Shared Pain

That night, Fuuga spoke in front of his generals.

"We don't have time to spare taking Red Dragon City," he said. "There

are a lot of real schemers in the Kingdom of Friedonia, and Souma is one of

them. If we give them time, there's a risk they'll come up with a plan we

can't see through. In order to prevent that, we must tear out his throat faster

than expected."

"So you're suggesting we leave Red Dragon City alone?" Gaten asked,

and Fuuga nodded.

"That's right. But we'll leave a force to make sure they don't hit us from

behind... Krahe."

"Yes, sir!" Krahe stepped forward as he was called.

"You fought the Kingdom's wyvern cavalry, right? Is it possible to stop

them?"

"Yes, sir! The equipment they use to accelerate midair is troublesome,

but I suspect it must also put considerable strain on the rider. It seems

unsuited to be used for long periods of time. If we hang in there and exhaust

our opponents, we may not achieve air superiority, but we can at least

prevent an attack from the rear. Please, allow me to take on the task."

Krahe's eyes were filled with determination. The way the Kingdom's air

force played with him that afternoon stirred up his pride as an air combat

specialist.

"Next time, I'll win for sure," he added.

Fuuga nodded. "Then we will entrust General Krahe with his aerial unit

as well as a force of ten thousand land troops. If the soldiers in Red Dragon

City try to give chase, defend us, and crush them."

"Yes, sir! As you command!"

And so it was decided that Krahe would stay at Red Dragon City while

Fuuga led the main force to Parnam himself. No cities were left between

here and the capital, so the showdown between the two leaders was on the

precipice.

Or so he thought, but then something even Souma hadn't anticipated

happened...

◇ ◇ ◇

I was in the governmental affairs office in Parnam Castle, doing desk

work again today, like always.

Even in wartime, paperwork never lets up. In fact, war created more

necessary paperwork, and I was having Liscia and Yuriga help me handle

what came my way. I'd entrusted matters of strategy and military command

to Strategist Julius, Commander-in-Chief Excel, and Ludwin's advisor

Kaede, so it wasn't an issue for us to focus on paperwork. But that didn't

mean we weren't concerned about the ongoing situation.

Even at this very moment, my people's blood was being shed. I prepared

and prepared, trying to make sure nothing I hadn't predicted would occur,

but it was nerve-wracking to work when I felt this uneasy. Especially now

that I didn't have the children to soothe me.

Aisha and Naden rushed into the room.

"Your Majesty. The Great Tiger Empire gave up after attacking Red

Dragon City for just one day!" Aisha reported. "They left behind only a

small force to keep our forces in check and are now heading towards

Parnam!"

"Julius and the others say they're ready to meet them in battle whenever

they need to," reported Naden.

They must have gotten messenger kuis from Serina, who was observing

from up in the sky.

I laid down my quill and thought, I see... So Fuuga and his people didn't

get fixated on capturing Red Dragon City, huh?

"This is close to our worst predictions. I thought they would wait and

see for at least two or three days," said Liscia.

"They give up too easily," Naden snorted. "The Great Tiger Empire's

troops have no backbone."

"No, I think they didn't want to let you buy time," Yuriga speculated. "I

couldn't tell you whether that's because of a suggestion by Advisor Hashim,

though, or if it was my brother's wild instincts."

It was just me, Liscia, Aisha, Naden, and Yuriga here, which meant that

all my wives remaining in the capital were gathered in one place.

"Things are running slow, but...it shouldn't be too much longer," I said

with a sigh, looking up to the kamidana shrine I had as a decoration in the

office. "Mao. How are the preparations?"

"It will still be a little longer."

"Whoa?!" Yuriga backed away as the image of Mao suddenly appeared

in the room and responded.

Liscia and the rest weren't surprised, but that was probably because of

how long they'd been around me. Yuriga had been in this country a long

time too, but it was only relatively recently that we could start letting her in

on everything. It'd be some time before she got used to it.

"What's your overall progress?"

"Around ninety percent. The materials have been gathered, so I believe

it should be finished today or tomorrow, but it will take even longer to

transport them to each location."

"We're really cutting it close..."

