How does that old saying go? Reality is stranger than fiction.
The events were quite straightforward. The two principal figures involved in the investigation report were Viscount Josk and Miss Elisa. The matter concerned the reputation and privacy of two well-known members of the
Eight years ago, the Norton Family armed forces went to war with the Fisaburen Family. Duke Fisaburen, that old and cunning fox, executed a golden cicada shedding its shell—transferring his forces from the Southern Province to the Pastoral Province, where he allied with the barbarian tribes of the grasslands and set an ambush that dealt a crushing blow to the newly formed Hunting Rider Corps. The Second and Third Regiments were almost completely annihilated. The Third Regiment commander, Piet, died on the battlefield, and the Second Regiment commander,
This was the first major defeat suffered by the Norton Family armed forces, with over thirty thousand officers and soldiers killed or wounded. Both the corps commander and deputy corps commander were sent to the Women's Camp for treatment due to their severe injuries. At that time, Miss Elisa had just passed her application to join the camp and had become a new recruit. Her very first assignment was to tend to the gravishly wounded and unconscious Corps Commander Josk.
In terms of their relationship, Miss Elisa knew Josk. This handsome young knight had always followed coolly by her dear Uncle Locke's side during the march north, rarely speaking, a cold and quiet man. She might even have called Josk "uncle," as he was her father's colleague—of the same generation. But the two merely knew each other; they had barely exchanged a few words, the most casual of acquaintances.
Among the gossiping female soldiers of the Women's Camp, Josk was considered the most handsome and best-looking knight among the Norton Family's knights. His story of swearing to remain unmarried for the rest of his life in memory of his deceased beloved had moved countless love-struck female soldiers, making Josk the most coveted heartthrob in the camp. When Josk was gravely wounded this time, it had nearly broken the hearts of the entire Women's Camp—they wished they could take his place.
At that time, Miss Elisa was only twenty years old, while Josk was already thirty-six, at the very peak of his appeal. Perhaps infatuation was contagious. During their days and nights together, Miss Elisa inevitably fell in love—smitten with this melancholy, handsome older man—and declared that she would marry no one but Josk in this lifetime.
For Josk, this was just another lovesick fantasy from a young girl. He knew Elisa's father, Bodfinga, and their relationship was rather cordial; he saw no reason to cause friction between them. Besides, he had seen plenty of lovesick girls like Elisa, and under his cold demeanor and polite regard, they all eventually left with broken hearts. Josk had long resigned himself to a life of solitude.
But Miss Elisa was not so easily dismissed. Her creed was that action beat daydreaming. Using the convenience of her duties, she stayed by Josk's side at every moment, utterly indifferent to his attitude. Even spending an entire afternoon resting her chin on her hand and gazing foolishly at Josk was, to her, a kind of happiness.
The end result was that Josk was defeated. Determined to avoid Elisa, he insisted on returning to the Hunting Corps to recover, and eventually got his wish. Although staying in the Corps meant Elisa would still visit periodically with an apothecary to check on his health, this was still far better than being stared at by that infatuated girl for an entire day.
Don't think Josk could avoid Miss Elisa just by returning to the Hunting Corps. Besides bringing the apothecary to check on Josk's recovery, Elisa could always invent various reasons and excuses to appear before him. For instance, the Female Camp's cultural performances at the Hunting Corps were more frequent than at any other legion, and Elisa always led the team. She also remembered Josk's birthday, the day he was knighted into the Norton Family, and the anniversaries of his titles, like being made a Baron. On top of that, she constantly wrote him letters, pouring out details about her life in the Female Camp, arguments with her father, and other trivial matters...
This back-and-forth entanglement continued for eight years. Even when Josk went to the Mana Hill Plains for battle, he still received letters from Miss Elisa. But Elisa was now twenty-eight, and she faced the same troubles as many women her age—being pressured by her family to marry. Not only did Bodfinga push her, but so did her brother, Schwad, and even Miss Threst, whom she deeply admired.
The problem wasn't that Elisa didn't want to marry; it was that the man she wanted to marry was a complete block of wood. Josk was actually in a difficult position too. A man is not a plant or tree—how could he be without feeling? Eight years of forced association with Elisa left him unsure how to handle these emotions. All he could do was play the coward, delaying as long as possible. Perhaps he believed that Elisa would eventually leave on her own, given their nearly generational age gap.
