I, who was eager to retire, became an Imperial General.

Chapter 278 [7K] Old acquaintances are strangers, roses carry poisonous thorns
Alafia actually knows me?

John was filled with doubt upon hearing the greeting from the First Princess.

Because neither in his memory nor in the background information of the story he knew, he did not recall ever having any interaction with Princess Elafia, who was known as the "Rose Witch" in the side story.

At the same time, John couldn't help but start recalling information about the other party.

In fact, there is very little storyline involving the First Princess of the Empire, Elafia Caster Perus.

Aside from what was mentioned in the demo storyline after completing the game, after William and the core high-ranking officials of the Empire committed suicide, this princess, who for some reason escaped the forced suicide by the surveillance forces, participated in the presidential election of the New Norman Empire through some means, and changed her identity to use the name Alice Sylsevier.

She became the female president of the new empire.

Subsequently, the Allied forces split due to an inexplicable civil war, leading to continuous conflicts between the countries.

Taking advantage of the chaos, Elafia formed the Rose Knights and combined them with magical technology, enabling the empire to achieve unprecedented growth in national power.

After that, he used various means to instigate and provoke conflicts between countries and profit from the wars until the new empire's power reached a certain scale and he had control over all the officials under his command.

She then officially announced the restoration of the old system and succeeded to the throne under her real name.

Following in his father's footsteps, he reignited wars abroad, causing the empire's territory to expand at an unprecedented pace.

Apart from that, there isn't much description of the other party in the new game's demo storyline or main storyline.

As for the unique spell of the Perus Law Contract held by the other party, it seems to be different from William's effect, which is applied through the corresponding Word of Power. Instead, it is an effect similar to an aura skill.

Its main effects are charm and control, and because it involves a new skill system called "Aura" that did not appear in the original work, it was not described in much detail in the story.

Unfortunately, before John could even receive the release of the second-generation game empire, he was transported here.

Therefore, his understanding of Alafia was not comprehensive.

But whether it's the background description of the opponent in the side story, the effect of the opponent's unique spell, or the title of the work in the trailer for the second sequel, "The Invasion of the Rose Witch".

All of this clearly proves that the other party is an extremely dangerous and complex person, someone he should avoid getting involved with.

Even if you are forced to interact with them, you must be as careful as possible, otherwise you may fall into their trap and become a puppet who is silently bewitched by them!
But judging from what the other party just said, he and this witch princess were not strangers at all, but rather seemed to be quite familiar with each other.
John initially intended to exchange a few simple pleasantries in response to the other party's words.

However, if he pretends to know the other party and then reveals his inconsistencies during subsequent questioning, it might arouse the other party's suspicion and even escalate the situation to a point where the other party also has a headache.

After a brief moment of thought, he looked at the other person with a puzzled expression and asked:

"Excuse me, Your Highness Elafia, have we met before?"

"Brother John, don't you remember me?"

Upon hearing this, Ailafia's bright eyes, which had been filled with joy, quickly dimmed, as if she had suffered a severe blow, and even her eyes became slightly red.

John, who had some basic information and understood how dangerous the other party was, clearly could not fool him with such behavior.

John's gaze remained calm throughout, showing no sign of emotion.

"!"

However, after John nearly made the noble Princess Alafia cry with just one sentence, the second-generation members who had initially stood up for John and beaten Count Obito suddenly turned their sharp gazes toward the new lieutenant general.

If looks could kill, then without a doubt, John would already be riddled with arrows by everyone at this moment.

"Perhaps due to the negative effects of certain experiments I experienced in the past, my memories before the age of eighteen have always been somewhat vague. I only vaguely remember that I lived in the Imperial Third Orphanage, also known as the 'Lighthouse of Hope' Orphanage, for a period of time. After becoming an adult, I participated in His Majesty William's training program for commander-type magic soldiers and was fortunate enough to enter the Imperial First Military Academy. And then, there is everything I have experienced on the battlefield so far."

