Chapter 35.1 - Side: Princess (2)

  I sit at my desk, jubint, a smile almost bursting from my face as I scan the report once more. It details how a mere tier 1, my knight, defeated a mana-infused tier 8 monster with minimal help from two others: a tier 0 and a tier 10.

  Shadow 404 might have managed the feat on her own, but not as swiftly as "the mere Tier 1" did. This remarkable achievement has prompted all the noble houses to reconsider the nature of their future associations with my knight.

  Noble houses have always been far-sighted, sacrificing immediate gains for substantial long-term benefits. With my mother’s warning, I've found it challenging to forge alliances between them and my knight, with his impending fate looming, any investment in him would be futile.

  Or so they thought. Now, he has demonstrated that his combat skills are not only immediately valuable when judiciously utilized but also that he has secured a grand favor from the head of the military, which he personaly made public to all the nobles.

  The intelligence on the patriarch of House Ironfist proved accurate—he does indeed have a soft spot for his slightly inept and often overlooked second youngest daughter. When my knight salvaged her doomed operation, he saved not just her troops, for which she was responsible, but also her pride, shielding her from the bitter taste of her first real defeat.

  Although the failure was no fault of hers, she has taken full responsibility. She still chose to initiate the operation without the usual safeguards her father provided, them being needed elsewhere, even if she truly had little true choice.

  She adhered strictly to all procedures, and even ensured a seer was consulted, significantly raising the operation's cost and duration—all of which she funded personally. Yet, despite her meticulous preparations, it proved inadequate.

  You can take every precaution in the world, but you can never account for everything. When the unexpected occurs, you must have the ability to overturn it—a lesson we're taught from a young age.

  A lesson that would have devastated her, stripping her of all her confidence, perhaps indefinitely. The only certainty is that she would have forever been a mere shadow of her potential, and for preventing this, House Ironfist owes my knight a great debt, not only for preserving her spirit but also for teaching her what true resilience involves.

  "Ava Ironfist," I mused, revisiting her section in the report. I knew her intimately well, as I was tasked with thoroughly understanding every member of our noble houses. To one day become queen, I needed to know how to manipute the intricate web to achieve my desired outcome.

  This task, mind numbing at the time, has proven to be infinitely valuable. Once again, my mother has shown her foresight, and I am applying everything she taught me.

  In my meeting with the other nobles, I praised my knight as the true jewel of our city—a fact. And naturally, the city’s budding guardian’s loving younger sister would have to meet him for herself. Unlike her more confident sisters, who simply let the matter go, she harbored insecurities.

  My primary aim was to create opportunities for my knight and let him leverage them as he saw fit. Initially, when he showed no interest in appeasing Ava, I thought he felt indifferent towards her, simir to his response to the previous candidates I had introduced. However, his actual feelings became irrelevant when he once again showcased how entrancing he was.

  He took command of a dire situation, breaking through it with a dashing smile. Ava, no doubt, saw echoes of her father in him, but I knew my knight's charm surpassed that of any figure she admired. When he ascends to tier 14, he will make her father seem ordinary by comparison.

  I squealed to myself at the thought of it, my breath growing shallow. I grabbed a nearby canvas and immediately began sketching the image I had envisioned. No doubt it would pale in comparison to the real thing, like all the rest, but I still hoped to capture even a fraction of his charm.

  The only real surprise in this scenario was that my mother had allowed it, but seeing how things unfolded and knowing her as I do, it all started to make sense. The bigger picture was coming into view.

  As I drew, I reflected on how this incident had been woven into his growing legend. Seraphina had taken my advice and begun crafting his narrative, disguising it as merely an update on my intrepid knight for those captivated by him since the tournament. Over the past few weeks, she had been discreetly spreading word of his initial valiant act, where he fought off a void monster to save his family.

  Just recently, she completed his newest tale. It told of how he stood up to an arrogant noble and single-handedly rescued his squad from her perilous scheme. It would soon circute through the whole city, inspiring street pys and growing the fan club that gathered girls smitten with him, further fanning their adoration.

  It was all cleverly orchestrated to appear as a grassroots movement, yet it was meticulously managed to ripple through the city, subtly twisting events to cast the nobles in a negative light—a task made easy by their general infamy.

  With the emergence of this new narrative, some had begun referring to him as "The Smiling Angel, Bane of the Gentry."

  I now had a clearer understanding of my mother's scheme. Many things that once baffled me suddenly made sense, such as her reluctance to rehabilitate the nobility's image among our citizens, and her active sabotage of those houses that tried. She was orchestrating a heroic downfall for my knight.

  The rest of the nobility would be bmed, fueling further animosity. If I chose to rebel, I could use this situation to circumvent the contract and incite a rebellion. I could decre her machinations harmful to our city, mirroring what my mother once did to her own mother, though with less severe repercussions. Her schemes wouldn't bring divine judgment.

  "We are all merely pawns in her game, and the others don't even realize it. I am the only one with a choice," I murmured to no one in particur as I concentrated on my painting, perfecting his muscles. A smile crept across my face at the thought of how spectacurly her pns would backfire when my knight survived.

