Became a Strategist with a 100 Intelligence and 100\% Accuracy-Chapter 183: Maybe, I…

A few days later.

Airen was preparing for a long departure.

‘Come to think of it, we had decided to split the occupation forces and dispatch them to various locations across the continent.’

As the vice-commander, Airen was no exception. Now that training duties were roughly concluded, she was making final preparations for her journey.

Would I not be able to see her for a while?

The first person Airen greeted was the head maid, whose face she had now grown quite familiar with.

"Well then, I’ll be off. I leave the mansion in your care."

"Do not worry, my lady."

"Reika. I’d appreciate it if you could stay comfortable even while I’m gone."

"Have a safe trip...!! I’ll be waiting for you. When you return, I’ll make you lots of delicious food...! So please come back safely...!"

"And..."

She hesitated for a moment.

Sensing that it was now my turn, I approached her.

Airen’s golden eyes wavered slightly as she looked up at me.

"Swen. I’ll be back soon... So make sure to stay safe and take care of yourself."

"..."

There was something subtle about her tone of voice.

I hoped I wasn’t reading too much into it.

And yet—

I stepped forward and—

"...!!!!"

Opened my arms wide and pulled her into an embrace.

Airen flinched slightly, startled—but she didn’t reject me.

Instead, she leaned into my chest, resting her head against me.

"Have a safe trip, Lady Airen. I will miss you very much... but I will wait for you."

"Mm... Swen, I’ll do my best. I’ll miss you too... a lot..."

"Please take care of yourself. Don’t push yourself too hard. If anything even feels dangerous, retreat immediately. Understood?"

"I won’t overdo it. If Swen tells me not to do something... I won’t do it..."

She was only going out on patrol, so maybe I was being a bit excessive.

But back when she was with the Aishus Army, she had been willing to risk her life for me without hesitation.

If I didn’t at least tell her this much, I wouldn’t be able to breathe easy.

I slowly ran my hand through her crimson hair.

She always put on a strong front, always acted steadfast and resolute.

But moments like these reminded me—Airen wasn’t an unshakable pillar of steel.

After seeing her off—

"...?"

"Ah, u-uh, um...!!!"

I turned to see Reika, her face flushed bright red, sweating profusely as she fidgeted awkwardly.

I softened my expression and asked,

"Do you have anything to do today?"

"Uh? No, um... I... don’t..."

Her fingers tapped against each other, her flustered behavior oddly endearing.

"Then, would you like to meditate with me? It’s been a while."

"Huh...?"

"Do you not want to?"

"N-no, that’s not it, it’s just, uh... I-I’d love to! I’d love to...!!"

Reading together in the library wouldn’t have been a bad idea either.

But the time she always seemed happiest while with me was when we meditated together.

Today, I supposed, would be a good day to spend some time with her.

With that, Reika and I stepped outside the mansion.

***

Thump, thump.

Even though Reika had come out to meditate with Swen, she couldn’t calm her racing heart.

‘That was... incredible...’

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Lady Airen saying she would be off.

And Swen pulling her into a tight embrace in response.

It was like a scene straight out of a painting—a perfectly matched pair.

Seeing them together like that sent an inexplicable ticklish sensation through her chest.

Their bond looked undeniably strong, yet—

The surprising thing was that, as of now, they weren’t actually anything more than that.

And from that nothing more than that, Reika found a strange sense of relief.

‘If I ever had to leave on a long journey someday... would Swen also hold me like that...?’

After all, both she and Lady Airen had started in similar positions.

And if she considered the engagement proposal, she was technically ahead.

So there was no need to feel discouraged, right?

Or so she thought—

‘...Huh?’

A single realization struck her like a bolt of lightning.

Wait a second.

Did I just think that I was ahead...?

‘...Ahead in what?’

In the engagement?

And if I am ahead in the engagement, what does that even mean?

One thought led to another, forming a continuous chain—until finally, she reached a single conclusion.

Then, maybe... I...

‘Do I like Swen...?????’

‘Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.’

Her eyes went wide, her face turned red, and a tidal wave of thoughts crashed through her mind.

‘I never really wanted to get married... But the idea of becoming Swen’s wife... It didn’t seem so bad. I didn’t hate it from the beginning.

I only went along with it because Father wanted me to, and that’s just how marriage works for women anyway...

But at some point... Something, something changed...!’

She would be lying if she said she didn’t feel a thrill when Swen had introduced her in the library as his wife.

‘But... Swen told me that if I didn’t want to marry him, if I wanted to live freely, I could choose that instead.

At the time, I was grateful for his words... but wasn’t there always this subtle sense of distance between us?’

