Became a Strategist with a 100 Intelligence and 100\% Accuracy-Chapter 221: First Encounter (3)

"I expect he is currently with Serpina’s army... but I have been living in seclusion lately, so I don’t have any detailed information. Realistically, he was sold off as a prisoner, so the most likely scenario is that he’s being held captive. I can only apologize for not being of more help to you, my lord."

Jinor deliberately phrased it that way—saying that Swen was merely "held captive" by Serpina—so as not to unnecessarily agitate Luna.

He wasn’t entirely certain, but for some reason, he had the distinct feeling that this was the way he should speak in front of Luna.

Luna, who had no way of knowing his true thoughts, slowly nodded, sorting out her emotions.

"No... This alone is enough."

Simply learning where Swen was right now was enough.

So that’s how it is.

Right now, Swen is... being held captive by Serpina’s forces.

That meant the story Violet had told her might not have been just an empty rumor after all.

She had no way of knowing what Serpina had hoped to gain by exchanging a hostage for Swen.

But wasn’t it obvious?

A tyrant’s actions could only be so predictable.

Perhaps it was a momentary whim, a cruel and twisted indulgence.

Or maybe it was greed for Swen’s abilities, driving her to act recklessly.

Whatever the reason, as long as he was alive, that alone was enough for now.

At that moment, another question surfaced in her mind.

Why was Swen in Aishus' army in the first place?

"May I ask you a few more questions?"

"Of course, my lord."

"Why did Swen... end up in Aishus' army? I was certain he would have been with Brans' forces..."

Jinor stroked his beard for a moment.

"I don’t know the full details..."

"It’s alright. As I said, just tell me what you do know."

"He betrayed Brans' army and defected to us."

"...What? Betrayed?"

"That’s correct."

Swen betrayed them?

Why?

No—betrayal, from Swen’s perspective, would be fundamentally different from what she had done to Karelia.

Someone as arrogant as Lyn would never have taken Swen seriously. Besides, the very fact that Swen was in Brans' army in the first place meant that he had been forcibly taken from Luna’s side.

But even so, was there really a reason for him to go so far as to betray them and cross over to Aishus' forces?

Strangely enough—

Very strangely enough—

She was overwhelmingly curious about why Swen had chosen to betray them.

Was it an instinct as a ruler?

Or—

"Do you perhaps... know the reason?"

—Was it an instinct as a woman?

"The reason... I do not know why Sir Swen personally chose to betray them. After all, he didn’t defect alone. If I had to say, it would be more accurate to say that he followed someone else who had already betrayed them."

"...Excuse me? Followed someone?"

"A female knight defected alongside him."

"...What?"

As soon as she heard the words "female knight," Luna’s eyes grew cold.

"If I had to guess, I’d say he followed her. The two of them seemed... quite close."

"......???"

What?

They were... close?

Close enough to betray together?

So the reason Swen abandoned Brans' army and defected to Aishus... was because of that?

Luna’s fingertips turned cold.

Of course, logically, this wasn’t an impossible story to accept.

After all, this was Swen. There must have been a reason.

And she had no right to interfere in whatever Swen had done after being taken to Brans' army.

Besides, the very act of betraying Brans' army practically signified that he intended to return to her someday.

Who he had met along the way didn’t matter.

Swen and she shared a ruler-strategist relationship.

If she thought about it rationally, this shouldn’t have been shocking.

And yet—

Why?

Why did it feel like ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) something was sinking deep into her chest?

This emotion was different from what she had felt upon learning that Yuri had sold Swen away.

If the previous emotion had been pure anger—

Then what she was feeling now was something deeper, something far more personal.

Luna herself couldn’t quite grasp what it was.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight

But if someone could pinpoint exactly where her attention was fixated, they would immediately recognize this feeling for what it was—

A profoundly human emotion.

At that moment—

Her instincts as a woman flared up like never before, sending her a sharp, urgent signal.

"That... female knight. What is her name?"

"She is a renowned general. My lord, I believe you are already familiar with Airen Juliet, the specialist in siege warfare."

"!!!!!!"

Airen Juliet.

Of course.

Of course, she knew that name.

The very moment Swen had gone to negotiate with Lyn, placing Zeilant Castle’s fate on the line—

The Brans army’s vanguard that had invaded them had been none other than Airen.

And yet—

A female knight, someone whom Swen supposedly held dear.

Someone he had betrayed Brans' army to follow.

And that person was Airen Juliet—who had attacked their forces?

