The man, clad in knight armor, kneeled with one knee on the ground and spoke gravely. His voice, however, appeared to be trembling. The unreal reality he had witnessed shook his heart deeply. Even so, he had to carry out his duty. To report the incredible things he witnessed.
âThe western side has been annihilated. We believe they are all out of commissionâŚ!â
ââŚ.I see.â
The man listening to the report seemed to have expected such a development.
A miracle might happen. Such expectations, as well as the guilt of causing the death of people with long lives ahead of them, filled the tone of his reply. Among the âannihilatedâ were likely to be the âTrash Princeâ, Fay Hanse Diestburg, and Mephia Zwai Afillis, who led the troops that went to act as his rear support.
Even so, they were currently engaged in a war. Knowing that those who stood above others should not show weakness, the man who listened to the report -King Leric Zwai Afillis- simply frowned slightly.
That was how it was. How it was supposed to be. YetâŚ
âIn addition to the annihilation of circa 10,000 *enemy* troops, the Hero âGame of Illusionâ Indies Farizard has been reported as slainâŚ! It is Afillisâ victoryâŚ!â
ââŚ.whatâŚdid youâŚ?â
The king thought his hearing had suddenly gone bad. The knightâs words, however, stated that the unbelievable report was no mistake.
âOur casualties are zero. The 3000 troops from the Diestburg kingdom can even now head to the eastern front as support.â
ââŚwait. That âGame of Illusionâ died?â
With the addition of the Diestburg forces as rear support, Afillisâ forces amounted to about 5000 troops. They might have been fortunate enough to be able to push back a force five times superior. That was still believable.
With the enemyâs morale so high because of their advantage, a reversal was simply not believable.
âOur casualties areâŚzero?âŚwhen did I ask to receive a false report?â
King Lericâs tone, differently from when he spoke to Fay or few others, was firm with authority as he cast doubt on the knightâs words.
ââŚYour Majesty, I too feel like what I am saying sounds absurd. However, this is the truthâŚâ
The knight took out the document he kept in his breast pocket. He was ordered by his captain to report it to the king. He didnât look at the contents, of course, but he could imagine what was written in it.
The princess normally never showed any signs of weakness. The knightâs captain was indeed the princess of the Afillis kingdom, Mephia Zwai Afillis. A person strict with herself and with others.
Despite her position as princess, she took up the blade and fought on the frontlines, always a gallant and inspiring display on the battlefield. The number of citizens who volunteered to become soldiers out of admiration for her was not small.
Before a âHeroâ, however, even the princess was powerless. Mephia realized it and understood.
Most of the loyal soldiers she led had fallen in battle. Even so, she didnât stop fighting. She kept struggling, even after realizing that she couldnât compete with a âHeroâ. Because of this, the knight could tell what she must have felt as she wrote the missive for the king.
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ââŚwhy am I not the one standing there?â
Mephia spoke while looking at Fay Hanse Diestburg who returned, a bit unsure on his feet, after slaying Idies Farizard.
âYour HighnessâŚâ
The knight next to her spoke with a pained expression on his face.
The man who deftly manipulated eerie shadow blades to annihilate the enemies. Skilled enough to fend off the enemyâs attacks even while being deceived by illusions and, in the end, even capable of taking down the âHeroâ.
Not only Afillisâ soldiers, but even the ones from Diestburg were utterly shocked; among them, only Princess Mephia looked at Fayâs movements intently, as if etching them into her memory. Forgetting that the man who crushed the âHeroâ was that âTrash Princeâ.
âIf I was as strong as prince Fay, then no one would have died, Iâm sure.â
âYou must not accuse yourself soâŚâ
âIâm envious, though. I envy his power, wonder why he kept it hiddenâŚthere are a lot of things on my mind, but I feel envy more than anything else. I mean, look.â
Mephia was looking towards the Diestburg troops and Feli von Yugstine among them.
âTheyâre all there. Safe and sound. Thatâs what I envy the most.â
Why did you hide your true ability?
Mephia wanted to interrogate him, but seeing that not only Afillisâ, but also Diestburgâs soldiers were completely surprised, she already gave up on it.
âHow did you get so strong?â
Work hard till you bleed? I do that already. I accumulated as much experience as I could. My hands are full of sword bruises, theyâre as unprincess-like as it gets. Even so, I couldnât even make the Hero pay for what she did.