My shoulders slumped. I wanted to finish it before Fuuga attacked

Parnan, but that was looking to be difficult. I asked Mao to continue her

work, then asked her to leave (or disappear, rather, since she was a

projection).

I leaned back in my office chair and let out a long sigh.

"I wish they'd wasted time a little longer..."

"Red Dragon City is an important location we can't let fall. We defended

it tightly, but maybe we should have asked Carla and the others to fight a

more painful battle?" Liscia suggested.

I shook my head. "No. Neither Fuuga nor the Great Tiger Empire are

such easy opponents that we can defend against them while pulling our

punches. If we let down our guards even a little, Red Dragon City would

have fallen and horrible things might have happened."

"You're right..."

"With the pair of Sir Fuuga and Durga, it may be possible for him to

take the castle alone," Aisha murmured, crossing her arms.

Fuuga's ability to unleash lightning strikes on the level of a dragon,

paired with Durga's high mobility, was a dangerous combination. If a fort

wasn't adequately prepared, he'd easily smash through the gates himself. In

order to defend against his wild strength, the defenses had to be super tight

and able to make the enemy question if something had happened to Fuuga.

I rose from my chair and spoke to the other four. "Anyway, there isn't

any place where we can defend between Red Dragon City and Parnam.

Fuuga and his people will be approaching here in no time. I'm sure Excel is

already preparing to meet them in battle, but we should go too."

"Yes."

"Yes, sire!"

"Roger that!"

"Okay."

Liscia and the others all nodded. The time had finally come to face

Fuuga head-on. Or so I'd thought...

"What's the meaning of this?!"

After Fuuga and his men gave up on attacking Red Dragon City early,

we received reports they were on their way to Parnam the next day. After

hearing one report in particular, I stormed into the war room with Liscia and

Aisha in tow.

Julius was there with a grim expression while Excel hid hers behind a

fan, and Kaede looked around anxiously.

I strode over to Julius.

"There are no defensible cities between here and Red Dragon City! The

only thing left to do was to meet Fuuga in battle near Parnam! That's why

we agreed not to leave any troops in the castles and fortresses along the

Great Tiger Kingdom's path!"

"Yes...I suppose we did," Julius said, his expression unchanged as he

nodded.

Now that he'd admitted it, I got up in his face without even trying to

hide how livid I was.

"Then why are there units holding their positions?!"

In the report I'd received, there were units still remaining in the

abandoned fortresses and evacuated towns along the invasion route.

"Your Majesty... Please calm down," Excel interjected with a soothing

tone.

However, I couldn't settle down at this point.

"None of those cities or castles can withstand such a massive army!" I

exclaimed, seizing Julius by the front of his shirt. "If they hold out there

with their meager forces, they'll just be overwhelmed and crushed by the

enemy! You need to recall those units immediately!"

"I..." Julius paused. Looking me straight in the eyes, he finished,

"...cannot do that."

I'd been giving him a royal order. There shouldn't have been anything

strange about it, yet, unbelievably, he was refusing.

I blinked in surprise.

"Why not...?"

"Because they wished for it themselves," Julius answered, grinding his

back teeth.

"Themselves? Who is leading the remaining units?"

"General Owen Jabana and my own grandfather, General Herman

Neumann."

Old Man Owen and Old Man Herman?! They're only supposed to be

participating in this operation as individual commanders. Why are they

defending a place like that?!

I glared at Julius. "You said it was their own will, right? Do you know

something, Julius?"

"Yes... They called me aside to speak before this war began."

With a pained expression, Julius began to recount the story.

◇ ◇ ◇

"What is it you want to talk about, Grandfather Herman?"

One day, as war with the Great Tiger Empire neared, Julius visited

Herman's domain in the Amidonia Region.

The other day, he'd received a message saying, "I would like you to

come to my house without telling His Majesty or Roroa. It isn't an

emergency, but please do come as soon as possible."

Once Julius arrived at Herman's manor, the steward led him to the

sitting room. Another man—a mountain of rippling muscles—was also

present with Herman.

I've seen him around the castle before. Souma's personal trainer, Sir

Owen, I believe.

