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Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? (Light Novel) - Volume 13, Chapter 3: Empress Elfaria
Volume 13, Chapter 3: Empress Elfaria
This chapter is updated by NovelFree.ml
Part 1
May 19, Wednesday
It had almost been a month since the measures to get Yurika into a university had started. With Koutarou's strict guidance, Yurika's math drills increased in school year every week. She was now solving fifth grade math problems.
“...Uhm, Tarou-kun's average score for three subjects is 60 points, and he got 80 points on his literature test, so his average score for four subjects should be 70 points?”
Yurika was learning the basics of averaging, but she still hadn't fully understood it. And her calculation this time was wrong.
“Ah, no that's not right!! This is a trap!!”
But having been trained for a month, Yurika noticed her mistake just in time.
There's no way the last problem Satomi-san would give me would be this easy! I'm sure there's a trap I'm overlooking!
She hadn't noticed through mathematics, but because she had been studying under Koutarou's guidance for a month, she was able to sense danger. A glimpse of light at the end of the tunnel, would lead to an even greater despair, and Yurika knew that better than anyone else.
“That's right! I can't just average the average! First I have to add up the average score of all three subjects and then add in the 80 points, before calculating the average of the four subjects... Uh, it's 65 points!! Satomi-san, I'm done!!”
Sensing the danger she was walking towards, Yurika was able to find the correct answer. Happy, Yurika presented her solution to Koutarou with a smile.
“...”
However, Koutarou was completely silent and looking out the window. That's why Yurika had to call out Koutarou's name one more time to let him knew that she was done.
“...Satomi-san?”
“Hm? Ah, sorry. You're done?”
“Yes! The average score for Tarou-kun is 65 points!”
Yurika smiled again and handed her notebook to Koutarou. After he confirmed her answer, he nodded.
“Correct.”
This problem was the last one for the day. Having gotten it correct, it meant that Yurika had properly learned today's subject. That's why there was no more reason to be strict for today, so Koutarou showed Yurika a satisfied smile.
“Well done, Yurika.”
“Yes!”
Sensing that the atmosphere around Koutarou was softening up, Yurika presented her head to Koutarou. It was a gesture that Sanae would often do, and as of late Yurika had started to copy her.
“Good, good.”
“I did my best!”
Koutarou's large hand patted Yurika on the head. Yurika smiled happily. As of late, she loved being praised by Koutarou like this. As a woman, she had a desire to show Koutarou her good sides. Not only could she fulfill her desire by being praised, but she was also happy being touched. Because of that, Yurika had been positive about studying in an attempt to get praised.
“Hm? You don't have to study any more today.”
Koutarou was done for the day, but for some reason, Yurika flipped to the next page of her book.
“Yes. But, but I wanted to prepare for tomorrow.”
“I'm impressed. But don't go overboard, okay?”
“Yes!”
If she prepared today, her studying tomorrow should be easier. And that meant that she would make it easier for herself to be praised.
That was when the cellphone in Koutarou's pocket started vibrating. Koutarou pulled it out, and the name of his best worst friend was written on the display.
“...Mackenzie, it's rare for you to call at this hour.”
With cellphone in hand, Koutarou got up. There were too many people in room 106 for a phone call, so he left Yurika behind by the tea table and left the room.
“Good-bye, Satomi-san... Alright, I'll do a little more.”
Yurika said goodbye to Koutarou's back before turning back to her math problems. Seeing that Yurika and Koutarou's study session was over, the other girls started gathering around the tea table.
“Satomi-kun was looking up at the stars again...”
The first one to say anything was Harumi, who was seated next to Yurika.
Harumi's room was connected to room 106 via Clan's ship. Technology-wise, it worked the same way Theia and Ruth's gate did. As a result, Harumi appeared more frequently in room 106.
“Maybe he's really worried for Theia? Well... that's true for us too...”
Sanae took a bite off a rice cracker and replied to Harumi as she looked out the window. There, she saw the summer night's beautiful starry sky. Theia and Ruth had gone somewhere far off. That was why just like with Koutarou, all of the girls of room 106 found themselves looking up at the stars more often.
By the way, Sanae's room was connected to room 106 the same way Harumi's was. Since Sanae's parents trusted Yurika, she was in room 106 more often than Harumi. With the threat of Darkness Rainbow, they wanted to leave Sanae by Yurika's side.
“We've spent more than a year together. It's only natural.”
Shizuka joined Sanae and looked up at the stars. Theia and Ruth were close friends to her as well. At first, Shizuka had only been yelling at Theia for being reckless, but that was just at the start, and her memories of the two were almost all but happy. But now those two had just upped and left, and Shizuka felt as if she had lost a vital part of her everyday life.
“...I really won't work as Theia-san's or Ruth-san's replacement.”
Maki, who had only just come to room 106 recently, had less of a connection than the others with Theia and Ruth. As a result, her feelings were directed towards Koutarou and the girls here instead.
“Nobody could serve as anyone else's replacement. We would feel the same if anyone one of us was missing.”
Kiriha talked to Maki, who was showing a lonesome expression. Maki responded by raising her hand and gently putting her hand on her chest.
“Even me?”
“Of course. You're already a part of our lives.”
“Ah... yes!”
Thanks to Kiriha, Maki's expression turned a little brighter. Maki felt like she could understand how Kiriha felt. Only a month had passed since she came here, and she already felt like her everyday life in this room was important to her. And having Kiriha say that, Maki started feeling like she belonged here.
“But... I don't think that would be enough for him.”
The last one to speak was Clan. She hated sitting in a cramped space and was using her own invention to float in the air. Her appearance looked very similar to how Sanae looked in the past.
“It's okay. We only have to work together to support him.”
Yurika put her pen down and boldly stated so.
Having lost a family member in a very shocking fashion, parting with someone close held a special meaning to Koutarou. However, Yurika chose not to be pessimistic. She firmly believed that they could protect Koutarou together.
“...What's wrong? You've all got such serious expressions.”
Just around that time, Koutarou, who had finished his call with Kenji, returned. Noticing the serious atmosphere in the room he tilted his head in confusion.
“Hayaaaaaah!”
In response Yurika sprung up towards Koutarou. She clung onto his body and tried to perform a joint lock technique like the ones he always used on her. Yurika knew that neither words nor silence was needed. What was needed was to take action and continue taking action. And Yurika wanted the same thing. Doing this was necessary for both Koutarou and Yurika.
“Oh, what?!”
“Take thiiiss!!”
“I don't know what's going on, but you're too naive!!”
“Gyaaaaaa?!”
However, Yurika's techniques were but a trifling matter to Koutarou. He easily broke free from her move and turned the tables on her. Yurika's expression distorted in pain, but she was satisfied with this result.
“Yurika-chan...”
“Well done, Nijino Yurika. She knows what we need and how to do it.”
At first glance, it simply looked like Yurika's surprise attack had failed and she was now being punished.
However, that was what was needed and Yurika hadn't hesitated to take action.
And that fact slowly sunk into the hearts of the girls watching.
“Hah!”
“Uwah?! Who is it this time?! S-Sakuraba-senpai?!”
Inspired by Yurika, the normally quiet Harumi took action. She was the one who had given Yurika that answer, and because of that, she understood the meaning behind her actions better than anyone.
“Ei.”
Harumi relied on her vague memory and tried to perform a joint lock technique on Koutarou's leg. But being so weak, she was unable to hold down Koutarou. That was when Harumi called out to the other girls.
“Everyone, come help!”
“Martial arts is my specialty!”
