Chapter 0679 Visit to the Grand Duchy of Atinjo IV
-x-X-x-
The next day.
"This is the day of destiny for the Atinjo Grand Duchy."
"Isn't that a little exaggerated?"
Abel asked, eyeing Ryo with a suspicious, dubious expression as Ryo declared that with a strangely determined face.
Of course, Ryo had not been assigned any particular role… he was just giving a determined look on his own, for some reason.
"It is not exaggerated. If a civil war is about to break out in the capital, then it is a grave matter for the entire country."
"Didn't Bash-dono say he had no intention of turning the entire capital into a battlefield? That is why he is staying inside the royal palace. The battlefield is the palace and its surroundings."
"Then… I'll rephrase it as: the day of destiny for Grand Duke Atinjo."
"Y-yeah."
Abel had no choice but to accept Ryo's wording.
Indeed, for Grand Duke Bash of Atinjo, it may well have been a day of destiny.
"We did experience civil war in Darwei, didn't we?"
"Ah, the Second Prince, Prince Kouri."
"And there was civil war in the Kingdom of Knightley in the past, wasn't there?"
"Yeah, Uncle Raymond."
"It's all civil war, here and there."
"So what you're saying is that civil war breaks out wherever Ryo goes?"
"Why are you blaming me…"
At Abel's remark, Ryo was shocked and dumbfounded.
But he immediately countered.
"That sort of thing—that wherever a detective goes, a crime is guaranteed to occur—is just something from novels."
"Yeah, I have no idea what you're talking about."
Ryo was talking about the statistical observation that murder cases often occur wherever the great detective Kindaichi Kousuke goes, but naturally, it meant nothing to Abel.
"Ryo, let me say this first…"
"It's okay, Abel. You don't need to say any more."
"Is that so?"
"You were going to say I should eat breakfast properly because I might not be able to eat lunch, weren't you?"
"That's not it!"
Ryo's full-force deduction was denied by Abel.
"This civil war is strictly an internal matter of the Atinjo Grand Duchy, so…"
"Non-interference, you mean?"
"That's right."
Abel said it in a firm tone.
Because he understood that Ryo was dissatisfied.
"You're thinking that if you intervene, the damage would be reduced, aren't you?"
"Well, yes…"
Ryo, after all, had an ordinary person's feelings at heart, so he did not like seeing people injured before his eyes.
That was true even if they were soldiers whose role was to fight.
And all the more so if they were innocent civilians.
"I understand how you feel, but…"
"The people must seize it for themselves."
"Yeah."
"There shouldn't be much of anything more important than a human life."
After saying that, Ryo gave a small shake of his head.
"What is important differs from person to person. I think that the very fact that such differences exist should be respected."
"Diversity is difficult, isn't it?"
It was only natural that there would be differences in outlook between Abel, who had been taught from childhood to view things from a high, broad perspective as royalty, and Ryo, who had lived within democracy and liberalism.
Even so, people ought to understand one another…
"As for intervention, I'll leave that aside, but I will at least witness His Majesty Bash's resolve."
That was all Ryo said, clearly and firmly.
At nine in the morning, the attack on the royal palace began from the south gate.
"As expected, from this height we can't see beyond the wall."
"Yeah, that figures."
Ryo and Abel were on the rooftop of the annex where they had stayed.
Since it was a single-story building, they had easily climbed up by setting an ice ladder.
However, the wall surrounding the royal palace was quite high.
Perhaps about five meters from the ground.
From where the two stood, they could more or less see inside the walls, but they could not confirm how many troops the attacking side had deployed beyond the wall.
"Here goes nothing."
"Hm?"
"
At Ryo's chant, a thick—very thick—ice icicle, with a diameter of perhaps four meters, emerged from the rooftop and lifted the two of them upward by about ten meters.
From there, they could see beyond the wall.
"There are quite a lot of enemies too."
"Just around the southern gate, about two thousand? And beyond the eastern wall… ah, there are people beyond the western wall, too. So altogether, there are about five thousand?"
"More or less. It seems a large force can't be deployed on the north side of the royal palace because of the cliff, but they're attacking from the other three directions. I don't know how much strength the Grand Duke's side is using to defend it, but this certainly won't be an easy battle."
Both Ryo and Abel had experienced their share of battlefields up to this point.
They had not been pleasant experiences at all… and yet, they had gained experience.
Because of that, they could now tell at a glance how much strength the enemy possessed, and they could also understand how much strength their own side had.
Naturally, they could also tell which side had the advantage.
"The attacking side's magic bombardment… honestly, it's not that much."
"Right. And all of it is being deflected by the Grand Duke's talismans."
"Yeah… and there's some archery fire, but mostly they're moving in for close combat toward the gate…"
"Of course, they're being shot at from the walls."
Ryo and Abel were emotionally on the Grand Duke's side.
That was only natural.
The new Grand Duke, Bash, was trying earnestly and sincerely to do his best as Grand Duke.
Many people would surely want to support him.
On the other hand, the attacking side centered around the Babury family… they did not know anyone there to begin with.
There was no reason to support them.
And yet, even so, this attack…
"It looks unrefined."
"Crude, you mean."
Both Ryo and Abel found themselves thinking that.
"Still, siege warfare is difficult in the first place."
"True. In my hometown, there are sayings like: if you want to attack a castle, prepare four times the defending force; or no, six times is needed; or no, no, no, castle assaults are the height of folly… things like that."
"I always think your hometown is amazing. There are books on the art of rulership in the city library, and lots of books on military strategy too…"
"Perhaps people in the past understood the historical importance of preserving things in books."
For some reason, Ryo was puffing out his chest with a smug air.
Of course, the fact that many books remained was not thanks to Ryo.
"In any case, everyone agrees that siege warfare is difficult."
"Yes, no military strategist would deny that."
"Then this south gate is just a decoy to draw attention?"
"I see. The attacking side is not aiming to break through the gate and enter. Another unit is supposed to decide the battle."
"Obviously that would be…"
"Zlurma-san's clan of origin, the Gyuga clan."
Abel and Ryo were in full agreement.
Somewhere, the Gyuga clan—assassins of a sort—would infiltrate the main royal palace and assassinate Grand Duke Bash… if that succeeded, it would indeed be a victory for the attacking side.
"Maybe they've already gotten in?"
"Yeah, they might already be inside."
Ryo and Abel looked toward the main palace from atop the Ice Pillar.
The assassins moved forward silently, without a sound.
The structure of the main palace was in everyone's minds.
The Grand Duke's personal guard, defending the main palace, was by no means weak.
However, before they could even notice the abnormality, their throats were slit.
In utter silence, the shadows invaded the main palace.
An infiltration by the Gyuga clan.
But…
Clang, clang…
In a world that had known no sound, sound was born.
The battle between shadow and shadow began.
This was truly a secret struggle.
