Became a Strategist with a 100 Intelligence and 100\% Accuracy-Chapter 288: You Know Everything, Don’t You?
“Huh? Lady Luna? All of a sudden?”
“Yes.”
I glanced at her face, surprised by the abrupt topic—but it didn’t seem like idle chatter meant to kill time.
We moved to a nearby spot under the shade of a lone tree, crouched down beside each other, and I cautiously opened the conversation.
“May I ask why you’re bringing her up?”
“Your true lord was Lady Luna, wasn’t she?”
“...Yes.”
I hesitated for just a moment—but I had no intention of denying the truth.
“I was just wondering... what kind of person she is, that you, Swen, could be so certain she’s the one who’ll become the unifying sovereign.”
Something about her question made it feel like she wasn’t telling me the whole story.
Still, since she’d asked, it was only polite to answer.
“She was a good person. She always trusted me completely. Even when I made outrageous suggestions, she never demanded proof. She just accepted them all.”
Looking back, maybe that was only possible because her nation was still small at the time...
But even so, I didn’t want to diminish the fact that she gave me her full trust.
Just like her faction was small back then, I was no one—just a pebble on the roadside, not yet known as the White-Haired Mage or anything else.
“She also had this natural ability to make the people of her territory follow her. I think she was one of the few who could genuinely feel their pain as if it were her own.”
“Like Lady Serpina just now?”
...Ah.
Only then did I realize why she had brought this up.
“Are you... thinking about her? About Lady Serpina?”
“...!”
Airen flinched at my words—then let out a bitter smile.
“I don’t think I can lie to you, Swen.”
She was someone who, despite being called a tyrant by the world, continued walking her path without hesitation.
Even if no one acknowledged her—even if she gained nothing—if she saw a way to save someone’s life, she would bear the infamy and act without hesitation.
Just earlier, she had done the same.
Even when facing a civilian who had almost certainly cursed her until recently, she treated them with compassion.
It was the kind of moment that would make anyone question how someone like her ever earned the title of “tyrant.”
Airen must’ve been thinking the same.
She was beginning to question something I’d already wrestled with once before:
“Even after all this... why can’t Lady Serpina become the unifying sovereign?”
“I was just... curious. Just how exceptional must Lady Luna be, if Lady Serpina can’t become the one to unite the continent?”
If it weren’t for my 100 Intelligence and its /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ perfect predictions, I wouldn’t be able to answer that with certainty either.
But in this world, my predictions were absolute.
As long as Serpina remained sovereign, neither she nor her army would defeat Lunarian’s forces—nor would she ever be able to change either her fate or Lady Luna’s.
We fell silent for a while.
I knew what she was thinking. So I gave her time to process it all without rushing.
“...Swen.”
“Yes?”
“I just want to say this now, in case anything happens. I’m always on your side. No matter what.”
“...Thank you.”
“My body will be your shield. My convictions will be your sword. And if you ever have to walk a disgraceful path, I’ll be the one out front taking the mud flung your way.”
“Thank you.”
“So whatever decision you make, I won’t question it. But...”
“...But?”
“I still... can’t stop thinking about Lady Serpina.”
As she spoke, Airen hugged her knees and buried her head in them. freēwēbηovel.c૦m
She had once longed to be acknowledged by someone—anyone.
And Serpina was the first ruler to truly acknowledge her.
The woman who had thrown herself into danger to save Airen’s life.
Of course, if it hadn’t been for Airen, Serpina would have died—but that didn’t make Serpina’s actions any less significant.
I had never once heard of a sovereign throwing themselves in front of danger for their knight.
And if Serpina had died protecting her, nothing would’ve changed.
No one would have blamed her. It wouldn’t have added to her already stained reputation.
It’s expected for a knight to sacrifice themselves for their ruler.
To die for a noble sovereign is considered an honor.
And yet—Serpina threw herself forward.
To protect Airen. ...And to not be hated by me.
“No matter how I look at it... I just can’t abandon her. Swen. Do you remember, when you and Reika went to the relief camp?”
The word “relief camp” immediately brought back memories of kissing Reika, and I felt my mouth go dry.
Still, I somehow managed to keep my expression in check.
“I stayed behind to be at Lady Serpina’s side while you were away. At first, it was lonely... with neither you nor Reika around. But in hindsight, it was like Lady Serpina filled that empty space for me. She treated me—just a bodyguard—with sincerity.”
“The closer I got to her, the more I understood. Just how lonely and isolated her life had been. Outwardly, she never showed weakness... but from where I stood, she looked like she could collapse at any moment.”
“Sometimes, when I looked at her gazing out the window... it reminded me of myself.”
Maybe only Airen could’ve picked up on that.
They had something in common—being hated.
Brans Army had despised Airen, and the world despised Serpina.
“If we leave... will she be all right? She relies on you a lot, Swen. Just like I do...”
I tilted my head back and looked up at the sky.
Between the blossoms in the trees, the bright blue sky stretched above, streaked with drifting white clouds.
