by Dojyomaru
“Why, you!” Aisha raised her greatsword to deal the finishing blow.
“Hold on, Aisha!” I held out my hand and stopped her. “Take that one alive.”
“Huh? We’re taking prisoners?”
“It may teach us something about the ecology of the monsters. I want to catch one, at least.”
“Understood. Phew... Take this!”
Aisha thrust her greatsword into the ground, then landed a hand chop on the back of the twitching lizardman’s neck. The lizardman’s back arched for a moment, and then it went limp and stopped moving. Its eyes were rolled back, and it was foaming at the mouth.
...I dunno, even if it was a monster, I felt bad seeing that happen to it.
I hesitantly asked Aisha a question as she dragged it over by the tail. “There was a nasty noise there. Are you sure you didn’t kill it?”
“I held back a little, so it should be fine...probably.”
“O-Okay then...”
Looking closer, the monster was out cold and didn’t seem to be dead, so I had a royal guard bind its mouth and body, then lock it inside a tower near the castle.
That was it for enemies outside the royal mansion.
Jirukoma came rushing over. “The royal family and refugees have been left behind inside the royal mansion. I want to rescue them, but there may still be lizardmen inside the building. I would like to request help from the royal guard.”
“Okay.” I nodded and gave the order. “Work with Jirukoma, search every nook and cranny to eliminate any lizardmen, and save the royal family and refugees! They may be hiding in the shadows, so exercise due caution!”
“““Yes, sir!”””
The royal guards saluted me, then went inside the castle with Jirukoma.
Only Aisha, Naden, Julius, and I were left behind. Time drifted by as everyone remained awkwardly silent. Julius was looking toward the castle, and Aisha was cautiously watching him. I guessed it was time for me to say something.
“I hear there were people left behind, but are they okay?”
“I decided that rather than try to move them out, it was safer to have them stay in one place until things settled down,” Julius said. “They were in a place deep inside, and the entrance was tightly sealed, so they should be all right.”
“I see.”
“Yeah...”
...Yeah, this was awkward.
Julius and I had met leading opposing armies on the field of war.
Julius had invaded the Elfrieden Kingdom together with his father Gaius VIII, who had lost his life during that war. He should be trying to take revenge against me, as his father’s killer, but I was also engaged to his younger sister Roroa, so things were complicated.
On top of that, he was the one asking for reinforcements, and I was the one providing them.
While we were both unable to find the words to say, Aisha eyed him warily. Her hands had not left the hilt of her greatsword, as if she were saying, “If you make even one wrong move, I’ll kill you.”
We were enveloped by an air of tension.
As the only one unacquainted with Julius, Naden sensed the uneasiness in the air, and her eyes darted busily back and forth between our faces. “Wh-What? Why’s everyone so tense?”
“Bro... Big Brother...” Roroa said hesitantly.
Turning toward her hesitant voice, I saw that Roroa and Tomoe, who had been told to stay in the gondola where it was safe until things were settled, were getting out. Behind Tomoe was her bodyguard Inugami.
Seeing his sister, Julius’s eyes narrowed. “Oh, it’s Roroa...”
She walked slowly over and stood beside me. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but she couldn’t quite find the words, and her mouth just bobbed open and shut. I couldn’t blame her.
My relationship with Julius was complicated, but hers was too.
They were brother and sister by blood, but they had also been political enemies. She had driven him out for the sake of the people of Amidonia, and then protected them by marrying me and bringing her country with her.
No doubt she felt guilty over driving her brother out.
Meanwhile, Julius had used his connection to Roroa to save the Kingdom of Lastania. In a life-or-death crisis, Julius had relied on the little sister who had been his enemy.
“Roroa,” he said at last.
“Ah!”
Julius walked forward to stand in front of Roroa. That naturally meant the petite Roroa would have to look up at him. Before the uncertain Roroa could look up, Julius quietly lowered his head.
