“Hmm…”
Marie-Rose narrowed her eyes as she looked at Yekaterina.
“Well then, it was a pleasure meeting you, Your Highness.”
That was all she said.
After winking at Yuri, Marie-Rose shifted the conversation to say she would find lodging. Yuri had invited her to stay inside the palace, but with a playful smile, Marie-Rose declined and headed toward the castle.
As Marie-Rose’s figure grew smaller in the distance, someone approached Yuri’s side.
“Your Highness.”
To Yuri’s surprise, it was Raymond.
They had met briefly when the Anti-Empire Alliance marched on the Empire, and Raymond had volunteered as a soldier. True to form, he had come running again.
Yuri shook Raymond’s hand warmly.
“Thank you for coming. I’m always grateful to you, Sir Raymond.”
“It’s my duty.”
Whether during the Alliance’s campaign or when forming the veterans’ association, Raymond had always taken on the tough tasks. Yuri often felt indebted to him.
Raymond smiled gently.
“By the way…”
“Hm?”
“I’d like to say something personal.”
“What is it?”
“I’m sure everyone has already given you advice. But sometimes, the thoughts of older people can be more helpful than those of the young.”
“What do you mean…?”
He looked at Yuri with kind eyes.
“Your Highness, you don’t have to choose just one person.”
“Hm?”
“You are both royalty and a hero of Briol. Don’t forget that.”
“Uh-huh?”
“Well, I should get back. I have to train with the soldiers. Please take care of yourself.”
“Wait—”
“Hahaha…”
Raymond made a strange sound and left again.
Yuri shook his head.
“Phew…”
He appreciated everyone’s concern.
But—
“What do they all take me for…?”
Why was everyone so eager to give him advice about relationships?
He was Yuri Briol.
Though he had no real lover in this life, in his past life he had been very popular. There were countless women who had shed tears because of him—far more than the number of soldiers in this training ground.
Four rows of soldiers, two laps around the training field by number…
“That’s enough to form a unit.”
Yuri thought that the fact no one besides Marie-Rose had shown any romantic interest in a man as handsome, noble, intelligent, good-natured, and skilled with a sword as himself was proof of his deep understanding of women’s hearts.
Whenever he sensed any signals from the opposite sex, he immediately shut down any possibility.
Yuri had avoided serious conversations with Yekaterina not only because of the emotional burden but also as a strategic move.
Just as Yekaterina’s calm demeanor unsettled Yuri’s heart,
Yuri’s own composed reaction was shaking Yekaterina’s feelings.
Though invisible to others, they were wounding each other in a silent duel.
Just because the latch is open doesn’t mean you rush in like a wild dog.
And he was no wild dog—he was a cheetah.
Yuri smiled wryly.
“Well, I guess it can’t be helped now…”
Yeah, it was all just excuses.
He looked up at the sky. The final battle was approaching; he could no longer delay.
It was time to settle things with Yekaterina.
Spinning a guilty coin in the air, Yuri glanced sideways.
Yekaterina sat under a parasol, sipping tea and watching the other knights train.
On the training ground, some knights, exhausted from the grueling drills, had stripped off their clothes and were shouting fiercely.
One knight, his sculpted torso bare, subdued his sparring partner and roared triumphantly, prompting Yekaterina to applaud.
“…”
Yuri closed his eyes, then opened them and took a deep breath.
“I am a cheetah. A wild cheetah. Not the same breed as a dog…”
Behind him, Laurent watched silently. Moyongchan, who was resting with them, spoke up.
“Laurent, don’t look at him like he’s an idiot.”
“Ah, I didn’t mean to.”
Two days passed.
Yuri still only exchanged surface-level conversations with Yekaterina.
They never addressed what needed to be said, yet somehow their talks flowed naturally, and time would slip away as they walked together.
It felt strange, like when they were just getting to know each other.
“Phew…”
Lost in deep thought, Yuri was interrupted by an unexpected visitor.
“Your Highness, someone’s here to see you.”
“Who?”
“They didn’t say, but they said you’d recognize them by face. Should I turn them away?”
“No, let them in. I’m curious to see who would come to me in times like these.”
In the reception room, Yuri found someone he hadn’t expected at all.
His mouth fell open.
“You… why are you here?”
It was Oliver Elgast, a knight of the Empire.
Oliver was a promising knight who had once competed in a tournament but was unexpectedly knocked out by Sven of Liberta.
At the time, he and Yuri had formed a strange rivalry—though that was only in Oliver’s mind.
Oliver shrugged.
“Is there a problem?”
“Don’t tell me…”
Yuri’s hand went to the hilt of his sword.
“Are you here to spy?”
“No, no.”
“Then are you an envoy of the Empire?”
“If I were, do you think I’d show up looking like this?”
He looked disheveled, as if he had fled in a hurry. His usually well-groomed hair was now messy.
“Then… could it be…”
Yuri narrowed his eyes, memories flooding back.
Oliver had admired Yekaterina.
Maybe that was why, knowing she was here, he had escaped the Empire and come all the way to Briol’s palace.
“Yes, that’s exactly it.”
Oliver nodded, and Yuri’s eyebrows twitched.
“That bastard…”
“I’m an Imperial, but the Empire is wrong now. We have to stop it somehow. That’s why I came to cooperate.”
“Oh, really?”
“I think I heard you curse just now…”
“No, you misunderstood.”
Somehow, Oliver had been nowhere to be seen during the war with the Empire.
Yuri nodded.
“Good. You came at the right time. Tell me everything.”
“My family realized something was wrong when the Emperor started losing his mind and prepared early.”
“Oh…”
“After learning that the palace was being consumed by dark magic, we tried to stop it behind the scenes. But it was impossible. His Majesty was already in the hands of the dark sorcerers.”
