We then continued moving, stopping in towns to rehydrate, etc.
Gilbert suddenly deviates from the main road when the sun passes directly overhead and begins to tilt to the west.
“From here we will take a detour. We might catch up with the main force of Remrest’s army ahead of us.”
While coming this far, we passed a group of wagons that appeared to be Remrest’s army rearguard. It was probably a Transportation Corps unit carrying supplies behind the main army.
After a short walk from the main road, the path leads to a small village. We passed it and soon entered the woods. Little by little, the road began to turn uphill.
We are going through the mountains to get to our destination.
The mountains are familiar to me. This place is more accessible because there are mountain paths where people might pass by. But in the real mountains, the trees and grass are so thick that it is difficult to know where to go, forcing one to use offensive magic to make one’s way through them. If you can’t use magic, a strong blade is a must.
I enjoyed the slow climb, following Gilbert’s lead.
We were approaching a rocky, steep zone. Leading the way, he nimbly leaped and climbed steadily up a height as tall as he was. I followed.
Upon passing a grueling passage, Gilbert turned around and shouted loudly
“This is the hard part! If you can’t climb it—”
“You don’t have to shout. I can hear you.”
He sees me right behind him and jerks as if he didn’t expect me to be there.
“…How did you get up there?”
“Well, I just came up here like normal.”
“I didn’t hear any noise behind me.”
“Um, since girls weigh lighter. …Look, let’s hurry up.”
I rushed him, and he kept on walking while trying to wrap his head around it.
We continued along the mountain path. The path narrows as it turns away from the direction of the summit.
Are there not many people going this way? It finally started to look like a secret passageway.
Thrilled, I made my way through the dense overgrown trees.
“Something’s wrong.”
“What’s wrong?”
“I don’t sense any sign of animals. This place is far from any monsters’ habitat. Normally, I would see some small animal, but… I don’t even hear any birds chirping.”
He looked around uneasily.
It didn’t feel strange to me at all. Aren’t mountains generally like this? The place where the scene is quiet is the place where there are no monsters. If there is a noise, there are monsters.
That reminds me: We haven’t encountered any wild animals. Even in places with no monsters, deer, bears, and other animals exist. The same should be the case in the Dolknes territory’s mountains.
Gilbert was vigilant about his surroundings, even if he didn’t stop to look.
“These are times when powerful monsters are wandering around. The animals are hiding in fear of them.”
“Demons can leave their territory quickly, can’t they?”
“Not that often. Maybe a few times a year at most.”
Is that what it is like? My senses were numb because I lived where I would immediately go to work if a monster appeared near a human settlement in my territory.
Then he raises his hand and looks me in the eye. I guess I’m supposed to be quiet.
“…A wild boar?”
It was uribo in the bushes. It was a baby boar. The striped pattern was charming.
This is the first time I have seen a live wild boar piglet. Wow, I didn’t know this encounter was possible in the mountains.
As soon as they saw me, they rolled on the ground. Oh, there were siblings, too. There were five of them? They were so cute rolling around together. But I was worried because they seemed frozen rather than taking a nap.
“Back off!”
Gilbert shouted sharply.
From behind the bushes, something approached at high speed.
What appeared was… an adult boar. Probably the mother.
The mother boar scowls at us, or instead at me, huffing and puffing threateningly.
The little ones get up and run away, squawking. It is great to be able to act as a group.
Once they were far away, the mother boar turned on her heel and ran away.
The mother was on edge because she had to protect her child. Neither of them had any hostile intentions. Thank goodness it didn’t end up in a fight.
While I was at ease with the lovely mother and her children, only Gilbert still had a grim look. His eyes were on the other side, behind me, where the boar had gone.
“The boar didn’t make eye contact with me. It was staring behind me as if to say that humans are not a threat. The monster is over there.”
He said and pointed behind me.
No, no, no, the boar mother was looking at me. I thought there was more danger ahead of me… Oh, is that what I think you mean?
The forest is too quiet. Just as it always is for me.
The wild boars and the animals in this forest are afraid of me, and there is no doubt about it. And they are so scared of me that they are still and quiet.
“I don’t think there are any monsters out there. Let’s move on.”
Unable to offer proof, Gilbert went along the road with half a doubt in his mind.
We arrived at our destination without encountering any strong monsters.
We were on top of a cliff when our field of vision suddenly widened. The view of the meadows below was magnificent.
There is something familiar about this place. It is where Ryu and I had landed before, where Ashbaton and Remrest’s forces were in a standoff.
The main army had already arrived on the Remrest side. Those behind them were working on putting up their tents.
The Ashbaton side was unmanned. They must be stationed at a fort a short distance away. There was no need to be courteous. Now I understand that it was a performance when they stared at each other.
“Somehow we managed to get here in time. The march will take all day, the full-scale movement will start tomorrow, which is the usual process. All that remains to be seen is what time she will arrive….”
“I believe the Remnest march was ahead of schedule. The woman is in Ashburton, isn’t she?”
“No, she is on the east side of Balshine. The messenger was supposed to have gone there yesterday…”
The east side?! Ashbaton is on the western edge and even farther across from the capital.
They will never make it in time. For some reason, the march has been sped up, which is messing up the plan.
“I don’t think they’ll get here in time. By the way, where on the west side?”
“…Will you know?”
Since my Dolknes territory is located on the west side of Balshine, I am somewhat familiar with the area. Most of the territory’s names are familiar; if I were told where they are, I would know where they are.
And what he said was a familiar name.
