Chapter 4
#4
Lucy closed her eyes for a moment and regulated her breathing.
Having entered the academy, she had expected to meet him someday, but she didn't think it would be this soon.
It was just luck that she encountered him, but she hadn't decided how to make a first impression on Walter.
Time continued to pass as she pondered. After much deliberation, Lucy concluded that since she would meet him again anyway, she would just observe the situation today.
If she approached him clumsily and acted too friendly, she might make a bad impression from the start. Haste makes waste, so she should approach him slowly and methodically.
Leisurely resting her chin on her hand, she listened to his voice. A low baritone, yet not overly gloomy or rough, suited the stiff tone of a soldier with uncanny perfection.
"...Because of this, Pomnos is significant not only as a city but also as a strategic stronghold. I recommend that you all visit it someday if you have the opportunity."
Unlike his consistently impassive expression, Walter answered questions fluently.
Before she knew it, an hour had passed, and Walter adjusted his posture and said he would take one last question.
One of the cadets, who had been looking at him with admiration, hesitated and raised his hand. Walter nodded as if to tell him to speak, and the cadet cautiously opened his mouth, glancing around.
"I heard that the General currently has Lykan as his adjutant. I've also heard rumors that you've always been close to other races."
"I don't particularly favor them. I simply don't have the eccentricity of wanting to define an individual's characteristics by their race. And?"
The cadet swallowed his words and continued his question in a lower voice.
"But isn't the reason you were promoted from Brigadier General to General because you killed the leader of that Lykan and quelled the rebellion? Were the Lykans under your command okay?"
Walter responded with a wry smile instead of an answer.
It was a very malicious question disguised as innocence. But it was also a familiar question.
Countless people who liked to divide people asked the same question, and after realizing that the question was merely out of curiosity, Walter also gave the same answer.
So, this time too, he mechanically parted his lips. But the answer came from elsewhere.
"Talkisin, who led the rebellion, was already a criminal before he was a Lykan."
Walter raised his chin at the gentle, ringing voice.
In the corner of the classroom, next to a shaded pillar, a female cadet with her light brown hair tied up was resting her chin on her hand, her lips moving with a bored expression.
"While outwardly acting as a hero to the Lykans, he was secretly monopolizing essential goods to raise prices."
Lucy, with her eyes half-closed and lowered, continued speaking unconsciously, unaware of his gaze.
"Because of the Illusion Grass monopoly, Lykans were going berserk more often, and Talkisin led those Lykans to start a rebellion. Perhaps the Lykans around the General knew about the corruption. What difference does it make whether they are Lykans or humans when punishing a criminal..."
Lucy muttered to herself as if in a daze and closed her eyes completely.
In her mind, filled with the past, present, and future plans, information and rumors accumulated over many years rose like a mirage and then subsided again.
As a result, Lucy had a habit of blurting out her thoughts, as most elderly people who had lived a long life did.
Lucy, who had been muttering to herself without realizing it, opened her eyelids with a bewildered expression at the sudden silence.
"...Uh..."
And soon, she realized that she had made a mistake, aware of the gazes fixed on her.
What did I just say?
Lucy, quickly rolling her eyes, slightly lowered her head to hide her pale face.
Although she was often embarrassed by her bad habit of blurting things out, she never thought she would make a mistake in front of Walter.
Damn it....
She just ends up muttering to herself unnecessarily.
No, she can mutter to herself, can't she? Why are they all staring so intently?
She muttered inwardly and bit her lip. It was then.
"It's amazing how a cadet knows facts that are confidential, but that's right. The soldiers under my command knew the details of the criminal, so they were not shaken."
The soft voice cleared the bewildered mood.
Walter, with his gaze fixed on Lucy, fiddled with the end of the sword hanging from his waist.
"And to point out, there is an error in your statement. Once you have sworn allegiance to the military, your essence is nothing more or less than a soldier who must defend the kingdom."
The gaze that had been on Lucy shifted to the cadet who had asked the question.
"Unlike other countries, our Parnassus Royal Army does not discriminate based on origin or background and accepts everyone as soldiers. Even the Lykans, who are rejected elsewhere, and the Lafi, who have difficulty living outside the north, are serving as soldiers. Why do you think that is?"
