IRER 91

Chapter 91

In Sidamo

Yes. Aidan already knew.

From the very beginning, he had sensed the strong aura of the Sun Spirit emanating from the carriage—how could he not notice it?

He almost rushed in out of alarm, but Brody’s response had been so calm that he missed the chance to step forward.

If he acted rashly, Brody might draw suspicion from the surrounding knights. That was why he chose to observe carefully instead.

After all, she was from the Central Region. Not only that, she was tied to the Ducal House and even under the Princess’s attention. With just a spark of rumor, she could easily be accused of being a spy.

Fortunately, or perhaps not, Brody’s conversation with the Princess ended quietly.

Why did she respond so calmly? Why did she accept the mana stone?

Seeing her hide it only made it harder for him to ask about what had happened.

It wasn’t that he outright suspected her. More precisely—he was afraid.

The mana stone was a medium that connected to the Princess.

Had she wanted a means to reach the Princess at any time? Or, conversely, a way to leave Aidan when she wished?

That thought haunted him, just like on the day Brody had been drunk. While rambling in her stupor, she had dropped an amber-colored mana stone from her pocket.

The next day, Aidan had deliberately placed the stone in plain sight on the table instead of tucking it away. She saw it right there in front of her eyes but said nothing.

From then on, he could not bring himself to ask again.

“Then if you already knew, it must have been awfully suspicious for you.”

Brody pouted, sounding displeased.

“You should have asked. I completely forgot about it after missing the timing, you know.”

“…”

He hadn’t dared to ask because he was afraid—but of course he couldn’t admit that.

So he explained everything else, leaving out only his fear.

“I never thought you were a spy. I could see with my own eyes how devoted you were to the North. How could I doubt you?”

“Then you should have asked all the more.”

It was the sort of matter where Brody should be questioned, yet somehow Aidan was the one being cornered.

Good grief. Even that was absurd enough that Brody sighed.

Rummaging in her pocket, she pulled out the mana stone.

Why is she bringing that out now? Don’t tell me she’s angry at my reaction and planning to run off to the Princess right this moment…?

A bead of cold sweat slid down Aidan’s neck.

“Your Highness, you deal with it.”

Without hesitation, Brody handed the stone to him.

“…Me?”

“Yes. Now that I remember it, keeping it makes me uneasy. Can’t you strip away the function inside and recycle it for something else?”

“…Recycle it.”

“Mm, like… give it a function that lets me return to Your Highness’s side anytime?”

“Ah…”

Aidan was dumbfounded. All the unease and suspicions he had been carrying until now suddenly felt ridiculous.

“I don’t know much about magic formulas, but… I’ll look for a way to study it.”

A function that let her return to him at any moment—

He knew it was only an example, but still, just hearing it warmed his heart.

He tucked the mana stone away with a smile and urged Kais forward in high spirits.

Thanks to that, Aidan’s group was able to descend to the Sidamo region without delay.

His earlier tension—that the Princess or Jax might appear to interfere—proved unfounded.

And soon he understood why.

News of the Empire spread so loudly and openly that everyone had heard.

The Emperor had died, and a new ruler would soon ascend the throne.

“Then… will Crown Prince Sirot be crowned?”

At Brody’s question, River answered.

“No. The Crown Prince declared he was unworthy to become Emperor and threw himself from the castle.”

“…”

Others might not know, but Brody understood immediately.

There was no way the Crown Prince had done it willingly.

He must have fallen victim to the same sort of sorcery that had ensnared her.

Brody shuddered.

She could feel once again, with her very skin, just what kind of person the Princess was.

“Then Princess Myla will become the Emperor.”

River glanced at her while checking the plans she had written and replied.

“How did you know? She won overwhelming support over the Second Prince.”

“…”

As expected. This only deepened her conviction that the Princess was behind the Crown Prince’s death.

River continued.

“Either way, this is our chance. With succession disputes, the removal of rivals, and the coronation itself, they’ll be far too busy. During this chaos, we must raise the fortress to a significant height.”

He stacked the papers neatly after finishing.

“Good. Your Highness, you and your party should hurry back to the County.”

Brody’s jaw dropped in surprise.

“So soon?”

They had just arrived, and now he was telling her to set out on that arduous journey again?

Her very hip bones seemed to protest.

“Did you not hear me? This is our opportunity. I’ll manage things here. You, Your Highness, must prepare the North so trade can begin at any moment. Ah, and I should push the greenhouse harder as well. We’ll need to send our fastest runner.”

River flipped through the documents once more.

But Brody remained silent at his sharp words.

After a moment, sensing something off, River lifted his gaze.

She was staring at him with narrowed, lazy eyes.

“…”

River suddenly lost his words.

Brody spoke softly.

“Is that an order?”

