/
Chapter 86 - We Finally Met
Fionia Lavaltor.
The only daughter of Duke Lavaltor, and the treasure that Lavaltor cherished the most.
But Ian couldn’t understand something.
‘Was she also like this then?’
She certainly wasn’t like this in his previous life.
A young lady donned in an ordinary blue dress and exuded a strong sense of oppression. Turning the pages of a book suited her better than swinging a sword.
Ian recalled his first meeting with her.
“Nice to meet you, Your Highness. My name is Fionia Lavaltor.”
He remembered how disciplined she was, befitting Lavaltor’s daughter.
But the young lady in front of him now, despite still having the same calm eyes and smile.
Drip drip.
Drops of red blood were dripping from her hair, which should have been a natural blue color. It was stained red with the blood of enemies, not hers.
She was strong enough to be called the goddess of war.
Ian quickly returned to his senses and asked her.
“You must be the young lady of Lavaltor, correct? How come you are here…”
Fionia also replied casually.
“I came to give you supplies, thus here I am.”
“The lady herself in such a dangerous situation?”
“I came here because my brother Fiosen eagerly asked me to come. He told me I would see something great.”
She smiled, praising his amazing feat. It was clear that she had watched Ian fight even while fighting with the Bahara soldiers. Her twinkling eyes were the evidence of it.
But for Ian, it was absurd.
‘Fiosen. That guy?’
It was obvious what he had done.
As Lavaltor’s successor, he was also entrusted with the work of the supply unit.
Ian never expected Fiosen would do something like this.
Of course, it wasn’t all that bad. Not only did he get to see a different side of the lady from his previous life, she also managed to catch all the enemies he would have otherwise missed.
It was thanks to Fionia moving directly that Red Wolf moved together.
It was then.
“Miss, are you already taking care of your dear husband first?”
A man who appeared to be the leader of the Red Wolf approached Fionia. His whole body was also dyed red with the enemy’s blood. But his face was full of playfulness.
It was like Nathan.
Fionia noticed him.
“Uncle Harper!”
“Why? Did I say something wrong? The battle is yet to be over, but you already took care of His Highness first instead of us. This Harper is very disappointed.”
“Uncle…”
She tried to say something, but it was quicker for Harper to come down before Ian.
“Harper of the Red Wolf greets His Highness the Seventh Prince.”
Fionia couldn’t say anything more to Harper, who was bowing down to Ian.
Meanwhile, Harper was looking at Ian with interest.
‘Is this him?’
The man who would be betrothed to their young lady, Fionia, instead of the Second Prince he didn’t see in a good light. He was a young yet confident kid. Harper came to take a liking to this young prince.
He couldn’t help feeling so.
‘Regardless of how many knights he had, he personally charged through Bahara’s troops.’
He heard that Ian hadn’t even had a coming-of-age ceremony yet.
The men of Lavaltor never disliked a brave man.
‘A Lavaltor lord-to-be should be like that. Second Prince, that piece of trash. Tsk!’
Harper naturally felt a sense of closeness, especially after seeing Ian’s performance firsthand.
But at that very moment, Ian was thinking of something else.
It was because he couldn’t understand at all.
‘How could such a person become Duke Lavaltor’s shackles?’
She was not only confident but also a brave woman who fought among the Red Wolf, Lavaltor’s secret weapon. It was unbelievable that such a person had been wrapped around a mere Second Prince’s fingers and made the Lavaltor move.
There must have been something oppressing her.
But that wasn’t the point now.
Anyway, Ian got a huge boon thanks to Fionia.
The matter in front of him now was more important.
“We’ll surrender!”
“Please help us!”
The savages cornered by Red Wolf were raising the white flag without any hesitation.
Thanks to this situation, the savage troops were absorbed into Ian’s army in an instant.
It was truly a staggering number of prisoners. If the report was submitted to the royal palace right now, it would be recognized as a huge merit.
Of course, they were not the only things Ian gained.
“Your Highness! I’ve brought all the enemies’ supplies!”
“Everyone, take off your weapons and armor in one place and kneel! I will kill those who do not obey the order!”
They reaped the resources owned by the savages.
That’s not all either.
“I’m glad you didn’t destroy everything.”
“I think it could be used, Your Highness.”
They were able to seize the catapults, a siege weapon.
Then Nathan approached Ian, who was looking at the siege weapons.
“Are you interested in siege weapons?”
“Of course. I heard this weapon requires a lot of resources, so Kaistein does not have many of them.”