As Julius thought to himself, Herman spoke.

"Good of you to come, Julius. Well, have a seat," he said, indicating to

the sofa across from them.

Despite feeling suspicious, Julius sat down.

"Grandfather. Things are busy right now, but is there something you

need? With war about to break out with the Great Tiger Empire, I'm not

free at the moment..."

"I know. There's something I wanted to say about that war."

"There is?"

Seeing the suspicion on Julius's face, Herman and Owen both looked at

him with warm eyes.

Then, keeping his eyes on Julius, Herman said, "Julius. You're His

Majesty's strategist now, aren't you?"

"Hm...? I am. What of it?"

"Then do you understand His Majesty's weakness?"

Julius mulled over Herman's words. When asked the question, Julius

thought Souma had so many that it was hard to answer. But Herman and

Owen were waiting for him to respond, so Julius did.

"If we're talking about weaknesses... He has no martial abilities and

occasionally comes up with off-the-wall strategies but then has to leave the

details to his retainers. He doesn't stand out as a king and can't talk back to

his queens. He has so little fixation on his authority that he lets Halbert and

I talk to him casually. When it comes to personal charisma, he not only has

less than Fuuga or Queen Maria, he also loses to Head Kuu, Queen Shabon,

and Queen Sill too."

"A rather harsh assessment."

"But we, his subordinates, are more than able to make up for those

shortcomings. The true value of a ruler is not in his own talents but in the

quality and number of people serving him. On that singular point, Souma is

a ruler who outstrips even Fuuga or Queen Maria."

Julius's assessment of Souma was frank at this moment.

In terms of ability, Souma might have strange ideas stemming from

another world, but Julius felt he had the advantage over Souma in martial

arts or strategy. However, his reign had been short lived, while Souma's

appeared secure. The way Julius saw it, the main reason for this was

because, although there were differences in the respective power of their

countries and the situations they'd found themselves in, Souma had been

able to hire capable subordinates, evaluate them, and put them to work.

In the Principality of Amidonia, Julius had pushed away his capable

sister Roroa and his friend Colbert, surrounding himself only with

militaristic types like his father Gaius had. That narrowed his field of view,

and his reign collapsed not long after he inherited the seat of sovereign

prince. However, while in the Kingdom of Lastania, he was supported by

Tia and her parents, the king and queen, and blessed with trustworthy

comrades like Jirukoma and Lauren. By reconciling with Souma and Roroa,

he was able to protect the country from the demon wave.

The things that Julius had learned through his failures and frustrations

were things that Souma had been able to do all along. Julius believed that

was what qualified him to be king.

Herman gave Julius's answer a satisfied nod. "I'm sure you're right. As

your grandfather, I'm proud you've come to that point of view... But therein

lies the trap His Majesty falls into."

"What do you mean by that...?"

"His Majesty is able to hire capable subordinates and trust them to do

the tasks he sets them to. In short, that means he's a man who values his

subordinates... Too much, sometimes." Herman looked straight at Julius as

he continued. "That is His Majesty's greatest weakness. He cannot treat his

subordinates like pawns."

Julius gulped. He was as smart as Hakuya; that was why he knew what

Herman was getting at and why he was summoned here alone... Looking at

it in light of the country's current situation, he was able to find the answer.

"Sir Julius. You understand it too, right?" said Owen, who had remained

silent up until now. "The full details haven't made their way down to us, but

we can tell His Majesty, the Black-Robed Prime Minister, Duchess Walter,

and yourself have been working on a strategy for war with the Great Tiger

Empire. And I know you want to do whatever you can to buy time for that

plan."

"..."

"Now, if it's a matter of buying time, there is one way to do it. Have his

subordinates fight to the death and risk their lives by buying that time."

"Well, yes, but... That's not what Souma wants!"

"I'm sure it isn't." Owen nodded in agreement. "His Majesty cares for

his subordinates. With the high regard people hold for him, if he said, 'Die

for the country,' many would, but he's not the type who could say it. It's a

likable trait. However...if he is unable to buy enough time, and the

showdown with the Great Tiger Empire comes before his plan is ready, then

it may result in even greater sacrifices. And if it does, his subordinates will

be the ones to suffer."