“You did well to bring King Souma here. Thank you.”
Roroa’s eyes went wide. “Brother...I...”
“I no longer have my position as the crown prince of Amidonia. Now I’m just a guest seeking refuge in this country. You needn’t be polite with me. You speak in merchant slang with Colbert and the others, don’t you?”
Julius raised his head.
“...Oh, fine! I get it.” Roroa scratched her head, then crossed her arms as if she’d come to terms with it. Then, she faced Julius straight on. “So, uh...it’s been a while, huh? How’ve ya been?”
“Well, I’m healthy enough, as you can see. The people of this country have been treating me well, and thanks to your reinforcements, we were able to deflect today’s offensive. Let me thank you again for passing my request for aid on to King Souma.”
“H-Hmmph. You’d better be grateful.” Roroa looked away and pursed her lips. “I wasn’t expectin’ it to be like this when we met again.”
“Heh, I could say the same.”
“I’m not gonna apologize for havin’ ya run out of the country,” Roroa added aggressively. “That time... it was all I could do to protect the people of the principality.”
“I failed as a ruler, so I’m not in any place to complain,” Julius said. “If you acted in the interest of the people, be prouder of it. You needn’t feel guilty about it.”
“I-I’m not really feelin’ guilty about it!” Roroa said, flashing her teeth at Julius. “Nyahh!”
I dunno... Watching from the side, they looked like any brother and sister talking.
According to Roroa, they had only spoken the bare minimum that was necessary in Amidonia. She’d been playing innocent out of concern for how her father and brother would see her. Now that that was over and she was being open about her feelings, I was surprised just how much they looked like a normal brother and sister.
Julius shook his head in exasperation. “You’re childish as ever, I see. It’s been a year since you went to be with King Souma, hasn’t it? Shouldn’t you have conceived a child by now?”
“Wha?!” Roroa panicked. “What’re you sayin’?! Me and Darlin’, we haven’t...uh...”
“Don’t tell me you haven’t even laid a hand on her yet?” Julius said in exasperation, having apparently picked up on what Roroa meant.
Roroa turned so red that I thought her face might start shooting flames. It seemed she wasn’t good at having the matter addressed directly. It wasn’t a reaction I saw from her often, so I thought it was a little cute.
While she was in that state, Julius kept talking. “Roroa. You are the head of the Princely House of Amidonia now. If you birth a child, the bloodline of the Princely House of Amidonia will be protected. You have a duty to produce heirs who will tell the stories of the Royal House of Amidonia’s military accomplishments. I implore you to make King Souma fall in love with you as soon as possible.”
“Oh, geez! Lay off! Now I know how Big Sis Cia felt!” Roroa quickly hid behind me. Then she stuck out her face to hiss and give Julius a menacing look.
Since when did she come from a cat beastman race...?
Now that Roroa had hidden, I faced Julius again. “I’ve come in response to your request for aid. It will still be some time before the main force arrives, but I’ve brought 200 Dratroopers as an advance party.”
“I am deeply grateful for your assistance.” Julius knelt and bowed his head
.
The man I’d once competed with during the negotiations with Madam Jeanne was now bowing down to me... It was a strange feeling.
“This feels weird. Please, just stand up and talk normally. Or else...”
“Or else?”
“I’ll call you ‘Big Brother.’”
“...I’ll ask you to spare me that, if nothing else.” Julius stood up and looked me straight in the face.
There wasn’t the grimness that had once been there, and he looked relaxed, as if something that had been possessing him had moved on.
Then Julius moved the discussion along. “I know it’s odd for me to say this as the one making the request, but why did you respond to my call for aid? We fought each other before. You could have ignored me, couldn’t you?”
“I didn’t want to put Roroa through any more pain than she’s already been through.”
“How soft...is what the old me would have said, but now...I think I can understand. Is Roroa that big of a deal to you?”
“Roroa’s family now,” I said. “I’ll protect my family, come whatever may.”