“Leave it to the adorable Sanae-chan! I've clung onto Koutarou's back for over a year! I know all of his ticklish spots!”
Shizuka and Sanae were the first to respond to Harumi. The two joyfully joined in on the attack on Koutarou.
“Seriously... physical labor is out of my expertise.”
“I'm surprisingly good at it. And besides, doesn't it look fun?”
Clan and Maki followed suit. They didn't want to be left out.
“Fufu, looks like things are getting interesting.”
The last to join in was Kiriha. Since she loved being mischievous around Koutarou, there was no way she would miss this chance.
“W-What now, all of a sudden, wahahahaha! Owowoww, ahahaha!”
With seven girls, some using wrestling moves, others tickling and others simply holding onto him and dulling his movements, not even Koutarou could do anything, and he helplessly endured the tickling and pain.
“What are you doing all of a sudden– owowow, don't touch that, that spot's no good, wahahaha!!”
“Give it up, Satomi Koutarou. Resistance is futile.”
“Waaaaahhh~!!”
Koutarou's countless screams echoed in room 106. But in the next moment, a sound loud enough to erase Koutarou's scream rang out.
It was the sound of a noisy siren that brought with it a serious sense of unease. The siren was coming from the bracelets that Koutarou and Clan were wearing.
“A large scale space quake detected. It is presumed, with 98% reliability, to be a warp out signature.”
Hearing the siren blasting, everyone instinctively stopped moving. Silence returned to the room, and the only thing that could be heard was the artificial voice coming out from the bracelet. That voice belonged to the AI on Clan's ship, the Hazy Moon.
“Mass calculated from the warped space. Warning. In a few minutes, a fleet of four ships will warp out. The formation is one royal-class battleship, one spaceship carrier, and two medium-sized battleships. Reliability is 90%. This is an emergency situation, my princess.”
The contents of that report signaled that a large fight was about to start.
After receiving the report, Koutarou and the others all moved to the bridge of the Hazy Moon. If this was Theia returning, there would have been a message ahead of time, and it was hard to believe she would come with four ships. Regardless of who was about to warp out, it was quite clear that an incident was occurring.
“Emergency rescue signal received. It is being sent through hyperspace communication. Unable to verify the source, but considering the signal strength, there is a 99% chance of being from one of the four ships.”
The moment they entered the bridge, they received a new report. It was a report that one of the four ships about to appear was sending out a rescue signal, though it wasn't certain which of the ships was sending it. It wasn't even clear if it was being sent from one ship or from all of them. Transmissions during warp were difficult to interpret. The situation was hard to grasp.
But upon hearing that report, Clan spoke the name of the person sending the signal.
“...It's Theiamillis-san.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. I can't imagine it being from anyone but Theiamillis-san in this situation.”
Clan was certain that Theia was the one sending out the rescue signal.
If this had been a mere accident mid-warp, the signal sent over hyperspace would make use of all frequencies. Despite that, it was only sending on the frequency that the Hazy Moon normally used. In other words, this was a transmission from someone who knew that the Hazy Moon was close to Earth. And considering the fact that one of the four ships is a royal-class spaceship, then it was only obvious to believe it was the Blue Knight.
“And she is probably in big trouble.”
“...I bet.”
Koutarou nodded with a stern expression. Sanae, on the other hand, didn't understand and simply tilted her head in confusion.
“Hey, glasses girl, how can you tell?”
“She's asking me for help. What kind of reason could she have for ignoring her consideration for me and asking for help?”
“I see. You get along well with us, but your family are Theia's rivals, weren't they?”
Normally, Theia would want to hide that Clan was in a place like this. If she didn't, Clan's position within the Schweiger family would worsen. But despite knowing that, Theia was asking Clan for help. In other words, she was in a situation so dangerous that she had no other choice.
“Clan, we're going to help. Move us toward the position where that Blue Knight-like ship will appear.”
“I thought you'd say that, so we're already on our way.”
“Thanks, I owe you one.”
Koutarou thanked Clan and placed his hand on her shoulder. Clan responded by placing her hand on top of his and smiled.
“I don't mind. I can't let Theiamillis-san run off with a victory after all.”
“That's true, you're absolutely correct.”
Koutarou lightly squeezed Clan's shoulder before letting go and heading to the front of the bridge. In front of him was a large monitor, showing the stars twinkling in space. It served as a replacement for a window. On top of showing the stars, it also had all kinds of information overlaid on it. The four ships would soon appear.
Part 2
First, four blue lights appeared right where the Hazy Moon had predicted. There was one that was close, and three that were further away. They were in the position the Hazy Moon had forecast.
“Space quake detected. A fleet of four spaceships have warped out. One royal-class battleship, one spaceship carrier, one battleship, one defensive ship. The ship in the front belongs to the Holy Forthorthe Galactic Empire. It's the seventh royal class battleship, Reios Fatra Bertorion. The other three ships’ factions and names are unknown.”
The four lights that appeared shone like stars as they flew, leaving a long trail of light behind them. But the lights slowly faded away, and in their place, four large spaceships appeared.
“A gravitational wave communication has been received from Reios Fatra Bertorion just as it warped out. 'We are under attack by ships of an unknown faction, request immediate support.'”
Three ships were chasing after the lone one.
The ship being chased was over a kilometer long, and it even had the shape of a person. Behind it, the three other ships were in a line formation, chasing after it.
“Isn't that Theia's spaceship?! She's being attacked!!”
Shizuka pointed at the monitor on the bridge and let out a scream. The ship being chased, the Blue Knight, had taken a lot of damage. The insides of the ship could be seen from the tears in the hull, and the areas around the holes were charred black. Because of that, the luster of the hull that was painted blue and white was greatly dimmed.
“Koutarou, they're shooting at Theia! We have to hurry!”
The damage was of course from the three ships chasing after it. They were shooting even now, and colorful lasers and beams flew through space. From time to time, the light was disturbed by the fires shooting out from the missiles. And while the Blue Knight was attacking back, it still had taken a lot of damage, and its attacks were sporadic at best.
“Not good!! Clan, can't you do something?!”
“I'll try!”
Obliging to Koutarou's request, Clan operated the device by her seat and opened communications.
“...This is the second princess of the Holy Forthorthe Galactic Empire, Clariossa Daora Forthorthe. To the three unidentified ships, you are to stop your attacks immediately and surrender. Do so and I will spare your lives.”
Clan sent her hyperspace message using all frequencies. There was no way that her message wouldn't reach them if they were from Forthorthe.
“Kiriha-san, do you think they'll stop their attacks?”
Koutarou stared at the monitor with a serious expression as he asked Kiriha for her opinion. After thinking for a while, she answered.
“...There is a chance that it will work. But, the situation might get more complicated if it does.”
Before Kiriha could finish speaking, the three ships stopped firing and slowed down.
“Clan!”
“I know!”
Not missing her chance, Clan positioned the Hazy Moon between the Blue Knight and the other three ships. Though it was weaker than the Blue Knight in terms of sheer combat capabilities, having taken so much damage, the Hazy Moon should be stronger right now. It was dangerous, but necessary to protect the Blue Knight.
And like that, the Hazy Moon and the three ships faced each other. It seemed like the three ships weren't sure what to do, as they remained unmoving.
“...Clan, if it comes to it, work with the Blue Knight to counter attack.”
Koutarou could feel sweat run down his forehead as he placed his hand on Clan's shoulder again. The fact that he was putting a little strength into his grip was a sign that he knew how dangerous of a situation this was.
