Chapter 0652 Ryo vs Marie II
-x-X-x-
"Ugh…"
Ryo immediately formed an ice membrane to stop the bleeding.
But the damage was greater than he had imagined.
His right arm had been neatly severed between the wrist and the elbow.
Still, that was an inevitable sacrifice.
"I meant to cut off your head, but you put your arm in and changed Kotetsu's cutting trajectory… that arm must hurt, right?"
"It hurts a lot."
Marie said with a grimace, and Ryo answered with his face contorted in pain.
Of course, it hurt—his arm had been severed.
Depending on circumstances, he could even die from shock!
"Ryo, you swing a Japanese sword too, so you know. You can't wield it with one hand."
"Yes, I know."
Ryo had thought about it before.
He couldn't swing properly with one hand.
That realization came after the Akuma Leonore had cut off one of his arms.
At that time, the arm was cut and he cleaved the opponent's neck at the same moment and won… but this time was different.
Although overwhelmingly disadvantaged, the fight continued.
"Surrender."
"Surrender?"
Marie proposed surrender and Ryo frowned.
"What happens if I surrender?"
"Well… I'll ask the leader to spare your life."
Marie said that, but her expression was grave.
Which meant…
"What are the odds that the request will be granted?"
"…Ninety percent against it."
"That's no good."
Yes—there is no Geneva Convention here banning the mistreatment of prisoners.
Even if he surrendered, it was more likely he'd be killed.
Made an example of.
"But if you resist, I will kill you one hundred percent."
"I'll resist and bet on that remaining one percent!"
"There isn't even one percent left!"
Somehow, the banter of joke and retort flowed.
"You've got nerves to joke in this situation."
"I train daily with a powerful retort partner. This kind of thing doesn't feel like a crisis."
Ryo said that and looked toward his retort partner, Abel, who was watching from the window.
Marie followed his gaze and looked at Abel.
"This world is beyond me."
"Taking the world by storm with manzai* isn't easy." (TLN: Comic duo)
"Is that so… so you intend to conquer the world with manzai?"
"Yes, of course!"
Ryo's seemingly pointless conversation was, naturally,
a way to buy time.
What time for?
(I've mostly assembled the form!)
He then chanted:
"
At that instant, an ice right arm sprouted for Ryo.
"…Huh?"
Marie was understandably surprised by the unexpected development.
Ryo tested it lightly by clenching and unclenching his fist.
(It's impossible to move each finger individually. With magic, I can only alternate the palm between open and closed states. Even though I reused technology from the ice golem, it's a hurried makeshift…)
He was quite dissatisfied with it, but it was better than nothing.
Ryo's fundamentals were kendo.
With Murasame, he gripped firmly with the left hand and guided motion with the right.
Even with only the left hand, he could swing the sword… though speed would be lacking, and he couldn't produce attacks that bypassed an opponent's defenses.
Still, even if far from perfect, having this ice arm should make a big difference.
"You actually grew an arm of ice. And the hand moves properly."
"Of course. It's not an exaggeration to say I cultivated some alchemy for this very purpose."
For some reason, Ryo said this confidently.
"When did you reincarnate into this world, Ryo?"
"Huh? Well… about twenty years ago?"
"Oh, you're young!"
"Young? Um… Marie, you look young too."
"I've probably been around for about four thousand years."
"…Excuse me?"
Ryo emitted a bewildered, high-pitched sound.
"Basically, phantomkins don't disappear."
"Don't disappear?"
"Even without a body, they drift in the world like a soul and eventually inhabit another body."
"That's incarnation?"
"Exactly. So you can have lots of experiences. I think it's interesting."
"This world has far too many long-lived races."
Ryo said with a slight shake of his head.
"Well then. Let's try out that arm you grew."
"No, a draw would be fine with me…"
"I've taken no damage."
"Right."
Marie sheathed Kotetsu again.
She bent her knees, lowered her hips, and the air around her changed.
Ryo assumed his usual seigan stance.
He turned on
Slash.
Again, Ryo's right arm was cut off.
This time it was the ice one.
"I knew you were rushing in, but I couldn't react fast enough."
Ryo's face twisted with frustration.
He immediately regenerated the arm.
"If I cut faster than you can react, you won't be able to respond."
Marie said with a faint smile, but when she saw Ryo regenerate his arm, she frowned.
"That's endless, isn't it?"
"It's the fruit of efforts I've lived through."
Ryo shrugged in reply.
In truth, his arm had been cut off many times now…
"So that means I have to cut off the head."
"No, there's always a way to settle things amicably."
"You said settle amicably, but that won't work."
"That's not the kind of settlement I meant…"
Even though they both originated from Japan, the two were perhaps talking past each other.
How difficult it is to reach a resolution that satisfies everyone.
"You just want to be the funny man, don't you?"
A swordsman's retort murmured from beyond the window, but the two did not hear it.
Then.
Suddenly— Ryo's charge initiated the third round.
He judged that it would be hard to defend against another battoujutsu*. (TLN: Blade drawing technique)
Naturally, Marie understood that too.
"So you decided you can't just defend."
"Attack is the best defense."
Ryo put on bravado at Marie's words.
He knew that seizing the initiative by attacking wouldn't necessarily overturn the disadvantage.
But he also understood that if he kept just defending, he'd be worn down.
In the past, he had sometimes managed to turn the tables with ironclad defense against stronger, faster opponents.
But even those opponents were not so different from Ryo technically.
This opponent was different.
As a phantomkin, her strength and speed exceeded those of the human Ryo.
And her swordsmanship skills were superior to his.
An undeniably high level of skill.
Higher than Ryo's.
How to beat such an opponent was wholly unclear.
If he couldn't envision surviving on ironclad defense, then entering defense would mean slow attrition.
That was all he knew.
So he tried attacking…
"So you're good at defense too."
"Of course."
Marie was not a swordsman only specialized in offense.
Her defensive technique surpassed Ryo's as well…
Ryo kept attacking.
If he kept pressing, she wouldn't get the chance to create distance.
If he kept attacking, he might avoid taking the battoujutsu strike.
If he kept attacking…
"You can't win with that backward mindset."
Marie dodged Ryo's diagonal strike with body work and thrust from low left to upper diagonal.
Ryo had no choice but to jump backward to create distance.
He could only retreat to evade that thrust.
"It feels like the flow of this fight is like dancing on Marie's palm."
"Interesting expression."
Ryo said in frustration, and Marie gave a faint smile in response.
Yes—experience made the difference glaring.
Knowing how an opponent will move in response to a given attack… that's accumulated only through combat experience… prediction.
Ryo thought the biggest gap between him and Abel was in combat experience.
Prediction.
When the outcome is uncertain, and the fight becomes one of brute force, it's nearly impossible to defeat an opponent skilled at anticipating moves.
(I know. I know, but…)
Ryo murmured inwardly.
He knew what to do to avoid it too.
(I know. But I couldn't bring myself to do it.)
Yet now Ryo steeled himself.
You cannot predict what will come.
You cannot know what will happen.
How to avoid that?
Simple.
Force the fight into a pattern where a certain move will certainly come… and then aim at that 'certain' move.
A move that always comes in Marie's swordplay.
A move that always comes after she repositions.
And that move is the strongest technique.
(I have to aim for the battoujutsu.)
He had intercepted it once.
But that was when he still had his real right arm.
Now the right arm was a temporary ice arm.
It inevitably reacted more slowly than a living arm.
With such a right arm, he had to intercept battoujutsu.
That made him hesitate; he even tried initiating attacks himself…
(The die has been cast.)
As if responding to Ryo's decision, Marie sheathed Kotetsu.
She bent her knees, lowered her hips, and the air changed.
Ryo raised Murasame above his head in an unusually high stance.
(
He kept
The sword flashes crossed.
Marie's godspeed step-in, her ultra-fast draw.
Ryo stepped forward to meet it.
The timing shifted.
Ryo stepped forward and turned his body to the right.
He moved into the position where Marie's draw would strike from the front.
Battoujutsu draws and releases the sword with only the right arm.
Its sword speed becomes considerable…
Toward that Kotetsu, Ryo brought down Murasame with both hands.
Kotetsu was blown away.
Yes—Ryo's aim was the weapon.
If he could blast away her weapon, the opponent couldn't attack.
Under normal circumstances.
"I am also a magician."
After a faint light of mutual annihilation, Marie's voice came from directly behind—a sound that would make anyone nervous.
"
He had no time to check behind him.
But he knew she would attack with magic.
So he had to raise his defense even if it meant encasing himself in ice.
However, that meant abandoning movement.
