Chapter: 33
Jeanne bowed her head in greeting to the viscount.
She had observed proper etiquette, but she couldn’t simply let the embarrassingly flattering words he’d offered upon his arrival slide by.
“You flatter me too much, Viscount.”
Raches chuckled heartily as he looked out over the harbor beside Jeanne.
“Look. The fishermen are working as usual, and the children are running around happily. If it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t be enjoying such a peaceful day. So calling you a hero is only natural.”
His eyes seemed to say: So just accept the praise.
Feeling a little embarrassed but unable to deny the truth, Jeanne let out a small laugh and let it pass.
“Still, that evolved megalodon is causing trouble even in death.”
In the harbor, the corpse of the megalodon they had slain the day before was skewered with harpoons and hung up in grotesque display. Its scales—once embedded into the ground—were now piled high in one corner like salt from a salt field.
“Before it evolved, we could grind its meat into feed for livestock or use it as fishing bait. But the evolved megalodon has poison throughout its body, so it’s completely useless.”
As if eager to vent, the viscount continued without being prompted.
“And those scales—we tried burning them, but they won’t even burn…”
Raches looked troubled, clearly at a loss over how to dispose of all the debris.
But to Jeanne, it didn’t seem like a problem at all.
I remember a noble who made a fortune from those scales.
In her previous life, the evolved megalodon had been a symbol of terror that devastated Cassis for quite some time.
Then, about five years later, a gem craftsman—out of sheer curiosity—cut into one of its scales. What emerged was a new material that shimmered with rainbow hues, rivaling even precious gemstones.
The noble in Brienne who hired that craftsman reportedly earned an astronomical fortune using a proprietary processing technique.
Even if that discovery had originally been made in Brienne by chance, there was no reason now—when Cassis was still intact—to hand Brienne such an advantage.
“Viscount.”
The megalodon had damaged the harbor badly; funds for reconstruction would certainly be needed.
If processed goods were produced in Loren first, the profits would belong to Loren.
“How about trying to polish those scales?”
“Polish them?”
“While fighting the megalodon, the thought crossed my mind. When they caught the light, they sparkled like gemstones. Right now they just look like lumps of plaster, but I don’t think they shone for no reason.”
Jeanne spoke as if the idea had simply occurred to her by chance.
“Pearls come from inside oysters, don’t they? Who knows? We might discover a new jewel of the sea to rival pearls.”
“……”
“Rather than leaving them as useless eyesores, why not have a craftsman try processing one?”
Even if Raches dismissed her suggestion, it wouldn’t matter much to Jeanne. She had nothing to lose.
“Hmmm…”
Fortunately, Raches seemed intrigued. He gazed at the pile of scales with a bright expression before laughing heartily.
“I can’t very well ignore a suggestion from the hero who saved Cassis. There’s nothing to lose—let’s give it a try.”
She was a little surprised at how readily he accepted the idea, but the thought that Brienne wouldn’t be walking away with a massive business opportunity left her feeling relieved.
“I was just about to visit His Grace to relay your suggestion. Will you be staying here?”
“Well, I only came out because staying in my room felt stifling…”
“Then let me repay your interesting idea by sharing one of my own.”
Raches turned and pointed to a building perched atop the cliff.
“Long ago, a priest who wandered the continent built a temple there in honor of the goddess. It’s empty now since everyone moved elsewhere, but the view of Cassis from there is a painting in itself.”
Saying it was perfect for a leisurely walk, the viscount strongly recommended visiting the temple.
With nothing to do here and no desire to return to her room, it seemed like perfect timing.
“Thank you. I’ll go take a look.”
After bidding the viscount farewell, Jeanne left. After walking uphill for twenty minutes, she reached the cliff and looked out over all of Cassis.
No wonder he recommended it.
The vast cobalt-blue sea stretched endlessly, and Cassis’s distinctive milky-white buildings filled her view. Bright pink flowers bloomed throughout the town, adding a lively charm.
