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Hereâs the chapter, enjoy~
ED: LonelyMatter
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<b>Part 6</b>
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The new royal capital of Felzen was set at Sandinal in the southwest.
Although the Six Kingdoms forcibly promoted the transfer of the capital, no one objected to it as most of the Felzen nobles and royalty had been killed in battle or were missing in action.
Although there was a Felzen remnant army, they could not resist with their own strength, and the former royal capital of Scheue had long been in ruins, so the peopleâs support was biased toward the Six Kingdoms.
Sandinal was rapidly developing, partly because of its proximity to Azel, the entrance to the Six Kingdoms. Compared to the devastation in the east, the area around Sandinal flourished like a different country. Its lordâs mansion still saw many visitors to this day, and the townâs atmosphere was so cheerful that it was hard to believe that it was still wartime.
Today, Sandinal was ruled by Queen Lucia of Anguis, one of the Six Kingdoms. She was in her room, wrestling with a stack of reports piled up on her office desk.
One of her aides, standing nearby, was twitching at the piles of parchments that were being brought in one after another.
ââŚ..Where did Nameless go, forcing people to do the work for him?â
âI believe he went to see what was going on in the north?â
âYes, and I havenât heard from him since. Does he not understand the situation?â
Lucia said dismissively, then threw down her quill and leaned back in her chair.
âWe have to concentrate on the fight against the Grantz now.â
With a wry smile, the aide quickly prepared a cup of tea and placed it in front of Lucia. Lucia sipped her tea quietly and looked at the aide who had begun to clean up the desk.
She observed that a sheet of letterhead was tucked into the stack of finished reports.
âGood, I will leave that to you, Seleucus.â
Lucia turned her eyes to the wall. A man is sipping a cup of tea elegantlyâSeleucus, a longtime member of the Anguis royal family. He was a man who always smiled and looked frivolous, but he was a man of great ability and should be considered Luciaâs right-hand man.
âSeleucus, why donât you work for me once in a while instead of just leaving things to others?â
Seleucus sighed a little, shrugging his shoulders as Lucia instructed him with her chin. Shaking his head, he moved away from the wall and tapped on the shoulder of the aide familiarly as he approached.
ââŚYou rest and leave the rest to me.â
âB-but I shouldnât bother you, Seleucus-samaâŚâ
âSometimes I have to work too, or Lucia-sama will demote me.â
After holding the bundle of parchment in both hands as if he was half-grabbing it, Seleucus looked at Lucia once and then headed for the door. However, there was no way he could open the door with his hands full.
As he reached for the handle in an impossible position, the bundle of parchment fell out of his hands like an avalanche to the floor. In contrast to Seleucus, who calmly watched, the aide hurriedly began to pick up the reports.
Seleucus smiled at the earnest man.
âIâm sorry, but it doesnât seem efficient for one person to carry this amount. Can you help me?â
âCertainly, sir.â
While picking up the parchment with the aide, Seleucus quickly put a piece of letterhead in his pocket.
Then he stood up and opened the door with a nonchalant look on his face.
âThen, Lucia-sama, we will leave for a little while, but if you need anything else, please call the soldiers at the entrance.â
Seleucus bowed with the aide and closed the door.
In the quiet room, Lucia, having finished her tea, stood up from her chair.
She was about to approach the window whenââ,
âHowâs the situation?â
âââ!?â
Lucia turned around in surprise to find Nameless standing in front of the windowless wall.
He was drinking tea with a saucer in his hand.
âYou use good leaves, donât you?â
Nameless smiled at her, and Lucia recovered herself from her confusion and spread out her fan to cover the lower half of her face.
ââŚYou always appear so suddenly. Itâs bad for my heart. Will you stop?â
âI canât stop now; itâs in my nature. Above all, this girl likes to surprise people, and if I donât entertain her regularly, sheâll get bored with me.â
Nameless patted the staff in his hand. Lucia expressed her disgust at this.
âThatâs why I donât like your âRashomon.'â
âIf it is a âMandala,â even if it catches an opening, it will not be fatal.â
âEven if a fatal wound is averted, if caught by surprise, even me would be injured.â
Itâs not even a gut feeling. The two were not even trying to get to know each other. There was something empty about their exchange.
Perhaps thinking he was wasting his time, Nameless shook his head several times and put the plate on the table.ă
âSo, howâs the situation?â
âCome here.â
Lucia left her desk and went to a long desk near the window.
On it was a map of Felzen. There were several different colored pieces, mostly concentrated in the center and west of Felzen.
âThe Grantz is attacking from two directions. The first and second Grantz Armies, on the northern flank, will be unstoppable. With the main army in the rear, we are at a complete disadvantage.â
Nameless, who was listening to the explanation, turned his gaze to the south.