"And so...you two are volunteering to be the sacrificial pawns?"

Julius shook his head. It was out of the question.

"You know that Souma would never allow it," he told them.

"Of course, we aren't planning to get permission. We will act at our own

discretion based on the situation we see in front of us. The soldiers and

subordinates we'll bring have been carefully chosen and volunteered to

come."

Owen put on a sardonic smile.

"There were more than I expected, you know. This battle with the Great

Tiger Empire... It will be a disaster if we lose, but even if we win, many of

us old soldiers will no longer have any place to shine. With the Great Tiger

Empire removed, nearly all the countries in the world are now our allies.

I'm sure His Majesty has thought about what's to come in the world after

this, but we don't have the stamina or life span left to follow him there.

When you get as old as we are, it's hard to change how you live. So, at the

very least, we would like to lay the foundation for young people's futures."

"But..."

Julius searched for a counterargument but couldn't put one into words.

He was the better debater, yet these two weren't speaking with logic but

with conviction. He couldn't think of anything he could say to convince

them.

"Grandfather Herman. You'll make Roroa sad. And Tia too."

What ended up coming out of Julius's mouth was a trite appeal to the

feelings of their family. The normally stern-faced Herman broke into a

smile at that.

"Just hearing you say that, I can go without any regrets."

"Don't be silly! Are you fine with that? Making your granddaughters

cry?"

"I'm speaking from the heart. I was able to see you and Roroa, the two

grandchildren that my daughter left me, reconcile and walk forward

together. On top of that, Roroa gave birth to Leon with His Majesty, and

you had Dius with Madam Tia. As a warrior, I never knew when I might

drop dead on a battlefield somewhere, yet I lived to see my greatgrandchildren. Could there be a more satisfying life than this?"

"His Majesty is like a grandson to me," Owen said, letting out a

boisterous laugh. "Because I'm the one who trained that weakling into a

man. The time I saw him ready to pick a fight with some thugs, I was

overcome with emotion. So for me, all of His Majesty's children are my

great-grandchildren."

Owen focused his gaze on Julius.

"Sir Julius," he continued. "We don't mean to cast our lives away for

nothing. If His Majesty's plan goes smoothly, we will quietly carry out his

orders. However...if we see there are delays and time must be bought, then

we will act of our own accord. I wanted you and Duchess Walter to know

that."

"Duchess Walter knows?!"

In light of the fact that word hadn't made it to Souma or Julius, Excel

must have chosen to maintain her silence in case what they were suggesting

proved necessary. It was against Souma's wishes, but Souma was the one

who made this country into a place where they each worked in their own

ways, distinct from what he intended, for the betterment of the nation.

Even if Souma got angry later, being able to act on their own initiative

was this country's strength. Julius had no choice but to give up on

persuading them, and his shoulders slumped.

"Here are two letters from me," Herman said. "If anything should

happen, give them to His Majesty and Roroa."

Owen handed him one of his own. "Mine is for His Majesty."

A pained look washed over Julius's face, but he eventually accepted the

letters and put them in his pocket. He could only hope that there wouldn't

come a time when he had to give them to their recipients.

◇ ◇ ◇

However, contrary to Julius's hopes, he gave those letters to me.

With quivering hands, I opened the envelope sealed in wax with the

crest of House Jabana and pulled out the letter inside. One-third of it was an

apology for acting without orders. He also requested not to blame Julius or

Excel, who'd only stayed quiet out of respect for his feelings and shared no

responsibility for his actions.

The remaining two-thirds were about his memories with me.

He talked about how he'd enjoyed training me as my personal educator

and sounding board; how happy he was to ride the bicycle that Roroa and I

used around the courtyard; how thrilled he'd been when my kids called him

Grampy Owen... It was a bit all over the place.

Around the time when my eyes got so dewy with tears that I couldn't

make out the letters anymore, I saw this at the bottom of the letter.

"I think that even if we hadn't rushed into this foolishness, you already

had a plan in the works that would beat the Great Tiger Empire. However, a

flawless victory is not necessarily the best one. It leads the victors to hubris

and leaves darkness in the hearts of the defeated. The knowledge that both

sides had losses makes the winner remain cautious and brings comfort to

the losers."

