Chapter 400: Interlude: Gold and Silver (5)

0% Delphine exhaled deeply and relaxed her tense body.

She felt the soft touch of the cushioned backrest, yet her mood remained unsettled.

The scene of the half-destroyed office was reflected in her blood-red eyes.

It was the devastation created by just a few minutes of battle.

Once filled with antique furniture, now, it was hard to find a single intact object.

Well, that was inevitable.

Both Delphine and Seria were serious.

This wasn’t some amateur skirmish–it was a clash between two expert level swordsmen. Such an outcome was only natural.

Still, she couldn’t shake off the lingering bitterness.

It wasn’t for any particular reason.

It was simply because she ended up revealing her ‘true self’.

At first, she hadn’t intended to do so.

As she had declared before, Delphine never really planned on restraining Ian.

After all, he was a man who couldn’t be tamed–and the circumstances of their entanglement were far from honorable.

A night of compassion–or perhaps a momentary impulse.

She didn’t know how Ian was processing that night. But for her, that was exactly how she defined that relationship.

She was the one who had pounced on him while he wavered until the very end.

She wasn’t shameless enough to demand payment for her purity.

Thus, whatever developed between Ian and Seria mattered little to her.

In fact, she even considered helping Seria.

Yes, that was the case–but then, why…

Delphine let out a long breath and retraced her memories.

What flashed through her mind was the conversation they’d just had.

In the presence of the vassals, Delphine had bent over and whispered in Seria’s ear.

“Smile, Seria.”

The vicious glare of a cornered beast turned toward her.

But she merely smirked as if amused.

“By the way, my husband has received an imperial order. To decide the fate of our Yurdina household… So if our relationship ever becomes known, it’ll put him in quite the predicament. You don’t want that, do you?”

The sound of teeth grinding could be heard.

At the mention of ‘husband’, Seria’s grip on her sword tightened. Her bloodshot eyes burned again with murderous intent.

She wanted nothing more than to plunge her blade into Delphine right then and there.

But she couldn’t.

The bigger the incident, the messier the aftermath.

And that process would include a thorough investigation to examine the circumstances.

Which meant that Ian and Delphine’s relationship could be exposed.

Though furious and trembling with rage, Seria couldn’t possibly put her beloved senior in jeopardy.

But smiling? That was impossible.

So she chose to remain silent.

Forcibly grasping Delphine’s outstretched hand, the girl’s body staggered to its feet.

The atmosphere was anything but warm.

If anything, it felt colder than a blizzard sweeping across a frozen wasteland.

Even the vassals who rushed into the office were too stunned to utter a single word.

Only Delphine wore a faint smile.

“Sorry, gentlemen. It’s been ages since I sparred with my little sister–and I got a bit carried away.”

As if asking if that statement was true, the vassals’ gazes turned to Seria.

But the girl neither denied nor affirmed the claim.

Her face remained frozen as she took one stiff step after another.

Each step radiating a chilling aura.

The atmosphere was so fierce that the vassals didn’t even dare to try to stop her.

But it wasn’t long before Seria had to halt her steps.

Because she heard a small voice from behind her.

“Begging won’t change anything, Seria.”

Seria’s blue eyes glanced back briefly.

Delphine stood there with a cold expression.

“If you want something, take action. And fight to win.”

“Sister.”

Like their swords had clashed, now it was their words.

With an utterly expressionless face, Seria offered her parting words.

“You should have killed me.”

And a moist whisper followed.

“Soon, I’ll make you regret it.”

The vassal who gave her final warning left just like that.

The next time they met, Delphine and Seria might no longer have a lord and vassal relationship.

Perhaps they wouldn’t even be sisters anymore.

Delphine, replaying those past events in her mind, recalled the last look Seria gave her.

Dark blue eyes where even hostility had frozen solid.

It was a gaze in which not even a speck of respect or affection could be found.

Delphine chuckled incredulously.

“They say raising a daughter is pointless……”

Getting bewitched by a single man, and now look at this mess of a result.

More sigh like laments followed. If the imprisoned Marquis Yurdina heard this, he would have roughly expressed his agreement.

Deep down, she knew she wasn’t much different from Seria.

The woman’s sighs continued to deepen.

There were several reasons why she deliberately provoked Seria.

It was partly to stimulate Seria, who was showing weakness, and partly to force the conflict between them into the open.

It was because Ian was deeply entangled with the Yurdina household.

The fact that he was close not only to Delphine, the family head, but also with Seria, was widely known at the academy.

So she split the House of Yurdina in two.