“Family...huh.”
Julius and I eyed one another. Like we were each probing the other’s intentions.
I could hear Aisha and Naden talking behind me.
“Madam Naden, you and I are His Majesty’s family too, right?”
“You bet we are. And when we include everyone’s little sister Tomoe, we’re a family of seven.”
“Then, do you suppose that makes Sir Julius my brother-in-law?”
“No, I don’t think it works that way.”
I wanted to say, Um... Could you two take the relaxed conversation elsewhere...? But, no, it was reassuring to have the two powerful ones close by. That way, I didn’t have to be afraid of Julius.
Julius pulled his sheathed saber from his belt and offered it to me.
I narrowed my eyes and asked him, “What’s this supposed to mean?”
“When I sent the request, I said I was willing to offer you my head. If you want it, let me do as I promised.”
“...You were serious?”
“Of course. If you strike me down, that will be one less worry regarding your rule over Amidonia. In exchange, I’d like you to look after this kingdom to the end.”
There was no indecision in Julius’s eyes. He’d already made up his mind, it seemed.
I slowly took the saber, and Julius bent down and extended his neck so it would be easier to cut.
“Darli—”
Roroa was about to say something, but then forced herself to stay silent. Thinking she shouldn’t say anything, she swallowed the words.
Now, what to do...
“Lord Julius!”
A young girl coming out of the castle with Jirukoma raced over, putting herself between Julius and me. She hugged Julius, who was still hanging his head.
The young girl looked up at me, her eyes filled with a strength of emotion that belied her charming appearance.
“I see you are King Souma Kazuya of the Kingdom of Friedonia. I am the princess of this country, Tia Lastania.”
“Oh, right... I’m Souma Kazuya.” I was thrown by the girl’s intensity and responded in the way I normally would. So, this was this country’s princess, huh?
Princess Tia made a desperate appeal to me. “We are very happy, and grateful, to receive reinforcements from the Kingdom of Friedonia. However, though I hesitate to say this as the one receiving assistance... I must ask you, please, be magnanimous and forgive Lord Julius!”
“Princess Tia! This is dangerous! Please stand down!” Julius barked.
“I will not let go! I don’t want to see you killed!”
Though Julius tried to tear her off him, Princess Tia held on tight and wouldn’t let go. She was putting her life on the line to save Julius.
“I’ve heard the situation from Lord Julius! I know that Lord Julius risked his head to make this request for aid! But he did that for us, the Kingdom of Lastania! I do not know what kind of man Lord Julius was during his time in the Principality of Amidonia. However, in his time here, Julius has led a force of volunteer soldiers, striking down the monsters that attack, and serving this country. He is irreplaceable to this country! And also to me!”
Seeing Tia speak quickly and try to persuade us...
Oh, that makes sense...
Roroa and I got it. The reason Julius seemed to have grown as a person was likely thanks to this princess here. I could read between the lines and see her love for Julius. Her feelings for him, and his for her, had made Julius who he was now.
Though, hold on, I never meant to cut Julius down in the first place.
It wasn’t like taking his head at this point would change anything, and, more than anything, I didn’t want to make Roroa sad. Besides, it felt like Julius had offered me the sword knowing I’d think that way. It was probably a symbolic formality, like we were cutting off our past relationship.
But Princess Tia, who didn’t know that, was desperately trying to protect Julius.
Now, how am I going to get this situation under control? I wondered. Then, suddenly, it came to me.
“...Very well. If you will accept a certain condition, I will refrain from bringing retribution on Julius.”
“If it is something I can do, then anything!”
“Princess Tia!” Julius hastily tried to make her take it back, but Princess Tia stubbornly refused to listen.
“Now then, what might your condition be?” she asked.
“I wish for you to take the name of Amidonia from Julius by your own hands.”
“Take his name away? Um, do you suppose that is something which I can do?”
“Yes, and if it’s you, it can be done quite easily, I think.”