He finished with this line:

"Your Majesty... Please, do not forget this pain. It is my last lesson to

you."

"Old Man Owen..."

I handed that letter, wrinkled by how tight I'd held it, to Liscia and

Aisha. They covered their mouths once they'd read it and tried not to be

overwhelmed as the tears flowed.

We hadn't read Herman's letter yet. He probably had similar things to

say, and I wanted to read it together with Roroa when this battle was over.

Yes. Once the battle is over.

"Eek?!"

Kaede jumped in surprise as I looked at Julius, Excel, and my advisors...

My expression must've been pretty scary. I slapped myself once across the

face, and looked straight at Julius and the rest.

"I won't blame anyone right now. Owen and Herman wouldn't want

that. But I'm going to give you a piece of my mind! Once this war is won!"

"""Yes, sir!"""

Everyone answered me with a salute.

◇ ◇ ◇

Along the invasion route towards Parnam, an old fort and a fortress city

were burning.

In every city and castle the Great Tiger Empire's forces had come across

—with the exception of Red Dragon City—the defenders had either

surrendered without meaningful resistance or quickly left. At first, the

invaders expected things to be the same with these two, but it was clear that

the old fort was an impromptu fortification that had been hastily restored.

As for the city, it was small, and the residents had already left.

Once the defenders departed, the Empire's forces should only have

needed to leave some troops to defend them, and then the main force would

have pushed straight on towards the capital. However, after the bulk of the

enemy defenders left, a portion stayed behind, shutting themselves up

inside the bases. They numbered in the hundreds, so the Empire's forces

tried to convince them not to resist in vain, but these remnants were

stubborn and refused to listen. Because of that, Fuuga ordered the two bases

to be taken by force.

However, since his wild instincts told him there was something

unsettling about the two bases, he kept his best troops out of the fight,

instead letting the mercenaries and newcomers handle the assault. Everyone

assumed the battle would be finished in less than an hour, even if the small

enemy force holed themselves up behind these not particularly solid

fortifications. But the two bases put up a stubborn resistance.

There was a major difference in morale between the Kingdom's forces,

who were quite literally prepared to fight to the last man, and the Empire's,

who were confident of their victory but knew if they got hurt here they'd

lose the chance to distinguish themselves in the main battle. As a result,

they faced a harder fight than expected, and the Empire's forces were forced

to stop acting arrogant and get serious.

Then, just as the imperial forces managed to force their way into the

fortress...

Kaboom!!! Both bases went up in a pillar of flames and black smoke

almost simultaneously, sending tremors even as far as Fuuga's main camp.

The remnants had backed the bases full of explosives, and once they felt

that the end had come, they blew themselves up along with the swarming

imperial forces.

Fuuga shot to his feet as he saw the sky alight with flames.

"No way! They blew themselves up to take our forces with them?!"

"That certainly does appear to be the case..." Hashim's reply was calm,

but the expression was as if he'd just bitten into something unpleasant. "It's

rather unexpected...to see the Kingdom using their own soldiers as

sacrificial pawns. We will need to make haste in checking that none of the

other cities we fell have traps in them."

In preparing for this campaign, Fuuga's camp had thoroughly analyzed

the kind of ruler Souma was, along with Fuuga's own view of him as a

person. They concluded that Souma would prioritize minimizing casualties

and reducing the damage done by the conflict. Moves like throwing away

his men as sacrificial pawns, breaking dams to cause floods that also put a

burden on his people, and scorched earth tactics like destroying cities were

unlikely from him.

That'd held true until this point along the invasion route, and Souma had

kept making choices that preserved the people and their cities. However,

now he'd sacrificed his own men and destroyed a city. It was a wild move

—one that overturned all their presumptions and forced a reevaluation of

the entire strategy.

Fuuga and his people couldn't guess it was Souma's subordinates acting

on their own initiative. Once Hashim had hurried out of the main camp to

confirm things for himself, Mutsumi approached Fuuga.

"Do you think...this strategy was really Sir Souma's orders?"

