Genjitsushugi Yuusha no Oukoku Saikenki

It was a night in autumn when the moon was bright.

By the time Souma and his companions finished with their meeting to discuss the plan Excel had brought from Hakuya, it was already late at night.

There were soldiers from both the Kingdom of Lastania and Kingdom of Friedonia resting in the fortress courtyard.

That said, it was a tiny fortress. There was no way for it to hold the entire 50,000-strong army that the Kingdom of Friedonia had sent. Most of the soldiers and officers were camped outside the fortress.

With the strategy meeting finished, Julius went to look around the camp. At which point...

You! Youre Lord Julius?! a soldier cried.

Ohh, theres no doubt about it, its Lord Julius!

He was surrounded by several men wearing Friedonian army uniforms. There were many in the Friedonian forces who had fought against him in the past, so Julius tensed, but the men put their hands together in front of them and bowed to him.

We belonged to the forces of the principality.

We fought under you at Van.

Were so, so glad to see youre all right.

As the two began to shed manly tears of joy at their reunion, Julius relaxed.

I see... Youre Amidonian then.

Yes, one of the soldiers said tearfully. We werent strong enough to protect you then, Lord Julius...

These were likely men who had sworn loyalty to Gaius and Julius. Even in the homeland he thought he had cast away, there were people who thought about him. That alone gave Julius some solace.

Because of that, he put an arm around the shoulder of the man crying manly tears and said, Youve saved me by coming here. I thank you.

Lord Julius...

How are things? Are Souma and Roroa ruling Amidonia well?

The men nodded.

Y-Yes. I think theyve brought stability.

Theyve unified and reorganized the forces of the principality and kingdom, and were making progress with reconciliation.

He held a festival in memory of Lord Gaius the other day too.

A festival to mourn my father... I see. That does sound like something hed do.

Julius properly understood Soumas intent. It was likely a mixture of emotion and practicality.

The common people had feared Gaius, but he had been an object of love and respect for the soldiers. In holding a memorial festival, Souma would be able to reduce resistance from those people. That would be of practical benefit to Souma, who wanted to advance reconciliation between the kingdom and principality.

The emotional part was his feelings for Roroa. Even though Roroas relationship with her father had been frosty, Souma perhaps felt a sense of guilt over being the one to kill him.

Its naive of him, but...I cant see any reason to reject it.

Julius now had a person he would give his own life to protect: Princess Tia, who had remained in Lasta. If it would keep her from crying, and it would make her smile, he would do anything, no matter how inefficient. Even as he complained about doing it.

The image of Tias perfect smile flashing through his mind made Juliuss face soften a little.

Lord Julius? one of the soldiers asked.

...No, its nothing. Julius put a serious look back on and said, Though my father, Gaius, was defeated, I am told he was able to display the pride of Amidonia in his final moments. If I, as his son, were to complain about that result, it would be a stain on my fathers legacy. Therefore, I have no intention of holding a grudge against Souma or Roroa. Id like all of you to keep supporting them.

Ohh, what resolve!

Lord Julius! We swear to support Lady Roroa!

Seeing the crying soldiers act so moved, Julius could only smile wryly.

There was no lie in what he had said, but Julius didnt want to hear, Please, come back to the principality at this point, so he had meant to convey, Im getting along just fine here, so you people take care of yourselves there. He had no lingering attachment to the House of Amidonia.

I couldnt leave Tia to return home, and Ive no desire to bring her back with me, he reflected. I wouldnt want to pull her away from this country where the people love her, and where all the people she loves are.

Julius forced a smile as he put a hand on the soldiers shoulders. I know I was unable to rule my own country, but I want to do what I can to protect this country which took me in. Please, if only for now, lend me your strength.

Thats always been our intent!

We are proud to be able to fight alongside you again!

The soldiers wiped the tears from their eyes.

Julius gave them a firm nod. Then rest now. Ill need you to work your hardest tomorrow.

Y-Yes, sir! Excuse us!

The soldiers saluted and then returned to their posts.

Once he had seen those soldiers go, Julius let out a sigh in the sudden silence that had fallen around him.

Maybe I should rest too...

Julius went inside the building and stood in front of the room he was now using as his own. He was kind of exhausted today. He opened the door, thinking it was about time he rested in preparation for tomorrow.

Welcome back, Lord Julius! a voice said.

Yeah... Huh?! He gave a natural response, but then realizing there should be no one there to say that to him, Juliuss head snapped up.

There stood Tia, who was supposed to have been left behind in Lasta.

Princess Tia?! Why are you here?! he exclaimed.

In the fortress kitchen, Poncho and Serina were doing prep work for cooking.

They would need to prepare a large amount of food tomorrow. In addition to providing nutrition before the decisive battle, there would need to be a banquet for the victory afterward.

It might seem presumptuous to say that when they hadnt won yet, but if they didnt prepare for a feast, it would give the impression they expected to lose. That was why, in anticipation of victory, Poncho and his team were making the necessary preparations.

Um... Ill help, Komain offered, watching Poncho stir a large pot. When you and Serina are both working, I cant be the only one to relax.

