Six years ago, Lena was taken away the very day she was called to her father’s study. There was no time to greet her family or to pack things.

As if being kidnapped, she was in a strange carriage, and after that, she traveled nearly 10 days without knowing where her destination was.

Lena suffered anxiety day after day because she didn’t know where she was going or how long she was going.

She was nothing better than a trapped beast. So she cried a lot while she was riding in the carriage.

She cried again and again and kept crying as if she was dying.

It was around the time when the tears that flowed smoothly were dry when she arrived at the castle of the Western Duke.

Lena, who was extremely afraid, was finally emptied her heart and drooped like a broken doll.

She thought she’d rather die. She didn’t have the ability to run away and she didn’t have the courage to face reality, so she wondered if it would be better.

The resignation made her feel much more at ease. But nevertheless, when I saw the bizarre crack, tears poured again.

—Welcome, I’ve prepared this for you.

The man who brought Lena here said in front of the crack.

Inside the crack, in the air, the red sky and black ground that Lena saw for the first time in her life, were blazing like nightmares.

—Don’t be too scared.

The voice of the man, Klavis, was sweet. So it seemed crazier.

—Have you ever seen the dead?

Asked Klavis, stroking Lena’s head.

Lena trembled and shook her head.

The dead were only in the South. Or sometimes appeared in the North. Even then, it was all she heard from adults.

—Yeah, you haven’t. Outside the city, the number of dead bodies is increasing day by day, but you haven’t seen them yet because you’re wearing pretty clothes and eating cake at the mansion, right?

Klavis whispered mockingly. Because of this, Lena’s heart sank again.

—It’s okay, I’m not blaming you. That’s a girl’s blessing, a natural blessing.

Klavis soothed the sobbing Lena. But he wasn’t for Lena either. There was something else he really wanted to say.

—As if you enjoyed it for no reason, don’t find a reason for this. Even if it’s painful, even if it seems to be dying, everyone lives like that.3

3

Klavis said that and kissed Lena’s forehead. Then he grabbed Lena’s frozen wrist.

—Now, should you stop crying now?

‘Where do you want me to go?’

Lena asked silently. Klavis recognized the pitiful expression and smiled brightly.

—What you see over there is the land of the dead. Hell for us, discovered by the Empress. I sent a lot of friends to see what kind of place it is, but no one came back yet.

Klavis said as he pushed Lena’s back, in an excited voice.

—So, I set the conditions. I was wondering if you could grow up as fine as the Empress. It’s a bit sad if you think you’re going to be in hell too.

Although his mouth said he was sad, Klavis’ eyes actually looked pleasant.

—If you come back safely, you will be as great as the Empress. But of course, that won’t happen.

Klavis talked irresponsibly, pushing Lena. Lena desperately stepped back. Her appearance might weaken everyone’s hearts, but Klavis smiled innocently and dragged Lena.

Then, he said farewell, pushing Lena into the abyss.

—Then I will wait. You may take revenge, so please come back.

That was the end. Lena fell at the end of the whisper.

To a place infinitely deep and low. There, Lena faced a strange world. Like the Empress did in the past.

????????????

On the day after the National Foundation Day, Duke Arles felt uncomfortable from early morning.

“Did you sleep at peace last night, Your Highness?” asked Lena.

“I don’t think so. Your Highness doesn’t look good.” The one who replied her was Yuni.

“Excuse me, he always looks like that.”

“Oh, my God..”

When the young maid express her regret with sad eyes, Duke Arles was impatient and chewed.

“Why do you think my face is like this?”

“Is it because of me?”

Lena’s na?ve question kept the Southern Duke closed his eyes tightly and exhaled.?(lol, sorry, but I kinda like their relationship)4

It was the morning after the anniversary. Duke Arles called Lena as soon as the day dawned. It was because of the mistake Lena made the day before.

“Do you know what your fault was yesterday?”

“Eastern Duke?”

“You know it!”

Duke Arles screamed, but Lena and Yuni didn’t even lift their eyes. That made him more crazy.

