Ceasefire
The royal castle of the former Saint Miriam Kingdom. Amalia is using the room that used to be the king's private room at the back of the castle as an appeal to the extremely limited number of people who know that she is the King of Saint Miriam.
The restoration of the former Saint Miriam Kingdom is only a matter of words. In reality, it is impossible to prevent the Nord Empire from strengthening its control, let alone expanding its territory.
Negotiating a truce was meaningless. Amalia was made to realize this.
Amalia received more sad news. From Yuya, the man she trusted the most.
"T-that’s… that’s a lie, right?"
"It's not a lie. We are temporarily withdrawing the army."
Yuya tells Amalia that the united front army is withdrawing from the former Saint Miriam Kingdom territory. This is unacceptable for Amalia.
"Yuya, are you telling me to give up on restoring my homeland!?"
Without the united front army, Amalia would have no power to resist the Nord Empire. There is no doubt that the former capital, which is now under her control, will be taken away in no time.
"I'm not saying to give it up. We just have to postpone it."
"Postpone, for how long?"
"Amalia. You should know. Right now, I don't have the power to restore the Saint Miriam Kingdom alone."
There was no way he could know the specific date. Yuya decided to persuade Amalia by making her aware of the current situation. That was his intention from the beginning.
"Isn't that why we need to gather the power of each country?"
Amalia knows the current situation of those countries. Once they are disbanded, it will be difficult for them to regroup.
"The forces that are here now are regrettably not enough. We need more power."
"I know that. I know."
Will the intentions of each country ever coincide once again? They may think that fighting the Nord Empire is like playing the poor game and trying to leave the fighting to other countries as much as possible.
Amalia thinks so.
"Amalia. I want to restore your homeland. This feeling is not lost, but is growing stronger and stronger."
"I'm happy about that, but..."
"I can't seem to borrow the power of others to realize it. I have to acquire my own power."
"...Yuya's own power"
Amalia does not understand the meaning of Yuya's words. As a hero, Yuya has power. She wonders what it would be like to have more power than that.
"Above all, to be able to act of one's own volition. It has to be."
"That's……"
Heroes are beings who act according to the wishes of the country. Yuya says that he must escape from that shackle. For Amalia, that would be impossible.
"I want to realize your dream with my own will after obtaining freedom."
"...Can you really do it?"
"I can do it. That's why I'm withdrawing this time. Even if I withdraw once, I'll come back with power that far surpasses what I have now. I promise."
"…………"
The desire to hear the specifics of how to do this and the feeling that it is better to stop. Caught between these two conflicting thoughts, Amalia was unable to say anything.
"It's for you. To realize the dreams of you and me..."
Yuya, who took this as frustration, began to try to persuade Amalia in a different way.
"Y-Yuya. Don't. Now we need to talk seriously......."
Amalia resists Yuya's hand, which was touching her body. However, there is no way that Yuya will give up. Yuya was used to her reaction. It's different now, though.
"Amalia. I will risk my life for you."
"N-no."
Amalia's body is pulled and her clothes are taken off. She grabs Yuya's arm and tries to stop him, but he still won't stop.
"Or do you want to stay here alone?"
"Eh……?"
Surprised by Yuya's unexpected words, Amalia stopped moving.
"Are you okay with being away from me?"
Yuya runs his hand and tongue over Amalia's docile body.
"I-it's not okay. I-I, with Yuya always..."
"You want to be with me, right? Don't you want to make love like this?"
"...Of course."
"Then, I hope you won't be selfish."
"I-I'm not selfish... ah..."
Without even a hint of foreplay, Yuya sinks his thing into Amalia.
"Do you love me?"
"Yeah, I love you, I do... nhh..."
In response to Yuya's movements, her words became choppy. Amalia, the former princess of the Saint Miriam Kingdom, changes her consciousness to that of a woman.
"You'll follow me, right?"
"...Y-Yuya"
"Or do you want me to stop?"
Yuya stopped moving his lower body and said this. She doesn't know what he's asking.
"…………"
"Which one? I won't know unless you tell me."
"...I'll follow you. So..."
"Yeah. I will always love you."
Yuya starts to move violently. The conversation can no longer go on. The only sound in the room is Amalia's moaning voice.
And outside the room. Emily was standing in front of the door with a complicated expression.
"...What is there to be amazed at now?"
Emily whispered to herself. Once she took a deep breath, she walked away from the scene.
"I apologize for making you miss the eavesdropping."
