Chapter 55
Just a few weeks ago, the Imperial Capital's media had lavishly dressed up the expedition as a Holy War.
But the public could see through it.
Once the initial excitement died down and the reality of the Ashen Forest set in, public sentiment turned cold.
"What holy war? They're walking straight into a tiger's jaws. Do they think the Ashen Forest is some hill behind their neighborhood?"
"Tsk, tsk. His Highness the Crown Prince even provided military funds to save face, and yet……. Those ignorant country bumpkins are scattering them to the winds."
Every tavern and salon in the Imperial Capital was abuzz with skepticism about the expedition.
A demon-beast lair that even elite troops honed over decades would not dare challenge.
The very notion of conquering it with an expedition hastily assembled in a month was laughable.
"It'll be a miracle if they manage to kill a few demon beasts at the forest's edge and escape."
"It'll be a miracle if even half of them make it back alive."
With public reaction this cold, the media outlets that had been drumming up support also began changing their tune.
The front page of the Imperial Capital Daily made the Empire's chilly public sentiment plain.
[A Step Toward Glory, or Rash Youthful Folly?]
[Cardenos's 'Ashen Forest Expedition' Nears Departure. Concerns Among Imperial Capital Citizens Continue to Grow……]
The praise extolling 'humanity' and 'the greater cause' had vanished without a trace.
Before long, it was being disparaged as a reckless challenge born of Young Master Astin's ambition.
In the end, the expedition would fail, leaving behind only enormous losses and no results.
That was the prevailing prediction.
***
Two days before departure, I headed to Kyle's workshop.
The moment I opened the iron door, a pungent smell of herbs hit me.
Amid the thick smoke, Kyle stared blankly into space with hollow eyes.
"Ah, Young Master……. You came."
The dark circles beneath his eyes were heavy, and his hair was a mess, as though a bird had built a nest in it.
Even workaholic Kyle had been reduced to this state. I couldn't begin to imagine how busy he'd been trying to meet the deadline.
"You've checked everything to make sure nothing's missing, right?"
"Yeees…… We've stockpiled more than enough antidotes for demonic energy. We've distributed standard-issue purification masks and emergency clotting agents as well."
Kyle pointed to the dense stack of documents on the table. Fatigue had carved deep furrows between his brows.
"But so many people gathered that we had to classify some of it as dead stock. Especially the magical items."
A mere headcount and cold weapons would not be enough to break through the Ashen Forest.
Since we couldn't use warhorses, subspace pouches were essential.
Magical communication stones for contacting the rear, and magical flares that would shine in the darkness.
Purification stones, silent heating stones, and all sorts of scrolls to tie down the feet of demon beasts, among other things.
Magic items were precious resources that the expedition could not do without.
"We stocked up generously, but the recruitment notice was a huge hit. That's why having too many people is a problem, too."
"Well, it doesn't matter much. We're only short on the spares, right?"
The dead stock Kyle mentioned consisted of spare supplies. One might call them extra lives prepared for unforeseen disasters.
The money earned from cosmetics, along with the family's full support.
On top of that came Irina's bottomless funds and the Imperial Family's military funding. The supplies assigned to each person were more than sufficient.
"It's noisy outside. Is something happening?"
Kyle blinked tiredly and glanced toward the window.
I, too, furrowed my brow and approached the window.
Through the window, I saw a long caravan stretching across the vast plain.
It was a massive supply convoy, with every wagon piled high with cargo.
I figured it was Irina's doing.
The Partian merchant guild was pushing in the final supplies with only a day left before departure.
"……What?"
The crest carved into the lead wagon. Seven stars engraved on a silver background.
I rubbed both eyes after seeing it for the first time.
Even after looking again, there was no mistaking the crest of the Sirius Tower.
'Why is the Imperial Capital's tower here?'
I immediately ran outside the workshop.
A crowd that had gathered to watch was already murmuring in front of the encampment.
"Hey, isn't that the crest of the Sirius Tower?"
"Wow, that's insane. Did the tower send us support?"
"First the Imperial Family, and now the tower, too…… This is seriously no joke."
The lead wagon approached in a cloud of dust and came to a stop, seemingly by design, at a spot close to me.
Clatter-
The wagon door opened, and a familiar figure stepped onto the ground.
It was Damian, the deputy tower master of the Sirius Tower. His gaze had been fixed on me from the very beginning.
"It's been a long time, Young Master Astin."
Damian gave me a bow while observing the formalities characteristic of a noble.
Seeing him, I still could not hide my surprise.
