Editor : Amethyst00



Second Prince. Camp of Badecus.

The morale of the nobles belonging to the Badecus faction was sky-high.

"As long as the glorious heroes of Seiren are with us, we will be victorious!"

The person who appeared to be the commander shouted, raising his sword.

"Waaaahhh!"

"Long live the heroes of Seiren!"

The knights raised their swords in unison and shouted.

The morale of the knights on the battlefield was soaring.

But the morale of the regular soldiers fell far short of theirs.

For the regular soldiers, many of whom had been dragged into this without knowing the reasons, they were fighting a war against their own countrymen.

Even if they had the upper hand, it was hard for their spirits to rise.

Many had even received kindness from enemy soldiers in actual battles.

"Why do we have to fight?"

"Ugh… I hate this now. I just want to go home."

"My family is in the west…!"

Frustration spread among the soldiers.

Someone wearing a hood, who had been mingling among the soldiers, quietly slipped away.

A short while later—

Arriving at a tent not far from the soldiers' quarters, the figure took off the hood.

It was Luca, a half-elf and the third-ranked student in the third year at Seiren.

"As expected, the morale of the soldiers is rock bottom."

"Knew it."

Lunia let out a deep sigh.

The expressions of the elf students were grim.

"Humans are too pitiful!"

"Ahhh. We have to end this war quickly!"

"But the enemies are also humans… How can such a tragedy happen."

Sighs poured out among the elves.

Watching them, Lunia wore a strange expression.

'I mean, just a few months ago, these same guys were cursing humans as barbaric creatures that fight among themselves…'

Now they saw the civil war of the Davienne Kingdom as a great tragedy and were sincerely saddened.

It wasn't a bad thing, of course, but Lunia was still struggling to adjust to this shift in sentiment.

Just then—

Someone entered the tent.

It was Leah, the top second-year student.

"Everyone! I brought some combat rations that regular soldiers eat!"

"Oooh! A new human culture!"

"I'm curious!"

"I want to taste it!"

"Hey! You guys think we're here for fun? Don't be so stupidly happy over food—gahk!"

Watching the Seiren students get instantly excited, Lunia grabbed the back of her neck in frustration.

The terrifying aura from Lunia made the students shrink back.

"Endure it. Endure it. This is still better than hating humans, right?"

Luca said with an awkward smile, trying to calm her down.

It was true, as Luca said.

Since her first year, Lunia had hoped for better relations between the elf race and humans, so she couldn't say the school's current approach was wrong.

'The problem is that these damned pointy-eared kids have no sense of moderation!'

Gritting her teeth inwardly, Lunia scratched her head.

Meanwhile, the Seiren students assumed a solemn posture.

"These are essential supplies eaten by regular soldiers. We must not consume them out of mere curiosity. We must eat them while feeling the hardship they endure."

"I agree wholeheartedly!"

Watching them change their tone again, Lunia covered her face with her hands.

The students of Seiren were truly trying to understand and feel human culture.

'To think I have to spend the rest of school life with these fools. Maybe I should just transfer to Lumene already.'

With a bitter laugh inside, Lunia stepped outside the tent.

As she was taking a deep breath under the sunset sky, she noticed Eiran sitting gloomily near a campfire, her legs pulled in.

"What are you doing over there, Eiran?"

"Lady Lunia."

Eiran looked at her with a face on the verge of tears.

Seeing this, Lunia asked, "What? Because humans call you the Witch of Corpses…?"

"Don't call me by such a horrible nickname!"

Terrified, Eiran lunged at Lunia, grabbing her by the collar and shaking her.

"Okay, okay! I won't call you that anymore!"

Feeling dizzy, Lunia sat down in front of Eiran.

She let out a sigh.

"Anyway, I'm glad you're here. My magic causes injuries, so it's hard for me to join the battlefield."

Although Lunia joined the civil war following the council's decision, she had no intention of killing anyone.

That's why she couldn't easily step onto the battlefield.

Fire burns not just the enemy but allies too.

If she wielded such power recklessly in battle, many would turn to ashes.

At Lunia's words, Eiran sighed deeply.

"I also have a hard time controlling my strength."

It's difficult to subdue someone without killing them.

Especially on a battlefield.

"Now that we've intervened, Lumene will likely step in soon. Then we might be able to guide both sides to negotiations."

Seiren hadn't stepped into the Davienne civil war without a plan.

Though the reason—'we cannot watch humans suffer the tragedy of civil war'—would have been unthinkable for the old Seiren.

Still, they predicted that once they intervened, Lumene would too, and with the two major powers mediating, the civil war could be ended.

"Yes. And then we might see Lady Lysinas."

News of Lysinas's descent had already spread around the world.

Eiran was eager to meet Lysinas.

To meet none other than the Wise Queen.

As Eiran's eyes sparkled—

"…Right. She'll surely be with Leo."

Lunia's eyes wavered slightly.

