Chapter 17: Silverna is Busy

After the battle with the Transcendents.

The Malidan barrier, now revealed to be a great den, bustled with activity every day.

Not only did they stand guard atop the barrier walls, they also dispatched scouting parties daily for reconnaissance.

Each day, everyone watched the departing detachments heading out to confirm the dangers beyond, praying for their safety.

It was an unintended calamity.

“Haah.”

“I want to go home.”

The nobles who had been dispatched here after hearing that a mere monster den would be nothing to worry about, had arrived with peace of mind. But now their faces were dark with fear.

A historical catastrophe that resurfaced after 23 years.

They were terrified to find themselves at its very center.

Moreover, the time last night when they had been defeated without being able to offer any resistance to the Transcendents was etched into their minds like a traumatic scar.

[Do not tell them.]

Isaac had told Uldiran and Silverna everything he knew about the Transcendents.

But Uldiran didn’t bother making it public.

They still hadn’t determined whether the great den was connected to the Transcendents, and with everyone already so demoralized, announcing such news could plunge them into even deeper confusion.

As for the Blackthorn family, the royal court had already been contacted.

Their betrayal was likely being meticulously verified by the royal family step by step.

“Hooo!”

While everyone else was busy…

Isaac, at least, was living each day satisfied and productive.

Recognized for his recent achievements, Isaac was granted a special exemption from wall-duty.

In these dire times, when even one more person was needed, Isaac was nevertheless allowed to train in swordsmanship alone—thanks largely to Silverna’s influence.

“He’s at it again.”

After finishing her lunch, Silverna observed Isaac from afar.

Isaac was sparring with Jonathan.

They had been repeating sparring and training daily for several days now.

If there was something unusual…

“Isaac is winning.”

Anna, who had eaten with Silverna, passed her a cup of ginger tea and spoke up.

“Haaaaa.”

Just as Anna said, Isaac’s sword effortlessly toppled Jonathan.

Jonathan, knocked down, got up again with a tearful expression, declaring he’d challenge him once more.

If nothing else, Jonathan had outstanding stamina.

Even if he was just a low-ranking knight, it was still impressive to defeat a knight of Helmut.

Yet Silverna and Anna both wore complicated expressions.

“There’s a record of the sparring matches among those dispatched. Isaac has fought in 41 matches: 2 wins and 39 losses so far.”

“…….”

“For reference, Jonathan has had 23 matches: 17 wins, 6 losses.”

They didn’t bother recording Isaac and Jonathan’s sparring since it was unofficial.

However, aside from the earliest matches, Isaac had been dominating Jonathan for the most part.

“Of course, Isaac mostly sparred with exceptionally skilled nobles….”

Among them were certainly nobles who had lost to Jonathan.

Wasn’t that a strange record?

Silverna wanted to comment but felt it best to remain silent.

“If I may speak for you, my lady,” Anna said awkwardly, scratching her cheek.

“Isaac seems as if he… specializes in fighting Helmut.”

“…….”

“He easily handles nobles who wield greatswords similarly, but if they’re from Helmut, it’s like he’s several moves ahead, taking action first.”

“…….”

“And that’s why Isaac, even with incomplete training, can still defeat Jonathan.”

“Haah.”

“Maybe if it were someone else, it’d be fine. But he’s Helmut’s son-in-law, after all. This seems a bit off.”

It was almost as if he’d accumulated all his knowledge until now just to bring down Helmut.

“Enough. Stop worrying. He can handle himself.”

The idea that Helmut’s own son-in-law might grow into a hunter specializing in taking down Helmut itself was unsettling, but that was Isaac’s life to live.

“Ughhh!”

Just then, Isaac knocked Jonathan down once again.

“...Let’s stop here for you.”

Isaac, now fully accustomed to Jonathan, clicked his tongue as if there was nothing more to learn.

Seeing this, Silverna headed toward Isaac.

“I’ll be right back.”

“You’re going again? Lately you’ve been hanging around him so much!”

“We’re friends, right? And what, you think this is fun? I’m helping Isaac draft his training manual. And while I’m at it, I get some advice too.”

As Silverna departed, Anna sighed worriedly.

‘Does that look like the face you make for just a friend?’

Wasn’t she already wearing a bright smile that could melt even the cold wind?

From the start, hadn’t she been standing here, waiting for the right moment to go see Isaac?

‘My lady, please.’

He’s a married man!

Anna wanted to shout.

“Isaac, I’m here.”

Silverna greeted Isaac, who was wiping off his sweat with a towel.

“Silverna, you came again today.”

Seeing Isaac welcome her warmly, Silverna replied with a sly grin.

“Haa, I’m really busy. You know I only came because you asked, right?”

“Yeah, I know. Do you have to say that every day?”

“Show some more gratitude. Who else here can help you besides me?”

Silverna was helping Isaac with both sparring and researching his swordsmanship techniques.

The book he was writing, ‘Isaac’s Sword,’ already had Silverna deeply involved.

“Got it. Remember what we did yesterday? Get into that stance and counter.”

“We’re still doing that?”

Now the two were accustomed to swinging their sword and spear at each other.

A few minutes passed.

Isaac told her to wait, took up his pen, and squatted down to continue writing.

‘Impressive.’

He had told Silverna that she was carrying on Caldias’ spear techniques.

Yet seeing Isaac start from the basics and steadily progress in swordsmanship, Silverna felt a subtle distance—perhaps the difference in talent was just that great.

“How’s Blackthorn?”

Still holding his pen, Isaac asked.

Blackthorn was a noble family that had assisted the Transcendents.