Emily apologized to the escort knight who was standing a short distance away.
"What are you talking about? I was only letting you, Amalia-sama's maid, pass."
"...That's right. You were faithful to your duties. I said something strange."
"Yes. Then... um..."
The knight said he knew nothing of eavesdropping, but he was curious about what Emily had heard. The knights also know that the situation in this land is heading in a bad direction.
"Don't worry. She's leaving today. No misinformation."
"...Leave?"
Emily gave a different answer than what the knight asked for. However, the knight found even more worrisome words in that answer.
"Yes. Her Royal Highness has decided to leave this land."
"What!?"
The knight let out a voice of surprise at the unexpected information. The answer he wanted to know, but he wasn't looking for this kind of information.
"I know it is my duty to obey and serve at her side as always......"
"......You will not do that?"
"Yes. I... my hometown is here. It may not be the Saint Miriam Kingdom anymore, but it doesn't change the fact that I was born and raised in this land."
"So?"
When she put it that way, so was the knight. He was born and raised in the former Saint Miriam Kingdom territory.
"The name of the country may change, but the people who live in it are the same. I want to do what I can for the people I care about. I know there is little I can do, but still ......"
"...No, if it's you, you can do a lot for the people of this country."
The knight knows Emily's influence over Nord Emperor Ren. Hearing Emily's wish, Ren doesn't discriminate against the people of the former Saint Miriam Kingdom, and on the contrary, he actively extends a helping hand.
"It's not my power. There must be many people who despise me, who can only beg for mercy."
"No way! You are acting according to your beliefs. You are sacrificing yourself for the sake of many people!"
The knight vigorously denies Emily's words.
Many accused her of selling herself to gain the favor of the Nord Emperor. But their voices are becoming much quieter now that they know what has been achieved as a result. Some people even began to think that Emily was sacrificing herself for her country.
Of course, this is because of that kind of information manipulation.
"Thank you very much. If you say so, I can do my best, no matter how deep the darkness that surrounds me in the future. It gives me that kind of energy."
"You..."
"Well then, I hope you and your loved ones have a bright future."
Without letting the knight say a word until the end, Emily said her last goodbyes and left. The knight stared at her back.
"……The future"
Will it be a shining thing? What is shining in the first place? Is it something so wonderful? Emily said she would do her best even in the darkness. He thinks that Emily says that is the light for people. Various thoughts welled up in the knight's mind.
Eventually, the knight takes off the armor he was wearing, the armor of the knight of the former Saint Miriam Kingdom. A light that shows him the path he should take. Chasing after Emily.
◇◇◇
The united front army withdrew from the former Saint Miriam Kingdom. The Nord Empire does not understand that this is an action that is faster than the actual orders coming from their home country. It doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is the fact that the united front army withdrew.
The continental upheaval is entering a new phase. The withdrawal of the united front army is a harbinger of this.
Without waiting for it, the Nord Empire will move on to its next move. It is nothing special. If there are no more obstacles in their way, they will take what they can get while they have the chance. They began to incorporate the former Saint Miriam Kingdom into their territory in earnest.
For this purpose, civil officials moved en masse. Ralph was the one who put them all together. The first thing that Ralph did was――.
Ren, who received Ralph's fist straight on his face, fell backward.
"...Why didn't you avoid it?"
Ralph was the one who was surprised by that. There is no way Ren could avoid it.
"...Ralph hit me, that's a big deal, isn't it? I have to take it honestly."
It wasn't that he couldn't avoid it. He didn't avoid it.
"I see… then, can I have another hit?"
"Huh? Did I do something to warrant that?"
Ren didn't understand why Ralph hit him in the first place. Furthermore, even if he said to have another hit, it is not convincing.
"You did something. No, you didn't do anything."
"……What are you talking about?"
"That's……"
When Ren asks him why, Ralph immediately becomes upset. He doesn't want to talk about the reason.
"It's for letting Rin-san die."
"H-hey?"
Shizuku is convenient at times like this, and a nuisance to Ralph right now. She easily sees through why Ralph hits Ren.
"Regarding Rin… I understand that, but why two hits?"
Ren just doesn't understand what that means.
"You don't understand it at all. The second hit was for letting Rin-san go."
"Oh...... no, why would you hit me for that? I'm the one who's most shocked."
"That's not necessarily the case, right? Ralph-san is more shocked than Ren――"
"S-stupid woman! Don't say anything unnecessary!"
