Chapter 29: Dinner

“Organize the parts you felt were lacking and let me know tomorrow.”

Night had quietly crept in before they realized it. As Isaac spoke while sliding his sword back into its scabbard, Sharen blinked in a daze.

“Me?”

“Yeah, you did pretty well earlier. What you pointed out was actually quite helpful.”

“Oh, right… yeah, I did say something.”

Sharen answered sheepishly. After all, what she’d mentioned earlier was actually advice given by Rihanna, so it felt strange to be asked for more input. It made her feel a bit awkward, too.

“Do I really have to say it?”

“It’d be great if you did. Why, does it feel too hard?”

“No, no! I can do it! Totally doable. I’ll pick apart that sword you showed earlier like fish bones and bring you all my notes!”

At Sharen pumping her fists with childlike excitement, Isaac let slip a faint smile. He wasn’t really expecting anything groundbreaking from Sharen. Rather, he was hoping she might relay some input from the woman behind her.

‘Facing my ex-wife directly for advice would’ve been awkward.’

In this way, Sharen became something of a carrier pigeon. Isaac intended to make use of her as long as he could.

“By the way, Isaac, you’re going to eat dinner now, right? Want to go together?”

“I’ve actually been invited somewhere for dinner tonight. So I can’t join you.”

“Invited? Now? By who?”

“By the Margrave.”

“Uldiran Caldias?! Wait, why you?”

“Beats me.”

Isaac gave a nonchalant answer, as if he were babysitting a child, but he also found it curious. Normally, he’d just let it slide, but this was wartime, and the enemy hordes were closing in.

An invitation to dinner under these circumstances… it wasn’t likely to be pleasant.

“Hey, Isaac, you don’t think he’s trying to get you to remarry or anything, right?”

“….”

Startled by Sharen’s sudden question, Isaac clamped his mouth shut. It felt like blurting out any old response might lead to disaster.

After taking a breath, Isaac replied calmly:

“I’m not interested.”

“Really?”

“I’m telling you, I’m not. But why do you even ask? It’s none of your concern.”

“I-I was just checking! I was worried maybe you’d end up becoming Caldias’s son-in-law or something!”

“Hah, Sharen. Since you don’t know much about how things work here, let me make it very clear.”

“Huh?”

He figured he should let this naïve, sword-swinging tomboy know that this wasn’t the same as back at the mansion.

“Don’t go saying weird things outside. Rihanna and I are still husband and wife.”

With that, Isaac showed her the ring on the ring finger of his left hand.

“See this? But you’re out here talking about divorces and remarriages with the Caldias family. Saying stuff like that in public is dangerous.”

“….”

“What would you do if someone overheard? Do you have any idea how many nobles from various houses are here?”

“Yes, I know.”

“How many?”

“…No clue.”

“Then you don’t know anything.”

Sharen looked up at Isaac blankly, then nodded before she even realized it.

“Y-yeah, you’re right.”

Sharen tilted her head, feeling like she’d somehow been cornered in that conversation. Before she could collect herself, Isaac continued firing away.

“That’s why you need to watch what you say, day or night. I’ll be leaving Helmut in a month anyway, but what about you? You’ll be staying, right?”

“Yeah.”

Sharen nodded, then suddenly lifted her head with curiosity.

“Wait, are you worried about me?”

“What the—? Haa… believe whatever you want.”

Kids around this age could throw the conversation off track at any moment. Deciding he couldn’t keep up, Isaac gave up on any more thinking and set off for his dinner appointment.

***

“…..”

This wasn’t his first time being invited to dinner at the Caldias estate, so Isaac didn’t think too much of it at first. They’d known each other for quite some time now, and he figured there was no need for excessive formality or feeling burdened.

“Please, help yourself.”

To his surprise, however, there was another woman at the table—a presence that caught Isaac off guard.