"Miss Reika?"

‘I never quite understood what that distance was, but now that I think about it...

Could it be that I wanted to hear something different...?’

"Excuse me? Miss Reika?"

‘What if... instead of giving me a choice, Swen had firmly told me—

"Be my wife."’

"Miss Reika!"

"Kyaaah...!"

Startled, Reika finally turned her head to look at Swen.

"S-Swen...?"

"You seemed a bit lost in thought."

"N-no, it’s nothing! I’m completely fine!!"

"You say that, but you looked very distracted."

Flustered, Reika stammered.

"Why... do you say that?"

"You kept fidgeting and looking around restlessly. Normally, when you meditate, you close your eyes and stay incredibly calm. But today... not so much."

"...Did I really do that?"

"Yes. Like this."

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Swen casually mimicked her movements, ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ making her shrink into herself in despair.

"I’m so sorry... I... I don’t think I need to live anymore. I will now end my life..."

"No, no! That’s way too extreme!"

"But... I showed you such an embarrassing side of myself..."

"It’s fine. More importantly, is something troubling you?"

"A concern...?"

Reika met Swen’s gray eyes.

When she had first met him, she had thought—He’s really handsome, but he seems cold.

And those sharp, gray eyes had played a major role in forming that impression.

But now... for some reason, those same eyes looked warm.

Gentle.

The kind of warmth that came from people who were genuinely kind and caring.

‘A concern, huh...’

That maybe, instead of living freely—

Maybe, getting married to Swen...

Living together with Lady Airen, the three of them, peacefully...

Maybe that would be better.

But—

She didn’t have the courage to say that out loud.

"It’s nothing..."

Swen was silent for a moment before nodding.

"Is that so? Alright. I won’t pry. But if you ever want to talk, you can tell me anytime. Okay?"

"Y-yes...!!"

His words—telling her she could always talk to him—warmed her heart once more.

—My heart must be wavering because Swen is such a kind person.

Having Swen as her engagement partner, something that had fallen into her lap unexpectedly—

Maybe, Reika thought, it was an incredible stroke of luck.

"Shall we continue?"

"Yes...!"

Finally shaking off her tangled thoughts, Reika focused on the mana flowing in the air.

This place was rich in mana.

Not to the extent of an overflowing, dense forest, but far richer than the central continent.

‘With this amount of mana... I might be able to pull off that technique I failed last time...!’

Reika recalled the time at Valharat Castle when she had found a dying rabbit in the garden.

Back then, she had failed because there wasn’t enough mana in the air.

But now, she had a feeling she could succeed.

This was how she had always learned magic—

She would get a feeling, then turn it into a formula and manifest it.

No one had ever taught her, but for Reika, it was as natural as breathing.

Lately, she had been growing even faster—so much so that even she could feel it.

Handling mana had become fun.

Magic formulas, which should have been incredibly complex, felt like simple puzzles to her—problems that only required a little time to solve.

And in reality, that was exactly the case.

But Reika had no idea that it was simply because she was an innate genius.

She firmly believed—

"It’s all thanks to Swen. Ever since I met him, I’ve been able to understand things better...! One day, I have to repay him for everything he’s taught me...!"

Believing it was Swen’s guidance that had helped her grow, Reika’s admiration for him only deepened.

And so, that day, she spent her time meditating alongside Swen.

For Reika, this was a moment she would cherish more than anything.

***

Several days had passed since Airen's departure.

Early in the morning, a maid hurriedly informed me that the head maid was looking for me with urgency.

Without wasting any time, I quickly dressed and headed to where she was waiting.

As soon as she saw me, she bowed her head respectfully before speaking.

"Ah, Lord Swen. You’ve arrived. I should greet you with a good morning... but..."

"It’s fine. What is the matter?"

"A messenger has arrived from the royal palace. Lady Serpina has requested that you come immediately."

"Did you hear anything about the reason?"

I asked, though I had a fairly good guess already.

The troubled look on the head maid’s face.

The urgency of the message.

And considering the only plausible situation that could warrant this level of haste...

"The details are unclear, but... it seems a rebel army has risen somewhere on the continent."

As expected.

So it was news of a rebellion.

Which also meant—

‘Lady Serpina’s prediction was correct.’

A rebellion would rise.

And the only basis for that prediction... was my advice.

How had she been so certain that a rebellion would occur?

Well, regardless—this was something I could resolve by meeting my lord in person.

"I will depart immediately."

"Yes. Please, take care on your way..."

Exchanging a brief farewell with the head maid, I swiftly donned my uniform and made my way to the royal palace.