Chapter 402: Determination
The frivolous thought flashed briefly through Lyra’s mind. When she looked up again, Amalia was sitting obediently, her long, jet-black hair cascading beside her calves. Combined with her naturally petite frame, she exuded a uniquely soft, harmless fragility, only seen in the sweetest of little girls.
Maybe she had misjudged things. After all, Princess Amalia had always been fond of clinging to her sister. Staying close a little longer was only natural.
After arranging the game pieces, Lyra sat upright, hugging her knees. The soft bed dipped slightly under her weight, but the gentle indentation didn’t disrupt the connected game board.
"Everyone placed? Then I’ll roll the dice."
Feeling a warm touch at her ankle, Astrid lifted down and saw her younger sister. She gently patted Amalia’s head, then picked up the prepared oak dice.
"Same rules as always..."
This was a rule carried over from their previous games of "Landlord." Starting from Astrid, they will count clockwise. The roll of the dice determines the turn order.
Just as they were seated now: Astrid was 1, Amalia to her left was 2, and Lyra and Elise were 3 and 4 respectively. The number shown on the dice indicates which player will start. Rolling a 5 or 6 means a re-roll, until one of the numbers 1– 4 appears.
The oak dice settled, facing up with a clear 2. Amalia, true to her consistent luck in Landlord, would go first.
Taking the wooden dice from her sister, Amalia touched at the map tiles and casually tossed it. The oak dice arced through the air and landed neatly on the board.
"Six."
After confirming the number, Amalia picked up her wooden token and, with elegant precision, placed it at the farthest single-step marker from the starting point.
"Purchase land, then end my turn."
She handed over the game currency to the imaginary king. An empty plot of land now bore Amalia’s ownership mark.
The next player to act is Lyra.
Picking up the dice, feeling the weight of the oak in her hand, the pink-haired girl gently rolled it. After a brief spin, the number on top settled at six.
Another long-distance journey. But this token’s fate diverged sharply from the previous traveler’s. Lyra couldn’t gain anything, instead, she had to pay a toll to the land’s owner, Amalia.
"Ah..."
Having to pay money on her very first move, Lyra fluttered her eyelashes, realizing today might not be her lucky day. Her pale, delicate toes instinctively tugged at the tip of her white socks as she sobbed softly, then took two wooden coins from an adjacent empty slot and handed them to Amalia.
This was the advantage of going first. Even with the same roll, the earlier player gained the upper hand, making it easier to snowball ahead.
Many things in life work the same way.
’I hope my next roll surpasses Princess Amalia’s.’
Lyra lifted at her dwindling pile of wooden coins and silently prayed.
............
One game ended. Victory did not go to Amalia, who had seized an early advantage, but to Astrid, who had advanced steadily and claimed the win.
"Lucky. Amalia almost overtook me."
Astrid gently pinched the black-haired girl’s cheek in consolation, then reset the board. Her eyes casually flicked toward the wall clock.
They had spent over an hour on a single game of Landlord. It was nearly four now.
During the break, Elise had the maids prepare afternoon tea. After drinking tea, they played another round, and this time, Amalia, who had lost the previous game, emerged as the final victor.
Astrid turned her gaze, noticing the snow still falling outside. Night had fallen, and beyond the chambers, only a few faint yellow lights swayed in the darkness.
With this heavy snow, going to the dining hall will be inconvenient. And by now, changing into more elaborate noble attire just for dinner seemed overly troublesome.
"Elise, let’s just have some light snacks and sweets here in the chambers tonight."
Having spoken, Astrid changed at Lyra. The latter caught her gaze, understanding that Astrid was asking for her opinion. She moistened her lips and replied.
"I’m fine with anything."
Truthfully, skipping dinner wouldn’t matter much. Lately, Lyra had noticed her legs felt slightly thicker, clearly noticeable when wearing thigh-high socks. While it didn’t affect her overall appearance, she was still worried about it. Like many girls at this age, she was anxious and sensitive, afraid that if she gained weight, she’d no longer be pretty, so she never dared to eat too much.