In combat technique, the Gyuga clan was superior.
But this was the Atinjo Grand Duchy's royal palace.
The shadows that met them in defense had the advantage of home ground.
"Tch."
The one-eyed man leading the Gyuga clan clicked his tongue without thinking.
"Are these the troops trained by Zlurma? Their technique is rough, but they're used to fighting inside this building."
"Of course."
The moment he heard that voice, the one-eyed man, Rukiya, instinctively twisted his body.
A sword swept through the place where his head had been.
"You have fallen into a trap."
"Cut the nonsense!"
Zlurma and Rukiya, now revealed, faced each other.
The Gyuga clan's infiltration was being blocked all around, and fierce swordfights were beginning to erupt.
"Special Guard Unit of the Foreign Ministry's External Affairs Section. A unit designed to intercept assassins like the Gyuga clan inside the royal palace."
"Do you really think you can stop us with such half-baked technique? You were once called one of the finest of the Gyuga, so you should understand—our blades cannot be blocked."
"Because I was one of you, I understand how strong the Gyuga are. At the same time, I know their weaknesses too."
"What are you…"
Just as Rukiya was about to retort to Zlurma's words.
A small red light flashed from Zlurma's hand.
It was not an attack spell.
"A signal?"
Rukiya muttered.
The next instant.
A flash of light illuminated the area.
At the same time, a deafening roar rang out.
Flash and roar inside the building.
By Zlurma's red signal, the alchemy devices for flash and roar that had been installed inside the palace were activated.
The External Affairs Section's Special Guard Unit, which had been handling the situation, suffered no damage.
But the Gyuga clan was different.
For those accustomed to darkness and to fighting in places with little light, such as indoors, flash and roar were fatal.
Their vision was stolen, and their hearing was shattered.
They instinctively froze.
Even the more experienced among them immediately backed themselves against the wall… but in the end, they were unable to move for a while.
A one-sided slaughter by the Special Guard Unit began.
The tide had clearly turned in the Grand Duke's favor.
-x-X-x-
Chapter 0680 Visit to the Grand Duchy of Atinjo V
-x-X-x-
Clang.
Rukiya batted away Zlurma's strike with a ringing crash.
"Even though your eyes should be blind and your ears should be ruined, you still managed to block that blow?"
To Zlurma's astonished words, Rukiya gave no reply.
He had still not restored his hearing from the thunderous roar of the trap.
Deprived of sight by the flash of light, and having his hearing sealed by the deafening roar.
Rukiya nevertheless continued to defend against Zlurma's sword.
"As expected."
Zlurma's sincere praise.
Even though they had become enemies, they had grown and honed themselves together in their clan's village.
He knew better than anyone just how talented Rukiya was.
And precisely because of that…
"Surrender, Rukiya."
He urged surrender in a louder voice.
"You must be kidding, Zlurma?"
It seemed Rukiya's hearing was recovering little by little.
"You were soft-hearted back then, and I guess that still hasn't changed, has it?"
Rukiya answered with his mouth twisted into a frown.
The content of his words was mocking, but his tone was not.
Now that both had reached middle age and still had not lost their strength, there was the pleasure of seeing an old rival still standing strong, but also the bitter, vexing feeling of having such a troublesome man as an enemy.
What was more, preparing a trap of this scale and actually defending against their infiltration with the troops he had raised himself… that was, in a dimension entirely different from individual combat, superb.
And yet…
"Surrender is impossible."
"Look carefully, Rukiya. More than half of the men you brought are already down, aren't they?"
"As you can see, my eyes still haven't recovered from the flash."
"You joke in a situation like this?"
Zlurma frowned.
But at that instant, a sense of wrongness ran through his mind.
Rukiya had been raised from a young age to become a commander later on.
His individual combat ability was high, of course, but so was his ability to command.
And having high command ability did not merely mean executing a plan perfectly.
It meant being able to command in a way that kept losses to a minimum.
He would not recklessly let his allies die.
And yet, why did he not surrender?
No—why, moreover, did he not retreat?
Why… was he staying here? Drawing Zlurma and the others in…
A feint?
"Damn it, a decoy! Bash-sama!"
Royal Palace Main Building, Council Chamber.
That was the command center for this defense operation.
The Grand Duke Bash, the Supreme Commander of the national army, and others were gathered there.
Naturally, the surrounding area was sealed off by the Grand Duke's personal guard.
But suddenly the doors flew open, and multiple shadows burst inside.
"Enemy atta… ugh!"
Before they even had time to shout, the Grand Duke's personal guard was being brought down one after another.
"Protect His Majesty!"
"Ring the alarm bell!"
Voices flew back and forth.
But the attackers were the Gyuga clan.
People who made their living through assassination.
They would not allow the enemy to sound bells or whistles.
It was impossible to make it completely silent, of course, but compared with fighting outside the walls, the battle progressed in a terrifyingly quiet fashion.
However, the Grand Duke's personal guard, who were attacked, were also elite.
As time passed, they steadily regrouped.
Working in concert with those guards, spell talismans began to fly.
The one sending them was the protected target himself… Grand Duke Bash of Atinjo.
That gave the personal guard a sliver of breathing room.
Piiiii!
At last, the whistle was blown.
That meant the palace had been informed that something abnormal had happened around the Grand Duke.
"Hurry! The enemy will gather here!"
At last, a voice rose from among the Gyuga clan members who had been attacking in silence.
The owner of that voice was an old woman.
It was the elder herself who was directly leading the assault on the Grand Duke.
But that also meant their commander's position had been exposed.
Eight spell talismans rushed at the elder.
Manipulating them was Grand Duke Bash.
"You brat, and yet you can control eight talismans!"
The elder muttered bitterly.
A sorcerer controls spell talismans.
Most can manage only one.
At an advanced level, one becomes able to control two at the same time.
And if one can handle four talismans… then they may be called one of the finest sorcerers in the country.
For a human being to control eight talismans was not normal.
Of course, there was no one like that in the Gyuga clan.
Even the elder was limited to four.
The result of Bash's desperate effort to close the gap between himself and his great father and uncle.
From the time he was old enough to understand, Bash had understood that his father and uncle were beings entirely different from himself.
He knew that it was not that there was something wrong with him, but that the two of them were extraordinary.
What arose there was not rejection of them, but admiration.
I am different from the two of them.
I cannot become like them.
He understood that. He accepted it.
And yet… he still wanted to get closer to them.
So he worked.
His intellect, martial skill, bravery… and sorcery.
A level fit for a prince, one that would not bring shame… he had long since surpassed that.
He had never once thought in terms of such a level.
When, in the future, he inherited the title of Grand Duke, what the people would compare would be the gap between himself and his father and uncle.
That was why he wanted to close that gap even a little.
The Atinjo Grand Duchy had grown into a great power during his father's reign.
Precisely because of that, the demands placed upon the successor to the ducal title grew even greater.
