Chapter 115
Thanks to the 활약 of the birds and animals, the war was nearly brought to an end. The result was, of course, the Grand Duke’s victory. The massive reinforcements deployed at the last moment had made the outcome foreseeable from that point on.
Since Amelia had captured Kyle as a hostage, once the heat of battle subsided, it was easily concluded.
The surviving allied forces were taken prisoner and made to tend to their own dead and wounded. The Grand Duke’s forces also organized their casualties, and the injured were treated with my healing potion. After arranging our troops, we distributed the healing potion to the enemy as well. The imperial army and the kingdom’s soldiers, having witnessed its effects, were overwhelmed with emotion and began praising me as Saintess. Feeling burdened by that title, I quickly fled from the garden.
The cuties who had grown larger from the buff returned to their original forms. And before they could even receive thanks, they quietly returned to where they had come from. The only thing I saw was Gwangho, who had spotted me from afar, spinning around in place before disappearing.
So instead, I conveyed all my gratitude to Okhee. The little guy was being treated to water and sunflower seeds for the first time in a while. If it had been Raymond’s house, it might have felt even more like returning home, but we stayed in one of the many rooms within the Imperial Palace. From now on, we would have to grow accustomed to this place.
With the table between us, I sat facing Raymond. How long had it been since we’d had such peaceful time together? Resting my chin on my hand, I stared at his face as if trying to bore a hole through it, and his face gradually turned red.
“Ahem. Eileen. I think you’ve been staring only at my face for thirty minutes already.”
“Oh? The statue talks.”
“Sta…tue?”
“How can you be this handsome?”
“…”
I was going to thoroughly make up for all the time I’d lacked in fangirling over my favorite! I had already vowed that hundreds of times in my heart, so not even Raymond could stop me. It was a burden he would have to bear.
“If you keep looking at me like that.”
Raymond deliberately lowered his voice sternly and pulled my arm. Then he drew me to his side and wrapped an arm around my waist.
“It makes me not want to just sit still.”
“Oh my.”
Such boldness—I wholeheartedly welcomed it—but the moment we got close, Okhee stopped pecking at the sunflower seeds and glared at us, so we had no choice but to sit properly again.
“I’m really relieved.”
I began as I watched Okhee dip his beak into a cup of water.
“That Okhee and Gwangho came at just the right time. If they hadn’t, there was a high chance we would have lost. They’re the true heroes of victory.”
“Actually.”
Raymond scratched his cheek before continuing.
“I knew they would come to help.”
“What? You knew in advance?”
“On the night Eileen told me about the trap at the wedding, Okhee let me know.”
When I asked in surprise, he began explaining what had happened.
Late at night, Okhee tapped on the window of the Grand Duke’s estate with a note tied to his leg.
“A note from Eileen!”
Raymond hurriedly opened it in delight, but the message inside was sorrowful. It said that the Emperor had set a trap at the wedding to capture the Grand Duke and that he must never come.
“Ha…”
After reading the entire note, Raymond let out a deep sigh. Just then, Okhee stretched out his wing and tapped Raymond’s arm. Wondering why, Raymond looked up and saw Okhee puffing out his chest and thumping it with his wing. It was a confident gesture, as if telling him to trust him.
“What am I supposed to believe?”
“Ok, okokok, okok, okokokokok.”
“Right. I wish you could speak, too.”
Frustrated, Okhee hopped around in place before suddenly stopping as if something had occurred to him. Then he snatched the note from Raymond’s hand and tore it to shreds with his feet.
“What?”
Startled by Okhee’s unexpected action, Raymond looked closely at the torn pieces. Precisely the parts that read, “Please give up on me,” and “Do not come to the wedding,” had been ripped apart. Stroking his chin for a moment, Raymond voiced his deduction.
“So you’re saying I should attend the wedding?”
“Ok.”
“And that I shouldn’t give up on the revolution?”
“Okokok!”
Delighted that his intentions had been understood, Okhee nodded vigorously. Raymond then reached out and gently patted Okhee’s head.
“You rascal. Even if you hadn’t said anything, I was planning to do that.”
“Okok.”
Okhee thumped his chest once more. Then, as if he had urgent business, he quickly flew out the window.
After hearing the whole story, I was dumbfounded.
So he had acted based on a rough guess of what Okhee’s sounds meant?
“Wait, you carried out the plan just trusting that?”
“As if. I did it because I was confident in my ability.”
