WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Haruto
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◈ The Pushover Young Lord in a Romance Fantasy Won't Take It Anymore ◈
Chapter 33: She Who Is a Sister
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The editorial office of the Imperial Capital Daily.
Today, too, the place shook with the rumble of printing presses and the smell of ink.
It was the information hub that carried news from the imperial capital throughout the Empire.
Knock, knock.
Senior reporter Felix knocked on the editor-in-chief's door, bearing the weight of that responsibility.
"Come in."
After hearing the voice, he carefully opened the door and stepped inside.
"Oh, yeah. What brings you here?"
Morgan, the editor-in-chief, looked up slightly as he smoked a cigar with his boots propped on his desk.
Felix opened and closed his lips several times before asking, "Chief. Is this really right?"
A flyer trembled visibly in his hand.
"What is?"
"This notice. Even if the Grand Ducal House Cardenos requested it, this is a little..."
Rustle!
Morgan snatched the paper from Felix's hand and scanned the words at his usual speed.
[Recruiting applicants for the Ashen Forest Expedition.]
[Freezing cold, magical beasts, dense demonic energy, endless darkness, constant danger, survival not guaranteed.]
[Unpaid until the expedition is complete. Wages will be paid upon return, amount undetermined.]
[Great honor and glory upon success.]
Morgan casually held the paper out to Felix.
"Of course we can't run it like this."
"Haha. Right, that's what I thought."
"This isn't even fit for a first draft. We need to make it more exciting. To our taste."
"...Pardon? Ch-Chief? You're really going to publish this?"
Felix was not overreacting in the slightest.
There had already been a huge uproar within the office.
What kind of place was the Ashen Forest?
An unexplored death trap where anyone who set foot inside would struggle to return alive.
Even Swordmasters and high-ranking mages avoided entering that inhuman hellscape.
And they were recruiting people to go on an expedition into such a place.
It was nothing but absurd nonsense, like asking for volunteers to commit suicide.
"Forget the danger, just look at this!"
Felix pointed to a line.
[Unpaid until the expedition is complete. Wages will be paid upon return, amount undetermined.]
"Even a fortune would not be enough compensation, and it says the amount is undetermined! Does that make any sense? They're telling people to volunteer as cannon fodder without paying them a single coin!"
"You're loud."
Without even looking at him, Morgan pulled the fountain pen tucked behind his ear.
Scratch, scratch.
He scribbled a sentence onto one of the many sheets scattered around.
[However, success will bring boundless honor and glory unprecedented in the history of the Empire.]
"Just change the final sentence like this. What's the problem? It's the Ashen Forest. It may be a little exaggerated, but it isn't a lie."
"Chief!"
Bang!
Felix slammed both palms onto the table.
"No matter how much we love a scoop, this is a ridiculous tabloid piece. If we publish it, we'll have to print a correction the next day. Are you really going ahead with it?"
"Cardenos says the expedition is already decided. They told us so themselves, so there's nothing to worry about."
If Cardenos had asked them to run the article and then backed out, the house would bear the responsibility.
Even so, the Imperial Capital Gazette would not come away unscathed.
"Yes, I know that. But is Cardenos really preparing an expedition? Everyone knows they haven't made any preparations yet. We need to see something before we can believe it!"
At present, Cardenos was sealing off the Ashen Forest behind a wall.
If they defied that natural order by developing the forest and tearing down the wall, Cardenos could claim all the glory of the Empire.
They had a justification, but most things did not run on that alone.
People only moved after calculating and weighing the practical benefits.
A righteous cause was nothing more than a veneer spread over it.
"Isn't this just propaganda? It's obvious those bastards are trying to use us."
"Let's say you're right. What would they gain by announcing a fake Ashen Forest Expedition?"
"...There must be something."
"You're making assumptions without knowing anything. Do you even know who's planning and leading the expedition?"
"Isn't it obvious? Grand Duke Valdemar."
"Look at you. You don't know a thing from start to finish. It isn't the head of the house, it's Astin. Young Lord Astin, Cardenos's legitimate son."
"What!?"
Felix's eyes widened unnaturally.
"That makes even less sense! That young brat is the one in charge? It's obvious this is all talk and no substance!"
"Don't look at the person. Look at the event. Have you forgotten what Astin was like at the Founding Festival?"
Astin von Cardenos.
A person of interest currently setting the imperial capital's social scene ablaze.
Not long ago, at the Founding Festival, the man chosen by Lady Lucia, known as the star of high society, had been Astin.
Since then, Astin had been at the center of every wild rumor.
The eyes of the imperial capital's gossipmongers were still fixed on him.