So Miss Elisa took a breathtakingly audacious action. She used the opportunity of the Female Camp performing a celebratory show after the Hunting Corps' triumphant return to have her female soldiers surround and toast the Corps' high-ranking officers, getting most of the legion and battalion commanders drunk—Josk included. Then, Elisa secretly administered a certain... stimulant potion to Josk. In the private tent of Battalion Commander Josk, she overpowered him and had her way...
The current situation was that Miss Elisa had successfully taken up residence in Viscount Josk's territory, claiming to be his legitimate wife. Josk, however, was now hiding like a stray dog, too afraid to return to his own domain to face the formidable Miss Elisa. He was currently wandering around the family's territories, freeloaders...
Lorist had just taken a sip of tea to calm his nerves when he saw the intelligence report detailing Josk's current whereabouts, causing him to spray a mouthful of tea and nearly choke to death. This was too ridiculous! Josk, of all people, was too scared to return to the family's domain to face Elisa. Was it guilty conscience, or was he too ashamed after their encounter to face her, choosing avoidance instead? Elisa, on the other hand, showed no such hesitation. She brazenly installed herself as Josk's Lady, occupying the Viscount's territory and making it impossible for him to return home.
Now Lorist understood why Josk had applied to lead the Hunting Corps to hunt in the Barbarian Plains—he wanted to keep as far away from Elisa as possible. Elisa, however, had dispatched search parties everywhere to find him, intending to force him back to his territory for a proper wedding, and she made sure this news spread throughout the family's domain. It was quite the farce, and no wonder Bodfinga had suddenly appeared and rambled on so incoherently.
At that moment, Lorist felt a sudden sympathy for Bodfinga. On one side was his disobedient daughter, on the other was his colleague. He was stuck in the middle, in the most uncomfortable and awkward position. Josk was Lorist's trusted confidant and favorite general; although his status within the family's armed forces was a step below Lorist's, he was still on a comparable level. In the blink of an eye, he'd become Bodfinga's son-in-law. Even though Elisa had initiated it, this whole affair was a huge embarrassment for Bodfinga.
Especially now, with these two—one chasing, one fleeing—stirring up considerable scandal and giving everyone plenty to laugh about. They might find it amusing, but Bodfinga felt the family's honor was completely ruined. Now he just wanted this matter to die down quickly, to stop developing further. Even if Elisa insisted on marrying Josk, he would reluctantly accept. But Josk refused to cooperate, preferring to wander the family's domain instead of returning to his territory. It was as if he'd taken everything and then reneged on the deal, ultimately forcing Bodfinga to seek Lorist's help to end this farce as soon as possible.
"Genorio, go find Reddy and have him convince Josk to return to his territory and marry Elisa. If Josk refuses, bring him to me." Lorist summoned Genorio and issued his instructions.
Josk was currently hiding in Reddy's estate. He didn't have many close friends among the family's armed forces. Originally he'd been hiding on the estate of Yuri, the Third Battalion Commander of the Hunting Corps, but Elisa had found out and led a squad to turn Yuri's estate completely upside down. Josk had no choice but to flee to Reddy's estate for cover.
These were eight estates that Lorist had previously confiscated from Northland nobles. He had given one each to Princess Sylvivia and his four concubines. Of the remaining three, one went to his cousin Krysia, and another was bestowed upon his eldest disciple Reddy as a reward for his promotion to Great Swordmaster. These weren't the same estates given to the family's Gold Knights, so they were relatively discreet and not widely known. Josk and Reddy were on decent terms, and he had already been hiding here for two days.
Actually, the solution was simple—just escort Josk back and force him to marry Elisa. As for Josk's little vow of eternal bachelorhood, Lorist had no intention of taking it seriously. Living out the rest of one's life in solitude was just something people did when they had nothing better to do. He'd already slept with the girl, so trying to run away now was out of the question. Whether Elisa had forced herself on him or the other way around, the one who enjoyed it was him, and as a man he needed to step up and take responsibility.