He never cut corners in anything and continued to strive in everything.
And that result was now.
A spell talisman manipulation ability that even surpassed the Gyuga clan elder.
Still, as expected of the Gyuga elder.
Bash immediately understood that he could not defeat her in a talisman contest alone.
Bash shifted his talismans away from attack and concentrated on protecting his allies.
Bash's talismans protected the Grand Duke's personal guard, and the guards, now free to focus on offense, struck down the Gyuga clan members.
"Brat, I acknowledge your effort. But as a sorcerer, you still have a long way to go."
After muttering that, the elder recalled the talismans she had been controlling and took two new slips from her breast pocket.
A careful observer would have realized that they were not spell talismans.
The two slips adhered to the ceiling.
And from there, something was 'born'.
"Something strange from the ceiling!"
"Charms!"
At the guard's cry, Bash was surprised but still saw through it in an instant.
Yes, not spell talismans, but spirit charms.
A spirit charm does not unleash sorcery…
"A revenant*! " (TLN: Also known as ghosts, spirits, but using revenant here because they exhibit physical properties)
"Revenants in armor? They're appearing one after another…"
From the two spirit charms stuck to the ceiling, armored revenants emerged one after another.
They held swords and wore armor, but their eyelids were shut, as if sewn closed with thread.
And they were directly above Bash.
"I'll take down the revenants! The personal guard should focus on the assassins."
The moment Bash shouted, he drew his sword.
The Holy Sword Tatien.
With a single flash, he cut down the revenant falling from the sky.
At Tatien's slash, the revenant dispersed into mist.
"So magic and sorcery are fundamentally the same after all?"
Bash muttered.
The effect of the Holy Sword Tatien was to 'ignore magic'.
The revenants born from spirit charms were, in a sense, beings generated by sorcery.
If magic and sorcery were fundamentally the same thing… then it made sense that Tatien's slash would erase them.
Bash had not only worked on sorcery.
He had also worked hard on the sword.
So his swordsmanship was solid.
But…
"Even so, talisman control grows unstable."
The elder muttered with a grin.
Bash had to protect the Grand Duke's personal guard with his talismans while slashing at the revenants raining down from above.
Controlling talismans was an extremely delicate technique, and even a slight disturbance in one's heart could have a major impact.
In truth, compared with a magician handling magic, it was an even more delicate thing.
Even if one like Bash had worked tirelessly since childhood… simultaneous control of a sword and talismans was impossible.
"This is the subtlety of a battle between sorcerers. It is not decided simply by how many talismans one can handle. The brat is, after all, just a brat."
The elder's murmur reached no one's ears.
Bash's talisman control wavered only slightly.
But his opponent was the Gyuga clan led by the elder.
That amount of instability was enough to exploit.
The talismans Bash had been using for defense wavered ever so slightly, and the Grand Duke's personal guard was brought down.
After cutting down five descending revenants, Bash realized it too.
"So that was the aim!"
He was frustrated, but there was nothing to be done.
The difference in battle experience between sorcerers had shown itself.
The falling revenants did not stop.
As the Grand Duke's personal guard was struck down, the gap widened with frightening speed.
Clang.
Bash's sword deflected not only a revenant, but also a throwing knife aimed at him.
At last, the Gyuga clan's attack had broken through the personal guard.
"Ugh."
Bash understood what it meant.
That collapse was right at hand.
Almost at the same time, Zlurma burst into the Council Chamber.
But it was too late.
Bash met the elder's eyes.
"Die!"
"Damn…!"
Bash braced himself for death.
At that moment.
Clang, clang, clang…
All of the throwing knives hurled toward Bash were deflected.
"What the!"
The atmosphere changed.
At that instant, no one could move.
Clink, clink…
Footsteps could be heard.
But no one wanted to turn toward them.
Because in an instant they understood those were the footsteps of death.
Clink, clink…
Without even the slightest hesitation, the footsteps drew nearer.
A slight turn of the neck would reveal the owner of those footsteps.
But no one wanted to move.
No one wanted to know.
Why would they want to know the identity of the one taking their lives?
Among them, Bash turned his head with certainty.
A man wearing pale purple clothing, his long black hair tightly bound up, held in place by a small crown that emitted a faint purple glow.
The owner of the footsteps was Duke Helb.
"Uncle!"
"Bash-sama, you have truly grown well. My elder brother… no, the previous Grand Duke would have been greatly pleased if he were here."
As always, Duke Helb wore his cool, unruffled expression.
He also addressed the person who had just burst in through the door moments earlier.
"Zlurma, you held them well."
"Yes, sir! "
Zlurma replied, hastily dropping to one knee.
Up to this point, not a single member of the Gyuga clan had moved.
That was not rational.
They understood that if they moved first and seized the initiative, they might be able to turn the situation to their advantage… they understood that.
In their heads.
But that was all.
Even if the mind understood it, the body would not move.
No—some people could not even think that far.
They could not think at all.
Their heads were full of fear…
All they could wish was that time would pass without incident, and that the 'death' standing before them would overlook them.
It is said that when death draws near, a person's memories run through their mind like a flashback.
That is a lie.
That kind of reward is reserved only for those who have already found some measure of satisfaction in their lives.
Ordinarily, no such reward is granted.
What remains is only fear.
Fear of being unable to do anything.
Even so, some can still speak while fully aware of that fear.
"So the monster… has awakened, has it."
The elder's murmur.
By 'monster', she did not mean some other being that was not human.
But whether one was human or not, how much meaning did that difference really have?
They could not be defeated, no matter what, and they brought absolute death. That did not change.
"A monster? Hehe. I, at any rate, am far below the two 'true monsters' staying here at the palace… Ignorance truly is bliss, isn't it?"
Duke Helb glanced toward the roof a little way off.
There, hiding in secret, were a swordsman and a magician peeking furtively at the Council Chamber…
They had probably intended to intervene in Bash's battle if things turned truly dire.
Duke Helb gave a small bow with a faint smile.
"For now, before the true monsters intervene, let us prove that there is no problem whatsoever."
"What are you planning to do?"
"Just as you imagine."
To the elder's question, Duke Helb answered without changing his expression.
"Die."
In that instant, every single member of the Gyuga clan in the Council Chamber collapsed, dead.
Something thin had pierced them from the back of the neck.
All of them, simultaneously.
How many of those present could have understood that it was done by an astonishingly thin spell talisman?
At the moment of piercing them, Duke Helb took a single large breath.
In truth, he still had not fully returned to his original condition.
Even so, he had somehow forced everything to fit just in time…
Duke Helb walked forward with a faint smile still on his face, came before Bash, and bowed his head.
An astonishingly graceful and beautiful bow.
"Duke Helb Plak, at your service."
"Uncle…"
"Your Majesty, please order the suppression of the traitors attacking the palace."
