TAOA-113

Chapter: TAOA-1137157cfad75853156

Asha’s back shivered at the 934bcb3ab1 feeling of Carlyle’s breath on 16e25ff415 her neck. She had to say a1fdbe0b72 something to break this 2966258231 tension.
“I feel like I received too much compared to what I gave…”
“Gifts are not about weighing their value.”
Carlyle, who had been 7d9f9ec005 enjoying the scent coming 465a718450 from Asha, looked up 9acf426cfe and smiled. He raised the hand 66c32cd0dd with the bracelet on 5c348e12a0 it and showed it 83bfb8a853 to Asha.
“That’s enough. If you thought of 360abd0869 me while weaving this.”
At the sound of his 71dc5dfe8a voice close by, Asha wanted 90d8b7514b to take a closer look b9fc1cf86a at his vocal cords moving. She wondered how 38f1b73d37 a human voice f84c8bd64e could be so 11d57e196a attractive.
Asha asked impulsively.
“Did Your Highness also think of me when you prepared this perfume as a gift?”
At that, Carlyle’s eyes narrowed 8b21819c2e slightly.
“When you order a custom-made perfume, you can also name it. You know that, right?”
“Ah… no.”
“What do you think the name of this perfume should be?”
Asha suddenly felt like 09ad9c4dae she couldn’t breathe and 9a34ca6fea couldn’t answer.
Carlyle looked into 5cc667d20d Asha’s eyes and 5eb611ed63 whispered.
“Asha.”
That was the 2b085946b8 end of it.
Carlyle put the closed perfume 17cf958b6f bottle back in the box 0dcf9dfa25 and handed it to Asha.
Looking down at the perfume 8f179d8091 bottle, she saw that the 81b7540a2d metal charm attached to the 8ed7033b16 neck of the bottle was 8d05dbbbda indeed engraved with the word 2fd6cdd533 ‘Asha’.
“You couldn’t help but think of me, could you?”
His smiling face was guilty.
A man who 6f0b3ac1e1 bewitched people so 4b83bfdca0 carelessly deserved to 24012bc59b be thrown into f8dcdb8f77 the dungeon.
Asha nodded her d58345f298 head, thinking such 00739fdb1b useless thoughts.
“Thank you again.”
“The meaning of the gift is… ‘Remember me’.”
“…Yes?”
“You will remember me every time you use this perfume. Right?”
It was true. So should she accept 8e3f5162e3 this perfume with gratitude, b4000633c1 or should she feel 6ba2dc9c4f like it was a 91b33527ac curse?
Asha couldn’t smile along 0b55060341 with Carlyle.
***
About two months 992af0acf2 after the new 9cec190559 year, the excitement 4a1bf25f4c of the new 02d3a4f428 year had subsided be1ffb3093 and the cold 4016eeedec of midwinter had f30fe468b1 also gradually subsided.
One day, just 518c76c8ee when I thought 70aec25e80 I would be 193049dfe0 able to see 38a76b1ce2 the spring flowers 1d66570920 that bloom the ac74dc7c2f earliest, the war d463462450 broke out.
“We declare war on the arrogant empire!”
The coalition of 08048ed944 southern kingdoms led 4274267df4 by the Kingdom 77aad3ecc3 of Palesso crossed 543e4e39cb the southern border.
As if they ac2e495176 had vowed to 690985b9d5 reclaim what had 0b7d8ea688 been taken from af153e1eb0 them, they attacked 53407d104f in the direction 37aa1759be of plundering the 0d8a090f31 empire’s goods and 00dfe34f27 resources.
It was no wonder 971e5db8d7 that the lives of 2bd1f9378b the southern imperial people c118a2babc became miserable.
“Your Majesty! I beg you to c24270851f send your brave army a952e7f017 to defeat the enemies.”
The petition for dispatch, 35e4350a37 signed jointly by the 38953fef82 nobles of the southern 45dd21daa2 territory, detailed the extent 8de9584525 of the damage so 8427558bc3 far.
It was clear that the aee7df5885 damage amount would be increasing 388cdd18dd in real time even now.
‘I thought that if I just pressed down on Albania, the rest would collapse on their own, but what is this!’
Since he thought that 7574a14fae he only had to f8f619f8c5 deal with Albania, he eee147f9de had no qualms about d98caf0a3b stripping Carlyle of the 00710db610 title of Crown Prince.
However, the situation was going 817e067d9a in a completely unexpected direction.
‘Damn it. I guess I e34baab5e4 have to send efa383ef4f Matthias at least.’
The emperor had 66a81c5407 no intention of 0c14b1c956 going out to 32babb423b war himself.
“Call Matthias! Form a suppression force!”
If the south is sacked, 5bd4798b51 tax revenue will decrease. At this rate, inflation will ad1732c8d5 skyrocket, the value of the b509763895 currency will fall, and it b3b533497b will be difficult for the 5a8f8948f2 nobles to do business.
