When I opened my heavy eyelids, I saw the bright ceiling. I did feel kind of out of it, but I didn’t think much time had passed. It went without saying that my body felt refreshed as if I had just woken up. The wound on my right arm had been treated, and my body felt soft as if I had just taken a shower.

‘Someone must’ve washed my body...’

I was sure they used magic to clean me.

My vision was blurry, but it would get better over time, so it wasn’t that much of an issue. Seeing that I was alone in this large room, I must be in a hospital room. It was very luxurious for a hospital room, but it was proof that they treated me well, so I felt good while looking around. Suddenly, the door slowly opened, and I expected it to be Jung Ha-Yan, but it was actually Lady Marilyn. I immediately heard her loud voice.

“Mr. Lee Ki-Young!”

She ran over to me while crying and hugged me. Afterward, I felt a bit flustered when I suddenly fell backward. She must have been surprised by what she had done as well, as she was holding her hand up her chest. She was probably thinking about how her actions just now weren’t very ladylike. I liked how she looked really embarrassed, but sadly, I wasn’t interested in her at all.

‘She is cute, though…’

Lady Marilyn wasn’t very beneficial to me, and I also didn’t have the energy to take care of her.

“Oh, Lady Marilyn.”

I didn’t forget to give her a polite smile, and when I spoke while smiling, she immediately answered.

“What’s today’s date?”

“It has been exactly three days since you fainted. I was worried that you wouldn’t wake up anymore…”

“Three days?” I asked once again.

“Yes, Mr. Lee Ki-Young.”

A little more time had passed than I had thought. I thought of many things for a moment, but I eventually felt better.

‘They’re probably almost done with the postwar issues…’

Actually, it would take more than a day to clean up the monster corpses, so I was sure that they were still cleaning up, and that was when I realized why my party members weren’t here in this room. Dialugia must be doing fine, as there was nothing wrong with my body. I was curious about where she was, but there were other things I wanted answers for as well.

“I see…” I nodded

“Thank you very much, Mr. Lee Ki-Young,” she suddenly said.

“For what?” I asked.

“The fact that you fought for Castle Rock to the point that you fainted… I was disappointed in myself for not being able to do anything. Heuk…”

“Hahaha. It’s fine. It’s the others that fought hard. I didn’t do anything,” I told her.

“That’s not true! Not only did you command the free city denizens, but you also stopped the monsters from the underground waterway… the citizens and free city denizens of Castle Rock witnessed how you fought hard on the battlefield! Heuk…”

“That’s… ahem. The Small Stone Guild and Mr. Song Jung-Wook are the real heroes, as they sacrificed themselves for Castle Rock. I just…”

“O-Of course, I remember their sacrifice, but… anyway… how are you feeling?” she asked, changing the subject.

“I’m fine. I don’t think I got hurt anywhere else,” I responded.

Lady Marilyn didn’t seem to care about how Song Jung-Wook got buried under a monster and died a horrible death, so I guess this could be considered a success.

Earlier, she mentioned monsters in the underground water, but that was a lie Jo Hye-Jin had made up to run away from Cha Hee-Ra. However, the Red Mercenary Guild threw a few monster corpses in there to make it seem real. We couldn’t let the others know that Cha Hee-Ra went berserk and ruined the defense war plan nor could we tell them the truth about the part of me fighting on the battlefield. I hadn’t exactly pulled my weight, but if I looked like I did, then I succeeded.

‘This is nice.’

If that’s what Lady Marilyn thought, then it was obvious what the others thought of me. There wasn’t a reason for the Blue Guild and me not to receive any benefits. When I spoke to Lady Marilyn again while smiling, she answered immediately.

“Where are the others…”

“Who exactly?”

“My party members and Miss Cha Hee-Ra. What about Dialugia? Have they finished cleaning everything up? Have they taken care of the other issues…” I responded.

“Oh! I’m very sorry, Mr Lee Ki-young. I should’ve explained everything that happened while you were out first…” she said in a low voice.

“It’s fine, Lady Marilyn. It’s nothing to apologize for. I was just curious whether the postwar issues had already been taken care of,” I told her.

“I-I didn’t know you cared so much about Castle Rock…” she whispered.

“Hahaha…”

“I’m sorry. I keep talking on talking like—”

“No, it’s really fine,” I said, interrupting her.

She looked a bit excited. It could be because she thought that risking my life for Castle Rock meant I was also risking my life for her. It was nothing more than an assumption, but if I was right, then I had to clear up the misunderstanding in advance. When I smiled awkwardly, she started to talk nervously.

“If you’re asking about what happened after you fainted… Oh! They started cleaning up the corpses right away, and they’re still cleaning it up right now.”

“I see...”

“There could still be monsters that survived, so the free city denizens started cleaning up first… so it’s taking a bit of time. The Blue Guild party members are probably—”

“...Helping out,” I said, finishing her sentence.

“Yes, they’re working with the Red Mercenary Guild at the forefront by protecting the workers,” she added.

“Is Miss Cha Hee-Ra with them as well?” I asked.

