And Thus… It All Comes to an End - Chapter 12

“Lady Luciana, I have a matter to discuss.”

The door opened quietly, and Gareth entered. He wore his usual stern expression, yet I could see a playful light shining somewhere within his eyes. I looked up from my maps and questioned him composedly.

“What is it, Gareth?”

“It concerns the Dreisburg soldiers we captured.”

His voice was low, carrying the lingering echoes of battle.

“It is hardly interesting to simply feed them for doing nothing. I thought, since we have them, I might train them and see if I can turn them into something useful.”

My eyebrows arched for a moment. I let out a small breath.

“Train them? Hee-hee.”

A faint smile touched the corners of his mouth.

“That sounds just like you. Or perhaps I should call you a glutton for punishment?”

“If left alone, they will only rot. If I subject them to discipline, they may become men of some backbone. —As soldiers of my King.”

I narrowed my eyes slightly. The idea of refashioning enemy soldiers into my own people tickled something deep inside me.

“I wonder if you can truly pull it off?”

“It would trouble me to be underestimated.”

Gareth dropped to one knee and pressed a fist to his chest in a formal salute.

“If Lady Luciana permits it, I shall beat some spirit back into them and turn them into soldiers of absolute loyalty. I shall forge them well enough that they will not bring you shame.”

A gentle smile spread across my lips.

“Then please, strike them down without mercy. Do as you wish.”

“Understood.”

He stood up and struck his chest once as a sign of finality.

“Fortunately, neither we nor they suffered any fatalities. Hatred is unnecessary. However, I shall make them atone for the sin of invading our land with the sweat of their training.”

“I leave it to you.”

Gareth’s training knew no such thing as “going easy.”

In the dim light before dawn, the prisoners stood in the line of fire, covered in mud, and were driven without a moment’s rest until the sun dipped below the horizon. Muscles screamed, voices grew hoarse, and men collapsed time and again.

But Gareth’s commands were not mere violence. There was a craft to it—instilling discipline, teaching technique, and stripping away the habit of making excuses for defeat.

In their eyes, which initially held only defiance and fear, a different light eventually took hold. The hands gripping their swords stopped trembling, and they began to move to protect their comrades instinctively. Watching them help one another before being ordered to do so, it was clear the training was becoming their blood and bone.

Eventually, words began to escape naturally from the mouths of those who were supposed to be the enemy.

“For Veridia—”

It was not yet complete loyalty. However, the old hatred had grown thin, replaced by a rooted “will to survive.” Gareth’s hands had certainly built that foundation.

One day, a messenger rushed in.

“The Knight Captain of Dreisburg has returned with a reply!”

I pushed open the tent flaps to find the Knight Captain, covered in mud. Fatigue and tragedy were etched deep into his face, and a slip of paper fluttered in the wind within his trembling hand. I took it and scanned it quickly. The contents were exactly as I had predicted.

“I beg of you…! Please, at least spare the lives of my subordinates. I will go back once more and surely bring the reparations—”

His words cut off, turning into sobs. However, what welled up in my chest was not sympathy. It was cold calculation. War is not moved by mercy alone.

“Conrad, was it? Follow me.”

I took him with me to the training grounds. The moment Conrad saw the soldiers standing in orderly ranks amidst the clouds of dust, he gasped. Toughened bodies, efficient movements, and straight, unwavering gazes. The shadow of the once-weak soldiers was nowhere to be found.

“Well? Impressive, isn’t it?”

“Y-yes. It’s as if they are different people. Is this your doing?”

Where he directed his question, Gareth gave a quiet laugh.

“I simply happen to enjoy training people.”

As Gareth shrugged, I returned a small smile.

“Tell me, what happened? That King of Dreisburg—he didn’t offer a single cent of reparations for these prisoners, did he?”

“No! You are correct.”

My voice rang out coldly.

“I already know that King’s way of doing things. I was by his side for a long time.”

Gareth narrowed his eyes slightly.

“…How ironic. The King’s incompetence has, in the end, granted strength to our nation.”

Conrad quietly dropped to his knees and bowed his head low.

“If it may be granted, I wish to serve this country. Lord Gareth, I wish for you to retrain me as well.”

I stepped toward him and looked straight down at him.

“And to Her Majesty the Queen. I offer my loyalty as well.”

“It is too early to swear loyalty. I am not yet a formal Queen. —Request it again when you have become ‘useful’.”

Conrad bowed his head even deeper.

“Stern words, Your Majesty.”

In his eyes, there was a light of resolve rather than frustration.

“A knight’s loyalty is not found in words of oath, but at the end of rigorous training. Gareth, I leave him to you.”

What makes a nation a “nation” is neither power nor authority. It is the accumulation of certain loyalty and trust. I thought this as I looked up at the azure flag fluttering in the wind.

“Lady Luciana.”

I turned at the sound of the voice behind me to find Gareth standing there.

“Gareth, you really are something. Those prisoner soldiers… the way they held their swords, they looked as though they were fighting for ‘pride,’ not fear.”

“There is still hesitation within some of them. Many likely have families remaining in the Royal Capital.”

I took a small breath and smiled.

“Leave the source of their hesitation to me. Even so, the soldiers you train are always like that. You don’t just forge their strength; you forge their hearts.”

Gareth let a slight smile surface. In that expression, memories of my childhood overlapped. The same smile he gave back then, when he used to give sweets to a crybaby version of me.

“I grew up watching your back. Watching you lead everyone, never flinching from any pain.”

“I am honored. But as I am now, I am your sword. Even if the day comes when I should break.”

Those words soaked into the depths of my heart. I laughed softly and replied quietly.

“That sword will never break. Because I, who was trained by you, will be fighting right alongside you.”

Gareth narrowed his eyes, his smile softening. Just standing side-by-side with him filled my chest with a sense of security beyond words. Suddenly, he held out a small parcel.

“There now. A reward for all your hard work. It’s my special stash of chocolate. It’s a secret since it’s before dinner; Anne will be cross with us.”

I reached out and took it, my cheeks relaxing at the sweet aroma.

“Oh, Gareth, treating me like a child all of a sudden. But I will take it.”

In that moment, our eyes met softly.

Nothing has changed between the past and the present. He is one of the people who watches over and guides me. As I popped a piece of chocolate into my mouth, I thought to myself: the future of this country will be built upon trust and bonds like these.