/
Chapter 1 Escapees with no drive
Part 1
More than 10 soldiers started drawing magic arrays…
Creating large flashes of lightning.
The surroundings are filled with lightning that seem to be trying to intimidate the enemy…
On seeing this,
“Wh~y must we be treated like this? I’m sleepy, and I’m tired here. Don’t you feel that something is definitely wrong somewhere here…?”
Ryner Lute muttered. Suddenly, a flash of lightning hit below Ryner’s feet, and the ground had a hole blown there…he glanced at the hole.
“Haa…always bullying me…”
Ryner sighed. He had disheveled black hair and an unmotivated expression even during this moment of crisis.
On the long skinny cat-back body, he was wearing a battle outfit formed by the white armor that only the strongest Roland Knights could wear and some accessories…but they still couldn’t prevent the sleepiness and laziness that came onto his entire body…
Ryner continued to say with that extremely relaxed voice of his.
“Or rather, I’m really not suited to bullying others. Un. That’s why I said that it’s best for everyone to take a nap together…”
At that moment.
An explosion!
Several parts of the ground below Ryner had holes blown into them…
“Uu…no way!? Can't I not run away? I hate having to run, you know? It’s troublesome…you know?”
He continued to say those words, and the powerful lightning bolts that would definitely char and evaporate him if they hit him continued to be fired…like a thunderstorm.
It was a storm of destruction. A large amount of force came at Ryner’s surroundings. To give an example as an explanation, it was as if the lightning came like pouring rain…and right now, he was in such an unusual scene.
However—
In this scene, he wasn’t worried about the storm-like lightning as he continued to give his sleepy expression. Ryner’s steps looked even weirder as he dragged his tired steps to dodge all the lightning attacks…
Also, there was someone else beside him…
It was a beautiful woman who didn’t seem to notice the presence of the lightning as she continued to dodge them with natural feet.
The elegant blond hair continued to sway in the midst of the storm, and the long and narrow green eyes, the abnormally beautiful face and the stylish body had a leather-made light armor on, and there’s a longsword tied to her waist as she showed such a posture.
It was really an unbelievably stunning beauty.
Anyone who sees her for the first time would definitely be captivated by her and let out a cry of amazement…
However—
Ryner just looked at this woman.
“You…hey…”
He wasn’t in awe. He was sighing…
The owner of the beauty that didn’t feel like an ordinary person’s didn’t seem to show any emotion in this situation for some reason…she continued to take out a package from her clutches without any emotion and opened it before eating the dango inside… And then.
“…As expected, the Wynnit’s shop dango are delicious.”
“THIS IS NOT THE TIME TO SAY SUCH THINGS, RIGHT!? …WHAT ARE YOU THINKING OF NOW!? DO YOU UNDERSTAND THE SITUATION NOW!? WE’LL BE KILLED, YOU KNOW!?”
“Fm, but even so, I see that you lack quite the tension there as well.”
“YOU DON’T HAVE THE RIGHT TO SAY THAT ABOUT ME! Urk…haa…I’m tired. Never mind…I’ll go take a nap first. Please deal with all the troublesome things before I wake up.”
The soldiers of the border sentry were ready to use magic attacks on them…
Also, the sturdy large chair behind Ryner’s group cut off their retreat.
Both of them were completely forced into a dead end…
Finally, the soldiers surrounded the two of them…
A somewhat mustached man who looks like the squad leader walked forward,
“Haha! Finally caught you ‘taboo breakers’!! Let’s see where you’re going to run to? You can’t escape! I’ve worked here for 25 years. With this great border sentry Betran here, you’ll definitely be unable to pass this border!!”
He enthusiastically said such a line as if he was the boss around here,
But Ryner ignored the man’s words as he said to the beauty beside him,
“I say, Ferris. Ever since we entered the border and got attacked by these guys, I—~rrreeeeaaaaaaallly have a question I really couldn’t figure out…can I ask?”
However—
Like usual, Ferris said in a flat tone that didn’t hold any emotions,
“No way, I’m fighting against the dangos now.”
“……”
It was a direct answer.
It was an answer that felt like it was to be expected…
Ryner immediately felt faint and tried his best to control his breathing.
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THAT!? REALLY, WHAT’S WITH YOU! HOW MANY TIMES DID I TELL YOU TO CONSIDER THE CURRENT SITUATION! NOW’S NOT THE TIME TO FIGHT AGAINST DANGO!”
However,
Ferris stared at Ryner with icy cold eyes that didn’t show any emotion…
And said…
“So what?”
“Eh?......Au, no…tha, that’s, I won’t be intimidated even with you saying something scary like so what!? Ugh, it’s not like that! So just answer my question!”
“So what?”
“No, anyway, I’ve always felt weird about this. We were decreed by that guy to leave the country.”
