27

“Commander Gaus, Marquis Kansas Brandy has arrived.”

“I understand. Show him in here.”

This was the Ains Domain, in the commander’s office within one room of the Silver Snow Knights’ hall.

The short-haired man with his clothes open at the chest, revealing a rugged chest beneath, was Gaus, commander of the Silver Snow Knights and the one acting as proxy ruler of the Ains Domain.

Facing a mountain of documents and moving his pen across them, Gaus stopped at his subordinate’s report and rose from his chair.

Before long, there came a knock on the door from outside.

“Come in.”

Gaus answered after letting out a short breath.

Standing beyond the opened door was a man led in by a subordinate, giving off a gentle air. His features too showed kindness and calm, making those he met feel he was easy to approach.

“(…Kansas Brandy.)”

In contrast to that appearance, he was a formidable man who had survived for many years within the murky, bottomless den of monsters that was politics in the Royal Capital Kirk.

His ability went without saying, but his political skill and instincts were equally exceptional.

He was a man of such great influence that the factions in the royal capital were effectively divided into three: the royal family, the Sobi House, and the Brandy House.

He was an outstanding figure.

“I am greatly obliged, Commander Gaus, for making time for me while you are busy. I am deeply grateful that you would arrange this on my behalf.”

“The honor is mine, Marquis, that you would come all this long way to such a remote place. Now then, please, have a seat.”

After confirming that Kansas had sat down on the sofa for guests, Gaus also took his seat facing him across the table.

“As a mage myself, I still find that entering the Ains Domain naturally tightens my nerves.”

Kansas began speaking in a cheerful tone.

“Even for you, Kansas-sama? We too always keep ourselves taut so as not to shame the predecessors who built the Ains Domain, so I suppose it is much the same for us.”

Gaus answered with a laugh.

The subordinate who had led Kansas in placed on the table two glasses filled with water and a pitcher, then left the room.

“With things as formal as this, neither of us will be able to truly speak our minds, will we? So how about this, Commander Gaus? We are both people who have thrown ourselves into the storm—let us speak frankly.”

“…Well, very well.”

Kansas knew that the true identity of Ains Silvetas, the Silver Snow Sorcerer known as the Demon God, was Ains.

And Gaus too had already received word of that from Sophia in the royal capital.

“Commander Gaus, I will be direct. I would like the Brandy House and your people to enter into a cooperative relationship.”

Kansas spoke while looking straight into Gaus’s eyes.

“Our Ains Domain has always been cooperative toward the kingdom, has it not? I do not wish to boast too much of our worth, but the present standard of living owes much to things that originated in the Ains Domain. If that is not cooperation, then what is?”

“Yes. This environment, which has now become taken for granted, is all thanks to the Silver Snow Sorcerer, the Eternal Witch, and the Ains Domain. The fact that everyone can smile in peace is also because of that. However, that is not the sort of matter I am referring to.”

Gaus understood as well.

He knew exactly what Kansas meant to say. Knowing that, he had intentionally steered the conversation in another direction. If Kansas had chosen to follow that diversion, then that would have been fine in its own way.

In other words, Gaus had drawn a line.

Though both of them were people who knew Ains’s true identity, Kansas was not a person of the Ains Domain. At this point, he could still choose not to cross that line and simply turn back.

The very fact that Kansas had personally come all the way to the Ains Domain meant that he likely possessed a fair degree of resolve, but even so, Gaus felt he ought to give him one final warning.

Gaus took a sip of water before opening his mouth.

“Kansas-sama, what is it that you desire? Absolute power within the kingdom? The next throne?”

Gaus fixed a sharp gaze on this veteran of the political den of monsters.

“There is only one thing I seek: the realization of the peace everyone desires.”

“…”

“You know this as well, Commander Gaus. The current balance of power within the kingdom is split into three. Shamefully enough, one of those is our Brandy House. But this situation is not healthy. There is no absolute ruler, and each faction checks the others while gathering money and gathering power. This will inevitably collapse from within. It is only obvious where that distortion will appear. I think the current royal family is doing well enough. But this peace stands upon a foundation that has already begun to crack and fray.”

Kansas concluded that the life of that foundation was nearing its end as well.

Slowly reaching for his glass, Kansas tilted it and drank. There was not the slightest tremor or hesitation in the movement.

“We have no intention of involving ourselves in the question of whether an absolute ruler is right or wrong. However, if one is to affirm the necessity of an absolute ruler, then it is certain that such a ruler must be a wise king. Kansas-sama, do you intend to become such a ruler?”

“It need not be me. However, given the current circumstances, I believe that I am the one best suited to accomplish it. There are also Prince Haral and Princess Kirishiya, both around the same age as my daughter. But in the next generation under their rule, the foundation will surely collapse. The Sobi House will make certain of that, and the Brandy House too will be drawn into it.”