Baka-Tsuki - User contributions [en]

Tate no Yuusha no Nariagari: Recommended Read

2014-09-09T13:02:35Z

EcoJakk:

==Defferences between Light Novel version and Web Novel version==
===Volume 1===
*Light Novel
**Chapter 16 - Twin Headed Black Dog - Houses Illustration #6
**Chapter 17 - Preparation for the Wave
**Chapter 18 - The Barbarian's Armor
**Chapter 19 - Engraved Dragon Hourglass
**Chapter 20 - Sword
**Side Story - The Reformation of the Spear Hero
**Side Story - Flag on Kid's Lunch (not the same content as the WN's)
*Web Novel
**Doesn't have a chapter for illustration # 6
**Chapter 16 - Preparations for the Wave
**Chapter 17 - The Barbarian's Armor
**Chapter 18 - Engraved Dragon Hourglass
**Chapter 19 - Memory/Black Beast
**No Side Stories

===Volume 2===
*N/A at the moment

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Return to [[Tate_no_Yuusha_no_Nariagari|Main Page]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

User:EcoJakk

2014-06-20T14:20:05Z

EcoJakk: Created page with "."

Shinmai Maou no Keiyakusha:Volume 2 Chapter 2

2014-03-16T05:40:13Z

EcoJakk:

==Holding heightening Feelings==

===Part 1===

Eating delicious Yakiniku with Takigawa and the school nurse Hasegawa.

Then made to play an erotic game by Maria, which Mio got wind of and fiercely scolded them for it. Now the next day.

At the Hijirigasaka Academy during lunch break, Toujou Basara was surrounded.

It took place at the deserted backside of the school building with the inner courtyard. With his back to the wall, more than ten male students stood so that he couldn’t escape. Since Takigawa was absent from school today, Basara had headed for the school store alone at lunch break, where he was intercepted with “You’re Toujou, right?” in the hallway, like a detective found his suspect. Before he could even nod, both his arms were grabbed and he was dragged away. Well, Basara himself wanted to confirm something, so he didn’t mind that, but

“Uhm… Do you need something from me?”

Since they were his seniors, Basara asked with a polite tone.

''…So I say, but,''

He could mostly guess why it came to this. Naruse Mio, his little stepsister, and Nonaka Yuki, his childhood friend. Both his classmates as well, they were something like idols in the school, respectively called “Princess Mio” and “Princess Yuki”. Since Basara only transferred here recently, he didn’t know much about the affairs at school, but according to Takigawa, they even had some passionate fans. And,

“It seems you’re living together with Princess Mio… I hope you’re not doing anything funny to her?”

“We heard our Princess Yuki hugged you, but are you really just childhood friends?”

Two guys, apparently each the leader of the Mio and Yuki factions, asked him that. These words were surely based on the fact that they considered Mio and Yuki to be theirs.

''…Still, such guys were really around, huh.''

The lively type, the serious type, the rustic type and the slightly frivolous type. There truly was a rich variation amongst Mio and Yuki’s fans. But right now these guys were one at heart. The looks filled with hostility aimed at him told him, that hard and fast.

That said, these eyes weren’t of someone, who was manipulated or lost one’s sanity.

''…A man’s jealousy wasn’t to be underestimated, but this should work out.''

Extreme emotions gave openings that were easily exploited. Basara had once checked out what kind of guys were Mio and Yuki’s fans, since it was thinkable that they were manipulated by the enemy devils that were after Mio, and at least the guys in front of him weren’t a problem.

---Well, considering Mio’s future, it would be safer to dissolve these groups.

And--- Basara, even in his current state, could overwhelm this number of ordinary guys.

Basara confirmed the position and breathing of the male students in front of him and simulated their action in his mind.

He would knock out the nearest guy by stepping one step forward and ram his palm into his chin, then he would make the dumbfounded guys on the right and left faint with a strike to the abdomen. During the opening due to the other flinching, he would move forward, where he would make use of the charge from the opponent, who finally started moving, on the very right and throw him to the left. There he would collapse into two others. Closing the distance to the remaining five at once with a top speed, he would use the knee of the stiffed up guy in front of him for a jump. Extending his jump by kicking the back of the guy’s head with his sole of the foot, he would land behind the two leaders, who stood at the farthest back, and knock them out with a strike of the side of the hands to their necks. Seeing their leaders collapse onto the ground, the last two guys would lose their will to fight. With a light threat then, he could make them give up on Mio and Yuki. But,

''…That’s certainly going too far.''

Basara was no longer a Hero that prioritized his mission over anything else. He had decided to protect Mio, but only as a family. And above all, Basara had no right to deny the love of these guys in front of him. No guy beside Takigawa would really talk to him, even under normal circumstances. If he were to make a wrong choice here, it wouldn’t be as bad as in the game he played with Maria last night, but it would worsen his isolation and give his high school life that had only just started a BAD END, giving him the secret slogan “Forever Alone”. Thus, staying docile without running away would be for the better.
Knowing the attitude he was supposed to take, Basara stayed silent, whereupon

“Hey, say something…!”

As expected, one guy, losing his temper, tried to grab Basara.

“Mh? What are you guys doing there?”

Suddenly a voice came from above. On a look, there was one male teacher looking down from the passage on the second floor.

It was Sakasaki Mamoru, the homeroom teacher of Basara’s class. Seeing him, the male students

“Tch… We ain’t doing anything.”

saying so with a click of their tongue, then leaving together, leaving Basara behind. Apparently they would let him off the hook this time. Sakasaki watched after them, then

“Geez, Naruse and Nonaka’s fan sure are out to get you, Toujo.”

“Yeah, well… Guess so.”

Basara looked up to Sakasaki after giving an agreeable response.

“But you saved me, Sensei. Thank you.”
“I didn’t do anything. Actually I should have given them a proper warning, but I wouldn’t want your situation to get any worse because of it.”

said Sakasaki with a wry smile.

“But if they do something to you… no, if it seems they’ll do something to you, then tell me right away.”

“…Yes. Thank you.”

When Basara replied with a nod, Sakasaki said “See you” and disappeared into the passage.

“Now then… I gotta hurry to the store.”

He didn’t really want to attend the afternoon classes without having had lunch. He headed there in hope that something wasn’t sold out yet.

“---Basara.”

A calm voice called him to a halt. The girl appearing from the shadows of the tree in the inner courtyard was

“Yuki… I see. You called the teacher.”

“Mm, because I thought it would be better than coming out myself.”

Yuki nodded. Indeed, some of them were fans of Yuki. Before making things more complicated by having Yuki carelessly cover for Basara, it was better to have Sakasaki, a third party, to intervene.

“Thanks for the help… What’s up?”

His childhood friend stared at him silently, whereas Basara asked.

“…Actually, I have a favour to ask, so I looked for you.”

“A favour? Why so formally…”

“I want you to accompany me somewhere on the coming weekend… Are you busy then, Basara?”

“No… I have nothing planned.”

Upon that, Yuki said “I’m glad” and grabbed the sleeve of his uniform tightly.

Then Yuki said with a quiet, yet clear tone.

“It’s a date then, Basara--- with just the two of us.”

===Part 2===

And now it was Saturday morning.

Leaving the house, Basara headed for the meeting place with Yuki under the sky with the perfect weather for a date.

The arranged time was 10 o’clock in front of the station. He arrived ten minutes early, but Yuki was already there.

“Morning, Basara.”

Since it was a holiday, Yuki wore casual clothes. He had only seen her in her school uniform so far, so the casual clothes gave Yuki fresh novelty. That said, her personality was showing in the choice of her clothes. The plain arrangement, including a slightly dark cardigan, embodied Yuki’s docile personality.

---However, Yuki’s clear complexion wasn’t something that could be subdued by plain clothes. In fact, a lot of the passing by people were inadvertently captivated by Yuki for a while now. Amongst them, some even stopped. Basara felt a slightly bit superior.

“Morning, Yuki… I thought I would be the first here, but I guess I made you wait?”

“No. I only arrived here shortly before too.”

Yuki shook her head to the sides.

“Shortly before--- Since when?” “…One hour ago.” “Eh… that early?”

Man, that was too early. So much that he was no longer happy about her waiting for him, but felt guilty instead.

“At least give me a call. I would’ve come earlier too then.”

“It’s fine. I wanted to wait for you.”

“Well, okay, if you’re fine with it… But Yuki, call me next time when you’re too early. Because I don’t really want to make people wait for me.”

“Next time…”

Mumbling a repeat like parrot, Yuki brightened up her expression a bit.

“…Okay. Will do so next time.” “Yeah, please do. Okay, let’s go then.”

Saying so, Yuki and Basara started walking towards the ticket gate of the station. Their destination was the shopping district downtown.

Because it was a holiday, the platform was crowded with people, who wanted to go downtown like them, after they passed through the ticket gates. They lined up in a relative short line and the train entered the station soon enough.

However, the train was already packed and when Basara and Yuki boarded the train, the passenger count naturally increased. All seats were occupied and there were no free handrails or straps either, but Basara somehow managed to get to the door that connected two wagons together with Yuki.

Yuki leaned her back against the door and Basara somehow got into a posture of standing shielding in front of her. Even so the available space within the wagon was limited, which made their bodies get into direct contact if they wanted or not.

''…Ugh, this is…''

A lucky--- no, quite the unfavourable posture. A part of his true feelings were showing through.

But he couldn’t help but feel the warmth and softness of Yuki’s body and her sweet fragrance.

“Ehm… Are you okay, Yuki?”

Because the train started moving, Basara asked while turning a bit red.

“I’m fine. And you…?” “Me as we---ll!?”

On the clattering shaking of the train, the crowd leaning onto Basara’s back pushed him forward.

“Ah…” “S- Sorry!”

Yuki turned red along with a short voice, whereas Basara hastily apologized. They were in direct contact anyhow, yet they got into an even more unbelievable posture now. His right leg--- more precisely, it’s knee had gone between Yuki thighs, spreading them out.

And speaking of thighs, it was perfectly under Yuki’s skirt. Actually,

''…Uwah, is this…''

The soft sensation that pinched his knee from the left and right were surely Yuki’s inner thighs.

If so, then the soft sensation on his thigh was

“Mm… Basara, your leg… is touching…” “S- Sorry…!”

An outrageous “It’s touching” situation. Every time the train shook lightly, Yuki released a nasal “Mm” voice and lightly trembled her body with a shiver.

It was an disturbance beyond awkward.

Basara tried to somehow pulled his leg back, but since someone was behind him, leaving no space, it was pushed forward right away again. Not giving up, he repeated that procedure numerous times, whereupon Yuki tightly clung to his chest. While flushing her cheeks embarrassed, she had shifted her gaze downwards.

“B- Basara… all your movements… have been rubbing against it.”

The words were declared with a frail voice. Understanding the meaning behind them, Basara’s heartbeat accelerated at once.

“---S- Sorry! That wasn’t what I… Wh- What should I do?”

“Just stay still… Mm, then I think… it’ll be fine.”

“O- Okay--- Anything else I can do?”

“…Put your arms… around my back… and hold me for a bit.”

“---Eh? Wh- Why…?”

“Because my body is being pressed against the door… It’s a bit painful.”

Ah, right. Then he had no choice. He had no choice in this case… hadn’t he.

“O- Okay, excuse me then…”

Like Yuki asked him to, Basara entwined his arms around her back and hugged her.

Upon that, there opened a small gap between Yuki’s back and the door.

“A- And?” “Mm… A bit better.”

On these words, Basara made a sigh of relief, but his heartbeat didn’t calm down.

Yuki’s body was warm, soft and gave off a sweet fragrance--- ''And above all'':

Toujou Basara’s right leg was still between Nonaka Yuki’s thighs.

There were people spying on Basara and Yuki from the next wagon.

Right after Basara had left the house, two people had followed him secretly--- Mio and Maria.

“Hugging each other in the train, these two are already acting like a stupid couple.”

“……………”

“What do we do, Mio-sama? For now we should keep--- Mio-sama?”

“……………”

“Mio-sa--- Oww!? Ouch. Mio-sama, that is not the handrail, but my wrist. My wrist, you hear!?”

“H- Hoho. He said he would go out with Nonaka, but he’s doing that inside the train.”

While cladding herself with composure as much as possible, Mio clenched her right hand as much as possible.

“Hiii. Please calm down, Mio-sama! At this rate my wrist will break!”

Maria cornered voice didn’t reach Mio’s ears.

After all, on the other side beyond two doors, Basara was embracing Yuki.

---Basara told her that he would go out with Yuki at dinner last night.

When he asked “May I?”, she couldn’t say no. Sure, Mio and Basara were family and he promised to protect her. And they even formed a Master and Servant Contract, albeit in a different way than intended. However, Mio didn’t have the right to restrain Basara 24/7 just because of that. But,

''…I, I have the right to worry.''

It wasn’t like she was planning to interrupt Basara and Yuki’s date. A lot had happened between Yuki and Mio due to their positions, but through the battles on the rooftop and the park with the white mask, they came to understand each other a little bit.

However, Yuki was too assertive on the weirdest things. Like suddenly hugging Basara on their reunion or coming into their house in the morning and storming into the bath with Basara in it. It wasn’t unthinkable that she would do even more unbelievable actions if she were to be all alone with him.

So her tailing was a justified pursuit. The other day, the curse activated from her jealousy when she thought about Basara being all alone with Yuki, but now there was no problem--- In other words,

“Yes… There’s no doubt. I’m not jealous… or anything.”

“Yes, I understand! You are only worried about Basara-san! So, Mio-sama, please relax your grip a bit, okay? My left hand is becoming congested and is turning purple, you know!?”

Mio said mumbling, whereas Maria pleaded with teary eyes. However, the train stopped at a certain station.

“Ah, they’re getting off! Like I thought, they’re changing trains here. We’re going, Maria!”

Chasing after Basara and Yuki, Mio got off the train as well. She tightly grabbed Maria’s left hand as not to get separated, whereupon she could hear a short “HGG!!?” shriek from Maria along with a “Crack” noise due to it, but she paid it no mind. With the Master and Servant Contract, she could localize Basara if she wanted, but it wouldn’t tell her what he was doing at a different place.

For now, she couldn’t afford to take her eyes off Basara and Yuki for even a moment.

===Part 3===

Transferring once, the train arrived at the destination’s station after the scheduled forty minutes.

It was just before noon. Yuki suggested to have lunch first and Basara agreed.

It wasn’t like Yuki liked fast food. But she thought that there was no place more benefiting than this for a high school couple eating out.

---Nonaka Yuki, living her life so far as a Hero, didn’t know what a normal high schooler was like.

The reason she currently attended a high school in Tokyo was that she had the task to observe the daughter of the previous Lord Devil: Naruse Mio. She simply was here for her mission as a Hero.

''…But only for today.''

At least only for today--- she wanted to be a normal girl.

It was a city full of youngsters and moreover a holiday, so the store was already crowded.

Yuki wasn’t all too comfortable with crowded and noisy places, but the nearby seats were filled with young couples and above all, Basara was stuffing his cheeks with a hamburger across from her. Amidst this situation,

“……..” “Mh? Something wrong?”

He might have sensed her restless mood. Basara looked at her puzzled, whereas Yuki shook her head with “No”.

She wasn’t used to the taste of the hamburger or the fizzing carbonic acid of the cola, but even so Nonaka Yuki tried savor the taste as an important memory with Basara and her high school self.

When they left the store after their meal, they headed for today’s main event--- buying clothes.

Entering a fashion mall that was even famous as a landmark,

“Wow…”

Basara next to her mumbled overwhelmed. Because the mall was filled with girls looking for popular fashions. The loudly playing BGM made it rather lively.

---However, a problem arose. While heading towards the elevators, they briefly passed by the shops, but to be honest, Yuki had no idea where she should go.

''…Careless.''

She had thought for sure that by coming here, she would naturally find some clothes. The first floor technically had an information booth, but to be honest, she didn’t even know what to ask for.

Wavering about what to do, Yuki showed a weakness for the first time here.

“Hello~ Are you looking for something~?”

Suddenly the clerk of a nearby shop called out to her.

Mio watched that scene from a distant.

It must have been an unforeseen situation. Yuki was obviously panicking on the sudden happening. Towards her,

“Excuse me for suddenly calling out to you~ You looked troubled, so I just wanted to help you.”

The female shop clerk said so with a carefree smile.

“What are you here for today? You seem kind of hesitant, so are you just looking around without a special aim? If so, why not take a look at our sales? We have stocked up on our new winter collection.”

“Ehm… But”

However, Yuki showed hesitation. Because the one who had called out to her was a clerk from a shop that sold mainly street-style clothes in vivid colors.

It wasn’t really the type of brand that Yuki liked. As far as Mio knew, Yuki was more of the docile type. She came to the holy land of fashion for youngsters on her date with Basara, but

''…She must have been taken for an easy target.''

Mio had guessed the aim of the clerk. Yuki obviously gave off an aura that she wasn’t used to this place at all.

Like the clerk had said, right now it was the period where the new winter collections started to sell. For the shop it was the most profitable season, so the selling quota got harsher.

Due to that, some clerks wanted to score sales by persistently palming off customers. The female clerk kept talking on and on as to press for an answer.

“It is part of my job to help people dress up, you know? I am sure I can help you. For example, I believe this would suit you perfectly.”

Quickly grabbing a hooded jacket from a nearby shelf, she held it up against Yuki’s body.

“See~ Totally terrific. It fits with a lot of other clothes, so you can make all kind of arrangements.”

Terrific indeed. The shop clerk recommended a shocking pink hooded jacket with lamé.

It was possible that she recommended it, because Yuki was rather meek. Moreover,

“It fits with other clothes, because you want to sell more…”

Starting with the hooded jacket, the clerk likely intended to sell various products as a whole arrangement. Seeing the persistent clerk, Maria next to her said.

“His childhood friend seems troubled, yet Basara-san is not helping her out at all, is he?”

In their field of vision, Basara was scratching his head next to Yuki, not knowing what to do.

“…No, he’s trying to offer her help for a while now. But it seems he isn’t used to such a place either. The clerk is a woman too, so he doesn’t know how to deal with it.”

It surely was too much to expect Basara, a boy, to do something that he couldn’t even do with Yuki, a girl.

''…Well,''

Even if Yuki was troubled, it was nothing of Mio’s concern. Basara wasn’t any better. He was all over Yuki in the train earlier, so… a bit of trouble for him now was just fine.

Mio just watched them from a distance and had no plans to help them. However,

“…….” “---Mio-sama?”

Mio heard Maria’s question, who was supposed to be next to her, from behind.

Before she noticed it, she had moved forward. Briskly getting in-between Yuki and the clerk,

“Sorry for the wait, Nonaka~!”

she linked arms with Yuki and pulled her away.

“Okay, let’s go.” “---Eh?”

Yuki was surprised on her sudden appearance. Same for Basara next to her. However, Mio didn’t care about that. Pulling on Yuki’s arm, she tried to leave the place--- but her supposedly forward moving legs were stopped against her will. The clerk was grabbing Yuki’s sleeve,

“Oh, are you her friend? How about you come in together? Your friend just took a liking to her new collection.”

The shop clerk certainly was experienced. She wouldn’t let go off her prey she got a hold off so easily. Even while her mouth formed a friendly smile, she pinned down Mio with her sharp look. However, Mio showed a friendly smile as well,

“No thanks.” “But this” “No thanks” “Hey, at least take a closer look” “No thanks”

When she repeated the same words to the persistent clerk, the clerk let go off Yuki before long. She must have accepted that no matter what she said, she wouldn’t sell anything.

How she sent them off with a smile and “Please come by again~” in the end, showed how much of a professional she was.

As soon as Mio got to the elevator area without any shops by still dragging Yuki on her arm,

“---Just to tell you, it’s only a coincidence!”

She declared so shouting, after turning around to Basara, who leisurely followed after Yuki.

“Ehm… Mio?”

“It’s just by chance! I was shopping with Maria, when I saw you guys by chance. And since you were troubled, I had no choice… Really! It’s nothing else but that!”

“Please calm down, Mio-sama. If you get too ruffled, you will dig your own grave.”

“---I, I’m not ruffled.”

Mio shouted while turning bright red. Not good. Forcing her way in on the spur of the moment was all fine, but she had moved without thinking up an excuse, so she was saying nonsense now.

''…But, I mean…''

It couldn’t be helped. Because her body moved on reflex.

---She probably didn’t want to lose to Yuki.

During the battle in the park the other day, Yuki had helped Mio, even though she actually had no obligation to do so. That was the undoubted truth, even if she couldn’t forgive that it could have killed Basara. Mio got the feeling that she would lose to her, if she were to ignore the troubled Yuki there despite that.

Yes, it surely was her nature. Naruse Mio didn’t want to lose to Nonaka Yuki--- That was all.

“Anyway, thanks. At this rate we would have been persuading into buying… Right, Yuki?”

“…….”

Next to Basara, who said so with a sigh, Yuki nodded wordless. Her slightly frustrated expression probably originated more from the negligence of needing help rather than from displeasure of being helped by Mio.

“So, how’s it, Yuki? Did any shop catch your eye?”

When Yuki gave no clear answer, Basara softened his expression.

“I see… Then what do you want to do, Yuki? Look around a bit longer?”

Yuki stayed silent on Basara’s question. It most likely was a silence of inner conflict, instead of pondering. Upon that,

“Uhm… May we accompany you?” “Hey, Maria!?”

Mio raised a flustered voice on the sudden proposal, whereas Maria stayed calm.

“No, I mean, you two are not used to this kind of place, correct? So with Mio-sama with you, you could easily get out of situation like the one earlier.”

“Well, yeah, but…”

But Yuki would never give her consent to this, which would interfere with her date.

“What do you say, Yuki…?”

Asked for her opinion by Basara, Yuki stayed silent for a while, then closed her eyes.

“………….Okay.”

Before long, she agreed with Maria’s proposal like giving up on something.

And when Yuki peacefully opened her eyes, she said by staring at Mio.

“Naruse-san--- if you like, please help me find some clothes.”

Mio accepted Yuki’s request.

She wasn’t all that opposed to helping Yuki. If she were, she wouldn’t have saved Yuki from the female clerk earlier.

---Due to that, the shopping went relatively smooth after that.

After hearing her concept, Mio guided Yuki through shops with clothes in the design that matched Yuki’s concept.

Skilfully handling the shop clerks, they chose Yuki’s clothes together. In the end,

“…Here, what do you say about this?”

Since Yuki didn’t know how to put on the clothes properly, Mio had come into the changing room with her and helped her try on the clothes.

Normally that would be the job of a shop clerk, but Yuki asked Mio to help her, probably still affected from the earlier incident with the persistent clerk.

“Yeah… Looks good, really.”

While looking at her refined self, Yuki nodded. That her cheeks were lightly flushed was proof that she was satisfied with Mio’s choice.

“---Basara, look.”

Opening the curtains, Yuki got outside and spun in front of Basara.

“Mh? Hoo… Nice. These kind of clothes suit you too.”

Basara inadvertently raised an admiring voice, whereas Yuki softened her expression with an happy “Mm”. It was Yuki’s expression as a normal girl, which she would never show to Mio.

Upon that, Maria approached Mio and whispered into her ear.

“Are you sure you should be so kind to your enemy, Mio-sama?”

“…Now look here, it was you, who suggested this.”

“Well, yes, but… even so, why are you helping her so seriously? She will use these clothes to seduce Basara-san.”

“Still, it’s against my principle to be shoddy and recommend something ugly then.”

A promise among girls. She didn’t want to do a half-hearted job. And above all, if she were to make a coward move, it would mean she accepted being inferior to Yuki. There was no way she could do that.

[[Image:Shinmai v02 107.jpg|thumb]]

After Yuki finishing showing the clothes Mio chose to Basara, she returned to the changing room satisfied.

When she took off her clothes and was only in her underwear, the great style of Yuki’s tall figure was rather prominent. Mio stood next to that graceful body and looked at it through the mirror.

''…She’s really pretty after all.''

Mio once again became aware of Yuki’s charm. Yuki’s clear complexion was something Mio didn’t have. Her body line drew different feminine curves than Mio’s and while they were of the same gender, Mio was a bit captivated.

She also comprehended why she had a fan club at school like herself.

That said, she wasn’t envious. Each person had it’s own charm--- same for clothes. Mio had her own charm and believed she didn’t lose to Yuki in that regard.

''…More importantly.''

What she was surprised about was that Yuki had asked Maria and her to accompany her. Yuki was supposed to be on a special date with Basara.

The persistent clerk had stolen her thunder, but actually Yuki should have wanted to go around some more with Basara on this occasion.

Even so she should have been opposed to ask Mio. Yet, Yuki honestly spoke out words of gratitude.

“Thank you, Naruse-san.”

“It’s fine… I only helped you find some clothes with a shop clerk. It’s nothing special.”

When Mio answered brusquely, Yuki shook her head with “No”. Dropping her gaze,

“That’s not true. I never came to a place like this before… and only trained when I was in the village. So, I don’t know what a real date is like.”

“……I see.”

“I’m just happy to be with Basara… But I think it’s boring for him, since he’s used to an ordinary life.”

Being told that by Yuki in quiet voice, Mio once again realized that she was a Hero.

And--- that she herself had inherited the power and blood of the previous Devil Lord.

---However, the timing at which they found out about their own situation had decisively been different for Mio and Yuki.

Mio got to know about her own linage half a year ago--- On the day her foster parents, which she thought were her parents, were killed.

Until then, Mio had lived as a normal girl with a normal happiness.

However, Yuki on the other hand had known about her existence ever since she could remember and was trained for it.

Of course it would be insolent to call that misfortune. The Hero Tribe had the mission to fight to protect the world, but obviously they should have happiness in their life as well.

''…But.''

Even so, they surely experienced yearning for the natural happiness of average people.

When Mio inadvertently fell silent, Yuki said with a cold voice, as Mio’s thoughts were showing on her face.

“It’s not something for you to worry about. Thanks to you, I could buy clothes to seduce Basara.”

“Seduce… Now you.”

“I also learned about dates. Making use of today’s experience, I’ll go on a better date with Basara next time, with just the two of us.”

Yuki said nonchalant. Mio certainly couldn’t overlook this.

“Hey--- You plan to go on another date with Basara?”

“Of course. Now then, guide me to the next shop and choose some clothes for me.”

This girl… for asking a favor, she was having a rather haughty attitude. However,

“Fine--- Let’s do this.”

Accepting Yuki’s challenge at once, Mio smiled fearless.

Once promised, she would go through with it until the end. And she wouldn’t be half-hearted.

But Yuki would do better not to forget.

Buying new clothes--- prettying up, that wasn’t something exclusive to Yuki.

Going around various shops then, Yuki borrowed the help of Mio and clerks.

Finally she decided what she would buy next.

When Mio and Maria started to choose clothes for themselves too, they tried on clothes in a competition and all three showed their new selves to Basara one after another.

All kind of new fashion terms and unthinkable arrangements. All of it had a novelty--- But Yuki surely didn’t even understand half of it.

Even so, she had fun, since she could spent a holiday together with Basara. And regarding Mio and Maria, she hardly considered them a bother, since they faced her upfront instead of interrupting her date.

Of course she would have preferred to be all alone with Basara, but it was a fact that the two helped her on numerous occasions. Therefore--- Yuki believed it was fine like this.

“…Okay, I’ll go buy this.” “Yeah. We’ll wait outside.”

Nodding to Basara, who replied so, Yuki lined up at the register. As they went around a lot of shops, the time had already changed from afternoon to evening upon a look on the wristwatch.

It was hard to tell, since they had been in an illuminated building the whole time, but it would surely be dark when they got outside.

''…Oh right.''

Before going home with the train, she should go eat something with Basara. She wouldn’t mind inviting Mio and Maria too, since they helped her with the shopping.

Showing a small smile, Yuki glanced behind her--- turning around to Basara and the others outside the shop.

“----”

The scene in her field of vision made her look inadvertently turn bitter. She couldn’t hear their conversation due to the distance. But judging from their expression, she could clearly tell that Maria most likely teased Mio, who then got angry, and Basara watched these two with a wry smile.

Above all, Basara’s side profile while looking at Mio and Maria was gentle.

Nonaka Yuki saw the happiness that she wanted at a place that she couldn’t reach.

---Basara, no longer a Hero, lived with a new family in a new place and was fighting for the girls’ sake. That was Basara’s present and desired future.

And--- Yuki was merely a symbol of his past to Basara.

Yuki went through the tragedy at the <village> five years ago together with Basara and she embodied the very past that still kept hurting him, so she was nothing but a bother to the future with Mio, which Basara was envisioning.

“………….”

So Yuki averted her eyes and turned her back to them. Because she could no longer look at it. Then she kept waiting in the line at the register for her turn with her eyes cast down.

“Next one please~” “…..”

It was her turn now and Yuki was about to move forward--- when her arm was suddenly grabbed from the side.

She didn’t sense anything until her arm was touched. She looked at the other party in surprise.

“---?”

Yuki’s breath was inadvertently taken away. It was a familiar face.

A girl--- with the same cold eyes as herself.

“Kurumi…”

When she dumbfounded called her name, the girl said with an indifferent voice.

“The <village> made an official decision. I came to tell you--- your new mission.”

One breath.

“Enough with playing house… Big Sis.”

“……Mh?”

Basara had been talking with Mio and Maria, but suddenly he felt something amiss and frowned.

The presence of Yuki, whom they were waiting for, had disappeared.

“Yuki…?”

He quickly shifted his gaze to the line at the register, but Yuki, who was supposed to be there, wasn’t to be seen.

No matter how much he searched the shop. No matter how much he searched the surroundings.

Nonaka Yuki had unexpectedly disappeared from their sight, even though she was with them moments ago.

===Part 4===

In the end, they couldn’t find Yuki after that.

They asked the shop clerk, but didn’t get a favorable response and even when they looked around the other shops in the mall and searched for her in the area outside, she was nowhere to be found.

All calls to her cell phone just resulted in the out-of-range announcement. She must have turned her phone off. Because of that the GPS function couldn’t find her either.

“…Just what happened? Did she go home ahead of us?”

“Can’t be… Us two aside, Basara’s here. So that’s impossible.”

While listening to the exchange of Maria and Mio next to him, Basara was thinking about something else. It was something he felt when he was all alone with Yuki--- ''A glance''.

''…But.''

Shortly after Mio and Maria had appeared and then he hadn’t really felt it anymore. The timing was too good, so he had thought for sure that it were Mio and Maria watching them.

Could it be--- there had been someone else watching them?

After returning to their local area with the train, they headed for Yuki’s mansion just in case, but

“…No good. She isn’t there.”

Calling her cell phone one last time resulted as expected in out-of-range. They were finally out of ideas, so they had no choice but to return to the Toujou House.

“………….” “………….” “………….”

The sky was clouded and the road at night was illuminated by street lights while the three of them walked home in silence. Even though they had so much fun earlier. Even though they spent that time together. The silence made it seem like a dream.

''…At a time like this,''

If--- he had a Master and Servant Contract with Yuki as well. Then he could localize her right away. However,

''…What am I thinking.''

Basara immediately discarded the cheap idea. He wanted to ease his worry so bad that his thoughts took a strange direction.

But, if anything had happened to Yuki--- Thinking so, Basara’s chest tightened inevitable.

---Five years ago, a tragedy befell the Hero’s village. On that day, at that time, lots of his comrades lost their lives and Basara’s own power went out of control, causing even more destruction.

Even so, some lives were saved and one of them was none other than Yuki's. If something happened to Yuki now, he would---

“…Basara? What’s wrong, Basara!”

Strongly pulled on his arm from the side, Basara came back to his senses.

“Are you okay, Basara-san…?”

“…Yeah, I’m fine. Sorry… I was thinking about something.”

When Basara repeated a “I’m fine” with a powerless smile, suddenly the ring tone resounded from his pocket.

It wasn’t the tone for a call, but mail.

Even so, Basara pulled out his cell phone reflexively and first confirmed the sender.

Regretfully it wasn’t from Yuki.

When Basara shook his head, Mio next to him mumbled a quiet “I see…”. But looking at the field with the sender name, Basara stiffened his expression a bit.

There was no name. It was blank. But for someone that sent him a mail for the first time, it should display the mail address.

Why it didn’t do that was because Basara himself set it up to be like that.

It was the person, whom he secretly formed an alliance with and thus saved the number differently from the others for an absolute secretive exchange.

It was the very first time that this person sent him a mail.

“………..”

The written content was just like Basara had imagined. So when he read through it wordless, he pressed the delete button to erase the mail right afterwards and the cell phone started to delete it--- In that very moment.

Suddenly the surroundings got darker. The moment he realized that--- an attack came from right above.

“---Get away, Maria!”

While giving an instant warning, Basara picked up Mio and jumped.