It wasn’t necessary to actually split it. Just showing cracks within the household would give Ian more room to maneuver.

Even without Delphine, he could borrow Yurdina’s power through Seria.

In any case, the Imperial Family didn’t seem to want to erase the Yurdina household.

If they did, they wouldn’t have left the decision to Ian in the first place.

Erasing the Yurdina name would be an arduous process.

A major operation that even the Imperial Family would approach with caution.

There was no way they would risk leaking information prematurely.

Ultimately, what they wanted was to save face.

Completely severing ties with the Dark Order, pledging unwavering loyalty to the Empire, and standing at the forefront in the coming war.

Once those promises were secured, they’d leave the Yurdina alone.

So the punishment had to stop at an appropriate level.

As long as the Yurdina retained their status as one of the Five Great Noble Houses, they were still useful.

That was why Seria was one of the compromise points Delphine was considering.

Though illegitimate, she still carried the blood of Yurdina, and her talent was undoubtedly genuine.

Wasn’t she an appropriate choice as a force to keep the family head in check?

It was sufficient warning toward the family head who wielded absolute power.

Additionally, it was an opportunity to strengthen the Imperial Family’s influence over Yurdina.

What was even more pleasing was that Seria could never seriously threaten the family head’s authority.

After all, she carried the bloodline of vampires.

As long as this weakness existed, there was no worry about Seria taking the position of family head.

All that remained now was patience.

Just hoping that Ian would notice this and make the right decision.

Delphine’s job was now done.

Seria, however, now harbored deep resentment toward her.

The vassals began to suspect something was amiss between Delphine and Seria.

Even though she’d achieved her goal, her heart felt unbearably heavy.

Delphine unconsciously chewed her lips.

Yes, in fact, she’d provoked Seria more than was necessary.

Because her timid little sister was pathetic?

Or, perhaps because her feelings that had grown within her were beyond her control?

“Stupid girl……”

Was she talking about Seria, or herself?

Not knowing who she was addressing, Delphine continued to ponder over her sighs for a long time.

***”Why are you alive?”

It was a question dripping with sincerity.

That wasn’t something you should say to a friend you haven’t seen in a while. Even if we’re relying on communication magic to have this conversation.

My expression immediately soured.

“Should I be dead then?”

“It wouldn’t be strange if you were… Honestly, if someone put a knife to my throat and told me to bet my entire fortune, I’d bet on you being dead.”

“That’s a relief then.”

I chuckled and added.

“You tend to lose more when the stakes are high.”

“Hey now.”

My friend Leto, a handsome man with distinctive curly brown hair, imitated a solemn voice.

“I’m just waiting for the final victory. As you know, to gain something, you must lose an equal amount.”

“That’s typical gambler’s logic.”

“I do enjoy gambling a bit.”

I continued chatting and snickering with Leto for a while.

Of course, it didn’t take long for me to get to the main point.

Communication magic required far more mana than one might imagine.

Because of this, I had to explain my situation as briefly as possible. The previously idle chatter suddenly felt like a lie.

Leto swallowed a groan as he listened to my brief story.

After his greenish eyes glanced to the side for a moment…

My most trusted friend, as always, wore an annoying smile.

“Not bad? Your meddling might be helpful.”

“……Meddling?”

At my dumb retort, Leto clicked his tongue.

His eyes, full of exasperation, couldn’t hide his true feelings.

Those damn swordsmanship majors…….

I clenched my fist secretly and trembled.

I’d pay back this insult with interest when I returned to the Academy.

But Leto was indeed Leto.

With each brilliant idea he came up with, I had no choice but to nod quietly.

Fortunately for him, the future where my fist would be stained with my friend’s blood disappeared.

Only after taking notes on our discussion was I finally able to leave the communication room with a satisfied expression.

It wasn’t a complete plan yet.

But for a while, proceeding this way shouldn’t cause any major problems.

I was able to walk with a much lighter heart.

At least until someone came rushing toward me.

A familiar girl with dark blue hair and silver-gray eyes.

The Empire’s Fifth Princess, Cien.

She shouted while flapping her arms in a manner unbefitting her noble status.

“B-Big trouble, Sir Ian!”

I had no choice but to stop right then and there.

She looked quite urgent, squeezing her eyes shut and raising her voice and all.

The emergency news that the princess had rushed to deliver was as follows:

“Yurdina… I-I mean, Senior Seria has become strange!”

News that my kind junior had become strange.

My body, which had been lost in thought for a moment, immediately kicked off the ground and shot forward.

Please, Seria.

I hope it’s not too late.