“Yes.”
“But why is it that we’re attacked once we crossed the border…and called ‘taboo breakers’ by others!? If that guy ordered it, the permit to leave the country should have been given, right?”
And Ferris,
“Yeah.”
Nodded in a bored manner.
On a side note, the meaning of this ‘Taboo Border’ would be those who learned Roland’s magic and were fleeing the country or sneaking out without the country’s permission. These people who’re ‘taboo breakers’ will be captured by the people sent from the country and punished severely.
This was a means to prevent Roland’s magic system from being leaked out of the country…
Of course, if they left with the permit of the country—moreso a decree by the king of Roland to leave the country, they should be able to exit the border without any problems…
That should be the case… Ryner looked around.
The soldiers were filled with killing intent, surrounding Ryner’s group in an instant battle formation…
It was an imminent situation.
It was just this kind of atmosphere…
“Wh, Why did it end up like this?”
He asked, and Ferris continued to eat the dango calmly.
“Don’t know.”
“Well…saying don’t know…you’re…really irresponsible…you’re the one who dragged me here while threatening me with a sword!”
“Un, that was the king’s order. A sex maniac like you who likes mature ladies will do something foolish once I let you out, so my mission now is to ‘watch you—and if you do anything to others, exterminate’.”
“…Immediately eliminate… that king, I don’t remember him saying something so overboard…speaking of which, why must I be the sex maniac here!?”
“Your face.”
“Uwah…don’t, don’t just say it so directly…THAT’S NOT RIGHT!! ARRGGGH, REALLY, I’M GOING TO EXPLODE HERE!! HOW AM I GOING TO ENDURE GOING AROUND WITH THIS PERSON HERE!! ISN’T THIS TOO WEIRD!!? WHY MUST I LISTEN TO THE KING!!? TAKING AWAY MY REPORT WITHOUT PERMISSION, BECOMING KING WITHOUT ME EVEN KNOWING, AND GIVING ME AN EMOTIONLESS PERSON WITH SUCH A BAD PERSONALITY AS MY PARTNER!!? I’LL REALLY EXPLODE NOW!! I’M GOING BACK!! I WANT TO SLEEP!! IT’S DECIDED!!!’
And—
Ryner continued to roar as he walked towards the soldiers surrounding them.
Completely ignoring the mood of the scene…
The soldiers merely stared at them for a long while…and then,
“WAIT A SECOND!! YOU CAN’T JUST BRUSH ME OFF LIKE THAT BY DECIDING THINGS ON YOUR OWN!! I’LL DEFINITELY NOT ALLOW YOU TWO TO ESCAPE…”
Suddenly, Ferris,
“Alright, dango break’s over. Then,”
She said as she drew the sword at her waist.
And then—
“Ah…”
What happened next caused the soldiers to be stunned…
Ferris beautifully swung the sword in her hand and used the hilt to smack right at the back of Ryner’s head in a straight line…
GONK!!
“Ugya!?”
With a blunt sound, Ryner immediately fell…
“…”
And had no strength to stand up…
The soldiers backed away as they were faced with this sudden situation.
“Eh? Ha? No wait…what’s this…”
But Ferris turned around while completely ignoring them, and this time, she faced the large metal gate in front of her.
She nodded.
“Nn.”
Immediately,
Ferris’ body vanished.
No, it’s like she vanished, as she quickly jumped up.
And then, with the flash of the blade.
At the same time,
The giant gate was sliced completely in half…
“Oi oi, are you kidding me…”
Lying down on the ground, Ryner saw this scene and exclaimed without thinking,
As for the soldiers, all of them had their mouths wide open in shock…
This was really an unbelievable scene.
Her swordsmanship aside, her movement was so fast she couldn’t be seen at all…
Also, that sturdy metal gate was sliced in half without resistance, like paper…
She’s just like a monster.
They would definitely be slaughtered if they took action against such a monster…
“And has a bad personality…uu…do I really have to travel with this person…”
Suddenly, while he was saying this, Ferris landed on Ryner’s back.
“Ugyah!?”
Now Ryner really couldn’t get up…
After checking things through, Ferris dragged Ryner by the collar.
“Alright, let’s go, Ryner.”
And then, she dragged him out of the gate.
Nobody who treasured their lives would stop her…
Nobody did…\nPart 2
And now for a slight change in location and time…
Ryner’s group entered the neighboring country of the Roland Empire, the Nelpha Imperial.
On the road that extended far out, Ryner continued to walk, *boto boto*, and gave an expression that showed that he had given up.
“Haa…I got it… I would hate to be killed by you, so I’ll just obey you for the time being…what’s next? Is our aim really to find all the relics of the legends scattered all over the world in the report I wrote? Do you actually believe they exist?”
