The Master of the Brave - Chapter 136
The Master of the Brave
Chapter 136. Interlude (I)
The departure was to begin after sunset. There were seven figures who had prepared for their journey and left the city unnoticed: Wynn, Leticia, Cornelia, Kelvin, Locke, Wedge, and Lino. The seven were mounted on horses that they had hidden in the forest beforehand, and they walked along a narrow path that could barely be traversed by a single horse. It was a branching path that was originally not well maintained.
“Letty, clear the rocks over here too.”
“Right away.”
Wynn, who was in the lead, stopped at a rock blocking the path and looked at Leticia, who was following behind him.
A rock taller than Wynn, which appeared to have fallen from a landslide, completely blocked the narrow path, but when Leticia put her hand on it and intoned a spell, it turned to sand and crumbled. It was dangerous to advance on horseback at night. Only local hunters, lumberjacks and charcoal burners used this forest road, and it was covered not only with fallen rocks, but also collapsed trees and cliffs. Due to the poor condition of the path, Wynn, accustomed to this type of trail thanks to his work as an adventurer, led the way, while Leticia cleared any obstacles.
The reason they were forced to advance at night was to avoid the scouts of Prince Neumann’s army, who were probably still in the vicinity of Erz.
“Let’s rest over here.”
On a dangerous route, the degree of fatigue increased more than on a normal route.
When Kelvin stopped his horse, seeing how tired everyone was, the tension they had been accumulating suddenly relaxed, and everyone let out a big sigh. The place he had chosen for the camp was a rocky area with a small stream. Thanks to the large bare rocks, no trees were growing and it was a small open space.
“Vice-captain, do you want us to build a campfire?
“There’s no sign that we were tracked, so we should be fine.”
“Then I’ll go gather firewood. Letty, help me.”
“Yes.”
Wynn and Leticia walked together into the depths of the bushes.
“Locke-kun. “
As Locke gathered up dead leaves, twigs, etc., that were scattered about and transferred the fire from the torch in his hand, Kelvin called out to him.
“What’s the matter, Vice-captain?”
“Was there any progress in the relationship between those two during the mission in Lyon?”
Kelvin stared in the direction in which Wynn and Leticia had walked.
“Why do you ask?”
“Well… because their relationship somehow seems to be more intimate.”
“Well then~, maybe something happened in Peshlika~.” The one who answered was Lino, who was taking out dried food and tools needed for camping from the bag she was carrying in her horse’s saddlebags. “When Leticia-sama was surrounded by the nobles in the city of Peshlika, Wynn-kun intervened and forcibly took her out of there~.”
“Huh?” Kelvin’s narrowed eyes widened slightly, which was unusual.
“I didn’t hear what happened after Wynn took Leticia-sama out, but it looks like they were alone for a while. I think something may have happened then.”
“So that’s what happened?”
“But, Vice-captain, how did you know?”
Locke shot him an impressed look and Kelvin laughed.
“I guess I had a hunch. In the past, Wynn didn’t seem to like Leticia-sama using her power in her knighting, but now it seems to have changed. The atmosphere between the two of them is also different.”
“Heh, Vice Captain~. You are surprisingly perceptive in that sense~.”
“Lino-kun, as you know, I’m a married man, remember?” At Lino’s words, Kelvin let out a small laugh and then made a surprised face. “You can tell with a little observation, can’t you? It’s not just the words they say to each other, but also their breathing, the way they look at each other, and the pauses between them, there are a lot of signs that allow you to see the change in their relationship. This is a technique I’ve developed in battle, but you can also apply it in real life to infer relationships between people.”
“H-How clever…” Locke gave him a subtle glance as he continued to hold the mallet.
“That’s not the point, Locke-kun.”
“Really?”
“It’s been a long time, but remember what I told you on the way to Erz?”
Locke cocked his head to the side with a “Really?” when Kelvin asked him if he remembered.