Without changing his expression, Duke Helb asked for orders.
Bash took one deep breath.
That completely restrained both mind and body.
The words that came from his mouth did not waver even a millimeter.
"I command Duke Helb. Exterminate the ones attacking the palace. This is an imperial command."
"Your imperial command is duly received."
This was the first order from the new Grand Duke Bash to Duke Helb.
After bowing deeply, Duke Helb began walking toward the outside of the Council Chamber.
A smile naturally slipped from the corner of his mouth.
The expression on his face was that of a master delighted by the growth of his disciple.
"He told me to exterminate them. Heh heh heh, as expected of Bash-sama. Elder brother, elder brother's blood has definitely been inherited by Bash-sama."
Of course, no one heard that murmur.
"Not drive them off, not merely remove them, but exterminate them. So that they never again even think of raising a rebellion, let us ensure that they are thoroughly 'exterminated'."
After that, in less than ten minutes, the noble army centered around the Babury family that had attacked the palace was annihilated.
It is said that four thousand corpses lay there.
The swordsman and magician who had been secretly watching the battle in the Council Chamber were, needless to say, Abel and Ryo.
They did not see Duke Helb's 'extermination' when he headed outside.
They thought it would surely become a gruesome scene anyway, and that if Duke Helb had come out, then no unforeseen disaster would occur.
They did see the scene after everything was over.
"That is truly the way of hegemony."
"By 'hegemony', you mean ruling by hegemony, instead of monarchy?"
"Yes, that's the one."
Outside the palace, where countless corpses lay scattered.
The attacking side had been exterminated by Duke Helb alone.
Seeing that, Ryo used the word hegemonism.
"I can certainly picture it, but…"
"Hegemonism is not just about showing power. It is not enough to solve everything by force, either."
"That so?"
"Yes. That would just be a musclehead."
"R-Right…"
Ryo stated it flatly, and Abel accepted it more or less naturally.
There was no particular reason to deny it.
"Showing power, and that power captivating people… that is the essence of hegemonism."
"Power captivating people? Sure, people are fascinated by overwhelming power, I won't deny that…"
"If you think of it as that state expanded to the level of governing an entire nation, it may be easier to understand. Every citizen becomes captivated by that power. And so, being ruled by it begins to feel pleasant."
"Feeling good about being ruled? Really?"
"Yes. The desire to be ruled by someone overwhelmingly strong is part of human nature. In some worlds, that may be a being called 'God'… but I think that is the essence of hegemonism."
Ryo, who had only dipped the tip of one foot into the world of history studies, had once become interested in the very act of 'rule' across time and place, and had researched it.
To study rule was also to understand the essence of the 'masses'.
Why did Athens, which had adopted democracy, lose its power?
Why did the Roman Republic transition into the Roman Empire?
Why is it that even when Western countries try to establish democracy, it does not take root well in the Middle East and Africa?
Of course, each of those questions has dozens of correct answers.
Depending on which angle one looks from, the form of the answer changes.
One such correct answer is the one that focuses on the 'masses', and that is all there is to it.
"Abel, please walk the royal path, not the hegemonic one."
"O-Okay."
"Hegemonism does not suit Abel."
Ryo declared it flatly.
"Is this really a matter of whether it suits me or not?"
"Of course. Personally, I do not think the royal path and the hegemonic path are about which is right and which is wrong."
"Hm?"
"It is more like the suitability or unsuitability of the ruler, the suitability or unsuitability of the masses, the historical suitability or unsuitability of the people in that region… I think it is something that emerges from a very large number of complex factors all tangled together."
Ryo explained.
Abel tilted his head.
He did not seem able to agree completely.
"Do you think the royal path is the better one?"
"Yeah, more or less."
"If that is what you think, then the royal path is what suits Abel best."
"I see, so that is what you mean."
Abel must have found it convincing, because he nodded several times.
"The world is made of diversity. What is justice for some people can be injustice for others. If you forcibly impose one side's justice, resistance will arise."
"That much is true."
What is right in the Central Countries is not necessarily right in these Eastern Countries, either.
One week after the Atinjo Grand Duchy's Royal Palace was attacked, Ryo and Abel were to depart the capital of the Atinjo Grand Duchy, Cam Pho.
"Lord Duke of Rondo, Abel-dono, thank you very much."
"No, Your Majesty Bash, we are the ones grateful for your generous hospitality."
Bash expressed his thanks, and Ryo also expressed his thanks.
"Thank you for delivering the Holy Sword Tatien."
"Good to hear Duke Helb also recovered."
Duke Helb and Abel also exchanged thanks.
"From the port town of Hoi An, one of our Atinjo Grand Duchy's long-distance cruising ships will escort you as far as Darwei."
"Yes, thank you very much."
And so Ryo and Abel, riding Andalusia and Faiwan, once again set out on the road back to the Kingdom of Knightley.
-x-X-x-
Chapter 0681 And Once Again, By Them!
-x-X-x-
"And once again, by them!"
Ryo said resentfully.
Yes, the 'them' Ryo was saying resentfully… needless to say, there was only one group like that.
"The Kraken swarm was troublesome."
Abel said, shaking his head.
Yes, the ship the two were riding had once again been attacked by Kraken.
And this time, by a swarm.
It was one hour after leaving the port town of Hoi An.
On the deck of the long-distance cruising ship heading north with the continent on their left, Ryo and Abel were spending time peacefully.
Their beloved horses, Andalusia and Feiwan, were also basking in the sun contentedly.
The first to react were those two horses.
They suddenly stood up and neighed.
The two men, and the crew of the long-distance cruising ship, were startled.
Only then did Ryo notice it too.
"Something is coming up from beneath the sea!"
The next instant, something white pierced from the ship's bottom all the way to the deck.
"That is!"
"It is a kraken arm!"
Ryo and Abel understood at once.
A long kraken arm.
There must now be a huge hole in the ship's bottom.
Naturally, it would sink.
"Come forth, Neil Andersen-Mod!"
Ryo chanted, and a submarine, generated by alchemy, appeared on the sea beside the long-distance cruising ship.
Almost without pause, Andalusia and Faiwan leapt aboard.
They must have instantly judged, by wild instinct, which was safer: the ship they were on now, or the submarine generated by Ryo.
If anything, Ryo and Abel were the slower ones.
The moment the two leapt aboard, several Kraken arms sprouted from the deck of the long-distance cruising ship.
A Kraken has two long arms that it uses for attack.
So if several arms appeared, that meant there were multiple Krakens beneath the sea.
Not long after Ryo, Abel, Andalusia, and Faiwan boarded the Neil Andersen-Mod, the long-distance cruising ship folded in on itself and sank with a thunderous crash.
"Ugh, we've become the target!"
Probably because the long-distance cruising ship had sunk, a group of Krakens began attacking the Neil Anderson-Mod.
"Damn it, we're bolting!"
