Oswald Mikal Keeley, the Earl of Keeley, responded immediately to the call from the royal court and led his knights to the capital.
　However, less than half a day after leaving at dawn, he received the news of the fall of the capital and had to make a hasty retreat.

　It was reported that the First Knight Commander and the King had already been defeated. I later found out that this was a false alarm (if the two were still 'alive' in that state), but in the end I was right in my judgment that there was no point in me rushing to the capital for a few days now.

　The information coming from the chaos around the capital was scarce, but I knew that a tragic battle had taken place.
　Ruin or Rebirth: ......
　A number of visions of the future came to Oswald's mind.
　But no matter what the outcome, the fact remained that he had to protect the people of his domain now. It was simply a matter of priorities.

　It was simply a matter of priorities.

　It was three days after the fall of King's Landing that the carriage carrying Katherine and her mother arrived at the castle of the Earl of Keighley.

"Father, ......
"Catherine!　Thank God you're all right!

　As soon as Catherine got off the carriage, Oswald greeted her with a full-on hug.
　If I had wanted to go and get her myself, I would have led the knights to pick her up, but that was not possible and I was getting impatient.

"Hey, Father, you're in pain.
"Oh, I'm sorry .......

　Oswald, who was kneeling down to hug Catherine, finally let go when Catherine shook him off.

Are you hurt?
Not a scratch.
I'm glad to hear that ...... King's Landing has been attacked, it was really hard to live with myself. If you escaped unharmed, you're very lucky.

　In the event that you've got a lot of time, you'll be able to take a look at the most effective way to make sure that you'll be able to make the most of your time.

But Catherine tilted her head and said, "Oh, you haven't heard about that yet?
　I was grabbed by the Rose of Hell, but she didn't do anything to me and let me go.
"What?

　I'm not sure what to make of this.

　Because of the overcrowding at the other end of the line, Oswald had only received word from his wife, who was on her way back to the estate, that she was safe, but he had not been able to hear anything specific about what had happened.

Nothing was done to you?
"No. I don't know what happened to the daughters of the royal knights who were captured with him, but I had nothing to do with them.
"I see. ......

　As the surprise passed, a bitterness began to well up in Oswald's chest.

"Catherine. As you may know, that monster is ......
"Yes, I know.
　You're the daughter of the former king who was killed in the coup d'etat, aren't you?
Yes. Even if she is corrupted into an undead monster, she is the son of the noble former king.
　Even if it is for revenge, she may have tried to avoid shedding the blood of the innocent. ......

　The undead monsters that are the spies of the evil gods are supposed to be the enemies of all living things. But.

　It's a good thing that you're not the only one who has a problem with this.
　It's a great way to get the most out of your life.

　...... In fact, he didn't kill Catherine for a much different reason.

I'm not sure if I'd be able to do that. I'm sure you've heard of it. While you were gone, ......

　Oswald changes the subject. "The adventurer's guild had given us some information about the dragon's whistle.
　I'm sure you'll be pleased to know that I'm not the only one who's interested in this.

No, father. It's not ...... necessary anymore.
What?
I felt like I knew what was going on.

　I couldn't ask him what.
　I couldn't ask him what. He seemed to be afraid to ask further.

"...... Father. Can I get some rest?
"Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. I'm sorry. You must be tired. Get some rest.

　And with that, Catherine left in a flash.

　* * *

　Katherine was in her bedroom, dressed in her nightgown, throwing herself on the bed.
　The fiasco at King's Landing, the chaos of the escape, and the forced march in the carriage. I was so exhausted that I didn't want to move my body anymore, but I didn't feel like sleeping at all. I could hear the crackling of wood from the fireplace.

　--That wasn't Iris from the ...... beginning.

　That thought was now a certainty in Catherine's mind.

　She had been ruminating on the conversation she had had with the thing that had taken the form of Iris.

　She couldn't forget the bottomless emptiness and sadness in his eyes when he said, "I'm happy just to have my mother.
　When she said, "Everyone is unhappy," she could not forget the heavy voice that sounded as if it carried all the unhappiness in the world.
　I wonder if those were Iris's words. ...... Maybe so.


　But if you think of it as René's words, they fit together too well. Everything fits together.

　Every night we talked about trivial things.
　She told me tales of her adventures (I don't know if they were made up or if Iris was really experiencing them), and Catherine told me stories about herself.
　We laughed when things were funny. Sigh in the warmth of hot milk.
　Was it all a lie?
　Was she just hiding under the guise of Iris to get revenge, and acting as Iris to avoid suspicion?
　Did she sneer at Catherine in her mind when she thought she was having a good time chatting with her?

　No, she thought.
　She thought that Rene was there as a girl, unmasked as a revenant.

　Rene was a girl her own age to Catherine.
　She imagined what it would be like if she had lost her parents for some unreasonable reason and had been beheaded.
　She was sad, frustrated, lonely, and painful, and she didn't think she could bear it.

Of course I'd be lonely. ......

　Unable to stand it any longer, Catherine rushed to the window.
　It was still early in the evening, but in winter the sun set early. The silvery moon was shining in the sky.

　Rene knew that the Rose Princess of Hell was a monster that had invaded the capital with a large number of undead monsters.
　Even though she knew that, Catherine couldn't help but feel sorry for Rene.

"Rene, ...... don't you need a friend, ......?

　Catherine's breath fogged the window.

　The girl who would later be known as "the one who blocks the thorns" and "the war goddess of powerlessness and inflexibility", Catherine Margaretha Kiely.
　For the rest of her life, she was ......