Chapter 5: The Elder’s Gambit

The silver-haired girl, Chloe Raina, regarded the two of them with an air of profound seriousness.

Xina lifted her head, her gaze vacant as she looked at Chloe. Her bloodshot eyes, wild with a frenzied intensity, seemed to belong to someone who had just escaped the clutches of death.

“This is bad!” Norria’s heart sank. Lady Xina had just endured a traumatic ordeal, and now an unknown person was attempting to seize her territory. This could only exacerbate her already fragile mental state.

Chloe, looking utterly unperturbed, sat primly in the carriage, as if she had always belonged there. “Are you heading to the Royal Capital? Would you mind giving me a ride?”

“How could that be possible…”

Beads of sweat, as large as grains of rice, trickled down Norria’s face. The Holy Church’s influence within the Principality was at its zenith, and the Pope of the Holy Church was a particularly favored confidant of the Prince.

If the letter Chloe held were genuine, the Prince would undoubtedly bestow the Aphros Territory upon her without hesitation. After all, the original lord of this land had already been deposed.

Taking her to the Royal Capital would inevitably ignite a fierce succession dispute. And when that happened, would the Prince truly side with Xina?

Norria glanced at Xina, the young woman barely eighteen, who appeared utterly vulnerable. Moreover, if rumors spread that Xina had inherited Lord Norlin’s madness, no liegeman would ever rally behind her rule.

Chloe had clearly grasped this fact. If she were to use it as leverage when reporting to the Prince, Xina’s chances of victory would be virtually nonexistent.

‘Then… the only option is to eliminate Chloe here and now, and report it as an accidental killing by bandits,’ Norria resolved, his mind made up.

Chloe, seemingly oblivious to any danger, merely propped her chin in her hand, her gaze fixed intently on the two of them.

Under the scrutiny of those innocent eyes, Norria felt a growing unease, his murderous intent wavering erratically within him.

Norria’s eyes darted to the letter’s signature, where the emblem of the Holy Church was prominently stamped. There was no possibility of this letter being a forgery.

‘It’s strange, why would the Pope of the Holy Church recommend such a young girl to be the lord of Aphros Territory?’

The Aphros Territory was neither large nor small within the Principality, yet it bordered the Eledis Empire, a rival principality. It was, in essence, a hot potato. The family name Raina was unheard of, suggesting they might be newly established nobility.

Norria secretly gripped his sword, preparing to deliver a fatal blow to Chloe.

‘Forgive me, young girl, but if Lady Xina loses her position, my own situation will become dire!’ Norria thought.

Just as he was about to draw his sword, he suddenly noticed the robe Chloe was wearing—it wasn’t an ordinary robe, but the crimson and gold robes that signified a member of the Senate!

The mere mention of the Senate’s name sent shivers down Norria’s spine. History books recorded that they upheld the world’s order, and even after the collapse of the ancient empire, the Elders of the Senate continued to exercise their central authority.

Militarily, they even commanded multiple forbidden magics. Immortality and death curses were merely the entry-level spells; beyond them lay world-ending magic capable of summoning the ‘Calamity Starfall.’

For this very reason, from kings to commoners, no one dared challenge the Senate’s authority. And the indestructible crimson and gold robes were the distinctive attire of the Elders.

Lost in his thoughts, Norria failed to notice that his sword had already been drawn from its sheath.

Chloe, meanwhile, was curiously observing the unsheathed blade.

‘I’m finished!’ Norria screamed inwardly.

The Senate might very well be observing Norria’s every move. If he were to kill an Elder, what awaited him would be far more severe than mere dismissal; even death might be considered a mercy.

A sudden inspiration struck Norria. He immediately knelt, one hand supporting the blade, the other the hilt, and bowing his head, he declared, “Elder, your humble servant hereby offers you my sword for your personal defense.”

‘This sword was forged by the finest blacksmith in the village. While its quality certainly won’t impress an Elder, it should at least buy me some time,’ he mused.

“Thank you,” Chloe said, taking the sword. She gave it a tentative swing, inadvertently leaving a scratch on the carriage. “My apologies, this is my first time holding a sword.”

“It’s nothing. I can teach you myself, step by step.”

Norria stood up, his legs feeling like jelly.

‘That guy definitely wanted to seize the opportunity to kill me, didn’t he?’ Xia Ni—no, Chloe—thought to herself.

It was only natural, though. In games, encountering someone with a superior claim to inheritance usually led to immediate, unscrupulous assassination plots.

‘But he seems intimidated by the Senate’s influence, afraid to act against me,’ Chloe mused, her eyes narrowing into slits.

‘It appears I won’t be able to glean any information about the Senate through conversation with them. After all, if I, an Elder, knew nothing about my own colleagues, I’d easily be exposed.’

Disregarding the scheming guard for now, Chloe returned her dagger to its sheath and turned her attention to Xina, who had been staring intently at her this entire time.

‘She seems to be the legitimate heir, but legitimacy means nothing to a “player” like me,’ Chloe smiled faintly to herself. ‘In these chaotic times, do kings, nobles, generals, and ministers truly have a lineage to speak of?’

‘The Aphros Territory will be mine, no matter what!’

****

Clearing the battlefield proved time-consuming, and both sides spent a considerable amount of time burying their fallen comrades.

Xina ultimately accepted Norria’s advice, ordering a pardon for the bandits who had attacked them, but swore to pursue those who had harmed the guards to the fullest extent.