Ralph interrupts Shizuki's words in a panic. But this was too late. He should have shut her mouth earlier, even if it was by force.
"...Eh? Eh!?"
No matter how insensitive Ren was, he understood what Shizuku wanted to say.
"N-no, Ren, no, that's wrong, Your Majesty."
"I don't care what you call me at a time like this...... no, but...... eh...... want to hit me two more times?"
"Two more hits?"
Ralph requested one more hit. Ren increased it to two hits.
"For letting Rin go… I wonder if I can give Ralph…"
"You idiot! Who asked you to give her up!"
This is no longer a conversation between an emperor and his subject. Like when Ralph punched Ren.
"No, but... Ralph probably came first..."
Ralp meets her much earlier. To begin with, Ren is unsure of his own feelings for Rin.
"It's not a matter of which one comes first. No, I mean, this kind of conversation... but well, yeah. Let's be clear at this point."
He didn't come here to talk about these things. He had originally intended to keep it to himself for a long time. But now that it's become clear, Ralph decided that it was time to tell the truth.
"You liked her, right?
"I liked her. This is not a lie. I want her to be next to you now. I think it would make her happy."
"Really?"
Putting Rin's happiness first is a sign that he still loves her. Ren understands it. Not emotionally, but logically.
"It's true. My feelings for her were doubtful in the first place. I don't deny that I had feelings for her, but I gave up on her from the beginning because she was a vampire."
"But then again, if she's from this world, it can't be helped, right?"
The feelings of a human toward a demon are such that there is no room for any kind of favoritism. Ralph is better, in Ren's opinion, only because he can love her earnestly.
"Maybe so, but that's my limit. And I think I can go beyond that now."
"……What do you mean?"
"I mean that if I fell in love with someone from the demons right now, I wouldn't give up on them."
"But you gave up on Rin?"
When it comes to these slightly complicated feelings, Ren can't keep up. He can't explain it with logic.
"It's thanks to you that I came to think that way. You're the one who erased the idea that they are a demon from my head."
"How does that lead to giving up Rin?"
In theory, the opposite should come to mind. Ren thinks so.
"If I fall in love with someone again, I won't give up on them. Except, of course, if they dump me. That means that person is someone I like more than her."
"...I don't know if I understand."
"You don't have to completely understand it. Anyway, don't worry about me."
Ralph has no intention of explaining this logically. This is half a deception. Rin is best by Ren's side. There is no lie in that thought. He doesn't want Ren or Rin to worry about him.
"...But I see. It wasn't that woman?"
"If that woman you're referring to was Amalia, I'd be surprised if you really meant it."
Ren had always assumed that Ralph liked Amalia. Ralph thought it was just a joke to make fun of him.
"That Amalia. But good. As you can imagine, I wouldn't recommend her either."
"I don't remember asking you to recommend her. She, you said, followed the hero obediently. Why?"
Ralph changed the subject to something serious. He thought that if he kept chatting like this, it would be possible for Ren to say something strange again.
"The hero is plotting something."
This is the information he got from Emily.
"Don't you know what it is?"
"Maybe he's trying to quit being a hero."
"What?"
"He wants to be free. That means he wants to quit being a hero, right?"
"Is that possible?"
The reason Ren is free is because he is not bound to begin with. On the contrary, Ralph didn't think there was a way to escape from the curse of being a hero.
"I think it can be done. By the way, if there's a way that would take a little time, I know of it."
"...Is it okay to ask what is that?"
"No problem. It's not the kind of thing you keep secret."
"Then tell me."
"Unravel the magic. That's all."
"...Too easy"
Because they can't do that, the heroes are forced to obey. Ren's explanation is completely incomprehensible.
"You just need to analyze the magic and find a way to cancel it. You probably won't be able to do it yourself, but if other people do it, there shouldn't be any restrictions."
"...Is it because of the knowledge of the demons?"
Humans are far behind demons in terms of knowledge of magic. Ralph thought that demons could do what humans couldn't.
"I wonder? After all, they are just a fake. I'm sure the humans could analyze it if they took the time to do so."
"A fake?"
"It seems that magic that forces obedience is taboo. Demons don't do it. In other words, it's a fake made by humans. The structure of the magic is bad."
"Is it really that different..."
"I've heard, too, that the magic handed down in this era is a combination of pre-prepared forms. In the past, the demons used to make them from those forms. If we can analyze that form, we can solve all the magic."
Demons have strengths and weaknesses when it comes to magic. To put it simply, beastman tribes are weak at it, while vampire tribes are good at it. Furthermore, there are differences in individual knowledge and experience within the tribe.