Despite the surprised or amazed looks from the crowd, John, who couldn't figure out the true purpose of this future Rose Witch, decided to continue the performance with her.

He immediately bowed to Alafia, who was on the verge of tears, and then said helplessly:

"If the side effects of the early modification experiments have affected Your Highness Elafia's mood, I sincerely apologize."

“I see! But that makes sense. After all, when Alafia first met John through Aunt Anora’s arrangement, you were sick all the time. It wasn’t until two years later that you started to get better, but you often had serious aftereffects. Sometimes you even had great difficulty speaking. I can’t understand that feeling, but I imagine it must have been extremely painful.”

"I think it's because of the side effects, plus the body's self-protective instincts, that you forgot a lot of things, John."

Alafia analyzed the situation carefully, and then, as if convincing herself, her initial sadness gradually dissipated, and her gaze towards John was filled with pity and self-reproach:
“Although it’s true that you’ve forgotten about Alafia, Brother John, and that it’s made Alafia feel a little disappointed, I understand that it’s not your fault. Besides, if thinking about me reminds you of the pain you felt when you were suffering from the illness, then I’ll feel guilty about it.”

"Moreover, John, you didn't lie to Alafia about this matter. Instead, you chose to tell me the truth. Alafia is really, really happy about that."

Finally, a radiant smile, unlike anything she had ever seen before, appeared on Arafia's face. Then, amidst the infatuated and heartbroken gazes of countless imperial talents around her, she spoke gently to John:

"As expected, even though you lost our past memories, John, you didn't lie to Alafia. John, you really haven't changed at all! That's wonderful!"

is it?

I'm not happy at all to be praised by you, the cunning Rose Witch.

John inwardly scoffed, but outwardly feigned gratitude and said to the other party:

"...Thank you for your understanding, Your Highness Alafia."

"Oh dear, please don't call me Your Highness anymore, Brother John. Can't you just call me by my name like you used to? Or, you can call me Ella like you did when we were little?"

Hearing John address her so formally, Alafia, sensing that he was deliberately keeping his distance, couldn't help but act coquettishly towards him.

"..."

However, he felt the death stares from everyone and heard the grinding sound of his molars being forcefully clenched.

John was immediately overwhelmed with anxiety.

My heart was filled with frustration and doubt.

To be honest, he really didn't understand why this Rose Witch, who rarely appeared in the main story, would act so intimately towards him.

He couldn't understand why the other party, who was extremely intelligent in the backstory, would publicly provoke hatred in this way.

Fortunately, he had just been appointed Governor of Fauken by William, and his military rank was directly promoted to lieutenant general.

Otherwise, after what Alafia did, he might have been sacked and beaten to death by those jealous second-generation rich kids as soon as he left the banquet.

However, Ailafia's complex and dangerous identity meant that he could not act recklessly in front of her. No matter how helpless he felt, he could only suppress it all and turn it into a fake smile.

孽 孽!
John sighed inwardly, but looking at Ella Fia, who had a gentle smile on her face but whose azure eyes were full of amusement, he knew she had no intention of letting him get away with it so easily.

Despite wondering whether the Rose Witch was approaching him because of their past relationship or if she had ulterior motives.

But John could only suppress this doubt and instead slowly began to speak, following the other person's lead:

"Although it may be presumptuous, if it is His Highness's request, then I have no choice but to comply. Elafia, is that alright?"

"Well, although it's a little different from what I expected, I'm really happy to hear you call me that again, Brother John, after so many years~"

Hearing this, he seemed finally satisfied.

Alafia stopped teasing John and gave him a sweet smile.

Then, as if remembering something, a flash of annoyance crossed her face, followed by a blush and an embarrassed expression as she spoke to John:

"Well, because I hadn't seen Brother John for a long time, I got so excited that I was catching up with him and almost forgot about the important matter."

"I am here on the orders of my father, to honor and pay tribute to Lieutenant General John Maslow and all the heroes who participated in the Battle of Faoken and brought glory to the Empire."