“H- Hey!”

Mio raised a surprised voice, but Basara had no time to care.

Because the attack hitting the ground gave off a fierce shock wave along with a roaring sound. Basara landed while still holding Mio.

“---You okay!?” “Yes, somehow!”

On Maria’s reply from the corner of his vision, he made a sigh of relief for now.

---The reason he only warned Maria was that she was on his opposite side with Mio in-between them.

But Maria, a Hard Striker that specialized in close combat, should be good at sudden movements--- His judgement came from believing so. In response to Basara’s instant judgement and choice,

“Hoo--- your reaction is quicker than I thought.”

An audacious voice resounded from above, making somewhat fun of him.

When Mio looked up, a giant man was floating in midair.

An ominous black aura spread from his body.

There was no doubt. It was a devil from the current Devil Lord Faction. And a bit apart,

“…What is going on here?”

Maria slowly stood up and said. Glaring fiercely at the enemy devil,

“Your attack just now… If you had it aimed at just Basara-san and me, I could have overlooked it, but at worst, you could have dragged Mio-sama into it.

Is that what you, the current Devil Lord Faction wants?”

“Huuh? I ain’t really wanting to drag her into it. It would be bad if I killed her carelessly and Wilbert’s power gets lost. But a battlefield is always changing. Some things just happen--- accidents, ya know.”

The floating giant devil let his body shake by laughing.

“Besides--- The top brass want Wilbert’s power, but if this stupidly inherited power gets lost by an attack like this just now, it wouldn’t be of any use anyway.”

But, saying so, he looked at Basara.

“That retainer succubus aside, ya ain’t half-bad either, Runt… Still, not so much that Lars would’ve troubles with ya.”

He said so, then he scrunched his nose.

“Well, whatever--- I’m gonna kill everyone besides Wilbert’s daughter anyway.”

Basara listened to these words while still holding on to Mio’s waist.

“……Is it your doing?”

On Basara’s low and cold voice, the giant devil looked puzzled.

“Huh? Say what?”

“Is it your doing that Yuki disappeared?”

Basara asked again. Upon that, the devil finally seemed to recall.

''"Ohh--- That Hero girl."''

The moment he said so, Basara’s appearance next to Mio vanished.

“Eh---?”

Mio raised a bewildered voice on the sudden happening. At that time--- Basara was already in front of the giant devil.

And in his right hand was Brynhildr, his beloved sword, already materialized.

He swung it.

The side-slash attack Basara swung went into the giant devil’s torso like it was drawn there.

---In that moment, Basara felt a resistance.

But it was abnormal tough for a resistance of his attack.

CREEEEEAAAAAAAK!

“Kuh…!”

Along with a shrill metallic sound, Basara’s right hand became numb. He was warded off. And moreover, not by a guard with a weapon or shield. The torso of the giant devil took in Brynhidlr as it was.

“Hey, you’re really short-tempered--- Are ya getting enough calcium?”

While laughing a Heh, the devil

“I’ll break your body all over… so that you fit into my pocket, Runt!”

Saying so and launching his right fist towards Basara. Instantly Basara kicked the devil’s torso and retreated a paper-length away from the fist’s range.

However the launched fist of the devil produce a shock wave as it was,

“? Guh, Gaaah----!?”

Receiving a full blow of the invisible attack, Basara was sent flying backwards. Crashing right into the border of the barrier--- the wall between normal space and this isolated space.

“Oh, what’s wrong? Done already?”

There the devil approached. He wanted to give the finishing blow. However, before the newly launched fist could reach Basara, the devil was engulfed in flames along with a roaring sound.

“Don’t pop out of nowhere and act like you’re some big-shot!”

Mio released more flames in succession.

“Hah… This shabby flame ain’t even tickling me!”

Despite that, the devil’s charge wasn’t stopped. He broke straight through the flames.

“---Then what about this?”

Using the flames as a cover, Maria had gone in front of him and her fist rammed into the devil’s torso.

BAM! A heavy crashing sound. The attack from Maria, a Hard Striker relying on strength, certainly stopped the devil’s charge.

“…That hurt.”

“Eh--- Gah!?”

The back of his left hand blew Maria’s small body away like shaking her off. Right before she crashed into the ground, Basara somehow made it in time to catch Maria’s body, but

“What happened to your earlier vigor? Is barking all you can do?”

The giant devil swung down his fists one after another with over motions, sending shockwaves down from the air.

Basara and the girls split up and dodged them somehow, but they couldn’t counter-attack.

''…Damn, he’s a perfect power type!''

He looked like a simple brute, but a power type could fight perfectly with an excess of it.

Power was strength. A body capable of handling an enormous power obviously had a high defence from tenacity too and as a matter of fact, it easily blocked Basara’s earlier attack.

He was most likely superior to even Maria, a fellow power type--- Moreover, he was a Shooting Fighter, even capable of attacking with shock waves.

The problem was not only that Basara’s attack didn’t work, but Maria’s fist as well.

So even if they closed the distance, they had no way to effectively damage him.

So their last bet was the powerful high-class magic from Mio, a magic type, but--- needless to say, the more powerful the magic was, the more mental concentration it needed. Thus,

''…When he keeps attacking with shock waves like this…''

He looked at Mio, but she couldn’t afford any time to chant a magic, as she had her hands full with dodging the downpour of shock waves.

Judging by his stature, he probably had superior stamina as well.

At some point Basara and the girls would be unable to take a breath and dodge the shock waves first--- It was stalemate like this.

''…Then,''

Basara crouched down and concentrated.

What he estimated was the best and shortest route to slay the enemy in the air and his own speed needed for that.

And then--- Basara was about to attack by kicking off the ground. At that time.

“Such a pain… I’ll finish you off all together.”

Saying so, the enemy, who had been dealing with Maria, launched an unforeseen attack.

---The type of shockwaves so far that cut in a straight line were produced by a punch with the fist.

That fist stopped now midway. Upon that, the air was hit--- As a result, the produced shock wave wasn’t a straight line, but spread radially, coming towards Basara and the girls all at once.

“? Bastaaaaaaard----!”

Basara used the energy he had built up for his attack with high speed for a counterattack.

The attack released in front of Mio and Maria wasn’t <Banishing Shift>, but it succeeded in cutting apart the shock wave. The radial shock wave passed by Basara’s side to vertical behind him.

“Sweet. Now we’re talking.”

Even while his own attack was warded off, the giant devil was rather happy.

“Then--- try this!”

The moment he said so, the already thick right arm of the devil swelled up one--- no, two sizes larger.

''…Not good!''

Most likely the enemy tried to launch an enormous attack that wouldn’t even compare to the previous ones.

---The old Basara would have surely gone out to the front immediately at such a time.

Without doubt he would close the distance with his utmost speed and prevent the enemy from attacking.

However, the current Basara hesitated.

He couldn’t decide on the spot if he should charge into the attack or if he should devote himself to defense to protect Mio and Maria.

The enemy used the opening created by Basara’s short hesitation to make his attack motion.

“---Huh?”

However, the giant devil stopped his movement, as he had suddenly realized something.

Just why?

Basara saw the answer to that at the torso of the devil. The floating devil--- had something pierced through his gigantic body.

“A spear…?”

Mio, looking at it from a different angle, mumbled frowning, whereupon there was a rapid change in the body of the devil.

It started to freeze up snow-white with a noise.

The giant body of the devil, solidifying all over in no time, stopped floating and fell down to the ground.

CLINK. Along with a noise like glass breaking, the devil smashed up into very small pieces.

===Part 5===

All that was left was a single white long spear pierced into the ground.

Mio and the others couldn’t react to the sudden happening. Amidst this motionless silence,

“-------”

A single young man appeared from somewhere. Looking at his side-profile as he was picking up the spear wordless,

“Takashi…”

Mio heard Basara’s sudden dumbfounded mumbling in front of her.

Having his name called, the young man shifted his sharp eyes from the spear in his hand to Basara.

“…Who’s that, Basara?”

“Hayase Takashi… My childhood friend, just like Yuki, from back then when I was in the <village>.”

On Basara’s answer to her question, Mio could guess the circumstances more or less.

''…No wonder he was able to get into this space then.''

Mio knew of the tragedy that Basara was involved with back then when he was still in the Hero village.

She also knew what happened from Basara’s power going of out control.

It gave many people never healing mental wounds and was the reason Basara was chased out of the village.

There probably weren’t many people like Yuki, who were friendly to Basara after the incident.

At least--- the look the young man gave Basara wasn’t one of a long-awaited reunion with a childhood friend.

“Takashi, why are you… And that spear, don’t tell me…”

When Basara asked still somewhat unbelieving, suddenly

“Yeah--- You’re right, it’s ‘Byakko’.” <ref>Byakko means White Tiger and is one of the four Chinese constellations</ref>

A chuckling voice came from behind. When Mio turned around, there was a slit-eyed young man.

“----!?”

[[Image:Shinmai v02 127.jpg|thumb]]

As soon as seeing that young man, Basara changed his expression and moved with a jump.

He stood obstructing in front of the young man, covering Mio and Maria.

“H- Hey, Basara…?” “What is the matter all of a sudden?”

Mio and Maria were perplexed by the uncommon situation, whereas Basara didn’t reply. Still wearing a stern expression, he was waiting for the reaction of the young man. Upon that,

“Geez. And here we finally reunited… Don’t give me such a hateful look.”

The slit-eyed young man shrugged his shoulders and made a wry smile. Towards him,

“Shiba-san… Why are you here?”

Basara asked with an obviously different attitude than towards the young man called Hayase Takashi.

''…Basara?''

Looking at Shiba, Basara’s side-profile showed a great alertness and tension.

“Do you… even need to ask? The <village> orders.”

“Don’t screw around. The <village> would normally never let you go outside.”

“---I wonder who’s screwing around here.”

said Takashi interrupting.

“Basara… Don’t tell me, you’re considering this situation normal?”

“What do you mean by that…”

“The girl with the inherited power of the previous Devil Lord is here. Can you call that normal?”

“…Are you saying it was decided that Yuki alone isn’t enough to observe her?”

It was Shiba, who answered Basara’s question.

“No, Yuki-chan’s enough for the surveillance. It’s the opposite. ''It was decided that surveillance wasn’t enough''.”

Then Takashi spoke out the decisive words, taking up on Shiba’s sentence.

“The <village> changed Naruse Mio from a S- rank surveillance target to a S- rank termination target. This is an official statement. That’s why we’re here--- To fulfil our duties as Heroes.”

Facing Takashi, Mio was inadvertently taken aback.

Word-wise he had used the term termination, but Takashi basically was saying to kill Mio.

Mio personally wanted to avoid fighting with the Hero Tribe if possible.

One reason was that it was situationally tough to take on the devils of the current Devil Lord Faction while fighting with the Heroes.

''…Moreover.''

She was fighting together with Basara, a former Hero, and kind of came to an understanding with Yuki, a current Hero, through the incident the other day.

Precisely because of that it was possible that they went shopping together today.

But Mio realized that her thinking was too naïve.

For the Current Devil Lord Faction, she wasn’t Naruse Mio, but the daughter of the previous Devil Lord Wilbert.

Same applied to the Hero Tribe. Mostly likely it was the same for Maria of the moderate faction.

“…….”

Looking down, she wordless bit down on her lips, whereupon suddenly a hand was rested on Mio’s shoulder.

It was from the only one here that saw Mio as herself.

Her big brother that tried to protect her as his family, as his little sister--- Toujou Basara.

“-----”

With calm, yet resolute eyes, Basara stared at Takashi.

It was a declaration of his resolve. He was still holding Brynhidlr in his right hand. Therefore,

“Well, I knew you would be like that, Basara… You’re Jin-san’s son after all.”

Shiba behind him wearily made a wry smile.

“That said, we aren’t here for fun either. Since you were chased out of the <village>, you aren’t treated as a comrade anymore, but just an ordinary human--- if you interfere with us, you’ll be an enemy.”

“Yeah… I’m prepared for that, Shiba-san.”

He would protect Mio, who couldn’t be protected by the Heroes. He was here today because he had decided so.

“More importantly, let me ask one thing. The reason Yuki suddenly disappeared…”

“Mh? Oh, if you’re looking for Yuki-chan…”

On these words, a girl quietly appeared from behind Shiba.

“Yuki, you…”

On Basara’s outcall, Yuki looked at him for just a moment, but cast down her eyes sadly right away.

Her emotions aside, she stood with them--- That spoke volumes for Yuki’s standpoint.

“The <village> wants Yuki to fight too…?”

“---What do you mean?”

Takashi narrowed his eyes and asked, whereas Basara replied somewhat irritated.

“Just like I said it. Yuki has always been docile and didn’t like to fight. The <village> appointed her to observe Mio, but forcing her to fight, that’s---”

just wrong… Basara tried to say that, but couldn’t.

Because a lightning ball drew near him from the side, interrupting his words.

“Watch out!”

Suddenly Mio got in front and created a magical barrier, but

“---? Kyaaaaa!”

The lightning ball, crashing into the barrier, sparked and sent Mio flying.

“Mio-sama!”

Maria hastily rushed over, whereas Mio got up while scowling with “I’m fine”, whereupon a girl appeared from the shadows of an alley, where the lighting ball had come from.

“Kurumi, even you…”

“Don’t call my name so casually, you traitor!”

Kurumi shouted with a tone that gives the impression of hatred.

“Protecting the daughter of the previous Devil Lord? I’m impressed you can mess around like that… You don’t even know what feelings my sister lived the past five years!”

“------”

Toujou Basara stood stock still on Kurumi’s angry shout. Because she was right.

When they reunited at Hijirigasaka Academy, Basara was surprised at Yuki’s change.

The five years, in which he hadn’t seen her, had changed Yuki so much.

But Basara, having left the village and no longer a Hero, didn’t have the right to worry about Yuki.

And since he chose to protect Mio, who had inherited the blood of the previous Devil Lord, he was nothing but an traitor to Yuki and his former comrades. But,

“Is that all you have to say?”

Maria slowly stood up, then suddenly jumped by kicking off the ground. With the start dash from the powerful legs of a power type, she closed the distance to Kurumi in no time and tried to strike at her like that.

“---Don’t get cocky, you measly succubus.”

With a speed faster than Maria’s, Takashi swung the spirit lance “Byakko” from the side.

That attack was stopped by Basara, who had gotten in-between Takashi and Maria, with Brynhidlr.

But something forcefully stopped the four, who had entered a full-blown fight with Basara vs. Takashi and Maria vs. Kurumi.

It was a roaring sound that shook the air. At the same time, the barrier that separated the space was easily destroyed.

“Wha…!?”

Suddenly being returned to the normal space, Basara and the others halted their battle.

“Okay--- That’s enough. Don’t get all fired up and start a battle here.”

Shiba declared with a peaceful smile. With a somewhat threatening tone,

“The devil, who erected the barrier, is already dead. Are you guys insane for starting a fight within a space that so easily broke from my light attack? What if it causes casualties?”

Basara gulped on these words. It was no laughing matter. Sure, the devil had died, but ''the barrier had been still up''.

The very barrier that easily took all these shock waves from the giant devil. Precisely because they knew that, they had started a fight.

“That’s not good, Takashi, Kurumi-chan… Sure you guys are the actors this time, but I believe that I told you not to get too emotional. I’m just an overseer and the <village> forbid me any fighting with Basara and co. So spare me the trouble, okay?”

“……” “----Fine!”

Takashi and Kurumi jumped, albeit sullen, and landed next to Shiba and Yuki.

Seeing that, Basara and Maria relaxed for now, albeit still wary. A distance between both parties was naturally formed.

“That’s the deal, Basara, so we’ll excuse ourselves for now. If we carelessly wrecked the city, the elders would pressure us again. We’ll settle this in one week. We’ll prepare a barrier space that can withhold our fighting, so let’s do it there--- What do you say?”

“…Not like I can say no.”

“Yeah, guess so.”

Shiba said nonchalant, whereas Basara asked.

“About that barrier, where are you going to put it up?”
“I want a place suitable for barriers, but sadly we don’t know this city very well yet. I’ll contact you when we have decided on a place.”

“If you’re an overseer, Shiba-san, then we’re going to fight Takashi and Kurumi?”

“''And Yuki-chan''. You’re three too, so it matches perfectly.”

“…..”

Don’t make Yuki fight--- Basara could no longer speak out that wish.

He looked at Yuki once more, but Yuki never met his eyes again.

“---Well, in one week then.”

Saying so, Shiba and the others turned their backs to them and left.

===Part 6===

“Hee--- I knew they would come one day, but it’s rather early for these obstinate elders.”

After the chance meeting with Takashi and the others, Basara returned home and contacted Jin in his own room.

---Jin, the head of the Toujou Household, left the house and was infiltrating the demon realm.

He had said that he wanted to get in touch with someone, but Basara hadn’t heard anything in detail. That Jin wouldn’t tell him about it probably meant that it still wasn’t the time for him to hear it.

Jin’s cell phone had a special magic chip in it that allowed him to have a call like this, albeit depending on some conditions like time or place in the demon realm. And,

“But to think that the elders let Kyouichi out of the <village>…”

Basara had told him the circumstances from start to end, whereas Jin said with an unusual serious tone.

“But Shiba-san said he’s only an overseer this time and won’t fight.”

“Well, they had to give him some kind of ''shackle'' outside the village, but… be careful.”

“Yeah, I know…”

The aftermath of the tragedy five years ago. The reason it was suggested to throw Basara into prison right after his <Banishing Shift> went out of control was because there had been a “Precedent Case”.

Basara had been called a “Genius” by people, but the term to evaluate Shiba Kyouichi was “Over talented”.

His all too moody character in view of that superiority made him cause “problems” and as a result, he was confined to prison for various years.

To be honest--- They were quite lucky under the circumstances without him joining the fight this time.

Thus, Basara shifted his attention to the pressing matter first.

“…Yuki fought together with us before, though for certain reasons, so I thought she wouldn’t be all that hostile towards Mio. Even today we all went shopping together.”

Of course Basara didn’t think the <village> would let go of Mio so easily.

However. Somewhere in his heart, he was embracing a faint hope.

Even though she ended up inheriting the power of the previous Devil Lord, Mio never wanted any of this.

To begin with, Mio had been raised as a normal human girl until half a year ago without knowing about her devil bloodline.

So it couldn’t be helped that they kept being wary of her as a surveillance target, but they wouldn’t try to kill Mio by setting her as a termination target--- That was what he had wished for.

“What were you expecting? They have the sole mission to protect the peace in the human world.”

“Yeah… I know. But I also have things I want to protect.”

Basara tightly clenched his right fist.

“Yeah, right. I’m not going to question the nobility of their mission, but if we can’t make a compromise no matter what, then we can only take them on.”

“…Are you fine with that, Dad?”

It was different from taking on the current Devil Lord faction, which was after Mio’s inherited power.

Even if they were chased out, they had once been comrades.

Another trouble was that the Hero Tribe, working on world peace, only considered Wilbert’s inherited power as a threat.

That meant that they would mercilessly come to kill Mio, unlike the devils, who tried to get a hold of it and use it.

Even if they should win against Takashi and the others this time, it was quite unlikely that the <village> would revoke a statement that was passed once.

On the contrary, they would surely deem her more dangerous and send even stronger enforcers.

---Moreover, the Hero Tribe didn’t just exist in Japan.

The appearance of devils and demonic beasts wasn’t limited to just Japan.

It was necessary to protect the world, not just Japan. So the Hero Tribe had divided the world into many areas and each protected it’s assigned area, Japan being one of that.

So when they made an enemy of the Japan <village>, the Hero Tribes all over the world would inevitably become their enemy. But,

“I don’t really care. That’s just what it means to protect Mio.”

Jin readily said on the other side of the phone.

“We’re talking here about the guys, who wanted to chase you out of the village as a surveillance target, were eager to kill you if anything happens and even wanted to make me take on the role of observing you. Like I would care about some holy duty now.”

“That’s… true, but”

He knew that they had to take a clear stance to protect Mio.

''…But.''

At any rate, there was a reluctance inside Basara about making his former comrades his enemy.

Lose and it was all over. But winning would just increase the hardships.

He didn’t know if he could find anything from a fight under these circumstances.

Moreover, of all things his first opponents were Takashi, Kurumi--- and even Yuki. That was just too ironic. However,

“Hey--- Don’t tell me you’re worrying about what happens after you win, even though you haven’t even fought yet? Where does that composure come from?”

“That wasn’t my…”

Basara hastily denied.

“I won’t tell you to forget about the future, but don’t be too greedy. Even if you wreck your brain, some things just happen. So focus on what’s right in front of you first. At the least, you’ll lose something if you lose and you’ll protect something if you win. That’s where you have to draw the line.”

“…..”

Right. What was he worrying about? The school nurse Hasegawa told him as well, didn’t she?

He should draw a line he would never back off from and protect it.

Remember. What was it that he--- Toujou Basara truly wanted to protect?

“Right… Yeah, I’ll do it.”

Basara said so like shaking off the hesitation within him, whereas Jin laughed with “Good”.

“I’ll take responsibility. It doesn‘t matter that the opponent has ‘Byakko‘--- Go beat him up.”

==Translator Notes and References==
<references/>

<noinclude>

{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Back to [[Shinmai Maou no Keiyakusha:Volume 2 Chapter1|Chapter 1]]
| Return to [[Shinmai Maou no Keiyakusha|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Shinmai Maou no Keiyakusha:Volume 2 Chapter 3|Chapter 3]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Maou na Ore to Fushihime no Yubiwa:Volume 2 Chapter 2

2014-02-21T07:18:43Z

EcoJakk:

==Chapter 2 - Cooperative tactic!?==

Recently I feel like I’m losing my dignity as a man.

Speaking frankly, I’m being made fun of.

And that’s because.

The pretty freeloader ghoul girl that came suddenly ― Zonmi R. McKenzie.

The devil-like little sister that lurks inside the Kusumi home ― Kusumi Manami.

Currently trapped in these two’s pace, my life of being dominated goes by without issue.

Hey, hey.

What a situation I, whose catchphrase is “To hell with sissy main characters” and does not want also to be known as a “bossy husband in the flesh”, have ended in…

It’s an urgent matter that must not be left unresolved.

… Nevertheless.

A ghoul and my blood-related sister. That pair of selfish-to-the-core pretty girls that are constantly letting out sighs of ‘Something must be done about this personality…!’ are impossible to be kept in check.

In the end, I ― today like always I can’t help but being controlled.

“Chiharu. Are they going to celebrate a festivity soon in this town?”

Morning. While waiting for the bus in front of the station.

While standing to my right, the one who asked me that was Zonmi the ghoul.

Straight long silver hair reminiscent of white snow, slender limbs.

Her features without flaw, her dignified gaze gives her a cold aura ― a beautiful girl with the atmosphere of a cool beauty.

“Aah. You mean the Saegusa festival. It’s a big festival that encompasses the Tanabata Festival, a summer festival and a fireworks rally.”

The preparation being made in Saegusa city as the day approaches have greatly changed the town scenery.

Though there’s still time until Tanabata, the hastiest shops have already started to place the stalls.

“I see. It’s a festival overflowing with greed. By the way, Chiharu, are you planning on going with someone to it?”

“Nope. No one in special at this moment…”

“Is that so? That’s surprising.”

“… Izzat so?”

Could it be that inside Zonmi’s head I give an impression of having many friends?

Though that said, it’s not very wrong.

Zonmi, pondering about something for a moment,

“By the way, Chiharu, are you currently seeing someone?”

That’s quite the sudden question she has made.

“In the least. That’s not possible…”

Simply look at my usual lifestyle and you’d understand!

Even if I’ve been truthful, for some reason Zonmi’s expression harbors suspicion.

“Chiharu… It’s not good to lie to me. Wouldn’t it be better for you to tell me the truth?”

“I’m not lying…”

Isn’t that because I couldn’t get a girlfriend for 16 years?

“I see. I’ve got a gist of the situation.”

“Hoo, so you’ve finally understood?”

“Yes. There’s no ‘person’ you’re going out with, because it’s a ‘monster’ who you are going out with. Isn’t that what Chiharu means?”

“Wouldn’t it better be that I have neither a human girlfriend nor a monster girlfriend!?”

“… Muu.”

Even when I explained myself without delay, Zonmi seems like she’s still not convinced.

Why does Zonmi distrust me that much.

Or rather, that about a ‘monster girlfriend’ gives the impression of having a highly destructive potential…

“―Ah!”

I’ve just realized something.

“Could you be talking about the pendant?”

So it was that. I had totally forgotten that I’m wearing the pendant I found yesterday.

When I asked, Zonmi nodded with an embarrassed face,

“Yeah. No matter what, it doesn’t seem to suit Chiharu…”

“… Perhaps a little.”

I’m not someone who wears many accessories, for starters.

“Could it be something you received from a past lover?”

“Hardly, since as I’ve kept telling you, I’m a male virgin who’s been 16 years without a girlfriend.”

Don’t make me say it. It’s embarrassing.

“…”

“…”

“……”

“…… Wha?”

Even though I’ve said the truth, it seems as if the air around us instantly froze.

It seems that “male virgin” is a taboo expression to Zonmi.

“So it’s like that. It seems that I became oversuspicious. Of course someone that speaks with no delicacy… Won’t be able to get a lover. No doubt I must excuse myself.”

Zonmi looks like she despises me.

“… No problem.”

Looks like I’ve cleared her doubts, but… What the heck. This is surely very complex…

“Haah…”

I let out a deep sigh.

No matter what, I didn’t think this pendant would raise so much suspicion.

Do I look like an outsider to fashions?

Since it appeared out of nowhere inside my room and it surprisingly fit me nicely, I tried wearing it, but… Truth to be told, I didn’t think it would cause such a fuss.

Have I to conceal it under my shirt<ref>I don’t know whether what Japanese call Y-Shaatsu is a WHITE shirt or a short-sleeved shirt; I only know that the term does not exist on the main English-speaking countries. - In English speaking nations, what the Japanese call a Y-Shirt is called a button up shirt, or dress shirt. And English speaking countries have no clue why the Japanese call them Y-Shirts.</ref> so to prevent someone else from seeing it, getting suspicious and causing a riot?

“Going back on track. So, you are not going to participate this year?”

“Nope. I had planned on going, at least…”

Maybe I’ll go together with my classmate Youhei… I believe that, him being him, it seems that he won’t let the chance escape.

“I have been asked by Manami, like a demon, day after day, but… Going to a festival with my little sister at our age is of course embarrassing… I think I better pass."

“I see. I think it’s a commendable judiciousness.”

“If you’re interested, would you like that we two went together?”

“… Wha?”

As it seemed that Zonmi became momentarily speechless and had her mouth agape, soon after she became panicked with her face pure red ―

“Whawhawha, what the heck do you plan by saying that!? Maybe, what you mean with those words… Do you have the intention to be on a date with me!?”

“… No. Nothing so flashy.”

My intentions.

“Wasn’t only recently that Zonmi came to Saegusa city? You’re still not familiar with this area.”

Needless to say, my aim is that if I have someone that I planned to go with, it will be easier to fend off my sister’s approaches.

“… Th-thank you very much from the bottom of my heart.”

Totally in disarray, Zonmi took a deep breath in.

“Sadly, I must decline. Because basking under the summer sun while taking a stroll in the middle of a crowd… Is life-threatening to a ghoul…”

“Ah―”

That’s right, didn’t she tell me before? That each year on summer 100,000 ghouls were sent to hospital?

If it’s like that, then there’s no way around.

And recently it’s been abnormally hot.

To the human-hating + weak to heat Zonmi, an event like a festival could be like hell.

“Then… Though I can’t attend to the summer festival, what if we go somewhere indoors―”

“KyeeeeeEEEEEEEEE―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――!!”

“!?”

The moment Zonmi started talking, a shriek like that of an uprooted mandragora was heard.

Glancing on the direction of the voice ― a pretty girl came out of a trash bin placed on the street.

Big and round eyes like those of a small chick.

Nicely developed big breasts.

Her black hair, pride of Japan, was arranged as a ponytail at the back of her head.

Kusumi Manami. The one that has suddenly come out of a trash bin is my little sister.

“What the heck is that, oniichan!? I demand an explanation! How come I don’t get what you mean at all!?”

“Calm down, Manami. Isn’t it you the one who has to give a explanation!? That thing you are doing… Is it a human jack-in-the-box!?”

However.

As if it was only natural, Manami turned a deaf ear.

Instead, she criticized her brother’s humor sense by letting out “Uwah. Don’t make that comparison” in a small voice.

"Why, while you turn down my approaches, are you making an appointment with the zombie? That’s totally weird!”

“…”

I do it in order to have a good pretext to turn down your approaches… That’s something I won't say even if you rip my mouth open.

How come. This situation… How can I get over it?

It seems like Manami is in the right this time.

If my invitations were turned down and I saw the other party asking out a total stranger… Even if I’m not Manami, it wouldn’t sit right with me.

There’s no option… I’ll use ‘that’.

The last resource when in trouble. It tends to work.

As it makes use of Manami’s feelings, though I don’t like it, I have no other way.

Brushing away my forelocks, I struck a somewhat exaggerated cool pose.

“Listen, Manami. This is totally for your sake…”

“Eh…”

Manami let out a little sigh with a befuddled face.

“… Wait a bit, what?”

Yosh. Hook, line and sink.

My little sister’s expression turned in a flash into that of a lovestruck maiden.

“I’m your brother, right? Since you are more important to me than anyone else… Ain’t I telling you to harden your heart? Next year, you’re also gonna be a high school student. Won’t it be troubling to you if you cannot let go of your brother by then? I beg you, Manami. Make your brother feel relieved and make a single friend before then.”

“…”

It’s really something I can’t endure. Due to Manami’s bad habit of having a much-too-strong sex drive, she hasn’t had no one she could call a friend in elementary and middle school.

That’s why my words ― are my sincere true feelings.

Though it’ll be good that Manami learns to not cling to her brother for a bit…

“Understood… If that’s what oniichan says… Manami… Will try. From now on I’ll make a friend to go together with to the festival.”

“That’s it… Did you understand?...”

Shit. I got some tears in eyes.

As I expected, if you make Manami listen properly, she’s quite the sensible child…

“In turn, if Manami does as oniichan said and can make a friend to go with to the festival… There’s something I want as a reward. Will you promise me?”

“… Promise?”

“Not now ― once it happens, oniichan. Let’s go together to the festival.”

“Eh.”

What the heck does she mean by that.

After going to the festival with a friend, double booking by going together to the festival with me?

I mean… Isn’t that completely going back to the start line!?

“Hey, Manami… By saying you will make a friend in order to let go of your brother, isn’t that putting the cart before the horse?“

“Pretty please! This is the last I will ask of you! I want my last memory of middle school, by all means, to be going together to a festival with my brother…”

“…”

Since it’s unusual that Manami asks for something so meekly, I ended up rejecting it on impulse.

Thinking about it… Isn’t this to some extent better than keeping being insistently asked to the festival?

I don’t want to say it, but the chances of my sister that has been a solo player all her life to successfully make a friend in the lapse of a few days… Are far slimmer than the chances of survival of an ocean sunfish’s<ref><i>Mola mola</i>, a fish, wiki it.</ref> offspring.

“Understood. I’ll promise you that.”

After talking with a bit of a serious tone, Manami, with her feelings seemingly overflowing,

“I did iiit!! Oniichan, I love youuu!!”

<nowiki>*MUGYUUUUUUUUUUUUU*</nowiki>

Manami hugged me with all of her tender body.

Also, how much long will you keep being inside that trash bin?

Since the start, being hugged by my sister doesn’t make me very happy, but the stench like dead crayfish that comes from her hair adds up an extra layer.

If you’re going to be hugging, take out the rubbish from your hair.

“Chiharu, you adulterer.”

Zonmi badmouthed me, with a glare cold like a North Pole blizzard.

“…Ah.”

This is bad. Could it be that, this time, is Zonmi the one who has lost her temper?

Now that I say it, that’s right. I may have been insensible from my part to promptly make this kind of promise with my sister only minutes after having asked her out.

Being these two the women most near to me, unless you are very careful, the troubles won’t stop.

“Sorry. About this…”

“Jealous wench!”

By promptly making a follow-up, Manami didn’t let me continue.

“Shitty zombie! Read the mood! As you see, oniichan has chosen Manami♪ That’s why, get out♪”

“… Ku.”

Zonmi made a face as if she had bit a lemon,

“How many times I have to say it to you so that you understand!? My name isn’t zombie. It’s Zonmi! I’m a descendant of the proud since ancient times ghoul clan, Zonmi R. McKenzie!”

She rebuked with her usual cathphrase.

It seems that Zonmi being a ghoul she can’t stomach being treated as a zombie.

“Haa… Still with that? I’m fed up with that sentence!”