"That's... because His Majesty wants to create a world without discrimination."
The cadet, seemingly ashamed of himself as he spoke, rubbed his flushed cheeks and closed his mouth. Walter continued, saying, "That's also true, but..."
"It's because once you enlist, you are reborn as a soldier. Soldiers transcend race. If it is an element that threatens the kingdom, whether it is a human, a Lykan, or a Lafi flying in the sky, soldiers must antagonize them all. And to that extent, if it is a talent that helps the kingdom develop, we protect anyone without discrimination."
Walter, stepping back from the podium, glanced outside and gauged the time.
Judging by the numerous gazes flickering in the window, it seemed that the lecture was already over and it was break time.
"Think a little more about what the essence of a soldier is. Then I believe you will have your answer, so I will end here."
Against the backdrop of regretful voices, Walter came down from the podium. He was about to leave the classroom as it was, but he stopped and cast his gaze back towards the classroom.
In his dark eyes, a female cadet with a somewhat tired expression came into view.
The cadet, who was about to get up from her seat, seemed to sense his gaze and raised her head to meet Walter's eyes. Walter looked at her with an impassive gaze and said.
"Cadet Arsinoe. I would like to request a brief interview. Is that alright?"
⚜ ⚜ ⚜
Lucy followed him, feigning the most composed expression she could muster.
The two remained silent as they passed through the hallway, crossed the cloister, and reached the backyard. There was awkwardness, but it was also because they were engrossed in different topics.
Looking at his broad back ahead, Lucy quickly recalled information about him.
In his late twenties, with no interest in women, a man who had dedicated his entire life to the military.
Thanks to being born into a prestigious family, he is skilled in socializing and manners, but he doesn't enjoy it. He likes chess and contemplation, and he is said to climb nearby mountains to relax on his days off.
As Lucy already knew everything about Walter, it was not difficult for her to recall his characteristics.
Perhaps the only humans who knew Walter better than she did were his family. It wasn't because she was particularly interested, but simply because she had often been involved with him in her previous life.
If there hadn't been talk of a marriage with the Crown Prince, Lucy would have married this taciturn man.
Throughout her three lives, he had been the guardian of the kingdom, and Lucy was the only princess left in the kingdom.
There is no more effective way to control a man with great power than to tie him down as family. Therefore, King Parnassus tried to tie him down under the guise of marriage, and in her second life, there was actually talk of marriage between Lucy and him.
Considering how deep their connection was, this was the first time they had actually met.
Recalling this, a hollow laugh escaped her lips. Lucy controlled her expression and turned her attention to thinking about why he had called her and how he knew her.
"I heard that the Princess had entered the academy, but I didn't expect to actually meet you."
Walter, having reached a corner of the garden, pointed to a bench and spoke first. His tone was much softer than when they had faced each other in the classroom.
Lucy swallowed her surprise and carefully sat down.
"Did the General... know me? How?"
"As someone who serves the royal family, how could I not know the Princess? And personally, the Princess is my..."
Walter, who had been speaking in a low voice, trailed off and closed his mouth. Then, as if changing the subject, he continued in a louder tone.
"I will explain in detail when I have the opportunity later. More than that, I met Ansila in the palace not long ago."
Ansila?
Lucy blinked reflexively when her mother's name was mentioned.
Walter stood before her with his hands behind his back in a polite posture. And he opened with, "Princess."
"Your mother is very worried. It's a pity that you've worked hard for four years, but wouldn't it be better to return to the palace? It's funny for me to say, but the military is not such a romantic place."
It was a sentence that seemed arrogant at first glance, but the tone in which he recited it was full of concern. Lucy stared at him for a moment and then slowly shook her head.
"I was wondering why the General knew me, but it seems you have a connection with my mother. I appreciate your concern, but I'll take care of my own affairs."
She said confidently, but she didn't think he would listen to her.
She was only sixteen now. He would see her as a hopelessly young novice, so talking to him like this would only frustrate him.
And as expected.
"Even if it's okay at the academy, romance ends the moment you are deployed in actual combat. The Third Prince also entered with great ambition, but he returned to the palace before the graduation ceremony. If even the Prince was like that, I sincerely worry about how someone like the Princess will be able to endure this harsh life."
Walter narrowed his eyes and advised in a serious tone.
