Episode 16: Variables are needed. (1)
“The Ferdium side failed.”
“what?”
A man with a well-grown mustache frowned after hearing his subordinate’s report.
His name is Harold Desmond.
He was the lord of the Desmond County and was plotting to overthrow the North under the Duke of Delphine.
“You were going to fight for Digald Territory and Territory War. You said that failed?”
“Yes.”
“You failed even after recruiting the knights? Did you get caught by the knight commander?”
Ferdium was a fiefdom with neither money nor people, but Count Ferdium and the knight commander Randolph were worthy of praise.
The adjutant seemed a little embarrassed and hesitated as he answered Harold’s question.
“The Knight Commander was on a campaign with Count Ferdium. But… … .”
The adjutant continued, watching Harold’s expression.
“Rumor has it that two of the knights were caught trying to kidnap Youngae and were killed by Archduke Ferdium. Frank is missing, so it is unknown whether he is alive or dead.”
“Archduke Ferdium… … That troublemaker? He beat a regular knight? Did Frank get beat by him too?”
“Giselle doesn’t have that level of skill. I expect that… … the two knights who escorted her fought each other while trying to take over the Count’s daughter.”
Harold, who had been silent for a moment, soon began to laugh in disbelief.
“Are you telling me to report it now? Maybe? Expected? Are you saying that you don’t even have a proper grasp of what happened in that territory?”
As the story continued, a ferocious aura began to rise from Harold’s body.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. The scene was completely burned down, so it’s hard to know exactly what happened.”
Harold, who was looking at the trembling adjutant, slowly opened his mouth.
“The lord and the knight commander are away on a campaign, and there are few knights and soldiers in the territory. You sent Frank to such a place, and even recruited the knights who escorted him. And yet, he couldn’t even kill one girl?”
Harold raised his voice in annoyance.
“And then you actually say that that pitiful Prince Ferdium killed the knight? Since when has my adjutant been such a useless guy who can’t even get a single piece of information straight?”
The adjutant fell flat on the floor and begged.
“I’m sorry. Please give me one more chance and I will definitely succeed.”
“You want another chance after failing at something so easy?”
Harold snorted.
As the ridiculous rumors suggested, the possibility that the Archduke of Ferdium was an unexpected variable was extremely slim.
In that case, it was clear that either the adjutant’s ability was below expectations or… …he was doing the work haphazardly.
Either way, there’s no need for such a thing.
Tinkle, tinkle.
Harold picked up the bell on the desk and rang it a couple of times, and two knights opened the door and came in.
He looked down at the pale adjutant with an emotionless expression and said:
“Take care of it.”
“S-save me! Give me one more chance! Please! Please! Aaaah!”
The adjutant was dragged out and made a fuss, but Harold paid him no attention and turned his gaze to the papers.
“It’s a headache just worrying about Leipold, so why are people like Ferdium bothering me?”
Harold was now most interested in Amelia’s plans for rebellion.
According to information, Count Leipold was quietly stockpiling food and increasing his troops.
‘Amelia needs to succeed before you gain more power.’
However, we couldn’t just leave Ferdium like this.
Harold furrowed his brows, suddenly feeling strangely uneasy.
“Giselle Ferdium… … .”
It was even more annoying because it was a person I had never even considered before. If someone else’s name had come up, it wouldn’t have been this bad.
“I guess I’ll have to send more people.”
After much deliberation, Harold decided to deploy more spies into the Ferdium territory.
* * *
“Your Majesty, what on earth happened?”
“It’s just a lover’s quarrel. Amelia must love me too much. This popularity thing.”
Belinda glared at Giselle, who had a haughty expression on her face.
“Why on earth did you ask Miss Amelia for money?”
“I have some expenses that I need to spend money on, and the only person around me with a lot of money is Amelia.”
“Aha, so that’s why you took money from your rich fiancée?”
Belinda squinted her eyes at Giselle as if she was looking at a madman. He shook his head as if he was being unfair.
“Oh, I’m not that kind of guy. There’s a reason for everything.”
“What on earth is the reason?”
“Amelia tormented me a lot in my previous life. I’m receiving that debt now. You could call it compensation.”
“… … .”
It was true, but there was no way such words would work.