“Hahaha. That’s not all. I know this thing very well. This is…”
“From the empire. It’s not made roughly, it’s of the highest quality made by the imperial family. Seeing that it used ebony wood, it must have been prepared for a night attack.”
“!?”
Nathan’s mouth gaped in fright.
It was because he couldn’t even glean where this prince would end up.
‘It’s information that no country can tell at a glance. What the hell is with this prince!’
It was natural for Nathan to think so.
Ian recognized it was made in the empire. However, it was something one wouldn’t know unless they studied with interest for a long time. Some shallow knowledge could never uncover the source of this weapon.
Furthermore, siege weapons were mostly a classified field.
Nathan just couldn’t wrap his head around how Ian, who used to be a serf, came to know this.
But that wasn’t what Ian was interested in.
‘I can definitely use this.’
It was for the Northern Expedition.
There would not be many useful situations to use it in Bahara, which had plenty of mountainous areas. Siege weapons were essential to capture the enemy’s capital.
Of course, there was a downside.
‘We need experts who can handle siege weapons.’
It was hard for ordinary soldiers to handle them.
The transportation, coupled with the operation method, was on a whole nother level of difficulty. One could not even make a good shot unless they were a skilled artilleryman.
But there was no need to worry.
It was because they had Bahara troops who were now in their custody.
“Walk straight! Why are you so weak when you are Bahara savages!”
“I’m… I’m innocent.”
“What?”
“I’m not a Bahara soldier. Please don’t lump me together with those ignorant bastards.”
There was an imperial army dispatched among the savages. They were also professional soldiers who could operate catapults.
Ian truly thanked the crown prince from the bottom of his heart.
‘Not only did he promise to pledge allegiance, he also gave me everything necessary for the Northern Expedition. Thank you so much, Crown Prince.’
There was no need to train a professional artilleryman. They had competent artillerymen. If it didn’t work out, just made them learn how to do it through torture.
Thus, Ian’s eyes gleamed, and he immediately ordered Galon.
“Put them in a separate place. They are useful.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
As the battlefield was being sorted out slowly.
Ian’s eyebrows rose when he looked at one side.
It was inevitable.
Nathan also approached with a glare.
“Those guys…”
It’s the troops of the First Princess, the exact people who tried to run away during the battle. Still, he noticed that they were standing far away from him as if they knew some shame.
At that moment, Ian’s eyes turned sharp.
‘The First Princess has crossed the line this time.’
The soldiers might be clueless, but the battalion chiefs certainly must have been briefed in advance.
That was to betray at the critical moment.
Therefore, they were just keeping an eye on him while preparing to run away.
Ian slowly walked toward them.
“Y… Your Highness?”
Ignoring the battalion chiefs asking in a trembling voice, Ian asked Galon.
“Sir Galon, what is the military law for disobeying orders?”
“Summary execution.”
Galon answered in a cold voice.
The battalion chiefs, realizing the dire situation they were in, urgently cried out.
“P, please wait a moment! Your Highness, you’re mistaken. We’re just…”
But Ian didn’t wait for the answer.
Shiik!
With a swing of Ian’s sword, the head of a battalion chief flew up. His sword drew a horizontal line and slit his throat.
The frightened battalion chiefs began to run away in a hurry.
“Ru… Run away!”
They understood well that their lives were in jeopardy.
Ian sneered in disbelief.
‘It doesn’t seem like they are thinking of attacking me in the meantime.’
They made a reasonable choice.
They had directly confirmed the skills of Galon and Nathan escorting Ian.
Besides, what about the young lady of Lavaltor and Red Wolf next to her?
If they attacked Ian but did not manage to kill off everyone here, they would only be charged with high treason. Rather than having their entire families annihilated, they chose to run away by themselves.
Ian shouted at the top of his lungs.
“Sir Nathan! Execute the sentence on the sinners!”
“I’ll obey your orders!”
Nathan was ready to invoke his Oath.
But at that very moment.
“Huh?”
Nathan slumped down. It was clear that he had been exhausted from overusing his Oath excessively.
The battalion chiefs smirked at the sight.
But at that instant, Fionia moved. She jumped on the horse next to her and spurred it.
She straddled the horse with only one leg crossed.
It was an advanced horsemanship technique that only skilled horsemen could pull off.
Thanks to that, Fionia quickly reached the side of the fleeing battalion chiefs.
“La… lady of Lavaltor?”
The chiefs shouted in an urgent voice.
“Don’t do this, my lady!”
“If you do, we won’t stay still either!”
