Ending Maker

Chapter 141: Unexpected Encounter (2)

Chapter 141: Unexpected Encounter (2)

Double chapters today to make up for not posting one yesterday.

Regarding family and clans: This series uses a lot of wuxia and murim terms, so I want to clarify this stuff. Family usually refers to blood-related relatives or those with marriage ties. But in the world of wuxia or murim, family could mean the sect or clan they belong to and does not necessarily mean they have blood relations. You’re a knight of Count Bayer? Then you belong to the Bayer family or clan.

What makes this confusing is the fusion of western and eastern culture in this series. Knights are vassals of a lord, and technically do not belong to the lord’s family or clan, but in wuxia or murim, they do. So the 12 northern families are actually 12 sects with a feudal noble as their head.

And if you’re wondering why there is this fusion, this series technically belongs to the ‘fusion fantasy’ genre, where there’s a fusion of two or more genres in a story. In this case, it’s a fusion of western medieval fantasy, wuxia/murim fantasy, reincarnation, and game-like elements.

Princess Darianne.

Her official name was Perdarianne de S?len.

As the child of the Second Queen, she was half-siblings with Princess Daphne and Prince Dion who were the First Queen’s children, but the relationship of the three were quite good.

‘Because they have a huge age gap and the probability of Darianne inheriting the throne is low.’

‘Because Darianne is the cutest.’

Jude frowned at the reason Cordelia gave, but she wasn’t exactly wrong.

If a cute child clings to her older sister and brother, it would be hard for people to not react or resist it.

‘Anyway, about Princess Darianne.’

Why is she, the darling of the S?len royal family, sitting here now at an inn in a mountain village like this?

‘Though I have pretty good idea why.’

‘You know why?’

‘You, you didn’t properly read the character settings, right?’

‘No, I did. I know how many favorite shoes Cordelia has, okay?’

‘Hey, you’re Cordelia.’

‘Is that so?’

Cordelia smiled with her tongue slightly sticking out to hide her embarrassment, and Jude wryly smiled but was still happy.

Because she was cute.

‘Anyway, it’s just a guess?’

‘What?’

‘But isn’t this conversation with our eyes too high level? Do you understand what I’m talking about?’

‘Uh…roughly?’

No matter how well we understand each other, is it possible to have a conversation with our eyes like this?

Isn’t this almost telepathic?

‘Is this the power of love that master said?’

‘You must be nuts if you keep repeating that bullsh*t.’

Cordelia said with her eyes as she smiled prettily, and Jude laughed before tearing a scroll under the table.

The two had an almost telepathic conversation with their eyes, but it was still impossible to convey specific information without understanding the circumstances and context.

So in this case, it was better to just use magic.

[She probably came here because of the duke.]

[The duke…isn’t he the maternal grandfather of Princess Darianne?]

[Bingo. He is Henry Spencer, the father of the Second Queen and the current Duke Spencer whose family has royal blood flowing in their veins because they are collateral relatives of the royal family.]

[Isn’t he suffering from an illness?]

[That’s why she came here. To get some medicine that will cure her grandfather’s illness.]

[Ah, aaaah!]

Cordelia clapped her hands a little as if she understood now.

[Medicinal herbs in Arkeman’s Dungeon.]

[Bingo again this time.]

A medicinal herb called the Seven-Colored Herb naturally grew in the deepest part of Arkeman’s Dungeon, and though it was not as good as the Sunflower, it had a rather strong life energy.

[Will it perhaps cure an ordinary chronic illness in one dose?]

[But in the original, he was still suffering from it. Her duke grandfather.]

[I guess she couldn’t get the herbs in the end.]

[Well, it’s because Arkeman’s Dungeon is difficult.]

Arkeman was a particularly eccentric freak among the many eccentric Archwizards.

A wizard’s dungeon was originally more like a lab with excellent crime prevention measures rather than a labyrinth full of traps and monsters.

After all, it was a place created to conduct research.

But Arkeman’s dungeon was different.

The dungeon was filled with powerful traps and guardians as if the dungeon’s purpose was crime prevention and not research.

[In particular, the dungeon boss is a problem.]

A chimera created by Arkeman.

A creature that was created by combining three different beasts into one, and an inferior monster that could be taken care of in a funny way.

[Anyway, we’ll talk about it later.]

That was it. Jude looked to his side, and so did Cordelia.

Because one of the big men standing next to Princess Darianne approached them.

“Hey, you two.”

It was a deep and intimidating voice.

Because of her traveling with Jude, Cordelia’s acting skill had become excellent so she blinked with a frightened look on her face, and Jude slightly leaned forward as if to protect Cordelia before he spoke.

“What is it?”

“Are you travelers?”

“Yes, we’re travelers.”

