Chapter 215

* * *

After the commotion had settled…

Luna was slowly coming to terms with the fact that still seemed unbelievable.

“So… you all…”

“We apologize for deceiving you, Lady Luna.”

Francis knelt down and offered a polite apology.

Charlotte and Violet standing beside him also dropped to their knees in unison.

“My name is Francis von Einhardt.”

“Charlotte von Einhardt.”

“…Violet von Einhardt.”

Cain Nerkis – no, Kyle von Einhardt, who had desperately hidden them, now knelt before Luna.

The immense legitimacy of the Einhardt side branch, successors of a house whose only power lay in their royal blood, were bowing before her.

If anything, this very lack of power had allowed them to survive until now.

Cain had risked his life escorting them south while hiding them from the chaos.

“Lady Luna.”

“Cain… no, Lord Kyle. This…”

“Please call me as you wish, Lady Luna. Whether Cain or Kyle, my resolve to follow you hasn’t changed.”

Seeing Luna’s complex expression, Kyle nodded understandingly.

“I know you don’t harbor good feelings toward the Imperial Family. But-”

“I understand. I don’t blame you, Kyle. In fact, I’m grateful.”

Luna rose from her seat and bowed deeply to him.

“If it weren’t for you, Kyle, I wouldn’t have been able to properly persuade people. And I’m aware that having a member of the Einhardt family assist me will provide justification to many others… And…”

Then she smiled brightly.

“You’ve always been by my side, haven’t you? So, my feelings toward the Imperial Family… are secondary.”

“Lord…”

“It’s Serpina who’s the bad one… It’s fine.”

Kyle hesitated for a moment upon hearing “It’s Serpina who’s the bad one”- but then-

He bowed deeply and replied.

“My Lord, please unify the continent. Overthrow the old Einhardt Empire and create a new nation! This Kyle will dedicate the rest of my life to serving Lady Luna.”

As soon as Kyle finished speaking, the three others also voiced their opinions.

“We feel the same way, Lady Luna.”

“We haven’t forgotten the grace you’ve shown us.”

“To be able to assist Lady Luna would be an honor.”

“Everyone…”

Even though they were from a side branch, receiving support from survivors of the Einhardt Imperial Family gave her a legitimacy that even Serpina might envy.

Though there had been betrayal, they hadn’t turned their swords against her first, giving her a sense of righteousness.

Everything was going smoothly just as Sir Swoen had said, but-

‘Not yet.’

They had merely taken the first step.

There was still a mountain of challenges ahead.

Still, it had to be done.

Because he would come.

To face him squarely when he arrives, she needed to establish a proper state as soon as possible.

Things were much better than when she had been idly staying at Jeilrant Castle.

‘Sir Swoen. We’ve raised our flag again. We’ll wait forever if we must. Please return…!’

Luna’s clock, which had stopped at Jeilrant Castle, began ticking again after a long time.

* * *

The rebellion of Lunarien Iniyan, the Lady of Tevelo Castle under Karelia’s command.

News that she had turned her sword against her own lord spread astonishingly fast.

Madlen Castle, the Royal Palace.

Makana Karelia, the Absolute Ruler of the Karelia Army sitting on the throne, looked utterly shocked.

“Is this… true?”

“It’s an extremely regrettable report, my lord…”

Lady Lunarien’s rebellion meant she had betrayed them.

“Surely this can’t be… Then, the commanders sent there…?”

“General Hutton and three other generals seem to have been captured. The rest… most of the officers stationed at Tevelo Castle appear to have defected to her side.”

With a thud, Karelia could only collapse into her seat.

She had trusted Lunarien so completely. She had believed in humanity so wholeheartedly, what else could she do?

Naturally, she hadn’t even considered Plan B.

Karelia thought of Lunarien as someone similar to herself. Even Vanessa had repeatedly warned that the main reason to keep an eye on Lunarien was because she was too similar to Karelia herself.

If Lunarien showed any superior qualities as a castle lady or ruler…

Vanessa had often expressed concern that Lunarien might surpass Karelia someday.

Yet Karelia trusted Lunarien fully.

“I trust you so much, and we’re so alike, surely you won’t betray me,” she had firmly believed.

