The Day Of The Coup

Around noon the next day, Ernesto arrived at the base. He looked tired, but it didn’t seem like he was injured.

“Luca, Rebecca, I’m glad you made it here safely.”

“Yeah, we got in without any problems. …So, is everything alright at the royal palace?”

“It’s not alright… but for now I managed to slip away after getting a little time. However, I have to return in about an hour, so let’s get straight to the main point.”

From what Ernesto explained, it seemed the knights had avoided the worst possible punishment. However, although it had not been told to the knights, it had apparently been decided that when war was declared against another country, they would be thrown onto the front lines without question.

In other words, they would be used as expendable pawns.

As Ernesto spoke about this, he wore a bitter expression and furrowed his brow. It seemed he could not accept either the punishment of the knights or the fact that war would be waged.

…Still, the fact that Ernesto could hear this kind of information meant he must have earned trust within the royal palace. Having someone like that as an ally was a huge advantage.

“So what should we do from here? Should we remain in this city for a while?”

“Yes, that would be helpful. However, the date for the coup has been decided.”

After saying that, Ernesto looked around at the other allies besides us before continuing.

“In one month, the king’s birthday party will be held. We will attack then. The major figures of the nation are scheduled to gather there.”

“In one month… understood. Leave it to us to pass the information along to the other members.”

“Good, I’m counting on you. For now we’re short on time, so we’ll discuss the detailed plan later. The details of the party haven’t been decided yet either.”

“Understood.”

After that Ernesto spoke briefly with the other members before hurrying back to the royal palace.

“So what should we do for the next month?”

“Let’s see… for now we should only come here occasionally and operate somewhere else.”

If we came and went too frequently, someone might discover this place. As for where we would stay… Ivan-san’s place seemed like the best option.

When I suggested that to Rebecca, she seemed slightly troubled by the possibility that our presence might bring danger to Ivan-san and the others. But after a moment, she slowly nodded.

“We don’t really have anywhere else to rely on, so let’s talk to them. But if we stay there, we should repay their kindness properly.”

“Of course. Let’s give them not only food but other things as well.”

This city was probably lacking various tools and daily necessities too, so we would help them until the supplies stored in the Divine Domain ran out.

“We’ll be staying somewhere else, but how often should we come here?”

Before leaving the base, I asked the man who had welcomed us earlier. He thought for a moment and then raised a single finger.

“I’d like you to come once a week. If the plan is finalized, I want to inform you quickly. When you come, try to arrive at night so you don’t stand out. I’ll always be here, so you don’t need to worry about no one being around.”

“Got it. Then we’ll come back in a week.”

After giving brief farewells to the other members, we left the base and immediately started walking toward Ivan-san’s inn.

From the base, the inn was about a twenty-minute walk away, so it was a convenient distance.

“Luca, Ann is somewhere near the Imperial Capital, right?”

“Yeah. From what Lady Seremees told me, she’s fighting monsters every day. Apparently she can already use magic quite well.”

“I see. That’s impressive for a divine servant.”

“She just didn’t have the opportunity to train before. Once she got used to it, she probably became pretty strong.”

I was looking forward to seeing how strong she had become. Since we had some free time now, maybe it was about time to reunite with her.

“By the way, what is Lady Milora’s special ability? Yours is Temporary Peace, right?”

“…Now that you mention it, I’ve never heard about it. Let’s ask when we meet up. Should we meet tomorrow?”

“Of course!”

Rebecca smiled happily, probably because she would see Ann again after a long time. But soon after, she furrowed her brow and began thinking.

“What’s wrong?”

“Hey… what kind of position will Ann take when she enters the Imperial Capital?”

“Well… if we say she came from a rural village in the Empire, it wouldn’t seem unnatural.”

“That’s true. But if we do that, I don’t think we can have her join Ernesto’s faction…”

That was true… now that she mentioned it, that might be a problem. Ernesto would never trust someone from the Empire, especially someone he had just met for the first time.

But at the same time, saying she came from another country would also be unnatural.

Would it be better to have Ann wait in the Divine Domain the entire time? But if she had grown stronger, it would be a waste to leave that strength unused.

“…For now, let’s reunite with Ann and see her combat ability before deciding.”

“Yeah. Let’s do that.”

After that, we casually discussed our monster hunting plans for the coming month and eventually arrived at Ivan-san’s inn without incident.