“Hey. It’s a problem that you are fed up…”

“Straight to the point, zombie-san. Aren’t you excessively close to oniichan despite being a newcomer? Going together to school every morning, you surely feel important. Could it be~, despite not being going out you feel like you’re his girlfriend?”

“Wha-wha-wha-what are you saying!? If you say that, then you too!”

“With me, it’s fine! Since I’m oniichan’s little sister♪”

“… Is that reason enough? If it’s like that, than I’m Chiharu’s partner. ―So it’s only my natural duty to serve at his side.”

Saying that, Zonmi showed the silvery glittering contract ring.

Some days ago, I formally established an employer-employee relation using the ring.

For that reason, Zonmi and me are wearing matching rings.

Contrastively with Zonmi’s face of triumph, Manami’s factions got shrouded in darkness.

“Ring… Oniichan and the zombie are wearing matching rings…”

“…Ah!”

This is very bad.

A switch has totally been flipped.

“I won’t forgive you… Never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never!”

My sister’s brother complex has sincerely deplorably gone out of track.

That’s bad.

So bad that it’s on the level of making even monsters run away.

Even Zonmi has gone pale.

“Let’s go, Chiharu! It’s dangerous to stay here!”

“… Yup.”

Zonmi took my hand.

It seems we can’t afford to wait for the bus.

The instant we left the station as if we were in agreement, a tremendous killing intent was felt at our backs.

“Aaa, You’ve taken…”

“Eh…”

“You’ve taken―, You’ve taken the hand―――――!! You’ve taken oniichan’s hand――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――!!"

I carefully looked back.

There, Manami, with the face of a demon, had taken out of nowhere a couple of huge knifes with 40 cm. of blade length, and isn’t she shortening distances with us with ferocious speed!?

Man… I don’t know what’s what…

With this you can’t tell who’s the monster.

“Chiharu, raise your speed.”

“Y-Yeah!”

Zonmi was dashing while strongly pulling my hand.

―Zonmi is of course a monster, and seeing it like that makes me too quite the monster tamer.

Could it be due to producing magic power? As of recent, my physical ability has risen conspicuously, reaching a level that can’t be compared with a normal person.

That’s why ― I don’t have to worry about the chance in a million that my sister catches us―

That’s what I was thinking at the moment.

“Hya!”

As I thought I’d heard a little shriek, suddenly, Zonmi’s arm that was pulling on my hand ― was severed while fresh blood gushed out.

“Fufufu. At last, I caught you♪”

From behind… No, wrong. It was from the front.

Before we could notice it ― there was my sister covered in the red of shed blood.

What an amazing act, my sister not also has defeated a monster tamer and his partner in speed, but managed to sever the right arm that Zonmi was using to pull my hand too.

Emm, from where has she acquired that pointless combat ability?

Good grief, that’s bad for the heart.

Had Zonmi not been from the ghoul clan…. Wouldn’t that have been no laughing matter?

“Fufufu. Lass. How dare you cut my arm… Today for sure I won’t forgive you.”

“Bring it on♪ Everyone who gets close to oniichan is an enemy♪ I’ll chop your heart and body!”

“…”

Taking an umbrella [weapon] from nowhere, Zonmi faced my sister.

My sister being my sister, she faced Zonmi with the aforementioned huge kitchen knives while smiling ominously.<ref>If Manami isn't actually an Oni-Baba (Demonic Hag: Depraved. Loves kitchen knives and eating people. Highly territorial and jealous.) I will be very surprised.</ref>

Man… I don’t know what’s what anymore…

Ever since Zonmi became a freeloader on the Kusumi residence, every day has been like this.

Even if I’m so worried, can’t I even sigh!?

My spirits are almost as low as when I threw a tantrum because I stained my newly bought shirt with curry sauce.

Paying no attention to those two, I carefully got out of that place and went to school alone.

<center>× × ×</center>

“Then, have you heard, Chiharu?”

Lunch break.

My classmate from the seat next to mine, Sakurazaka Youhei, asked me with his cheeks stuffed with flavored bread.

This good friend of mine is a man of the currently styled ‘low fuel consumption hybrid’ kind, who likes 2D girls and loves 3D girls.

“It seems A-class has decided to do caramel apples.”

“Eeh. Is that so. Tanaka from C-class does frankfurts. And didn’t Yamazaki from D-class chose chocolate bananas?”

“Yep. Both of them have made low-lifeness reach a whole new level. It seems they are using the confusion to make girls eat rod-shaped foods, and like that fulfill their hidden intention of seeing them make sexy poses.”

“…”

Regarding to our talk till now, it’s about the stands that will be set up during Saegusa festival.

A stand even though we are on high school?

You may be wondering, but to set up a stall is something specially regarded as part of our school’s extra-curricular activities.

To tell the truth, the reason I decided to go with Youhei to the festival is the following.

“About your booth… It was yo-yo fishing, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah. Isn’t it the best? The guys around me won’t stop saying ‘Isn’t he too fired up!?’, being no match for me.”

“… As expected. Your idea is on a whole different line of those of the perverts from the other classes.”

“!!”

As soon as I remarked that, Youhei’s eyes got sharper.

“Ku, ku, ku. As I suspected. Chiharu… I supposed that, being you, you’d realize.”

“… You overestimate me. Anyone would notice if he used his imagination a bit.”

“Nope. Apart from you, no one has realized it.

That yo-yo fishing has become the best panty-seeing spot―!!”

“…”

As I see it, yo-yo fishing is the best panty-seeing spot owing to two facts.

First.

As we know, in the game known as yo-yo fishing, if you don’t lower your hips enough you can’t pick a yo-yo, but, on the other hand, girls strongly dislike to dirty their clothes by touching the ground with her butts.

For that reason, since while yo-yo fishing they can’t but keep their hips lowered on a halfway stance, that makes the perfect chance for panty-seeing.

Second.

The line of sight of the girls engrossed on yo-yo fishing, where is it aimed at… Of course, at the prey [yo-yo] before their eyes.

With this, no matter how much wary the girl is, it’s difficult for them to realize their own defenseless stance.

By the way, due to the former, when you really try to google ‘yo-yo fishing panty-seeing’, you get a truly astonishing number of search results.

Even if the monster affair has enlivened society… Even today, the world is at peace.

“Now that we are talking about it, Chiharu, do you have someone to go with to the Saegusa festival this year?”

“Still no luck…”

Since I was rejected by Zonmi this morning.

“So it’s like that. If you ask me with your all, I may let you man the booth for a bit.”

“What… the heck…!?”

If you are telling me that I will be able to see panties effortlessly… That’s too good to be true.

“In that case, I want you to promise me something.”

Youhei put on a very serious expression,

“Since you are with me, make it so neither Zonmi-san nor your sister go to the festival.”

“…? No problem.”

Though I find it very unexpected, Youhei’s suggestion is somewhat easy to achieve.

Truth to be told, Zonmi has already rejected me once, and I doubt Manami will be able to make a friend before the day of the festival.

“… May I ask the reason?”

“Chiharu… Me being still your best friend, I want us to be together!”

Hey, hey.

You seem to be saying that if I went to the festival with two girls you’ll stop being my friend.

“Understood. Though I don’t understand why, if it’s like that, I’ll prevent those two from going to the festival.”

“For real…! Are you serious, pal!”

I was surrounded by his arms and hugged.

Seeing it from outside, it gives a dangerous feeling, but even being hugged by Youhei, I think I kept my face from revolting.

Gu, fu, fu, fu, fu.

How much has it been since I looked so forward to the day of the festival?

Saegusa festival? Now that I think about it, long ago, I often went with Kyouko, but lately the chances have remarkably diminished.

… Now that I think about it, has she planned to go with someone to the festival?

As I thought about that, once I reached my seat.

“Go-good morning! Haru!”

… Speaking of the devil.

A clear soprano voice suddenly resounded inside the classroom.

Looking in the direction of the voice, there was my childhood friend.

The moment she set foot inside the classroom, my classmates spirits fired up like gunpowder.

“Uooooooooooooooooooo! It’s Kyouko-samaaaa!” “Our angel has come doooooooown!”

Even after Zonmi transferred, Kyouko’s popularity was as strong as ever.

No, I’d dare say it was even stronger than ever.

The source was the “Monthly Seiran<ref>Written as “sex revolution” instead of the “sacred orchid” on the name of the academy.</ref> underground magazine published each month by our school’s newspaper club.

According to the same issue, over these several weeks, haven’t some of the core members of the Kyouko Fan Club (KFC) taken the banner of revolution, established the Zonmi Fan Club (ZFC) and now both parties are in the middle of a bloody feud?

“… What a fuss are these humans making.”

Engrossed until a while ago by the karaage roll she had for lunch, Zonmi expressed blatantly her displeasure without listening to the current conversation.

“Eeerm. What’s the matter?”

When I tried to ask, feeling an ominous premonition on my back, Kyouko blushed,

“We-well. I made an obentou for Haru!”

She spat those surprising words.

Kyouko put before me a humongous three layered… No, four layered bento box, then she averted her gaze while bashfully entwining her fingers.

‘Heh. Humph. So it’s like that? Chiharu and the Nephilim, not minding that I’m the partner, have entered into an unusual relationship.’

‘I misjudged you! You rom-com bastard!’

I think I’ll hear those two’s words anytime now.

… No, rather I want to hear them.

I don’t know what feelings do they hide inside their chests, but those two secretly pierced me with their glances without a word. As I thought I heard the creaking of plastic being broken, next instant, the remains of a pair of chopsticks rolled over the desk.

If you have something to say, why don’t you say it!?

Chopsticks have no guilt!

“… Yeah, erm. Currently, Kyouko-sama is intermingling with Kusumi Chiharu. Urgent, I request permission for bloodshed.”

“Yeehaa! Serves you right, KFC! It’s obvious our angel is Zonmi-san!”

“…”

The dubious students from next class came dashing, being as noisy as they pleased.

Not that it matters, but KFC… Isn’t that fried chicken?

“What the heck… How come? Why have you done this bentou for me that of a sudden?”

“Eeerm. That’s, you see…”

A change in the surroundings, the air got filled with tension.

The classmates watched us intently as they drooled.

“I-it’s the same work doing one or two!”

“…”

I-it cameeee!

The king of response that nowadays only happens on games!

Thanks for the treat. I’m full.

Thank you very much!

“What? Any problem? Since I made it for you, at least be thankful!”

“Ye-yeah…”

“Then, what are you going to do? Will you eat it or not?”

“I’ll eat it.”

“… Fuun. Y-you should have said that from the beginning!”

“…”

Aah. Of course I’d like to refuse.

Nevertheless, If I refuse Kyouko’s goodwill, she could not take it well. I’m scared of the retribution from the KFC members.

I don’t know if Kyouko’s plotting something, but it’ll be better to play along with her.

“Uwah!”

Next instant, Youhei’s shriek was heard.

No one present at the site when it happened could do nothing more than stare silently.

Speaking from the results, Yohei, who was until now seated next to me, has his head inside the garbage bin and is letting out anguished screams.

A catastrophe.

It’s a catastrophe.

“Yo-Youhei!?”

“This is bad! The infirmary! Someone take him to the infirmary!”

On the seat Youhei was occupying until a while ago, now is seated Kyouko, feigning innocence.

Dreadfully, probably Youhei’s appearance doesn’t reflect in her eyes.

Since she has used too casually her monster powers, no one present has noticed her wrongdoing.

… But that’s only natural.

It has been so fast that, despite having the dynamic vision of a monster tamer, I’ve barely noticed it…

“Come on. You can tell me if the bentou I made for you is of your liking!”

While trembling as if there was a poltergeist phenomenon going around, she opened the bentou box’s lid with unsteady hands.

If I have to talk about the contents ― they surely are of top-notch quality.

The fourth layer has white rice, while layers 1~3 seem to have been designed as side-dish areas.

Fried prawn. Hamburger steak. Karaage. French fries. Spaghetti. Pork cutlet. Curry pilaf. Yakiniku. Steak. Sweet and sour pork. Salad. Fried salmon. Mackerel with miso. Takoyaki… Etcetera, etcetera.

Like that, it was filled with multicolored side-dishes made to be well-received by men.

“Kyouko.”

“W-what?”

“Could it be… You want me to eat all of this?”

“Yeah. I tried to choose and make only what Haru liked, but…”

“…”

Sadly, it seems she has no ill will.

I don’t understand the exact reason, but since long ago her harsh efforts end all going on weird directions.

“Aah. Then. Bon appetite.”

I carefully reached out with my chopsticks to the hamburger steak.

“… How is it?”

“Yeah. The usual deliciousness.”

There’s no problem with the ingredient selection or their passing over the flames, and also there was no complain about its quality.

I’d believe it if they said to me this had come from a restaurant.

“Izzat so? That’s good…”

Kyouko, letting out an exhalation of deep relief, gazed at me with a dazzling expectation,

Come, why don’t you try the next one? If you ask me, I’m confident on how the fried shrimp has come out…

She asked me as if it was only natural.

“…”

This flow of events… It gives me bad vibes.

I looked around looking for help, but each and every one of them conspicuously turned away their glances, so I couldn’t meet their eyes.

[[File:Maou na Ore to Fushihime no Yubiwa 2 p071.png|thumb]]

It seems I deserve it, it can only be called divine punishment.

“… What’s the matter? Could it be it doesn’t suit your tastes… perhaps?”

I couldn’t get rid of my suddenly meek childhood friend, her eyes tinged with uneasiness.

Being like this, even I… Better to steel my stomach…

Having made my decision, I, with tearful eyes, I gulped down the hamburger and white rice as if stuffing them into my throat.

<nowiki>*MUNCH MUNCH* *MUNCH MUNCH*</nowiki>

Resolutely, I kept chewing.

My stomach capacity has reached its limits long ago.

It’s as if I could end up throwing everything up anytime if I so much let some air out.

However, I can’t go and give up.

This Kyouko, what the heck… What was she thinking, making so much bentou?

I don’t know the circumstance, but she wouldn’t have prepared so much bentou for no ordinary reason.

That’s why, I’ll eat it. I’ll keep eating it.

… After a while I could see the end.

Another bite.

Another bite… Only this last piece of pineapple from the sweet-sour pork and finished!

“… Blergh!”

Nevertheless, reality is not so kind.

Having my stomach reached long ago the limits of its capacity, its contents were thrown up in an explosion of a paste resembling egg icecream.

“Danger! Kusumi has been defeated!”

“To the infirmary! Even if it’s Kusumi, take him to the infirmary!”

What. I see a beautiful river.

Could this be… The Sanzu river<ref>River that represents the border between life and death according to Japanese Buddhism. Lit. “River of the Three Crossings”, if you were a very good person, you cross it through a jewelly bridge, if you had a balanced karma, through a shallow crossing, and if you were evil, through a deep part full of snakes.</ref>?

He… y…

The one who’s waving to me from the other side… Is it Youhei?

I see. You also fell on a very flashy manner.

Youhei… I follow your steps.

“Good grief. How can you be this soft-hearted, Master…?”

While I was losing consciousness, I thought I heard Zonmi’s voice.

<center>× × ×</center>

As soon as Kyouko reached her apartment, she buried her face in her pillow and hanged her head.

“…The worst.”

If that’s not the worst, then what would you call the worst?

The nicely timed ‘handmade bentou tactic” had ended in utter failure.

For sure, it’s the fault of the size of the bentou, I got carried away and did too much, I think I have many things to reflect on.

Then, no wonder, it ended up making him faint…

All the same, I should have predicted it.

“Hah…”

I let out a deep sigh.

Like this, usurping the contract is but a pipe dream.

If I keep it like this, wont I be forced to make a contract with the partner that I don’t want?

With Chiharu ever after, is that a destiny denied to me?

Thinking like that, I felt my mood steadily going down.

“I’m going to support you! Kyouko-oneechan.”

From somewhere, the voice of a girl could be heard.

“Who!?”

That’s weird. When I got out, if I’m not wrong, I locked the door.

Right now, no one should be inside this room other than me.

No one should…?

Next instant, *BAM!*, the wardrobe’s door was opened with force.

Following that, a familiar human came out rolling like a pill bug.

Kusumi Manami. The one who has suddenly come out from inside my home’s wardrobe was Chiharu’s little sister.

“…”

Unintentionally, I held my head in my hands.<ref>Don’t know exactly how to express it. Something similar to a double palmface.</ref>

I don’t know what Chiharu thinks, but what’s inside the head of this little sister that’s rolling there was a mystery.

“… What are you doing? Manami-chan.”

Worried as I was, I could hardly squeeze out those harmless words.

“Don’t mind it, oneechan!”

“Don’t mind!? Isn’t that a full-fledged crime? Don’t you have something to say about that!?”

“Fufu. That’s that. Now, compared with oneechan’s problems, that’s trifling. Am I wrong?”

[[File:Maou na Ore to Fushihime no Yubiwa 2 p077.png|thumb]]

--Wha…

Since it was spot-on, Kyouko was unconsciously taken aback,

“Eeeerm. What do you mean by supporting me?”

I asked with a somewhat forced smile.

“Cheering on your love, of course♪ Kyouko-oneechan, don’t you love oniichan?”

“… What?”

“However. Oneechan’s recently abused template of tsundere childhood friend, is it a successful approach against oniichan? Is not, right?”

“… R-rather, about liking Haru, I don…”

“Aaa. Yeah, yeah. It’s fine to go with that character.”

“…”

“You like him, don’t you?”

“…”

It’s not possible to keep a secret from her, so it seems.

“… Yes. I like him. I love him.”

Just when I voiced that, I noticed my face heating up.

(What’s with… This situation!?)

Why am I confessing my loving someone to that someone’s little sister?

Why was she inside my room’s wardrobe?

As the questions kept popping up, feeling that she’d lose if she thought deeply about it, Kyouko gave up thinking.

“Yep, yep. Let’s go straight to the point♪”

“…?”

“That love, I’ll help you fulfill it!”

“Eh,”

“From today onwards, Manami will be love’s Cupid for you two! I’ll teach Kyouko-oneechan about love!”

“Eeeeeeehhhhh!?”

I didn’t understand the reason.

Isn’t it somewhat sad that I have to learn about love from a girl younger than me?

“Don’t worry. Since if you leave it to me, everything will be OK! Feel at ease, Kyouko-oneechan!!”

“Hah…”

I could only sigh. Since I can’t reply, it seems I’ve given my consent.

That’s weird.

Manami is a well-known bro-con. I don’t know what reason she’d have to help me with my love.

“Ufufu. Now I can make Kyouko onee-chan get in the way of that ghoul’s romance…!”

“You’ve let out your true thoughts!?”

I don’t understand a bit of what’s happening, but I can say a single thing.

That is, it seems that it’s my fate to be completely manipulated by these pair of siblings.

<noinclude>

==References and Translation Notes==
<references />

{{SimpleNav|e=6}}
</noinclude>

Madan no Ou to Vanadis:Volume 06 Chapter 3

2014-02-19T22:56:09Z

EcoJakk:

== Chapter 3: A Foreign Land ==

When Gerard Augre visited LeitMeritz, Tigre was still at sea.

The young man, who was about 25 years old, had curled brown hair and bronze eyes, and was wearing an official uniform of red and black. That official uniform showed his status as registrar of the Kingdom of Brune, and the chest seam symbolized the Red Horse embroidery of Brune.

"Though as expected, I have certainly become used to seeing it since this is my third time coming here..."

Waiting at the main gate to meet with Ellen, Gerard sighed slightly while looking up at the towering Imperial Palace.

A year ago he did not even imagine that he would become the registrar of Brune and would visit Zchted on such a regular basis. He originally thought he would inherit from his father the vineyard around Territoire, and spend a nice and quiet life uneventfully, but unfortunately he didn't have such a fate.

All changed after he met Tigrevurmud Vorn.

In Brune’s civil war, Gerard, under Tigre’s command, was responsible for managing logistics and showed excellent ability to adjust the distribution of food, fuel, and weapons work. That ability was highly rated, and after the civil war ended, he began to work in the Imperial Court of the Kingdom of Brune.

Every two months, he would visit LeitMeritz. And he reporting to Ellen the progress of the work on the Vosyes Mountains was one of his duties. It was the third time now, and since the gatekeeper also remembered his name and face, he was able to enter the Imperial Palace without being kept waiting too much.

He was taken to the office after his luggage and clothes were inspected. His luggage was only a linen backpack filled with notes, tools for writing and a bundle of letters.

He was already checked at the main gate, but since he was with luggage this time, there was a need to check it again. After the inspection, Gerard knocked the door.

"Long time no see, Mr. Secretary."

Ellen, who wore a formal dress based on blue, was sitting by the office desk. Lim was standing beside her.

"It's good to see that both Vanadis-sama and also Limlisha-dono seem to be healthy above all."

Gerard put on a smile used for social etiquette and bowed in an exaggerated gesture. Ellen nodded generously, but Lim wordlessly returned the courtesy.

Though Gerard's smile was basically stemming from interpersonal politeness, it was also somewhat sincere. In front of Ellen, ones attitude need not be as rigid. However, if he were facing a big aristocrat or high-ranking official of the court of Brune, he must pay attention to his words and behavior.

"Without delay, let me first report on the Vosyes Mountains Road."

This was the agreement that was established in accordance with the mutual non-aggression pact between Brune and Zchted which was signed half a year ago. As long as the mountain path was upgraded, the shortest highway linking the King's Capital of both countries would be born. The merchants and travelers would surely take this new road, and LeitMeritz which was situated halfway along the way would therefore also profit.

The reason this matter had yet to be resolved was because this mountain range was on the border between Zchted and Brune. If large-scale construction was performed near the border, it would surely be admonished by the others, and the highway being made also meant that aggression actions will be more convenient.

Originally it was a matter that would be accepted no matter what, even if a non-aggression pact was concluded. But Brune was indebted to Zchted, and moreover the contract was exchanged partly because of various circumstances and speculations, therefore such a project could be made possible.

Gerard was already used to this. While he read aloud the report he had prepared in advance, he also fluently answered the questions raised by Ellen from time to time. Gerard was familiar with the status-quo of this road, and he has a clear understanding since he just passed there from Brune on the way here. He answered without hesitation.

After listening to Gerard's report, Ellen smiled contentedly.

"Yeah. It seems to be going smoothly. Good work, Mr. Secretary."

"To hear such words from Vanadis-sama makes me feel relieved. I would also convey as such to our lord."

Gerard bowed in an exaggerated gesture in the same way as the time when he entered the office. Afterward the topic then changed over to casual conversation.

Even if it is called small talk, the main topic was about the situations in their respective countries. Most of the content was for example like what a noble was saying in the country, where there have been disputes within the respective countries, the movements of Muozinel and Asvarre and so on.

"What position does Brune hold concerning the civil war in Asvarre?"

"For our part, as sparks of the war does not affect us, we intend to watch it calmly. Fortunately, Sachstein’s attention seems to be going towards Asvarre, so we are thankful for there not being a threat temporarily on the west side of Brune."

"Currently, there are three main forces in Asvarre. Prince Germaine, Prince Eliot and Princess Guinevere... If one among those sought assistance of Brune, what does Her Highness Princess Regin plan to do?"

"Obtaining desirable results by thrusting one's neck into the quarrel of others is probably something possible only in the world of heroic tales or dramas. Not to mention that our country has yet to recover from the turmoil of half a year ago."

Gerard lifted the corner of his mouth sardonically and shrugged his shoulders. Though Lim frowned at his behavior which lacked etiquette, she was soothed by Ellen's gaze and remained silent to some extent.

"That's right, isn’t it? Please tell Her Highness Regin to take care of herself."

"Thank you for your concern. I won’t fail to convey those words."

Then, just before finishing the chat and leaving, Gerard expressed one wish.

"After this, could I greet Lord Tigrevurmud?"

This was what he applied for whenever he visited LeitMeritz. Tigre was currently a guest here. Although it was only a small matter, it would less troublesome if he got Ellen’s permission.

Gerard thought that he would obtain Ellen’s agreement like before, but this time it was different. As Ellen's face looked glum, she shook her head with an apologetic expression.

"I'm sorry. Lord Tigrevurmud is not here now. He was summoned by His Majesty the King about ten days ago, and went to the King at the Capital Silesia."

"By King Viktor? For exactly what kind of business?"

Speaking with a very troubled voice, Gerard frowned plainly. However, Ellen shook her head again.

"I was not told either. However Lord Tigrevurmud is an important guest, even for His Majesty. So there is no need for Lord Gerard to worry."

"...Is that so. It's regrettable that I'm not able meet Lord Tigrevurmud."

Though Gerard made an expression of disappointment, he backed down quietly without further questioning. He felt that there was nothing more that he could gleam from Ellen.

"By the way, there is something I need to hand over to Lord Tigrevurmud when he returns, may I request Vanadis-sama to fulfilled it for me instead?"

"No problem. What is it?"

As Ellen asked, Gerard took out a bundle of letters from his backpack, which filled up both of his hands, and put them on the desk. Ellen and Lim could not help but stare in wonder. There were nearly twenty letters.

"...What...is this?"

"There are 17 letters. Three of them are applications for marriage meeting. The remaining 14 are applications from Feudal Lords hoping to leave their daughter or niece at his side as trainee maids."

"Marriage meeting? Maid applications?"

Making a face as if she swallowed a bitter medicine, Ellen stared at the pile of letters. Lim’s poker face collapsed instantly, and asked Gerard with a confused look.

"Excuse me, but... Are Her Highness Princess Regin and Lord Massas aware of this?"

Massas was Tigre's father Urz's best friend, and the man who took care of Tigre all the time even after Urz died. He helped Tigre in the civil war of Brune, and Lim who had acted as his assistant trusted his character.

After the end of the civil war he let his son inherit his title and his territory, and accepted the request of Regin and Prime Minister Bodwin to serve the royal court. Lim simply could not believe that he would overlook it.

"Of course. The only reason I brought them was simply because I have already gotten the approval from those two."

Gerard answered as if it were a matter of course. After hearing that Ellen and Lim looked at each other.

Ellen knew that Regin harbored feelings of love for Tigre beyond status or position. Even Lim was vaguely aware of that fact.

Despite that, she let the Feudal Lords send such letters. What was the meaning behind it? Didn't they notice Regin's feelings, or were they aware of that and deliberately ignoring it?

"...Mr. Secretary."

With a cough Ellen somehow regained her composure, and asked with a cautious tone while poking the letters with her fingertip.

"What do these people think of Princess Regin and Lord Tigrevurmud?"

"They naturally swear allegiance to Her Highness the Princess. The assessment of Lord Tigrevurmud should not be low, either. After all, he was the hero in the previous war, and Her Highness the Princess, Lord Massas, and even the knight squadron have deep trust in him. He also has a good relationship with Zchted, so they would naturally want to have good relations with him."

With a hypocritical smile, the secretary with brown hair gave a model answer as a bureaucrat of Brune. Ellen realized that there was something wrong with her method of questioning. It seems that she should say it more bluntly.

"Didn’t Princess Regin feel upset after seeing such a thing? Mr. Secretary, It seems the Feudal Lords' thoughts of your country is a little different."

"...Indeed, thanks to the efforts of Lord Tigrevurmud, the life of Her Highness the Princess was saved, and she became the leader of our country as the successor of the late King Faron. Suppose that kindness becomes love, and Her Highness becomes a maiden in love and continues to yearn earnestly for Lord Tigrevurmud."

At this point, Gerard's face became serious.

"...There cannot be such a thing. Those people think so. Lord Tigrevurmud is a person born from an Earl House in the frontier, and he doesn’t have anything to be proud of other than his archery. Such a figure is not suitable to become the King of the next generation. Her Highness should feel the same way."

Ellen did not answer back to that, and sullenly looked at the pile of letters.

It would not be a lie, that Tigre's assessment was not low. If it were only a good relationship they could still compromise, but putting him on the throne would be out of the question. And they believed that Regin also thought in the same way.

''---It can't be helped.''

Since Ellen, Lim, and also Gerard were in the {{furigana|[Silver Meteor Army]|Unstoppable Silver Flow}}, they knew that Regin trusts Tigre completely and opens her heart to him. However, virtually none of the Feudal Lords knows about this. Even after listening to the rumors of the triumph in the King's Capital Nice, it would be extremely difficult to imagine that their relationship had gone so far.

Lim appeared to have thought of something, and asked Gerard.

"Has Princess Regin said anything about Lord Tigrevurmud?"

"Her Highness is very concerned about Lord Tigrevurmud's situation. In the presence of the minister, she once said that she cannot use wealth, territory, or position to express her gratitude, and that upon his return to Brune she will reward him accordingly."

"W-Well, it is natural. It is thanks to Tigre... Lord Tigrevurmud that she is currently there."

Ellen's face became stiff, though she was able to return to her usual tone. The Vanadis with silver white hair managed to correct herself and nodded. Not being able to express her gratitude with either wealth, position or territory.

Then how on earth was is she going to express her gratitude?

"Also, the fact that Lord Tigrevurmud was only bestowed the title of {{furigana|[Knight of the Moonlight]|Lumiere}} by His Highness King Faron, and the land of Alsace which he inherited from his father is requisitioned and in is currently in the co-management of Her Highness the Princess and Vanadis-sama. In addition, Lord Tigrevurmud himself was forced to leave his homeland, where he was born and raised, and had come to Zchted..."

After saying this, Gerard deliberately stopped his mouth. And then he bowed with an exaggerated gesture while apologising for complaining about it. Able to say such criticism to Ellen without any care, it seemed that his cynic daring had not change so far.

Gerard being able to say things like that, should probably be because he had heard about the story from Tigre. Ellen immediately understood that he deliberately intended to say such things. Most likely, what he just said were the reasons why the Feudal Lords firmly believe that there was no way Regin would love Tigre.

''---This is a decision that we have made, and Tigre has also consented...''

Ellen crossed her arms once again and looked to the pile of letters, then sighed.

Limited by her status, Ellen was also unable to reveal her true feelings, and even if she knew about the attempts of the Feudal Lords, she also had no reason to prevent it. She felt sympathy for Regin who could only confirm these letters with a depressed face. Lim also bore a bitter smile, imagining Massas ruefully sorting these letters.

"...I understand. When Lord Tigrevurmud returns, I will give these to him. I promise you, I will take good care of these letters until he comes back."

"Thank you very much."

Gerard's face seemed relieved, and he left the office this time for sure. After closing the door, in contrast to his relaxed mood, Ellen and Lim looked at the pile of letters with trouble faces.

Gerard, who left the work office, made a request to the soldier who was going to send him off to the main gate.

"Sorry to bother you, but can I stay for a while? There is someone that I want to greet. Of course I have gotten the approval of Vanadis-sama."

The latter half of the sentence was a lie. He knew that the soldier would be unable to judge the truth from the lie immediately. The soldier uneventfully complied. When he said the name of the person he wanted to greet, the soldier agreed to it without any suspicion.

''---Though I was not able to ask either Vanadis-sama nor Limlisha-dono...''

Gerard wanted to know by all means what kind of life Tigre was leading nowadays. Though it was not as if he were personally interested in it, there was a reason behind it.

Regin and Massas would be very glad if he talked to them about Tigre. Especially Regin who brightened her blue eyes until they were shining like a child's, and even the change of her expression was very interesting to see.

As Gerard had greed for success in life like everyone else, in order to please his boss, he had to bring some information about Tigre back.

Walking the corridor of the Imperial Palace led by the soldier, Gerard soon spotted the target. In the figure of a maid with white apron on top of the black long sleeves skirt, it was a girl who was in a twin tail chestnut hair. Gerard called out to her with a radiant smile.

"Long time no see, Teita-san."

The girl, Teita, also noticed Gerard and politely greeted him with a smile.

"Ah! Gerard-san, you came."

"Yeah. I was just talking with Vanadis-sama earlier on."

And then, Gerard and Teita chatted for a while. There were many topics that she was interested in, like Alsace's situation or matters about Massas who was fed up with the royal court duty. Teita then happily talked about the events of Tigre's life recently in the Imperial Palace.

"Massas-sama is doing well as usual, huh?"

"He is often bickering with his Excellency the Prime Minister Bodwin-sama."

"Like Gerard-san and Rurick-san?"

To the innocent words of Teita, the secretary of Brune was at loss for words. Though he would just think of it as sarcasm or provocation if it were another person who said it, because he knew that this girl did not have these intentions, he was troubled about how to respond.

Suddenly looking away, Gerard saw the soldier who were standing silently nearby. Because he bore the duty to guide Gerard to the main gate, he did his best to maintain his smile while faithfully waiting for them to finish talking.

"Excuse me, but we are probably going to take awhile. Since I will feel bad for making you wait any longer, I think that it should be alright to let her guide me to the main gate instead."