The battalion chiefs hastily raised their weapons.
Nevertheless, Fionia swung her sword in a cold voice.
“Military Code Article 16. Death penalty for disobedience of orders.”
Slash!
That’s the Fionia attack.
Her sword, like Ian’s, flung the head of a battalion chief high into the sky.
“!?”
Everyone except Ian gawked in shock.
What the hell happened just now? No, the young lady of Lavaltor should have been no different from any other ladies. They were surprised by the calm eyes of such a woman.
But Fionia didn’t stop.
“Military Code Article 45. Mutiny during battle is equivalent to treason. Death penalty.”
“Military Code Article 3. Desertion in battle. Death penalty.”
“Military Code Article 53. Plotting to murder a superior on the battlefield. Death penalty.”
Similarly, she beheaded the heads of the three escaping battalion chiefs.
All happened in a flash. Nathan, who was trying to invoke his Oath, was just staring blankly. No, it was the same for everyone, including Galon.
“Oh my god. What a neat skill.”
“I… impressive. She took care of them before Sir Nathan did.”
Harper smiled at the sight.
“As expected of our lady. It is worth teaching her.”
Ian was just as speechless.
He was surprised by Fionia’s quick judgment and bold swings.
Having finished off the battalion chiefs, Fionia leisurely drove her horse.
“I’ve dealt with them according to military law.”
“!?”
Everyone was dumbstruck. However, the Red Wolf seemed to be familiar with the situation.
They merely watched on from the side as if nothing had happened.
Moreover, no one thought of refuting Fionia’s words.
What she said was one thing.
‘Who the hell is she?’
‘I’m scared.’
Her voice, as she uttered so, was so hair-raisingly cold, as if a wind blew on their necks. Her eyes even looked as if she would not hesitate to do the same thing again.
It was natural for everyone to gulp stiffly and close their mouths.
The same went for Nathan.
‘It’s not wrong. Obviously not…’
At that moment, only one thought popped up in Nathan’s and the soldiers’ minds.
‘…I should be careful from now on. If I do something wrong, I could really die.’
But only one person was different.
It was Ian.
He was smiling as he looked at Fionia as if he found this amusing.
‘Because my older brother always hid her, I always thought it was meant to keep Duke Lavaltor in check.’
Looking at it now, it was clear that the Second Prince couldn’t handle that personality of hers.
He surely would not make any attempt in front of a woman like that.
He would have chosen to be alone all the time, even if he had to swallow his shame.
It seemed like he didn’t dare to meet her even in the present lifetime.
Ian liked her anyway.
“Should I call you Dame Fionia?”
“I haven’t been officially ordained yet. You can call me comfortably.”
“All right, young lady of Lavaltor.”
Then, for some reason, Fionia glanced at Ian and lowered her head.
“I wish you could just call me Fionia.”
“Yes, Fionia.”
Of course, she didn’t seem like an easy lady.
In a way, she felt like a straight arrow, similar to Galon. Still, it felt pretty good.
The moment the two locked into each other’s eyes.
“Hey, I guess the young lady is interested in the prince.”
“Did you think so, Sir Nathan?”
“Oh? You too?”
Nathan and the soldiers were watching the scene with interest.
***
Thanks to Fionia and the Red Wolf, Labadom quickly regained its peace.
It was when Ian was organizing the village with the soldiers.
“Your Highness! Soldiers are approaching!”
A cloud of dust rose beyond the Labadom village. It clearly signified that a large number of soldiers were on the move.
Nathan, who had good eyes, immediately noticed.
“They’re our soldiers. In addition, there is the Lavaltor flag.”
Finally, the person they had been waiting for had arrived.
And that expectation was not wrong.
Ian greeted them with a bright smile.
“Thank you for your hard work, Duke Lavaltor.”
Duke Lavaltor looked at the barbarians who were being apprehended for a while. He opened his mouth with a stiff look.
“I apologize I couldn’t come early.”
“That’s all right. Didn’t you bring a good present instead?”
“!”
Duke Lavaltor smirked.
He seemed to like Ian’s spirit.
And in the meantime.
“We finally met.”
“…”
Ian smiled at the crown prince. However, he looked wretched. Aside from being infected with the plague…
“I guess someone hit you.”
“You…”
It was because his face was swollen. Ian secretly checked, and he found a blood-soaked club hanging from Duke Lavaltor’s horse. It seemed that he got his hands on him.
But that wasn’t important to Ian.
It was because the time had finally come to wrap up the bet with the crown prince.