“Are you really not going to tell me?”
“No, I’m telling you, are you serious?”
As they left Castle Leipold, Belinda kept questioning Giselle.
But no matter how much Belinda pestered, no proper explanation came out of Giselle’s mouth.
‘Would you believe me even if I told you?’
If I told her that Amelia would become Ferdium’s enemy in the future, she would be treated like a crazy person.
However, it would be difficult to ruin Amelia’s plans by revealing her true nature.
If that happens, the Delphine Dukes will immediately abandon her and look for another long-term partner, and it will be even harder for Giselle to prepare than it is now.
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It was better to use the advantage of knowing the future as long as possible.
Belinda snorted, as expected, with a look of complete disbelief.
“Yes, let’s say that. By the way, is it okay to extort money like that? If Count Leipold finds out, there will be trouble.”
Jiselle shrugged her shoulders as if to say, “Don’t worry.”
“It’s okay. Amelia can never tell.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Um, it’s a secret for now. I’ll tell you later. Anyway, let’s get to the next thing.”
Belinda’s eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected words.
“What’s next? Aren’t you going back right away?”
Jiselle nodded.
“Amelia won’t stay still.”
Belinda nodded without denying the statement.
She also knows a lot about the shady ways of the nobles.
Now, it wouldn’t have been strange if a sword had been thrown at them at any time and any place.
“I guess I could send someone.”
“Yeah, we need to prepare.”
Having already been through everything Amelia had to go through in her past life, Giselle knew her better than anyone else.
With that personality, he would never let them go on like this.
“We need some variables on our side too. We need to confuse Amelia a little.”
“A variable?”
“Someone who will be with us. And someone who will be our strength in the future.”
“Who is that? Do you know anyone?”
“First… … I need to check if they’re here.”
Belinda asked back, embarrassed.
“Are you looking for someone you don’t even know exists?”
“I also have a vague memory. Let’s look it up first, and if I can’t find it, then I’ll think of another way.”
“Really, what are you thinking… … So, what’s his name?”
“Gillian.”
Jiselle and her group went around to various places to find a man named Gillian.
Not long after, a knight came to find him.
“It was nearby. Let’s go.”
Jiselle became anxious and started walking quickly.
Gillian was a person he had only heard of through rumors while he was living as a mercenary in a foreign country.
I heard that he stayed in Leipold for a while and then eventually took his own life.
‘Fortunately, he’s not dead yet.’
The reason he committed suicide was because the situation was so desperate.
Jiselle nodded as she stood in front of a shabby house on the outskirts of the castle.
‘As expected, the family fortunes have completely fallen.’
The house was shabby, as if it would collapse at any moment. Its location alone made it no different from the houses in the slums on the other side of the castle.
“Are you there!”
As the performer knocked loudly on the door, a man came out after a while.
He was a man who looked to be in his fifties. His hair and beard were gray, as if he had suffered a lot.
His hair and beard were unruly and tangled, as if he had not taken care of them. His eyes were sunken and looked like those of a rotten fish.
“What’s going on?”
Belinda and the knights who accompanied her could not hide their disappointment at the broken and weak voice.
To Belinda and the knights who performed the ritual, Gillian was nothing more than a wreck.
‘Why did you search so hard for someone like this? What on earth were you thinking?’
People have something called momentum.
Even for ordinary people who don’t use mana, there is a unique atmosphere that can be felt the moment you see them.
But Gillian… … . Even aside from the pungent smell of alcohol, the sound of his outstretched prayers was no better than that of a market thug.
Belinda looked Gillian up and down, trying to gauge Giselle’s intentions.
‘Are you just planning to use me as a porter? In that case, it would be better to hire a slave or a servant.’
Although his physique and muscles looked somewhat serviceable, his tired expression and hunched shoulders made me doubt whether he could do the job of a porter.
While the rest of the group looked doubtful and disappointed, only Jisel smiled.
“Gillian, I came to see you.”
“What business do you have with me?”
Gillian treated Giselle with respect and courtesy even though she looked younger than her age.
Their attire is different from that of commoners, and they even have knights and maids accompanying them, so you can tell at a glance that they are nobles.
“Are you having a hard time right now? I can help you solve your problem.”