When Jude immediately replied, the big man frowned instead of talking again.

‘He’s bad at this.’

‘He’s clumsy.’

He was probably sent here by his superior, but it seemed like this was his first time doing it.

‘Isn’t he a duke’s knight?’

‘I think this is the first time he’d ever gone undercover like this.’

What would I say if you asked me if I was a traveler at a place like this? Of course I would say I’m a traveler.

The man hesitated for a moment and looked back, and he caught the gaze, or more like the glare, of a fierce-looking middle-aged man sitting next to Princess Darianne.

‘Get it together?! – I think he’s being told something like that.’

‘I think so too.’

Shortly after Jude and Cordelia exchanged glances, the man flinched again and turned to Jude and Cordelia as his mouth opened and closed several times before he spoke.

“Why were you looking at our side?”

“It’s strange that there’s a lone child among adults. Their face is also covered with a robe.”

Cordelia spoke naturally, and the man was flustered again.

Because when he thought about it, she was right.

There was a small child who was alone among big men. Their body and face was also covered by a robe.

‘Even I would look at it.’

The young knight of Duke Spencer, Hunt, was troubled but he couldn’t look back again.

Because his superior would clearly scold him severely.

‘I think I can already hear it, huhu.’

In fact, Hunt felt that it was unfair.

Any of the knights who came with him would also respond in the same way as he did.

“Umm…is there a problem?”

When Cordelia cautiously asked, Hunt’s face slightly blushed and he faltered again.

Although he had some difficulties on how to respond, the main cause was Cordelia’s beauty.

‘She’s so pretty.’

She was pretty when he saw her at a distance, but she was much prettier when he saw her closer.

“Hunt!”

Hunt flinched after hearing the angry voice behind him, and he shook his head to clear his mind.

Since it had already happened, he had to do something even if it would be a success or a failure.

“You two, you’re too suspicious. Identify yourself. Are you really just travelers?”

He felt ashamed at the words that he said himself, but he couldn’t help it.

And at his shameful lines, Jude sighed and looked at Cordelia as he sent her a gaze.

‘Let’s just do it then.’

‘We’re going to get involved with them?’

‘Because it would be nice if we can get close to Princess Darianne.’

He was wondering on how they would go to the royal capital and meet Princess Daphne, but the problem would be solved at once if they became close to Princess Darianne.

After taking a deep breath, Jude stood up and said.

“Sir Knight.”

“Eh…what? I am not a knight. I’m just a traveling veteran mercenary.”

“I understand. You’re a knight of Duke Spencer, right?”

Right after Jude said that.

The air in the inn rapidly changed.

The men around Princess Darianne stood up at once, and even the bewildered Hunt gave off a sharp pressure and grabbed the sword on his waist. He was ready to pull it out.

Then one person moved.

The middle-aged man sitting right next to Princess Darianne.

He was Sir Cornwell, the head of the Knights of the Red Rose who were known as Duke Spencer’s sword.

“Who are you? Depending on how you answer, your life could be at stake.”

He did not give off a sharp pressure like Hunt.

He did not even hold a weapon in his hand like everyone else.

But the quality of his sense of pressure was different.

Jude took on his pressing gaze as he took a deep breath once and stepped forward. He stood in front of Cordelia as if to protect Cordelia from Sir Cornwell and everyone else before he opened his mouth.

“The second son of the Bayer family, Jude Bayer, greets Sir Cornwell of the Knights of the Red Rose.”

At Jude’s smooth words without any sign of fear, Sir Cornwell slightly narrowed his eyes, and Hunt and the other knights could not hide their confusion.

“H-how?”

“Bayer?”

Several very small voices were abruptly heard, but soon disappeared.

Because Sir Cornwell began to let out a terrifying sense of pressure.

But it didn’t last long.

“Stop it, Sir Cornwell.”

The cheerful voice of a girl, which did not match the current mood, broke the uncomfortable silence.

Sir Cornwell seemed to frown once before he looked back at Princess Darianne who smiled and walked towards Jude and Cordelia.

“My lady.”

“It’s okay. Sir Cornwell is next to me, right?”

At the words of Princess Darianne, Sir Cornwell eventually sighed and then stepped aside.

“Hehehe, thank you. As I thought, Sir Cornwell is the best.”

Princess Darianne cutely said before she took off the hood she was wearing on her head.

The golden hair that was called the symbol of the royal family, and her pretty doll-like face were then revealed.

“Whew, that’s better. It was quite stifling after all, huh?”

Mumbling to herself as if she was talking to someone unknown, she then took a deep breath and said as she looked up at Jude.

“Good-looking oppa, please try to guess who I am.”

Who she was.

Jude smiled at her provocative question, and Princess Darianne’s cheeks slightly turned red.

