"The overlord is coming...?"
"Yes... Him and his stupid face..." Sakura pouted, as was usual whenever her
father came up.
He'd cry if he saw you like that, you know?
Their father-daughter relationship was as one-sided as ever.
"I should warn my mother... Tell her to hide..."
"No, no... Come on now... Let's not treat him that way. You need to at least
meet him."
"Hmph..." Sakura quietly sipped her tea. The overlord was a little...
overbearing, that was true... but I didn't want to cause any trouble with him. He
was just the typical doting dad, really.
"As for me, I'm fine with my brother coming, but... my grandfather may cause
trouble..." Hilde let out a little sigh.
Oh... The old man's coming too? He was the only person in the world other
than me who'd reached gold rank as an adventurer.
He'd probably go tame if I showed him some swimsuit photos or something...
He'd be a lot easier to deal with than Sakura's dad.
"My elder brother will be coming to escort Ieyahsu-sama, he will. It has been
a while since I have seen him, it has. I look forward to it!" Yae smiled to herself,
seemingly content. Her brother wasn't just here as a guard, since he also
planned to participate in the tournament. There were also several Eashen
fighters coming to test their mettle.
"Man, this festival sure got out of hand quick..."
"I think it'll be fun, don't you? Oh yeah, Auntie Lana and our cousin Emma are
coming over, too."
"Not your uncle?" I remembered that Elze's uncle was pretty nervous when it
came to being around members of higher social class.
"He won't be coming. I'm pretty sure he'd faint where he stood and never get
back up if we brought him somewhere as fancy as a castle."
I agreed with what Linze said. It was a shame but it was how it was. Hell, he'd
probably get unlucky enough to bump into the emperor of Refreese, his own
ruler. He'd probably have a heart attack.
Things were going to be super busy on the opening day, that was for sure...
Especially for me. I dreaded to think of the number of times I'd have to cast
[Gate]. Still, it probably wouldn't take too long... I just needed to arrange to
meet each world leader in a designated spot.
Members of the alliance participating were:
Belfast
Regulus
Refreese
Mismede
Ramissh
Roadmare
Lestia
Lihnea
Including Brunhild, that amounted to nine nations in total.
Then there were the countries that weren't part of the alliance, but we were
still well-acquainted with. These nations included:
Eashen
Xenoahs
Palouf
Felsen
Elfrau
Ryle
Hannock
Seven in total.
Lastly, there were the nations we didn't really have anything to do with:
Egret
Horn
Nokia
Three in total.
The world as we knew it was composed of these nineteen nations.
Technically, there was also Palerius island, as well as the tribes from the Sea
of Trees, but they weren't areas that were formally recognized as nations.
There were also still people living in the fractured remnants of Yulong and
Sandora, but those places weren't really countries anymore either.
Ultimately, representatives from every nation in the world would be
gathering in Brunhild... To be honest, I was kind of worried. I'd definitely
overdone it here. Still, there was no going back.
I just hoped everyone could have some fun.
Guess I'll give it my all, then! This is pretty hype!
◇ ◇ ◇
The day had finally come.
I'd been going from country to country in order to pick up the relevant VIPs.
The nobles and royals had gathered in my castle, and for the most part, they
seemed to be getting along. Some of them had never met in person before, so it
was a bit of a casual chance for them to get to know one another.
They were made to disguise themselves, so at a glance, they'd look like
nothing more than regular people. That being said, they still stuck out a little bit
in the way they carried themselves. It was only natural due to how they'd been
brought up, and I didn't think it'd be a huge deal. Still, they definitely had
something in them that just made them look regal.
"Grand Duke... How does this badge work, exactly?"
The young king of Palouf spoke up as he pinned a little star-shaped badge to
his chest. He was dressed in plain clothing, which made him look like a regular
little kid you might see walking around any regular old town in the world. He
really did look completely unremarkable...
"You just need to channel a little bit of your magic into the star. The
spellstone inside will turn from red to yellow, alright? Then, your appearance
should change to the disguised form. Like this, see?"
"But, Your Highness... Ernest doesn't look any different to me at all."