Though the soldier looked troubled, Teita was a guest and is also the maid of Tigre, in addition to being trusted by Ellen and Lim. Living here for half a year was also not short at all. The soldier briefly explained the situation to Teita, and asked if it was okay.

"I understand. If it is something like that, I will bear the task to see off Gerard-san properly to the main gate."

Just like that, Teita watched the soldier leave. Gerard secretly gloated at the moment. Up till now it all went as planned.

"By the way, Teita-san. About Lord Tigrevurmud."

With his radiant smile intact, Gerard changed the topic of discussion. Teita looked at Gerard with a surprised face.

"...Is there something wrong with Tigre-sama?"

"Vanadis-sama said that he went to the King's capital Silesia, but... Has Teita-san not heard anything from Lord Tigrevurmud?"

"... No, he didn't say anything special."

Teita denied while shaking her head, but her eyes swam for an instant, and her wavering voice lowered. Gerard did not overlook the subtle change on her face. Instinctively, he believed that something must have happened. He boldly stepped forward, closing the distance between them, and strongly stared at Teita’s face.

"...Really?"

Teita flinched from Gerard's abrupt action, and her shoulders shivered as she retreated a step. Gerard took another step forward promptly and shortened the distance to her again.

"Th-That..."

Teita had on a helpless expression, continuing to shake her head in denial, such that even Gerard could not bear it in his heart. However, this was unavoidable in order to find out what she was hiding.

"Stop that."

A voice suddenly came from behind. A shock and a pain ran to his head, and Gerard staggered. When he looked back while holding his head, a young man wearing armor was standing there.

With a well-featured face and a slippery head without a single hair, he had a sheathed sword in his hand. It seemed that he clubbed Gerard's head with it.

"Even if it was only for a short period of time, what intention do you have to threaten the maid of the person whom I used serve, you malicious person of Brune? Depending of your answer, I might club you again."

"When I wondered who it was, it was just you... "

Gerard groaned in annoyance. The man's name was Rurick. Despite his short fellowship with Gerard, they had (what we might call) a close bond relationship.

"It is bad for my reputation for you to say that I threatened her. I could not possibly do something like that to her."

"Even the eyes of five-year-old child would see that you are scaring her. You bastard, what are you trying to do?"

As if to protect Teita, Rurick was standing in between the two of them and stabbed Gerard with sharp eyes. The secretary of Brune sighed.

"You may not understand even if I explained it to you who has dull eyes and a cloudy brain, but I was only talking with Teita-san about Lord Tigrevurmud. Since there was a matter in which I was more interested in, I leaned forward carelessly."

"...This insidious damp man says so. Teita-dono?"

Looking back at Teita, Rurick asked with a very serious face and tone. Teita, with a troubled expression, looked back and forth between Rurick and Gerard's faces.

"E-Err... What Gerard-san says is true. While talking about Tigre-sama, we probably became a little too excited."

Tough Gerard was inwardly relieved to hear the resolute and decisive words of the maid with fox-tail millet colored hair, but her words did not seem to dispel Rurick’s suspicion.

"Teita-dono. You don't need to force yourself to cover up for this man. Even if you are afraid of a reprisal, in place of Lord Tigrevurmud, I won't let him lay a single finger on you."

"Are you trying to be a knight in shining armour?"

"I'm originally a knight. That's why."

Replying immediately to Gerard's misnomer, Rurick stared at Teita. As Teita unintentionally laughed, she slightly bowed to show her gratitude.

"Thank you Rurick-san. But he really did not threaten me."

"...... I understand, since Teita-dono says so."

Though he could not accept it, if she said it like that, even Rurick could not hold on any further. However, seeming to feel the need to give a warning to Gerard, the bald head knight turned towards the secretary with brown hair.

"I must report about what I saw just now to Limlisha-dono just in case."

"Wait a minute. Why do you have to do something like that?"

Anxiety was mixed in with Gerard's voice. As for what was bad for him, that was because Lim was friendly with Massas. In the worst case scenario, she might convey this matter to Massas in a letter or something.

"It will only be natural to report to the top if something unusual happened within the castle."

Folding his arms, Rurick proudly replied. Gerard was not able to retort to this sound argument. Though he requested for help from Teita with a gaze, but only an apologetic smile was returned.

''---It seems that I have no choice but to withdraw here...''

It was certain that Rurick would become a hindrance if he kept up any further with this conversation. Besides, he was able to obtain something out of that small talk about Tigre's current lifestyle. As tales of his travel to Regin and Massas, even if it was not complete, in terms of quality and quantity, it should certainly be satisfying enough.

''---And if I tried to find about the rest myself? First of all, I must dispatch someone to the King's Capital Silesia and then examine what kind of business Lord Tigrevurmud was called for by the King of Zchted.''

"Well then, I will leave first since I will apparently be haunted by an unpleasant gaze if I stay here."

"Ah, then let me see you off to the main gate."

As Teita remembered and said so, Gerard was accompanied to the main gate by both Rurick and her. Although Rurick was constantly speaking badly about him while they were walking down the corridor, since Teita was nearby, their squabbling did not reach to the extreme levels, and gradually it ended.

"May the blessing of the gods be with you, Gerard-san."

Teita waved. Gerard waved in return to say goodbye to her while deliberately ignoring Rurick's presence. Then he left the Palace.

<center><big><big>◎</big></big></center>

It was seven days later that Tigre reached Asvarre across the Breton Peninsula at the northwest edge of the kingdom of Brune since he got on the '[{{Furigana|Proud Beluga|Górdyj Beluga}}]'.

When looking at the port town of his destination from afar, Matvey relaxed, and an expression of relief spread through the passengers' faces. Two days later, the tense atmosphere that covered the ship finally defused.

"It seems like we have finally reached our destination safely."

On the deck, Matvey looked back at Tigre and Olga and smiled brightly. Although it was just a smile on the face of this man, it looked as though he was up to no good, and it's a little scary. However Tigre, who had become accustomed to that in this sea trip, nodded with a smile.

After passing the peninsula two days ago, the sailors became laconic, and there was always a dangerous air among them, as though they were in a battlefield. Even the passengers also took in such a mood, and kept their weapons beside them at all times.

Tigre, Olga and Matvey were the only people who remained calm.

"It’s because the pirates may appear."

To Tigre who asked about the strange mood, Matvey replied unhappily.

"Though I think Lord Tigrevurmud is aware of that matter, among the two princes who are currently fighting in Asvarre, Prince Eliot employs pirates as subordinates. Prince Eliot's base is in Asvarre island, and the surrounding area is just like their backyard for those guys."

Matvei frowned and explained while drawing a map in the air with his fingertip.

"Aren't they prohibited from targeting a merchant ship of Zchted?"

It was Olga who asked so. She wrapped herself in a mantle whenever she comes out on the deck, and she covered her eyes with a hood.

"Sadly, in this world there are words that are very convenient to use such as ‘made a mistake’."

As Matvey shrugged, he said that he would look at the state of the surroundings and left from there. Tigre was looking at the scenery of the small port town that gradually approached when Olga tugged at his sleeve.

"Tigre. Can you shoot that down?"

Extending her arm straight, what Olga pointed to were seabirds flying gracefully under the cloudy sky. After observing the seabirds for a moment, Tigre shook his head.

"It is meaningless even if I shoot it down."

Seeming not to understand Tigre's answer, Olga tilted her head.

"It will only fall into the sea even if I shoot it down. Though this ship is loaded with a shallop, I cannot possibly trouble so many people just to collect a seabird."

He explained so while looking at the seabirds, but Olga seemed to interpret it as making excuses. She narrowed her eyes that were visible through her hood and said with a bored voice.

"You travel only with a bow and handled it with great care, that's why I thought that you would be very confident... or do you think I am deliberately making things difficult for you?"

"I do not think you are deliberately making things difficult for me, but there is definitely a little difficulty in hitting this target."

Tigre, with an indifferent look, replied softly to Olga. This was because he knew that she didn't say it just on a whim.

While on board, other than sleeping, they didn't have much else to do, and therefore Tigre talked to her a lot. She was heartily surprised that Tigre only had a dagger in addition to his bow.

"Is it really so rare?"

In turn, this even made Tigre feel that it was unbelievable. Olga was surprised, or stunned.

"Most people have a sword and a hatchet as weapons. And after that many have spear and ax. Even if there are people who use the bow in addition to such weapons, I have never seen people using only a bow."

"A hatchet is good. I will prepare that from the next time onwards."

Tigre also carried a hatchet when hunting. It was because it was convenient to cut away tall weeds, obstructive branches and leaves. However, he never thought of carrying it while on a trip. To Tigre who was impressed, Olga asked.

"Are you that confident with the bow?"

"More than with a sword or a spear."

Though every word that he said was the truth, but Olga's gaze at Tigre showed that she was at a lost for words.

While recalling such a conversation several days ago, Tigre observed the seabirds again.

Though they were not that fast, they were flying pretty high. The wind was blowing, and since they were on a ship, the footing was also unstable. It would probably be extremely difficult for someone with ordinary skills to make an arrow hit the seabirds.

''---To begin with, Can that stuff be eaten? This is my first time seeing such a bird...''

Tigre returned his eyes to the port town while intending to ask Matvey later. There was a small hill in the vicinity of the shore, and the gently undulating terrain filled with broad streets made up the cityscape. He saw a building that seemed like a palace on the hill. One might overlook the sea from there.

The captain roared out a command loudly, 'The [{{Furigana|Proud Beluga|Górdyj Beluga}}]' folded its white sails and began slowing down little by little. The ship’s power was converted to wood-pulp, and it went forward to the port town under the leadership of the pilot vessel.

Maria was one of the very common port cities in the kingdom of Asvarre.

The harbor was crowded with people handling the cargo. Roadside stalls were located on both sides of the street, the merchants, the travelers and the housewives who came out for shopping, all sorts of people were coming and going, and the atmosphere was wrapped in a chaotic buzz.

A huge fish that was a long as a man is tall was chopped into chunks on the spot for sale. The basket was filled with small fish that were just caught, and were still alive and kicking. The sea water dripped from the shellfish piled in heaps in the barrels. Moreover, mushrooms, cabbage and wild grass were also placed on the mat for sale.

"It is lively, but not as much as in Lippner. I wonder if it is because of the civil war."

As Tigre gave his honest impression, Olga beside him also nodded.

"The number of ships is different, though the port size is about the same."

At those words, Tigre looked at her with a surprised face. Even when talking about the bow, this girl’s calm was completely at odds with her age, as if she was accustomed to traveling in general. Tigre was constantly surprised after leaving Lippner, and thus he did not manage to observe both the port and the ship well.

'The [{{Furigana|Proud Beluga|Górdyj Beluga}}]' anchored on the wharf, disembarking passengers in succession.

Tigre and Olga were waiting for Matvey and thus got down last.

Though Tigre finally set his foot on the hard ground after a long time, he felt a sense of incongruity to his body and stamped several times on the spot. Olga asked him with a wondering face.

"What are you doing?"

"I may only be tired, but I feel like my body is still shaking."

"...I also feel that, too. What is it?"

The two looked at each other tilting their head. It was Matvey that gave them a clear answer.

"We are calling it wave motion sickness (drunkenness), since the body got used to the state of vibration. It will be mostly wear off if you leave it for awhile."

"How long will take if we leave it be?"

Olga asked with an uncomfortable voice. Matvey frowned and answered.

"If you walk around for awhile, your body should get used to the hard ground again. Although there are rare cases where the illness becomes worst for the person, but you will probably be alright since you did not get seasick. Shall we go eat for the time being?"

Matvey led the way out of the port, walking down the street.

''---As expected, it is different from Brune or Zchted after all.''

The fence surrounding houses, wood materials and assembly methods, the pattern of the walls, as well as the structure of the roof. The differences of these details, as well as the conversations of people that leaked to the ear strengthened the feeling of having come to a foreign land. Tigre did not understand nor recognise the words that they occasionally saw as well.

Before long, Matvey chose one shop and entered. Tigre and Olga also followed. A fragrant smell assailed their nose the moment they passed through the door, and the noise inside struck their earlobes.

In this snug store, more than half the seats were already filled. The guests were not just the residents of the town, there were also passengers and sailors. Deep in the store, the three people sat around a round-topped table, and a young waitress squeezed through the crowd to pass to Matvey a menu.

Tigre was looking around the store. Such places did not change wherever he went.

"After this we are going to meet with someone."

Tigre looked at Olga who was covered with the turban over her eyes even when in the store. Although this caused her to seem very suspicious, other guests were also far from being decent. Thus he decided not to mention it.

"We plan to leave this town today at the earliest. What do you intend to do?"

After being asked this question, Olga cast down her eyes, seeming to think about something. She paused and opened her mouth after about a count of three.

"May I accompany you until midway? Concerning meals and lodging, I will pay my share myself. I won't do something like causing you trouble."

"If you tell us the purpose of your trip."

As Tigre replied so, Olga remained silent once again. Perhaps wanting to ease the atmosphere, Matvey was about to say something. Tigre held him back and continued.

"I won't ask you to explain in detail. Like how I said it just now, I am going to meet a certain person, it is enough if the extent of what you tell me is something like that. I won't even ask your identity. However, it would be good if you can describe at least that much to us."

During the sea trip, when he was free, Tigre would think about Olga's situation, but he could not reach a conclusion.

No matter how you look at it, she just did not fit with her age. She also seemed to be accustomed to traveling, and she also had a splendid axe hung to her waist. Even when she was in front of him or Matvey, she was neither perturbed nor scared, and she had a calm and brave attitude.

If she was an itinerant entertainer or a bard, then it was strange that she did not have her tools for work. If she was a fugitive guilty of some crime, her behavior was rather sloppy (her words and deeds were rather ostentatious). Even though he did not ask her much, but she also did not talked too much about herself. It was like saying that she was suspicious of him.

An extreme thought would be the possibility of her being spy, but as expected, she was too young and it would be rather conspicuous.

This silence lasted a long time. As the waiter carried the beer which that was filled to the brim in big glasses made of ceramic and put them on the table, Olga finally spoke.

"...Is it no good if I say that there is something that I want to see?"

She looked at Matvey and Tigre. They showed neither approval nor disapproval.

"Does that mean there is a place where you want to go?"

To Tigre's question, Olga shook her head.

"I just want to walk around this country properly, and hear various stories in the towns and villages that we will drop by in. I only want to go to those towns and villages, meaning there isn't particularly any place where I want to go."

It became more and more incomprehensible. Leaving aside Brune and Zchted which currently have no signs of war, here was Asvarre.

Tigre violently rummaged his darkish red hair and sighed. As he looked towards Matvey.

"My orders were to assist you."

It seemed that he entrusted him with the decision. Thus as Tigre asked him whether it was fine with his gaze, the scary-looking sailor said with a happy smile.

"Sailors always encounter various mishap situations on the sea. If I leave a young girl all alone just to loaf around, the beluga on my back will look down on me."

Tigre thanked him again and said sorry. Rather than being Tigre's subordinate, he was only cooperating because it was Sasha's request. But he was willing to respect the will of a youngster who probably did not have even half of his age.

"I would like to hear from the man who looks good with the white dolphin, what are our future plans?"

"We will leave the town as soon as we can acquire horses. We will arrive at our destination city after two or three days. Though it is a camping-out for tonight, we will stay at a small village along the highway tomorrow."

Matvey who was probably expecting such a question answered it smoothly without any pause. Tigre purposely made a severe expression and looked at Olga again.

"We don't mean to stay long in Asvarre. We will return to Zchted quickly after we finish our business. So if you do not mind, our trip together will be until that town."

Having Olga accompanying the both of them was not without its benefits. Since it would be very difficult for others to imagine them to be secret agents if they took a child along.

"...I understand. Then, until that town."

Olga moved her small body and bowed to Tigre and Matvey respectively.

"Well, I wish us a happy journey in this country, cheers!"

The trio each picked up a cup, and bumped them together lightly. Tigre gulped down the beer vigorously. After drinking about half of the cup, he frowned.

"It is very bitter, this beer."

Though he also drank beer in both Brune and Zchted, he had not drank any kind of beer that had left such a bitter taste on the tongue thus far. Distorting her facial expression underneath her turban, Olga seemed to think so too. Only Matvey’s smile remained.

"There is also a way of drinking it while diluting it with water, wine or herb. Or, would you like to drink another liquor?"

While still at a lost as to what to do, the dishes were served. There was oatmeal and beef stewed with liquor which was Asvarre's peculiar dishes. And moreover, since it was situated at the seashore, there was also salmon and cabbage soup, grilled cod fish with its stomach stuffed with herbs and mushrooms, and many other kinds of fish and shellfish as well.

Also on the table, bread coated with crushed peanuts and mutton fried soybean was lined up. All these had fragrant smells drifting out from the dishes, and just by looking at it, saliva accumulated in the mouth. They were at loss as to where to start.

The oatmeal had a unique smell and texture, and since the beef that was stewed with liquor had a strong flavor, it was just right eating it with bread. The salmon that was used as the base of the soup used salt marination ahead of time, and thus the salt taste that entered in the soup was just right.

As Tigre and the others smacked their lips over the many dishes, while they were talking about their cruise until today and their impression of this town, they were also listening to the conversations from other tables.

"...It seems that before we left Zchted the situation here had not changed."

It was about the fight between Prince Germaine and Prince Eliot. Although small-scale battles occurred frequently, it seemed that both sides failed to gain any advantage against the other.

"There may be a change happening soon. Because it seems that Prince Eliot left the Asvarre island that is his base, and came to the continent."

Similarly overhearing the nearby conversation, Matvey said.

"It is probably to encourage the soldiers of his army."

"There is also the possibility that he may personally lead them himself. As for the number of soldiers, the fact that Prince Eliot's side is superior didn't change."

After answering so, Matvey picked up a tender piece of fish to his mouth. Olga put her glass down and asked.

"I heard that among Prince Eliot's troops, the pirates account for a great number of them, but are they really that many in numbers?"

"You know that half a year ago, a civil war occurred in Brune. I heard that thousands of the pirates were once remnants of the defeated army who fled to the North at that time."

After listening to Matvey say these words, Tigre almost choked with his food stuck in his throat.

"Others are Sachstein’s mercenaries, as well as a group of people known as sea people, it's quite a mixed bag of people. And if this messed up situation drags on for much longer, many more will lose their jobs and livelihoods, and Zchted will also definitely be affected. For example..."

Stopping his hand that was eating, Matvey suddenly put on a serious expression.

"As there are those who are making a living by trading with Asvarre merchants, what will happen when they are no longer able to trade because those merchants were killed due to the civil war? You may say that they should look for new trading partners, but if such a thing was so easily found, they would not be having such a hard time."

Listening to the conversation of the two people, Tigre tore the bread roughly and threw it into his mouth.

Even if it was to escape from starvation, becoming a pirate was not something allowed. Misfortune will never become a reason to dispossess (to deprive) an innocent person. So, instead of becoming a pirate, was it better to starve and die? No, that's not right as well. What should be done is…

"Lord Tigrevurmud."

Unwittingly, Tigre fell into silence with a serious face. Matvey said with a soothing tone and a fearful expression.

"Are you tired from the sea trip? The food is becoming cold you know?"

"Ah, no, I was just thinking about the upcoming trip."

"For us, here is a foreign land. Although there may be some things that will make us unhappy, but I hope you will not be so depressed."

"...That's right. Thank you."

It was for Matvey's consideration towards him that Tigre expressed his gratitude. Matvey understood what the young man was getting worried and angry about, so he persuaded him gently.

Tigre fiercely stretched out his hand to the remaining food on the table. To face Germaine in an adequate condition with both stamina and energy, he convinced himself that he must properly eat from now.

<center><big><big>◎</big></big></center>

Along the road flanked by a small hill, a small village came into view when they exited the forest. Since they left the port town of Maria, two days had already passed.

The three people were on horseback and had tied their luggage to the saddle. Matvey led the way, followed by Tigre and lastly Olga.

Though Tigre thought that Olga was used to traveling, she was also proving it by her actions. When they camped out yesterday, she managed to hunt two wild hares in only a half koku.

In addition, Tigre also shot down two wild birds, and thus the supper of that day became very luxurious. Olga also did really well when handling the birds and hares. She continued the work with much finesse, drawing out blood, skinning and plucking the feathers of the birds easily, and Tigre was impressed.

"Though it is still daylight, we will rest in this village for today."

While looking up at the bright sunshine in the cloudless sky, Matvey that was at the vanguard said those words.

"If we leave on the early morning of tomorrow, we may arrive at Valverde, which is our destination, at the afternoon."

After finishing the harvest, there were withered grass stalks scattered everywhere in the field, and the farmers were resting by either sitting or lying down. Opposite the field, there were simple houses lined up row by row, with roofs made from black asphalt with small slabs of stone interspersed here and there. Remembering the villages of his hometown, nostalgia crossed Tigre’s eyes.

Suddenly one farmer turned around and faced their way, noticing Tigre and the others. His calm face changed radically into one that was mixed with fear and suspicion, and he called out to other farmers and ran away hurriedly.

"...What's going on?"

For villagers to be wary of strangers was not a rare sight. However, Tigre sensed a different atmosphere from them.

"Isn’t it because Matvey-san’s face scared them?"

Olga muttered so, and Matvey showed an exaggeratedly sorrowful face. Even Tiger could not refrain from laughing. It was unusual and rare for this girl to say a joke, and thanks to that the strained mood softened.

"In any case, I do not want to scare them too much. Let's get down from the horses."

Since talking on horseback would probably intimidate the other party. Getting off the horse, the three people went to the village by pulling the reins of the horses. At this moment, one man walked their way. His linen clothes were stained with soil, and his face had a trace of wiped sweat. One look was enough to tell that he was working on the farms until just a while ago.

"Dear travelers, what kind of business do you have with this village?"

"We would like to ask for food and overnight accommodation. And we would like to acquire new horses as well."

It was Matvey who could speak the Asvarre’s language fluently that answered, and he took out several pieces of silver coins from his breast pocket and handed them to the man. After looking at the silver coins, the man glanced at Tigre and Olga. Tigre said with a smile to reassure him.

"There are also such villages in my homeland. We are only passing by and we don't have any intentions to interfere with your work."

Matvey conveyed it again in Asvarre’s language. The man let out a breath of relief, and seemed to lose some of his initial wariness.

Tigre and the other two were guided to the man's house. The man seemed to be the village mayor and he was living in the only 2-story building in this village. There was a barn and a stable near the house too, and he had his family help move the horses there. Tigre and the others were provided with a spare room on the second floor of the house.

Though there was nothing in the room, if there was something they desired, the man said that they would try to prepare it as long it was possible. Tigre left negotiations to Matvey and walked to the window.

He could overlook the entirety of the village from the window, and he even saw the entrance of the village where they came from. There were children who were looking up at Tigre who was standing by the window with great interest, but when he waved his hand, some would hide quickly or flee in every direction. There were also several who waved their hand back awkwardly.

"Lord Tigrevurmud. The talk has been settled."

At Matvey’s voice, Tigre turned towards him.

"It is impossible to sleep on a bed, but it seems that they have prepared three thick blankets, so there is one per person. The meal will be a moment later. He said that we will have one chicken with soup and bread. We also have three buckets of hot water prepared for us."

After saying till there, Matvey suddenly lowered his voice and asked whether or not he should negotiate for one more chicken happily. Tigre shook his head with a bitter smile.

Rather than say he was trying to be polite, it should be said that because the villagers were already a little wary of them, he wanted to avoid doing things that would agitate them. This is a more accurate statement.

Laying the blanket which had just been brought over on the floor, Tigre lied down on it. As he stretched his limbs to the fullest, he felt extremely relaxed and comfortable. Olga displayed an astonished expression. When the person of the village left the room, she removed the turban that she was wearing.

"How indolent..."

"Because there hasn't been much chance to relax like this during the past few days, that's why."

"Indeed. I wonder if I can also enjoy the feeling of comfort of lazing my whole body for a while as well."

Matvey agreed, as he also laid on the blanket in the same way. As the dimly expressionless Olga looked down at the two men, she laid her body on the blanket.

Over a period of time, the trio did not do anything, lying down in silence.

Then, the time that passed was only about a half koku. Tigre frowned suddenly. He had a feeling that he heard something like a scream in the distance.

Tigre and Olga woke up almost simultaneously. One moment later, Matvey also got up. Tigre grabbed his black bow, grabbing his quiver with arrows and move towards the window. He examined the situation outside carefully.

''--- What happened? Those guys are...''

There were thirty, no around forty men in the village. They had a discernibly rough atmosphere about them, and despite being armed there was no uniformity in their equipment. If there were some people who were wearing riveted leather armor, there were also those wearing chain mail. The weapons were a huge mix, with there being swords or spears, axes, pikes and even mallets.

And every house of the village have shut their doors firmly, as if waiting for the storm to pass while holding their breath. Only several people were in the fields, standing together with their horses or cows, looking blankly at this scene.

The men set their eyes on one house, then started beating their spears, pike and mallets against the door while shouting loudly. Stepping over the wrecked door, several people went into the house, which were then followed by screams.

"Are they... Brigands?"

"It is possible that those bandits have their stronghold in the neighborhood."

Matvey who was looking at the situation across the window from the side opposite of Tigre, replied in a calm tone.

''---That's not right, it would be strange if they were truly bandits.''

Tigre frowned. If this were truly an attack, then the attitude of those men was too laid-back. The villagers too, rather than running away, were only shutting their doors firmly.

Even as he was thinking, there were those who attacked the houses of other villagers, or those who went towards the field who surrounded and beat the farmers. There were even those who bludgeon livestock to death while laughing happily.

It was certain that one would be trembling violently in fear if they were to be timid in nature. It was a terrible spectacle that made Tigre sick just by looking at it. An extremely furious Tigre stretched his right hand to his quiver, but at this moment the door of the room was knocked on. Matvey moved quickly and went to open the door.

A woman of about 45 years old was there. She was from the village chief's family. Though her face was paled, she insisted that we would be safe as long as we were here, and that we should close the sliding shutter and remain still.

"What are these guys? Brigands?"

To Tigre's question, the woman shook her head wearily.

"Those people are the soldiers of His Highness Germaine."

Not only Tigre, but even Matvey and Olga opened their eyes wide at that answer.

" Prince Germaine’s soldiers...? Those guys?"

It was an unbelievable story, but there was no reason for this woman to tell them such a lie. Above all, with this explanation, their behavior as well as the reactions of villagers finally made sense.

At that time, the woman's look turned to Tigre's hand. To the left hand which grasped the black bow tightly, and the right hand which was extracting an arrow.

"W-What do you plan to do?"

The woman's voice was shaking in fear. Tigre did not answer. She trotted over and clung onto the hands of the youngster. She pleaded with a face and voice that seemed about to burst into tears at any moment.

"Please. Don't do anything strange. Please..."

"But... But, how could you let those people do as they please!"

When Tigre painfully spit out those words, tears started to flow from the edges of her eyes and she twisted her expression.

"You will leave here tomorrow, right? We will live in this village not only tomorrow, but also the next day and the day after that."

Feeling bitterness spreading within his mouth, Tigre was not able to answer to her mournful voice.

Even if Tigre sent away these soldiers here, the situation would not improve. They will take revenge for themselves on this village soon after. In the worst case, they might burn the village saying the villagers defied Prince Germaine.

They must endure it until the soldier's tyranny had passed. Even if they had to make sacrifices, they must endure it.

It was the way that this village chose.

Although the woman tried to continue her words further, a scream that came from outside cut off her words.

While only moving his head Tigre looked outside from the window, and saw that several girls were pressed down by many soldiers as they were dragged to the center of the village. Villagers who apparently tried to stop it were beaten and were crouching down before the statue.

"Matvey."

Tigre suddenly called the name of the sailor of white beluga. To the dreadfulness with which the voice was tinged with, Matvey's shoulders shook with a startle.

"Tie up this person. No, tie up all those present in this house and bring them to the first floor. And then, block up the first floor with whatever you can use. The doors and windows, everything."

The woman and Olga both made an expression of astonishment. Matvey immediately moved to obey Tigre's instructions, and he bound the woman's arms from behind.

"What are you trying to achieve?"

Tigre did not answer back to Matvey's question. Moving his quiver of arrows to his waist, he placed his foot on the window frame. In the next moment, he clung to the wall on the outside with a light motion and quickly climbed up on the roof. No one among the soldiers on the ground noticed.

Tigre set up the bow when settling down on the roof and nocked an arrow. He aimed at the soldier who was going to pounce on a girl. The distance was approximately 100 alsins. A piece of cake.

The shot arrow cut through the wind, flew and went through the head of the man as though it was sucked towards it. The body of the man who ceased to breathe inclined and fell down beside the girl. Several people doubtfully turned their eyes to their friend, and as they saw the arrow in his head, the second arrow from Tigre was already released.

The arrow went through his throat, and the arrowhead piercing through his throat was stained with blood. The man fell down on the spot and writhed about painfully without being able to utter a single sound.

The men finally noticed the existence of an enemy. On the other hand, Tigre, without changing his cold expression even one bit, shot the third arrow and killed the third person. Flashing in his mind was the memory of one year ago.

It was in Alsace, the central city Celesta that is his hometown. Zaien, the son of Duke Thenardier, invaded with his soldiers, causing many private houses to be destroyed and burned, and many people lost their lives.

The state of the girls being held down by the soldiers awakened the young man's memory of the time when Teita was being attacked by Zaian.

When he thought of the scene that he saw then, it was not within Tigre to be able to overlook what was happening now in silence.

As Tigre shot and killed the third person, Matvey was tying up the woman skillfully on the second floor under the roof. He also carefully gagged her, and then pushed a dagger against her neck. Although he would not do something like hurting her, his scary face was sufficient to make quite an impact.

"Even Lord Tigrevurmud can give such a cruel order. It might be a little painful, but please forgive me."

"...Please, explain."

It was Olga, who watched the course of things in silence until then, that asked Matvey. Doubt and suspicion were swirling in her black pupils.

"Don't you understand? No, excuse me. Let me explain it later since my hands are full now. I will be able to explain it to you earlier if you help me."

To the answer of the Matvey who seemed happy, the virtually always dimly expressionless Olga showed a slight change in her expression. She frowned, and while lost in her thoughts, her eyes went around the inside of the room and then were directed to the outside of the window.

"Will it also be counted as helping if I cut down those guys outside?"

Matvey, who was going to leave the room with the woman whom he had restricted, suddenly stopped.

Although he was also surprised that Olga's tone lost the usual politeness, what was more important was that her voice had become even more colder, the scary-looking sailor couldn't help turning around. He tried to open his mouth to ask what she meant, but was forestalled.

"Yes or no? Answer only that. Your hands are full, right?"

"...It would be convenient if you could leave one person alive, but otherwise do as you like."

Only by using his utmost was Matvey able to answer like so. After he finished speaking, Olga started moving. She kicked the floor, slipped through the side of Matvey and ran down the hallway.

Matvey continued standing stunned after watching her leave, and he finally came to his senses upon feeling the gaze of the woman.

At this time outside the house, Tigre just shot and killed the sixth man.

''---That was a terrible miscalculation...''

As for the soldiers, though half was running about in confusion and were still reeling from the surprise attack, the remaining half were trying to counter attack following the directives of a man who seemed to be the adjutant.

Tigre had already shot and killed the commander who led them.

At first he took down the commander to confuse them, and then he would reduced their number and force them to retreat.

Though Tigre had planned so and it went smoothly until the first half, the adjutant who fled quickly into the cover of a building scolded the soldiers harshly and gradually restored their morale.

When the commander fell down, it was natural for the adjutant to act as his substitute, but the fact that this adjutant managed to splendidly take over the reins of the troops could be seen as miraculous. Even a decent army rarely bounced back this early.

''---Well, how do I defeat them then?''

While nocking an arrow to the black bow, Tigre thought calmly about his next move. Although it looked as if he had an overwhelming advantage, Tigre knew very clearly that it was not the case.

Tigre could not help but surrender if the soldiers of Germaine held a villager hostage while hiding themselves in the cover of the buildings. Even if Tigre forsook the hostage, they would use the villagers as a shield to his arrows. If they protected themselves that way, then surrounded the house he was on, the fight would become extremely difficult.

"The enemy is only one person, you know? You bunch of useless fools, What are you afraid of?"

"Do you think I could do something like this alone? How about you stop acting like a rat and step forward instead of only letting your underlings come out."

In order to cover up the scoldings of the adjutant, Tigre also issued a roar that spread throughout the village. He had already shot down 8 people. Since they were being sniped from a highly advantageous position, Germaine's soldiers can't help but act cowardly. Tigre originally wanted to use this method to keep them suppressed.

However, at this point in time, one of soldiers suddenly threw an adze (hand ax) over at him. Although Tigre avoided it at once by twisting his body, he destroyed his posture and slipped. He narrowly avoided falling down from the roof, and the adjutant cried out without overlooking the chance he gained.

