Lately, wherever you went, people were buzzing about the second prince of Ingrone.

The maidservants who brought gossip from the fortress squawked all day long like hungry seagulls. Prince Aslan, a man she never even met, was starting to get on her nerves.

Freya shot a sideways glance at the maidservants, their nostrils flaring like they were expecting something.

You think a little flattery and I’ll fold? Not a chance.

“You think I don’t know what you’re up to? You’re trying to rile me up for your own entertainment.”

At that, a maidservant with cute freckles twisted her body and played innocent.

“Us? How could we ever rile up Freya, daughter of the great warrior Bjorn?”

“We’re simply hoping that Freya will uphold the pride of Vaigon’s women.”

The word pride made Freya’s shoulders twitch. These little things were going to drag pride into this?

“It’s only natural to feel offended when a hostage looks down on Vaigon’s women like they’re nothing.”

“Exactly. How dare a weak and pathetic man of Ingrone disrespect Vaigon’s women! Someone needs to put him in his place.”

Thinking it over, the maidservants did have a point.

Hadn’t this war made it perfectly clear just how pathetic the men of Ingrone were?

For decades, Vaigon’s warriors seized the Ingrone coastline time and again, only to return it each time.

Every time the coast was taken, the king of Ingrone groveled and offered up silver ingots. What easier prey could there be?

On top of that, the current king of Vaigon, Haakon, was a greedy man. Chests of silver weren’t enough to satisfy him.

Haakon didn’t stop at the coastline. He pushed his warriors deep inland.

The king of Ingrone, who never imagined the sea raiders would set their sights on the plains, failed to mount a proper defense and retreated again and again.

The pathetic Ingrone army was pushed back even in land battles. Vaigon’s warriors plundered small cities and closed in on the heart of the kingdom at a terrifying pace.

The flames of war swept across what was once a peaceful land.

And what was the result?

Rather than fight with everything he had, the king of Ingrone offered even more tribute and surrendered his second prince as a hostage.

He submitted completely to Vaigon, the very people he dismissed as savages. The shame of the Ingrone king was beyond words.

Instead of fighting back, he sat there praying to the sun god. Vaigon’s warriors returned home loaded with tribute and hostages, and they laughed until their sides split.

And people like that dared to look down on Vaigon’s women?

Word of the arrogant Ingrone prince spread even beyond the fortress walls. The more she thought about it, the more outrageous it seemed.

A sharp-eyed maidservant pressed close and whispered sweetly in her ear, the soft voice tickling at her.

“The Holmgang duel is next week. Why not go and give Prince Aslan a little trouble that day?”

Many free people were looking forward to the Holmgang duel next week. A fight between two men vying for the heart of the brave shieldmaiden Lindra was nothing short of thrilling.

Who would be the man to win her favor? Bets were already being placed on the outcome.

This duel was sure to be as lively as a festival.

And since Haakon volunteered to serve as judge, there was a good chance Prince Aslan would attend as well.

Haakon was treating Prince Aslan as a guest, after all.

The Kingdom of Ingrone was like a goose that laid golden eggs.

Hostage or not, he was still royalty in name, so it made sense to treat him well for the sake of future dealings.

‘Is that why Haakon lets Prince Aslan get away with acting so arrogant?’

Sending away the maidservants Haakon carefully assigned to him was already an act of disrespect toward Haakon’s goodwill.

She was starting to get curious about the face of this Prince Aslan, who ran wild without knowing his place.

Freya drummed her fingers on the table, mulled it over, then gave a small tilt of her chin.

“I am a little curious what kind of man acts that full of himself.”

The maidservants made more of a fuss about it than she did.

“Prince Aslan won’t be able to do a thing in front of Freya.”

“There’s probably no woman more beautiful than Freya even in the Kingdom of Ingrone.”

“His jaw will drop the moment he sees you.”

“Doesn’t he seem like a v*rgin? He’s probably never slept with a woman once in his life.”