The young king's sister, Lucienne, tilted her head slightly. His badge had
indeed turned yellow, while hers was still red.
"That's because you're wearing a badge, too. People wearing badges won't
see the illusions, so they can know who they're talking to. If you remove your
badge and look at the king of Palouf, you'll see what I mean."
The princess followed my instructions and removed her badge, her eyes
widening in shock as she looked over at her brother. He likely looked like a
complete stranger. I was also wearing a badge, so the disguises didn't work on
me either.
"The star also has a protective function, so listen carefully. If you pour extra
magic into it, it should turn green. While the badge is green, it will be able to
sense if you're in danger. Should you come to any harm, no matter the cause,
the badge will warp you back to your guest room in this castle. Please make
sure the star remains green throughout the festival, and don't take it off,
either."
We'd given badges to the guards charged with protecting their heads of state,
as well. But those guys had been instructed to keep their badges yellow, since
they'd end up being warped away from any danger if it was set to green.
There'd be no point in them being there if they couldn't protect their monarchs.
Those participating in the tournament, like the Beastking, were asked to keep
it set to green outside of matches. There weren't any matches on the first day,
so that much was fine. Jutaro and Lyon weren't exactly high standing citizens,
so they didn't need the disguises, but they still received badges so they could
tell who everyone else was.
"Ah, right, please take this little guy too..." I called a small white puppy out of
a summoning circle. I didn't want to give out smartphones to people who
weren't in the alliance, so everyone in that category got a familiar to follow
them around instead.
"If anything happens, just talk to this guy. He'll be able to contact me. He's
also a lot stronger than he looks."
"Thanks! Oh, he's so cute!"
The king of Palouf squatted down and gently pet the puppy's head. The puppy
responded by happily wagging its tail. It wasn't actually a dog, it was a wolf pup.
More specifically, it was an infant Snorra Wolf from the frozen wastes of Elfrau.
Rachael, Duke Rembrandt's daughter, was standing across the room from us.
She was carefully looking at the Snorra puppy with curious eyes. It looked to me
like she wanted to play with the puppy like the young king was, but she didn't
want to approach because I was there. Damn... I really did go overboard with
her... Guess I can't blame her.
I said goodbye to the Palouf party and made my way across the room. Rachael
immediately walked over to the king and his sister, and they started playing
with the puppy. It went just as I'd expected...
I'd finally finished explaining everything to the royalty in the room, at the very
least. Some people had returned to their guest chambers, but for the most part,
everyone seemed to be getting along. They were probably taking advantage of
the fact that they could freely talk to foreign nationals in a relaxed
environment.
I left the rest of the royal greetings to Yumina and Lu before opening a portal
to the Silver Moon Inn in the castle town.
I entered the dining room and found Elze and Linze eating their breakfast
amongst many others. They were seated next to their Aunt Lana and her
children. There were seven in total, including Emma. Emma was the eldest
daughter, and she was around my age. The entire family was eating breakfast
together, except the eldest son, who was independent enough to go off on his
own.
"Ah, Touya. Is everything sorted?"
"For the most part, yeah. How're things here?"
"Things are fine, yeah. Nobody here needs any disguises, so it's been pretty
chill."
I nodded to Elze and then greeted both Lana and Emma. There were a few
people from Reflet eating their meals too, like Barral from the weapon store,
and Simon from the general store. I waved to them and they returned the
gesture with smiles.
All our invited guests were going to have their food and board covered by the
national treasury. Most of the people staying in the Silver Moon were people
we'd asked to come.
"Hmm... Where's Dolan? I don't see him anywhere."
"Ah, Dolan is helping Micah in the kitchen. The inn is totally booked, so there
were some staff shortage issues..." Linze explained the situation to me.
Geez, I guess things really are getting busy around here... I wonder how it's
going in the other inns.
"When does the festival start, again?"
"Around eight. So, about an hour from now. We'll do a formal opening
ceremony, greet all the guests, and then put on some mock battles in the
northern training field. We're gonna try to make it flashy and all that."
"The northern field... Are you gonna use Frame Gears?"
