I'd Give Up The World For You

"Congratulations, Lieutenant Colonel May," Lieutenant Colonel Hodges said reluctantly two days later. "You've passed your evaluation with flying colors."

Rukelion knew he would but it was a relief all the same. Now he could potentially ask for the time off he needed. He knew it might be pushing things considering he was already taking a day off for Conrad's wedding but General Pace should understand that much since he used to be his lieutenant.

"It is all due to your teachings," he said humbly to get the man off his back.

This mollified Hodges slightly and he let Rukelion go. The first thing he did once he was free was head to General Pace's office. The sooner he got that day off approved the better.

"Who is it?" the general barked.

"Lieutenant Colonel May, sir. May I speak with you for a moment?"

"Oh, May! Of course. Come in."

His attitude changed in less than a second. He had always liked Rukelion though, which could work out in his favor here. He was more likely to grant his request than any of the other senior officers. The thought of someone who was directly involved in the destruction of Katalya liking him made him sick but he had to take what he could get.

"Thank you, sir. Forgive my impertinence so soon after my promotion but I would like to request a day off to watch the upcoming tournament. Several of my former men are entering and I would like to see them in action," he said as politely as possible.

General Pace laughed. "Of course you do! Not a problem, May. You don't ask for time off terribly often, though there is the matter of it being so close to Conrad's wedding…I can set that aside. Everyone knows how close the two of you are.

"A good chunk of the Black Dragon and Golden Eagle Squadrons have requested time off for that as well. Conrad is a popular man! I haven't seen this many time off requests at once since you got married.

"How is your wife doing these days? Is she enjoying living in the officer's row? Those houses are probably much nicer than what a country girl like her is used to."

"She is doing very well, sir. Thank you for asking. She is quite satisfied with our living arrangements," Rukelion said.

His insides twisted. Talking about someone as pure and lovely as Daisy with people like the general always disgusted him. Men like that weren't worthy of hearing about her! But he had to maintain the façade that he was a good, loyal soldier to his commanding officer.

"Of course she is! Why wouldn't she be? My wife is fond of the area as well, though our house is bigger than yours since I've been in the army much longer," General Pace said with a laugh. "Anyway, your time off request is granted. You can go ahead and get back to work now. I'm sure you have a lot of paperwork to do."

Rukelion barely managed not to grimace. That he did.

"I will. Thank you, sir!"

He backed out of the office feeling somehow drained and elated at the same time. Drained from dealing with General Pace but elated that this practically guaranteed they would get someone inside the palace. It was all coming together!

===

Juliet's anxiety was at an all-time high. Elaine would not shut up about wedding preparations and how excited she was to leave the laundry room. She talked everyone's ears off about the house Silas had gotten for them, the furniture they had picked out, and how Veronica had already offered to let her come over for a few hours every day between her shift ending and her husband coming home to help her learn more about being a housewife.

As much as Juliet wanted to be happy for her friend—and she was in a way—this was the last thing she needed to hear about when she was trying to figure out a plan to save the world. At this rate it seemed like she would be able to afford to travel to the academy by the end of the summer but it still felt like she was running out of time.

She was relieved when the day of the wedding came so she could get that over with and be able to focus on more important things again. She headed over to the church with the other laundry girls who naturally had today off or were able to get permission from the laundry mistress.

There were a lot more people there than she had expected. Most of which were dressed in military uniforms. They had to be Silas's friends.

Veronica's husband stood out since he was taller than most of the crowd and had that rather distinctive eyepatch. He looked very regal in his uniform as he stood there listening to some soldiers talk with his wife.

She seemed to be in a great mood and was laughing at something one of them said while the two of them stood with arms around each other's backs. He looked down at her with a fond smile, his visible eye softening at the corners.

Juliet had been crazy to ever think he could be Rukelion Blaze. That madman could never gaze at someone with such a tender expression!

Everyone was ushered to their seats so the ceremony could begin and she watched Elaine float down the aisle blissfully. She had come a long way since she planned to snag a husband to have an easy life. Looking at her now, you would think she had been a romantic from the start.

The ceremony was short and sweet and it made Juliet a bit sad. If she didn't manage to stop the impending destruction simple moments like this would all be for naught. Elaine…Silas…Mitzi…Amaya…Veronica and her husband…they would all be dead if she didn't do something and soon.

What was his name, anyway? She had never managed to catch it.

Veronica talked about her husband a lot but she usually referred to him as "my husband" or "he" or even "we" when mentioning things they did together. She was sure it had been brought up at some point but couldn't remember it for the life of her.

She would probably find out what it was today. All she knew was that he was a lieutenant colonel now. Veronica had very excitedly shared that news the last time they talked. Apparently, he was the youngest ever.

Juliet hadn't realized she was spacing out until she heard "you may now kiss the bride" and everyone began clapping. She hastily joined in.

Afterward she elbowed her way through the crowd and made her way over to congratulate the bride and groom, who were rather swarmed. Once she hugged Elaine and told her how happy she was for her she was shunted to the side.

She ended up going to talk to Veronica since the other laundry girls were otherwise preoccupied and she didn't know anyone else here. "I can't believe she's actually married."

"Me either. Good for both of them though! Doesn't Elaine make such a beautiful bride?" Veronica asked with a smile.

"She does."

"Nia did such a great job with the flowers too. I knew she would though. She has a real eye for bouquets. I may love flowers but I'm not the most skilled at arranging them. All I know how to do is make necklaces and crowns and things."

Juliet hadn't realized that. "You can make flower crowns?"

"Yeah, they're sort of a specialty of mine. I made them all the time with wildflowers back on the farm," Veronica said nostalgically. "I even managed to get my husband to wear them sometimes. Isn't that cute?"

That was pretty cute. Also a funny thought considering how big and serious he looked. This probably happened when he was much younger and less imposing though.

"Definitely. Where is he, anyway? I saw the two of you earlier but I've never officially met him."

Veronica glanced around before spotting him. "Ah, he's talking to some of his old squad members. I'll see if I can flag him down."

She waved her arms over her head and Juliet saw her husband excuse himself and walk over since he had been summoned. He looked much happier than he had talking to his friends. The same soft expression as earlier was on his face at the sight of his wife.

"What's up?" he asked.

The phrase struck her as odd. She had never heard anyone use it here. That was distinctly something from back home in her world. Don't tell her Veronica's husband was the transmigrator! That singing voice had seemed distinctly feminine!

"Juliet wanted to meet you since I've talked about you so much," Veronica told him brightly as she reached for his hand.

Interest briefly flickered in his good eye. "So this is the famous Juliet? Thank you for being such a good friend while I was gone. According to Veronica's letters, the two of you were quite busy."

A flicker of guilt went through her. Her motives for doing so were almost entirely selfish even if they did happen to benefit her friend. She squashed that down and smiled at him. "It was my pleasure. Veronica is wonderful company."

"She's the best," he agreed, giving his wife's hand a squeeze.

Veronica laughed but her face was slightly flushed. "Stop it, you two. You're embarrassing me!"

"How is the truth embarrassing?"

She poked his side and he grinned at her.. The hard angles of his face were transformed into something warm to the point that he was nearly unrecognizable. This guy really knew how to keep his work and private lives separate, didn't he?