Until this very moment, she had never seriously entertained the thought that “Lunarien might betray me.”

Such naivety and innocence unsuitable for a ruler.

What Vanessa had worried about as Karelia’s “only weakness” had become decisive in bringing her down.

“So… what should we do now?”

“Mi…Milord…?”

Only now realizing the messenger was staring at her, Karelia gave trembling orders.

“For now… please gather all available forces…”

“Yes… Yes!”

Fortunately, the soldier quickly understood the situation and rushed out.

Almost simultaneously, a familiar woman’s voice reached Karelia’s ears.

“My Lord!”

In the distance, Vanessa was running towards her.

Her expression clearly showed she’d already heard the news.

“Ba… Vanessa.”

Upon seeing her vacant-eyed lord, Vanessa’s expression crumpled with sorrow but she swallowed it back and sighed briefly before speaking.

“What’s done is done. There’s no turning back. Now isn’t the time for pointless talk about how I was right. We need to take action on what we can and must do.”

“But… How could Lady Luna… betray us…”

Vanessa instantly realized Mets hadn’t incited Lunarien’s betrayal.

Mets had… fallen to her side.

Given how little information had leaked despite losing all those troops, this conclusion seemed certain.

“I was foolish.”

Lunarien was similar to Karelia.

Of course, if she followed Karelia, Lunarien would naturally follow without hesitation due to their shared ideals and ambitions.

And the main reason Vanessa kept watch on her was because even she recognized Lunarien was more suited to be a ruler than Karelia.

Knowing this, believing the spy would definitely remain loyal was undoubtedly a painful mistake in hindsight.

“Though the extent of what Lunarien has uncovered is key… Regardless, the fact remains she has betrayed us. Perhaps it’s better for our army that she revealed herself now rather than continuing to stay with us without betraying.”

Losing troops was painfully bitter, but it was just one territory after all.

We were still advantageous in every aspect, so all that remained was to help steady Karelia’s heart and assist her in commanding…

Until then.

“Milord…?”

Vanessa easily noticed something was troubling Karelia from her expression.

At the same time, unease gripped her shoulders tightly.

“Could there be something else?”

“That… That is…”

With a trembling voice, Karelia spoke.

“The supplies… and military funds…”

“Pardon?”

“Lady Luna said the war materials wouldn’t be enough for the troops, so she announced plans to conquer three territories simultaneously…”

Vanessa’s complexion paled upon hearing her lord’s trembling words.

“Surely you didn’t hand over all available resources except the bare minimum?”

–A nod.

“…”

This was the worst-case scenario, yet Vanessa couldn’t utter a single word recklessly.

Transporting resources is naturally within the ruler’s authority. Reporting such trivial matters to her as strategist wasn’t entirely appropriate even for someone like herself who should be the second-in-command under the absolute leader.

Though she had received military authority recently, they were still preparing for war- and to preserve Karelia’s image of gentle charisma, she avoided getting her hands dirty unnecessarily, never intending to exceed her authority here.

So, she couldn’t complain now.

However, the thoroughness with which everything was mobilized made it seem like betrayal had been planned from the start.

Lunarien Iniyan.

Behind that innocent facade, she had been sharpening her blade all along?

“Is this truly her true nature?”

Vanessa couldn’t fully accept this, even though she had anticipated it.

She had kept watch on Lunarien. From the moment she consistently produced outstanding results among the castle ladies at Tevelo Castle, she monitored her movements and actions closely.

As Karelia said, she greatly resembled Karelia- naive, stubborn, and valuing loyalty.

Unlike Karelia, she possessed overwhelming strength and social skills that made everyone favor her, which Vanessa had noticed and guarded against.

Thus, she knew.

It was impossible for someone like Lunarien to execute such an underhanded plan while efficiently draining all resources and striking from behind.

Neither Tifa nor Cain who accompanied her seemed capable of devising such a despicable scheme.

Even the officers rumored to have participated in the betrayal were merely diligent individuals, not particularly remarkable.

Had someone else been influencing her all along?

Someone unknown to her.

Someone skilled at crafting such schemes, a calculating strategist type who only cared about efficiency- the thought that such a shadow was controlling her made Vanessa shiver.

“Perhaps… another person… is influencing her?”