"RUSH!"

After receiving his instruction, four soldiers ran towards the house on which Tigre was standing.

"Oh no-!"

Though Tigre shot an arrow quickly and took down one soldier, the three remaining soldiers did not slow down, and rushed to the door.

It was at that time. The door was suddenly opened from the inside, and a girl with a petite body who wrapped herself in a mantle ran out. It was Olga.

When the soldiers of Germaine first saw someone running out of the house, they immediately took up wary postures. However, after they understood that their opponent was just a child, they mercilessly swung down their weapons which they had in their hands.

Consecutive dull sounds were heard and blood splattered about suddenly. Shocked, Tigre shouted out her name. However, in the next moment, the ones who screamed out and fell down were Germaine's soldiers.

Olga, as always with the turban covering her eyes, was silently standing inside the puddle of blood which was slowly spreading. In her hand, there was now a dark red axe stained with blood.

''---In one blow? No two blows...''

It was not only Tigre, even the village girls who were late to run away and failed to get out in time as well as the soldiers of Germaine who had hidden themselves in cover stared at the girl with a stunned face.

It was a frightening ability. Among the three soldiers that attacked her, two wore chain mail and one was in leather armor reinforced with metal. However, the young girl's axe cut and tore through both their armour and their abdomen. Wielding this axe was a girl who was only 13, 14 years old.

Olga, as if unmindful of the surrounding people who were currently in consternation, was still observing the state of the men. The soldiers of Germaine shuddered as the enemy who just appeared and was definitely not an ordinary one. Some turned their eyes to the adjutant for further instructions.

Olga was waiting for their reaction. Although it seemed as though she just wanted to step over the bodies, she suddenly rushed fiercely towards the adjutant. The adjutant got anxious and shouted.

"B-Bring her down."

Receiving that order, two men attacked Olga. However, one of them was pierced through the neck with an arrow that Tigre shot and fell to the ground. Even the remaining one had his arm cut off from below his elbow with a flourish of Olga's axe, and fell down on the spot while shrieking.

Realizing that he could not escape, the adjutant lowered his posture, intending to fight. Maybe it is because the weapon which he had in his hand is a spear. In terms of reach, it held an absolute advantage over the axe.

The adjutant thrust out his spear. With only one slash, Olga blew away the dark gray tip of the spear that was approaching her.

The actions of the girl with pinked colored hair hadn't ended yet. She ran beside the edge of the spear which was nothing more than just a stick in a single breath, and shortened the distance. The adjutant's head flew in the sky, leaving a trail of blood.

Olga, without taking notice of the body, thrust her axe at the man who ran over in order to support the adjutant.

"Throw away your weapon."

The man realized instantly that he would lose his life if he didn't listen to her instructions. Fearing the girl who was only about half his age from the bottom of his heart, he discarded his weapon, crossed his hands behind his head and surrendered.

The other soldiers discarded their weapons, suddenly cried out in fear, then turned their backs and escaped. As the adjutant had died, there was no one left who was able to command them now.

<center><big><big>◎</big></big></center>

Tigre immediately released the soldiers that Olga caught, and then he gave them a short order.

"Go back and help me relay this information, that people of a foreign land wants to see Prince Germaine."

Afterwards, Tigre sat down at the doorway of the village facing the highway. It was towards that direction that the soldiers of Germaine escaped. If they waited here, their comrades will show up sooner or later.

Soon after, Olga and Matvey, who was holding on to the horses, walked over to him.

As Tigre turned to look at the two, though somewhat tinged with gloom, he asked with a mild expression.

"How is the state of the village?"

"Since one of the village headmen came over to that house, we explained the circumstances while having a look at the inside."

Though the village was poor, in order to prevent foxes or wild boars from entering, it was surrounded by a tall wooden fence. While tying the horses there, Matvey explained in a hearty voice.

"Were you able to tie up all the people of that house?"

"Yes. In a few moments the village headman will be coming here, and they would appreciate an explanation from Lord Tigrevurmud once again. Also, it seems like they will help out with the burial of the hooligans."

"You have really saved us, thank you very much."

When Tigre bowed, Matvey smiled bitterly and waved his hand.

"Don't mind it. If I were to still be able to heartlessly ignore what was happening even after seeing that scene then, I won't have the face to see my lord anymore. One more thing, Lord Tigrevurmud. I would like you to quit using the polite way of talking. It will also be easier for you, won't it?"

"...Alright, since you have said as much."

When he seemed to be at loss and scratched his head, Tigre changed his expression and turned towards Olga.

"I must also give you my gratitude. Thank you. Honestly, you really saved me there."

Without this girl's involvement, though it could not be said that he would be defeated, there was no doubt that he would be force to put on a tough fight. However, Olga shook her head to say that such a thing was just a trifle matter.

"Leaving that aside, I want you to explain. Why did you tie up the people of that house?"

Tigre stared steadily at her involuntarily. Though she was still expressionless, he felt an intense will within her quiet voice. This might be Olga's true nature.

After thinking a little, Tigre used an attitude which considered the other party as equal instead of talking as though he were talking to a child, and said.

"While receiving such treatment, the people of this village didn't resist. From what I have seen of the soldiers' attitude and the village's reaction, I concluded that such a thing hasn't happened only once or twice. Perhaps, they may have also destroyed another village as a warning to the others."

The expressionless Olga had a shadow cross over her face. Tigre continued in a serious tone.

"It is the policy of the village not to defy the soldiers. If they dare to oppose them, it will rouse the anger of those guys and they will retaliate. Not only that, it will implicate the other villagers. Much more so if it were to be caused by the people in position like the village mayor and the village headmen, which will undoubtedly cause even bigger problems to occur. However... if I tied them up so that we weren't be disturbed, it would become a possible excuse to the village."

Tigre remembered the words of the woman who clung to him. They must live tomorrow and also the day after tomorrow in this village.

Olga looked down and muttered, as if very dissatisfied.

"Isn't there the option of escaping and abandoning this village? To a place without bandits and tyranny..."

"Have you ever plowed a field?"

Giving a soft smile, Tigre kindly asked her. After blinking several times, Olga shook her head. Looking away, Tigre gazed at the distant field.

"It's very hard, you know. Although I've grasped a hoe only once. At first, you need remove pebbles, weeds and chips of wood from the land as much as possible. It's seriously tough manual labour. Next, you need to dig up the soil, and you need to deep it really deeply, therefore it is also very hard work."

The fields of his hometown came into Tigre's mind. That time, he was enjoying the scenery which he just saw along with his late father.

"While using the hoe, if it hits the stones mixed among the soil, if the edge either bends or breaks, then you must repair it. In case there isn't a blacksmith and only wooden hoes can be used, it will take a great amount of both time and effort."

"... Isn't there a way of making a cow or a horse pull a plow?"

"Not every house can afford to keep cattle and horses. They are very expensive."

To Tigre's answer, Olga fell into silence without a word. Matvey opened his mouth to brighten up the atmosphere that had sunk heavily.

"Well then, Lord Tigrevurmud, what do we do from now on?"

"I will wait for the subordinates of Prince Germaine here. If they are fast, they will even reach here by tomorrow. Though it was somewhat off track, it can still considered to be going according as planned."

"Did you come to this country to meet with Prince Germaine?"

Olga black eyes were tinged with the touch of an unexpected look.

"Yeah, and so our travel together will end here."

He did not think they would part in this manner. But Tigre believed that this child would certainly have no problems by herself. Whether it was her equestrian skills, or her aptitude at hunting, as well as her excellent combat skills, Olga's capability should not be underestimated.

However, the girl with light pink hair spoke some unexpected words that Tigre never anticipated.

"Tigre. If it's alright with you, would you let me accompany you as your attendant?"

"...... The reason?"

In order to ask this, Tigre had to use the time taken for a few breaths.

"I want to personally meet the man called Germaine. - Can't I?"

He just thought that she would finally give a clear-cut answer, but he did not expect her expression to change into one that had a child-like weak expression. Tigre folded his arms and muttered. He did not think that Olga was unaware of how dangerous it was to see Germaine now. He really could not understand her thoughts.

"Who are you exactly?"

After some wavering, Tigre asked bluntly.

"Until now, we have not asked each other's identity. As we planned to say goodbye with you here, we decided not to ask about it any more. However, since you are coming with us, it is another matter entirely. Please just tell me who you are."

Olga momentarily turned her gaze, and shook her head, seemingly having an internal struggle within her mind. Subsequently, she looked straight into Tigre's eyes.

"You may not believe me..."

Of her dignified expression, and in a calm tone filled with strong will and conviction, the young girl that was traveling with them that the two were familiar with seemed to have become a completely different person.

"I am one of the seven Vanadis of Zchted. Holding on to the {{furigana|Dragonic Tool|Viralt}} named Muma, and also bestowed with the land of Brest and the {{furigana|Curse of Reversal|Houju no Genbu}}--- That is me, the {{furigana|Moon Princess of the Roaring Demon|Bardiche}}, Olga Tamm."

Tigre and Matvey stared wide-eyed and were at a loss for words.

Standing before the two people now was not the girl without sociability who was also absentminded in some ways. She was a one-man army who had been accepted by a {{furigana|Dragonic Tool|Viralt}}. She was a Vanadis whom one couldn't help but have his hairs stand on end if they looked closely at her.

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Back to [[Madan_no_Ou_to_Vanadis:Volume_06_Chapter_2|Chapter 2]]
| Return to [[Madan_no_Ou_to_Vanadis|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Madan_no_Ou_to_Vanadis:Volume_06_Chapter_4|Chapter 4]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Madan no Ou to Vanadis:Volume 06 Chapter 1

2014-02-19T16:56:20Z

EcoJakk:

== Chapter 1: Emissary ==

A buck casually walked atop a mountain ridge with an arid wind whistling around it.

The creature stood head and shoulders above its brethren and its right horn grew in a bizarre shape. The beast looked repulsive and monstrous.

To the villagers living at the foothills, it was a monster to be feared. In broad daylight, the creature trampled their fields as it pleased, eating its fill of the crops before disappearing into the mountains.

They could not stop it. Those who dared to give chase, hoes at the ready, were gored by its horns, suffering grievous wounds. Teams of seasoned hunters were sent to hunt it down. But this buck had a prodigious sense of smell and leg strength beyond the norm. It saw through every trap and when the hunters drew close, it would leap across cliffs, jump atop the rocky crags, or simply slide down steep slopes to elude them. As a result, even after three days and nights they had not been able to take it down.

And yet one young man was now bringing his bow to bear on this creature.

He could not have seen more than twenty winters and was of average build. But if one espied the arm which peeked out from his sleeves one could see that he was not lacking in training. There was vigor under his dark red locks and his gaze was keen as it focused on the buck.

From his hiding place in the crags below the stag’s ridge, there was a distance of about 300 alsin. No distance for a mere bow. If asked, any seasoned hunter would shake his head and advise to close in sixty, even seventy paces. What's more, this boy was also aiming against the grain of gravity, shooting from a low position to a higher one. A light breeze blew downhill from the ridge to the crag. With this, his approach and attack would be masked against his prey. Yet if he missed, this good fortune would have been in vain.

All this, the young man knew well. But he did not waver. He kept calm, notching a single arrow with an ease born of unceasing practice, following through until he had drawn the bow taut.

The wind ceased for but an instant. The young man, as though foreseeing this, let loose that arrow. It traced an arc through the sky and struck the stag in the neck.

It was an unerring blow almost as if it was sucked in by some unknown force. And yet the beast did not cry out. Rather it turned and fled in the direction opposite to the young man.

At this, he at last showed consternation. “Looks like that huge frame wasn’t just for show...”

Leaving his hiding spot he nocked another arrow as he made his way up the slope. It was not meant for the buck - in his mind, the hunt had been all but ended by his first strike. This arrow was meant for any surprises that might crop up along the way.

<nowiki>*</nowiki>Patata* The sound of flapping wings entered his ears as a creature the size of a large cat passed by his side.

But it was no cat. It was a dragon - its reptilian form scaled bronze with a greenish hue from head to tail, with horns, coarse sharp teeth, and wings that reminded one of a bat. Flitting about freely, as though disregarding the young man that was its companion.

If they were on level ground, he might have traveled on equal pace with it. But as it was, he stood in the rough of the rocks, only able to smile bitterly at the departing form of the dragon.

Regulating his breathing carefully, he scaled the ridge-

-and was dumbfounded by what he saw.

Where he had hidden there was naught but a barren rocky wasteland, and yet beyond the ridge there sprawled a large forest, filled with trees, bark, and dense greenery.

“Well. It’s not that I can’t find it...but this is going to be a chore.”

He was hesitant to go down. But he could not simply leave the mountain. The villagers would remain uneasy if he merely told them ‘the beast has been taken care of’. He needed proof of his hunt.

“And I still need to find Lunie...”

Lunie, of course, was the dragon who had just left him behind. Thankfully, he knew that he needn’t worry. It was small, but it was a dragon nonetheless. No creature in the woods would dare attack it. And though it was now nowhere to be seen, it was likely that it had gone after the wounded buck.

Making his way down the slope, the young man took great care as he stepped into the thicket. There could be snakes about, and he didn’t want to risk snagging his clothes on the branches. Once past the thicket, the cold air wrapped around him as he stepped into the verdant woods. The sunlight was greatly dimmed by the undergrowth and some trees even snaked along the slope’s surface.

Indeed, there were few things worse than traversing a forest infested by overgrown weeds and roots.

As he approached cautiously, another *patata* of flapping wings could be heard. He stopped, and sure enough, out from deep within the forest’s gloom came Lunie. Recognizing him, the dragon whelp did an artful about-turn in mid-air and went back the way it came.

The young man gave chase and in not even ten paces, he found himself standing before the fallen buck. It had long breathed its last, having bled enough from the wound on its neck staining its fur-coat a deep crimson. Even so he did not relax - there were many tales of seemingly dead beasts using their last ounce of strength to rise up and bring their killers down with them in a rage. And judging from the distance between the ridge and the forest there was still a possibility that more wild beasts would come, having caught the scent of blood.

But Lunie seemed unwilling to humor his cautiousness, plonking itself unceremoniously onto the carcass and spitting him with a look of impatience. ‘Hurry up’, it seemed to say.

The young man grimaced, but made no hurried move nonetheless. Slowly he crept up to the buck, making sure that there were no other creatures about. Only when he had been absolutely certain did he return the arrow to its quiver, before taking a knee in front of the creature.

“Well done, Lunie,” he said, and at last flashed a genuine smile.

The young man’s name was Tigrevurmund Vorn.

Those close to him called him Tigre.

This year, he would be 17. Half a year had gone by since the day he left the land of his birth in Alsace to live in LeitMeritz, in the neighbouring country of Zhcted.

Tigre had initially thought to bring the buck down the mountain with him, but he’d happily given up on that thought upon realizing that the creature was heavy. Extraordinarily so at that.

So he hung the creature by its legs to a tree using a rope he’d prepared beforehand and prepared to dissect it.

Uncharacteristically, Lunie was curled up at his feet, but Tigre was not fooled. It was there only so it could get at the entrails that fell from the carcass at its convenience. It seemed rather eager to do so too, at that.

“Well, I guess I can only take the pelt back with me.” He definitely needed to bring the oddly-shaped horn back as proof of his success and that was no small amount of baggage to carry by itself. So, unfortunate though it was, he knew apart from what he would eat, he had to leave the rest of it behind. "Bones—those would work for proof too, but no, too heavy. Meat, it seems like I have to discard them all..."

Suddenly, he became aware of something rubbing against his trousers. As he looked down, he was chagrined to see Lunie stuffing a face full of blood and entrails into the bottom of his pants—its unique way of saying ‘More, please’. Well, nothing to be done about that. With a sigh, Tigre hefted his dagger, slicing off a few more pieces of meat for the hungry whelp.

By the time he actually finished the whole process, the sun had already reached its zenith. The removal of the horns had taken a large amount of time due to their size. He tied the pelt, still ringed with residual flesh and fats, with a rope of hemp, and put it into a backpack. Afterward, he washed his hands using the water in his canteen and got to starting a campfire. That done, he dug a trench, into which he dumped and buried the arbitrarily sized remains of the carcass.

While he was doing all this, Lunie, having eaten its fill, was lying asleep beside the campfire.

Half a year ago, when the breath of spring had only just begun its reign, Tigre had come to LeitMeritz. There, a chill wind still blew upon the plains, as a sign of Zhcted’s late-come springtime when compared to his homeland Brune.

He had waited for the mountains of LeitMeritz to thaw before trekking across them, hoping to see with his own eyes the land he now lived in, to feel with his hands and feet its depths and heights—or so he claimed; in actuality all he simply wanted was to experience to the fullest the thrills of hunting in unknown terrain.

Interestingly, for all they had interacted during his time as a captive in the court, or even later as a guest commander, he had never once enjoyed Lunie’s favor. Rather, that honor was given by the dragon to his servant-girl, Teita. Yet it insisted on being by his side when he went hunting. It would even sit on the horse that Tigre rode on when he went hunting, insisting that it be brought along regardless.

And how did the silver-haired Vanadis who was the whelp’s master reply when asked for her opinion on this strange turn of affairs?

“This fellow is probably bored to tears from being cooped up in a world of stone walls, so if you would be willing to bring him along...”

She even tacked a joke onto the request. “Don’t go returning to the wild now...”

Though he was unwilling, it was impossible to refuse her. Not when she looked upon the dragon she petted with an expression of both affection and regret at her inability to satisfy its desire to fly freely in the skies. She wasn’t all that different from the dragon, Tigre realized. She too was a person who could not live and do as she pleased.

In any case, he had the excuse of studying the geography of LeitMeritz. Of course, he wasn’t just there to hunt. So he had ended up bringing Lunie along anyway. And it had exceeded all his expectations—well, at least his expectations for a companion in battle anyway, like during this buck hunt. The rest of the time, it did not display any such attitude. In fact, Tigre fully expected that it would start treating him akin to a roadside pebble once they got off this mountain.

A regrettable situation. But despite his disappointment, Tigre made no move to improve their working relationship. After all, this wasn’t a human he was dealing with. Lunie may still be but a stripling, but it was still a dragon.

---''I can’t understand for the life of me why it follows me at all. Maybe for now I should keep my distance.''

Tigre thought as he watched the dragon snoozing by the fireside.

And as he continued to keep watch, well fed on a meal of venison, his thoughts turned to the events that led up to the present day.

He was born as the heir to Earl Vorn of Alsace in the northwest of Brune. He had inherited the title at the tender age of 14 when his father succumbed to illness and with it, the stigma of being of the lowest rank of nobles in the land.

But his life would change on a battlefield at summer’s end.

At Dinant, the nations of Zhcted and Brune had clashed over the right to control the stream along the borders, and Brune had been defeated. Tigre had led a hundred men in that battle, and there he had encountered the commander-in-chief of Zhcted’s forces—silver haired Eleanora Viltaria, whom they called [{{furigana|Danseuse of the Sword|Meltis}}] and [{{furigana|Wind Princess of the Silverflash|Silvfrahl}}], one of the Seven Vanadis.

His attempt to assassinate her had failed, but Ellen was taken by his skill with the bow and took him as a captive.

In the aftermath of the battle, the rivalry between Dukes Ganelon and Thenardier—the two foremost nobles of Brune—came to a head, and Alsace was swept up by the wave of turmoil into the fires of war. Upon hearing this news from his father’s loyal servant Batran, Tigre borrowed soldiers from Ellen to save the place of his birth, eventually avenging himself upon Thenardier after a great many battles to the death.

And yet even after all this, there was no happy conclusion. He had only achieved a brief time of peace, and he would have remained Ellen’s captive if not for the new ruler of Brune, the king’s daughter Regin, having helped to intercede on his behalf. Under the terms negotiated, he was to be returned to his homeland after spending three years as a guest commandant in Zhcted. That was the best that could be done for now. And so with the promise that he would return to them in three year’s time, Tigre bid farewell to the people of Brune and crossed the border into Zhcted, with his only companion being his maid Teita.

<center><big>◎</big></center>

Half a year had passed since that day. The tardy spring had gone swiftly by, and now even the summer would soon pass. Indeed, the brief nature of Zhcted’s summer compared to Brune’s was enough to leave an impression in and of itself.

His life in LeitMeritz so far had not been easy. One half of that he’d expected and the other of it he’d experienced. He had to learn how to speak, write, and to immerse himself in the local culture.

There was also no shortage of important personages from Zhcted who wished to meet with him. And though most of these chose to send emissaries rather than come in person, Tigre knew that establishing good relations with them was a necessity. In any case, failure was not an option; any failing on his part would smear the name of Ellen, who had given him a place to stay, and he couldn’t rightly allow that to happen.

Adding to his litany of woes were the almost daily assignments left to him by Ellen’s second-in-command Limlisha. The topics were of a grand scale, ranging from governance to military affairs—under governance, the subject could be anything between internal governance and multilateral relations.

She would also enlist his aid in her work often. This was cause for some complaint on his part. But he went along with it anyway. For one thing, the knowledge he gained while accompanying her would be useful in developing Alsace upon his return.

And for another, she wasn’t all work and no play. Under the guise of ‘inspections’ or ‘reviews’, she would sometimes allow him some free time to roam.

At last, dawn broke.

Smothering the fire with mud, Tigre shouldered his backpack and set out. Antlers in his right hand, bow in his left, and Lunie tagging alongside him, trademark *Patata* resounding as it flew. They reached the village in the foothills by the afternoon. There they presented the antler and pelt to much rejoicing and many eased minds among the villagers. However, among those who had been counted with the hunters there were many wide eyes.

“So he really managed to bring it down, eh...” The village chief, who had been responsible for leading the hunters, had only this to say.

He had gone into the mountains three mornings ago, alone. Having turned down the offer that the villagers made to have their hunters serve as his guides.

“For a hunt like this, I alone will be enough.” He’d said that even as he gazed up at the foothills from the village. “And with more people we run a greater risk of the buck getting wind of us, whether it be by sight or sound.”

It wasn’t arrogance, of course. And besides, he had subsequently grilled both the chief and the hunters for detailed information concerning the mountain.

Seeing this, the village chief had mixed feelings. On one hand he thought it was to be expected of a knight of the court. And yet on the other, he felt that the boy was only 17. Could he really be relied upon?

But Tigre had surpassed all their expectations, setting out alone and returning triumphant, having shot the beast down brilliantly.

He had succeeded where a group of six—including the chief himself—had failed throughout their five day long hunt. And he did not waste his breath on swaggering or on boasts of his ability.

Rather, Tigre just asked for a bed he could borrow for the night, which the chief obliged. He turned in rather early too.

When Tigre rose the next morning, the sky was still dark. It was a tad early for ‘morning’—even those whose farms were their livelihood had barely gotten out their beds.

“I’m sorry to wake you at this hour,” he said as he called the village chief forth from dreamland before informing him of his decision to leave.

The chief seemed shocked, and even a little disappointed. “If it is convenient for you, sir knight, please do tarry another day in our good village. We will prepare a feast for you as much as we may with our meager means.”

He asked once again. However, soon after expressing both gratitude and pushing a gentle refusal, Tigre quietly left the village and went on his way. The horse galloped along the path under a brightening sky, though it wasn’t very fast with both Tigre and Lunie sitting on it.

“What a waste...” Tigre mumbled to himself as he gazed heavenward. “...It’s not like I had anything urgent to do anyway.”

He was, of course, bemoaning the missed opportunity in the village chief’s offer. If this was Alsace, he might just have taken the proffered boon, but here he had Ellen to consider. She might have been alright with it, but she did not speak for all her subordinates. Particularly for those who already held a certain dislike for Tigre himself.

He couldn’t care less if they criticized him, but he would not allow them to do the same to Ellen.

<center><big>◎</big></center>

The sun was already falling into the west when they arrived at the capitol. They rode in via a side road constructed for the exclusive use of those in official service—with Lunie around the two of them would have made a sight for sore eyes in the crowded main streets of the city.

“Tigre-sama!” Just as they passed the gates, a familiar voice reached their ears, calling the youth’s name. It was Teita, chestnut hair tied behind her head, running towards them. She dressed after her usual fashion, long-sleeved one-piece dress falling into black folds below her legs and a clean white apron over it. Notably, she had discarded her old twin-tailed hairstyle for a single ponytail, which Tigre believed looked well on her too.

Of their immediate reactions, Lunie’s was the greater. It took to the air with a *Patata* and flew into her arms. Tigre merely exchanged smiles with her.

“I’m home, Teita.”

Upon catching Lunie, she held it close and it snuggled in her embrace. While doing so, she walked over to the youth.

“Welcome home, Tigre-sama.”

“Are you alright? You don’t have to carry it like that if it’s too heavy, you know?”

“Thank you. But Lunie’s not as heavy as it appears. I might get my clothes dirty though.” So she said, but if she was distressed, it did not show. Instead, like a mother beguiling a child, she petted the little dragon whelp.

This sixteen-year old girl, who like him was born in Alsace, had served him in the capacity of a maidservant since she was 11 till today, and even when he was set to live in LeitMeritz, she had insisted on following him.

This had been his wish as well, and Ellen had acquiesced. Nonetheless, he had worried at first that she, whom he treated like a sister, might not be able to adapt to the new environment. She had rendered his concerns moot, however, breaking the ice easily with the ladies of the court and their maids. Indeed, naught but a few days had passed before they all loved her.

Upon hearing this, Ellen had grimaced before saying thus.

“You’re quite something yourself, but it seems Teita hasn’t fallen behind. Quite the unexpected catch, isn’t she?” These words relieved Tigre greatly.

“Oh, yes. Tigre-sama, the Eleanora-sama and Limlisha-san have important matters to discuss with you.”

“Important matters? With me?”

“Indeed. Ellen-sama instructed me to inform you of this upon your return.”

Upon hearing Teita recall her previous conversation with the Vanadis and her second, Tigre set his head askew in thought as he dismounted. It was all very odd. He had just returned, and had yet to greet anyone yet. Moreover, he was required to report to Ellen anyway.

Therefore, it must have been something of extraordinary importance, for her to have left him such specific instructions.

“Are they going to remind you not to take so many detours?” Teita asked.

Naturally, she did not say this in earnest. Those mischievous words were only meant to lighten his mood, Tigre guessed as he patted the younger girl on the head.

“Hmmm. That’s possible...” He did after all have a history of chatting Rurick up in the halls for too long while en route to the administration office. This habit which had earned him many a stern earful from Lim, and at times some nattering from the officials who disliked him whenever they could catch him. “In any case, I’ll head up there. Thank you, Teita.”

After handing both horse and dragon over to her, he headed up to the administration office. In the dying light of day, the corridors were dim, lit only by the flames of pinewood torches. But Ellen would be in there at this hour, he knew. He walked up to the door and knocked lightly, calling out as he did so. Sure enough, a moment later a ‘come in’ could be heard.

Opening the door, Tigre’s eyes were met by a familiar scenery. A modestly-sized room, a table of black sandalwood piled high with a veritable mountain of books, and two ladies attending to the paperwork.

The first of them sported waist-length silver hair and a blue-based silk dress. Her crimson eyes burned with vigor, and against a wall close within reach, she laid a longsword by. She was so fair of face, it was hard to imagine her as a skilled sword maiden capable of holding any man at bay. Yet she was and more. She was the administrator of this capitol, ruler of LeitMeritz and one of the seven Vanadis of Zhcted, seventeen year-old Eleanora Viltaria.

The other was golden-haired Limlisha—Lim, as both he and Ellen would normally address her—, Ellen’s second-in-command and confidante. Tall, twenty and well-endowed, her look of detached stoicism as she silently perused the documents before her was quite the opposite of Ellen’s.

“Looks like you made it back safely.”

After looking him up and down for a moment, Ellen’s expression relaxed visibly, and Lim greeted him with an upward quirk of her lips.

“I’m back indeed,” Tigre noted, before closing the door and pulling a chair over to sit on.

Ellen’s eyes glittered. “And how did the deal with the buck go?”

He gave a simple explanation of what had transpired in the village and on the mountain while Lim prepared wine for three. Naturally, the whole request had been their doing; Ellen had dispatched him to deal with the problem after the village had informed them of its plight.

Stopping the work in their hands, the three offered up a small toast in celebration of this success, and after having finished his explanation, Tigre switched topics.

“So I hear from Teita that you have important affairs to discuss with me.” At this, the two ladies exchanged glances, and Ellen dipped her gaze to the cup in her hands, as though considering her reply. A moment later, she lifted her eyes once again.

“Tigre. Have you heard of Asvarre?”

The sudden question came as a surprise, but Tigre recovered quickly. “It’s situated northwest of Brune, across the western sea of Zhcted, I think. It’s best known for its agriculture-based economy, but a few generations ago, they had a queen who led many campaigns of expansion into the continent.”

In actuality, the number of things he knew for sure about Asvarre could be counted off on one hand, and all that, he had learnt from Massas. But being in the northeast, Alsace had no stake in that country. So for all he knew of Asvarre, it could be a fairy tale land—only the story of the conquering queen had made any lasting impression on him.

Once again, the two women exchanged looks. But these were looks of unease.

Draining her cup, Ellen spoke. “A certain someone has requested your presence in Asvarre.”

At this Tigre furrowed his brow. He did so not so much in surprise as he had in consternation. Judging from her tone, this request must be awfully hard to refuse. And there were only so many people in this world who could cause a Vanadis apprehension of this level. “And who might that be?”

“His majesty, the King,” Lim replied coolly.

Tigre’s eyes widened.

Victor, King of Zhcted. He had met the man once, when he was living in Zhcted following the conclusion of Brune’s civil strife. It was a formality that no official guest could avoid, especially not one staying for 3 years in the country, and in any case, he had heard from Ellen that the king desired to see him.

But for all that was worth the audience itself was frightfully short. The king had merely saw fit to praise his talents, and assure him that he would be given full freedom in Zhcted—with that, their meeting had come to an abrupt end.

Within that brief time, he had indeed felt the oppressive stateliness and authority emanating from the man on the throne. But what had struck him most profoundly had been the man’s eyes. Victor’s eyes were tranquil, yet cold and subdued. It made one think of the inmost depths of a dark forest, bereft of sunlight for a hundred years; like a deep bog without breath or sound of life.

But such thoughts about the monarch of a nation could not be shared with anyone, and so Tigre hid them, buried them deep in his heart.

Honestly, he didn’t make a good impression, Tigre thought. ‘An enigmatic old man’ was the most honest summary he could give on his thoughts concerning that man.

And now this person was ordering him to go to Asvarre.

“So what does he want me to do there?”

“Essentially, he wants you to serve as a secret envoy.”

At this point, Ellen put her cup down and folded her arms, a distressed look on her face.

“Tigre. What do you know about Asvarre’s situation, really?”

“Well, that there’s people in it, and they sing, dance and hunt all day long?”

“Indeed, and they slaughter their own people with axe and sword while they’re at it too.” He’d actually expected this, but still it seemed there was no chance that this would be a comfortable topic.

Lim put her still unfinished cup on the table, and then proceeded to retrieve a piece of parchment from a drawer beneath the table.

“...I suppose I’ve never really told you about Asvarre either, Tigre. I’ll try to make this brief.”

“Please do, sensei.” Tigre said mischievously.

Ellen laughed. “Yes, please do, sensei.”

With a sigh, Lim turned to the parchment and began to draw a simple map. “Now, until half a year ago, King Zechariah was still on the throne of Asvarre. At that time, there was intelligence to suggest that he planned to invade Brune, but due to his own poor health, he ultimately decided to sit back for a while and observe the situation.”

Tigre’s breath caught in his throat. He had underestimated till now just how much Brune had been like a sheep thrown among wolves during those times of turmoil half a year ago. True, Sachstein was repulsed by Roland, and he himself had driven Muozinel back. But if Asvarre had invaded from the west at that time...heaven only knew what would have happened then.

“A short time after the civil war in Brune ended,” Lim continued, “King Zechariah breathed his last. I can’t really say how exactly he died. Some say he died in an accident, others say he died of food poisoning.”

Now, the King of Asvarre had six children. His eldest, Germaine, was to ascend the throne.
And that was where the madness began.

“A few days before the coronation ceremony, Germaine called his siblings together and had them executed on counts of treason.”

“Heh, or so we heard afterward,” Ellen added drily, supplementing Lim’s lecture with her own comments. “It seems Germaine is quite the arrogant character, and paranoid as well. I guess he hid his true colors while his father still lived, but with the throne in sight he must have decided to take action.”

This subject was repugnant to Tigre, but he nodded for Lim to continue anyway.

“However, two of the king’s children escaped Germaine’s grasp—the second prince, Elliot, and the first princess, Guinevere.”

