TYND 28

Chapter 28

While pondering the answer, Lucy recalled an expression that seemed to say, “Why are you bragging about something so trivial?”

“Because Lapis hate leaving their homeland? All the Lapis I’ve met had an enormous amount of pride in their hometown.”

“It’s close to the correct answer, but a little different.”

“Then what is the right answer?”

Hwist picked up a feather that was sticking out and fiddled with it half-heartedly.

“Even if coolant stones exist, it’s rare for a Lapi to want to come down from the North. There are almost no Lapis willing to entrust their lives to a tiny pebble.”

While the Lycans, due to their oppressed circumstances, clustered together closely, the Lapis — who had almost no history of being invaded — maintained a comparatively loose social bond with anyone outside their hometown.

Perhaps it was because they had wings that could take them anywhere.

Rather than adjusting themselves to unfamiliar rules, Lapis tended to live however they found comfortable. That such Lapis would serve in the military — and not only that, but guard humans in an unfamiliar land where they couldn’t survive without coolant stones — struck Lucy as quite a strange sight indeed.

Lucy lifted the hem of her dress and sat cross-legged. Hwist frowned at the unrefined posture that didn’t suit such elegant attire, but she ignored him and asked,

“Come to think of it, Hwist, why did you naturalize to Parnassus? If you’re the son of the Pomnos chieftain, you could live more luxuriously than most nobles. Was there a specific reason you abandoned your homeland for another country — and a human country at that?”

Hwist turned his head slightly to the side. After thinking it over for a moment, he furrowed one eye and put on a troubled expression.

“Living as the chieftain’s son isn’t all that pleasant. You have to set an example, so you must always watch your words and actions, and even if you dislike something, you have to pretend you like it. It’s an exhausting life.”

“So you left the North because you hated that?”

“It’s hard to pinpoint a single reason, but…”

Hwist scratched his collar, trying to hide his discomfort.

But Lucy stared at him endlessly with a look that screamed curiosity. Under the desperate gaze of his liege, Hwist awkwardly tapped the tip of his beak.

The ambiguous atmosphere didn’t last long. A few minutes later, the sound of heavy footsteps thundered from inside the passage.

The gradually growing tremor suddenly stopped.

Moments later, the curtain behind the throne fluttered, and Zen appeared. With an awkward posture, he emerged from the secret passage and hurried breathlessly toward Lucy.

“Your Majesty! They’re— they’re coming!”

Duke Kill had fallen into the trap. Lucy’s expression shifted as she asked,

“What’s the situation?”

“A large force is pouring in through the western docks of the capital. Around four thousand enemy troops are heading for Central Command, and a similar number are marching toward the palace.”

Four thousand to the palace, four thousand to the command center.

A total of eight thousand.

Four times the initial estimate. Lucy spoke quickly, without a trace of panic.

“Is the road to the palace cleared?”

“We evacuated civilians under the pretext of emergency drills. Assuming they march straight to the palace, they’ll arrive in about an hour and a half.”

Lucy rubbed her chin, deep in thought.

Four thousand heading to the command center… not a trivial number, but manageable.

The important question was when to strike the troops advancing toward the palace. Lucy pushed aside the curtain and walked toward the throne.

“The plan is exactly what I said before. Lure the enemy into the palace. Pretend we’re at a disadvantage and draw in as many as possible, then return to the Audience Hall. If we perform the operation correctly, we can defeat them with almost no losses.”

“Understood.”

“Zen.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Lucy stopped before the throne, straightening her attire.

Every time her sleeves fluttered, the hair falling down her back trembled slightly. Gazing down at the engraved golden eagle on the floor of the Audience Hall, Lucy asked in a probing tone,

“Everything is going according to plan so far. Do you trust me?”

Zen nodded as he looked at her back.

“Just as the Grand Marshal said, I trust Your Majesty’s insight.”

Lucy turned, lifting her chin toward the ceiling.

Moonlight, even whiter than her pristine dress, settled over the fabric, casting a soft glow. Despite her pure priest-like appearance, a mischievous smile — wholly unfitting for such a look — slowly spread across her face.

“I acknowledge that Gödel Kill is not an ordinary man, but he’s still nowhere close to being my match. I’m a genius, and we’re not going to lose. So don’t worry — just go wild.”

Zen twisted one corner of his mouth into a grin.

Lucy’s composure and confidence were so bold — even reckless — that no one would think she was preparing for war. And the fact that such bravado came from a young human barely grown… normally, he would have snapped at her for spouting nonsense.

But Zen now felt absolute certainty that everything happening was under her control.

When he first heard the plan, it had sounded absurd, yet everything had unfolded exactly as she predicted. And it felt like things would continue to do so.

“I won’t worry. Leave the wolves to me — Your Majesty, get some rest until we return!”

Zen rubbed his nose in embarrassment, flashed a sheepish grin, then dropped onto all four limbs and dashed out of the Audience Hall with the king at his back.

The moment he stepped through the doors, the Lycan soldiers waiting outside rose and followed, their footsteps pounding like a pack of beasts. When they reached the main gate, more Lycans waiting in the garden stood one by one and formed ranks.

Under the faint moonlight, their vertically slit pupils expanded, gleaming with wild intensity as they stared down at their commander.

Five hundred pairs of eyes converged on one point, and cutting through that flood of gazes, Zen rose and shouted in a booming voice:

“Fight like your lives depend on it! For every enemy you kill, I’ll treat you to lamb!”

There was no cheer, no response. The soldiers ignored their commander and moved into their designated positions, preparing for battle.

In their countless golden eyes, the hunger for blood and the craving for lamb stew mixed and swirled into a rolling vortex.

* * *

Harsh winds tore through the two figures beneath the pale moonlight, as if trying to rip their bodies apart.

No matter how tightly they wrapped themselves, the higher they rose, the colder the air bit into their skin. Walter pulled the cloth covering his mouth a little higher and looked down.

Pitch-black darkness spread beneath them. The moon, briefly hidden by clouds, appeared again, and as if waiting for it, the expanse below rippled faintly with a sinister shine.

By day, the sea of Portmeyer would boast an emerald brilliance — but now, it writhed ominously, threatening any wanderer who dared cross it.

“I see the ducal estate! I’m lowering altitude — hold on tight!”

Nafari called out loudly enough to rise above the wind.

Walter answered by gripping the chains and shifting his weight backward. Taking this as a signal, Nafari leaned forward and began their descent.

They crossed the strait, passed over the harbor where ships were lined up, crossed the wall dividing port and city, then flew over a few towns before the vast estate surrounding the ducal manor came into view.

To avoid any watchful eyes, Nafari flew a bit higher before carefully searching for a place to land.

Circling near the highest structure, Walter kept a vigilant watch in Nafari’s stead, looking for any guards.

“Landing now! Hold tight, Grand Marshal!”

With that shout, Nafari slowed with gentle wingbeats. Choosing the left watchtower of the estate as the landing point, he calculated the distance and flapped cautiously.

Seeing guards around the tower, Walter removed the cloth from his mouth and folded it neatly. Once they came close enough, Walter released the chains without hesitation and dropped down to the ground.

He immediately sprinted toward the guards.