Eiran looked puzzled.

"What's wrong?"

"Lady Lysinas will always be with Leo, right?"

"Of course."

"Ugh…"

Thinking that far, Lunia bit her lip and squirmed.

Seeing this, Eiran tilted her head.

"Why?"

"Because… Leo and Lady Lysinas are very close… so… at night, maybe…"

"Lady Lunia."

Eiran's eyes narrowed.

"W-What?!"

Blushing, Lunia flared up, and Eiran said, "You shouldn't imagine such indecent things."

"What do you mean indecent! Compared to your collection of obscene novels, this is wholesome!"

"W-What's wrong with the books I read! And I didn't read them often! Just out of simple curiosity—!"

"You read way too many for it to be curiosity! And throw some of them away! Now I have to hide your books in my room too!"

"B-But! I only kept the best of the best!"

"The best? What was that book series in my room called again? The Three—"

"Eek! Don't say it! Don't say it! You said you didn't read it!"

Eiran, face bright red, shrieked and lunged to cover Lunia's mouth.

The two struggled on the ground before catching their breath and moving apart.

After a short while, Eiran exhaled and said, "S-Sorry. I got too excited."

"It's fine."

Lunia shook her head, her face dark.

"Anyway… Leo and Lady Lysinas… they're married, right."

"…That's true."

Their relationship was a top secret known only to a few.

But Lunia had shared it with Eiran.

"But that's only natural, right?"

Eiran tilted her head.

"…Because of Lady Luna."

"Ah…"

Eiran's face also darkened slightly.

The revered Poet of the Star, Luna.

The beautiful founder who cared deeply for them.

And Eiran knew the words Luna left at the end of her life.

Lunia had even witnessed the confession firsthand, and everything leading up to it.

Both felt their hearts grow heavy.

"I wish future generations would remember the Poet of the Star and the Hero of the Beginning as lovers."

Lunia said with a slightly guilty expression.

Eiran nodded.

"Me too."

Luna's confession to the world.

They couldn't imagine the feelings behind those words at the final moment.

Perhaps she simply wanted to express the feelings she had hidden for so long.

Leo and Luna.

They now lived in different worlds.

If so, then at least being remembered as lovers—was the wish of both of them, or even of all elves.

'Sorry, Lady Lysinas…'

"And also… well… it may be disrespectful, but… didn't Lord Leo say he was tricked into marrying Lady Lysinas?"

"He did."

"Then we shouldn't really see them as a married couple, right?"

"Is that so?"

"Yes! I'm sure of it!"

"That makes sense. Knowing Leo's personality, he wouldn't tolerate being tricked."

Lunia nodded.

Eiran beamed at her.

"Actually! I've been writing a novel about Lord Leo and Lady Luna recently!"

"…You… you're asking for divine punishment."

"It's not a weird novel!"

Eiran cried out and brought a book from her tent.

"Here, look!"

"…I feel like I'll be cursed too…"

Lunia cautiously opened the book with a wary face.

After a while—

She let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness, it's not some lewd story."

"Lady Lunia!"

"Sorry, sorry."

Lunia laughed and closed the book.

"But really, it's well written."

The story was about the love between the Poet of the Star and the Hero of the Beginning.

Though the personalities and speech of the characters were completely different from the real ones—after all, it was fiction.

"This will be a bestseller! I'll spread the memory that they were in love to the public! A cultural victory!"

It was a grand and dangerous plan.

But Eiran truly wanted to make it happen.

'Lady Velkia once thought of Lord Leo as her father.'

That meant her ancestor believed her parents were Kyle and Luna.

'I feel bad for Lady Bihar, Lady Xia… and Lady Lysinas…'

But Eiran's heart leaned more toward her ancestor Velkia and Luna, her teacher.

At Eiran's words, Lunia nodded.

"This might really work."

Even just the beginning was interesting.

If this novel became popular—

The world might start to believe in Kyle and Luna's love.

Just then, Luca entered the tent.

"Lunia, Eiran. The prince's commander is looking for you. Looks like there's a strategy meeting."

At those words, both nodded and stood up.

"Oh! I better leave this here."

Eiran left her manuscript in the tent.

As darkness fell over the tent—

Ssshhh—

Someone appeared silently.

Lysinas.

She stared at the book, then reached out to read it.

After confirming the contents, her eyes narrowed.

'These kids are dangerous.'

She had felt this kind of threat before.

Specifically, from Velkia.

The problem was—Lunia and Eiran were clearly different from Velkia.

They were smart and had far higher social standing than Velkia ever had.

They had both the will and capability to carry out their thoughts—a truly threatening pair.

She had long ignored the efforts of Melina and En to bring her and Leo together, but now she realized this wasn't the time to sit idle.

In the past and now, elves had a habit of pushing forward aggressively.

Feeling a sense of crisis, Lysinas grew impatient.

'These girls… If I don't act fast, I'm in trouble.'