Chapter 33
Chapter 33: Choose a Good Day to Get Married
Gwen walked through the gate with her head lowered, looking every bit like someone caught between hope and dread.
She was not paying attention for a moment and walked straight into a soft body.
Gwen paused, then lifted her head.
"Sis……big sister!?"
"Long time no see, little Gwen~"
The woman smiling before her was her eldest sister—Kavra Delin.
She was a beauty of an entirely different style from Gwen—long, pale violet hair, features as though painted by an artist's brush, lips red and teeth white, her eyes shimmering with warmth. Every gesture, every movement she made carried an air of elegance and nobility.
Like a violet in full bloom—graceful and refined.
Gwen's impression of her eldest sister had been frozen in the past.
Back then, Kavra's hair had still been the same silver-white as her own.
Did she dye it?
Gwen was a little curious.
But there was no denying it—after so many years together under the same roof, the bond between the 2 sisters was an exceptionally close one.
Even after such a long separation, Gwen could not hide the delight welling up inside her.
Her face broke into a beaming smile, her entire bearing completely transformed from just moments before.
"Aren't you going to give your sister a hug?"
Kavra spread her arms open wide and smiled as she said it.
Like the bright moon on a clear night—anyone who saw her would feel an instinctive warmth and closeness.
Gwen's cheeks flushed red, and she gave a nod before throwing herself into her sister's arms in a long, tight embrace.
At that moment, Kavra still wore the same smile as she asked:
"I just heard from the servants that you came back in someone else's Carriage—who was it?"
"Sis……big sister!"
Gwen stamped her foot, putting on a sulky expression.
Kavra looked at her like that and gave a nod, as though she already knew everything.
"Right, right—you don't have to say it, I already know. That was Viktor just now, wasn't it."
Gwen kept her head down and said nothing.
Her mind was a little muddled. She had only just begun to grasp Viktor's feelings, and then her sister—whom she had not seen in years—suddenly appeared out of nowhere to tease her about it.
What on earth was today?
"Come to think of it, it seems like I haven't seen Viktor in quite a long time either. I wonder if he's still just as insufferably smug as he used to be."
"Maybe I should find the time to pay him a visit?"
Kavra was muttering away to herself, and Gwen turned that thought over for a moment before her curiosity got the better of her:
"Sister, what brought you to the Royal Capital?"
"Hmm? Why, I missed my dear little sister, of course~"
Kavra pulled Gwen into her arms and gave her a thorough squeeze. Gwen pushed her away with a mildly indignant look.
"You know I can tell the difference between truth and lies."
"Fine, fine—I knew I couldn't fool you."
"Using your ability on your own family, not an ounce of mercy—little Gwen has picked up some bad habits, hasn't she."
Kavra stuck her tongue out, then composed herself.
"I was already planning to come to the Royal Capital at some point, but then I heard from a friend that something had happened here recently, so I came a little earlier than intended."
"You weren't caught up in it, were you?"
Gwen shook her head and said:
"The ones most affected were mainly Duke Livi and Viktor."
Kavra tilted her head slightly, a flicker of unmistakable puzzlement crossing her eyes.
"Hmm? Why would Viktor have anything to do with Duke Livi?"
Gwen chose her words carefully and recounted everything she had encountered over this period of time to Kavra.
***
"What, what!? The volcano almost erupted? There was a Volcano God sealed beneath it? And a magical beast of that caliber was actually defeated by Viktor!?"
"Ugh, if it weren't for business at home, I would have absolutely wanted to be part of something that exciting!"
"Next time something like that comes up, you have to call me, alright!"
Listening to Gwen's account, Kavra's eyes lit up with a brilliant gleam.
She bit her lip—it was plain to see how deeply she resented having missed out on this.
Seeing that, Gwen felt a little helpless.
"Sister, how could something like that ever happen again."
"Even if it did, I would not want to go through it a 2nd time."
Kavra adopted a sagely tone and lectured her with great seriousness:
"You don't understand, Gwen—this is a rare and precious adventure."
"Yes, the risks are enormous, but with great risk comes great opportunity."
Hearing Kavra's words, Gwen paused slightly, her mind suddenly going back to Viktor in the Imperial Palace today—the bearing and overwhelming strength he had displayed.
"……Opportunity?"
"Exactly—opportunity."
Kavra crossed her arms, gave a solemn nod, and said: "If you want to grow stronger relying purely on regular training alone—not to say it's impossible, but the pace is so slow it's enough to make anyone lose heart."
"Though I'm not worried you would ever give up……"
Kavra kept talking after that, but Gwen had already stopped taking it in.
Viktor had grown so suddenly, so powerfully—could it be that he, too, had come across some rare and precious opportunity?
She was still lost in thought when Kavra's voice drifted through to her.
"So, the Duke stopped the War Magic for his daughter's sake…… perhaps I ought to thank him for that."
Gwen was a little puzzled. From the standpoint of the Empire's interests, if the volcano had erupted, the destruction wrought would have been unimaginable.
That was the premise under which Viktor succeeded—but what if he had failed?
Surely her sister should have been thinking of the family's interests and the Royal Capital's interests first.