Her name was Seleny Caldias, Uldiran’s wife and Silverna’s mother. Her long white hair, her still-radiant beauty despite her age, and her ample chest all hinted at the source of Silverna’s looks.

“Thank you for having me.”

The meal was rather modest. For something called an ‘invitation,’ it wasn’t all that fancy, comparable to what you’d get in a soldiers’ mess hall.

“Were you expecting some grand feast? Disappointed?”

Across from him, Uldiran Caldias asked playfully, still holding his fork.

“If you had put on a lavish banquet in the middle of all this, that would’ve disappointed me.”

Isaac replied with a gentle smile, and Uldiran chuckled with approval. A Margrave hosting a decadent feast during wartime wouldn’t have been the Caldias he knew.

“…..”

“My, Silverna. We have a guest, and all you’re doing is concentrating on your food?”

At her mother’s remark, Silverna, who’d been shoveling food into her mouth while staring down at her plate, flinched. She quickly grabbed her water and gulped it down before speaking.

“I—I was just really hungry.”

“He’s still in your unit, you know.”

“…..”

Silverna, who’d been avoiding Isaac’s gaze, glanced sideways at him. Her cheeks were flushed red with embarrassment as she awkwardly offered a comment:

“Hey, you. I told you to cut that hair of yours, didn’t I?”

“Were you serious?”

“Of course I was.”

“I’ll cut it later. The barbers up here in the North all want to make me look like a barbarian berserker.”

“You look so slender, they probably think you need a more rugged look.”

Surprisingly, the conversation between the two flowed more smoothly than expected—enough to make Silverna realize she’d been acting overly dramatic about keeping her distance.

Now that she understood her feelings and knew she had to give up on them, maybe she’d overreacted.

“How about I cut it for you?”

“You know how to cut hair?”

“Why wouldn’t I? I’ve taken plenty of heads off monsters.”

“…..”

“I could just use a spear instead of scissors, if that’s alright?”

As they continued their banter, Uldiran cut in:

“Isaac Helmut, Antonio suddenly came to see me today.”

“…Antonio-nim.”

This was exactly the topic Isaac had expected for this dinner invitation—the most likely reason for it.

“He said he wants to make a sword out of Frostsilver Ore. And it’s for you.”

Isaac internally cursed Antonio’s recklessness, but at least the Margrave brought it up first. Even mentioning Frostsilver Ore felt like a delicate matter for Isaac.

“I must have ignited his craftsman spirit. If he said anything disrespectful to you, allow me to apologize on his behalf.”

“Oh, he was certainly disrespectful. He barged into my office out of nowhere, demanding I hand it over.”

“Oh my, really?”

That crazy blacksmith…

Isaac felt a cold sweat coming on, but the Caldias family didn’t seem particularly upset.

“It’s not the first time.”

From Silverna’s reaction, it sounded like Antonio had done similar things before. Uldiran simply chugged his beer, laughing uproariously.

“But this time was a bit different. Usually, he asks for the ore to create his own masterpiece. Now, he wants to make a sword for you, Isaac.”

“…..”

“He said he’s always believed that Helmut was the greatest sword the gods had ever forged. But now, he wants to surpass it with a blade created by his own hands.”

Under the table, Isaac briefly clenched his fist.

“He believes that thin sword he’s going to make for you could defeat Helmut.”

Isaac neither agreed nor denied. He simply sat there quietly, bearing the weight of those high expectations.

“Isaac Helmut.”

Uldiran slowly released his grip on his beer mug. His expression hardened, any hint of inebriation gone from his eyes.

“Needless to say, I can’t hand over Frostsilver Ore.”

“…..”

“It’s not because you’re from the Helmut family. Don’t misunderstand.”

“Yes, I understand. I’m sorry for causing you any trouble.”

Uldiran said no further things simply taking another swig of beer to moisten his lips.

“But why must Isaac, who is already Helmut, surpass Helmut?”