“The Emperor’s already lost, then.”
“Yes. During that time, my father was assassinated. My family is now considered traitors in the Empire.”
“That’s unfortunate.”
“It’s alright. We’re doing what’s right.”
Oliver’s voice was steady.
Yuri felt ashamed for doubting him.
He wasn’t the only one resisting the dark magic. Though their relations were strained, those who knew right from wrong shared the same goal.
“I supported the Anti-Empire Alliance in the recent war…”
“Yeah.”
“But in the end, they summoned a terrible monster.”
Oliver sighed.
“There’s still a group in the Empire resisting dark magic. It’s the legacy of the late Lord Ragna. They don’t act with us directly but maintain a cooperative relationship.”
At the mention of Ragna, Yuri looked up.
“Lord Ragna?”
“Yes.”
Yuri recalled Ragna’s hearty laugh.
If he were still alive, things might have been better.
“But recently, a problem arose.”
“What kind of problem?”
“We knew in advance that a human sacrifice ritual would take place in Zbeta. So we sent people to stop it.”
“And?”
“Of course, we failed. But…”
Oliver’s expression hardened.
“The one who infiltrated there was none other than the Black Knight.”
“What?”
What followed was shocking.
The Elgast family had planted a spy in Zbeta who regularly reported on internal affairs. One day, someone was captured.
Surprisingly, it was a woman.
“It was shocking enough that the Black Knight was a woman, but even more so that she was captured without much resistance.”
Yuri stared at him.
Having fought the Black Knight before, he knew how formidable she was.
Yet she was caught without a fight.
“Apparently, it was because of a certain mage. Someone using an unknown magic…”
Oliver glanced sideways. Behind him stood another figure, hood pulled low.
“From here, he’ll explain.”
The hooded man pulled back his hood.
Yuri’s face lit up with recognition.
“Raipio?”
“Long time no see.”
Raipio Artem, an Imperial knight who had worked with Graham Hartpole. Yuri hadn’t seen him since Graham’s death, but now he seemed to be resisting the Empire alongside Oliver.
Raipio gave a faint smile.
“Despite the circumstances, it’s good to see you. You haven’t changed.”
“Good to see you too.”
“First, Your Highness, I should tell you that the mage who subdued the Black Knight is likely someone you know.”
“Someone I know?”
Among the mages Yuri knew, only Inariel had the skill to overpower a knight like the Black Knight.
Though even for her, it wouldn’t be easy. It was common knowledge that mages rarely beat knights one-on-one; a knight of the Black Knight’s caliber wouldn’t even give a mage time to cast spells.
Yuri tilted his head in confusion, and Raipio looked at him quietly before continuing.
“I’m talking about Kori, the one who used to follow Your Highness in the Alliance army.”
“What?”
Yuri’s eyes widened.
It was a name he hadn’t expected at all.
Raipio went on.
“At first, I was skeptical too, but the description from our informant matches Kori exactly. And above all, his name is Kori. He calls himself that, and everyone else does too.”
“That can’t be…”
“Recently, he’s been gaining Cedric’s favor. He’s a half-orc and uses a strange kind of magic. I heard it’s called ‘Power Word.’ It’s a technique where a single word can subdue a person.”
“Power Word…”
Yuri had to admit it.
It was definitely Kori. There was no doubt he was using the Dragon Words he learned from Kruar.
Rubbing his temple, Yuri asked, “You’re saying that guy subdued the Black Knight?”
“Yes. Disguised as an imperial soldier, he managed to overpower the Black Knight with just a word.”
Kori’s mastery of the Dragon Words wasn’t very refined. But somehow, under Cedric’s command, he’d grown strong enough to put the Black Knight in serious danger.
Oliver continued with the report.
The informant in Zbeta had witnessed a cruel side of Kori.
He gathered the prisoners in the camp, conducted magical experiments on them at will, and then threw them into pits as sacrifices for dark magic.
Reipio added, “Apparently, the Black Knight was thrown into one of those pits too. Since that monster was summoned, he’s no longer truly alive.”
“…”
“Offering even someone like him as a sacrifice—that’s how such a terrifying being could be summoned. It’s truly horrifying.”
Yuri closed his eyes, lost in thought.
Laurent had said Kori was no longer the man he once was. Now, the underground faction from the Empire considered Kori a loyal subordinate of Cedric.
When Yuri remained silent, Reipio spoke quietly.
“Your Highness, I understand how you feel. I saw how much you favored that half-orc when we were with the Allied Forces, so I tread carefully. But that half-orc is now our enemy.”
“I understand.”
Yuri lifted his gaze.
Oliver and Reipio fell silent instantly.
There was a fire burning in Yuri’s eyes. The energy radiating from him made the hairs on their arms stand on end.
“I know exactly what I have to do now. Oliver, Reipio.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“Yes.”
“I’m leaving Briole to gather people. The chances of winning the final battle are slim. We’ll probably lose, and I’ll die. Maybe I’ll suffer something so terrible that death would be a mercy.”
A faint smile tugged at Yuri’s lips.
“Will you join me?”
Overwhelmed by the moment, Oliver and Reipio simply nodded.
“Yes.”
“Yes.”
Yuri smiled wryly.
“We leave tomorrow. I have some final preparations to make, so I’ll give you the room. Get some rest.”
After leaving the reception room, Yuri immediately set off. Ena, who had been waiting, hurried after him, asking anxiously, “Where are you going?”
“To see Ekaterina.”
“Oh?”
Ena covered her mouth in surprise.
“Finally?”
“Finally what?”
“Our Highness has really grown up.”
“Shut up.”
“Take a flower with you, at least.”
“I don’t do that kind of thing.”
“The bad boy trend ended ages ago.”
“I’m the flower, so I don’t need one.”
“You’re crazy…”