Right before my eyes was a scene of a person being thrown into a wall and
leaving cracks in it, something I had only ever seen in battle anime before. After
seeing him take a hit that I was sure would have killed me instantly, Castor was
bruised but still conscious. I guess that's what made dragonewts so impressive, huh.
With his back to the wall, he slumped down, groaning, "Urgh... So this is it, huh... I
admit defeat, princess."
"Duke Castor..."
Seeing the sad look on Liscia's face, Castor smiled a little. "Don't look like that. I
stayed true to my pride, fought, and was defeated. I have no regrets. But, that aside...
I'd like to ask you the same thing I asked the dark elf girl."
"...What might that be?" Liscia asked.
"Is Souma... a good king?"
"Yes. For me, he's a good king." Liscia gave a clear answer to Castor's question.
"Whether he was good for the country and people is something to be decided once a
king has died. There is no end to the number of kings who ruled well at first, only to
become tyrants in later years. So, I can only give you my own opinion."
"..."
"Many of Souma's political measures can be roundabout, or downright strange,
but I feel at ease watching him. That's because I can feel that this country is slowly
but steadily improving. So... call me selfish if you want, but I want Souma to be king.
If my father demands his crown back, I'll fight him at Souma's side."
I had heard those words before. If I recalled correctly, they had come before we'd
gone to the planned construction site for the new city. While I had been exhausted
from repeated all-nighters, Liscia had said this to me when I'd been trying to take a
nap.
"Never forget. You're the one I want to be king, Souma. I'll accept no substitutes.
If my father were to demand the crown back, I'd fight him at your side."
Since her words hadn't changed, was that proof that her feelings hadn't either?
...I was happy. At the fact there was someone who would say they wanted me to
be king. That she could feel at ease with me in that position. It was because Liscia
was at my side that I was able to be king.
As I was thinking that, I saw the Albert explode in the distance.
"Liscia, the Air Force is coming back," I said. "Hurry and get that thing out."
"...I know." At my urging, Liscia took something black out of her pocket and
fastened it around Castor's neck. "I'm sure you're aware, but that is an item called a
slave collar. It can be tightened at the master's will, and if the wearer seeks to harm
their master, the collar has a spell in it to automatically decapitate them. It will
decapitate the wearer if they attempt to remove the collar contrary to their master's
wishes, too. They can't commit suicide, either. Also, the master of this collar is set to
be Souma Kazuya."
"...I don't have the will left in me to resist at this point," Castor said.
Having been collared, Castor limply let go of the sword he had been holding. The
hilt guard bounced on the stone floor with a clatter. This was the moment the battle
was decided.
Then...
"Father!"
A girl with blazing red hair, gleaming golden eyes, dragon wings, and a tail flew
down from the sky, rushing over to Castor, who had his shoulders slumped.
Come to think of it, Excel had told me "I have a granddaughter who stayed with
Castor" with a deeply pained look on her face, hadn't she? In that case, this girl had
to be Castor's daughter, Carla.
The Albert had just blown up moments ago, but when I saw her red armor, it
occurred to me that she may have been fighting with the Albert up until now.
The moment she saw my face, Carla unsheathed the sword at her hip. "Curse you!
How dare you do this to my father?!"
"Stop, Carla!"
Castor stopped Carla just as she was about to come swinging at me.
"Father?! But..."
"That's enough. We've lost."
Liscia stood between me and Carla, spreading her arms wide. "Stop this already,
Carla! Duke Vargas is already wearing a slave collar! If you kill Souma, Duke Vargas
will die, too!"
"Liscia...?!" she gasped. "I see... We lost, huh."
The strength seemed to drain from Carla's body. The sword fell from her hands
and Carla limply slumped to the ground where she stood. She wore a stunned look,
tears streaming from her eyes.
It pained me a little to see it, but she had taken part in this rebellion. I couldn't
show her preferential treatment. I asked Aisha to put a slave collar on her, too.
Around that time, the wyvern cavalry who had been fighting the battleship Albert
began to gather. They were all seething with anger, but as soon as they saw the
collars on Castor and Carla, they realized they couldn't touch us and just ground
their teeth in frustration.
The glares of the wyvern cavalry hurt, but I didn't have time to be concerned by
that now. "Tolman, steward to the House of Vargas!"
"...I am here."
I raised my voice, and Tolman, who hadn't interfered and had just silently
watched how things had played out, just as Castor had said he would, stepped
forward.
"You recall the rule that was agreed on when I delivered my ultimatum, I trust," I
said. "'If one of us is struck down or captured, that person's subordinates will
immediately come under the command of the other side.'"
"Yes..."
"As you can see, I have captured General of the Air Force Castor Vargas," I said.
"From this moment, I temporarily give the powers of the General of the Air Force to
you. You are to lead the Air Force under the command of the Forbidden Army!"
"Yes, sir. I understand... However, might I ask one question?" Tolman asked with
a face stricken with grief.
"...What is it?"
"What will become of Duke Vargas and Lady Carla?"
"We will deliberate on what is to be done with them after the war. There is no
need to decide that right here and now."
Then, looking to the wyvern cavalry around me, I said, "If you come under the
command of the Forbidden Army now, you will be treated as only having acted
under the orders of Castor. Those who do not comply will be tried alongside Castor
as traitors when the war is over."
"You want us to sell out our masters?!"
"Yeah! We won't abandon Lord Castor!"
Some spirited voices shouted out from amidst the wyvern cavalry. I glared in the
direction of those voices.
"Consider this carefully. This country has a system of joint responsibility for
crimes. If you are found guilty of treason, your relatives will be punished, as well. I
hope you were prepared for that before you spoke!"
""...""
The room fell silent. Surely even the fearless soldiers of the Air Force weren't
willing to gamble with lives other than their own. When told their families would be
implicated as well, they didn't have the spine to go through with it.
In that heavy atmosphere, Tolman bowed his head to me. "...I will follow your
orders, Your Majesty."
"S-Sir Tolman!"
"We can still fight!"
"Silence! Can't you see that the more you resist, the worse you make Duke
Vargas's position?!"
"Urkh..."
Having silenced all opposition, Tolman bowed to me once more. "Your orders,
please, sire. How would you have the Air Force move from here?"
As Tolman admirably bowed before me, I gave him my order.
"First, announce the end of the battle using the Jewel Voice Broadcast. Announce
to the people of your domain that Duke Vargas has been captured and the Air Force
will come under the command structure of the Forbidden Army. After that, call up
the members of the Air Force that aren't present here. Once your forces have
gathered, I will have you head to the Carmine Duchy. Also, I want you to announce
that anyone who continues to resist, especially after all that's happened, will be
judged as a traitor once the war is over. Do I make myself understood?"
"Yes, sir! It will be done." Tolman saluted me, then moved to carry out his orders
at once.
With this, the terrible battle in the Vargas Duchy, which had been a "needless
battle" for both the losers and the winners, came to a close. That was one obstacle
surmounted.
Now, finally... I can head to the Carmine Duchy.
From the wall, I looked off into the distant west. There, I knew that man must be
waiting for me.
"I've kept you waiting, Georg Carmine. I'm coming now."
Liscia was watching me with silent concern, but I barely noticed it.
[MISTERLP]:
"Attack a Castle with a Battleship"
Type: Figure of Speech
Meaning: Doing a thing that no one had ever thought of before.
Origin: During the One Week War, when King Souma attacked the rebellious
Castor's castle, he employed the unusual strategy of using a battleship on land to
win.
Synonyms: "Copernican Revolution," "Egg of Columbus"