The Protagonists of the Novel Escaped

How on earth does Ludmila know the material of the wedding ring?

Father just left it with me for a moment…

Could it be that she thinks I prepared a wedding ring to propose?

Ludmila, now a manifestation of jealousy, showed an expression full of anticipation. Edanant went through thousands of thoughts in an instant, calculating what Ludmila wanted.

Hmm.

So, it really is about the wedding ring.

While she was eagerly waiting for the proposal, a misunderstanding about running away with Zebeline caused this mess.

What a dramatic turn of events.

Misunderstandings piling up, leading to a catastrophe.

Edanant looked stiff, holding the ring box.

Ludmila’s obsession and desire for the wedding ring were displayed so blatantly. If he didn’t offer the wedding ring along with his confession, it felt like he’d be killed by the Red Dragon as he boasted.

“…Lud, Ludmila.”

Clears throat.

He stepped forward.

At that moment, Ludmila reflexively took off her gloves and subtly extended her left hand.

It was a gesture asking to put on the wedding ring. A rosy flush stained the face of the white-haired witch, filled with hatred and jealousy.

“What I mean is, you might not believe me now, but… I’m sorry for always being slow to act. I should have given Ludmila the wedding ring earlier.”

“……”

“I swear on the sanctity of the Earth Mother, you are the first person I’ve fallen in love with. It’s my first time experiencing love, that’s why I’ve only shown clumsy and frustrating sides.”

“……”

The ruins lay scattered like they had been flipped by a bombardment.

Smoke clouded his vision.

Flames roared, spewing out intense heat.

It was the worst place, hardly holding any trace of a romantic atmosphere. Nevertheless, Ludmila slowly approached, paying attention to Edanant’s confession and listened intently.

“Ludmila. I’m truly sorry.”

“…A, as long as you understand.”

Her anger gradually subsided.

The Tyrant’s flames, which had been devouring everything around, began to weaken.

The flames would soon die out.

The flame, having lost its power, was inevitably going to extinguish.

-Lie! That’s just a cunning scheme to evade the immediate crisis!

Kill him.

Kill him now.

Feeling the rising alarm in Ludmila’s reason, the Tyrant shouted in an agitated voice.

Anger surged.

Fostering distrust while urging killing intent.

To Ludmila, Edanant is both a romantic interest and an object of hatred. Therefore, the Red Dragon, seeking complete resurrection, aimed to have Ludmila kill Edanant, her greatest obstacle.

“Am I really your first love? I thought you were an experienced man with women, considering how skilled you’ve been?”

“As I just said, I swear on the sanctity of the Earth Mother, it’s the truth. Ludmila is the first person I’ve ever liked this much.”

If it were the usual Ludmila, she wouldn’t have been deceived by such a lie as “I swear on the Earth Mother’s sanctity.”

However, the current Ludmila was in an unstable state, influenced by the Tyrant’s divine status.

She lacked the reason to discern the truth.

So, like a country girl, she had no choice but to get swept away by Edanant’s adept confession.

-Ugh! This isn’t working at all… What kind of mental state is this!

Ludmila’s mental strength was strong enough to withstand even the Tyrant’s encroachment. If it weren’t for the numerous misunderstandings triggered by Edanant, the Tyrant’s disaster wouldn’t have been able to seize her reason.

Though it encouraged killing intent, it ultimately failed.

Despite igniting rage and hatred, it rebounded.

Unfortunately, Ludmila was among the strongest heirs of the Red Dragon. Thus, a reversal was born, being helplessly suppressed by the disaster containing divine status.

“I love you, Ludmila.”

“Ugh…!”

As Edanant stepped forward, narrowing the distance, he finally reached right by Ludmila.

He took the wedding ring out from the ring box.

Faced with the brilliantly shining wedding ring, Ludmila unconsciously swallowed hard.

Finally.

At last, this moment—.

The ring, carved from pure silver, slid onto her slender and soft little finger. It was the moment she finally became Edanant’s true fiancée.

“Shut up with your nonsense!”

Just as the overflowing emotions and exhilaration began to push back the Tyrant’s disaster,

a sharp shout from a girl rang out.

It was Zebeline.

The girl, dressed in pure white vestments, burst in with an agitated reaction.

“How dare you… take the wedding ring by force? Are you still the protector of the Valtarian Empire after doing this!”

“Anyone hearing this might misunderstand. It’s a legitimate prize, after all.”

The Saintess condemned the one-sided violence in front of her.