Ferris, who was walking beside him, nodded,
“It doesn’t matter whether I believe or not. I just don’t want that cruel king to use a hostage and force me to obey orders.”
“Hostage…?Ahh, speaking of which, the king did seem to mention it before when we left the palace…or rather, your little sister got taken by the king as a hostage, right?”
But Ferris shook her head,
“My sister’s life doesn’t matter. She’s my sister, and she will always have a way to survive on her own. More than that, if I don’t listen, that king will destroy the Wynnit dango shop…if I can’t eat the dango from that shop, what should I eat to live on?”
“…”
There was nothing to think about…
Ryner frowned, but he didn’t know what would happen to him if he argued back, so he nodded.
“That guy’s really too much, forcing a partner with such bad character onto me…the country’s doomed with that kind of guy as king…”
“Un, just like you say, a king who is despicable and also the friend of a sex maniac…I really don’t dare to imagine the fate of this country…”
““…””
Both of them went silent, and then—
“I say… was the sex maniac referring to me?”
“You’re the only bastard here. Is that partner with bad personality referring to me?”
And Ryner and Ferris glared at each other…
Several seconds later.
Again, Ryner looked rather frail as he dragged his battered body and moved forward.
“…An, anyway, about that, we have to find the powerful relics of the legends scattered all over various countries..”
“Nn, that’s right. We can’t possibly let the powerful relics fall into the hands of other countries.”
“Or rather, I feel that nobody actually went to find something like legendary relics so seriously, so there shouldn’t be any problems…”
Ferris showed a surprised look.
“Un? Really? But I heard from the king that the report you wrote about the relics was really outstanding?”
Ryner gave a wry smile.
“…An outstanding report…huh…even though I wrote it…ah, never mind. Given that we crossed the border so brazenly like that, I guess we can’t go back before things can even settle…let’s go find out about the legend of Nelpha…really…why did it become so troublesome…then, let’s go to the capital of Nelpha.”
“Nn, are there any legendary relics over there?”
“No…there aren’t any…in fact, the report I wrote only contained the information collected in Roland, so for the legends in the Nelpha Imperial, I have to check them in Nelpha. If not, I can’t find the correct place…”
“Hou, so we’re going to the capital?”
“Un, to the Imperial Library.”
“Let’s go then.”
As she said that, Ferris started to walk off…
Ryner couldn’t help but grumble.
“I say, can’t you go a little slower? I was beaten up pretty badly by you. Don’t you have any sympathy for your wounded teammate…I’m sleepy, tired, and when on a trip, I really hate the ‘let’s work hard and walk to the next city today!’ situation, you know? But…”
However, the moment Ryner said this, Ferris turned around and put her hand at the hilt of the sword on her waist—
Ryner panicked the moment he saw that,
“Okay! okay! I got it. I’ll walk, I’ll walk…”
He started to walk as he said,
“Damn it. Really, you’re the devil! Speaking of which…you just sliced that large gate in half…what kind of person are you!?”
But Ferris ignored this.
“I don’t want to hear that from you when you can keep dodging fatal blows from my sword all the time…I’m the one who wants to ask you who in the world you are.”
“Ugh…did you see through such a thing?”
“Of course. But I’ll definitely kill you next time…”
“DON’T KILL ME!!”
Both of them continued with their dangerous conversation as they walked down the road and went away.
They’re aiming for the capital of Nelpha Imperial…
Part 3
And now for a shift in location back to the Roland Empire.
This was the largest building in the country, full of unnecessary authority.
The city where the Roland King’s lived.
In that city, in that room that was most simple…
The king of this city was there.
The elegant looking silver hair, the golden eyes that showed a strong will, and a nice face.
Sion Astal.
Whether he was the son of an ex-king’s concubine, whether it was the accomplishments during the war against the Kingdom of Estabul and how he leapt into the higher command of the Roland army…
He then called out the king of Roland on his tyranny, used a splendid move to launch a revolution and became the hero king.
The king who was merely 19 years old used the exceptional charisma, ability, looks that came with his blood as a leader and got the majority of the people’s support…
However, with the people who supported him, it meant that he would be hated by the politicians— the nobles…
“U~n”
Sion narrowed his golden eyes, staring at the documents in front of him and pondering.
“If I don’t deal with the flooding in this river, the surrounding cities will be affected…in that case, I can only delay the development of the Beril area…but if that’s the case, Beril will not remain silent…un~”
At this moment, from beside him,
“Well…Astal-sama.”
A voice was suddenly heard, but Sion didn’t lift his head.
“Un? Wait a moment, Fiole. I’ll deal with this first…done.”
He then turned around.
“What is it? Is there something?”
The 16, 17-year-old youth who was slightly younger than Sion was standing in front of him and smiling.
