Osterode’s soldiers successively entered Silesia through its northern gate. If someone aware of the palace’s circumstances to some extent had seen this, they might have been baffled by that spectacle. Valentina, the commander of Osterode’s army, was a criminal. As such she usually shouldn’t be allowed to pass the gate with her troops just like that.
However, she calmly led her horse at the head of her army as protector of the capital who had repelled Bydgauche’s army. The residents had gathered at the sides of the main street, watching the procession, but their eyes were only filled with hope and curiosity, lacking any hostility or anxiety.
The number of soldiers she had taken with her from Osterode amounted to roughly 5,000 men. An army of this size was the maximum she could move during the winter. Valentina had chosen 500 soldiers from among them to enter the capital with her, ordering the rest to remain on standby outside the city. If she had tried to enter the city with all soldiers at once, she’d have invited uneasiness among its residents which would have inevitably led to chaos spreading.
Seeing how she was planning to stay in the capital for a long time, she had assessed that she ought to avoid such a situation.
“Lady Vanadis, what are we going to do with these iron chains?” The knight instructing the soldiers from Valentina’s side asked.
Upon Valentina’s order, the supply unit had loaded very long, iron chains on wagons that were pulled by two oxens. Moreover, it was a convoy consisting of several wagons. Yet, none of Valentina’s men had been told what she was planning to do with these chains.
“Please transport them to my mansion. I can’t let you in on the details, but please be aware that these are very important.”
“As you wish, milady. I shall order the soldiers to handle them carefully.” The knight saluted, and left to pass on the directives to the supply unit.
Valentina suppressed the wry smile forming on her lips. There was no way she could actually talk about the intent behind those chains. After all, they were capable of sealing a draconic tool’s powers. She had gotten her hands on these chains in Brune. Charon Anquetil Greast had secretly handed them to her. The power of the chains had been proven when he had used them to hold Elen prisoner.
Of course Valentina wasn’t so naive to believe that these chains would allow her to prevail in the battle against the other Vanadis, but there was no doubt that they were an effective weapon against them. For this very reason she had to keep them hidden until the other Vanadis would challenge her on the battlefield.
After proceeding along the main street while casting a sweet smile at the residents, she arrived at the palace.
──I’m sure no one has expected me to return in such a manner.
After having the majority of her soldiers wait outside the palace, she took five soldiers with her and entered the compound. The one greeting her was Miron, unable to hide his mixed feelings. He didn’t come out to meet her alone, but had several civil officials standing behind him.
“Lady Valentina, you have my gratitude for having defeated Bydgauche’s army for us.” In his position, Miron had no choice but to say so.
Valentina responded with a smile, “Don’t mention it. It’s my duty as Vanadis to protect the capital. Although I had expected you to accuse me for having escaped the capital despite having been placed under house arrest.”
Having been beaten to the punch, Milon and the civil officials grimaced. They hadn’t yet been able to collect their thoughts on how to tackle that issue since they weren’t able to keep up with the sudden changes in the situation.
Valentina continued with a calm face, “It sounds like all kinds of problems are occurring at various places within the Kingdom, but I shall make any effort to protect His Highness and this capital. I’d like you to give me your permission towards this end. I also find it hard to believe that Bydgauche’s army would give up after one defeat…”
Valentina knew that Bydgauche’s army wouldn’t make any moves for a while, but Miron and the people at the palace didn’t. Remembering Julian’s letter, worry towards Bydgauche’s army overshadowed all their other emotions. Miron lowered his head, adhering to decorum.
“I shall leave it in your capable hands, Lady Valentina. Please protect His Highness and the capital.”
“Please count on me.” Valentina elegantly bowed once more.
This was the moment she had secured an unshakable position in the capital.
“Then, as for the matter of you having broken your house arrest, we will put it on hold for──”
Miron interrupted the civil official, who had spoken up, by lifting his hand.
“No… Thinking about it now, Lady Valentina was punished for having tried to protect His Highness from that cunning Earl Pardu.”
Valentina had challenged Sofy to a fight in the palace’s garden after taking the secret information that Eugene was targeting the crown seriously, at least according to what Valentina had told Ruslan.
“Seeing how Earl Pardu’s plots have come to light, the actions of Lady Valentina and Lady Figneria are nothing that ought to be regarded as crime. Rather, they should be praised for their loyalty.”
“…Did something happen?” Valentina asked, nervousness somewhat coloring her face.
Of course this was no more than acting. Valentina knew very well what had happened. After all, it was one of her own schemes that had led to this.
