Chapter 108

The time we had been separated wasn’t very long, yet we behaved like a star-crossed couple who had been apart for years. By which I mean, we clung to each other and tried not to be apart for a single moment. I didn’t mind the embracing and showering each other with affection; in fact, I loved it. Perhaps it was because the events at the Imperial Palace were bigger and more stressful than we anticipated, making our reunion all the more poignant.

Yes, that was certainly the case, but—

“W-wait, Nine!”

“What’s wrong?”

‘What’s wrong?’ he asks.

I looked alternately at the room I was about to enter and at Nine, who was following me closely, refusing to be separated.

“W-why are you trying to follow me into the bathroom?!”

I was tired enough to fall asleep the moment my head hit the pillow, but I couldn’t possibly lie down without washing up. So, I headed straight for the bathroom, and Nine was trotting right behind me!

‘No wonder the maids were all smiling as they left!’

I understood his desire not to be separated, but following me into the bathroom seemed a bit much. I gently pushed his shoulder, trying to usher him out, but Nine, with his usual calm and sharp face, wore a look of intense disappointment. It was an unfamiliar expression, but it didn’t look out of place on him.

‘…He’s cute.’

In my eyes, he looked like a huge, sexy black panther sulking as if he were merely a house cat. It was like watching him tap the floor with a blunt tail. Which is to say, incredibly cute.

“I just wanted to help…”

Nine, looking uncharacteristically sulky, insisted that he had no ulterior motives.

Aside from being cute, his pouting lips were also sexy, and I couldn’t control the pounding of my heart. I grabbed my chest and screamed inwardly. ‘

Do everything! My Nine, do everything you want! Insane! Let’s smash the continent of Gradia!’

After mentally shattering the continent of Gradia into hundreds of pieces, I cleared my throat, pretending nothing was amiss, and asked, “You really won’t do anything?”

“No. Of course not.”

“Okay. Then fine.”

And one hour later.

“You said you wouldn’t do anything!”

I playfully pounded Nine, who was kneeling on the bed. I was completely exhausted, so there was no strength in my fists. Not that I could have hit him hard anyway. I buried my face in the pillow out of embarrassment.

“I thought I could control myself, but I couldn’t… I’m sorry…”

Nine apologized with a sheepish expression and reached out his hand to my waist. It felt like he intended to give me a massage, but just in case, I dodged his hand.

‘Absolutely no more now!’

Dodging wasn’t enough, so I rolled myself into a cocoon with the blanket and turned my back to him.

“Hmph!”

“Haha. Alright, alright.”

Nine burst out laughing at my reaction, finding it irresistible. I felt his large hand gently patting the blanket over me. The tender touch and the sound of his happy laughter instantly melted away my annoyance. I couldn’t stay sulky any longer.

Sensing that my mood had improved, Nine turned off the room light, lay down beside me, and pulled the blanket bundle close. His breathing, close beside me, was like a lullaby, and I quickly fell asleep.

***

“…Duke!”

Beyond my sinking consciousness, an urgent voice faintly reached me. With a rustling sound, the comforting weight that had enveloped me disappeared. I tried to open my hazy eyes, stammering with a voice thick with sleep.

“Mmm, Nine…?”

“Chacha.”

Unlike me, who was still half-asleep, Nine’s voice held no trace of drowsiness. His deep voice clearly stated, “Count Laurel launched a surprise attack.”

“…What?”

I instantly snapped awake. Nine was already dressed in his clothes and carrying his sword. His dark eyes looked at me with worry, full of concern. It was the look of someone who wanted to keep me in sight and protect me personally.

But as the Duchess, I had a role to play too.

“Come back safely.”

I tried not to show any anxiety. When I managed a composed smile, Nine leaned in and kissed my cheek. Looking at him again, Nine was also smiling. Just like me, he didn’t want to show me his unease.

“I will.”

After Nine left, I immediately put on an overcoat and a shawl and headed to the grand assembly hall.

