The Tyrant Empress is Obsessed with Me - Chapter64

64 – Receiving a Proposal

The chilly wind blew.

On the city walls of Winter Tide in the North, where it is said to have never been penetrated, were the empire’s warriors.

What caught the eyes without fail was a man wrapped in the hide of Ice Fang Wolf, known for its ferocity.

His name was Duke Felix.

The pride of the empire, a Swordmaster, and the solid shield of the North.

People called him the Iron-blooded Swordmaster.

“Try adding more fire. It’s still cold.”

“Phew, the wind is so strong that the fire keeps going out.”

“Don’t we have a wizard or something? It’s quite a fuss every time we want to light a fire.”

“Do you think this rare wizard would come here? Even if we give him stacks of gold, he will run straight away.”

Grand Duke Felix held his hands near the flickering campfire.

“Roast some sausages before the fire goes out.”

“What if we’ve run out of herbs?”

“Hunger is the best spice. Let’s eat it raw.”

Grand Duke Felix, blowing the hot sausage handed by the soldier, crinkled his nose. It tasted somewhat like sh*t—the taste of guts not well cleaned.

Although every aspect of the north seemed miserable, recently it felt even more so.

Above all,

“He’s still doing that, huh.”

With becoming a Swordmaster, all senses tend to develop extremely well. However, Grand Duke Felix had a question.

‘Did I become a Swordmaster because my senses developed, or did my senses develop because I became a Swordmaster?’

He was thinking of seriously discussing this the next time he met another Swordmaster. But the likelihood of that happening here in the north was as low as a sudden hot spring eruption.

Regardless,

Grand Duke Felix saw him.

Standing still far away, a gigantic giant.

Nearly half the size of a wall.

Blue skin pale as if frost-bitten, muscular arms that could easily smash a stone wall with one full swing,

Tusks bigger than an elephant’s ivory.

Every time the giant steps, a small earthquake occurs, and his footprints deeply hit the ground.

And the instinctive action that Grand Duke Felix took as soon as he saw the giant was.

＜Help.＞

For the first time in his life, he called for help to the Empire.

Honestly, he was scared.

It’s something when they’re big, but this was castle-level big.

…Thinking about it, he should’ve written down what the situation was and who the enemy was in more detail. But the eagle had already flown away.

He sent another courier anyway.

But come to think of it, what kind of help could he get from the Empire against that giant?

In the end, it must be the north who confronts the giant.

“Northern warriors, be ready for death!”

Prince Felix summoned all his forces for a final siege on Jupiter. But no matter how much time passed, the giant didn’t move.

From Noble mtl dot com

Eventually, a scholar ascended the rampart to speak.

“That is a Frost Giant. Other names it goes by are Géant de Gel, Морозный гигант, Frost Giants, हिमगज, and…”

“Just stop there.”

Prince Felix interrupted before the scholar could give an ancient history lesson.

Scholars were known to have a propensity to over-explain when in their element.

“So why isn’t this Frost Giant attacking?”

“I wouldn’t know. If I did, I would be the Oracle, not a Scholar.”

“I see.”

The scholar shrugged. Prince Felix was convinced.

“All we can do is to watch the Giant.”

From that day onwards, Prince Felix started living on the rampart.

“General! The Frost Giant is scratching its behind!”

“He might be itchy.”

“General! The Frost Giant is out there tearing trees apart for dinner, he’s even burping.”

“Must be hungry.”

“General! The Frost Giant is going to… uh oh.”

“Just don’t observe such things.”

Then, after some moments.

The Frost Giant started to engage in abnormal behavior.

Pulling out whole trees, he started writing on the snow-covered ground.

“General, the Frost Giant is writing something. What could it mean?”

A Frost Giant writing.

He never thought he would witness such a scene in his lifetime.

Prince Felix had a vision that was vastly different from ordinary persons. It was as if he possessed the vision of an eagle.

So, he could closely see even from this distance what the Frost Giant was writing.

“That, that writing!”

“Is it a warning of our impending annihilation!?”

“No, it’s just a poor penmanship”

It’s a severe case of poor handwriting.

And astonishingly, the writing completed by the Frost Giant was in the Imperial language.

The message read.

＜Ascal, fetch him.＞

“So, they’re calling for Ascal.”

The soldiers were shocked at the mention of Ascal’s name.

Even in the Northern territory, Ascal’s reputation was well known. However, the aspect they were particularly interested in was slightly different.

“Isn’t Ascal that legendary womanizer known for having a fling with the princess?”

“I’m… so… jealous.”

“But why would the Frost Giant be looking for Ascal?”

“If I knew that, I’d be a fortune teller.”

Duke Felix said.

“So the Frost Giant speaks Imperial. This is a great gain.”

And then Duke Felix gave the soldiers a command.

“Everyone, cover your ears.”

“Yes.”

Just as he finished, Duke Felix jumped from the citadel. He then strode off, keeping a moderate distance from the soldiers until he got slightly closer to the Frost Giant.

“His physical capabilities are marvelous every time I see it.”

“He’s not a Sword Master for no reason.”

＜If he is brought, will you retreat!＞

It was a roar.

The soldiers were in pain. If they hadn’t covered their ears in time, their eardrums would have burst.

The Frost Giant stared at Duke Felix.

The Giant nodded.

Duke Felix sent another message to the empire. Fortunately, an eagle that had left its home long ago had come back looking gloomy, failing to find a mate.

“Ascal. Prepare the stew.”

