Chapter: 23
Heavy, angry breathing echoed through a quiet corridor of the royal palace.
Servants who happened to be passing through flinched and hurriedly stepped aside. It was well known that brushing against Alexis in his current state—his face flushed red and blue with fury—could lead to serious consequences.
Yet whether the servants recoiled in shock or cleared the way, nothing registered in Alexis’s eyes.
His mind was seized by a single name printed in a daily newspaper.
Jeanne Leclerc.
No. That can’t be right. There must be some mistake.
Repeating those words over and over in his head, Alexis threw open the door to his office.
“Philip!”
Philip spun around with wide eyes and leapt to his feet the moment the door burst open. He looked as though he had been startled by the door nearly coming off its hinges—or perhaps he was simply dumbfounded by Alexis’s earlier-than-expected return.
“Bring me the editor-in-chief and every reporter from Le Chac Journal immediately and make them kneel before me!”
“Y-Your Highness? All of a sudden, what—”
“Is it really that hard to understand that I’m charging them with spreading false information?!”
“What false information are you referring to?”
“…Jeanne…”
Alexis clamped his lips shut, unable to bear even saying it aloud, then began pacing the office like a trapped bee.
“Wh-What about Miss Jeanne?”
“They wrote some absurd article claiming she joined the Loran Order!”
Silence swept through the room. Philip spoke carefully, disbelief plain on his face.
“Th-That can’t be. Of all people, Miss Jeanne would never… It must be some sort of misunderstanding.”
“Exactly! That’s why I’m telling you to drag in the editor and reporters who printed such nonsense!”
Alexis himself could scarcely believe it.
He prided himself on knowing her better than anyone.
Jeanne was a woman who would roll if he told her to roll, and might even die if he told her to—so unquestioningly obedient was she to his words. If nothing else, her loyalty to him rivaled even that of the captain of the Royal Knights.
For someone like her to join Loran and serve Claude—the man she despised most? It was even harder to believe than the sun rising in the west.
“Please calm yourself for now. Miss Jeanne should be returning soon—why not wait a little longer?” Philip said gently, trying to soothe him.
“…Wait.”
At that moment, the lingering sense of unease Alexis had felt began to connect piece by piece.
Jeanne had gone to obtain medicine in the eastern forest—and Loran lay beyond that forest.
He had been busy with engagement preparations and had never doubted that Jeanne would naturally return, so he’d let things be. But looking back, it had already been two full weeks since she left.
The possibility that something had happened to her in the forest was extremely low. A knight who had graduated second in her class from the Royal Military Academy wouldn’t fall to mere bandits or low-ranking monsters.
That she was delayed because she’d gone home to rest? Also unlikely. Given her disposition, she would have returned to Alexis the moment her business was finished.
Yet she still hasn’t come back…
His thoughts began to tilt toward the idea that the article wasn’t entirely false—but Alexis soon snorted in derision.
Whenever banquets were held in summer or winter, academy students on break could be seen. If he casually asked them whether Jeanne ever spoke about him, they all answered the same way.
“Of course. She’s always saying it’s all thanks to Your Highness, and that she wants to graduate top of her class and be of use to you.”
Every answer was nearly identical.
Impossible. Anyone else maybe—but Jeanne betraying me? What am I even thinking?
The chance that Jeanne had changed was zero percent.
Then was it a false report? That, too, seemed unlikely. Le Chac Journal only published highly credible stories—credible enough that even the queen herself read it regularly.
That left only one possibility.
Claude had schemed and forcibly detained Jeanne in Loran.
That damned bastard!
He had disliked Claude from the moment they first met.
Claude had everything Alexis wanted, and monopolized not only the attention of the nobles at every banquet, but even that of Alexis’s own mother. Because he was called the Goddess’s Child, he was praised more than Alexis himself—and he used that to slyly mock him.
As if stealing my spotlight wasn’t enough—now he’s trying to take Jeanne too?!
It was obvious: Claude had stolen Jeanne, who had pledged her loyalty to Alexis, just to humiliate and ridicule him.
The moment he reached that conclusion, something deep in his chest threatened to erupt like a volcano.
As his entire body trembled with rage—
The door suddenly flew open.
“Prince.”
Queen Marie entered with a face that looked ready to erupt in fury. Yet contrary to her expression, her voice was low and heavy—making it all the more intimidating.
So much so that Alexis, who had been breathing raggedly, instinctively quieted down.