Ryo declared with a distorted expression.
Abel had noticed, even before Ryo made that declaration, that Ryo had glanced toward Andalusia and Faiwan riding in the rear.
He had chosen a safer course of action for the sake of his beloved horses.
To Abel, that judgment looked favorable.
"I support Ryo's decision."
He said it clearly.
From there, the Neil Anderson-Mod devoted itself entirely to escaping.
The Kraken swarm pursued them one after another.
While fending off repeated attacks with the 'alchemical armor' generated by the Neil Anderson-Mod, they gained distance with a rearward suppressive attack using Mark 256 torpedoes…
And it was only one hour after the long-distance cruising ship sank that they finally shook off the swarm.
"We barely got away, but…"
"The pressure from the swarm closing in from behind was incredible."
At last, Ryo and Abel let out a breath of relief.
And once they felt safe, anger began to boil up inside them.
"Those guys again!"
Ryo said bitterly.
"The Kraken swarm was a pain."
Abel also shook his head as he answered.
"Well, the Krakens came after us, so the crew of the cruising ship should have survived."
"They were thrown into the sea after losing the ship, but the shore wasn't that far away anyway."
Both Abel and Ryo could think it a good thing that, by serving as bait, they had saved the crew's lives.
Suddenly, Ryo looked toward the rear cargo hold of the Neil Anderson-Mod.
There sat their two beloved horses, obediently.
"Compared to us, Andalusia and the others have steadier nerves."
"Yeah, I think so too."
Ryo and Abel nodded as they looked at the two horses, who sat there gazing back at them with trust.
"Still, this ship… was it a submarine? It's a lot bigger than the previous one."
"Yes, yes. This Rondo-class third ship, Neil Anderson-Mod, had its size recalculated on the premise that it would carry Andalusia and Faiwan. Since I needed both the forward cockpit, where we sit, and the rear cargo hold, where they can also fit… once I made the old tank section larger, it inevitably had to become much bigger. But the cargo hold can also store food, so long-distance navigation became possible as well."
"As long as there's food."
"Yes, as long as there's food…"
Abel and Ryo simultaneously looked toward the rear.
There were Andalusia and Faiwan.
And there were bags of cash frozen in ice.
"You really brought the money you got in Darwei, even in that situation. Impressive."
"Money is important."
Abel praised them, and Ryo nodded as if it were only natural.
There are worlds where people even kill one another for a tiny amount of money.
"But there's no food…"
"Right. We weren't able to recover the food that had been loaded onto the cruising ship."
"Because of those guys?"
"Damn you, Krakens! This grudge… I'll never let it go!"
Ryo voiced his resentment.
"For now, let's surface. There might be an island nearby."
"True."
And so the Neil Anderson-Mod, carrying the two men and two horses, surfaced.
"Remarkably… it is the vast open sea."
"There isn't a single island."
What came into view from the surfaced Neil Anderson-Mod was a horizon stretching in every direction.
What was more, thick clouds covered the sky, so they could not even confirm the sun's position.
"This is a problem. I do not know our bearing."
"Wouldn't it be better to just keep moving on the surface?"
"Yes, that might be best. If we keep going and see an island in the distance, we can stop there. If we turn back, we might run into the Krakens again. But…"
Ryo frowned.
"Is there something wrong?"
"Sonar is difficult when we're on the surface."
"Sonar? Ah, the thing that uses magic to determine whether enemies are around?"
"Yes, that one."
"Hm?"
Abel tilted his head, unable to understand what was difficult about it.
"When you're on the surface, you have to detect both attacks from the air and attacks from under the sea, right?"
"Well, yes."
"The density of water molecules in the air and the density of water molecules in the sea are completely different. So the information received from each is completely different."
"Yeah, I have absolutely no idea what you just said."
At Ryo's explanation, Abel answered with a big nod.
It was wonderfully refreshing.
"Originally, sonar is something that detects the movement of an opponent in water-rich situations like underwater."
"I see, that part makes some sense."
"I adapted it so that I can detect the movement of an opponent even on land, using water molecules in the air too… tiny, very thin water."
"I see, that part doesn't make much sense."
"So on the surface, I have to deploy both of those at the same time, which makes it hard."
"I see, it's hard. Good luck."
"…"
Abel patted Ryo on the shoulder to encourage him, and Ryo was left speechless.
"I thought that if you couldn't do it, there was nothing to be done, but if it's only hard, then it should be fine, right?"
"Fine… I wonder?"
"Ryo can do it. It'll be fine."
Abel stated it with certainty.
Ryo looked at him with a suspicious, sidelong stare.
Then Abel delivered the decisive line.
"It'll be fine if it's for Andalusia, right?"
"Of course it will! That's easy."
A complete about-face. A full retraction.
Ryo nodded once, emphatically, then gave Andalusia, seated in the rear cargo hold, a thumbs-up.
Seeing that, Andalusia neighed happily.
"I'll take advantage of the good fortune."
Abel said so with a wry smile.
It might be fair to say luck was on their side.
Six hours after shaking off the Krakens.
"What is that…?"
"An island."
Ryo asked in question form, and Abel answered with certainty.
Abel had good eyesight.
"We should be able to reach it before dark."
"As long as we don't run into 'them', right?"
"That sounds ominous, Abel…"
Abel said with a shrug, while Ryo frowned in complaint.
"Those guys… the Krakens really are troublesome."
After traveling for a while longer, the full view of the island came into sight.
Of course, only from this side. They had no idea what the other side looked like.
Then—
"A ship ahead…"
"It emerged from behind the island."
"There's not just one, is there?"
"There are three."
"And those are, as I thought…"
"They're heading straight toward us."
Both Ryo and Abel recognized that the three ships were coming their way.
"This Neil Anderson-Mod is transparent, too. And out on the sea, if a person were floating there, you probably wouldn't recognize them very well either, right? How did they notice us?"
"There might be a watchtower or something on a high point of the island."
"Ah, I see."
They might not be recognizable from the sea, but perhaps the island had something like that.
"Even if there's a possibility that the island is occupied by pirates, I wonder if it's really a good idea to launch a preemptive attack."
"Yeah, you sure make it sound like I proposed that, but I didn't propose anything like that. Definitely don't do it, okay?"
"And by 'definitely don't do it'…"
"It is not 'go ahead and do it'! "
"I've been foiled in my gag… terrifying, the gag-crushing Abel."
Ryo tilted his head with a clunk to show his disappointment.
While the two were talking about that, the distance between the Neil Anderson-Mod and the three ships rapidly shrank, and at last they met.
But…
"They're speaking to us, but I can't understand them."
"Could that language… be something like the Archipelago language?"
"Archipelago? Like the Suje Kingdom or the Komakuta Principality?"
"Yeah. Come to think of it, we had a translator…"
"Mine broke after repeated fierce battles."
"Mine too."