Seleny interjected naturally, cutting through the tense atmosphere with the perfect question.

“Uh, well, you could say it’s a personal determination of mine.”

Isaac responded with an awkward grin, trying to dodge the real reason—he couldn’t exactly announce his impending divorce. Uldiran, however, jumped in again:

“It’s because of the Sword Festival.”

“The Sword Festival?”

Mother and daughter both turned their gazes on him. Uldiran smiled calmly, as if telling a story from the old days.

“It’s an event in Helmut that happens every four years. Nobles from all over the kingdom are invited, and that’s where the direct descendants of Helmut duel each other.”

Uldiran smirked mischievously.

“Outside nobles can join, but most don’t bother. There’s no point; they’d just get crushed by the Helmut anyway.”

“What about you?”

“Me?”

Uldiran let out an embarrassed laugh.

“I tried about twenty years ago. Lost to Arandel. Shame.”

“In that case, Isaac–.”

Silverna’s gaze landed on Isaac.

“I might be a son-in-law, but I’m still the husband in that family. Not Rihanna, but I’ll be the one entering. That’s how it goes.”

Isaac answered with a wry smile, causing Silverna’s eyes to widen.

“So that’s why you’ve been sparring so much with Sharen lately?”

“You could say that.”

Of course, the Sword Festival wasn’t his only reason. Still, it was something he’d have to face eventually. Isaac wanted to become a true swordsman, and sparring with the Helmut family was a rare opportunity. That alone drove him to train so hard.

Especially because once he divorced a month from now, he’d have no chance for those duels.

‘I need to milk every opportunity while I can.’

At least everyone seemed satisfied with that explanation.

“That’s pretty romantic, isn’t it?”

Seleny said with a warm smile.

“Pardon?”

Without meaning to, Isaac let out a flustered noise, and Seleny seemed to take it as him trying to hide his embarrassment.

“You’re entering on your wife’s behalf, after all. You’re working hard so you won’t tarnish her name, right?”

‘That’s not it at all.’

Isaac forced an awkward smile as if his lips were cramping up.

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Ah, that’s lovely. I wish my husband had that kind of romantic streak. Being dependable is great, but a man also needs a bit of romance.”

“Cough-cough!”

Uldiran cleared his throat in embarrassment.

“Why don’t I go get some fresh air?”

Uldiran bolted right out of there.

Seeing him leave, Seleny seemed more at ease. She straightened her posture and her eyes shone with curiosity.

“Hey, Isaac. If it’s not too much trouble, could you tell me some of your romantic memories as a married couple? Everyone around here is always so stiff.”

“Mother?!”

“Haha….”

Silverna tried to stop her, but Seleny propped her chin on her hand, silencing her daughter in one swift motion.

“You need to hear these things, too. You take after your father so much that you have no interest in romance at all, do you?”

Unable to rein in her mother’s chatter, Silverna covered her face with both hands and lowered her head.

“How did you two first meet?”

“Our first meeting….”

Maybe it was the atmosphere pushing him along—before Isaac realized, he was speaking without thinking.

They’d been married for four years. They wed a year after they met, so in total, they had known each other for five years. But if he counted his previous life as well—

That would make it around fifteen years in total.

“Under the warm sunlight—”

Surprisingly enough:

“It was a day when the river glowed golden.”

He could recall that day so vividly.

“She was like a rose, so beautiful yet bristling with thorns.”

Isaac felt himself drifting into memory. The image of Rihanna on the day they first met was as clear as ever.

‘I want to cross the river.’

She hadn’t even bothered with a greeting. She simply made her request in a dry, matter-of-fact tone.

‘One silver coin will do.’

‘I don’t have any on me.’

‘That’s unfortunate. I need that silver coin to row you across.’

‘.…I’ll pay you next time.’

‘What reason do I have to trust that? Could you give me some kind of collateral?’

‘All I have is this sword.’

‘That looks a bit too heavy to be convenient.’

