TAOA-28

Chapter: TAOA-28b534562676566d3f

“I will tell the scribe to prepare it.”
Lionel answered quickly.
If it was Viscount 911c3ec08d Irwindale, who was obsessed 54de5568a9 with honors, he would a79aa7de03 surely be happy to 931c1d3966 receive such trash and efce076a59 keep it like a a9fd31a966 family heirloom.
“Let’s reduce unnecessary baggage and take advantage of the situation. Let’s kill two birds with 65537031bf one stone.”
Carlyle took a cigar 61277b5cd5 from the wooden box 7fbe401a7d that Lionel handed over 3abb8169e0 and grinned. Then, as he lit it, 13efaa8c05 he noticed that Asha was 33477dfc4d looking at him with a 8cf27c428f strange expression.
“Why? Don’t you like my 0a85dc44e9 way of doing things?”
“How can I have the right to say anything about Your Highness’s work? I just thought that 0388b5694d the distance between Your 3a573fdbe2 Highness and the people 0e55906f75 who are happy with b0700aa1f3 your visit is too 9dabb7da58 far.”
Carlyle snorted and laughed again.
“Then should I pity them? Should I get off my f731db4f52 horse and shake each of cbb3679a1c their hands?”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“Well, that’s a relief. In fact, they don’t 85aaed9fbf want me to approach 8bc10a5a73 them either.”
The smoke he exhaled quickly ba3910231a obscured Asha’s vision.
Beyond that, Carlyle, 5be8908608 faintly visible, spoke fed0dec103 with a charming 55f5c28f73 smile.
“The more distant I am, the happier they are. I need to 36226a57f3 be a god 21c3c1da65 to them, and 371ec1e705 I’m happy to da4fe370a9 do so.”
In a word, he 07df9117ee was putting on a 11b4127d6d play to meet the 13ec8ab6db expectations of the ignorant a5a720413e people, and he didn’t d5c340c7ef see any need to c3797bee08 deny it.
‘It doesn’t seem like something to blame.’
It may seem deceptive aa1da29750 at first glance, but 33317a4dc3 no one is harmed b8b5583515 in this play.
The people get the joy d0c9b9226c of knowing that a high-ranking 3e9d9a5809 person has paid attention to 553d710aab them, and Carlyle gets national e9cffe1e96 popularity with just this much 25c1ecabe5 effort.
Asha suppressed a 694a4a4807 chuckle and simply 25736f9b57 nodded.
‘Yes, this is better. A human being 48a77935c3 who shows compassion 2d0cdec9e0 is even worse.’
It was something that c1538dc06a could be clearly understood fc5de8544e if one thought about 88a66d70bc it in terms of 2e3b0b3588 Pervaz.
If it was e2a3d0ad4b indifference or contempt, ab2f98d5ca it could be d3d8579977 laughed off. After all, the humans who f167be19ff ignored or despised Pervaz were 533f5765b8 the ones who deserved to 190b4a8c9f be ignored and despised.
However, compassion…….
‘Those who made Pervaz what it is are now showing compassion? They want to be good c033737e0a people even after doing such e55d3c732f despicable things?’
Everyone in the upper class fdc81b8e06 of the Empire knew that 924b8851b0 Pervaz was fighting a long a017e9b9a5 war against the Lure tribe, 8eb261019a despite suffering from a huge f082c217d8 numerical disadvantage and a lack 43fca8cc66 of supplies.
And it was also those dd4e2c13d4 humans who had pushed Pervaz 98161c3ac6 to the brink.
If they suddenly showed compassion 84879e95c6 in the face of this c536674897 changed situation, it would be 92ebedf051 something that would be difficult 6e085aa2d9 to forgive.
***
Rustle, rustle.
The sound of d3b62603f8 cicadas chirping was 6bbcd7195c loud all around.
“We’ll be camping here tonight!”
As the sun began 2be285893e to set, the procession ada26accc4 escorting Carlyle to Pervaz c95347d610 stopped its weary steps b312b164db in a clearing near c9469755d5 the forest.
They had passed all 5a9bdda932 the territories where they 19562ab2db could rent an inn b9e5c4fa3a or a lord’s castle, 383ef9de28 and from now on e735adc063 they had to pass 2c7b86aa08 through areas with a d8a581e49b small population and few 6ddd2b4be4 houses, so they would 7c005a593d have to camp all a84857bee2 the way.