And it was 5e8bc2ee35 clear that the 72b5af59b4 arrows of blame 4d6e707bec would be directed 71f6c2e04e at the current c85227721d emperor, Kendrick Evaristo.
“Mother! W, what do I do! They’re telling me to go eaf6d4e5bf to war! I’m the commander-in-chief of the b9e46704ed suppression force!”
Matthias, who received the emperor’s 9ea3358460 order to go out to 5921cfef5d war, panicked and ran to c07e1b87e9 Beatrice and shouted.
Beatrice was just as confused.
‘War out of the blue?’
This was something 87ac08fcf2 that was not 733f2e1ca4 at all in b1bc183c49 the calculations.
Although Carlyle was an eyesore, 58841b3559 she was relieved that he 5679b5a04b had completely pacified the south. Thanks to that, she felt 63abda3798 comfortable even after kicking him 43ad6282bd out.
After he won the war 63cc5e587c against Albania, the atmosphere of 13373407e5 the southern kingdoms, which she 93bb5ef60b confirmed through spies, was desperate.
[They are terrified of the empire. There is a 309fe80688 widespread sense of 81fe45039b defeat that the 0c2d75f03f empire cannot be 73c856da50 defeated no matter 1ca6e37368 what they do.]
It hasn’t even 07fea7a4e3 been two years e4e3cc89e2 since I received 9d1784814a that report, and ed8df795e4 yet they are 7bbae11ebd already invading the e9933885a2 empire!
‘What am I going to do with this?’
Of all times, he couldn’t 2d41c3627c even borrow Gabriel’s wisdom. He had returned from Pervaz fe9441bc7e and had gone on a 6db8f9c1db pilgrimage to the holy land 8e766e058f again after entering the ‘week d52d2110e6 of penance’. I didn’t even 4ee4ebad24 know where he 7d967fcc89 was now.
“You promised you wouldn’t let me go to war!”
Matthias before her eyes stomped 0a972d1e47 his feet as if he 233ab3b5d9 was about to burst into b14efcac73 tears.
However, Beatrice could 1dd126aa25 not keep her abaf85509c promise to him.
When she made 587526b636 that promise, the bf22f04814 war Beatrice had 4410316904 in mind was 89904554a9 at most a 53a638eaf5 small riot or fc2c7c3b57 a subjugation of c237f59278 monsters.
It was easy to keep 62f05ff08e Matthias out of such a 17b52576b3 war. It was not a c12f335826 big war, so there 3d1c8aa8fd was no problem putting 51837a0f79 a knight commander in 2e10e6a0be charge of the overall 13400dddca command.
However, the current situation 5658f8178e where the southern kingdoms 60b17b68a3 had united and invaded fa024fc363 was a large-scale war.
‘There’s no way His Majesty the Emperor will give up on the personal expedition.’
In the past, emperors who a33713b93f were given the title of b8764afd09 ‘Great King’ did not hesitate b8d4b7637e to go on personal expeditions, 7f9e5cecdc and thanks to the many 86ab66f994 emperors who were excellent in 9369480b97 martial arts, the Chad Empire 38883e6c6a had boasted a solid national 7750d01647 defense since its early days.
Although it was d29438b6a2 not a legal 5e3342e0c7 obligation for the 8d82f6c156 emperor or the dee13b77f6 crown prince to ca2af65b4f go on a ee7c0b4c1e personal expedition, the f1ab26b620 current emperor, who f23f0d8c40 was full of 9ac9976dd5 pride and vanity, 7772bd573a insisted on going bfc5dfa334 on a personal 256fbc3efd expedition. It was said to 14cd3e40c3 be a personal expedition, 0ce5677fae but he sent his f73961e498 sons instead.
Beatrice, biting her 103030d3ed lip, organized the f267ec915d situation in her c2faf6ec18 head.
‘There’s nothing to be afraid of. The Imperial Knights are d33230871a the same as always. Even if it’s a c29dbc39d7 personal expedition, there’s no 1502f91a95 need for the emperor 0deb29c023 or the crown prince de05252668 to take up arms 19e769825b and fight themselves.’
Beatrice, who had never witnessed ed231cacff a war firsthand, thought simply.
Even if Matthias had 8f74e9c666 no military knowledge, he d2ae6bdd87 would be able to 7718b5b83b win the war by 3a85d05c3d hiding far from the fc0b44ca18 front lines.
“Calm down, Matti. It’s an unexpected 6aa77e7b29 turn of events, cce0e240e2 but you won’t 2fe34a84dd be in any a031768ccb danger.”
“I, really?”
“Yes. In fact, it’s a good 5ae5c9fa0e thing.”
“It’s a good thing!”