“Ingrone people are all about premarital chastity, aren’t they? What a bunch of dimwits.”

Whatever they found so funny, the maidservants burst out laughing like a flock of squawking seagulls.

“It’s kind of romantic, though, isn’t it? Saving your first time and giving it to the person you marry?”

“But what if you unwrap the package and there’s nothing worth having? They can’t even divorce in Ingrone!”

“Ugh! That’s horrifying!”

What kind of absurd custom was that?

‘Why bother waiting until marriage? Is it fine not to be chaste after you’re married?’

Freya couldn’t help but let out a short laugh along with them.

But she soon dug a finger into her ear with an air of annoyance and sank back against the chair.

Was Prince Aslan really as handsome as the sun god’s secret son, come down to earth?

Rumors always get blown out of proportion. She’d be happy if he was even half of what the rumors said.

She was more worried that one look at his face would kill all her enthusiasm.

‘Conceited men aren’t my type. No matter how fine a man is, the moment I see him strutting around, my interest dies.’

It was the same when Ulfgar, who won the warrior tournament last winter, came to propose.

He won one tournament and marched up to her father with all the swagger of a man who earned the right to have her.

He must have thought her father would overlook such rudeness. His confidence was far too inflated.

Naturally, Ulfgar was humiliated and thrown out of the estate.

Freya was a shieldmaiden who sailed on ships. She had no patience for men who took one look at her face and thought she was easy.

Her mother did nag her to lower her standards and have a heart that could overlook a partner’s flaws, but…

‘Why should I?’

It wasn’t like she was desperate for a man. Why should she lower her standards?

What would she gain from being with a man who fell short? She’d rather live alone.

Thinking of Ulfgar made her feel that Prince Aslan probably wasn’t much different.

He likely just seemed a little special because of his different looks and culture.

Peel back the surface and he’d be the same as every other man.

‘Men are all the same in the end.’

The competitive spirit that swelled up in her deflated just as quickly, like a punctured lung.

The maidservants’ coaxing drifted past her ears like the sound of distant waves.

***

It was a festival after a long while.

Things had been dull since Haakon returned from his great victory in the Ingrone war with nothing interesting happening since.

Dandelion seeds drifted across the green fields, and the roaring cheers sent them floating even farther.

Red flames roared in the long hearth placed at the center of the longhouse.

Weapons and animal hides hung like decorations from the pointed wooden palisade.

An irritating face was visible beside Haakon.

It was Ulfgar, who secured a place among Haakon’s inner circle after agreeing to wed Haakon’s fourth daughter that coming autumn.

Perhaps because of that, Ulfgar’s shoulders, which stayed low after the humiliation at her father’s estate, rose again. He looked thoroughly pleased with himself, having claimed a seat at Haakon’s side.

Warriors with forearms the size of their own heads lined up around Haakon.

At the shadowed far end, a man who seemed out of place caught her eye. Even sitting quietly, barely noticeable, he stood out in a strangely striking way.

‘That’s him.’

She recognized him as Prince Aslan the moment she saw him.

He was tall and broad-framed, but surrounded by hulking warriors, he looked like a boy who just barely started growing into his body.

Clean blond hair, smooth skin, and features that were neat and balanced gave him a look that was somehow as fine as powder.

Was he really a man? She almost doubted it. His wide-shouldered build made it clear enough that he was, and yet.

There was a soft, composed quality about him that you simply couldn’t find among Vaigon’s warriors, who prized strength above all.

It was unfamiliar and strange, and her gaze kept drifting back to him.

—

T/N: This is the second time this month that I have two novels with the same ML name. (Carlisle from ‘I Was Reborn, and Now I’m Marrying My Ex-Husband Again’ and ‘Revenge on Those Who Abandoned Me’ and Aslan from ‘The Salvation History of Romantic Savagery’ and this novel).

Two new worthy opponents for all the Kaidens, Kailens, Kyles, Leopolds, and Cesars in the rofan world! This battle will surely be legendary.