Raising the Princess to Overcome Death

Chapter 255

254. Engagement - Priority

"I've traveled a lot since my younger days. There's not a corner of the continent I haven't been to. The warm southern seas, was it Bomère...? The raging volcanoes of the Holy Kingdom of Jérôme, the first city of humanity, Orville, in the center of the continent, and even the swamps in the eastern part of the continent. Of course, I've also been to the Cornel Tower, the first mage tower."

- Gulp

Old Boris took a swig of his drink. The wrinkles on his face, highlighted by the firelight, reflected his long years of experience.

"I had no particular reason for traveling so far without getting married. Youth is just like that. With the wind pushing you forward, friends who could be anywhere, and a lazy magere. That's enough, isn't it? Cuber, that friend of mine, desperately tried to convince me to hunt monsters together, but in the end, I hit the road..."

"Cuber?"

"Who’s Cuber...? Ah! The chief!"

The young men sitting around Boris were already looking at him with skeptical eyes. Having returned from their first hunt as warriors, they were being treated to drinks by their senior warriors.

They were all from the Ainar tribe, so while they called them seniors, they were actually fathers, mothers, uncles, or aunts. It was a warm gathering where relatives exchanged compliments and stories of bravery. However, Boris Ainar, the tribe's troublesome old man, had intruded without any sense of propriety.

Boris was suffering from dementia. He hadn't been hunting in ages, losing his warrior status long ago.But age had its privileges.

They couldn't bring themselves to rudely chase away the old man, who insisted on giving them some advice. So Boris hummed and rambled on with stories that no one believed.

"Yes. When I returned from my travels, Cuber had become the chief. Anyway, I saw and felt many things during my journeys. I met countless women who loved me, but I never stayed in one place for more than half a year, drawn by the freedom of travel and the mysteries of the continent. But the most mysterious place of all was the temple I saw in the Antareph Gorge."

Among the young men sipping their drinks were Lena and Leo. They sat close together, sharing snacks. As expected, Noguhwa was not present this time either.

"When I fell asleep, there was nothing there. I'm sure of it. But when I woke up in the middle of the night, there was a huge temple in the middle of the gorge."

‘So his dementia started back then!’

That was the common thought among the young men. Leo casually sipped his drink, but Lena laughed, chiming in with the old man's story.

"Wow! You must be like a hero from a legend. Did you go inside?"

"Of course. Inside, there was a sword bathed in the blue light of the crescent moon..."

Boris's adventure tales went on and on. Not only did he claim to have seen the temple, which he suspected was the Hall of the God Lachar, but also the temple of Binar, a god who guided against evil, in a cave in the Bomère Volcano, the temple of Namer, the god of endurance and devotion, on an island across the southern sea, and the temple of Boar, the goddess of noble sacrifice, in the eastern swamps where the sun rises. The young men were amazed by his grand exaggerations.

Even Lena, who had been encouraging him, grew tired of it by the end. As she and Leo discreetly left the gathering, they overheard Boris saying,

"In the kingdom of Bellita, there's a castle ruin called 'Badobona.' I found a certain goblet there. I snatched it up right away, but it gave me a strange feeling... I later donated that goblet to the cathedral... What? Why would I lie about that?"

Boris was passionately defending himself as the young men, now without Lena’s support, began to openly express their disbelief.

Regardless of their reactions, Lena and Leo, who were both quite tipsy, headed home. Feeling good about becoming a warrior, Lena suggested to Leo,

"Why don't we go home and have another drink? My dad is going to be drinking with the great warriors, so he said I could bring you if you want."

"No, thanks. I'm not a warrior yet."

"Come on~ Let's go together."

I have things to do tonight... But if Lena insists, I can't refuse.

Leo reluctantly hugged Lena and said,

"I'll go if you give me a kiss."

"You're so cheeky."

Lena wrapped her arms around Leo's shoulders. Leo held her by the waist and kissed her, bending her back like a bow.

Lena was beautiful.

Though she neglected self-care due to her obsession with the sword, her features were strong and well-balanced.

Her thick eyebrows, almost as prominent as a man's, were long.

The thick, short brows extended from between her eyes toward her temples, emphasizing her strong impression, and complemented her eyes, which might have looked cute if they weren’t slightly droopy.

If she grew her hair out, she would be truly beautiful.

Her oval-shaped face suited any style, but long, straight hair would look better than her current short cut. Even a round, voluminous fringe would be nice. If she trimmed her eyelashes and took care of her skin, which had become rough in the harsh cold, applying rouge, she might become as pretty as her younger sister Lena.

‘Haha. No matter how much, that's impossible.’

Lerialia had a timeless beauty. Her perfectly balanced features, centered around her nose, were universally admired by all genders and cultures.

