kscans

Chapter 90 - The Beginning of the End, Five

"What is the meaning of this?!"

For some reason, the countess’s travel preparations were already complete. Augfel was surprised by the carriage pulled by a white spider monster, but he was even more surprised by the many monsters swarming around it. Then there were the people, led by the countess, who boarded the carriage one after another. It was a large carriage, but not nearly big enough to seat that many people. He had watched at least ten people get on. With no knight escort, the carriage set off alone to the west, and Augfel followed on his own horse, his head in a state of confusion.

And now, he was confronting the Little One and her party as they stopped for a lunch break at the Curious Tree Clearing.

He had explained Hyrulia’s situation. Why would they try to return to their dangerous homeland? The moment they returned, she would be captured and handed over to the king. Then she would be forced to become his brother’s bride. He absolutely could not let that happen.

Glancing at the menacingly approaching Augfel, the Little One muttered with an air of annoyance.

"To protect the adorable Hyrulia, of course. Who knows what your old man will do if we just leave him be?"

Old man? Does she mean my father, the king?

Her tone was unbecoming of a noble lady. It was a world away from her demeanor at the palace just a short while ago, and Augfel was flustered.

"Protect Hyrulia, you say?"

The girl’s words denied the worst-case scenario he had imagined. Unable to comprehend, Augfel looked at her with suspicion, and the Little One explained.

The matter was simple. All they had to do was let Castrato know that the heir to the ducal house was alive. Then Hyrulia would appoint a new administrator for the ducal house, and leave the rest to that person.

"If they know Hyrulia is alive, they can’t set up a fake, right?"

"I intend to entrust the ducal house to my father’s younger brother, the count. He is a just man. I do not think things will go poorly."

The two of them casually spoke of the worst possible outcome for the King of Castrato. If they did that, the king would be furious. He might even have Hyrulia’s head cut off on the spot.

As Augfel muttered this in a trembling voice, the Little One looked at him with mischievous eyes and pointed to herself.

"I’m here to make sure that doesn’t happen. I may be at the bottom of the royal ladder, but I still hold the title of a Frontier princess."

Hyrulia was currently the Little One’s official lady-in-waiting, making her the Little One’s property. For any reason whatsoever, to lay a hand on her would be tantamount to a declaration of war against Frontier. The groundwork was in place for the Little One to go on a rampage without consequence.

"...Let us pray the King of Castrato is not a fool. If Chihiro-sama so desired, Castrato would be swallowed by monsters."

With a sharp glint in his eyes, Dorfen’s lips twisted into a cruel smile. Following his lead, the escort knights also showed ferocious grins.

A strange atmosphere descended, and a chill ran down Augfel’s spine.

It was the unique killing intent that only non-humans possessed. The way they looked at him, as if he were an insect, was genuine. It wasn’t the clumsy intent born of arrogance and pride like his father’s. It was the pure, undistorted killing intent possessed only by those who have truly waded through bloody battlefields. Having clashed with Castrato countless times since the Little One’s abduction over a decade ago, they no longer saw that country as anything but an enemy nation. There was no mercy to be given, no compassion to be had. If anything, they wanted to crush them completely.

"..........When I think of the battle from a decade ago, it is infuriating beyond measure. I suppose you would not know of it."

For Dorfen, who had allowed the Little One to be kidnapped due to his own failure, that battle was as clear in his memory as if it had happened yesterday. It was a bloody, desperate battle, rare in Arcadia. That was to be expected, since a force of about two thousand knights had fought an army of nearly twenty thousand. Though they had the protection of the frogs, their greatest asset, magic, was sealed, and the knights became covered in blood, even suffering amputations. Healing magic had erased all traces of their wounds, but how could they ever forget a battle that would have left them with horrific scars otherwise?

Even the younger knights who hadn’t been there knew of it. It was a battle still spoken of in vivid detail.

"I have heard of it... but wasn’t that battle started because Frontier attacked?"

Augfel knew of it as a historical fact. Frontier attacked, so they counterattacked. It was a battle for national defense.