“You have guests—ladies and a young noblewoman present. What exactly do you think you’re doing, behaving so disgracefully?”
“Mother, it’s that bastard Claude—!”
“I told you not to lose your composure to emotion. And mind your form of address.”
“…My apologies, Your Majesty.”
His mother was especially strict with him. He obeyed, because it was the king’s command—but the rebellion he’d failed to vent still writhed inside him.
She was gentle to everyone else—especially to Claude.
“So, what exactly was so urgent that you stormed out like that?”
His mother’s warm smile, the attention of everyone around them—Claude had taken all of it.
“…Your Majesty. I believe I must make a brief visit to Loran.”
“What are you saying all of a sudden?”
But there was one thing—
“I thought I’d see an old friend after so long—and personally deliver the invitation to my engagement banquet.”
No matter what, he would reclaim his beautiful sword.
* * *
Immediately after the attempted assassination of Claude, Pascal—the would-be assassin—and even the mechanic who had tampered with the carriage were executed.
Some of the retainers who had participated in the plot also failed to escape punishment. Stripped of their titles and assets, they were forever barred from setting foot in lands ruled by Loran.
Since those who were supposed to be loyal to the Grand Duke’s household had attempted assassination, the remaining retainers would remain silent and obedient for some time. Like pottery placed in a kiln before firing, it was the perfect moment to reset the balance of power.
Though there had been talk and criticism surrounding Claude’s decisions, it all quieted down before long. By then, Jeanne had fully adapted to her red-and-white uniform.
A few days after Pascal’s execution, unit assignments for the new knights were finalized. Jeanne was placed in the 1st Division, and its commander, Laurent, welcomed her enthusiastically.
The atmosphere of Laurent’s division—led by his cheerful personality—was lively. If anything, Jeanne found herself wondering whether it was appropriate; the bond between the commander and his soldiers was unusually close and informal.
After assignment, daily life was simple. All knights except those who had been on night patrol the day before gathered for morning training.
Once training ended, each division received its duties—mostly patrols of the walls and villages, border surveillance of the Grand Duchy, or monster searches. Assignments rotated weekly.
Like today.
“All units, assemble!”
At Cedric’s booming command, the knights scattered across the training grounds moved in unison.
“Morning training concludes here. This week’s duty assignments have been distributed to each division commander—confirm them. Dismissed!”
Cedric gave the order, and the knights dispersed by division. Jeanne walked to where the 1st Division had gathered, took her place at the back, and waited for Laurent to announce their assignment.
“This week, our 1st Division will be—”
Laurent had a habit of dragging things out, like announcing results at an awards ceremony.
But today, the pause was unusually long. He narrowed his eyes as if urging them to anticipate something, which only added to the confusion.
At best, it would be patrol or subjugation—
“Starting today, four days of special patrol duty in Cassis!”
As if expecting applause, Laurent made the announcement, and the soldiers erupted in cheers. Amid them, Jeanne tilted her head at a familiar place name.
Cassis…
She raked through her memories of her previous life until something surfaced.
The Megalodon Incident.
About two years after she joined the Royal Knights, over a hundred giant shark-shaped monsters known as Megalodons had appeared in the coastal village of Cassis, at the southernmost edge of the Loran Grand Duchy. The village and its residents were annihilated.
The scale of the devastation was due to the monsters’ evolution. Sharks meant to swim in the sea had begun breathing on land like amphibians—and even flying through the sky.
Worse still, their bodies grew enormous, their scales hardened like steel, and knights below master rank reportedly struggled against them.
The evolved monsters were eventually exterminated by Claude’s elite knights. Their remains and a report were sent to the Brienne royal family, and that was when Jeanne learned about the evolved Megalodons.
It won’t happen for another two years—but since we’re going anyway, maybe I should discreetly check things out. Preparing early can’t hurt…
As she gathered her thoughts, the senior knights were still buzzing with excitement. One of them noticed Jeanne’s subdued expression, slapped her on the back, and spoke up.
“Hey, Leclerc! Why so lukewarm?”
“…I’d like to ask you the same. Why is everyone so excited?”
“Of course we are! No morning training, right? And aside from one day on duty, work ends early! Honestly, it’s basically eating, drinking, and having fun!”
“Ah… I see.”
She understood why they were happy—but she couldn’t share their joy. To Jeanne, Cassis was a village destined to be destroyed by Megalodons, making it hard to celebrate like the others.
“Sir Leclerc.”
At that moment, Cedric approached and called her name.
“Come with me for a moment.”
