“You’ve got some nerve, eating peacefully when we’re up to our eyes in trouble!”
Al dragged himself to the dining hall to have breakfast, only to immediately be told off by Jamka.
“I admit, Ranbolg made some mistakes, but tell me: what was going through your tiny brain when you charged at a former guest of the state!?”
As Jamka smashed his hands down on the table, Saaya jumped up and hid behind Luna. Other than those four, Feena, Cecilia, and Brusch were also present at the table. Sharon, of course, was not there.
“Calm down, Jamka. Luna and Saaya are guests too; startling them would look bad for the whole country. Besides, don’t you think it’s strange?” he asked Jamka while simultaneously calming him down and enjoying his breakfast.
“Don’t I think what’s strange?”
Feena answered Jamka’s question. “They’re acting too fast. No general should be allowed to declare war without the approval of their country, despite what atrocities they or other guests may have suffered. They planned this from the start.”
“But I still can’t accept you rushing after Sharon all alone.” And, naturally, as his self-proclaimed legal wife, she couldn’t miss the chance to deride Al.
“I’m really sorry for that, Feena. I’d like to apologize to you too, Kanon.” Al bowed before them. From what he’d heard, Feena, Kanon, and Cecilia had taken on the entire enemy army by themselves, so he couldn’t thank them enough. Yet, for some reason, Feena averted her gaze.
“It’s okay. The compensation was more than worth it,” she said while giggling, which made Al wonder what in the world had happened while he was unconscious.
“Either way, our enemy is an army of eight thousand led by the tyrant Prince Ranbolg, while our numbers barely scratch half of that. We’ll need a damn good plan if we want to beat them!”
“Certainly, Ranbolg’s army was a handful to deal with at first. They’re rumored to be a band of misfits and mercenaries, but they followed Ranbolg’s and their lieutenant commander’s orders to the letter. Individually, their skills were above that of an average soldier’s, though they were nowhere near the level of an Eshantel warrior! Plus, Lady Cecilia easily disposed of them once she let loose!” Kanon threw in her two cents. Ever since their battle with Ranbolg’s army, Kanon started referring to Cecilia as ‘Lady’, looking at her with genuine awe and dread.
What in the world happened in that battle?
“Their army is skilled and numerous. I experienced their wrath firsthand. But...” Al took a dramatic pause and looked at each person present. “But, I think we can win with everyone’s help. It’ll be tough, it’ll be risky, but I want to save Althos. And there’s one more thing I’d like to do.”
He sat up straight in his chair.
“I want to save Sharon. Please, lend me your strength to save her!”
He bowed in front of everyone.
“Oh my, I already gave you my answer.”
“It’s a wife’s job to fulfill her husband’s requests. Also, I want to save my friend.”
“This is my chance to repay you for everything! Trust me, I’ll tear them a new one!”
“Ah! I-I’ll help too!”
Cecilia, Feena, Kanon, and even Luna offered their help.
“I’ll be there for you too!”
“Mm.”
Brusch answered Al’s request as well, while Jamka simply nodded.
“Thank you all so much.” He was a bit embarrassed after getting so much support, so he decided to stuff his mouth with chicken to hide his slight blush.
I can’t let myself get carried away this time. I won’t charge at them; I’ll fight to the very best of my abilities!
The sorrowful eyes of a certain crimson-haired girl crossed his mind. He mercilessly bit into his chicken while staring at the empty space in front of him.
✦ ✦ ✦
“Useless, all of you! Why didn’t you find the assailant last night!?” Ranbolg slammed his fists on the table at their temporary headquarters.
“We’re using all of our power to search for the perpetrator! Please, give us a bit more time.” Gatou, who had just recently woken up from the nightmare Cecilia’s spell induced, let Ranbolg’s wrath slide. Despite how it seemed, Gatou, the ex-mercenary, had never sworn loyalty to him. He was simply on a secret mission that required him to see Ranbolg’s orders through to the best of his abilities.
“Hmph, whatever. We should begin our march toward Althos. I trust that the army is prepared to embark.”
Gatou silently nodded. Their strategy for dealing with Divas in the last battle was deemed mostly successful. He believed that with a bigger platoon, they could even hold a certain blonde-haired, blue-eyed Diva at bay. Understandably, Gatou himself didn’t want to face her again and planned to keep his distance from that part of the battlefield, but...
“Lord Ranbolg! Our scouts have reported movement at Althos! They’ve begun amassing their troops and are ready to march on our location!”
“What!? Are they out of their minds!?”
According to reports, Althos only had four thousand-odd soldiers. It was unbelievable to hear that they were now taking the initiative with an army half the size of Ranbolg’s own. It seemed like a foolish act of self-destruction, a plea to die an honorable death. That was perfect for him, though, as he didn’t want to spend any more time in the middle of nowhere.
“Good, we’ll engage them. Everyone should’ve recovered from that Diva’s attack, so mobilize all the troops and move out according to our training!” Ranbolg’s orders echoed through the tent.
Althos will fall. After that, I’ll go back home, marry Sharon, start a rebellion, and usurp the throne! Ranbolg smiled as he went over his road map to success.
✦ ✦ ✦
“Hmm... Where am I?”
Sharon woke up on the ground. Despite spending the night on a thin rug, which was a far cry from the luxury beds she was used to, she’d had a pleasant dream and felt completely refreshed.
“Bah, I ’ate this!”
Next to her was the half-naked Airi.
“Oh, I see...”
Ranbolg considered yesterday’s attack an attempt to free Sharon, so he moved her to the Lost Children’s tent for further surveillance. After being stripped and chained to the others, she had been left there for the night, but she was happy to see them first thing in the morning.
“I’m not dreaming. I’m not dreaming, right?”
To make sure that she was, in fact, awake, she gently poked the peacefully sleeping Airi’s cheeks.
“Mhhmhmhm... Nooo, stahhhp...”
She wasn’t dreaming, but...
“Naaah! Stahhhp! I’m flattered, Ya Majesty, but Sharon—”
Wham!
“Aaaah! Oi, that ’uuuurt!”
Airi was rolling on the floor while rubbing the top of her head. Sharon was certain that this couldn’t have possibly been a dream.
“Oi, now! Dun be so rough on me! I can’t even foight back now!” Airi said while sitting up and staring at Sharon with her brown eyes.
“You were having a strange dream, so I wanted to snap you out of it,” Sharon answered with a nonchalant tone and a playful smile.
“Hmmm, it’s quite rare for you to not hold back, Sharon. Or did you find her comments revolting to the point that she deserved your unfiltered wrath?” the person lying next to Airi addressed Sharon in a sleepy voice.
“You really think I’d ever do something so pitiful?” Sharon answered calmly.
“I see you’ve still got that habit of denying claims of mischief with a straight face.”
“Fer real! Ya always ’ave on a mask, but yer twitchin’ mouth gives ya away!”
“What!? That’s not—” Sharon hurriedly covered her mouth, but that didn’t stop the others from chiming in.
“Hey, Sharon! What kind of person is Alnoa? Is he cool? Nice?”
“He’s a total tenderfoot! B-But, well, I guess he’s n-n—nothing! Nothing at all!”
The tent roared with laughter as a small crowd formed around Sharon. She knew all of them, and they hadn’t changed at all in the past years. No matter how tough or brutal their circumstances were, they endured with a smile.
Maybe this is where I truly belong, she thought while enjoying their chit-chat.