I'm A Sucker For Extras - Chapter 11

Chapter 11

On the day he returned from the battlefield, it felt as if she had received absolution.

She was relieved that he had not died and returned alive, but her heart weakened.

Just because Brody wants to be free doesn’t mean he wants Aidan dead.

The decision to move the main base of the Northern Army to the south was made quickly, and Aidan asked Brody to come with him.

Brody nodded silently.

“Are you okay?”

“What?”

“I mean…… your body.”

Aidan asked cautiously, worried about last night.

“Do you think I’ll be okay?” Brody replied with a stern look, and Aidan blushed. Then Brody smirked, as if she’d expected it.

His reaction was amusing, but Brody refrained from teasing too much.

Brody changed the subject.

“Your Grace, please ensure that the potatoes I developed are not leaked to the outside, and also the turnips; I improved them to grow quickly.”

“I understand. I’ll give instructions.”

“Yes. It will inevitably spread to the entire region over time, but for now, if you do business with it, it will be a great help to the north.”

“Well, what do you think? How about you take charge and push this forward?”

Brody laughed and paused for a moment.

Then she replied, “How can I handle such a difficult task? Won’t the Chief of Staff take command?”

“River may grumble, but he’s already recognizing you, isn’t he?”

“I doubt it.”

Brody refused, but Aidan ultimately thought she would succeed in taking on the task.

After some time, they prepared to depart.

The current camp had left behind prisoners and a few soldiers to maintain the fields. The remaining soldiers were mostly wounded or had bonded with their captors.

They would settle here and lay the foundation for building a new territory.

The day of the biggest battle, facing the Imperial Army, was not far away, but strangely, Aidan wasn’t worried.

It seemed like they would win.

As if he knew Aidan’s feelings, Brody, who met his gaze, smiled at him.

“Do you know how to ride a horse?”

River asked Brody with a raised eyebrow.

Somehow, he seemed quite pleased when Brody admitted that he didn’t know how to ride a horse.

“People are consistently predictable.”

Brody strutted over and slid into the back of the wagon. The coachman smiled when he saw him. It was a welcome smile.

After returning the soldier’s smile, Brody turned to River with a stern look.

“It’s not so much that I can’t ride a horse; it’s that I’m not human.”

River’s brow twitched at her response.

Even the soldiers who hadn’t liked Brody had changed their minds when they saw what she’d done—though that didn’t sit well with Brody either—but River hadn’t said a word of thanks or apology.

“You’re just trying to get at me.”

Brody snapped back at his attitude.

Seeing the bone in Brody’s answer, River responded with a pout.

“I didn’t realize you were so hungry for recognition.”

“I didn’t realize you were so jealous.”

River’s voice rose involuntarily at that.

“What, jealous? Me?”

“Just checking; I didn’t know you were so emotionally attached to me.”

A sarcastic response and a heated reaction. It was clear who the winner was.

When Brody gave her a lingering look, River snorted and turned his horse’s head.

“It might be hard for you if we continue like this. The road is quite long.”

Aidan said worriedly, looking at Brody in the back of the wagon.

He was riding Kais, a huge black stallion with the most physique and well-groomed.

“It’s okay, I’ll stay here for now and later sit next to the coachman over there.”

‘Sit next to a strange man?’

Aidan frowned slightly at the idea, and the coachman shuddered.

But Brody had no concept of a strange man, so he didn’t see the problem.

Brody patted the wagon and called out.

“Let’s go.”

The coachman gave the Duke a more puzzled look but eventually set the cart in motion.

The ride was more arduous than expected.

Her hips felt like they were going to crack under the frantic rattling of the wagon

“Oh, my hips.”

It was the same when sitting next to the coachman.

Every time the wagon lurched, Brody would grab hold of the coachman next to him, who would be too busy trying to keep an eye on the Duke.

It wasn’t until the wheels caught on a large stone and Brody, who was clinging to the back of the wagon, bounced off with a thud and landed hard on the ground that she accepted the new method.

Aidan silently groaned and hoisted Brody onto the front of the wagon. He offered Brody to ride with him on his horse.

It was frightening to be on such a high horse, but it was only for a short time, and she suffered badly from motion sickness.

Aidan fidgeted, but he couldn’t help someone else’s motion sickness.

“I’ll just sleep, and you can wake me up later. Is that okay?”

Brody had already eaten the meshu and fallen asleep.

Curled up like a squirrel, she nestled into Aidan’s arms and fell asleep.

Aidan tied the cloak forward, creating a makeshift cave, and held her tightly with sturdy arms to prevent her from falling.

Although he was robust, exerting strength on his arms continuously while on horseback couldn’t have been an easy task.

However, Aidan looked down at the sleeping Brody in her arms with satisfaction.

❖ ❖ ❖

“Bree? … Bree?”

She woke up from the dark place to the voice calling her and returned to the bright reality.

Brody, who had raised her head in the hazy drowsiness, almost bumped Aidan’s chin with her head.

Dodging her leisurely movement, Aidan blinked and looked up at Brody, staring at him.

“Ugh….”

Brody, who had been bending her knees, slowly stretched one leg at a time, as if her knees were sore.

Aidan supported her so she wouldn’t fall, helping her achieve her goal.

He held her ankle underneath.

