An Outing For Just The Two Of Them

An unintended guest had ended up staying in the royal palace, but Ian’s work did not change much. He spent his days as always, working in the office, and amid the worsening colonial situation, the departure ceremony for the force to suppress it could finally begin.

World Era 1917, January 14.

In a fairly wide space, thirty thousand elite soldiers stood in formation. They had already been kept in readiness to depart at any time, so after today’s ceremony they planned to move immediately toward the Colonial Continent.

Doom—! Doom—! Doom—!

As massive drumbeats thundered through the air, Ian watched from atop a high platform. In a sense, this was the first large-scale war situation since he had ascended the throne. Of course, since the enemy was colonial rebels, the risk was certain to be extremely low.

‘So this is what it feels like when your chest swells with grandeur.’

Though it was only thirty thousand, the sight of them in person did not feel inferior to any hundred-thousand-strong army. They were all trained to an elite standard, and their armament was fully prepared as well.

‘If the army, navy, and air force—these three services—move as one in an organic way, we could defeat any enemy.’

In the past, an army moved as the army alone, but this was not that era anymore. That was precisely why he did not worry. What would happen if fighter aircraft flew overhead and dropped bombs? That camp would be thrown into utter chaos.

Of course, if they dug trenches and took a defensive stance, attacking would be difficult—but a breakthrough spearheaded by tanks would look to ordinary people like a great steel wave crashing over them.

And if there was naval gunfire support from ships along the coast, an assault on coastal zones would be assured. As Ian watched the soldiers assembled for the ceremony with such thoughts, they raised a single voice together.

[All loyalty to His Majesty King Ian di Polia, Lord of the Great Ocean of the great Polia Kingdom!]

“We pledge loyalty to the great sovereign!”

The unified shout sent a tingling shock across his skin. As Ian applauded, Adrina beside him also applauded in her role as queen. Soon, the words continued.

[No matter how difficult the circumstances, we shall bring complete ruin upon the enemy for the sake of the King and the nation alone!]

“For the King and the nation—ruin upon the enemy!”

Clap-clap-clap-clap—

As the applause continued with the soldiers’ chant, it slowly died down. Ian knew it was his turn, took a short breath, and brought his mouth to the microphone set before him. His words spread in all directions through the loudspeakers.

[Proud warriors of the Polia Kingdom! You are to go to the chaotic Colonial Continent to place the final period on the Great War that was like hell itself. That is, you go to suppress those who have plunged it into disorder! This is what I will tell you. Do not let your guard down, even against the smallest enemy! Do your utmost and defeat them! And return safely! Understood?]

Yes—!!!

At the roar of tens of thousands, Ian nodded and spoke one last line.

[Now go. Go and show your might to the entire world!]

Waaaaaah—!

The thirty thousand raised a mighty cheer, and the departure ceremony came to its end. Ian watched them to the very last as they began marching out in formation. Before long, the wide grounds had emptied.

Of course, the fighter planes brought in and lined up for the ceremony still remained, but they too were scheduled to be moved elsewhere within the day. At that moment, Adrina approached Ian as he turned and said:

“They’ll all come back safely, right?”

“Of course they will. Though some losses will be unavoidable.”

“I figured… I just hope they finish everything and come home safely.”

“If we support them with everything we have, they can.”

As Ian spoke to Adrina, he heard cheers rising from far away. The ceremony here was over, but the march onward still remained. They were walking in ranks along the capital’s main avenues, and citizens had flooded out to cheer them on.

‘Their parents will be among them, too.’

Who would not worry when their child was going to a war zone? Knowing that and still carrying it out made Ian feel bitterly self-mocking. He thought that quite a few would die to blind bullets and shells.

“More importantly, how has Princess Helena been lately?”

“Why? Are you starting to take an interest in her?”

“What are you saying? It’s just that it’s been several days, and she hasn’t done anything in particular, so I found it odd.”

“I heard she spends a lot of time with the Queen Mother and the princess.”

“Is that so?”

Since she could not win him over directly, it seemed she had approached those around him first to gain favor. And if she was getting along well, Ian wondered whether his mother’s heart might also be turning toward Princess Helena.

With no child being born, his mother seemed to be taking a strong interest in the matter of consorts.

‘Even Mother, who was once a consort herself, is like this… Her anxiety over me not having a child must be quite large.’

He felt sorry—both to his mother and to Adrina before him. He felt sorry to his mother for being unable to give her a grandchild, and sorry to Adrina for letting rumors spread about her being unable to conceive when, in truth, they barely even had a relationship.

‘I heard the rumors have been ballooning more and more lately.’

It was not just about her—there were all sorts of things being said about him as well. They called him a seedless melon who could not father children, and even absurd rumors resurfaced that he loved a man who had completely vanished after the engagement and marriage.

‘Honestly, eight years on the throne with no child… that really is a problem.’

Now that the Great War was over, everything had grown noisy again. Until now, circumstances had been urgent and there had been too much to do—but as things stabilized, attention was gathering entirely on King Ian.

‘It feels like it’s time to steel my heart at last.’