Everything about this made no sense.

But among all the baffling details, there was one thing that gnawed at her the most.

Why does it have to be... a woman?

Why?

At this moment, louder than anything else, the voice screaming in her mind—

Was the voice of her own womanhood.

***

And just the same—

Jinor, who had been sitting across from her, watching her reactions as he told her the story, had by now reached a near-certain conclusion.

Every time he mentioned Swen, her expression changed moment by moment. Her demeanor now only reinforced his assessment.

There was only one possible conclusion.

This woman—Luna—held Swen in extraordinary regard.

Far beyond that of a ruler cherishing her retainer.

That was why she reacted so strongly to any news about him, why she couldn't fully conceal her emotions even in front of a stranger like himself.

'...It seems this isn't the time to speak too candidly.'

He didn’t know what exactly had happened between them in the past, but there was no need to stir up unnecessary trouble.

After clearing his throat a few times, Jinor carefully opened his mouth. It would be best to calm her down first.

"However, my lord, all of this is merely an old man's conjecture."

"Conjecture... you say?"

"Yes. The only absolute truth is that the two of them defected together. Everything else is speculation. Unless you hear it directly from him, there’s no way to know the full truth."

Everything was merely speculation—

That was the best he could offer her.

From the very start, this woman—this ruler—had been referring to Swen as Swen-nim.

It didn’t sound like a sovereign addressing a subordinate.

Rather, it felt much closer to the way a woman would refer to her husband.

He didn’t know the details, but jealousy over another wife was hardly an uncommon story.

Fortunately, he had chosen correctly by mentioning Airen first instead of Reika.

At first, he had considered subtly bringing up the possibility that Swen might one day become his son-in-law to win her trust.

But after seeing her reaction, he was certain—mentioning that now would not be a wise decision for their ruler-strategist relationship.

Besides, it was nothing more than a possibility. Since nothing was certain yet, there was no need to bring it up.

There was also no need to further provoke her by discussing that female knight—Airen.

Especially—

What kind of expression Swen had when he looked at Airen...

That was something best left unspoken for the rest of their lives.

As expected of someone as sharp as Jinor, he had grasped the core of the situation quite well.

Meanwhile, Luna's ruby-colored eyes wavered at Jinor’s words.

"Conjecture... conjecture."

Yes.

If it was just a conjecture—

No, even if it wasn’t just a conjecture, was this really such an important matter?

Swen’s judgment had always been correct.

There was likely something behind this that she simply didn’t know about.

There had to be a reason.

There had to be a purpose...

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Thinking that, she barely managed to suppress her emotions.

Finally, Luna steadied her trembling body, lowered her head, and spoke again.

"Ah... I... I apologize. I must have shown you a rather undignified display."

"It’s nothing, my lord. As I said before, it’s not a problem... However, if I may be so bold, may this old man ask you a question in return?"

"Please, go ahead."

"How did you come to meet Sir Swen?"

"Swen... was..."

Luna lowered her head and recalled the moment they first met.

It had taken her five visits before he finally agreed to stand by her side.

And in every decisive moment, he had always led their army toward the optimal path with insights no one else could have even imagined.

To Luna, Swen was her guide.

Her army’s national strategist.

Her most dependable political partner.

Her most trustworthy vassal—

And...

"...Swen is the man who saved my life."

"He saved your life?"

"That’s right. You may not know, but... I was once just another minor lord ruling over a small nation in the western continent. Had it not been for Swen... I would have most certainly died by Lyn Brans' hand."

Jinor nodded silently.

And at that moment, he finally understood why Swen had sent him here.

'So this was Sir Swen’s final destination all along.'

Most people believed that Swen had first made his name in Brans' army, that it was his first official military appointment.

But before he had served Lyn—

He had already pledged himself to the woman before him, Lunarian Iniang.

Even when he was in Aishus' army, even after he had fallen into Serpina’s hands, that fact had never changed.

After their conversation reached a natural pause, Jinor rose from his seat.

"Then, I will take my leave now. When the time comes for orders to be given, do not hesitate to summon me."

"I understand. Thank you for choosing to stand with our army. ...And thank you for sharing this story with me today."

At those words, Jinor bowed his head and met Luna’s gaze directly.

"It is my honor. I look forward to working with you, my lord."

Thus, Jinor formally joined the ranks of the newly reborn Lunarian Army.

And across the continent, piece by piece, the great board that Swen had laid out was now beginning to come together—

All converging upon her.