His soldiers, barely used to the unfamiliar sight of the Duke carrying Brody as they traveled, were surprised to see him so tender.

They had only ever seen him as soft-spoken, majestic, and mercilessly slicing up the enemy on the battlefield.

Lowering her legs, Brody grabbed Aidan’s arm with one hand and rubbed her eyes with the other.

“Are we there yet?”

“Almost?”

“Almost…?”

Brody answered with an annoyed tone, asking why she woke her up so soon.

Aidan chuckled and pointed ahead with a jerk of his chin.

Brody, sitting next to her, turned her head to see where she was pointing.

“Wow….”

There was a massive fortress.

Situated between rough mountains on both sides, the fortress was protected by nature on both sides, making it worthy of being called a natural fortress.

The walls of the fortress were entirely white, as roasting the local soil for the walls made them glow white.

As they faced south, the sun had set on their right, and the slanting sunlight from behind painted the white fortress in shades of pink and orange, creating a magnificent scene.

“Wow….”

Brody couldn’t find the right words and kept exclaiming.

“It’s amazing.”

“Well, it is. I intentionally came here at sunset.”

“Huh? Oh, that too, but, Your Grace.”

“Hmm?”

“How did you conquer this fortress?”

I can see why the people to the south were so undefended. How could they think this fortress would be conquered? Now that they had captured it, they should feel the same way the other side might have.

The Duke smirked as Brody looked amazed at the fortress.

‘What an unpredictable woman.’

While Brody had expressed amazement at the fortress’s grandeur, it seemed she was also captivated by the beauty of the scenery. Judging by the way she looked around with her neck stretched out, it was evident.

Proud and pleased with himself, Aidan led the way with a confident stride.

❖ ❖ ❖

After entering the fortress, they spent a few days organizing their positions and making plans to take over the Royal Palace.

The final battle would take place in the Gory Plains in front of the outer wall of the castle, where the Imperial Army was stationed.

The further down they went, the warmer the climate. The vegetation had changed dramatically from the fortress’s surroundings, indicating a different world from the north.

In the occupied villages, crops grown on fertile soil welcomed them.

Instead of rejoicing at the abundance, people who had experienced life and death in the northern desolation shed tears.

It vividly reflected how the royal family had treated the north.

In any case, the supply line to the battlefield had become shorter. It was possible to launch an assault directly from this region.

Aidan’s army pushed southward at a steady pace.

On a hill with the Imperial City in the distance, the Northern Duke’s army formed up.

The hill overlooked the Gory Plain, and at the end of the plain, the moated walls of the capital were visible.

The castle looked peaceful, but the walls didn’t look fit for battle.

At the request of the Duke, Brody rode with Aidan to a hill overlooking the enemy and looked at the flags of the opposing army.

The emblems of the Imperial Army and Duke McCarthy’s army were visible.

‘Jax will show up.’

Jax was the name of the original male lead.

Brody furrowed her brows while looking at the emblems.

Aidan was more concerned about Brody’s thoughts than his opponent’s army, which would have had enemies on the imperial side.

Considering her feelings about her hometown… He thought it wouldn’t be a pleasant experience.

“Is there anything I should particularly take care of in your hometown? Like family or something…”

Aidan asked, intending to offer protection for places or family members she might care about.

“There’s nothing.”

However, Brody answered indifferently.

‘Come to think of it, I don’t know much about her.’

Aidan was surprised by her blunt response, but, facing Brody’s hometown about to be involved in a fight, he felt uneasy asking further questions.

‘I’ll ask after the war.’
***

“Take care.”

Perhaps because the final battle was near

Unlike usual, Brody came forward in front of the soldiers to bid farewell to the Duke.

Aidan nodded in response, urged the horse forward, and turned the horse’s head.

Soon, the battle began.

The first to emerge, even before the army of the Riley Imperial Family, was the army of Duke Jax McCarthy!.

Standing proudly with golden hair flying behind him, Jax, with his army tightly arranged behind him, was a noble sight to behold.

His army boasted high-quality weapons and armor, and the formation was neat, displaying majestic and flamboyant movements.

It was a military force composed of nobles and knights who graduated as elites from schools sponsored by the Imperial Family.

However, it was challenging for these exemplary individuals to become formidable opponents against seasoned fighters who had survived battles with their lives at stake.

Initially taken aback by Jax McCarthy’s imposing presence, the Northern Army regained its composure after clashing with them a few times.

They realized that they were more formidable than they initially thought.

After that, the tide turned.

When Jax’s army was surrounded and faced the risk of annihilation, Jax, with a loud roar, challenged Aidan to a one-on-one duel.

Although Chief of Staff River tried to intervene, Aidan, without moving a single eyebrow, accepted the challenge and defeated him before the clash of swords began.

And just like that, the blond Jax became the prisoner of the Northern Duke Aidan.

That was how the first day’s fighting ended.

Having shattered the army of Duke McCarthy, known as the capital’s highest-ranking army, the rest was only a matter of time.

Aidan returned to the camp with a dignified demeanor.

With a pounding heart, he looked towards the entrance, wondering if Brody would come out to greet him.

However, she was nowhere to be seen.

Inside the Duke’s barracks.

On a table where the warmth of a person could not be felt, there was only a small vial and a short note.