Gillian let out a self-deprecating laugh at Giselle’s words.
“Young noble lady, you seem bored. You should show off your superficiality somewhere else.”
His words were laced with nervous sharpness and sarcasm.
Belinda and her attendants were impressed by her sensitive personality, whose attitude could change with a single word.
But Giselle didn’t care.
“I can help you.”
“Okay, just go back. My life is already tiring, and I don’t have the time to play along to the rhythm of Young Master Aesong.”
Gillian turned away after saying that. It was an insolence that a commoner would not dare to commit against a noble.
One of the knights stepped forward, holding a sword.
“He is quite a rude man.”
Gillian turned around for a moment to glare at the knight’s sword, then chuckled and pointed to his heart.
“If you want to kill me, then kill me. Do you have the courage to do that? This is my heart, so stab me properly.”
“This guy!”
The performer gritted his teeth and took a step forward, but he couldn’t bring himself to swing his sword.
It’s rather painful to see them not even being scared or attacking but just telling me to kill them.
Jiselle smiled as if it was okay and pushed the knights back.
“Hey, it’s our first time meeting each other, so don’t be so mean to each other. Gillian, I can really help you solve your problem.”
Gillian looked back at Giselle with blank eyes.
A bright expression that seemed optimistic. There was an upright confidence in those eyes.
‘What a strange nobleman.’
The carefree atmosphere and lack of regard for authority that made it hard to believe that they were nobles reminded me of old acquaintances.
He hesitated for a moment, then finally sighed and said.
“… … Come in.”
The group that followed Gillian inside immediately had their noses covered. Belinda clicked her tongue internally and looked around the house.
‘Ha, there is no such thing as a beggar’s den.’
There was a lot of dust piled up everywhere because the room hadn’t been cleaned for a long time, and there was even mold growing in the corners of the room that didn’t get much sunlight.
But what was more noticeable than that were the various weapons strewn throughout the house.
‘Are you a blacksmith?’
Considering his large physique and the weapons scattered throughout the house, it seemed like a pretty plausible deduction.
But in this situation, there is no need to go around asking around for a blacksmith.
‘I did this because of this and that, what are you going to do next, why aren’t you telling me?’
Belinda pouted in displeasure. Since Giselle wouldn’t give her any details, she could only guess.
“This way.”
They followed Gillian into a small bedroom.
There, a girl who looked about the same age as Elena was sleeping with a haggard face.
“She is my daughter.”
Belinda and the knights flinched and took a step back when they saw Gillian’s daughter.
Her faded brown hair was so matted that it would crumble to the touch, and her lips were cracked and split. She looked almost like a corpse.
The bloodstains and missing fingernails scattered all over the bedsheets gave an idea of how much pain the girl was in.
But a bigger problem was the red spots that appeared all over the girl’s face and body.
Belinda unconsciously grabbed Giselle’s arm and shouted.
“master!”
Giselle nodded, slowly taking Belinda’s hand in hers.
“Yeah, I know.”
“Your Highness, please step back. This is not a situation in which you can help.”
Now I understand why Gillian was like that.
A daughter suffering from an incurable disease, the attitudes of those who despise or avoid them, and an invisible hope.
He was dying along with his daughter, who was slowly getting closer to death.
Gillian let out a faint laugh at Belinda’s actions.
“You said you would help me, but you came to me without even knowing what my daughter’s illness is?”
“No, I know.”
“If you knew, you would tell me quickly. My daughter has an incurable disease.”
“Of course I know that there is no known cure.”
Gillian growled, frowning at the tone of voice that said it so naturally.
“And yet you said you could help me? What were your intentions in asking me to… … .”
Belinda cut Gillian off and blocked Giselle’s path.
“Confucius, please step back!”
Her voice was loud. The fact that she used the title of Confucius was proof that she was really angry.
But Giselle didn’t back down an inch.
“It’s okay, that’s not an epidemic. It’s already been proven to be a rumor.”
“Still, back off! It can’t hurt to be careful!”
“No, I said it’s not an epidemic.”
Belinda frowned. She couldn’t understand what Giselle believed and how she could be so confident.
What followed was even more surprising.
“I know the cure for that disease. To be exact, I am the only one in the world who knows the cure right now.”