Vassals who were not fighting on the front lines were gathering there one by one. The successors to the frontline vassals and older vassals who could not go to war were to assist me.

As soon as I entered the assembly hall, Roona immediately stood behind me. She was tasked with being my personal guard during this state of emergency. A vassal placed a communication orb in the center, displaying the situation of the territory. I unconsciously frowned as I looked at the screen.

‘He’s launching a surprise attack suddenly at this hour? Hasn’t he given up?’

Now that the hypnotized Emperor had made a new public announcement, Count Laurel no longer had any justification to oppose Eclipse. That’s why this reckless choice to attack at dawn was somewhat understandable.

Even if Count Laurel had hired soldiers from his private army and the mercenary guild, he couldn’t compare to Eclipse. The Eclipse Ducal House, which had protected the North for a long time, was the unparalleled leader on the continent of Gradia. No one could match Eclipse in terms of the size and quality of its knights.

‘Perhaps only the Mabelin Ducal House could go head-to-head, and that would only be under the assumption that the Imperial Palace and the Magic Tower joined forces.’

The difference in military power was that overwhelming.

However, I couldn’t completely dismiss my worries. I now knew that the Urkel Church, who had sided with Count Laurel, could control monsters using the Spinelle Tribe. If monsters joined the fight, even Nine and the Silver Wolf Knights wouldn’t escape without casualties.

The vassals who had not gone to the front seemed to share my concerns, speaking in grave voices.

“We cannot estimate the scale of monsters the Urkel Church can command.”

“We don’t know how many of the Spinelle Tribe are involved, or the number of monsters they can control…”

The atmosphere sank heavily.

We couldn’t just sit here and worry. I decided to refocus on the tasks I needed to handle.

“Have the Iclea residents been successfully evacuated?”

“Yes. They have been fully evacuated to the temples of the Paruel Church and the Guild buildings, which had promised cooperation.”

A young vassal answered clearly. Starting with my question, the vassals stopped making comments that could dampen morale.

As time passed, the war began in earnest, and the assembly hall quickly grew noisy. I listened to the continuous reports and directed the defenses in various locations.

Despite the chaos, I kept checking the communication orb screen, just in case. The orb displayed scenes from various parts of the battlefield.

‘Where is Nine?’

I focused most intensely on the communication orb that was dedicated to Nine. Nine was on horseback, commanding the battlefield. As someone familiar with warfare, he looked calm and composed. Seeing Nine’s figure slowly extinguished the anxiety that had been flickering in my heart.

“Lady Chacha. This…”

“Ah.”

The moment I looked away briefly to address an incoming report—

“Oh?”

A young vassal checking the situation on the communication orb let out a cry of surprise. I quickly looked back at the battlefield.

In the sky opposite Nine, a large dark cloud was approaching, obscuring the moonlight.

“What is that?”

A question arose on everyone’s faces. Even though the sun hadn’t risen and the sky was dark, the dark cloud was clearly visible.

‘What is its true nature?’

I frowned, staring intently at the cloud, when a faint flapping motion briefly caught my eye.

A sudden realization struck me like lightning. I sprang from my seat and shouted,

“Lady Roona! Tell them immediately to eliminate any individuals who appear to be of the Spinelle Tribe around Count Laurel’s forces!”

“Duchess?”

The vassals, who hadn’t grasped the situation, stared at me with puzzled faces.

Right, it couldn’t be a mere dark cloud. The very thing I had been worried about was happening.

“It’s a flock of wyverns!”

As soon as the words left my mouth, Roona burst out of the assembly hall and dashed out. Everyone looked back at the battlefield with shocked expressions.

The dark cloud drew closer, revealing its distinct form.

“Wy-wyverns!”

“They can command that many of them?!”

I bit my lower lip and paced inside the assembly hall. I had informed them about the Spinelle Tribe as soon as I returned, but I couldn’t hide my anxiety at the flock of wyverns pouring in like a cloud.