SIDE STORY 31

SS 31 - Lucas Hr?svelgr (1)

When I was young, I had a thought when I first held a real sword instead of a practice sword.

‘I want to be like Biltwein.’

The protagonist of Biltwein the Hero.

A shining, cool, and strong invincible hero.

A person who stood in the front and led everyone, becoming their beacon of hope.

It was a childish thought.

It was a childish dream.

That young me became an adult.

I headed out to the world and met the harsh reality.

The growing pains.

At some point, I realized.

I was just a frog in a well.

There were people with even greater talent than me.

There were people in the world whom I could never catch up to and were called the true geniuses.

Those who shined like the stars in the sky.

I woke up to the reality.

Even if I did not want to realize it, I could not help but do so.

The praises I had taken for granted since I was born and raised had all disappeared.

People no longer focused on me.

All their attention and praise went to the true geniuses who appeared like comets, to the heroes who saved the wild lands and the royal capital.

They played the lead roles on the stage.

They were the main characters of the story.

If they were the stars and moons, perhaps I was just a firefly.

I realized the reality.

I witnessed the reality.

The childish dream of the young me was just a dream in the end.

But.

But still, I…

Still, I…

I want to become like Biltwein.

***

Lucas opened his eyes.

His mind was in a daze as he had woken up from a deep sleep and not just from the blink of his eyes.

A blurry vision was added.

“Uuuuuek?”

Lucas let out a voice as dazed as his mind, and wiped off the drool that had flowed down from the corners of his mouth up to his chin. He blinked his eyes and then looked around.

A bed that was familiar to his eyes and body.

A book that was spread out next to the pillow.

Opening his eyes wide again, Lucas sat up and did some stretching.

Groans came along with the cracking sounds.

“Guuuuuuh.”

He seemed to have been reading a book all night and fallen asleep without realizing it.

“Ugh, it’s crumpled.”

The open book next to the pillow was half-folded. Although the weight of the book was heavy, it had been left in that state for several hours, so the folds in the pages were clearly visible now. Moreover, it was a problem that there were not only one or two folded pages. At least ten or more pages were arbitrarily folded.

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‘Uh… it can’t be helped. But I’m glad that it’s for reading.’

Each volume of Biltwein the Hero that Lucas owned had five copies each.

One for collection, one for appreciation (or viewing it while in a bookshelf), one for propagation, one for reading, and the last one was a spare for reading.

T/N: Propagation here means to spread or recommend the book to someone with the purpose of converting that person into a fan of that book.

The crumpled one this time was for reading, so he still had the spare one for reading.

‘I’ll have to buy new ones tomorrow.’

He needed to have a set for reading and a spare for reading.

Because the reading one was really for reading, so it was prone to damage.

“Tomorrow.”

Lucas said aloud and burst out laughing.

He was one of the Ten Great Swordmasters that the S?len Kingdom was proud of, and called the strongest swordsman of the kingdom after the founding of the Holy Nation of Judelia, but still had a lot of his boyish side remaining.

Tomorrow.

Tomorrow was a really important day.

It was the nineteenth birthday of Lucas Hr?svelgr.

As listed above, Lucas was no longer just the successor to the Count Hr?svelgr position.

Being an heir to a margrave family that was high ranking among the 12 northern families was definitely a huge thing, but the current Lucas had a much higher status compared to a few years ago.

He was one of the only two teenage great swordmasters in the world and in history.

The strongest swordsman in the S?len Kingdom.

Naturally, there were many people who wanted to attend the birthday party of Lucas, and Count Hr?svelgr had been busy preparing for the party since two months ago.

But Lucas had a different thought.

The reason why tomorrow was important.

His own birthday was indeed important, but there was one thing more important than that.

“A new one, a new one.”

A new book of Biltwein the Hero.

A new volume would be published after three years!

He was so surprised when he first heard the news that it was no exaggeration to say that he almost passed out from extreme joy.

The fact that a new volume of Biltwein the Hero would be released made the world look beautiful to him.

‘3 years.’

The author of Biltwein the Hero was a person named Sanudil.

Their age and sex were unknown.

The name Sanudil was obviously not a real name but a pseudonym.

Therefore, when a new volume of Biltwein the Hero had not been released for three years, hardcore fans including Lucas were afraid and terrified that Sanudil might have been in an accident or if they had ended their writing career.

They did not know the age or even the sex of Sanudil, so all kind of rumors circulated.