But Fiole still showed a slightly angry expression.\n“It’s not about what happened, Astal-sama! How many hours have you been continuously working!?”
“Eh?”
Sion pondered for a while,
“Uu, how much time was it?”
Fiole snatched the document in Sion’s hands away.
“You’ve been sitting in that seat for 20 hours, and didn’t you just arrive from the inspection of the land…you haven’t had a proper meal yet…your body will be in bad shape if this keeps up! Here! I won’t hand these documents over to you until you finish this food.”
He pointed at the luxurious food on the cart as he said that.
Sion saw it, and gave a bothered smile.
“You’re really scary, Fiole. I got it. I’ll rest for a while then.”
Sion raised his hands to surrender, and Fiole gave a ‘that should be the case’ look before starting to clear the documents on the on the table, and then laid the food over.
Sion looked at these dishes, and then folded his arms,
“Actually, Fiole, what about the situation there? The leaders in Cleado village not collecting taxes due to their feud with the nobles.”
As he finished his words, Fiole finished laying all the dishes onto the table.
“Work~ again…about that, I went to the place to sort the leaders’ views and compiled them into documents. However, I won’t show them to you until you finish your meal!”
“I, I got it. But, you finished arranging the documents…and the problem just happened…I suppose it was the right choice to nominate you. You’re outstanding.”
“Wh…why are you saying such things? I won’t give you any leeway even if you praise me, you know?”
Fiole’s face was blushing red…
However, Sion was serious,
“No, I’m being serious here. You helped me out a lot here. Now that I think about it, Fiole. You managed to compile the report in such a short time. You’re the one who didn’t sleep well at all, weren't you?”
Fiole shook his head.
“I’m fine here. I was raised in a poor family. My parents died in the war started by the ex-king…and you picked me up when I was wandering with my sister…so serving you is something I have to do. But…”
Fiole showed a hardworking look with that somewhat childish face on him.
“I can’t consider myself to be repaying you if you’re working much harder than me.”
Sion smiled.
“Repay? So that’s what you’re thinking about, Fiole. Un~ that’s troublesome. This is a whole lot different from my ideals…beside, I never did anything worth making you repay me. Even though anyone can tell that you’re outstanding, the insistent nobles demanded that people of low background couldn’t be raised in rank, and I couldn’t nominate you officially and hid it from the nobles…”
But Fiole shook his head,
“What are you saying? That’s enough for me. It’s like a dream for me to live this life. It’s because of you that my sister can go to school properly, Astal-sama…to a commoner like me, there’s no better thing…”
Suddenly,
“That’s not it.”
Sion suddenly raised his voice to interrupt Fiole’s words.
Fiole was shocked,
“Eh…?”
Sion stared at Fiole’s troubled eyes—
And then, he smiled again.
“Don’t think of it this way, Fiole. The background doesn’t matter. The birth circumstances don’t matter. Right now, there are nobles in this country, and there exist a noble…but do I look like I’m of a higher status than you? Do you feel that way when looking at other nobles? No, right? Everyone’s the same.
The people…should all be equal.
Of course, everyone needs to act a certain role…but one day, I will create that kind of country.
A country where everyone is equal; one without wars…
To achieve that, there will be a lot of obstacles. The old corrupted system, the antagonistic mentality towards me who rose in ranking in such a short time, the nobles who are only interested in saving themselves and money…
I want to change all of this…
"It will take a lot of time, so I need outstanding talents like you. But this isn’t the most important thing…"
As he said this, Sion closed his eyes. Immediately, a lot of images appeared in his mind. The dog carcasses sent over, the mouths of the nobles who insulted him for being a lowborn, a dirty dog’s kid.
The despicable identity…
Of the mother who had the most noble look in the world…
Sion smiled—
“The most important thing is not to give up, Fiole. That’s what I feel. Don’t just give up because of your commoner status…don’t give up because of this. No matter how many people look down on you…you’re definitely not alone. You’ll definitely have a lot of allies…
"However, these are just something I heard other people make up…”
He shrugged his shoulders.
“…”
Fiole went silent, merely widening his eyes to look at Sion…
“What is it, Fiole? Did I say something weird?”
Fiole hurriedly shook his head.
“No! That’s not it! It’s just that…”
“Fm, what then?”
Fiole smiled radiantly.
“It’s just that…it’s really great that you’re the leader of this country. That’s what I think.”
“Eh?”
Sion widened his eyes.
“You won’t get any leeway by praising me, you know?”
Fiole shook his head.
“I’m serious. I’m proud that you’re the king of this country. And I’m feeling blessed over my sister who’s being cared by the country like this…I really thank god for that.”
Sion scratched his head in an awkward manner…
“You flatter me.”
Fiole grinned and said.
“That’s right. You’re the king of this country~ it’s not bad to have such chess pieces, right?”
