AN: I decided to split the chapter again, so this is going to be followed up by "Thawing Ice III". I really have no idea how I ever thought these events could all fit in one chapter.


Wilmarina was standing on the roof of one of Castle Salvarision's towers. More specifically, she was standing on one leg while tracing out circles with the other, and she had her eyes closed. This would be a difficult exercise for most people at ground-level, nigh-impossible when in such a windy location.

For Wilmarina, it was a basic exercise that helped her order her thoughts.

A lilim is leading an army of monsters towards Lescatie… Even if I were to do my proper duty and inform everyone, we may not prevail. No lilim has ever been defeated in recorded history. And with the current state of Lescatie, we certainly won't be able to break that trend.

For almost a decade, Wilmarina had known about how much of Lescatie's leadership flouted the Order's principles. They didn't yet consort with monsters, but that was virtually the only principle they held to. And because they were so ruled by personal desires, they might—no, would easily fall for the temptations of monsters.

But she'd overlooked it. She'd acted just as an ideal hero of Lescatie should, namely by focusing her hostilities on the external threat of monsters. Internally, she'd just put on a fake smile to inspire the people. An important duty, perhaps… but looking at it now, Wilmarina realised she'd been doing far too little.

The defences of Lescatie aren't receiving the funding they need… and even the knight orders, who are well-funded, are too disorganised.

If Wilmarina were to mention this to others, they'd assume she was talking about the solitary actions of heroes like Mimil or Primera. Some might even assume she was talking about Sasha, the hero who snubbed proper company to manage a ruined church in the slums. But in truth, Wilmarina was worried about the endless competition among the "proper" knight orders of Lescatie: groups of knights and heroes that were each led by a skilled hero.

Officially, all of the knight orders are unified in the purpose of serving the Chief God and opposing the monsters. Unofficially… we're tools to demonstrate the power of the noble faction we're associated with. And those factions are constantly jockeying to increase their power at the expense of others, forcing us to dance to their whims...

There was a good example from eight months ago. Wilmarina had led the Order of the Holy Ice Flower out on a mission to take back land from the monsters, accompanied by two other knight orders: the Order of the Ever-Keen Blade and the Order of the Dawn. But when they planned the decisive battle, all three orders had argued over their placement in the battle, as all wanted the glory of slaying the enemy leader. The argument had lasted for more than three hours. To Wilmarina's shame even now, some of her subordinates had joined in the argument.

It's absurd that we must act like bickering children instead of the Chief God's chosen warriors. And that's not all…

Still keeping her eyes closed, Wilmarina switched from standing on her right leg to standing on her left. The wind howled, yet she didn't lose her balance in the slightest.

Sometimes, we've been sent on diplomatic missions to our neighbouring countries. Officially, as a show of human solidarity. But it's hard to miss how these missions always ended with our neighbours donating more coin and supplies to Lescatie. True, Lescatie is a military country that needs support from others to maintain its army… but far too much of that support is used to throw lavish parties, and fill already-bursting vaults.

Such thoughts were the height of blasphemy in Lescatie. Even someone as high-ranking as Wilmarina would be punished if she said them out loud.

But I know… I know that Lescatie doesn't truly care about protecting humanity, but about self-indulgence, about personal advancement, to the point that even murder of the lower classes is permitted. If we are to stand any chance against a lilim, that must change.

Wilmarina put both feet on the floor, opened her eyes and drew her sword: a blade of silvery metal attached to a hilt shaped like a golden cross. Though relatively simple in design, this was the Magic Sword Orufoyu once used by the founder and first king of Lescatie. Traditionally, it had been passed down within the royal family of Lescatie, but a year ago it had been bestowed upon Wilmarina… another example of her family's out-sized influence.

This sword could likely cut through a dragon's hide, but it won't help me at all for what I plan to do…. Though that's actually fitting. If I want to combat the corruption of Lescatie, I can't use something I received due to that very same corruption.

Wilmarina sheathed Orufoyu again.

But the question remains: what goal should I aim for? What sort of society do I want Lescatie to have? It's easy to say that I don't want a repeat of Elt's parents, but what can I realistically achieve?

The first thing that came to mind was to look at Lescatie's neighbours, Seren and Amalos, for inspiration. Geographical proximity meant that these two countries were also close to Lescatie in history, culture and other aspects. Wilmarina hadn't seen much of them, but at the very least she hadn't noticed any problems as severe as Lescatie's.

For one thing, there's… Karl's family.