...Maybe it was okay to share just a bit.
As flower petals danced in the breeze and the clouds floated gently above, I carefully opened up to her.
“Well, I feel the same way.”
“...Really?”
“Why else do you think I’m still here?”
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
Of course, that wasn’t the only reason.
A mix of complicated thoughts and feelings were tangled up inside me.
Airen sat quietly, deep in thought, then finally looked at me with a trembling voice, her violet eyes flickering.
“...Is there a way?”
“The Lady Luna I knew... she hated Lady Serpina. She told me she raised her banner because she couldn’t entrust the world to her. From that moment alone, I knew. The two of them can’t coexist.”
“In a situation like this... is there really a way for both Lady Serpina and Lady Luna... for everyone... to smile in the end?”
"......"
No point trying to input “Can Serpina von Eingart and Lunarian Iniang coexist?”
Even if I did, I doubt it would give me an answer worth reading.
Not that I’d ever try entering that query here, anyway.
“Do you remember the battle at the northern fortress, Lady Airen?”
“Of course I remember. Swen—you saved me. When everyone else had abandoned me, you reached out your hand. How could I ever forget that?”
“Everyone said it was impossible back then too, didn’t they? But somehow, we pulled through. Come on, who am I? I’m the guy who dropped a meteor, remember?”
I still dream about that moment sometimes.
It was the turning point of my fate.
Before that, I’d planned to quietly fade into the background—but that day, I met Airen, then Reika, then three sovereigns later... I met Serpina.
“So just trust me. Maybe it’ll all come together into a bigger picture. I bet when the time comes, you’ll be saying, ‘Swen, you really knew everything, didn’t you?’ Something like that.”
At my silly words, Airen finally smiled.
Just then, a gust of wind swept past us, sending a few flower petals swirling through the air.
“...I see. That makes sense. You always did know everything, Swen...”
“Of course. And no one knows that better than you, Lady Airen. From the very moment we lived together at Arnel Castle—you’ve been by my side the longest, and the closest.”
“......”
Her cheeks turned slightly pink, giving her face a youthful glow.
Airen took a deep breath, turned to face me, and asked—
“Then... can you tell what I’m thinking of doing next?”
“What you’re planning?”
“Yes. Swen, you know everything, don’t you?”
Even if I did, my predictions didn’t extend to anything outside of strategy, combat, or matters of state...
But maybe it was the fluttering petals or the mood that swept me up, because I wracked my brain for the most fitting answer I could come up with.
“Uhh... Are you thinking about what kind of tea to have with dinner?”
“Wrong.”
“Then... it’s not tea, maybe you were—”
I didn’t finish the sentence.
Because in the next instant, I had no idea what had just happened.
My vision darkened—or rather, it was suddenly filled entirely by someone’s face.
She closed her eyes and leaned in close...
A red-haired knight.
The soft, warm sensation of lips.
I knew that feeling by now.
We’d had two similar moments before, after all.
What flavor was it this time?
Not citrus. Not sweet like cake.
No... this was the taste of Airen.
...Smack, chuup, slurp...
Wet, sticky sounds that assaulted all five of my senses.
Our tongues entwined, and my mind went completely blank.
Too intense.
So much deeper, stickier, and more overwhelming than anything before.
Something far stronger than fleeting fragrance or soft sweetness invaded my mouth, swallowing me whole.
“......”
The moment that felt like it would last forever finally came to an end—slowly.
Very slowly, she pulled away.
Only then did I truly see the face of Lady Airen, flushed crimson.
Gone was the composed knight—before me now was a woman, gasping for breath, her expression burning with desire.
The deep valley of her cleavage, barely contained by her armor, pushed my already shattered composure over the edge.
The scene around us was perfect:
The sound of the breeze, her red hair swaying like waves in the wind, and the soft pink petals drifting down like rain.
“Lady... Airen...?”
“......”
We stared at each other in silence for a long time.
...My heart felt like it would explode.
I’ll say it plainly—this kiss shook me more than any of the others.
Unlike with Lady Serpina or Reika, where I’d recovered quickly and kept my cool, I couldn’t string together a single coherent sentence this time.
I just stood there, dumbfounded, gazing at her like a complete idiot.
She was the one who finally broke the silence.
“Did you see it coming?”
“...N-no...”
“...Did you hate it?”
I shook my head—couldn’t say a word. Just dumbly shook my head like a fool.
“Good.”
She said it with a smile as warm as sunlight.
The same smile I’d seen back at the fortress, after she had finally shed her loneliness.
The first smile that made me want to protect someone.
“...Then I’m glad.”
Airen slowly stood up.
“Let’s go.”
“...Ah... um, yes.”
I had no idea what the hell had just happened.
Couldn’t even come up with a cool line to say.
All I could do was let out a weak, helpless answer and stumble after her, dragging my unsteady legs as we made our way back to the others.
—Another unforgettable memory added to a day I’d never forget.
I was beginning to like this place more and more.