When Miron explained that Eugene stood in contact with Muozinel, Valentina intentionally acted surprised, asking with a shocked face, “That Earl Pardu?”
“Where is the earl right now then?”
“I have thrown him into the dungeon. As it’d plunge the capital in confusion if I announced the truth, I felt that it’d be prudent to wait a little bit longer until things have settled down.”
“I agree with your line of thinking, Your Excellency.” Valentina flashed a smile at Miron.
For her Miron was far easier to deal with than Eugene.
“By the way, I’d love to visit His Highness to take a look at his condition.”
With the talks having reached a breaking point, Valentina requested to do something she wanted to confirm above all else. A sheen of sweat appeared on Miron’s forehead as he looked back at the officials behind him. One among them spoke up.
“His Highness’ body still is not back in shape, and thus he has been resting.”
“I’m well aware of this.” Valentina returned at once, a faint trace of cold indifference dyeing her voice. “As one of his retainers, I’m deeply concerned about His Highness’ health. Please do not take my words as me wanting to unreasonably wake him. I’ll be more than satisfied with taking a look at him from a distance. If you claim that something of this level cannot be granted, I’d like to know whether there’s some reason for your refusal.”
“No, that’s not how it is.” Miron shook his head in a hurry.
The old chamberlain believed that Valentina’s loyalty towards Ruslan was as firm as a rock. He found it unbearable to be suspected by her that they attempted to keep her away from Ruslan because she harbored some evil intentions.
“Very well. I shall take you to him, Lady Valentina. In the meantime, I’d like your attendants to wait in a guest room. Would that arrangement be alright with you?”
Valentina consented, and after entrusting her subordinates to the civil officials, followed Miron through the hallways of the palace. They arrived at Ruslan’s bedroom in no time. Valentina passed her draconic tool to a soldier serving as guard.
Once Miron opened the door, she could see how Ruslan was laying on a luxurious bed located in the center of the spacious room. The court physician was standing next to the bed. As soon as she saw Ruslan, Valentina felt a pang of tension. With her eyes being widened a bit more than usual, she unconsciously pursed her lips.
Without noticing that change in Valentina, Miron explained the circumstances to the physician. Being invited by Miron, Valentina walked up to the bed.
Ruslan was apparently awake. Albeit dimly, his eyes were open. His pale golden hair had been carefully tied at his nape, and he was clean-shaven. His face was somewhat pale, and his cheeks had lost some of their fleshiness.
──It appears he’s going to last a bit longer for me.
She calmly analyzed while pushing her emotions aside. Valentina would be troubled if Ruslan died on her in this situation tomorrow or the day after. She wanted him to at least stay alive until the end of winter.
“Your Highness, Valentina Glinka Estes has come to visit you.”
While maintaining her politeness as retainer, Valentina quietly watched Ruslan’s state. Ruslan moved his eyes, looking up to her. Then a hoarse voice escaped the prince’s lips.
“Tina, huh…?”
“Yes, Your Highness. I am here.” Valentina smiled after being addressed with her nickname.
However, Ruslan’s next words caused Valentina’s smile to freeze.
“Tina, did you read Leitmeritz’ 『Ephram and Ivan』…?”
Despite the casual nature of the question, Valentina couldn’t reply right away. 『Ephram and Ivan』 was a märchen passed down in Zhcted since ancient times. Its story revolved around the wise Prince Ephram defeating the evil Grand Chamberlain Ivan, but after being altered by many people over decades, it was said that more than fifty versions of the fairy tale existed nowadays. This was the reason why Ruslan had expressly added 『Leitmeritz’』.
“…Yes. I enjoyed reading it.” After leaving a pause of two breaths, Valentina answered with her smile still stuck to her lips.
That was no lie. In the so-called Leitmeritz version, Ephram was an illegitimate prince, and after overcoming all kinds of ordeals, he defeated the grand chamberlain, who was about to take over the kingdom, and ascended the throne in the end. The story of 『Ephram and Ivan』 itself was rather simple, but it was the kind of story Valentina liked.
Ruslan put on a smile, “I was sure you’d like it. Albeit being a girl, you always liked stories of bravery. You should read 『Northern Sea Baron』 when you get a chance. Aunt Natasha──”
As his voice became too quiet during the latter part of his comment, only Valentina could hear what he said. But then his words got interrupted by a strong coughing fit.
Miron cried out, “Your Highness!”, but Ruslan held him back by lightly shaking his head. Closing his eyes right after, the prince soon began to snore.