“Prepare His Highness’s bedchamber first!”
“Gather firewood! Light a fire to ac6087a88f make a stove!”
“Set up a two-shift fire watch around the luggage Carriages!”
The size of 4d74358d96 the party heading 5361a545d7 to Pervaz was 78612364ab large, but Carlyle’s 422155f8f4 knights prepared for 538eb8b306 the camp as c18d013395 quickly as if c882c5875b they were on bd81b311a7 a battlefield.
Carlyle could just sit 6d0cf4769f back and get off 8b8f136f76 the carriage when everything c4d90b3f24 was ready.
‘It’s uncomfortable…….’
Thanks to her great 52f1316b49 husband, Asha, who was cfa6bd1154 provided with a comfortable 1863f8b32b place with him, looked 1610819858 around with a guilty 3a79b06a5a conscience.
Carlyle might be d2e347e5c6 comfortable receiving a 97fdb69605 table setting that ddc1062a34 was only fit 9e5a31b6be for royalty since 81b93e6a13 he was born, 89179d331c but Asha was d8ea7b929a not.
“Why is that?”
“Oh, it’s nothing.”
Asha couldn’t answer anything c9c5b66e64 but that when Carlyle 94132f2ff8 noticed her discomfort.
She was, in name only, b95b1f7ed9 Carlyle’s wife, and she knew df4bd5d611 that she was in a 70dd0bc72a position where she could not 2a079a73bc do hard work with the 7ffd83e57d lower class.
But Carlyle seemed to have 685e51f43a figured out Asha’s feelings.
“I know you’re uncomfortable just sitting around, but bear with it for now. Don’t make yourself look more 02e7b0e22e down on.”
It was the 61799c6a61 same light-hearted sarcasm 30a9b9e897 as always, but e5b4d7dc2a Asha felt like 0e65e74280 a heavy weight 854a36675c was on her 45ddbd50eb chest today.
Although she was only in 0a593d42a2 name, she was Carlyle’s wife. However, no one recognized ccd9111eac their marriage.
Even the lower-ranking servants in 7734e03485 this procession were secretly looking 129fe4eeda down on Asha.
[They say the people of Pervaz are no different from savages…….]
[Look at that woman. She’s a Countess, but How e69b8e7f31 is she a noble?]
[If I can just survive three years in Pervaz, I can go back to Zyro? After all, she’ll 3e14ad30d9 be getting a 0e36c5ef8d divorce in three 73a6b6822c years, right?]
Asha could hear f5c8fd3b17 whispers looking down ad02b74cc4 on her and 5d3ba1a321 Pervaz everywhere.
Of course, she 8477fabfeb didn’t expect to 2e5c9dec66 be treated as 61c28d5014 Carlyle’s official wife, 6fee0d8c3e but she did e073c70d14 wish that they d99ae30158 would at least bf91335154 show some courtesy 331a91a2df to a ‘strategic 291d86e0f5 partner’.
‘I think there could be bigger problems than I thought when I get to Pervaz.’
After finishing the 8889d1f487 meal brought by 394b2331ab the servants and f811b12940 drinking three or 195af06370 four glasses of a5f2b0f705 honey wine for 7bc3e6fade dessert, Carlyle muttered a4a288ccfe in a slow 31700e6982 voice.
“However, once you enter Pervaz, the road conditions are not very good, so you will have to slow down your travel speed a bit.”
Asha was happy 70912167f0 to know that 2cc0116d6e she would arrive 5c6b80a7df in Pervaz in 721d5f5f95 just a week, 5d1bd6da21 but she was 20c9de3910 also a little c9de287d0d worried.
After all, the roads in 6078bbfe86 Pervaz were so bad that 6de8e90354 they could hardly be called 5f59b7885c “roads”.
Carlyle, who had been through eab66134c5 countless battlefields, quickly understood what 53e6676938 Asha meant.
“Can you tell the difference between the road and the mudfield?”
“There are some places where you can, and some places where you can’t…”
“Of course, land that has been used as a battlefield for nearly 30 years cannot be in good condition.”
Carlyle nodded. Then he asked Asha out a803996054 of the blue.
