“What are you talking about?”

Hearing Yuvil’s dismissive tone, Aira grew desperate.

“They’re not Imperial forces. It’s the Archipelago! The Archipelago fleet has betrayed us!”

The Archipelago, ruled by Luten, was playing both sides between the Empire and the Republic. Relatively weaker than the two major powers, the Archipelago wanted the Empire and Republic to maintain equal strength. Their policy was generally to keep the powers balanced while profiting from the middle position.

But this Servolang Naval Battle had clearly put the Republic at a disadvantage from the Empire’s initial declaration of war. Believing the Republic might suffer devastating damage that could collapse their system, the Archipelago formed an alliance with the Republic—to maintain the balance of power, ensuring neither side could fully dominate or be defeated.

However, Jens Will’s unexpected emergence had brought the Republic an unforeseen major victory. Growing anxious, King Luten of the Archipelago had planned to secretly betray the Republic in this final Rokor Battle, aiming to end the war with the Empire and Republic in a balanced state of power.

That was before the previous Aira had surrendered to Luten and revealed the Empire’s true condition.

After learning about the Empire’s fleet situation, Luten had determined that betraying the Republic to help the Empire would only leave them vulnerable to the Republic’s counterattack. So he had accepted Aira and withdrawn to the Republic’s rear during the Rokor Battle.

The Imperial forces and the 9th Prince, who had induced the Archipelago’s betrayal, were ultimately crushed by Jens Will…

‘Good heavens. Because I came to the Republic instead of the Archipelago.’

In this new timeline, Luten hadn’t heard Aira’s intelligence and didn’t know the Empire’s true condition. Therefore, he must have judged that the Empire could negotiate a favorable armistice with the Republic, and was now betraying the Republic by attacking from within.

Barely maintaining her balance on the wildly rocking ship, Aira gradually realized the implications of her time travel. Choosing Jens over Luten had changed not only her fate but the direction of the war itself.

‘No. What if Jens dies because of this absurdity…’

Yuvil looked down at Aira, who was nervously biting her lip.

“Did you say the Archipelago?”

“Yes.”

“Is this information reliable?”

Aira hesitated but had no choice but to bluff. She nodded firmly.

“I would have already told the Lieutenant if there had been time. Who do you think I am?”

After contemplating for a while, the large soldier finally tucked Aira under his arm like a package.

“If you’re lying, I’ll blow your head off immediately.”

“Please hurry.”

Aira squeezed her eyes shut against the dizziness and replied.

* * *

“The cannons?”

“The main gun is still intact. But guns three, four, and five have been lost.”

“Report on the engine.”

“There was minor damage, but it’s still operational! The chief engineer says repairs can be completed within three minutes.”

“Captain, I think we should maintain our current course for now—”

“No need to ask about every little thing.”

The bridge was chaotic with officers running about, shouting, and sirens blaring. Aira instinctively looked for the captain first. The captain, who could hardly be described as unharmed, was barely sitting in his chair, wrapped in bandages.

In a previous battle, the flagship Nautile had taken direct hits, and not only the admiral but also the captain and first officer had been injured too severely to command.

As a result, command had urgently fallen to Lieutenant Jens Will, a mere tactical officer who had survived only because he happened to be away from the bridge. Jens had then turned the tide with a strategy that defied common sense, crushing the Imperial forces.

But the war wasn’t over yet, and military honors hadn’t been awarded, so the injured captain was maintaining his position at least nominally. The other senior officers hadn’t even made it to the bridge.

So it was Jens who was effectively responding to this surprise attack. When they returned to the Republic, their positions would likely be reversed.

“Lieutenant.”

Jens, who had been frantically giving orders, turned at Yuvil’s call and frowned when he spotted Aira.

“Yuvil. Why did you bring the princess?”

“She claims to have important information, sir.”

“Admiral, those aren’t Imperial ships. They’re from the Archipelago.”

Aira called him by his future rank out of habit. Either not hearing or ignoring it, Jens responded only to the content, his frown deepening.

“The Archipelago is the Republic’s ally… Wait a moment.”

But this young officer with his flexible thinking immediately picked up a telescope. After examining the ships surrounding them, Jens bowed to the captain and spoke rapidly.

“There are shell marks on the hull of Ship Number 3. I believe they’ve disguised themselves using only the hull of the Imperial destroyer Sojourner, which was decommissioned two years ago after the Lugis Naval Battle.”

“Is there no possibility the Empire repaired it for reuse?”

“The magical engine circuits were completely destroyed then. Building a new ship would be cheaper.”

“So they’ve just taken the hull shell for disguise?”

“Yes. The Empire has no reason for such an eccentric approach. This is camouflage designed to make them appear Imperial at first glance.”

Aira stared at Jens with an astonished expression.