âPlease, tell me. Prince Fay.â
Fay returned, his pace perfectly calm, and Mephia asked him that question. She asked while doing her best to hide her frustration and hold back the tears.
ââŚwho knows.â
Fay played dumb. What he found after obtaining strength was only solitude. To Mephia, who still had people concerned about her close to her, he didnât feel like talking about it. He understood that she wished for power in order to protect others.
Because of twisted love. In order to survive. For Fay, who obtained his strength because of such motives, Mephia was purely too shiny to look at.
âAs far as I can see, your vassals wouldnât want you to fall so low as to become a beast like me.â
During the trip from Diestburg to Afillis, Fay heard from Feli about some rumors concerning Mephia.
Afillisâ war maiden. That was her nickname. She probably fought in a way that earned the admiration of others. Her fighting style was probably beautiful. Fay thought that she probably led her soldiers that way.
Fayâs fighting style and way of thinking were the complete opposite. Fay Hanse Diestburg was a human being whose heart was destroyed, someone who killed without hesitation. He was sure that the strength that Mephia sought was something he did not have. She was simply temporarily lost.
âBesides, someone who loathes the sword isnât going to talk about it. As I already said, I had no intention of wielding my sword. Even if you ask someone like me, you have nothing to earn.â
âThenââ
Fay quickly set to leave, clearly expressing that he had nothing else to say, but Mephiaâs words stopped him.
âThen, why did you wield the sword?â
ââŚ..â
Why did I wield it? Thatâs a good question. I planned to live a life of sloth after all. Why did I end up wielding the sword again?
AndâŚ
Why did I end up killing again?
AndâŚ
Why am I swinging my sword again, before I realized it?
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But to live for the sake of others. Take up the sword in order to protect. That is what I felt I was told.
ââŚbecause I was fascinated, I think.â
The reason why Fay took up the sword in this life. That was simply because the knight Logsaria Bornest fascinated him. Meeting the knight sparked something within Fay. It was an undeniable truth.
âIâm weak to the words of people who die while looking all happy, with a smile on their face.â
They were all like that. Around Fay, no one died with regrets. When he looked at someone dying with a smile on their face, he recalled the faces of those important to him.
âIn a word, itâs because of admiration.â
I wanted to die while smiling. But I didnât want to wield the sword. Because I knew what awaited at the end. What a contradiction. But I suppose that this was like me tooâŚ
ââŚIt sounds very complicated.â
âIt took me years to find an answer too. If you find it right away, Iâll look like a fool.â
For the first time in a long while, I laughed. I smiled naturally. I think that a day like that isnât bad either.
âA certain knight made me promise to protect your dad and you, no matter what happened. Iâll be in your care till the end of the war.â
Pain jolts through my head. The effects of overusing my bloodline technique wouldnât disappear so quickly. I didnât show it, however, and turned away from Mephia.
âWait.â
âWhatââ
âdo you want now? Is what I mean to say, but my words stop. When I turn around I see Mephia bowing down to me.
âI wish to apologize on behalf of my soldiers for treating you with disrespect. My humblest apologies.â
Courtesy begets courtesy. No matter the process, no matter the reason. The fact that Fay saved Mephia and Afillis was the truth. Mephia thought that she needed to apologize about addressing the person that put his life on the line for them as âTrash Princeâ. Thus she bowed to him.
Despite her position as princess, she did so without hesitation.
âAnd alsoâŚâ
Mephiaâs vassals were surprised at first, then shaken by her actions, but she didnât stop.
ââŚThank you very much for saving us! On behalf of my kingdom, I give you my thanksâŚ!!â
Mephia might have been terrified. Terrified of the possibility of causing the deaths of more soldiers, more vassals, even if they were just rear support. For Fay, it was just a side effect of the request he accepted, of the promise he made, but for her it was different.
âindeed, this isnât bad at all.
He had rarely ever been thanked by anyone. It made Mephiaâs words feel fresher. For Fay, it felt like the first step of his new goal.
It was nothing.
The usual Fay would have said something like that. Mephia, however, wasnât waiting for words like that. What she probably hoped to hear wasâŚ
âYouâre very welcome.â
Something like this.
It was the first time I had been thanked for wielding a sword. A new sensation. It felt strangely pleasant.
Yes, it was really trueâŚa day like that wasnât bad at all. I found myself thinking about such thoughts.