Wilmarina was the only heir to House Noscrim's main line, but there were also branch families outside of Lescatie. She'd had the chance to visit one of these branches during a diplomatic mission to Seren, and in this visit she'd met her first cousin Karl. She could still remember how nervous he'd been throughout her entire visit. But she could also remember how kind he and the rest of the family had been to their servants, to an extent that would be considered uncouth in Lescatie.

Even when I eavesdropped on the servants' gossip, they didn't have a bad word to say about their employers, nor of any other nobles who'd visited… I just wish I hadn't also overheard them gossiping about Karl's secret relationship with a maid. At the time, that stirred up uncomfortable memories.

Though I never got to actually see the maid in question. Did Karl ask her to stay hidden because he feared my disapproval?

Wilmarina couldn't base her reforms solely off her… desire to emulate her cousin's relationship. She quickly forced her thoughts into a different track.

To make any significant changes, it would be necessary to change the ingrained values in Lescatian society. For example, by making it so that constant parties are seen as frivolous while fighting monsters is seen as praiseworthy. That would take time, time we don't have.

But… right now, I can at least try to bring down the worst individuals, leaving openings to fill

Wilmarina came to a decision. She jumped off the tower, hurtled downwards for several seconds, then landed on a roof and began moving south.

-ooo-

Her first destination was the Noscrim Manor in the capital of Lescatie. This was a magnificent three-storey building near the very centre of Lescatie. In recent years, Wilmarina had rarely been here as her usual residence was Castle Salvarision. There were too many painful memories in this building… but she had no choice but to return here to obtain what she needed.

The manor was surrounded by a high outer wall with a single gate of golden bars being the sole entrance. Two guards in plate armour stood on either side of the gate, and they jumped to attention as Wilmarina approached.

"Lady Wilmarina!" one guard exclaimed. "What brings you—if I may ask, what brings you here?"

"I was hoping to meet my father, is he here at the moment?" Wilmarina said.

While she already knew the answer to this question, it was important that other people heard Wilmarina ask about her father's whereabouts.

"Sun Priest Noscrim? He's currently at a meeting of the Senate," the other guard explained.

"Hmm, then I'll just have to wait inside until he returns," Wilmarina said.

The guards opened the gate, then Wilmarina stepped through and made her way into the manor proper.

Within the manor were crystal chandeliers, marble floors, blue carpets of the finest wool, antique furniture, portraits of Noscrim ancestors—overall, a scene of luxury that wouldn't lose to anything in Salvarision.

Wilmarina ignored all of this as she made her way through the manor. She passed by numerous surprised servants, nodding politely as she did so. To the first few servants, she gave orders to not disturb her, since she wished to relax for the time being. Finally, she arrived at the room used for entertaining guests.

There have been some renovations, but fundamentally, it's the same as it always was… Wilmarina thought, looking around at the mahogany table and soft couches, at the glass cabinets filled with rare vintages of wine.

As a young child, Wilmarina had marvelled at the high-class guests whom her father met in this room. She'd thought they were discussing matters of grave importance for Lescatie. But after the expulsion of Elt's family, she'd discovered the truth: it was a private place for her father and his guests to drink and laugh about their crimes.

But… now it's convenient for me.

Wilmarina took off her boots, lay down on a couch, took out a hip-flask and drank some of the water within. If anyone was spying on her now, they'd just assume she was relaxing in this guest room.

Then Wilmarina allowed one of her arms to hang down near the bottom of the couch. She pressed a small, button-shaped object there, where it remained in place.

Wilmarina continued lying on the couch for several minutes, simply listening to the sounds of the manor's inhabitants. Eventually, she got back to her feet, picked up her boots in one hand and left the room.

I'm not sure when Father will use this room next. Hopefully it won't be too long before I can record one or more of his meetings.

Heroes were often thought to challenge monsters head-on without preparation, but that was a fallacy. Any halfway-competent hero knew the importance of information. They thus made use of magic tools to gather information on their enemies, such as the sound recorder Wilmarina had planted in the guest room.

While useful, this won't be enough on its own. So…

Wilmarina hadn't remained in the guest room purely to disguise her actions. She'd also used that time to listen to the servants' movements, building up a mental map of their locations.

This was an idea Wilmarina had conceived of thanks to Elt's advice. According to him, servants wouldn't seek out their master if given orders to not disturb them, not unless there was an emergency. Furthermore, if they didn't see their master for a while, they'd just assume the master must be in some other part of the building. Taking these things into account, a careful and quick master could move around stealthily even in a manor full of servants.

There's an open path to Father's study… if I go to the south wing, head up the stairs, turn left and…

Once she'd plotted out her route, Wilmarina began running. Her earlier removal of her boots was to minimise the sound of her footsteps. Thanks to the agility of a hero, she avoided all the servants and reached the door of her father's study.