The northern training field was different from the standard field our knights
typically used. It was a more spacious area far away from the castle, and we
used the area to run Frame Gear field tests. For the most part, only authorized
people were allowed to access the field due to how dangerous it could be. We'd
installed a powerful barrier on the northern field to prevent any damage from
spells or bullets from escaping a certain area. Our testing often had a... large
area of effect, so the barrier was necessary to ensure that no bystanders ended
up hurting themselves. Frame Gears were kind of too massive to keep secret, so
they could be seen training in the field from a distance.
During training hours, a lot of the townspeople had started coming to watch
the Frame Gears clash. It had become a bit of a regular thing for them, and they
seemed to like it a lot. That was why I thought a Frame Gear demonstration
would be entertaining enough for our international visitors.
"After that, we'll do the first baseball rounds. Both stadiums are hosting two
games, one in the morning and the other in the afternoon. That means today
we'll get four matches in. Those games should decide who'll advance to
tomorrow's games."
"Have we decided who's playing against who yet?"
"Nope. We'll be doing a lottery draw to decide that in a bit." There were only
eight teams, so it wouldn't take long. The lottery was actually one of the events
I'd chosen to pad out the fun a bit.
Brunhild's team was led by Logan from the knight order, but I didn't really
have much to say about the team in general. It wasn't especially strong, nor was
it particularly weak. Really, it all depended on who we ended up getting as an
enemy... since all the other teams seemed to have more specific strengths and
weaknesses. Either way, it would probably be fine so long as everyone enjoyed
themselves.
I handed out a few discount coupons to Lana and her kids. They could be
exchanged at the festival stalls for 50% off select purchases. Then, I waved
goodbye before warping off to the schoolhouse.
"Whoa! What the heck?!" I stared in disbelief at the crowd of cats gathered in
the schoolyard. There were tri-color cats, spotted cats, black cats, white cats,
tiger-striped cats... Cats as far as the eye could see. And they were all staring at
Mr. Mittens... He stood atop a mandarin box, holding his sword skyward.
"My dear furry friends! Today is a day for meow and you! The very peace of
the town rests in our paws! Begin the paw patrol, my feline eyes and ears!"
"Meow! Meow!"
"If you see something suspicious, then keep tabby-tabs on them, got it?! If
anything happens, run to the nearest guard and bring them to the incident!
Then, get meowwta there!"
"Meow! Meow! Meow!"
"The cats that fight for the sake of mankind! Mankind that gives its lifeblood
to the cats! The heavens cry! The earth cries! The cats cry! They shall bear
witness to our kitty-cat chivalry! Glory awaits those that work hard today! One
dried tuna for all, I say! One for all!"
"Meooow!"
The cats all scattered in various directions, dispersing into the town. His
leadership was certainly... incredible. It was almost too good to be wasted on
cats, honestly. Then again, the dried tuna probably had something to do with
that.
"Ah, meow liege. Here to purruse the area?"
"Well, I guess. But it looks like you've got everything taken care of here."
"But of course! I am the purrfect guardian for both this town and milady's
mother! For I am Mr. Mitt— Uh... D'artagnan!" Wow... He actually got his own
name wrong. That's kinda funny... Oh right, I gotta warn him.
"The overlord of Xenoahs might want to visit Fiana while he's here..."
"I already got the litter scoop from the princess! Should he behave insolently
in front of Lady Fiana, I have permission to slay him where he stands!"
"Isn't that a little much?!"
That'd cause an international incident, Sakura... Forgive the old guy already.
I'm seriously starting to feel sorry for this guy. He just wants his daughter's
love... Sheesh.
I kindly asked Mr. Mittens not to murder the overlord, lest political
destabilization emerge as a result.
I sighed quietly and checked my smartphone. Doctor Babylon had sent me a
mail, so I decided to return to the castle. Things seemed to be progressing
smoothly enough.
Once I made it back to the castle, I found Kohaku, Kougyoku, Sango, Kokuyou,
and Luli waiting to greet me.
"My liege, we're sending out our own subordinate animals to keep an eye on
the streets as well."
"Gotcha. Lemme know if anything weird happens."