Seeing that, the chamberlain felt relieved. Miron then exchanged a look with Valentina, and the two left the prince’s bedroom after nodding at the physician.
Miron addressed Valentina, who accepted her draconic tool from the guard, with a confused look, “Lady Valentina, did you meet with His Highness in the past?”
“No,” Valentina shook her head, causing her long, black hair to sway.
At that time, she had already regained her usual composure.
“I just went along with his story. I was surprised by the sudden topic, but I also happen to have read 『Ephram and Ivan』.”
“But, His Highness called you Tina…”
Seeing on Miron’s face that he found it hard to believe her, Valentina added, “His Highness said 『Albeit being a girl』, didn’t he? I consider myself to still be young, but unfortunately I’m not an age anymore where you could call me a girl. I fear that His Highness has confused me with someone else because of his weak condition.”
“…Hmm, that makes sense. It must be as you say.”
It wasn’t as though Miron had asked out of some conviction. And Valentina’s argument that Ruslan had mistaken her for someone else carried a persuasive power.
Pulling herself together, Valentina bowed at Miron, “You have my deepest gratitude for having allowed me to visit His Highness Ruslan. Let me ascertain you once more: I shall protect His Highness, and expand all of my meager abilities to defend the capital from foreign enemies.”
“I leave it in your capable hands, Lady Valentina.”
After Miron deeply bowed as well, the two talked about the upcoming measures and plans. Valentina requested for all gates to be opened as proof of peace having returned to the capital. On the same occasion, she got Miron to agree with Osterode’s soldiers gradually entering the capital.
“I will have my soldiers man the walls and patrol the streets. Your Excellency, you can leave all matters related to the military to me. So could I have you take care of the governmental affairs instead?”
This was an arrangement Miron had desired to begin with. The elderly chamberlain readily consented, and led Valentina to one of the guest rooms.
“I’d like you to use this room for the time being. I’ll have a room for your personal use prepared by tomorrow at the latest.”
“Thank you very much for your kind consideration.”
When Miron had left in order to give the bureaucrats the necessary instructions, Valentina leaned against the wall and sighed deeply, now all alone in her room. Various emotions swirled through her violet eyes.
“For him to have remembered this of all things…”
Ruslan had certainly mistaken her as he had addressed the past Valentina.
──A girl with the nickname Tina; if it’s only that much, it’s not limited to me alone. But…
Ruslan had only one aunt with the name Natasha. She was the younger sister of the late Viktor, and Valentina regarded her as her second mother. Natasha had married twice, and lost both husbands. King Viktor had urged his sister to remarry many times over, but she refused that, and moved to Osterode, saying that this was the land where her second husband had been born and raised. This was something that happened close to twenty years ago.
Valentina had lived at Natasha’s mansion for five years after she became seven years old. This had been arranged by King Viktor with the aim to comfort his sister, but Valentina hadn’t been chosen for this task because she was suitable, but as a result of a process of elimination.
As Natasha was the king’s sister, holding the right to the throne, many of the noble lords approached her. Just like some of them tried to curry favors with her out of selfish interests, other lords tried to passionately bring up entreaties the king had rejected.
Natasha moving away from the capital to Osterode wasn’t just a result of her cherishing the memories of her husband, but also followed the aim to escape all these troublesome approaches.
If it came to placing someone close to his sister, the king wanted to avoid relying on someone of high status or someone with many relatives in the capital. However, someone of low social standing would likely falter away in front of her, and King Viktor loathed the idea of placing someone of unknown lineage at his sister’s side. Moreover, since it’d be bad for nasty rumors to crop up, men above a certain age were excluded as candidates as well.
As such Valentina came up as a candidate. She was a distant relative, but still royalty as she held the Estes family name, and given that she also possessed an obedient character, the king chose her.
Natasha harbored neither interest nor indifference towards the seven-years old girl that visited her mansion. Beginning with her language, Natasha strictly educated Valentina in etiquette, but she also taught the young girl many practical things such as reading and writing, knitting and embroidery, and the art of brewing tea. On top of that, Natasha passed on many stories and songs she knew.
Valentina became fairly attached to Natasha. For her, who had had a lifestyle equal to that of a commoner despite being royalty, everything and anything she encountered in Natasha’s mansion was a fresh experience. Moreover, Valentina quickly realized that all of Natasha’s teachings were for her own sake, causing her to make a serious effort to learn as much as possible. Because Valentina’s body was weak back then, she couldn’t go outside much, and thus she used her free time to read books next to Natasha, or listen to her tales.
