Chapter 49

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter: 49

Chapter Title: How to Survive as the Wife of the Monster Duke

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Crimson Delroz, Azure Noz, Verdant Mille, Luminous Ello.

The number of families affiliated with each faction was greater than expected.

Among them, the foremost were naturally the families that lent their names to each faction.

For Crimson Delroz, it went without saying that House Biplten, with Aden as its sole member, represented them.

And the Noz, Mille, and Ello families fittingly led their respective factions.

"Vine pattern..."

Etra, who had been examining the back of the woman's hand, turned to Ilrin.

"It's definitely the crest of the Verdant Mille main family, Madam."

Of course it was. She was already a familiar face, so there was no way she could have a suspicious identity.

If that were the case, she wouldn't have been allowed to attend the succession ceremony.

"Etra, you can lower the sword."

Ilrin said in a gentle voice.

Etra withdrew the sword from the woman's throat but did not return it to its sheath.

"If I may, what is your name?"

Ilrin asked.

Though she was sitting on the bed, it wasn't a breach of etiquette.

Above all, it was absurd for the intruder to speak of propriety in her position.

Fortunately, the Mille lady seemed to have that much sense and answered honestly.

"Lipo. Lipo de Mille."

She was indeed a lady of Verdant Mille.

Moreover, one of the most precious daughters of the Mille main family.

She was probably related by blood to the elders of Mille.

"I hope you understand that we had to treat you harshly."

Ilrin spoke calmly.

She set down the Mille sacred relic, Setos, that she had been holding.

"Of course."

It seemed she was more sensible than expected.

Thud!

Now fully awake, Ilrin rose from her seat and closed the window herself.

The room grew a little warmer.

Since Ilrin hadn't screamed or caused a commotion, only the three of them were in the room.

"Before I ask why you've come here like this..."

Ilrin glanced at the window once more.

"...I want to hear how you managed to get in here first."

This was serious enough to be considered an assault on the lady of House Biplten, the head of Delroz.

It was a delicate matter that could escalate into a conflict between Mille and Delroz.

Moreover, it could unleash a bloodbath within Delroz itself.

The guards had been breached by a woman holding just a single flower, leaving Ilrin exposed to danger.

It made the knights' claims of airtight security ring hollow.

If Aden learned the truth, the remaining knights would not escape unscathed.

"That... with this."

The Mille lady, Lipo, cautiously pointed a finger toward Ilrin.

Ilrin held up the flower she had been clutching moments ago, the Mille sacred relic Setos.

"With this?"

"Yes..."

The sacred relic of Mille.

Ilrin gazed down at the fresh flower that seemed utterly impossible in winter.

Come to think of it, the Ello relic could erect a barrier of light against intruders, and the Delroz relic could summon an unquenchable flame.

So then.

"What ability does the Mille relic have?"

At that moment, not only Lipo but Etra as well glanced at her briefly.

Ilrin had already considered one possibility the instant she felt their gazes.

"...If it's rude to ask, then since your entry into this room is also a rudeness, I'll let that slide."

However, it meant she would hold her accountable for threatening the lady of Delroz.

Ilrin fixed her gaze on Lipo.

"...Understood."

Lipo replied in a small voice.

"Setos has the ability to erase one's presence."

Ah? Ilrin's eyes widened round.

She looked down at the flower again, but felt no particular change.

"As long as you hold that flower, no one detects you."

Etra, who had been listening quietly, asked,

"Even monsters?"

Since Madam was using polite speech, she had no choice but to follow suit.

But she couldn't stop the interrogative tone.

Lipo nodded with frightened eyes.

"Thanks to that, I could come secretly."

"Through this April chill... you say?"

Ilrin narrowed her eyes.

Even with the Azure Noz fabric, the cold had bitten into her flesh.

Lipo de Mille was certainly from the Winter Lands, but April's chill was so severe that even locals rarely ventured out.

"I rode in the supply carriage from Mille."

Lipo said in a trembling voice.

Ilrin studied her face.

She didn't seem to be lying.

If Setos truly had such power... Ilrin tilted her head slightly.

She clearly remembered the succession ceremony.

She couldn't forget that striking event.

She distinctly recalled this shy-faced lady entering.

The quiet sound of the door opening then.

She had definitely heard the sounds Lipo made upon entering.

The rustle of her skirts had clearly reached her ears.

The reason was simple.

If someone without presence had been right in front of her, she wouldn't have forgotten.

But Lipo had been detected.

'It's a flower that never wilts.'

That's what had stuck in her memory.

Her blushing exit had helped too.

It felt so different from the formal demeanor of the Ello lady.

"Since there are Mille people in the estate, they do send supply carriages periodically."

Etra provided the objective information.

She intended to follow her superior's decision as a subordinate.

Ilrin pondered for a moment.

"...Etra."

"Yes, Madam."

Etra spoke more deferentially than usual.

It wasn't just the seventh floor occupied by Delroz people, so she was showing more decorum.