“...Yes... I know...”
Clan adjusted her glasses and stared at the monitor intensely. She didn't know if the Hazy Moon and the damaged Blue Knight could win against these three ships.
“Now then, what will they do...?”
“Go away, go away.”
“I don't want to die in a place like this!”
“God...”
“...It's frustrating not being able to do anything.”
“This could be so easily resolved if I could just punch them!”
If things turned into a battle between spaceships, there was almost nothing the girls of room 106 could do. Apart from Clan, the others could only pray for Theia's and their own safety. As the atmosphere on the bridge was reaching its peak in tension, it happened.
“A small container has been fired from the carrier. Space quake detected, generation of a warp field confirmed. The three unidentified ships are retreating.”
The three ships were wrapped in blue light again. The light was a technology used to allow the ships to travel long distances in a short amount of time. They had chosen to cease fighting and retreat.
“...Koutarou, what do we do?”
“Let them go. We don't really understand the situation.”
“Okay.”
Though the ships hadn't surrendered like Clan had wanted, she simply let them leave without attacking. Wrapped in light, the three ships accelerated and flew off like a shooting star, leaving behind a long trail of light.
“The three unidentified ships are leaving this region.”
As their trails became as long as they had been when they first arrived, the three ships completely disappeared. They moved faster than the speed of light.
And once they had left, only the small container left behind by the carrier remained.
Part 3
The Blue Knight that was slowly growing larger on the monitor was seriously damaged. Being very familiar with how it used to look, its appearance shocked Koutarou. It seemed that Theia and Ruth had somehow escaped a crisis where they suffered such serious attacks using just their own power.
Theia, just what happened on Forthorthe?
Seeing how severe the damage they got was, Koutarou felt uneasy. He wanted to make sure that Theia and Ruth were safe as soon as possible.
“Clan, can't we head over to them right away?”
“Just wait a moment. This region is still a bit unstable due to the influence from the three ships warping out. It's too dangerous to transfer live people right now.”
“I see...”
Koutarou endured his uneasiness as he stared at the Blue Knight closing in. It would take several minutes before the Blue Knight and the Hazy Moon could come into contact.
“More importantly, Koutarou. I know what's inside the container they sent.”
Clan operated the panel in front of her and displayed a hologram for Koutarou. Strangely enough, what he saw was a Forthorthe style suit for men. It was neither a pilot's uniform nor a military uniform either, but a fashionable and elegant formal suit.
“Is this what's inside?”
“Yes. There was practically no meaning in sending an unmanned ship to investigate.”
Because it was dangerous to directly collect the container using the Hazy Moon, Clan had sent an unmanned work machine to investigate it. However, the contents of the container didn't have anything dangerous in it; it only gave off a reaction of textiles. Once the container was opened, this suit was what appeared.
“Is there anything else?”
“There was nothing else inside. If it was a present, they should have just left a card as well...”
Clan had a puzzled look on her face. She had suspected they might have left a bomb behind as a souvenir, but it only contained a suit. It was hard to understand if they were enemies or not.
“A suit... a suit, huh...”
Koutarou had an idea of who this suit was from and for whom it was intended for.
To think he would really keep his promise... what a troublesome guy...
If Koutarou was correct, this wasn't a present, but rather the opposite. It was a challenge. And as Koutarou was thinking of the man whom the suit was from–
“Koutarou!”
He heard a voice he hadn't heard for a month. It was an unforgettable voice that everyone on the Hazy Moon had been waiting to hear.
Part 4
Once the owner of the voice entered the bridge, she started sprinting, and without any hesitation she kicked off the ground with all of her might and threw herself into the air. The golden hair on her head spread out through the air like a golden trailing flag.
“H-Hey, wait, wait!”
“I am back! Greet me with all your might!”
She shot through the air and headed straight for Koutarou with her hands spread out. It was obvious to anyone watching that she was planning on embracing him.
“I told you to waaiiit!”
“As if I wooouuuuld!”
If she was just planning on embracing him, Koutarou probably wouldn't have moved. But she had jumped off a quick sprint, from several stair steps above him, so she was flying towards Koutarou at a terrific speed. And with that kind of momentum, she easily knocked Koutarou to the ground. This could only be described as a violent expression of love.
“Ouch...”
“You fool! Why did you fall?! Are you telling me you can't accept my everything?!”
The girl who had thrown Koutarou to the floor straddled him and looked at his face with a dissatisfied expression. Her golden hair then tickled Koutarou's face.
“...That's just a metaphor, Theia.”
“That's not what I wanted to hear, my knight.”
The girl puffed up her cheeks. Her expression reminded Koutarou of a young girl he had met in the past Forthorthe. Partially thanks to his nostalgia, Koutarou found himself unable to complain.
“...Welcome back, Theia.”
“Fufu... I'm back, Koutarou.”
Like that, the girl, Theiamillis Gre Forthorthe, returned to Koutarou and the others.
Part 5
Because Theia couldn't wait any longer, Ruth transported her over using a small spaceship. Ruth was caught up doing some necessary procedures in the Hazy Moon's hangar, so she arrived to the bridge a little later than Theia.
As Ruth reached the bridge, she saw Theia gracefully flying through the air and then knocking Koutarou down.
“Ah...”
Theia and Koutarou were playing around. Just seeing that plain sight, large tears fell from Ruth's cheeks.
We're back... We're back with Master and everyone...
Ruth had assumed that they wouldn't meet again for at least another few years. If the current empress, Elfaria, had collapsed due to illness, they wouldn't be able to do anything until it was determined who would become the heir to the throne. And even once that was over, they wouldn't be able to return to Earth until Elfaria recovered from her illness. If Elfaria died instead, things would become even more complicated.
But through a strange twist of fate, Theia and Ruth had managed to return to Earth within a mere month. Though the current situation was bad, Ruth couldn't help but feel relieved when she saw the faces of those close to her.
“Theia, you're heavy.”
“What do you mean by heavy?! Are those the words you give to your highly esteemed master?!”
“While I hold you in high esteem, your boobs are small.”
“There you go being mean again!! Didn't you say that the size of my breasts didn't matter?!”
“It matters now. I've had a change of heart.”
“Is this the mouth spouting such things? Take that, and this!”
“Ow, ouch, owowow!”
And most of all, Ruth was happy to meet the man she loved again. Theia hadn't behaved as anything but a proper princess this past month, but thanks to Koutarou she was now acting so childishly. Ruth knew what he meant for Theia, because he meant the same thing for her.
But...
On the other hand, meeting with their beloved ones in their current situation meant that they would involve them in their own problems. Because of that, joy and guilt intermixed, creating a complex emotion within Ruth.
“Koutarou, I've found Ruth!”
That was when Sanae spotted Ruth and reported that fact to Koutarou.
“Really?!”
“Kyaa?!”
Koutarou forcibly lifted up Theia and ran over to Ruth.
“Koutarou! Don't treat me so roughly! Put more love into it!”
“You know you tend to treat those things you love with less care, right?”
“Oh, well in that case... No no no, I won't get fooled by that!”
“Guess it can't be helped, geez...”
“Go on, do that thing.”
“What thing?”
“Holding me like a princess.”
“Okay, okay, as you wish, my princess.”
“Hmmhmm♪”
Even as Koutarou and Theia approached Ruth, they continued quarreling. They were more intense than normal, but their faces were brighter than ever, so Ruth's tears wouldn't stop.
“Ruth!”
Once they had reached Ruth, Theia slipped out of Koutarou's arms and placed herself behind Ruth.