  Gazing at the heroic painting taking shape under my brush, I thought, "He will not just survive; he will prevail magnificently."

  She will be single handedly handing her city over to my knight, a prospect that will undoubtedly drive my mother mad. Therefore, my objective is to ensure that this transition occurs as smoothly as possible, preventing any outliers from vying for power during the transaction and also connecting him with key figures in nearby cities.

  "Announcing the arrival of Lady Ava of House Ironfist, bound by contract to our grand city and graced with the dignity of her noble lineage. Please allow Lady Ava to join the Royal First Princess in her esteemed rexation quarters." The announcement reverberated through my room, her shadow alerting me to her presence.

  "Lady Ava, you honor me with your presence. Please, come in and join me. I’ve been eagerly anticipating our time together. Let us take a break from our duties and enjoy the soce of good company," I invited her in. At my beckoning, the door opened, and Ava entered gracefully, handing her artifacts to her shadow who remained outside next to my own. Once inside, she bowed deeply and exchanged the usual pleasantries before taking a seat opposite me, elegantly picking up a pte and carefully selecting snacks from the centerpiece on the table.

  “It's uplifting to see you in such high spirits after your challenging ordeal, having been forced to retreat from an overwhelming foe—one that, incidentally, your sister has already cimed victory over," I said, deliberately shifting the conversation to more sensitive territory and subtly undermining her by referencing her sister, aiming to unsettle her.

  Her hands tensed at the mention of her sister, whether from my veiled jab or the difficulty in accepting that her seemingly fwless younger sibling could err, I couldn’t be sure. Nevertheless, I feigned ignorance as I continued to move my brush, capturing the flowing hair of my knight in the breeze.

  "I accept full responsibility for the mishap. It was a harsh lesson, but I assure you, it won’t happen again. I have relinquished my command and will remain under my mother's tutege until she deems me ready," she said, a girl who had spent years trying to emerge from her family's shadow, now seeming prepared to heed her mother's guidance.

  “You don’t seem bothered,” I observed, surprised by her acceptance, which was more profound than I had expected from her usual demeanor.

  “I thought I had learned all that my mother could teach me,” she admitted, looking downcast. “When I was leaving, my squad actually looked relieved. I did everything by the book, just as my mother would have, but their reaction upon my departure was the por opposite.”

  “Madam Thalia would not have allowed personal feelings to interfere with her command,” I pointed out, causing the blonde girl to recoil slightly.

  “I didn’t either, I...” she began, then halted. She knew that command involved more than just actions during an operation. While she might have only done some slight harassment and always took precautions to keep her troops safe during missions, she failed to be an inspiring leader. She wasn't someone her troops wanted to follow or could trust; instead, she squandered the time that should have been devoted to building trust on petty, selfish pursuits. Pursuits that even she acknowledged were petty.

  Had my knight shed out, she may have felt vindicated and been able to see her actions as the silly tantrum they were, but with him dismissing and refusing to do so, it just kept the fmes alive. If anything, it only fueled her insecurities, exacerbating them further.

  Finishing my portrait, I spun it around for Ava to see, smiling as I said, “He’s everything I described, right?”

  “Wa, he... he did well. More than well, I suppose,” she responded, then added in a much quieter voice while fidgeting slightly, “And he was kind of charming when pinning me to my chair.”

  “So well that you ran home and begged your father to give him a grand reward for his accomplishments,” I teased the blushing girl, who couldn’t maintain eye contact. The man would even personally announce it to my knight.

  “Well, that’s because he saved me, and I did not beg…” she stammered, her blush deepening, likely realizing that she had done it in public.

  I shifted the conversation, discussing the upcoming operations and preparations for the next Breaking. Thanks to my knight, we were still on schedule and on track to clear the surrounding area of all threats before the event. The loss of the mana spires was a minor setback to our dungeon, but it also presented an opportunity to negotiate with the dwarves for a repcement.

  As the one who witnessed how a monster bypassed the safeguards, my knight would naturally be asked to join. This would be another chance for him to make valuable connections. The Amazon princess has also been keeping tabs on him, and I’m sure her interest will only grow once she learns of this.

  After some time, a call from outside reminded Ava of her next appointment.

  “I must be leaving, Princess. I am most grateful for your invitation,” she said as she stood up, pausing halfway when I handed her a flyer.

  “What is this?” she asked as she carefully took it.

  “A few of the common girls in the city decided to start a fan club for my knight,” I expined.

  “I am not interested in some fan club,” she replied, looking quite offended.

  “Mother has always said that before you can lead, you need to understand,” I improvised, though it sounded like something my mother might say. “Consider this a first step so that you do not repeat your mistakes.”

  I gave her the pretext she needed to explore the group.

  “I’m not interested,” the noble girl muttered, yet she discreetly slipped the flyer into her shirt.

  With a second reminder from her shadow, she quickly completed the leaving formalities before hurrying away. Watching her leave, I couldn't help but find her cute.

  With a satisfied sigh, I held up the canvas, only to realize there was no more space on my wall to hang it. "Maybe it's time to expand my hobbies," I mused aloud, my mind already brimming with ideas as I admired my collection.