Remaining immobilized.
"
A wall of flame with a ten-meter radius around Ryo formed.
From that wall, it contracted toward the center, shrinking toward Ryo's ice coffin.
"Now layer it!
Plasma at millions of degrees instantly evaporated everything.
Everything vanished.
The sphere of flame dissipated.
There was nothing inside.
Not even the ice coffin…
Marie breathed with her shoulders heaving.
The moment Kotetsu was blown away, she had deployed the four special flight rings attached to her limbs at full power and maneuvered through the air.
When she wrapped around behind Ryo, wind-attribute magic from the flight rings touched the water-vapor mines—but only lights of mutual annihilation sparkled incessantly.
She blocked his escape path with
The successive use of such heavy magic is strenuous even for a phantomkin said to possess inexhaustible magic power.
She must have consumed most of her internal mana temporarily…
"That's a win, so it's fine."
At that instant, Marie's head was cleaved off.
An ice blade also plunged into her chest and stopped precisely a little before the heart.
"I win. Marie, surrender."
Ryo said quietly.
"…I admit defeat."
The severed head said.
In the next moment, Ryo pulled Murasame out of Marie's body and dropped to his knees.
A swordsman leapt through the window.
"Ryo!"
"Abel… I won."
-x-X-x-
Marie's body walked over, picked up the head that had fallen, and put it back where it belonged.
Then she produced a potion from her bosom and poured it around the neck.
A faint light glowed… and the neck rejoined.
"What the…"
Ryo muttered as he watched the scene, while being propped up by Abel.
"I'm a phantomkin, so I'd reconnect on my own if you left me be… but this potion makes it reconnect right away."
"There's no way a potion like that exists!"
Ryo said, outraged.
Yes—that was truly beyond what one ought to expect of a 'potion'.
Admittedly, among the potions made by Viscount Kenneth Hayward, the very best could reconnect a severed arm… but even those did not mean you could slap a limb back on and sprinkle potion on it and be done.
"Here, Ryo, you should use it too. With this potion, that arm of yours will grow back."
"…Huh?"
Ryo could not make sense of Marie's words.
Ryo was a water-attribute magician, and he dabbled in alchemy as well.
He considered himself to possess a respectable amount of knowledge and technical skill—enough even to make golems.
So he knew.
"You can't regrow limbs with a potion."
He said it plainly.
"Right, normally you can't."
Marie nodded in agreement.
In other words: the potion Marie offered was not ordinary.
"I don't know why this potion can regrow limbs either. I can't really do alchemy myself, you know."
"Then where did that potion come from?"
"I received it long ago."
"You… received something like that? From whom?"
"From a certain vampire."
Marie's eyes grew distant.
She might have been remembering that time.
"The only person I ever lost to in swordsmanship. Oh—now that I lost to Ryo just now, make that two."
Marie grimaced as she spoke.
She seemed annoyed at having lost to Ryo.
"Someone stronger with a sword than Marie…"
"Ryo, that assessment isn't accurate."
"Huh?"
"He's overwhelmingly stronger with the sword than I am."
Marie did not grimace; she stated it plainly.
It seemed different from the shame of losing to Ryo.
Losing to Ryo was vexing.
Losing to that vampire was natural.
There was that much of a gap.
"Come to think of it, his alchemy was extraordinary, too…"
The moment Marie said that, for some reason, Ryo pictured the Lord Progenitor of Twilight Land in his mind.
So he asked.
"That vampire, might he have called himself the Lord Progenitor…?"
"Progenitor? No, he didn't go by a name like that."
"Did he lead other vampires?"
"No… now that you mention it, he said he had been exiled. He was alone."
"I see."
It seemed he was different, after all.
"Where did you meet that vampire?"
"The Dark Continent. Oh—you're not thinking of hunting vampires, are you?"
"No, not at all."
"Good. Don't lay a hand on him. Even Ryo would be killed in seconds."
"Ah, yes."
Marie—who had just experienced Ryo's full-strength combat—said that.
One could imagine how strong that vampire must be.
Ryo looked at the potion in Marie's hand.
It was a faintly blue potion.
"Do I just drink this?"
"Yes. Though you might want to remove that ice arm first."
"…Understood."
Ryo steeled himself.
He erased the ice right arm and took a deep breath.
Abel, who had been supporting Ryo, moved back.
It was unavoidable—nobody could say what might happen…
"You chose to abandon me, Abel."
"If anything happens, I'll help you immediately."
Ryo shook his head slightly and shot Abel an accusing look.
Abel truly meant it when he said he would go help if something happened.
Ryo took another deep breath.
Then… he downed the potion in one go.
At first, nothing happened.
Nothing at all.
"Huh?"
A small sound escaped Ryo's lips. The next instant—
"Ugh!"
A scream Ryo had never cried before burst from him.
He clutched the severed right arm with his left hand.
A sharp pain stabbed through the right arm.
"Oh, right—limb regrowth comes with searing pain…"
Marie said, scratching her cheek.
She had completely forgotten to mention that.
"You should have said so earlier…ugh!"
Before Ryo could finish his complaint, another wave of agony hit.
Accompanying it, his right arm began to regrow slowly.
It felt as if it were being reconstructed from the point of severance outward.
"Completely different from that
Abel's murmured remark seemed to reach Marie's ears.
"Yeah. That's more like a divine miracle. It regenerates almost without pain… impossible even from the standpoint of regenerative medicine."
Marie nodded.
Abel did not understand all the technical terms, but he had to agree that the other method resembled a miracle.
"Could that really be light-attribute magic?"
Marie muttered.
"It almost feels more like time being rolled back."
The words were too small to be heard by anyone.
Before the two of them, Ryo's 'regeneration' continued.
Ryo clenched his teeth.
But at the moments when pain seemed to surpass limits, even his iron will betrayed him and a sound slipped out.
That sight continued for over five minutes…
At last, the regeneration finished.
Ryo breathed shallowly.
He did not yet have the strength for a deep breath.
"Ryo…"
Even Abel's voice calling out was soft.
He moved closer slowly.
Finally, Ryo's breathing shifted from shallow to deeper.
Abel had experienced acute pain before.
When pain is intense, you can't breathe.
As the pain eases, breathing moves from shallow to, eventually, deep.
From that experience, it seemed Ryo's pain was finally subsiding.
"Ryo?"
Abel called again.
"Yes, Abel… I'm all right."
Ryo answered, deliberately taking deeper breaths.
"Looks like you're fine now."
Marie nodded.
"No—you should have told me it would hurt that much beforehand!"
"Yeah, sorry. I haven't regenerated anyone's limbs recently so I forgot."
Ryo scolded; Marie answered with a wry smile.
Ryo noticed something.
The severed arm that had been cut away had disappeared.
He didn't end up with two right arms.
"Did the severed arm become material for the reconstruction?"
He voiced the thought that occurred to him.
If that were so, conservation of mass wouldn't be an issue.
He swung the newly regrown right arm repeatedly and squeezed his hand over and over.
There was no discomfort at all.
So he declared.
"Right arm, fully restored!"
He raised his arm high with a triumphant shout.
Ryo vowed inwardly.
That he would never endure such pain again.
He glanced at the window of the bedroom where Emperor Tsuin should have been sleeping.
There, Tsuin stood watching them.
"Oh? Emperor, you were awake?"
"Yes. He watched your fight from partway through."
Ryo asked; Abel answered.
"Well, if you can get up, then it might be good to leave. Don't push yourself, but it'd be troublesome if the leader came back and ran into you."
"Is that okay with you, Marie?"
Ryo's question meant: won't Marie be held responsible?
"Who knows. I don't know, but I'll tell the truth as it is."
Marie shrugged.
She wasn't sure how the phantom king, the lord of their kind, would react.
He probably wouldn't praise her…
Others couldn't be as detached as Marie.
The other phantomkins, for instance.
They remained at a distance from Ryo and Abel, unable to act.
It was natural.
Marie had lost.
They could not imagine winning on their own.
"Um, Marie?"
"Yes?"
"Some of the people around seem confused."
"Oh…"
Marie looked around, understood the situation.
And spoke plainly.
"I lost. I'll take responsibility. So I will let these two and Emperor Darwei leave. If anyone lays a hand on them, I won't forgive it."
Her words were almost businesslike, devoid of emotion.
The other phantomkins seemed to understand and relaxed.
Most of them nodded.
At least, no one tried to attack Ryo and the others.
"Also… I'd be glad if I could get some bedding."
"Bedding?"
"Yes, to lie in the emperor's carriage… or rather, his vehicle."