Although he was overshadowed by Cordelia, Jude was like her too as he was one of the Four Great Kings of Beauty.

Just as a beautiful woman’s smile was effective for men, a handsome man’s smile was effective for women.

Moreover, Jude even took it a step further.

“Let me properly introduce myself.”

Jude spoke in a lowered voice as he knelt on one knee and gently held the princess’ hand before he kissed the back of her hand.

“Jude Bayer of the Bayer family greets Princess Perdarianne.”

And he brightly smiled again.

Princess Darianne held her breath without realizing it, and Cordelia’s eyebrows twitched when she saw everything.

Because she somehow unconsciously felt upset about it.

‘Hey, hey. Don’t go overboard, okay?’

Don’t seduce an innocent girl, okay?

She shot a glare at him, but perhaps because she shot it in the back of his head or he deliberately ignored it, Jude continued to hold the hand of Princess Darianne and kept his sparkling smile.

And a few seconds passed.

Princess Darianne came to her senses and said with a shy smile.

“That’s surprising. Are you really Count Bayer’s… Are you Mr. Jude Bayer?”

“Yes, Your Highness. I am Jude Bayer.”

But that was it.

Sir Cornwell who was listening quietly stepped forward again.

“Prove it. No, more than that, answer my question first. Why did you think that we are the people of Duke Spencer?”

When Sir Cornwell showed a coercive attitude again, Princess Darianne slightly frowned, but she didn’t really stop him.

Because Sir Cornwell and the princess were also curious about it in the first place.

How in the world did he know?

“It’s not that surprising.”

Jude softly replied and stood up as he faced Sir Cornwell and gave an explanation.

“First of all, your outfit is too unnatural for a mercenary.”

At Jude’s words, the rest of the knights except for Sir Cornwell looked at themselves.

Because their clothes such as their cloak, leather armor and so on, were quite like that of a mercenary.

“The quality is too good. Most of it are new. Especially the shoes.”

Mercenaries were those who carried swords while traveling all over the place to look for work.

Their shoes were always worn out from their rough journey.

‘Perhaps they asked for clothes that were fit for a mercenary.’

But the knights of Duke Spencer who came from the capital would have found it hard to wear second-hand clothes worn by mercenaries. Everything they purchased must have been brand new.

“In addition, most mercenaries don’t wear such a perfect full set. They don’t bother about color schemes too.”

At Jude’s comments, the knights looked back at their clothes, and deep furrows lined Sir Cornwell’s forehead.

“And most of all, the sword. The sword on the waist of the first person to talk to us…it was the sword of the Spencer family. I saw the crest engraved on the handle and figured it out.”

Sir Cornwell hurriedly turned to Hunt at Jude’s words, and soon glared.

He seemed to be yelling with his eyes that the other was stupid for carrying the sword with the duke’s crest.

‘Because weapons are difficult to change.’

For a knight, the sword was like their own life.

In the first place, a knight who was unskilled in going undercover would have unconsciously carried his usual sword.

‘In fact, it seems like there are more of them.’

Some of the knights who saw Hunt being scolded had flinched and covered their swords with their cloaks.

“And to add one more thing… Everyone was too handsome to be a mercenary.”

At the words of Jude, the rest of the knights except for the cowering Hunt cleared their throats.

They were quite embarrassed, but felt that it was nice at the same time.

‘Of course, it’s not like they’re really handsome, but they have the air of a rich person.’

In any case, most of the knights were convinced of Jude’s words.

Because they liked such plausible talk.

‘Of course, the truth is that it’s just some random guess.’

Mercenaries wouldn’t always use old things.

They would use new ones sometimes.

Moreover, if they were a high-end mercenary who specialized in escorting, there were a lot of times that they matched their clothes well.

There were many cases where their customers and escort targets would want a good-looking escort.

In the end, it was possible to argue his points one by one if they thought about it calmly, but what mattered was the atmosphere.

Ah, that makes sense.

I think he’s right?

Once that kind of atmosphere was formed, they overlooked his other words unless there were too many irrational things behind it.

‘As expected of my scammer.’

Jude felt Cordelia’s satisfied(?) smile behind his back and turned to Princess Darianne again, who was fascinated by Jude’s explanation and asked with sparkling eyes.

“What about Sir Cornwell and my name?”

“It was a lot easier.”

Jude knelt on one knee again to make eye contact with Princess Darianne and then said.

“Because Sir Cornwell is the only one in the Spencer family with such a splendid physique and a nice beard.”

Princess Darianne laughed and clapped her hands at Jude’s words.

“That’s right, Sir Cornwell’s beard is really nice. It’s probably the coolest beard in the royal capital.”

