Became a Strategist with a 100 Intelligence and 100\% Accuracy-Chapter 197: Fate’s Night (2)

"Huh...?"

For a moment, I froze at the surreal sight of Airen running with Serpina slung over her back.

But only for a moment.

As soon as Airen spotted me, she rushed toward me with an urgent expression.

"Swen...!"

Just hearing her voice was enough for me to understand.

Something had happened.

I immediately ran toward Airen, Reika following at my side.

"What happened?"

"My lord...!"

Looking at Serpina, I noticed that her waist was tightly wrapped with torn cloth.

'...!!'

So, something really did happen.

Quickly assessing the situation, I asked Airen,

"What’s the current status?"

She immediately understood the implications of my question and responded in a hurried tone.

"One is dead, the other is incapacitated. Both of them... were my lord’s personal knights."

'...What a cruel twist of fate.'

To be betrayed by the very knights she trusted the most.

If I hadn’t stationed Airen with her, things would have been far worse.

Or maybe...

Perhaps her survival was already within the expected range of my calculations.

The assassination attempt’s timing had changed... which meant her fate had changed as well.

But that wasn’t what mattered right now.

"It would be best to head straight to the physicians. The clean-up—"

"I already instructed the soldiers on our way here to secure them immediately."

"Understood. Then we should hurry."

I nodded.

At that moment—

"Wait... a moment."

A weak voice came from Serpina, still resting on Airen’s back.

"If you make... too big of a deal out of this... it will only cause unrest. If I go to the royal hospital... word will spread... and that’s dangerous."

The ruler had just barely survived an assassination attempt and was in a dangerous state.

If this became public knowledge, it would throw the nation into chaos.

But this wasn’t the time to worry about that...

"My lord..."

"Find... another location... and summon a physician there..."

"..."

Airen carefully turned her gaze to me.

This was it.

She was waiting for my decision.

If we went to the imperial hospital, news would spread instantly. No matter how well Airen and the soldiers tried to cover it up, it would likely become a serious issue.

Considering Serpina’s current standing, this would only complicate things further.

Her personal safety was important, but preventing political instability was equally crucial in her mind.

I looked carefully at Serpina.

If she were truly on the brink of death, I wouldn’t even consider granting her request.

But if the future where she survives was already set, then accommodating her wish would be the rational choice.

Fortunately, Airen had done a good job stopping the bleeding, and while the wound seemed severe, it didn’t look immediately fatal—but I needed a more definitive answer.

'I need a way to confirm it...!'

As I frantically worked through my thoughts—

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"...Swen."

Serpina, her voice weak, suddenly asked me a question.

"I want to ask... is not taking me to the hospital... the right decision...?"

'Serpina...'

I see.

She must have sensed my hesitation and asked the question in her own way.

She knew about my ability.

But—

[Unknown.]

...Of course.

I had expected this.

Even though she had taken the trouble to phrase her question carefully, my 100 Intelligence was unable to determine whether this was the right or wrong decision.

Seeing my expression, she must have realized the answer.

Her voice came again.

"...I suppose... even you... don’t know everything... I’m sorry... for burdening you..."

For some reason, her words hit me harder than I expected.

I stepped closer to her and whispered,

"My lord. Please conserve your strength. ...I am fine."

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Looking at her exhausted and pale face, I couldn’t help but resent my own ability.

If only I could get an answer like, ‘The fate of continental unification hangs in the balance,’ then I would have no hesitation in taking her to the hospital, political consequences be damned.

If that were the case, I wouldn’t waste a second—

'...Wait?'

Hold on.

The fate of continental unification...?

The moment I recognized that keyword, I realized—

There was one specific question that could confirm whether Serpina would survive.

'...Is Lunarian Iniang fated to become the ruler who unites the continent?'

Thump.

Thump.

Suppressing my anxious heartbeat, I waited for the response.

[Yes.]

'...!!!'

It was fine.

Serpina will not die.

Even without immediate medical attention, she will survive.

If Luna’s fate remains unchanged, despite Serpina being injured and untreated, that meant she had avoided death.

Just to be sure, I also asked a direct question about Serpina’s fate—and the answer was ‘No.’

That meant nothing else will happen to her.

If she will not die, then I could grant her request.

I nodded and spoke.

"For now, let’s take her to my estate and summon a private physician."

"...Understood."

Hearing Airen’s response, I slowly turned to Reika.

She had already grasped the seriousness of the situation and nodded silently, following behind us.

Why did this happen?

I thought I had changed fate, but perhaps I had only delayed death, not prevented it.

Or maybe...

This situation itself was the result of escaping her original fate.

No—more importantly, how had someone as skilled as Airen allowed Serpina to get injured in the first place?

'...I can figure that out later.'

I put my thoughts in order and followed behind Airen, Reika at my side.

Serpina’s strength truly was remarkable.

