Survival Report

Five days had passed since Ann joined us, and today was the day Ernesto was supposed to show up at the base. It was not certain, but apparently there was a high chance he would come early in the morning.

“If Ernesto is here, let’s tell him Ann’s true identity in another room where the others aren’t present.”

“Yeah. Ann, Rebecca and I will go inside first, so wait nearby. If anything dangerous happens, escape to the Divine Domain immediately.”

“Understood.”

Not knowing how Ernesto would react made me nervous as we headed to the base. We had Ann wait inside an empty house near the base, and then we knocked on the door.

After exchanging the same kind of greetings as before and going inside… Ernesto was in the living space where everyone gathered, sitting in a chair and staring at a map of the Royal Palace.

It seemed he had shown up just as planned.

“Luca, Rebecca, it’s been a while.”

Ernesto looked up and greeted us, so taking advantage of the opportunity, we approached him right away to bring up Ann’s matter.

“Ernesto, I’m glad you’re here.”

“Hmm, did something happen?”

“Yeah. It’s a bit delicate to talk about here… could we discuss it in another room?”

“I don’t mind, but—”

Though he wore a suspicious expression, Ernesto followed us. The three of us entered a room far away from where the others were gathered, and inside that room we faced him again.

“Is it something you can’t let the other comrades hear?”

“Yeah. It’s related to the coup, but strictly speaking it’s a different matter.”

“It’s actually… about Princess Henriette.”

At Rebecca’s words, Ernesto’s entire demeanor instantly stiffened, and he furrowed his brow deeply.

“…Why bring that up now? A messenger already reported her death to the Kingdom, and the Empire has officially concluded that she died as well. It would be difficult to start a search again now…”

“No, that’s not it. It’s not like that… Princess Henriette is alive.”

The moment we told him that fact, Ernesto froze with his brow still furrowed. As if trying to suppress his confusion, he placed a hand on his forehead and shook his head.

“…Did I mishear you? It sounded like you said Princess Henriette is alive.”

“You didn’t mishear. That’s correct.”

“But surviving a fall from that height… the search turned up no clues at all. When did you find out she was alive? Don’t tell me you discovered her during the search?”

“No, that’s not it. Apparently Her Highness is quite skilled in magic, and when the carriage fell she used magic to protect herself.”

“And then she walked all the way from the bottom of the cliff to the Imperial Capital on her own. That’s where we found and protected her…”

As we explained the scenario the three of us had prepared so Ernesto would not become suspicious, he seemed confused but gradually began to accept the situation.

With his hand on his chin, he appeared to be thinking seriously about what to do next.

“So Princess Henriette, whom we believed had perished, actually survived on her own and made it all the way to the Imperial Capital.”

“That’s right. And Her Highness wishes to remain hidden for now.”

“…Well, I can understand that. This marriage was forced under extremely unfavorable conditions. —To begin with, no one would want to marry that prince.”

From the words he muttered under his breath, it seemed the prince who had been meant to become Ann’s husband was indeed a terrible person. It was truly fortunate that Ann managed to escape.

“But then why tell me that she is alive? Wouldn’t it be safer if no one knew and she simply stayed hidden?”

“There are several reasons… but the main one is that we want to invite Princess Henriette to join us. After seeing the state of this country and the suffering people, she said she wanted to help even though this is another nation. And as long as the Empire continues to exist as it is now, she would have to remain hidden forever.”

“We believe Her Highness will help with the coup. And after seeing her magical ability, I can say that just having her on our side could change the course of a battle.”

“The chance of Her Highness defecting to the Empire’s side is practically zero, so it’s not a bad proposal. …What do you think, should we recruit her?”

After hearing Rebecca and me, Ernesto’s frown deepened as he showed a troubled expression. He was likely calculating the advantages and disadvantages in his head.

“Is it really acceptable for a princess of another country to participate in a coup?”

“That part is fine. We have something called a Transformation Robe, and we have Her Highness wear it at all times. There should be no chance of anyone realizing she’s the princess.”

“I see… In that case, we would be grateful if Princess Henriette would lend us her strength. Honestly, we need as much fighting power as possible. Someone who could survive a fall from that height and even walk all the way to the Imperial Capital must possess incredible magical ability. To have someone like that on our side is something we desperately want. And if the risk of betrayal is almost nonexistent… there is no reason to refuse.”

After saying that, Ernesto looked back and forth between Rebecca and me. Then he let out a long breath and gave a self-deprecating smile.

“It’s pathetic that the people we can rely on most are from another country. I truly appreciate it. Thanks to the two of you, I can finally feel hope for the outcome of this coup.”

“Don’t worry about it. Besides, we’re only providing fighting strength. You’re the one who created this organization and brought everyone together.”

“…That’s true. I suppose we’ll keep pushing forward a little longer. Luca, Rebecca, I’m counting on you until the very end.”

“Yeah, leave it to us.”

“We’ll definitely save the people of this country.”

After that, when we told Ernesto that Ann was waiting nearby, it was decided that he would meet her directly and recruit her himself, and Ann was welcomed into the base.