In fact, a member of the Blackthorn family was among the dispatched nobles.

“No particular movements. The one here is still young. Maybe he didn’t know about the Transcendents?”

“…….”

Isaac said nothing more and continued writing.

He too had sparred a few times with the dispatched noble from the Blackthorn family, but found nothing unusual.

As Silverna stood there blankly looking down at Isaac, her lips parted slightly.

She had something she wanted to ask. She hesitated because it was a sensitive topic, but—

“About Rihanna—.”

Before thinking, almost by instinct, Silverna blurted out the words.

“Hmm?”

She hastily tried to cover her mouth with her hand, but Isaac had already heard her. He turned his head and looked her way.

It was too late.

After a moment of pondering, Silverna forced an awkward smile and asked:

“Rihanna is quite skilled, isn’t she?”

Perhaps assuming it wasn’t a big deal, Isaac nodded and went back to writing.

“Right, aside from the head of the family, she’s the strongest in Helmut.”

Among her siblings, she stood out by far in terms of ability.

“I also easily beat the eldest son once, but I lost to Rihanna. Of course! That was only because I was exhausted at the time!”

Silverna hurriedly added, prompting Isaac to grin.

‘If I judge it coldly now…’

At present, Silverna wouldn’t stand a chance against Rihanna. One could say Silverna hadn’t yet ‘bloomed.’

‘Still, she is doing her best.’

Spurred by Isaac’s words from before, Silverna had been seeking her own “Caldias” and working hard.

“Rihanna is… well… an incredible swordswoman.”

Isaac, who didn’t particularly feel like talking about her, tried to gloss over it.

But oblivious, Silverna rambled on about her rival.

“Actually, there’s a rumor that Rihanna’s reputation might be inflated. She’s called the ‘Blood Rose,’ but they say she hasn’t really shown much compared to Lohengrin, the eldest son.”

“…….”

“But having faced her myself, I know. There’s an immeasurable gap between Rihanna and Lohengrin.”

“Well, that’s true.”

Isaac paused his pen and stared blankly at the ground.

“Did you know?”

Recalling the past, Isaac let out a hollow laugh and murmured:

“Rihanna can split a river.”

“……Huh?”

When Silverna gave him a puzzled look at the absurd claim, Isaac grinned, amused by her expression.

Still at a loss, Silverna asked:

“Is that… some kind of metaphor? Like you’re describing a blood-soaked battlefield figuratively?”

“Haha, think of it however you like.”

Even now, remembering that sight made Isaac chuckle in disbelief. Realizing he wasn’t joking, Silverna tilted her head and asked:

“Why would she split a river?”

It was a purely curious question.

If she wanted to train, why do something as pointless as slicing a river?

A question that got straight to the heart of it.

Isaac, treating it as an old, weightless memory, answered with disinterest:

“It was a proposal.”

“What? What do you mean by that?”

Although Silverna kept pressing for details, Isaac brushed it off as nothing important.

“Anyway, do you have time? Can you help me a bit more?”

Isaac closed the book and asked.

“Ah, again?”

Truthfully, she did have enough time.

“Tsk, hold on. I’ll go ask Anna.”

“Please do.”

“It’s tough, you know. I said I’m busy.”

With that, Silverna deliberately turned her body and headed toward Anna, who was waiting off in the distance.

“Hehe.”

Silverna felt genuinely happy that Isaac needed her and held onto her like this.

****

The next day, at the same time.

Just like before, Silverna finished her lunch and went to find Isaac.

‘Where’s Anna?’

She couldn’t spot Anna anywhere, so she spent some time looking around and arrived a bit late. But at least she made it to Isaac.

“Silverna, you’re here?”

“Ah, my lady.”

Isaac greeted her with an even brighter smile than yesterday. In front of him stood Anna, awkwardly holding a spear.

“Wh-what… what’s going on here?”

With a baffled look, Silverna asked, and Isaac gave her a thumbs-up.

“You said you were really busy, right? So I asked Anna to help me out today.”

“…….”

“So you don’t have to spend time helping me today. I felt bad that I’ve been taking up so much of your time lately.”

“Oh, right.”

Silverna, dumbfounded, nodded absentmindedly.

Unlike usual, her face went blank as she stared at Anna. But Anna stood firm and didn’t back down.

‘It’s for your own good, my lady!’

Anna knew Silverna was growing fond of Isaac. This was her special measure.

A married man. And worse, the husband of Helmut’s eldest daughter, Rihanna.

If Silverna fell in love with Isaac?

‘No future awaits but disaster!’

Not just heartbreak—society would surely point fingers at Silverna.

“Ah, so… you don’t need me today.”

With a voice as cold and dry as the northern chill, Silverna nodded and turned around.

“...”

“Great, that’s a relief.”

“...”

“Really, I was busy. Guess I was pushing myself too hard.”

“...”

“I had to do this, and that too.”

“...”

“Ah, I was busy, but this worked out well.”

“...”

“Haha, lucky me. It was so annoying.”

“...”

“Right, right, Isaac. I’m leaving then.”

“Ah, good. That’s great.”

Watching Silverna’s hunched shoulders as she trudged away, Anna felt her heart wrench, but she held it in.

“Anna, shall we get started?”

“Yes, understood.”

Anna took up the position and weapons Isaac requested, serving as his sparring partner.

Through this, Isaac would discover and understand something new.

“…….”

Feeling a prickling sensation on his back, Isaac turned slightly.

At the far end of the training grounds, hidden behind a tree, Silverna stood glaring intently at them.

– – – The End of The Chapter – – –

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