“Dolknes territory.”
“Dolknes… huh?”
“That woman will come riding on a dragon from that damned Dolknes territory.”
Eh? What? Only one person I know of rides a dragon in the Dolknes territory.
“Um, could it be…”
“My name is Gilbert Ashsbaton. And my brother Patrick’s fiancée is Yumiela Dolknes. Having said all this, you can see why I’m letting her do it alone.”
Makes sense! Now I understand why a civilian woman would feign defeat by an army without handing over command. That Yumiela Dolknes is as strong as an army by herself, right?
It’s nice to know the core of the plan… It’s not the time to do this!
Eh, but Patrick’s brother’s name is Gilbert, oh.
I am amazed at how clunky my brain is. I thought I inputted that if I met someone named Gilbert inside the Balshine Kingdom, I should assume it was Patrick’s brother… Oh, maybe it’s because I was out of the kingdom. Still, what a mess. The AI could be a little more adaptable.
Then, was I the crazy fiancé he was talking about? Does this mean Patrick is the younger brother with a bad taste in women? Are you saying that Gilbert is my brother-in-law?
Nobody had expected this shocking turn of events, causing chaos in my mind.
I freeze up for a moment to process my thoughts.
…Eh? The situation looked the worst, but it’s surprisingly good, isn’t it?
The issue that has been bothering me and why I ran away from home is that Patrick’s brother won’t see me. That has been resolved. We have already met and had a conversation.
And the problem is that Patrick’s brother hates me too much. This is also resolved. Gilbert’s impression of me is not bad.
Lastly, the problem is that he does not attend the wedding. This is also easy. All I have to do now is to charge into Remrest’s army and make a show.
Oh? Before I knew it, all sorts of problems had been solved.
Gilbert shook me by the shoulder as I stood frozen.
“Are you all right? Are you feeling traumatized by her name? No, that’s not unreasonable.”
“I have a question for you, Gilbert-san. What do you think of me?”
“…Without knowing what your intentions are, I can’t answer that question.”
“My apologies. If I were to introduce myself as your brother’s fiancée, what would you think of that?”
“You? There is a difference between you and Yumiela. As for me, I’d prefer you.”
Okay, I got it!
If I reveal who I am here, Gilbert will say, “Oh, yeah! You were Yumiela! By all means, marry Patrick! I’ll give you my blessing too”.
This happy ending was only possible because I said I was running away from home and headed for the moon. Falling out of the atmosphere, the coincidences piled up, and I had a happy ending.
“My name, Eleanora, is a pseudonym.”
“I already know that.”
“My real name is Yumiela, Yumiela Dolknes. Brother-in-law.”
Now, it was my brother-in-law’s turn to stiffen.
“…Yumiela? You are?”
“I can show you some dark magic.”
To prove that it is Yumiela, I stretch out my black arm from the shadows. It is a dark magic called Dark Bind.
This will make him believe me. It is hard to tell from the black hair alone, but if someone can handle the dark attribute, it’s me.
He puts his hand over his mouth and mumbles something.
“That magic with the black hair. I knew Eleanora was an alias… that’s why Linus asked me to tell you the plan.”
In hindsight, Linus probably thought we knew each other’s backgrounds. He would never have thought that we both recognized each other as strangers.
He seems to have accepted that I am Yumiela. Gilbert looks me in the eye and says.
“You are Yumiela Dolknes.”
The light fades from Gilbert’s eyes.
His face becomes blank for a moment. Eventually, life returns to his face, and he rages. …Huh?
“You are Yumiera?! How dare you trick me? I’ll never allow you to marry Patrick!”
“What?! Didn’t you say I was a suitable fiancée for Patrick? That’s low, brother-in-law.”
“Don’t ever call me brother again! I knew something wasn’t right from the beginning. Who show up through the roof of someone’s house?! I will not have such a lunatic as a relative!”
“Wait a minute! When I shared my circumstances with you, you said that my fiancee’s brother who judges me without even meeting me is a terrible person! That was you, brother-in-law!”
“I told you not to call me brother! Everything went wrong! What’s with that outrageous preserved food impression? No wonder your physical strength is so ridiculous! The animals in the forest were probably scared of you!”
It was a betrayal. I did not expect to be so spectacularly outmaneuvered.
The argument continued at arm’s length, with both parties leaning forward.
“Heh, the moment you find out who I am, you change your opinion about me. Aren’t you just a poor judge of character to begin with? How can you judge a person’s character based on hearsay without even meeting them!”
“I know from hearing rumors alone that you’re crazy! You even said yourself that Patrick’s taste in women is poor!”
“Patrick has excellent taste!”
“Yes, he does! My brother is perfect! Except for his choice of partner!”
I hate this person already. How can I get this evaluation from Gilbert’s interactions when I’ve tried to play nice? It’s impossible to talk, get to know each other, and get him to approve of my marriage.
Then, I’ll have no choice but to carry out the plan.
“Brother-in-law, you said if I could beat them, you’d give me your blessing to marry.”
“I did! I said it! Go ahead and beat them!”
One word of provocation followed by another word of agreement. The plan is put into action, skipping over the prior arrangements.
We were close enough to engage in a fight at any moment. We clicked our tongues at the same time before pulling away.
“I’ll see you later.”
“Get the hell out of here.”
I leaped off the cliff facing backward while Gilbert stared at me.
My goal was to reach the Remrest Army’s main camp.
Poor dude lol out of all people he challenged the hidden boss lol
Master tactician, releasethe kraken xD