There was a rumor that Sanudil was actually a knight who lost their life during the Calamity War, or the rumor that they stopped writing because they had to focus on raising their children.

‘Ah, Sanudil. Anyway, thank you. Thank you for coming back.’

He could not figure out whether Sanudil was a man or a woman, or why a new book had not been published for the past three years, so Lucas decided to think simply.

After all, the fact that a new volume would be released meant that Sanudil was healthy enough to publish a book, and it was like a blessing to all the readers of Biltwein the Hero.

‘Tomorrow, tomorrow.’

He would go to the bookstore tomorrow and buy the new volume.

In fact, there was no need for Lucas to directly go to buy it since he was the heir of the count, but he still wanted to personally buy the book whenever a new volume came out.

Because he wanted to get the new book as soon as possible.

Since Lucas was the heir of Count Hr?svelgr who was influential enough to claim himself as the leader of the 12 northern families, there were many ways he could get the book at the distribution stage if he wanted to, but he did not take such a quick method.

“Fwoooo.”

Lucas had been binge-reading the books all night for the past two days, and smiled again as he got out of his bed.

The sun shining through the window looked beautiful and brilliant today.

***

“So in the end, which one of the two is it?”

“Pardon?”

At the office of Count Hr?svelgr.

The count usually stayed at Thunderdoom Fortress in the north, but had returned to the Hr?svelgr mansion in the past few days.

Because the birthday of Lucas was tomorrow.

“I asked which of the two is it.”

When Count Hr?svelgr repeated his words, Lucas was flustered and could not answer.

The question of his father.

Which one of the two.

Although the subject was omitted, it was clear on who he was talking about.

Kajsa Ophand and Scarlet Viper.

One was the young daughter of Marquis Ophand who was the de facto leader of the 6 southern families, and the other was a beautiful female swordswoman prodigy from the empire.

The two not only stayed with Lucas throughout the Calamity War, but also traveled with him across the continent after the war.

And because of that, those who saw a man and two women in their prime stay together had all thought.

“Which one of the two is it?”

Who would become the next Countess Hr?svelgr?

In terms of status, Kajsa Ophand was the correct choice.

Because she was the daughter from the Ophand family who was one of the 6 southern families.

Considering that the Hr?svelgr family was one of the 12 northern families, Kajsa Ophand matched their family level.

But people did not hastily make decisions.

“Because the northern and southern regions are too far away.”

The Hr?svelgr family in the northern region and the Ophand family in the southern region received no benefits in joining hands.

They were not attractive prospects for arranged marriages.

“Besides, that woman named Scarlet seems to be a child of a noble.”

A noble was still a noble despite their prestige not being on the same level as the 6 southern families.

And there was one more reason why Scarlet had a competitive edge.

“She’s completely a swordsmanship genius.”

The Hr?svelgr family were swordsmen who inherited the Holy King’s Cross Sword from generation to generation.

Therefore, there were many people in the family who liked Scarlet who was a swordsmanship genius.

“The young lady of the Ophand family is strong, but she’s more of a wild fighter.”

A brawler and not a swordswoman.

In addition, the various notorieties that Kajsa had built up in the south became deduction factors.

The fact that she was the captain of a ship that robbed pirate ships did not make her look good for the people of the north who did not know the sea.

Obviously, Scarlet also had her faults.

First of all, it was a problem that she was an imperial noble, and that the level of her family was lower than that of Kajsa.

And even though it was not yet known, Scarlet was in more danger than Kajsa if one added the fact that she was the Rogue Master.

Anyway, about the two.

The two were the ones who were most likely to become the wife of Lucas Hr?svelgr.

“Lucas.”

“Yes, father.”

“I don’t think you’ll give me the shameless answer of both.”

At the stern gaze of Count Hr?svelgr, Lucas was covered in cold sweat as his lips twitched.

***

A few hours later.

Scarlet and Kajsa were sitting opposite each other at a table, with one drinking coffee and the other drinking fruit wine.

“Tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow.”

They were not talking about the release date of the new volume of Biltwein the Hero.

It was the date of the birthday party of Lucas Hr?svelgr.

The day of an official and significant event would be held in the Hr?svelgr territory.

“I’ll be his first dance tomorrow.”

“How funny. You’ll be the one he’ll dance with?”

“Hey, I was the first one Lucas danced with.”

“That was back then, but he danced with me first when we were dating, okay?”

They were talking about their past lives.

Unlike Lucas who was always on the side of Jude, Scarlet and Kajsa were sometimes on the side of Jude, and sometimes on the side of the demon followers.

