The Youngest Son of the Northern Grand Duke Wants to Break Off the Engagement-Chapter 102

Chapter 102
The elite forces returned to the first defensive line and only then announced the news that the dragon had been subjugated, albeit belatedly.
The soldiers were filled with joy, but they could not afford to neglect their assigned duties.
Monsters could invade at any moment, and for now, they had to take care of the bodies of the fallen.
"... We'll have to rebuild the fortress, won't we?"
"It will likely come to that. We need a fortress to maintain the frontline."
Alter was seated off to the side, drinking water.
He had engaged in battle as soon as he arrived at the eastern front, and had been periodically expending his mana to slay monsters.
On top of that, he had also neutralized the dragon's breath, so it was only natural that fatigue had accumulated in many ways.
"When do you think we can return?"
"We'll have to keep an eye on the situation for the time being. They won't keep us here for long."
"So much has happened during this time. We've done nothing but fight with our swords every time."
"Well... there was war in the northern region, and when we returned to the capital, we had no choice. There were even signs in the eastern region, but it did happen rather suddenly."
"I really cannot afford to let go anymore. I almost got swept away by that breath, didn't I?"
"If Brillie Illenat had been beside you, you might have avoided it."
"Still... you are strong. How did you manage to block that?"
Brillie Illenat looked at Alter with worried eyes and gently stroked his cheek.
So frail he appeared, yet his magic alone resided at a peerless level.
That was why she could trust him, but still, when faced with crisis as before, wouldn't she be instinctively gripped by fear?
"I think I was lucky. It wasn't a spell I should have been able to use."
"It looked a bit too grand to just call it luck."
"I still don't understand the principles behind that magic. I don't think I could reproduce it again."
In truth, it was practically as if Tiksa the Frostbane had borrowed his mana.
It seemed that Tiksa's will had manifested itself through the dragon's mana.
So, all Alter could do was watch as the breath was formed, swept away helplessly.
"It's better if you don't use it. You almost collapsed."
"But in a situation like that, I would have to use it. Better than dying, isn't it?"
"That's why I should be by your side. If I can just carry you and escape, that would be enough, right?"
"I think so too, but... our forces are moving together, so you can't stay only by my side."
"I told you before, didn't I? When you regret it after losing someone, it's always too late. If Alter dies, what would be left for me?"
"... Perhaps honor remains."
"I don't need something like that. If you die honorably, am I just supposed to quietly hold your funeral? If that's the case, why did I even come all the way here?"
"..."
Alter closed his mouth and looked carefully at Brillie Illenat.
She had replied somewhat bluntly, but her gaze was tinged with sorrow.
She couldn't bring herself to be angry at Alter, so she merely suppressed her gloomy emotions.
"I don't want to win the war after losing you. If that happens, I'd rather save you and choose defeat."
"..."
"Even if you end up hating me... I won't yield on this."
"I wouldn't hate you. In the end, I'll come to accept it too."
Alter unconsciously took the hand that had been stroking his cheek.
Brillie Illenat was slightly flustered, but soon accepted it naturally.
He had worried she might object to this, but she consented immediately.
"But if I may ask... I'd like you to be a bit more prudent in your decisions. You have a noble family, don't you?"
"So do you, Alter."
"That's why I try to save face, at least. While we may lose in battle, we shouldn't let others misunderstand us."
"So, you mean even if I'm protecting you, I should do what needs to be done, right?"
"Yes. Even if I'm not working hard, I should at least make my presence known, shouldn't I?"
Alter did not demand pride as a noble or obligation as a powerhouse.
In the end, both he and Brillie Illenat were just humans.
They lived for themselves, after all. Was it necessary to purposely embrace sacrifice?
"If just making my presence known would be the end of it, it wouldn't have turned out like this."
"That's why, honestly, I'm happy. Because you're saying these things for me."
"Th-that... ugh..."
Brillie Illenat, embarrassed, couldn't continue speaking.
With such a blatant remark, her position only became awkward.
Perhaps it would have been better to pretend ignorance and gloss over things.
"I'll continue to rely on you. Could I even go anywhere without you by my side now?"
"P-please stop. You're just making me embarrassed."
"What's there to be embarrassed about? Surely you don't think I'm strange, do you?"
"I never said you're strange, just that I'm the one growing troubled."
"Hmm... I didn't tell a lie, did I?"
"It's true, but! Still..."
Even while hesitating, Brillie Illenat consciously avoided his gaze.
Alter reluctantly grew quiet, but never took his eyes off her.
Alraune, having watched the pair, finally spoke in a slow voice.