Kohaku sent out dogs and mice, Kougyoku dispatched several tiny birds, while
Sango and Kokuyou dispersed many tiny snakes into the urban sprawl. They'd
be extra security for us. Obviously, we couldn't make much use of Luli's
subordinates, since she governed dragons. Luli herself would take to the skies,
allowing a bird's-eye view of any incidents in town.
I passed through the castle gate and noticed a group of people from Ramissh
heading down the road into town. Her Holiness the Pope was among them. I
guess some of the foreign envoys are already checking the castle town out...
The pope noticed me and began to approach, there was a priest walking with
her. Oh! I know you... It's Phyllis!
After everything that went down in Ramissh, Phyllis became a cardinal. She
was also the only person aside from me and the Pope herself who had met God
Almighty.
The two of them had their star-shaped badges on. I was pleased to see that
both badges were green.
"G-Grand Duke... Do you know when He will be arriving...?"
He...? Ah, that can only mean one person... God Almighty! I'd informed her a
little while ago that he was going to descend for the festival, and she ended up
getting a little panicked about it. Thankfully, she'd calmed down a bit since
then... But not completely, it seemed. There was nothing I could do about that.
"I don't think he'll be coming down today. He contacted me recently, so I
think he'll be here from tomorrow on. Don't worry so much, I'll let you know
when he's here."
"D-Do you think he remembers me...?" Phyllis turned to me and sighed
slightly. She looked concerned.
"He will, you know? He isn't senile just yet, you know?"
"Wh-Whoa! Don't just appear out of nowhere like that, Karen!" I jumped as
my annoying sister appeared from nowhere to answer Phyllis. You need to stop
doing that! I'm gonna have a heart attack, you scared the pope and Phyllis, too!
"I'll be opening up a consultation office in the church today, you know? I can't
wait to solve people's problems! I'm gonna show them my skills!"
Hmm... That sounds great and all, but the way she's putting it is making me
uneasy... I quietly hoped she wouldn't cause any issues.
"Well, let's head off! The lost lambs need us, you know?"
"A-Ah, wait, Lady Karen!"
"A-Ah, s-sorry, Grand Duke! W-We'll see you later!"
Karen grabbed Phyllis and the pope and started dragging them toward the
town. Their guards started to hurry after the three, clearly confused. I wonder if
it's alright to treat a foreign representative like that... Damn it, Karen. You're
technically royalty here, act a little more like it!
I didn't worry too much, though. They were incredibly safe so long as they
were around her. That girl was scary when she wanted to be.
A few more groups headed into the castle town, and it was finally time to
begin.
The clocktower in the middle of town struck eight, and Babylon launched
several fireworks into the airspace above.
Sousuke, who was positioned in the clocktower, began to play his violin,
sending out a tune across the entire town. He was playing the Pomp and
Circumstance Marches by Edward Elgar.
I'd heard that the song was known as The Land of Hope and Glory in the
United Kingdom, and was beloved there to the point where many regarded it as
their second national anthem. It was somewhat funny to me that such a song
was now being played in another world.
Personally, I wished for Brunhild to become a "Land of Hope and Glory" of its
own... I smiled quietly, then approached a microphone connected to the
clocktower speakers. It was time for the festivities to officially begin.
◇ ◇ ◇
The first day was well underway.
Business was booming, the mock battle between the Frame Gears went
swimmingly, and the streets of the castle town were now bustling with life.
There were all kinds of stalls lining the streets, and wonderful smells were
mingling in the air. I wanted to try some festival food...
We had guards from the knight order patrolling and watching out for crime,
and a few Belfastian and Regulusian guards were here to enjoy the festivities
too. On top of that, we had Mr. Mitten's cats, and the subordinate animals of
my Heavenly Beasts scattered around. Security was all but guaranteed.
I didn't really have any need to do any patrolling myself, so...
"Guess I'll enjoy myself a bit!"
"That sounds good to me. The world leaders have their badges and guards, so
we can take it easy..." Leen was walking by my side, wearing her usual gothic
lolita outfit and wielding a black parasol.
The others had gone to join their own families... Sakura was a little bit
irritated when the overlord tried to talk to her, though. She was probably trying
to keep him from visiting Fiana. That guy was really hopeless.