“You’re really impossible.”
I smacked my forehead and shook my head. Thankfully, everything had worked out in the end. I didn’t even want to imagine the alternative.
But then a thought crossed my mind.
What if the god who transmigrated me shares the same goal as I do? Maybe he’s also a fan of Raymond and wanted me to save him. Perhaps the path we walked and even the outcome of our victory had all been predetermined from the start.
Because this place is a novel, and novels often have predetermined endings.
Then does that mean all that remains is “and they lived happily ever after”?
I still didn’t know the answer, but now that everything had turned out well, even that assumption felt pleasant.
After taking a short rest, Raymond and I moved when we received Melas’s report that everything had been settled. The most important matter—Kyle—remained.
Since Raymond would soon ascend to the throne, it was time to decide what to do with him.
When we arrived at the place Melas guided us to, Kyle was bound and kneeling. Instead of his usual splendid imperial attire, he wore plain clothes fit for a servant. With the revolution successful, Kyle was no longer Emperor but a criminal.
Kyle lifted his head when we arrived. His eyes looked worn and exhausted, yet arrogance still lingered within them. Suddenly, as if seized by a thought, Raymond drew his sword from his waist and strode toward Kyle as if he intended to cut him down immediately.
Though the subordinates and I were startled, none of us dared to stop him. At that moment, one person stepped in front of Raymond.
It was Amelia. With a resolute expression, she spread her arms wide.
“Move.”
“Cut me down first.”
Even at his icy command, Amelia did not budge. Instead, she stood her ground more firmly.
“Baron Amelia Sope.”
“Yes.”
“You have those you must care for. Is staking your life worth it?”
“…”
Amelia could not answer. She herself could not fully understand her actions. Righteous and compassionate, she not only had her Kagomisl but also orphans in her territory whom she cared for like her own children. Raymond had just referred to those children.
I knew why someone as rational as her was being so irrational.
Even if she didn’t know it herself, I did—as a reader of the original novel.
It was the love between the male and female leads.
The author had set it so that all narrative causality pointed toward the bond between those two.
Therefore, even if her life were taken, Amelia’s resolve would not break. I stepped forward at that point. Approaching Raymond, I quietly grasped the arm holding the sword. When he looked down at me, I shook my head.
“…”
Raymond glanced at me once and at Amelia once. Then he sheathed his sword.
“Hmph. To think you’ve saved your life by hiding behind a woman. How admirable, Kyle.”
He sneered as he looked at Kyle. It showed just how deep the humiliation and suffering he had endured from him ran.
“I had no intention of killing you anyway. I merely meant to threaten you. Kyle must make a promise to me.”
“If that’s the case, I will not interfere.”
“We shall discuss it later.”
After confirming the sword had been put away, Amelia clasped her hands politely and stepped aside. But Raymond’s eyes, as he looked at Kyle, were still filled with venom. As I watched anxiously, Raymond suddenly turned to me and made a suggestion.
“It feels unjust to let this pass so easily. How about Eileen hits Kyle with all her strength? To repay the hardships you’ve endured.”
“Well, that sounds good.”
Amelia nodded in agreement. Unaware of anything, she smiled faintly as if it were cute.
No, Amelia. That’s not something you should agree to so easily.
Since she didn’t know how strong I was, it probably seemed half like a joke. When I looked up at Raymond, he was wearing a wicked grin. He seemed thrilled that his intention had worked perfectly.
“Go on, Eileen. Do it.”
Raymond pushed me toward Kyle.
Suddenly, I felt heavy-hearted, as though entrusted with a great duty. But regardless of my heart, my anticipation grew as I loosened my fist. How long had I endured the urge to punch him while imprisoned in the Imperial Palace? I had had enough strength back then too, but for the success of the rebellion, I had restrained myself.
Crack.
A terrifying sound came from my small, slender hand. Around that time, Amelia—who had been smiling lightly—began to sense something was off. But it was already too late to turn back.
“Clench your molars.”
If I was going to hit him, I couldn’t aim for his back, arm, or leg. I struck his face so that anyone watching would feel satisfied. Of course, I was the most satisfied of all.
Smack!
My fist landed squarely on his cheek, and Kyle’s body lifted halfway into the air before sprawling onto the floor. At the same time, he lost consciousness.
“…”
“Good. That settles it.”
Beside Amelia—whose eyes looked like they might pop out in shock—Raymond clapped his hands and smiled in deep satisfaction.