Ryo and Abel sighed.
In the Komakyuta Principality, the two of them had bought an alchemy tool that translated the local language, that is, the Archipelago language, into the language of the Central Countries.
But when they crossed to the continent, both of them learned the language of the Eastern Countries, and since then, the eastern language had been enough, so they eventually stopped using the translator…
"Come to think of it, when we met at the meeting in Kwebasa, didn't Queen Iliaja speak the language of the eastern countries?"
"That's right. Then shall we try speaking to them?"
It worked beautifully.
"We are the northern navy of the Suje Kingdom."
A man dressed in the finest clothes, more like a squadron commander than a ship captain, introduced himself.
"I am Northern Fleet Commander Mebeli. We will now conduct an inspection. Remain calm."
"Go right ahead."
The Neil Anderson-Mod was floating on the sea.
Its forward cockpit roof was opened, so it looked like something that could pass for a ship… more or less.
Incidentally, the rear cargo hold still had its transparent roof in place because Andalusia and Faiwan were inside.
Since the deck of the navy ship was high up, it would not be difficult for them to board the Neil Anderson-Mod.
Commander Mebeli and six others transferred over.
"Who are you?"
Commander Mebeli asked in an extremely businesslike tone.
"Ah, we're adventurers."
"We're sixth-rank adventurers."
The two of them showed their adventurer cards, which they had not used much since entering Darwei.
"Hm."
Commander Mebeli checked the cards, but his expression remained stern.
Ryo and Abel exchanged silent glances.
"Looks like we're being suspected.", "They don't seem to have a very good impression of us."
That kind of eye contact.
"I understand that there are people called adventurers on the continent, but I cannot judge whether you truly are such people."
"Ah…"
At Commander Mebeli's words, Ryo let the words slip from his mouth before he could stop himself.
Come to think of it, he remembered that there were almost no 'adventurers' in the Archipelago region.
Their adventurer registration had also been done only after they crossed to the continent…
One of the soldiers behind Commander Mebeli was arguing about something in a language Ryo and Abel could not understand.
Another soldier seemed to be agreeing.
"They must be trying to arrest us."
"That may be so, but it may not."
Ryo and Abel also whispered to each other.
"Even if that were the case, I do not want to resist by injuring them."
"Why not?"
"At the very least, this captain looks serious. Even if they are going to arrest us, there must be some situation that led him to judge that he should do so."
"Abel… maybe because you're His Majesty the King who protects the order of the country, but you're too soft!"
For some reason, Ryo criticized him.
"Too soft?"
"In this world, there are people called corrupt officials. Those people secretly torment ordinary citizens like us and do terrible things for their own selfish gain. They'll surely seize our property and line their own pockets."
"Well, there are certainly officials who can't be called pure and upright… but Ryo's claim is far too distorted."
"Is it?"
Ryo pursed his lips into a frown, unwilling to accept Abel's words.
But it was something else that Abel brought up.
"Hey, Ryo."
"What is it, Abel?"
"Was the Suje Kingdom really this far north?"
"Huh?"
"We were taken to the autonomous city of Kwebasa by a Suje warship, remember?"
"Yes, yes. It was the Suje Navy's ship, the Lone Dark."
"The northernmost point of the Suje Kingdom was the city of Banra, wasn't it?"
"That's right, I remember now! We stopped there aboard the Lone Dark, didn't we? That was where the swarm of crabs came!"
The crab soup was delicious…
"We departed from the city of Banra… and then, well, we took a huge detour east at one point, and there was even the ghost ship, but it still took us quite a while to get to Kwebasa, didn't it?"
"Maybe about two weeks?"
Ryo counted on his fingers.
But this time it had only taken a few hours…
"Hoi An and Kwebasa aren't supposed to be that far apart, so even if we assume the same scale… this is only a few hours from the southern part of the continent."
"It's too close. That's strange."
But the commander had said he was from the northern navy of the Suje Kingdom.
Ryo and Abel tilted their heads and thought about it in various ways, but no good answer came to them.
After listening to his subordinates for a while, the commander turned toward the two of them and spoke.
"I would like to hear your purpose."
At Commander Mebeli's question, Ryo and Abel looked at each other.
Ryo because he did not know how to answer.
Abel because he was about to answer himself.
"We were trying to return to Darwei from the Atinjo Grand Duchy when we were attacked by Krakens. We escaped desperately, but we didn't know where we were going, so we kept running and ended up here. It seems we went in the exact opposite direction from the north we had intended, and came south instead."
Abel answered very honestly.
The content was, in no small part, unbelievable.
The soldiers were discussing it among themselves.
Seeing that, Abel asked Commander Mebeli:
"We also have a question. We have visited the Suje Kingdom before. We've been to the capital, Purri, and we've also met Queen Iliaja."
When Commander Mebeli heard those words, his eyes widened.
"Indeed, we left the Suje Kingdom many months ago… but at that time, the northern end of the Suje Kingdom was the city of Banra. That should be more than ten days south of here. So where exactly are we?"
"It used to be part of Bor."
"Bor? That sounds vaguely familiar…"
At Abel's question, Commander Mebeli answered, and Ryo tilted his head.
After a while, he remembered.
"The large archipelago-type vessel!"
"What is that?"
"You know, the one that was being attacked by ghost ship Ruri."
"Ah, the country that ship belonged to."
Ryo's words reminded Abel, too.
The Lone Dark that the two of them were on had rescued a ship attacked by a ghost ship.
That ship belonged to a country called Bor.
"So Bor was an archipelago nation?"
Perhaps Commander Mebeli had heard that line, because he nodded.
Then he continued with shocking words.
"Bor has fallen."
-x-X-x-
Chapter 0682 Confinement
-x-X-x-
"Don't tell me… the Suje Kingdom destroyed Bor?"
If Bor had been destroyed and the island claimed to be part of the Suje Kingdom, it would be natural for Abel to think that.
"No, that is not the case."
However, Commander Mebeli shook his head.
"Abel, it was destroyed by a ghost ship. The two from Ruri must surely have…"
"Isn't that a bit much?"
"I do not want to think so either, but… at that time, they failed to collect the skeletons, so they must have attacked the island directly."
"Did they?"
"Let us negotiate directly with the two from Ruri and have them release the people of Bor."
With a determined expression, Ryo said that.
After hearing the two's conversation, Commander Mebeli shook his head again.
"Bor was sunk overnight when the volcano erupted."
"So it was the Atlantis route after all."
"A natural disaster, then. There is nothing humans can do about that."
Ryo and Abel were both shocked.
"The capital was destroyed, and all the centers of the royal family, the government, and the economy were lost. And so on our island… it is called Lulu Island, but on Lulu Island, a vote was held among all residents, and it was decided that we would come under the umbrella of the Suje Kingdom."
"So that is why you are the Northern Suje Kingdom Navy."
