Chapter 8

With the meeting reaching a pause, each person left the conference room. The time remaining until the decisive battle was short. They needed to hurry and turn what they could do now into something usable. Not a single moment could be wasted.

Simon, Zeke’s subordinate and the commander of the Lagias private army, came to Zeke, who had been at the center of the meeting. The way he knelt and lowered his head was a sign of their master-servant relationship.

“You heard the discussion.”

“Yes, sir. I will return to the Lagias Domain immediately.”

Simon and his men had hurried to the royal capital from the Hidden-World Ruins. From there, attending the meeting and then immediately returning to the Lagias Domain was quite harsh, but Simon himself showed no sign of fatigue. From Simon’s perspective, their daily training was far more severe.

“The kingdom’s army should march to the Lagias Domain soon. Keep a close watch so those people do not cause trouble.”

He called it surveillance, but in essence, it was an order to handle all matters without fail while Zeke was absent. If a large number of people suddenly appeared in the Lagias Domain, the people of the domain would be thrown into confusion.

“You people are, in the end, the private soldiers of the Lagias Domain. This battle is something the country should originally take responsibility for handling. You have no obligation to go along with them more than necessary.”

“I understand fully.”

“Keep the people of the domain away because they will only get in the way. …Listen carefully. I will not accept losses. I will not allow you to die on your own either. If you judge it dangerous, run without hesitation. I alone am more than enough to fill the gap left by you people.”

Simon lowered his head deeply. If someone else had said those words, that would be one thing, but words from Zeke carried different weight. Because Simon understood the meaning behind them, all he could do was show his loyalty. All he could do was respect the thoughts of the master who had a worse mouth than anyone, yet cared about the people of the domain more than anyone.

After greeting Zeke, Simon left in a hurry. Perhaps they had been waiting out of consideration, for Eris and Kratz came to Zeke next.

“Heh heh, it felt good to watch. Seeing those stupid nobles being taken away was the best.”

“That’s true, but that attitude toward the king was still dangerous. I was nervous the whole time…”

Eris wore a full smile, while Kratz smiled wryly. Their relationship with Zeke could perhaps be called that of comrades-in-arms. They were people who had overcome the line between life and death together.

“Leave it. In the end, they are pieces of trash clinging to titles that are only useful among their own kind. Once they leave the country, they are nothing but senile old fools.”

“…No, the king is different, right?”

Kratz drew back at Zeke’s absurd logic. In a sense, Zeke treated anyone equally, no matter who they were. …Thinking back on it, he had been the same with President Riedel.

“Things have become kind of incredible, haven’t they…”

“That’s true. The structure of the world, spirits, and all sorts of difficult things.”

For Eris and Kratz as well, everything they had heard was new. They had been shocked when they learned of Lagias’s role, and they had shuddered at the ambition of Elzen and the others, who were plotting to destroy the world.

“…You people have no need to go along with this. If you are going to risk your lives, do it for something else.”

“What are you talking about? —It’s already too late for that. Now that I know, I’m going to fight. …I don’t want you to misunderstand, but it’s not only for your sake, Zeke. I have my own reason to fight. I have no intention of forgiving Feluart and the others who attacked the royal capital.”

Eris was from Spirito. During the attack on the royal capital, many people of the capital had been hurt. Among them were people Eris knew.

“I’m going to fight too. …I’m weak, and I’m a foreigner, so maybe even if I’m there, I won’t be useful at all. But… I hate the idea of doing nothing and just watching. I’m not weakling Kratz anymore.”

Kratz had experienced his homeland being driven to the brink of destruction by a coup d’état two years ago. He had fought desperately, but he still remembered how powerless he had been. …Precisely because he remembered, he had a strong will that told him he had to fight.

“I see. Then I will not stop you. I am returning this.”

What Zeke handed to Kratz was a single saber. It was a special magic sword embedded with a fragment of Leviathan’s jewel.

“It was useful, so I will praise you for that. …But I no longer need it. It suits a powerless man like you.”

“That’s right. Trash-tier weakling Kratz is already a hopeless old man, so he needs to dress himself up a little at least.”

“…Hey, both of you are definitely making fun of me, aren’t you? And I’m still in my twenties! I’m not an old man! Calling me trash-tier weak is really rude!”

Kratz became angry at Zeke and Eris, who naturally insulted him. Even in the face of a world-ending crisis, their relationship had not changed. …Believing that it surely would remain that way from now on as well.

“…Well then, I’m going. There’s a meeting at the Adventurers Association. Kratz, you’re coming too.”

“Yeah, that’s right. I think things will be hard for you too, Zeke, but let’s both do what we can.”