Lorist knew his trusted general's personality all too well. What Josk needed right now was a ladder to climb down gracefully. As his lord, Lorist was more than happy to provide one—in fact, he'd already taken it upon himself to act as Elisa's elder. The fact that Josk had effectively been knocked down a generation didn't bother Lorist one bit. If an old cow wants to nibble on fresh grass, he'd better be prepared for the consequences.
He thought of his neighbor from his previous life, old Li, whose precious daughter had graduated from university and landed a job at a foreign trade company. Before long she'd become the company boss's mistress. After three years of tireless effort, she finally succeeded in getting the boss to kick his plain, aging wife to the curb and elevate old Li's daughter to the position of wife. Every holiday, that half-bald company boss would show up at old Li's house and call him "Dad"—despite old Li being five years younger than him. The scene was endlessly comical. It was quite an inspiring real-life story: the poor, hardworking old Li had raised a daughter who made something of herself, propelling him onto the road to prosperity.
If that half-bald company boss could call a man five years his junior "Dad," then Lorist was confident that Josk, after marrying Elisa, could get past his hang-ups and call Bodfinga "Father-in-law" or call Lorist "Uncle." So what if he was a generation younger? Marrying a beautiful wife was the greatest prize of all.
True to Lorist's expectations, Josk was brought over by Reddy. Convincing Josk to return to his territory and marry Elisa was beyond Reddy's ability—all he could do was drag Josk before Lorist to deliver him. Clearly, Josk still couldn't get past his mental block. Lorist poured his heart out trying to persuade him, but Josk simply sat there in stony silence, uttering not a single word.
Lorist was furious. *I refuse to believe I can't break you.* He then deployed his ultimate persuasion technique and ordered Princess Sylvivia and his four concubines to be summoned to help talk Josk around. Generally speaking, women who had borne children would awaken a particular feminine talent: the irresistible urge to play matchmaker and bring two people together. Getting two strangers to become husband and wife gave a woman a special sense of accomplishment. And this was Josk and Elisa—a pair who had been entangled for eight years, had developed genuine feelings for each other, and had already been intimate...
Under the relentless barrage of criticism and non-stop chatter, Josk found himself truly unable to deny that he had been ungrateful, that he had failed to honor a beautiful woman's affection, that he shouldn't be so heartless and fickle... Running away couldn't solve anything... Lost love seemed beautiful only because it existed solely in your memory... One had to look forward, to cherish everything one had rather than feel regret only after losing it... What if Elisa was already pregnant? He couldn't let his own child grow up without a father's love... On and on they went...
Josk was soon cleansed by the spiritual chicken soup to the point of feeling refreshed and invigorated. He decided to return to his viscount's territory and marry Elisa, to live a proper life. Since a sincere love had been placed before him, he would hold on to it tightly rather than obsess over issues of seniority or being the one who got seduced. Besides, the fact that Elisa had gathered the courage to seduce him only proved she truly loved him. Josk decided he had to be a real knight and shoulder the responsibilities he ought to bear...
Something about all that spiritual chicken soup felt like it had gone slightly sour from overuse, but since Josk had been duped into resolving to go back and marry Elisa, Lorist was naturally overjoyed. The longer things dragged on, the more dreams could go wrong — better strike while the iron was hot. Lorist immediately announced that he would personally preside over Josk and Elisa's wedding, dispatching capable hands to organize a grand ceremony without delay, and kept Josk by his side to prevent him from coming to his senses and slipping away again.
Fortunately, it seemed Josk had genuinely seen the light and had no second thoughts. After about ten days of frantic preparation, the wedding was pulled together in a hurried but complete fashion. When Josk and Elisa embraced tightly and kissed before the assembled guests, Lorist finally let out a breath of relief amid the crowd's applause. This matter was settled.
The entire month of May had been consumed by this affair, but Lorist felt genuinely gratified that Josk and Elisa had gotten their happy ending. Yet after only a few days of leisure, trouble came knocking again — and this time it put Lorist in a bind. As a lord, Lorist was deeply reluctant to see any unexpected upheaval within his family's territories, but sometimes there was nothing he could do. This time, it was envoys sent by the temples in
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