Kavra saw through what was on Gwen's mind, let out a quiet sigh, and rapped Gwen on the head with her fist.
Gwen winced in pain, clutching her head, a few involuntary tears squeezing out from the sting of it.
"Sister, do you have any idea how strong you are?"
"Sorry, sorry—big sister just couldn't help herself."
Only then did Kavra lovingly ruffle Gwen's hair and say soothingly:
"But think about it—you were up on that mountain at the time, too. If the Duke had released the War Magic……"
"How would your sister have faced you at your graveside afterward?"
Gwen froze. She had never once thought about that.
At the time, it was not only Erika who had been standing at the Summit.
Gwen herself, who had gone chasing after Erika, had been there too.
Just as Kavra said.
Thank goodness it was the Duke who held command over the Magic Formation—and he had stopped the War Magic.
Had the magic been unleashed, she, too, would not have been spared.
At that moment, Gwen thought again of Viktor's words.
For her sake, he had defeated the Volcano God.
Without her even knowing.
"Viktor…… really did save me……"
The turmoil inside Gwen's heart only deepened, and she found herself losing the ability to tell what she was feeling anymore. The expression on her face grew steadily more complicated.
"What is it? Is something on your mind?"
Kavra watched Gwen with her usual smile, her gaze sweeping back and forth across the top of Gwen's head.
Hmm…… she shouldn't have hit her that hard.
She probably wasn't hurt.
Gwen shook her head. Now that she had accepted someone's goodwill, there was no reason not to repay it in kind.
Once she had thought it through, she found herself far less tangled up about it than before.
Kavra smiled and gave a nod, then suddenly seemed to think of something and said:
"Ah! Since little Gwen hasn't taken off her armor yet—how about a sparring match with your sister? We haven't crossed swords in so many years!"
Gwen looked at Kavra with some surprise, equal parts skeptical and reluctant.
"Sister? You?"
Before she could say another word, Kavra had already grabbed Gwen by the hand and was pulling her toward the Training Ground.
"Come on, come on! To the Training Ground!"
"Don't we need protective gear?"
"No need, no need!"
***
Huff, huff……
Gwen was down on one knee, barely keeping herself from collapsing entirely with one hand braced on her sword.
She was drenched in sweat, her stamina almost entirely spent.
Meanwhile, on the opposite side stood Kavra.
She had been wielding nothing more than a standard Knight's sword, without a single piece of protective gear on her body.
And yet—she looked completely at ease, as though she had not used even a fraction of her full strength.
Kavra stretched out with a long, leisurely yawn, slid the Knight's longsword back into its scabbard, and hung it back on the wall.
"Mmm~haah! Haven't had a proper workout in ages! Now that felt good~"
Gwen managed to drag herself back to her feet and asked out of nowhere:
"Sister, why did you choose to give up the path of a Knight?"
"Hmm?"
Kavra turned back around, one hand resting under her chin, as though she was genuinely giving it careful thought.
"Helplessness, I suppose."
"After all, the family needed what I had to offer."
Something heavy settled in Gwen's chest.
Her sister—Kavra Delin.
As the eldest daughter of the family, she possessed exceptional talent and tremendous strength. Even 10 years ago, she had already wielded power on par with the Royal Knight Commander.
And yet, her sister had given up the martial path.
She had started over from scratch, setting her sights on a career in politics, relentlessly honing her social skills and weaving her way through the world of governance.
This, too, was a form of helplessness.
As the Delin Family—a house that held considerable military influence within the Empire—they needed a leader who could plant steady roots in the political sphere, someone to guide the family through whatever crises lay ahead.
Even with their father's countless students spread throughout the land, there was no shortage of people who regarded the Delin Family as a thorn in their side.
And Kavra—cheerful by nature, extraordinarily perceptive, and gifted with exceptional social grace—was a beauty beloved by all who met her.
She was, in nearly every way, the polar opposite of Viktor.
And so, Kavra Delin had laid down the weapon she loved, and for the sake of her family, became the one who bore the sacrifice.
Beneath that ever-bright exterior, there was perhaps a pain too deep for words.
"But things are looking a bit troubling, little Gwen."
Suddenly, her sister's voice pulled Gwen back from her thoughts.
She blinked, a little puzzled.
Kavra looked at her, a pained expression on her face:
"To be honest, part of why I came to the Royal Capital this time was because I was curious about how strong you had gotten."
"But you…… don't seem to have made any progress whatsoever."
Hearing her sister say that, Gwen tightened her grip on the sword in her hand.
It was true that she could not defeat her eldest sister—not even when her sister had long since abandoned the path of a Knight.
But if anyone said her strength had not grown in the past several years, she refused to accept that.
Kavra suddenly said:
"This won't do at all, little Gwen. If things keep going like this, Father is very likely to call you back home for intensive training—what on earth are we going to do?"
Kavra put on a fretful expression while her eyes darted around in a quick, scheming sweep, watching Gwen's face the entire time.
"I've got it!"
Gwen looked up at Kavra.
Kavra, as though she had hit upon the perfect solution, said:
"Why not pick a good date soon and just get married to Viktor already!"
"That way, Father will definitely let you stay here!"
Gwen blinked.
"Hah?"