“She rushed back to Lindel. I’m not sure what happened, but she looked very busy, so I couldn’t even thank her. She’s a hero that fought for Castle Rock… I’m heartbroken by the fact that I couldn’t treat her properly,” she replied disappointingly.

‘Did she run away?’

“Did you say she looked busy?” I asked.

“Yes. She said she had urgent business to take care of… Oh, Miss Cha Hee-Ra asked me to deliver this to you,” she answered.

“Thank you. If you don’t mind…”

“Feel free to read it right now, Mr. Lee Ki-Young.”

When I quietly looked down after deciphering the coded spell, I noticed Lady Marilyn peeking. I guess she must’ve wanted to read it as well, but obviously, I wasn’t going to show it to her. I thought it would be an apology letter, but it wasn’t that kind of letter.

[Don’t forget and don’t ignore me. Mr. Lee Ki-Young, the sub-guildmaster of the Blue Guild in Lindel. I trust that you’ll keep your promise and I’ll be expecting a nice invitation at the right time. - To Mr. Lee Ki-Young, the honorary bishop of the Holy Empire

- From Xiaolin, the Republic’s Five Tiger Generals, Commander Xiaolin]

‘Xiaolin?’

I guess she gave this letter to Cha Hee-Ra after their fight. I wanted to ignore her letter, but I had never imagined that she would reveal her identity.

‘Five Tiger Generals…’

I didn’t know the details, but it seemed like the Republic didn’t have a problem with giving the free city denizens a government position, and based on her title, her rank was higher than I thought. Moreover, there were at least four more people as strong as her.

I didn’t know what kind of relationship the Holy Empire and the Republic would have in the future, but I did obtain some good information.

‘I think I can use this…’

It would be risky on my side as well, but I was sure she would become useful in the future. Whether we were on the Republic’s good side or bad side, we had to face them at least once.

‘Based on the recent events, I don’t think things are going well with the Republic, though…’

I couldn’t afford to go to the Republic right now because I couldn’t even take care of myself. The issues in the Holy Empire were enough to give me a headache.

The person I was worried about right now was Cha Hee-Ra. I was certain the reason why she left Castle Rock immediately without showing her face was because she was embarrassed. If she suddenly recalled this moment 20 years later, I was sure she would still feel embarrassed about it. I could understand why she felt that way since she left a mess after leaving the front line. She would probably appear in the future as if nothing had happened, but I was surprised that she had such a girly side. I couldn’t help but look forward to seeing her reaction when we met again.

“Also!” Lady Marilyn exclaimed excitedly.

“Yes?”

“Even though we haven’t officially recognized you for your extraordinary service, I think we’re going to give rewards to you, Mr. Kim Hyun-Sung, and to all the members of the Blue Guild,” she added.

‘Oh!’

“We didn’t help because we were expecting a reward,” I said.

I couldn’t help but smile, and naturally, I treated her even friendlier without realizing it. When my coldness was suddenly replaced with kindness, Lady Marilyn quickly spoke up because she realized exactly what I wanted.

“But Castle Rock was able to overcome this crisis thanks to you and the Blue Guild. I even saw my father thinking deeply about it…”

“Hahaha…”

“If you think it’s not enough, then I’ll…”

“No, your thoughts are more than enough, Lady Marilyn. We really didn’t do this to get rewarded. We only did what was right as a member of the Holy Empire,” I explained, interrupting her.

“No, please let me pay you back…” Lady Marilyn said, begging.

“If that’s your wish… there’s nothing I can do, then…”

“Th-Thank you,” she said, stuttering.

“I should be the one thanking you since you’re rewarding us even though we only did what was right.”

Marilyn was kind of a pushover, and I realized I would get a reward better than what I had imagined. When I slowly sat up, I noticed Lady Marilyn blushing. I wasn’t thinking about expressing my gratitude, as all I could think about was getting started on the work that had been piling up while I was asleep.

“Regarding the monster I captured…” I mentioned.

“Excuse me?” she asked.

“Have you seen a woman with horns on her head?” I asked.

“Oh… that woman…” she mumbled.

“Did something happen?”

“I believe she’s in Castle Rock’s underground prison. We were actually thinking about what we should do with her… and…” she replied hesitantly.

“Please continue,” I encouraged her.

“That monster mentioned something outrageous like you two sharing a life…” she continued.

‘I wonder if that’s all she said…’

What she had done was a reasonable decision. I didn’t think she mentioned that I was her spouse, but she had to save her life and the baby’s life. I liked the fact that she was quietly waiting for me, and I was certain her body hadn’t recovered just yet. I wasn’t sure if the baby was still with her, but I had to check up on her.

“I have to go and see her…”

“What?” Lady Marilyn questioned.

“What Dialugia said is true. I honestly don’t know the details on how it happened, but… all I know is that we are sharing a life right now,” I explained.

“Ah!” she gasped.

“Thank you for letting me know, Lady Marilyn. Let’s have dinner together with Count Castlerock.” I suggested.

“Sure, Mr. Lee Ki-Young!” she replied.

I immediately headed out.

‘I wonder how my baby is doing.’

Out of all the work surrounding me, Dialugia was the most important task.