Her Graceful War Song

Back to me-Violet-again, and I had to complain a little.

About my husband, Isaac Prince, of course.

Heavens help me, but that man truly had a talent for being infuriating!

Before our marriage, we had come to an agreement. In the future, whatever I chose to do, he would not interfere, would not advise, and most certainly would not involve himself.

Well, it had only been a year since our wedding, and that agreement had already gone out the window. Now, he insisted on doing everything with me.

But could he even be part of the work I did? Of course not.

The Pathfinders Guild had strict rules, and there was even a rather fearsome man -Sage Everett-keeping watch. If they ever discovered I had taken Isaac with me to personally punish people in my own way... Wouldn't they grind my bones to dust?

Yet, Isaac claimed he was a man of the martial arts world, and that in such a world, one settled debts of gratitude and grudges alike. And yes, that included other people's grudges too. He argued that if we kept everything well hidden, the guild would never find out.

Had my dear husband forgotten he was in the Ministry of Defense now? And that he was a proper official? How could he still speak of settling grudges like some wandering hero?

The things I did I hadn't even told Cari all of it. And if she had guessed anything, she chose to turn a blind eye. It was a matter of roles, understand? Our positions didn't allow for such entanglements.

I wasn't an official, nor did I serve the court. I only did what I wished to do, and whatever consequences came of it, I bore alone.

Over the years, I had offered the Royal Citadel no small number of clues and pieces of evidence. As for cases with no evidence, I would use my own methods to force out the details of the crime. If the details matched, there was basically no chance of wrongful accusations.

Of course, Claire helped with the investigations. If it had been left to me alone, I would never have uncovered so much. But that was the extent of Claire's help. Everything else, I did myself.

Isaac and Cari-by their very identities-belonged in the light. I, however, could only move in the shadows.

I didn't know if there could be a middle ground between black and white. However, the law could only punish those caught and proven guilty. What about the rest? Should they just wait for retribution?

In that case, I would be their retribution.

I was happy that Isaac agreed with my view, but when he insisted on joining me in action, I was far from pleased.

He gave the rather charming excuse that if a wife took the lead, then naturally, the husband had to follow. Besides, he said that he only developed weapons in the Ministry of Defense. By day, he was part of the armory division; by night, he was simply Isaac. And what he chose to do at night, the people in the Ministry of Defense need not know.noveldrama

I argued with him for a long while, but could not out-talk him or out-stubborn him. In the end, I gave in and let him come along.

Of course, I made him agree to one thing first. He had to follow my orders without question, and under no circumstances was he to challenge my authority or try to take control.

And so, it seemed we had come to walk the same path.

To think, when we first met, the idea of us ending up together was truly absurd.

When I married him, many laughed and teased, "Didn't you say you'd never marry? And now here you are, a bride!"

Everyone believed I was thoroughly against the idea of marriage—that I hated it from the bottom of my heart.

But that wasn't true.

As a child, I had attended many weddings. Everything, from the joyful scenes and lively music to the bride in her fine robes and splendid headpiece, had filled me with wonder.

Yes, I had once dreamed of it too.

Back then, I paid no mind to gossip. Even if I heard it, I never thought it had anything to do with me or the Spencer family. But as I grew older, I began to understand. The woman they whispered about-the shameless creature who ran away with a man-was Liana, amember of the Spencer family.

I began to see the scorn on their faces and understand what it meant. If it had only been the adults, I might have endured it. But even the children I played with repeated those cruel words.

How could I bear it?

I didn't yet know how to tell right from wrong, but I knew what it felt like to be

bullied. However, there was nothing that couldn't be solved by beating the other person into submission.

I was fierce, unafraid of pain,

reckless even, and I struck hard.

Before long, they no longer dared lay

a hand on me. Instead, they used

what they thought were the Cruelest words to cut me down.

They said I would never marry, and that no one would ever want me. They said that I had a shameless aunt and was an evil woman myself. No one would want to marry a woman like me, and even if they did, they would probably beat me to

death once I was married

I would stand with hands on my hips and shout back at them with all my might: "Then, I shan't marry! Not ever! In fact, I'll go learn martial arts and come back to beat you to death!"

Of course, I suppose that vow couldn't count.

For to keep it, I would have to stay unmarried and beat them all to death.

So, for the sake of their lives, I had no choice but to marry.

Yes, that was the reason.