"Oh, the bedroom one? Take it if you want."
And so Ryo, Abel, and Emperor Tsuin left the 'Summer Villa'.
But there was a problem.
It would be cruel to make Emperor Tsuin walk a long distance.
He was not an adventurer like Ryo or Abel; besides, the endurance of those two was abnormal even compared with ordinary adult men, so he couldn't keep up.
Therefore, they had Emperor Tsuin ride on Ryo's
They had even taken bedding so he could lie down in the
"The
Ryo remarked, tilting his head as he fretted over this and that.
Even if they put the emperor on it, the ride would be awful along unpaved roads…
"Why don't we just make the road better? Like when Ryo cleared the way through the forest and jungle."
"Exactly! If the
Abel suggested, and Ryo, channeling some imagined Marie Antoinette quote, tweaked the phrasing and spat it out.
What a versatile line that turned out to be.
Thus, Ryo and Abel led the way, and behind them, the
Inside Marie's room in the now-empty Summer Villa.
"Did Ryo say he dabbled in alchemy? If only I'd shown him this magic circle Hal gave me… the one that produces the potion from earlier, I wonder if he'd have liked it."
Marie said as she drew a card-shaped metal plate from a drawer, placed it on the desk, and flowed mana into it.
In the next moment, a magic circle was drawn on the desk and in the air above it.
"Would he have liked this layered stacking magic circle?"
Marie smiled.
"Come to think of it, Hal was a reincarnator too, right? If I meet Ryo again somewhere… maybe I'll show him this stacked magic circle then."
-x-X-x-
That day, the forest suffered devastation.
"For the sake of His Majesty the Emperor, who is not yet fully recovered, the trees of the forest must be sacrificed."
"Y-yeah… I suppose it can't be helped."
Ryo and Abel moved at a quick pace, talking as they went.
To ensure a smooth ride for the covered cart trailing behind Ryo, an ice road free of bumps was laid through the woods.
Bedding had been spread inside it, and Emperor Tsuin—still weak from having had blood drawn and not yet fully recovered—lay there.
"Abel, if anything happens, I'm counting on you."
"What do you mean by 'if anything happens'?"
Abel didn't understand the meaning behind Ryo's words.
"When Marie attacked the Imperial Palace before, she brought along those faceless things."
"Faceless things?"
"Monsters with no eyes, nose, or mouth… gray beasts."
"Oh, Shadow Stalkers, huh."
The two Shadow Stalkers Marie had brought were driven off by Abel and the lady-in-waiting Mifa.
"I've heard those are creatures born from the forest."
"That's what people say."
Even someone as experienced as Abel did not know the precise truth.
Shadow Stalkers were that much of a mystery.
"I once encountered them on my way toward the Western Countries."
"Really? That's rare."
"After that, the forest warned me."
"Uh… right…"
"Maybe there are some in this forest too. And we're destroying the forest again."
"So the forest might get angry and send Shadow Stalkers after us. If that happens, you want me to handle it?"
"Exactly."
Normally, Abel would complain at such unfairness, but this time he did not.
They had achieved their original goal of rescuing the Emperor.
Now they had to bring him back to Darwei.
The Emperor rode on Ryo's
Ryo, after all, was a water-attribute magician skilled in defense.
Ideally, Ryo would guard while Abel took the offensive.
"Understood. I'll fight then—Ryo, you watch over the Emperor."
Abel was earnest and good-hearted.
After that, the three of them's return proceeded fairly smoothly.
Along the way, Ryo and Abel often talked about what would happen after they returned.
"Even if His Majesty returns, I don't think Prince Kouri will hand back supreme power."
"Return power? I don't get it. You mean he won't give back the authority he's seized? I agree. Those around him will resist even more than he will. They might try to make it a fait accompli."
"Fait accompli? Ah—you mean they might simply eliminate the Emperor by force."
"Exactly."
Neither Ryo nor Abel were schemers.
Yet even they could imagine such things.
That meant if there were plotters or strategists around Prince Kouri, they might well take that step.
"Ideally, no one would know, but even if it becomes known, you can always just kill him afterward."
"Well… he already controls more than half of the Shitaifu Class and holds the Imperial Palace. Even if something drastic happened, they could probably make it work."
"So sneakily returning to the capital is absolutely out. We need a grand reentry. One that leaves the other side speechless."
"That'll be hard."
The two often traded such theories.
Naturally, they had told Emperor Tsuin what had happened to the Imperial Court after his abduction.
"I see… Kouri has…"
Emperor Tsuin fell silent after that.
Ryo and Abel refrained from pressing the Emperor further; he was still far from fully well.
And most of what had happened transpired while they were away from the capital.
The bulk of their information had come through Secretary Shau, relayed by Inspector Li Wu, so they planned to meet up with the Tenth Ship and do more information-gathering.
As the days passed, Emperor Tsuin's health recovered.
He had not been ill per se; he simply needed the blood he had given to replenish itself. With nutritious food and some care, he could recover.
"Duke Rondo, Abel-dono, I am truly grateful."
The Emperor expressed thanks almost daily.
"No, Your Majesty. Please convey that gratitude to Commander Tin of the Imperial Guard and to Prince Ryun."
Ryo always answered like that.
Most likely, the greatest regret belonged to Commander Tin.
Prince Ryun, who had requested Ryo's cooperation despite knowing he might attract Prince Kouri's ire, had also put himself in a dangerous position.
Compared to those stakes, Ryo and Abel were comparatively trivial…
"We merely moved a short distance, fought for our lives, and had an arm severed."
"Don't forget, Ryo."
"Eh?"
"That during the fight, a large area of forest was destroyed and sacrificed."
"Yes, I'm sorry…"
In a world where limb regeneration—the 'Phi' that could regrow limbs—had become possible, having an arm cut off might be less significant than destroying entire stretches of forest.
…No, that really should not be the case.
Far from the Choouchi Imperial capital, at the Phantom King's main camp.
The Phantom King—sat.
"Taoran, you say a report from Marie has arrived?"
"Yes. It has just reached us."
Taoran, who had accompanied Envoy Berke to the Darwei Imperial Palace and had been the woman who had whispered to Prince Bin behind a black mask.
Handed a report.
She handed it to the Phantom King.
Anyone who had seen Envoy Berke would have been startled.
The Phantom King and Envoy Berke were nearly identical.
The difference lay in hair color.
Envoy Berke had white hair reaching down his back and wore black Darwei Attire.
The Phantom King had black hair reaching down his back and wore white Darwei Attire.
But their manner of speech was completely different.
Imperial Envoy Berke was always polite.
The Phantom King was rough and blunt.
"For Marie of all people to send in a report… something serious must have happened. Did the capital get destroyed or something?"
Saying that, the Phantom King read through the report.
His brow clearly furrowed.
After slowly reading it once more, he handed it to Taoran.
"Read it. And let Berke read it too when he comes back."
"Yes, sir."
Taoran took it and read.
But she immediately looked up.
"She lost a duel and let Tsuin escape…?"
"Yeah, that's what it says."
"That can't possibly be…"
"It can't be helped. That's what happened. Her opponent was that Duke Rondo."
"Even if it was Duke Rondo, for Marie to lose in a duel…"
Taoran repeated it several times with an expression of disbelief.
But after a while, she came back to herself.
"What shall we do about pursuit?"
"Forget it."
"Huh?"
"Who would we even send? The opponent was someone Marie lost to. The only ones who could fight him are Berke or me… and both of us are too far away to chase."
"But still…"
Taoran understood as well.
She had seen Duke Rondo facing Imperial Envoy Berke at the Rondo Manor.
He was indeed strong.
But if they let the Darwei Emperor get away now…
"True, the Emperor's southward movement could be a nuisance."
The Phantom King said with a laugh.
Showing not a shred of respect.
"But don't forget. What I want is the Central Countries. If the Emperor wants Darwei, let him have it—I won't stop him. We'll attack Peiyu as well. We'll invade northern Darwei, too. But all of it is to reach the Corridor that leads to the Central Countries."
"Understood."
"I already crippled the function of the Atinjo Grand Duchy for the Emperor's sake, and caused a ruckus at that Eastern Countries council. That choked Darwei's rear… oh, speaking of which, I think Duke Rondo was the one who interfered with that as well."
The Phantom King recalled the robed man he had faced in Kwebasa.
"Seems there may be some troublesome fate tying us together. The Central Countries, a duke of the Kingdom of Knightley, huh…"
The Phantom King laughed a little and spoke,
"The report says they collected as much of the Darwei Emperor's blood as needed. We can't move for a while anyway because of preparations. Let Marie know that this time we'll let it go, so have her bring everything here."