"Yeah, no... Probably not. Souma hates this kind of stuff. It was

probably the soldiers who stayed behind in these bases making the

decisions for themselves."

"So the retainers went and acted on their own, risking their lives without

any commands from their ruler?" asked Mutsumi.

Fuuga crossed his arms and nodded.

"Yeah. I think it's a brilliant display of loyalty, and Souma drawing it out

of them shows he's doing a good job as king. Probably better than he thinks

too."

"I'm sure...he's regretting that right now."

Soum being a good ruler to his retainers had resulted in their deaths.

When he hears of this, he would be filled with sadness and regret.

However, for these two, Souma was someone they needed to defeat in

order to accomplish their ambitions. They held no personal enmity towards

him because he was also looking after Yuriga and Ichiha. Fuuga and

Mutsumi felt bad for the suffering that Souma would no doubt go through

after this.

Because the Great Tiger Empire was forced to double-check the cities

that submitted to them for any sign of traps, they were delayed for two

days.

◇ ◇ ◇

Fuuga Haan was the favored child of this era.

Perhaps, in the same way that people refer to the period during which

Napoleon performed his incredible feats as the "Napoleonic Era," this

would be called the "Fuuga Haanic Era." It was a time of dreams and

adventure when one great man's grand ambition shook the entire continent.

As hinted many times before, the only way to defeat Fuuga—the one

protected by this era—would be to change the times themselves.

No matter how much he lost to Xiang Ji (Xiang Yu), Liu Bang tried

relentlessly until he finally turned things around and emerged victorious.

Even though a third of all the battles ended in defeat or a tie, Nobunaga

almost managed to unite the country under him.

During times of national crisis, France produced great people like

Bertrand du Guesclin, Jeanne d'Arc, and Arthur de Richemont during the

Hundred Years War. Until the era decides such people have served their

purpose, they seem immortal, rising up again and again. That is because the

people supporting them want these great people to keep fighting, and will

approve of their actions no matter how cruel they may be.

That's why defeating Fuuga wouldn't be enough to put out the fire. Even

if he was fed a bitter defeat and forced to withdraw, his supporters would

still demand a rematch. With their voices pushing him onward, Fuuga

would start another world war. That wouldn't change even if he was cut

down in this battle. In fact, that might be an even worse outcome.

With Fuuga dead, leaving only the people enraptured by his ambition,

how would they act? First, they would resent me and my country, start a

war for revenge, and maybe resort to terrorism or guerrilla tactics. Also,

without Fuuga, they couldn't maintain such a vast domain and would likely

fracture into competing states. The northern part of the continent would be

laid to waste. Refugees would rush in from the north, and we'd be back to

the same place we were when the Demon Lord's Domain was expanding.

The only way to stop it would be to launch an intervention, but as I

already mentioned, they would resent us. A Maritime Alliance intervention

would generate resistance, and it would take a long time to subjugate them.

For these reasons, in this war, we were pushing forward a plan that would

bring an end not so much to Fuuga personally, but to this era supporting

him.

On this night, Liscia and I were in the governmental affairs office,

listening as Mao reported that the set-up that gave our plan the final push it

needed was complete.

"All tasks are complete, Master Souma."

"Oh, yeah? So we made it in time then..." I murmured to myself, half

relieved, half full of chagrin.

I was grateful to have the plan ready before my direct showdown with

Fuuga. But what had bought us this time was Owen, Herman, and the other

volunteers risking their lives. If only it'd been finished two days sooner.

The two old men's faces flashed through my mind. As I remembered

them, anger and hatred for Fuuga coursed through me. If only he hadn't

started this stupid war for his dreams and ambitions. I wanted to really let

loose on him. Despite considering the drawbacks of killing Fuuga in this

war, even though I understood it logically, it was hard to deny my emotions.

"Souma..." Liscia spoke softly as she put her hand on my shoulder.

"Huh?!" I snapped back to my senses and turned to see her with a slight

smile.

"The look on your face was getting scary. I don't think Owen or Herman

would have wanted that," she chided me.

"Yeah, you're right..." I said, nodding meekly. We weren't in a situation

where I needed to go into king mode yet.

