In front of Gent Castle of Heinz, there was a clash between Rowen and Heinz forces.

Dana received this news at Eluan Castle. Sitting in the library reading a letter, she became lost in thought.

Following the Duke of Khalid’s report that Heinz was behind releasing the new species of monsters in northern Rowen, a messenger of protest was sent from Rowen to Heinz. The Heinz side claimed it was nonsense, asking if there was any evidence that Heinz was responsible. Their defense that monsters weren’t beings that could be sent or controlled from anywhere seemed somewhat plausible.

And then Heinz mobilized their knights, claiming that Rowen forces had attacked their castle.

In response, King Taras, who had taken a dislike to Kaiden, sent a letter blaming the Duke of Khalid for his hasty actions. The Duke of Khalid argued that he hadn’t attacked the castle but had merely sent Divine Beasts for reconnaissance to catch dangerous monsters crossing the border, and that it was the Heinz forces who had made the first aggressive move.

The Heinz side denied this again, and Taras washed his hands of it. Since this was an issue raised by the great Duke of Khalid, the Duke of Khalid should resolve it himself. The hidden meaning in those words was that the Duke of Khalid should apologize and withdraw his knights.

Unfortunately, Kaiden had no intention of apologizing. The reason was simply because the opponent was Heinz. However, without the king’s permission, he wasn’t in a position to lead his knights into immediate battle with Heinz forces, so he temporarily pulled his knights back.

Thus currently, on the Mirbad Plains located between Rowen’s Mirban Castle and Heinz’s Gent Castle, a standoff continued between the Rowen forces led by Kaiden and the Heinz forces led by the Count of Gent who had come out from Gent Castle.

Leaving behind the battle between monsters and monsters, now there was a crisis of battle between humans and humans. It seemed like combat between the two nations could break out at any moment.

‘This didn’t happen before.’

While there might have been incidents involving monsters in the north, there hadn’t been such a clash with Heinz. This was inevitable because back then, there were no knights in the north who could use Divine Beast powers, so no one could discover who had released the new species of monsters.

However, it wasn’t surprising that things were happening that weren’t in her memories. Dana herself had already changed the past and was living a different life. It wasn’t unreasonable for things different from memory to happen elsewhere. What was needed now wasn’t surprise but questioning and finding answers needed for this situation.

‘What exactly happened with those monsters?’

New species of monsters that eat Huran. How did Heinz know about these monsters and utilize them? Why did they send them to Rowen? There was nothing she could know yet. It didn’t seem easy to find out either.

Although Kaiden could move an enormous number of Divine Beasts, because King Taras hadn’t permitted it, it was awkward to use Divine Beasts in the current situation. The Divine Beasts would listen to Kaiden, Bazesus’s contractor, but it was impossible to know what issues Taras might raise about it. For the same reason, it was still difficult to summon other northern knight orders or soldiers.

Taras probably passed the problem to Kaiden because he didn’t want to take responsibility for attacking Heinz’s castle.

‘But brother is the king…’

It’s a position that should naturally take responsibility. Especially when it’s a conflict that arose while dealing with dangerous elements related to the people’s lives.

It was an incomprehensible course of action. In the past she might have looked the other way, but not now. She had decided not to do that anymore when she became the Duchess of Khalid.

And in Mirbad, her husband the Duke of Khalid and Rowen’s knights and soldiers were in a standoff with Heinz forces, swords drawn.

‘While fighting on the frontlines is the knights’ role.’

As a duchess, her duty might be to safely manage the territory while her husband was away, but as a member of the royal family, there were things she could do as well.

There are ways to help the front lines even without being on the battlefield. Those who cannot stand directly on the front lines should find ways to minimize battlefield casualties and provide support. Finding ways to prevent this conflict from growing larger and minimizing damage.

Because King Taras wouldn’t do this job, she had to do it. Even if she wasn’t sure how well she could do it.

Dana mentally organized the current situation. The power holder in Heinz who wasn’t taking responsibility for their actions and was playing innocent in their response.