Astrid nodded upon hearing this, then gave instructions to the head maid. A while later, Elise wheeled a food cart into the bedroom. After dinner, they returned to their Landlord adventure.
Unaware, the moon climbs above the treetops. Outside, the heavy snow continued to fall. The cold night wind rattled the bedroom window with faint sounds, but these were quickly drowned out by the spinning of wooden dice, merely becoming another layer of background noise beneath the warm glow of lamplight.
Lyra couldn’t recall how many games of Landlord they had played, wins and losses, back and forth. The only thing she clearly remembered was Astrid’s refined, beautiful face in the warm light.
Outside, snow fell endlessly. Inside the room, familiar people, delicious pastries, cozy warmth, good tea, and a board game they could never tire of.
It feels just like childhood New Year celebrations. She lay in bed, listening to the elders downstairs chatting about the year’s harvest. The dim light, the faint scent of malt fills the air. Within reach: soft bedding, pillows, and blankets warmed by body heat, snug against the wall.
This feeling was truly wonderful... She wished it could last forever...
Endlessly.
"Lyra?"
A clear female voice snaps Lyra from her thoughts. Her eyes refocused, looking at the oak dice before her. She quickly grasped the situation.
The map tiles in front of her were filled with plots marked by Elise and Amalia. Meanwhile, Lyra’s wooden coins were nearly depleted. Her only hope lies in rolling a five on her next turn, the border zone between two properties, where she could draw an event card that might save her or allow her to barely survive.
She looked up at Astrid once more, then gently rolled the wooden dice, silently praying for a five.
Not because she wanted to win, but simply to prolong this warm atmosphere a little longer.
In the end, as if a goddess of luck truly heard her prayer, the dice stopped on the number five. The little knight with the slender wooden sword, guided by her fingers, stepped across mountains and rivers, finally reaching the plain marked with a "?".
Event Card: The Favor of the Light God. Next time passing the starting point, receive double reward.
It didn’t solve Lyra’s immediate financial crisis, neither good nor bad. But at least it extends the game’s duration.
On the next roll, Astrid was certain to step onto her land.
Lyra breathed a slight sigh of relief, her fingers lightly poking the soft flesh of her calf. Her sky-blue pupils reflected fragmented glimmers of light.
Even if Lyra didn’t want the game to end, two turns later, the winner was decided. Amalia surged ahead with absolute dominance and claimed final victory.
At the same time, the wall clock’s hour hand points to eleven.
It was already late. Continuing will certainly affect tomorrow’s schedule.
Elise, who always paid close attention to the Third Princess’s routines, reminded Astrid that it was getting late. Astrid nodded in response, saying the Landlord games for today would end here.
As she tidied the board, she urged Elise to go to the washroom and turn on the magic-powered heating vent to prevent Amalia from catching a cold.
"Amalia, you go bathe first."
The black-haired girl nodded gently, then softly stepped off the bed. Her smooth, silk-covered feet padded in slippers toward the washroom.
Elise went to prepare a mild calming tea, Amalia headed off to wash up, suddenly, the lively room was left with only Astrid and Lyra.
Astrid brushed her hair aside, her mental energy stimulated spreading as she adjusted the indoor fire-elemental crystal’s heat dispersion to better suit sleep, ensuring neither she nor Amalia would wake up the next day feeling stuffy and dry-mouthed.
"I wonder when we’ll get to play this again."
Landlord was fun, yes, but it consumed too much time. Without noting, half an afternoon and the entire evening had slipped away.
Still, these traits make it perfectly suited for idle noble ladies, offering both social interaction and excellent time-killing.
Tomorrow, she’d commission artisans to craft several more figure pieces from crystal and test them. If suitable, she’d add gold-embossed text and gemstone borders to the cards. Might even turn a small profit.
Unaware that Astrid had already shifted her thoughts toward business, Lyra gave a slight nod and softly replied.
