WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Irevi
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
Chapter 94: Your Side, My Side
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The scenery outside the window sped by.
‘...I’m on a train.’
Judging by its speed, this wasn’t the Cyrus Express.
The lavish decorations throughout the carriage made it clear that this was one of the Christoph Cross-Country Train’s VIP compartments.
‘Why am I here?’
A pounding headache washed over me, like I was suffering from a terrible hangover.
No, not a hangover. It felt like I’d taken a hard blow to the head from something blunt, like a hammer.
‘Aren Bright and the others... They’re not here after all.’
That was when I heard it.
“You’re awake.”
Fuck, that startled me.
I looked up at the sudden voice and found Regnar staring down at me from the opposite seat, his arms folded.
“...Where are the others?”
“That’s not for you to worry about.”
Right. Instead of the others, I should probably be worried about that fist the size of my head.
The moment I saw Regnar’s face, my memories came rushing back.
I’d been knocked out by that fist and dragged straight here. No wonder my whole face hurt.
I never thought I’d meet someone who would punch someone in the face without warning. He was an entirely new kind of person.
I wasn’t happy about it, but the gap in our status was like heaven and earth. I had to do what I had to do.
“I am Halibal Velder, Your Grace.”
I immediately bowed my head.
“It has been a while, Halibal Velder. Is this the first time since that day?”
“I’m honored that you remember me.”
Flash Sword Regnar Ren.
Setting Master Jin aside, he was counted among the Empire’s three greatest swordsmen alongside Adeline and Kylien.
He was a central figure in the Imperial faction and held overall command of the military. Aside from the Imperial Family itself, he was practically the most powerful man in the Empire.
Yet despite all that, he rarely appeared in person like this.
Regnar, unlike Viktor, had only briefly appeared at the Grand Council and was mentioned during the civil war arc as, “Duke Ren defeated the noble faction that had set up camp!”
“I can finally thank you for saving my daughter. It’s late, but thank you.”
I’d only seen him briefly when I received my medal, so I had figured we would formally meet someday.
Still, I thought I would be summoned to him. I never imagined he would come looking for me himself.
And right before Kylien was about to take me away, too. What incredible timing.
“Can you guess why I wanted to speak with you privately?”
“...I’m sorry about what happened with Lady Cecilia.”
“Do you truly think I came looking for you because of an accident during a childhood sparring match?”
That wasn’t it?
“On the contrary, I should be the one apologizing and thanking you for that matter. That is not why I sought you out.”
The way he kept circling around the point made it seem like some kind of test.
Should I just throw out whatever came to mind?
“...I’m sorry about what happened with Lady Senia.”
“?”
Ah, shit. Not that either?
It seemed Senia hadn’t told him that I’d hit her, because Regnar looked like he was hearing it for the first time.
His one eye turned cold, and a violent aura flickered above his pot-lid-sized fist.
I’m screwed.
“...Enough.”
Thankfully, the pressure filling the compartment faded with Regnar’s voice.
“I’ll hear about that child’s matter directly from her later. For now, I will teach you what noble etiquette is.”
“Etiquette?”
“A battered wife.”
“I’m sorry!”
I immediately bowed my head.
It was unfair, but not entirely unfair either. A strangely complicated feeling.
“Half of that was a joke, but the point is that you and Cecilia are seen as lovers in the eyes of the world.”
“...Lovers, you said?”
“That perception has spread throughout noble society, so I had no choice but to act myself.”
Regnar stared at me.
“I cannot allow my daughter’s lover to be taken away.”
“It’s only a rumor.”
“Once that rumor has reached even my ears, it does not matter whether it is true.”
“But...”
“What matters is that Princess Alicia entered the dungeon with you, and Commander Kylien headed to the Ronwood Plains in the prince’s name. At that point, I could not remain still. Do you understand what that means?”
He spoke with a furrowed brow.
“It means you must make your position clear.”
Ah.
‘This is that thing. Picking whose side I’m on.’
Regnar belonged to the Imperial faction.
But that only meant he was loyal to the Imperial Family. Between the prince and princess, he had remained strictly neutral.
The moment one of the Empire’s two great pillars leaned to either side, the rival prince or princess’s side would collapse without any chance of winning.
Then rumors spread that Cecilia and I were lovers.
What if Regnar did nothing while I, labeled the “Ren House’s future son-in-law,” was taken away by Kylien, the prince’s trusted subordinate?
‘Ah! The Ren House chose the prince!’
That was the misunderstanding it would plant in noble society.
So the moment he heard that Kylien was on the move, he had personally come.
After all, the only person with enough authority to stop the Empire’s knight commander, especially one acting on the prince’s orders, was the head of the Ren House himself.
What could Kylien, or even the prince behind him, say when a father wanted to look after his future son-in-law?
Especially when that father was Regnar.
‘Fuck, seriously.’
If there had been a can nearby, I would’ve wanted to kick it as hard as I could.
This was why I hated noble scenarios.
They pulled every kind of bullshit behind the scenes over one person.
Dungeon runs were a hundred times more relaxing.
“Soon, the demonic energy will clear, and everyone will learn that the Third Abyss has been conquered.”
Regnar turned his gaze toward the rising sun.
“By the time the train arrives in the Imperial Capital, everyone will know. They will also know that your name was part of this raid party. How valuable do you think you will be then?”
“Probably...”
“Master Jin, the Imperial Family, the Church of the Main Gods. A hero who shines alone among students with all sorts of illustrious backers.”
He firmly cut me off.
“The world will never leave you alone. Everyone will focus on you, and every movement you make will take on meanings you never intended. Wherever you go, jealous and envious eyes will follow.”
His gaze still carried force.
