It was a Political Marriage, But I’m Being Loved - Chapter 51

When chaos erupted at the fortress gates, Charlize was completely focused on magic training with Achilles. He had noticed someone enter through the front gate, but he didn’t sense any danger—so he ignored it.

“Your Highness, Tower Master—someone requests an audience.”

At the word “steward,” Charlize paused her training and allowed Baron-Jun to enter.

Charlize looked at him curiously, while Achilles observed in silence behind her, expression unreadable. Baron-Jun quickly explained the situation.

Charlize’s eyes widened at the news: a monster attack in the village below. She had never heard of such a thing since receiving the fortress as a royal gift.

“Have they contacted the city?” she asked.

“It’s a small village, Your Highness. They likely have no such means. And even if they did, reinforcements wouldn’t arrive in time.”

“Then…”

“Your Highness.”

Baron-Jun dropped to his knees before her. Charlize, knowing how difficult it was for him to kneel with a prosthetic leg, was startled.

“Baron-Jun, don’t—please!”

“I wasn’t born in that village, but I’ve known its people for a long time. Some of them even work here at the fortress. Please… save them.”

He lowered himself all the way to the ground, bowing his head. Flustered, Charlize looked to Achilles.

She didn’t want to see innocent villagers slaughtered. Of course she wanted to help.

“Charlize, do you want me to assist them?”

“Of course I do… but… we didn’t bring a single knight with us. You’re a mage—can you fight alone?”

“Your Highness.”

Achilles looked at her, his gaze calm but intense.

“Even a Swordmaster cannot rival me. You know that.”

Oh…

She suddenly recalled the moment Valter had been turned to stone by Achilles’s magic—despite being a Swordmaster.

“Then… yes, help them. I’m a royal, and it’s my duty to protect my people. If I had knights here, I would send them—but…”

She hesitated, glancing at him again.

“…right now, I only have you.”

“That I am the only one you can rely on at this moment—makes me happy.”

Achilles smiled faintly and began casting a spell. Two glowing magic circles appeared beside him. From one, four mechanical knights emerged—each in full armor. From the other, a massive white stag with majestic horns stepped forward.

“I’ll leave these behind to guard you while I’m gone. Keep them close—they’ll protect you.”

Charlize quickly nodded.

Achilles turned to Baron-Jun. “Where is the village?”

Lewein watched from a distance, his spell allowing him to track long-range movement. A streak of brilliant golden light shot out from the fortress—straight toward the village.

It didn’t take a telescope to see it.

“Noy succeeded!”

And technically, Noy hadn’t even lied. The monster attack on the village was going to happen. By now, the monsters might already be arriving.

“I need to move quickly—there’s no telling what the Tower Master is capable of!”

Lewein gathered his men and headed toward the fortress.

The garrison only had eight soldiers. There weren’t enough eyes—or hands—for true defense.

Their “security” was nothing more than keeping the gates closed.

There was a single sentry on the battlements, but only to identify visitors. Not to repel intruders.

“I’ve heard that fortress gates don’t usually close until well after midnight.”

They only closed during the day when someone as important as the princess was visiting. Normally, the gates were left open at all times.

The forest below was rarely traveled. Even monsters rarely ventured this far.

Lewein and his group stuck to the shadows, moving silently under thick branches and behind large rocks as they neared the fortress.

If Noy had successfully lured the Tower Master away, it was time for the next man to act.

Lewein approached the gate with precision. The guards were distracted, staring off toward the village beyond. That gave him the opening he needed.

The sky was already darkening with Ailbbern’s early dusk. Shadows stretched long across the ground.

He slipped toward the base of the fortress wall, inching near the gate as he waited for the moment to strike.

“Hurry, Dave!”

Dave had been relocated from the servants’ quarters to better accommodations some time ago. It was a courtesy from those who knew he was once a knight.

He appreciated the gesture, but he didn’t feel especially attached to the people here.

If Duke Valter had failed to convince the princess and was now set on carrying out “the plan,” then everyone inside this fortress was going to die.