The man at the center of all that attention was leading an Ashen Forest Expedition.
Where else in the world could they find a more perfect, sensational scoop?
The focus would not be on Cardenos or the Ashen Forest Expedition.
It was obvious that the entire Empire's attention would be focused on Astin alone.
"The whole capital will be turned upside down, and word will spread like wildfire. Whether that's in a good way or a bad way."
"Even so, shouldn't we verify whether it's true first?"
"I told you, it's already decided."
"What makes you trust him? People say he's a loose-lipped wastrel."
"You keep saying that."
His throat dry from talking, Morgan downed a glass of cognac from the table. His Adam's apple bobbed.
"Khah. Anyway, there's nothing for us to lose. We won't publish it immediately. We'll wait at least a month, until they ask us to break the news."
"And."
Morgan continued.
"If we need to correct it later, we don't have to make it seem like nothing happened."
"Then how...?"
"We can say the expedition schedule is undecided. Or that it's been postponed indefinitely. We just need to coordinate with Cardenos and cool things down."
Holding the fountain pen, Morgan spun it smoothly through his fingers.
"In the end, it isn't swords that make people go wild. It's pens. And pens are what calm them down, too. That brilliant grand ducal heir contacted us because he knows that."
"..."
Felix fell silent, as if at a loss for words. Soon, he let out a sigh.
"Young Lord Astin. Why is he doing all this?"
"I don't know either. He must be confident."
"Confident about what?"
"Confident about this notice."
Click.
Morgan used a metal cutter to snip the end of his cigar.
"Honor and glory are born from danger. Everyone knows that."
Sizzle.
Morgan slowly put the cigar in his mouth and lit it.
The tip glowed red, giving off a harsh scent.
"Those who live for that stuff will go of their own accord. Well, we'd never understand it, even if we died and came back to life."
There were still people blinded by such lukewarm fantasies.
Morgan doubted he would understand them even in his next life.
"Come to think of it, Cardenos has been causing quite a stir lately."
"Ha... You're right. It feels like only yesterday they were clashing with Rosenthal."
"The Founding Festival incident and the conflict with Rosenthal, Young Lord Astin was the cause of both. There isn't a bigger celebrity around."
"This Ashen Forest recruitment notice is Astin's doing too, isn't it? Can't that man live quietly?"
"Astin isn't the only one who can't live quietly."
Morgan's gaze settled on a weekly magazine in the corner of his vision.
[The Black Lion Who Opened the North's Lifeline, Selena von Cardenos!]
On the northern front, where freezing cold and death lurk, Selena von Cardenos of the Grand Ducal House Cardenos has reported victory after victory. Leading the knights under her command, Lady Selena broke through the treacherous Frost Mountains and accomplished the remarkable feat of annihilating a horde of hundreds of magical beasts threatening the northern border... [...] A true Black Lion is not proven by bloodline. Birth may place a crown upon one's head, but only martial strength can bear its weight. Having completed her lengthy assignment, Lady Selena will return to Cardenos...
* * *
At last, that day had arrived.
Selena von Cardenos.
My sister, who had been dispatched to the north, was returning today.
Father, Celine standing beside me, the house's retainers and servants, even its knights.
Everyone from Cardenos had gathered before the main gate.
The people of the territory had gathered in one place, murmuring among themselves, while the soldiers standing watch atop the gate craned their necks to look into the distance.
Everyone in Cardenos waited for Selena's imminent return.
Their faces were filled with excitement they could not hide.
Everyone already knew of Selena's military achievements in the north.
Her name had spread not only through the north and Cardenos, but throughout every corner of the Empire.
Rumble!
The tightly shut gates slowly began to open.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
At the same time, huge drums resounded as though they would shake the earth.
The blare of horns joined in, and cheers burst from the crowd that had been holding its breath.
It was a triumphal song for Selena alone.
"Waahhh!"
"The Black Lion of Cardenos has returned!"
"Long live Lady Selena!"
Brightly colored petals fluttered through the sky. Applause and cheers poured down beyond the gates.
Amid the overwhelming welcome, an order of knights clad in black armor appeared.
Their footsteps, marching in perfect formation, did not vary by an inch.
Even the hoofbeats of their warhorses seemed to merge into a single sound.
Their eyes gleamed through the gaps in their helmets. The people flinched as though frightened.
This was Cardenos's proud elite order of knights. There was something overwhelming about their presence alone.
"Gasp!"
"Th-that's...?"
The knights were not what captured the crowd's attention.
In the center column was a massive wagon being laboriously pulled by a dozen or so warhorses.
All eyes focused on the savage trophy resting atop it.