“Your Highness…”

Sir Cornwell said in a quiet voice as if he was embarrassed, but he seemed to be happy as the corners of his mouth was slightly raised.

“And the princess… How can I not recognize such a lovely princess?”

Princess Darianne’s face turned red at Jude’s sweet whispers.

Her red face seemed like it would burst if one touched it.

But as for one person.

‘Hey, hey. Isn’t this too much? Hey!’

Cordelia somehow got angry and sharply glared at him, but Jude didn’t budge.

He continued to sparkle in Princess Darianne’s eyes, who twisted about before she loudly said.

“Fantasy couple!”

What is she talking about all of a sudden?

Jude and Cordelia reflexively thought, and Princess Darianne quickly spoke in a voice full of excitement.

“I’ve heard the rumors too. A fantasy couple who are already betrothed with each other, but they love each other so much that they runaway at night because they want to love the other more!”

It was a blow that made even the mature Jude falter.

No, it’s good that it’s already an established fact.

It’s good if that’s what the royal capital thinks so.

Jude glanced at Cordelia whose face was so red that it was like a ripe persimmon that was about to burst.

‘D-do something!’

Seeing Cordelia’s eyes that were at a loss, Jude nodded his head and turned back to Princess Darianne as he said.

“That’s… First of all, you’re right that we’re the fantasy couple but…”

“I knew it!”

Princess Darianne clapped her hands again and turned to Cordelia who flinched and belatedly stood up to give her greetings.

“Cordelia Chase of the Chase family greets Princess Perdarianne.”

At Cordelia’s greeting, Princess Darianne blushed again in happiness.

But it was at that moment.

“Prove it.”

Sir Cornwell raised his big hand and cut in Princess Darianne, Jude, and Cordelia as he stared at Jude and said.

“I know well now how you recognized us. But that does not prove that you are children from the 12 northern families. So prove your identity.”

The atmosphere in the inn sharply changed again at Sir Cornwell’s sharp remark.

‘As expected of the head of the Knights of the Red Rose.’

He didn’t get the position of knight commander for no reason.

Instead of being flustered, Jude got up and pulled out something hidden in his inner chest pocket.

“This is a crest of the Bayer family that only the legitimate children of Count Bayer have.”

It was not the crest of some vagrant family but was that of the Bayer family, one of the highest-ranked among the 12 northern families when it came to military power.

Sir Cornwell immediately nodded upon receiving the crest.

“You are the child of Count Bayer. If so, what about you?”

As Sir Cornwell’s gaze shifted to Cordelia, she blinked her eyes and looked at Jude.

Because unlike Jude, she didn’t carry anything like a crest.

‘Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.’

‘How?’

‘Leave it all to me.’

Jude smiled and lowered his posture again before he spoke as he faced Princess Darianne.

“Princess, my fiancée unfortunately does not have a family crest at the moment. But…do you really need proof?”

At Jude’s question, Princess Darianne showed her curiosity with her sparkling eyes, and Sir Cornwell frowned.

And Jude continued his words.

“My fiancée, Lady Cordelia Chase, is rumored to be the most beautiful girl in the north. If you’ve heard the rumors about us… I’m sure Princess Darianne already knows about it, right?”

“Yes, I heard about it. She’s an angel-like beautiful girl with vivid red hair and blue eyes that sparkle like gems.”

Princess Darianne’s description made Cordelia’s face turn red again.

And Jude pushed it further.

“That’s right. She’s the most beautiful girl in the north. A girl who’s truly like an angel that descended on earth.”

As he spoke dramatically, some of knights unknowingly nodded, and so did Hans who was sitting at the counter.

“A woman who’s like a flower and is so lovely and pretty that it makes you want to look at her more even though you’re already looking at her.”

‘F-f*ck. Stop. Stop it! Hey!’

It was unknown if Jude could hear Cordelia’s screams in her mind or not, but he continued to speak as a smile bloomed on the face of Princess Darianne.

“I see, are you saying that her beauty itself is the proof of her identity?”

“Yes, wise princess.”

Princess Darianne giggled at Jude’s words before she looked up at Sir Cornwell, who nodded and sighed as if he couldn’t help it.

In fact, identifying them was pretty much done at the time when he saw the Bayer’s crest.

Asking for the Chase family’s crest to be presented was in reality more of a trick.

“I guess the rumors are true. I’d like to hear from you two, so can you tell me? Ah, are you still in your runaway of love?”

The way she asked with her slightly lowered voice was very cute and lovely, so Cordelia covered her face with both hands instead of answering, and Jude gently shook his head.

“No, Your Highness. The runaway of love is over.”

“Then?”

“We’re on a journey of love now.”

Jude shamelessly said, and Princess Darianne had a face like that of a dreaming girl while Cordelia couldn’t remove her hands from her face.