At Commander Mebeli's explanation, Abel nodded.
But then someone tugged at Abel's sleeve from the side.
Naturally, it was Ryo.
"Hey, Abel."
In an even quieter voice than before, he leaned close to Abel's ear and spoke.
"This is strange."
"Hmm?"
"Normally, even if the capital were destroyed, no one would decide to come under some other country's umbrella."
"Is that so?"
"Wouldn't they try to restore the country themselves?"
"Ah… now that you mention it, that may be true."
With Ryo's words, Abel also realized it might be unnatural.
Certainly, rather than immediately coming under the umbrella of another country, they might think first of restoring their own nation…
And the Suje Kingdom should be quite far from here.
If anything, this island was probably closer to the southern part of the continent than to the archipelago region where the Suje Kingdom lay.
Would such an island want to come under the umbrella of the very distant Suje Kingdom?
"Please do not take offense at this question… but did the people of Lulu island not think of restoring the destroyed Bor?"
Abel decided to ask directly.
Ryo, who was listening from behind, widened his eyes greatly and seemed with his whole face to say, "What kind of question is that!" …or so it seemed, but Abel ignored him.
"No, they did not."
Commander Mebeli stated it clearly.
"Originally, Lulu Island had been occupied by Bor thirty years ago."
"Ah…"
If they had been occupied, then they would hardly have had good feelings toward Bor.
"There were some who wanted to become independent again and stand on their own. But they feared being occupied again by a country like Bor. The people of Lulu Island are by no means weak, but… the war with Bor, and the occupation afterward, are not fond memories."
"I see."
"There were also people who wanted to come under some country on the continent, but… the Atinjo Grand Duchy, a great power in the southern part of the continent, is said to have lost its duke and fallen into internal conflict."
"Yeah…"
Both Abel and Ryo involuntarily spoke at the same time.
The two had, in fact, been there just recently.
"The Ghegish-Lu Federation, which is under the rule of the Grand Duchy, has also become unstable again because of it. So the people of Lulu decided that they wanted to come under the Suje Kingdom, a powerful nation in the archipelago region that has a new queen on the throne and is also rapidly growing stronger."
"I see."
At Commander Mebeli's explanation, Abel nodded.
Behind Abel, Ryo was nodding repeatedly.
He had his arms folded and was muttering grandly to himself things like, "The people of Lulu have a good eye", and "With Queen Iliaja, there is no mistake".
Abel ignored him and continued.
"I understand various things now. Thank you."
However, Commander Mebeli began to think deeply.
"What is it?"
"I do not know."
Ryo and Abel watched him quietly in a low voice.
After pondering for a while, Commander Mebeli opened his mouth with a grim expression.
"As I said earlier, I cannot tell whether you two are truly something called adventurers. Even if you are adventurers, I cannot rule out the possibility that you are obstructers."
"Obstructers?"
Abel tilted his head.
"The truth is, tomorrow an envoy from the Suje Kingdom proper will arrive. He will bring Her Majesty's royal charter… the official document recognizing Lulu Island as formal territory of the Suje Kingdom."
"Ohhh."
"The ceremony will be held then, but… the fact that the two of you arrived here the day before is far too convenient."
"I see. You think we may be obstructers trying to interfere with it, huh. I understand what you mean."
Abel shrugged. Ryo nodded as well.
If the two were in the commander's position, they would doubt them too.
"For that reason, I am sorry, but I would like to detain you for a while."
"That is fine."
"Eh…"
At Commander Mebeli's request, Abel nodded without changing his expression, and the other soldiers all looked startled.
"It is only until tomorrow, until the handover of that charter is finished, correct? That much is no problem."
"I appreciate it."
At Abel's words, Commander Mebeli nodded.
And so Ryo and Abel ended up being detained.
Neil Andersen-Mod, traveling while still surfaced, was surrounded by three Northern Suje Kingdom Navy ships.
Commander Mebeli had said they would be detained, but he was not certain the two were obstructers.
Far from it, he probably thought, as they had said, that they had been chased by the Kraken.
For that reason, the escort around them while traveling was slack.
"Such a loose watch over the vicious swordsman Abel is far too dangerous."
"I see. What would Ryo do?"
"First, freezing Abel is essential. Also, that magic sword and Feiwan must be kept separated. If anything were to happen, lowering Abel's combat strength is the basic procedure."
"…I see."
Ryo explained while nodding, and Abel replied with a shrug.
"Anyway, something like that, I suppose."
"What, that alone is enough?"
"Hm?"
"Isn't that the kind of thing that would bring about a painful counterattack?"
"For example?"
Ryo asked with a suspicious expression.
"If you can thaw me out, I will feed you cake every day."
"What did you just say!"
"Ryo would thaw me out, would you not?"
"M-Maybe there is a chance…"
"There I would hold a dagger to Andalusia."
"That is cowardly!"
"That's rich, coming from you, Ryo."
Ryo protested, and Abel laughed.
While exchanging such trivial conversation, Neil Andersen-Mod entered the port of Lulu Island.
"Your two horses, Andalusia and Feiwan, will be taken care of responsibly by the Northern Navy in the stable. You may come see them morning and evening, accompanied by navy soldiers."
Commander Mebeli told Ryo and Abel.
After leaving their beloved horses in the stable, the two were guided to the third floor of an adjacent fine stone building.
"This is a fairly large officers' room. We would like you to stay in this room. Dinner tonight and breakfast tomorrow morning will be brought to the room. There are navy soldiers outside the door, so if you need anything, please do not hesitate to say so. I hope you will not cause any trouble."
"Understood, we'll try not to."
"Please take good care of Andalusia and Feiwan."
Abel nodded at Commander Mebeli's explanation, and Ryo asked him to look after their beloved horses.
And so the two were confined to the officers' room.
"I expected to be locked up in some scary place, like a dungeon or something."
"The window opens normally, too."
Ryo was relieved that the room was much more decent than he had imagined, and Abel was surprised that, since they were on the third floor, of course, there were no iron bars on the window and it could open normally.
"It seems the Suje Kingdom envoy will arrive tomorrow morning, so we just have to endure until then."
"We can see the harbor from the window, so maybe we can see that envoy too."
That night, Ryo and Abel ate the meal delivered to them without any particular complaint, naturally finished it all, and slept peacefully.
And then the next day, at ten in the morning, the ship carrying the Suje Kingdom's envoy came into view.
-x-X-x-
Chapter 0683 Charter
-x-X-x-
"The island people are gathering in huge numbers at the port."
"Yeah, there are quite a lot."
"Everyone looks happy."
"Would there be anyone who isn't happy?"
"Abel is always so cynical like that! Couldn't you be a little more honest? For the people of the island, the Suje Kingdom is hope!"
For some reason, Ryo spoke with unusual passion.
"If this place is incorporated into the Suje Kingdom, my books will spread to this island too."
