🔊 TTS Settings
chapter 97
“You really did well.”
“For someone like me, I still dropped the sword too many times.”
Today, Leto’s entire training had been just about holding a sword—feeling the aura embedded in it by Noah and getting used to it.
But whenever he tried to concentrate even a little, the aura would attack him. The violent energy, almost like sheer brutality, would stab the palm of Leto’s hand holding the sword as if cutting with a blade, and every time, he would inevitably drop the sword.
“But you’re truly doing well.”
Noah turned her body fully to meet Leto’s eyes.
“My mother said that when she first held a sword after getting married into the Mars family, she kept dropping it every time for a whole month without being able to do anything.”
It wasn’t a comforting lie. Leto had done far better than Noah had expected.
“You naturally have an annoyingly good knack for learning things.”
Noah had been jealous many times because of that, but precisely for that reason, she believed Leto would master it quickly.
Excited by the praise, Leto rubbed his face against Noah’s head like a puppy. Unrestrained laughter kept slipping out.
“Someday…”
Leto asked.
“You’ll go to the Empire, right?”
“Yeah.”
Noah told Leto the rest of her story.
“Of course, it’s not like I’m going immediately. I’m not even sure when I can go, and I need to prepare for it too.”
“Then I’ll have to work hard to adapt to the aura until then.”
“Don’t you think it’s unfair?”
“Why would this be unfair?”
“You got caught up in it.”
Noah still felt sorry that Leto had to go through this just because he married her.
But Leto didn’t feel that way.
“I really know what’s unfair.”
“What is it?”
“When you have a goal you desperately wanted right in front of you, but you missed it because of a twisted superior who only thinks about themselves.”
“……”
Noah slowly sat up from where she had been lying. Leto didn’t get up, but his gaze stayed fixed on her. Noah did the same.
“I’m always sorry to you.”
“Yeah.”
I know.
Noah gently stroked Leto’s messy hair.
“But if you’re doing this out of guilt…”
“No, it’s actually the opposite.”
Leto grinned. The corners of his mouth lifted high enough to make the guilt on his face seem meaningless, and he looked genuinely happy.
“Just marrying someone as terrible as me is already amazing, but you trusted me, told me your secret, and asked for my help.”
Leto was overjoyed by that fact.
If it were me, could I have done what Noah did?
Honestly, since I haven’t experienced it, I couldn’t say lightly. But I understood well how difficult it must be.
“…You’re not a pushover, you’re a saint.”
Leto twirled a lock of Noah’s hair between his fingers.
“A saint?”
Noah chuckled at the sudden remark.
“The saint who disappeared seven years ago?”
“Now that you mention it, the timing is similar. You came to the kingdom seven years ago too, right? Aren’t you the saint?”
“That’s nonsense.”
Noah dismissed it as a ridiculous idea.
“There’s no saint like me.”
“You’ve already reached the ranks of a saint.”
“Are you fully recovered now?”
Seeing him joking around, she realized he must be.
Noah glanced at the pasta on the nightstand. In the short time they had talked, the noodles had absorbed all the broth and puffed up.
“Still, it’s really unpredictable.”
Leto, now fully up, finished the swollen pasta. Perhaps he liked it this way; he ate faster than before.
“Surprisingly, a saint…”
“Swallow what’s in your mouth before you speak.”
Gulp.
After swallowing all the food, Leto said,
“A saint might be living freely, having thrown off all duties.”
“For example?”
“Blowing off responsibilities, gambling constantly, being promiscuous.”
“That’s trashy.”
Noah grimaced.
It had already been three days since the spy was captured.
The southern region still didn’t know about that day’s incident.
All the newspaper reported was that a business expo was held successfully and a suspicious person tried to steal an ice cream truck to commit kidnapping.
“By now, it should have reached the capital.”
Gloria said as she folded the newspaper she had finished reading.
“Grandma, what reached the capital?”
“I sent a package to someone I know there.”
“Who do you know?”
“A person in power.”
“People in power are bad. They claim to help others, but they’re only looking out for themselves, leaving the public’s needs behind.”
“Whenever my sister-in-law says that, my heart aches…”
The morning in the Velo family home was peaceful, unaffected by the commotion.
Clare, having eaten a full breakfast, wore practical clothes and slung her favorite chef rabbit bag over her shoulder.
“Can I bring my knife?”
“Call it a toy. Your brother-in-law will be startled otherwise.”
“Sis-in-law, please… our beautiful words…”
“Then, we’ll be off.”
Noah and Leto, Clare and As, headed toward the Oceanus mansion.
“Don’t report my regards.”
“Have fun.”
Gloria and Vis, who stayed behind, waved them off.
