Chapter 1450. Continental War (30) [Illustration]

‘I had a feeling this would happen.’

Honestly, I expected a situation like this. Lady Brush wouldn’t have asked Palette alone for help. The fact that the scattered young ladies had been maintaining a connection with Brush was something even that idiot Holy Sword Hero, Sung Ji-Hoon, was aware of.

Some of them were close enough to support the Black Rose Salon’s activities or watch each other’s backs, so it wasn’t strange that Palette was the first to appear here.

Even if Brush hadn’t contacted everyone herself, they were probably already in communication with each other.

‘They weren’t really casual best friends.’

Whether they’d been keeping in touch all along or not, I was certain that a communication channel linking them remained alive.

I didn’t know by what means, but it existed.

Brush had simply thrown a stone into a calm lake, and the ripples had spread everywhere.

Sure enough, among the new Black Rose Salon members, I saw faces I’d never seen before. The scattered young ladies had decided to come to us. Some of them were alone, while some led their own forces.

‘Isn’t... that Lady Rusvilla?’

Unlike the Union forces that were relatively close, the new Black Rose Salon members were positioned far away, and my curiosity about how they made it here was finally answered. As the eldest daughter of a prestigious magical family supporting the Union of Kingdoms, she seemed to have spent her time at the Magic Tower.

She lifted her staff, and the troops of the new Black Rose Salon became transparent.

‘A large-scale invisibility spell.’

It wasn't as potent as the cloaking used by assassins, but there was no denying the magnitude of what she had accomplished.

‘She must’ve maintained the invisibility spell the entire way here.’

She had grown in ways that were impossible to compare with before. Not just in raw magical power, but in the depth of her knowledge as well. Her constant talk about wanting to see the limits of magic hadn’t been empty boasting, it seemed.

Of course, thinking of our Ha-Yan, I couldn’t help but reflect on how foolish and absurd it sounded when she claimed she wanted to see the limits of magic, but considering how much she’d accomplished over these past four years, it no longer felt like mere bragging.

If Jung Ha-Yan ever faced Lady Rusvilla herself, she’d probably evaluate her as a competent mage.

‘Even just that level of recognition from Ha-Yan would make her an A‑rank mage in my book.’

She had grown into an accomplished mage.

“...”

“...”

‘These days, kids really can change this much in just four years.’

And then there was another familiar figure on the Union side...

‘Lady Hamgardia.’

She had been the most promising front-line debutante besides Pastel. The once dreamy girl, who said she had grown up and wouldn’t do sword duels anymore, had somehow abandoned the decorative sword she always carried and was now swinging a massive greatsword that looked bigger than herself.

Every swing of her greatsword sent two soldiers flying away, and I couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of the sight. Of course, I’d expected her to have grown stronger, but I never imagined she’d switch into a powerhouse fighter.

‘Pastel said she was a half cripple under Paint...’

I wasn’t sure if she had healed or if Pastel was just wrong, but she looked a lot more intact than I had expected, especially compared to the one fighting right beside her.

‘Lady Rainelpia.’

She used to be the kid who couldn’t do anything but scream and charge blindly while crying over her severe facial burns, but she had clearly grown into someone with influence. I remembered worrying about her scars, but now... she was covered in them from head to toe.

“

Ah

... I think it’s going to leave a scar... It’ll be fine, right?!

Aah!

”

“You already have plenty of scars.”

“Isn’t it a bit harsh to say that to a lady?!

Ah

, I’m sure it’s going to hurt!”

‘The same line again. But I actually expected it when she recklessly thrust her face into those flames back then.’

She wasn’t lacking guts at all, and she was the perfect tank material. I noticed her swinging a massive flail while carrying a huge round shield. Normally, someone like her would die somewhere due to bad luck, so I honestly didn’t expect to see her again.

‘She made it somehow.’

Of course, I didn’t see all the young ladies. Perhaps they hadn’t received the message, or perhaps they had gone down paths from which they couldn’t return.

Of the faces I remembered from before, I didn’t see half of them.

‘It’s a war zone. That’s to be expected.’

Considering the constant wars over the past four years, even this many ladies still being alive was already a miracle in itself. Countless deaths I didn’t know about had surely happened, and they were carrying scars I couldn’t even imagine.

Those scars were probably why they had to stay scattered. To survive the deep grief without drowning in it, they had to have decided to do that for themselves. Seeing them reunite hit hard. Perhaps they hadn’t come just to help us. I felt like they had come here to heal the wounds they themselves carried. Their expressions made that clear to me.

“Long time no see! Hamgardia!” Rusvilla greeted.