"Understood."
Taoran said so and left the room.
"For Marie to lose, huh. When I fought him in Kwebasa, I did think he was a troublesome opponent… I'm interested. Should I fight him once more, this time in person? Hmm, that might not be bad either."
Saying that, the Phantom King laughed ominously.
Ryo, Abel, and Emperor Tsuin took seven days to travel from the 'Summer Villa' and arrived at the port town of Mei-Hei in Peiyu.
"Your Majesty, I'm glad you are safe."
"La Wu, you and the crew of the Tenth Ship have gone through a lot as well."
"You honor us."
Emperor Tsuin spoke to Captain La Wu and the others with a smile.
Some of the crew were even in tears.
Because the 'Imperial Ship' belonged directly to the Emperor and the Imperial Palace, their feelings toward the Emperor might have been different from those of other Darwei Navy crews.
"You are Inspector Li Wu of the Inspectorate, right?"
"For Your Majesty to know even my humble name…"
"I have heard from Chief Zhuon that you are an inspector with backbone."
"I am most honored."
At Emperor Tsuin's words, Inspector Li Wu bowed deeply.
The group moved to an inn adjacent to Mei-Hei Port.
It seemed the crew of the Tenth Ship had been staying here while waiting for Ryo's party.
"First, here is a summary of the movements in the capital since Your Majesty was abducted."
After entering a spacious room, Captain La Wu said and laid several sheets of paper on the table.
They described, centered on the movements of Prince Kouri's camp, the reasons why the camp of Prince Churei, the Third Prince, had been unable to act aggressively, and more.
"They appointed Prince Churei as Supreme Commander of the Northern Expedition?"
Ryo blurted out one item that caught his eye.
"Churei is straightforward, for better or worse. But that is also for the sake of the Darwei Imperial House and its people. If told it is for the country rather than himself, he will accept becoming Supreme Commander."
Emperor Tsuin answered.
"But wouldn't that be taken as him accepting being under Prince Kouri?"
Abel voiced his concern.
Emperor Tsuin did not respond verbally to that concern, only nodding in silence.
By accepting it, among the Shitaifu Class who had supported Prince Churei, those who were quick to chase advantage would surely have left him at once and drawn closer to Prince Kouri.
It might be questionable as human behavior, but those who lived around power could not survive without making such judgments and actions… that too was a fact.
"Prince Kouri predicted that Prince Churei would accept if it was framed as being for the country and the people, and calculated that this would split the Shitaifu factions that had been in Churei's camp. Prince Kouri is impressive."
"That calculation is very much like Kouri."
Emperor Tsuin nodded at Ryo's words.
But his face was clouded.
"His high level of calculation is admirable, but the people do not like being shown calculations."
Emperor Tsuin muttered.
Ryo nodded repeatedly at that remark.
The masses do not like rational explanations.
Rather, that is the very nature of the masses.
Their nature does not change, no matter the era or the world.
If one reads history with that premise in mind, many things start to make sense.
If one studies without understanding that, the moment 'the masses' appear, one will panic.
"Why?" "Why do they act that way?"
It is not a matter of being foolish or wise.
That is simply how they are.
And the moment one understands that… the one who understands is no longer part of 'the masses'.
Yes, from the instant you understand, you are no longer among them.
Then what do you become?
That is something you decide for yourself… it depends on what you do afterward.
But you cannot return to being part of the masses.
You will never return to being part of the masses.
You become something that is not the masses.
While Ryo was lost in such a digressive train of thought, Emperor Tsuin continued reading through the documents on the table.
His eyes were those of a ruler.
The expression filled with determination to carry forward the nation's politics was unmistakably that of an Emperor.
Ryo exchanged glances with Abel.
Abel nodded.
Yes, Abel had thought the same as Ryo.
Emperor Tsuin was trying to reclaim his position as the Emperor of Darwei.
How strong his resolve went, they did not yet know.
Would he forcibly remove Prince Kouri?
If the Darwei army, including the Imperial Guard, turned against him, would he fight them?
If forces were blocking his return to the capital in the first place, how far would he go…?
Both Ryo and Abel felt they should eventually ask Emperor Tsuin these things directly and confirm.
"So Ryun is staying shut in the Royal Residence, claiming illness."
When Emperor Tsuin muttered this while reading, Inspector Li Wu nodded.
"Did new information arrive?"
Ryo was surprised.
Up until Ryo and Abel left, no such information had come in.
"After Duke Rondo left this town, several developments occurred."
Captain La Wu said this and gathered the documents Emperor Tsuin had finished reading, then began laying additional papers in the empty space on the table.
"These are detailed reports from inside the capital. This handwriting must be from the Censorate's Shau, correct?"
"Just as you say, Your Majesty. They came to me from Shau-sama through our Chief Zhuon."
Inspector Li Wu bowed.
"Come to think of it, those two were from the same cohort of the Central Examination, were they not?"
Emperor Tsuin said with a laugh.
At that, Inspector Li Wu and Captain La Wu both looked surprised.
Even though Shau and Zhuon were major figures of the state, they were astonished that the Emperor knew such details.
"In the palace examination under the previous emperor, those two argued fiercely. Even though it was the occasion to answer the Emperor's oral questions! Both gave splendid answers, but before long they started debating each other… There has never been anyone like that before or since."
Emperor Tsuin said, laughing nostalgically.
"And now they get along well…"
"Because they recognize each other's ability."
Emperor Tsuin nodded firmly once.
Then he turned to Captain La Wu.
"I roughly understand the situation so far. Now then, regarding what comes next, is there any information or proposals from somewhere?"
"Yes. Shau-sama and Zhuon-sama have a recommendation."
Captain La Wu said this and handed over something like a tightly sealed envelope.
Emperor Tsuin opened it and read.
"Indeed, those two are remarkable. Have you contacted them already?"
Emperor Tsuin said this and handed the document to Ryo.
"Is it all right for me to read it?"
"Of course. At this point, I intend to trouble Duke Rondo to accompany me until the end."
Ryo took it and read.
Abel leaned over from the side to read as well.
When both finished, they wore surprised expressions.
"Roche Ten is on board, I see. The other person—you can fully trust their loyalty as well."
"Yes… actually, I know that other person too."
"What? It seems you have far more connections within Darwei than I realized, Duke Rondo."
Emperor Tsuin said and laughed cheerfully.
It was probably the first genuine laugh from the bottom of his heart since his abduction.
"Very well, our destination is decided. We head for Boago."
-x-X-x-
The tenth ship of the royal fleet set course for the southern Darwei town of Boago.
Naturally, that meant they would not stop by the imperial capital Hanlin.
"We were able to load enough provisions at the port town of Mei-Hei. I also conveyed our gratitude to the magistrate's office, so there should be no problems."
Captain La Wu explained.
"If I recall, you handed them something like a handwritten letter of thanks from His Majesty?"
"Yes. Captain Moa Shu of Mei-Hey's port garrison was moved as well."
Captain La Wu answered Ryo's question.
The two nations had suffered an unfortunate clash in the past, but perhaps they were now trying to move past it and walk a path toward peace.
After Captain La Wu left, Ryo spoke to Abel, who was reading a book beside him.
"Peace is truly a wonderful thing."
"I couldn't agree more."
"Abel, our Kingdom of Knightley should also push forward with a diplomacy of letters of thanks."
"What's that supposed to be?"
The king tilted his head at the premier duke's proposal.
"We'll hand out letters of thanks, personally written by King Abel, to the lords of neighboring countries."
"No—letters of thanks and the like should be very rare, right? If you spam them, they'll have the opposite effect."
"Is that so? Aren't you just saying that because writing them is a pain?"
Ryo gave Abel a sly, puzzled look.
It was the inverse of their usual roles.
"Think about it. If a lord of the kingdom had a handwritten letter of thanks from the Emperor of Debuhi Empire displayed in his office, what would you think?"
"He's bound to betray us someday!"
"See?"
"Indeed… let's drop the idea of 'letters of thanks diplomacy'."
Ryo frowned and shook his head slightly.
Even diplomacy meant to bring peace didn't always produce peaceful results.
How fiendishly difficult diplomacy could be.
The next morning.
Captain La Wu presented their sailing plan to Boago.
"We don't have exact charts or reliable wind information, but we expect to arrive in roughly three weeks."
"Understood."
Emperor Tsuin nodded.
Since setting sail, Emperor Tsuin had apparently been holed up in the stern captain's cabin, writing letters.
"After proclaiming our safe arrival in Boago, he'll probably send them out to the regions."