Having said that, Alafia's expression turned serious, and she gracefully curtsied to the astonished crowd. Then, her calm yet remarkably authoritative voice slowly reached their ears:

"As the First Princess, I, Elafia Caster Perus, on behalf of the Royal Family and the Empire, thank all the soldiers for their valiant fighting. The Empire will forever remember your sacrifices and contributions."

Then, as if remembering something, Alafia smiled and added:

"Of course, verbal thanks are not enough to show the Empire's respect. Therefore, I have also brought some personal rewards in addition to those promised by His Majesty William, to express my gratitude to all the heroes."

"Although these are just small gifts, I hope you heroes will not find them offensive."

After speaking, Ailafia nodded to the dead-eyed female guard who had returned to the banquet hall at some point. Then, under everyone's gaze, the royal guards, carrying boxes one after another, filed in through the door.

These boxes, with their simple and ancient design but radiating powerful magical energy, were slowly opened by the guards.

Immediately, to everyone's astonishment, a series of artifacts shimmering with dazzling magical light came into view.

Its superior quality and large quantity surprised even the most knowledgeable duke's son in the room.

"In recognition of your contributions on the battlefield, I have brought a total of 141 magical artifacts, including one legendary magical artifact, ten secret magical artifacts, thirty rare magical artifacts, and one hundred restricted magical artifacts, to be presented to you as a reward."

"I will then arrange for personnel to distribute the rewards based on each hero's contribution to this battle, ensuring that no one is missed."

After a slight pause, Alafia bowed again amidst the fervent gazes of the crowd, and spoke in an elegant yet earnest tone:

"I hope these magical artifacts will be of assistance to you all on the battlefield in the future, and will bring you even more brilliant military achievements!"

"Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness Princess Alafia!"

Upon hearing that Princess Elafia, the First Princess, had come in person to express her gratitude and even brought a large number of high-grade magical artifacts that they would never normally have access to as a reward, the soldiers responded excitedly.

Although the imperial nobles and high-ranking officials who were not among those receiving the rewards felt envious and jealous, they did not say anything.

As if taking these people's thoughts into account, after announcing the extra reward, Ailafiya immediately changed the subject, smiling gently at the envious crowd and saying:
"Of course, those imperial core members who are not included in this reward should not be discouraged, because I also believe that in the near future, you will all be able to become outstanding imperial warriors and win the glory of your respective families in the trials of the battlefield." "At that time, as the First Princess, I will also give you the corresponding proof of your merits."

"Finally, may the glory of the empire be with all of you heroes, and with all of you future heroes present here!"

"May the glory of the Empire be with you, Your Highness Princess Elafia!!!"

As Alafia's encouraging words fell, the entire banquet hall was immediately filled with enthusiastic responses.

After seeing that her mission to award rewards had come to a successful conclusion, Elafia didn't say much. Instead, she smiled and gestured for the guards to distribute the rewards to everyone in turn.

However, when it came time to award the last legendary magical artifact, Elafia dismissed the guards and picked it up herself.

The necklace, made of the bones of an unknown and powerful magical beast strung together, with each bone engraved with numerous ancient magical runes, and inlaid in the center, is a strange crystal necklace that is entirely ice-blue, but upon closer inspection, one can see that it contains a large number of rays of light, like those emitted by a shooting star.

Amidst envious and jealous gazes from the crowd, this legendary magical artifact, named 'Star Phantom,' was revealed. When its wielder faces a mortal crisis, it can teleport the wielder to a distance of 500 meters in the opposite direction of the attack, generating hundreds of phantoms that can mimic the wielder's aura. These phantoms can also perform retreat or feint attacks based on the wielder's will. In its inactive state, it can continuously cast a mind-clearing spell on the wielder by collecting magical energy from the air, and it can also slightly increase the wielder's maximum magical energy at night.

He personally tiptoed and placed it around John's neck.