“Lady Rusvilla?” Hamgardia said.

“I’m not really a lady anymore. How have you been?” she asked.

“I heard you entered the Magic Tower, Rusvilla...” she said.

“I just got frustrated, that’s all. I heard you got seriously injured, but you look fine. That’s a relief. Rainelpia seems to have taken more damage,” Rusvilla said.

“Rainelpia’s always reckless. It’s a constant worry when we’re together,” she complained.

“Anyway, once all this is over, I’ll specially invite you to my tea party,” she offered.

“

Hahaha

. It’s been a while. A tea party, huh?” Hamgardia laughed.

“It’s not like there’s been much of a chance for that,” she commented.

“Count me in too, Rusvilla!”

“Of course. You’re definitely invited.”

‘How did kids who love playing like this manage to go all this time without a tea party?’

The brief conversations weren’t just between them. Sure enough, there were more young ladies. They pushed back the enemy troops, and then they took the chance to catch up after a long while.

“

Ahhhh!

Long time no see! You’ve gotten so pretty!”

“Tarya! How did you manage to stay so healthy even on the battlefield?”

“Both of you, save the empty compliments for after the battle!”

I saw others making a fuss, while others were speaking calmly about the other ladies:

“I got contacted by Palette.”

“Really? I thought she’d joined the Republic.”

“She did become a citizen of the Republic. We’ve met on battlefields as opponents, but she helped me a lot. If it weren’t for Palette, I’d be dead already.”

Then, I heard shocking news.

“What!? You got married!?”

“If my husband were to learn that I'm here doing all this, he’d faint.”

“So who’s the lucky guy?! A duke? A count? A baron?”

“A simple farmer, and we already have a child.”

“What!? You said you’d never even look at anyone below a baron... and now a child? How?”

“Well... he’s good-looking, I guess?”

Even in the chaos of war, they were chattering, checking on each other, sharing news, and somehow, it felt like it gave them strength.

Those who had left were replaced by new faces. Many ladies were lost, but just as many new ones had appeared. I hadn’t seen most of them before. There was no sense of imbalance at all among the four hundred or so ladies from the new Black Rose Salon, those inspired by them, and their large forces.

It felt like it was just yesterday when they were struggling together to build those walls to push those monsters back. Now, they were moving in perfect coordination. Watching them execute what could only be called 'brilliant teamwork" made my jaw drop.

Of course, Sung Ji-Hoon looked equally stunned.

‘Right. From his perspective, this must be completely shocking.’

The sudden way Palette’s smoke enveloped the troops was already absurd enough, but as more allies popped up from everywhere to help, he probably felt like he was the main character in some action movie.

Allies always showed up at the perfect time for the protagonist. It was almost an unwritten rule. The other soldiers’ expressions weren’t much different from the Holy Sword Hero’s face.

“W-what... what is this? Where did these people come from... Why are they helping us?” Sung Ji-Hoon asked.

‘What do you think, damn it?’

“Jin Yoo... Jin Yoo!

Huh

?”

‘Instead of asking me that, go swing your sword already. Seriously, the healthiest one is just standing here gaping.’

A reply came from the right side. “They’re my friends.”

“...”

“...”

“M-Miss Brush?”

“It looks like we arrived just in time,” Brush said.

“...”

Brush’s gaze, passing over the still-dumbfounded Holy Sword Hero, landed on Palette.

‘This must feel nostalgic.’

Palette, still controlling the smoke to aid in the battle, kept her eyes on Brush as well. She looked almost at a loss for words. Perhaps it was because it had been so long since they last saw each other, but when Palette opened her arms slightly, Brush ran straight into her embrace.

“...”

“...”

The way they held each other tight was really touching.

“Thank you, Palette,” Brush said.

“My pleasure,” Palette responded.

They didn’t exchange many words, yet it felt like a long conversation had passed between them.

“What about Pastel...?” Brush asked.

‘Yeah, she’s not here.’

“She’s staying by Peneloti. She didn't want to leave Peneloti alone while everyone is together...” Palette answered.

“...”

“...”

‘Right, she didn’t come here.’

Palette’s expression turned slightly bitter at that, but the one who seemed most disappointed was another person—someone overseeing and commanding the battlefield.

I heard the sound of hooves in the distance. When I looked up, I saw a figure in a sleek helmet. She carefully removed her helmet, revealing a face I hadn't seen in a long time.

“Paint!”

‘S-she... doesn’t look too good.’

“It’s been a while, Brush and Palette,” Paint greeted.

She almost looked like a skeleton.