The larger part of the details that Lim mentioned afterward could be summarized as such: After making his way to safety, Elliot had begun a revolt against his brother. Despite the succession having been the king’s will, there were many among the nobility who had opposed Germaine’s kin-slaying, and the revolt had been a success. Germaine was forced to abandon the palace and flee.

“So now Asvarre is split into two—” Lim broke off as she concluded, “no, perhaps you could say three parts. Germaine has hired mercenaries from Sachstein to bolster his own forces, while Elliot has done much the same by bringing the pirates of the coast into his ranks. Asvarre is in a state of chaos.”

“What about the princess Guinevere?” It was strange that she was not mentioned, so he asked.

“Rumors say that she is indifferent to either side, and has retired to a more quiet life. Most likely, she will not make any moves until the conflict between her brothers has been settled,” Lim said.

“And till now Zhcted has been supporting Elliot,” Ellen added.

“Oh yes. There’s that,” Lim said. “Okay, let’s stop talking about Asvarre for now.” With that, she produced another parchment, and began drawing up a map of the continent. Zhcted in the center, Asvarre west of the sea, Muozinel to the south on land and Brune to the southwest.

“Tigrevurmund.” Lim’s voice was scholarly and stern, like a teacher asking a question of her pupil. That meant that if he answered wrong, he was sure to be reprimanded. “Who, in your opinion, is the greatest threat to Zhcted at this time?”

“Muozinel, I suppose.”

“Correct.” Lim confirmed, unsmiling, as though this answer was a given.

“So you see, the situation in Asvarre is as we stated before. And in Brune, the scars left by the civil war have yet to heal. At best, it would take two or three years for it to make a full comeback.”

Needless to say, the next major factor was Muozinel. Even though they had been beaten back during their assault on Brune six months ago, in reality, only their navy had been dealt any significant casualties. Their land army—footsoldiers and cavalry both—had withdrawn before a decisive battle could be fought, as such minimizing their losses.

Muozinel now had an axe to grind against Zhcted as well—Tigre had the help of Zhcted troops in his rout of their advance army. Moreover, currently, Zhcted held Agnes, originally part of Brune, as their own territory, thus forming a strip of land belonging to Zhcted that Muozinel had to pass through first before it could attack. As such, Muozinel could only attack via sea, and that was impossible with their damaged navy: it could hardly even defend against an enemy attack as it was, let alone launch an invasion. So they could only sit on their hands and watch Brune recover.

“Sooner or later, we and Muozinel will surely clash. But when that will happen, no one knows. It could be three, even ten years from now.”

So saying, Ellen gazed at the wall behind her and the two flags that adorned it.

A silver sword upon black, for LeitMeritz, and for Zhcted the black dragon.

“The balance of power hangs on Asvarre’s decision—whether to join hands with Muozinel, or with us.”

Upon hearing Ellen’s words, Tigre at last understood. If Asvarre were to align itself with Zhcted, then the latter could concentrate all its energy on Muozinel. But if Asvarre were to make Muozinel its ally instead, then Zhcted would be beleaguered from both the south and the west, and it would have to divide its forces to tackle such a dire situation.

“As we were saying before, we would have preferred Elliot, but it seems he personally leans towards Muozinel. As such we shall have to support Germaine instead.”

“So, this secret envoy you speak of...” Tigre trailed off.

Ellen looked distinctly apologetic. Seeing her struggle to reply, Lim stood in for the silver-haired Vanadis. “Tigrevurmund. I believe we had said before that this is the King’s request, not that of Eleanora-sama.”

“I know. There is no way Ellen would ask something like this of me.” He answered decisively to reassure them. It worked. Almost immediately the tension in the room decreased several fold. Both women loosed smiles, and Ellen heaved a sigh of relief while still hanging her head in apology.

“I’m sorry, Tigre.”

“You needn’t be, Ellen,” Tigre said. “More importantly, what does King Victor hope to achieve by sending me?” He didn’t have the foggiest idea about how Asvarre was. He hadn’t even been there. Ever. The king’s intentions were unfathomable in this regard.

“From a certain point of view you could say he wants to recruit you,” Ellen noted while passing her now empty cup back to Lim. “It’s basically selling favors, giving you honor and glory in exchange for your services. Isn’t that practice quite common in Brune as well?”

Tigre set his head askew—he still could not accept this. “But I am not King Victor’s subject, I am a citizen of Brune, a guest who will return to Brune in 3 years time, no?”

“And that’s precisely why he wants you. Think about it—do you really expect to live off the fat of the land once you get back after 3 years? If it were up to me, I’d make you a military advisor. That way you wouldn’t ever leave the palace even after a few years.”

Upon hearing Ellen speak so solemnly, Tigre could only contemplate in silence. It was true, for he was undeniably a person of meritorious deeds.

“Having received the title of [{{furigana|Star Shooter|Silvrash|}}] and [{{furigana|Knight of the Moonlight|Lumiere}}] from an enemy general and your own king respectively, you are someone who will definitely be in an important position once you get home. So as far as the King of Zhcted is concerned, selling you favors is the right thing to do.” Lim added coolly after pouring Ellen some more wine.

For her part, the Vanadis pulled open a drawer on her own desk, and from there retrieved a letter, two rings and a sleek tube.

The tube was half an arm long, and covered by a dark black cloth. On its cap, the seal of the King of Zhcted was engraved and inlaid in gold.

“This contains a secret message to Prince Germaine, and the rings will be proof of your identity as the King’s envoy. But what I really want to show you is this—the king’s letter.” Taking the letter, Tigre read it carefully. The words of a king could not be ignored, not a single one.

It started with the normal salutations, with the King giving some praise for his gallantry in Brune and celebrating the newly forged peace between Brune and Zhcted before diving straight into the main topic.

—You are proof of the strong ties between Zhcted and Brune, and thus able to represent both nations before the Prince Germaine. No one is more suited than you are to accomplish this task.

Written below are instructions as to how far we are willing support the prince in terms of finances and in the sending of troops, as well as the duration for which we shall do so. There are contingencies should extenuating circumstances force you to deviate from the initial plan, but you should return immediately should the situation go too far out of hand.—

So, Tigre mused. He wants to use me as a bargaining chip then.

At the end of the letter, there were instructions as to how he should enter Asvarre. He would travel from LeitMeritz to Regnis, and then from there he would rendezvous with some men the King sent before setting out together for Asvarre. He was flabbergasted at the sheer amount of detail the letter went into. It even mentioned what street he should be travelling by.

Suggesting that both Zhcted and Brune were in support of Prince Germaine—quite clever of the King, really, Tigre thought.

Still. He glanced up from the letter and gave Ellen a look of unease. “Was Brune told of this?”

Ellen shook her head. “I doubt it.”

Lim nodded in agreement. “If it were so, Queen Regin would have passed the orders down to you herself, Tigrevurmund.”

She was right. In the end he was still a guest commandant, and not under any obligation to obey King Victor. Even the letter itself closed with these words—

“I, the King of Zhcted, earnestly ask of you—”

—meaning that this was no order, but a request.

And yet he could not so flippantly refuse. It was a request from a king, after all.

“...Aside from me, is there no one else who can take on this task?”

“Zhcted doesn’t lack for such people. But to the king, he couldn’t claim to be doing you a favor without at least asking you to do this much.”

Tigre tried to contemplate this for a few seconds, and then gave up, shrugging. Immediately, Lim scolded him in a low voice, and then proceeded to explain.

“You see, something like rooting out mountain bandits wouldn’t be adding any additional feathers to your cap. Your role in the Brune civil war has already demonstrated your bravery, and therefore your worth, enough.”

“There are other ways of winning honor, yes, but these would mostly involve you becoming a counsellor to the king. And that would put you in a precarious position—most of our nobles would oppose the idea of Brune interfering in affairs of governance, and it would undermine the king’s authority. So a diplomatic assignment would be the best option.” Ellen sighed.

It was true, Tigre knew. The advantages of sending him were exactly as King Victor had stated—and in those regards no one in Zhcted could compete with him.

“...And that’s how it is. Assuming that the King bears you no ill-will in the first place.” Ellen griped, leaning back in her chair.

Her casual posture relieved the young archer greatly, and he smiled. “I don’t remember ever doing anything to incur his ill-will.”

“If a country has a skilled general, do you not think that his very presence will cause the surrounding nations to be on their guard?” Lim noted coolly, remaining upright and altogether serious despite them. “In our country, there are many people who are displeased by your presence, Tigrevurmund...although I am not saying the king is one of these.”

“But the negotiations are important to Zhcted. Failure would be disastrous—so why would he give the task to me if he has enmity towards me?”

Ellen furrowed her brows as she spoke, her displeasure plain to see.“Well, since there is a contingency in place you will most likely be held responsible for any failure.”

“Of course, success would be still be best, but if you were to fail, getting rid of you would eliminate some future concerns. Depending on the situation, the blame could also be shifted onto Brune.” At this, Ellen swung back upright with a *BANG*, ignoring Lim, who cocked an eyebrow at her. “Actually, don’t you find it all very strange? If I were in the king’s place, I would throw you a banquet with someone else as the host, and make my request while the host distracts the rest of the guests.”

That was true. Tigre thought. He and the King had only met once—they weren’t friends by any means. There should have at least been some sort of party thrown to improve their relationship.

“It would only take a simple check to know that you’ve never been to Asvarre. Sending you there is like asking a child who doesn’t know left from right to go to a neighbouring village to buy something. And then there’s the men the king sent. We have no details on them. The whole thing practically screams ‘this is suspicious’!”

Indeed, it was getting quite hard to think that the king had given him this job for his ability.

“But King Victor has yet to reveal what he thinks of me, correct?” Tigre asked cautiously.

Both Lim and Ellen nodded.

“I can only think of 3 reasons why this was assigned to you. One would be to do you a favor by letting you take the honor of being a diplomat. The other might be to destroy you by putting you in a situation where you would be helpless. And the last would be to gauge your abilities.”

“Gauging my abilities?”

Ellen held up a hand. “In short, he wants to know if you are merely a person who is skilled in warfare, or if you have other skills besides. I still can’t tell if he wants you on his side, or if he wants to destroy you. But whatever it is, he definitely wants to use you.”

The silver-haired young woman chuckled a little, causing Tigre to grouse silently. None of the three options was anything to be glad about.

“And if he has any other design,” Ellen noted in a low, more serious tone, “it’s most likely to use your actions to see how the Vanadis—myself included—and the Queen of Brune will act.”

“Ellen, what should I—”

“Tigrevurmund,” Lim said in a stern voice, cutting him off. “Do not ask that of us.”

Ellen shook her head bitterly. “No matter what your decision is, I will respect it and do my utmost to help you. But it is you who must make the decision, Tigre.”

“I’m sorry.”

He could refuse. But that would lower the king’s opinion of him, and it would also affect Ellen and Brune. Turning to the map, Tigre thought about what was just said. He did not like Prince Germaine, whom Zhcted was planning to support. And yet if his rival Elliot were to ascend to the throne, his alliance with Muozinel would threaten both Zhcted and Brune, for Brune and Asvarre shared a border.

And then there was the alliance with Zhcted to think about.

For the sake of our countries, must I support a foreign tyrant?

By virtue of lending support to Germaine, it might be possible to request that he mend his ways. But he was not the King of Zhcted, Tigre knew. His words would most likely have no significant impact.

But he had to move past that. Sighing, he asked another question. “What sort of person is Prince Elliot, then?”

“Rumor has it that he’s not all that different from his brother. But at least he didn’t kill his whole family.”

“But previously you said that he roped pirates into his army to make up for his lack of numbers. Doesn’t that mean the army is no more than a band of thieves?”

King Victor must really want me to disappear, asking me to go into such a place alone.

“Will you refuse, then?”

“Might as well go. It might be a good opportunity to visit Asvarre anyway.” He meant this in earnest, but more because he did not wish to further burden the similarly-aged Vanadis. “But isn’t this a rather roundabout method? Asking me to be a secret envoy, and yet openly supporting Prince Elliot at the same time?”

“Playing both sides isn’t an uncommon tactic. Ludmira was like that during the last war.” Ellen said.

“What?” Tigre asked, not comprehending her intent. “I thought Mira was a more straightforward person than that.”

Mira of course referred to Ludmira Lurie, [{{furigana|Snow Princess of the Frozen Wave|Michelia}}] of the seven Vanadis and the governor of Olmutz, a province to the south of LeitMeritz.

“You forget that she was Duke Thenardier’s ally at first, which was why she led troops to constrain us. In addition, she continued her pursuit even when we offered to retreat. In order to fulfill her obligations to the duke, she even fought a duel with me.” Ellen’s eyebrows arched in annoyance as she said this, but Tigre could not tell if it was his casual mention of Ludmira’s nickname, or general displeasure at his reply that caused her to act this way.

“But she protected Eleanora-sama from the assassin’s blade that time, even going so far as to risk her own life.” Lim pointed out stoically.

“W-Well, that was just her trying to make me owe her a favor!” Ellen blustered, her expression that of one caught off-guard. “Even if she didn’t think about it that way at the time, when the need arises, she will definitely find an excuse to bring it up!”

“It’s only natural to do that in negotiations,” Lim reminded.

Ellen ignored her, instead turning to Tigre. “And there was that battle against Muozinel. She didn’t come to help you right away, did she? She held off to observe, right? That’s not helping you, that was just her waiting for the moment where she could make you most indebted to her. And she only severed ties with Thenardier after that incident, don’t you forget!”

With that, she downed her cup of wine with much gusto.

Tigre, for his part, understood. This Machiavellian aspect to Ludmira’s character was probably so deeply ingrained that she did not think any worse of herself despite it. Still, given that she had been forced into a conflict due to her rival’s character, it was not surprising that Ellen would be so angry.

If it was Mira, how would she respond to this request?

During his time at LeitMeritz, Ludmira Lurie had paid three visits to the capitol, and she came for three reasons. Firstly, to inquire about the state of the mountain road in Vosyes and Brune in general; secondly, to make a show of being on excellent terms with Ellen. Lastly, she came to prevail upon Tigre to join her.

Every time Ellen received a report of her arrival, she would say ‘tell her not to come again’. But who would dare say that to a Vanadis? And in any case she was half joking. They needed the information that Ludmira regularly brought them concerning Muozinel, and a petty rivalry was no reason to hinder important exchanges of intelligence.

Following her meetings with Ellen she would go looking for Tigre. The first time, she attempted to use the promise of money to win him over, and failed. From then on, she would simply come to make small talk. She did try to invite him on a hunt, but Ellen had turned her down.

If it were her, she would hint at agreeing while avoiding giving a direct answer, all the while gathering intelligence as best she could in the background. And when the critical moment came she would refuse decisively.

Perhaps this is only the first of more difficult requests to come.

He still didn’t like the given task, but he could see it for its uses. And in any case, his complaints were best kept to himself.

<center><big>◎</big></center>

After staring at the door Tigre had closed after his exit for a while, Ellen let out a sigh.

“Is this really alright?” Lim asked.

“We don’t have a choice, do we?” Ellen replied brusquely.

She’d agreed to let him go to Asvarre after their meeting. It was an odd thing—actually, she had been prepared to give way should he refuse adamantly, but as it turned out, he gave an unexpectedly decisive answer. She should have been glad about that, but her heart still felt heavy. Unwilling.

“I’m sorry about just now, Lim,” Ellen said with an apologetic smile. ‘Just now’ naturally referred to the point when Lim had butted in to stop Tigre from asking for her help in deciding. “I...probably wouldn’t have been able to answer him.”

In her heart of hearts, she wanted to say ‘don’t go’. But to deny the king’s request, they needed a viable alternative. Another way to foster closer ties between Zhcted and Asvarre. Or even someone to replace Tigre. But there was no such option. With regards to the king’s requirements there was none better than him, and she would be hard pressed to find such a substitute.

During Brune’s civil war, she was able to mollify the king by claiming that she had no choice but to do battle. And it had been a sweet deal overall. Brune footed much of the war bill, Zhcted had gained Agnes in the south, and Ellen had gained Tigre’s services through her co-ruling of Alsace.

This time, she had no such cards to play—without such, even a Vanadis must obey her king.

So despite herself, she could not tell him to stay. Supporting him was the only thing she could do now.

Turning her face to the window, Ellen gazed out at the scenery. The slow breeze of late summer blew across a land where the descent of darkness was nigh complete, with only a little sun peeked out from beyond the western horizon. The stars too, though she could not see them, must have already come out.

“When he came, the snowdrops were still in bloom...”

Snowdrops grew everywhere in Zhcted, and they were the herald of springtime. But spring had passed them by in a hurry. She spent hers governing, and he spent his getting accustomed to the land. And now, even summer was drawing to a close.

With a sigh, Ellen shook her head vigorously. Clearing her mind, she turned back to Lim once more, with a smile on her face. “Well, since he has decided to go, we should pave the way for him. I’ll be counting on you, Lim. This is the king’s request, so people can’t speak ill of it anyway.”

“Yes.” Lim flashed a rare smile, her voice ringing clearer than usual. But it seemed some anxiety came upon her, and cast a shadow over her turquoise eyes. “Yet there is still much to worry about. Becoming a secret envoy to an unknown country, with only one other person following...”

“Let us trust him,” Ellen said brightly, her words and eyes brimming with confidence. “He has shown us many miracles during this year we spent together. Yes, you could call it luck, but without the skill to use such good-fortune there would have been no miracles, and he has that sort of ability.”

That was exaggerating somewhat, but that was because she too felt uneasy. She could not help but worry. Indeed, perhaps she had even wished for him to refuse back then.

“He will return successful. We will send him off smiling, and we will receive him with that same smile. We can do that much, even if we can neither officially celebrate his designation as envoy due to its secret nature, nor reward him easily due to his status as a citizen of Brune.”

“Indeed.” Lim said, glad that her master had erased her worries.

With that they returned to their duties. But as Ellen sorted through the papers, a sudden thought came to her.

I wonder, has the distance between him and I lessened any?

Though she was busy most of the day, and Tigre was under constant scrutiny by the court officials, they still spent their free time together often. When the weather was good they would take afternoon naps on the roof, sometimes even sneaking out the palace under the noses of Lim and the other officials to roam the city streets. During official breaks, they would have tea and refreshments with Lim and Teita. These were all small, but important memories.

We even danced together in the city once.

In the tradition of Zhcted, such festivals always began with everyone singing and dancing together, and only later would couples form and dance alone. Apparently, this had originally been a way for men to choose their brides, but that custom had long been phased out, leaving behind only that fragment of knowledge and the form of the dance itself.

When they had found out about the origins of the practice, they had both gone red in the face, but did not stop holding hands as they departed. (Of course, no one else knew, for both of them were too embarrassed to speak of it.)

They never crossed the line, each having understood the other’s position. But the silver-haired Vanadis recalled those memories of their daily lives together, and she felt her heart grow warmer.

<center><big>◎</big></center>

Tigre’s room was somewhere in the bowels of the palace. Here, unlike outside where the employees of the palace still milled about even after sunset, there was relative peace. This had been one of Ellen’s considerations, for as a guest, he drew significantly more attention than when he had been a captive.

It was not a particularly luxurious place, but the deep green carpet, brick fireplace and an oak table-and-chair set gave it a relaxing atmosphere. There was no lack of necessities either; in the corner there was a cabinet draped with grapevine as well as a long table.

Upon entry, Tigre lit the lamp by the doorway, and hit the bell on the table.

Before long, footsteps approached the door. Teita’s footsteps.

“Tigre-sama, may I enter?”

“You needn’t be so uptight, I’m the only one here,” Tigre replied in a gentle tone.

The door opened, the chestnut-haired maid entering with a curtsy before lifting her head and sticking her tongue out at him. “I’m used to it already. And besides, I’m away from home.”

Back in Alsace, they had been even less formal with one another. Tigre favored shouting across the hallway to ringing a bell anytime, and Teita, for her part, would inquire clearly as to his requirements before entering, sparing them a lot of hassle. But this was not Alsace, and there were many officials here who disliked him for being so close to the likes of Ellen, Lim and Rurick. In front of such people, they had to pay more attention to such formalities.

“So,” Teita asked after receiving Tigre’s outer coat, “have you finished speaking to Eleanora-sama on the matter?”

A dark look crept over his face. “Do you have some time, Teita? I have some things I need to tell you concerning that.”

She nodded, perplexed.

Seeing that, Tigre walked over to the cabinet and took out a bottle of wine and a pair of wine glasses. This would be worrying to her, he knew, but nonetheless, he wanted her to know the truth.

After having her take a seat, he poured the wine. First for her, then for himself.

He downed a mouthful.

And then made his announcement.

“I need to go out for a time. I’ll be counting on you to take care of this place.”

Her eyes shot open, staring into the depths of the glass before her, the crimson fluids reflected her depression.

“This isn’t a hunt, is it?”

She was right. If this was a hunt or just some inspection in a nearby city, he would have spoken differently. He had done his best to sound calm, but there was no way he could completely hide the anxiety of stepping into unknown territory. Not from Teita, who had been serving him for so long.

So he didn’t bother playing dumb, merely lowering his gaze to meet hers.

“I know you won’t say unnecessary things to others. So I need you to keep a secret for me.”

After confirming her assent, he told her of the trip to Asvarre.

“I can’t tell you the details, but this is a very troublesome matter. While I’m gone, you will tell anyone who asks that I have gone to Silesia,” Tigre said. “And...oh yes. Take care of Lunie while I’m out.”

“I understand the part about Lunie. But ‘to the capitol’?” Teita shook her head, uncomprehending.

“Don’t worry, Lim and Ellen are the ones cooking up the cover story. You just need to tally your account to theirs,” he assured her. “I did think of claiming illness to avoid meeting people, though.”

“That wouldn’t have been like you at all, Tigre-sama. I mean, those aren’t the sort of words a person who would go out during deep winter in furs to hunt would say. And I don’t think I could fool everyone like that,” she said, displaying her resolve in an ironic sort of way, to which he could only scratch his head, at a loss.

Seeing this, she smiled. “Tigre-sama. How far away is this Asvarre?”

“I don’t know. It’s my first time going there too. All I know is that I need to go northwest from here, and then head there by ship.”

“Ship. Sea,” Teita muttered, her eyes wide. Neither of them had ever even seen anything like those. The closest they had come was in images stirred up by the songs of a wandering troubadour, or from the stories of travelling artists who had been as far as Celeste, a town in Asvarre.

She bit her lip, her fists tightening about her apron as she tried to restrain the unease welling up inside her. Reaching for her cup, she downed it all in one go—

—and with a sigh she stood, placing the cup back on table, hazel eyes locking on his.

“I don’t really understand how important this task is. But you must come back safely, Tigre-sama.”

Tigre placed his own cup aside, and held her lightly, the fragrance of her hair wafting into his nose as he did so.

You’ve grown taller...

“I will come back,” he repeated over again. “I’ll definitely return safely.”

<center><big>◎</big></center>

Tigre left the palace before the dawn of the next day. He would travel not as Tigrevurmund Vorn, but as a common soldier of LeitMeritz. He had said his farewells to Lim and Teita, but not to Ellen.

I wish I could have said goodbye to Rurick and the others as well.

These things left him quite a few regrets, but as a secret envoy, his departure needed to be made known to as few people as was possible. Perhaps Rurick might figure it out on his own, though.

He also had to leave by the back gate, instead of from the front. At the side of the gate, a saddled horse was already awaiting him—Lim’s handiwork, most likely.

Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Tigre placed his black bow on the saddle and secured a quiver full of arrows to his luggage—if one could call a small pack with a bear doll tied to it ‘luggage’—behind.

The bear had been obtained from Lim the night before, when she had come to check on his luggage to confirm that he had brought everything.

“Well then, take everything out.” She had said this rather strictly, and he had complied, laying out each item on the table. Food and water for several days, a stone flint, a dagger with a bottle of oil, and a purse full of silver and copper coins.

There was also a letter Ellen had written to her friend Alexandra Arshven, the Vanadis Sasha. She had done this in a hurry, and had given instructions for him to see her friend when he passed through Legnica.

“Sasha will give you additional guidance on my behalf, so it doesn’t matter if you are late by one or even two days—You must go to see her. Understood?” And with that, she had given the letter to him.

Lastly, there were the two rings as well as the silk-covered tube that contained a secret message in the king’s own hand. The surface of the tube had been rolled over with a tanned hide painted black, rendering it completely waterproof.

After inspecting everything item by item, Lim had told him to wait, and left the room for a while.

Before long, she returned, carrying between her arms quite a few new items: a bag of herbs, a bottle of ointment, ropes of hemp and straw, needle, thread and even a hand mirror.

“Bring these along too.”

She said this matter of factly even as she let him help her to arrange these additional things, much to Tigre’s shock.

“Isn’t this a little overdone?” Actually, all of these should have been necessities for travel as well, but he hadn’t thought to bring them with him initially. When he got to the port town at Legnica, he could just purchase all of those trifling things there.

“And what will you do if something happens before you get to Legnica?”

His suggestion had been coldly rejected. He knew she meant well though, and didn’t argue.

But his thoughts inadvertently spilled out into words. “It feels like you’re my mother or something.”

“M-Mother?!” Lim’s stoic mask shattered outright, her eyes going wide as she stared at Tigre, dismayed. In the face of this unexpectedly strong response, Tigre quickly backed down.

“I’m really sorry if that made you unhappy. Teita’s mother was like this too—she would inspect my luggage very scrupulously every time I headed out of town.” Here, he paused for a moment, barely stopping short of calling her naggy. “You reminded me of her.”

“I understand. Still, you should watch how you say things,” Lim said. She seemed to have regained her composure after a few moments, but Tigre still felt terrible about calling a twenty-year old woman ‘mother’.

“In that case, take this with you.”

At this moment, Lim put something into Tigre’s hand. Into his hand, not onto the table—it was a small bear doll.

“It’s a charm. Mothers always give them to their children when they go off travelling, so take it. —I don’t remember having a child this old, though,” she said roughly as his shocked gaze alternated between her and the doll. Perhaps if the room had been brighter lit he might have seen her blushing right up to her hair.

Honestly speaking, it was embarrassing to have to hang a bear doll onto his luggage. But when he thought of Lim’s feelings, he could not bear to take it off.

Leaping into the saddle, Tigre trotted the horse forward a few steps. Then suddenly he turned, gazing atop the city walls. It was still dark, and the contours of the palace walls were silhouetted against the darkness. But he could feel someone watching him.

Straining his vision, he caught a small movement.

Who’s there?

It wasn’t a soldier—a soldier would be carrying a torch at this hour. But it was not an intruder either. He could not feel the person trying to conceal his or her breathing.

A gust of wind blew in.

It did not come from the left or the right. It came rushing down from above, blowing his hair every which way and forcing him to squint.

In the midst of the gale, he caught sight of an object hurtling towards him, glittering faintly as it caught the light. About the size of an insect, but not as fast. He reached out and caught it.

It was a silver coin, and on closer inspection there were words written in ink on it.

‘Good luck’

His eyes scanned across the walls again, but that person was gone.

Glancing at the coin once more, he put it into his waist-pocket with great care. That done, he grabbed the reins and rode out into the streets, his form enveloped by the darkness.

He knew who the one standing on the walls was. The Vanadis who commanded the winds.

She could not send him off openly, and so she had chosen this method instead.

His drowsiness was far behind him now, gone with the wind. He felt warm, and full of vigor.

I will definitely return safely.

He would give her a pleasing result with his own hands.

So decided, he spurred his horse forward, through the streets at the crack of dawn.

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Back to [[Madan_no_Ou_to_Vanadis:Volume06_Illustrations|Illustrations]]
| Return to [[Madan_no_Ou_to_Vanadis|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Madan_no_Ou_to_Vanadis:Volume_06_Chapter_2|Chapter 2]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Madan no Ou to Vanadis:Volume 06 Chapter 3

2013-07-27T23:18:29Z

EcoJakk:

== Chapter 3: A Foreign Land ==

When Gerard Augre visited LeitMeritz, Tigre was still at sea.

The young man, who was about 25 years old, had curled brown hair and bronze eyes, was wearing an official uniform of red and black. That official uniform showed his status as registrar of the Kingdom of Brune, and the chest seam symbolized the Red Horse embroidery of Brune.

"Though as expected, I certainly become used to seeing it since this is the third time..."

Waiting at the main gate to meet with Ellen, Gerard while looking up at the towering Imperial Palace sighed slightly.

A year ago he did not even imagine that he would become the registrar of Brune and would visit Zchted on such a regular basis. He originally thought he would inherit from his father the vineyard around Territoire land, and uneventfully spend a nice and quiet life, but missed the chance of a lifetime.

All changed after he met Tigrevurmud Vorn.

In Brune’s civil war, Gerard, under Tigre’s command, was responsible for managing material showing excellent ability to adjust the distribution of food, fuel, and weapons work. That ability was highly rated, and after the civil war ended, he began to work in the Imperial Court of the Kingdom of Brune.

Every two months, he would visit LeitMeritz. And he would report to Ellen the progress of the work on the Vosyes Mountains was one of his works. It was the third time now, and since the gatekeeper also remembered his name and face, he was able to enter the Imperial Palace without being kept waiting too much.

He was taken to the office after his luggage and clothes were inspected. His luggage was only a linen backpack filled with notes, props and a bundle of letters.

He was already checked at the main gate, but since he was with luggage this time, there was a need to check it again. After the inspection, Gerard sounded the door.

"Long time no see, Mr. Secretary."

Ellen, who wore a formal dress based on blue, was sitting on the office desk. Lim standing beside her.

"It's good to see that both Vanadis-sama and also Limlisha-dono seem to be healthy above all."

Gerard hung up a smile used for social etiquette and bowed in an exaggerated gesture. Ellen nodded generously, but Lim wordlessly returned the courtesy.

Though Gerard's smile was basically stemming from interpersonal politeness, it was also somewhat sincere. In front of Ellen, attitudes needed not be so rigid. However if facing a big aristocrat or high-ranking official of the court of Brune, he must pay attention to his words and behavior.

"Without delay, let me first report on the Vosyes Mountains Road."

This was the agreement that was established in accordance with the mutual non-aggression pact between Brune and Zchted which was signed half a year ago. As long as the mountain path was upgraded, the shortest highway linking the King Capital of both countries would be born. The merchants and travelers would surely take this new road, and LeitMeritz which was situated halfway would therefore also profit.

The reason this matter had yet to be resolved was because this mountain range was on the border between Zchted and Brune. If large-scale construction was performed near the border, it would surely be admonished by the others, and the highway being made also meant that aggression actions could be more convenient.

Originally it was not a talk that would be swallowed no matter what, even if a non-aggression pact was concluded. But Brune was indebted to Zchted, and moreover the contract was exchanged partly because of various circumstances and speculations.

While he read aloud the report he had prepared in advance, while fluently answering the questions raised by Ellen from time to time. Gerard was familiar with the status-quo of this road, he has a clear understanding since he just passed there from Brune on the way here. He answered without hesitation.

After listening to Gerard's report, Ellen smiled contentedly.

"Yeah. It seems to be going smoothly. Good work, Mr. Secretary."

"To hear such words from Vanadis-sama, make me feel relieved. I would also convey as such to our lord."

Gerard bowed in an exaggerated gesture in the same way as the time when he entered the office. Afterward the topic then changed over to casual conversation.

Even if it is said small talk, the main topic was about the situation in their respective countries. Most of the content was that a noble said something in the country, where there have been disputes about Muozinel and Asvarre and so on.

"What position does Brune hold concerning the civil war in Asvarre?"

"For our part, as sparks of the war do not affect us, we intend to watch it calmly. Fortunately, Sachstein’s attention seems to go to Asvarre, so we are thankful for there not being a threat temporarily on the west side of Brune."

"Currently, there are three main forces in Asvarre. Prince Jermaine, Prince Eliot and Princess Guinevere... If one among those sought assistance of Brune, what does Her Highness Princess Regin plan to do?"

"Obtaining desirable result by thrusting one's neck into a quarrel of others is probably something possible only in the world of heroic tales or dramas. Not to mention that our country has yet to recover from the turmoil of half a year ago."

Gerard lifting the corner of his mouth ironically shrugged his shoulders. Though Lim frowned at his behavior which lacked in etiquette, she was soothed by Ellen's gaze and remained silence to some extent.

"That's right, isn’t it? Please tell Her Highness Regin to take care of herself."

"Thank you for your concern. I won’t fail to convey those words."

Then, just before finishing the chat and leaving, Gerard expressed one wish.

"After this, could I greet Lord Tigrevurmud?"

This was what he applied for whenever he visited LeitMeritz. Tigre was currently a guest here. Though just a little bit, it would relatively be easy with Ellen’s permission.
Gerard thought that he would obtain Ellen’s agreement like before, but this time it was different. As Ellen's face looked glum, she shook her head with an apologetic expression.

