novelraw Chapter 254
Chapter 254
253. Engagement - Gift
On a snow-capped mountain peak, beyond the rocky terrain, stood a gray castle. The scene transitioned to Avril Castle, marking the beginning of the engagement scenario.
Two houses stood side by side.
Though they were the same height at two stories, they differed in style. The house on the left had a long roof, similar to the other houses in the area.
The steep roof covering the second floor had windows, and the stacked stones caused the falling snow to slide off.
The rough finishing exposed beams in some places, and apart from the wooden pillars, there was nothing but stone.
In contrast, the house on the right was a refined structure, with the pRaned wood standing out.
The materials were the same thin gray stones sourced from the nearby mountains, and the amount of wood used was likely similar. However, unlike the other houses that had haphazardly piled stones, this house was artfully constructed.
Wood was visible between the stone walls, adding a decorative touch to what could have been a monotonous wall.
Indeed, it was the home of the esteemed Dexter family. In the clearing behind it, Leo Dexter gazed at the unchanged house, his own sturdy physique, his body temperature, and Lena Ainar, who was confidently swinging a sword. The sight made him feel as if he might cry, so he looked up at the snow-filled sky.“Leo! Are you listening to me?”
Lena turned around. It was heartwarming to see her resting her practice sword on her shoulder.
Her pride... was something he cherished.
“Of course. I’m listening. I’ve been... listening.”
[Achievement: ‘20th’ Leo – The rate at which the player synchronizes with Leo slightly increases.]
[20/23]
[You do not know the true name.]
Minseo, you bastard.
What? Make Lena a princess? Damn it.
You have no idea how much we suffered because of that misguided judgment. In the end, I became a Sword Master, and it was fortunate that I learned I had to hide my skills from Lena.
But the process was horrifying.
An engaged relationship.
If I had known that, I should have guessed from the beginning that making Lena a princess wasn’t the endgame. Every cycle, every day was hell. I couldn’t sleep at night, thinking that one day I would have to break off my engagement with Lena, and I was frustrated with my lover’s desire to become a knight.
Looking back now, Lena hadn’t done a single thing wrong.
She didn’t abandon her harsh fiancé who talked about breaking off the engagement, and on the battlefield, she fought harder than anyone else. She never neglected her training, never resorted to cheap tricks, and never did anything that would tarnish a knight’s honor.
The fault lies with Minseo... and further with me. My first mistake was accepting the words of that useless scum just because he was supposed to be an ally. It was wrong from the start to entrust my life to someone else.
Leo banished the remnants of Minseo from his mind.
The 20th Leo. With the synchronization counter piling up, the faint remnants of Minseo couldn’t even make a sound. Despite feeling somewhat guilty, Minseo timidly suggested, “Wouldn’t it be better to avoid war?” But Leo Dexter didn’t accept it.
Lena spoke up.
“You know the merchant group that’s here now? Let’s go buy something later.”
“Sure. I was planning to go anyway, so that works out.”
Leo confirmed the ‘initial funds’ in his pocket with a slight jingle before continuing.
“Lena, before that, how about we have one more sparring match? There’s something I want to try.”
“Huh? We just sparred earlier. Hmm... fine. You didn’t get enough last time, did you?”
Lena grinned and set aside her practice sword, picking up her actual sword. Leo also picked up his own sword.
The sword was practically a part of him. Deliberately loosening the strong bond, Leo held the sword lightly as he spoke.
“You’d better be on your guard.”
“Leo, you’re quite talkative today. Just get on with it... Ah!”
Leo spun his body lightly and brought his sword down. Lena initially thought it was a powerful strike and laid her sword flat.
-Clang.
“Huh?”
She expected a fatal blow, but Leo’s sword merely tapped hers lightly. Realizing that his lower body was rotating, Lena quickly raised her knee.
“What the...!”
Lena blocked Leo’s kick and realized she was at a disadvantage from the start. Leo, having kicked, leisurely stepped inside her guard.
He’s aiming for the hilt.