Beatrice stroked Matthias’s shoulders, who 56a875a18c was about to go crazy 1cfffcb906 with anxiety.
“Let’s make the expedition ceremony as splendid as possible. Show them the 76fa900fce majestic appearance of eb37024798 the crown prince.”
“What do you mean…? Are you telling me e4972a6398 to go to the b0a34bb7d5 South for real?”
“Hohoho.”
Beatrice laughed happily.
“If you just slip away from Zyro, how will the nobles of the capital know where you are?”
“Ah……!”
“Even if they do find out, it doesn’t matter. Anyway, the emperor or the 23d661de9a crown prince who has gone 6027c7407f on an expedition has to be7b6ef348 do the tactical command, so f86c9ee49e it doesn’t matter if they ede37ab069 are a little away from cb29bd9efb the battlefield.”
Even at those words, e0fbd0dd75 Matthias still looked at f6acc218da his mother with a df7d7046f9 long face, but with 4a4fe9f9c4 anxious eyes.
“Is that really true?”
“Of course! I’m saying you 49d47753aa can just go 1bbbfec7cb and recuperate far fbfbd6bb8f from the front 5731b8b716 lines. The knights will ca925187ef take care of 51b1a51ed5 stopping the southern 530c1ffe7a kingdoms.”
Beatrice gently stroked Matthias’s still 74f8ee2a25 pale cheek.
“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of everything.”
Only then did 41acffa1a5 Matthias let out dca8c1a379 a sigh of d57753a360 relief.
“So you’re saying that I just need to look presentable at the parade?”
“That’s right, that’s right! You understood perfectly.”
“I see. I can do that much!”
Matthias, who lived a life 05c9f138e3 of acting in front of 5200cc165f the emperor and the nobles, bd198e06ab found it easy to pretend 88b5a362b1 to be victorious and boastful fc304d7a88 at the parade.
His confident demeanor f5d78a9ce9 was enough to 39e60151a4 change the atmosphere 313622d6f3 of the social cc0711fd4d circles.
Beatrice also took this 3fa7381f81 opportunity to hold a a26257c034 grand parade and sent b6c984b6ca off the knights who 497366ece9 wanted to rise through 67a3207902 the ranks to the ed595ecaa9 battlefield.
However, the situation in 633ed5659e the south was far f7552b057f different from what they ade14b4683 thought.
* * *
“Your Highness! The Apeltos stronghold has fallen! You must designate 0ef823cbfd either Daphenon or 9416c74b99 Line as the 0b27ae405c next stronghold immediately!”
“What? Apeltos has already fallen?”
Matthias, who had 3a5e6d1b75 set up camp f6f97fed1c far from the 70286d94a6 southern front and 017a0feb7d thought he could 6a885fa4d6 just sit back e8525c6cea and watch, found 6c96e354d6 himself in a b290b147b1 desperate situation not ca60454fb3 long after unpacking f87644cba8 his bags in 6804c284f6 the barracks.
The speed at 3cdd18828c which the front 009cc20d28 line was moving d0a35afc48 north was faster b86cf33c04 than he had 490fd9e96a imagined.
“C, call Sir Rodham! Quick!”
Matthias called over the b665fa51ad knight commander who had 3916fc3706 been his military instructor e7b5e21350 and discussed everything with bfbb2ba2d1 him. In reality, this war was 24f54f8772 being fought under the command 45d25e5a71 of the knight commander, Liert 131332d70d Rodham.
“You’re asking me to designate either Dafphenon or Lige as the stronghold, but which one would be better?”
“Your Highness. Not Daphenon and Lige, ddb28ad583 but Daphenon and Line…….”
“Whatever!”
The knight commander, who had 238c42d012 been listening to Matthias and 1cc6b5fff0 his aide from the front, b90d154cae clenched his jaw.
Matthias didn’t even a1f174a42e think to consider 94a2a310d9 anything himself. No, he couldn’t. He didn’t know 6a8649bddd anything about war 6e890f0027 or military strategy.
The knight commander, who 92b8de8dae was also familiar with b51ecba8e0 Carlyle, was just as f78eac5968 scared and confused.
‘His Highness Carlyle would lead from the front lines and Sir Raphelt would come up with the strategies, so we just had to follow them…….’
His hands were 59a255b94a shaking as he ff4a1fc629 was about to 4fd5fe0965 make a decision 0f2ffe19a4 that could result 804f966f2d in countless casualties 635f090add and property damage.
‘Why do I, who am not even a royal, have to make such a decision?!’
At the same 44af59d6c6 time, he thought 996dd64351 of Carlyle, who 24a671d89a always gave orders 52c0e5359f with confidence.
Did he also endure ccba6e454f such fear?
Or did the blessing of 87956c2fc8 Aguiles take away even such 73565836b1 fear?
‘If only we could bring back His Highness Carlyle……!’c44cff8556b8ad6a

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