They Say an Age Gap Like This Doesn’t Even Need Matching - Chapter 92

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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They say a age difference of nnn years doesn’t even warrant checking compatibility.
Chapter 92
“Did you find out something about the Prince?”
Raern, who had been silent for a moment, clicked his tongue softly before answering.
“Well, something like that.”
“And that’s connected to Mikhail?”
Raern nodded once.
The conversation had progressed this far, so there was no way I could feign ignorance now.
Besides, he wasn’t the type of person that would work on anyway.
“Think about it carefully.”
Raern spoke with a serious expression.
“Their eyes are identical.”
“…What?”
“The way the Prince looks at the Commander. It’s the same as Mikhail’s.”
Kei narrowed his eyes and stared at Raern.
Unbothered by that gaze, Raern rubbed his arms frantically and muttered.
“Isn’t it absolutely chilling? Think about it—if the same thing happened back then. Right now he’s pretending to be pretty, cute, and docile, but.”
“Hmm….”
Indeed, the personality, usual behavior, and values of Elhart that Kei had gathered were somewhat different from now.
Though his ideal image as a ruler remained unchanged, his attitude when dealing with Iserna was truly….
‘Sometimes he seems like a madman.’
Kei now understood why Raern had compared Elhart to Mikhail.
Because Mikhail had been the same way.
When Iserna was by his side, there was no particular problem.
‘Of course, he did defeat his rivals again through rather crude methods.’
Still, he was someone worthy of everyone’s trust.
At the time, both Kei and Raern agreed that only Mikhail was fit to be king.
The problem arose after Iserna disappeared.
Having lost her, he must have endured for several years.
Believing she would return soon, he would have done his best with the duties entrusted to him.
But as years passed and people began to speak of abandoning the Expedition Team.
When people began to assume the death of Iserna, the first Knight Commander.
Mikhail began to lose his mind.
‘Elhart could very well….’
Kei, who had been thinking for a moment, nodded in agreement.
‘It’s possible. Yes, it certainly might be the case.’
After everything is over, if Iserna decides to leave Elhart.
That prince might crumble as if he had lost the world.
‘But then again, there’s not really any way to prevent it, is there.’
Love, romance—it’s always been that way from the beginning.
Kei, a man experienced in marriage matters, let out a small sigh before speaking.
“Regardless of what others think, your feelings are what matter most, Commander. It’s not something that can be stopped by objection anyway.”
Separate from how deeply Mikhail cared for Iserna, she remained completely oblivious to his affection toward her.
As a comrade, she genuinely cherished and liked him greatly, but that was all.
She had never felt or regarded him as a romantic interest.
On the other hand, the way Iserna looked at Elhart was…
‘It’s clear she’s utterly smitten—so much so that pretending otherwise is almost laughable.’
Since knowing Iserna, this was the first time such a thing had occurred, so Kei watched her with considerable fascination.
“Whether she resembles Mikhail or not, what matters is that the Commander’s heart belongs to the Prince. That’s all that’s important.”
“Yeah, and that’s exactly what’s irritating.”
Raern muttered.
“From his appearance to his personality, he showed up perfectly tailored to her tastes. The cunning bastard. He probably wheedled and pleaded with the Goddess, playing the pitiful victim.”
“What are you talking about?”
Kei furrowed his brow and waved his hand dismissively.
“If you’re going to spout nonsense, don’t interfere. I have a lot to prepare.”
“Ah, so you won’t let me help with the date planning!”
“Honestly.”
Raern flinched at Kei’s sharp glare and raised both hands in surrender.
“Fine. I won’t interfere.”
….
“I’ll just have a snack and then get back to work.”
With that, he pulled over a bread basket that had been pushed to one side of the desk and began eating it along with some cooled tea.
Though Raern’s lingering glances were somewhat distracting, Kei methodically continued filling in the schedule.
Time was pressing, and besides, he didn’t think Raern would cause trouble even if he knew the itinerary.
‘With the magic portal restoration work, there’s barely time to close my eyes.’