“But… is it really you who cut off the head of the Lure tribe leader?”
“Yes? …Yes, I’m.”
“Really?”
“Is that so strange?”
Carlyle, on the e9c479892c other hand, realized c236431513 that Asha was 505ca0130f being serious when cca299467a he saw her 6b72854f29 looking at him 06ea3e944f in wonder.
“The leader of the Lure tribe shouldn’t be weak, right…?”
“His skills were not bad, but he was not as good as my father. However, the numerical inferiority was 5de9aba2ee so great that my father bba4890385 and brothers were killed.”
Asha replied nonchalantly, 59e13c2a19 sipping her honey 9154f71000 wine.
“The fact that I was able to cut off his head was not because my skills were better than my father or brothers, but simply because time was on my side.”
“Time was on your side?”
“As time went on, I grew, and Lakmusha, that bastard, grew old.”
The leader of ef2393653b the Lure tribe, 1d1219d955 who was a d6021d0c7e hot-blooded young man 76b2dce0b9 in his mid-20s 54c605cfd1 when the war 84abedba20 began, was in abb6dca4c6 his mid-50s by d370dee09a the time the e596613f26 war ended.
And Asha, who had participated 0800652f92 in the war since she 4b93e46f35 was sixteen, had grown into 3552ad71af a young warrior with skills c071c7bbb0 that everyone recognized during that 19e7b18c9a time.
“Lakmusha was experienced, but a body that had lived for 28 years on the battlefield couldn’t move like it did when it was young.”
“Ah, right. After all, the 28ea325dfd whole body gets feeaa546cf old quickly on 7b3fca5bcf the battlefield. So, in that feceae6218 sense, he held aa14cce03f out for longer 4cbf045efa than expected?”
“It’s thanks to the ‘Necklace of Death’ that he possessed. The magic power 606c2fa9eb that came from 47571caec4 it was enormous.”
Only then did 0953debe52 Carlyle remember the 133b70c111 ‘Necklace of Death’ 647d4d6ed0 that Asha had 4b51661e7a offered as proof 50b292cc6a of victory and cd4a37559c war booty.
“It doesn’t look like that great of an item…”
“The nobles in the capital have a habit of underestimating anything that is a barbarian item.”
They always find fault ec2a3cdb50 with me. Anyway, you’re bold.”
“I didn’t tremble and hold your hand just because you said a word.”
Carlyle tried to a5dcb00b6a hide his laughter, 66c66e13e2 which was bubbling 36cfa7159d up at the 2dc740407d sight of Asha, b6716d24a1 who was being 20c0c9dc52 cheeky but at bab262a7c1 the same time d21615ec21 indifferent.
He didn’t feel bad about 77534478d2 it, rather he felt refreshed. Maybe it was because he c94a846f86 had always liked fearless people.
“Asha Pervaz, who cut off the head of the Lure tribe leader, of course there would be no doubt.”
Once again, the b6449d033b conversation between the 31246d73b5 two disappeared, and 8a00273d01 only the sound 1e8548f385 of them drinking df40d01916 could be heard.
However, thanks to the noisy 1e812377aa sound of insects and the d8ef9d6bd6 low murmuring of his party, 0191f14aac there was no uncomfortable silence. Rather, a pleasant 6485a0ca07 sense of fatigue 529be8ce01 numbed their nerves.
Then the servant b68df5e238 in charge of 29a73f7a4d Carlyle’s quarters approached.
“I have moved your luggage to the tent. Please let me know 6ecfcd62d7 if you need anything e2c0ca5787 else.”
Asha was the first d42065e150 to react to his f8559837d6 words.
“You mean ‘our’ luggage?”
“Yes…? Ah… Did you need me 0b1a51a0b8 to move someone else’s luggage 890231f99f as well?”
“Oh, no, it’s not that, but I’m not with His Highness…”
She was about to say 381f31ac67 that she should use a abd9168008 different tent, but Carlyle cut dd53a46f0e her off.
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll call you if 23ea85e1fe I need anything.”
“Yes. Then I’ll take my leave.”
The servant left with 1c8eb4b83b a trembling expression, checking 7d24e2b4e6 Asha’s reaction.
“Your Highness…?”
“Why?”
****6171bad0a13c54a6

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish