Chapter 105 - 9-6
The Western Army, led by the kingdom's princess and composed entirely of raw recruits, became a moving calamity.
The events in the city of Bolsa became rumors that swept across the entire west.
—She seduces children and carries them away.
People whispered to one another in hushed tones.
Princess Lucy is the pathogen of a plague that infects the youth, especially the boys.
She marches into towns and villages with an arrogant and insolent expression, scattering unnecessary thoughts. The voice of a charming woman permeates the towns and villages with a powerful volume. The huskiness and resonance of that voice vibrate against the strings of people's hearts. Lucy is a performer who uses people's emotions as her instrument.
—Just like a witch.
This was written with utter contempt by the bishop of a city called Ulham. The bishop scribbled a condemnation that seemed to set the paper ablaze and sent it to the Bishop of Siddim in Delroy.
'Using fraudulent rhetoric, she hypnotizes the people, painting fantasies with empty words and enchanting the youth by flaunting the lines of her body. The way the kingdom's princess positions herself as the "Daughter of Siddim" from folk legends is akin to that of a false prophet.'
The letter ended with a proposal for her immediate excommunication.
—She is the Saint who will save the nation.
There was also this evaluation. Moreover, it was the evaluation of the bishop of the holy city, Karnain. The Karnain bishop also sent a letter to the Bishop of Siddim.
'The majority of Her Highness Luchentin's words are unrelated to faith. The princess is undoubtedly speaking from the position of the Alish royal family, stirring the patriotism of the people. Her attitude of neglecting the Church could be a succinct example of the manifestation of the problem we call the "Siddim Problem." However, the princess has the right to appeal from her own position, and the people are rising up in strong response to her words. It is as if she is performing miracles.'
The Karnain bishop concluded that this might be the last chance to save Siddim.
—This is evil.
If the recipient of the letters, Bishop Kabel Kofie of Siddim, were to judge Princess Lucy by good and evil, that would be the result. But it is a pure evil. Because it is pure, one might call it justice. Rather than passionate, it should be called fanatical.
He never imagined that Her Highness Luchentin would grow into such a wicked person. Though she had a quality that fascinated people since she was young.
It was a good thing he had followed Yugis's advice and removed Sister Lucy from the Church's registry.
Even if called evil, it was not a petty evil that sacrificed others to fulfill her own desires.
She was likely focusing the aim of her will solely on repelling the Kosa army. In the fact that she might deny everything else, the bishop saw an evil like a natural disaster.
Then again, whether it was evil or good, it didn't matter to Bishop Kofie.
Bishop Kofie was deeply moved by the sheer amusement of the princess. He wondered if there could be anything more interesting than this. He couldn't help but feel a strong attachment to this situation. It was also amusing to see people being played so perfectly by a princess who was still at an age to be called a girl, and who moreover dressed as a man.
—If I were to use this as a pawn.
Bishop Kofie thought. He would have to become a superior kind of evil.
—The abolition of the Alish royal family.
This had been the thousand-year cherished desire of the Roma Church. This was because only the royal family of Siddim threatened the highest positions of the Roma Church. Bishop Kofie had also been scurrying about to crush the Alish family.
However, the bishop realized the absurdity of that goal.
—I quit.
As if saying that, the bishop had discarded the goal of abolishing the Alish royal family. He had invited this war himself. Bloodshed, sorrow, mountains of war dead. All of it was what Bishop Kofie had planned. Before being a clergyman, as a human being, there was no way he could simply abandon it halfway.
And yet, the bishop quit.
He made the decision not to follow the intentions of His Eminence, Archbishop Kyle VIII.
The bishop believed this betrayal was a good thing. This irresponsibility and lack of conviction were unavoidable characteristics of goodness. The form of goodness is limp and messy. The bishop knew well that when something good gains a face, a skeleton, and becomes rigid, it begins to hurt people.
In the first place, is it not the Church that creates the standards of good and evil?
If Bishop Kofie says he is not evil, then he is certainly not evil.
For example, hypothetically.
What if every human being in this world became a devout believer in the Roma Church? If everyone thought the same things and spoke the same things, the bishop would despair and become a hermit. The "amusement of humanity" would vanish from this world.
Humans must not be the same. Humans are tasteless unless they are more eccentric, fragile, and foolish. The mere fact that each clumsy and greedy individual engages in interactions that don't mesh with others is already interesting. The bishop was a man who loved human stupidity above all else. If everyone became pure and stainless, that would be the death of the world.
In the sense of dyeing values in a single color, the bishop was also not impressed by the Kosa people's attempt at world conquest. If the Kosa people achieved world conquest, people would come to obey the same laws. Law must be the condensation of a people's history and philosophy, and originally, the imposition of another country's law should not be permitted.
—If all people obey the same law, war will cease.
If the Kosa people thought that way and executed it, the world would likely become boring, and people would undoubtedly commit suicide. Armies would vanish, and in their place, a power that could be called the police, which oppresses its own citizens, would rise. To maintain order, the police power would eventually have to censor even the thoughts of the people.
People would fear that power, walk in step with everyone, share the value that boredom is justice, and bind themselves and the world. There would be tightness there, but no amusement. Or even if they could adapt to that boredom, would there be any development beyond that?
—People have the right to be foolish.
If he put it in beautiful words, the bishop could have said so.
To protect human foolishness, the bishop defies the intentions of the Church. He betrays His Eminence, Archbishop Kyle VIII. No matter what tragedies, dramas, or bloodshed that foolishness may invite in the future.
The survival of the Alish royal family is now Bishop Kofie's hope. There should be at least one authority in the world greater than the Roma Church.
Indeed, without the Alish family, could the oddity that Princess Lucy is stirring up have occurred? This delight—a beautiful princess becoming a clown's spectacle and bewitching the people—is possible precisely because it is the Alish family. The west of Siddim is now dancing for Bishop Kofie.
Furthermore, if this insolent and indecisive priest were permitted to put into words the very bottom of his heart,
—The survival of the Alish family aligns with the divine will.
He would have gone that far in denying the Church's policy. The bishop is a believer who can find light only within the absurdity of people. He is a heretical saint who kneels before human stupidity. People are precious because they are fools. The Tenshu dwells within human stupidity. To forgive and love human foolishness is the true essence of the Church.
This philosophy, which he cannot tell others, is the final settlement of Kabel Kofie's life.
It was the state of mind he reached after a long period of faith.
Even His Eminence, Archbishop Kyle VIII of Kindary, the headquarters of the Roma Church, cannot strip Bishop Kofie of this faith. Of course, His Eminence could expel Kofie from the Church and strip him of everything. If he defied His Eminence, that would surely happen.
—If that happens, it will be interesting.
The one who drew the Kosa people into this country was not Urgil Necrat. The bishop has the pride of believing it was himself. To climb as high as the Bishop of Siddim and then fall to the level of an apostate monk—that would be true karma. If he were to die in a ditch somewhere, it would be a death fitting for the cause of this great turmoil.
The bishop, who loves the stupidity and meanness of others so much he cannot stand it, has reached a state where he can enjoy and love his own misery.
For that reason, Kabel Kofie did not judge Princess Lucy's actions by right or wrong. Only whether she could win. Only whether she could save Siddim was important. When evaluating Princess Lucy's actions from that perspective, Bishop Kofie couldn't help but tilt his head.
—Is this going to be okay?
If Princess Lucy is a witch, then Yugis Necrat is something like the demon manipulating her. Or perhaps Yugis is the one being dragged along by the princess.
Such things didn't matter.
The question was, what does he intend to do by gathering greenhorns who have held nothing but farming tools?
Yugis Necrat was struggling with the recruits who were arriving one after another.
In the original plan, he had considered having them deployed after about a week of training. However, it took a week just to get to the start of that training. Just feeding the recruits was a struggle. The places prepared for them to sleep were filled up in an instant. Commotions such as fights broke out here and there.
Even so, Yugis was excited. It was a happy miscalculation that the numbers seemed likely to be filled sooner than expected. Moreover, the recruits were all high in morale. They had spirit. Their feelings for the kingdom were vividly conveyed.