‘Queen Cladimien.’

Given the quick response and all the situations that seemed prepared in advance, perhaps the queen knew about sending new species of monsters to Rowen across the border. No, there was a high possibility that she had planned it from the beginning.

‘But why?’

What did the queen want from Rowen?

Even if she couldn’t know the reason, she could decide how to respond. If Queen Cladimien was making Rowen dangerous, what Dana could do from Rowen was to make the queen turn her attention somewhere other than Rowen.

Queen Cladimien had her biggest enemy within. That was Crown Prince Friedrich.

Everything Queen Cladimien did would ultimately be actions to check and oppose Crown Prince Friedrich. Just as in the past, Cladimien had arranged the marriage between Dana and Prince Ergart to add the power of the Divine Beast corps to her son.

‘Even if the appearance of the new species of monsters wasn’t the queen’s doing.’

In any case, it was the queen’s decision to escalate the conflict with Rowen now. In the end, the way to end this conflict was to make real fire fall on Cladimien’s feet, who was throwing sparks of war toward Rowen.

‘I don’t have any connection with Crown Prince Friedrich.’

But if she went through one or two connections, there wasn’t absolutely no connection.

Dana’s brother and Rowen’s king, Taras, had Queen Bridget and their son Elias. Bridget was originally a princess from the Kingdom of Etrang. The connection arose there.

Crown Prince Friedrich’s wife was Crown Princess Charlotte. Charlotte von Heinz. Her unmarried name was Charlotte de Gallois. Currently the crown princess of Heinz, she was originally a princess of Etrang, one of Queen Bridget of Rowen’s sisters.

‘Though Crown Prince Friedrich’s side makes me uneasy…’

There was a terrible fact that inevitably came to mind when thinking of Crown Prince Friedrich of Heinz. Dana had heard that in the kingdom’s destruction she experienced, it was Crown Prince Friedrich who had poisoned Prince Ergart.

In other words, if that was true, the crown prince was the culprit who caused the war she had experienced. Poisoning and the crown prince, nobles involved with him. There were many suspicious elements all around, but.

‘Anyway, what I can do in the current situation is to move Crown Prince Friedrich through Bridget.’

Surprisingly, that was true.

‘The relationship between brother and Bridget is literally just a formal marriage.’

They had decided to marry considering each other’s status and position, and that was the extent of their relationship. And now Dana had been diligently exchanging letters with Bridget for three years, coming to know better than in the past what kind of person Bridget was. She also knew which aspects would move the queen when touched.

Dana picked up her pen and began writing on the parchment she had laid out. The recipient of the letter was Bridget.

Dana’s hand only left the parchment when dipping the pen in ink, otherwise continuously writing down the necessary words.

[…I’m really sorry I couldn’t properly greet you after Elias’s birthday. As you probably already know, I’m terribly worried because my husband Kaiden has left for the conflict zone. Of course, he is a knight, and as in the past, present, and future, even when Elias rules this kingdom, he will devote his life in loyalty to protect Rowen.

It must have been God’s will that arranged for Kaiden to contract with the Divine Beast in advance on Elias’s birthday. Since Kaiden contracted with Bazesus, just imagine what an amazing Divine Beast Elias will contract with when he turns seventeen! The only regrettable thing about me being in Khalid is that I can’t keep watching my adorable nephew grow up!

I’m so sad that Kaiden can’t return because of the presence of Heinz forces. Isn’t Crown Princess Charlotte of Heinz Bridget’s younger sister? If Queen Cladimien had considered Crown Princess Charlotte’s position, she wouldn’t have caused such trouble. To think she would endanger a kingdom where her crown princess’s sister serves as queen.

I hear the crown prince is disliked by the queen, and because of that, it seems Crown Princess Charlotte is also having a difficult time in Heinz. Bridget must be very worried since her sister is having a hard marriage. Perhaps in Heinz, Crown Princess Charlotte is being treated unfavorably because she’s from Etrang? Indeed…]