At the time, Augfel had been about six years old and had not been told the details. It had been a plot carried out in secret by the king and a few nobles to begin with. There was no way he would know.

"Attacked... you say. Do you know the reason?"

"The reason?"

With a self-deprecating smile, Dorfen raised an eyebrow.

"Do you think our Frontier would attack without reason? At that time, Castrato had abducted our country’s princess."

Abducted royalty?!

Augfel’s face stiffened in utter shock.

"The deed was done by a Frontier noble, but it is clear as day that Castrato, who sent a large army to support and ‘rescue’ them, was the mastermind. ...This is the reason Frontier severed diplomatic ties with your country. Do you understand?"

Under the concentrated fire of the knights’ sharp glares, Augfel finally understood.

They weren’t heading to Castrato out of kindness. They were scheming to, if the opportunity arose, unleash their long-held grudge and vent the frustration that had been stuck in their throats for years. They were using Hyrulia as their justification. In a sense, they had been given a once-in-a-lifetime chance.

Suppressing the chill that crept up his spine, Augfel galloped out of the Curious Tree Clearing, ahead of the Frontier party.

He spurred his horse on, heading straight for Castrato.

I must inform my brother. We must not give Frontier an excuse.

Even setting Hyrulia aside, their seething killing intent had Castrato in its sights.

If the opportunity arose...

Their ferocious smiles told the whole story. Furthermore, the countess’s nonchalant demeanor, seemingly having no intention of stopping them, conveyed the existence of a chilling malice to Augfel with undeniable clarity.

This is bad, this is bad, this is bad!!

No wonder Hyrulia was so calm. He had never seen such fierce warriors. And on top of that, a demon-king-like girl leading a host of monsters.

Veteran knights. Exceptional magic. And countless monsters surrounding them.

Who in the world could stand against that? Even Augfel, who had only been with them for half a day, could keenly feel the threat they posed.

His thoughts consumed by the unexpected disaster befalling his homeland, Augfel raced across the wilderness, having forgotten his original purpose.

The uneasy feeling he had at the Frontier royal palace. Augfel now understood the true meaning behind the countess's departure, which the Prince Regent had seen off without a word. He accurately sensed that this was the consensus of all of Frontier. If anything happened to them, Frontier could openly lead a large army to invade Castrato.

We must not give them an excuse.

Since diplomatic ties with Frontier had been severed, they hadn't been able to replenish their magic stones, and their stockpiles were running low. The day when their magic tools would cease to function was near. Some nobles had privately hired Frontier mages, but it was like a drop in the ocean.

Something had to be done before they suffered a fatal blow.

Though he intended to discard his family name, Augfel was still a prince of Castrato. He had to avert the disaster that would befall his people, no matter what.

As the prince desperately wracked his brain, the Little One, having watched him go, received a meal from Adonis.

"Now then... I wonder how this will turn out."

The Little One pondered as she munched on her food.

Normally, one would try to avoid trouble. But doing so would leave a huge sense of defeat, so it wouldn't be surprising if they couldn't hold back. Above all, they wouldn't get their hands on the ducal house. If the king could act rationally with Hyrulia, whom he desired so badly he could taste it, right in front of him, then maybe there'd be some hope.

Thinking this and that, the Little One glanced at Dorfen.

"You provoked him on purpose, didn’t you?"

"...It is what I truly feel."

Dorfen’s eyes gleamed. All the knights at the same table had tense expressions. Adonis and Zack wore similar expressions, smirking. Even Hyrulia.

...Wow. The bloodlust is off the charts. Who brought this ready-for-a-fight atmosphere here?

...It was you.

Feeling as if she heard the voices of the gods from somewhere, the Little One unconsciously looked up at the sky.

Always ready for a fight, always ready to wing it. Her motto was, "Life will work itself out!!"

That fundamental stance of the Little One had firmly taken root in the Little One Squad. Placing the girl’s self-inflicted situation on a divine shelf to be ignored, the Little One Squad advanced with determination.

And so, a conflict no one had wished for began, the fuse lit with vigor.