That being said, I believed her when she said that she felt bad and that she didn’t hold anything against us. I could tell that from her expression. Even so, she wasn’t hesitating to kill me at all. She was a true noble through and through. She wasn’t swayed by her emotions and could make a rational decision every time.
“In other words, the king said you could be queen if you destroyed House Sevensworth?”
“That’s right. We’ve spent quite a bit of money on the rebellion in Thorsdale while also supporting your army,” she said with an elegant smile.
As I thought. The current king’s behind this. The reason they intentionally froze out House Lillard when they joined his faction was always to use them as a pawn for assassination. If she was successful in killing me, she could become queen and her family would become the core of his faction. If they failed, they’d go to the bottom of it. That was why the current king had offered them a seemingly miraculous chance to turn everything around, forcing House Lillard to make a very bold choice.
“There’s no point in telling you my last words since you’re the one who’ll be dying here. Return to your army already so we can begin our final battle,” I said.
For a brief second, I saw a look of surprise on her face, but it vanished just as quickly and she returned to a smile. She bowed elegantly before mounting her white horse and riding back to her army.
I began forming magic circuits to release a spell toward Ana while she watched Lady Francess ride away. Before Ana knew it, she collapsed to the ground. I’d used a medical type of magic for anesthesia. Medical magic was very powerful, but despite being hit by the full strength of this spell, Ana didn’t fall asleep. She simply became unsteady on her feet until her knees buckled, but she still kept her consciousness. If she’d finished building her magic circuits as a Magic Monarch, a regular spell like this wouldn’t have worked on her, but she hadn’t gotten there yet. For now, it still affected her, albeit at a reduced impact.
“Bridgette, please take Ana and run away. Take the knights too. All of you need to protect Ana. As long as she lives on, House Sevensworth will survive. Protect her with all you have.”
“What will you do?” Bridgette asked, looking right at me.
“Buy you time. You should know that I can do that.”
“Understood... I promise I will protect her even if it costs my life! I wish you luck in your battle!” Bridgette said with a serious expression before running away with Ana.
The knights tried to keep up with her, but on foot, Bridgette was incredibly fast, making it hard for them to do so. Well then, I’m up. You’ve miscalculated something, Lady Francess. You’re really underestimating how strong I am with the knowledge I have from my past life.
I’d make sure Ana survived. Armies were built around central leaders, so if I could take them out, they’d be paralyzed. I just had to take out their high-ranking officers to give Ana enough time to escape while they fumbled to regroup. The reason I had Lady Francess return was to determine the positioning of the main force. I’d planted the idea in her head that I might still have some forces lurking around somewhere and I was sure that she’d report that to the commander because that was how it worked with these kinds of armies. Most likely, she’d report to her father. As expected, I saw her communicate something to him and was able to confirm his location, which wasn’t too far from where the mind control spell was being cast.
What I was doing had no chance of me getting out alive. Simply running with everything I had to reach their commander would drain half my mana at least by itself, and I had no doubt that their forces would do everything they could to try and stop me. By the time I took out their leader, I wouldn’t have enough mana left to flee.
Suddenly, I remembered Hugo’s warning to me about how I was too fixated on Ana and how it would lead to my death. Heh. Hugo, you really were a great fortune teller. Your prediction was right on the money. If I’d just given Ana to the current king, I’d never be in this position. But you know...I’d rather die than let that happen. Maybe this was part of your strategy too. I gripped the handle of my sword tightly.
Those who died naturally were accepted back into the wheel of reincarnation, but those who died an unnatural death were stuck in this world, uninvited to heaven. That’s what the church proclaimed and why they declared killing as an act of evil. If that was true, then my soul would most likely remain in this world.
I’m going to die... Whether it’s in thirty minutes, an hour, or a little longer from now, I’m going to be dead... I’m scared... My teeth began to chatter. That was why I screamed. I screamed to overcome my fear. I screamed to beat it down deep inside me while I charged forth.
I’d promised Ana that I would never leave her again, that I would stay with her and be by her side forever. Ana, if my soul stays in this world, I want to remain by your side. I want to continue protecting you forever. You’re still young. I’m sure you’ll be able to fall in love again and I promise I won’t interfere. No matter who you fall in love with, I will always wish for your happiness. No matter who you love, I will never stop loving you. Ana... Please be happy...