"Isn't this a good time?"
"It's a fine moment indeed. If even one of them had been hurt, it could have been catastrophic."
Berhan turned away with a wry smile.
While he and Alraune stood at dusk's threshold, for those two, a dazzling dawn was shining.
That the dawn had not faltered in this war was a source of some relief.
"To think they've come this far without even holding a wedding... it's truly a pity."
"What? They haven't been wed yet?"
"My understanding is the wedding was delayed due to recent incidents."
"Ha! Even so, they should have arranged the marriage before allowing them to participate. How could you send them off like that?"
"They're enduring misfortune in order to reach their destined fortune. Surely, they'll hold the wedding soon?"
"If misfortune had come, harm would already have followed. It seems Semerune's radiance is guiding those two."
"... It appears the Lord Berhan has grown quite fond of them."
"Why wouldn't I? We risked our lives together—they are my comrades, and the Church's kin."
"Is that so? I thought you might quietly harbor some resentment since they retreated during the battle."
"Resentment! Do you take me for a petty man? When a loved one is dying, how could I remain still? In fact, had they not retreated first, I would have scolded them myself."
Berhan answered with a serious expression.
Alter Radiant had withstood a dragon's breath on his own—he could not have been burdened with anything more.
In truth, it was only right to retreat quickly before another attack could come.
"I only bring this up because it was a dragon. Wasn't that a formidable monster?"
"It's an enemy I'd never wish to meet again. It was difficult for me as well."
"Of the seven, now three have been annihilated. I suspect the others will reveal themselves someday."
"Haa... don't even say such things. I don't even want to think about fighting anymore."
"I too wish this would be the end, but life rarely goes as one wishes..."
Alraune was already envisioning the future, where yet another dragon would invade—Grafden the Deep, Mwin the Thunderstorm, Ru the Luminescent, Lailnetia the Devouring.
Some of the previous great mages had contacted Ru the Luminescent, but one could not simply trust dragons blindly.
For now, weren't they better off preparing with all four as potential foes?
'If only more strong ones would arise, even a little, things might become easier...'
* * *
Even the sky that could not be reached from the ground was hidden by clouds.
Not even birds dared ascend here, and even a human would find this place difficult to reach.
Only an existence that had transcended Providence walked these surroundings in calm.
"... So, it has finally been extinguished."
Something lying atop the clouds looked below and then slowly began to move.
Since first coming to this world, it had delivered repeated warnings.
If the balance of this world was disturbed, it would be exiled once more or its life would fade away.
In particular, Benelrode the Incandescent had only barely survived the last battle, yet had made the same mistake again.
'I do not interfere. The choice is yours.'
Ru the Luminescent, one of the seven dragons of Hazlodein, impassively scanned the corpse of its kin.
Its left wing had been cut off long ago, a side of its back gouged open to expose spine and entrails.
To top it off, the heart was utterly crushed, and even the mana was stolen away.
'How greedy. How could a human dare to abuse a dragon's power?'
Ru the Luminescent watched the humans writhing in agony from flame, and then shook its head.
It was the outcome Benelrode the Incandescent had brought upon himself, so there was no need to intervene.
Still, curiosity arose at the human who had usurped a dragon's mana.
'Tiksa's power has returned to its descendant. That descendant played a part in Benelrode's destruction.'
Ru the Luminescent had a certain respect for the decision made by Tiksa the Frostbane.
At least, Tiksa tried to adapt to this world and wholeheartedly embraced a human.
In a sense, having become part of this world, balance had been kept.
"Tiksa. Your descendant has met me. And she bestowed prophecy."
Ru the Luminescent, recalling the past as he observed Tiksa's descendant, reminisced.
She had quietly discovered his location and eventually met and conversed with him directly.
Although she carried a dragon's blood, wasn't she astonishingly audacious?
"... She claimed I would interfere in the humans' war. But as one who professes neutrality, how could I become an enemy to my own kin?"
At that time, Ru the Luminescent was convinced her prophecy was wrong.
Even with foresight, the future was ever-changing and never entirely accurate.
Even so, she never admitted her mistake, only adding that some things must be learned through experience.
"Uriel Astille. I still do not believe your words, but now circumstances have changed. Your child is coming to resemble Tiksa."
Ru the Luminescent saw traces of a dragon's aura in her descendant, Alter Radiant.
Merely a human body, yet he drew forth Tiksa the Frostbane's chill perfectly.
On top of that, he even reproduced the breath—it could only be taken that Tiksa the Frostbane had descended in truth.
"I shall watch a little longer. If I truly find an act that violates the order... I shall step forward myself."