Chapter 127

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Amire Castle.

Located on the outskirts of the eastern side of the Northern Continent, it wasn’t on any particularly notable trade route, nor did it have any special resources, so it hadn’t experienced dazzling development. However, in contrast to that, it managed to maintain its own kind of peace by staying slightly out of the Era of Chaos. Currently, aside from having about 3,000 minimal defensive forces stationed here, there were no special defensive preparations being made—until now.

A new order from the monarch Serpina had just been issued.

“Are you saying we’re supposed to use the newly conscripted troops to strengthen the defense and public order of our castle?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Is this truly Lord Serpina’s command?”

Pavel von Amire, the 13th Young Patriarch of House Amire—one of the seven influential clans that served House Einhardt since the old empire days—stroked his chin with a puzzled expression as he asked.

“That’s right.”

“Isn’t there some other castle that needs reinforcements or something?”

“Yes.”

“…Hmmph.”

Why station troops in such an out-of-the-way place? What could be going on?

Not that Pavel doubted his lord’s decision at this point. In his eyes, Serpina von Einhardt was far more capable than even the emperor, and all her previous decisions had mostly had good reasons behind them.

Still, it didn’t sit easily with him.

‘Could something be happening nearby?’

There were no signs of trouble, and the surrounding villages seemed utterly peaceful…

At that moment, Pavel shook his head.

‘Never mind. Lord Serpina must have her reasons.’

It wasn’t unethical, after all. Just a command to fortify defenses—no need to argue over it unnecessarily.

“I understand. I’ll issue the conscription notice immediately. Pass it along to the relevant departments.”

“Yes, sir!”

And so, the conscription notice was issued at Amire Castle.

Since they hadn’t conducted conscription for a long time due to prolonged peace, there were plenty of young men available. Without much resistance from the Territorial People, they managed to gather around 18,000 soldiers who would soon bolster their ranks.

Among these 18,000 soldiers was Louis, a young man who had just turned twenty and spent most of his days helping out with his family’s farming without anything else to do.

Initially, being forcibly conscripted wasn’t very pleasant…

But the sentiment toward Serpina among the people of Amire Castle was rather positive, making it easy for soldiers like Louis to develop a sense of pride in their duties. Even Louis enjoyed patrolling around while wearing his fancy armor, contributing to maintaining public order.

Most of the conscripts, including Louis, were trained as specialized garrison troops tasked with defending Amire Castle. For weeks, they heard the same warning: “Prepare yourselves; an ambush-style invasion is expected soon.”

Louis, who never attended an academy or even basic education, didn’t think too deeply about how such an ambush could occur in such a remote location. He figured:

‘The higher-ups will handle it.’

Regardless, wielding a spear during training felt great. Being a soldier under Serpina’s banner gave him a growing sense of purpose he hadn’t felt before as a farmer. The fact that no enemy forces had appeared yet paled in comparison to this newfound meaning.

After several weeks passed…

Louis began feeling more like a soldier than a farmer. On another routine patrol to maintain public order, he approached a house like always.

“Is anyone home?”

Louis lightly knocked on the door of an old house.

As part of their patrol duties, checking who lived where was essential—not only for census purposes but also because places like this sometimes became hideouts for thieves. Although Amire Castle wasn’t plagued with terrible crime, the lack of prior military presence meant thorough checks weren’t possible until now.

After a short while…

A young boy peeked out from the slightly opened door.

“What is it?”

“We’re patrolling this area.”

“Oh… umm… my parents aren’t home right now. They said they’d be back soon…”

The boy looked young, his clothes dirty and his skin dry from malnutrition. Feeling a pang of sympathy, Louis remembered his younger siblings and decided to act like a proper young man.

‘Right.’

He had packed food to eat when he got hungry during patrols. Since it would soon be dark anyway, why not share it with this kid?

“Hey, can I come in for a bit?”

“Huh? Why…?”

“I’ll cook you something delicious.”

“But…”

Korokoro—

The sound of his stomach growling betrayed his hunger, causing the boy to quickly bow his head in embarrassment. Louis smiled kindly.

“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it. Besides, I need to eat too, and using your cooking utensils will make it taste better.”

After pondering for a while, the boy finally nodded cautiously.

“Can I come in?”