“I told you before, didn’t I? I told you about our squadron’s role with Wynn-kun. The role we’re expected to play is to help him achieve his goals. He seems to have already accomplished enough in Lyon to live up to those expectations, and as I just confirmed, his relationship with Leticia-sama has also moved in the right direction…” Kelvin cut off his words there and looked at Cornelia, who was tending the horses. She was supposed to be the most important noblewoman in the empire and, despite her high status, she was leading the horses to the stream next to Wedge and watering them. However, Kelvin noticed that her eyes turned from time to time in the direction in which Wynn and Leticia had walked.
“…Uh, is something wrong with Cornelia-sama…?”
“It’s a great pleasure for our empire that the relationship between Wynn-kun and Leticia-sama seems to be progressing, but what about the relationship with Cornelia-sama?”
“W-What about…” Locke was speechless. “As long as Wynn and Leticia-sama have a good relationship, it’s hard to say, but I think she’ll have to step aside or something…”
At Locke’s answer, Kelvin let out a big sigh. Then he shook his head once, a small, light shake, and stood up and walked over to Cornelia by the stream.
“Excuse me, Your Highness.”
“Yes?” Cornelia, who had crouched around the stream to water her horse, turned back in the same posture.
“I’m sorry if this is a rude question, but I’d like to ask about the personal relationship between you and Wynn-kun?”
“Our personal relationship?” Cornelia, who was crouched by the stream while the horses were drinking, looked back without changing her position.
“Umm… it’s just that I’m pretty sure Her Highness has special feelings for him.”
When Kelvin asked her so directly, Locke and Lino, who followed behind him, looked at each other’s faces and couldn’t help but let out a surprised expression.
“H-H-Hold on, Vice-captain.”
“Vice-captain~, as much as I want to know, that question is kind of…”
Cornelia looked at the two people in panic for a moment, but then stood up, trying to maintain a calm attitude.
“…Kelvin-san, I don’t understand what you’re saying, what do you mean when you say that I have special feelings for Wynn-kun?”
“Just that, that Her Highness has special feelings for him. Oh, I’m sorry, I don’t want to be indelicate about it. But I would like to confirm Her Highness’s feelings as a politic when we move forward.”
“Does my personal relationship with Wynn-kun affect your politics in any way?”
“Of course it does. You don’t know how much.” Kelvin nodded firmly. “I would like to remind you that the outcome of your personal relationship with Wynn-kun will be of great interest to the Empire.”
“To the Empire?” Cornelia’s eyes widened for a moment. “But… Wynn-kun already feels something special for Leticia-sama. Even if… even if I had these special feelings for him, I could never dare to tear their relationship apart.”
Cornelia’s cheeks tinged slightly when she mentioned the word “special feelings”. That alone allowed everyone present to confirm what her true feelings were.
“Indeed, it is true that no person will be able to do anything to separate those two. However, Your Highness. We cannot just allow you to step aside.”
“What do you mean you can’t…?” At Kelvin’s words, Cornelia seemed to be confused.
“You see, Your Highness. As I mentioned to Locke-kun earlier, I am very glad that Wynn-kun and Leticia-sama are moving in the right direction. However, for our Lemmrousell Empire, that alone is not enough. It seems that Leticia-sama is not attached to her family, the Mavis family, and furthermore, Wynn-kun does not have a family as such either, although he does have adoptive parents. In other words, the two of them are not firmly rooted in the empire.
“Oh, that’s true. It seems that Leticia-sama hates her home. And, from what I heard, she spent her entire childhood at the inn where Wynn lived?”
“Even when Leticia-sama met with her older brother~, her attitude was so reserved~.”
Locke and Lino backed up Kelvin’s words.
“The Empire wants to keep those two here at all costs. We definitely don’t want them to go to other countries. That’s what His Highness Alfred thinks too.”
“I understand what you’re saying, but how does my personal relationship with Wynn-kun have anything to do with that?”
“In other words, I would like you to build a closer relationship with him than ever before, and be the wedge that holds him to the Empire.”
“How dare you! You ask me to separate the two of them!” Cornelia raised her eyebrows at Kelvin’s comment.
“No, no, I’m not asking you to separate them. I’m just saying that I want you to be as close to him as Leticia-sama and build a close relationship. I’m sure His Highness Alfred is thinking the same thing.”
“My brother?”
Kelvin nodded to Cornelia, who questioned him suspiciously.