“Your highness?”
When Ruth instinctively chased after Theia with her eyes, Theia whispered in a quiet voice only Ruth could hear.
“...You go dote on him as well.”
“Eh?”
In the next moment, Theia pushed Ruth forward.
“Kyaaaaa?!”
Ruth lost her balance and flailed her arms wildly as she fell towards the ground. Koutarou easily caught her since he was right in front of her.
“Are you okay, Ruth-san?”
“Mas― n-no, Satomi-sama! I'm fine, t-thank you!”
Having been caught off guard from being suddenly pushed, Ruth almost called Koutarou her Master in front of others. Shaken by those things, Ruth's voice faltered. In the next moment, she realized that she was being held in Koutarou's arms and her face turned red.
“Ah, ah, eh?! Uhm...”
Ruth couldn't form any words. There were so many things she wanted to tell him, but she couldn't find the words to convey it. Ruth opened and closed her mouth countless times in an attempt to form words, but the only thing she could do was shed tears.
“...Ruth-san.”
Koutarou noticed Ruth crying in his arms, and reached his right hand out towards her cheek to wipe her tears away. But since her tears wouldn't stop, he wiped a second and a third time.
“U-Uhm... I...”
Ruth didn't know what to do or what to say, and simply entrusted herself to Koutarou.
“...Welcome back, Ruth-san.”
“Ah...”
The moment she heard that, Ruth figured out something she wanted to say. And she went all-out to turn it into words.
“...I'm back... Satomi-sama...”
They were words she had so often spoken. But Ruth had never tried harder to form those words.
Part 6
Koutarou, Theia, Ruth and the other seven girls all rejoiced in their meeting for a while. Once some time had passed and they were able to calm down a little, Theia began explaining what had happened once she returned to Forthorthe.
“...My mother being sick was a lie.”
Theia who had been smiling with joy just a moment ago now had a very gloomy expression. Thanks to their time together, Koutarou could read a lot from her expression. Koutarou had a very bad feeling about this.
“Lie? You mean you lied?”
“No, why would I have to lie?”
“That's true. Then whose lie was it?”
“It was the people trying to drag my mother off the throne. In other words, a coup d'état is happening in Forthorthe.”
“What?!”
“Just wait a minute Theiamillis-san!! Is that true?!”
Since this was regarding Forthorthe, Clan who was listening to Theia, slammed her hands into the table the ten people sat down around and leaned forward towards Theia.
Clan was a Forthorthe princess as well. Recently, she was starting to be conscious of her position and matured as a royalty. And a coup d'état was a big deal for the country. Clan couldn't just stay quiet.
“Sadly, it's the truth. It seems the military are unable to overlook my mother's calls for disarmament any more. They placed mother under house arrest.”
Theia's mother, the current empress, Elfaria, was a pacifist that proclaimed disarmament.
The military of this age had gotten too strong, and a powerful force was hard to control. Elfaria insisted that if the military wasn't reduced to a reasonable force that could be controlled, they would eventually run out of control and cause a major incident.
The military heavily objected to this. In order to protect their pride from protecting Forthorthe for so many years, and to protect their vested interests producing vast profits, they did everything in their power to obstruct Elfaria.
But those obstructions were exactly what Elfaria was worried about. And once the obstructions turned more intense, they developed into a coup d'état. Ironically, the very act of objecting to Elfaria, proved that they were in a state that couldn't be controlled.
“Which means, Elle... uhm, Theia's mother being sick was just a trap to lure you out?”
“Yes. Since my captured mother wasn't listening to them, they were going to capture me and use me to negotiate.”
The military placed Elfaria under house arrest under the pretext of sickness. But even then, Elfaria wouldn't retract her statements of disarmament, so they decided to capture Theia and use her for their negotiations. So an encoded message was sent to Theia, calling her back to Forthorthe.
“No wonder I didn't hear any information about her majesty Elfaria's sickness. She wasn't sick after all. What's more, the military themselves have placed her under house arrest. It's not that they didn't leak this information, but they couldn't leak it.”
“Wait, so why are you safe? You were tricked right?”
“That's because we realized that it might be a trap just before it was sprung...Ruth.”
“Yes.”
Ruth continued to explain from here.
“Actually, just before we left Earth, Clan-sama told me that she hadn't heard anything about the sickness from her information network.”
“Now that you mention it, I did.”
Because the Mastir family had a bad relationship with the military and the Schweiger family had a good relationship with them, the information they could get differed. Clan noticed that she hadn't heard anything about Elfaria's state, and as such, gave Ruth a warning.
“Back then, I too believed that her majesty might be seriously ill, but when I told her highness about this just before we arrived at Forthorthe, we had a bad feeling about all of this.”
The military, who strongly opposed the empress, had overlooked information as important as the empress's sickness. Realizing that, Theia felt like something was really out of place. And if that was intentional, Theia contemplated whether or not this might have been a coup d'état or that Elfaria had been placed under house arrest. That was what Theia's intuition was telling her.
“So instead of returning home according to the schedule, we returned home secretly, through an old retainer. If her majesty really was sick, we could think of it as a funny story. But if she wasn't, this wasn't something we could laugh off.”
“And like Theia suspected, it wasn't something you could laugh off, huh.”
Ruth nodded at Kiriha.
“Yes. Behind the scenes, the military was planning a coup d'état and had placed her majesty Elfaria under house arrest in the imperial palace.”
“So what did you do?”
Sanae excitedly intervened. Since she knew that Theia and Ruth had safely gotten away, she listened like she was hearing an adventurous tale.
“Supported by our loyal subjects, we rescued her majesty Elfaria and escaped to Earth aboard the Blue Knight.”
“So the coup d'état army were the ones chasing after you?”
“Yes, a part of it. Thanks to the efforts of Pardomshiha's and Wenranka's band of knights, only three ships managed to come after us.”
Wenranka was a distinguished family of knights on the same level as Pardomshiha, and they had shown absolute loyalty to the royal families since the Silver Princess's era. They didn't hesitate to side with the Mastir family in this crisis. Together with the Pardomshiha family, they played a major part in letting the Blue Knight escape.
“But, but, why did you flee to Earth? Wouldn't it be better to hide somewhere else?”
When it came to hiding places, the cowardly Yurika was the girl to ask.
It was known in Forthorthe that Theia had spent a year on Earth. So even the coup d'état army could guess where she'd have run off to. That's why Yurika felt like it was a bad idea to hide here.
“There are two reasons.”
Hearing Yurika's doubts, Theia continued explaining.
“The first is a rule of diplomacy between planets. There is a principle of nonintervention with planets where formal diplomatic relationships haven't been established. That's why if I hide on Earth, the coup d'état army can't carelessly attack.”
Using illness as a pretext, the coup d'état army put Elfaria under house arrest. So there were no suspicions of Elfaria or Theia abusing their powers. If the coup d'état army launched an attack without reason that also involved the inhabitants of Earth, the coup d'état army would be doubted, and their support from the public would be weakened. Since they couldn't do anything that would make the public opinion side with Elfaria, until they could forge a crime to frame Theia with, they couldn't launch any major attack on Earth.
“The other reason, that there was nowhere else where we still have territory.”
“Territory?”
“Yes. The coup d'état army is pressuring Forthorthe, and the other territories have also fallen into their hands. Except for the territory on this planet.”
“Theia, could that territory be...”
“...The only territory rightfully ours that hasn't fallen into the hands of the coup d'état army... that is Corona House's room 106. This was the only place we could hide at.”