Yet, to Leo, Lena seemed just as beautiful as Lerialia. Blinded by love, he saw Lena, tall, broad-shouldered, strong, and mature, as far more attractive than the little "brat."

Their kiss lasted longer.

Their breathing grew a little rough. The look in Lena's eyes as she gazed up at him held a silent permission, and Leo's hands had long since left her waist. Her flushed cheeks urged him on.

"...You don’t need a drink now, do you?"

"Should we... go ahead?"

"It won’t end quickly."

Leo’s bold declaration made Lena burst out laughing. However, just as they were about to sneak into Leo’s house, they ran into Noel Dexter, who was coming out of Lena’s house.

He was their father and teacher. Lena and Leo respectfully folded their hands and greeted him,

"We're back."

Noel responded,

"You're back early. Your father and his friends are waiting inside to congratulate you. Go on in. Leo, come here for a moment."

He called Leo over.

Tch.

Good thing it was dark. Lena’s face turned sour.

She tugged on Leo's pinky finger. Leo shrugged, unable to avoid the situation, and sent Lena inside.

He followed his father into the house. Noel Dexter waited until they were in his study, seated in his rocking chair, before speaking.

"It seems you've broken through a wall."

Leo looked up in surprise, but his father merely gazed at him calmly.

He thought he had hidden it well. But of course, he couldn't escape his father's notice. Leo nodded.

"...Yes."

"Congratulations. I had a feeling it would happen. I'd love to spar with you properly, but... is this because of Lena?"

"..."

"Hmm. Did you really need to go that far to spare her feelings...? Tsk, never mind. I, too, unintentionally hurt my older brother. But remember this. You can't hide your skills forever."

"...Yes. I'll keep that in mind."

Noel Dexter looked at his son with pride.

When I broke through the wall and perfected my own swordsmanship, I couldn't wait to show it off. I applied for the knightly order's entrance exam and became the youngest knight ever, while my older brother Elson, who was still a squire, gave up years of struggle to become a knight and left home.

It was an inconsiderate action toward my brother, who had been stuck behind a wall. While I don’t think there's any need to hide outstanding skills, in hindsight, there was no need to flaunt them either.

Thinking how well his son had handled the situation, Noel said,

"Your mother would be proud. Now that I think about it, it's been a long time since we visited her grave. Let's go back home in the spring. We'll take Lena too."

We probably won’t be able to go, though. Because of the war.

But Leo nodded.

At the same time, he wondered, 'Why does everyone only mention my mother when my skills improve? Why does no one else talk about her?' Lena seemed to know something, but as if bound by some unspoken rule, no one ever mentioned his mother, who died during the Ghuul War.

Since this happened before the start of the scenario, and when he was very young, Leo couldn’t understand why people acted this way. And since he had no memories of it, he didn’t see any reason to investigate.

In the childhood friend scenario, it turned out that Rev's mother was still alive. Rev was really happy about it, but...

Honestly, that was all there was to it. The fact that my mother had returned to life didn’t provide any real advantage in clearing this game, and I’d already received her “bound item” as an inheritance.

Moreover, now that I knew the conditions for the true ending, my mother’s life or death, which I didn’t even miss, became irrelevant.

Sure, it’s not normal. But has my life ever been normal since getting involved with that guy Minseo? I’ve finally found the direction for a normal life, and I didn’t want to complicate it.

I’ll go to war, become a knight alongside Lena, fulfill her dream, and marry her. I’ll return to Avril Castle in glory and live happily with Lena. Isn’t that enough?

Leo left the study, where his father had resumed reading even at this late hour.

It puzzled him why his father, still a great swordsman, spent all his time buried in books, but Leo focused on one thing.

As long as my Lena is happy, that’s all that matters.

That alone is more than enough.

With that thought, Leo headed next door. The back terraces of Lena’s house and his were connected, so he stepped out into the biting cold and crossed over...

“Why do you keep pouring more drinks? I haven’t even finished this one yet. Seriously...”

Grumbling. Lena’s complaining voice drifted out from the window. Inside, a fire burned brightly, roasting meat expertly prepared, surrounded by huge warriors including Dehor, with Lena Ainar drinking with them.

Standing outside, Leo realized he didn’t need to intrude. He didn’t want to ruin the boisterous drinking session of barbarian warriors by having a so-called “civilized person” join in. Maybe if he were Rev, a fellow barbarian, it’d be different.

In the freezing wind, Leo wiped the frost from the window. As he wiped, the glass kept fogging up again, but he continued watching Lena from outside until he remembered what he had intended to do. He pulled out the mirror from his pocket, which was also fogged up.

[Achievement: Bound Items, 2/3]

[Sword – Indestructible.]

[Mirror – Can Connect. 1 Use.]