It was the head of a magical beast as large as a house.
It looked too large to even pass through the gates.
Dark green blood had dried between its brutally torn jaws.
It was not an ordinary magical beast, but the alpha predator that had reigned over the Frost Mountains ecosystem.
What was more shocking was that Selena had slain that magical beast all by herself.
Even searching through the memories of my previous life, Selena's strength at this point rivaled that of my father, Valdemar.
'She had opened five Heart Furnaces and was on the verge of opening a sixth.'
Even after abandoning the Heart Path, she had forged five rings in just one year.
If Selena had survived to the end, I dared say she would have slain one of the seven kin.
Yet even Selena, so powerful, had died helplessly at Celine's hands.
She had not merely died. She had chosen to let Celine kill her...
Selena was a hero who should not have died that way.
"Lady Selena!"
"Ahhh! She looked this way!"
"You're so amazing! Congratulations on your safe return, my lady!"
The people of the territory raised their voices, adding to the triumphant atmosphere.
They, too, felt a sense of belonging to Cardenos.
The retainers and knights naturally agreed in private, and even among the people of the territory, there was a growing consensus that Selena should become the next head of the house.
'They aren't wrong.'
Selena was one of the few warriors I acknowledged.
Which meant she was an essential asset to the Ashen Forest Expedition.
If I could persuade Selena, the elite knights loyal only to her would follow as well.
Somehow, I had to make her join my expedition.
'Though that won't be easy.'
"Waahhh!"
"Lady Selena!"
Behind the gigantic magical beast's severed head, the star of the triumphal procession slowly came into view.
Silver hair flowing down to her waist. Silver eyes as cold as frost.
A woman sat straight-backed atop a black horse, holding its reins, her silver plate armor faintly stained with blood.
Selena moved silently forward beneath the falling petals.
Waaahhh!!!
Thunderous cheers erupted everywhere. I thought my eardrums would burst.
People craned their necks like mad and chanted Selena's name.
The drums and horns grew even louder, and the applause continued without end.
Selena's expression, in contrast, was utterly cold.
Emotionless.
It was nothing new. My sister had always been like this.
She was Father's eldest daughter born out of wedlock, and she resembled him to an extreme degree.
An icy lady with a terrible habit of silence, as though every emotion in her had worn away.
Clap, clap, clap.
I, too, clapped slowly.
"Sisterrrrr!"
Beside me, Celine raised both arms with a bright smile.
Even Father, who rarely showed emotion, smiled faintly and applauded.
As Selena approached through the cheers, she pulled on the reins and brought her horse to a stop.
Her cold silver eyes went first to Father.
Without wavering atop her horse, Selena bowed her head.
It was the plain greeting of a knight, without any noticeable emotion.
"You worked hard, Selena."
Valdemar nodded in reply, as though proud of her.
It was recognition offered not as her father, but as the head of the house.
Selena's gaze naturally slid to the side.
Toward me, Cardenos's legitimate son.
Our eyes met in the air.
I was the first to form a faint smile.
"It's been a long time, Sister. I can't tell you how relieved I am to see you back safely."
"..."
Selena coldly turned her head away.
It felt as if she were looking at a stone lying by the roadside.
Having withdrawn her gaze, Selena spurred her horse forward again.
The emotion I caught in that brief instant was unmistakable.
A deep contempt beyond indifference.
I understood. Until now, I had acted like a debauched fool despite being born the legitimate son.
Selena was my polar opposite.
Though born out of wedlock, she had spilled blood without hesitation to earn recognition and accomplished countless military feats.
I was stupid to have hoped for some warm reunion between siblings.
"Astin, you coward who ran away. I don't think of you as my brother. Get lost. Never appear before me again."
I needed to persuade her to join the Ashen Forest Expedition, but there was no way it would be easy.
I did not mind much.
The truth was, there was something else I wanted to tell her.
"Sister!"
I cupped both hands around my mouth and shouted.
Selena was alive, not a mutilated corpse.
It was not easy to hold back my emotions as I watched my sister return alive.
Just holding back my tears was agony.
"Thank you for coming back alive!"
The black horse came to an abrupt halt as Selena pulled on the reins.
After pausing for a moment, she slowly turned her head.
The surrounding gazes clung to us, but I stared at Selena without caring.
If I could, I wanted to run over and embrace her at once.
A quiet voice slipped through Selena's teeth.
It was hard to hear beneath the noise, but I could read her lips.
"Crazy bastard."
"Um..."
It was creepy, I suppose.
I was just glad she had not drawn her sword on the spot.
Author's Note
I'll be posting extra chapters during the week. Thank you for reading!
Footnotes:
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