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“Wasn’t this supposed to be a strategy game?”

Somehow, seeing that sight made my heart sink even more. Eden was sweating coldly as she looked at Asmun’s clearly angry back.

Of course, from Asmun’s perspective, it was only natural to feel outraged at my reckless act that was almost akin to suicide without consulting anyone. But this was the best course of action. After all, this is a game.

**Ding!**

A new notification popped up, and Eden glanced at the window.

This was to be expected, so I wasn’t too disappointed, but because my combat power dropped, it felt like my head was spinning. Thankfully, it was nothing more than that. It was then that Eden recalled the soldier who was about to die clutching Seruka.

“That soldier from earlier…!”

At that moment, Jepar stepped forward.

“Our soldier is safe.”

Hearing that, Eden felt relieved and finally looked properly at Jepar.

With not a single hair out of place, his pure white silver hair and icy blue eyes felt chilling—it was clear that Jepar was a born handsome man, as befitting a key character. He was all sharp angles, making me feel a bit cold just looking at him. Yet, the relaxed smile he wore offset his inherent chilliness.

“That’s a relief. I’m glad no one was hurt.”

Eden replied kindly, forcing a smile. While everyone else looked like a complete mess, Jepar remained pristine, just like Asmun earlier.

Suddenly, I wondered what would have happened to Jepar if I hadn’t accepted this event quest, but I had a strong hunch that even if I hadn’t been there, Seruka wouldn’t have been able to mess him up.

He would have been fine without me.

“……”

Eden unintentionally shot a glance at Asmun, who was compiling his thoughts. Once as neat as Jepar, Asmun was now smeared with monster blood and had torn limbs from climbing a steep cliff.

“Thanks to you, we’ve dealt with the troublesome monster, Priest.”

Jepar bowed politely to greet her, causing Eden to quickly regain her composure and shake her head.

“No, it’s only what I should do.”

“We should get going. Allow me to escort you.”

Jepar treated Eden with utmost politeness and kindness. The soldiers moved Seruka’s corpse with a scroll, and Eden, Karon, and Asmun finally got out of the wretched forest, following Jepar.

Throughout the journey out of the woods, Asmun never once turned back to Eden.

As soon as they exited the forest, Jepar gathered troops to locate the three and the scattered hunting team.

The hunting team that had lost sight of the three had, it seemed, no choice but to retreat when the sun began to set, waiting outside the woods for them.

Since the spot they waited was not far from the Grand Duchy, the three of them soon reunited with the hunting team.

In the swift turn of events, Eden could faintly grasp the power of Jepar, which had previously only been described in writing.

‘It would be quite a headache if he switched sides with another prince.’

Jepar requested that all three stay at Yurenka with the hunting team, but Karon rejected him.

“We need to return to the capital before the corpse decays.”

Jepar smiled gently, as if questioning what he was saying.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t give you the corpse. It was a monster caught in the Grand Duchy, after all.”

Just like that, the atmosphere suddenly turned icy.

“But it was caught by Priest Eden ‘alone’.”

As my name was suddenly mentioned, Eden shuddered and looked around cautiously.

“Yes, I have no objections.”

Jepar, with that relaxed face, turned his gaze toward Eden.

“I will definitely repay you, Priest. I promise on the honor of Yurenka.”

As he exchanged glances and smiled, Eden’s eyes sparkled for a moment. Jepar’s repayment was worth swapping for Seruka’s corpse. Besides, I didn’t need Seruka’s corpse anyway.

However, Karon seemed displeased with Jepar’s behavior. It was absurd to come all this way and not take the monster they had caught with such effort.

“Who knows when or where the same monster will appear again? We need to take the corpse for research.”

“It’s a monster that appeared in the Grand Duchy. Even if such a creature does exist, it’s likely its habitat is nearby, but we can’t just sit idle until the research is done.”

At that point, Karon’s eyes, which had been kind till now, gradually grew colder. Still smiling, he replied.

“It seems that you think of the Grand Duchy as a separate matter from the Empire.”

Despite being hit on the mark, Jepar didn’t bat an eye.

“How could that be? You wound me with your words.”