Eris and Kratz left the conference room. There had been so many people there, but now only Zeke and Van’s group could be seen. Each of them had begun moving toward what they needed to do.

“Zeke. That was a magnificent speech. I felt as if I were watching some kind of stage play.”

“Spare me. Every last one of them is an idiot. Thanks to that, my work has increased.”

The one who spoke to Zeke teasingly was Luke. Luke was probably the only one who could naturally tease Zeke. The relationship between the two was also special.

“So—what are we going to do?”

At Luke’s words, everyone’s attention gathered on Zeke.

“Ciel. You are the final defensive line. Steal as much sacred arts technique as you can from Aktor and the royal family. Your existence should affect the course of the battle. …I will speak to the ducal house.”

“Understood!”

Ciel and the ducal house had a delicate relationship, but now was not the time to worry about that. She also had Zeke’s trust. Ciel engraved into her heart that she would absolutely become stronger.

“Selen and Atri, join the Mage Corps. They are a gathering like trash, but they are ideal for learning magic. Glanz, make the arrangements.”

“Ho ho, it has been a while. I will instruct not only these two, but the other mages as well.”

“You want us to learn how to handle mana, then. Understood.”

“…Yeah. I’ll do my best.”

The coordination between Van’s group was important, but increasing each person’s individual combat power was also important. From their combat styles, the three honestly accepted Zeke’s thinking that they should strengthen themselves with the Mage Corps.

“Luke. You go without saying.”

“I know. I’ll join the Knight Order. …It’s a little embarrassing, since I only just quit.”

Luke had become a former knight. He had never imagined that he would be involved with the Knight Order in this way, but he accepted that this too was some kind of fate.

“And last is you, failure.”

“…I’m the only one who’s the failure, huh?”

Van grimaced. The smug expression Atri wore beside him was inwardly irritating.

“I will give you one night. If you have made up your mind, come to the royal capital’s east gate tomorrow morning.”

“T-Tomorrow!? …That’s sudden.”

“Are you an idiot? Do you think trash like you has any time to spare? We are shortening time that should require years into less than thirty days. Do not forget that this is a situation where we should originally be moving immediately, dullard.”

Van was scolded by Zeke with perfectly sound reasoning. Unlike the others, he felt small and out of place.

“As I said earlier, I do not intend to force you. You decide. If you do not even want to be involved in this battle, you may disappear.”

“How could I do that… I’m the one who has to stop Dad.”

“Stop him? At this late stage, what madness are you spouting? —Kill him. Unless you kill him, that man will repeat the same thing over and over.”

Van looked down and clenched his hands tightly.
Even if he understood it in his head, Van could not bring himself to say those words.

“You barked quite a lot before, but in the end, this is all you amount to? …Hmph, fine. Struggle as much as you can so you have no regrets. —I have already chosen.”

Zeke was covered in the light of teleportation. After the light vanished, Zeke’s figure had disappeared as well.

Zeke, Hiroto, walked down the lively main street of the royal capital. When he turned his eyes toward the people passing by, there were all sorts: people chatting merrily, people walking busily, and people enjoying sightseeing. There flowed the peaceful everyday life of the royal capital.

During the attack two years ago, a gloomy atmosphere had drifted through the city because of the scale of the damage, but now that had largely cleared away. Reconstruction work was also progressing, and it was likely returning to the original appearance of the royal capital.

(Everything has changed since that time…)

Though he had had a purpose, Hiroto himself had fought during the attack. He was not conceited enough to think everything had been resolved by his actions alone, but as a result, there had been lives saved. Just that alone now made him think that what he had done had not been pointless.

He could not remain an outsider forever. Hiroto also had to face forward and move on. If he denied everything he had done until now, he would render the deaths of those who had died meaningless.

With renewed resolve, he had attended the strategy meeting with the major figures of the kingdom. Zeke’s sharp tongue had not improved, nobles who hated Zeke existed, and the Knight Order, Mage Corps, and other organizations were not united. Every last one of them was the same as ever. …Though Hiroto was certainly in no position to talk about others.

With Alderic, who knew everything, present, the sharing of information and future military developments seemed to have gone smoothly. All that remained was how much each person could level up.

If this were a game, he would only need to worry about the party, but this was the real world. If people fought, they would get hurt, feel pain, and in the worst case, lose their lives. He needed to move in a way that would keep casualties in the kingdom’s army as low as possible too. …He did not want to see good people die.

(For now, I have no choice but to have each of them do their best. I hope the main characters become a good stimulus.)

He was aiming for the growth of the main characters, but at the same time, his arrangements were also meant to revitalize the organizations. If they strengthened each other through a synergistic effect, the chance of victory would rise, and the damage would likely decrease.

