After That Day
After that day, I officially began taking on the role of Lynn's advisor, offering counsel by her side.
Without any special orders given to me, I simply provided advice whenever she summoned me to the royal castle.
Since Farfalle, the national strategist, was still handling the situation in the east, it made logical sense for Lynn to call on me.
For my part, I was advising her according to what my Intelligence 100 brain dictated.
For now, she needed to trust me to some degree.
"Swen, we have three idle workers. What should I assign them to do?"
"I believe there are still some hidden talents around Anel Castle and this territory. If you search for them, you might find good results."
The search yielded a B-class general who had been hidden in obscurity and a treasure worth about two thousand gold.
"I'm thinking of organizing the western region soon, and I'm planning to invade Galamil Retas's army. What do you think?"
"It's not the right time yet. It would be better to gather more soldiers and focus on defending the border."
"...Really?"
A few days later, news arrived that the Brands army had attacked Galamil Retas's forces west of Jeilant Castle with 30,000 troops but was defeated.
It seemed that a sudden illness had spread through our camp, destroying morale, and they couldn't breach the walls defended by Galamil's desperate forces.
Apparently, Lynn had gone ahead with the attack without heeding my advice.
That's fine. In fact, it would have been problematic if she hadn't. She needs to test me more so that she'll subconsciously trust my opinions.
"...Swen. It seems you were right again."
"I merely thought we should establish defensive lines. There's no need to overestimate me. The defeat was purely due to bad luck."
"Then should I just stay quiet now? The soldiers' morale is extremely low, and it would be difficult to pull additional troops from the border."
"No. Regroup immediately and attack again. This time, you'll be able to occupy it safely."
"..."
And once again, a few days later...
News arrived that the Brands army had broken through the walls and occupied Hoero Castle, which had been held by Galamil's forces—
And that Galamil's army had disappeared from history.
"...We won. Just as you said."
To her, who showed a subtle expression despite the victory report, I added a plausible explanation:
"The soldiers of Galamil's army probably didn't consider their previous victory a true win, just that the Brands army was defeated due to illness. So they wouldn't have experienced increased morale despite winning. It was just luck that they repelled us."
"When they heard that the Brands forces were coming again, their morale naturally broke. It's not difficult to realize that no matter how many times they defend, there's no future for them."
I bowed my head and concluded:
"I simply targeted a situation where the enemy's morale would be low. Not everything worked out exactly as I said. I believe it was all thanks to Lady Lynn's decisive action."
Of course, all that talk about morale rising or falling was just me stringing random words together to sound impressive.
All I knew was that the first invasion would "fail" and the second invasion would "succeed."
But the results were correct.
This would surely resonate with her.
During my free time, I deliberately went to meditate in a cave some distance from the territory.
I stationed two soldiers in front of the cave, instructing them not to let anyone enter.
The image I wanted to create was simple: "Swen sometimes meditates alone here, undisturbed."
After assisting her like this for several days, one day she asked me:
"Swen. Thank you for your hard work. Farfalle should return tomorrow, so you won't need to visit every day starting the day after tomorrow. But is there anything you want? You've worked hard for me these past few days, and I'd like to give you something."
"Haven't I told you? I want to make a name for myself. Please continue to make full use of me."
"Really? That's all?"
"Yes."
She said nothing for a while, then smiled that fresh smile of hers again.
"I still want to repay you. Outside the castle gate, I've prepared something you might like. Since it's my token of appreciation, I hope you'll accept it. Make sure to take it home and look at it alone. And tell me your thoughts about it later. I'm curious about your feelings. Understand?"
A token of appreciation?
From the instruction to take it home and look at it alone, I had a somewhat uncomfortable feeling, but regardless, I needed to show loyalty to Lynn here.
"Thank you for your kindness. I will never forget it."
"Good, I like that. Hehe."
And so I left the royal castle.
What awaited me was certainly something I hadn't expected at all.
"Um... Are you perhaps Sir Swen...?"
It was a woman.
A very beautiful woman with blonde hair, wearing provocative clothes and having a voluptuous figure.
She didn't appear to be an officer of the Brands army. More like an ordinary civilian.
No. Judging by her makeup and clothing...
'She's a woman who works in a brothel.'
And here, I could easily read Lynn's intentions.
She was trying to... 'tame' me.
Bestowing a brothel woman on a retainer as a reward.
Saying I would like it and asking me to tell her my thoughts after taking her home was outrageous.
This wasn't a reward. It was an insult.
Simply put, it probably meant something like "Let's see how far you'll go" or "Will you still kneel before me after this?"
In other words—
She was testing how far I would obey her.
It meant that before trusting my abilities, she needed to go through this process.