[Necklace – A Pretty Necklace.]

Maybe it was because he didn’t know the true name. Originally, the mirror was unusable.

But during the last childhood friend scenario, a saintess had blessed my mirror during the ceremony. Even though it was Rev who had heard it, the unusable mirror became usable, and when I asked why it only had one use instead of being continuously usable, the saintess had said:

“This blessing is sufficient for one use. The Lord truly loves you. I’ve never seen Him grant such a delicate benefit to a mere creature before.”

What nonsense. The saintess must have known this engagement scenario would be the last.

She knew from the beginning that the true ending would occur when Lena became a priestess, and she must have known that in this scenario, with Lena becoming a knight, I would reach the true ending.

Fine, that’s exactly how it’ll go.

Whether Minseo gives me another chance or not, I planned to achieve a flawless ending this time with no mistakes.

Minseo might escape this world through sheer luck... but fine. He can just get lost. Leo wiped the mirror, which glowed as it connected.

[Achievement: Bound Items, 2/3]

[Sword – Indestructible.]

[Mirror – Childhood Friend.]

[Necklace – A Pretty Necklace.]

Rev appeared in the mirror with a surprised expression. And it was no wonder why.

“The mirror is fixed. I was debating whether to throw it away after it broke last time, but thank goodness. So the cycle has moved forward. What happened?”

The mirror, which had shattered after one use, had been restored. It was in such a bad state that it could have been discarded, but Rev had kept it because it was a gift from his mother.

Leo asked directly.

“Where are you right now?”

“I’m on my way to the March of Guidan, with the others. What happened? Did the rebellion succeed? Did Lena become a princess?”

“You don’t need to go. That idiot Minseo...”

Leo explained how the last cycle had ended. Although the rebellion had succeeded and the throne was within reach, the condition for the true ending wasn’t making Lena a princess—it was fulfilling her dream.

Rev was silent for a while.

He paced in the forest, away from his students, before finally speaking.

“...I see.”

“Yeah. That bastard Minseo. There’s a limit to how stupid someone can be. If it weren’t for him, we wouldn’t have had to go through all that hell...”

“Don’t be too hard on him. You know he struggled, too.”

Rev spoke, his tone heavy with emotion.

“Anyway, thanks for telling me. I guess I still need to go to the March of Guidan. I’ve done something terrible to Harie.”

“...”

Leo was momentarily speechless. If it had been him, he would have rushed to Lena, who was at the cathedral, but Rev’s decision to prioritize someone else was shocking.

He’d always been that kind of person—quietly doing what needed to be done without asserting himself. It was different from Lean de Yeriel, who always voiced his opinions clearly, even while accepting Minseo’s views.

But to think they could be so different. Fulfilling Lena’s dream is the condition for the true ending, right?

Who cares about rebellion, Harie, or anything else? All he had to do was stay by Lena’s side, who would soon be a priestess, and live happily with her...

“Well, do what you want. Lena will become a priestess next fall, so it’d be good for you to be at the cathedral before then.”

“Got it. Thanks. Oh, and although the mirror is fixed, it can’t be used again. You’ve done well. Finish things up... and let’s definitely meet again.”

Rev ended the connection simply. Feeling strange, Leo stared at the mirror, which was now cracked.

Is this a trait of people from the southern continent? Or am I the one who’s thinking wrong? Leo looked up.

Through the frosted window, his beloved Lena Ainar was visible again. Leo Dexter thought, who cares, and turned away.

My priority is to protect my lover and make her happy. Everything else is secondary and doesn’t even rank in importance.

Yet even when Leo returned to his room and lay on his bed, sleep wouldn’t come. Restlessness and an odd feeling kept him awake.

Lean and Rev... What’s wrong with everyone? It’s annoying.

He tossed and turned for a while. Just as he began to wonder if something was wrong with him, there was a knock at the window. Lena Ainar was outside, braving the blizzard.

“Lena! What are you doing? It’s dangerous. Are you drunk?”

“I’m not drunk!”

Lena climbed through the window, shouting. Her face seemed completely sober.

But she was clearly intoxicated. She reeked of alcohol and smiled lazily.

“Shall we... finish what we started earlier? No one knows I’m here.”

Lena pushed Leo onto the bed. As they fell together, she seemed to lose strength and immediately fell asleep.

...She’s so reckless.

She really needs looking after. Leo straightened her on the bed and covered her with a blanket. Stroking the hair of the woman who was both his fiancée and his first and last love, he murmured to himself.

“I’m not wrong.”

Leo sat down on the cold floor, trying to sleep. He held the sword to protect her close to his chest, and with his other hand, he firmly gripped Lena’s. The window rattled in the strong wind.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Request: Please Rate us on Novel Updates to Motivate me to Translate.

<>