And nothing was more foolish than getting attached to people who were destined to die. Especially when Dave himself was about to play a major role in bringing about their deaths.

When he heard the commotion by the gate, Dave casually approached the window and opened it to listen. He didn’t know what Noy looked like, but he knew the role he was meant to play.

A servant ran from the manor to fetch cold water, then ran back again. Several staff members emerged from the house, trying to see what was going on.

“Wait until the Tower Master leaves.”

There was no point in acting if the Tower Master didn’t leave the fortress. Dave almost hoped he wouldn’t. Many of the people who’d cared for him were genuinely kind. If Achilles didn’t go to the village, Dave wouldn’t have to kill them.

If the Tower Master were just another selfish noble who didn’t care about commoners, he would’ve stayed.

After all, the safety of the princess outweighed the lives of hundreds of villagers.

But Achilles left. Whether he went because Charlize urged him to, or because he wanted to save people on his own—Dave didn’t know.

“Well, that’s that.”

The fortress’s defenses were laughably poor. Ever since Dave had arrived, received healing potions, and claimed to be recovering, he had wandered the grounds under the pretense of needing fresh air.

Everyone in the fortress pitied him, so when he walked around looking weak, they merely tried to help. No one stopped him.

They assumed the only place an outsider couldn’t go was near the princess. Which meant anywhere outside the manor was fair game.

Baron-Jun, the steward, had kept an eye on him—but Dave avoided drawing attention when he was around.

“The gate mechanism…”

Gone were the days when it took several men to open a castle gate. These days, it could still be done manually, but most fortresses had a simple release lever.

Right now, everyone was focused on Noy. A single soldier stood atop the wall, watching the village worriedly.

“As I thought—no one’s guarding the gate lever.”

Dave hadn’t been armed when he entered the fortress, but stealing a dagger from the armory wasn’t difficult.

He sighed inwardly. This was almost too easy.

“No wonder my lord doesn’t respect her.”

He thought of the princess. He had never seen her face since arriving at the fortress. The only time he’d seen Charlize was from afar—during a national ceremony.

To him, she wasn’t a person. She was a tool. A steppingstone for his master’s rise to the throne.

The front courtyard was already deserted. Baron-Jun had rushed back inside to inform the princess, and the servants had carried Noy into the kitchen to calm him and offer something warm to drink.

Dave stepped past the busy staff and walked into the empty courtyard. There was truly no one around—except the one soldier still watching the forest from the wall.

“This is so easy, I almost feel bad for the Tower Master.”

He strolled straight to the gate controls, pretending to inspect them. Then, casually, he pulled the lever with force.

CLANK!

The massive gate groaned and began to open.

The soldier on the wall leaned over in confusion.

“What are you doing? Why open the—what the—?! Who are you?!”

At that moment, the hidden attackers charged in. Their faces were covered, and they were fully armed. Just the sight of them made the soldier’s face turn pale.

“W-We’re under attack!!”

The soldier blew into the warning horn—only for it to sputter with a sad wheeze. Dave had climbed up the wall the previous night and cracked the horn so it wouldn’t work.

They couldn’t risk the Tower Master hearing it and returning.

The horn looked intact, but a long crack ran along the base, muting any sound.

“ENEMIES! WE’RE UNDER ATTACK!!”

The soldier had no choice but to scream at the top of his lungs. He saw the invaders below aiming arrows at him, and he dove behind the battlements for cover, still shouting.

Staff from the manor heard the noise and rushed out—only to freeze in horror at the sight of armed knights flooding into the fortress.

“Who are you?!”

“How dare you! Her Highness the Princess is here!”

Baron-Jun shouted as he came out to the courtyard. But the knights sneered and drew their swords.

The few soldiers who had followed the steward looked around in panic, realizing their weapons were leaning against the walls—they weren’t even armed.

Meanwhile, Dave quietly broke the lever handle, just in case. Limping slightly, he turned and muttered to himself,

“I’m leaving. I’ve seen their faces, even briefly. Watching them die would be, huh?”

Support