Leen had offered to spend some time with the beastking of Mismede, but he
wanted to walk around on his own for a bit, so she decided to accompany me
instead. Leen was fairly well-regarded in Mismede, so she'd invited some
friends over to the festival, but they hadn't arrived yet.
Paula was toddling along behind us as well, but she occasionally got held up
by excited children who wanted to poke and prod at her.
"Hm...?" I glanced over to the stage by the clocktower and saw a swarm of
attractive young women fawning over Sousuke.
...Are you doing an impromptu piano concert or something?
"He's certainly amazing... I've never heard a melody so beautiful in my life."
Even Leen seemed enraptured by the music. I wondered if the bewitching
nature of his music was his own brand of divinity... He was wearing pretty
gaudy clothing, almost like a court musician... Actually, he basically was our
court musician, when I really thought about it...
He was playing a French tune on his piano, a fairly simple melody.
Though, as plain as it was, it went without saying that Sousuke's skill
surpassed mine by leaps and bounds. It certainly came naturally to him, but
that wasn't too surprising... He's a god... If he wasn't a god, I'd totally be better,
I swear!
I wanted to keep on listening to his song, but we just walked past him and
headed to one of the stadiums.
There were four matches to be played today, two in each stadium. Two in the
morning, and two in the afternoon.
The matchups were like this:
Stadium One
Morning: Brunhild vs Lestia
Afternoon: Mismede vs Refreese
Stadium Two
Morning: Belfast vs Roadmare
Afternoon: Regulus vs Lihnea
Seemed simple enough to me.
After the mock battle earlier, we'd hosted the lottery that determined who
would be playing against who.
We were up against the Knight Kingdom of Lestia... Their team was offensivefocused, but that didn't necessarily mean they had a lot of heavy hitters. They
were the kind that slowly ramped up points to maintain an advantage.
Logan said he was confident that Brunhild's batters were more well-rounded
and capable than Lestia's.
The first match was already underway when I got there. The score was still
evenly matched at 0-0. They were up to the second inning, and Lestia had just
finished pitching.
I looked into the stands and saw the beastking with Mismede's team, and the
emperor of Refreese with his team as well. They were keenly watching the
proceedings.
Mismede would be going up against Refreese after this, and the winner would
go up against whoever won here. It made sense they'd survey the game.
I looked down into the stands and saw the knight king of Lestia sitting a little
bit away from third base. Hilde was sitting to his right, and their grandfather
was sitting to his left.
On Brunhild's side of the stands was old man Naito. He and his men were
enjoying some beers and laughing to themselves.
People who worked in the knight order and the castle were given one day
during the festival off in order to enjoy themselves. I wanted them to take it
easy for a while, after all. There weren't a lot of opportunities for them to have
fun like this on vacation days, so I let them seize it when they could. But
obviously, not everyone could take the same day off, so they had a rota that
meant some staff was off during day one, some during day two, and so on.
The only events on the first day were the baseball matches, so the people
who got that day off probably drew the short straw... Still, I was glad to see that
they were enjoying themselves.
"Ah, milord. Patrolling?"
"Just looking around for now. Everyone enjoying themselves?"
"Aye! This is a festival in a town that we ourselves built, you know? Of course
we're having fun!"
Usually, the old guy didn't do much to stand out, but he seemed to be in
unusually high spirits. We probably had the booze to thank for that. Naito was
in charge of construction and agricultural developments, so he was probably
really proud of what Brunhild had become.
I built the foundation of this place, but they were responsible for building on
that and modeling it. The town wouldn't have made it nearly as far as it had
without them. No, the entire country needed them.
I aimed a grin at them, ordered myself and Leen some popcorn and drinks,
and we spent some time enjoying the match together with Naito and the
workers.
◇ ◇ ◇
"What a shame..."
"Yeah... If only we'd gotten that last point..."
Lestia had won against Brunhild with a final score of three to two. It wasn't
like Brunhild was a worse team or anything, it was just the way the match had
gone... Sometimes victory was just circumstantial.
The players had tried their best, so I decided to bring them some snacks and
drinks afterward.
The match between Belfast and Roadmare at the other stadium had ended in
a win for Belfast. Apparently, their tactical play was superior across the board.
