The essence of the joint operation was to draw the monster horde away from the tree while the mages cast sealing magic around it.

Of course, the mages weren’t just sitting idle until then. They occasionally cast recovery magic on the soldiers.

Being so well-versed in various fields, they even bandaged the wounded or provided direct treatment.

But the most brilliant performance in the subjugation force was undoubtedly by the assassins.

They moved very nimbly and intelligently even in this melee. Like herding fish into a net, they cleverly lured the monsters to create another opportunity for a lethal magic strike.

“Your Highness!”

Tatiana heard Kay’s shout very clearly. It was loud enough to make her wonder if he had always had such a big voice.

However, this was not a situation where she could chant a spell.

To be honest, she was busy trying to stay alive.

“Kay, there are too many here too…… My life is in danger.”

No matter how much of a magic swordsman she was, it was nearly impossible to deploy high-level magic while desperately defending herself.

The flow of swordsmanship naturally breaks each time she chants a spell.

When concentrating on large-scale magic, it was inevitable that a mage would be placed in a defenseless, vulnerable state.

That’s when Gideon stood diagonally in front of her, shielding her.

“I’ll block them, so don’t worry and do it.”

But there are too many. It would be overwhelming for him alone.

As Tatiana hesitated, she saw a heat haze beginning to rise from Gideon’s sword. It was sword energy.

That faint energy leaped up with a “whoosh” when Gideon swung his sword widely, and eventually covered the entire blade.

His swordsmanship was, as always, plain without any fancy techniques. And that no-frills swordsmanship became even more rigid when it met the sword energy.

Seeing monsters being torn apart like paper by the large blade, Tatiana wasted no more time and began her magic incantation.

She closed her eyes to focus her mind.

Everything in front of her was pitch black. But she wasn’t anxious at all.

When she couldn’t defend against enemies, he would surely become her shield. Just as she was always ready to be his sword in battle.

“……Those who disrupt order, be annihilated! I shall purify the world from you!”

Boom, crash!

The earth shook violently once more due to Tatiana’s magic.

It was a sound loud enough to make one’s ears ring, and momentarily difficult to maintain balance, but the soldiers cheered loudly. With morale as high as it could go, the soldiers mercilessly cut down the monsters. And after the melee, the subjugation force finally surrounded the tree densely.

Now it was the Magic Tower’s turn to step up.

The mages who had been casting healing magic on the wounded from the hill moved while being carried or piggy-backed by the assassins. Although it was for safety, they were being transported almost like luggage.

However, the head of the Magic Tower alone rejected all help and walked steadily through the heart of this chaos on his own feet. It was tremendous confidence and boldness.

He thr*st his magic staff into the ground as if driving in a stake. And under the head of the Magic Tower’s lead, the mages began the incantation of the sealing magic as if singing a round.

“God. Protect humanity. Heaven is on our side.”

“Heaven is on our side.”

Tatiana and Gideon pressed their backs together between soldiers who had formed a circle around the ancient tree. One faced the monsters coming from outside, while the other cut down newly sprouting monsters near the tree.

They seemed to have cut down dozens of monsters in just a few minutes. The urgent cries of soldiers also echoed chaotically.

“There!”

“Block it, hold on!”

If the defense line broke here, the mages would not be able to complete their incantation.

In that brief moment, everyone risked their lives.

Even in that moment, the head of the Magic Tower’s lead chant and the mages’ response continued without interruption.

“Return to soil. Return to nature. Return to nothingness.”

“Return to nothingness.”

“To earth, to fallen leaves, to air, to light.”

“To air, to light.”

And that’s when it happened. The exhausted mages began to collapse to the ground one by one, and a bright light burst from the ancient tree.

It was an incredible radiance that could be seen even from the distant capital or from a school in some slum.

“Whoa……”

It was so bright that Tatiana momentarily lowered her eyelids. Then she barely opened her eyes to prepare for any possible attack.

But the surroundings, which had been filled with the monsters’ howls, were now immersed in silence.

One of the soldiers explained the scene with a murmur.

“They’re disappearing……”

The monsters that had covered the snow field in black were crumbling piece by piece, scattering in the wind. Like soil, like fallen leaves, and like air. As if they had never existed in the first place.

The head of the Magic Tower announced the end in a quiet voice.

“It’s over.”

It was truly a calm statement, but the soldier standing next to Tatiana trembled at those words, making a strange sound.

When she glanced to the side, there were tears in his eyes.

Tatiana couldn’t tell whether the soldiers were collapsing one by one due to the joy of victory or because of the regrets they had carried.

However, she too could no longer overcome the feeling of exhaustion and sat down on the ground following them. No, she actually lay down completely.

Gideon looked down at Tatiana and chuckled before lying down beside her. His fingers, as always, arranged her hair.

“Titi, are you okay? You’re not hurt anywhere, right?”

“Yes, and Your Highness?”

“Me too. I feel refreshed.”

For saying that, they were both completely drenched in sweat.

She laughed softly because it was amusing to see him disheveled when he always showed such a neat appearance. It really felt like they had fought to their heart’s content.

Tatiana arranged his hair as he had done for her and said,

“I think I work best with Your Highness.”

“Really?”

“Yes. I work pretty well with the assassins too, but I feel most comfortable when fighting alongside Your Highness. We know how each other will move without having to say anything.”

Gideon made a troubled expression, wondering if his competition had indeed been the assassins, and whether he should be happy that she felt most comfortable fighting with him. Then he soon smiled and said,

“To be honest, if I wasn’t this skilled with a sword, you wouldn’t have given me a second glance, right?”

“……”

“You can just say it. I pretty much know anyway.”

“That wouldn’t be the case……”

“Your voice lacks confidence.”

Even if she confidently denied it, would he believe her?

“No, it’s true……”

The head of the Magic Tower approached Tatiana and Gideon, who were chatting quietly, after tending to his subordinates.

He clicked his tongue and then closed his eyes, muttering a recovery spell. Seeing the royals exhausted to the point of lying on the snow regardless of appearances, he seemed to feel sorry for them.

Tatiana thought with a “hmm.”

‘If you look closely, he’s surprisingly full of affection?’

But you really had to look closely. Usually he speaks so curtly that you’d never notice it with a casual glance.

“A fishing boat encountering sea winds. When the dream of a full catch wavers, God. Protect the fisherman. His family waits for him. I believe he will overcome.”

As she had thought before, the head of the Magic Tower’s incantations were more like prayers than magic. Listening to them makes one’s heart reverent and peaceful.

She quietly closed her eyes, her ears filled with the old man’s prayers and her skin tingling with her husband’s touch.

The days spent in the north were like a dream to Tatiana.

They were still royalty here, but much freer than when they were in the palace. Sometimes they could lead the way, and other times they could mix with people and fight together.

They had walked rougher mountain paths than ever before. They tried to sleep in unfamiliar rooms, in forests, in barracks, relying on just a few changes of clothes. And each time, they turned to each other and leaned on one another.

The north, which once felt somewhat sad and distant.

That name, which was like a kind of spell that made her hesitate, doesn’t sound quite the same anymore.

There is definitely a different resonance than before. New memories and emotions have been layered on top.

She had a feeling that this experience would be a great nourishment for Gideon and her in their married life going forward.

However, it was now time to return to reality, cherishing all of these things in their hearts. The place where they truly belonged. To the capital, and to the throne.