I Will Avoid The Death Flag [It's Published]
46. Covert

After the waiter served tea and snacks on the table, they obediently left the room at my command. Just in case, I had Sir Derick stand behind the door.

Now, it's just me, Etrill, and Kallistar in a room full of the sweet aroma of cake. Jasmine-scented tea also rivaled the fragrant room, making a tense atmosphere for me to be a little relaxed.

I sat on the single sofa, while Etrill and Kallistar sat side by side.

Honestly, I'm a little nervous. It was the first time I met the two without someone beside me, in that context it was Sir Derick accompanying me in the dungeon. Now, I'm totally alone.

"Serethy," called Kallistar with a gentle smile on his lips.

I smiled back, fake. "Sister."

"We miss you so much, Serethy," Etrill took over the conversation.

"You should know how we always have trouble sleeping because we think of you" Kallistar sighed with a reassuring facial expression.

Maybe he has good acting skills. So I wanted to register the names Etrill and Kallistar to the theatre arts in the capital.

"Certainly that?" I asked with false sadness in my eyes. "I'm sorry for worrying about my dear father and brother. I didn't mean to do it."

Etrill laughed softly. "It's okay, Serethy. I was so happy to see you back. It was as if Dad could die peacefully now."

"Dad, don't talk like that" Kallistar said. "What about our promise to live happily with Serethy?"

"That's absolutely right, son." Etrill stroked Kallistar's silver hair. "We're desperate to make up for the time that's been wasted because we lost you on the run."

"I'm sorry, Serethy. At that time I was heavily injured by the war, so I could not try my best to save you," Kallistar continued, bowing his head, looking at the jasmine tea on the table. "By force, we let you go."

"However, I promised to save you, Serethy. Then, we come this time."

I just smiled gently while listening to their nonsense. I also don't know if they're really saying nonsense or not because I arrived in this world when I've captured Asher warriors, inside a shabby carriage moving towards Asher Kingdom, he said, and have not seen either of them at all. However, if it was acting, I almost wanted to clap their hands in a frenzy because they were really good at acting.

"So?" My voice echoed in the quiet room. "Until when will you two play the role of being a good family to me?"

My sentence provoked the two of them to stop the disgusting facial expression directed at me. Instead, they directly looked at me sharply.

"Ho? You crazy bitch," muttered Kallistar. "I almost vomited when I had to keep being gentle with you. Fortunately, you quickly realized."

Etrill just remained silent with an indisputable cold highlight, as if the warmth emanated earlier meant nothing. His fingers reached for the teacup on the table, then sipped the contents slowly. The dignity of a king was still left in his body, so even the resulting aura felt majestic.

"Yes, yeah. I'm also very sick of this," I said off guard.

"Thyak?" Kallistar laughed in annoyance. "Aren't you really looking forward to this moment, Serethy? Didn't you really want us to act like this to you?"

If the point of this bastard is how the real Serethy wants to be gently addressed by his family, then you're the wrong person, you bastard. I'm not the real Serethy, who's not stupid, not naive, and doesn't pursue the pseudo affection of assholes like you.

I clenched my hand tightly until it turned white. They both really made me angry.

"The brother I love" I said with a cold vowel. "It used to be, yes, but now I don't. Thank you to the people in the Asher Kingdom who have made me realize that pursuing your love is the most disgusting thing ever."

Brak!

Kallistar kicked the table. The tea cup on the table swayed and the beautiful snack order was shattered.

Kallistar slowly got up from his chair and approached me.

"Look at this arrogant blur," said Kallistar as he stabbed me with his violet eyes. "You're a big head because you're loved by Angelina. And you're just a poor little bastard who's lucky because Dad still wants to pick you up! I'm so sick of your flashy hair!" Kallistar grabbed my pink hair violently.

I laughed, ignoring the pain in the scalp. "Yes, motherfucker. Tear the disgusting mask on your fucking face! You're so disgusting, Kallistar Matria!"

"****** this!" Kallistar grabbed my hair.

I secretly activated the holy power to make the pain wear off.

"Stop it, Kallistar."

The cold voice that swept through the space was able to make Kallistar relax the jubai without actually taking off my hair.

"You shameless child" continued Etrill, his gaze fixed on the teacup, but I could tell if the bastard was talking to me. "After becoming the Princess in the enemy kingdom, you really get the privilege."

Etrill poured the tea into his cup of kosonh calmly, without being disturbed by the sight of me being grabbed by Kallistar. Fortunately, I did not feel any pain because of my holy power.

"Why indeed? Are you jealous that I'm getting more privileges than you being a fugitive with your head valued at five million ash?"

Prangs! Etrill threw the teacup in her hand onto the floor until it broke to pieces. Etrill then approached me with a look of wrath embedded in her face.

"You should return the favor to me," Etrill said before my face, her eyes shining coldly on me. "I've picked you up even though you're just a lowly bastard. You shouldn't have grown your head after being appointed Princess in this bastard kingdom."

"Dad, now she's the queen's candidate." Kallistar laughed loudly. "What queen candidate? She is completely incompetent, the Asher Kingdom must have collapsed if she were to become Queen."

