Chapter 14. If It Doesn’t Work, Make It Work
How many days had passed?
The damp, dark underground prison felt suffocating even with the door merely closed. There was no actual harm inflicted, but Marquis Chavez trembled to his teeth with fear.
The wall his back was against was so cold it sent chills through him. The only place that could treat a noble of his rank like this was the Grand Duke’s domain in the North.
At first, the door had been shut tight so that not even a sliver of light could enter. Now, however, the door stood open, and a torch burned outside.
Someone was coming.
Just the thought that he might be released made him feel like he could kiss the Grand Duke’s feet. Then, footsteps echoed from beyond the open door.
Moments later, the Grand Duke appeared.
“Y-Your Grace!”
“Well, well. Marquis Chavez. You’re quite the sight.”
“I-I truly know nothing. I had no idea that knight was from the Serpent clan!”
“I know. I doubt you would knowingly bring someone like that into your ranks.”
Despite the Grand Duke’s gentle tone, his presence alone was enough to crush the Marquis. It was as if his shadow were swallowing him whole.
With rights such as exemption from court summons and authority to punish his retainers directly, the Grand Duke was practically above the law.
Could he even hope to make it out of here alive?
“Still, that doesn’t mean you’re entirely blameless.”
“M-my apologies, Your Grace!”
“When you get out of here, you’ll need to properly investigate how that man became your knight in the first place.”
Was that… a sign he might be spared?
Marquis Chavez’s heart began to race as if he’d seen a ray of light.
“Y-yes, absolutely. Just please spare me, Your Grace! I swear my undying loyalty!”
“Spare you? When did I ever say I was going to kill you, Marquis?”
“Y-Your Grace!”
The Marquis spoke with a tearful voice, bowing his head deeply.
“The only people I execute on the spot are enemies or traitors. You were merely incompetent—careless and negligent. Of course, it’s deeply disappointing that someone of your rank and position turned out to be so unreliable, but since you didn’t commit the crime directly, I’ll let it slide this time.”
“Th-thank you, Your Grace!”
“Don’t thank me. Thank Ludia. She survived. Had she died, even you wouldn’t have escaped responsibility.”
When the serpent broke through the window and caused a commotion, a servant and a gardener were killed by its tail.
Losing people within the Grand Duke’s household was no small matter—but losing his future granddaughter-in-law? That was another level entirely.
Cold sweat trickled down the Marquis’s back.
If he couldn’t uncover how that serpent clan member infiltrated his knights, he would not escape consequences.
Vowing to get to the bottom of it, he bowed his head, and the oppressive shadow above him finally receded.
***
Meanwhile…
The knights stood still, dazed, blank looks on their faces.
‘What, never had someone shout at you like that before?’
Their expressions were all clueless. But in this brutal world of survival, ignorance wasn’t an excuse.
You had to figure things out, even if just by reading the room.
I yelled again.
“D-droBb dwoon- and seetch ut!!!”
(“Drop down and stretch out!” in a garbled command)
“Did she say to get down?”
“Sounds like it.”
“Yeah, let’s try lying down and stretching our legs.”
Despite the confusion, they were getting the gist. One by one, the knights dropped to the ground.
At first, their form was awkward, but once one of them got it right, the rest followed suit. It was a rough copy, but passable.
“When I say ‘one,’ you bend your arms and lower yourself. On ‘two,’ you push up again—but your face shouldn’t touch the ground! Stop just before it hits. Got it?!”
“Yes, ma’am!!!”
“One!”
“One!!!”
Everyone followed my lead, bending their arms. They were trained knights, so their form was decent.
“Two!”
“Two!!!”
After fifty reps, their faces were a sight. Blood had rushed to their heads, making them look like puffed-up apples.
They clearly weren’t used to this kind of training.
But I had no intention of stopping here.
“Your overall fitness is a mess! With that weak excuse of a body, how do you expect to defend a country…?”
Wait—was that the right approach?
“…Think of your parents who raised you, the ones who dreamed of seeing you become knights…”
Hmm. That might not work either. In this era, knights were basically hired by money.