âThen the other one comes from the southâŚ?â
âYes, the Third Army of Grantz and the small country of Baum. The speed of the invasion here is still slow, thanks to the efforts of the country of Azel.
If the position defended by the Azel were breached, it would be a straight road to Sandinal.
If the Six Kingdoms lose to Sandinal, Felzen would once again be in the hands of the Grantz. If that were to happen, the neighboring Azel would be in trouble. That was why they were fighting so hard, but the difference in strength cannot be easily reversed. It was clear that eventually, even Sandinal would have to retreat.
âBut we can buy time. Iâm going to ask Azel to hang on a little longer.â
âI see⌠Then, the problem at hand is the northern front. What are the other countries doing?â
âTigris is still on the run, and Scorpius is keeping a low profile. They probably donât want to see any damage to themselves. The walls of Urpeth, which holds the former royal capital, are meaningless if they are confined in such a city. They might escape in the near future.â
It was only natural that they would be defeated even if they took on the Grantz individually. Even if the soldiers had the same level of training, their experience was too different. The other side was an ever-victorious nationâan allied force that couldnât coordinate, was no match for them.
âI see, thatâs not good. Let me tell them something.â
Nameless, who showed a light reaction, showed no signs of impatience. It was as if he had known this would happen.
ââŚIâd appreciate it if youâd do that for me.â
Lucia, staring at Nameless with a suspicious look in her eyes, hid her mouth with a fan.ă
âSo, as for our future plans, we have decided that if the Grantz seize the former royal capital, the Six Kingdoms will be thoroughly confined to their borders.â
âYou are deliberately giving up the east side of the country?â
âThe Six Kingdoms are now thoroughly confined to the interior. Then let us divide Felzen between the west and the east.â
The invasion of Grantz three years ago and its defeat still lingers in the air. The number of troops was not enough to occupy the territory of Felzen. If Luca had not taken nearly half of them with her, she might still have been able to keep them, but there was no point in talking about âwhat if.â The fact was that there were not enough soldiers, so a compromise would have to be reached.
âThe east side was certainly the nuisance above our eyes. If we surrender it to the Grantz, at least the burden on the Six Kingdoms will be reduced.â
Nameless, who was looking at the map, nodded his head repeatedly in agreement.
Luciaâs eyes narrowed at the sight, and her shoulders gave a slight shake.ă
âThatâs why we are inciting the people in the west to reject the Grantz.â
âBut it seems things arenât perfect yet, are they?â
âYou are very good at reading peopleâs minds, donât you think? But you are right.â
Lucia dropped a number of pieces on the map.
âThe wall of the people has not been built yet. The remnants of Felzenâs army have been desperately trying to get the people to accept the Grantz. Even so, the results donât look good, and thanks to them, weâre not making the progress we want to make.â
Both sides were agitating. The people of Felzen must be fed up.
They had been exposed to warfare for a long time, and their hearts were broken. If they were pushed too hard, they would rebel, and fire would erupt from everywhere. The current situation was that it was becoming more and more difficult to control the situation. But if things continued to go unchecked, the fangs of the Grantz would dig in as far west as they could.
âThen, let me buy you some time.â
âWhat?â
âIâve finished training the watchdog, and Iâm going to throw him against the First Army of Grantz.â
ââŚHow many do you need?â
âNo, Iâll move Tigris, Scorpius, and the soldiers of Urpeth. Queen Lucia, you will stay where you are and accomplish your objective.â
Lucia frowned at Nameless, who lifted the edge of his mouth confidently.
ââŚWhen I see your modest attitude, I get goosebumps. What are you up to?â
âItâs all for the sake of the unified king.â
ââŚStop using such whitewashed words.â
She never trusted Namelessâ words. This was because he had never worked for the Six Kingdoms, not even once. The actions of Namelessâall lead to the prosperity of the Vanir three kingdoms. Thatâs why itâs so eerie that Nameless is making his own move this time.
âI wonder, what happened to the girl I told you about?â
âI got tired of her, so I dumped her. She was fun at first, but she resisted.â
âWhere is she now?â
It is unusual for Nameless to be interested in another person. And if it was an enemy spy, it was even worse. Lucia was more than a little surprised at the reaction of the long-eared race, who do not see human beings as people. However, she never showed it in her facial expression but rather probed into the matter.
âWhat are you concerned about?â
âI thought she might know something important about the Grantz.â
âI see. But she is a stubborn woman. She never gave me any information.â
âI see⌠Thatâs unfortunate.â
Perhaps believing Luciaâs words, he backed off rather easily.
Nameless then left the map, looked around, and said,
âI donât have much time, so Iâll leave you to it.â
With these words, he disappeared without a shadow of a trace, just as he had appeared.
Lucia closes her fan as she stares at the spot where Nameless was standing.