Etrill grunting. "The Asher Kingdom collapses if she becomes queen, can't we just get rid of two birds with one stone?"

"Father's right. The ****** this must indeed be queen."

These bastards. I was so angry that I could not speak.

"And with us as the queen's family, isn't that the perfect position to avoid the fact that we're ex-fugitives?"

Plaque! I couldn't help but slap the cheek of the bastard in front of me as hard as I could.

Etrill frowned at the painful feeling on the cheeks. "Basic crazy. You're the same as your cheap mother, Serethy."

Slowly, I felt Etrill's rough hand clutching my neck.

I laughed, what an irony. Angelina did not say that the original family of Serethy was very crazy and abusive. Evidently from how Kallistar did not hesitate to grab my hair or Etrill who was trying to strangle me.

"You arrogant bastard doesn't know thank you." Chew Etrill hardened at my neck, as if it really intended to snatch the breath I was breathing. "Serethy, I really want to kill you with both hands. You're nauseating. You keep reminding me of—"

Etrill had not finished saying her sentence, the door of the room opened violently.

With such a swift movement and no ordinary eye could follow, a sword had touched Etrill's neck, while Kallistar was already slammed onto the floor.

I'm glaring. This is the true strength of a knight commander?!

"Remove your filthy hands from the Princess" Sir Derick said with a hunting breath. He pressed the blade of the sword against Etrill's neck.

Etrill snorted and released her giggles at me.

Crazy bastard, he really intended to kill his own daughter.

"Mr Princess, are you okay?" ask Sir Derick. For some reason, the skin on her cheeks flushed red and the breath she drew hunted down.

"I'm fine, Sir Derick."

Sir Derick nodded his head, then hid my body on his back.

Sir Derick pressed the sword against Etrill's neck until the blood poured out from the surface of the pale skin.

"Fuck," muttered Kallistar as he tried to straighten his painful body.

Now, in front of Sir Derick stands Etrill and Kallistar whose appearance has been chaotic with only one movement Sir Derick.

As expected of Sir Derick, a worthy knight commander.

"What's your goal?" sir Derick asked, emphasizing each syllable in his sentence. "How dare ... How dare you hurt the Princess! Isn't the Princess your family?!"

"Is ... Are you all just pretending to be gentle in front of the Princess while in the dungeon?"

Kallistar grunting. "Of course, you strong bastard. How could I think of him as my brother."

Sir Derick's cream-colored bead vibrated. The blade of the sword that was still pointed at Etrill's neck also trembled faintly.

"Why? Whyyy?! Doesn't the Princess love you?! Why do you return the Princess' love like this?!" Sir Derick suddenly shouted furiously.

In the meantime, I was silent. I never once told Sir Derick that I loved my family? Then, why did he even take the wrong perception of how I looked at my family? Was it because of that brief conversation in the dungeon that Sir Derick misinterpreted my sentence?

"You, Knight," Etrill opened her lips after a long moment of silence. "Shut your mouth, you don't know anything about us."

Sir Derick's breath is hunting. He pulled out his sword and returned it to the sheath.

"I will tell Your Majesty," Sir Derick said as he glanced at me who was still hiding on his back.

"No," I said.

Sir Derick frowned. "Why, Princess? They've hurt the Princess! They were saved by the Princess from the snare of death!"

"Dad, Brother." I ignored Sir Derick and glanced at the two men from behind Sir Derick's back. "The tea banquet is over, please return to your room."

Etrill and Kallistar did not protest at all by turning over the body to leave the room.

"Mr Princess!" sela Sir Derick.

I took her gloved hand. "Take it easy."

"How can I feel calm, Princess?! Do you know how anxious and hurt I am when I see them hurting you?!"

"Quiet," I said, repeating my words.

Sir Derick bit his lips hard. "Tell me, Princess. Why did you take them off? Is it because the Princess loves them so much?"

What does this angel say, anyway? Love them? Just hearing it almost made me nauseous.

"Of course not, Sir Derick."

"Tell me the reason. I'll be tolerant if that reason makes sense. And if not, I will directly report this matter to His Majesty."

I exhaled my breath. Sir Derick was overwhelmed by emotions he never showed me.

"I can't just hand them over right away because I have to hold my sentence in the gossip paper. I will punish them, and then I will love them. What would people say if I suddenly punished? This will have an impact on my influence being—"

"Affect, influence, influence! Princess Sir! Fuck that influence! Why don't you think about yourself?! They intend to kill you and who cares about your influence being the Queen?!"

I gasped at Sir Derick who suddenly snapped at me. This was the first time Sir Derick raised his tone to me, with a burning emotion in his spotlight, let alone a cream bead that started to glaze over.

Sir Derick held both of my shoulders. "Mr Daughter, how important is that influence to not think of yourself? Why do you always think about things that can be worried later than things that need to be worried about now?"

I frowned and brushed Sir Derick's hands on my shoulders. Suddenly I was upset.

"That's very important," I pressed. "Sir Derick, again, that influence is very important! Maybe you don't know because you were never me! You don't understand my feelings! And you don't understand my fear! If I do not become queen, when the influence of the queen disappears one by one after my laborious build ...! Then, I will also die in a different way from the giggles of my father and brother!"