"I'm sorry. Lord Tigrevurmud is not here now. He was summoned by His Majesty the King about ten days ago, and went to the King at the Capital Silesia."

"By King Viktor? For exactly what kind of business?"

Speaking with a very troubled voice, Gerard frowned plainly. However, Ellen again shook her head.

"I was not told, either. However Lord Tigrevurmud is an important guest, even for His Majesty. So there is no need for Lord Gerard to worry."

"...Is that so. It's regrettable that I'm not able meet Lord Tigrevurmud."

Though Gerard made an expression of disappointment, he backed down quietly without further questioning. He did not know what else he could ask from Ellen there.

"By the way, there is something I want to hand over when Lord Tigrevurmud returns, may I request it to Vanadis-sama?"

"No problem. What is it?"

As Ellen asked, Gerard took out a bundle of letters from his backpack, filled up the letters with both hands and put them on the desk. Ellen and Lim could not help but stare in wonder. There were nearly twenty letters.

"...What...is this?"

"There are 17 letters. Three of them are applications for marriage meeting. The remaining 14 are applications from Feudal Lords hoping to leave their daughter or niece at his side as trainee maids."

"Marriage meeting? Applications?"

Making a face as if she swallowed a bitter medicine, Ellen stared at the pile of letters. Lim’s poker face collapsed instantly, and asked Gerard with a confused look.

"Excuse me, but... Are Her Highness Princess Regin and Lord Massas aware of this?"

Massas was Tigre's father Urz's best friend, and the man who took care of Tigre all the time even after Urz died. He helped Tigre in the civil war of Brune, and Lim which acted as his assistant trusted his character.

After the end of the civil war he let his son inherit his title and his territory, and accepted the request of Regin and Prime Minister Bodwin to serve the royal court. Lim could not think at all that he would overlook it.

"Of course. Since I brought it simply because I was able to get the approval of those two."

As Gerard answered as if it was a matter of course. After hearing that Ellen and Lim looked at each other.

Ellen knew that Regin harbored feelings of love for Tigre beyond status or position. Even Lim was vaguely aware of that fact.

Despite that, she let the Feudal Lords send such letters. What was the meaning behind it? Didn't they notice Regin's feelings, or were they aware of that and deliberately ignoring it?

"...Mr. Secretary."

With a cough Ellen somehow regained her composure, and asked with a cautious tone while poking the letters with her fingertip.

"What do these people think of Princess Regin and Lord Tigrevurmud?"

"They naturally swear allegiance to Her Highness the Princess. The assessment of Lord Tigrevurmud should not be low, either. After all, he was the hero in the previous war, Her Highness the Princess, Lord Massas, and even the knight squadron have deep trust in him. And he had good relationship with Zchted, so they would naturally want to have good relations with him."

With his barefaced smile, the secretary with brown hair gave a model answer as a bureaucrat of Brune. Ellen realized that she got the wrong way of questioning. It seemed that she should say it more bluntly.

"Didn’t Princess Regin feel upset after seeing such a thing? Mr. Secretary, It seems the Feudal Lords thought of your country is a little different."

"...Indeed, thanks to the efforts of Lord Tigrevurmud, the life of Her Highness the Princess was saved, and she became the leader of our country as the successor of the late King Faron. Suppose that kindness becomes love, and Her Highness becomes a maiden in love and continues to yearn earnestly for Lord Tigrevurmud."

At this point, Gerard's face became serious.

"...There cannot be such a thing. Those people think so. Lord Tigrevurmud is a person born from an Earl House in the frontier, and he doesn’t have anything to be proud other than his archery. Such figure cannot be suitable as the King of the next generation. Her Highness should feel the same way."

Ellen did not answer back to that, and sullenly looked at the pile of letters.

It would not be a lie, that Tigre's assessment was not low. If only a good relationship could compromise, but putting him on the throne would be out. And they believed that Regin also thought in the same way.

''---It can't be helped.''

Since Ellen, Lim, and also Gerard were in the "Silver Meteor Army", they knew that Regin trusts Tigre. However, almost no Feudal Lords knew about it. Even listening to the rumors of the triumph in the King Capital Nice, it would be indeed impossible to imagine so far.

Therefore, Lim asked Gerard whether anything might have occurred.

"Has Princess Regin said anything about Lord Tigrevurmud?"

"Her Highness is very concerned about Lord Tigrevurmud's situation. In presence of the minister, she once said that she cannot use goods, Territory, or wealth to express her gratitude, and that upon his return to Brune she will reward him accordingly."

"W-Well, it is natural. It is thanks to Tigre... Lord Tigrevurmud that she is currently there."

Ellen's face became stiff, though she was about to return to her usual tone, the Vanadis with silver white hair somehow corrected her track and nodded. Not be able to express her gratitude with only goods or territory.

So what on earth was she up to?

"Then, speaking about the fact that even though Lord Tigrevurmud was bestowed the title of "Knight of the moonlight" by His Highness King Faron, the land of Alsace which he inherited from his father is requisitioned and in the co-management of Her Highness the Princess and Vanadis-sama. In addition Lord Tigrevurmud himself was forced to leave his homeland, where he was born and raised, and came to Zchted..."

After saying this, Gerard deliberately stopped his mouth. And then he bowed with an exaggerated gesture when saying sorry for complaining about it. Able to say such a criticism though Ellen doesn't care, it seemed that his cynic daring did not change so far.

Gerard, saying things like that, should probably have heard about the story from Tigre. Ellen immediately understood that he deliberately intended to say such things. Probably, this had also led to the firm belief of the Feudal Lords that there was no way Regin would love Tigre.

''---We decided so, and Tigre has also consented...''

Ellen crossed her arms once again look to the pile of letters, and then sighed.

Limited by her status, Ellen could not read their thoughts, and even if she knew the attempt of the Feudal Lords, she also had no reason to prevent it. She felt sympathy for Regin who could only confirm these letters with a depressed face. Lim also bore a wry smile, imagining Massas ruefully sorting these letters.

"...I understand. When Lord Tigrevurmud returns, I will give him these. I promise you, I will take good care of these letters until he comes back."

"Thank you very much."

Gerard's face seemed relieved, and he left the Office this time for sure. After closing the door, in a relaxed mood, Ellen and Lim looked at the pile of letters by contrast with a trouble face.

Gerard who left the work office made a request to the soldiers who were going to send him off to the main gate.

"Sorry to bother you, but can I stay for a while? There is someone that I want to greet. Of course I got the approval of Vanadis-sama."

The latter half of the sentence was a lie. He knew that the soldiers would be unable to judge the truth from the lie immediately. The soldiers uneventfully complied. When he said the name of the person he wanted to greet, the soldiers had no doubt agreeing.

''---Though I was not able to ask neither Vanadis-sama nor Limlisha-dono...''

Gerard wanted to know by all means what kind of life Tigre was leading nowadays. Though it was not as if he was personally interested by it, there was a reason behind it.

Regin and Massas would be very glad if he talked to them about Tigre. Especially Regin who brightened her blue eyes shining like a child, and even the change of her expression was very interesting to see.

As Gerard had greed for success in life like everyone else, in order to please his boss, he had to bring some information about Tigre back.

Walking the corridor of the Imperial Palace led by the soldiers, Gerard soon spotted the target. In the figure of a maid with white apron on top of the black long sleeves skirt, It was a girl who was in a twin tail chestnut hair. Gerard called out to her with a radiant smile.

"Long time no see, Teita-san."

The girl, Teita also noticed Gerard and politely saluted him with a smile.

"Ah! Gerard-san, you came."

"Yeah. I was just talking earlier with Vanadis-sama."

And then, Gerard and Teita chatted for a while. There were many topics that she was interested in, like Alsace's situation or matters about Massas who was fed up with the royal court duty. Teita also again, happily talked about the events of Tigre's life recently in the Imperial Palace.

"Massas-sama is doing well as usual, huh?"

"His Excellency the Prime Minister Bodwin-sama and him often bickered."

"Like Gerard-san and Rurick-san?"

To the innocent words of Teita, the secretary of Brune was at loss for words. Though he would just think of it as irony or provocation if it was another person who said it, and because he knew that this girl would not have this meaning, he was troubled about how to respond.

Suddenly looking away, Gerard saw the soldiers who were standing silently nearby. Because they bore the duty to guide Gerard to the main gate, they made a smile as hard as possible and were waiting faithfully for the talk to finish.

"Excuse me, but I want to talk with her a little more. Since I will feel bad for making you wait any longer, I think that I will ask her to guide me to the main gate."

Though the soldiers looked perplexed, Teita was the maid of the guest of honor Tigre, and also trusted by Ellen and Lim. Living here for half a year was also not short at all. The soldiers briefly explained the situation to Teita, and asked if it was okay.

"I understand. If it is something like that, I will bear the task to see off Gerard-san properly to the main gate."

Like that Teita watched the soldiers leave. Gerard gloated secretly at the moment. Up till now it went as planned.

"By the way, Teita-san. About Lord Tigrevurmud."

With his radiant smile intact, Gerard changed the topic of discussion. Teita looked at Gerard with a puzzled face.

"...Is there something wrong with Tigre-sama?"

"Vanadis-sama said that he went to the King capital Silesia, but... Has Teita-san not heard anything from Lord Tigrevurmud?"

"... No, he didn't say anything special."

Teita denied shaking her head, but her eyes swam for an instant, and her wavering voice lowered. Gerard did not overlook the subtle change on her face. Instinctively, he believed that something must have happened. He boldly stepped forward closing the distance between them, and strongly stared at Teita’s face.

"...Really?"

Teita flinched from Gerard's abrupt action, her shoulders shivered and retreated one step. Gerard took another step forward promptly and shortened the distance to her again.

"Th-That..."

Teita looking helpless, continuing to shake her head in denial, even Gerard could not bear to mind. However, this was unavoidable in order to find out what she was hiding.

"Stop that."

A voice suddenly came from behind. A shock and a pain ran to his head, and Gerard staggered. When he looked back while holding down his head, a young man wearing armor was standing there.

With a well-featured face and a slippery head without even one hair, he had a sheathed sword in his hand. It seemed that he clubbed Gerard's head with it.

"Even if it was just for one moment, what intention do you have to threaten the maid of the person whom I serve, you malicious person of Brune? Depending of your answer, I might club you again."

"When I wondered who it was, it was just you... "

Gerard groaned annoyingly. The man's name was Rurick. Despite his short fellowship with Gerard, they had (what we might call) a close bond relationship.

"It is bad for my reputation for you to say I threatened her. I could not possibly do something like that to her."

"Even the eyes of five-year-old child would see that you are scaring her. You bastard, what are you trying to do?"

As if to protect Teita, Rurick standing in between two people stabbed Gerard with sharp eyes. The secretary of Brune sighed.

"You may not understand even if I explained it to you who had dull eyes and a cloudy brain, but I was only talking with Teita-san about Lord Tigrevurmud. Since I was a little interested, I leaned forward carelessly."

"...This insidious damp man says so. Teita-dono?"

Looking back at Teita, Rurick asked with a very earnest face and tone. Teita, with a troubled expression, looked back and forth at Rurick and Gerard's faces.

"E-Err... What Gerard-san says is true. While talking about Tigre-sama, we became very keen on that."

Tough Gerard was inwardly relieved to the brave words of the maid with fox-tail millet colored hair, but her words did not seem to dispel Rurick’s suspicion.

"Teita-dono. You don't need to force yourself to cover up for this man. Even if you are afraid of a reprisal, in place of Lord Tigrevurmud, I won't let him lift even one finger on you."

"Do you put on air of a knight?"

"I'm originally a knight. That's why."

Replying immediately to Gerard's misnomer, Rurick stared at Teita. As Teita unintentionally laughed, she slightly bowed to show her gratitude.

"Thank you Rurick-san. But he really did not threaten me."

"...... I understand, since Teita-dono says so."

Though he could not consent, if she said it like that, even Rurick could not hold on any further. However, seeming to feel the need to give a warning to Gerard, the bald head knight turned towards the secretary with brown hair.

"I must report about what I saw just now to Limlisha-dono just in case."

"Wait a minute. Why do you have to do something like that?"

Anxiety was mixed with Gerard's voice. As for what was bad for him, Lim was friendly with Massas. In the worst case, she might convey this matter to Massas in a letter or something.

"It will be only natural to report to the top if something unusual happened within the castle."

Folding his arms, Rurick proudly replied. Gerard was not able to just retort to this sound argument. Though he requested help to Teita with a gaze, only an apologetic smile was returned.

''---It seems here that I have no choice, but to withdraw...''

It was certain that Rurick would become a hindrance if he kept up any further with this conversation. Besides, He was able to obtain something of that small talk about Tigre's life nowadays. As tales of his travel to Regin and Massas, even if it was not complete, that portion could certainly be satisfying.

''---And if I tried to find about the rest myself? First of all, I must dispatch someone to the King Capital Silesia and then examine what kind of business Lord Tigrevurmud was called for by the King of Zchted.''

"Well then, I will leave first since I will apparently be haunted by an unpleasant gaze if I stay here."

"Ah, then let me see you off to the main gate."

As Teita remembered and said so, Gerard was accompanied to the main gate by both Rurick and her. Despite of repeated misnomer exchanges with Rurick while walking down the corridor, it did not reach extreme disparagement, and would end with an incomplete burning feeling since Teita was near.

"May the blessing of the gods be with you, Gerard-san."

Teita waved. Gerard waved in return to say goodbye to her while deliberately ignoring Rurick's presence. And then left the Palace.

<center><big><big>◎</big></big></center>

It was seven days later that Tigre reached Asvarre across the Breton Peninsula at the northwest edge of the kingdom of Brune since he got on the '[{{Furigana|Proud Beluga|Górdyj Beluga}}]'.

When looking at the port town of destination from afar, Matvey relaxed, a color of relief spread through the passengers' faces. Two days later, the tense atmosphere that covered the ship finally defused.

"It seems we end our travel without incident somehow or other."

On the deck, Matvey looking back at Tigre and Olga smiled brightly. Just the smile in the face of this man looked like he was up to no good in general, a little seepage. However, Tigre, who had become accustomed to that in this sea trip nodded with a smile.

After passing the peninsula two days ago, the sailors became laconic, their behavior were somewhere frenzied and they seemed to put their body in the battlefield. Even passengers also took in such a mood, and kept their weapons beside whenever and wherever they were inboard.

Tigre, Olga and Matvey were the only people calm.

"It’s because the pirates may appear."

To Tigre who asked about the strange mood, Matvey replied dishearteningly.

"Though I think Lord Tigrevurmud is aware of that matter, among the two princes who are currently fighting in Asvarre, Prince Eliot employs pirates as subordinates. Prince Eliot's base is in Asvarre island, in the neighborhood's backyard just like those guys."

Matvei frowned and explained while drawing a map on space by a fingertip.

"Aren't they prohibited to aim at the merchant ship of Zchted?"

It was Olga who asked so. She wrapped herself in a mantle, when coming out of the deck, and she was being covered with the hood over her eyes.

"Sadly, in this world there are words very convenient to use such as ‘made a mistake’."

As Matvey shrugged, he said that he would look at the state of the surroundings and left from there. Tigre was looking at the scenery of the small port town that gradually approached, when Olga tugged at his sleeve.

"Tigre. Can you shoot that down?"

Extending her arm straight, what Olga pointed to what were seabirds flying gracefully under the cloudy sky. After observing the seabirds for a while, Tigre shook his head.

"It is meaningless, even if I shoot it."

Seeming not to understand Tigre's answer, Olga tilted her head.

"It will only fall into the sea even if I shoot it down. Though this ship is loaded with a shallop, I may not possibly borrow it to collect only seabirds."

He explained so while looking at the seabirds, but Olga seemed to interpret it as making excuses. She narrowed her eyes at the back of the turban and said with a bored voice.

"You travel only with a bow and handled it with great care, I thought that you would be very confident... or do you think I deliberately make things difficult for you?"

"I do not think you deliberately make things difficult for me, but it is a difficult target."

Tigre with an indifferent look replied softly to Olga. This was because he knew that she didn't say it just on a whim.

On board in addition to sleeping without other things to do, Tigre talked to her a lot. She was heartily surprised that Tigre held a weapon in only not more than a dagger with a bow.

"Is it so rare?"

Instead of being curious Tigre asked again. Olga was surprised, or amazed.

"Most people have a sword and a hatchet as weapons. And after that many have spear and ax. Even if there are people who use the bow in addition to such weapons, I have never seen people using only a bow."

"A hatchet is good. I will prepare that from the next time."

Tigre also carried a hatchet when hunting. It was because it was convenient to cut away highly spreading weeds, obstructive branches and leaves. However, he never thought of carrying it in a trip. To Tigre who was impressed, Olga asked.

"Are you confident with the bow that much?"

"More than with a sword or a spear."

Though he stated the fact, Olga having difficulty to say anything turned her gaze at Tigre.

While recalling such a conversation several days ago, Tigre observed the seabirds again.

Though they were not so fast, they were flying pretty high. The wind was blowing, and since there were on a ship, the scaffold was also unstable. It would probably be difficult for someone with ordinary skills to make an arrow hit the mark.

''---To begin with, Can that stuff be eaten? Since I see such a bird for first the time...''

Tigre returned his eyes to the port town while intending to ask Matvey later. There was a small hill in the immediate place from the shore, and cityscape spread along gentle ups and downs. He saw a building that seemed like a mansion on the hill. One might overlook the sea from there.

The captain yelled out a roar like instruction, 'The [{{Furigana|Proud Beluga|Górdyj Beluga}}]' folded the sails and began slowing down little by little. The ship’s power converted to wood-pulp went forward to the port town under the leadership of the pilot vessel.

Maria was one of the very common port cities in the kingdom of Asvarre.

The harbor was crowded with people handling the goods. Booths were located in both sides of the street, the merchants, the travelers and the housewives who came out for shopping, all sorts of people coming and going, were wrapped in a chaotic buzz of the atmosphere.

A certain big fish was chopped into chunks on the spot sale. The basket was filled of small fish caught just now, still alive and kicking. The sea water dripped from the shellfish piled in heaps in the barrels. Moreover, mushrooms, cabbage and wild grass were also placed on the mat for sale.

"It is lively, but not as much as in Lippner. I wonder if it is because of the civil war."

As Tigre said his honest impression, Olga beside him also nodded.

"The number of ships is different, though the port size is about the same."

To those words, Tigre looked at her with a surprised face. Even when talking about the bow, this girl’s calm was completely at odds with her age, as if she was accustomed to traveling in general. The only thing that surprised Tigre when leaving Lippner was that he did not observed well both the port and the ship.

'The [{{Furigana|Proud Beluga|Górdyj Beluga}}]' anchored on the wharf, disembarking passengers in succession.

Tigre and Olga waiting for Matvey got down last.

Though Tigre applied his foot on the hard ground after a long time, he felt a sense of incongruity to his body and stamped several times on the spot. Olga asked him with a wondering face.

"What are you doing?"

"I may only be tired, but I feel like my body is still shaking."

"...I also feel that, too. What is it?"

The two looked at each other tilting their head. It was Matvey that gave them a clear answer.

"We are calling it wave motion sickness (drunkenness), since the body got used to the state of vibration. It will be mostly settled if you leave it."

"How long will it be if we leave it be?"

Olga asked with an uncanny voice. Matvey frowned and answered.

"If you walk just for a moment, your body will get used to the hard ground. Although there are rare cases where the person turns worse like illness, you will probably be alright since you did not get seasick. Shall we go eating for the time being?"

Matvey led the way out of the port walking down the street.

''---As expected, it is different from Brune or Zchted after all.''

The fence surrounding houses, wood materials and assembly methods, the pattern of the walls, as well as the structure of the roof. The differences of these details, as well as the conversations of people, that leaked to the ear strengthened the feeling of having come to a foreign land. The writing were occasionally saw without fully understand what its meaning.

Before long, Matvey chose one shop and entered. Tigre and Olga also followed. A fragrant smell assailed their nose at the moment they passed through the door, and the noise struck the earlobe.

In this snug store, more than half seats was already filled. The guests were not just the residents of the town, they were also passengers and sailors. Deep in the store, the three people sat around a round-topped table, and Matvey ordered sake and dish to the daughter of the waiter who pushed visitors aside.

Tigre were looking around the store. Such places did not change wherever he went.

"After this we are going to meet with someone."

Tigre looked at Olga who was covered with the turban over her eyes also in the store. Although it showed itself to be suspicious, other guests were also far from being decent. He decided not to mention it.

"We plan to leave this town today at the earliest. What will you do?"

Olga to whom he asked, cast down her eyes, seeming to think. She paused, and opened her mouth about a count of three.

"May I accompany you until midway? Concerning meals and lodging, I will pay my share myself. I won't do something like causing you trouble."

"If you tell us the purpose of your trip."

As Tigre replied so, Olga remained silent once again. Perhaps wanting to ease the atmosphere, Matvey was about to say something. Tigre held him back and continued.

"I won't ask you to explain in detail. Like I say just now, I will see a person, it will be good if you tell to a certain extent. I won't even ask your identity. However, I want you to speak about that at least."

During the sea trip, when he was sometimes free, Tigre had thought about Olga, but did not reach a conclusion.

Anyhow, she did not just fit that age. She also seemed to be accustomed to traveling, and she also had a splendid ax hung to her waist. Even when she was in front of him or Matvey, she was not perturbed or scared, and she also put a dignified attitude.

If she was an itinerant entertainer or a bard, then it was strange that she did not have tools for work. If she was a fugitive guilty of some crime, her behavior was rather sloppy (her words and deeds are extremely rather free). Even if he did not ask her anything, she said that he did not also talked too much about himself. It was like saying simply that she suspected him.

He considered in some way the possibility of spy to be an extreme conception, but, as expected, she was too young and it would be rather conspicuous.

This silence lasted a long time. As the waiter carried the bier with which the big glasses of ceramic was filled to the brim, and put them on the table, Olga finally spoke.

"...Is it no good if I say that there is something that I want to see?"

She looked at Matvey and Tigre. They showed neither approval nor disapproval.

"Does that mean there is a place where you want to go?"

To Tigre's question, Olga shook her head.

"I just want to walk around this country properly, and hear various stories in towns and villages at which we will drop in. I want to go those towns and villages, meaning there isn't particularly any place where I want to go."

It became more and more incomprehensible. Leaving aside Brune and Zchted currently with no sign of war, here was Asvarre.

Tigre violently rummaged his darkish red hair and sighed. As he pegged Matvey.

"My orders were to assist you."

It seemed that he entrusted him the decision. Thus as Tigre asked him whether it was fine with his gaze, the scary-looking sailor said with a happy smile.

"Sailors always encounter various mishap situations on the sea. If I let a girl all alone to loaf, the beluga on my back will look down on me."

Tigre thanked him again and said sorry. Rather than being Tigre's subordinate, he was only cooperating because it was Sasha's request. But he was willing to respect the will of youngster who probably did not have half of his age.

"I would like to hear from that man looking good with the white dolphin, our future plans?"

"We will leave the town as soon as we can supply horses. We will arrive at the destination city after two or three days. Though it is a camping-out tonight, we will stay at a small village along the highway tomorrow."

Matvey which would expect a question answered smoothly without settlement. Tigre especially made a severe expression and looked at Olga again.

"We don't mean to stay long in Asvarre. We will return to Zchted quickly after we finish our business. So if you do not mind, our trip together will be until that town."

Having Olga accompanying the both of them were not without its benefits. Since it would be very difficult others to imagine them to be secret agents if they took a child along.

"...I understand. Then, until that town."

Olga moved her small body and bowed to Tigre and Matvey respectively.

"Well, I wish us a happy journey in this country, cheers!"

The trio picked up each cup, and bumped them lightly. Tigre gulped down the beer vigorously. When resting after drinking the half, he frowned.

"It is very bitter, this wine."

Though he also drank beer in both Brune and Zchted, he had not seen so far any kind of beer that left such a bitter taste on the tongue. Distorting her facial expression in the back of her turban, Olga seemed to think so too. Only Matvey’s smile remained.

"There is also a way of drinking it while diluting with water, wine or herb. Or, would you drink another liquor?"

While being lost, the dish had been carried. There were oatmeal and beef stewed with liquor which were Asvarre's peculiar dishes. And moreover, since it was situated at the seashore, there were also salmon and cabbage soup, eviscerated stomach stuffed with herbs and mushrooms grilled cod fish and shellfish cooking a lot.

On the table, painted crushed potato bread and mutton fried soybean were also lined up. All this was filled with fragrant smells in the steam, and just by looking at it, saliva accumulated in the mouth. They were at loss of where to start.

The oatmeal had a unique smell and texture, and since the sake of beef stew had a strong flavor, it was just right eating it with bread. The chum salmon that cooked the soup used pickling ahead of time, salt taste entered in the soup just right.

As Tigre and the others smacked their lips over those many dishes, though they were talking about their cruise until today and their impression of this town, they were also listening to conversations from other tables.

"...It seems that before we leave Zchted the situation here had not changed."

It was about the fight between Prince Jermaine and Prince Eliot. Although small-scale battles occurred frequently, it seemed that both sides failed to account for the advantage.

"It is likely going to move from now on. Because it seems that Prince Eliot left the Asvarre island that is his base, and came to the continent."

Similarly overhearing the nearby conversation, Matvey said.

"It is probably to encourage the soldiers of his army."

"There is also the possibility that he gives directives himself. As for the number of soldiers, the fact that Prince Eliot's side is superior didn't change."

After answering so, Matvey picked up the whitening fish to his mouth. Olga put her glass down, asked.

"I hear Prince Eliot's troops had pirates accounting for great numbers, but are they so many?"

"You know that half a year ago, a civil war occurred in Brune. I heard that just thousand of the pirates were indeed remnants of the defeated army who fled to the North at that time."

After listening these word to Matvey, Tigre almost the menu card to his throat.

"Others are Sachstein’s mercenaries, as well as a group of people known as sea people, it's quite a mixed bag. And is this fucking situation dragged on longer, those who fail to get a job and become penniless will appear, Zchted will be affected. For example..."

Stopping his hand that was eating, Matvey suddenly put on a serious expression.

"As there are those who are making a living in the trade with Asvarre merchants, what will happen when they are no longer be able to trade if those merchants were killed due to the civil war? You may say that they should look for new trading partners, but, if such a thing was easily found, they would not have a hard time."

Listening to the conversation of the two people, Tigre tore the bread roughly and threw it into his mouth.

Even if it was to escape from starvation, becoming a pirate was not something allowed. The misfortune could never become a reason to dispossess (to deprive) an innocent person. So, instead of becoming a pirate, was it better to starve and die? No. What should be done was…

"Lord Tigrevurmud."

Unwittingly, Tigre fell into silence with a serious face. Matvey said with a soothing tone and a fearful expression.

"Are you tired from the sea trip? Food will cool down, you know?"

"Ah, no, I was just thinking about the upcoming thing."

"For us here is a foreign land. Although it may not help, but I hope you will not be so depressed."

"...That's right. Thank you."

It was for consideration towards Matvey that Tigre expressed his gratitude. Matvey understood about what the young man was getting angry about and worry, so he persuaded him gently.

Tigre fiercely stretched out his hand to the remaining food on the table. To face Jermaine in an adequate condition with stamina and energy, He convinced himself that he must properly eat from now.

<center><big><big>◎</big></big></center>

Along the road flanked by a small hill, a small village came into view when they exited the forest. It was two days later since they left the port town of Maria.

The three people were on horseback and had tied their luggage to the saddle. Matvey led the way, followed by Tigre and behind could be seen Olga’s shape.

Though Tigre thought Olga to be used to traveling, she was proving it by action. When they camped out yesterday, she hunted hares of two wings only over the past half-time (in only a half koku).

Although Tigre also shot down two wild birds, and the supper of that day became very much gorgeous, Olga pulled off (did a good job indeed) really well when handling the birds and hares. She continued the work without faltering (fluently) drawing out blood, tearing off the skin and pulling off wings for instance, Tigre was impressed.

"Though it is still daylight, we will rest in this village for today."

While looking up at the bright sunshine in the cloudless sky, Matvey that was at the vanguard said those words.

"If we leave on the early morning of tomorrow, we may arrive at Valverde which is the destination at afternoon."

After finishing the harvest, straw color of dried grass were scattered sparsely in the field, and farmers were resting in a position of their own way. Made beyond the field on the roof which piled up the flat stone stucco walls, the houses made of structure were lined up. Remembering the villages of his hometown, nostalgia crossed Tigre’s eyes.

Suddenly one farmer turned around their way and noticed Tigre and the others. His calm face changed radically into that mixed with fear and suspicion, and he called out to other farmers and run hurriedly.

"...What's going on?"

For villagers to be wary of strangers was not a rare sight. However, Tigre sensed a different atmosphere from there.

"Isn’t it because Matvey-san’s face scared them?"

Olga muttered so, and Matvey showed an exaggeratedly sorrowful face. Even Tiger could not refrain from laughing. It was unusual for this girl to speak of a joke, and thank to that the strain mood softened.

"In any case, I do not want to scare them too much. Let's go down from the horses."

Since talking on horseback would wither the other party. Getting off the horse, the three people went to the village by pulling the reins. One man walked their way. His linen clothes were stained with soil, and his face had the trace of wiped sweat. It was an understandable figure in a day when considering they was working on the farms until just a while ago.

"Mrs. Travelers, what kind of business do you have with this village?"

"We would like to ask for food and overnight accommodation. Also for horses."

It was Matvey which could speak Asvarre’s language fluently that answered, and he took out several pieces of silver coins from his breast pocket and handed them to the man. After looking at the silver coins, the man glanced at Tigre and Olga. Tigre said with a smile to reassure him.

"There were also such villages in my home. I do not intend to loiter and to interfere with your work."

Matvey conveyed it again in Asvarre’s language. The man let out a breath of relief, and seemed to loosen some wariness.

Tigre and the other two were guided in the man's house. The man seemed to be the village mayor and he was living in (it was) the only 2-story building in this village. There were a hovel and the cereals storehouse near the house, too and he had his family help move the horses there. Tigre and the others were provided with the spare chamber on the second floor of the house.

Though there was nothing in the room, if there was something they desired, it would be said to prepare that as long it was possible. Tigre left negotiations to Matvey and walked to the window.

He could overlook the aspect of the village from the window. He saw the entrance of the village where they came. Because children were looking up at Tigre standing at the window with great interest, and when he waved his hand, some would hide quickly or run to escape, but there were also several people who waved their hand awkwardly back.

"Lord Tigrevurmud. The talk was settled."

At Matvey’s voice, Tigre turned toward him.

"It is impossible to sleep on bed, but it seems that they have prepared three thick blankets, so one per person. The meal will be a moment later. He said that we will have one smashed chicken with soup and bread. After that, three cups of hot water in a bucket."

After saying to there and suddenly lowering his voice, Matvey added happily whether or not he would be sticky about one part of the chicken. Tigre shook his head with a bitter smile.

Rather than having to withhold from the village, he avoided stimulating be worried about how scared he was when he first saw, it was correct.

Laying the blanket which had been carried on the floor, Tigre lied down on it. As the relaxation of stretching at ease his limbs, Olga displayed an astonished expression. When the person of the village left the room, she removed the turban that she was wearing.

"It is untidy..."

"Because they didn't use this place for a while."

"Certainly. I wonder if I can also taste the freedom throughout the whole body for a while."

Matvey agreed, as he also laid on the blanket in the same way. As the dimly expressionless Olga looked down at the two men, she laid her body on the blanket.

Over a period of time, the trio did not do anything, lying down in silence.

Then, the time that passed was only about a half koku. Tigre frowned suddenly. He had a feeling that he heard something like a scream in the distance.

Tigre and Olga woke up almost simultaneously. One breath minutes later Matvey got up rather slowly. Tigre grabbed his black bow kept in his hand hauling the quiver with arrows and compromised to the window. He inquired the situation outside carefully.

''---Who are those guys?...''

There were thirty, no around forty men in the village. They wore a discernibly rough atmosphere, and despite being armed there was no uniformity in their equipment. If there were some people who were wearing leather armor which struck the rivet, there were also those wearing chain mail. The weapons were also swords or spears, the ax with a pike mallet was not uniform.

And each house of the village shut the door firmly. As if waiting for the storm to pass while holding their breath. Only several people who had come out to the field were keeping standing on that occasion together with their horses or cows.

When the men had their eyes on one house, their flung spears and pike mallets against the door while booing aloud. Stepping over the wrecked door, several people went into the house, and many screams broke out.

"Are they... Brigands?"

"It is possible that those bandits have their stronghold in the neighborhood."

Matvey which was looking at the situation across the window from the side opposite of Tigre, replied in a calm tone.

