Raising the Princess to Overcome Death Chapter 115
115. Childhood Friend - Condition
Something about it seemed familiar.
'Where have I seen that before? More importantly...'
He felt a strong desire. For some reason, Rev wanted that jewel resting in Harie's cleavage. But the feeling was so sudden that he couldn’t help but be taken aback.
“I apologize for asking this as a stranger, but I have a favor to ask.”
Harie calmly opened her mouth to draw his attention. Even so, Rev's eyes wouldn't leave her chest, and Harie Guidan’s brows furrowed slightly.
'But why did Father tell me to get permission from this man?'
In the trade city of Bospo of the Kingdom of Orun, she met her destined partner. 'Philas Tertan,' a man undoubtedly chosen for her by the gods.
At first, it was just a way to escape being married off to those useless princes, but the more she talked with him, the more Harie fell deeply for his kind and beautiful heart.
At that moment, he revealed that his grandfather, Duke Rupert Tertan, would not approve of their marriage and asked for her help.
He asked her to come with him to the duke's household, and Harie readily agreed.
Even if he had asked her to enter hell, she wouldn't have hesitated, so there was no reluctance in her acceptance.
But then she received a message from her father.
A few days ago, he had permitted her to go, but suddenly he ordered her to return to the capital.
Although she felt deeply sorry towards her father, Harie didn’t want to comply.
How could she leave this man behind?
She defied her father's order and prepared to leave. However, the steward and knights strongly dissuaded her, preventing her from moving. Hearing about this from the steward, Philas comforted her.
In the end, the two lovers promised to meet again.
Philas promised to persuade his grandfather somehow, and Harie firmly vowed to plead with her father to allow her to visit the duke's household.
Leaving her maids, who were on the verge of collapse from overwork, in Bospo, Harie hurried back to Nevis.
Arriving with no time to freshen up, she ran straight to her father, begging him that she loved him and wanted to go to the duke's household.
But her father's reaction was strange.
He hesitated and didn’t give his permission easily, showing signs of wanting to say something but holding back.
The truth was, by that time, Philas Tertan was already dead. He had been attacked by assailants while crossing the Irotashi River, and Margrave Harvey had already heard the news.
He was relieved he had ordered his daughter to return. Had he not, his daughter might have been swept up and killed as well.
Margrave Guidan marveled at his lord's insight but felt a pang of sorrow. His returned daughter had fallen in love with Philas Tertan,
She was so fond of Philas that she forgot all about noble decorum and cheerfully listed his virtues.
She pleaded to get permission from the duke to marry him, believing he would make an excellent son-in-law that even her father would approve of, despite him being dead.
His heart ached.
He knew he had to tell her about his death sooner or later, but the margrave decided to wait for his lord’s return.
He needed to decide how to handle her situation. Although unfortunate for her, her future remained uncertain.
As Harie Guidan, a noblewoman, she had yet to pay the price for the luxurious life she had enjoyed.
If she didn’t want to remain an old maid forever, gossiped about by other nobles, she would have to bury Philas in her heart and find another match.
That would be better for her.
And, in fact, her match had already been decided. Philas Tertan was just an alternative.
With the engagement to the Tertan duke’s family nullified, Margrave Harvey Guidan now had to decide whether to marry his daughter to the princes as planned or face the isolation of his family.
Just then, items sent by his lord started arriving in large wagons.
Thirty large wagons full of weapons.
The margrave realized his lord's intention. He must be preparing for a rebellion.
He hid the incoming weapons.
It was troublesome that the wagons were sent to the mansion, but he secretly had them sent to the Guidan family's estate in the northeast.
Then, he went to see Margrave Evni Drazhin. Earlier, he had told his lord that he hadn't done anything, but he was actually preparing for rebellion as well.
He didn’t want to marry his daughter to the princes.
By following his lord’s plan, his family wouldn’t be isolated.
The lord, who had an audience with the king, told him not to worry as he had a plan...
“That's ridiculous!”
Margrave Evni Drazhin drew the line.
“You want to start a rebellion without any justification? I sympathize with your daughter's situation, but we can't do that. It's absurd!”
“...”
“If you're really worried about your daughter, find another match and marry her off. Then join us. Baron Guanin has promised to stand with me. If you join us, there will be two margraves. If we can persuade Count Ogleton as well, the royal family won’t easily touch us.”
Count Ogleton’s family.
The noble family led by the wizard 'Soarel Demetri Ogleton.'
The Ogleton family was not a family of wizards. Wizards were born rarely and without regard for lineage, but the Ogleton family had the fortune of having a wizard born to them.
As seen from the name 'Demetri,' Count Ogleton was a wizard who studied at the 'Volinue Tower.' Located in the western part of the Kingdom of Orun, that tower was the most advanced in the theory of mana accumulation among the five towers on the continent. The middle name ‘Demetri’ symbolized the school of thought and was carried by wizards from the Volinue Tower.
