‘I’ve travelled the road back to the Royal Capital twice. This is now my third time.’
‘The switch in seasons to spring wasn’t distinguishable in the North, but the further and further South we went, the more and more prominent the change became. Black soil was now revealed in the fields on both sides of the roads. The ice had melted into clear water, and there’d occasionally be people who’d be stamping over and over in the soil. I don’t know what they were doing, though. There were more people travelling on the road. I didn’t hide my identity this time. I boastfully raised the flag of the royal family with the royal family emblem on it. Everybody who passed by had to salute us. It felt really nice.’
‘This time, I felt rather at leisure, since it’s just an annual meeting I’m attending. I won’t be participating in the hunting event. This is, therefore, basically a vacation for me, except I’m a little unhappy that I couldn’t bring my wife along. But then, my Princess already made an appearance at the wedding, so she doesn’t need to make an appearance at these sorts of gatherings between me and the vassal states.’
‘Moreover, I’d feel more assured if my two pregnant wives stayed at home to look after themselves, instead.’
“Onii-sama, after we arrive, we need to provide a reception for the envoys first. This is the busiest time of the year in the Royal Capital. We will need to handle lots of matters, because the level of the relationships between each vassal state varies, in addition to them having different religious beliefs. If we do not handle our time together well, it is very likely to create harassment incidents in the Royal Capital. Hence, we must be very meticulous with where we arrange them and what they do.”
I kept silent for a while before responding, “Do we have to handle that, too? Haven’t those things already been arranged? I don’t have any experience in dealing with their business. How am I supposed to know what habits they have or what their religious beliefs are? I’ll be the one that suffers losses if I have to handle it.”
“Did I not give you the information on them already?”
I scratched my head. I dryly chuckled and replied, “I didn’t have time to look over it… I was planning to read through the information on the way there…, but it doesn’t seem as though I’ll get a chance now…”
“There is no such thing as ‘doesn’t seem as though I’ll get a chance,’ you just never made time. Onii-sama, as the main star of the meeting this time, you cannot be slipshod like this. While you have, indeed, just returned from the desert, you must prepare yourself to work hard. The work you will have to handle in the future will be more complex and tiring than the work you are dealing with now. You cannot be so slipshod.”
I looked at Freya’s stern face as she scolded me. Freya looked at my smile with a stern look and exclaimed, “Onii-sama, do not look at me with a nonchalant look as you say these things. The things I said are all things that you need to be mindful of!”
“I know, know.” I stroked Freya’s head as I said that then smiled and said, “But seeing you so worked up is cute.”
“I am not worked up at all!”
“But you’re still very cute.”
“… Hmph!”
Freya blushed and snorted before looking away. Although she acted prideful, the corner of her mouth was actually curled up into a proud smile. A moment later, she looked at me again and said, “Although I was just cut off by you, I must remind you again that this is a very important matter for you, Onii-sama. You can start looking over it now, too… However, we will deal with the details when we meet them. You should be aware that they might deliberately do something to make things difficult for you.”
“Ah? They will?”
“Of course they will. It might not be out of ill-will, but everybody always tries to tease newcomers. Further, you would not dare to fire back at them if they teased you on this occasion. Nonetheless, out of consideration for the future, they will not pull any ill-willed jokes.”
Freya nodded and then informed me, “That is when you must show them something which you will need to think of. Did you not say you wanted to be a fair and just King? In that case, you must display your dominance and fairness. In the face of troublemakers, you just need to kill any insignificant individual and then console their master. You do not have to worry about killing someone, as Her Majesty relied on that to establish herself. Dabbing yourself with some killing intent would also prove that you, too, are Her Majesty’s child.”
“I honestly don’t want to be stained with that stuff…”
“That is rich. Did you not put a bullet in a noble’s child in a fit of anger for a beauty?” Freya then tilted her head and went on, “Wow, did you know that everyone was shocked by that at the time? You may not have realised it, but after that, everybody avoided Luna when they saw her. Oh, right, there is more. The friends of the young man you put a bullet in all… disappeared after… Hmm… It shouldn’t have to do with the Valkyries, It should have been…”
Luna, who was In front of Freya, gave a nod. Then with a smile, said, “I have His Majesty to thank for that time. Nobody harassed me after that.”
I hopelessly shut my eyes.
‘That was akin to a dream now that I think about it. I never thought I’d kill someone just like that, but I was truly broken at the time, and yet someone still dared to harass people around me, so naturally, I killed him.’
‘The same applies now, of course. If somebody dares to hurt the people around me, I’ll kill him, too. I’ve long become sick of killing. I sat on a mountain of corpses while in front of me was sand drowned in blood, as well as more and more corpses. I do, however, still try to refrain from killing senselessly. Even now, I would still criticise Nier, who was the first person who killed in front of me.’
‘Killing isn’t a result, but a process.’
“Those will be our first steps then. Onii-sama, you must find an opportunity to kill someone to warn others. The remaining question is who will be killed. Onii-sama, since you were played as the mantis stalked by the oriole lurking behind, do you want to kill them as revenge? Taking advantage of my absence to use such an underhanded method to obtain the map, how shameless. Had I been there, I would have killed them, too.”
‘Freya seemed to be full of resentment for me getting tricked. It could be because she felt she didn’t give me any good suggestion and was not content. But why does it feel that Freya feels as though I can’t succeed without her…? Perhaps that’s why she was so insistent and excited about coming this time.’
“We’ll be at the Royal Capital any moment now.”
We continued travelling for a while. At sunset, we could see the tallest place in the royal capital shine. Freya looked up in its direction. Seemingly longing for it, she said, “I will soon have to say that to you, will I not, Onii-sama…? This plaque will soon be yours, right, Onii-sama…?”
I replied, “There’s still a long way to go.”
“Uhm, there is.” Freya nodded then continued with a smile. “But as long as we continue to advance, we will be able to reach it, right? We are by your side after all.”
===============
Current time with the Karnashun group.
“Did you agree?” Nara looked at the envoy greeting her and the letter in his hand. She smiled and asked, “Was this your idea, or Her Majesty’s idea?”
“It is our idea.” The envoy then raised his head to look at Nara. He explained, “Almost half of the vassal states’ lords have agreed. I, now, would like to know your stance.”
“My stance?”
Nara looked at the envoy with a smile and walked up to him. He blankly looked at Nara who had a beautiful face. He didn’t know what to say. Nara raised her hand up and ripped the letter in front of him to pieces. She then rolled it up into a ball and stuffed it down his collar. She then gracefully spun around and left him with, “That is my answer. Please be on your way now. Tarak, see our guest out.”
“Yes, My Lord.”
Glossary
*The mantis reference is a reference to the quote, “The mantis stalks the cicada, but behind them lurks the oriole.” Troy was the mantis and the lord of Socina was the oriole.
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