Wilmarina reached out to the doorknob hesitantly. While she could sense no security spells from it, the mere sound of a creaking door would ruin this part of the plan.

Fortunately, the door opened smoothly. Presumably, her father was like most people in that he wanted to minimise any problems with a room he used often.

Wilmarina stepped inside and shut the door behind her. She looked around to see a table, a chair and a locked chest. The desk had a quill, an inkpot and a magical lamp on it, but she dared not light the lamp. The dim light from underneath the door was enough for her to see by.

Alright. There's no turning back now…

Breaking open the chest wasn't an option, both because it would leave evidence and because Wilmarina could sense an alarm spell on the chest that would be triggered by any damage. Fortunately, a few years ago Wilmarina had seen her father holding what was presumably the key to this chest. Said key was coated in brown paint… the exact same colour as the table.

Wilmarina carefully ran her hands along every surface of the table. Though nervous, she avoided rushing the search since that might create noise.

I have time… the servants definitely won't enter Father's study, he never even allowed them in to clean except when he was present to watch.

After a few minutes of searching, Wilmarina found the key inside a cavity of the same shape in a table leg. It was very cleverly hidden so it wouldn't stand out. A normal burglar might not have found it even if they had bright light to see by.

With the key in hand, Wilmarina opened the chest. The interior was partitioned into five parts by thin wooden panels, each marked with a different label. One vice Father could never be accused of was untidiness. The five parts were all filled with paper.

One by one, Wilmarina pulled out each sheet of paper, skimmed through the contents and put it back in the same position as before.

...I had some idea of his dealings, but… this is unbelievable.

While only a small fraction of the papers was about illegal activities, that still meant dozens of crimes spanning decades. Most of it was blackmail material on various nobles—records of their own embarrassing or outright illegal actions—which went a long way to explaining House Noscrim's extraordinary influence in Lescatie. There were also letters between Father and his political allies… though "co-conspirators" might have been a better term.

"You were right, Noscrim. There was a rat just where you said one would be. I've now dealt with him, so our usual business can continue unhindered" ...this writing, it reminds me of Earl Bluefern, who helps oversee the delivery of goods into Lescatie… Could this "usual business" be embezzlement? Or smuggling?

And all this is merely what Father personally deals with, and has records of. There might be more records that he's now destroyed, or he might have activities never committed to paper…

Wilmarina took several deep breaths to calm herself.

I can't take too many of these records without potentially alerting Father. Nor can I take the most recent ones, the ones he's most likely to refer to.

After careful consideration, Wilmarina chose and removed ten sheets of paper. She carefully folded these up and stuffed them into a pocket.

Finally, Wilmarina shut and locked the chest, returned the key to its hiding place, and left the study. She made her way to an empty room to put her boots back on, then left and began walking normally through the manor.

I can't believe this was so easy… but then again, I only succeeded thanks to being a hero, being allowed to walk through the front door and having inside knowledge of Father's activities. The only person in all of Lescatie to fit those criteria is myself. And I've served Father loyally for the past eight years, so he has no reason to suspect me…

At that moment, Wilmarina remembered her father teaching her about the Order, about the importance of protecting humanity. She remembered him seeking out the finest tutors and instructors for her, and nodding proudly whenever she achieved something extraordinary.

Beyond her family, there was also the fact that a Lescatie in turmoil would also be more vulnerable to monsters, at least temporarily. Indeed, Druella must have been hoping for this when she made contact with Elt, who in turn could influence several of Lescatie's heroes.

It wasn't too late. Wilmarina could still put back the papers and retrieve the sound recorder.

But… I can't stop now. I can't, anymore than I could… sacrifice Elt.

For if Wilmarina did her proper duty, that was what would inevitably happen to her childhood friend. Being executed at once would be his kindest fate. And she couldn't bring herself to hurt him even more than she already had.

Then there's Fran… It's thanks to Father that Elt and I can no longer meet her. And while Elt at least has friends now… I'm not sure about Fran.

When Father had fired Elt's family, he'd also forbidden any further visits from Wilmarina to the isolated fourth princess. Since then, Wilmarina had only seen Francisca once, during a fancy dinner held at the royal castle. And that reunion had simply been painful for both of them, with Wilmarina keeping up her usual mask even as she saw the anguish on Francisca's face.

Her older sisters are often talked about, yet I've never heard any discussion of her… not even as someone to pity.

That, too, is something that must change.

Lescatie had to change. If that meant lighting it on fire, even as monsters approached… she would have to take the risk.