Theia was indirectly in control of room 106 through Koutarou. With all the other places under the coup d'état army's control, this place was Theia's last stronghold.
“In other words...”
After explaining that far, Theia clasped her hands together in front of her chest and looked up at Koutarou's face.
“...We came seeking your protection, Koutarou. And... we’re well aware that we would involve you and everyone else here in our fight...”
Theia was always strong minded and acting like a princess. But at this time she was uneasy and timid, which showed on her expression.
“We alone can't do anything anymore... We don't have enough help, wisdom and power. But it's not like we want to involve all of you! We don't want to make you unhappy, but we have no one else we can rely on!”
Theia desperately appealed to them.
Theia and Ruth had been cornered and had nowhere else to go. In that situation, they had come to rely on Koutarou and the others.
Sanae's spiritual powers, Kiriha's brain, Yurika's, Maki's and Harumi's magic. Clan's science, Shizuka's martial arts and Koutarou who combined all those powers. To Theia and Ruth who were lacking in numbers, Koutarou and the others would be a big help.
But it wasn't like Theia and Ruth wanted to involve Koutarou and the others in their fight. There really wasn't anything they could do but to cling onto their bonds.
“Please, help us, Koutarou! And everyone! I am aware how selfish I sound! I have gotten you involved into a dangerous fight you have nothing to do with! However, you are the only ones who trust us! And you're the only ones we trust!”
In that crisis, Theia relied on normal people. Not a legendary knight, nor the goddess of the dawn. Though they had various powers, they weren't all that different from Theia.
“That's why!!”
But together with them, she would surely be able to do something. That's what she believed. They were Theia's last hope.
“...Please... lend us your power...”
As Theia said that, she lowered her head and closed her eyes. Her body was stiff and her hands were tightly held together. That was only obvious; she knew she was asking for something unreasonable.
“...What are you doing? Raise your head, Theia.”
Koutarou's voice sounded.
Those powerful words and the decisive will put into them drove themselves into Theia's chest.
“Eh?”
His words unfroze Theia's body and made her look up. Her eyes met with Koutarou's, and that glance of his was as powerful as his words.
Koutarou...?
Theia had never seen Koutarou with eyes like that before. So she didn't know what kind of feelings were behind them.
“Raise your head. Pull your expression together. Puff up your chest. You don't look like a ruler.”
Koutarou was more severe than normal. He wasn't even this strict when teaching Yurika.
“Koutarou, what are you...”
Theia felt pressured by the atmosphere around Koutarou. She hesitated, like any normal girl would.
“You've fundamentally misunderstood something.”
“I don't understand... what are you saying?”
“What is our relationship?”
“That's...”
Theia temporarily hesitated before answering.
“I am your princess. And you are... you are my knight.”
“Then there's an attitude that you should take, and words you should say.”
That was when Theia realized what Koutarou wanted.
“...B-But...”
But even if she understood, she couldn't quite do it. The kindness and love she had developed this past year got in the way.
“I'm only talking about your form. Not the feelings you put into it.”
“Koutarou...”
“Do it properly.”
“...”
Understanding Koutarou's intentions, Theia closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The next moment, she opened her eyes wide. Her expression completely changed. A strong will resided within her eyes and her expression was sharp. She was not an anxious girl from a few seconds ago, but a ruler that had decided to fight.
Theia opened her mouth.
“My knight, Koutarou, carry out your duty to recapture our mother country.”
It was an oppressive and one-sided order. The Koutarou from one year ago would have absolutely refused.
“That's better.”
But once he had heard it, Koutarou nodded and smiled. Since that was the form and words he had been expecting, he had on a very bright and satisfied smile on his lips. But he quickly erased that smile and replaced it with the expression of a proud knight. Koutarou kneeled before Theia and placed his right hand on his chest.
“As you wish, princess Theiamillis.”
That was as long as Theia was able to keep herself from crying.
Part 7
Koutarou wasn't the only one who wanted to help Theia. All of the girls on the bridge of the Hazy Moon intended to do so.
“You're an idiot from time to time, Theia. There's no way we'd say no.”
“Yeah. Everyone loves you two.”
“Eventually, I will need everyone's help for my fight as well. If you hold back here, I'll have to hold back when it's my turn too.”
“Theiamillis-san is my precious friend. Also, an important scenario writer.”
“Theia-chan and Ruth-san are my tenants. So your enemy is my enemy.”
“I just became friends with you, Theia-san, but I know friends help each other out. Besides, Satomi-kun is getting all fired up... I don't need any more reason other than that.”
“I really don't like coup d'états. If they have a problem, then why don’t they just say so.”
“... Didn't you first come here to assassinate Theia?”
“It's about time you forget about that, Koutarou!”
Koutarou and the others naturally felt that they should help their friend in need. Besides, they had saved each other’s lives more than once or twice. There was no reason for them to refuse this time.
“...Thank you... for doing so much for us...”
“Thank you very much, everyone. I will never forget this day...”
Theia and Ruth said their thanks with their eyes full of tears.
Since they had escaped in a hurry, they didn't have anything that they could use as rewards. But even then, Koutarou and the others hadn't so much as hesitated to offer to help.
That made them incredibly happy, so they simply continued saying their thanks. They had no other way of showing their gratitude and joy.
Part 8
Once some time had passed and everyone had calmed down, Koutarou returned to their original topic.
“So Theia, what will you do now?”
“...T-That's right. Wait a moment.”
Having been asked by Koutarou, Theia wiped her tears away and slapped her cheeks a few times to psyche herself up. As she did, a strong will returned to Theia's expression. Apart from a slight blush when she looked at Koutarou, she looked like her normal self again.
“For starters, I want to gather information. While few, I do have allies on Forthorthe. After obtaining information from them, we'll wait for a chance.”
“We won't be able to do anything even if we go to Forthorthe without information, huh.”
“Precisely.”
Theia nodded and continued.
“At the same time, we have to protect ourselves. The coup d'état army will eventually launch some kind of attack on me and mother. Of course, we can't let them. We'll most likely have to defeat all the enemies they'll continuously send at us.”
The coup d'état army would eventually change their policy to silence Theia and her mother, either by capturing them or murdering them. In order to do that, they would need to frame them for something beforehand. At which point they could kill them by claiming that Theia and her mother resisted during their arrest.
“Which means that the current problem will be the strength of the enemies they send and their numbers.”
Having heard Theia's explanation, Kiriha listed the problems.
Theia's side was still lacking in information in order for them to make a move, that's why defending themselves until they could gather everything they needed was the number one priority. And if that was the case, they'd need to predict the enemy's numbers and strength and prepare for them. If they made a mistake here, they would pay for it dearly.
“What do you think?”
“In order for them to operate in Japan, there will have to be an upper limit for the number of soldiers. At most, it would be around 50 men.”
50 soldiers were what Kiriha and the People of the Earth had used for their simulations of a surface invasion. Having more soldiers would of course make the force more formidable, but they would stand out even more. Capturing or assassinating Theia and Elfaria was a mission that needed to be done in secret, so sending more than 50 men was unreasonable.
“What about in space?”
“A space battle is hard to imagine. Even with Forthorthe's technology, it must be hard to fight without being observed from Earth, right?”
“Clan, how about it?”
“Let's see... With my Hazy Moon's stealth capabilities, a battle in orbit might be possible, but it's not very realistic. And I find it hard to believe that the Blue Knight could win in that state...”