"Damian, what brings you here? And what is all that you've brought with you?"
When I pointed with my chin toward the long line of supply wagons, Damian's lips curled upward.
"The Sirius Tower has decided to support the expedition. I pulled a few strings as the deputy tower master."
The general public estimated the expedition's chances of success at less than one in ten.
Even merchant guilds obsessed with profit and the odds were reluctant to provide support.
And yet the proud, calculating tower had suddenly decided to provide supplies?
I looked Damian up and down with suspicious eyes.
"You must think we're going to succeed."
Trying to pick up a few crumbs, no doubt.
Damian gave an awkward smile and shook his head.
"That isn't the reason."
"Oh? Then what is it for?"
Damian did not answer. Instead, he turned his gaze toward the direction of the grand ducal residence.
It was as though he were looking at someone somewhere beyond the walls.
"Ah, wouldn't my goddess be sad if you died?"
"You lunatic."
A disbelieving laugh escaped me.
I had thought all the original male leads were woman-crazy idiots and would be useless.
But now that things had turned out this way, I had changed my mind a little. Even a woman-chaser could be useful, depending on how you used him.
"But you're just going to provide the supplies and leave, right? You're not coming along on the expedition, are you?"
"Yes, well. My life is precious to me, too."
What a letdown.
I suppose even mages were obsessed with that blasted self-preservation.
Of course, I was still immensely grateful for the supplies alone.
Unexpected support was all the more appreciated.
"I'm grateful for the support, but don't make a move on Celine because of this."
"……"
"Answer me."
"I was only planning to see her once before I left…….."
"Just get lost. We don't need support with ulterior motives."
"Ah, my apologies. Please accept it as a token of my sincerity."
***
D-1.
Time flowed on, and only one day remained before departure.
Training continued, but we were also in the midst of finishing the paperwork that had to be completed in advance.
Practical calculations such as checking the supplies were the responsibility of Adjutant Lucia or the quartermaster.
There was separate paperwork I had to handle as commander.
Documents for final approval to reinforce the chain of command, along with documents assigning political and legal responsibility.
The first thing I tackled was the authorization to invoke wartime military law and carry out summary executions.
The only means of controlling the expeditionary force was discipline.
The moment we crossed the boundary of the Ashen Forest, the Empire's laws would become useless.
Only Cardenos's military law would remain as the sole order.
Bang!
I stamped my seal ring down in the signature field.
It was a document delegating to each unit commander the authority to summarily punish anyone who disobeyed orders or deserted.
The second was a guarantee of death benefits and pay for the fallen.
The expedition members had come prepared to risk their lives, not to throw them away.
They were drifters who had plunged in pursuit of money and glory.
'Even if I fall in the Ashen Forest, my family will be properly compensated.'
Honor and glory were good, but trust had to come first.
Only then would the warriors take up their swords and willingly risk their lives.
Bang!
The last document was none other than my will.
I had already ordered the expedition members to write their wills in advance.
The fate of the world hinged on my life. If I died, the world would be destroyed.
I had not the slightest intention of dying, but it was necessary as a matter of form.
Scratch, scratch-
Since I had already thought through the contents, the writing proceeded quickly.
In my first life, I had written wills countless times.
I had probably written more of them than love letters to that fucking bitch Azelin.
Even so, perhaps because it was a will, writing it always left me feeling strange.
After finishing my will, I left the office.
It was one in the morning. I headed straight to my room.
Inside the dark bedroom.
Without turning on the light, I slipped my will into the desk drawer.
Then I turned around and froze.
"……?"
Once my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I saw that the center of the bed, which should have been flat, was bulging upward.
The thought that it might be an assassin sent by Rosenthal flashed through my mind.
But if it really were an assassin…… would they be this careless?
Just in case, I placed a hand on the hilt of the dagger at my waist.
Suppressing my presence, I approached the bed.
Whoosh!
The instant I pulled back the raised blanket.
"……Ha."
Soft, steady breaths escaped from beneath the blanket.
Celine was curled up asleep, hugging a pillow.
It was so unexpected that all I could do was laugh.
There was no way she had mistaken the room, so I had a general idea why she was here.
I considered waking her, then decided against it.
Worried that she might wake, I carefully slipped between the blankets.
Celine's long eyelashes trembled. Her half-open eyes soon grew as large as saucers.
"Gasp."
Even her startled expression was absurdly fucking cute.
Hiding my thoughts, I asked calmly,
"Why are you sleeping here?"
"I wasn't sleeping. I came to surprise you……."