“Ah—I see. So you’re really a good strategist. Very outstanding.”
“Alright, don’t just say such things. Hurry up and eat. The nobles’ dinner will start soon, and at such a place…”
Sion’s face suddenly became stern.
“Ahh, I definitely can’t have a good meal with those foolish fake nobles. Really, can’t they do anything on their own about such meals? Wasting the funds of the people…only knowing how to harm others and recommending their daughters to be my wife or something. It’s because of them that I’m surrounded by such ambitious women and lost all my appetite.”
“Hahaha, but there’re a lot of people who actually admire you there, Astal-sama? I’m the same as well. It’s not because you’re the king, but I want to let my sister marry you, Astal-sama.”
“Fm~, is that so…but your sister should be a good kid, Fiole…how old is your sister?”
“Younger than me by 3 years…she’s 14.”
“What is she doing now?”
Fiole’s expression softened.
“Because of you, she’s now studying in school. Unlike me, she’s outstanding, has good grades and is really energetic. She would occasionally write to me…but I don’t even have time because my superior here’s busy, so I couldn’t write back…ahh, she must be feeling lonely?”
“…I say…you’re…secretly deliberately trying to provoke me into resting, right?”
Fiole shook his head.
“No, I’m not doing it secretly. I’m directly provoking you.”
And then, he showed a worried look.
“You really need to…take care of yourself. Or else you’re going to harm your body.”
That expression looked like he would cry anytime soon. Sion frowned,
“Un~ I got it. Then, after the dinner event tonight, I’ll go back to my room for some long-needed rest…as exchange, you will go for vacation this weekend, Fiole.”
“Eh? …Vacation? No, I can’t accept this. I really don’t have the time for this…”
“Un~ really, you. Forcing me to go sleep, yet you don’t want to sleep? I won’t be able to sleep then.”
“Wh, why are you saying such childish things…besides, even if I don’t rest…”
But Sion interrupted Fiole.
“I’m not letting you rest for your sake, but for your sister's. Go find her.”
“Ah…”
Fiole went silent…
And then,
“I understand. I’ll gladly accept this then.”
He smiled happily.
Part 4
The ex-king built this hall for entertainment purposes, and created this place as a fan-shaped room with the king’s throne as the base. This construct, called the Azure Illusion room, had all sorts of glamorous decorations on all places imaginable, even the walls and ceiling. This large hall had thousands of people in glamorous clothing, men and women—all who were called nobility, were laughing and talking here.
The luxurious food; the meaningless expensive wine…
Sion saw all of this…
And sighed.
How much money was needed to host a banquet of this scale…?
Fiole once calculated it before, and the total amount wasn’t just at a level where he could just sigh at it, but one that was bothersome…they could have used the money in other places to save a lot of people …
But as the king, Sion couldn’t stop such a banquet that used up so much money.
The power of the nobles was very high.
Sion frowned as he folded his arms. He had already dealt with the former king who had relations with these nobles, but…
Nothing changed…
No, rather than that…
As he dealt with the former king, something big was created, inadvertently born…
At this moment, the several armor-clad men surrounding Sion like guards saw him grimace. One of them, a 20-year-old man who had tidy bright red hair, sharp red eyes and a straight back said,
“Don’t show such a tense look, okay? Look, the pretty girls are staring at you. Go over there, go on. Isn’t it an important job for a king to interact with the nobles?”
Sion stared at him with a disgusted look.
“You’re saying that because you want to talk to the girls, Claugh.”
“Ah, I was seen through…”
“What about being seen through…weren’t you also like that when you were in my army?”
“Ara, was it like that?”
This time, the man who then spoke up was standing opposite Claugh, having blond curly hair, beautiful emerald eyes and looked rather delicate.
“Yeah, besides, you tried to make some moves on a noble’s daughter, and her parents saw through it…and I had to clean things up. You have to know when to stop, Claugh-sempai.”
“Id~iot, Calne. It’s the job of the junior to help the senior when he’s in trouble.”
“I’ll kneel down, I’ll kneel down! When that noble girl was crying away…she even said that you had to bear responsibility…really, she’s not a kitten or a puppy. You've got to restrain yourself!”
“Houhou…speaking of self-restrain, I know you’re secretly having an affair with the mistress of Parl…”
“WHA, WHAT!? WHAT ARE YOU SAYING IN FRONT OF SION-SAMA!?”
Claugh and Calne continued to make noise.
They were good friends in the army before Sion became king, and whether it was during the revolution or when he became king, they continued to work hard for Sion, and were reliable aides, but…
Claugh and Calne were getting louder.
“Really…you’re really not human to make moves on someone else’s wife. No no, I don’t want to become that kind of adult.”
“What adult when you’re just 7 years older than me!? Be, besides, Lady Parl and I are…well…to put it, serious, so it’s fine!”