Not wanting to be found applied to space battles as well. Since there were even less places to hide in space, any battle would stand out. In order to avoid being found, they would need to fight far away from Earth or make use of ships with stealth capabilities like Clan's. But equipping ships with stealth would sap away combat potential. The same should be true for the coup d'état army, and a lone stealth ship probably wouldn't be able to beat Theia's Blue Knight. Of course, it might be possible in greater numbers, but it would be difficult to coordinate them in battle, making it unrealistic.
“Which means that the Blue Knight won't be getting attacked even if we leave it in orbit like this.”
Normally, the Blue Knight orbited Earth, pretending to be an asteroid. Finding it would be hard, and even if they did, since it was so close to Earth, they wouldn't be able to do anything. As long as the Blue Knight didn't move, there would be no fear of attacks.
“Can I ask something?”
That was when Shizuka raised her hand.
“What?”
“If the Blue Knight won't be targeted, why don't you two hide in it?”
“That's not a bad choice, but it would be bad if my mother and I were in the same place. And if we cut off our link to Earth, we'll eventually starve to death. We most likely won't be able to avoid an attack on the ground.”
Considering the worst case scenario, it would be bad for Theia and Elfaria to be in the same place. They had to hide in different places to prevent the possibility of both of them being captured or killed at the same time.
On top of that, the Blue Knight didn't have an unlimited amount of supplies. They had to resupply from the ground at regular intervals. But if the coup d'état army locked down the ground, they would be unable to do so. Without supplies, it would be impossible to hide themselves.
It was because of these two reasons that a battle on Earth was inevitable.
“That's true, I'm against being sieged as well.”
There was one more reason why Koutarou was against being sieged.
“...If that guy's on Earth, there's no guarantee that the Blue Knight won't be found in orbit.”
“That guy? Who do you mean?”
“DKI's Elexis. He's back on Earth.”
“Satomi-sama, are you sure?!”
The moment Elexis's name popped up, Ruth's face turned pale, and for a good reason. He was her past fiancé and the CEO of Dragon Knight Industries, a conglomerate working with the military.
“Yeah, I'm sure of it.”
Koutarou nodded.
Koutarou was sure that Elexis was on Earth. He only had one reason to suspect that, and that was the contents of the container a little while ago.
In the past, when Koutarou had fought Elexis, Koutarou's clothes had been torn to pieces by a missile's explosion. Back then, Elexis had said that he would give Koutarou one of his old suits.
The container from before had a suit in it, and Koutarou just knew it was from Elexis.
“Since he's here, those unidentified ships should be new models from DKI. Who knows what kind of equipment it has...”
Elexis's enterprise, DKI, had a lot of technologies they developed themselves. And when Koutarou had fought Elexis in the past, he had used all kinds of technology. While they had fortunately managed to fend him off, DKI's power couldn't be underestimated. They might have a means to find the Blue Knight.
Or, that suit might be it... I might be playing into his hand, but we can't just leave Theia and Ruth in space...
Koutarou was suspecting that the “equipment” in question was the suit. By delivering the promised suit, Elexis revealed DKI's involvement and implanted the suspicion that he might find them even if they hide. That's what Koutarou thought.
But even with that in his mind, Koutarou suspected that hiding in space had a very high risk. Having your supply route cut off would be bad. Even though it might be a trap, they couldn't avoid intercepting the enemy forces on the ground.
“We'll have to include that into our plans as well.”
Kiriha came to the same conclusion as Koutarou. Her expression was severe.
“Can I trust you with that, Kiriha?”
“It's a bit difficult for me to approach, but... I'll give it a shot.”
In this situation, the attacking side had an overwhelming advantage. It was very difficult for the defending side to prepare for all kinds of possible attacks. It was a challenging task, even for the intelligent Kiriha.
“Your highness, the passage is almost fully stabilized.”
With the explanation over for now, Ruth pulled up a hologram of some kind of data and showed it to Theia.
“Hm, very well. Contact the other side.”
“Yes.”
After giving Ruth instructions, Theia turned towards Koutarou and the others.
“Actually, there is a person I would like to introduce to all of you.”
“Introduce?”
When it came to Theia introducing someone, there couldn't be that many. And there was one person who had been mentioned a few times already that wasn't here.
“My mother, Elfaria.”
At the same time Theia spoke her name, a beautiful woman appeared behind her. With the instability from the warp out diffused, a gate connecting the Blue Knight and the Hazy Moon had been opened, and that woman had travelled through it.
“...Nice to meet you, ladies and gentlemen.”
That woman was the 120th empress of the Holy Forthorthe Galactic Empire, Elfaria Dana Forthorthe.
Elfaria had fled with nothing but the clothes on her back, so she was wearing clothes and accessories more toned down than normal. But even then, what she was wearing looked exceptionally luxurious. Her well-tailored dress made from expensive looking textiles made that obvious. She had a brilliant golden hair like Theia had, and a hair ornament covered with jewels. She also had on pure-white shoes, lined with gold and jewels. Amongst countless other things. Elfaria had an appearance fitting for an empress of an empire in control of many worlds.
“My daughter is always in your care, I'm Theia's mother, Elfaria. It is nice to meet you.”
But she was a very open hearted person. Befitting of a pacifist, she spoke with a gentle smile.
“...Y-You could buy three mansions using what she is wearing...”
“Yurika, keep it together!! She might be ridiculously rich, but she seems like a nice person!!”
“Haah... so this is the empress of a country that's been around for over 2,000 years...”
“So that's Theia's mother... I'm glad to see she is healthy.”
“Will Clan-san and Theia-san turn out like that too eventually?”
“That's my plan. In order to become the next empress, I'd have to at the very least be on equal grounds with her majesty.”
“...The next empress huh... I'll make sure to absorb all of this, and make use of it in the next play...”
The girls instinctively held their breath when they saw Elfaria's beauty. It wasn't just her clothes, but Elfaria herself was just as beautiful. She had the attractiveness of an adult, and a youthful look that made it hard to believe she was a mother. Thanks to that, the clothes she was wearing didn't look gaudy. In fact, they served to amplify her beauty. The empress Elfaria was the kind of person that looked picturesque just by standing still.
“...She sure is making herself look young.”
Amongst the many overwhelmed by Elfaria, only one remained normal. That person was sending a frosty glance towards Elfaria and easily cast her beauty aside.
“She should be in her late thirties.... yet she looks like a young girl...”
Those cold words in front of the empress of Forthorthe came from the only man on the bridge, Koutarou.
“Ah?!”
Hearing those disrespectful words, Elfaria noticed Koutarou's existence. She had definitely not heard any praise, yet she smiled brightly. Like a young girl, her eyes sparkled and she ran up to Koutarou.
“Long time no see, Reio―”
“Aaaaaahhhh!!”
Noticing what Elfaria was about to say before anyone else, Koutarou hurriedly caught her and blocked her mouth. He then wrapped his arm around her neck, forcibly drew her closer to him and whispered into her ear.
“Elle, if you say any more than that, I'll punch you, even if you are the empress.”
“Hmmh, Mhhm.”
Sensing that Koutarou was serious, Elfaria frantically nodded her head. After that Koutarou let go of her, but Elfaria didn't move right away, and instead whispered into his ear.
“...Reios-sama, you still haven't told Theia the truth, even in this situation?”
“..How could I tell her? Do you want to expose Theia to danger?”
“...I don't think there's anything more dangerous than a coup d'état though...”
A sudden shout, rude behavior, and an empress that allowed it. On top of that, they were secretly talking about something. Koutarou and Elfaria's strange behavior astonished most of the girls on the bridge. Theia represented the girls and posed a question to Koutarou.