Even now, he was hastily filling his stomach well past mealtime.
Looking at his hollow eyes and disheveled hair, one could almost pity him.
Kei sighed and pushed a fresh cup of tea toward Raern.
“Everything will work out fine, so don’t worry.”
Kei hoped that Iserna and Elhart would fare well together.
Even conspiring with Pope Karteus to push through the sham marriage was done to help Iserna, who was unaccustomed to examining her own heart.
If only one person in the world could be happy, Kei believed it should be Iserna.
He was sorry, but for this purpose, what became of Elhart was of no consequence.
“No matter what happens, we’re here. What’s the problem?”
At Kei’s murmur, Raern’s body stiffened slightly before he slowly nodded.
“…Yeah, that’s right.”
If it was Iserna who had protected the expedition members from the demons, then it would be their turn to protect her going forward.
Regardless of whether such protection was necessary.
***
As dawn broke, I rose early and left the room.
I didn’t want to slip away from Elhart’s sleeping embrace, but that very reluctance steeled my resolve.
‘This isn’t the time for indulgence.’
Even our dates weren’t meant for leisure.
Once we left Brin County, we’d be living as a married couple in disguise, and I needed to practice so we wouldn’t arouse suspicion anywhere.
I couldn’t afford to lose sight of my true purpose for even a moment.
I headed first to the Western Tower, where the magical portal restoration work was in full swing.
According to Kei, roughly half of the Expedition Team members had decided to send their descendants.
Most of them had been living together in Belken since three hundred years ago, waiting long for the Expedition Team’s return.
Some of those who couldn’t come had volunteered for military service to defend the border against the Cradion Empire, he said.
Even when offered extraction, their resolve was so firm that we had no choice but to leave them be.
Well, even if traitors infested the political sphere, they wouldn’t touch soldiers in the military, so it might actually be safer.
Besides, the Empire itself was too busy managing chaos to spark a sudden war anytime soon.
Still, to be cautious, I’d had a few Expedition Team members infiltrate as soldiers on that front.
‘The rest will be the real problem.’
Most of them faced situations like Count Brin’s.
People with those they had to protect, unable to flee no matter how dire their circumstances.
The small castle walls that had sustained Bardia all this time were crumbling in places.
Destroyed by those they once protected.
By traitors more vicious than demons themselves.
“Raern.”
Upon entering the Western Tower, I spotted Raern crouched before an enormous magical circle.
“Huh? Commander, what brings you here at this hour?”
“You’re the one I should ask—surely you haven’t slept at all?”
“Well, somehow it just happened?”
I gave his back a few sharp pats.
“Eat on time! Sleep on time while you work, I told you!”
“Ow, ow… that hurts, little brother.”
“Seriously.”
He laughed and then spoke.
“While working on it, something occurred to me. If I modify the incantation slightly, the mana consumption should drop significantly. Stability would improve too.”
“Really?”
I looked up in surprise, and he spoke with a self-satisfied expression.
“Didn’t your older brother hone his skills considerably in the Black Rift?”
“I thought you only got better at smashing things.”
“All skills are interconnected, you see.”
That smug face was irritating, but it was good news regardless.
He’d managed to improve a magical portal that three hundred years ago took all the high-ranking mages combined to barely create, now doing it alone.
Raern really was a genius, no doubt about it.
“Then can you also eliminate the aftereffects of teleportation?”
“Aftereffects? What kind?”
“I’ve never used a magic portal before, so I can’t say for certain, but when I used the return scroll this time, I became completely helpless—I couldn’t move, let alone speak.”
Raern’s expression grew grave as he listened to my account.
“Is that so? How long did it take to recover?”
“At least ten minutes or so?”
“Most people don’t experience anything like that, but it seems only you did, Commander. Do you still have the magic scroll you used back then?”
I retrieved the return scroll, torn in half, from my spatial pouch and handed it to him.
“Here.”
It was a relief that the other team members hadn’t suffered the same phenomenon.
“Would it be alright if I examined this more closely before returning it?”
“Of course. Take your time investigating.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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