Furthermore, there was yet another important experience at Natasha’s mansion for Valentina. Someone from the capital visited the mansion around once per month. The visitors varied. Just like a middle-aged woman wearing a silken dress came over, it also happened that slender, young men visited.
Natasha welcomed all these people without reservation, led them to the guest room, and listened to their stories, but Valentina still remembered very clearly how Natasha almost always looked weary after those guests left.
At some point, Valentina started to eavesdrop. 80% of the reason lay with her sense of justice to make a huge ruckus if something happened to Natasha, but the remaining 20% stemmed from the thrill of witnessing something scary. Valentina intuitively sensed that she’d encounter a world she didn’t know, or very likely, a world best left unknown.
The guests were all people visiting the mansion to influence King Viktor and the kingdom’s authorities through Natasha. Because Natasha didn’t look all that eager after listening to them in most of the cases, they explained the circumstances down to the last detail, and fell back on fervent speeches. After these guests left, Valentina often told Natasha, “Aunt, let me handle the next visitor. If I tell them that you are preoccupied, I am sure they will go away.”
However, Natasha always shook her head while gently stroking Valentina’s head, “Don’t mind it, Tina. Those people are my guests, so I must deal with them.”
Thinking back on it now, Valentina knew that it was the shallow thinking of a kid. It was unthinkable that visitors, who had traveled all the way to Osterode from the capital, would simply go back because a child said so. And just the fact that they were relying on Natasha, who was as good as retired, already showed the gravity of the problems they wanted to bring up with her. Understanding all that, Natasha didn’t turn them away, and occasionally listened to their requests.
By the way, some of the knowledge Valentina had obtained by eavesdropping on those meetings, she later used for her own ambitions after growing up.
Most of the visitors weren’t really welcome, but there also existed exceptions. One of those exceptions was a blond youth called Petrov. He was around twenty years old, giving everyone who saw him a cheerful impression. Whenever he visited, Valentina was also allowed to sit in. Natasha never called him by name, but instead referred to him with boy. Petrov accepted that with a smile.
As far as Valentina knew, Petrov never mentioned any requests towards Natasha. He talked about the news of the capital to her, enjoying the light-hearted casual chats. Sometimes, when he stayed over for the night, he’d sit on the sofa next to Valentina, completely absorbed in reading books.
As she was curious about him, Valentina asked Petrov all kinds of things, but with him dodging all her questions, she could only extract that he was apparently royalty just like her. Once he found out about Valentina’s liking to read books, he introduced various kinds of books to her. He visited Natasha’s mansion once every two months, but sometimes he also brought books for Valentina with him.
Before long Valentina noticed that Petrov was just an alias. It often happened that the name Petrov was used as an alias because it was so common in Zhcted’s north. This was also the reason why Natasha never called him by that name. However, since Valentina had become very close to Petrov at that time, she didn’t pay any real attention to it.
Once Valentina turned twelve years old, her duty was taken over by someone else. It wasn’t as though Valentina had made a mistake. It just followed King Viktor’s belief that it wouldn’t be overly wise to allow a single person to keep staying by his sister’s side.
Back then, Valentina didn’t understand the idea behind it. She felt devastated that her daily life up until then had come to an end. However, Natasha telling her, “You’re always welcome here, my beloved daughter,” made Valentina very happy. Afterwards Valentina made sure to visit Natasha at least once a year.
◆◇◆
Several dozen days ago, even before departing Osterode with 5,000 soldiers to take the capital, Valentina had visited Natasha. She had knocked on the door of Natasha’s mansion with the intent to bid farewell for the last time.
Even though Natasha noticed that an atmosphere different from usual clad her “beloved daughter,” she welcomed Valentina with the attitude she had always used when dealing with the young woman.
Without mentioning anything unnecessary, Valentina enjoyed a friendly chat with the elderly woman while drinking the black tea Natasha had brewed for her. During her childhood, Valentina had never requested anything of Natasha that would require time and effort, even when it came to her childish pleas.
When their conversation hit upon the time when Ruslan fell ill at the capital, Valentina ended up asking something that had been bothering her against her better judgment.
“Aunt Natasha, do you know anything about the mental illness that befell Prince Ruslan in the past?”
Eight years ago Ruslan had managed to garner the respect and popularity of the people through his own efforts as the one to succeed the throne in the future. But then he suddenly fell ill and set fire to the royal villa. Valentina had investigated the cause for his illness at a time, but in the end she failed in finding out anything.