However, John, who was tense all over and even subconsciously activated his magic eyes and analysis to try to resist the charm contract power of the other party, did not expect that...

When Alafia personally put the necklace on him, she did not use her unique spell to initiate a charm contract with him as he had expected.

Instead, in a volume only the two of them could hear, they whispered something in his ear that made his pupils constrict:

"John, I've fulfilled my initial conditions, so you'd better remember our agreement quickly, or I'll get angry!"

"And if I get angry, the consequences can be quite, quite serious!"

"I will await your reply at Mirror Spring Manor. I hope you won't disappoint me~"

"My dear brother Johann von Maslow~"

Agreement?

This……

John was taken aback upon hearing this.

Before he could even ask what the so-called agreement was all about, Alafia, seemingly anticipating John's questions, proactively distanced herself and gave John a slight smile.

She then bowed to everyone before leading her guards out of the banquet hall.

However, before completely leaving the banquet hall, John saw a meaningful glint in the eyes of the mysterious Rose Witch through his magic eyes.

So, how much of the original owner's past experiences are still unknown to him?
It can't be that the Rose Witch deliberately sent this guy to the Allied forces, right?

But wouldn't his time travel have disrupted everything?

"But this was never mentioned in the key plot points, so what's going on?"

Feeling the magical energy surging into his body from the legendary magical artifact called 'Star Illusion' around his neck, John frowned slightly. Without hesitation, he put the necklace, which he didn't know if it had been enchanted, back into the gift box.

At the same time, he made up his mind that after completing the family crest design tomorrow and giving his subordinates leave to visit their families, he must go to the Third Imperial Orphanage as soon as possible to try to retrieve his memories.

Otherwise, the frequent occurrence of such unexpected events made him feel quite uneasy.

Especially in situations where one is suspected of having made a deal with an extremely dangerous entity, but is completely unaware of it.

It's undoubtedly like dancing on a knife's edge.

"..."

Under the lamplight, as John watched the direction Alafia had gone, his eyes gradually became deep and dark.

……

After Alafia left, the celebratory dinner came to a close.

After exchanging brief pleasantries with a group of reformist nobles and becoming acquainted with them, John, who had a lot on his mind, didn't linger in the banquet hall. Instead, he called over Serbia and the others, who had been sitting there for a while and were getting impatient, and they planned to go to the hotel to rest together.

However, because Leia has a manor in Eleno and has expressed her wish to go home to see her long-lost maid, she agreed to stay.

So John didn't insist that the other person come along. Instead, he generously gave the other person an early leave so that they could go home and visit their family without worry.

Therefore, the only four people who went to the hotel together were John, Serbia, Carrie, and Wendy.

"I understand the logic, but why do you all want to sit in my car? Don't you find it cramped?"

In the back seat of the black sedan, he saw Serbia on his left, legs crossed, who for some reason never looked at him directly, but instead kept his face turned to the window with an expression as black as the bottom of a pot. On his right was Wendy, the pig-headed squad leader, who pretended to admire the scenery outside the window, but actually kept glancing in his direction.

And there was Carrie, sitting upright in the passenger seat, but because she was too tall, her head was touching the roof of the car, so she had to droop her head down and looked particularly uncomfortable.

John, caught in the middle, felt somewhat bewildered.

Before he could even frown and ask what kind of trouble these people were up to, Serbia, who had been silent since getting on the bus, spoke up, and his words were laced with a strong sense of sarcasm:

"Tsk tsk tsk, John Maslow, you're really something! You managed to keep the fact that you and the First Princess were childhood sweethearts a secret from everyone. You're really something!"

As if getting angrier the more he thought about it, Serbia couldn't help but clench his fists unconsciously, wishing he could punch this bastard who was already engaged but was still having affairs outside.

But considering that his punch might actually kill his opponent, Serbia suppressed his anger and instead stared coldly at John, saying:

"John Maslow, how many things are you still hiding from us? What exactly is this so-called modification experiment that the First Princess mentioned?"