“Brother! Welcome back!”
Karina, who had gone out early to wait, waved at the approaching red horse carriage. Aytra and Albus were with her.
“Karina! Hello!”
“Clare, hello too.”
Clare, having gotten out of the carriage, greeted Karina first, then their in-laws.
“Greetings. Has your household been well?”
“And you, Clare?”
“You greet very well, young lady!”
Aytra and Albus found Clare utterly cute.
“Oh, embarrassing…”
Noah covered her flushed face with both hands, embarrassed by her little sister.
“Karina, I’ll lend you this so we can play chef rabbit!”
“Like at school yesterday?”
Clare asked, touching the toy knife.
“We’re both chef rabbits, got it?”
“Then who’s the illegal butcher?”
“Can I join too? I’ll be the illegal butcher.”
“Eh, As is too strong an opponent.”
“I’ll go easy on you.”
“I don’t like that either. Don’t go easy on kids!”
While As took the two children into the garden, the remaining adults chatted in the living room.
“The news will come out soon.”
Albus said, staring at the steaming tea.
“The ones who handed funds to the spies, those who helped them escape…”
“Are they all military personnel?”
“No, not all, but most.”
“Be careful too.”
Aytra moved a small grape-topped cake onto Noah’s plate, and she softly said thank you.
“There won’t be any mention of collusion with the spies.”
The king had a target that had to be caught perfectly in this incident. Until that was done, all of this would remain a secret.
It might never come to light.
But criminals existed, and they would be captured thanks to the spies’ testimonies.
And they would be labeled as…
“…war criminals.”
Noah said the answer aloud.
“Not wrong.”
The spies were from the Sisto Empire, the enemy kingdom that had waged war with the Adlavore Kingdom seven years ago.
So broadly speaking, calling the criminals who colluded with them “war criminals” wasn’t strange.
‘A bit forced, though…’
For now, there was no other way to hide the incident.
“That’s why there will be an audit of the military units.”
“Even the navy isn’t exempt.”
“There was a former navy admiral who committed treason, right?”
Damn that Plancy bastard.
Noah smiled faintly but thought of the wretched man. She regretted not being able to curse him out properly.
“I can feel the king is being cautious.”
Leto added two sugar cubes to his moderately cooled tea.
“Too cautious, even.”
“Sensitive matters, after all.”
Aytra added another sugar cube to Leto’s tea. Meanwhile, Albus tried to sneak in five sugar cubes, catching Noah’s eye. He quietly removed the sixth cube he was about to add. Noah covered the loosening corner of her mouth with her teacup.
“Hmm.”
Albus cleared his throat, embarrassed.
“Well, the king must prepare for the worst-case scenario.”
“Are you talking about the war?”
Leto asked, and Albus nodded.
“Kid, the war ended only seven years ago.”
No matter how big Adlavore Kingdom’s victory was, experiencing another war would be a burden.
There were still people suffering from its aftermath. War was a tragedy that should never be repeated.
“A difficult situation.”
Leto placed his teacup on the table. The scarlet tea had nearly halved.
“It’s certainly better if war doesn’t happen.”
“Exactly!”
Albus laughed heartily and drank his tea in one gulp.
“Kid, do you want to go to the garden and play with the kids with me?”
“Ah, then Noah too…”
Leto suggested going along.
“Sorry, but—”
Aytra gently interrupted.
“Noah has something to discuss with me.”
Leto looked at Noah with wide eyes, silently asking if it was true.
Noah shrugged.
“Actually, she said she’d show me your childhood photos.”
“…What?”
Surprised, Leto looked at Aytra. Aytra avoided his gaze and playfully blamed Noah.
“Noah, you should’ve kept that secret until the boy disappeared.”
“Eh, Leto isn’t that petty. He wouldn’t lie down and cry just to avoid seeing the photos.”
“Does he usually lie down and cry?”
“Quite a lot. When he proposed, when my grandmother learned he was General Adbel…”
“I’ll go to the garden with the general.”
Leto bowed to Aytra and left.
“Ha ha! Living life joyfully!”
Albus, following behind, laughed heartily. The dull thuds of his steps echoed.
Noah, startled, looked back and saw Albus patting Leto on the back through the door.
“…Normally…”
Watching that happily, Noah looked at Aytra.
“Leto didn’t show this much interest in Karina.”
“Do you mean he disliked her?”
“Quite the opposite.”
Aytra’s smile lacked strength. Noah couldn’t ask more due to the guilt she sensed.
Fortunately, Aytra continued.
“Leto kept his distance for Karina’s sake. But because of that, Karina thought she was hated.”
“Does she still think that?”
“Not at all.”