Yesterday, Lena bowed her head to the Eastern Duke in front of everyone’s eyes.

Lena spoke to him first, introduced herself, and even thanked him. All were acts that shouldn’t have been done as a representative of the South.

“As long as the uniform of the South hung over the body, it is not necessary to bow down to even a Duke from other territory!”

“I just delivered my gratitude for the help I received.”

When Lena made a clear explanation, Duke Arles tried to shout again. Then, Lena added.

“If it weren’t the Eastern Duke, you would’ve been seriously hurt.”

It’s not for her herself, but for Duke Arles.

Lena’s silent pointing left Duke Arles speechless. At the same, his face was distorted as if he had an upset stomach.

Otherwise, he was going crazy because of the cheeky Eastern Duke saved him. He’s not like that, so what the hell was he doing?

When Duke Arles was confused, Lena asked with infinite eyes.

“I got help in front of everyone, and I thought it would seem too rude if I just let it go. I thought it was dignity to keep the basic etiquette, but did I make a mistake?”

Lena’s voice when she said so was so faint. Duke Arles was forced to change his attitude because of the ‘executor’s appearance was unfamiliar.

“If you had to say hello, you’d have to do it in quite way.”

“Why should she say hello if she has to do it quietly?”

“Yuni, hush!”

Yuni, who was listening quietly, grumbled as the old man insisted pitifully. Lena hurried her to stop, but Duke Arles had already heard it clearly. Because of that, his face turned red,

In fact, wasn’t that kid like a ventriloquist doll Lena carried to provoke the enemy?

So he swallowed his anger, doubting himself almost being delusional. And Lena felt a little sorry as she watched it.

Actually, it was purely to help Lynn yesterday. It’s a rough excuse that she did it for the sake of the dignity of the South, but the primed Southern Duke took it seriously.

Lena, who felt the inner conflict of the old man, was stabbed with conscience and belatedly pleased him.

“I know what you’re worried about. As a representative of the South, I have to act properly, but my thoughts were short. I’ll be careful from now on.”

“You speak well.”

“Say something....!”

Yuni struck out, but fortunately, this time Lena’s hand was faster than her mouth. She covered Yuni’s moth and whispered, “Yuni, hush!”

As soon as he saw the frustrated Yuni reluctantly shut her mouth, Duke Arles finally relaxed. Lena confirmed that he was feeling better and added implicitly.

“Actually, the best thing is not to make it happen from the beginning.”

“Hm?”

“Because if you don’t get help, you don’t have to say thank you.”

Duke Arles raised his eyebrows and looked at Lena. She also looked at him.

Then, Lena carefully explained the matter.

“In that sense, I’d like to ask you, what happed to the southern knights? Where are all those who participated in the silent war?”

When Lena asked, Duke Arles sighed.

“It was a fierce war.”

Duke Arles muttered like a man who forcibly said something he didn’t want to say.

Actually, it was a story had to be told anyway. However, he put it off because he felt uncomfortable showing his weakness, but he couldn’t avoid it anymore when Lena asked him in person.

“Those you know are taking care of the post-war situation in the South.”

After a big fire, ashes remained. If it’s a desperate struggle to control the flames, it’s an atrocious act to rise again from the ashes.

With the same reason, the post-war was as fierce as the main war.

It was necessary to repair the collapsed castle, take care of the ruined people, and find ways to survive, but he couldn’t place a clumsy figure there.

Thus, Duke Arles sent his aides, who had been on the battlefield together, to various parts of the Southern part of the country. The valiant southern knights were scattered, and Duke Arles set up a new order of knights with new characters to fill their vacancies.

“So you’ve filled the corps with fresh newbies?”

“Fresh newcomers, a gang of pubescent boys.” Yuni said abruptly.

“Uhuk...!”

Duke Arles coughed in vain at Lena and Yuni’s remarks. The word ‘pubescent’ was quite painful, but it was more painful because it couldn’t be denied.

“This is what I meant that you have to figure out the situation first.”

“But still, they’re all prestigious sons and daughters of noble families.”