“The… Princess…”

The party, almost arrived in the North, decided to take a short rest. A warm fire was kindling, and the pot began to boil.

Yulia clung to Ascal tightly.

“My hands are so cold that I can’t even hold the spoon, but I’m hungry.”

“Miss, behaviors of such could be misunderstood.”

“The meaning of misunderstanding is to understand something differently from the truth. What misunderstanding could arise from you personally feeding the soup to the lady who is shivering from the cold? Speak up.”

It was strange.

Yulia, who came with this northern journey, was different from usual.

Compared to Yulia with her hair down, she was far more proactive and had no hesitation.

“I will serve you, Your Highness.”

The maid serving Yulia tried to scoop the soup.

“What lack of sense. That’s enough. Step back. The lady will eat herself.”

The princess, whose hands were starkly frozen, began to eat the stew without hesitation.

What on earth has happened to Yulia all this while?

“We will soon arrive at the northern grand command.”

Ashe Dever slammed his hot tea in one shot.

Ashe, who has become the leader of the emperor’s hounds, joined the group as the overall commander of this northern journey.

Of course, a different intention was clearly seen from Ascal.

‘He sent me to keep an eye on me.’

Ascal grumbled.

“Your demeanor has become fierce now that you’re climbing up the ranks, Father.”

“Your salary is quite substantial.”

“How much do you make? Should we share our salaries?”

Ascal wagged his finger.

Ashe wagged his finger back.

“Do you earn more than a minister?”

“That’s why I followed to this cold place, isn’t it?”

Nothing more can be said because it’s true.

The rest of the group arrived at the grand command after a short break.

“Hup!”

Splash.

The moment Ascal stepped into the grand command, he saw a northerner diving into a puddle in the buff in this cold weather.

Moreover, it seemed like it wasn’t unusual for that northerner, as the next one was diving into the puddle too.

“In the north, we beat the cold with cold.”

The deputy commander of the north, Simos, explained to the group as he led them.

“There’s a bear!”

“Ah, judging by the scar on its face, it must be Chorong. It must be wanting a snack.”

Simos took out a bottle filled with honey from his waist bag. However, the honey was too frozen to come out.

Simos, squinting his eyes, struck the bottle with his fist. The bottle shattered, causing the frozen honey to drop on the ground. Chorong eagerly licked it up.

“We often keep bears as pets.”

Even Ascal, watching a Northerner lick icicles hanging under the roof because of thirst, seriously started regretting coming to the North.

“……Where is the Duke?”

“The commander is on the city wall. He’s watching the frost giants.”

Frost giants?

What does that mean?

It wasn’t mentioned in any reports.

“Ah, that was a secret. Yes.”

“…….”

“hahahaha. Anyway, I shall guide you to your accommodation. You all must be needing rest.”

Ascal was worried whether the so-called ‘accommodation’ would be a cave or something, but thankfully, the guesthouse was pretty nice.

It wasn’t luxurious, but it had a fireplace, it was quite large, and above all, it was clean.

“I’ll see you tomorrow. Everyone.”

Simos left.

Ascal unpacked his luggage, feeling the fatigue coming from deep within his chest.

He fell asleep as soon as he lay in bed.

Clang!

Clang clang!

The sound of swords clashing woke Ascal.

It was the dead of night. Only the dancing fireplace flames and a candle were creating some light.

Ascal hastily turned on the emergency magical stone lamp.

Two people were visible.

One was a man with a stern face, wearing a wolf skin hat upside down, and the other one had a familiar face.

Aser Devre. His own father.

His father was fighting with the mysterious man.

Why?

“It’s been a while since I had an opponent like this! I’ve been waiting for a man like you.”

“I feel the same way.”

It was a high-level match. If only there was a way to record and sell this event, every fencer would lose all of their wealth just to purchase it.

“What do you think of this?”

“Very sharp. Is this real combat fencing?”

The two men squared off for a long time.

Almost to the point where they had to replace the old lamp once its lifespan was nearing its end.

“I like it! I really do!”

“Good. It’s been worth the trip up North!”

“I’d really want to keep going until we have a winner, but I have urgent matters to tend to. However, I don’t like the idea of letting a man like you go.”

“I feel the same way.”

Suddenly, the man pulled out a glass of liquor.

“Shall we become sworn brothers?”

“Sounds good.”

The two men held their glasses up high and emptied the contents in an instant. Is this the Northern style?

“Brother.”

“Older brother.”

“No. Why did you two fight in the first place? And who are you?”

Ascal, who had been eagerly waiting for a chance to intervene, finally found his opportunity.

“Hmm. I am Van Felix, the person in charge of the North. I came to take you, but I unexpectedly came across this great swordsman.”

“As an escort, that is my duty.”

Ascal was taken aback.

Could it be that the man who attacked him in the middle of the night was this Northern Count? And his father suddenly became sworn brothers with him after their fight?

“So why have you come to take me, Count Felix?”

Count Felix frowned.

“The giant has been quite insistent. He told me to bring you.”

“……?”

“Anyway, I will ensure your utmost safety. Follow me. It would be good if the brother also follows.”

“I understand. Older brother.”

Dawn was breaking.

He realized that blindly following wasn’t a good choice.

From Noble mtl dot com

For the first time in his life, Ascal witnessed.

A frost giant making a heart shape with both hands.

“A female frost giant indeed.”

＜Marry me, Ascal＞

Ascal vowed never to trust the witch’s prophecy again.