Chapter 07
“What offer did they make?”
“They said they’d appoint me as Commander of the Navy and let me deal with the infamous pirate king. In return, they promised to send 30% of the stolen treasure back to Ivannes.”
Ah—the pirate king.
Even Chloe, who used to be in the navy, had heard of him. The pirate king Bartholomew, who caused havoc around Soleria, was rumored to have hoarded loot worth as much as ten years’ worth of Ivannes’ national budget.
So, the two kings had come up with a win-win plan.
If they dumped Curtis in Soleria:
- The king of Ivannes would get rid of someone he didn’t like.
- The king of Glintrande would get Curtis to handle the pirate problem.
- And if treasure was recovered, Ivannes would get a nice cut.
The only loser in this whole deal? Curtis himself.
He’d risk his life and fortune without ever being properly rewarded. So, unsurprisingly, he had a blunt opinion:
“It’s a scam.”
Fair enough. Chloe understood how he felt.
But considering he faked having a lover just to avoid a marriage, he wasn’t really in a position to complain, in her opinion.
‘Not that it’s any of my business, really.’
Seriously. If Curtis hadn’t randomly announced that she was his lover a few hours ago, all this would’ve been just another tale of nobles scheming and plotting.
“That kind of offer would definitely catch the king’s interest.”
Chloe replied flatly, tilting her head a little.
Curtis let out a short, incredulous laugh.
Oh? He’s the one who should be offended here, Chloe thought.
She spoke again, carefully.
“But sir, you’re a war hero. You’ve got money—you said yourself you didn’t want to fight poor. Wouldn’t you get plenty of treasure if you went after the pirate king?”
Usually, when someone captures a major international criminal or enemy like a pirate king, they’re entitled to keep half of the stolen goods.
So if he didn’t want to fight the poor, why not just use the loot?
But Curtis narrowed his eyes.
“You used to be in the navy. Then you should know—I have no intention of being some second-rate sailor.”
Chloe tilted her head again.
“Well, the Ivannes navy isn’t much—just guards the Prado coast. But I’ve heard Glintrande’s navy is well-structured and very disciplined.”
“…Let’s put it this way. I have zero intention of spending my life soaked in saltwater, clinging to a rotting ship rail.”
Huh? What kind of excuse was that? He’d be a commander, not a deckhand. Why would he be soaking in seawater?
Then she paused… Something clicked.
“…Wait… Sir, do you get seasick?”
“Who said that?!”
Curtis snapped back way too fast.
“I negotiated peace with three kingdoms! And you’re accusing me of seasickness?!”
Normally, Chloe would’ve stopped there.
But she still had the Verck family crest brooch in her hand. That gave her a little extra courage.
“…So… is it that you can’t swim? Or do you just get motion sickness?”
Curtis frowned. Deeply.
Oops. Maybe she’d gone too far.
Curtis turned his head and muttered,
“…We’ve completely gone off-topic. Back to the real point—”
“Is it both?”
Silence fell.
Chloe felt oddly satisfied.
Curtis, on the other hand, was definitely not in a good mood.
****
There was something that neither Chloe nor the king knew.
Curtis didn’t love Ivannes either.
In fact, for most of his life, he had desperately wanted to leave it. Probably more than even the king wanted him gone.
But… he couldn’t.
He had tried sailing about twenty times before he came to that conclusion.
He’d even considered seriously accepting the Soleria Margrave position. So he gave it a shot—he boarded a ship.
And threw up.
“Must be because it’s my first time.”
I tried again.
Threw up again.
“Third time’s the charm.”
Nope. Threw up again.
He vomited every single time—all 20 times.
On the last attempt, he even fell off the ship because he was so sick he could barely walk.
That’s when he realized: he just wasn’t compatible with the sea.
Now, someone might say, “Well, as a commander, you don’t need to actually get on the ship, right?”
But that only shows they don’t understand how small Glintrande really is.
There’s a saying there:
“If there aren’t enough hands, even a king has to help cook.”
Why? Because Glintrande has always been a small, poor, and salt-scorched country. If not for its salt farms, it probably wouldn’t exist at all.
And a proper commander can’t just sit safely inland barking orders.
Not in a real war. That’s how you lose everything.
Worse still—Curtis wasn’t exactly in a safe position in Glintrande either.
The current king had no biological heirs.
If Curtis married the adopted duchess, he’d become dangerously close to the throne.
There’s no way the king would let him stay on land.
If Curtis went to Soleria, they’d push him out to sea immediately.
“But what if he dies?” some might ask.
Wouldn’t that be a loss for them?
Well, no—because they’d still get his money.
It was rumored that the rewards Curtis earned from the three-kingdom war were worth five years’ worth of Ivannes’ national budget.
If he died, Glintrande would inherit it all.
Alive or dead, Curtis would be a profit.
****
“The duchess from Glintrande has already set out with the proposal, Curtis.”
That news came two weeks ago in the afternoon, from his old friend, Lieutenant Noel.
Curtis had seen it coming.
He’d even planted spies to keep tabs on Glintrande—so it wasn’t hard to learn quickly.
“I waited until Prince Frederick got married first… and now they’re all rushing in.”
Curtis had deliberately kept his relationship status empty.
He wanted the king to think he could be used for marriage at any time.
If he proposed to some noble lady too soon, the king would surely block it.
So he planned to wait until the crown prince’s wedding was over, then quickly find someone and get married just as fast.
But war delayed everything.
When the peace treaty ended, the king shoved Curtis into the Royal Guard—kept him close and watched.
He never had a chance.
Now that the royal wedding was over, Glintrande made its move.
“Guess I’ll have to claim I already have a lover.”
“But who?”
Silence.
“What have you even been doing all this time? Haven’t you ever dated someone?”
Curtis gave his friend a death glare.
He’d spent six years on the battlefield, all thanks to the king’s schemes.
He’d been in combat since he was twenty.
And on top of that—he was a bit of a clean freak. He didn’t like other people’s scents or personal space.
Even Noel, who had once teased him, didn’t push it further.
“…What about your sister?” Curtis asked, carefully.
Noel gave him a flat look like he’d heard something disgusting.
“Absolutely not.”
“…Sorry. Forget what I asked.”
Curtis sighed.
It was clear that finding a proper fiancée in just two weeks would be impossible.
So what about a fake lover, just to stall?
But that woman had to be strong enough to stand up to the king’s pressure.
Which meant: no noble ladies.
Most were already spoken for anyway.
“What about that young lady who liked you? Aria, I think? She’s in the navy. That fits, doesn’t it?”
Curtis immediately shook his head in frustration.
“You of all people should know how badly unrequited love can mess up a situation, Noel.”
Indeed. Curtis had seen too many people ruin their lives—and others’—because of messy emotions.
His own father was a prime example.
“Besides, if she’s from a weaker noble family, the king will just interfere again.”
The two of them groaned.
That’s when there was a knock at the door, and someone entered.
“Salute. Excuse me, Brigadier General. I’m submitting the bombardment training records and mana stone usage logs you requested.”
It was Chloe Ambroise—his new aide, assigned just three months ago.