Mismede vs Refreese and Regulus vs Lihnea would be later on in the day.
Then, the final matches between the winning teams would come the day
afterward.
As we walked through the town, we saw the Palouf entourage eating in a
corner café. The young king was there, as was his sister, Duke Rembrandt, and
his daughter Rachael. They looked to be enjoying their lunch.
I unfastened my badge for a moment and looked over at them. Their disguises
made them look just like a regular old family. I was glad to see the illusions
were functioning properly. Leen was also wearing a badge, but we had no need
for the disguise functions, so ours were inactive.
"Yo, you guys eating?"
"Ah, Grand Duke! Yeah, we've walked around a lot, so we were taking a
break..."
I greeted them, and the young king offered us some nearby seats. Rachael
was sitting opposite the young king. She held the Snorra pup in her hands and
looked just about everywhere except for me. She definitely hated my guts...
"What are you guys gonna do this afternoon?"
"We were planning on seeing the Lihnea match. We've yet to acquaint
ourselves properly with baseball, after all..." Princess Lucienne spoke up,
smiling softly. They were probably asked to show up by King Cloud. I was glad to
hear that things were still going well between them.
"We had a stroll this morning and certainly found no shortage of
distractions... The time had passed by before we even noticed it, actually! This
is a wonderful town. There's much Palouf could learn from it..." Duke
Rembrandt looked out into the streets as he spoke. I was extremely happy to
hear that he thought so highly of the place.
"That being said, we found a place that was quite the money sink... It ended
up being rather... unfortunate."
"Ah..."
Duke Rembrandt grinned at the young king, who suddenly turned a little red. I
wondered what he was talking about.
"Ernie here got rather addicted to the capsule toy machines in the market
district... He turned them many a time. We had a lot of money, but Father still
ended up telling him off because other people wanted a chance to use it, too."
"I really wanted to get the Shining Count toy, that's all..."
Rachael glanced toward something on one of the nearby chairs, and I saw a
paper bag full of capsule toys. Seemed like he really did overdo it...
Wait, she just spoke to me! Did she forgive me already? I turned back to look
at her, and she immediately averted her gaze. Geez, come on...
"Did you manage to collect them all in the end?"
"Uhm... I didn't manage to get Grimgerde..."
"Oh? My Frame Gear?"
"Huh?"
The young king looked over at Leen with a puzzled expression on his face. I
explained to everyone at the table that Leen was the pilot of Grimgerde, and
they all looked on in surprise.
She might have been six-hundred-and-twelve years old, but she still
resembled a young woman. She probably didn't match up at all to the image in
their heads. Grimgerde had unleashed a ton of destruction during the mock
battle after the opening ceremony, so they probably thought the pilot was
someone a lot scarier.
People knew that Leen was court magician of Brunhild, and the former clan
matriarch of the fairies, as well as the fact that she was my fiancée... But not
many people seemed to know that she was also a Frame Gear pilot.
"Darling, don't you have one of those?" Leen quickly prodded her fingers into
my side as she asked me that question.
"Oh, yeah... But, I mean... Ah, whatever..." I kind of wanted people to get the
prizes the proper way... but he'd poured a lot of money into it, so I didn't feel
too bad letting him have this one.
I opened up [Storage] and took out a small black Grimgerde figurine. Leen
then took it and handed it over to the young king of Palouf.
"Here you are. Make sure you treat it well."
"Oh, thank you so much! Now I have them all!"
"Ahaha, not quite. We'll be adding Lu's Waltraute and Sakura's Rossweisse
next month, so the set will have new additions..."
"Ah..."
The young king frowned a little at my words, which made everyone giggle
softly. Probably shouldn't tell him that Lu's Waltraute has four variants... There
are the attacker, booster, caster, and defender types... It'll be hard to catch
them all...!
Olba would probably open a branch store in Palouf eventually... If he was
patient, I was sure he'd finish the set.
We weren't just adding Frame Gear toys to the collection either, there were
new Behemoths going into the lineup too. Specifically, the Heavy Kong, Grand
Boar, Power Bison, and Needle Rat from Palerius Island.
