Chapter 108
“Oh my, Riz. Where have you been?”
As Nerys left the greenhouse and returned to the tournament grounds, her mother approached and asked.
Her mother looked excited. Wearing the fine dress Nerys had thoughtfully picked out and elegant, if not the most expensive, jewelry, she looked perfectly at home among the other lords’ wives.
In fact, the other ladies mingled with her as if she were an old friend, laughing without any awkwardness. Nerys greeted them politely and answered her mother.
“I just stepped out for a bit. Were you looking for me?”
“No, it’s just that you had a leaf stuck in your hair.”
Her mother plucked a fallen leaf from Nerys’s hair. Nerys blushed a little.
She’d brushed all the leaves from her clothes after leaving the garden, but she hadn’t realized one had gotten stuck in her hair.
“Thank you.”
“I thought you were the type who never leaves a detail unchecked, Advisor, but you can be quite cute,” one of the ladies watching the tournament with her mother said with a laugh. Nerys’s face reddened even more.
Cheers erupted just then. A huge crowd surged forward, all because of the person entering the arena they were watching.
With sharp, intelligent eyes and a calm demeanor. A smile that seemed unshakable by anything.
Cledwyn stepped onto the stage in a casual outfit.
His opponent was a minor knight from far away—a vassal managing a small estate under one of the Grand Duchy’s lords, about the same standing as Lord Wilmot, the lord of Nerys’s hometown, Rohez.
Normally, someone like him would never have the chance to speak directly with Cledwyn, who was the de facto king of Maindulante. But in this tournament, he could cross swords with his lord himself.
A faint smile played at the corners of Cledwyn’s mouth.
“Don’t hold back—show me what you can do.”
This man had come a long way to compete. The knight was confident in his skills.
“Then, pardon me, Your Grace! Haaap!”
A vigorous shout.
The silver blade flashed in the sunlight. Clang, clash!
Within seconds of charging, the knight’s sword fell to the ground. Judging by his torn, bleeding palm, it hadn’t been easy to let go.
Standing tall without a change in expression, Cledwyn lazily nodded his chin.
“Well done.”
The Grand Duke’s sword, shining brilliantly like white-hot metal, slid into its scabbard. It was longer and thinner than the swords most knights used, elegant, just like its wielder.
Thud. The knight, who looked to be in his mid-forties, lost the strength in his legs and collapsed. A slow, helpless smile crept across his shocked face.
“Heh, heh heh…”
It had only taken a single swing. That alone had nullified the attack he’d put everything into.
Such strength, speed, precision—there was nothing to do but marvel. Of course, he’d personally put down a rebellion at such a young age.
“Your Grace! Waaah!”
“Long live our lord! Long live Maindulante!”
The crowd went wild at his overwhelming skill. Nerys felt a little overwhelmed. She’d never seen people adore their ruler like this. Not even the imperial family, who commanded unwavering support as descendants of the three heroes, nor the Elandria family, received such devotion.
Cledwyn turned and left the arena, heading straight toward Nerys.
Unlike the other participants, who tried to stand out with crests and colors, Cledwyn wore a simple white shirt and pants. Strangely, that made him stand out more than anyone else. No outfit could make it clearer who the master of this castle was.
“Lady Truydd.”
Nerys’s eyes widened as he passed her and kissed her mother’s hand. The ladies smiled as if they’d seen something entertaining.
“Congratulations on your victory, Your Grace.”
“Thank you. Are you enjoying yourself, Lady Truydd?”
“Thanks to you, Your Grace.”
Her mother looked a bit flustered and confused, but also proud. The ladies around her looked even more kindly on her than before.
Nerys could understand his thoughtfulness.
Though she and her mother were from different regions, in a festival filled with Maindulante natives, it was easy for them to be outsiders. Nerys, as an advisor, had earned her place, but her mother hadn’t.
Though her mother had lived here for years, provincial nobles unfamiliar with the capital didn’t know her well. Now that the Grand Duke had shown her public favor, her mother’s standing would improve.
After finishing his conversation with her mother, Cledwyn gave the ladies a bold nod, observing the formalities of a knight. At last, he met Nerys’s eyes and smiled.
“You came to watch my match?”
“I just happened to be free at the right time.”
Nerys told the truth. As the tournament supervisor, she knew he’d be competing at that hour, but she hadn’t come just to see him.
Cledwyn gave a wry smile.
“Pity.”
“You’re heading back to work right away, aren’t you?”
“I have to.”
“Alright. See you at lunch then. Ah.”
Nerys suddenly noticed the knot on the cord fastening Cledwyn’s shirt was crooked. As her gaze lingered on the ribbon, Cledwyn asked without concern,
“Will you fix it?”
“Alright.”
She didn’t know why he couldn’t just do it himself, but maybe his hands were dirty or sweaty from the match… Anyone would assume that. Nerys simply accepted it.
Lowering her eyes, she carefully fixed the knot. Cledwyn looked down at her hands at his chest and smiled silently.
