Chapter 29

“Summarize what you felt was lacking and tell me tomorrow.”

Before they knew it, the sky had darkened. As Isaac added a few words while putting away his sword, Sharen blinked blankly at him.

“Me?”

“Yeah, you did well earlier. What you said was pretty helpful.”

“Oh, right… I did say that.”

Sharen’s awkward reply. The words she had spoken earlier were actually something Lianna had told her, so she felt a bit embarrassed. It was also strange that he was asking her to do it again.

“Do I really have to say it?”

“It’d be nice if you did. Why? Is it too much?”

“No, no! I can do it! I’ll bring it up sharp and clear, like filleting a fish bone!”

Isaac chuckled at the sight of Sharen clenching her fists and stepping forward with determination. He wasn’t really expecting anything from Sharen. He was just using her as a messenger to consult the woman behind her.

‘It’s a bit awkward to talk face-to-face after the divorce.’

This way, Sharen ended up playing the role of a messenger, and he planned to use her as long as he could.

“Hey Isaac, are you going to dinner? Want to go together?”

“I’ve been invited to dinner tonight, so I can’t join you.”

“Invited? Now? By who?”

“By the Margrave.”

“Uldiran Caldias?! Why you?”

“Exactly.”

Isaac answered casually, but he was also quite puzzled. Normally, he would have just brushed it off, but this was wartime, with the Great Horde pressing in.

A dinner invitation in this situation didn’t seem like a good idea.

“Hey Isaac, are you thinking of remarrying?”

“……”

Caught off guard by Sharen’s sudden question, Isaac hesitated and closed his mouth. He felt like if he blurted something out, he might make a mistake.

After swallowing hard, Isaac answered calmly.

“No.”

“Really?”

“No. But why are you asking? It’s not really your concern.”

“I’m just checking! I’m worried you might become Caldias’s son-in-law!”

“Ha, Sharen. Let me make this clear since you don’t seem to get it.”

“Huh?”

He needed to explain to this clueless tomboy that this place was different from the estate.

“Don’t go around saying weird things. Lianna and I are still married.”

Isaac showed the ring on his left ring finger.

“See? But talking about divorce or remarrying Caldias is really dangerous.”

“……”

“What if someone hears? Do you know how many nobles from various families are here?”

“Ah, I know.”

“How many are here?”

“…I don’t know.”

“Then you don’t know.”

Sharen, who had been staring blankly at Isaac, nodded without realizing it.

“Right.”

Feeling like she’d been cornered in the conversation, Sharen tilted her head. Before she could regain her composure, Isaac continued.

“So, watch your words. I’m leaving Helmunth in a month anyway. But you? You’re staying, right?”

“Right.”

Sharen nodded, then suddenly perked up and asked.

“Are you worried about me?”

“What kind of nonsense— Ha. Fine, think whatever you want.”

Conversations with kids at this age could go anywhere. Isaac eventually gave up and decided to head to the dinner.

* * *

“……”

Isaac had been invited to a Caldias dinner before, so he wasn’t too nervous. Having spent some time with them, he didn’t feel the need to be overly formal or burdened.

“Please, have a seat.”

To his surprise, a woman was sitting at the table, making Isaac a bit flustered.

Her name was Selene Caldias. Uldiran’s wife and Silberna’s mother. Her long white hair, undiminished beauty despite her age, and ample chest. It seemed Silberna had inherited much of her appearance from her mother.

“Thank you for having me.”

The meal was modest. For an invitation, it wasn’t much, not much different from what they served in the soldiers’ mess hall.

“Did you expect a feast? Disappointed?”

Uldiran, sitting across from him, asked with a fork in hand.

“I’d have been disappointed if it were a feast.”

Isaac answered with a soft smile, and Uldiran chuckled and nodded. Even as a Margrave, indulging in a luxurious meal alone during wartime wasn’t the Caldias he knew.

“……”

“Mother, Silberna. We have a guest, but you’re too focused on eating, aren’t you?”

Silberna, who had been staring at her plate and shoveling food into her mouth, flinched at her mother’s words.

After gulping down some water, she answered.

“I’m… I’m hungry.”

“But he’s your squad member.”

“……”

Silberna, who had been avoiding looking at Isaac, turned her head slightly. Her cheeks flushed red with embarrassment.

“You told me to cut my hair, right?”

“Were you serious?”

“O-of course.”

“I’ll cut it later. The barbers in the north all want to turn me into a barbarian warrior.”

“You do look scrawny.”