Still, I wondered if there'd end up being more of a demand for vinyl
Behemoth figures, or scale model plastic Frame Gears... I wasn't really sure if
we had the kind of tech to mass-produce stuff like that... Especially since we'd
need glue. This world didn't really have plastic, so that might be an issue. Then
again, magic beast bones were roughly similar in composition.
Hmm... But if we can do that, maybe we can figure out how to use magic to
produce them more easily...
As I continued to sink into thought, Leen jabbed me in the side. Ack! Fine, I'll
save business thoughts for later.
After we finished our meal, the Paloufean group decided to head off to watch
Lihnea's match.
Alright, where should we go next...
"Ah... Uhm...!"
I turned my head to the sudden voice and saw Rachael looking down at the
ground. She was tightly clutching the Snorra puppy to her chest. I wondered
what she wanted...
"I-I'm sorry... About the other day... I... I understand just how far I have to go,
now..."
Oh my... This is a far cry from the smug little girl I spoke to recently. Looks like
she's been thinking things through. Actually, now that I look back on the day,
she's been acting more awkward around me than hateful... Guess that makes
sense...
"...It's alright. Just remember that you can't ever assume yourself to be the
best. There are many people in the world who can surpass you in a lot of
different ways. Even I have people that I can't match in certain fields, and I lose
to them every day."
"Wh-What?! Really?!" It would be more apt to call them gods rather than
people, but still... I wondered when I'd actually be able to win. I was probably a
thousand or so years too early...
"I... have to protect Ernie... Even though I thought I was unbeatable... I still
lost to you, so I've been thinking more about just how strong I actually am..."
She was starting to sound more and more miserable, and she let her head
hang in shame. Huh... Guess she's the one lacking in self-confidence for once...
Geez...
It wasn't like she wasn't strong. Her opponent was just an overpowered
matchup... But I couldn't say that to her, since she wouldn't take it as sincere.
I was at a loss for words, but Leen suddenly opened her mouth.
"If you become strong, you'll be able to protect the king of Palouf, that much
is true. But any strong knight could do that, couldn't they? You need to think
harder, young lady. There's something only you can do."
"H-Huh...?" Leen's words prompted Rachael to raise her head.
"A king's life is a life of hardship and struggle. Sometimes it can be hard to
face those things alone. That's why you need to be his rock. Sure, his advisors
can support political and military matters, but you must be there to support his
heart. You need to stay by his side, to worry alongside him, laugh alongside him,
smile with him, and be there for him. You don't have to protect him with raw
strength alone. You can become his support by being there for him on a
personal level. That's something only you can do. You can become a shield that
protects the heart of the one that matters to you... Just like me." Leen smiled
and took my hand.
O-Oh geez, how embarrassing... Paula suddenly put her hands to her own face
as if she was blushing. Damn it, Paula, your mime skills are too good!
"Can I really do that...? Can I become his shield...?"
"A good woman can be just that for her man. She can become an
irreplaceable person in his life. If you ask me, you're the only one who can do
that for him. I'm sure of it... Only you can support the king's heart, and walk by
his side. Don't lose hope."
"...O-Okay!" Rachael smiled up at us both and ran back to rejoin the others
from Palouf.
She certainly made a speedy recovery... I grinned a little as I saw her cling to
Ernest's arm.
"That was some interesting advice you had for her there."
"Well, it wasn't entirely my idea... It was just me telling her what your sister
told me, Darling..."
So this was Karen's doing... No wonder it sounded so sappy... But man, she
really has a way with words. It's actually a little scary, honestly.
"So, where shall we go now, Darling?"
"Ah... My arm..."
Leen tugged at my arm as if to guide me down the street. I was seriously
embarrassed...
"Hmm? You don't want to lock arms with me, Darling? I may not be proficient
at clinging to you... Do you think you're the only one shy here? I'm the one
summoning the courage to take the initiative... Shouldn't you play along?"
"Ahh... I guess you're right. Hm... There's gonna be a puppet show in a little
while. Wanna go see it?"
"As you wish, Grand Duke!" Leen smiled and gave a wink to accompany her
half-joking response, and we walked off into the crowd.