"......Isn't it necessary to keep it a secret?"
If the hero knows the current information, he will try to capture the demons who can analyze the magic. Ralph was afraid of that.
"No problem. Even if the hero tries to do it, they don't have to obediently follow it. Instead of undoing the magic, they can strengthen the magic. They can even kill him on the spot."
There is no way for the hero to know whether the analysis of magic is done correctly.
"Were you trying to use it as a ploy, perhaps?"
"No, I'm not. I'm the only one who can do that at the moment."
"Huh? What did you just say?"
The only one who can disarm it is not the demons, but Ren himself. He understands the meaning of the words, but to his surprise, Ralph asks in this way.
"For some reason, I know how to cancel subordination magic."
"……Why?"
"I don't know. It was in my head before I knew it. I'm afraid of myself on this one, as I should be."
"...You."
Ren's ignorance of common sense isn't new, but it's going too far.
There is a reason why he had learned it. However, there is no way Ralph can understand why when Ren himself is unaware of it.
"I don't know the specifics of what the hero is going to do, but I can predict that the chances of the united front rallying will decrease."
"...So you're going to make the Saint Miriam Kingdom a full-fledged territory?"
Merging takes time. Rather than just annexing it, they plan to build a rich nation like the Nord. It wasn't in the original plan.
"Because I think we will need more national strength in the coming battles."
In the next battle, the enemy will be much more cautious. Ren believes that the same kind of surprise tactics that have been used in the past will not work. If the number of head-on battles increases, he will need national strength to withstand it. The idea is to secure that national strength in the former Saint Miriam Kingdom.
"I understand that, but it won't work the same way as in the home country."
"I know that. A wide border is troublesome to protect."
There is only one invasion route into the Nord mainland, except by sea. Compared to this, the border of the former Saint Miriam Kingdom is quite large. Of course, it is not comparable to a major power, but even so, it is no longer possible to defend it with a small elite force as before.
"There is only one good news about that matter."
"Yeah, that's why Kou is here."
Among Ralph's companions was Kou. Kou's position is an armor craftsman. There is a reason why he came with him, who is not in a position to be involved in the national affairs of the Nord Empire.
"...You sound like I'm useless here."
Kou seems dissatisfied with Ren's words.
"What are you angry about?"
"No, about what you said earlier. I think it would be better if Ren himself made it, not me."
"I don't have that kind of knowledge."
Ren asked Kou to make a weapon for him. Kou came to report it.
"Neither do I. I'm an armor craftsman."
"It's the same as a weapon. Can you stop being mad at me and give me a report?"
"...The prototype is complete. The tests are going well. There's still room for improvement in accuracy, but the endurance test results aren't bad. Here are the results."
Saying that, Kou presented the document to Ren. Receiving it, Ren begins to read the contents.
"...Yeah, it's not bad."
"Do you want to move to mass production? Even if I say that, it's not something that can be mass-produced, though."
"I know. Let's put it in a key location on the border. It'll make it a little easier to defend."
"A little..."
"War isn't as easy as it can be won with tools alone."
"That's right. Especially when it comes to territorial defense, it is necessary to grasp the people's feelings."
At this point, Ralph interrupted the conversation. Ralph has a lot to talk about. From now on, Ralph will be the busiest, apart from the always-busy Ren.
"Emily and the fake saint are working hard on that."
"...The emperor is you. Ah, that's right."
Ralph's tone changed.
"What?"
"Shouldn't the loyalty of the subjects be directed to His Majesty?"
"It's uncomfortable if you suddenly change your tone."
"Don't worry about it, it's a natural attitude as a retainer."
"Haa. For the first time in a long time, being an emperor seemed troublesome."
Ren seemed dissatisfied with Ralph's words. The position of emperor was obtained because it was necessary for revenge. He doesn't want to be admired.
"I don't want any complaints, so could we go back to our discussion?"
"I understand. So what are you talking about?"
"I am saying that the loyalty of the subjects of the former Saint Miriam Kingdom should be directed to His Majesty."
"...I don't need that kind of thing. If it's a candy and a whip, I'm fine with just the role of the whip."
"But"
Ren's goal is revenge. After that, there will be no need for the position of emperor. But Ralph, of course, and other people close to him want Ren to rule the country forever. If possible, the entire continent.
Will the day ever come when this gap will be filled? Ralph's head hurts when he thinks about this.
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