"It was just a routine forbidden experiment. As a survivor of the experiment, you should know about those experiences, so there's nothing to say about it."

"Furthermore, Serbia, I think you're overthinking things. Although I've forgotten many things, whether from the perspective of our identities or from my personal feelings, I don't believe there's any special relationship between me and Princess Alafia."

"At most, they're just friends I haven't seen in years."

"Hehe, do you think I believe it or not?"

"..."

Looking at the sneer on Serbia's face, John couldn't help but frown slightly, feeling frustrated.

He really couldn't understand what kind of trouble his ally was up to.

What's with this resentful wife who seems to have discovered her husband's affair, and who speaks as if her jealousy has been overturned, with the sourness almost becoming a tangible thing?

Why do I feel like I'm the one who cheated?
"That's absolutely outrageous!"

John couldn't help but sigh. His head was already throbbing with pain from constantly searching through his memories, trying to find the so-called agreement that Alafia had mentioned, but to no avail.

At this moment, his headache suddenly became even more intense, almost unbearable.

So after a brief moment of thought, he decided that rather than trying to appease the Red Dragon Queen, who was caught up in her emotions and wouldn't listen to anything he said, he should stop trying.

It's better to stop torturing yourself, give the other person some time to calm down, and then have a good heart-to-heart talk with them after you've figured things out. That way, the matter can be resolved satisfactorily.

Thinking of this, John suddenly understood. He stopped paying attention to the death stare from Serbia and turned his gaze to Wendy, who was peeking at him as if watching a good show. Wendy had somehow taken out a bunch of jerky and was eating it noisily.

The veins on his forehead immediately began to throb uncontrollably.

However, considering the cramped space inside the car and the fact that he was sandwiched between the two men, rashly using his ruthless iron hand on the pig-headed squad leader might result in hitting the wrong parts due to the excessive force.

Ultimately, he was elbowed and sent flying out of the car by the enraged Serbian.

So John suppressed his intention to teach the pig-headed squad leader a lesson and instead spoke to Wendy with a forced smile:

"My dear Major Wendy, what is your reason for wanting to ride in the same car with me? Can you give me an explanation?"

"Reporting, Captain, I came here to protect your safety. I absolutely did not want to see you being insulted by the Serbian general, nor did I want to have some fun!"

Upon sensing John looking at her, Wendy quickly hid the snacks in her hand and spoke up.

Then, seemingly afraid that John would notice the traces of the snacks she had eaten while watching the play, she belatedly raised her hand and wiped the bits of meat from the corner of her mouth, amidst John's dark expression.

Then he grinned at John, giving him an awkward but polite smile.

You bastard, I haven't even asked you anything yet, and you've already confessed!
Wendy Brown, you must have been my creditor in your past life, otherwise I really can't understand why fate would send you to my side to punish me like this!
Hearing Wendy's sarcastic remark, John felt as if he had been shot in the knee, and he almost coughed up blood.

As he struggled helplessly between the oppressive atmosphere on his left, which seemed like a volcano about to erupt, and the mocking gaze on his right, which seemed to be watching the show with a silly grin, he found himself caught between two completely different, yet ultimately the same, hellish situations.

The next second, Carrie's weak voice slowly entered his ears:

“Um, Commander John, I really only chose to ride with you to protect your safety. I didn’t mean anything by it. I can swear to you in the name of Silver Moon. Please don’t misunderstand.”

"...Lieutenant General Carrie, could you please shut up? I need some peace and quiet. Thank you for your cooperation, I am very grateful."

"Yes, sir!"

Amid Carrie's wounded gaze, John's utterly dejected expression caught in the middle, Serbia's increasingly gloomy stare, and Major Wendy's excitedly munching on various snacks, the black sedan, carrying more passengers than the standard capacity, sped through the street in the chilly autumn wind and disappeared at the end of the road in the blink of an eye.

"Whoosh!"

……

(End of this chapter)