“You were saying that you were serious the last time you fooled around…”
Sion’s head started to hurt the more he heard about it, and couldn’t help but cup his head.
“You, your voices are too loud. Think about how you would feel if you’re in my shoes too. Really. I got it, I got it. Go find some girls for yourself, Claugh.”
Claugh stuck his tongue out.
“Yes! If it’s the king’s order!”
The tall body unexpectedly slipped into the crowd of nobles and disappeared.
On seeing this, Sion sighed…
“Only at such instances would he call me king…”
At this moment, Sion noticed Calne staring at him with a yearning expression…
“…Okay okay, I got it. I’m fine. Go find that Lady Parl or whatever her name is.”
Calne’s expression sparkled.
“You don’t have to worry about it…but, then, I’ll accept this happily then…”
And he fluttered off.
“These guys, really…try and learn some things from Fiole…”
Sion smiled wryly.
Several ladies dressed in glamorous ornaments eyed at Sion, who was left alone, and walked over…
From their looks, all of them were really dazzling and beautiful. They had beauty that was built from the money the nobles had.
Some women blushed on seeing Sion’s face, and some looked at Sion with confident looks…
“Greetings, Astal-sama.”
“Why are you hiding in such a corner? Come over to the middle of the hall.”
“Please be my dance partner.”
Sion showed a smile on his face and answered back with a tone completely different to the one used with Claugh and Calne.
“Such beautiful ladies. Are you inviting me? Aren’t there other powerful nobles gathered here in this Azure Illusion palace…?”
The women chuckled.
“You really know how to kid around, Astal-sama. There is no other man more charming than you.”
“I see, so you charming women haven’t found any suitable men in this Azure Illusion Palace. Looks like the goddess of luck is smiling at me.”
“You really know how to talk, my lord.”
He continued to smile at the female crowd, and at the same time, noticed six noble men walking towards him. One of them was a skinny, tall and frail looking man, who said,
“My king, you’re always so popular.”
Sion smiled back at him,
“Aren’t you Lord Beril, and Lord Parl and Lord Ishruna. Are you still partying today?”
The somewhat middle-aged Ishruna answered,
“We’re surprised that you would organize the Azure Illusion Banquet so glamorously, my King. We’re merely a few individuals who got some pieces of land in the countryside, so this is really a grand banquet we couldn’t imagine at all…as expected of my King.”
“That’s right.”
The nobles all nodded.
Sion narrowed his sharp golden eyes.
“Is that so? Recently, I heard that Lord Pali and Lord Ishruna managed to carry out outstanding management policies in your own respective places. I heard that you managed to earn quite some reward inside the place, right?”
Pali and Ishruna immediately frowned the moment they heard them,
“Mu…”
And let out hesitant sounds. In fact, through Fiole’s investigations, these two had been filling their pockets since the previous king’s rule by charging the people in their land unreasonable taxes…Sion stared at the two of them who were completely silent, but continued to keep a smile on his face and said out some words in a manner of pretense,
“Please continue to keep this up and work hard for Roland.”
Parl immediately answered without hesitation,
“Pl, please leave it to us!”
Ishruna immediately added,
“I’m willing to give my all for this country. Right, Mary?”
He said to one of the women who was just talking to Sion.
On hearing that, the woman nodded,
“Yes, my father. We’ll offer our all for our king.”
And then, she started to grab onto Sion’s arm and fawn over him…
The other ladies looked over at her with sharp stares…
At this moment, a young male noble who Sion didn’t know of, who had remained silent, looked like he didn’t want to lose out to the other nobles as he came out from the crowd. He lowered his head in front of Sion, introduced himself, and said,
“My king, I’m really sorry about this…but this is what I just heard…”
Sion was puzzled by these unexpected words, and tilted his head,
“Sorry? What are you saying? I don’t understand what you mean…”
The man seemed to be shocked by Sion’s words, and remained silent for a while, before continuing in a panicked manner,
“Ahh…well…do, don’t tell me you don’t know of it…? Pa, pardon my rudeness!”
“No, you don’t have to apologize. Speaking of which, what’s going on?”
The young man showed an awkward expression,
“No, well, it’s not really alright for me to say this…”
At this moment, Beril gave a wry smile,
“You don’t have to worry. Isn’t that whetting our appetite?”
“Is, is that so? But saying such a thing in such a grand occasion is really…”
Sion shook his head,
“Don’t worry. Just say it.”
However, the man still looked hesitant, and then, finally seemed to have made his own decision as he lifted his head,
“I understand…but in fact, I just heard this from the other nobles…my king, it seemed that Fiole—I think that's the name, can’t really remember that, which had been serving you...the commoner duty officer's mercilessly murdered corpse was discovered…”
Immediately, Sion’s eyes narrowed.