-ooo-

An hour later, Wilmarina's father arrived. Wilmarina waited at the front door to greet him.

"Welcome home, Father."

"Wilmarina? It's rare for you to come here…"

Warran Noscrim, current head of House Noscrim, was a man in his early forties, with short blue hair beginning to grey, blue eyes, and a solid build that was more muscle than fat—he'd fought on the frontlines during his youth, and even now worked to stay in shape. He was dressed in a long yellow cassock with a matching cap, signifying his title as the sole Sun Priest of Lescatie… and in a theocracy, that gave him power equalling or exceeding most actual nobles.

"Lately, Father, I've been thinking about how I can improve the Order of the Holy Ice Flower," Wilmarina said. "I've decided that I can best do this by attending the Senate, whenever I have the opportunity, and adding my voice to the proceedings."

Like all good lies, this had a substantial portion of truth mixed in. Still, Wilmarina felt nervous. Her father had lived and breathed the deception-filled world of the aristocracy for over two decades. There was a good chance of him seeing through her act.

If Father had any suspicions, he didn't let them show on his face. "Hmm… that is an excellent idea. There'll be another Senate meeting in two days' time. It's about time that you learned more about the battles fought with words instead of weapons. But we can discuss that further inside."

Warran stepped through the door, removed his cap and wiped the sweat off his brow. For all of his title and power, he was still a person like any other. When he wasn't in public, he allowed himself to show such vulnerabilities.

"If you want to gain the most benefit from attending the Senate, Wilmarina, you'll have to learn about all of the factions and their major figures," Warran said, making his way down the corridor.

Wilmarina followed her father to—ironically—his study. A butler brought both of them tea, then Warran began explaining the intricate workings of Lescatie's Senate. He gave plenty of good advice...

"And keep in mind that they will pounce on any weakness," Warran said. "For now, you ought to speak only when spoken to."

...interspersed with reminders that it was he who was in charge of House Noscrim—in charge of Lescatie itself, according to some.

Wilmarina listened to each and every word, nodding at appropriate points. She couldn't be the loyal daughter any longer, but playing that part for now would help her break free.

-ooo-

After a long conversation with her father, Wilmarina left the Noscrim Manor and returned to Salvarision.

It shouldn't be suspicious for me to leave now… I have plenty of work to do in Salvarision, Wilmarina thought while leaping from rooftop to rooftop. But I can't help but be on edge. I keep thinking he's noticed something wrong in my behaviour, or that some of his records are missing…

There was truly no turning back at this point. But perhaps that had always been the case from the moment she met Elt again. Even in a hypothetical world where Druella never intervened, Wilmarina likely would have sought him out herself… and when she did, and heard of his parent's fates...

It's no wonder that Druella sought him out to influence… something I also can never forgive. I might not be able to challenge her yet, but…

Many people were placing their hopes on Wilmarina to slay the Demon Lord, the progenitor of the lilim, and free the world from monsters. That would be a truly momentous feat, but ultimately someone would have to perform it.

In the past, Wilmarina had been driven by the impersonal goal of defending humanity. It was the only option for her after she'd tried to kill off her personal desires.

Now that those personal desires proved much more resilient than first thought, a new goal drove her. She still wanted to protect humanity, but now she also wanted to protect Elt specifically.

Neither a lilim's schemes nor Lescatie's corruption would take him from her again.

-ooo-

When Wilmarina returned to Castle Salvarision, Luciana was waiting for her at the front gate.

"Where were you today, Lady Wilmarina?" Luciana asked. "I could have accompanied you if I'd known. All I heard is that you went to the capital…"

"I'm sorry for troubling you, but it was just some business with my family," Wilmarina said. "More importantly, has anything happened here that requires my attention?"

"Quite a lot has accumulated while you were away…"

The two of them made their way to Wilmarina's study in the castle. Luciana told the truth, there was a fairly tall stack of paper on Wilmarina's own desk—being leader of the Order of the Holy Ice Flower came with many responsibilities. But after the nerve-wracking secret mission in her family mansion, dealing with mere paperwork now felt refreshing.

Most of this is about routine matters, Wilmarina thought as she worked her way through the pile. Budget allocation for the next few months, suggestions to improve our training… easily handled without requiring much thought.

For most of the paperwork, Wilmarina just needed to read, sign in the appropriate place, then hand it off for Luciana to file away.

And then there's the ones relating to the recent sightings of monsters…

The knowledge of what happened to Elt made the situation even more complicated. It forced Wilmarina into a delicate balancing act: do too little with this knowledge and Lescatie would inevitably fall; do too much and people would question where she'd gotten this knowledge from. Something that Druella had undoubtedly been counting on.