My breath hunts as I shout my words.

I wanted so much to shout at the man about how important the queen's influence was. Why that? Because if I don't have any influence, then I won't be able to survive. Like a sponsor in the real world, I would not be able to survive in a cruel world without the support of anyone.

If the influence as queen is destroyed, then people will thrust their swords at me and kill me in their own way. That's grisly.

For me who has survived in such a way in this bastard novel, I have gone through many horrors. Either way, Serethy's destiny is to die. And that's absolute. However, I broke the fate line and there was no guarantee that I would continue to survive in the future without protection.

In a world of fun-loving royal centuries, this century has its dark side too. The kingdom will not hesitate to behead someone who has no influence to protect me, the kingdom will kill me if I make the slightest mistake. Like Selene. It was a mistake that Selene made.

Thinking about it makes me almost crazy. I don't know if I can really survive this damned life. My only strength is to gather as much influence as possible from the people of Asher. The support of the people, the honor the nobles gave, and the recognition as queen of Asher from all walks of life.

For the error of a drop of ink in the sea that I do will drown out thousands of good things that pass.

I glanced at Sir Derick's iris cream which looked so pitiful. Slowly, tears trickled down from there, as if holding her behind the petals was already unable to do.

"I'm sorry, Princess." Sir Derick knelt in front of me. His shoulders shook violently, his sobbing sounded loud, but he forced himself to speak even though the words expressed became vague, "I'm sorry. I'm very presumptuous, Princess. I'm just the Princess knight, I don't have the power to interfere in the Princess's life."

I looked at Sir Derick's shaky shoulders with a strange feeling in his chest, but I decided to pass through his body and get out of the room.

I bit my lips along with the footsteps I took in the big hallway of the palace.

I snapped. I was not intentionally. I feel guilty now.

Even since I haven't become Serethy, I always yell at others harshly if they upset me or don't understand my situation. Therefore, I chose silence and ignored everything so that I would not blow my emotions in front of them and make them hate me.

But I blew everything up on Sir Derick. I'm sorry to you Sir Derick, but I will win myself first before meeting you and apologizing sincerely.

...***...

Sir Derick felt a little worried when Serethy asked him to stand guard behind the door because of the lingering feeling in his heart. However, Sir Derick tried to ignore the unpleasant feeling in the chest. The tattoo behind his heart was a little hot. It was a tattoo when the Knight's Oath was formed, a sign that Sir Derick would protect Serethy even at the cost of his life.

And sure enough what his heart said, his heart seemed to be squeezed so strongly that Sir Derick had trouble breathing. This is a sign that the protected lady is in a condition that endangers her life.

Without a second thought, Sir Derick immediately broke down the door without caring about his breath that felt tight. And how glorious he was to see Kallistar grab the hair of Serethy and Etrill who strangled Serethy.

Sir Derick's common sense seemed to disappear and what he thought was saving Serethy.

"Affect, influence, influence! Princess Sir! Fuck that influence! Why don't you think about yourself?! They intend to kill you and who cares about your influence being the Queen?!"

Until unknowingly, Sir Derick yelled at the girl he loved. Sir Derick even flinched when he heard his rising voice, or when he saw the startled look on the bead violet Serethy.

Sir Derick didn't mean to yell at the girl he loved. Only, Sir Derick was quite fed up with the influence that Serethy was trying to get by desperately.

First, meet Arcelio and slash a knife into his arm. Sir Derick wanted to shout furiously at the sight of the blood pouring down, but refrained because the condition for Serethy to follow him was to stand behind him and shut up, without intervening.

Later, where Serethy painstakingly calms Cioten's curse, Sir Derick also knows that calming the curse is tormenting him.

Then, Serethy would do anything to draw influence behind his back like healing thousands of Asher people with his holy power. It was as if gaining influence from the entire people of this country was an obligation for him, without even thinking about the risks to his own body.

Serethy is exhausted, Sir Derick can tell. Healing the thousands of Asher people was not an easy matter even though the sacred power of Serethy was very strong. If he could, Sir Derick would have opposed this decision and made Serethy aware that he would not have had to sacrifice much for the Asher Kingdom.

Sir Derick was sick of seeing the girl he loved whack a wound hidden under the surface of his skin wily.

Sir Derick was also broken when Serethy was crushed.

And how Sir Derick couldn't stop his stuffing when Serethy left the room. Perih, the pain in his chest is indisputable.

"Sorry, Princess," muttered Sir Derick. "I'm sorry, Serethy."

...***...

I hope you guys don't see Serethy that she's naive here. No (in the view of the author), it is because the influence in the era of the kingdom is very important. According to the knowledge I have from reading and watching, even a queen who has influence can be beheaded if the king does not like it. Especially the queen who doesn't even have any influence? Worse yet. And also, in Asher, there have been centuries of crowned queens no one is sane. Therefore, Serethy was too paranoid and too anxious for influence.

But that is the opinion of the author, you can argue as you please, free. I don't want you guys to misunderstand me, okay?

If so, may your day continue to be fun yes <3!