“Father, there is something I wish to discuss with you.”
“What is it, Diana?”
The day after the ball, Diana visited her father’s study.
Though he was in the middle of work, the Duke of Gazard, who had always doted on his daughters, immediately set the documents in his hands upon his desk.
“I have come to propose that House Gazard dispatch troops for the upcoming monster-subjugation campaign in the north.”
A vast forest stretched across the northern reaches of the Kingdom of Rutledge.
Commonly known as the Demon Forest, it was a region where monsters appeared in great numbers.
If left unchecked, the monsters would multiply and could eventually bring great harm to the kingdom. For that reason, troops were periodically sent north to reduce their numbers.
“Why must House Gazard send troops for this particular campaign?”
The Duke of Gazard calmly posed the question to his daughter.
Diana had anticipated it and answered in an equally composed tone.
“I, the future Duchess of Gazard, have now reached adulthood. I believe we should demonstrate House Gazard’s unwavering loyalty to the royal family through our actions.”
“Hmm…”
“The monster population has been increasing in recent years, and reports of damage have grown more frequent. If House Gazard takes the initiative in addressing the threat, we can further strengthen the royal family’s trust in us.”
Nothing Diana said was incorrect.
It was the duty of the nobility to demonstrate their unwavering loyalty to the kingdom.
Even so, her father could not simply accept his daughter’s words at face value.
“Surely you are not making this request merely because Alan will be joining the campaign?”
“I… cannot say that has nothing to do with it.”
Diana carefully concealed the cold sweat forming beneath her clothes and continued.
“The truth is… I saw it in a dream.”
“A dream?”
“Yes. I dreamed that this monster-subjugation campaign suffered devastating losses and that many of the kingdom’s knights, including Lord Alan, never returned.”
Her father was a seasoned nobleman who had spent years navigating the schemes and intrigues of high society. Even Diana did not believe she could outmaneuver him through deception.
Therefore, she had decided that revealing part of the truth and bringing him to her side would be the wisest course of action.
“If it was merely a dream, then all would be well… But it felt far too real. The terror I experienced still lingers in my heart. I cannot simply ignore it.”
Diana did not know how much he would believe if she told him the entire truth.
This much, however, might be enough for a father who had always been softhearted toward his daughters.
“I have no objection to sending our troops. However—”
“Then please entrust me with their command!”
The Duke of Gazard sighed as his beloved daughter spoke over him.
From his perspective, it appeared that Diana was making this request solely out of love for Alan.
Having watched the two of them more closely than anyone else, he had long realized that Diana had harbored extraordinary feelings for Alan since childhood.
“Do you understand? Before you are the future head of this family, you are still the daughter of a duke.”
“Yes, I understand. You are aware of the results I achieved at the academy, are you not?”
Diana the Moon, one half of the Gazard twins.
Unlike her sister’s epithet, Diana’s carried a dark and somber impression.
Despite being a woman, she had chosen to study both swordsmanship and magic. She received an A in swordsmanship and the highest possible rank of S in magic.
When every subject was taken into account, including swordsmanship and magic, she became the first female student in the academy’s history to graduate at the top of her class.
Compared to Cordelia, Diana had always faced harsher criticism, partly because of her exceptional achievements and the quiet determination with which she pursued them.
Unlikable. Always challenging men. Impertinent. Unfeminine.
In a noble society that demanded femininity from its women, Diana was considered an outsider.
Perhaps because she had been fiercely competitive from birth, it did not matter who her opponent was or what field they were competing in. Diana would devote everything she had to winning.
Those were the results she had achieved throughout her years at the academy.
“I am confident I can be of greater use than the average knight. Please, Father. Grant me permission.”
“Hmm…”
The Duke of Gazard folded his arms and groaned.
As the head of House Gazard, he had no doubts about sending Diana to the front lines.
She was simply that skilled, both as a swordswoman and as a mage.
As her father, however, his feelings were entirely different.
(That damned Alan. He has completely bewitched my Diana…)
As Alan’s friend, Wesley wished for his happiness. But when the woman in question was his own daughter, that was another matter entirely.
Alan was thirty-five years old.
There was far too great an age difference between him and eighteen-year-old Diana.
Age-gap marriages were common in noble society.
Marriages were rarely based on love. Most were intended to forge ties between noble families. As long as neither party was still a child, it was almost unusual for their age difference to be taken into consideration.
But when it involved his precious daughter, everything changed.
His beloved twins had never known their mother.
Wesley’s frail wife had been unable to endure the strain of giving birth to twins and had quietly passed away the following day.
Unable to bring himself to marry again, Wesley had raised his twin daughters alone.
Naturally, given how busy he was, there must have been times when the girls had suffered. Even so, he had always done everything in his power to ensure they never felt the loneliness of growing up without a mother.
And now, the daughter he had raised with such love was infatuated with a friend barely younger than himself.
Should he rejoice that Diana possessed such excellent judgment when it came to men, or should he firmly tell her to find someone closer to her own age?
Even now, Wesley had yet to find an answer.
“As for dispatching our troops, I will petition His Majesty myself.”
“Thank you, Father!”
Diana’s face lit up at the answer she had been hoping for.
The fact that even her radiant expression irritated him was troubling indeed.
Whether he should support his daughter’s innocent love was a question to which no amount of thought could provide an answer.
(If only you were here at a time like this…)
After Diana left, Wesley stood alone in his study, gazing down at the garden his late wife had loved as he silently addressed the empty air.
(If it were you, I am sure you would have said, “It is their life. We should support them,” wouldn’t you… Nadia?)
For a moment, he thought he felt the refreshing spring breeze gently caress his cheek.
Only ten days remained between the decision to join the campaign and their departure.
During that time, Diana was busy every day.
She compiled a list of those who would accompany her to the Demon Forest and established a clear chain of command.
This would be Diana’s first battle.
Both Diana and the knights were determined to prepare for every possible circumstance before setting out.
And yet—
“What exactly are you thinking, coming here without warning?”
Forced to set aside her work for the unexpected visitor, Diana pursed her shapely lips in displeasure.
Her amethyst eyes glared at her unwelcome guest—Miles O’Donoghue, the son of the Marquess of O’Donoghue.
“I heard you were going somewhere dangerous. You could hardly expect me to ignore that.”
An icy anger simmered in Miles’s eyes as he stared at Diana.