Abel murmured as the briefing ended and they dispersed, watching the emperor return to the captain's cabin.
"A proclamation of 'Rise up, citizens!' sort of thing, huh?"
"I don't quite follow…"
"You wrote something like that once too, didn't you?"
Ryo remembered.
Yes—when he rose in the southern town of Rune to liberate the kingdom ravaged by the imperial invasion and the king's younger brother Raymond.
Abel had written a rallying manifesto addressed to the realm's lords, urging them to rise together.
"The first to respond was the Marquis Hope family in the west. It's Ignis-san's family."
Ignis was a diplomacy specialist whom the two had traveled with as part of a delegation.
He was the second son of Marquis Hope.
"Ah. The Marquis Hope family, one of the great western nobles, and the Rune Frontier Count family and the Marquis Heinlein family in the south immediately expressed support. I knew the two southern houses would support us early on, but having Marquis Hope show support at that stage was huge."
Abel explained.
Originally, Abel had also been an A-rank adventurer belonging to Rune.
So the southern great nobles supporting him looked natural to the other kingdom nobles.
But having one of the kingdom's great western nobles—Marquis Hope—quickly throw their weight behind him carried significant impact.
"Do you think this time will be like that?"
"I don't know… to begin with, can we even say the other side is a clear enemy?"
Abel tilted his head at Ryo's question.
"Besides, wasn't more than half of the Shitaifu class aligned with Prince Kouri's faction? They gambled their futures on his faction, and that prince seemed to have seized supreme power. So how they will move is uncertain…"
"Hmm… but His Majesty the Emperor is the supreme authority, isn't he?"
"That's true, but an announcement was made that the kidnappers pronounced the Emperor dead. Those in the capital now probably don't know the emperor is alive."
"Indeed…"
"The real question is how they'll act after they learn he's alive."
"That's difficult."
Both Abel and Ryo understood the formalities.
The rightful supreme—the emperor—had returned.
If he reclaimed the throne and the country continued to function as before, that would be ideal.
Yes, that was the official line.
On the surface, it might look like everything would settle peacefully.
But they also knew reality could display a very different appearance…
"Just as many in the Shitaifu class follow Prince Kouri, each of those Shitaifu members has retainers beneath them."
"That's right. Those retainers also have families and subordinates. Choices are made bearing responsibility for all those people."
"You can't choose based on a sense of justice alone anymore."
Both Abel and Ryo had seen much within the kingdom.
So they did not want to unilaterally denounce those in the Shitaifu class aligned with Prince Kouri's faction.
"I hope it doesn't turn into direct armed conflict."
"Heading to Boago is part of the preemptive measures for that."
Abel said firmly.
"You can't avoid war by thinking 'I don't want to fight; I hope they don't attack'. The very feeling that you hope they won't attack means you are not overwhelmingly superior to them militarily."
"Well, if we were overwhelmingly stronger, they wouldn't attack. So it's true you don't just sit around hoping they won't attack."
"If we're not overwhelmingly superior, they might attack. What do we do?"
"…Make ourselves overwhelmingly superior?"
"Yes—that's best."
Abel nodded at Ryo's answer.
That was the answer of a king.
He answered with confidence that it was the measure to take as one who leads a country.
"At times like this, I really see Abel as a true king."
"…What do you usually think I am?"
"A starving swordsman."
"I'll pretend I didn't hear that."
A corner of the Kouri Royal Residence in the imperial capital Hanlin.
The Kouri residence hosted a wide variety of retainers and guests.
Many kinds, many statuses.
But among them, one of the most famous figures was undoubtedly Lord Rowon, one of the Six Saints.
As the strongest water-attribute magician, he held a place among the Six Saints—the pinnacle of magicians and sorcerers—and was also known as the capital's foremost alchemist.
Lord Rowon was walking through a part of the residence he usually did not visit.
There was no particular reason.
His feet had simply carried him there that day, at that time.
But in that building he found some extremely uncommon people.
"Well, the fire Buon, wind Leo Lin, and dark Barda… Three adventurers among the Six Saints gathered—how rare."
"Huh? Isn't that Old Man Rowon?"
The brusque voice belonged to the fire-attribute magician Buon.
Though a magician, he was nearly 190 centimeters tall and so brawny he looked like a swordsman. In appearance, he was a close-combat type, not a typical fragile magician.
Buon was a fire-attribute magician, but his prowess as a swordsman also reached the heights of the capital's adventurers; he was even listed among the physical peak group 'Six Swords' alongside the Six Saints.
At thirty, he was in the prime of an adventurer's life and, of course, a special-rank adventurer.
Beside him stood the slender wind-attribute magician Leo Lin.
Born the same year as Buon, he wielded a staff as tall as himself and, with seemingly inexhaustible mana, overwhelmed foes with relentless offensive spells.
Despite a gentle appearance, his ferocious consecutive attack magic was staggering.
Finally, a short man in a gray cloak with his hood pulled deep over his face—the dark-attribute magician Barda.
Dark-attribute magicians are quite rare in the Central and Western countries.
The situation is no different in the Eastern countries; dark-attribute is less common compared to the other five elements.
Nevertheless, dark-attribute—able to affect the human mind—is powerful in every situation and, far from being shunned in places like the Central countries, is often highly valued here.
At the pinnacle of the Eastern countries' dark-attribute magicians stood Barda.
He always wore his hood low, and it was said no one had clearly seen his face…
"The three of the Six Saints are preparing to depart? Hmm… maybe I should pretend I didn't see anything."
"You're catching on, old man. Only His Highness knows. Does that make things clear?"
"Hmm. But you still don't know where the 'target' will appear, do you?"
"There's a certain geezer who's been very active. I can't say more than that."
Buon shrugged after speaking.
"As I thought, I'll pretend I didn't see anything. You lot, don't fail, alright? Even if you're Six Saints… there'll be troublesome people around the 'target'."
"Hey old man, you taking us for fools?"
At Rowon's teasing, Buon responded with an undercurrent of irritation.
"Six Saints or whatever, it's irrelevant. People just praise us with titles they don't understand. But don't get it wrong—we are special-rank adventurers."
Buon declared firmly.
Pride seeping into the word 'special-rank adventurer'.
"Special-rank adventurers don't fail."
With that, the three set off.
Watching them go and after they were out of sight, Lord Rowon muttered.
"If you fail, I'll have to go on assignment myself… that's something I'd like to avoid."
Three weeks after the tenth ship left the port town of Mei-Hey, it arrived at Boago.
"We have been awaiting you."
Those who greeted the party were people familiar to Ryo and Abel.
One was Count Bashu, Roche Ten.
The other was his uncle…
"It's been a long time, Fu Ten."
It was the former Boago deputy magistrate, Fu Ten.
"Most glad to see you safe and well."
"By His Majesty's clemency and pardon."
Emperor Tsuin looked pleased; Fu Ten looked grateful.
Fu Ten had once been the lord of a territory further south of Bashu—the Barrow County. He had been responsible for guarding the Eastern Palace where the crown prince lived.
On the very night he was on duty, the crown prince was murdered in his sleeping quarters within the Eastern Palace.
As a result, Fu Ten lost his title as Count of Barrow and was reassigned as deputy magistrate within the domain of his nephew, Count Bashu Roche Ten.
But when Fu Ten looked at Emperor Tsuin, there was no trace of resentment.
On the contrary, he seemed to offer heartfelt respect.
Emperor Tsuin, for his part, seemed genuinely pleased to see Fu Ten again after so long.
Afterward, Fu Ten noticed some unexpected people standing behind Emperor Tsuin.
"Aren't those the adventurers, Ryo and Abel? Long time no see."
"You've been well."
"Fu Ten-dono seems in good health as well."
Ryo and Abel greeted him with smiles, but…
Another person suddenly panicked.
"Uncle, those are the Duke Rondo and Albert-dono you heard about."
The hurried explanation came from Count Bashu Roche Ten.
Of course, Roche Ten had not known at first either.
But by now, he had learned that Ryo was Duke Rondo and that Abel was his bodyguard swordsman, Albert.
"Oh my… That was most rude of me."
At the Boago magistrate's office where the group moved, troops were lined up in formation.
"The troops of the Bashu domain, but in fact some…"
Count Bashu Roche Ten began to explain, but immediately faltered.
There was something difficult to say.
"It's fine; I won't be angry, so speak."
Emperor Tsuin encouraged him.
"Yes. Actually, soldiers from the neighboring Barrow domain have come, wishing to lend their strength as well."
"Barrow? I see—that was Fu Ten's territory."
