."
"…Right."
"I deeply apologize! I know I've overstepped!"
Jonathan looked like he was about to kneel in apology, so Isaac reached out and grabbed his shoulders to stop him.
"No, you're right."
"T-Thank you!"
Although Isaac planned to divorce Liana, the divorce hadn't been finalized yet. Apart from Helmut's direct family and a few servants, no one else was aware of the situation, so Jonathan's advice was logical and sound.
Isaac absentmindedly stroked the ring on his left ring finger, a bitter smile tugging at his lips, before deliberately steering the conversation in another direction.
"Jonathan, are you joining us for training? I heard the knights assigned as adjutants or bodyguards usually start duty immediately."
Due to the influx of many promising young nobles, the training process for them involved basic evaluation. However, their attendants—being skilled professionals—were directly assigned to positions like the defensive walls without delay.
"No, my duty starts in the afternoon. I came here to assist you, Sir Isaac, and to do some personal training as well."
Hardworking and sincere.
Jonathan's pure, almost rural smile reminded Isaac of a simple country boy. He patted Jonathan on the shoulder to encourage him just as a loud, indignant voice rang out across the training grounds.
"Why me?!"
A noble youth stepped forward from the group of assembled trainees and shouted at the officer in charge.
"Is this a joke? Does this mean you're mocking the Drakemoor family? Just because you know how to handle spears?!"
"That's not what I meant…"
Drakemoor?
Like Helmut, the Drakemoor family was also renowned for its swordsmanship. Although their status was far below Helmut, they were not a family to be underestimated.
"The nobles weren't sent here solely to guard the defensive walls. You'll also undertake escort missions, reconnaissance, patrols, and provide support to nearby villages. Our responsibilities here are diverse."
The officer maintained a calm demeanor despite the blatant insubordination, but the noble youth wasn't having it.
"So what? Are you trying to imply I said I wouldn't do my duty? Or that I'm unwilling?"
"…"
"I'm offended that you're treating us like fools and subjecting us to these ridiculous drills. I held back yesterday, but today you're making us do these basic exercises again?"
A faint murmur of agreement rippled through the gathered nobles.
"The only reason we're here is because you failed to clean up the beast lair properly. Your incompetence brought us here, and now you're testing us as if we're the ones at fault? You can't even propose a solution for the lair!"
The atmosphere grew tense.
While the noble was undeniably crossing the line, the subtle support from other nobles in the group encourage him.
Any misstep here could alienate a significant faction of influential noble families.
"Tch."
A sharp scoff interrupted the commotion as a short-haired woman confidently stepped into the training grounds, spear in hand.
Silverna Caldias.
With a grin brimming with competitive spirit, she approached the noble from Drakemoor and stood before him.
"Name?"
"Meladik Drakemoor."
Meladik slowly placed his hand on the hilt of his sword. Silverna's lips curled into a smirk at the sight.
"At least you have some sense. Draw your sword. I'll personally verify whether you're fit to survive while serving on the defensive wall."
This was the way of the North.
The moment Meladik started causing trouble, the outcome had already been set.
Now, all eyes were on the two of them as the tension thickened.
"Jonathan, watch Silverna's spear technique carefully. You'll learn a lot from it."
"I use a greatsword, though?"
"Don't spout nonsense and just watch carefully."
"Yes, sir!"
Jonathan saluted and widened his eyes, focusing intently on the sparring match.
How nostalgic.
Isaac crossed his arms and smiled faintly.
In his previous life, he had first met Silverna a few years later than this.
That was after the Malidan Wall had fallen to the Transcendents, leaving him the sole survivor thanks to everyone else's sacrifices.
She had abandoned the name Silverna and was living as Caldias when the Grandmaster had brought her.
I was so shocked back then.
The first time he saw her spear technique, it had been a revelation, as if a new world had opened up before him. He'd even followed her around like a puppy with a cane for a while, pestering her with questions.
"I didn't call it 'great spear technique' for nothing."
"Understood!"
Adding a casual remark for Jonathan, Isaac smiled, looking forward to witnessing a good show after so long.
The sparring match began.
In only five exchanges, Meladik fell flat on his backside, dropping his sword.
The soldiers erupted into cheers around the training grounds.
"As expected of the lady! You're the best!"
"Amazing! That was perfect spearwork!"
"Glory to the great Caldias!"
In contrast, the dispatched nobles' morale plummeted, and their eyes turned toward Meladik with resentful gazes.
Jonathan, too, couldn't hold back his admiration.
"T-that's incredible. So this is Caldias' spear technique!"
While Jonathan was busy exclaiming in awe, Isaac's reaction was… different. He stared in disbelief, his mouth slightly agape, muttering under his breath.
"No… no way…"
"Excuse me?"
"No, no, that's not right…"
"W-what do you mean?"
Jonathan, puzzled by Isaac's reaction, asked hesitantly. Isaac, uncharacteristically flustered, blurted out the truth.
"No! That wasn't it! That was… that was just trash!"
What had he just witnessed?
Was that… really supposed to be Silverna's spear technique?
His bewildered outburst carried across the training grounds.
Unfortunately, it seemed that the sharp northern winds had carried his voice straight to Silverna's ears.
"What?"
The atmosphere froze.