I-Its okay. We have enough help here, yes, Poncho said with a troubled smile.

It was true, there were several other chefs in the kitchen helping with the preparations. However, they all looked very busy.

But...

Youll be going into battle tomorrow, wont you? Rest for today and get what little sleep you can.

Komain tried to belabor the point, but Serina shut her down completely. Komain had volunteered to fight in tomorrows battle, in order to fight alongside her brother Jirukoma. Given that, she needed to be fresh for tomorrow.

Poncho wiped his hands on his apron, then plopped one of them down on top of Komains head. I cant fight on the battlefield like Sir Jirukoma. Its embarrassing, but in terms of strength, Im not even a match for Madam Serina, yes.

A maid is expected to be able to manage a bare minimum level of self-defense after all, Serina said coolly, with a look on her face that said it was nothing special.

Those martial arts of Serinas, which make it feel like youre being glared at by a great wolf, are the bare minimum, are they? Komain felt like she was losing her grasp on what the job of a maid really was, but she knew Serina would just dodge the question if she brought it up, so she held her tongue.

Poncho gave Komain an awkward smile and said, B-Because of how I am, I cant help you on the battlefield. In exchange, Ill be waiting with delicious food, so make sure you come back safe, yes. Lets eat together, all three of us.

Poncho...

Ponchos kind words slipped into Komains heart.

That line sounds like its coming from a wife sending her husband off to war, Serina said with exasperation.

I-I guess it does. I need to get my act together, yes. Poncho smiled shyly.

Having been touched by the warm atmosphere between them, Komain smiled happily too. Yes, Ill definitely come back safe. Because the Ishizuka family table is where I belong.

Tomoe and Inugami were bringing supplies to the large room where injured soldiers were carried.

Looking around, most of the bandaged soldiers were sitting. The only ones lying down were those with serious injuries, and they had light magic casters next to them providing treatment.

Amid what could have easily been a dark scene, Tomoe deliberately chose to act cheerful. I brought more bandages and three-eyedine!

The medic handling the wounded saluted her. Good work, Lady Tomoe!

You medics all look so tired, Tomoe said. Are there a lot of people wounded?

No, the people here all have comparatively light wounds. Those with major external wounds are given priority for treatment with light magic, and those with the most serious cases are carried back to Lasta. These are all people wholl get better with some bandages and medicine.

Ohh, thats not gonna happen. Kuu shot her right down. This is one of those things where its a question of potential. Youre too nice to stand on the battlefield. Even if its for Bro, if youre up against a fierce beast, youre not going to be able to kill, are you? Besides, no matter how hard you train, youll never be more than a single soldier. You cant help much like that.

In the face of Kuus reasonable argument, Tomoe could say nothing. She just tugged at the hem of her outfit.

Inugami tried to say something to stand up for her, but there was nothing wrong about what Kuu was saying, so he couldnt find the words to.

Not caring one bit about the heavy atmosphere, Kuu continued. Besides, you have a more special power anyway, dont you? The ability to talk to animals, was it? I hear you used that power of yours to get more rhinosaurus trains going.

Huh? Oh, yeah...

If you ask me, thats a whole lot more useful than being able to fight. In my country, we use numoths to get around in winter, but we have a hard time getting more of them, you know. If we had your ability, I feel like we could set things up for them to breed more easily... Kuu trailed off, getting a thoughtful look on his face. Hm? Maybe we ought to borrow your power...have you talk to the numoths for us...

Um, pardon me, but Little Sister is the adopted daughter of the former king and queen, and is therefore royalty, Inugami said stiffly. Even with a bodyguard, sending Lady Tomoe to the republic alone is simply not an option...

Kuu just waved his hand. Thatll be fine. No need for her to leave the country. Well arrange the numoth, and if she can come to a town or city near the border, they can talk there.

Even for that, youd need His Majestys permission.

Bro wanted some numoths. I turned down his request because we need them for defense, but if sharing information between the kingdom and republic will make it easier to breed them, I dont mind letting him have a few. The south of the kingdom is cold too, so he should be able to raise them. Well...Ill need my old mans permission too, so itll take a while, Im sure, but Ill have to try talking to Bro about it later.

Kuu grinned at Tomoe.

When the time comes, little girl, Ill be counting on you. Ookyakya!

...Okay! Ill do my best! Tome said, clenching her hands into fists.

She must have been happy to know there was something she could do.

Inugami and Leporina looked on with smiles.

Meanwhile, around that same time, Ludwin, the commander-in-chief of the reinforcements from the Kingdom of Friedonia, and Kaede, his staff officer, were performing their final checks. In tomorrows operation, Ludwin would be in the main camp, while Kaede would take command from close to the front line.

I prefer commanding on the front line, though, Ludwin sighed.

We cant have the commander-in-chief saying that, Kaede told him. Please, stay put this time.

Ahaha... All right.

Once their final checks were finished, the two left the war room.

Ill be counting on you tomorrow, then, Ludwin said.

Yes. May fortune favor you in battle, Sir Ludwin.