Emperor Tsuin nodded at Roche Ten's explanation.
"Your Majesty, I am sorry."
Fu Ten bowed his head.
"The people of the domain must wish to aid Fu Ten. They likely thought that by coming to the capital with me now, your restoration would be expedited. It is a sign that you governed well as their lord."
Emperor Tsuin said this almost happily.
After nodding broadly, he continued.
"Very well. I had intended to restore the Count of Barrow to you eventually. This merely speeds up that process. I will here and now re-establish you as Count of Barrow."
"Y-Your Majesty!?"
That was surely unexpected even for Fu Ten.
His voice completely cracked.
"Since I have not abdicated, I remain Emperor of Darwei. There should be no problem."
Thus, Fu Ten was restored to the County of Barrow after five years.
When the news spread, cheers rose, especially among the Barrow soldiers, and spread outward.
"That's wonderful, Fu Ten-san."
"Ah, Ryo… no, Duke Rondo, my thanks."
Ryo didn't mind being called 'Ryo', but in front of Emperor Tsuin and his retainers, he understood it was better to use the Duke Rondo title.
Being mindful of which identity to use was surprisingly bothersome.
"When the crown prince was assassinated, there were even opinions suggesting our entire family, me included, be executed."
"What!?"
"But Your Majesty withdrew my title as Count of Barrow and sent me away to be a local deputy magistrate. Without letting the surroundings object, you first removed me from the capital. And you posted me to my nephew Roche Ten's domain. All by Your Majesty's clemency. If you had not acted so decisively, who knows what would have happened."
"At that time, I still could judge."
As Fu Ten explained this to Ryo, Emperor Tsuin approached and said as much.
"The instant I heard Jun had died, I thought I had to do something for Darwei. So I think it was good that I made the decision about Fu Ten immediately. But day by day, I sank into despair. The more I thought, the more I realized Jun was truly gone… I became listless."
Jun was apparently the crown prince's name.
Emperor Tsuin seemed to be recalling that time.
His face twisted.
Recalling one's past mistakes is never comfortable for anyone.
Yet sometimes one must overcome them.
Often, it is not for oneself… but for something more important than oneself.
"Lately, I feel I've begun to understand Jun's feelings."
"His Highness the Crown Prince's feelings?"
"He truly enjoyed going out among the people and interacting with them. To be honest, at the time I did not understand why…"
Emperor Tsuin paused, shook his head slightly, then continued.
"It was simple. He was happy to see the people's joy."
"Ah…"
"Having been shut up in the palace for so long, I couldn't grasp that. So lately I've tried to go outside the palace once in a while."
Acknowledging that going out too often had led to his kidnapping.
He laughed wryly.
It seemed he had recovered enough to be able to laugh about even his abduction.
"And those people you mentioned?"
"Ah—They're scheduled to arrive tomorrow, I hear."
At Emperor Tsuin's inquiry, Count Bashu Roche Ten answered.
The instant Emperor Tsuin nodded at that, a report came in.
"Urgent from the north!"
Emperor Tsuin took the dispatch and read it at a glance.
Then he handed it at once to Count Bashu Roche Ten.
Roche Ten's words were astonishing.
"The Peiyu nation has surrendered to the Choouchi Empire…"
-x-X-x-
"Rather, one should say it is surprising they held on this long."
Emperor Tsuin murmured.
"Peiyu are a horse-riding people, so even if their capital falls it was thought they would not surrender easily."
That supplement came from Li Wu, an inspector attached to the Inspectorate who is well versed in the affairs of neighboring countries.
"Extremely speaking, as long as the king is not captured, they wouldn't admit defeat."
Fu Ten, restored to the County of Barrow, folded his arms and muttered.
A little apart from those leaders, Ryo and Abel stood.
They were effectively outsiders to the operation and were not expected to be deeply involved in the plan itself.
"Abel, things up north are in terrible shape too."
"It took three weeks to reach here by sea. Well, considering they were fighting phantomkins, they did well, didn't they?"
"You're being cold, Abel."
Ryo complained about Abel's cool assessment.
"Just because a country is conquered doesn't mean everything is over."
"Th-That's true, but…"
"It depends on what each citizen thinks. Do they accept occupation as fine, rise to restore the former order, or strive to build a completely new country? People move for one of those reasons."
Abel said decisively.
Nothing is gained by simply waiting.
If you only wait for someone to give you something, nothing changes.
Therefore, when Abel fought the liberation war, he sought the strength of every soldier and every citizen.
He avoided a victory won by Ryo's lone force and, understanding that sacrifices would come, conducted a liberation campaign in which soldiers and civilians alike could feel that they had reclaimed the country by their own power.
"People aren't that strong."
Ryo, understanding everything Abel had done and thinking it admirable, nevertheless shook his head slightly.
Ryo knew.
Ordinary people are not that strong.
At most, they might give everything to protect themselves and those dear to them—family—but to lead them to fight for something vast and vague like a 'country' is difficult.
"That's true."
Accepting even Ryo's feelings, Abel smiled gently and nodded.
This, perhaps, is what being a king is.
The next day.
At Boago's harbor.
"They're appearing on the southern horizon!"
A lookout climbed the midsection of the tenth ship's mast and shouted from the crow's nest.
At that, people onshore began checking with telescopes.
Ryo and Abel didn't have telescopes, but they were excited.
"They're finally here!"
"How many are coming?"
"I hear around thirty ships, but all of them look like warships."
"It must have been hard to come all the way to Darwei."
Both were excited, but Ryo with pure curiosity and Abel was thinking about the hardships of the long voyage.
Some tens of minutes later.
Thirty warships anchored outside the harbor.
They were certainly warships, but of several different types.
One of them entered the harbor.
"That's from the Suje Kingdom…"
"The Lone Dark."
Both Ryo and Abel recognized the ship.
When they had previously visited Darwei, they came as diplomats for Prince Ryun's wedding celebration.
At that time, aboard was…
"On behalf of the expeditionary fleet, I, Kabui Somar, Lord Protector of the Suje Kingdom, salute you."
"Lord Protector, your long sea voyage is much appreciated."
Kabui Somar greeted them and Emperor Tsuin expressed his thanks.
This expeditionary fleet was a combined fleet of the Suje Kingdom and the Komakyuta Principality.
Tomorrow, fleets from the Atinjo Grand Duchy and the Bosuntar nation would also arrive.
Some of these ships were carrying supplies under treaties concluded at the Eastern Countries' joint conference.
But not only that—large fleets and land forces were arriving to demonstrate Emperor Tsuin's authority.
Of course, this was a show of force by Emperor Tsuin against Prince Kouri's camp.
Surrounding countries would demonstrate under whose banner Darwei's power lay.
For the surrounding states, sending troops also allowed them to curry favor with Emperor Tsuin.
If Emperor Tsuin manages to reclaim the throne, all is well.
Even if he cannot, they can argue, "We sent troops because the man who was once emperor told us to"…and claim plausible deniability.
Unless they make a serious misstep, there's little risk.
Naturally, Emperor Tsuin and his circle understood this.
And they believed there was nothing inherently wrong with it.
What they aimed for was simple: to avoid an actual armed clash.
The forces Prince Kouri controlled were originally Darwei's forces.
If a battle breaks out, whether they win or lose, it will only be damaging.
In other words, once armed conflict occurs, that very fact can be considered a kind of defeat.
Therefore, they intended to display overwhelming force so that the other side would choose to avoid battle.
Maintaining a large army to avoid actual war.
It seems full of paradox, but the original reason for preparing such a massive force is to win without fighting…
"Isn't that in Sun Tzu?"
"The general law of employment of troops says: preserving the state is best; destroying the state is next, this you mean?"
"Right. The best is to win while preserving the enemy state; the next best is to defeat and destroy it. Intimidate them into accepting defeat, then scoop up their soldiers and resources—Ryo said that, didn't you?"
Abel offered that explanation, and Ryo was clearly surprised.
"Amazing, Abel. Truly impressive…"
"It's worth committing to memory, isn't it?"
At times like this, Ryo genuinely felt Abel's greatness.
Not merely the breadth of a king's capacity, but an essential wisdom as a person.
Life is often uncooperative.
There are times when you inevitably clash with the uncooperative… whether you can overcome that moment is a measure of your wisdom.
How is wisdom acquired? How is it honed?
Obviously, it comes from experience. There's no other logical source.
Panicking after a crisis is useless.
What matters is how you lived up to that point, what experiences you absorbed.
Those experiences produce and sharpen wisdom.
Abel had internalized Sun Tzu—Ryo's offhand mention.