And when one was on the side of Jude, they always became the lover of Lucas, but on the contrary, when one was on the side of the enemy, they always became the rival of Lucas.

‘Of course, there were times both of us were not enemies.’

At that time, Scarlet and Kajsa were best friends.

“Moving on, let’s leave it to Lucas tomorrow. Don’t try to play tricks, okay?”

“You’re the one who shouldn’t play tricks.”

In fact, the two were quite close in this present life.

Even if they excluded the memories of their past lives, the time they traveled together in this current timeline reached nearly three years.

One could say that they were pretty much best friends because of the affection from hatred they had for each other.

But their problem was Lucas.

Neither Scarlet nor Kajsa could give up on Lucas.

But they also could not pressure Lucas to quickly make a choice.

“I-I can’t choose. If I have to make a choice, I’d rather not choose any of them.”

Words that were really like Lucas, and something he might actually say.

Because he really could not choose one over the other, and not because he wanted to openly date them both.

If he chose one, the other would be hurt.

So the relationship of the three was really complicated.

Because in their past and present lives, they shared a love so deep that they were willing to die for the other.

‘That idiot will say that it’s better if he doesn’t choose and even say that he’ll just remain single for his entire life.’

Scarlet was not wrong.

Because Lucas Hr?svelgr was such a person.

And Kajsa also thought the same, so the three had maintained a strange relationship until now.

“But more than that, you know, right?”

“I know.”

All the important sentences were omitted, but the two could tell what the other was thinking by just looking at the eyes of the other.

“Sylvia Crossbell.”

The female name that Lucas put in his mouth when they were trying to call the fairies in the royal capital.

As the daughter of Count Crossbell from one of the 12 northern families, she was also going to attend the party tomorrow.

“I can’t lose to her at least.”

“Me too.”

Because this was their battlefield.

A fair competition if they had to describe it beautifully.

They found it hard to express their feelings because of the memories of their past lives in addition to their present relationship, but the two were indisputably close to each other, so they lightly clenched their fists and looked out the window.

The sun was setting.

***

“It’s really incredible.”

When Dame Thilion, a knight who was a former mercenary, said as she watched from the window the line of carriages surrounding the mansion, Sir Seornn chuckled.

“Because this birthday party is special.”

It was a party to celebrate the birthday of the heir of Count Hr?svelgr, so it was natural for a lot of guests to gather. But this year, almost twice as many people came than usual.

There were many reasons, but there was one reason that Sir Seornn liked the most.

“Have you heard the rumor that the young master will make his choice today in this party?”

“I’ve heard of that rumor too, but… is it true?”

“It’s not true. But it’s something that gets people interested. Personally, I want it to be a bit true.”

“I agree.”

Sir Seornn and Dame Thilion liked Lucas, just like most of the knights of Count Hr?svelgr.

The children of Count Bayer and Count Chase had already been married two years ago and were called the couple of the century, so they thought that their young master should also find a wife.

So that a successor who would look like the young master would be born.

“So Captain, who do you think will be the next countess?”

When his title and nickname from his mercenary days came out, Sir Seornn smiled and tried to say something. But at that moment, a loud shout interrupted their conversation.

“Lady Sylvia Crossbell from the Crossbell family is entering!”

In an instant, the eyes of the everyone in the banquet hall were focused on the entrance.

And Sylvia Crossbell, a woman with sky blue hair who maintained her elegance despite the sudden attention, entered the banquet hall with a soft smile.

She wore a white Empire dress with an exposed back that made her fair and clear skin stand out even more.

“Ooooh.”

“As expected, she’s beautiful.”

Sylvia was considered the most beautiful in the north until Cordelia appeared.

Her beautiful appearance was truly magical as if she had popped out of a story book.

But there were two people who gazed at Sylvia differently.

“It’s her.”

“She’s here.”

Scarlet was in a provocative red dress while Kajsa was in a tightly fitting black dress that made her body stand out.

“S-She’s really pretty.”

Kajsa growled and Scarlet lightly frowned and soon shrugged as she said.

“She’s indeed pretty.”

“Yes, Scarlet is pretty too. We’re both pretty.”

If Cordelia had heard it, she would have apologized to the people around them and mentally shouted ‘Why am I the only one who’s embarrassed!’, but Scarlet and Kajsa were serious.

After checking the clothes and hair of each other again, the two approached the battlefield – Sylvia.

‘What are they doing?’

Sylvia was bewildered by Scarlet and Kajsa approaching her.