Duke Arles muttered sympathetically and beckoned the secretary who was beside him. Then, the secretary handed over the prepared report to Lena.

“This?”

“It’s the list of the knights. It would be faster to see it in person than to explain it in a long time. I’ve already told you to prepare a meeting, so see you in the afternoon.”

Lena turned over the report with Yuni. Inside, the names, ages, and family names of the knights were written.

As she said, they were all the children of the family who could be known by name. However, Lena paid more attention to the order of birth, not their origins.

‘The Earl’s third brother, the Marquis’ second brother, the second son, and this man...’

Most of them were sons born second, third, or later.

Lena saw one of the eldest son among the knights. She burst into laughter as she looked at it for some reason.

“Count Pieta must have been precocious since childhood.”

In Lena’s joke, Duke Arles quietly touched his forehead.

Count Pieta of the South, as Lena knew, was still young at the beginning of thirty. But his eldest son on the list was 22 years old. Count’s eldest son here would be adoptive, unless the Count had been striving to produce successors since he was ten.2

“Now I understand the situation.”

Knights of sons of aristocrats, the second son, the third, and even the adopted son, Lena realized what it meant and laughed bitterly.

“They’re thrown away, these people.”

The South was having a dangerous and devastating day after the war. Nevertheless, the Empress ordered conquest to the the Dukes, and the South was no exception.

The South decided to set up a new knighthood, which required a tricky selection to minimize the burden on the South and showed sincerity to the Empress.

“It’s an Imperial edict, so we need to send a noble, but there’s no hope of coming back, so we have to send the second or third son, excluding the eldest son who will succeed the generation. If it’s not feasible, we’ll send adopted children.”

Lena’s analysis further darkened the expression of Duke Arles.

It was all as Lena said. The nobles of the South protested once to the request for merciless loyalty, and this was the only way to compromise.

Lena smiled as the old man was deeply grieved at it.

“Everyone made a heartless choice. No, is it a reasonable decision?” Asked Lena.

“Don’t be sarcastic. Which parent would send their child comfortably? It’s a law to bite ten fingers so no one would be hurt.”?(it is Korean idiom means all your children are equally precious).1

“Fingers, that’s too much.”

Lena mumbled with a smile, and Duke Arles clicked his tongue, thinking it was a sarcastic remark.

But Yuni saw it. Lena’s eyes were slightly shaking. Lena felt that their situation was similar to her.

Less painful fingers, selected scapegoats, abandoned children. Only those things that would be remembered or soon forgotten.

No, it wasn’t that similar.

That touched Lena’s heart and Yuni noticed and became anxious about it. However, Duke Arles didn’t know anything.

“I like whatever you say. But don’t throw them away. I called you in so you wouldn’t throw them away.”

“That’s what you say, so I’ll have to work harder.”

Lena replied with calm eyes. It was serious.

A journey that no one could foresee, unprepared knights, those who knew everything but got on the wreck.

Was their decision a love for the family, a duty to the family, or an irresistive coercion?

Lena felt pity for them who were no different from her past self. So she decided to do her best to protect them.

????????????

But an hour later, Lena’s decision was frustrated even before it began.

The southern knights said, “We cannot accept you as a commander.”6

That was the first word Lena heard at the meeting.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ok, now I’m curious how old is Lynn, Klavis, and Ruvid. Like, we should prepare everything for the soon-to-be 2nd ML hohoho...

Comments:1

??? ??(jiye****):

Who are you to dare reject Lena??????????? You can come to the hell.

??(sher****):

Their reaction is understandable, as the Southern Duke described Lena as “The most frivolous boy I can see and will die first”. But that weak-looking boy turns out to be very strong. Lena is one of those ten thousand people, you guys (i kinda don’t get it)

??(sher****):

Lena’s almost the only hope to survive. But she looks slim and beautiful on the outside, so it could be ridiculous if you don’t know anything. It’s terrible that she joined a group of abandoned ‘dogs’, but if she’s a fine-grained girl I’ve never seen in my life, it’s hard for me to accept. But the Southern Duke couldn’t have been blind enough to refuse after seeing how strong Lena was.