By living and honing his wisdom day by day.
He was not living absentmindedly!
"Abel, I'll follow you for life!"
"W-What?"
Abel looked at Ryo with a puzzled expression at the declaration.
"If I follow you, I'm sure I won't go hungry."
"I see… Ryo speaks plainly."
"Oh, stop it."
Abel sighed in exasperation, and Ryo—mistakenly thinking he'd been complimented—blushed.
The leaders, including the newly arrived Kabui Somar, moved to the magistrate's office.
There, they held a meeting.
The general policy had been decided.
Now they needed to finalize dates and coordinate the land and naval forces.
Ryo and Abel moved along.
Naturally serving as representatives from the Kingdom of Knightley among the other Eastern countries who had dispatched troops.
"That said, I don't think we'll fight publicly."
"Probably not. This is Darwei's affair, broadly speaking an Eastern Countries' affair. It isn't the sort of situation the Kingdom of Knightley, a single Central Country, should intervene in."
"But doing absolutely nothing would be bad."
"You once said neutrality is problematic, didn't you, Ryo?"
"Did I say that?"
"You said it to His Highness Prince Willy of Ju Kingdom, didn't you?"
"Oh!"
During the liberation war, a festival was held to celebrate the capital's liberation and Abel's demonstration of power as the new king.
At that time, Ryo told Prince Willy,
'If you remain neutral, you become an enemy to the victor and are also resented by the loser for not helping'.
"That was classic Machiavelli."
"I see—that explains it."
"How nostalgic."
Abel nodded in understanding, and Ryo looked distant, remembering the past.
Then Ryo said quietly.
"Prince Willy… chose a difficult path."
"You should visit him someday. He's your disciple, right?"
Prince Willy was Ryo's water-attribute magic disciple.
Diligent Willy practiced magic until his limits.
Ryo always watched anxiously from the side.
"Yes, if the chance arises."
Ryo spoke with a little sadness.
Various circumstances made it difficult for him to go…
In the magistrate's main conference room, the leaders convened.
A map of all Darwei lay on the central table, as if they were also conducting war games.
After finalizing some supply details, they moved on to discussions about organizing the land and sea forces.
For now, aside from the Bashu Count fleet stationed at Boago, all ships sailing north were part of the combined fleets of countries other than Darwei.
Of course, there are differences in ship speed, but there was an even bigger difference.
Captain La Wu of the tenth ship pointed this out.
"It pains me to say this in front of Lord Kabui Somar, renowned admiral of the Suje Kingdom, but Darwei's fleet is in a different league from the other nations' fleets."
Even Ryo, who had worked with Captain La Wu for some time, was surprised by the bluntness of the remark.
Of course, by looking at La Wu's expression it was clear he was not belittling other fleets…
Kabui Somar gave a faint smile and nodded.
He seemed to understand why the remark had been made.
Still, no one else nodded.
Rather, many tilted their heads.
The most puzzled of all was Emperor Tsuin.
"Of course, it's best to avoid armed conflict, and that's the purpose of assembling such a large force. But if it comes to that, such a disparity… though I don't quite understand. Kabui Somar-dono, what say you?"
"Your Majesty, Captain La Wu refers to the 'magic bombardments' and 'magic barriers' installed on Darwei ships. If that is the case, his claim is accurate."
When Kabui Somar spoke, Captain La Wu nodded.
Their assessments matched.
Kabui Somar continued.
"After Prince Ryun's wedding, I observed Darwei's fleet exercises in depth. If a fight breaks out, we'd be sunk one-sidedly."
"What…!"
Count Fu Ten uttered that in surprise.
Fu Ten had once strode across battlefields, but that was on land.
He was not well-versed in fleet combat.
Many of the Darwei people here seemed similarly uninformed.
"In other Eastern countries, fleet battles are chiefly boarding engagements. The near-unique exception is the Atinjo Grand Duchy's Gowor vessels. Those place magicians aboard who unleash a kind of bombardment… but that's an exception."
"Boarding battles mean colliding with enemy ships, boarding them, and seizing control."
Captain La Wu supplemented Kabui Somar's explanation.
"But the Darwei fleet uses alchemy tools that fire magic bombardments from the ship itself, sinking enemy ships before they can close in. It never becomes a boarding battle."
"So we'd be sunk one-sidedly."
Emperor Tsuin seemed to understand and nodded.
"Avoiding armed conflict is best… but if it does occur, we must consider how to respond now."
Captain La Wu concluded.
All eyes turned to Emperor Tsuin.
Emperor Tsuin looked at Kabui Somar and asked,
"Kabui Somar-dono, do you have any clever plan?"
He asked because Kabui Somar's expression suggested an answer might be forthcoming.
Meeting that expectation, Kabui Somar nodded.
"Your Majesty, actually I do."
Then he looked toward a certain water-attribute magician and said,
"If we could have the assistance of His Grace Duke Rondo, I believe the problem would be solved."
At that moment, the entire leadership's gaze turned to Ryo.
The usual Ryo might have been flustered.
But this time, he had anticipated being called on, so he was confident.
Indeed, a faint smile played on his lips.
And he declared clearly,
"Leave it to me."
-x-X-x-
"I apologize for springing this on you without prior consultation."
Before Ryo, Lord Protector Kabui Somal, bowed his head.
"Oh, please don't worry about it. I half-expected as much."
Ryo answered with a smile.
He looked pleased to be of use.
"Long ago, the Bralcow—was it called the Rainshooter when it was built? I pictured the scene where you protected that ship from the Atinjo Grand Duchy's magic bombardment."
"Ah, yes. I'm a water-attribute magician, so defending is my specialty."
"After that, with ice spears you sank all five ships…"
"Yes, yes. That was the
Ryo replied happily to Kabui Somal's words.
Just then, Captain La Wu of the Tenth Ship arrived.
"Lord Kabui Somal, my apologies for my earlier rudeness. I want you to understand that I did not intend to shame you."
"Of course. This is a life-and-death campaign. There should be no restraint in speech at such a meeting. Candid opinions are what save our subordinates' lives."
Both La Wu and Kabui Somal were men of the sea—originally naval sailors.
They apparently did not fuss over small things.
"When we sail north from Boago, the ports we call at will basically trace the route the port where Princess Shio Fen stopped for her public debut."
"That's right. They're all realistically well-equipped port cities, so including supplies, we should be fine regardless of circumstances."
La Wu nodded in reply to Kabui Somal's confirmation.
Since La Wu's Tenth Ship had been part of Princess Shio Fen's fleet, they knew all those ports well.
"Will the flagship really be placed on the Lone Dark? I don't mean to be rude, but the Tenth Ship of the public fleet is one of the hardest Darwei vessels to sink. If we have to face their fleet, there will be many scenes where the flagship leads the front. Even considering the worst case, isn't it better that it not be the Tenth Ship?"
La Wu asked.
"Yes, I think you're absolutely right."
Kabui Somal laughed and nodded.
Then he continued.
"However, the Lone Dark seems to bring luck. Captains and sailors tend to value such things, don't they?"
"I see. I agree completely."
Kabui Somal and Captain La Wu laughed and nodded.
They left the room to receive reports from their subordinates.
"Nice, isn't it? Sailors together—men of the sea, you know?"
"I know what you mean. That sort of thing probably only really connects between specialists of the same trade."
Ryo and Abel talked about Kabui Somal and Captain La Wu.
"Will Abel become like that someday?"
"Me? A specialist in what?"
"…Governance?"
"Governance? Who would I connect with?"
"…Emperor Rupert of the Empire, or King Roberto Pirlo of the Union?"
"Sorry, I can't picture that at all."
"Even I, saying it myself, couldn't imagine it."
It seemed unlikely that specialists would immediately connect in that way.
"Maybe it's more likely between swordsmen?"
"Oh, that makes sense. For example—who?"
"…Mifa?"
"Isn't that… a bit off?"
"Even I, saying it myself, couldn't imagine it."
Master and disciple, it seemed, were something different.
While such meetings were being held in the city of Boago in southern Darwei; further north of Darwei.
In the capital Prin of the Peiyu country, which had fallen to the Choouchi Empire.
At the temporary Phantom King's residence—
"My lord, His Majesty the Emperor is…"
"I told you no envoy is necessary!"
Cutting him off, a man of luxurious Eastern attire entered the Phantom King's room.
His features resembled Envoy Berke and the Phantom King, but he appeared to be about sixty years old.
Compared to the two of them, he also gave a notably slender impression…
"Your Majesty, for deigning to visit such a shabby place…"
"No greetings are necessary!"
