7

Not long after that, Wenceslav and Haral, who had received Mireine’s report, visited Lizelotte’s room.

“Are you safe, Kirishiya!”

The door was flung open with great force.

The moment he entered, Haral showed a look of panic.

“Yes, I am all right, Brother. But Mireine…”

“Yes.”

Haral, who must have seen Mireine’s condition when she came to report, gave a short reply while lowering his eyes.

“Lizelotte, is what Mireine said true?”

Wenceslav, who entered the room a little later than Haral, asked as he sat down on a nearby chair.

“Yes, there is no mistake. Lydia, who calls herself the head of the Next-Era Luminaries, invaded. Well, it took the form of a greeting and a declaration of war toward me.”

“Those wretches have begun to move boldly, have they…”

The Next-Era Luminaries were the masterminds who caused the chaos in Elias. It was not hard to imagine that the effects of the chaos in Elias would threaten the entire kingdom for a long time. On top of that, the Next-Era Luminaries had said they would begin moving in earnest amid that very chaos.

Wenceslav wanted to let out a deep sigh.

“Worrying about the country is, of course, your duty, but you had better worry about yourself as well, Wenceslav.”

“…I heard from Mireine.”

“You allowed someone to invade the royal castle easily. On top of that, Lydia’s target is your head, you know?”

Wenceslav gave a wry smile at Lizelotte, who spoke curtly.

“I have always been prepared for that sort of thing since becoming king.”

Wenceslav touched his neck while glancing at Haral, who was worried about Kirishiya.

Haral was still inexperienced and immature, but even so, he had grown better than Wenceslav had expected.

Though he had some slight concerns about Haral ruling the country, he still believed that his capable son would be able to conduct politics with the peace of the people at its center.

“Lizelotte, if you would protect me, there could be no greater reassurance.”

“Fool. I have told you this constantly since the days when you were still suckling at the breast. I am here because I swore an oath to my late friend.”

“The kingdom’s prosperity comes second, then?”

“Yes.”

Wenceslav shrugged at Lizelotte, who answered plainly.

“So, where did Lydia go?”

“Elias. She went to meet Ains.”

“That is the distance between Kirk and Elias! Is that Lydia’s sorcery? Lizelotte, do you know what her sorcery is?”

“Roughly. But not completely. I can likely repel her, but I would not be able to ‘kill’ her.”

The word “kill” that Lizelotte spoke meant death as a sorcerer. Since Lizelotte had not seen through Lydia’s restriction, it was impossible for her to completely bury Lydia.

“Haa. It would be good if Ains struck her down.”

“You should not dream such faint dreams, Wenceslav. There is even a possibility that Ains will join hands with her.”

If that happened, the history of the Santia Kingdom would undoubtedly end here, Wenceslav thought, and let out a dry laugh.

The scene changed to Arabetta’s mansion.

A heavy atmosphere hung over her study.

“…”

No words came from the mouth of the utterly exhausted Arabetta.

Arabetta had once stood back up, encouraged by the words of Ains, who sat across from her, but the destruction of the warehouse district had completely broken her spirit.

Opposite her, Ains, looking as unreadable as always, was fiddling with a magic tool that had been placed in the study.

The sun had completely set, and it was dark outside the window.

In sharp contrast to the usual Elias, the scene outside was filled with an eerie silence. Of course, the residents had been injured, but the burning down of the red-brick warehouse district, one of Elias’s specialties, was also synonymous with the loss of the people’s emotional support.

“Haaah, I’m sleepy.”

Sophia silently struck Talidge, who let out a yawn.

Among the three, only Sophia, who was the best at reading the room, could consider Arabetta’s current feelings.

There was likely nothing the three of them could do about what had already happened, but even so, Sophia thought they should refrain from insensitive words and actions in front of Arabetta.

“…Ains-dono, I am sorry. I ended up dragging you into all sorts of things.”

“No, well.”

Ains continued fiddling with the magic tool.

“Elias is a lively city with many good things about it. I had wanted you to see that side of Elias, Ains-dono.”

Arabetta’s voice grew smaller as it trailed off. Even her hair, which had always been well cared for, looked dry, and she seemed to have aged all at once.

“We can do that next time, Arabetta-sama. I will probably stop by here again.”

“Next time, huh… I wonder if I will have that next time. With this much damage and such a massive impact on the country, this is the worst possible failure on my part as lord.”

The contents of the glass placed before Arabetta were empty. Sophia tried to pour water into it, but Arabetta stopped her with her hand.

Arabetta and the others still did not know that this incident had been caused by the Next-Era Luminaries. Because the mastermind was unknown, the mental damage Arabetta suffered from having failed to govern her territory was considerable.

No one knew how long Elias would remain at a standstill from now on, but it would lead to prolonged stagnation and chaos throughout the kingdom. Could Arabetta truly take responsibility for that with her own body alone?

She would not escape severe punishment, and the Elias House would likely be abolished as well. Knowing that only the suffering of continuing to live in disgrace awaited her, Arabetta did not even have the energy to lift her head.

“…Perhaps it would be better if I took responsibility and killed myself.”

Arabetta spoke weakly, bit by bit.

“Arabetta-sama, that is going too far…”

Sophia spoke to Arabetta, whose thoughts had turned in a ruinous direction, but she could not say it strongly.

After all, Sophia was not standing in Arabetta’s position, so there was no way she could understand her suffering. And Sophia could not be irresponsible enough to throw out temporary words when she did not understand.

“Ains-dono, is there any magic that can kill one instantly and without suffering? Many suicides use a short sword, but I cannot even muster that kind of courage now. Truly pathetic.”

There was also suicide by poison, but all of them brought death with an expression full of agony. It was by no means an easy way to die.

“Of course there is.”

“Haha… As expected of you, Ains-dono. I would very much like you to teach me.”

“I do not mind.”

“Ains-sama!?”

Sophia reacted to Ains, who said it without changing his expression.