—Your Highness.
Yugis felt like praying. He didn't know if it was to the Tenshu or to the ancestral snake god Meki. If he had to say, he wanted to pray to the people. He wanted to pray to the kingdom called Siddim. He wanted to pray to the kingdom's princess.
He even thought that with this, he had already won half the battle.
Discussing with Laicanel and Curier day after day, Yugis vigorously resolved the problems.
Fortunately, there was already a goal for supplies. Laicanel was meticulously constructing supply lines. Yugis was secretly impressed. Laicanel Thora was no fool. He was a talented man who handled everything better than the average person.
Especially regarding his mental agility,
—He is certainly a man capable of serving as a general,
Yugis thought.
About half of the recruits from Bolsa city brought by Dash were assigned to logistics support.
Since dormitories for the recruits could not be prepared, he had them pitch tents on an undeveloped wasteland that he had intended to use as a training ground.
Ness di Syllabus also conducted training along with Godly Curier.
"Is he okay?"
Laicanel asked Yugis, lowering one eyebrow.
"What is?"
"Ness."
To Yugis, it looked as though Ness's mental state had recovered considerably. Occasionally, he would say incoherent things. Conversely, he would sometimes utter extremely intellectual words. Certainly, it would be difficult to say he was stable.
"I don't know, but anyway, let's have him do it."
If his flaws showed during training, he might not be able to stand on the battlefield. The next enemy should be different from the group that had surrounded Euryas.
It wasn't even a matter of flaws showing.
On the first day of training, the recruits, with their sparse equipment, gathered before Ness, carrying the long spears they had been issued.
Ness was on horseback. He did nothing but glare down at the recruits, not speaking a single word. With a terrifying face like a demon, he directed silent anger at each person. That period of time was unnervingly long.
Just as Yugis, watching from nearby, thought he should finally do something, one of the recruits spoke.
"Fall in!"
The youths clumsily began to form rows and columns in a square shape, like a phalanx.
That didn't mean Ness's anger had vanished. He continued to glare at the soldiers with a face of rage.
Poor things, the youths began to frantically make small adjustments to the slight misalignments of the rows and columns.
Ness finally narrowed his eyes and looked over the soldiers. He still didn't speak.
"I've got it!" the youth who first spoke said. "Let's form eight blocks of twenty-five people, in five rows and five columns."
This youth seemed to be able to do calculations as well.
—I see, he's captain material.
Yugis was impressed, thinking he had apparently found personnel with leadership skills. Then again, he didn't know what Ness intended.
The youths, with some struggle, managed to create two rows of four phalanxes of twenty-five people each.
Ness finally moved his horse and began to circle the perimeter of the phalanx. His face was still angry. It was terrifying beyond measure. The recruits must have been breaking into a cold sweat.
In the end, that day finished with only the training of falling in.
The recruits under Curier's charge apparently progressed efficiently, reaching the stage of spear stances.
The group under Count Darcy, who was also assisting with recruit training, had a similar progression. This Count Darcy was a reliable man in his thirties who had followed them from the start solely out of gratitude toward the Thora family.
Yugis left the settlement for about two days for enemy reconnaissance. When he returned, the recruits had become completely attached to Ness. It wasn't that they were overly familiar. The soldiers had acquired the habit of straightening their backs to greet and see off Ness whenever he entered their field of vision.
It seemed they had even bestowed upon him the nickname of the Golden General.
Ness's best quality was, above all, his appearance. He was tall with broad shoulders. On top of that, he had a youthful face full of confidence and platinum hair. While there is no battlefield where victory or defeat is decided by looks, it is not a bad thing to have a man who looks reliable at the top.
—A man like that.
In the first battle, it might be necessary to have him lead the vanguard.
Yugis thought with chilled rationality.
He would have him charge into the enemy lines at the front. Normally, a general stays in the rear to command. Becoming the vanguard oneself happens only in extreme emergencies, or when there is a need to guide allies. The chaos of the battlefield is darkness to the soldiers. The presence of a general is light. Especially inexperienced soldiers rely on that light and gather toward it.
They would have no choice but to aim for their general recklessly while destroying the enemy.
It was a cruel story.
To make youths who knew almost nothing charge into a crowd of armed men filled with murderous intent. Moreover, under a man like Yugis, who had no significant experience.
Yugis tried not to think about it.
—If we win, it will be forgiven.
He told himself that, taking it lightly. If he worried about anything else, that would be a betrayal of the people.
If there was one thing that bothered him, it was Princess Lucy. Yugis didn't want the princess to get close to his own cruelty. Yugis wanted to monopolize the filth of war and fall into hell. She was a princess of the royal family. He wanted to keep Lucy away from all bad reputations. He wanted to offer only the fruits of war to the princess, his liege.
Of course, there was the aspect that she was a woman he had fallen for.
But more than that, as a Siddim person, Yugis had committed the forbidden act of touching the authority of the Alish family. To return it defiled was unthinkable. He should have finished the job perfectly, erased his own filthy fingerprints, and returned the princess to the kingdom.
Anyway, as long as they won, it was fine.
That was Yugis's fundamental belief. However, he hoped that Princess Lucy Alish alone would remain translucent.
A flow began to emerge in the recruit training. Ness taught falling in and formations, Curier taught the spear, and Count Darcy taught commands and signals.
That Count Darcy suddenly said he should return to Darcy.
Yugis jumped in surprise. Accompanied by Laicanel, he attempted to persuade him to stay.
Hearing the circumstances in the tent the Count used, it seemed that among the newly sent recruits, there were many from Darcy.
"It is my land, and they are my people," Count Darcy said. "To do that without permission, just what were you thinking..."
The Count's lips trembled with anger.
"The princess simply recruited volunteers..." Yugis began to say.
"Then what are we? Are you saying that we, who cooperate with the Thora family even beyond the period of military service obligation, are not enough?"
"The youths of your territory responded to the call for recruits," Laicanel said, capable of a high-handed manner of speaking only because he was of the Thora family, the powerhouse of the west. "What is the problem with that? Rather, if Darcy ignores the request of the princess, we who are the generals, it will only make your position more precarious."
"That is precisely why I say there is no longer any meaning in our lending our strength. Just how much of a burden does the Western Army demand of Darcy?"
"Are not volunteers people who cooperate in war without payment based on their own justice?"
"Now, now," Yugis stepped in as the peacemaker. "The fact that Count Darcy is here naturally has the aspect of protecting the youths of his domain, and we understand that. However, in the current situation, we still do not have the military strength to overwhelm the enemy."
—An emergency.
Yugis aimed to push through with that logic.
"Due to the emergency, could you not prioritize the defense of the fatherland over the protection of your domain for now? Your strength is absolutely necessary."
Count Darcy remained displeased, but softened slightly. "Of course, I too understand the circumstances."
"In that case, the volunteers from Darcy will be assigned to rear support and will not be sent to the front lines. How about that?"
"Hmm." The Count finally nodded. "Naturally, that is how it should be."
After finishing the discussion and leaving the tent, Laicanel spoke.
"Yugis, was that really okay?"
"It couldn't be helped."
Actually, it wasn't okay. Laicanel was right.
Yugis had essentially defiled the pure motivation of the volunteers by using it as a bargaining chip.
"But for now, it couldn't be helped. No matter how you look at it, we lack officers. Count Darcy's knowledge will be precious in this army."
When fighting the enemy Kosa army, what could become a resource for Siddim? Yugis thought it was human resources. Countless Siddim people who held the same faith, shared the same history, and spoke the same language. Siddim people were not exceptionally outstanding. However, Yugis hoped that if one could somehow show people's abilities in numbers and calculate an average, that value would be high.
A Siddim person from the east speaks, and a Siddim person from the west understands it exactly as it is. This is surprisingly rare. In regions where a simple language like Enagamo is widespread, there are linguistic ruptures even within the same country.
In that regard, in Siddim, the problem of communication had already been solved. If the language is understood, training can be done. The transmission of operations is easy. Words of encouragement are understood. Morale can rise with a single word. An army can be moved by language.
Furthermore, the people of Siddim possessed one thing different from the people of other countries. That was the Alish family, and the history of this country guaranteed by the Alish family.
There are many countries that have a royal family. There are likely royal families that receive deep affection. But whether a relationship like that of the Alish royal family and the Siddim people exists elsewhere is doubtful. For Siddim people, the king and the royal family have a closeness like distant blood relatives. It's not necessarily only in a good sense; some might feel a curse-like, fateful annoyance, similar to the loathsomeness felt toward family.
But there is no Siddim person who can ignore the royal family.
In that point, the people of this country are connected as one.
When told it is for the sake of the royal family, when there is no lie in those words, Siddim people cannot resist. Because it is justice. Because it is a legitimacy that has meaning only in this country. Siddim has justice. That is where it differs from other countries where justice varies by individual values. Siddim people already possess a common justice they can unite around, sharing history and recognition.
Yugis wanted to utilize those Siddim people—people who use the same language and unite under the same justice.
In Siddim, there are more healthy and powerful youths than can be used, even if they are not participating in the war. This is natural. Not all youths go to war. Of the population of appropriate age to participate in war, Sedias Thora had likely moved fewer than one in ten. The youths who do not go to the battlefield are protected by nobles in various regions and guarded by local powers. The nobles all did not want to consume the youths in war. They wanted to use them as financial assets to work for decades and leave behind the next generation.
Yugis wanted to seize those assets and use them in war. Rather, he saw that unless he did so, they could not win against the Kosa army. No matter how you look at it, the other side's skill in war was superior. They would challenge and fail. Unless they formulated a plan while examining those failures, the chance of victory would not become visible. Yugis had already factored in the consumption of a vast number of human lives.
—I am wicked.
There were, of course, moments when a shiver ran through him thinking that. He had to shake off that fear. To win. Telling himself that it's a story that ends as long as they win.
However, others would not understand. Who would provide personnel for such a plan? Yugis's thoughts should have originally ended here as a daydream.
But there was one woman who could realize Yugis's daydream. If Princess Lucy appealed, people's hearts would be moved. Yugis thought so shrewdly.
As long as the royal family appeals, people will cooperate in the war.
Moreover, the appeal of the Alish family easily crosses the administrative divisions of nobles divided into counts and marquises. With the authority of the royal family, Princess Lucy can go anywhere in Siddim. With the status of the royal family, she can make any claim she likes anywhere. As a result, he should be able to seize the blood-filled youths.
Whether such rights are actually recognized for the royal family is questionable. All the land of Siddim is lent to nobles as fiefs from the royal family. The residents would be attached to that territory. He didn't know how it should be interpreted legally, but normally the royal family does not do things like interfere with the nobles' territories.
It was not unreasonable for Count Darcy to be angry that the youths of his territory were arbitrarily made volunteers.
But, however.
If the princess appeals, people will surely respond.
If the people respond, the marquises and counts will have no choice but to withdraw their dissatisfaction.
—It will work.
As long as Lucy is here.
And in fact, it worked.
This was the system. This system where fresh soldiers can be supplied while ignoring local powers. This was exactly what Yugis had aimed for. Once this system was established, he could die now; Yugis was no longer needed. Even without him, the calculation for victory would surely become visible.
Though buried in various pending issues and chaos, Yugis believed the situation was heading in the right direction.
However, upon hearing Dash's report, Yugis stood up from his seat as if struck by lightning.
"What?"
It was a large tent used for military councils. Only Yugis, Laicanel, and Dash were present. The transport officers bringing the recruits were already handled by the rear support staff. As a separate liaison, Dash had already made several round trips between the princess and the settlement where Yugis and the others were.
"Young Master, please don't be angry with me."
"I'm not angry! What city is it?"
"Uh, a place called Slay—a fancy city," Dash stammered.
"That's in the Maysil territory. Our general moves fast. The lord is the Syllabus family," Laicanel said. Yugis couldn't understand his composed attitude.
That fancy city had, of all things, rejected Princess Lucy. It was said they closed the gates and shut her out. According to Dash, while the princess was warmly welcomed, bad reputations were also following her.
Princess Lucy, the general of the Western Army, without panicking in the least, had besieged Slay city with only recruits.
Yugis sat in his chair and immediately stood up again.
"She took military action? Dash, while you were with her... what about Hume?"
"Hume-sama is delighted. He's proactively cooperating with Her Highness."
"This is bad."
—Bad, very bad.
In this situation, how could he allow a war between Siddim people to happen?
Even though the unity of the Siddim people was Yugis's, and Siddim's, greatest weapon.
"Calm down, Yugis," Laicanel said.
Without realizing it, Yugis had been pacing around the chair.
"Laika, I leave this to you. I'll go."
That's it, Yugis thought. In his haste for victory, he had probably forgotten something critical. He had left something behind. There was surely something he couldn't see.
"You called me Laika?" Laicanel was grinning.
"What?"
"Nothing. Just calm down. I'll go."
"I'll go."
"You have a mountain of things to do. Leave the matters of the west to me."
According to Laicanel, there had originally been deep-seated animosity between the Syllabus family and the Thora family.
"My father managed it well on the surface. Those people probably returned to their own positions now that circumstances have changed. Still, they aren't opponents you can't talk to. If talking is useless, we can just leave Maysil be."
"Laika, what I want to make an issue of is not the attitude of the Syllabus family," Yugis found it hard to say. "I think Her Highness's reaction is what should be an issue."
"Why? Our general is doing something that makes sense."
"But it's not like her. Her Highness must be feeling anxious. She must be hurt."
Thinking something, Laicanel burst out laughing.
"You're quite a piece of work, coming out with that at a time like this." With the laughter still on his face, Laicanel stood up. "I'll leave immediately. Rest easy, Yugis. I no longer have feelings for the princess. In the first place, it's not like I was liked by her side. Dash, let's go."
"Yes, sir."
Dash looked back at Yugis and left the tent with Laicanel.
Yugis was speechless. He could do nothing but see them off.
If the Moscow territory and Darcy territory were the northern side of the west, the Maysil territory was the southern edge.
Slay city was a town along the highway continuing westward. Because Western culture flowed in directly, that flavor permeated the artifacts. Just from the spires and flags visible from the city walls, it had the taste of a "fancy city," as Dash had said.
—How pitiful.
Laicanel Thora felt sympathy for Princess Lucy, the general of the Western Army, who could not even touch that atmosphere. On the other hand, he also wanted to laugh a little. Having the gates closed in her face, the princess must have been quite taken aback.
Then again, Laicanel was equally taken aback.
He had heard it from Dash, but the person who was the kingdom's princess was truly dressed as a man.
Princess Lucy and the recruits were deployed on a small hill overlooking the city. Lucy, with her cloak fluttering, had her back to Laicanel and was planting a red flag. She was staring intently at Slay city.
"Our general," Dash called out and knelt on one knee.
Laicanel also knelt on one knee.
When he looked up, the general was looking down at Laicanel, her beautiful face stiff with seriousness.
"You have come, Laika. Dash as well."
There was a wooden building nearby that seemed to be used collectively by farmers. Lucy was likely sleeping and waking there. Laicanel headed toward the building with the princess. Thinking that rumors would spread if they were alone, he ordered Dash to accompany them.
Inside, there were familiar faces.
"This brings back memories, Kiara, Nona."
"To think you remember us," Kiara said.
"Laicanel-sama, you look well," Nona said.
Both of them seemed to be taking care of Princess Lucy's personal needs. Suddenly, a witty remark almost escaped him, and Laicanel hurriedly closed his mouth. He was remembering the days of the court. As the two ladies-in-waiting left the hut, Laicanel sat on a crude chair without needing to be prompted.
"I remembered the detached palace. I feel as though I had forgotten it for a very long time."
"I have forgotten it completely."