I took a deep breath to calm myself, then turned to Mao.

"Thank you for your assistance, Mao. And sorry. Normally, you're not

supposed to get involved in a battle between people, but I made you push

yourself."

Mao smiled at my apology and shook her head. "No. This matter had

nothing to do with the war, so don't be concerned... If anything, I'm

frustrated that this is all that I could do. I hear you had losses because of

how long production took on my end."

"No, you've all handled it well. Better than I could have expected. I

really am grateful. Thanks, Mao."

"And I thank you too, Madam Mao," Liscia joined in.

"May Landians and Seadians find a future you can work towards

together," Mao said, smiling.

With that wish, her image vanished. Everything was all set up now.

"Liscia, how is deployment going?"

"It's all done. The military and everyone else are in position and ready to

fend off the Great Tiger Empire's forces at any time. But the enemy has

been marching slower since the delay they incurred, so I'm told that we

don't expect them to arrive until after tomorrow morning."

Knowing Fuuga, I thought it was possible he would charge in recklessly

once he checked his rear, but it didn't seem to be happening. This was

probably thanks to Owen and Herman risking their lives to stake him down.

Once he got the impression that my forces included guys who would

defy me in order to launch suicide attacks, caution would be mandated.

Sighing, I looked at Liscia.

"The final battle's tomorrow then."

"Yes. Everything will be decided tomorrow... Are you feeling tense?"

"Well, yeah. But not as tense as when we fought the Principality of

Amidonia. We have more people on our side than back then, and none of

our allies are at risk of betraying us. Unlike before, when we blindly grasp

for solutions, everyone has coalesced around one idea, and we're pretty

calm."

"Yes... Things were a mess back then."

In the Amidonian War, we found ourselves caught at the intersection of

so many people's intentions—me, Gaius and Julius, Georg, Castor, Roroa,

the corrupt nobles who rebelled, the fence-sitting nobles who I later

executed, and finally Albert and Elisha.

Looking back on it now, it's amazing I was able to stay calm. Compared

to back then, everyone is now concentrated on one goal: "Protect the

country from Fuuga and his men."

It wasn't just something we were feeling in this country. The Republic,

the Nine-Headed Dragon Archipelago Kingdom, secretly the Dragon

Knight Kingdom, Star Dragon Mountain Range, and the Seadians felt it too.

It was no wonder I could stay so much calmer this time... Not that I didn't

have some misgivings.

"Although, my intentions haven't changed from what they were then,"

Liscia said before leaning in close, pressing her lips against mine.

I responded in kind as we each explored the soft sensation. Liscia

blushed, smiling as she brushed her hair back behind her ear with one hand.

"Then, now, and forever more... I will walk by your side, Souma."

"You know...I don't think you were quite so forward back then."

"I was waiting for you to make a move on me at the time."

"Well, sorry," I said teasingly, then stood up and hugged Liscia tight.

She was surprised, but her body relaxed, and she entrusted herself to me.

"You too, Souma... You've gotten more proactive, wouldn't you say?"

"Well, yeah, I have more experience under my belt now, after all."

"Hee hee, of course you do. You have so many cute wives," she said,

putting on a menacing smile.

"That smile's scary! Whoa, don't jab me in the ribs."

After playing around like that for a bit, Liscia gently pushed me away.

"With all that experience, you know, right? Whose side should you be

by? I think...she's hurting more than any of us right now. So go be with

her."

Seeing the look of sincerity on Liscia's face, I nodded.

I visited Yuriga's room, with Aisha guarding the door.

Because of Yuriga's position with the decisive battle approaching, I had

Aisha stay with her as bodyguard and watcher. Yuriga was cooperating with

us, but someone who didn't understand that might try to get in touch with

her with bad intentions, and she needed someone to watch her so that she

didn't get overcome by her sense of responsibility and do something

desperate.

If Tomoe were still in the castle, I would've had her support Yuriga, but

if anything happened to Tomoe in the conflict, that would be a huge blow

not just to the Kingdom but to mankind as a whole. It would also leave

Yuriga with a deep emotional scar, so having Tomoe evacuate along with

Ichiha was the right move.