He felt he had clenched his teeth and avoided it for so long. From the moment he mistakenly kissed her lips at the wedding, he had confirmed his own feelings. Yet he had hidden them, clinging to excuses like “she’s young,” and feeling the gulf between himself—someone reborn—and her was too great to reveal his heart fully.

‘For her sake too, I need to tell her how I feel now.’

Of course, he still did not know whether she would accept it. Perhaps, unlike him, she did not think of him at all. Perhaps the air between them would only grow more awkward.

“Your Majesty?”

“Ah. I’m sorry. I meant to think for a moment, but I fell in too deep.”

“You seem to have a lot on your mind lately.”

“I have many worries. So—have you been wanting to go somewhere these days?”

“Somewhere?”

“I mean going out and seeing things outside.”

“I want to, of course. But there’s so much work right now, it’s hard to make time.”

“If it’s Royal Welfare Foundation work, you could leave it to someone for a little while, couldn’t you?”

“How could I go out and postpone work by myself? I’ll just keep it as a wish.”

“Then if you go with me, will you go out?”

“Pardon? With Your Majesty?”

“Yes. Let’s go out and catch some air—just the two of us.”

“Ah—I’ll go!”

Adrina’s immediate answer, almost shouted, made Ian flustered instead. With no hesitation at all, she had said she would go—had she wanted to go out that badly?

Meanwhile, realizing she had raised her voice too much, Adrina covered her mouth with her hand as if it were a mistake—yet her face soon turned bright with a grin. A trip(?) with just the two of them was bound to make her heart race.

Her heart had already been unsettled by all the recent rumors, so for him to make time like this made her deeply grateful.

“In a way, it’s also an undercover inspection. I want to ride around and look at different places.”

“I see. That’s fine too. But if we’re going without being recognized, we’ll need disguises in a lot of ways, won’t we?”

“I plan to change our appearance somewhat. Let’s wear hats and cover our faces as much as possible.”

“Wow, that sounds really fun.”

She seemed genuinely fascinated by the situation itself. Seeing Adrina like that, Ian thought he wished he had done this sooner. He also felt he had often regretted it while thinking such things. This itinerary felt both tense and genuinely enjoyable.

Meanwhile, even at this moment, the colonial suppression force was moving toward the port. Once they boarded the large transport ships waiting there, they would depart within the day. Thirty thousand would sail in the first wave, and the second and third waves were also prepared—they planned to send them all within January.

Two days later.

Vrooom—

Ian held the steering wheel himself as he drove. He wore a hat, thick horn-rimmed glasses, and other things, and he looked different from usual. With special makeup, even his overall vibe had changed noticeably.

Adrina sat in the passenger seat beside him. She wore a hat as well, and special makeup altered her face too. Even so, her beauty did not truly change. Her distinctive loveliness still came through.

“You drive really well.”

“I don’t know about handling a horse, but I’m fairly confident when it comes to driving.”

“It’s amazing. The King himself driving like this…”

“Is it?”

Usually, he rode in cars driven by royal chauffeurs, so driving did feel a bit awkward to Ian too. Still, he had not forgotten the feel of it. But since there were performance differences from cars on Earth, he felt unfamiliar in many ways, and it was frustrating.

‘The steering wheel being thin isn’t familiar. And it’s heavy.’

It felt as if the wheels followed only slowly even when he turned the wheel, so he needed to get used to it quickly. Still, there was no real problem. A well-paved road stretched out ahead. Driving across broad flatlands felt refreshing.

“Is it really okay for just the two of us to go like this?”

“It’s fine. Guards will be tailing us discreetly from behind.”

“Really?”

As she turned to look back, curiosity showed on her face. In fact, quite a few cars were traveling behind them. The road they were on was one of the routes that spread like a spiderweb across the entire metropolitan region.

Along the widened roads—far broader than anything in the past—many cars were driving. Ian thought this alone showed how prosperous the Polia Kingdom had become.

Any household with some leeway tended to buy a car, and it was not an exaggeration to say that millions of automobiles traveled nationwide. And that number was expected to grow even more with each passing year.

“I’m glad it’s not hot anymore. Last year was really too hot.”

“Indeed. I heard the abnormal temperatures ruined crops in many places, so I plan to go as far as those areas and see for myself.”

“You’re planning to go pretty far.”

“Let’s travel around the whole country first.”

“Won’t you be tired?”

At her concerned question, Ian smiled as if it were fine. In truth, he had wanted time like this. Now, in his eighth year of reign, how much had the country changed and developed? He wanted time to confirm that.

‘Of course, that isn’t my only purpose.’

After glancing at Adrina watching him, Ian looked back to the road ahead and said what he had not been able to say before.

“Also, we’ll have to sleep outside tonight—are you alright with that?”

“Pardon? Sleep outside?”

“I’m thinking of trying something called camping. We’ll pitch a tent, eat some meat there, and so on.”

“Ah, so that’s why there was so much luggage.”

The trunk—and even the back seats—were piled with baggage. They were camping tools prepared in case they could not find a place to stay and had to sleep outside. The fact that he had prepared so thoroughly showed how much resolve he had poured into this trip.

‘This undercover outing will surely become a major turning point for me.’

With those thoughts, the car drove past vast farmlands, heading toward a satellite city in the metropolitan region. It was a scene that showed just how smoothly they were speeding along.