Using her lowered sword as leverage, Leo raised the hilt. If she didn’t react, her chin was at risk, so Lena stomped the ground with her raised leg. Moving to Leo’s right, she slashed her sword diagonally.
“Whoa!”
Leo exaggeratedly retreated. Having spent his breath on a cheap trick, now it’s my turn!
Lena thrust her sword forward.
Judging that the retreating Leo wouldn’t be able to block, she continued her attack...
But Leo’s relaxed movements made her hesitate. If she had just spun her aimless sword around, she could have easily blocked it, but she didn’t stop her thrust...
“Ah! Lena, you’re going to kill someone!”
“What?! I-I’m sorry. Are you okay?”
The thrust hit its mark.
“You’ve got to be careful. It’s just a sparring match, not real combat. What if you stab someone like that?”
Leo, who had fallen on his rear, rubbed his waist where he had narrowly avoided the blow.
It was really close. His clothes were torn, and a scratch had formed on his skin.
If he hadn’t instinctively kicked off to the side while falling, his stomach would have been pierced.
“Sorry. Can you get up?”
“No. My legs are weak... Help me up.”
Feeling guilty, Lena grabbed Leo’s hand. At that moment, Leo pulled her down hard, causing her to fall over.
“You little! I almost had to visit the church. You owe me for these clothes.”
“But... I don’t have any money...”
Though she had more money than others her age, she didn’t have a single coin left after setting aside the funds to buy leather straps at the market later.
“Are you telling me to cut open my stomach? You’re getting payback!”
“W-Wait... Kyaahahaha! It tickles! Stop... Kyaah! It’s cold!”
A brief commotion erupted in the snow-covered clearing. Leo, who had been tickling Lena, decided it wasn’t enough and began packing snow into her clothes.
Of course, Lena didn’t just sit idly by, and the two of them rolled around for a while, panting heavily as they lay on the ground. Leo held Lena’s hand tightly.
The sky was overcast, but the air was crisp. Leo stood up and looked down at Lena.
“...”
“...You’re handsome.”
“Now, hurry up and pay me back for the clothes.”
Leo kissed Lena. They rubbed noses and smiled before getting up.
“I’m going to wash up first. Since you’re guilty, you clean up.”
“Okay.”
*Leo disappeared towards the well, and Lena, left in the clearing, began to gather the scattered swords. Then, something came to mind, and she picked up a sword again.*
How did Leo do it earlier?
Tentatively, she tried to mimic the unusual sword technique Leo had shown. Unbeknownst to her, it was Katrina’s swordsmanship.
---
“Leo, about that thing you did earlier...”
Leo and Lena were hurrying towards the market. They were worried it might have closed since it was late, but fortunately, it was still open.
“Hm? That thing earlier? I just thought it might work, so I tried it, but it didn’t. It’s too hard on the body. You need to be extremely flexible to pull it off. Lena, what should we eat?”
“Wait a moment.”
Lena fumbled in her pocket. A single silver coin. She shook her head.
“I don’t have any money.”
“I’ll pay. I’ve got plenty.”
“Wow. What’s gotten into you? You’re dead today. In that case~”
Despite her teasing tone, Lena only picked some cheap snacks. As she nibbled on a piece of meat marinated in sweet sauce, she looked around the market.
“Leo, wait here for a bit. I’m going to buy something over there.”
It was a stall selling leather goods.
Leo smiled and said, “Sure, take your time.” Then, he turned away.
Something was odd.
In the previous cycle, he hadn’t paid attention to it, but now, the barbarian sisters Ran Aviker and Anne Aviker, along with Barnaul, were in a strange location.
In this small Avril Castle, if they were present, his {Tracking} skill should have shown their direction changing frequently with just a bit of walking. However, the direction towards the two sisters remained fixed at the northeast, indicating they were quite far away.
Leo went to find a merchant named Vernon. He was the owner of this merchant group and the one who had previously brought the Aviker sisters on a journey.
“Welcome! Are you looking for something? Don’t worry about the cost—jewelry isn’t always expensive. If you’re here to find a gift...”
“Sorry, I’m not here to buy anything. I just wanted to ask you something.”