"How is Yuriga?" I asked Aisha.

"Calm," she answered, glancing at the door. "We were just talking

normally up until the evening."

"I see... Thanks for looking after her, Aisha."

"No. I've been worried about Yuriga too... But despite the strong face

she's been putting on, I am sure she must have her own thoughts about

what's happening. Your Majesty, please take care of Yuriga..."

"I know."

I knocked lightly on the door before entering Yuriga's room. She was

sitting on the bed facing me, holding a fluffy pillow in front of her face.

Was she trying to be some kind of monster—the pillow-face woman?

"What're you doing...?"

"I can't possibly face you, so I'm covering my face," Yuriga said, her

voice somewhat muffled by the pillow.

Erm... This isn't the reaction I expected. I was thinking about how to

comfort her if she was depressed, crying, or hiding her feelings to put on a

strong face like Maria had when she was Empress. But...I wasn't expecting

to meet her in the guise of a pillow-faced woman.

I sat on a chair next to the bed as I considered what to do. Yuriga

continued to bury her face in the pillow's soft confines.

"Huh? We're seriously going to talk with that pillow in between us?"

"Well, I have no right to look you in the face."

Yuriga was still saying the same thing.

"I heard...about Sir Owen and Sir Herman..." she continued. "I'd been

prepared for this kind of thing to happen if you and my brother fought... But

not for people whose names I knew to be among those who died."

"It's nothing for you to feel bad about... Though, I guess saying that

doesn't help."

"You're right. It doesn't. It's a bit much to ask me not to feel something

about it," Yuriga said through the pillow.

What kind of look did she have on her face?

"Do you mind if I sit next to you...?"

I couldn't tell whether it was better to leave her alone or be by her side.

"Go ahead," she answered, patting the spot beside her on the bed.

Even as she patted the bed with one hand, her other arm still kept her

face covered. It was a surreal sight, but I sat down next to her.

"What should you do when there's nothing you can do?" she asked.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know if I can explain it very well. There's all these emotions

swirling inside of me...but I can't do a thing about them... I can't handle any

of it... What should I do at a time like that? Have you ever felt the same

way in your time as king, Souma?"

"Yeah... Multiple times," I told her honestly. "After a war, or after

executing my enemies... When my orders necessitated the ending of

people's lives, I always felt conflicted about it, and it would keep me up at

night. In my case, I had Liscia and the others to comfort me. Pathetic as that

sounds, it's reassuring to have someone at my side."

"I see..."

"But I think it's the same for everyone. After Maria made the decision

that split her country, she cried like a child. That's why I stayed by her side

the whole time like Liscia and the others did for me."

"The Maria did that? I can't even imagine..."

"I spoiled her so rotten that, by the end of it, she had turned into a

kitten."

"What does that even mean?" she asked, stifling a small laugh.

Maybe I'd lightened her mood a bit.

"Well, I want you to not push yourself and let us spoil you... Or rather, if

you act too sullen, we'll spoil you whether you like it or not."

"Huh?! I don't even get a say in it?"

"If even one member of the family looks gloomy, all of us worry."

"Even if it's me?"

"You did marry into the family, Missus."

"My position's been so delicate that we've all been so reserved around

each other, so it just hasn't sunk in yet."

Having said that, Yuriga moved a little closer, letting our shoulders

touch.

As we sat side-by-side, she asked me through the pillow, "Okay, if I ask

you to comfort me... How are you going to do it?"

"How about something like this...?"

"Whuh... Mmph!"

I hugged her close and pushed my face against the pillow from the other

side. If it weren't in the way, we'd have been kissing.

Yuriga seemed surprised for a moment, but then the tension melted out

of her shoulders.

After a little longer in that position, I said, "Well...what do you think?"

When I asked that with my face pressed into the pillow, Yuriga moved

away slowly, lowering the pillow. Her exposed face was redder than a

boiled octopus.

I could see the traces of tears in the corners of her eyes, which were

dewy even now, but she still had the presence of mind to glare up at me.

After some time, she finally answered my question.

"It'd be better without the pillow..."

And so we did it again, without the pillow this time.