These matters occupied them from noon until dusk. Chloe remained in the carriage, a silent observer, until everything concluded. She yawned, watching Xina and Norria approach, chatting and laughing amiably.

Xina appeared to be a completely different person than before. She had suddenly become eloquent and persuasive, first announcing to the surviving soldiers that they would be handsomely rewarded upon her regaining the territory, then expressing her unwavering loyalty to the King’s personal guard.

Her sweet smile and practiced social graces made it difficult for Chloe to reconcile this version of Xina with the highly aggressive girl she had encountered earlier.

“Is this person mentally ill?” Chloe sighed, having already endured enough “mentally ill people” back home. She never expected to encounter another in this alternate world.

“Hello!”

Xina approached the carriage, waving to Chloe. Full of vitality, she declared, “You must be our traveling companion! Norria told me all about it. We’ll need to look out for each other on this journey!”

Chloe replied weakly. Come to think of it, she hadn’t eaten in quite a while. ‘I should have taken the opportunity to drink some blood from the corpses earlier—no, that’s disgusting.’

Xina clenched her fists, raising them as if to cheer herself on. “I will absolutely not lose to little Chloe!”

‘If you say so.’

The group boarded the carriage, five people squeezed into the narrow compartment. Chloe sat upright in her seat, her hunger making it difficult to move. If the guard were to ambush her at this moment, she would be utterly helpless.

Chloe was gambling that their obsession with power wouldn’t outweigh their reverence for the Senate.

The sunlight streaming through the window gradually dimmed until it vanished completely, signifying the arrival of night. Norria lit an oil lamp inside the carriage, its reasonably bright glow illuminating the entire compartment.

Initially, there was little verbal interaction among the occupants of the carriage. It seemed as though they were wary of someone’s presence, everyone merely sitting in their seats, lost in thought.

However, once the cloaked figure had fallen asleep, the atmosphere shifted.

“Let’s get one thing straight, you boys aren’t allowed to bully little Chloe!”

As the only two girls in the carriage, Xina and Chloe naturally sat together. Xina wrapped her arms around Chloe, simultaneously pointing at the two awake men opposite them.

“As your big sister, I’ll protect adorable little Chloe!”

‘Are you really eighteen?’ Chloe sweatdropped internally. Such childish remarks felt more appropriate for an elementary or middle school playground.

Xiao Nuoqi, with his middle-parted hair, was polishing his spear. Upon hearing Xina’s words, his face immediately flushed. “No! I would never do such a thing…”

“Who would dare challenge an Elder?”

The taller Norria pressed down firmly on Xiao Nuoqi’s head. He then turned to Xina and said, “Lady Xina, while Elder Raina may appear young, her mind is quite mature. You needn’t treat her as a younger sister.”

Xina immediately released Chloe, puffing out her cheeks. “So Chloe is actually the older sister?”

‘Hmph, why did she let go so quickly? I wanted to keep getting bounced by her chest,’ Chloe thought, a hint of disappointment. Though her body had transformed into that of a beautiful girl, her mind remained that of a nearly thirty-year-old shut-in salaryman.

Suddenly, Norria earnestly asked Chloe, “Elder Raina, may I inquire why you have been dispatched to govern Aphros? After all, it is widely known that most Elders govern from behind the scenes.”

‘Everyone knows? I certainly don’t,’ Chloe thought. ‘But to maintain my facade as an Elder, I suppose I must…’

“So, what exactly is an Elder? And why is dainty, adorable Chloe actually the older sister?” Xina abruptly interrupted Chloe’s train of thought.

‘What? You didn’t know either?!’

“In short, an Elder is…”

Thus, Norria lectured for a long time. Xina and Xiao Nuoqi nodded incessantly, yet appeared to comprehend nothing at all.

According to Norria, if the Senate truly possessed such immense power, Chloe could only liken it to a ‘console command’ in a game. Simply inputting codes would grant access to all sorts of unbalanced powers. However, in games, Chloe mostly used the console to check if she had been cuckolded.

‘No wonder I couldn’t tear her robe earlier; it must be indestructible by design,’ Chloe realized, suddenly recalling Alena and feeling a mix of emotions.

“Lady Xina, how could you not know about the Elders? Their deeds are clearly written on the very first page of history books,” Norria remarked, a hint of bewilderment in his voice.

“Oh, I threw that book away. I don’t like reading,” Xina said, shrugging.

Chloe felt as if Norria was about to cough up blood. To be burdened with such an unreliable heir! ‘Should I try to recruit him to my side? He’s skilled, and his mind is quite agile; he could certainly make a good knight.’

“How can that be! As a lord, one must be well-read and learn the methods of governing people!” Norria exclaimed, a look of utter exasperation on his face.

“But many people at my school don’t like reading. That includes William, Duke Ross’s heir, and Felix, the son of the Governor of Crown Territory. They’re much more interested in sword fighting lessons,” Xina said, sounding aggrieved.

‘Typical Dark Ages,’ Chloe thought. In her original world, many lords delegated administrative tasks to church personnel, preferring to wage wars and indulge in pleasures themselves.

Consequently, during the Middle Ages, both the upper and lower classes were largely illiterate. The Church’s monopoly on knowledge led to its stringent control over people’s thoughts.

‘I wonder how powerful the Church’s authority is in this world. Though it seems the Senate must have it firmly suppressed.’

‘The Elders are truly a dangerous bunch,’ Chloe mused. ‘I wonder how much longer I can keep up this facade of borrowed power.’