The Princess argued that the wedding ring was “a legitimate prize.”

Her heart felt incredibly petty.

The White Dragon and the Red Dragon clashed again over the wedding ring.

Catfight.

No,

The main character, caught up in a dragonfight, froze while handing over the wedding ring.

Having regained her reason with great difficulty, Ludmila unleashed a dark divine status once more. Simultaneously, Zebeline’s blue eyes, glaring at her rival, glowed ominously.

This is dangerous.

If left as is, an irreversible situation would unfold.

Having experienced the fights between Ludmila and Zebeline multiple times, Edanant’s instincts were screaming of extreme danger. He reached out with both hands to intervene in the “clash of disasters.”

“I’ll give you the wedding ring later… Just bear with it for now. I’ll truly grant any request you have.”

“……”

He appealed with a desperate voice.

At that, shock washed over Zebeline’s fierce expression.

“Really? You’ll grant any request… That’s a promise, right?”

“Swear on the sanctity of the Earth Mother.”

“Don’t think you can brush it off with such nonsense. You don’t even believe in the Earth Mother.”

“…Fine. I swear on the name of the Hohenberc Family.”

Unlike the naïve Ludmila, Zebeline was sharp and quick-witted. No one understood Edanant better than she did.

She was indeed the heroine who had waited eagerly for three years.

Such trivial flattery wouldn’t work on her.

Faced with Zebeline’s sharp response, Edanant sighed as if declaring surrender.

“Anything the First Saintess desires will be granted? What does that even mean?”

“Ludmila has already received the wedding ring. Please show some mercy just once.”

At Edanant’s plea for leniency, Ludmila narrowed her eyes, showing displeasure. However, when she confirmed the engagement proof adorning her left ring finger, she momentarily stepped back.

She received the much-wanted wedding ring.

And also got an emotional proposal from Edanant.

Now, the First Saintess was merely a hindrance, no longer a rival. Soon, she would be having a wedding with Edanant in the spring.

Confident in her victory through the prize (wedding ring) and the declaration of surrender (proposal), Ludmila gazed at Zebeline with a faint smirk. Zebeline gritted her teeth in response.

“Now, let’s return to the Imperial City.”

Edanant reached out his hands and grasped the hands of the battling Ludmila and Zebeline.

“Elizaveta must be worried.”

“…That’s probably true.”

They had flown at full speed to the Marquisate of Hohenberg without a word. Ludmila lowered her head, recalling her younger sister, who must be worrying because of her reckless rampage.

She felt like she was being used for something.

Did she really lose her reason in an instant?

If it had been her usual self, she would have maintained at least a modicum of reason even after hearing that Edanant ran away with the First Saintess. But for some reason, after the unusual events at the Alliance Conference’s banquet, her impulsive nature made it hard to suppress her momentary rage.

The monstrous figure reflected in the mirror.

It must be related to that.

‘Could the Red Dragon, the protector of the Valtarian Empire, be the disaster of tyranny? If so…’

Edanant, looking at Ludmila with concern, then turned to Zebeline.

The Red Dragon was the disaster of tyranny.

That must mean the White Dragon of the Holy Kingdom is also connected to the disaster of innocence.

Zebeline, reading the hidden meaning in his gaze, nodded with a bitter smile. It seemed she had realized the underlying truth after witnessing Ludmila’s rage unfold before her.

‘The White Dragon of the Gael Holy Kingdom is likely the disaster of famine.’

The disasters of tyranny and famine, conjured by the Earth Mother Gael, had been revealed as the Red Dragon of the Empire and the White Dragon of the Holy Kingdom.

Was it mere coincidence?

No,

It couldn’t possibly be.

The fate initiated by meeting Zebeline and Ludmila was never some trivial coincidence.

-Disasters are bound to attract each other. They’ll meet soon enough, or perhaps they have already met.

He recalled the divine oracle given by the disaster of war that descended upon the cursed land of conflict.

Perhaps they had already met.

Just as the disaster of war goddess had foretold.

He met Zebeline on the battlefield of the Third Racial War, the starting point of a grand narrative. Then, he encountered Ludmila after the Saintess Party’s escape, marking the beginning of yet another grand narrative.

‘But back then, Zebeline wasn’t a saint blessed by the White Dragon… Could it be that she was destined to be selected as a saint in the future, orchestrating our meeting?’

What good would pondering this produce now?

Speculation was merely speculation.

Edanant wore an awkward smile as he looked at Ludmila and Zebeline.

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