The Second Son of The Marquis Runs Away from Home ~ Lacking Talent, He Abandons Everything and Becomes an Adventurer ~ - 118

Chapter 118: Cleanup and Tea Party of the Stars (Aria Side)

After defeating the Fifths and sweeping away the monsters at the Duke’s mansion, we rescued Duke Brayja, who had been thrown into the underground dungeon.

He had been neglected since being thrown in and was quite weakened, but thanks to Serena’s treatment, he managed to survive.

The monsters had visibly lost their coordination, and receiving a report from Luminus, the Imperial Army that had been fighting the monsters at the border upon receiving my letter, led by my older brother, joined forces with the Kingdom Army to sweep through the Brayja’s territory and the Earl Olshiron’s territory.

However, the Olshiron territory was even more devastated than the Brayja’s, and what seemed to be the Olshiron Earl and his family were found in a pitiful state.

The calamity that befell the kingdom this time was later referred to as the “Whisper of the Devil,” and its scars became something incredibly significant…

—

(Aria Side)

One month later…

“…It was quite tumultuous, wasn’t it?”

I muttered while taking a sip of tea. The Kingdom, which had concluded the extermination of monsters, had once again requested assistance from the Empire.

In addition to the significant damage to the Duke’s territory, most of those who had been incited by the Fifths (the majority of those who had cornered Celc) had died.

With nearly half of the nobility gone, the king agreed to become a de facto vassal to the Empire in exchange for assistance. In response, Victoria-nee-san consented on the condition that, once the situation settled, Princess Elnellis would succeed the king’s throne, becoming the wife of Brother Badur.

If she ascended to the throne, her husband, Brother-in-law, would wield immense power in the kingdom. Moreover, if their two children became kings, there would be a blood connection with the Empire through Berg.

In essence, the kingdom was allowed to maintain its form as a nation by Berg and Brother-in-law. Now, the extermination of monsters had finally settled down, and reconstruction efforts were underway, stabilizing the situation.

“How long do you think Berg will be back?”

“Maybe around two days at the longest? It won’t take even half a day from here to Garmia.”

Berg is heading to the Marquisate with Brother-in-law. There are things like visiting the grave and various arrangements that need to be taken care of. Somehow, it feels better not to touch on those matters and wait here.

And…

“…The tea is getting cold.”

I called out to the young lady, Teresa, sitting across the table. She stayed back for surveillance, and I wanted to have a conversation with her.

“…Excuse me for asking while preparations are being made, but is it okay if I stay here with you?”

“It’s okay. While we are nominally your supervisors, it’s just an excuse.”

“An excuse, is it?”

“Yes, we have things we want to ask you, and I’m sure there are things you want to ask me too, right? About Berg and such.”

Teresa responded to my words. Serena and I placed our cups down and shifted to a position to talk.

“Do you still have feelings for Berg?”

“Wha!?… That’s…”

“That’s why I wanted to ask. What are your plans from now on? Depending on that, our actions might change.”

If Theresa were to become one of Berg’s women, we would have to consider our positions and roles. It seemed better to discuss this beforehand rather than panicking later.

Teresa bowed her head and remained silent for a while, but she seemed to have made up her mind as she lifted her face to answer.

“I have no intention of being under him. He clearly said his goodbyes to me.”

With that, Teresa quietly began to speak about that time…