"I knew it. But why are you asleep already? You should have surprised me."
"You took so long to come back, Big Brother. What time is it now?"
"Now? It must be past one in the morning."
"I think I've been waiting for more than three hours."
"No wonder you fell asleep."
After holding back her laughter for three hours, she'd finally nodded off.
She must have been ridiculously cute.
At the same time, I felt sorry for making her wait.
"Ugh……."
Celine squirmed beneath the blanket.
After the distance between us narrowed, she slipped right into my arms.
A bright-yellow head peeked up.
Though she must have been tired from waking up, the eyes looking up at me were round and sparkling.
"Um……."
For some reason, her voice trembled faintly.
As I quietly watched her, Celine struggled to continue.
"Can't Big Brother stay home instead?"
She was asking the commander to stay behind alone on the day of departure.
Celine knew it was impossible; she was merely being petulant.
"Did you have a bad dream?"
Without a word, Celine pressed herself even closer into my arms.
After a brief pause, she gave a small nod.
I knew it all too well. Celine had always been a very anxious child.
With departure right around the corner, her unease must have grown uncontrollable. That unease had turned into a nightmare.
Pat-
I placed my hand on her tiny, chick-yellow head.
"Celine. You know it isn't possible."
"……"
Celine's expression sank gloomily. The corners of her eyes drooped as her gaze fell.
It was an obvious pout, but that was exactly why I liked it. If she was having nightmares over this, didn't it prove that I was all she could think about?
I wondered how to cheer her up, then suddenly had a good idea.
"Come to think of it, we've never slept in the same bed before. We're siblings, so we should do that at least once. Shall we?"
Celine's lips were pressed tightly shut.
Her mouth remained silent, but her actions were honest.
Nod- Nod-
Her platinum-blonde hair swayed in every direction. A strand tickled the tip of my nose.
Now that I thought about it, the pillow Celine had been hugging was one she'd brought from her own room.
So she must have planned to sleep with me without even saying so.
"My hands were feeling empty anyway. Come here!"
"Eeeek—"
"You soft and chewy little rice-cake of a young lady. Sniff—oh, what a lovely nutty smell. You're just a little injeolmi puppy."
I kneaded her cheeks, buried my nose in the crown of her head, and sniffed away.
It was a little perverted, but there was no way I could resist this.
Maybe because she had just woken up, her sweet, nutty scent was absolutely intoxicating.
After a while, I suddenly sensed something strange and stopped.
"What? Why aren't you moving?"
By now, she should have been squirming.
But Celine offered no resistance and made no complaints.
Anyone watching would have thought I was using her as a body pillow.
Even so, I couldn't let go of her cheeks. They were far too addictive.
"Are you asleep already?"
"Mmph……."
"But why are you staying still?"
I took my hand away, signaling for her to speak.
Celine placed both hands over my wrist.
Rather than pushing it away, she moved my hand onto her cheek.
"When you leave, you won't be able to touch me for a while."
Celine rubbed her cheek against my palm.
"So touch me as much as you like now……."
My thoughts came to a complete stop.
Celine filled my entire field of vision.
"You're not sleeping tonight. Come here!"
Celine offered me her cheek with a silly grin.
Celine, who always squirmed away and ran from my touch, was accepting it for the first time.
Honestly, I was deeply moved.
"Don't worry, you soft, chewy rice-cake young lady. If I die, I won't be able to touch these cheeks, right? I'm definitely not going to die."
"When you come back, you can have a bite of my cheeks."
"Oh, then there's no way I can die."
"Heehee—"
It was a somewhat clichéd thing to say……
But I truly had no intention of dying.
I had returned alive from a living hell worse than the Ashen Forest.
***
Time passed quickly, and D-DAY arrived.
At last, the day of the departure ceremony dawned.
Around two in the afternoon, beneath a clear sky without a single cloud.
I walked onto the platform, dressed impeccably in the Black Lion uniform.
Standing there, I slowly looked down at the scene below.
"……"
A vast wave filled my field of vision.
An army of ten thousand stood arrayed in perfect rows and columns. Ten thousand pairs of eyes gazed up at me alone.
Armored knights, trained elite soldiers, and veteran mercenaries who had survived life-and-death battles across the continent.
Above their heads, Cardenos's Black Lion banner snapped in the wind.
"What a sight."
The nobles and public of the Imperial Capital had mocked us and predicted our failure.
They called it a suicidal act of walking into a demon beast's jaws.
I wanted to show them the sight unfolding at my feet.
With the expeditionary force in view, I opened my mouth.