"Indeed."
For the empire’s princess, deeply invested in expanding her influence and making money, leisure time was scarce. Busyness was her norm.
Her pale fingertips lightly touched the dark black straps, adjusting the snug-fitting nightgown. Astrid turned her gaze and noticed Lyra still hadn’t moved to leave. She spoke slowly.
"What is it, Lyra?"
"Aren’t you going to rest?"
Facing the graceful, silvery-haired girl with a gentle aura, Lyra clenched her palm, remained silent for a long moment, then spoke.
"Astrid..."
"Tomorrow, I want to go to Elizabeth Academy of Magic."
Hearing this, Astrid paused, then narrowed her crimson eyes and softly parted her pink lips.
"Even if it’s still snowing tomorrow, you’ll go?"
Lyra hesitated for a few seconds, then answered quietly.
"Yes."
Seeing Lyra’s determined attitude, Astrid roughly guessed why she wanted to go to the academy. Her finger gently touched her lips.
"Lyra, do you intend to complete every single requirement?"
Lyra didn’t deny it, her fingers lightly rubbed a loose thread on her sweater.
Once she enrolled, she will have to follow the academy’s requirements, starting next semester, traveling to Duke Charles’ territory for at least six months of practical training.
This trip meant she wouldn’t return to the capital for at least seven or eight months. If border conditions worsened and war broke out between the two nations, being stranded for over a year wasn’t impossible.
Half a minute later, she spoke softly.
"Yes, Astrid."
"..."
The crisp voice echoed in the room, simple and direct. Yet Astrid could feel the weight behind those words.
After a long pause, Astrid parted her lips.
"If you’ve truly decided, I’ll accompany you tomorrow."
Her own graduation arrangements hadn’t been submitted to the academy yet, although she had long made her decision.
"But..."
Astrid asked. "Why?"
Lyra now holds a respectable social status and ample wealth to ensure her family’s comfort. In this timeline, she seems to have had no compelling reason to go to the frontier.
Hearing Astrid’s question, Lyra opened back at the window. Frost covered the transparent glass, reflecting their blurred faces.
"Because... I want everything to continue..." Lyra folded her hands, answering softly.
Whether it was today’s game of Landlord, or every little moment she had shared with Astrid in the past, these memories filled with beauty, she wanted to create many more.
"Astrid, I’ve been stuck at the middle tier Magnus level for a long time..."
In the past, the Lyra who viewed becoming a peak tier Sorcerer as her ultimate life goal might not have felt anxious or uneasy about her stalled progress. After all, high-tier power was more than enough to secure a worry-free life for herself and her family.
But now, Lyra had far more to consider.
"Earlier, I heard Miss Elise say that her rapid mental power growth was due to long exposure to dangerous environments, pushing her potential through life-or-death battles with enemies."
"Perhaps, stepping onto that cold land and experiencing the army’s grim atmosphere will aid my advancement."
There was another reason Lyra didn’t say: if war broke out at the border, she might try to follow Elise’s old path, honing herself through successive battles, hurriedly the iteration of her mental power.
The only issue was, this path carries immense risk. Even as a middle tier Magnus, already nearly top-tier combat strength within the army, it was dangerous.
Astrid’s brows tightened slightly. She crossed her arms, her back of the hand instinctively touched her chin.
"That would be too dangerous."
Precisely because she knew the journey was perilous, Astrid had previously given Lyra a relatively neutral opinion when this topic arose.
She wanted Lyra to grow, but not through such exceptionally risky means.
"I know, Astrid."
Lyra shifted her gaze from the window, her blue eyes lowered to the blanket before her.
"But... Astrid, aren’t you also doing dangerous things?"
Whether it was resisting pressure from Hibbort and the imperial princes to forcefully elevate Princess Amalia, or standing against numerous conservatives as a non-dynastic princess relying on the emperor’s favor, Astrid’s position had always been precarious.
Lyra wanted to do something, even if it was just a small act, a mere drop in the bucket.