A crossroads.
A crossroads dividing Wintella, the royal capital where the Kingdom of Luhan’s palace stood, from the border territory of Marquess Moonlight, which shared a border with the Empire.
It was a crossroads that brought many thoughts, and just as much hesitation.
Standing before it, Solacius recalled the events of the original work even more vividly.
―Luci, please take care of Luci.
It was the first request that came to mind, one he had received while playing the original work. He had received it while obtaining the World Tree Sapling, the second trial.
It had been a request made by an NPC in the game, but Tae Gwang-hwi, who had fused with Solacius, wanted to fulfill this request if possible.
Only as far as defeating the Demon King and lifting Queen Lucifurne’s curse.
However, to do that, he had to open the Queen’s heart.
‘I also have to expose the Chancellor beside the Queen as a traitor, and I need to be cautious of the Regent, who may be a regressor.’
There were other essential tasks he had to complete as well.
‘But do I really need to meet the Queen and experience that hysteria?’
Tae Gwang-hwi—whose true name was Solacius, who was now Roan Shalut, and whose state might have been possession, summoning, or some mixture of the two—pondered.
He recalled the irritating stress he had experienced while playing the game.
The misunderstanding had been resolved in the latter half, but the process of resolving it had been unbearably painful.
He had only endured it because he had watched it from a third-person perspective through a monitor. He had only raised her Affection Meter because he could skip through the scenes. If he had experienced it all firsthand in 4D, he would have cut ties with the Kingdom of Luhan and left long ago.
The Queen’s hysteria had been that severe.
‘If only the Queen were a regressor.’
The Queen he had seen at the end had at least been friendly.
Still, even after considering it carefully, the likelihood that the Queen was a regressor seemed lower than the theory that the Regent was one.
Haaah......
Solacius let out a sigh.
“Hehe, what kind of person is the Queen? They say she is a Grand Witch. Will I really freeze if I get too close?”
Ahead of him stood his younger sister, Lunacirne, who was gradually showing her rambunctious nature in earnest.
Lunacirne’s body was angled toward the road leading to the royal capital. It seemed she wanted to see the splendid capital, beautiful palace, and Queen as soon as possible.
“Brother? What is wrong? Do you need to take a dump?”
When he remained still without moving, she turned around with puzzled eyes.
“…….”
Seeing his younger sister, Solacius ran a simulation in his head. What would happen if that rambunctious girl met the hysterical Queen?
‘You expect me to raise my affinity with two women, Luci and Luna?’
On top of that, the Chancellor, an Imperial spy, and the Regent, who might be a regressor, came included as a bonus.
‘If the Regent really is a regressor, he will be wary of my actions, which have changed from the original history.’
He remembered the Queen’s letter stored in his inventory.
He furrowed his brow.
“It is highly likely to be a trap.”
The mutter escaped him with a deep sigh.
The very act of inviting him to the royal palace with the promise of a title and territory might be a massive trap.
I cannot go!!
A warning light flared brightly in his mind.
Solacius looked back and forth between the blue sword at his waist and his right hand.
‘The Demon King. He was someone I got rid of even on Earth. And thanks to this magic sword, the side effects have been resolved.’
The original Sun Abilities from Earth had been sealed, but……
‘If I have the Sunwell Ring, it seems I can resolve even the weakened abilities.’
One possible solution came to mind.
‘The first trial the Queen gave me was to retrieve the Sunwell Ring. But will she give me the same trial this time as well?’
Ignoring the Queen’s order to come for an audience and handling things alone, versus meeting the hysterical Queen, the traitorous Chancellor, and the Regent, who might be a regressor.
He considered which of the two carried the greater risk.
‘Doesn’t only the result matter?’
His deliberation did not last long.
“Definitely the former.”
It seemed he did not need to meet the Queen.
‘Meeting her will only hurt both our feelings. After I eliminate the Demon King, I can stop by once and lift her curse. Once I fully restore the Sun Abilities and combine the Sunwell Ring with the World Tree Sapling, I should be able to lift the Queen’s curse.’
Rather than playing push and pull with the Queen, he would pursue the hidden pieces and bonds that he had not found in the original work.
Like the blue magic sword at his waist. Like the First Imperial Princess before his eyes.
He turned the reins of the horse he was holding.
