kscans

Chapter 229 - The Kings' Conference.

That evening...

Shinsuke and the others who had returned to the base were taken to the infirmary.

However, the number of beds was limited, and it was impossible to accommodate everyone. Patients with minor injuries were laid on the floor, with their consent, of course.

Tina was watching over Shinsuke, who lay in a bed.

"You should rest too," a doctor told her. "It's not good for your beautiful body."

"Thank you for your concern," Tina replied politely, declining the offer. "I was lucky. A potion was enough to heal my wounds. I still have some lingering effects, but it's not so bad that I need to lie down. There are many who are more seriously injured than I am. Please use your resources on them."

"Very well," the doctor said. "If you need anything, let me know immediately. The General has ordered that you two receive priority treatment. Now, if you'll excuse me..."

He went to see to another patient.

The General was being dramatic. Tina didn't think she was that important. If Shinsuke were awake, he would surely say the same thing.

They were unaware of just how much attention they had garnered in the Empire, and by extension, the Kingdom.

General Goltor headed for the commander's office.

He, too, was severely injured, and the doctor had strongly urged him to receive treatment in bed.

"Treatment can be done in the commander's office," the General had ordered. "Do it there."

In his room, the doctor tended to the General, who was seated in a chair. The treatment was completed, and his major injuries were healed, but it would take time to fully recover.

He couldn't do any strenuous work, but light duties were fine. The doctor left, saying he would be back later for a follow-up, and exited the room.

The General picked up the wireless transceiver. "This is the General. Emperor Yorune, can you hear me?"

"This is Yorune!" came the reply. "General! Are you alright?!"

"I can't say that I am," the General said, his first words a report on the damage. "We have numerous wounded and some fatalities. Those two are also severely injured, especially Shinsuke-kun, who is in a coma. Lady Tina is also badly hurt, but she is looking after him."

"I see," Yorune replied, her voice heavy. "But considering the scale of this war, I believe we kept the casualties to a minimum. Even with the fatalities... that is the fate of those who go to the battlefield."

She was suppressing her emotions.

The battlefield was a graveyard. Those who fought were prepared not only to live, but also to die.

No matter how valiant or brilliant, a single bee sting could be fatal. To go to a place with such a high probability of death and expect to return unscathed was impossible.

A memorial service would be held once the chaos had subsided and the situation was under control.

"Did the monsters retreat because you defeated their boss?" Yorune asked, stating a plausible assumption.

"We did defeat it. Or rather, it was defeated," the General corrected. "We engaged the boss leading the monsters. Not me, but Shinsuke-kun and Lady Tina. They fought a powerful enemy before we even made contact, and then fought a series of battles without rest, leaving them both completely exhausted.

"The last I saw, Shinsuke-kun was fighting alone, and I myself was exhausted from battling the monsters. I'll get the details later, but I believe he dealt a near-fatal blow. However, I think Shinsuke-kun was in even worse shape. I realized we were defeated. It was then that a dragon appeared from the sky."

Yorune gasped. "A dragon? A real one? But the monsters related to dragons..."

"I'm aware," the General interrupted. "I doubted my own eyes as well. But it was unmistakably a dragon. The overwhelming presence and authority spoken of in the legends. Everyone else fainted from its roar, and when they woke up, they remembered nothing."

He was trembling.

He hadn't trembled like this since he was a young, fledgling knight fighting his first monster. No, this was even worse.

"My apologies," the General continued, composing himself. "I got ahead of myself. I will report in chronological order."

He apologized and recounted the events.

When he had finished, Yorune said, "Thank you for your report. I still find it hard to believe. Not only the existence of a dragon, but that it acted in a way that helped us. But from what you've said, it seems the dragon was acting for its own convenience rather than to help us, is that right?"

"Yes," the General confirmed. "I couldn't hear the boss's conversation, but I could hear the dragon's. I will write the details in my report later, but from what I heard, the strong impression I got was that it was angry that someone had tampered with its toys, rather than being an ally of humanity."

He reported this dispassionately.

Normally, he would be trembling with rage, but now, the only thing he trembled with was fear.

There were some beings so powerful that anger was useless against them. It was a foe that could not be overcome. Against a human dictator, one could still hope for a revolution. But this was something that could not be defeated. No matter how much time humans spent on tactics, they could never win.

"Phew... In that case, it's best we don't interfere," Yorune concluded. "Whatever the dragon plans to do in the future, it's clear it has no intention of exterminating us humans. And if it has no intention of ruling either, then that's convenient for us. We just need to make sure we don't encounter it again. It exists on a different timescale than us. I don't know what it wants to see, but let's just focus on what we can do."

That was her decision.

The General took a breath. "Understood. I will return to the capital as soon as I've finished dealing with the aftermath here."

"Ah, yes," Yorune said, as if remembering something. "We need to name the heroes responsible for resolving this incident, otherwise things will get complicated. This time, those two must..."

"I think that's impossible," the General said with a wry smile. "In fact, if we push them, they'll probably run off somewhere. Those two."

"You have a point," Yorune conceded. "Well, please confirm with them just in case. I'm ending the transmission now."

The static from the transceiver died down.

That night, in Yorune's room at the royal castle...

After hearing the General's report, Yorune contacted the rulers of the other nations.

"A dragon?" Olivia said after hearing the story. "That's a rather hard story to believe."

Her response was skeptical.

"I agree," Lustolfo said. "However, the fact that he's telling such a story suggests we should treat it as the truth. The most unbelievable things are often the most real."

He sympathized, but his opinion was affirmative.

Humans, when faced with a believable lie or an unbelievable truth, would choose the former.

Because it was something they could understand.

If common sense and the flow of the story made sense, they would believe it to be true, even if it were a lie. Conversely, an unbelievable story would be considered nonsensical, an insult to their intelligence. And once that happened, they would not only refuse to believe it, but deem it not even worth listening to.

This was especially prevalent in modern times, where many people lacked flexibility.

However, the royals gathered here possessed a corresponding degree of flexibility. Olivia, too, while skeptical, was merely stating the general consensus.

Knowing this, Yorune said, "Your opinions are most valid. I, too, find it hard to believe. But if it were one of the 'Seven Demon Lords'..."

At these words, Altorine spoke up. "The 'Seven Demon Lords.' The seven monsters who stand at the pinnacle of all monsterkind. Indeed, if it were one of them, it would be possible. The problem is their objective. If I recall correctly, it was written that one of the 'Seven Demon Lords' was trying to destroy the Kingdom, wasn't it?"

"That's correct," Olivia said. "I've only read about it in books, but a monster that controlled a large number of corpses supposedly identified itself as such. The one who defeated it was the hero Amsel, known as the Otherworldly Hero."

An air of unease began to spread.

After all, the war had just ended. For humanity to face another battle now would be pushing them to their limits.

Sensing this, Lustolfo said, "But I don't think we need to worry about that. If that were the case, they would have taken advantage of this battle to make their move. And then we would be in a three-way conflict that would never end. The fact that they didn't, and instead moved to end it, suggests that the 'Seven Demon Lords' may be forbidden from acting outside their interests. This matches the General's report that the dragon was angry."

He forcefully changed the mood.

The three of them relaxed. A heavy atmosphere was not conducive to a productive meeting.

"Then there's no point in discussing the 'Seven Demon Lords' any further," Altorine said. "Let's talk about the future of our respective nations' diplomacy. The damage is great everywhere. Now is the time for us to cooperate."

The other three agreed.

They were the rulers of their nations. If they were exhausted, they would help each other. For now, they would do what they could.

The four of them began their reconstruction meeting.