A bead of cold sweat ran down River’s back. Once again he realized—the one holding the real sword here was Brody.

The more flawless the plans he held, the clearer that truth became.

Besides, a plan alone wasn’t enough. The list of items was there, yes, but no instructions on how to make them.

Which meant only Brody could actually bring those items into reality.

Grinding his teeth inwardly, he lowered his posture.

“…A recommendation.”

Only then did Brody smile and nod.

“Alright. I agree that it’s urgent.”

Her answer made River cautiously add,

“At the very least, I’d like to try by spring.”

“So soon? Is that even possible?”

“That depends on Your Highness. Even just preparing prototypes would be fine. We must cast bait before the South resets relations with the Empire.”

Brody nodded gravely. His urging was forceful, but his reasoning made sense.

“You’re right. Then give me the plans.”

“Leave them here.”

“There’s only one copy.”

“…”

And so, Brody gained an extra day in Sidamo.

River had agreed to make a copy of the plans.

If there had been a copier, it would have taken ten minutes—but here, everything had to be done by hand.

Thus, they unexpectedly had a day of rest. Ha ha ha…

With some leisure at last, Brody reunited with Caleb.

At the moment, she was wearing Aidan’s clothes.

Not to disregard Caleb’s opinion, nor because she found the Duchess’s attire uncomfortable—there was a deeper reason.

The villages along the way to Sidamo had once belonged to the Empire.

There was no need to inspect them, and therefore no need to flaunt the dignity of a Duchess. In fact, it was better to hide that she and Aidan were Duke and Duchess.

On the day they descended from the Ice Valley, she had tried on Aidan’s clothes. With some alteration, she realized she could wear them.

The baggy fit was unavoidable, but still—

She belted the long tunic that nearly reached her knees, tucked the folded trousers into boots, and tied her hair loosely.

Ah, comfortable.

Whatever the reason, it gave her the perfect excuse.

Caleb frowned in regret, but the logic was sound, so he couldn’t argue.

Brody quickly shifted the topic.

“By the way, Caleb. How was it with River?”

Since they’d had a clash before, she wondered if traveling together had been uncomfortable.

Caleb answered in his usual flat tone.

“There was not the slightest point of contact.”

Brody nodded in relief. But oddly enough, there seemed to be a trace of disappointment in his voice.

At that moment, a knock sounded at the door of the reception room (if one could even call the hastily built shack a reception room).

The door creaked open, and a familiar face peeked inside.

“My lady, how have you been?”

It was none other than Teddy.

He wore his usual playful grin as he greeted her warmly.

“Teddy, have you been well?”

Brody welcomed him with equal cheer.

He had come to Sidamo along with River’s group.

Once just a common soldier, he had earned recognition and would soon be knighted.

Thanks to his wide connections and gift of gab, Brody often heard fascinating bits of news through him.

“Oh, by the way, have you heard how furious the Chief of Staff was?”

Brody tilted her head.

“Doesn’t the Chief of Staff often lose his temper?”

Her gesture implied what’s so special about that? Teddy chuckled in agreement but then shook his head seriously.

“This was on another level. It was absolute chaos!”

And so he began his tale.

The trouble had started like this:

Villagers across the North had heard from the knights that labor was being recruited to build the fortress.

Those interested began to gather in Sidamo, but at first their complaints were loud.

Why make us work instead of distributing the Empire’s grain as relief? Can’t you see how starved we are? Has the Duke grown greedy? Is he trying to hoard everything for himself?

It was the same sort of talk Aidan and Brody had heard while traveling from village to village.

And since these were the people who had rushed to Sidamo the fastest, their energy was all the more intense.

They practically incited others, shouting their grievances openly.

At that, River had flown into such a rage that he overturned every table set up in the square.

“You filthy, damned, rotten bastards! You think famine hit only you lot?!”

The veins on his forehead bulged violently.

Known for his icy sarcasm as the Duke of the Icewall’s chief of staff, famous for crushing opponents like frozen steel—now his eyes blazed as he roared, leaving the gathered crowd stunned.

Of course, his authority didn’t come only from his temper.

Behind him stood eighty knights and over a hundred soldiers, gleaming spears and swords in hand.

“Do you not know how His Grace has treated you all until now? Does it look like His Grace is doing this to fill his own belly?”

Then, giving the floor to each loudest complainer one by one, he invited them to speak—only to methodically crush their mutterings with merciless, razor-sharp logic. His words were technically right, yet twisted just enough to leave listeners feeling sour.

By the time no one dared speak further, River concluded,

“For the sake of a better future a few years from now, so we never again suffer such pain—this is why we ask you to endure just a little longer.”

His voice had softened, a complete contrast to his earlier fury.

“Let us endure just a few more years.”

And then, to seal it, he offered a shocking reward—enough to silence every last complaint.