He had identified the ship’s true nature just from the faint shell marks on its hull. And this confirmed that Aira’s information was true.

Not only Aira but also the captain and Yuvil looked dumbfounded. But Jens wasn’t finished.

“If, according to the princess’s intelligence, that fleet is indeed from the Archipelago, judging by the hull size, I’d guess they’re Formica-class destroyers.”

“Then…”

“The Formica-class vessels excel in speed, but with double hulls for disguise, they’ll be heavier.”

“And they can’t properly use their rear artillery because of the disguise.”

Jens raised his head from his bow to the captain. Still dangling at Yuvil’s side, Aira continued with a dizzy expression.

“And as you probably know already, the Imperial fleet has—ugh—thirty percent of their cannons damaged, and even the intact ships are slow due to crew shortages. Only about ten ships around the 9th Prince’s flagship have full crews.”

“…Just as I thought.”

“They’re 200 nautical miles northwest in the rear.”

Yuvil’s face turned pale as he listened to the Imperial military secrets being revealed so freely. But Jens merely gave her an annoyed look before turning to Yuvil.

“Yuvil. Escort Her Highness to Guest Cabin 1, then come back up.”

“What? Yes, sir!”

He believes me. Well, Aira had never met anyone as rational as this man in her life.

“Do you need anything else?”

“There will be further interrogation later. Please rest for now.”

Turning abruptly away from her, Jens quickly consulted with the captain before beginning to issue orders. He was essentially acting as captain in place of the actual captain who could barely speak. He was even advising the new admiral who had boarded another ship in place of the admiral who had withdrawn from the Nautile.

Aira watched as his demeanor grew increasingly similar to how she remembered him from the past, then left the bridge with Yuvil.

* * *

Aira was confined alone in a better cabin than before. Judging by the small bed, it appeared to be a guest cabin for visitors aboard the ship.

Leaning against the still-rocking ship’s wall, Aira gazed through the small window. Waves crashed against the glass, obscuring the view outside. But she was no longer worried.

‘My changed decision shouldn’t get Jens killed now. But this clearly exposes the Archipelago’s violation of their alliance, and how will the political situation develop from here…’

While contemplating this altered world, Aira suddenly gave a bitter smile. In her shock at finding herself alive in a changed world, she had desperately passed on information to them, but now that her head was clearer, she wondered what it all meant.

“What should I do now?”

Aira brought her hands before her eyes. They had grown rough during her final year training in the Republic before her death, but now showed no trace of that hardship.

Back then, her goal had been clear: sacrifice her life to take revenge on Luten. And before that…

“Ugh.”

Nausea rose suddenly, and she bent over, clutching the bed’s headboard. Pain surged through her like a monster gnawing at her insides. It hurts. It hurts. Stop it.

CRACK.

“What?!”

Aira forgot the nausea and phantom pain, staring wide-eyed at the headboard. Something impossible had happened. A tattoo-like pattern glowed on her hand, and the headboard she was gripping had bent.

‘This can’t be. My magic wasn’t supposed to manifest until I was seventeen. How?’

The pattern that had appeared unconsciously on her hand as she resisted the false pain from her stomach was magic—the same magic she had used as naturally as breathing until her death.

Aira immediately tried to gauge the magical power within her body.

“How is this possible?”

The amount of magical power determined the lifespan of royalty and mages. Aira had clearly depleted her magic by using it recklessly without any protection during her final year, nearly reaching the end of her lifespan at 22.

The amount of magic she felt in her body now was that final, precarious amount just before death. It wouldn’t be strange if she collapsed and died right here in this small cabin.

But it wasn’t decreasing.

Though the strength-enhancing spell clearly manifested on her hand, her magical power remained unchanged. With a puzzled expression, Aira gripped the bed headboard she had bent.

CRACK.

The instinctively manifested magic straightened the metal headboard back to its original shape. This was something impossible for a girl’s physical strength alone. Such a feat would terrify Republic citizens who had never encountered magic, and even ordinary Imperial citizens would be shocked. But for those who could use magic, it wasn’t particularly difficult. The problem was…

Aira raised her trembling hand. The pattern that had appeared on her skin like a snake burrowing beneath the surface vanished instantly. This time she had deliberately used a strength-enhancing spell, so her magical power should have clearly decreased. But it remained unchanged.

“Huh.”

She laughed in disbelief. She couldn’t understand what was happening.

But if the Empire discovered this ability—that she could use magic without depleting it and therefore couldn’t die from overuse—then the 3rd Prince’s protection would mean nothing. She would be dragged back to the Empire immediately.

No, even if they just learned that her magic had manifested, that would be enough. Then I’ll have to live forever without being able to die in that hell disguised as heaven.

Aira buried her face in her hands.

“Why…”