One notable example was a note from Eva: it seemed his request to enlist Hero Primera for scouting had yet to be answered.

That makes sense… Primera was also contacted by Druella, at the same time as Elt. Not only would she be very wary of leaving the city again, she'd also want to stay to protect that orphanage. And Elt is the one who normally brings her orders, but he's also occupied lately…

Normally, Wilmarina would be expected to use her influence to force—or to use a more polite term, mandate Primera's acceptance. Wilmarina didn't want to resort to that, yet learning more about the monsters was important and there was no one else in Lescatie with Primera's skillset.

Wilmarina eventually wrote down a suggestion to contact Sasha's orphanage, where Primera was presumably staying at.

I'm sorry about this… but her assistance might save us all. I know that Luciana, for one, would feel much less worried if Primera could find out clearer information on the monsters' activities.

After a few minutes, Wilmarina had cleared her pile of paperwork. Normally she would follow up by training, but she doubted a few more days or weeks of training would let her defeat a lilim.

No… that's something that will only be possible with the help of others. Right now, there's something else I should do.

"Luciana," Wilmarina said out loud. "Do you feel… happy in your position?"

As soon as she said these words, Wilmarina winced at how childish they sounded.

"Y-Yes, of course!" Luciana replied. "It's an opportunity I could never have imagined!"

An ideal response for the deputy of a hero… especially since she was a commoner, someone who rarely ever reached such a position. But it wasn't the response Wilmarina hoped for.

"There isn't anyone around to overhear, not at the moment," Wilmarina said. "And I'm sure there must be some things you're not satisfied with, things you want to change."

Luciana looked at the floor. Her lip trembled ever so slightly.

"I wish that the monsters would just stay out of Lescatie," Luciana said. She met Wilmarina's gaze. "I wish the monsters could be stopped once and for all."

Wilmarina clenched her own fists. Her deputy was just one of many people who expected Wilmarina to be the hero who would slay the Demon Lord. Yet based on Elt's words, even a mere daughter of the Demon Lord could effortlessly overpower a hero and also teleport across the length of the world. The day when Wilmarina could match such a foe was still far away.

That made it all the more important for her to have strong allies by her side.

"And I wish…" Luciana said, only to blush and look down again. "No, it's nothing."

"You can mention anything that concerns you," Wilmarina said. "Even if you might think it's insignificant, I won't laugh."

Luciana looked around at the floor, the walls, the door—anything except the other person in the room. It took over ten seconds before she spoke again.

"I… there's someone I've been looking at for a while," Luciana said. "I wish… I wish he'd look at me the same way that I look at him. I know it's foolish, a knight should be focused on their duty instead of—"

"I think it's perfectly human," Wilmarina said. "Sealing away your desires doesn't make you better at fighting monsters. It makes you a more convenient tool, something I can say from personal experience…"

Luciana blinked in surprise. "But… doesn't the Order require humans to be disciplined and not be sayed—swayed by desires?"

"If you'd been to as many parties as I have, you would gain a very different idea of what the Order expects," Wilmarina replied bitterly. "And love—true, honest love, instead of the depravity that monsters promote—is perfectly within the Order's teachings. The bakers, tailors, carpenters, blacksmiths and farmers of the world are honest with their love for their spouses, but I doubt that means they're unfaithful to the Order."

Luciana seemed shaken by these words initially, but then she smiled. No doubt because her own parents, along with her younger siblings, her old friends and everyone else she'd known growing up fit into those humble categories.

"But… even if he looked back at me that way, we… couldn't be together," Luciana said, her eyes turning sad again. "Because then everyone else would… I mean…"

Wilmarina could guess without Luciana having to say anything further. Luciana's secret crush had to be a commoner like herself, placing her in an awkward position. While she was already looked down on for her birth, publicly being in a relationship with another commoner would exacerbate that.

Judging from what I've seen and heard already, it would be deeply unpleasant, Wilmarina thought. I wouldn't be surprised if there were comparisons to rabbits in heat, all couched in polite language...

At any rate, while Luciana might be willing to endure such treatment, she wouldn't wish that on the person she loves. I can understand that… all too well...

"But what there weren't any barriers to you two being together?" Wilmarina asked. "What if… Lescatie was a place where such relationships weren't looked down on?"


AN: Karl is an OC I added to flesh out human society a bit more, since it's normal for noble families to have branches. I might include a brief segment from his POV to make it clear why he was nervous to meet Wilmarina.

And now Wilmarina is making her preparations. Her acting as a spy isn't something I've ever seen in fanfics before, but I had fun writing it. I hope it didn't seem implausible.