‘……’

She stared at him blankly, her face entirely void of expression. Perhaps that was why he felt like teasing her a bit.

‘How about one smile? I’ll take that as collateral.’

That day, Isaac had won quite a bit playing cards, so he’d been in a generous mood—generous enough to accept something so frivolous as payment.

‘Are you kidding?’

‘If you don’t like it, there’s nothing I can do. I’ll just take a nap now.’

‘t.Wait.’

The rose-like woman let out a sigh, then lifted the corners of her mouth in the most awkward smile he’d ever seen.

‘Is… that what you call smiling?’

‘If that’s not good enough, then I’m out of ideas.’

‘Haah. Alright then—any chance you could make me laugh, instead?’

Back then, he’d taken a keen interest in her naive demeanor. Actually, she could have just drawn that massive sword and forced him to row her across, but she didn’t.

‘Long, long ago—’

She racked her brains and began telling a story.

‘That’s terribly boring.’

It really was. The mood fell so flat you could practically hear it thud.

‘……’

Rihanna clamped her mouth shut, clearly flustered, biting her lip in frustration. Maybe it was the sun… or maybe her own embarrassment… but her pale face turned bright red.

She looked unbelievably charming that way.

‘Haha!’

He burst out laughing before he knew it, losing the silly bet he himself had suggested.

‘You just… laughed.’

‘Oh. Guess I did.’

Even though it felt like tripping over his own feet, Isaac didn’t mind one bit and started rowing.

Sitting on that tiny ferry, he watched her cradle her chin, soaking in the river breeze. He noticed her lips slowly curl upward…

And he distinctly remembered thinking:

-I want to make this person smile again.

“Looking back, I guess you could say it was love at first sight.”

Isaac ended his story with a bashful grin tugging at his lips.

“Well, whatever the situation may be now—”

Back then, at least,

He must have truly loved her.

****

After Isaac left, Seleny stopped by Silverna’s room.

“Mother?”

Silverna, who had been getting ready for bed, still wore a complicated expression. The story Isaac had shared over dinner had set her heart racing far more than she’d expected. And at the same time, it had also made her chest ache more than she’d anticipated.

“I hear you’re in love with someone you’re not supposed to be with.”

“Anna must have told you.”

“I only wanted to help you come to your senses a bit… but it might’ve hurt you more than I intended, so I thought I’d check on you.”

A sympathetic smile appeared on Seleny’s face. Silverna, eyes wide, shook her head softly.

“No, it’s fine. I think I can sort through my feelings now.”

“It was a more passionate story than I expected, but… I have to admit, I’m a little jealous.”

Murmuring that people need a bit of romance, Seleny let out a gentle sigh. Silverna agreed inwardly.

Initially, she’d wondered what Isaac was doing married to someone like Rihanna. But hearing his recollection, it now felt obvious they had gotten married.

Seleny stepped forward and embraced Silverna.

“Silverna, everyone goes through the pain of love at some point. I’m sure this experience will help you find an even better love someday.”

“Mother…”

“I’m sorry.”

“No, I’m the one who should apologize.”

Silverna admitted that it was her own fault for falling in love with a man she could never have. Seleny just held her tighter.

“Silverna.”

“I’m okay. I’ve learned my lesson. Next time I meet the right person, I won’t let the opportunity pass me by. This time… it was just too late.”

At those words, Seleny offered a soft smile. She thought back to her younger years, boldly chasing after Uldiran Caldias until she got his attention.

“Yes, you really are my daughter. I’m sure you’ll do just fine.”

Still cradling Silverna in her arms, Seleny offered words of comfort. She was confident her daughter was strong. Yet suddenly, she remembered:

‘….’

‘Well,’

Isaac’s last remark,

‘Whatever the situation may be now.’

It lingered in Seleny’s mind, unsettling her more than she cared to admit.

– – – The End of The Chapter – – –

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