“Koutarou, have you spoken to mother before?”
As far as Theia knew, Koutarou and Elfaria had never met before. Theia had mentioned Koutarou to Elfaria in the past a few times, though those had only been small talk. But the two of them most certainly didn't look like this was their first time meeting. That's why Theia believed that Koutarou had somehow managed to contact Elfaria after she had given him full access to the Blue Knight's systems.
“N-No, it was my misunderstanding. She just happened to look like someone I know. Right, Elle?”
“Elle?”
Theia tilted her head at that strangely intimate nickname. Having realized his own mistake, Koutarou hurried to correct himself.
“Uhm, I mean... your majesty, Elfaria.”
“That's right Theia. This is my first time meeting Reios-sama―”
A thud could be heard.
“You're doing that on purpose, aren't you, your majesty?!”
“Owowow... that's not true, this is our first time meeting after all.”
“Hmm??”
But every time Koutarou was about to convince Theia, Elfaria mixed things up. It would take a little while longer until Koutarou could convince Theia.
Part 9
Seeing how Koutarou and Elfaria were behaving, Ruth came up with a certain theory.
“...Could this be...”
That theory was that Koutarou and Elfaria had met in the past when Koutarou was returning home from Forthorthe.
Using that theory as her premise, there were a lot of things that started to stick out. And a prime example of that was the Blue Knight's maneuver suit, Koutarou's blue armor.
When Koutarou first put on the suit, it matched his physique perfectly, and there was no need for any minor adjustments whatsoever. At first, Ruth had only thought of that as pure chance, but when she thought about it now, it was strange.
As an archaeologist, Elfaria was supposed to have reproduced that armor based on descriptions in ancient documents. It was easy to think that Elfaria had redesigned the armor based off of Koutarou's measurements in the past Forthorthe, but that wasn't the case.
A few months had passed between Koutarou first putting on the armor and him being sent to the past Forthorthe. It was hard to believe that Koutarou, who was in the middle of his growth spurt, hadn't changed a bit. Just height wise, there should be a few centimeters difference. So if Elfaria really had based her measurements off of an old document, the armor should have had made some adjustments, but it hadn't.
Apart from it being pure chance, Ruth only had one other possibility in mind: Elfaria could have met with Koutarou before starting her work on the armor, and obtained the initial data at the time. That was the only way for her to know what measurements Koutarou would have when he first wore the armor.
“...At this rate, it might not have been a coincidence that her highness's trial was to invade Satomi-sama's room...”
Elfaria was a famed archaeologist, but at the same time she was a specialist when it came to computers. That was because being an archaeologist in this age in Forthorthe required extensive knowledge of ancient computers.
And it was because of that that Elfaria might have made some alterations to make Theia's trial an invasion of Koutarou's room. All she had to do was hack the computer before it decided on the contents of Theia's trial after all. And Elfaria had a strong motive to do so as well.
Elfaria, who had a lot of enemies, would want to put her daughter, Theia, somewhere safe before making any major political moves, like proclaiming disarmament. And if asked where the safest place would be, citizens of Forthorthe would surely reply as such:
Next to the Blue Knight, Reios Fatra Bertorion.
We might have been moving all according to her majesty's plans all along...
Ruth started to suspect that everything was according to Elfaria's plan. Raising Theia as a Blue Knight fan and choosing Ruth as her guard. It might all have been to protect Theia, or to have her meet with Koutarou.
Part 10
Once Elfaria had introduced herself, Koutarou and the others started their own introductions. The introductions took place one at a time in private in parallel to a strategy meeting. And since there were eight people that hadn't meet Elfaria before, it took nearly an hour before it was Clan's turn as the last one.
“It's been awhile, Clan-san.”
“I see you haven't changed at all, your majesty.”
“I'm glad we could meet again.”
As Elfaria said that, her expression changed a little, into the expression of someone meeting an old friend.
“Truth be told, I've always been watching over you until today.”
“Me?”
Clan put her hand on her chest. Her eyes behind her glasses showed surprise.
“Yes. I watched over as you matured, and started looking like you did in my memories, eagerly awaiting for you to become the person I know.”
“Then, when I left for Earth...”
“I danced for joy, thinking that the time had finally come.”
“You weren't worried for Theiamillis-san?”
“Why would I? I already knew the results, and besides, Reios-sama was with her.”
Elfaria and Clan both turned to look at Koutarou.
He was in the middle of a serious looking discussion with Theia and Kiriha. That wasn't the face of the boy Satomi Koutarou, but the legendary hero, the Blue Knight. It was the face that Clan had monopolized until today.
“In fact, I'm more worried now.”
“That's true. We're currently in a very severe situation and―”
“No, no, I'm not worried about that.”
Clan thought that Elfaria's worry was the coup d'état. However, she smiled and shook her head. She wasn't worried about that.
“Whatever happens with the coup d'état happens. And if I am defeated whilst walking alongside the Blue Knight, then so be it. As long as I do my best for everyone's sake, I won't have any regrets.”
“Then what are you worried about?”
“That girl. Harumi...”
“Harumi?”
It turns out that Elfaria was worried about the girl behind Koutarou listening in on the strategy meeting, Sakuraba Harumi. But Harumi didn't look like a threat to Clan. She couldn't understand what Elfaria worried about.
“She looks just like the silver princess. It's like she is her reincarnation.”
“Surely that can't be... She might be able to control Signaltin in this age, and has Alaia's memories... but Harumi is herself, she's a different person than Alaia-san.”
“'If I had met you first... if... I had asked you first... what would you do, Koutarou-sama?'”
“Eh?”
“They're the words of the Silver Princess trying to stop Reios-sama. I found those words in history of the translation device, in the armor's data that you gave me in the past.”
20 years ago, Elfaria had asked Clan for the data from Koutarou's armor. Since the data had direct recordings of important history in Forthorthe, it was something she would love to get her hands on.
“That's what the Silver Princess told Reios-sama, and Harumi met him before anyone else, and now she is serving as the Silver Princess's replacement. There's nothing I'm more worried about than this.”
Elfaria smiled wryly. If that wasn't by pure chance, then what did it mean? To Elfaria who wished for her daughter's happiness, there was nothing that worried her more than that.
“...Fate might not be on Theia's side.”
“There's no need to worry. Your majesty.”
However, Clan wasn't worried like Elfaria was. This time it was Clan's turn to smile.
“Even if your worry comes true, Bertorion isn't as simple of a man to only accept just Harumi.”
“You sound confident, Clan-san.”
“I guess you could call it a woman's intuition.”
“Well that's a problem. It seems I've found another reason to worry.”
“I won't back down easily.”
“My, fufu... Still, it feels very strange to hear you speaking of a woman's intuition.”
“Even if you're the empress, I won't forgive that kind of rudeness... I'm aware of it myself too though, fufu.”
“Fufufufu... Allow me to formally apologize, princess Clariossa.”
Before long, the two were laughing together. Their first meeting in 20 years proceeded peacefully. But something served to break that peacefulness,
and it was Clan's bracelet that was vibrating.
“Oh?”
“What's the matter?”
“Uhm... it's a message from my family. What could it be?”
Clan operated a nearby terminal and brought up the message.
“This is...?”
And once she read the contents of it, the peaceful atmosphere around Clan vanished in an instant.
The message Clan had received was actually a demand from the military sent through her family. The military wanted Clan and the Hazy Moon to retreat.