The people scattered to watch other matches, but the ladies stayed put. Their cheeks flushed as they barely managed to stifle their laughter.
They felt warmly toward Nerys. She had a good reputation among the lords for being helpful to Maindulante. Even as an outsider, who could complain about a direct descendant of the three heroes wanting to live here because she liked the place?
Moreover, seeing her in person, she had an air that inspired admiration. The ladies themselves had once been girls Nerys Truydd’s age, so they knew well how rare it was to possess such calm and grace—even in the greatest noble houses.
But it seemed there was even more reason to befriend her.
When the knot was neatly straightened, Nerys took a step back. She considered asking Cledwyn about the toy with the letter C—after all, if it was a child’s toy buried beside the late Grand Duchess’s greenhouse, it was most likely his.
But was it really alright to ask?
Without any idea of her complicated thoughts, Cledwyn just smiled at her.
“Thank you.”
“It was nothing.”
Because of their height difference, Nerys looked up at Cledwyn’s face framed by the sky. With the brilliant blue above and his head tilted in a lopsided smile, for some reason—
Her heart felt restless.
❖ ❖ ❖
The tournament preliminaries continued for several days.
Disqualified contestants raising objections, injured winners, post-match clashes… There were many unexpected situations in the process of selecting who would advance. But as the crowd of spectators grew by the day and the excitement rose, the lower officials in charge became even more enthusiastic.
Finally, when the names of the 128 finalists were announced, both the castle and the lower town were in a frenzy. Even after the festival in the capital ended, it would surely be talked about for years throughout Maindulante.
A day of rest was scheduled between the preliminaries and the finals so the finalists could recover from their injuries. Nerys let the tournament officials who’d worked so hard leave early and stayed behind alone in her office to finish her backlog of work.
The sun set quickly, and night fell in an instant.
Focused on her work, Nerys finally looked up and leaned back in her chair.
Compared to recent days, it was unusually quiet outside. The main palace was probably full of noble guests playing cards, and any finalist present would be enjoying the attention.
It wasn’t a bad time. Not at all.
‘If only I could have lived like this in my previous life.’
Her mother was alive, and for the first time since entering the academy, Nerys was able to use her abilities without being hated by those around her.
A life where she didn’t have to fear what terrible thing might happen tomorrow.
For some, this was simply ordinary—but for her, it was something she’d had to fight desperately to obtain.
‘This peace won’t last forever.’
The Elandria family had already set their sights on her. If they discovered her , [Jeweled Eyes] had awakened, the imperial family would surely make a move.
Rumors from Maindulante rarely spread outside, but not ‘never.’ Sooner or later, word would get out that Nerys Truydd was working for Cledwyn Maindulante, and that she possessed Elandria’s , [Jeweled Eyes].
The real question was ‘when’ and ‘how.’
She had dedicated her life to revenge—she wasn’t going to run. Nerys shifted her attention back to the list of head taxes paid by the vassal lords of Maindulante she’d been reading.
Just then, someone knocked urgently at the door.
“Advisor? Advisor, are you in there?”
Who could it be at this hour? Nerys frowned.
“I’m here. Who is it?”
“It’s Hilbrin.”
“Come in.”
The door opened.
Hilbrin entered, pale and out of breath. Nerys had been about to reprimand him for showing up unannounced, but narrowed her eyes instead.
“What happened?”
“G-Giverta is missing.”
Nerys shot to her feet.
“Where? When was she last seen?”
Hilbrin’s family was staying at a noble’s residence, not the castle. So if the child was missing, they should have searched there first—unless there was reason to suspect kidnapping.
Assuming the worst, Nerys’s brow furrowed. Hilbrin shifted anxiously.
“Someone saw her playing with other noble children at the castle earlier today. My wife wasn’t feeling well and went back early, so I thought Giverta went with her! But now someone has told us that Giverta said she would go back with me, so my wife went alone…”
That meant there was no immediate reason to suspect a kidnapping. But Giverta had been missing for several hours, and no one knew where she’d gone, so the concern was valid.
“I’ll notify the head butler and the chief lady-in-waiting to search the castle. Just in case, you go check the path between the castle and your residence—Giverta’s clever, she might have tried to walk home alone.”
“Yes!”
Hilbrin dashed out, looking on the verge of tears.
Nerys rang for Gilbert and Ellen. After instructing them to search the castle, she thought things over.
‘Giverta is a clever child. She’s unlikely to just leave the castle alone. Even if she got lost in an unfamiliar place, she’d know to ask for help.’
Besides, the castle was so full of guests that some had to be sent down to the lower town for lack of space. If a lost child was wandering around, someone would have reported it.
Earlier, she’d wondered if there was a motive for kidnapping, but there wasn’t anyone in the castle with a reason to target Giverta. Hilbrin was popular, and there was no one with enough of a grudge or conflict to go so far.
Considering all of that, Nerys thought she knew where Giverta was.