It was a view too beautiful to keep to herself. She was considering bringing Iris along sometime when—
“Found you.”
Just hearing that voice made her mind go blank.
“Jeanne.”
There was no way she could fail to recognize a voice she had heard for over ten years, even if she hadn’t heard it for only a few weeks.
She turned her head.
A man who should not have been there was staring right at her.
…Alexis?
Why is he here?
Her thoughts froze. She couldn’t move, as if she had turned into a plaster statue. Someone who had no business being here was standing brazenly before her.
“You said you were going to the forest to find an antidote. Looks like this place counts as a forest to you.”
Alexis sneered as he stepped closer. When he closed the distance in long strides, the sharp scent of rose perfume assaulted her nose.
Her body flinched. Only then did it sink in—this really was Alexis. She lowered her head, trying to hide her panic.
“…I greet Your Highness.”
“Yes. And you’ve even changed into new clothes while I wasn’t looking.”
His voice was thick with barbs.
When she looked up, she saw Alexis sneering as he eyed the knight’s uniform she was wearing.
“So you do have clothes that don’t suit you. I’ve learned something new.”
She couldn’t guess how he’d found this place. Running into him by chance didn’t make sense—especially since his first words had been, Found you.
Jeanne asked tensely, “What brings you here?”
“You really don’t know? I came to find you.”
“Does His Grace know?”
“There was no need to inform him. That petty thief.”
Jeanne was left speechless by his reply.
Loren and Brienne were allies bound by a nonaggression pact. Even royalty was required to notify Loren before entering its territory.
Yet judging by Alexis’s shameless expression and Philip standing guard at a distance, he had clearly snuck in.
“Poor thing. You’ve been fooled by a lowly man like that and ended up suffering like this.”
As they faced each other stiffly, Alexis suddenly let out a deep, regretful sigh.
“I know exactly what nonsense Claude must have whispered to lure you in. But how could you believe such garbage?”
“…Pardon?”
What was he talking about now?
“You may not realize it because you’re so naïve, but that sly bastard is scheming to keep you by his side.”
“……”
“There’s no need to worry anymore. I’ve come to take you back. Just follow me, and you’ll be fine.”
Telling her to be at ease, Alexis spread his arms wide and strode toward her, looking intoxicated by his own words.
The more he spoke, the colder Jeanne’s expression became. Just looking at him made her nauseous.
You may not know much about politics since you’ve spent all your time on the battlefield, but this is all for the good of the kingdom.
His words overlapped with a day from her past life, when Queen Marie collapsed from old age and Alexis ruled as regent.
But Your Highness, even so—how can you destroy a perfectly fine village? What about the villagers? At the very least, shouldn’t you secure land for them first—
Enough! You are a sword. A sword that moves as its master swings it! Since when does a sword think?
Back then, he whispered the same thing.
Don’t worry. Just do as I say.
You know nothing. Trust only me. Follow only me.
She believed Alexis when he told her not to worry. She believed he must have a noble cause, that his decisions were for Brienne’s future.
Is this really what knights sworn to protect the people should be doing?!
Bearing the hatred of the villagers, she carried out the order.
Later, a luxury retreat for nobles was built on that very site. When she finally learned the truth, she fell into despair—but even that doubt was soon buried.
I am his sword.
A sword doesn’t need to think.
A sword must trust its master.
“Come here, Jeanne. I won’t let you suffer anymore.”
At some point, Alexis had closed the distance until he stood right before her. If he folded his outstretched arms, she would be in his embrace.
Her gaze dropped to the ground. Her shadow and Alexis’s overlapped halfway. The shadow of his reaching arms looked as though it were strangling her neck.
If she were still the stubborn, naïve Jeanne of the past, she might have accepted this as her burden.
But Alexis—
You killed that obedient Jeanne.
She reached out and shoved her hand into his chest, as if driving a blade straight through him.