Or perhaps she meant something like "I'll give you what you want, so bow down to me even more."
'Heh, well.'
If I were truly a loyal retainer to her, I might have sighed and built up resentment in this situation.
But I was a disloyal retainer, fully intending to betray her.
Yes.
It was time to act as if "I will do as you command for the sake of my career advancement, even if you inflict such humiliation on me."
I smiled gently and said to her:
"Um... I'm planning to return to my home now. Would you like to come with me?"
"What? Oh..."
She blushed when she saw my face, then nodded and said:
"Oh, I understand..."
Sigh.
What is a person who has become the ruler of a country doing, bringing in a civilian from a brothel to order around a retainer for a power struggle?
While I was disgusted by her persistence, I was actually grateful for it now.
That persistence could ultimately make her let her guard down at the final moment.
So, I brought the young lady home.
Naturally, Irene, who had been training at home, was shocked.
"S-Swen...? Who is...??"
"Please think of her as a brief visitor. Oh, could you perhaps serve us some tea?"
"Well, that's not difficult, but..."
"I'll explain everything."
Though Irene was confused, looking back and forth between the woman and me,
She eventually nodded and regained her composure.
"Hmm. Alright. Um... it's humble, but please make yourself comfortable."
"What? Oh, yes...!"
I sat down at the table with the young lady.
Then, she leaned close to me and whispered:
"Um... Sir Swen."
"Yes?"
"Well... I was told to... give you a man's pleasure... but do I have to do it in front of that lady? I mean, if you want, I can, but... even for me, this kind of situation is a first..."
"..."
I sighed briefly and said:
"Miss. What is your name?"
"What? I'm... Lina."
"Miss Lina. I don't know what our lord told you, but what I'd like you to do isn't that."
"Then what...?"
"Have a cup of tea, spend some time here, and then leave."
"What...? Sir Swen, do you have that kind of preference...? Well, I've heard men's preferences are quite diverse."
"It's not a preference... sigh..."
"Hmm? Preference? Swen, did you do some wall repair work today?"
Irene approached with a tray holding three cups and a teapot, placing it on the table.
As I drank the tea, I explained the general situation to Irene.
"T-that... I mean, that, preference, I mean, not that, um, so that's what it was... hmm."
Irene's face turned as red as a radish, and she gulped down her tea with trembling hands.
Then she coughed and showed an uncharacteristically shaken appearance.
"Are you alright, Lady Irene?"
"No, I'm... um..."
"Um... so, we're not doing anything today...?"
I nodded at Lina's question.
"Yes. However... after spending some time here and leaving, I would be very grateful if you could act as if you 'did something' with me outside."
The reason I didn't immediately turn her away and invited her in was simple.
I thought Lynn Brands would have someone follow me.
Of course, my intuition wasn't particularly good. I didn't feel anyone following me or sense any gazes.
Nevertheless, I judged it would be better to act this way for various reasons. If she found out I just sent the woman away, she might unnecessarily overestimate me.
Appearing to be completely submissive to her.
This was an absolutely necessary procedure for a perfect exit.
"That's not difficult... but it's a bit disappointing."
"...What?"
I turned my head at the unexpected remark.
Lina was looking at me with a slightly flushed face.
"Actually, when I was first asked to do this... I thought I'd have to deal with another old man, but to my surprise, there was someone as fine and handsome as you, Sir Swen... so I was kind of looking forward to it... ♡"
"Kheuk! Kek! Keheuk!"
Irene choked on her tea again and coughed uncontrollably.
After patting her back a few times, I asked Lina:
"...Do you often receive such requests from her?"
"Yes. Actually, I have a bit of a connection with Lady Lynn Brands."
"A connection?"
"Kalinz is one of my regulars."
...Ah.
So Kalinz has been having quite the wild time, it seems.
"You know what? Kalinz has a firm body, but... he's not that impressive as a man. They say he finishes in 3 minutes?"
"..."
That was information I really didn't need to know.
Irene's continued coughing was just a bonus.
"Anyway, I hope you'll grant my request. Please act as if you did something with me. Here, take this, it's not much but keep it."
I handed her half of the funds I had saved from my salary working for the Brands army.
It was gold I had no use for anyway, but from her perspective, it seemed significant as her face brightened.
"Oh my, why are you giving me all this!"
She took the money and nodded.
"Yes! I understand. Besides, I tend to be unable to resist requests from handsome men. Don't worry!"
"Flattery won't get you anything more, but thank you."
I spent some time chatting about trivial matters with Lina.
And after some time had passed, she left the room.
Only then did Irene ask me in a serious tone:
"That Lina person... was she assigned to you by your lord?"