“Huh? Brother, where are you going?! Did you really need to take a dump?”
Lunacirne mounted her broom and flew after Solacius in little hops.
The direction was south.
‘First, I will go to Volka Mine and obtain the Sunwell Ring. If I need support, it would be better to receive it from Marquess Moonlight. At least the Marquess and his daughter were people I could communicate with.’
Solacius was about to turn back toward another crossroads, down the road opposite the royal capital.
SKREE, SKREE.
At that moment, a familiar cry came from somewhere above.
Then—
“Stop!”
The herald he had seen before appeared on a griffin and blocked Solacius and Lunacirne’s path.
‘…….’
Solacius’s expression hardened when he saw the herald.
‘Did she somehow see through my thoughts?’
Whether he knew Solacius’s thoughts or not, the herald politely dismounted from the griffin.
“By order of Her Majesty!”
Before Solacius could react, he abruptly pulled out a silk scroll and spread it open.
“Right now, the Empire’s Dark Grand Duke and Dark Legion have invaded Volka, at the southernmost edge of Marquess Moonlight’s border territory. They are after the Sunwell Ring there.”
The first line of the order the herald recited.
Solacius and Lunacirne’s eyes widened.
“Volka Fortress, which is defending against them, is in an extremely perilous situation.”
The two stood dumbfounded, forgetting even to show respect, but the herald did not particularly care.
The butterfly’s wings had beat wider and wider, until even the Dark Grand Duke and the Dark Legion had moved.
“To the honorable Imperial knight, Roan Shalut, I grant you a choice. First, go to Volka immediately and protect the Kingdom of Luhan from the Empire’s threat. Second, come to the royal palace as you are and have an audience with me. If you go directly to Volka, I will grant you a reward greater than what was already promised. I swear a Mana Oath to grant any wish you desire.”
The herald finished reciting. He read the final sentence with particular force.
“A choice, you say?”
However, Solacius focused on the word ‘choice’ rather than the final clause. It was refreshing that the Queen, who only knew how to give orders, had given him a choice.
“That is correct.”
“I will go directly to Volka.”
Solacius answered without hesitation.
HUMM!
At his words, the blue magic sword at his waist hummed and trembled.
“Without discussing it with me!”
Lunacirne protested from beside him, but he ignored her.
“You have made a good decision! Accept this letter from Her Majesty.”
The herald handed him the scroll, then immediately mounted the griffin and rose into the sky.
Given the state of affairs, the herald and griffin appeared extremely busy.
It was an unexpected development. Even Solacius was bewildered.
‘It worked out, but…….’
He had felt uneasy about disobeying the Queen’s order to come to the royal palace.
However, he could now go confidently.
“What is this? What is this? We are not going to the royal capital, then?”
Lunacirne asked with a dazed expression, shaking Solacius’s shoulder from atop her broom.
“That is right. We will have to return the way we came.”
With a calm expression, Solacius led the black horse, Manhattan Cafe, down the southern road.
“Damn it! We are not some mutts! They do not even train dogs like this! And why did you choose number one, Brother?!”
“She only said I could choose. The answer had already been decided.”
“I do not like that Queen! She must have some kind of mental illness!”
As she followed behind her brother, Lunacirne openly badmouthed the Queen.
“She is not telling us to defeat the Dark Grand Duke and retrieve the Sunwell Ring, right? Ah~ If that is what she means, she is a crazy bitch.”
It seemed Lunacirne believed they were merely being told to go there, provide support, and return.
Solacius snickered at his younger sister’s words. She had always been rambunctious, but it seemed that growing up with witches had made her mouth even rougher.
HUMMM.
At Lunacirne’s backtalk about the Queen, the blue sword at Solacius’s waist trembled.
‘Still, a choice. She could have simply given me an order. It does not suit the hysterical Queen I know.’
If the Queen he knew had been the one giving the order, she should have confidently commanded him to kill the Dark Grand Duke, defeat the Dark Legion, and retrieve the Sunwell Ring.
‘Did the Regent intervene?’
Solacius’s eyes grew deep.
“By the way, Brother, are you not going to take a dump? You did not need to go?”
As he sank into thought, Lunacirne suddenly flew close and asked.
“……I never said that my stomach hurt.”