“Anything at all. I’m happy to give you a quote.”
...I feel a bit guilty.
“Do you know Ran and Anne Aviker?”
“Oh? How do you know Ran and Anne? Could it be...?”
“Don’t misunderstand. I’m not from the Aviker tribe. I was born in Barnaul. I had a brief connection with them, and I heard you were from Barnaul, so I thought I’d ask.”
“Ah, you’re lucky. I know Ran and Anne well. What do you want to know?”
Why didn’t they come here? But Leo couldn’t ask so directly, so he diverted the conversation. As usual, a bit of lying was necessary.
“I’m curious about how they’re doing. When I last saw them, the kids were this small...”
“Haha, they’ve grown a lot now. Please, have a seat.”
Vernon seemed pleased to meet someone who knew Ran and Anne, so he offered Leo a seat and served him tea.
They exchanged names and small talk. Leo introduced himself as ‘Euan,’ to hide the fact that he was the son of the infamous Noel Dexter from Barnaul.
Vernon spoke up.
“But I’m really worried. Ran and Anne seem to have some kind of illness... They act strangely at night.”
“What do you mean by strange behavior?”
“Sometimes at night, they wander around as if possessed. Even with their kids and husband around. At first, I thought they were just patrolling like during the Old Nine War, but they say they don’t remember anything. The doctor says it’s sleepwalking, so it’s not something to worry about.”
“Hmm...”
Ran and Anne seem to have an illness?
Leo couldn’t be certain. He had no memory of the 14th cycle when he had met Ran and Anne Aviker.
The fact that they had children, that they had hunted the magical beast Sulgak Saro with him and traveled to Barnaul—all of these were details passed on to him by Minseo when the cycle ended, after ‘I’ had mentally checked out.
There must be gaps in the details. Leo figured Minseo didn’t share them because they weren’t important, so he spoke up.
“In that case, changing their living environment might help. Perhaps a trip would do them good?”
“That’s what I thought too. Honestly, it’s not just that. You probably know this, but Ran and Anne are excellent warriors. I tried to convince them to join the merchant group to save on mercenary fees, but they refused.”
“Why?”
They had agreed to come along in the previous cycle.
Leo wondered why they hadn’t come this time and asked, but Vernon just shrugged.
“It’s probably because of the kids. It wasn’t an easy decision.”
“...That’s a shame. If they had come along, I could have seen them again after so long.”
Leo feigned disappointment to wrap up the conversation. He wanted to warn this merchant against going to the Brina Barony, but it felt like overstepping, and he had no way to persuade him, so he just chewed on his words. At that moment, a voice called out from behind.
“Hey! Leo! I’ve been looking for you. What are you doing here?”
It was Lena. Leo nodded to the merchant, who wouldn’t be around in a few weeks, and stepped outside. Vernon smiled as he saw him off.
“What were you doing here? Were you buying me a gift? Did I interrupt?”
“If it’s a gift, I already bought one.”
Leo pulled out a ‘pretty necklace’ from his pocket. Just as the name suggested, it was a beautiful blue necklace that suited Lena perfectly.
“Oh... I was just joking. Thanks. Was it expensive?”
“Hugely expensive. Even if you sold Avril Castle, you couldn’t buy two of these.”
Hahaha!
Lena burst into laughter. With a satisfied expression, she pulled out a leather strap hidden at her waist.
“Here. I was going to give this as a birthday present... but oh well. Just take it. Your sword hilt looked a bit worn.”
Even though he had anticipated the gift, Leo was genuinely surprised and smiled brightly.
I’m going to live happily with Lena.
I’ll fulfill her dreams, and be so happy that Rev, who reached the true ending by sipping tea in a way that didn’t suit him, will be envious.
In the market of Avril Castle, the couple, with nothing to hide, walked arm in arm. Leo playfully tousled Lena’s hair and received a kiss on the cheek in return. Lena, too, enjoyed Leo’s newfound openness, chatting cheerfully.
It was a happy night.
Even as the Red Moon rose in the sky.
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