"When I was thrown into the earthen dungeon of Malfa city, Krisina came and told me. That you were going to a convent."
"Did you come to tell me such a story?"
Princess Lucy was looking outside from the window.
—She's agitated.
Laicanel observed calmly.
"I, you know, our general. Foolishly, I waited in the darkness, thinking that perhaps you would save me."
"Do you think I haven't noticed what you did?"
Eyes like blue ice, said to be floating in the northern sea of Gyua, looked faintly at Laicanel.
The shaking was not yet enough. Laicanel continued.
"Oh, so you know... In my pillow talk with the Queen, I once spoke of you. Wondering why I am not attracted to you."
"I, too—"
"The Queen said it was probably because you and I are too closely related by blood. Well, the things the Queen says are not to be relied upon."
With the silver reflection of her chainmail rippling, Lucy came to Laicanel's side.
"The one you are insulting is the consort of this country."
"But I have the right to say that to the Queen. I want to spit venom at other women as well. The only one I can say nothing to is you, Your Highness."
"Insolent man."
"Far from insolent, I am a prisoner who broke out of jail. Yugis is the son of a traitor and a wanted criminal. Ness is a madman, Hume is a drunkard. Curier is an old man who wants to die. What are you? A failure who couldn't become a nun?"
A slap flew to Laicanel's cheek.
A satisfying sound echoed through the room.
"Our general. We are such people. You must not carry Siddim on your shoulders alone. Everyone carries scars and wishes to carry this country together with you."
"I only did what was necessary."
"And we are trying to obtain what is necessary. Thanks to you. You must take care of yourself, Your Highness. You are the linchpin."
When Laicanel stood up from the chair, Lucy stepped back.
She turned aside and lowered her face. Her short blonde hair could not completely hide the princess's anxious expression.
Laicanel thought she might be ashamed of the slap.
"Where is Yugis?"
Still looking down, the beautiful princess spoke.
"He was flustered. He tried to admonish our general himself, but I stopped him and came here."
"...What did he say?"
"He is worried about you. From the bottom of his heart. He loves you. If I had let him come, he probably would have confessed his love to the princess."
Confusion appeared between Lucy's brows. She bit her lip, enduring something.
—Ah.
Laicanel did not miss it.
A sparkle that ran through the princess's eyes. And a dimple that appeared for a moment at the corner of her mouth. It was a face of Lucy's that he had known since childhood, but was seeing for the first time. Laicanel thought he hadn't even known that Princess Lucy could have dimples.
—Yugis! That bastard!
Anger flared like a green flame. However, the flame burned something away in an instant and vanished. To his own surprise, what remained in Laicanel's chest was a faint warmth. Not even a single sigh escaped him. Laicanel felt like giving a bitter smile to himself.
As for the princess, perhaps noticing her own expression, she shook her head violently.
"My thoughts are with those who responded to my voice." Eventually, she raised her face with a refreshed, determined expression.
"As you wish."
"You came to negotiate with the Syllabus family, correct?"
"That is correct. Indeed."
"Very well. I leave it to you."
Laicanel approached the city alone and had the gates opened. He entered negotiations with the head of the Syllabus family, but it came to nothing. The momentum was on their side. Laicanel made no compromises and returned empty-handed.
"Our general. Let us leave this city for later."
"Very well. We shall do so." Princess Lucy nodded with a smile. "Tell Yugis. That I will merge with him after bringing half of Siddim under my command."
"Yes, ma'am."
—In the end, I was nothing more than a child's errand boy.
Thinking such a thing, Laicanel galloped his horse back to the settlement.
When he reported the settlement of Slay city, Yugis relaxed his shoulders.
"I'm grateful. I don't know how to put it—you must be tired. You should rest."
Yugis spoke in a voice that sounded as if all the strength had left his entire body, not just his shoulders. He lacked energy.
"What now? What happened this time?"
"Things have become a bit bad."
"What?"
—It seems Malfa city intends to settle this war.
Laicanel froze. Peace negotiations were beginning. Peace negotiations in this situation were, in effect, the surrender of Siddim. Siddim had given up on victory.