Solacius frowned at the behavior of his younger sister, who was far from a lady.
“Even if you do not need to go, I do! Stop for a moment! Keep watch nearby.”
“…….”
***
Solacius sat on the black horse, Manhattan Cafe, blankly looking at the scenery.
A blue sky and land thick with greenery.
It was scenery that made it impossible to believe they were in the middle of a war.
‘Is she constipated?’
Even so, he frowned as he looked in the direction of his younger sister, who was taking quite a while.
Beyond the thick brush. It was certainly a fair distance away, but he somehow felt as though he could smell something.
While waiting, he drew the blue magic sword from his waist.
Looking at this sword was excellent for zoning out, like watching a fire.
The sword, which looked as though a massive gemstone had been sharply carved, made him feel as though he were admiring a work of art just by looking at it.
“What is your name?”
As he admired the sword, he suddenly asked.
He had heard that some magic swords possessed an ego. Perhaps this one did as well? It often trembled and resonated, so it did not seem impossible.
“A magic sword of your caliber must have a name.”
When he spoke to it, the blue magic sword responded with a humming vibration as though it understood him.
“If you do not have a name, may I give you one?”
Solacius gently asked the sword as though speaking to a person.
[……Yes.]
“……?”
At the completely unexpected voice, he furrowed his brow.
[Naming me. That does not seem bad either.]
It was a woman’s voice. However, its intonation was unnatural, carrying the strong feeling of Earth’s text-to-speech.
“Did you speak?”
His golden eyes, full of bewilderment, turned toward Wintella.
[It is so.]
Once again, the blue magic sword spoke while resonating softly.
Whenever the voice was heard, the magic stone embedded in the sword glimmered faintly.
“Why have you only spoken now?”
[……I needed time to prepare myself, too.]
“??”
An incomprehensible response from the magic sword.
[In any case, I have great expectations, since you say you will give me a name.]
Its intonation was unnatural, but its responses made him feel as though he were speaking to a person.
“What was your original name?”
[You need not know. No, I had none. So give me a name.]
Judging by this, it seemed that it had originally had a name. It must not have liked it.
“…….”
Solacius held the sword and fell into thought.
Excalibur, Nailing, Durandal, and more. Countless names came to mind.
‘There are Air Conditioner, Whisen, and Carrier as well.’
None of them suited the sword before him.
‘A woman’s name would be better.’
The magic sword had a woman’s voice. He thought of suitable women’s names, recalling the names of women he had known on Earth and after coming here.
‘Why does she have to come to mind?’
Then, someone suddenly appeared in Solacius’s thoughts. Perhaps the woman most similar to this sword: Lucifurne, the Queen of the Kingdom of Luhan.
‘I do not particularly like her. It is closer to wariness. But separate from my personal feelings, her name seems to suit it best.’
He did not like the Queen of the Kingdom of Luhan. Still, her name suited the sword remarkably well.
‘But if I use the Queen’s name outright…….’
It was common to name weapons or spirit beasts after famous figures, but even that had its limits.
What if he used the name of the Queen, who was revered as a Saintess in the Kingdom of Luhan, exactly as it was? Especially as an exiled imperial royal. He could not even imagine the reaction.
However, there was not no way.
‘I just will not use her full name.’
Having finished thinking, Solacius opened his mouth and spoke the sword’s name.
“……Luci.”
The name Luci, which was also Lucifurne’s nickname.
“Your name is Luci.”
He could not use Lucifurne, but Luci was fine. At present, no one in this country could call the Queen by her nickname. No, there was one person. The Regent.
Even so, it did not matter.
‘Luci is a very common name.’
If someone asked, “What is this magic sword’s name?” and he answered, ‘Luci,’ that person would reply, “That is a very ordinary name.”
[…….]
The magic sword did not react to the name Luci that he had given it.
HUMMM.
A few seconds later, the magic stone flickered with a vibration like that of a cellphone.
[……Luci?]
“Yes, Luci. Do you not like it?”
[No. Not at all. But why Luci?]
“……There is no particular reason. It simply seemed to suit you.”
GLIMMER, GLIMMER.
A faint light flickered across the entire magic sword.
[I like it. Luci. Yes, call me Luci.]
The magic sword appeared happy with the name Luci.