It was not just because the two were heading to her.

It was because she felt a strange hostility – no, a competitive spirit from the two.

‘Ah, don’t tell me?’

As a smart lady, Sylvia quickly realized why the two were heading her way like this.

After a while, or five minutes later, the music would change and the dance time would begin from that point.

As the lead character today, Lucas was naturally going to dance.

‘Who shall his first dance be with?’

Lucas, Scarlet, and Kajsa.

Because Sylvia knew well about these three.

‘Lucas must have talked about me, huh?’

Or perhaps the two people heard about her being the most beautiful in the north and were just trying to keep her in check.

A smile instantly spread across the face of Sylvia.

She was actually a mischievous woman, though she had suppressed it recently.

Moreover, she was now over 20 years old, so she was very likely to find a suitable spouse by next year at the latest. In fact, many families were sending proposals to her.

‘Shall I tease them a bit?’

Sylvia mentally grinned while looking graceful on the outside. She quickly glanced at Lucas with her eyes.

And when the ignorant Lucas came her way, she spoke in a friendly manner.

“Lucas, it’s been a while.”

“Yes, Lady Sylvia. It’s been a while.”

“Happy birthday.”

“Thank you.”

“Really?”

“Pardon?”

“Are you really thankful?”

Sylvia asked back, and Lucas tilted his head for a moment but soon smiled and nodded.

“Yes, thank you very much.”

“Then you should repay me, right?”

“Is there… anything you want to receive?”

“How about the first dance?”

At that moment, the flames exploded.

It was not a real flame but more of an aura, or one could call it a fighting spirit being set ablaze.

Scarlet and Kajsa.

Scarlet quietly stared at Lucas, and Kajsa gazed at Lucas with clenched fists.

At this point, no matter how tactless Lucas was, he could not help but understand the situation.

Scarlet and Kajsa.

There was also Sylvia.

‘I can’t choose the wrong one.’

If he made a wrong choice, he would not be able to handle the aftermath.

If he chose Sylvia, Scarlet and Kajsa would explode.

If he chose Scarlet, it would be Kajsa. And if he chose Kajsa, it would be Scarlet.

“Lucas?”

Sylvia called Lucas with a mischievousness hidden in her elegant voice, and the silent stare of Scarlet and the anxious gaze of Kajsa reached the cheeks of Lucas.

‘Which one of the two is it?’

Added to this was the voice of Count Hr?svelgr that he heard yesterday.

Lucas broke out in cold sweat.

And the music in the banquet hall changed at that perfect moment.

It was the beginning of dance time – that is, the moment when he had to choose one person regardless of the result.

Lucas was in agony.

In that time which felt like an eternity, he was in extreme distress.

But it was then.

“Lucas?”

A hand of salvation came down from heaven.

***

“I think Jude is upset. He’s been staring at you for a while.”

“I’ll accept it without complaints.”

At the answer of Lucas, Cordelia giggled softly.

“Are you in that much trouble?”

Enough to even endure the jealousy of that jealous Jude?

Lucas responded with a bitter smile at her question.

“Anyway, I am very glad. That Lady Cordelia appeared. You were really like an angel of salvation to me.”

“What salvation?”

“No, it’s true. Thanks to Lady Cordelia, I was able to get through today… I’m really glad. Thank you very much.”

If Sylvia was chosen, Scarlet and Kajsa would explode together, but Cordelia was a different story.

And it was the same with Sylvia.

When Lucas thanked Cordelia again, she narrowed her brows for a moment and soon said with a smile that felt sorry.

“Hey, Lucas, are you an idiot?”

“Excuse me?”

“Who are you going to dance with for the second dance?”

“Eh?”

“What do you mean ‘eh’? Were you thinking of only dancing once on your birthday and ending it?”

Scarlet and Kajsa are all dressed up like that, right?

Are you just going to send them back?

In that case, I’ll get angry too, okay?

At her interrogating gaze, Lucas gulped and averted his gaze.

Scarlet and Kajsa were standing together and looking at him after firmly rejecting countless requests for a dance. And Sylvia, who was hiding her mischievousness in her elegance, was having fun as she stood next to them.

“Oh, the music is over.”

The first dance was over, so the next one was the second dance.

“I’ll take her.”

“Kya.”

As soon as the music was over, Jude leapt over the space with Twelve Thunderbolt Steps and snatched Cordelia away. Lucas who was left alone swallowed his saliva.

He faced Scarlet and Kajsa looking at him. +

*1 more~!!