Fiole…?
Was killed…?
These words caused his mind to immediately sink into chaos.
The young man who was still talking to Sion happily just now was…
That youth who was extremely happy when his sister was being discussed?
Impossible. Besides, the rumors of Fiole being killed didn’t reach him yet. Why was it that it reached the nobles’ ears…
At this moment, Beril said,
“This is…really a bloody topic, really unfitting for such an atmosphere. It’s really tragic…however, I suppose we can take comfort that it’s only a commoner who died this time.”
Parl’s face showed a smile,
“It’s just like you said. There would be a large problem if it was a noble killed this time.”
Finally, Ishruna added,
“Alright alright. Don’t say such things. It’s rare for everyone to be happy. Mary, serve the king some wine.”
“Yes, father.”
Mary left Sion to get the wine.
“…I see. So that’s how it is,,,”
Sion muttered softly,
The nobles couldn’t hear him,
“Eh? What did you say?”
Sion shook his head…
He smiled, showing a smile without malice.
There was nothing more ‘easing’ than this.
“I’m fine. It’s just as you said. It’s really fortunate that it was only a commoner who was killed. I suppose I would be worrying if it was a noble who was killed. It’s great that everyone can say it like that. Thanks, everyone.”
He said this as he smiled and looked around.
And then, he saw several nobles looking away from Sion’s smiling stare…
“…”
Sion didn’t stop smiling.
He understood this clearly.
They were always like this.
They were always like this right from the beginning…
He started to feel a murderous intent deep inside his heart. A rage that was enough to cover Sion’s eyes rushed up from within him, but he didn’t show such an expression.
Sion continued to smile.
“Please enjoy the banquet tonight, everyone.”
And then, he forcefully snatched the glass of wine from Mary’s hand.
“My dear lady, can I enjoy a dance?”
“Ah, do I have such an honor?”
“Of course.”
And then,
Sion started to walk towards the middle of the hall.
Using a clear smile without any signs of malice as he endured the stares of countless nobles…
Part 5
It was a very simple room.
This room didn’t even have a single item of luxury, just the bare minimum required for living.
A desk, a bed and—
There wasn’t even a light with magic as its source, as the light source in the room was a lamp placed on the desk…
In the middle of the room…
The moment he saw that scene,
“……Damn it…”
Sion muttered softly.
“…Damn it…this is my…”
Fiole…was wrecked, seemingly drowned in blood.
There were all sorts of unnecessary wounds carved into him, as if it was deliberately meant for Sion to see…
“…IT’S ALL MY FAULT!!”
After saying that, he forcefully slammed the wall.
And couldn’t feel any pain at all.
He just felt rage that was enough to cover his eyes, and his heart seemed to be covered by a black emotion.
His mind remembered the laughter of the nobles who didn’t seem to treat other people’s lives like anything, their shallow smiles that didn’t understand other people’s feelings…
And as he was about to slam the wall viciously again, Claugh stopped him from behind.
“That’s enough, Sion.”
Sion turned around…
He saw his own bloody fist…and narrowed his eyes.
“…Sorry, I won’t do that again. So, can you just let me be alone for the moment?”
But Claugh remained silent with a stern expression.
And Sion asked again,
“Please.”
“…I got it. Let’s go, Calne.”
“But sempai.”
“We’re leaving.”
“…Okay.”
Both of them left the room after saying that, and closed the door.
The room was covered in more darkness than before.
In the darkness, there was a letter placed on the desk that was lit by the lamp.
Sion took the letter.
The letter was written as followed.
Eslina, thank you for writing to me all the time.
I’m sorry for often being unable to reply.
But this brother of yours is happy to hear that you’re healthy, Eslina.
Your grades have been good too. You’ve been working hard.
Your letters always manage to encourage your brother here.
And I’m lucky to have a very good superior.
Astal-sama…the king, he’s a really great man.
He’s able to treat us commoners equally,
and most importantly, he’s really thinking for the sake of this country.
It’s really great that, that great man is the king of our country.
I’m really proud to be living in the country that great man rules.
If there’s a chance, I really want you to meet Astal-sama, Esline…
Ah, yes. Astal-sama said that he’ll give me a vacation
this weekend to let me see you, Eslina.
See? He’s a really kind guy, isn’t he?
So I’m thinking of seeing you this weekend.
It’s been a long time since we met.
Whenever I went back home all the time,
'Mom would make her specialty cheese.
If you can cook as well as mom, Eslina,
you’ll definitely make a good bride.
If the groom’s Astal-sama…
Well, this isn’t something someone
Of my status can say~
Then, that’s settled. I hope
To see you this weekend.
Fiole Folkal
The letter ended here.
The letter showed that Fiole was really looking forward to seeing his sister, and how he was really happy to serve Sion.