*

After moving her to one of the bedrooms in our estate, I finally had the chance to hear from Airen about what had happened while the imperial physician, whom I had summoned through the maids, entered the room to examine Serpina.

"You’re telling me... she protected you?"

"Yes... My lord was injured while trying to protect me."

Airen clenched her fists tightly, her voice trembling with frustration.

"As a knight, I’ve failed... I trained so hard... I was taught that I should be the one throwing my life away to protect my charge...!"

"...You did nothing wrong, Airen. It was simply something beyond your control."

After all, how could she, a newcomer, have possibly known that two of her fellow knights were assassins?

Even I hadn't predicted it.

Neither had Serpina, which was why she had allowed them to remain so close to her.

Besides, one of the attackers had been a knight who had served as Serpina’s personal guard since the moment she took the throne.

How could anyone have anticipated that such a person would turn their blade against her?

Then, suddenly, I recalled something Serpina had said before—when she had calmly accepted that she would never become the ruler to unify the continent.

She had mentioned feeling the malice of the world toward her.

Was this what she had meant?

That everyone around her, the people who once followed her, would one day turn their blades against her?

Even if she had killed the other imperial heirs, I had heard that the infighting among them had been much worse when they were alive.

She had only been the one to clean up the mess in the end—albeit with excessive brutality.

In an era where familial bonds and human decency held little meaning, was she truly the only one deserving of such deep hatred?

I almost lost myself in thought, but we had no time to dwell on such things.

I reached out and took Airen’s trembling hands in mine.

"Airen, we can reflect on this later. For now, we need to focus on what needs to be done. That will help Serpina the most."

"...Yes."

"Head to the °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° capital and handle this quietly. Use ‘My lord’s orders’ as justification—that should be enough. More than just being a knight, you are also the deputy commander of the occupying forces. You have the authority. As for dealing with the assassins... Jenna is currently away, so you will have to handle this matter yourself."

"But my lord didn’t explicitly give those orders..."

"That’s fine. I will take full responsibility."

Even as I said it, I highly doubted Serpina would reprimand either of us over this incident.

She was not the type to be so rigid.

"...Alright, Swen."

Wiping away her tears, Airen straightened herself and stood tall once more.

"I will take care of the aftermath... so please, take care of my lord."

"You don’t have to worry about that."

Watching Airen walk away, I felt relief that she had already established her position within the military.

Since she had solidified her authority, her words would carry weight, making it easier to manage the situation.

But still...

Why had Serpina thrown herself in harm’s way to protect Airen?

It was completely irrational for a ruler.

As I was grappling with that question, the sound of the door opening pulled me from my thoughts.

The imperial physician, accompanied by two female attendants who likely served as nurses, emerged from the room.

I slowly stood up and approached them.

"What is her condition?"

"Fortunately, her life is not in danger... However, she lost a significant amount of blood. She will need complete rest for now. We’ve administered the necessary treatments, but I would advise at least several weeks—if not months—of rest."

Even though they had done everything they could, this world did not have the advanced medical knowledge of my previous one.

In that sense, the fact that her wound was not too deep was incredibly fortunate.

Whether this was simply how things were meant to unfold, or whether it was just her luck, I did not know.

"Is there anything else that needs to be done?"

"No. She simply needs to rest."

"...Understood."

"We will remain at the estate for the night. Please summon us if there are any complications."

With that, I dismissed the physician.

Then, I carefully opened the door and stepped into the room where Serpina was resting.

*

Inside the bedroom, Serpina lay motionless.

Was she asleep?

Moving as quietly as possible, I cautiously approached her bedside.

'Serpina...'

She had drifted off at some point.

She had lost a lot of strength, so it was natural for her to sleep in order to recover.

Dressed in simple white clothing, her waist was wrapped in bandages.

The nurses must have been deeply hesitant about placing their hands on the emperor’s body.

Even though the wound was not supposed to be severe, the sheer width of the bandaging suggested it was still a serious injury.

If a blade had cut her deeply enough to require this much dressing, then the pain must have been unbearable.

Yet Serpina had never once let out a cry of pain, even on the way here.

A ruler who threw herself in front of danger to protect her knight...

The irony of that weighed on my mind as I gazed at her face.

In the end...

Hadn’t she been the one who protected Airen?

Wait.

If that’s the case... then why?

Just as my mind was beginning to race—

"...!!"

I felt something grab my wrist.

Startled, I looked down—

It was Serpina.

She had reached out with her small, pale hand and was gripping my wrist.

Turning my head, I saw that she had already opened her eyes and was looking straight at me.

"You’re awake, my lord? You should rest—"

"...Swen."

"My lord."

For the first time, the woman who had always looked down at me was now lying in bed, gazing up at me.

And with a voice so delicate, so fragile—

She whispered words that cut sharper than any blade.

"...Don’t leave me, Swen..."