The slender man cut off the Phantom King's greeting.
He was Wanshan Ku, Emperor of the Choouchi Empire.
Having now even occupied the Peiyu nation and become, in name and in fact, an 'empire' recognized by neighboring states… as the ruler of that country he seemed without ease.
But that was always the case whenever Emperor Wanshan Ku stood before the Phantom King.
He could not help but understand that the Phantom King—who could move all the Phantomkins at will—occupied a stronger position than himself as emperor.
And it was all the more so if that being was his own child.
Moreover, it would be even more so if that child had once been cast out of the court as an object of revulsion…
However, there was something that had to be said.
"Help me take Darwei."
The tone left no room for refusal.
The Phantom King, however, smiled faintly when told.
An affected smile, as if he were deliberately pondering something.
Then the Phantom King spoke.
"Even without my aid, I suppose one could easily destroy a place like Darwei if Emperor Your Majesty used the full force of your prestige—"
"Silence!"
Emperor Wanshan Ku's sharp words struck the Phantom King.
But they had no effect at all.
"You know that I hate Darwei, do you not?"
"Because you were once sealed by Darwei's alchemists, yes."
"Exactly! For thirty years… I was sealed in the depths of a darkness where I could neither hear nor see. I will never forget that humiliation."
Emperor Wanshan Ku uttered words that could be called a cry of the soul from the depths of his heart.
It was, in truth, a curse.
A curse against Darwei and a curse upon Emperor Wanshan Ku himself… the Phantom King understood that.
As a curse, it was pointless to reason with or explain.
The only way to be freed from a curse was to have one's wish fulfilled.
The Phantom King let out a small, truly small, sigh.
"Help me."
Emperor Wanshan Ku said again, this time gravely.
The Phantom King shrugged slightly and answered.
"There are two conditions."
"What?"
Emperor Wanshan Ku frowned.
He made no effort to hide his displeasure.
"One: place all the 'Vessels' under my command. Your Majesty's main force can still make full use of the monsters, so that should pose no problem."
"…And the other condition?"
"Once Darwei's imperial capital falls, grant Berke the Choouchi Empire's home territory."
"What did you say? What do you mean by that?"
"Exactly what I said."
Emperor Wanshan Ku not only frowned but also tilted his head.
He could not understand the meaning of handing over the Choouchi homeland.
"Your Majesty can take the throne of Darwei. Therefore, give the Choouchi homeland to Berke."
"Are you saying I cannot have it all?"
"No, you may have it if you obtain it."
Emperor Wanshan Ku trembled as he questioned, and the Phantom King shook his head slightly in reply.
"Therefore, under the rule of Your Majesty, hand the Choouchi homeland to Berke. If something happens in Darwei's territories, as long as the homeland is safe, we Phantomkins can try again as many times as needed."
One minute later.
"Agreed. I will grant command of the 'Vessels,' and upon Darwei's fall, I will entrust the homeland to Berke."
"Thank you."
At Emperor Wanshan Ku's words, the Phantom King bowed.
Several hours later.
"Seven-Star General Marie Cloche, I have come to deliver the item requested by the Leader."
Marie knelt with formal courtesy and presented her report.
"…Three weeks? Isn't that taking too long?"
The Phantom King, the Leader, complained with the corner of his mouth raised.
"If we rush and spill it, it would be bad, wouldn't it? It's in a jar—the uncoagulated blood of the Darwei Emperor. Transporting something like that over roads that aren't even paved, full of ruts and bumps, or on beast-paths you couldn't even call roads, loaded in carts and hauled all this way. Really!"
At first, she had used polite phrasing and knelt with deference, but soon that was cast aside and Marie's frank tone emerged.
She never openly defied the Phantom King, but the lack of politeness in her manner was as always.
"Well, fine. You didn't want to take part in the attack on Peiyu anyway, did you?"
"If you already know, don't ask. I have no taste for tormenting weaklings."
"And if it's an order?"
"If it's an order, I'll obey. But if I can, I'd rather fight strong opponents."
Marie said it plainly.
"Was Duke Rondo strong?"
"Yes, he was strong."
Marie said that, and as if recalling something she looked briefly upwards and continued.
"He wasn't overwhelmingly so. So if the circumstances had been just a little different, I might have won…
Thinking that makes me really frustrated. Ah, but then again, strength is that 'little difference'. When I think like that, he really was strong."
Marie nodded several times.
"He's different from the vampire you lost to long ago."
"Obviously. But both…"
Marie looked straight at the Phantom King and said clearly.
"Both of them are monsters."
Having left the audience chamber, Marie was immediately stopped by a guard.
"The Leader requests your presence in the study."
"Hmm."
Marie entered the study.
"You called?"
Her subordinate's tone was full of complaint.
As usual, the Phantom King did not scold her.
He produced a sheet of paper from atop the desk.
It was the document Marie had submitted upon arrival.
"I read your letter."
"Yes."
"It says you wish to leave the Empire—what do you mean by that?"
"Exactly that. It means exactly what it says."
Marie shrugged at the Phantom King's words.
"It doesn't seem to be about dissatisfaction with treatment or anything like that."
"No, I'm not particularly discontent about that. I just… want to go out for a while."
"Because you lost to Duke Rondo?"
"Maybe that's part of it."
Marie tilted her head as she answered.
Indeed, that may have been the immediate trigger, but it didn't feel like the main reason.
"I want to visit the Western Countries and the Dark Continent for a bit."
"I see, the Western Countries and the Dark Continent."
At Marie's words, the Phantom King sank heavily into his chair and replied.
After thinking for a while, the Phantom King spoke.
"You know that in the current state you cannot go to the Western Countries, right?"
"Because the 'Corridor' is impassable, isn't it? You have to open the 'Wall', and for that, you needed the Darwei Emperor's blood. Now that we have it… Leader, you can open it, can't you? After all, you want to go to the Central Countries in the first place."
"To be precise, I don't need to open it."
"Pardon?"
Marie tilted her head at the Phantom King's remark.
"It took time, but preparations to open the 'Wall' are complete. All that's left is to pour in the Darwei Emperor's blood and wait a while, and a 'key' will be formed. With that, anyone… any Phantomkin with a certain amount of mana can open it."
"Oh, is that so?"
Marie didn't seem very interested.
"I want Marie to use that 'key' to open the Wall."
"Huh?"
Marie gave an incredulous, high, surprised sound.
"What about you, Leader?"
"Oh, I decided to go to Darwei to do some fighting."
"You want to fight Ryo… Duke Rondo?"
"You could say that."
"But you lost at Kwebasa, didn't you?"
"Hey…"
The Phantom King took on a hurt expression at Marie's words.
He did not often show that sort of expression.
"You should tell people properly. You're always bragging, so you never properly report these things when the time comes."
"That's not something to be blamed for so much, is it?"
"Well, that's fine. I understand wanting to fight Ryo again in the flesh. But asking me to open the 'Wall'? I don't know the location well, nor do I know the shape of the 'Wall' or the 'Corridor'."
Marie shrugged.
The Phantom King sighed deeply once, then began to speak.
"Do you know why the 'Wall' exists and why it separates us from the Central Countries?"
"No, I don't. It was built while I was away at sea, right? A thousand years ago? Maybe more?"
"It was built to prevent Spellno from coming from the Central Countries."
"Spellno? Oh—those beings humans call Djinns, right?"
Marie nodded.
That made sense to her.
"Spellno were troublesome back then. Their numbers were still fairly large. If that many had rushed over, the East would have been ruined. But now their numbers are much fewer, right? I see—so that's why you want to open the 'Wall'."
At last, Marie seemed convinced.
"That's part of it. The 'Wall' itself has been decaying for centuries. It was built by the greatest alchemists of the age, but after a thousand years, it's natural that it opens and closes at intervals."
"I understand it's safe to open, but isn't it unnecessary to deliberately open it?"
"Do you know why Spellno are effectively immortal?"
"No idea."
"It's because of the 'shrines'."
"Shrines? I see… those in the Central Countries and the Western Countries, right? Connected to ley lines…"
"They serve to replenish the Spellno's life force."
"Really? No wonder they're so strong."
Marie was learning the meaning of the 'shrines' for the first time.
Perhaps more like 'hidden temples'…
"We Phantomkins will take them."
"Ah…"
"After all, there are hardly any Spellno left. If we use what they no longer need, it won't be wrong, will it?"
"So that's the reason."
Marie finally understood everything.
"Well?"
"All right. If that's the case, I'll cooperate. To go to the Western Countries, I'll have to pass through the Central Countries anyway. The 'Wall' has to be open to get there."