Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"It was a voice so concise that it felt refreshing. At that firmness, Duke Netri could no longer speak. Shuer smiled at him, who was speechless, and then left the mansion.

On that road, Shuer unhesitatingly boarded a merchant carriage heading north. While traveling a long distance, she closed her eyes and recalled her memories of the original work.

The end of the novel was still vivid.

After Raygrain died, the north collapsed, and monsters ran wild.

As countless imperial citizens died, Erina and the male lead formed an expeditionary force to subjugate them, achieving accomplishments together, and Raygrain was completely forgotten.

Thus, without even finding his corpse, the novel only depicted Erina's happy ending.

Anyway, even if she endured in the south, it was difficult to figure out how to connect Raygrain and Erina.

Moreover, after meeting her in person, she doubted whether Erina, the female lead, was truly a suitable person for Raygrain.

'Rather, I'll help Raygrain regain his emotions before he meets Erina.'

It doesn't necessarily have to be love. Even absurdity is fine.

Annoyance, irritability, anger, wouldn't they also be fine?

Surprise, fear, and so on, if you consider it, the range of emotions was wide and diverse. Whatever it was, the immediate priority was to help him regain his emotions.

She would first save him, then set up a teahouse in the north, which Raygrain protected, and live a peaceful life watching him live.

This was why Shuer chose to go north.-----The next day, a maid was assigned to Shuer instead of an answer to her proposal.

"Celly, did His Highness say anything else?"

"He said he would send the chickens to the farm if you weren't going to raise them separately."

Celly answered firmly, despite her youthful appearance.

Even so, was a proposal less important than chickens?

Shuer subtly asked her again.

"...Is that all? Like, he permits it, or tells me to return to the south immediately. Nothing about me?"

"Ah, he said he would prepare a magic stone if you ever wish to return."

This was also not the answer she was waiting for.

She thought she saw a slight muscle twitch around his eyes. She thought he felt some emotion. But it passed too quickly, so she wondered if it was a delusion.

In the end, leaving her in the room and neglecting her seemed to mean nothing.

Or perhaps he moved reflexively because of the chicken smell?

All traces of yesterday had long been washed away, but she still raised her arm and sniffed it, feeling a strange sensation.

'Should I just be glad I wasn't kicked out?'

Shuer pouted slightly.

The Netri family, along with the Blen family, were originally the two great pillars of swordsmanship families and had a very bad relationship.

No, they were more like sworn enemies.

The Netri family mainly handled wars against people and operated in the center. Conversely, the Blen family, dealing with monsters in the north, had very brutal swordsmanship, which simultaneously evoked fear and awe in people.

Perhaps because of this, when people talked about swords, many naturally thought of the Blen family's swordsmanship first.

Thanks to this, many knights in key positions within the empire had learned swordsmanship from the Blen family for generations. This was despite the Netri family being the one active in the center.

Naturally, from the Netri family's perspective, the mere existence of the Blen family, who monopolized both the trust of the imperial citizens and key central positions, was nothing short of a thorn in their side.

Moreover, because the Blen family's sword energy consumed emotions, they did not get along well socially in human relationships.

No acknowledgment or loyalty could be expected from them, and because they were so stiff, even everyday conversations did not flow smoothly.

Such an unresolvable conflict continued for generations.

Perhaps this was why they were stuck in the north. After all, they were a family with many restrictions, from emotions to swordsmanship, when dealing with people.

In this complex relationship, it was fortunate that the lady from Netri, who had abruptly invaded the north, was not immediately expelled.

Thinking she was disappointed that her proposal was ignored, Celly gently spoke to her, seeing her lost in thought.

"He's probably distracted today. The scheduled expeditionary force hasn't returned."

"Then, will I be able to see his face at least in the evening?"

"W-well."

Celly recoiled at the quick reply. Since the surprise proposal didn't work, she had to think of another method.

To regain emotions, wouldn't seeing each other's faces be the priority?

Even without personal feelings, there was no way to return his emotions remotely.

In the very short time she saw Raygrain, Shuer felt a wall.

Perfection.

Hair blacker than darkness and sharp eyes like a well-honed blade.

If it weren't for the chilling blue eyes within them, he might have blended in with the bleakness of the north and become indistinguishable.

Moreover, the original work always said he wore a perfectly tailored uniform, but to see him in his casual clothes!

Even just wearing a shirt, he was a complete subject.

As his cool eyes from last night came to mind, Shuer involuntarily let out a gasp of admiration and trembled with joy.

"I should have made a portrait of him exactly as he was and hung it on the wall, what a shame."

As soon as she finished speaking, Celly took a step back. Contrary to her action, her tone was gentle.

"You're the first person like you I've ever met, Young Lady."

"How good would it be if our Grand Duke said that."

'You're the first person like you,' wasn't that the classic line that signaled the beginning of a romance? Of course, it was a different kind of emotion than what Shuer expected.

She only hoped he would be surprised or flustered by the proposal.

Shuer sighed, looking at the bright white northern landscape, where the sun was quite visible, unlike in the evening. Celly then expressed pure curiosity to her.

"Did you really come all the way to the north by carriage?"

"Yes. It was better than I expected. The merchant couple was kind."

It took about ten days to travel from the south by carriage. Still, it was more comfortable than she thought, perhaps because she was with the chickens spread out in a spacious compartment rather than a cramped one.

Of course, it was still not something a typical noble lady would do.

Celly asked again, as if she couldn't believe it.

"Do you like His Highness that much?"

"Of course. Not many people give you the will to live just by looking at them."

She wasn't originally a diligent person, but she could do anything for Raygrain. Even willingly stand in line from dawn for a limited edition special appendix of a novel.

No matter what she did, it couldn't be harder than enduring the ending where Raygrain died. Her heart had shattered when the north, which he had protected with everything he had, collapsed.

Do you know what it's like to commemorate an unclear death anniversary alone when others are celebrating their favorite's birthday?

She had to help him regain his emotions somehow. She hoped he would be happy, if possible.

Celly gazed at her with eyes mixed with admiration. At that gaze, Shuer smiled shyly, as if embarrassed, and said.

"In that sense, what are the Grand Duke's usual range of activities and schedule?"

Her eyes burned with curiosity.-----"Shuer Netri. She was recently excommunicated from her family."

"The reason?"

"They say the reason was that she couldn't make flowers bloom from her sword. Seeing that her younger sister, Erina Netri, is currently the Imperial Knight Commander, it seems she was pushed out in a power struggle."

Chief of the Imperial Guard, Jess Bellio, gazed at Raygrain with a gaunt face. Unlike himself, exhausted from an all-nighter, Raygrain didn't seem like someone who had worked through the night.

His consistently cold expression showed no room for even fatigue.