The Camellia Tattoo - Chapter 3
For Amber’s marriage partner wasn’t even a prince but a Grand Duke from the north was unthinkable.
“Isn’t it said that the hero who will eliminate the dragon Nidhogg will be born from the princess’s womb? We should send her off with joy!”
“What nonsense is this! How can our princess endure in that barren land, where there is nothing but snow and monsters? And to bear a child there? Such a disgraceful threat is unprecedented in my life!”
“While it is true that the man is of common birth, he is indeed a descendant of the renowned Niflheim family. It is true that he may not match the princess’s status, but the military he commands is stronger than that of any lord. If things go well, he could become an ally of Shadroch, couldn’t he? It is a good opportunity to break free from the influence of the imperial family.”
“That may be so, but… sending her off like this as if she’s being sold…”
The nobles of Shadroch were divided into two factions and fought for a week, day and night, on whether they should send off the princess or not.
Her prospective husband, Igmeyer Niflheim.
A young Grand Duke who rules the northern part of the Asgarden Empire.
As widely known, he was born to the previous Grand Duke and a daughter of a monster butcher and grew up in the mercenary ranks until the age of ten.
The problem began after that.
He took a different path from the ordinary illegitimate sons who usually became monks or knights.
At the age of eighteen, Igmeyer ventured out of the territory and established the Frost Giant Mercenaries. By the time he turned twenty, there was scarcely a lord who didn’t know of the Frost Giants’ notoriety and strength.
A mercenary group whose payment amounts to a year’s worth of territory management.
However, their prowess is undeniable; no matter the battlefield or the circumstances, they always complete their missions.
Even though they were only given missions that have been unresolved for several years or are extremely dangerous, they always return alive.
It was said that this was due to the leadership of their commander, Igmeyer, the mercenaries’ uncharacteristic loyalty, and the ruthlessness of their blades toward their enemies.
Their strength in combat was so formidable that it was hard to believe they were the same as regular humans. Their cunning and ingenious strategies. Companions with similar capabilities that could accept any kind of madness.
What was just as famous as all of this was the commander Igmeyer’s personality.
According to the separate investigation conducted in Shadroch, it was said that he was generally a calm man.
There were somewhat unbelievable stories about his physical strength, such as crushing a troll’s skull with one hand or grabbing a wyvern’s tail and throwing it into the mountains. Nevertheless, he didn’t seem to boast about his strength, but rather carried himself with a refined demeanor.
His jet-black hair, as if absorbing sunlight, and the delicate face seemed to be more suited for reading scrolls than holding a sword outside.
A demeanor quite different from the rough mercenaries, more like that of a young master.
However, there were nobles who sometimes took his demeanor lightly and made fun of him.
They tried to withhold his compensation, claiming that he had a bad attitude and talked nonsense, even though he had completed the mission through great hardships. They even subtly hinted at wanting Igmeyer to attend to the night.
And it was precisely at that moment that his notorious ‘character’ was revealed.
After breaking the neck of the client, he impaled him on a lance and put him on display. Those who shouted the devil at him were made the same way.
It was a time when wars of conquest were common between each territory.
It wasn’t a matter of criticism to execute the noble families and plant his flag, as it could become his land. He never harmed ordinary commoners, after all.
In this way, Igmeyer acquired small territories in about three places, using them as resting places in between missions, which greatly aided in the rapid growth of the mercenary group.
As word spread, no one dared to challenge the Frost Giant Mercenaries anymore.
The insults like wretched or uneducated that could no longer be said.
In front of the dark flag of the Frost Giant Mercenaries, as dark as the night sky, people naturally became cautious with their words and respectful in their mannerisms.
Not Niflheim, just Igmeyer.
A fierce man who acquired wealth and power with his own hands, without the help of his family.
This Igmeyer had now inherited the title of Grand Duke and became the marriage partner of the princess.
After reading the report, Amber was convinced that she could never love this man.
They were too different. It was as if their relationship needed one of them to die for the other to be complete, like winter and spring.
“He only received the title by luck, as the previous Grand Duke Niflheim died last year! Should we recognize such a person as a Grand Duke?”
“What on earth is the Asgarden Emperor thinking?”
“That’s what I’m saying. Bestowing the title of Grand Duke on a mere half-breed noble and lowly mercenary.”
“If he is to be joined with our princess, the bastard’s offspring will even acquire a noble status! We must protest!”
However, despite his remarkable achievements, the high nobles, who valued pure bloodlines, deemed Igmeyer a barbarian and did not acknowledge him as an equal in their ranks.
The Mercenary Grand Duke.
The aristocracy of Shardroch scorned him with such a title.
“You should go, my dear sister.”
After an argument that led to no gain, her older brother wearing the crown finally bowed his head to her.