The military didn't know about Clan's change of heart or her growth, so they still thought she was after Theia. In other words, that she was an ally, and they didn't want her involved in this. There was also the chance that Theia might use Clan by sending an emergency rescue signal again. And in order to avoid that, they wanted Clan to fall back.
Looking at the laws, it was only obvious that Clan would rescue the Blue Knight a little while ago. After receiving an emergency rescue signal, obeying the law, Clan would practically be forced to side with Theia upon seeing the Blue Knight being attacked by unidentified ships. And because the three unidentified ships knew that, they left without fighting against Clan.
The military didn't want to take a stance against the Schweiger family that they had a deep connection with. But as long as Clan was in the area around Earth, it was only obvious she'd be used by Theia again. That's why they sent a message through the Schweiger family to have Clan fall back.
Part 11
Immediately after receiving that message, Clan consulted with Koutarou and the others. Clan was now Koutarou and Theia's ally, and she had also been friends with Elfaria for 20 years. She wasn't cruel enough to retreat without consulting with those close to her.
“...This is bad. Having me retreat is proof that the attack is near. We should also assume that they're planning to attack in space.”
“Clan, retreat to a safe area.”
“No!”
Koutarou recommended retreating, but Clan shook her head.
“Are you telling me to obey the coup d'état army?! That's not a funny joke!! I might still be immature, but I am a proud member of the Forthorthe royalty!!”
Having grown, Clan couldn't accept the coup d'état's cowardly way of doing things. She was planning on standing with Theia and Elfaria and fight.
“Please, Clan. Take the civilians with you and retreat.”
However, Theia's words lowered Clan's resistance.
“Civilians?”
“That's right. The people that helped me and my mother to escape are on the Blue Knight. We can't fight with them still onboard. Please protect them on your Hazy Moon, just in case.”
“That's...”
Clan started to hesitate.
Theia had considered her ways of fighting, and that included all-out attacks. But she was hesitant to do so with people she was indebted to onboard. Evacuating the Blue Knight would be easy with just Theia and Ruth, but with so many civilians onboard, it wouldn't be. That would limit that kinds of attacks they could do.
“I want you to do so too, Clan. If they are in danger, it will be your job to escape with Theia and her majesty. Until then, I want you to keep away and hide.”
Because the Hazy Moon had such excellent stealth capabilities, Clan wouldn't have to fall back far in order to keep herself from being detected by the coup d'état army. That would allow the Hazy Moon to remain unharmed until it was needed.
“...I... understand...”
While mortified, Clan eventually obeyed Koutarou. She knew it had to be done. But simply watching as the empress and Blue Knight headed into battle was frustrating.
Fate might not be on my side either...
Clan was reminded of what Elfaria had said just a moment ago. She started thinking of herself as a side character seeing the main characters off before the climax.
Part 12
The coup d'état army chasing after Theia and Elfaria were using newly built ships, and it was unknown whose side they were on. Which meant that they were operating as a fleet that shouldn't have existed. That was why they couldn't contact Clan directly and had to communicate with her through HQ. Because of that, there was a large time lag between communications, and any detailed discussion was difficult.
“Elexis-sama, we have gotten a reply from the Schweiger family.”
“And the results?”
“It seems princess Clariossa will retreat. But if we attack shortly after she retreats, she will be suspected, so she wants some time.”
“How many days?”
“Three.”
“Hmm... It was pretty sudden, and the top brass didn't give her highness any information. So three days sounds about right.”
Having received a report on Clan, Elexis leaned on his chair, deep in thought. This was the bridge of the carrier, and Elexis was sitting in the commander's seat.
Like Koutarou had suspected, the three ships were under Elexis's command. DKI had secretly produced a fleet of ships, and the Melcemheim band of knights, which Elexis had a deep bond thanks to one of his distant relatives who was the captain of this carrier, was controlling them. Everyone with the rank of captain and above were from the Melcemheim family, with Elexis taking command.
“That's cutting it close to our time limit.”
“But we made it. Either way, we'd only have time for one attack. So there's no need to worry for some minor loss of time. We can just think of it as valuing our relationship with the Schweiger family.”
The military was chasing after Theia and Elfaria in a highly illegal way through Elexis, and DKI's manpower and equipment, but there was a restriction on how much time they could spend. If they took too long, they wouldn't be able to cover it all up.
After that, they would need to chase them legally, but before that, they would need to frame Theia and Elfaria for a crime. Of course, the empress and princess wouldn't do anything illegal, so it would take a lot of effort to frame them. And while they made their preparations, they couldn't touch the two.
Which meant that there wasn't much time to attack Theia and Elfaria before a long break would be forced on the attacks. Since Clan would retreat before the time was up, Elexis didn't think much of it. He believed he would only have one chance to attack either way, so it had no effect on his plan.
“In fact, I'm more worried about him.”
“Him?”
At first, the captain didn't understand who Elexis was referring to and gave him a puzzled look.
“You don't know?”
“...Ah, the man you sent a suit to?”
Elexis's expression at the time was the same as when he had packed his suit into the container and launched it. Thanks to that, the captain was quickly able to pick up on who Elexis meant.
“That's right... You could say that everything hinges on whether or not we can beat that extraordinary boy, Koutarou-kun.”
“Can we win?”
“We will. I've made preparations for just that reason.”
Elexis was smiling. Tension could be seen in his expression, but he showed a trace of confidence and joy. To the captain, it looked like Elexis was about to play a game with a good friend.
“...You look like you're having fun, Elexis-sama.”
“Oh it's fun. This might sound imprudent, but I'm having a blast.”
“I don't have the composure to laugh. This is an event that will decide the future of Forthorthe.”
“I'm not worried for Forthorthe's future in the slightest. Because no matter who reigns after her majesty, Elfaria, their political views will be closer to my ideals.”
“Even if that's princess Theiamillis?”
“That's what I believe.”
Elexis didn't think it was possible for any future rulers to manage their politics without making use of the coup d'état that happened during Elfaria's reign. And by taking advantage of that, it would be easy for DKI to raise their profits. Likewise, it would be easy to make the world a better place, as was Elexis's personal desire. Just by having the coup d'état occur was enough to accomplish many of Elexis's goals.
“Besides, I am confident I can survive no matter what way the world turns out.”
“There won't be any losses for you, and you're confident you can survive no matter what happens. And that's why it's him?”
“Yes. Not even my most desperate efforts might be enough. I've never met an opponent like that before. Can’t you tell? I'm going all out for the first time in my life.”
Before he met Koutarou, Elexis had always been the victor. He could repel all of his enemies without even getting serious. Because of that, he felt like life wasn't offering much of a challenge. Part of why he had worked together with the military to change the world was because he wanted a challenge. That was also why he was present on site. Normally, there would be no need for the CEO of DKI to be on the frontlines.
And that was when he had met him. Koutarou had powers which surpassed his knowledge, and confidence unfitting for someone his age. Elexis's couldn't even imagine what Koutarou had experienced to turn him into what he was. And because of that, he couldn't help but leap for joy. Even more, he was happy that he had lost. He felt immense joy having found an opponent that required him to push himself to the limit.
“You make it sound like you don't even mind if you lose.”
“Oh that wasn't my intention. Though I might not look like it, but I hate losing. Well, if I do lose, my enjoyment will be prolonged.”
“Then I will put my hopes on your hate on losing.”
“Don't worry. That side of me is hardcore.”
Elexis and the captain smiled. Partly because they were related, partly because Elexis and the Melcemheim band of knights were strong, but most of all, because they trusted one another.