“Of course. If not, there would be no way Wynn-kun would decide to stay with Her Highness. Fortunately, you seem to have a soft spot in your heart for him. His Highness Alfred wants to keep Leticia-sama in the Empire in a way that is in line with his wishes. This is not uncommon in the world of nobles, wives and concubines.”
“B-But Wynn-kun is a commoner, isn’t he?” Cornelia was annoyed by the direction the conversation was taking.
“Well, even though they’re commoners, my father and brother have concubines,” Locke muttered to himself. Three concubines of Locke’s father lived in the main residence of the Marine family, and there were also half brothers and sisters, although they were not recognized as heirs.
“As expected from the Marine family, one of the great merchant families of the Empire. In view of the Marine example, it is not uncommon for commoners to have more than one woman as a wife.”
“But Vice-captain~. Wouldn’t that mean that Cornelia-sama or Leticia-sama would become his mistress? Wynn, he’s a commoner, right, is something like that allowed when it’s a member of the royal family or a duke’s family?”
Lino’s question was legitimate.
As for Leticia, they could do nothing about it, except respect her wishes. She, who had had a great attachment to Wynn from a very young age, had no attachment to her title and had the strength to carry out her own will. Even if her father, Duke Mavis, and other relatives objected, it was impossible for them to bend her will by force. If they were not careful, she might end up leaving the empire quickly. She was a troublesome person who had no attachment to her status as a duke’s daughter.
With Cornelia, however, it was different. As the first princess of the empire, Cornelia was also second in line to the throne, making her the most important noblewoman in the empire. Unlike the royalty of other countries, the women of the imperial family of the Lemmrousell Empire were free to choose their marriage partners. Therefore, the women of the imperial family had been marrying the partners of their choice, and only the sons of high-ranking nobles could meet the princess. Consequently, in most cases, a man suitable to the position of the princess was chosen as a companion.
That is why Cornelia went to knight school, out of selfishness towards her father the emperor. And as a result, she chose Wynn, who was of the lowest rank in the knight school. It was unprecedented in the long history of the empire that the person chosen by the princess was a commoner. Even the nobles close to the royal family would not allow this to happen.
“Yes, I think Lino-kun is right in her fears.” Kelvin nodded, “Even if he has the title of the Master of the Brave, Wynn-kun up until now would not have allowed it. However, with the endorsement of His Royal Highness Raul, the crown prince of the Kingdom of Lyon and Sword Saint, the title of Sword Maker is now in his hands, and his achievements in the recent upheaval will be greatly appreciated. That’s the kind of thing that could be taken as nobility. Then Wynn-kun could marry the princess without fear of reprisal.
“But, Wynn-kun is still in love with Leticia-sama!”
“Now, now. That’s why we want Her Highness to establish a close relationship with Wynn-kun. Leticia-sama is the Brave and the daughter of Duke Mavis. There is no one else who can match her, you aside, is there?
“……”
Kelvin even smiled as he said it. The momentum of his words made Cornelia involuntarily swallow her rebuttal. In the back of her mind, she remembered Leticia’s beautiful blonde hair, which seemed to spread light, her miraculous figure, and her appearance worthy of a hero. Regardless of her position, there certainly weren’t many people in the empire who could be on equal footing with Leticia, who was attractive even from a woman’s point of view. With the exception of Cornelia. She realized this and felt inwardly flattered, but continued to speak in a tone of denial.
“Kelvin-san. I have no intention of get in between the two of them, so…”
“Really?” When Cornelia denied it again, Kelvin decided it was time to back off. “Well, Your Highness. Prince Alfred probably expects a future like the one I just described. I’d appreciate it if you’d keep that in mind.” When he said that, Kelvin smiled and gave a small bow and left the creek area and headed for the rocky ground. He was heading back to the campfire.
Both Locke and Lino were stunned by Kelvin’s reckless attitude towards the princess, but they went along with it. The only ones left in the stream were Cornelia, who was still trying to assimilate the words she heard, and Wedge, who was listening to the conversation and tending to the horses.
“Um… let’s go back too, shall we?” When they finished with the horses, Wedge opened his mouth and urged Cornelia, who had not moved from her spot, back to the campfire.
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