"Yes. It seems she was testing me. Something like 'Will you still follow me even after this?'"
"I see..."
Irene bowed her head and smiled bitterly.
She probably understood this situation better than anyone.
After all, it was Irene who had suffered such gloomy torment from Lynn until now.
"...I worry that you've come to be hated because of me."
"What does it matter? I don't care if Lady Lynn hates me. If Lady Irene hated me, that would be different."
"...u-um...?"
"If Lady Irene hated me, I might be incredibly sad."
At my words, Irene's face turned bright red again as she lowered her head.
Then, in a barely audible voice, she squeezed out a response:
"I... won't hate you, Swen..."
"Me neither."
"...Yes."
She fidgeted for a while, staring at the empty cup.
Then she looked up at me and carefully asked:
"I... I have something I want to ask you."
"What is it?"
"That... p-preference... what is it like...?"
"...What?"
I responded, thinking I might have misheard:
"I didn't do any wall repair work."
"N-no, that's not it. Not that... um... what Lina mentioned earlier... that kind of thing..."
"You're curious about that?"
"No, not curious, rather...! It's just... it came up... and you didn't answer. They say all men have various preferences, and... no, that's not what I mean...!"
By this point, her face had gone beyond red to crimson, looking like it might burst at any moment.
Why ask such a thing when she's clearly so embarrassed?
Suddenly, she seemed incredibly cute to me.
At the same time, for some reason, I felt like teasing her.
"Preferences... I don't know if this counts as a preference, but I like women with large breasts."
"Ah? Oh... yes...! B-breasts. Yes. I've heard that m-men... like breasts...!"
For some reason, did she look somewhat pleased, or was that my imagination?
"And I tend to like women with red hair."
"R-red hair?! Hmm, ahem, mmm...!"
"I also prefer women who are good with swords. I have a female knight fetish."
"Female knight fetish...?"
Having heard that far, Irene seemed to sense something odd and looked at me with a puzzled expression.
Looking at her, I smiled and said:
"I'd also like someone who trains every day. Oh! And I get excited when I see women who brew good tea."
"...Swen...!!"
Irene, uncharacteristically, puffed up her cheeks and said accusingly:
"I-I asked seriously... why are you joking...!"
"I answered seriously too, didn't I?"
"...Huh?"
And once again.
Her face turned red, and she opened her mouth as if broken, unable to say anything.
"I like busty, red-haired female knights. I'm being completely serious. I answered honestly, so it hurts that you think I'm joking."
"Was... was that true?"
She spoke as if genuinely sorry, not knowing what to do:
"S-sorry. I thought you were joking because it all sounded like you were describing me... ah... that means, well, um, that, um..."
I laughed loudly at her reaction.
After laughing for a while, I couldn't even remember Lynn's crude behavior toward me.
"I'm sorry. I was joking."
"...S-so it was a joke after all—"
"But I like you regardless, Lady Irene."
"What...!!"
Her face turned bright red again at my words.
Irene was a person with far more varied expressions than I had thought.
It seemed like a lie that she was the same person who always wore a heavy expression, being rejected by the Brands army people and feeling frustrated.
I want to capture more of her various expressions.
That thought suddenly occurred to me.
"Please continue to stay with me from now on. Understood?"
"..."
She said nothing and stared into my eyes for a long time.
My image was clearly reflected in her purple eyes.
"...Yes... Swen. I understand."
The bond between Irene and me was stronger than anything else.
There was absolutely no room for Lynn Brands to come between us.
*
The next day.
When I visited the royal castle, Lynn smiled at me and said:
"How was it, Swen? The 'item' I bestowed upon you?"
I smiled without the slightest hesitation and said:
"Thank you for your consideration. Thanks to my lord, I was able to get some time to recharge. I will not forget this kindness."
"What?"
She heard my words and laughed gleefully.
"It was kindness worth remembering? Swen, you're a man after all! Well, I understand! My brother had a similar reaction!"
I smiled appropriately.
She seemed very pleased with my seemingly submissive response.
Indeed, how pathetic must I look in her eyes?
Despite having such abilities, I must appear to only care about impressing her.
Yes.
I felt it was time... to set the stage.
"My lord. Since today is the last day, there's something I'd like to say."
"What is it?"
"As I've received a reward from my lord, I would like to humbly present a gift to you in return."
"A gift? For reference, my taste is for delicate and pretty ones like you, Swen, so keep that in mind."
"It's a much better gift than such trivial things."
I smiled and uttered a word she probably hadn't expected:
"Valharat Castle."
"...!"
With gleaming eyes, I spoke in a confident tone, as if seeing through everything:
"I believe it's time to clean up the Aishers army, which is a thorn in your side, my lord."