(The problem is Van. I said something arrogant like special training, but will it be all right?)

There was no way Hiroto had any experience instructing others, and in the first place, he did not even know whether he had the leeway to worry about someone else.

The enormous sea of trees spreading across the continent—the place commonly called the Forest of Death.

In the game, it was a high-difficulty dungeon unlocked after clearing the story.

Only monsters appeared there. It was a hellish place packed with monsters boasting levels higher than those on the road leading to the Gate to the Otherworld—the Sky Road, which decorated the final part of the story. If one charged in without thinking after clearing the game, it would lead to an instant Game Over. For Hiroto, it was a bitter memory.

(Like Aktor said, even if I don’t mess up, there’s a chance I’ll die. …But it means not only Van, but I can level up too.)

It was exactly high risk, high return.

Zeke, who had been a mortal enemy in the original story, had joined the allies and possessed greater power than in the original. With both enemies and allies having increased abilities, what would Zeke’s existence change? In the sense of breaking the scenario, Hiroto could not afford to lose.

(If I had time, I would have liked to try going to the Star Road too… but my hands are full.)

Like the Forest of Death, the Star Road was unlocked after clearing the story. It was a counterpart to the Sky Road, which led to the Gate to the Otherworld. The setting was that if the sky marked the beginning, then the stars announced the end. In the story, after the event where the Watchman appeared, it had manifested in the Lagias Domain at the same time as the Sky Road.

(Well, fine. That place is closer to end content anyway. …For now, I should gather supplies.)

He would seclude himself in the Forest of Death and train. He knew it was not such an easy place that he could challenge it with nothing but the clothes on his back. Potions, mana potions, food, hygiene supplies, changes of clothes. Spare weapons would be necessary too.

He did not know whether Van would really come, but he had to finish preparations by tomorrow morning. In the worst case, if Van ran away… it would be embarrassing, so he would train alone. After making such a bold declaration, saying he would not go would be far too foolish.

As he walked while organizing the supplies to buy in his head, he received the gazes of the people of the royal capital, as always. Black hair meant Lagias, and until very recently, suspicion of murdering the Sword Saint had hung over him. Their reaction was natural.

(It is better than being harassed.)

All sorts of emotions were packed into their gazes, but it was too late to worry about that now. There was no point resenting the people of the royal capital who had known nothing. Hiroto himself did not particularly want to broadcast the truth of Lagias throughout the country. —He only wanted the past generations of Lagias to sleep peacefully.

He stopped in front of the first general store that came into view. Since it faced the main street, he could expect a decent selection of goods. He did not know whether they would do proper business with Lagias, but if they had complaints, he could silence them with money. The war funds he had pointlessly saved up would simply show their power.

A black shadow suddenly appeared before Zeke, Hiroto, as he was about to enter the store. Faced with the bizarre atmosphere released by the small figure, the people around them widened their eyes… no, they recoiled. They recoiled heavily.

It was a girl dressed in pitch-black clothes that covered her entire body, wearing a black-haired wig that was clearly artificial. The strands of her real hair sticking out were asserting themselves intensely.

“Now is the time of the contract!”

On top of that, there was this abnormal statement. No matter how one looked at her, she was suspicious. Zeke was far more normal. The people passing by sent sympathetic gazes toward Zeke, Hiroto. …Here, a scenario break had occurred.

(That awful cosplay-looking outfit and those words that come out of nowhere…)

He felt as though he had seen this somewhere, but he could not remember. Perhaps Hiroto’s memories were refusing it, for no answer came.

“Engrave thy name upon this book passed down from ancient times! If thou dost, we shall become eternal!”

“We won’t! What are you doing, Mei!”

A girl snatched away the documents the suspicious person had thrust out. “G-Give it back, rude one!” the weirdo resisted. A boy grew flustered in front of the two of them.

“Nell, Mei, stop it! Zeke-sama is troubled!”

He certainly was troubled. Troubled by the three of them arguing while ignoring Zeke, Hiroto. Just when he thought they had suddenly come to harass him, they had started arguing on their own, and now he was being forced to watch it.

“This is the marriage contract that binds me and Zeke in eternity! Ricky, pass judgment upon this little insect!”

“!? I told you! It doesn’t sound alike! And what do you mean by eternity!? There’s some weird implication there, isn’t there!?”

(…I remember now. This stupid trio is…)

They had approached him in the same way in the royal capital before. They were the boys and girls who had said Zeke had saved them during the attack on the royal capital.

“Those three shitty brat siblings from back then…”

Led by a strange fate, they were reunited.