“Is that why you asked to join under our forces rather than as an allied force? To make it seem more likely that I was the one who ordered the death of Duke Sarouge?”
“That’s not the only reason. It also made it easier to gain your trust and get more information. Although, it seems I might not have been too successful in that regard.”
“How were you so sure that we’d succeed in taking down Thorsdale?”
Before the war began, she’d said that she wanted to join because she’d seen my magic. However, simply knowing that there was a talented sorcerer on our side wouldn’t allow her to predict that we’d topple an entire country. The best that could be guaranteed would be successfully repelling an invasion with minimal losses.
But even so, Lady Francess had been so assured of our victory that she even set up this plan to bring House Sarouge onto her side ahead of time. The fact that she’d enlisted her forces under our command was proof that she was setting up for them to join with her after killing the head of their house. She wouldn’t have done that if she wasn’t certain we’d win the war.
As far as I knew, our allies had at best expected us to be successful in our defense, but nobody expected us to succeed in occupying Thorsdale. Just looking at the sizes of our forces, we’d been at an obvious disadvantage. It’d be one thing if she’d known about the golems beforehand like House Sevensworth did, but without that knowledge, there was no way she would have been able to completely predict our victory.
“Have you forgotten that I’m a natural-born sorcerer? I know that other than you, everyone in House Sevensworth wears various Artifacts on their persons. I can tell by the complicated but precise flow of magic that they’re not normal magic tools. If they‘re always wearing them, then they must have some defensive properties, and if that’s the case, then they must be useful in war as well. If even those from House Valvalier and Adolni are wearing them, it’s safe to say that you have many other Artifacts that are useful in war as well.”
Oh, I see. It’s her magic eye that can see mana. My ring was a magic tool as well, but it used primordial magic; her eye could only see mana, so she couldn’t detect it as a magic tool. In addition, I’d cast a concealment spell on it to hide its activation. That was likely why she couldn’t see it for what it was.
The magic tools I’d given to Ana and the others weren’t fueled by their mana but by internal batteries. I wasn’t surprised that she’d be able to tell that they were magic tools. They were always active, so it must’ve been easy for her to see their magic circuits.
“So you thought we’d win based solely on the number of Artifacts we possessed? Seems a little optimistic, don’t you think?”
“Well, of course, it wasn’t just that. You were also very confident from the start of the battle. That’s what sealed the deal for me. I was certain there were other powerful Artifacts that could make up for the difference in forces. That’s why I made a plan to get House Sarouge on my side just in case.”
She got me. I’d tried to act like I was putting on a brave front, but that didn’t work on her. I never expected her to be able to tell the strength of my magic tools from that, though. She really lived up to her name as the Gold Rose.
“I never expected you to have such amazing Artifacts, though. I’ll admit I didn’t expect that there’d be absolutely no casualties and you’d be able to take over the royal palace.” She smiled as if she were enjoying a game.
“Why are you doing this?” Ana asked, a mix of fear, anger, and sorrow in her voice.
Ana had looked up to Lady Francess, so this betrayal probably hurt her a lot.
“Making me queen is House Lillard’s desire, as it is mine. This time, I won’t be relying on any men and will accomplish this feat by my own strength. I truly do feel bad that I have to sacrifice you all to my goal. Both of you are good people, and I don’t bear you any ill will. That’s why I’ve come here to hear your last words. It’s the least I can do.”
I doubt that’s why she’s really here. I was cautious of them launching an unseen magic attack on us, so I cast an inspection spell and saw that several metres above the enemy army, there was a spell being cast, invisible to the naked eye. It was still incomplete, but by the looks of it, it was likely a spell to control one’s mind. I’d wager this was the true reason House Lillard kept it a secret that they were a sorcery household.
They probably wanted to cast it on me so they could steal the golems before killing me. Lady Francess was here to buy time, which was why she kept volunteering information.
I know I say it a lot, but this world’s level of magic was really low. The magic circuit of the spell was crude and primitive. It was the kind of thing that adults in my time could’ve made in seconds, but these sorcerers were struggling to make it at all. Judging by their speed, it would take another twenty minutes or so.