It was a shift in attitude known only among those who shared Delroz's secrets.

Out of Lipo's line of sight, Etra flashed Ilrin a brief reassuring smile.

Ilrin looked down at Lipo.

Lipo was gazing up at her with trembling eyes.

"For now, I'd like to have some tea with Lady Lipo and talk slowly."

For the moment, Ilrin decided to receive the precious daughter of the Mille main family as a guest of Delroz.

The atmosphere in Luminous Ello was decidedly chaotic.

The reinforcements sent from Ello's secret base had returned empty-handed—not quite empty, but close enough.

They hadn't anticipated Aden arriving with support so quickly.

In the meantime, Aden had mopped up the Yester remnants.

—Kyaak!

The house head's authority to raise temperatures was fatal to the Yester tribe cluster resting in a group.

Unable to endure the suddenly soaring heat, the Yester horde melted away with the snow, plummeting to the abyss below.

It was as if a valley had appeared where there had been none.

But Aden pursued no further.

He knew it was what the Yester tribe desired.

It was a shallow lure.

Aden led the Delroz knights back to Ello territory without leaving a single one behind.

"Thank you!"

Ilrin had said the Yester horde was quite large.

The traces near the barrier indeed didn't match a mere ten or so.

There should have been at least hundreds.

"Thank you, House Head."

Meeting his eyes froze them solid.

The Ello knights dared not even look him in the eye.

Aden took in the sight.

Naturally, it meant that this Yester raid was absolutely not something Ello had desired.

"Until Ello reorganizes its ranks, we'll keep the temperature elevated around here."

Aden turned after his curt words.

His senses, attuned to presences, caught the knights' unrest.

In short, they were anxious.

"...The knight order is tracking the direction the Yesters moved."

An Ello knight cautiously spoke up.

Aden looked down at the knight showing only the top of his head.

He too was a familiar face from Ello, one Aden had seen recently.

Ello knight, Radon.

Another who valued only Ello's sword.

Aden twisted his lips into a smile.

"So, you're asking Delroz to exterminate them?"

"...That is our petition to you, House Head."

It was a petition in name only.

It amounted to asking him to handle it with his authority while they sat idle.

Aden's silent scorn deepened.

He looked up at Ello's barrier.

"You know why it's hard to wipe out the Yesters."

His chilling words swept over the Ello knights.

Ello knight Radon bowed his head deeper.

Ijis, guarding Aden's back, clearly saw the knight's throat tremble with fear.

"...Yes. Because Yesters riding the north wind move at extreme speeds."

"You expect me to melt everything around there?"

The Biplten house head's authority governed the entire Winter Lands.

Overfocusing on the Yesters' vast range would obviously let monsters rampage elsewhere.

Not only that, but people in other areas would be endangered too.

Exposed raw to winter's cold.

In the height of April's brutal freeze, no less.

"If we knew their exact position, it might be different, but chasing April Yesters who've caught the north wind would leave us open to counterattacks in the meantime."

His words slowly traced the truth.

The Ello knight kept his head bowed.

There was nothing more to say.

"Ello's barrier is intact."

Aden spoke.

His hand, showing no intent to attack Ello, passed over the barrier as if it weren't there.

"Delroz will keep watch on the Yesters' movements as well."

Aden, nailing down that no further favors should be expected, turned away.

"As always."

He added the awkward words.

They grated like sand in a dry mouth.

He didn't know why he bothered.

On the way back to the estate, he pieced together the nagging fragment in his mind.

"Ijis."

"Yes."

The loyal adjutant's reply came promptly.

"Do you think Ello remains safe beside the Yester tribe solely because of their barrier?"

Ijis tilted his head slightly.

"...I believe multiple factors are at play."

A prudent answer.

Aden turned to him.

"Such as?"

"The light barrier is one, but... above all, it's because they're close to the Biplten estate."

Exactly.

Aden gained conviction from Ijis's words.

Ijis continued.

"The Yester tribe's fatal weakness is His Grace's authority from the estate. Other tribes can still move in the heat, but they stick to the ground and melt."

Aden narrowed his eyes faintly.

"So they couldn't possibly attack Ello, which is this close to the estate. Moreover, Ello's light barrier isn't something breakable in short order."

In essence, the Yesters, vulnerable to the authority, would need to dismantle Ello's light barrier before Aden from the estate could arrive if they wanted to overrun Ello territory.

But the distance between the estate and Ello territory was far too close.

So close that Yesters hadn't even attempted it until now.

"Indeed."

Aden said slowly.

Were the Yesters, who had always been that way, truly moving at this precise timing—right when the Winter Duke had stepped out into the sun—by mere coincidence?

Didn't it seem like they knew the Winter Duke had left his post?

Aden narrowed his eyes.

The only ones who knew his outing schedule were those inside the estate.

Those in the territories would have heard late due to April's vicious weather.

Who could it be?

Aden's eyes narrowed further.