Surprisingly, their conversation flowed smoothly. Silberna herself was surprised. She had been keeping her distance, aware of her feelings and knowing she had to give up on them, but maybe she had been too cautious.

“Should I cut it for you?”

“You know how to cut hair?”

“Of course! I’ve taken down a few demon beasts.”

“……”

“Would it be okay to use a spear instead of scissors?”

Uldiran interjected, teasing.

“Issac Helmunth, Antonio came to see me today.”

“…Antonio, you mean.”

The most likely reason for the dinner invitation had just been confirmed.

“He wants to make a sword with Frost Silver. For you, no less.”

Isaac cursed Antonio’s ignorance internally but was relieved that the sensitive topic had been brought up. He couldn’t even mention Frost Silver himself due to his position.

“It seems I’ve ignited his passion for craftsmanship. If he said anything disrespectful to you, Margrave, I apologize on his behalf.”

“Oh, he was disrespectful alright. That guy barged into my office and demanded I hand it over.”

“Really?”

That crazy blacksmith.

Isaac felt cold sweat running down his back, but the Caldias family didn’t seem too upset.

“It’s not the first time.”

According to Silberna, it had happened a few times before.

Uldiran chugged his beer and laughed heartily.

“But this time was different. Usually, he asks for it for his own work, but this time, he said he wanted to make a sword for you… Issac.”

“……”

“What was it? He said he always thought Helmunth was the greatest sword ever forged by the gods. But now, he genuinely wants to surpass it.”

Isaac’s hand clenched into a fist under the table.

“He thinks that thin blade you’ll wield can beat Helmunth.”

He neither denied nor affirmed. He simply accepted the expectations piled upon him.

“Issac Helmunth.”

Uldiran slowly set down his beer mug. His expression changed, the drunkenness in his eyes fading.

“Of course, I can’t give you Frost Silver.”

“……”

“It’s not because you’re Helmunth. I hope there’s no misunderstanding.”

“Yes, I understand. I apologize for causing unnecessary trouble.”

Uldiran didn’t ask or say anything more. He just took another sip of beer and wiped his mouth.

“Why does Issac, who is Helmunth, have to beat Helmunth?”

Selene naturally chimed in. Her question broke the strange silence at the table.

“Well, it’s a personal resolve of sorts.”

Isaac awkwardly smiled and brushed it off. He couldn’t bring up the divorce openly, so he tried to steer the conversation away, but Uldiran interjected.

“It’s because of the Sword Festival.”

“The Sword Festival?”

The gazes of the mother and daughter turn toward Uldiran.

He smiles calmly and explains as if telling an old story.

“It’s an event held by the Helmunth family once every four years. They invite the nobles of the kingdom, and there, the direct descendants of Helmunth engage in duels.”

Uldiran grins slyly.

“Outsiders can participate too, but they usually don’t. They’d just get crushed by the Helmunths anyway.”

“What about you?”

“Me?”

Uldiran smiles awkwardly.

“I participated once, about 20 years ago. I lost to Arandel back then. It was a shame.”

“Then Isaac—”

Silverna’s gaze shifts to Isaac.

“Even though I’m a son-in-law, I’m still her husband. It’ll be me participating, not my wife, Lianna.”

Isaac answers with an awkward smile, and Silverna’s eyes widen.

“So that’s why you’ve been sparring with Sharen so much lately?”

“You could say that.”

Though, it wasn’t just about the Sword Festival.

The festival was just a stepping stone.

Isaac wanted to become a swordsman, and opportunities to spar with the Helmunths were rare, so he was just being diligent.

Especially since, if he got divorced in a month, he wouldn’t even dream of sparring again.

‘I’ll just take what I can get now.’

Anyway, it was good if they interpreted it positively.

“That’s so romantic, isn’t it?”

Selene smiles brightly as she speaks.

“Huh?”

A flustered voice escapes him, but Selene seems to take it as him trying to hide his embarrassment.

“Aren’t you participating in place of your wife, trying not to tarnish her name?”

‘No, not really.’

He awkwardly raises the corner of his mouth.

Twitching and wrinkling, he forces out a bitter reply.

“Y-yeah, that’s right.”

“Ah, that’s nice. I wish my husband had that kind of romance too. Men who are just too dependable aren’t that appealing, you know? They need to have some charm.”

“Ahem!”

Uldiran awkwardly clears his throat.

“I’ll go get some fresh air.”

He practically flees from the room.

With him gone, the atmosphere seems to relax, and Selene adjusts her posture, her eyes sparkling.

