As both the princess and the Chosen Hero, Heidi was undoubtedly the most prestigious figure among all humans in the kingdom, perhaps even the entire world.
Every move she made was seen as a symbol of her status, so she had to be especially cautious in both speech and action.
Whether in the Palace, the military camp, or at any social gathering, she had to restrain herself.
Moments like now—resting alone in a modest inn—were incredibly rare.
Completely relaxed, she slept in late, not waking even as the sun rose high in the sky.
Then—
“Heidi Alt, what on earth are you doing here!?”
A loud, familiar voice dragged Heidi out of her dream.
She opened her eyes and saw Lia standing before her, fully armored, gripping her unsheathed Holy Sword.
Behind her, the bedroom door was cleaved in two, the cut still emitting faint wisps of blue smoke—the mark of the Holy Sword’s strike.
Barging into a lady’s room while she’s asleep was rough and utterly uncouth, and Heidi was furious.
“Lia!? What’s gotten into you!?”
“It’s my problem! Weren’t you supposed to be here negotiating with the nobles, demanding reinforcements and supplies!? Where are the reinforcements? Where are the supplies? The knights are starving, and you’re just sleeping here!?”
Lia and her group had rushed overnight from the Anlin Plain.
Upon entering the city, with no time to rest, they sent people to search every inn for Heidi.
The so-called search meant storming into inns and questioning every place about a short red-haired woman staying there—the whole city now knew the Holy War Knights were looking for a red-haired, short woman.
After half a morning, they finally found her here.
Lia was frantic and unceremonious, slashing the door in half to get inside.
Seeing Heidi still groggy only fueled her anger further, and she reached out to drag her from the bed, but Heidi pushed her hand away.
“I can get up myself!”
The princess sighed.
She had thought she could escape this fool by coming to Tafia, but it turned out she was relentlessly pursued.
As long as Eze wasn’t back, she wouldn’t have a moment’s peace.
How frustrating.
Heidi stretched lightly, got up at a leisurely pace, washed and dressed, then changed out of her pajamas into casual clothes and sat by the window at the table.
She waved at Lia.
“Put the Holy Sword down and have a drink. With those dark circles and that complexion, anyone would think you got stung by a Doomed Medusa Jellyfish.”
She placed two cups on the table and poured some of the high-end Red Wine left over from last night.
Though anxious, Lia was indeed exhausted and tense after days of intense work.
Seeing the fine wine, she licked her chapped lips unconsciously, sheathed her sword, and sat opposite Heidi.
She downed her cup in one gulp and frowned.
“Tsk, a bit too astringent.”
‘A boar can’t appreciate fine husks,’ Heidi cursed inwardly, yet poured her another glass.
After all, a little wine would keep Lia from making trouble, which was good for Heidi.
“Why do you look so worn out? Did something happen at the camp?”
“Nothing much, just finished up some unfinished business for that bastard who ran off.”
“Eze’s… Document Work?”
“Yeah.”
Heidi’s eyes widened.
In the past, trying to play the role of a competent fiancée before Eze, she had attempted to help him with paperwork.
But after just two days, she gave up.
Even the strongest defensive hero couldn’t break through the mountain of documents.
Since then, she never thought to help Eze with paperwork again.
And now, this woman thought she could replace Eze in that area—and even actually tried?
She didn’t know if it was overconfidence or just plain foolishness… Actually, it was definitely foolish.
Heidi swirled her glass, sipped lightly, then asked:
“So, why are you here in Tafia? Didn’t we agree on a week? It’s not even up yet.”
“The supplies are almost gone; we can’t wait a single day longer.”
Lia had only casually agreed to the one-week deadline without truly considering the team’s situation.
Now, things were hectic.
After finishing her drink, Lia slammed the cup down on the table.
“How did the negotiations with the local nobles go!? When will they finally hand over the supplies!?”
The topic she dreaded had come up.
Heidi sighed.
“Lia, negotiating with nobles is complicated. It’s not that simple. You should go back, control the rationing, and hold on for a few more days. I’ll get this sorted quickly.”
Heidi was certain that after yesterday’s fake broken engagement, she held an absolute advantage.
Right now, Eze must be pacing like an ant on a hot pan, desperate to fix their betrothal.
Within three days, he would surely return and easily handle the nobles.
For now, she had to get rid of this unstable lunatic Lia, to prevent her from causing trouble.
Meanwhile, a few glasses of wine had improved Lia’s mood considerably, and she wasn’t as sharp-tempered as before.
She shook her head and said:
“We can’t wait a single day longer. I came this time to take some supplies back for emergency relief. Just a few days’ worth. The rest can be supplied by the local nobles later.”
She was here begging, yet she sounded like a tax officer collecting levies.
“Later?”
Heidi hid her disdain and took a delicate sip of the Red Wine, curious.
“Aren’t you planning a large-scale assault on the Demon Race Territory? How could a few days’ supplies be enough?”
“Once we get through these days, reinforcements and supplies from the Holy Capital will arrive.”
The princess frowned.
“The Holy Capital? Why would the Holy Capital send reinforcements?”
“Because I wrote them a letter.”
“A letter?”
“Yeah, I told them about the Prophecy of Missing Hero and requested support… What’s wrong? You look suddenly so pale.”
Lia watched as the color drained from Heidi’s face, her lips and pupils trembling, her voice becoming weak and shaky.
“…What did you say?”
“That I asked them to send reinforcements.”
“No, I mean the first part.”
“About the Prophecy of Missing Hero.”
Crack—
The wine glass in Heidi’s hand shattered under her grip.
Losing control, she stood up abruptly, grabbed Lia’s armor, and shook her without caring.
“You—you told the Holy Capital that Eze left!?”
“Yeah, so? What’s so shocking about that?”
Lia didn’t understand Heidi’s reaction but, having just drunk her wine, didn’t want to cause a scene and just looked at her with confusion.
Then she said:
“That useless guy held us back for so long in the team. Now that he’s gone, why should I keep it secret? Of course, the church needs to know.”
“…”
“Besides, he’s still a hero after all. Taking this opportunity to have the church send reinforcements is the last contribution he makes before leaving. So what… Hey, what’s wrong with you?”
Heidi stood frozen, as if petrified.
Lia waved her hand in front of Heidi’s eyes.
But just that flicker of motion caused Heidi to fall straight backward to the floor.
***
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