Thus, the power of the Ogleton family was not inferior to that of the Guidan and Drazhin margrave families.
Most wizards dispatched to various parts of the Kingdom of Orun were from the Volinue Tower, and although they were mercenary-like and worked for money, the bond among wizards was strongly tied through intellectual resonance.
Margrave Drazhin firmly stated his position.
"I don't know what made you suddenly think of plotting a rebellion, but my friend, you must let go of this idea. The time isn't right yet. Instead, will you join us? Together, we can overcome this adversity."
But Margrave Guidan couldn’t give a firm answer and returned home.
His friend's words were right, and his allure had somewhat diminished, shaking his resolve. If it hadn’t been for his subordinate relationship, the allure might have been completely shattered on the spot.
Thus, Margrave Harvey told his daughter to wait. While waiting for his lord’s return, he found his own indecisiveness strange.
Harie also found her father's behavior strange, but she didn't defy him.
She couldn’t even imagine that Philas might have died and was filled with the expectation that if she got permission from the guest her father mentioned, she could go to see Philas.
‘But why did Father say to get permission from this man?’
Harie Guidan was displeased that the guest, whom her father repeatedly emphasized as important, was staring at her cleavage, but she didn’t mention it.
Carefully deducing what kind of relationship this cold-looking young man might have with her father, she cautiously pleaded.
The butler said he seemed to be related to General Walter...
“I wish to go to the Tertan Duke’s household. I don’t know if you’re aware, but I met a man named Philas Tertan. He...”
“I know.”
The young man rudely interrupted Harie.
“I know you met the heir of the Tertan Duke’s family in Bospo, and I know why you want to go there, so you don’t need to explain further.”
Harie Guidan glanced at her father in surprise.
Who was this man to not only know the family's secrets but also speak down to her in front of her father?
And how should she respond to this?
But her father remained calm and indifferent.
Strange.
Harie felt an eerie sense of unease at her father's silent approval.
Even if this man were the king of the Orun Kingdom, her father would have shown displeasure if he spoke to her so disrespectfully.
At the very least, he would have raised an eyebrow to signal her to endure, or he would have reacted in some way...
Raised as the daughter of a grand noble, she took this suspicion very seriously.
Something was wrong.
Perhaps her father was in some sort of danger...
“But what is that necklace? Where did you get it?”
Harie met his intense, burning gaze.
Strangely, she didn’t find this stranger's gaze on her cleavage as unpleasant as before.
In fact, she didn’t see a problem with his disrespect, and she chose her words carefully in response.
“This is a gift from Philas, the man I promised to love.”
“I see.”
Rev hesitated. He couldn’t understand why the jewel seemed so familiar or why he desired it so much, and he pondered deeply, “Why am I like this?” — when Harie asked.
“Then... may I go to the duke's household? Father told me to get permission from the guest.”
She waited anxiously for his reply.
She still couldn’t understand why her father told her to get permission from this man, but she somehow accepted it.
Rev glanced at Margrave Harvey.
Philas Tertan should already be dead... Judging by his expression, he knew but hadn’t said anything.
“Alright. You may go.”
Harie’s face lit up, and Margrave Harvey looked puzzled as Rev added.
“But not right away. You should leave after winter. Traveling in the cold isn't good, and who knows, Philas Tertan might get the duke's permission by then? It would be more efficient to prepare for the wedding and meet then.”
“Really? Thank you! Thank you so much!”
“But there is a condition.”
“What is it?”
Overwhelmed with joy, Harie clasped her hands tightly, ready to accept any condition. She didn’t notice the desire burning in Rev’s eyes.
“That is...”
- Bang!
At that moment, there was a loud crashing sound outside.
Startled, the margrave stood up and called for the butler.
“What’s going on?”
“I apologize. I’ll go check right away.”
“Alright... No, I’ll check myself. I apologize for interrupting the conversation, but please excuse me for a moment.”
Noticing Rev’s subtle gesture to go out, Margrave Guidan changed his words. He left in a hurry to let his daughter and the lord continue their conversation and went to check the disturbance.
- Neighhhh!!
The commotion was at the mansion’s stables, where the servants had also gathered. Approaching to see, he found that the loud noise earlier was caused by Rev’s horse kicking and breaking the stable wall.
The pitch-black horse, now incredibly powerful, was aggressively neighing.
The horse, Bante, had broken the wall and was trying to mate with a mare in the adjacent stall.
Attempts to pull him away were met with violent head-shaking and bared teeth, so Margrave Harvey ordered them to leave the aroused horse alone.
Although he knew that such forced mating wasn’t good for the mare, as someone well-versed in horse breeding, he had lost interest in horses since his son’s death.
Margrave Guidan returned to the reception room where his daughter and the lord were conversing.
“I apologize for the delay. It was just Rev’s horse causing a commotion, but it’s nothing serious.”
Explaining the situation outside as he entered the room, he saw Harie’s face flushed red and Rev smiling satisfactorily.