I didn’t look away and met his gaze head-on.
And beneath that pressure, I understood the real meaning behind his words.
“...You intend to deliberately lower my value.”
“Yes.”
Regnar confirmed it.
“I plan to remove your name from this raid. Officially, it will be announced that ‘the final disciple of the Ultimate Divine Sword, the Saintess, and Her Highness the Princess conquered the dungeon.’”
“But many people saw me.”
“We cannot silence everyone, so the truth will naturally become known in time. But we can delay that time. That is why I am telling you to decide your position before then.”
He was right.
The more famous I became, the narrower my freedom of movement would become.
Right now, I was entangled with far too many people.
Cecilia and Senia. Alicia, Mine, and Aren Bright.
There was Richard, and Adeline too.
I would need to maintain relationships with Eugene and Ran as well.
Viktor had already marked me as his own, and with Kylien on the move, it seemed the prince’s side was beginning to take an interest in me too.
There were simply too many people opposed to one another.
Unless I was going to remain firmly neutral, I needed to establish my own position.
But I couldn’t decide that easily.
Even I hadn’t fully decided how I would move from here on.
Climmud had revealed a fragment of himself during this dungeon raid. That meant the cult would start causing serious trouble too.
There was too much to think about.
I had to join a faction quickly. Or else...
‘Do I... create my own faction?’
I needed time to think.
As that thought crossed my mind, I looked at Regnar.
‘This man... Was he considering my situation?’
But was there really a reason for him to protect me, even at the risk of turning the prince against him?
It’s not like I’m Cecilia...
Wait.
“May I answer your question now?”
“Go ahead.”
“Lady Cecilia... sent you, didn’t she?”
Regnar let out a sigh through his nose.
A mixture of frustration and disbelief crossed his usually stern face.
I was right.
“You knew.”
“Yes. I thought there had to be a reason for Your Grace to show me this much consideration.”
“No, I mean you knew that child liked you.”
Cough.
A dry cough slipped out before I could stop it.
“For the record, the punch I threw was only an outlet for my frustration.”
“...I understand.”
“But the person who truly deserves to be punched is not you. It is me.”
Whether I kept coughing or not, Regnar continued calmly.
“I separated her from her mother without asking her wishes and left her with bad memories. After sending her to the main house, I gave her a sword and taught her nothing else.”
“Is... that so?”
“After my wife passed away, I wanted to give that child anything she wanted. But the child wanted nothing.”
He fell silent for a moment, then laughed quietly.
“Then that child made a request of me. She said you would soon clear a dungeon, and asked me to make sure no trouble came after that.”
Regnar looked at me again.
“A child who had never asked me for anything in her life made her first request because of you alone. When I thought about it, I couldn’t hold back my fist.”
“...”
“And I accepted that request, so you and I are sitting alone on this train. You cannot possibly fail to understand what that means.”
‘Does that mean I’m already under the Ren House’s protection?’
“I could place you under the House’s control right now. But...”
Regnar lowered his voice.
“That child opposed it. She said she would win you herself.”
“...”
“My daughter does not seem to intend to leave her relationship with you as nothing more than a rumor. What about you?”
He leaned slightly closer.
“That was another meaning behind my telling you to decide your position. It was also why I came personally, to ask you that.”
If I drew a line between myself and Cecilia here, I had no idea how he would take back the consideration he had shown me.
I took a moment to steady my breath as I watched the scenery outside the window.
I had to decide which card to play before the formidable swordsman in front of me.
“...I feel more gratitude toward Lady Cecilia than I deserve.”
“Gratitude.”
“But, Your Grace.”
I raised my head and looked him straight in the eye.
“I believe I should give the answer to that question directly to Lady Cecilia, not to Your Grace.”
Regnar’s brow twitched.
He stared at me silently for a long time.
“...Is that so?”
After those few words, he said nothing until the train arrived in the Imperial Capital.
⁎⁎⁎
Regnar closed his eyes.
‘I believe I should give the answer to that question directly to Lady Cecilia, not to Your Grace.’
It was an incredibly bold answer. Who would have thought Halibal would draw a line and say, “This is a matter between your daughter and me, not you”?
An old memory surfaced behind his closed eyelids.
The day he first met Seidin.
‘Why is the eldest son of the Ren House taking such an interest in the daughter of a border noble? Is there something you intend to gain from me?’
Had she been that bold as she stared at the marriage proposal documents he had offered her?
‘I appreciate the interest, though it is more than I deserve. But if I ever come to care for you, I will win you myself.’
No, had she been as daring as Cecilia?
What had he said to her then?
He couldn’t remember.
But he still vividly remembered her eyes, which had not feared him.
He even remembered how, in those eyes, she saw not the Ren House, but only the man named Regnar.
Just now.
In Halibal’s eyes, there had been not Duke Ren, but only Cecilia’s father.
“I will win that person myself.”
Regnar slowly opened his eyes.
‘As I thought.’
He felt he could vaguely understand why Cecilia had become so drawn to Halibal.
At the same time, he did not want his daughter to take an unnecessarily difficult path.
That was why.
“Are you there?”
“You called for me?”
“Prepare to formally send a marriage proposal.”
Regnar decided he would grant Cecilia anything she wanted.
He believed that was the atonement he could offer.
After Seidin passed away, what had he ever done for Cecilia?
The more he thought about it, the more hollow he felt.
‘I must make up for it, even now.’
As Regnar made that promise to himself, he suddenly thought not of Cecilia, but of his eldest daughter, Senia.
The child who had always borne the weight of the family in his stead. Had that child also never sought her father’s attention?
“...Come to think of it, I never even made you a promise.”
Footnotes:
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