The letter was filled with expectations for a bright future.
But this letter was…
Stained by drops of blood…
Sion finished reading the letter…
“What an idiot…didn’t I tell you it has nothing to do with such a stupid thing like status, Fiole…”
He muttered to himself and turned to look at the blood on the floor.
He walked over to the blood that was in such an amount that any ordinary person would have fainted from the sight of it…at the body of the murdered Fiole…
Sion carried him.
“You’re really a big idiot, praising me like this…such a powerless me…who can’t even protect anything…”
The golden eyes showed a sudden flash of sadness that disappeared in the darkness lit by the lamp.
It was just for a moment, and then, those eyes became sharp.
Part 6
After a long moment of silence, Sion took a deep breath.
“Claugh, Calne! Come in.”
As he finished calling, the door was opened.
The two people who entered the room saw Sion’s bloodied clothes, and were speechless.
But Sion didn’t mind.
“Claugh, get ready for Fiole’s funeral immediately. Calne, before the nobles take action, protect Fiole’s little sister Eslina Folkal. We have to let her…meet her brother no matter what…”
Just as he was about to leave the room, Claugh suddenly interrupted him,
“Well, Sion-sama, are you alright? It’s better for us to follow you inside the palace. Fiole has been killed, so the next one might be you, Sion-sama…”
But Sion shook his head.
“The order is wrong, Calne. It’s because they couldn't kill me that they aimed for Fiole.”
Claugh nodded.
“No matter what, the king has that monster watching from beside him, that, Eris’ family’s…”
“Eris…family…huh? Sempai?”
“Ahh, it’s impossible that you don’t know, right? The great noble family protecting the king of Roland, also known as the swordsman clan. Sion is the king now, and the people in their family have been watching him from the shadows. As long as Sion is still in the palace, nobody can kill him.”
Sion shrugged.
“That’s the case. So you’re the ones more likely to be in danger than me. I don’t want to lose my trusted subordinates again.”
Claugh chuckled in a relaxed manner.
“It’s impossible for them to kill us who’ve been through the revolution. Besides, Fiole’s case here gave a warning to us. I’ll tell the rest to be careful.”
“Nn, I’ll leave it to you.”
After saying that, Sion left the room.
Part 7
The starry sky was still dazzling.
On the passage leading to the palace,
Sion stopped, and looked up at the sky…
A sound that came from somewhere rang…
It was a calm voice, but had a sense of madness in it…
“Sadness, hatred, anger, regret, revenge, resignation, what kind of feeling lies deep within your heart?”
He could only hear the voice, and even if he looked around, no one was there.
Sion understood this clearly, so he continued to look up at the sky,
“Everything, Lucile. No, resignation is the only thing which is not here.”
He answered to the emptiness.
Facing the invisible…head of the Eris family, Lucille Eris.
That voice rang again, this time giving an innocent laugh,
“Do you really feel like taking revenge on those despicable people?”
“Of course I do.”
Sion answered.
And then—
Suddenly, a man appeared in Sion’s sights.
Like he was standing there right from the beginning
The blond long hair, the extremely inhumanly beautiful face, the shut eyes,
In the darkness, the crimson red lips gave a smirk like a devil—
Lucille opened his arms wide.
“Then, let’s kill them all. I’ll help you out since I’m good at this.”
He shot out a powerful demonic presence and a maddening delight.
That presence alone had a suffocating killing intent…
But Sion smiled.
“No, there’s no need. Fiole doesn’t wish for this to happen as well. The time is not ripe yet. Just wait for a while until everything’s ready. Once that is done, we can annihilate them all in one go.”
“Fuun, do you intend to endure this until then? Until you tremble and bite your lips so hard that you bleed?”
Blood was already dripping from the smiling Sion’s face. Unknowingly, he already bit through it…
Sion wiped away the blood on his lips.
“I’ll endure it. No, if I say that I want to take revenge now, you’ll definitely kill me here, right? That’s why you appeared now, isn’t it?”
Lucille showed a devilish smile.
“An incompetent king, a king who can’t grasp the timing, a weak-hearted king…is not needed.”
After saying that, Lucille’s body disappeared as quickly as the time he appeared…
Sion watched this, and felt that his strength got sucked off as he sighed.
“I’m a little depressed now…maybe it’s because I didn’t sleep well… Fiole is right. I better sleep well today…”
The moon was covered.
The moment the clouds covered the night, the surrounding stars looked even brighter.
It’s like those many stars were waiting for the moonlight to weaken…
Like how they were waiting for the king’s power to weaken…
“…Really…this is really a nest full of monsters and desires…I’m a little envious…of Ryner’s group, travelling away in a relaxed manner…”
Sion stretched his back at the starry sky.
“They should be in Nelpha now.”
And muttered softly.