"Come to think of it, there was a book like that…"
Ryo looked pleased; Abel had completely forgotten about it.
Ryo's bag, which contained all kinds of books, had been frozen in opaque ice along with the cash and left with Andalusia and Feiwan.
It was very heavy, and since Andalusia and Feiwan were there, it should not be stolen.
From beyond the horizon, the ship of the Suje Kingdom, which had been gradually approaching, was finally about to enter port.
"What a shame, Abel."
"What is?"
"If only we'd been a little earlier, you were probably thinking this place could have been made an enclave of the Knightley Kingdom, a stepping stone toward world conquest, right?"
"As if I would think that."
His Majesty the King flatly denied the premier duke's words.
A policy of expanding control and exercising power over the territories of other peoples or other countries is called imperialism…
"Hmm?"
"What is it?"
Ryo tilted his head and spoke out, and Abel caught the remark.
"No, it's just, that ship from the Suje Kingdom… could it be the Lone Dark?"
"Is it? There were plenty of similar ships, weren't there?"
Abel tilted his head at Ryo's words.
Of course, Ryo himself wasn't certain, so he did not continue speaking…
The ship entered port, and a man came down from it.
His cloak fluttered dramatically, truly imposing.
He was about 180 centimeters tall.
In his mid-thirties, with hair closer to brown than black, brown skin, and pale blue eyes that stood out strikingly against that complexion.
He had a refined face, but there was a faint sword scar on his right cheek…
"That is…"
"No matter how you look at it, that's Lord Protector Kabui Somar."
Neither Ryo nor Abel would mistake him.
"He's bringing the charter to officially incorporate the island into the nation, after all. There's no one more fitting than Kabui Somar."
Abel nodded.
"He used to come to Darwei and other places, didn't he? After that, Her Majesty came to the autonomous city of Kwebasa. The government core of the Suje Kingdom really is quite nimble."
"Nimble? I do not really understand, but diplomacy is basically about visiting the other country, is it not? That is how you show them, 'We trust you'."
"Well, yes, but… it's scary if you're attacked while traveling or something."
"You'd be protected by sufficient escort, wouldn't you?"
Ryo's concern was true, and Abel's thinking was true as well.
They both understood that.
And both of them remembered.
What kind of person Kabui Somar was.
"He came to the Komakyuta Principality himself just to meet Princess Iliaja."
"That's right, all by himself."
Ryo and Abel both knew that Kabui Somar was a bold man.
"Bold people are cool and popular, but Abel, please keep it moderate."
"Hm? Why?"
"Because Abel will go beyond bold and probably charge straight ahead recklessly."
"…I really can't accept hearing that from Ryo."
"I am a rear-line magician whose motto is safety and security. I do not want to be lumped together with a sword-swinging, charge-first swordsman."
"We really should rethink the definition of magician, should we not? I think someone who not only uses magic, but also swings a sword around and charges in, is a different kind of being."
Ryo declared with his chest puffed out, and Abel objected.
While the two were having that conversation by the window, Kabui Somar met their eyes.
Ryo reflexively waved.
Perhaps because of that, Kabui Somar's eyes widened.
He must have recognized them as Ryo and Abel.
"He looked surprised that we were here."
"'Where Abel goes, trouble follows'… that kind of saying must have come to mind."
"Do not make up random sayings."
Ryo and Abel also turned their eyes to the person walking behind Kabui Somar.
"Captain Gorick… right?"
"In that case, as Ryo said, that ship really is the Lone Dark."
"Heh heh heh, I told you so, didn't I?"
A slightly smug Ryo nodded again and again.
"The Lone Dark is also a ship with deep ties to us, isn't it?"
"We were taken care of in all sorts of ways."
The two remembered their journey through the eastern countries.
"I recognize Lulu Island as the Northern Autonomous Province of the Suje Kingdom."
In the island's central square, Lord Protector Kabui Somar read out the charter and handed it to Aminga, the autonomous representative elected by the islanders.
With that, Lulu Island was formally incorporated into the Suje Kingdom.
At that moment, voices rose all over the square.
"Woo!"
"Hooray!"
And so on, but in the end, they all converged into a single phrase.
"Long live Her Majesty the Queen!"
The Suje Kingdom's new queen was apparently wonderful… the islanders had heard that many times from people who visited Lulu Island.
The islanders had also visited the Suje Kingdom for work, and each time they had been astonished by the kingdom's development.
If only we could…
And then came the destruction of Bor Main Island.
The ten thousand islanders of Lulu stood at a crossroads.
Suddenly, they found themselves in the position of having to decide their own future.
Of course, there were also people on Lulu Island who had migrated from Bor Main Island, and there was also a stationed unit of the Bor Navy.
Many of them lamented the destruction of Bor Island, of course, but since they had moved there because they had come to like Lulu Island, and had volunteered for the stationed unit as well, not a single one was now calling for Bor's restoration.
After a series of twists and turns, they ultimately came to wish for incorporation into the Suje Kingdom…
Today, that wish came true.
After that, the entire island held a feast.
Food and drink were distributed free of charge around the central square.
Ordinary islanders also provided things they had made at home.
"Lord Protector, thank you very much for making the journey here."
"No, Representative Aminga, for the kingdom, it is a joy to gain new companions. Her Majesty was especially delighted as well."
Aminga, the representative of Lulu Island, and Kabui Somar exchanged greetings.
After talking about matters such as the intensifying situation in the southern part of the continent, Kabui Somar asked about something that had been bothering him.
"What is that stone building over there?"
"That is the building of the Suje Kingdom Northern Navy Headquarters. Is something the matter?"
"No, it is just that a friend of mine was looking out from the corner room on the third floor of that building…"
"Ohh?"
As Kabui Somar and Aminga were speaking like that, it so happened that Commander Mebeli came over.
"Ah, Commander Mebeli, just the right person."
"Me?"
Commander Mebeli being caught by Representative Aminga was inevitable.
"His Lordship the Protector just said that there was an acquaintance of his in the corner room on the third floor of the Northern Navy Headquarters. What is that place?"
"The third-floor corner is the officers' room. But right now…"
Commander Mebeli looked at Representative Aminga and Kabui Somar, and hesitated slightly.
But he could not say nothing.
"The two I reported yesterday, the ones claiming to be adventurers adrift at sea, are inside."
"Ah… the commander said there was a possibility they were suspicious persons…"
At Commander Mebeli's words, Representative Aminga nodded.
The representative also remembered being told they were being held by the Northern Navy as a precaution.
After hearing the two's exchange, Kabui Somar gave a wry smile.
"Lord Protector?"
Aminga called out, puzzled.
"No, forgive me. I just thought it sounded like something my acquaintances would do. Could I meet them now?"
And so, Kabui Somar was guided to the Northern Navy officers' room.
And three days later, Ryo and Abel were on the deck of the Lone Dark…