Inside, the house wasn’t as run-down as it appeared from the outside, though clearly not affluent either. Following the boy to the kitchen, Louis found various items piled up.

‘Let me tidy this up quickly.’

After clearing away the clutter, Louis took out the ingredients from his pocket. The menu? A simple vegetable stew—a dish without meat but rich in buttery flavor, one of his specialties.

It didn’t take long to prepare, and soon they had a warm meal.

“Tasty, huh?”

Nod nod.

That’s right. I’m now someone who earns my keep serving Serpina’s army. Lady Serpina governed wisely, earning the support of the people far better than during the old empire days. To avoid letting her down, caring for each individual citizen was surely part of my duty.

After finishing this slightly special evening meal compared to usual…

Louis parted ways with the boy and continued his patrol for a few more hours before heading back to the barracks for shift change.

“Everyone, thanks for your hard work today. Remember, even during rest periods, enemies might launch surprise attacks, so stay prepared to mobilize at any time.”

“Yes, sir!”

While warnings of potential enemy ambushes were given daily, honestly, the tension didn’t feel real—at least until that moment.

“Hey, you.”

“Yes, sir!”

When his superior pointed at him, Louis snapped to attention with a sharp voice.

“What’s your name?”

“Louis, sir!”

“Louis, what did you say was the most important thing for a soldier serving in Serpina’s army?”

“To behave properly and maintain cleanliness in conduct!”

“So why does it look like you’re carrying unnecessary junk in your pockets?”

“Uh…?”

Looking down, Louis noticed his pockets bulging awkwardly.

Ah.

That’s right.

From the boy’s house earlier, when he cleared away the clutter to retrieve the ingredients, he accidentally brought those things along.

“Sorry, sir!”

“Clean it up immediately.”

Hurriedly, Louis pulled out the clutter. Upon closer inspection under the firelight, he realized one item was peculiar—an emblem of the Einhardt Clan.

Even uneducated, Louis recognized the crest etched into his own armor. Was this a brooch with the clan emblem?

This raised a more fundamental question for Louis.

‘The emblem looks different…’

Instead of the usual design, three diagonal lines were added beneath the eagle…

“Why are you wasting time? Hurry up and clean up!”

“Yes, sir! But…”

The superior stepped closer, examining the brooch Louis had been staring at, then spoke sternly.

“I don’t know what it is, but quickly put it away so we can finish the shift change…”

However, halfway through his sentence, the superior froze.

Seeing the Einhardt crest with the three diagonal lines, his expression shifted dramatically.

Slowly turning to face Louis with a stunned look.

“B-brother Soldier…”

Drawing his sword from his waist, he aimed it at Louis’s neck.

“It’s best if you answer truthfully, kid. Where did you get that item?”

* * *

Einhardt Royal Palace.

Serpina sat on her throne, lost in thought with a bored expression.

The conscription order issued to Amire Castle had gone smoothly, adding approximately 18,000 troops to the castle. These troops remained within the castle walls, undergoing training without being deployed elsewhere, patrolling the interior of Amire Castle to maintain local public order.

With the original 2,000-some soldiers expanded to nearly 20,000, the castle’s internal security undoubtedly improved. Two thousand troops wouldn’t have been enough to patrol every corner of the territory effectively.

But that was all.

Serpina waited for the ‘time’ Swen had mentioned.

If his words were true, the flags of the Aishias Army should have started appearing beyond the river by now. Sending reconnaissance teams deep into the mountains revealed no signs of approaching forces despite expectations.

If his predictions were accurate, they should have arrived days ago—but peace reigned undisturbed.

By now, doubt crept in.

Was I overestimating that man simply because he came from a dream, used magic, and had piercing eyes?

At that moment,

The doors to the palace opened, and a man walked in. Concealing the green rapier at his waist beneath his cloak, the distinctive white-haired youth—Swen—approached.

“Swen, you stand before your lord.”

Swen was here because Serpina summoned him. She felt she’d waited long enough.

“Raise your head, Swen.”

Serpina stared directly into Swen’s eyes as he complied. It was time to speak with him—to understand his thoughts and true intentions.

Taking a deep breath, treating him less like a subordinate commander and more like an envoy from another realm, she carefully parted her shimmering pink lips.

“Swen, do you not have something to say to me?”

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