“……”

“Just so you know, the palace’s troops are reportedly lacking due to the unprecedented rampage of monsters. I only ask you to be considerate, worrying that we may be a burden to the Grand Duchy.”

“I understand the Duke’s intentions. Then I suppose I must convey your words directly to His Majesty.”

Even mentioning the Emperor as a threat didn’t faze Jepar.

“I sincerely hope my intentions are not distorted and are communicated well.”

Eden observed the two men’s face-off and tried to make sense of the situation. In short, they needed the corpse for research, yet Jepar was refusing to hand it over because he needed it too.

Now that I thought about it, I recalled that during my previous playthrough, I had seen that Yurenka was also engaged in monster research. So, Seruka’s corpse would indeed be essential research material for Jepar.

In this world, monster corpses were vital research materials. At least, until I showed up.

Eden cleared her throat and called out to Karon, who was still locked in this nerve-wracking exchange with Jepar.

“Uh, Captain.”

All eyes immediately turned to Eden. Even Asmun, who had been standing there with an expressionless face, seemingly uninterested in the tension between the two men.

“For the sake of research, there’s no need to take the corpse.”

At those words, Jepar’s eyebrows rose subtly.

“If it’s information about that monster, I’ve already gathered everything.”

Eden beamed confidently and smiled. Asmun watched her with envy, gazing at Karon.

Karon, momentarily taken aback as he stared at Eden, soon expressed a soft chuckle, a smile creeping onto his lips.

“Ah. Right. I was momentarily forgetting the priest’s remarkable abilities.”

In an instant, the tables turned, and an annoyingly smug air shifted over to Karon. He looked at Jepar with a sly smile once more.

“Actually, I was unsure how to move that massive corpse, so this works out perfectly. In that case, we’ll present the monster caught by ‘our’ priest to the Duke. Since he wants it so badly, we really have no choice.”

Jepar’s icy blue gaze hardened dangerously at Karon’s annoying words.

“Then let us take our leave. Ah, and we’ll gratefully make use of the carriage you provided.”

Whether Jepar’s eyes were cold or hot, Karon looked at Eden with an indifferent expression.

“Shall we go, Priest?”

Eden nodded, giving a slight bow to Jepar before turning to follow Karon. Jepar’s gaze was still fixed on Eden.

Karon kindly escorted them, and Asmun, who had been watching with crossed arms, seemed to freeze further in grimace.

“Your Highness, we should…”

Ronpell, standing behind him, ventured to speak, but before he could finish, Asmun strode forward angrily toward the carriage Eden was getting into.

“Your Highness…?”

Ronpell called out in confusion, but Asmun leaped into the carriage without a backward glance at him.

Karon, holding the door, gave Asmun a baffled look as he stepped into the carriage, which had been prepared with three from Jepar. He certainly hadn’t expected the prince, Asmun, to ride along with them.

But in reality, Asmun remained expressionless, taking the seat right in front of Eden.

“I’ll keep watch in front of the carriage.”

Karon, unaware of the tension between Asmun and Eden, said something chilling to Eden.

“What? Let’s ride together…”

Feeling apprehensive about staying alone with Asmun, who still wore a cold expression, Eden weakly tried to hold onto him, but it went in vain.

“It’s fine. There are occasions when monsters appear, so we need to have a lookout.”

Karon left those kind words and promptly closed the door like a sharp knife.

“……”

“……”

Inside the closed carriage, a dreadful silence hung in the air. Soon, the sound of the carriage setting off could be heard. Eden glanced at Asmun.

Asmun, treating Eden like a ghost, fixed his gaze outside the window. Although there were three carriages supported by Jepar, it seemed he intentionally chose the one I was in to suffocate me.

‘Is it really worth being this mad…?’

Eden recalled Asmun’s earlier image, guarding her throughout the forest. Indeed, with basic quests and event quests, my greed had covered his pristine looks in filth, making it true that I was an incredible burden.

‘It must’ve been irritating.’

Cold sweat trickled down Eden’s neck. Sure, I risked my life for the quest, but from Asmun’s perspective, it must have felt like utterly senseless hardship.

“Um… Your Highness.”

 

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