Their loyalty would go first and foremost to the noble who employed them.
The ones serving Arcades would be utterly devoted to him.
“So, if you’re going to protect your lord, you’d better get your body in shape and train like your life depends on it! Again—one!”
“One!!!”
I didn’t let up for a second. To survive, they’d have to get to the point where they could do a thousand push-ups a day.
After eating three meals a day and doing it regularly out of boredom, doing a thousand push-ups was no big deal.
But since it was the knights’ first time today, I decided to let them off easy with just a hundred.
“Gentlemen, do you think you can handle it properly from now on?”
“We can do it!!!”
The knights’ thunderous voices filled the training ground, causing birds to flap and scatter across the sky.
Under the cloudless, clear blue sky, remembering my past life filled my heart with emotion.
“Good. With that same spirit and posture, pour your effort into training. So, with that in mind, we’ll run fifty laps around the training field today. Any complaints?”
“None!!!”
‘Of course not. That’s the spirit I like to see.’
“Alright then, everyone get up and start running. Move out!”
“Move out!!!”
The knights, panting, rose to their feet, lined up, and began running around the training ground.
I quietly watched them as they ran their fifty laps.
They moved slowly—probably still tired from the push-ups earlier—but I waited patiently. And just as they were finishing their final lap, Lisa finally found me.
“Miss, what are you doing here?”
From her breathless tone, it seemed she’d been searching for a while. I stood up from where I’d been calmly sitting under the wisteria-covered pergola.
“Watching the knights run.”
“Why?”
Lisa asked as she approached. She knelt beside me, brushing off some dust from the hem of my dress.
“I like training.”
“You’re really something, Miss. Sometimes, you remind me of the former Grand Duchess.”
The former Grand Duchess? That would be my great-grandmother-in-law, the wife of the current Grand Duke.
“The former Grand Duchess?”
“Yes. She was a strong warrior. She died heroically saving her troops during a battle in the North.”
“Wow! That’s amazing.”
I didn’t remember reading that in the original story—must’ve been a hidden bit of lore.
“She was famous even as a child. She once won a tournament hosted by the imperial family to choose the strongest young noblewoman and nobleman, defeating all the other candidates.”
“Wow! They had stuff like that? What’s that?”
“You don’t need to worry about that, Miss. You’re already beautiful, just focus on growing up pretty.”
“No! I don’t need to be pretty. I want to be one of those strong young noblewomen too!”
I didn’t know exactly what it was, but I was determined to become one.
“Tell me what it is.”
“Later. For now, just grow up safe and lovely. To be honest, the Empire doesn’t like capable women. In that sense, the former Grand Duchess was ahead of her time.”
“She sounds so cool. I want to be like her.”
Listening to Lisa’s story stirred something deep in my heart.
To think the one who died saving her subordinates was my grandmother-in-law… As a soldier in my past life, I couldn’t help but respect her.
“Miss, think about all that later. For now, please don’t go wandering off on your own. It’s hard to find you in a place this big. The Duke strictly told us never to leave you alone—when you do this, it puts us in a tough spot.”
“Okay. I’m sorry. I’ll be careful.”
I couldn’t let the maids suffer because of me.
Seeing my apologetic face, Lisa smiled gently at me.
Her eyes were a rich brown, like chestnuts ripened in the autumn. I liked the quiet depth in her gaze, it made me feel safe.
After returning while holding Lisa’s hand, I had to take a forced nap. But since I usually fall asleep easily anyway, I drifted off quickly into a deep sleep.
As soon as I woke up, I reached under my bed and pulled out the paring knife I’d hidden earlier.
Ever since I faced off against that serpent, I realized just how unforgiving this world could be.
Since my magic wasn’t offensive in nature, the only way to protect myself was by strengthening my body.
I glared at one of the canopy bed’s wooden pillars, imagining it as the serpent’s head.
With all the strength I could muster, I threw the knife.
But instead of sticking into the pillar, it clattered to the floor.
Of course it did. I still didn’t have the strength.
But this was just the beginning.
If it doesn’t work, make it work.