After remaining silent for a short while, Natasha turned her eyes to the wall. However, what the eyes of the old woman were apparently looking at wasn’t a white wall, but a distant past.
“Let’s see, big brother has already passed away, so I guess it’s alright for me to tell you alone.” Natasha told Valentina with a calm tone as if narrating an old story, “Do you know anything about the previous Vanadis?”
“No, not really…” Valentina shook her head.
She had heard some things from the people working at the governmental residence about the Vanadis who had ruled Osterode before her. But, she had never seen that Vanadis in person. That was only natural if you considered the system of the draconic tool searching for a new Vanadis after its previous owner passed away as Vanadis for some reason or another. It was a rare exception for the title of Vanadis to stay in the family as it happened with Ludmila Lourie’s family.
Seemingly having predicted Valentina’s response, Natasha nodded slowly, “The previous Vanadis, you see, were often women overflowing with valor, even when looking at them from my point of view. The relationship between them and my brother was very bad.”
Does she mean that they possessed an abundance of fighting spirit? Valentina mumbled in her mind. They must have been quite incompatible with King Viktor who considered war as annoying.
“Ruslan was on very good terms with two particular Vanadis. That boy wanted Zhcted to become greater by giving the Vanadis more freedom. I hear my brother and that boy have often argued about this issue. In the end, neither could accept the other’s view on this.”
Valentina’s eyes widened ever so slightly. This was something she heard for the first time. Going by the stories she had heard in the palace, Ruslan was a good prince and son.
──Strengthening the authority of the Vanadis to expand the kingdom, huh?
That part was surprising for Valentina since Ruslan had come up with the same idea she had in mind.
“I don’t know which of the two was right. On all other points, they were close to each other as father and son, just as it’s said by those who had been around them.” Natasha continued her story, “At some point, a certain royal plotted an uprising against my brother. He moved around very carefully to get everything ready, and succeeded in winning over several influential nobles, and moreover, two Vanadis. Those Vanadis allied with him because they harbored animosity towards my brother. In terms of the result, the revolt failed.”
King Viktor found out about the intrigue before it was carried out, and arrested the ringleaders on other charges, forced a confession out of them, and executed the whole lot. This intrigue became a scandal only known to a very few people.
Very likely the biggest salvation for King Viktor was the fact that he didn’t need to punish the two Vanadis. At the same time as the royal betrayer was executed, the draconic tools left their owners. Both had lost their qualification to be Vanadis, resulting in them departing from Zhcted. It was considered that the whole affair had ended with this, but King Viktor didn’t intend to leave it at that. His eyes zeroed in on the other royals, and the Vanadis who didn’t actively ally themselves with King Viktor during this incident. And among them were also Vanadis and royals who were close to Ruslan.
“I don’t know anything about the conversations between my brother and that boy. But, according to what I’ve heard from my brother, Ruslan tried to fervently persuade my brother, but my brother didn’t even try to lend him an ear. He said that their opinions and attitude towards the Vanadis differed too much to find a common ground.”
Valentina agreed with that in her mind. Natasha had heard this from her brother, King Viktor. Valentina was aware of the intrigue against King Viktor, but she didn’t know anything about what happened afterwards.
I dare say that currently no one in the palace knows about this.
“And then I heard that Ruslan took poison in order to stop my brother.”
A faint shadow of gloom crept into Valentina’s violet eyes. She had now realized why Natasha was telling her all this.
“──Aunt.”
“Forgive me, Tina.” Natasha bowed her head lightly.
Valentina shook her head, “No, there is no need for you to apologize, Aunt.”
Natasha had said, “it’s alright for me to tell you alone.” Natasha probably believed that at least one of the royals should know about this. Valentina was distantly related to the royal family, and possessed the family name Estes.
“Speaking of Ruslan, I think I should tell you something else as well. You were very close to him as a child.”
Valentina tilted her head in confusion. After all, she had met Ruslan for the first time when she visited the capital after having become a Vanadis.
Natasha continued with a smile, “Do you remember Petrov?”
The instant Natasha asked her this, the dots connected deep in Valentina’s mind. Until this very day she had striven to not pry into Petrov’s background. This stemmed from her respecting his wish of not wanting to reveal his identity, but there was also a part in her that believed that she’d stain her memories of him by learning the truth.
Valentina nodded while anticipating Natasha’s next words.