“Hey, Isaac, if it’s okay, could you tell us some romantic stories about you and your wife? Everyone here is so stiff.”

“Mother?!”

“Haha…”

Silverna tries to stop her, but Selene silences her with a raised hand.

“You need to hear this too. You’re too much like your father, so you’re not interested in this kind of thing, right?”

Unable to stop her mother’s rambling, Silverna covers her face with both hands and lowers her head.

“How was your first meeting?”

“Our first meeting…”

Perhaps swept up in the momentum, Isaac mutters without thinking.

They’ve been married for four years.

They got married after knowing each other for a year, so it’s been five years in total.

If you include his past life…

It’s been about 15 years.

“On a warm, sunny day—”

Surprisingly.

“The river was dyed yellow.”

The memory of that day is vivid.

“The rose, beautiful yet thorny, truly lived up to its name.”

Before he knew it, the image of Lianna from their first meeting began to surface in Isaac’s mind.

[I want to cross the river.]

There was no greeting.

She made the request bluntly.

‘It’ll cost one silver coin.’

[I don’t have it right now.]

‘That’s a shame. I need a silver coin to row.’

[……I’ll pay you later.]

‘What’s your guarantee? Do you have collateral?’

[All I have is my sword.]

‘That looks a bit too heavy.’

[……]

Her expressionless stare made him want to tease her a bit.

‘How about you smile for me? I’ll take that as collateral.’

That day, he won quite a bit in a card game.

He figured he could afford to accept something ridiculous like that as payment.

[Are you joking?]

‘If you don’t want to, that’s fine. I’ll just go take a nap.’

[……Wait.]

The rose-like woman sighed and awkwardly raised the corner of her mouth.

‘Is that supposed to be a smile?’

[If that’s not enough, then I can’t help it.]

‘Sigh, then can you make me laugh instead?’

Back then, he was intrigued by her awkwardness.

Though, in reality, she could’ve just drawn her sword and ended it.

[Once upon a time—]

She racked her brain to come up with a story.

‘That’s painfully boring.’

It was so boring.

The atmosphere turned icy.

[……]

Lianna clenched her lips.

She bit her lip in frustration.

Whether it was the sunlight or her shame, her pale skin flushed red.

It was truly captivating.

‘Hah!’

Without realizing it, he lost the bet.

[You laughed just now.]

‘Ah, I guess I did.’

Despite the defeat, he rowed her across without a care.

On the small ferry.

As he watched her, chin resting on her hand, savoring the river breeze, her lips relaxed.

He thought to himself.

I want to make this person smile.

“Looking back now, I think I fell for her from the very first meeting.”

Without realizing it, a smile forms on his lips, and Isaac awkwardly concludes his story.

“Well, whatever the case is now—”

Back then, he must’ve truly loved her.

* * *

After Isaac leaves.

Selene visits Silverna’s room.

“Mother?”

Silverna, who had been preparing, still had a troubled expression.

The story Isaac told earlier had made her heart race more than she expected.

But it also stabbed her heart more than she expected.

“I heard you’re in love with someone you shouldn’t be.”

“Anna told you, didn’t she?”

“I wanted to help you come to your senses… but it seems I unintentionally hurt you deeply, so I came to see you.”

Selene’s lips form a comforting smile.

Silverna, her eyes wide, shakes her head gently.

“No, I think I’ll be able to sort out my feelings.”

“I was a bit surprised by how passionate the story was… but I also felt a bit envious.”

Selene mutters about romance.

Silverna feels the same.

She wondered how Isaac could’ve married someone like Lianna.

But after hearing his story, it felt natural that they got married.

Selene slowly approaches and hugs Silverna.

“Silverna, everyone goes through the pain of love. This experience will surely help you find better love in the future.”

“Mother…”

“I’m sorry.”

“No, I’m the one who should apologize.”

She confesses that it’s her fault for falling in love with a man she can’t have, and Selene hugs her tighter.

“Silverna.”

“It’s okay. It’s a lesson. If I meet a fateful man next time, I won’t miss my chance. This time, I was just too late.”

At Silverna’s words, Selene smiles softly.

She had been the same, hadn’t she?

Back when she boldly pursued Uldiran Caldias.

“That’s right, you’re my daughter. You’ll definitely do well.”

Selene comforts Silverna while holding her.

Indeed, her daughter is strong.

But then, suddenly.

‘……’

[Well.]

Isaac’s last words.

[Whatever the case is now.]

They strangely linger in Selene’s mind.

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