“It can?” Tia was nonplussed.
Meanwhile, Julius, who understood what I was saying, immediately took on an angry look and glared at me. Oh! There was still some semblance of his old face there.
Then, having apparently figured it out, Tia clapped her hands. “Oh, I see. I just need to have Sir Julius marry into my family. If he does that, he’ll be Julius Lastania, not Julius Amidonia.”
“Princess Tia, this is the sort of thing you need to think through carefully...” Julius said hurriedly.
But Tia agreed with a smile and a nod. “I will accept your condition. I know my mother and father will accept Sir Julius.”
“...Urkh.”
“Wahahah!” Jirukoma laughed. “Looks like it’s time for you to pay the piper, huh, Julius. Congratulations. Well, from the looks of you two, it was just a matter of time anyway.”
Chapter 6: The Reality Here and Now
“It’s like a vision of hell...” I muttered, looking out over the scene beneath us.
It was the witching hour, and Julius and I were standing together atop the walls of Lasta.
In case anything happened, Aisha was standing a little behind us. That wasn’t a precaution against Julius, but against the creatures below.
The chimera-like creatures were swarming beneath us now, feasting on the roasted remains of the lizardmen killed by our aerial bombardment. These abominations would happily feed on man and lizard alike.
There were scattered cries as the monsters fought over food.
Watching, or even just listening to all of this couldn’t be good for my mental well-being.
“With all these lizardmen surrounding them, I’m impressed this tiny country has held out so long,” I said uneasily. “It wouldn’t have been unexpected for them to swallow you up in no time.”
“Perhaps so, but we couldn’t give up on living,” Julius said. “We’re here because everyone’s fought hard to survive.”
It was surprising to hear Julius say that. It seemed he really had changed. The Julius I’d known before wouldn’t have cared this much for the soldiers doing the fighting. His days of wandering and his time with Princess Tia really had left him a changed man.
“By the way...” Jul
ius began, “what happened to the wyvern cavalry?”
“I sent them back to the main force,” I said. “Since they’d used up the explosive barrels they brought. Besides, you don’t have the reserves to garrison them here indefinitely.”
“...Indeed.”
Wyverns would eat the equivalent of one cow per meal. However, once they fed, they didn’t need to feed again for close to a week, so their overall cost wasn’t too bad. Even so, it would be a heavy burden on a country which was under siege, so I couldn’t garrison them here.
Incidentally, if Naden or Ruby used their fire breath or electric shocks in dragon form, that used a considerable amount of energy, and they would eat ravenously for a while after to replenish it. Because of that, I hadn’t been able to let them go wild in dragon forms yet, either.
“I have, at least, asked the wyvern cavalry to bring in supplies you’re running short of here, but...it’s about half a day’s trip, so the earliest they will arrive is tomorrow night,” I said. “We’ll have to fight with just this country’s soldiers and the Dratroopers for a little while longer.”
“In that case...it will be important to decide how command of the two countries’ troops is handled.” Julius looked at me. “Are you sure about this? Letting me command Friedonia’s forces?”
“Well, in this situation, there isn’t much alternative.”
After speaking to my staff officer, Kaede, we’d decided that, for the limited time it took the main force to meet up with us, Julius would be entrusted with command of the Dratroopers.
This was a measure we were taking to avert any conflicts in the command structures of the Friedonian and Lastanian armed forces.
“You’re the most experienced commander here after all,” I said. “I may be high-ranked, but I’m more of a bureaucratic type, and the Dratroopers are fierce fighters, but they’re all a bunch of muscle heads. Kaede is the best commander we have on hand, but though she’s talented at planning operations, she’s not suited to taking command in the middle of a battlefield. In short, you’re the only real general here, Julius.”
“I understand that, but...I’m asking if you or your men can trust me. If they ignore my orders because they can’t, that’s a problem. I could use the Dratroopers like they’re expendable. Aren’t you concerned about that?”