“That boy was Ruslan. He was visiting me to check on my condition in my brother’s stead.”
◆◇◆
After leaving the royal palace, Valentina soon arrived on top of the wall enclosing the capital. She was shouldering her draconic tool, the scythe Ezendeis.
Valentina didn’t get perturbed by most things, but as might be expected, she needed some time to calm down after having heard Ruslan’s words. On top of that, the aspect of her getting confused by something like that was unexpected for her.
Up here she didn’t run the risk of drawing any suspicions, even if she walked around by herself. It was the perfect place to cool down her emotions.
Soldiers of Osterode were already visible atop the wall. They were serving as lookouts while cooperating with the soldiers who were assigned to patrol the wall to begin with. Of course, they didn’t forget to put up Osterode’s flags at all the key points. After all, it was necessary to let everyone know that Osterode’s army was protecting the capital.
“Thank you for your hard work.” Answering the soldiers saluting her with a smile, Valentina kept walking on the wall while looking down at the streets.
The eastern gate was wide open, and a long line of merchants and travelers had queued up there. The majority was trying to leave the capital with only very few trying to get in.
“It looks like His Excellency the Grand Chamberlain has opened up all gates just as I’ve asked him to. In some days the gate will likely thrive with people wanting to enter again.” Valentina cheerfully muttered while scanning the vicinity of the gate.
Until just a little while ago, the capital’s gates had been firmly locked day and night. It was only natural that many people felt like escaping a city under such circumstances. Valentina was certain that all those people would come back again once they realized that the capital was safe.
When she arrived at a deserted section of the wall, Valentina revealed a bitter smile while allowing the wind to whirl up her black hair, “One always runs into unforeseen situations, eh?”
Even when Valentina made Ruslan drink the medicine and thus allowed his awareness to slowly return, and also after Ruslan had fully recovered his former self, he had never broached the topic of him having acted as Petrov. Valentina suspected that he might have forgotten about it since it was something that took place more than ten years ago.
By no means had Valentina expected that he’d suddenly remember after she had heard the story from Natasha. But then again, he had merely picked up a fragment of a memory deeply buried in his unstable mind, and it was quite possible that he’d forgotten about their short conversation by the time his consciousness resurfaced next.
Valentina very naturally entered a place out of sight. After making sure that she couldn’t sense any looks on her or the presence of anyone, she quietly closed her eyes, and inclined her scythe a bit. Then she soundlessly mumbled, “Your Highness.”
──It feels slightly strange that His Highness and I have been aiming for the same thing. But I won’t become arrogant and say that I’ll fulfill His Highness’ dream together with him. The only thing I can fulfill is my own dream. The more concrete its shape, the more it will turn into nothing but my dream.
No matter how much their dreams resembled each other, Valentina was convinced that her dream would never become Ruslan’s and vice versa.
──Come to think of it, if it’s the progress it’s going to make during winter…there might be no visible, huge misalignment between His Highness’ and my dream.
Maybe this was her appeal to Ruslan, an attempt to persuade herself, or both. Valentina opened her eyes. As a happy smile formed on her lips, distinct ambitions gleamed in her amethyst-like eyes. Ruslan’s words had gone through several deep contemplations, and had now apparently turned into a new source of motivation for her.
──The things I have to do haven’t changed. I’m going to consign all those who point their weapons at me to oblivion as Ruslan’s loyal retainer. And then I’ll become the queen of this country after inheriting the crown from Ruslan. Since this is no disobedience against the king, my draconic tool won’t have anything to complain about either.
It’s not a really ingenious plan. Valentina herself didn’t believe that her way of doing things was overly creative or anything. It might lead to her having to repeatedly go to war for the sake of unifying the country under her rule after becoming the queen, but right now none of the neighboring countries had the leeway to invade Zhcted.
Moreover, the Kurtis family was on the brink of collapse, and the Kazakov house had recently lost most of its power, so it’d be an ease to grasp all of Zhcted’s north. Valentina had manipulated those two after foreseeing that. The rest would depend on how much she could whittle down the power of the other Vanadis.
“I think I should go and take a look at Legnicia’s state for starters.” Valentina raised her scythe overhead with her bluish-black hair flying in the wind. “──Space CorridorVuoldohl”
As soon as she swung down Ezendeis, cutting through the air, space around her warped. Colors and contour rapidly faded from Valentina’s body as she melted into the space distortion. An instant later, she soundlessly vanished altogether, leaving not a single trace of her former existence in this place behind.
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