''---But considering they are brigands, it's strange.''

Tigre frowned. For an attack the attitude of those men was too laid-back. The villagers also, rather than running away, were just only shutting their door firmly.

Even while thinking, and those who attacked the houses were different men, or those who went towards the field surrounded and beat the farmers. Even those who bludgeon livestock to death seemed to be laughing happily.

It was certain that they would tremble violently if they were people weak in mind. It was a terrible spectacle that could get Tigre sick just by looking. When the right hand of Tigre which could not bear anger lengthened to the quiver, the door of the room was knocked on. Matvey moved quickly and went for the reception.

A woman of about 45 years old was there. She was from the village chief's family. Though her face was paled, since she was safe when she was here, she said that she wanted to close the sliding shutter and would like us to remain still.

"What are those guys? Brigands?"

To Tigre's question, the woman shook her head with a look.

"Those people are the soldiers of His Highness Jermaine."

Not only Tigre, even Matvey and Olga stares wide-eyed at that answer.

" Prince Jermaine’s Soldiers...? Those guys?"

It was suddenly an unbelievable story, but there was no reason for this woman to tell them such a lie. Above all, their behavior also and even their correspondence of village entrance was understandable, in such a situation.

At that time, the woman's look turned to Tigre's hand. To the left hand which grasped the black bow tightly, and the right hand which was extracting the arrow.

"W-What do you plan to do?"

The woman's voice was shaking in fear. Tigre did not answer. She trotted over and clung to hold down the hands of the youngster. She appealed in a face and a voice that seemed to burst into tears at any moment.

"Please. Don't do anything strange. Please..."

"But... But, you should not let those fellows run loose."

When Tigre painfully spit out those words, She blotted tears to the edges of her eyes and twisted her expression.

"You will leave here tomorrow, right? We will live in this village not only tomorrow, but also the next day and the day after that."

Feeling bitterness spreading within his mouth, Tigre was not able to answer to her mournful voice.

Even if Tigre sent away those soldiers here, the situation would not improve. They will revenge themselves on this village soon after. In the worst case, they might burn the village saying the villagers defied Prince Jermaine.

He must endure it until their tyranny passed. Even if they made sacrifices.

It was the way that this village chose.

Although the woman tried to continue her words further, the scream which had been heard scratched it out.

When only moving his head, Tigre looked outside from the window, as several girls were pressed down by many soldiers, they were dragged in the center of the village. Villagers who apparently tried to stop it, were beaten and crouched down before the Jizo (statue).

"Matvey."

Tigre suddenly called the name of the sailor of white dolphin. To the dreadfulness with which the voice was tinged, Matvey's shoulders shook with a startle.

"Tie up this person. No, tie up all those present in this house and roll them on the first floor. And then, block up the first floor with whatever you can use. Even doors and windows, everything."

Two persons, the woman and Olga made an expression of astonishment. Matvey understood immediately Tigre's intention, he bound the woman's arms from behind.

"What are you trying to achieve?"

Tigre did not answer back to Matvey's question. Carrying an arrow piece to his waist he applied his foot to the window frame. In the next moment he clung to the wall on the outside with a light motion and quickly climbed up on the roof. No one among the soldiers on the ground noticed.

Tigre set up the bow when settling down on the roof and nocked an arrow. He aimed at the soldier who was going to cover the girl. The distance was approximately 100 alsins. A piece of cake.

The shot arrow cut the wind, flew and went through the head of a man so that it was inhaled. The body of the man who ceased to breathe inclined and fell down beside the daughter. Several persons doubtfully turned their eyes to their friend, and as they found fault with the arrow in his head, two flat knots were already released.

The arrow which stuck in the scruff went through the throat, and the second let a bloodstained sickle peep out. The man fell down to the place and writhed painfully without being able to utter voice.

The men finally noticed the existence of an enemy. On the other hand, Tigre not changing his cold expression in not even one bit, shot the third arrow and killed the third person. Flashing in his mind was the memory of one year ago.

Alsace central city Celesta that is his hometown. Zaian, the son of the Duke Thenardier, invaded with his soldiers, many private houses were crushed and baked, and many people lost their life.

The state of the girls held down by soldiers just reminded the young man the account of hundred million (many times) when Teita was being once attacked by Zaian at that time.

When he thought of the scene that he saw then. It was not within Tigre to be able to overlook it in silence.

Tigre shot and killed the third person, while Matvey was tying up the woman skillfully at the back in the second floor under the roof. He did it carefully with a gag, and pushed a dagger against her scruff. Although he would not do something like hurting her, he made a scary face to stir up respect by fear.

"Even Lord Tigrevurmud gave a cruel order. It might be a little painful, but please forgive me."

"...Please, explain."

It was Olga, who watched the course of things in silence until then, that asked Matvey. Doubt and suspicion were swirling in her black pupils.

"Don't you understand? No, excuse me. Let me explain it later since my hands are busy now. It will be faster if you help me."

To the answer of the Matvey who seemed happy, the dimly expressionless Olga slightly changed, and wrinkles appeared in the middle of her forehead. Being lost in her thoughts, her eyes went around the inside room and then were directed to the outside of the window.

"Will it also counted as help if I cut down those guys?"

Matvey which was going to leave the room with the woman whom he restricted stopped.

Although he was also surprised that Olga's tone lost the usual politeness, and became even more colder, the scary-looking sailor couldn't help turning around. He tried to open his mouth to ask what she meant, but was forestalled.

"Yes or no? Answer only that. Your Hands are busy, right?"

"...It would be convenient that you could do so that even one person doesn't die."

Having answered so was utmost, and when he finished saying, Olga was moving. She kicked the floor, slipped through the side of Matvey and the others and ran in the hallway.

After Matvey opened his mouth as if having grown senile and saw her off, he finally came to his senses at the gaze of the woman.

At this time outside the house, Tigre just shot and killed the sixth man.

''---That was a terrible miscalculation...''

As for the soldiers, though half was running about in confusion still reeling from the surprise attack, the remaining half was trying to counter attack following the directives of a man who seemed to be the adjutant.

Tigre had already shot and killed the commander who led them.

At first he took down the commander to confuse them, and furthermore reduced their number and retreated.

Though Tigre planned so and it went smoothly until the first half, the adjutant who fled quickly into the shade of the building desperately scolded soldiers and restored their morale.

When the commander fell down, it was natural for the adjutant to act as a substitute, but the fact that this adjutant splendidly took the reins of troops could be seen as miraculous. Even a decent army, rarely bounced back early this much.

''---Well, how do I pull it off?''

While nocking an arrow to the black bow, Tigre thought calmly about the next development. It was looking as if he was predominantly advantageous, and, in fact, Tigre knew that it was not the case.

Tigre could not help but surrender if the soldiers of Jermaine held a villager hostage while hiding themselves to the shades of the buildings. Even if Tigre forsook the hostage, they would use the village as a shield to the arrows as it was. In that way the fight would become difficult if he surrounded this house while protecting himself.

"The enemy is only one person, you know? You, 'Ranra', What are you afraid of?"

"I didn't think I could do something like this alone! How about you step forward without letting only your underlings do it and hiding on the sly."

Covering the jeers of the man, Tigre also reverberating inside the village just shouted at him. He had already shot down 8 people. Since they were sniped in a high place, Jermaine's soldiers backed away (got cold feet). They wanted to overcome the resistance (to face down the opposition) like that.

At this point, however, one of soldiers threw an adze (hand ax). Although Tigre avoided it at once by twisting his body, he destroyed his posture and slipped. He avoided falling down from the roof, but the adjutant cried out without overlooking the chance.

"RUSH!"

In response to the instruction, four soldiers ran. Went to the house in which Tigre was standing.

"Oh no-!"

Though Tigre shot an arrow quickly and took down one soldier, the three remainders rushed quickly at the door.

It was at that time. The door was opened with sufficient vigor from the inner side, and a girl who wrapped her body short in stature in a mantle ran out. It was Olga.

when the soldiers of Jermaine understood that the opponent was a child though she stood reflectively, they were merciless and swung down their weapon which they had in their hands.

A dull sound was chained and blood splash danced suddenly. Tigre was about to appeal for her name in surprise, but it was Jermaine's soldiers who screamed the next moment and fell down.

Olga as always with the turban covering her eyes, was silently standing inside the puddle of blood which was spreading In her hand, there was now a dark red ax stained with blood.

''---In one blow? No two blows...''

It was not only Tigre, even the village girls who had late run away and the soldiers of Jermaine who hid themselves in the shade as well failed to get out in time and stared at the girl with an stunned face.

It was a dreadful skill. Among the three soldiers that attacked her, two wore chain mail and one was in leather armor reinforced in metal piece. The girl's ax cut and tore their belly. A girl of only 13, no 14 years old who wielded an ax.

Olga, as if unmindful of the surrounding in dismay, was observing the state of the men. The soldiers of Jermaine shuddered to the enemy who appeared newly and was not ordinary. Some turned their eyes to the adjutant for instructions. Olga was waiting for their reaction. She started running towards the adjutant fiercely was she was thinking whether she was easy and stepped over the body of the step. The adjutant got impatient and cried.

"B-Bring her down."

Receiving that order, two men attacked Olga. However. One of them was pierced to the neck with an arrow that Tigre shot and fainted in the ground. Even the remaining one jumped an arm off from the hit of his elbow with Olga's ax, and crouched down on the spot while shrieking.

Realizing he could not escape, the adjutant lie in wait, lowering his posture. The weapon which he had in his hand had been a spear. In terms of reach, it was very advantageous than the ax.

The adjutant thrusted out the spear. With only one slash, Olga blew away The dark gray tip of the spear that was approaching her.

The action of the girl with pinked colored hair did not end yet. She ran over the edge of the spear which was no longer than just a stick at one go (breath), and shortened the distance. The adjutant's head flew in the sky leaving a trail of blood.

Olga, without taking notice of the body, thrusted her ax at the man who ran in order to support the adjutant.

"Throw away your weapon."

The man realized instantly, that he would lose his life if he took action otherwise. Fearing the girl who was only half about his age from the bottom of his heart, he discarded his weapon crossed his hands behind his head and surrendered.

The other soldiers discarded their weapons, suddenly cried and turned their back and escaped. As the adjutant fainted, there was not the person who was able to command them now.

<center><big><big>◎</big></big></center>

Tigre immediately released the soldiers that Olga arrested caught. And gave them a short order.

"Go back and tell. That People of a foreign land wanted to see Prince Jermaine."

Afterwards, Tigre sat down on the doorway of the village facing the highway. It was at that direction that the soldiers of Jermaine escaped. If they waited here, Their comrades would show up sooner or later.

Soon after, Olga and Matvey accompanied by horses were walking.

As Tigre looked at the two, though somewhat tinged with gloom, he asked with a quiet expression.

"How is the state of the village?"

"Since one of the village headmen came over to that house, we explained the circumstances while having a look at the inside."

The village though poor, in order to prevent fox or wild boars from entering, was surrounded with the fence of a tall tree. While tying the horses there, Matvey explained in a cheerful voice.

"Were you able to tie up all the people of the house?"

"Yes. Since the village headman seems to come here later, they would appreciate an explanation from Lord Tigrevurmud once again. And then, they will likely do the burial of hooligans."

"You saved us. Thank you very much."

When Tigre bowed, Matvey smiled wryly and waved his hand.

"Don't mind it. Because I was also on the point to turn a blind eye primarily since I forsook easily while seeing such a scene. One more thing, Lord Tigrevurmud. I would like you to quit soon the polite way of talking. It will also be easy for you, won't it?"

"...Oh! If you say so."

When he seemed to be at loss and scratched his head, Tigre changed his expression and turned toward Olga.

"I must also give you my gratitude. Thank you. Honestly, you saved me."

Without this girl's involvement, though it could not be said that he would be defeated, there was no doubt that he would be force to put on a hard fight However, Olga shook her head to say that such a thing did not matter.

"Leaving that aside, I want you to explain. Why did you tie up the people of that house?"

Tigre stared steadily at her involuntarily. Though she was still expressionless. He felt a strong core (the wick) in her quiet voice. This might be Olga's true nature.

Thinking a little, Tigre instead of talking as if talking to children, said it while considering the other party as equal.

"While receiving such treatment, the people of this village didn't resist. As far I have seen the soldiers' attitude and the village's reaction, I conclude such a thing won't happen once or twice. Perhaps, they may have also smashed the village as a warning to others."

The expressionless Olga got fogged. Tigre continued in a serious tone.

"It is the policy of the village not to defy the soldiers. If it opposes, it will rouse the anger of those guys and they will retaliate. Not only that, it will make another flipped through the involvement of other villagers. Much more if it caused the confusion between the people in position like the village mayor and the village headmen when doing so. However... if I tied them up so that we weren't be disturbed, it would save face to the village."

Tigre remembered the words of the woman who clung to him. They must live tomorrow and also the day after tomorrow in this village.

Olga looked down and muttered, as if very dissatisfied.

"Isn't there the option of escaping, abandoning this village? To a place without outrage and tyranny..."

"Have you ever plowed a field?"

Giving a mild smile, Tigre kindly asked After blinking several times, Olga shook her head. Plotting a look, Tigre gazed at the long distance field.

"It's hard, you know. Tough. I've grasped a hoe only once. At first, I remove pebbles, weeds and chip of wood as much as possible. It's hard work. Next, I dig up the soil, but it is still hard labor because I must dig the hoe in quite deeply."

The field of his hometown came into Tigre's mind. The scenery which he just watched along with his late father.

"While using the hoe, if it hits the stones mixed among the soil, and the edge bends or is breaks, you must repair it. In case there is no smith mentor and only wooden hoes can be used, it will take a great amount of both time and effort."

"... If there is a way of making a cow or a horse pull a plow."

"It doesn't mean that chicks also keeps cattle's and horses. That is expensive."

To Tigre's answer, Olga fell in silence without a word. Matvey opened his mouth to brush the atmosphere that was about to be sunk heavily.

"Well then, Lord Tigrevurmud, what do we do from now on?"

"I will wait for a subordinate of Prince Jermaine here. If early, he will come over even tomorrow. Though it was somewhat strange, it was done as planned."

"Did you come to this country to meet with Prince Jermaine?"
Olga black eyes infected with the touch of unexpected look.

"Yeah, so our travel together will end here."

He did not think they would part in this manner. But Tigre believed that this child would certainly have no problem. Whether it was riding the horse, or the level of hunting, as well as excellent combat skills, Olga's strength should not be underestimated. Speaking of her equestrianism, her skill in hunting, and now that admirable fight style, Olga's ability was the real deal.

But the girl with light pink hair spoke some unexpected words that Tigre never anticipated.

"Tigre. If good, would you not let me accompany you as your attendant?"

"...... The reason?"

Asking this, Tigre took a few breaths to.

"I want to personally meet the man called Jermaine. - Can't I?"

Just also thinking that she would give a categorical answer, and not actually expecting her expression to change, she put on a child-like weak expression. Tigre folding his arms muttered. He did not think Olga was unaware of how dangerous it was to see Jermaine now. He do not really understand her thoughts.

"Who are you exactly?"

After wavering, Tigre asked bluntly.

"Until now, we did not ask each other's identity because we planned to say goodbye with you here, we decided no longer to ask. But since you must come with us, it is another matter. Tell me."

Olga momentarily turned her gaze, shook the head, seemingly to reconsider it. Subsequently, she went straight on Tigre's eyes.

"You may not believe me."

On her dignified expression, In a calm tone to let you feel her intention, the image of the traveling girl from the two that got used to seeing did not remain at all.

"I am one of the seven Vanadis of Zchted. The {{furigana|Moon Princess of the Roaring Demon|Bardiche}} Olga Tamm bestowed with the land of Brest and the {{furigana|Curse of Reversal|Houju no Genbu}}, the {{furigana|Dragonic Tool|Viralt}} named Muma is me."

Tigre and Matvey stared wide-eyed and were at a loss for words.

Standing before the two people now was not the girl without sociability who was in some way absentminded. She was an ikkitousen (match for a thousand) warrior accepted by a Dragonic Tool. She was a Vanadis whom he couldn't help but be terrified if he looked close.

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Back to [[Madan_no_Ou_to_Vanadis:Volume_06_Chapter_2|Chapter 2]]
| Return to [[Madan_no_Ou_to_Vanadis|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Madan_no_Ou_to_Vanadis:Volume_06_Chapter_4|Chapter 4]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Madan no Ou to Vanadis:Volume 06 Chapter 1

2013-07-27T21:48:50Z

EcoJakk:

== Chapter 1: Emissary ==

===Part 1===

A buck was walking casually atop a mountain ridge, with arid wind whistling around it.

The creature stood head and shoulders above its brethren, and with its right horn grew in a bizarre shape. the beast looked repulsive, monstrous.

To the villagers living at the foothills it was a monster to be feared. The creature trampled their fields as it pleased in broad daylight, eating its fill of the crops before disappearing into the mountains.

They could not stop it. Those who dared to give chase, hoes at the ready, were gored by its horns, suffering grievous wounds. Teams of seasoned hunters were sent to hunt it down. But this buck had a prodigious sense of smell, and leg strength beyond the norm. It saw through every trap, and when the hunters drew close, it would leap across cliffs, jump atop the rocky crags, or simply slide down steep slopes to elude them. As a result, even after three days and nights they had not been able to take it down.

And yet one young man was now bringing his bow to bear on this creature.

He could not have seen more than twenty winters, and was of average build. But if one espied the arm that peeked out from his sleeves one could see that he did not lack for training. There was vigor under his dark red locks, and his gaze was keen as he bent his gaze to that buck.

From his hiding place in the crags below to the stag’s ridge there was a distance of about 300 alsin. No distance for a mere bow. If one asked any seasoned hunter he would shake his head and advise that one closed sixty, even seventy paces. What more then for this boy, who was aiming against the grain of gravity, shooting from a low position to a higher one. A light breeze blew downhill from ridge to crag. By this his approach and attack was be masked against his prey. Yet if he missed, this good fortune would have been in vain.

All this, the young man knew well. But he did not waver. He kept his cool, notching a single arrow with an ease born of unceasing practice, following through till he had drawn the bow taut.

The wind ceased for but an instant. The young man, as though foreseeing this pass, let loose that arrow. It traced an arc through the sky, and struck the stag in the neck.

It was an unerring blow, almost as if it was sucked in by some unknown force. And yet the beast did not cry out. Rather, it turned and fled in the direction opposite to the young man.

At this, he at last showed consternation. “Looks like that huge frame wasn’t just for show...”

Leaving his hiding spot, he nocked another arrow as he made his way up the slope. It was not meant for the buck - in his mind the hunt had been nigh unto ended by his first strike. This arrow was meant for any surprises that might crop up along the way.

<nowiki>*</nowiki>Patata* The sound of flapping wings entered his ears, as a creature the size of a large cat passed by his side.

But it was no cat. It was a dragon - its reptilian form scaled bronze with a greenish hue from head to tail, with horns, coarse sharp teeth, and wings that reminded one of a bat. Flitting about freely, as though disregarding the young man that was its companion.

And if they were on ground level he might have traveled on equal pace with it. But as it was he stood in the rough of the rocks, only able to smile bitterly at the departing form of the dragon.

Regulating his breathing carefully, he scaled the ridge-

-and was dumbfounded by what he saw.

Where he had hidden, there was naught but a barren rocky wasteland, and yet beyond the ridge there sprawled a large forest, all trees and bark and dense greenery.

“Well. It’s not that I can’t find it...but this is going to be a chore.”

He was loath to go down. But he could not simply leave the mountain. The villagers would remain uneasy if he merely told them ‘the beast has been taken care of’. He needed proof of his hunt.

“And I still need to find Lunie...”

Lunie, of course, was the dragon who had just ditched him. Thankfully, he knew that he needn’t worry. It was small, but it was a dragon nonetheless. No creature in the wood would dare attack it. And though it was now nowhere to be seen, it was most likely that it had gone after the wounded buck.

Making his way down the slope, the young man took great care as he stepped into the thicket. There could be snakes about, and he didn’t want to risk snagging his clothes on the branches. Once past the thicket, the cold air wrapped around him as he stepped into the verdant woods. The sunlight was greatly dimmed by the undergrowth, and some trees even snaked along slope’s surface.

Indeed, there were few things worse than traversing a forest infested by overgrown weeds and roots.

As he approached cautiously, another *patata* of flapping wings could be heard. He stopped, and sure enough out from deep within the forest’s gloom came Lunie. Recognizing him, the dragon whelp did an artful about-turn in mid-air and went back the way it came.

The young man gave chase, and not ten paces hence he found himself standing before the fallen buck. It had long breathed its last, having bled enough from the wound on its neck staining its fur-coat a deep crimson. Even so he did not relax - many were the tales of beasts seemingly dead using their last ounce of strength to rise up and bring their killers down with them in a rage. And judging from the distance between the ridge and the forest there was still a possibility that more wild beasts could come, having caught the scent of blood.

But Lunie seemed unwilling to humor his cautiousness, plonking itself unceremoniously onto the carcass and spitting him with a look of impatience. ‘Hurry up’, it seemed to say.

The young man grimaced, but made no hurried move nonetheless. Slowly he crept up to the buck, making sure that there were no other creatures about. Only when he had been absolutely certain did he return the arrow to its quiver, before taking a knee in front of the creature.

“Well done, Lunie,” he said, and at last flashed a genuine smile.

The young man’s name was Tigrevurmund Vorn.

Those close to him called him Tigre.

This year, he would be 17. Half a year had gone by since the day he left the land of his birth in Alsace to live in LeitMeritz, in the neighbouring country of Zhcted.

Tigre had initially thought to bring the buck down the mountain with him, but he’d happily quickly given up upon realizing that the creature was heavy. Extraordinarily so at that.

So he hung the creature by its legs to a tree using a rope he’d prepared beforehand, and prepared to dissect it.

Uncharacteristically, Lunie was curled up at his feet, but Tigre was not fooled. It was there only so it could get at the entrails that fell from the carcass at its convenience. It seemed rather eager to do so too, at that.

“Well, I guess I can only take the pelt back with me.” He definitely needed to bring the oddly-shaped horn back as proof of his success, and that was no small amount of baggage to carry by itself. So, unfortunate though that was, he knew apart from that which he would eat he had to leave the rest of it behind. Bones—those would work for proof too, but no, too heavy—meat, it seems like I have to discard them all...

Suddenly he became aware of something rubbing against his trousers. As he looked down, he was chagrined to see Lunie stuffing a face full of blood and entrails into the bottom of his pants—its unique way of saying ‘More, please’. Well, nothing to be done about that. With a sigh, Tigre hefted his dagger, slicing off a few more pieces of meat for the hungry whelp.

By the time he actually finished the whole process, the sun had already reached its zenith. The removal of the horn had taken a large amount of time due to their size. He tied the pelt, still ringed with residual flesh and fats, with a rope of hemp, and put it into a backpack. Afterward he washed his hands using the water in his canteen and got to starting a campfire. That done, he dug a trench, into which he dumped and buried the arbitrarily sized remains of the carcass.

While he was doing all this, Lunie, having eaten its fill, was lying asleep beside the campfire.

Half a year ago, when the breath of spring had only just begun its reign, Tigre had come to LeitMeritz. There a chill wind still blew upon the plains, as a sign of Zhcted’s late-come springtime when compared to his homeland Brune.

He had waited for the mountains of LeitMeritz to thaw before trekking across them, hoping to see with his own eyes the land he now lived in, to feel with his hands and feet its depths and heights—or so he claimed; in actuality all he simply wanted was to experience to the fullest the thrills of hunting in unknown terrain.

Interestingly, for all they had interacted during his time as a captive in the court, or even later as a guest commander, he had never once enjoyed Lunie’s favor. Rather, that honor was given by the dragon to his servant-girl, Teita. Yet it insisted on being by his side when he went hunting. It would even sit on the horse that Tigre rode on when he went hunting, insisting that it be brought along regardless.

And how did the silver-haired Vanadis who was the whelp’s master reply when asked for her opinion on this strange turn of affairs?

“This fellow is probably bored to tears from being cooped up in a world of stone walls, so if you would be willing to bring him along...”

She even tacked a joke onto the request. “Don’t go returning to the wild now...”

Though he was unwilling, it was impossible to refuse her. Not when she looked upon the dragon she petted with an expression of both affection, and regret at her inability to satisfy its desire to fly freely in the skies. She wasn’t all that different from the dragon, Tigre realized. She too was a person who could not live and do as she pleased.

In any case, he had the excuse of studying the geography of LeitMeritz. Of course he wasn’t just there to hunt. So he had ended up bringing Lunie along anyway. And it had exceeded all his expectations—well, at least his expectations for a companion in battle anyway, like during this buck hunt. The rest of the time it did not display any such attitude. In fact, Tigre fully expected that it would start treating him akin to a roadside pebble once they got off this mountain.

A regrettable situation. But despite his disappointment Tigre made no move to improve their working relationship. After all, this wasn’t a human he was dealing with. Lunie may still be but a stripling, but it was still a dragon.

I can’t even understand for the life of him why it follows me at all. Maybe for now I should keep my distance, thought Tigre as he watched the dragon snoozing by the fireside.

And as he continued to keep watch, well fed on a meal of venison, his thoughts turned to the events that led up to the present day.

He was born as the heir to Earl Vorn of Alsace in the northwest of Brune. He had inherited the title at the tender age of 14 when his father succumbed to illness, and with it the stigma of being of the lowest rank of nobles in the land.

But his life would a turn, on a battlefield at summer’s end .

At Dinant the nations of Zhcted and Brune had clashed over the right to control the stream along the borders, and Brune had been defeated. Tigre had led a hundred men in that battle, and there he had encountered the commander-in-chief of Zhcted’s forces—silver haired Eleanora Viltaria, whom they called [{{furigana|Danseuse of the Sword|Meltis}}] and [{{furigana|Wind Princess of the Silverflash|Silvfrahl}}], one of the Seven Vanadis.

His attempt to assassinate her did not avail him, but Ellen was taken by his skill with the bow and took him as a captive.

In the aftermath of the battle, the rivalry between Dukes Ganelon and Thenardier—the two foremost nobles of Brune—came to a head, and Alsace was swept up in by the wave of turmoil into the fires of war. Upon hearing this news from his father’s loyal servant Batran, Tigre borrowed soldiers from Ellen to save the place of his birth, eventually avenging himself upon Thenardier after a great many battles to the death.

And yet even after all this, there was no happy conclusion. He had only achieved a brief time of peace, and he would have remained Ellen’s captive if not for the new ruler of Brune, the king’s daughter Regin, having helped to intercede on his behalf. Under the terms negotiated, he was to be returned to his homeland after spending three years as a guest commandant in Zhcted. That was the best that could be done for now. And so with the promise that he would return to them in three year’s time, Tigre bid farewell to the people of Brune and crossed the border into Zhcted, with his only companion being his maid Teita.

===Part 2===

Half a year had passed since that day. The tardy spring had gone swiftly by, and now even the summer would soon pass. Indeed the brief nature of Zhcted’s summer as compared to Brune’s was enough to leave an impression in and of itself.

His life in LeitMeritz so far had not been easy—one half of that he’d expected, and the other of it he’d experienced. He had to learn how to speak, write, and to immerse himself in the local culture.

There was also no shortage of important personages from Zhcted who wished to meet with him, and though most of these chose to send emissaries rather than come in person, Tigre knew that establishing good relations with them was a necessity. In any case failure was not an option; any failing on his part would smear the name of Ellen, who had given him a place to stay, and he couldn’t rightly allow that to happen.

Adding to his litany of woes were the almost daily assignments left to him by Ellen’s second-in-command Limlishia. The topics were of a grand scale, ranging from governance to military affairs—indeed, under governance the subject could be anything between internal governance and multilateral relations.

She would also enlist his aid in her work often. This was cause for some complaint on his part. But he went along with it anyway. For one thing, the knowledge he gained while accompanying her would be useful in developing Alsace upon his return.

And for another, she wasn’t all work and no play. Under the guise of ‘inspections’ or ‘reviews’, she would sometimes allow him some free time to roam.

At last, dawn broke.

Smothering the fire with mud, Tigre shouldered his backpack and set out. Antlers in his right hand, bow in his left, and Lunie tagging alongside him, trademark *Patata* resounding as it flew. They reached the village in the foothills by the afternoon. There they presented the antler and pelt to much rejoicing and many eased minds among the villagers. However, among those who had been counted with the hunters there were many wide eyes.

“So he really managed to bring it down, eh...” The village chief, who had been responsible for leading the hunters, had only this to say.

He had gone into the mountains three mornings ago. Alone, having turned down the offer that the villagers had made to have their hunters serve as his guides.

“For a hunt like this, I alone will be enough.” He’d said that even as he gazed up at the foothills from the village. “And with more people we run a greater risk of the buck getting wind of us, whether it be by sight or sound.”

It wasn’t arrogance, of course. And besides, he had subsequently grilled both the chief and the hunters for detailed information concerning the mountain.

Seeing this, the village chief had mixed feelings. On one hand he thought: “As expected of a knight of the court.” And yet on the other he felt that the boy was only 17. Could he really be relied upon?

But Tigre had surpassed all their expectations, setting out alone and returning triumphant, having shot the beast down brilliantly.

He had succeeded where a group of six—including the chief himself—had failed to do throughout their five day long hunt. And he did not waste his breath on swaggering or on boasts of his ability.

Rather, Tigre just asked for a bed he could borrow for the night, which the chief obliged. He turned in rather early too.

When Tigre rose the next morning, the sky was still dark. It was a tad early for ‘morning’—even those whose farms were their livelihood had barely gotten out their beds.

“I’m sorry to wake you at this hour,” he said as he called the village chief forth from dreamland before informing him of his decision to leave.

The chief seemed shocked, and even a little disappointed. “If it is convenient for you, sir knight, please do tarry another day in our good village. We will prepare a feast for you as much as we may with our meager means.”

He asked once again. However, soon after expressing both gratitude and pushing a gentle refusal, Tigre quietly left on the village and went on his way. The horse galloped along the path under a brightening sky, though it wasn’t very fast—it couldn’t, what with both Tigre and Lunie sitting on it and all.

“What a waste...” Tigre mumbled to himself as he gazed heavenward. “...It’s not like I had anything urgent to do anyway.”

He was, of course, bemoaning the missed opportunity in the village chief’s offer. If this was Alsace, he might just have taken the proffered boon, but here he had Ellen to consider. She might have been alright with it, but she did not speak for all her subordinates. Particularly for those who already held a certain dislike for Tigre himself.

He couldn’t care less if they criticized him, but he would not allow them to do the same to Ellen.

===Part 3===

The sun was already falling into the west when they arrived at the capitol. They rode in via a side road constructed for the exclusive use of those in official service—with Lunie around the two of them would have made a sight for sore eyes in the crowded main streets of the city.

“Tigre-sama!” Just as they passed the gates, a familiar voice reached their ears, calling the youth’s name. It was Teita, chestnut hair tied behind her head, running towards them. She dressed after her usual fashion, long-sleeved one-piece dress falling into black folds below her legs and a clean white apron over it. Notably she had discarded her old twin-tailed hairstyle for a single ponytail, which Tigre believed looked well on her too.

Of their immediate reactions Lunie’s was the greater. It took to the air with a *Patata* and flew into her arms. Tigre merely exchanged smiles with her.

“I’m home, Teita.”

Upon catching Lunie, she held it close and it snuggled in her embrace. While doing so, she walked over to the youth.

“Welcome home, Tigre-sama.”

“Are you alright? You don’t have to carry it like that if it’s too heavy, you know?”

“Thank you. But Lunie’s not as heavy as it appears. I might get my clothes dirty though.” So she said, but if she was distressed it did not show. Instead, like a mother beguiling a child she petted the little dragon whelp.

This sixteen-year old girl, who like him was born in Alsace, had served him in the capacity of a maidservant since she was 11 till today, and even when he was set to live in LeitMeritz, she had insisted on following him.

This had been his wish as well, and Ellen had acquiesced. Nonetheless, he had worried at first that she, whom he treated like a sister, might not be able to adapt to the new environment. She had rendered his concerns moot, however, breaking the ice easily with the ladies of the court and their maids. Indeed, naught but a few days had passed before they all loved her.

Upon hearing this, Ellen had grimaced before saying thus.

“You’re quite something yourself, but it seems Teita hasn’t fallen behind. Quite the unexpected catch, isn’t she?” These words relieved Tigre greatly.

“Oh, yes. Tigre-sama, the Lady Eleanora and Miss Limlishia have important matters to discuss with you.”

“Important matters? With me?”

“Indeed. Lady Ellen instructed me to inform you of this upon your return.”

Upon hearing Teita recall her previous conversation with the Vanadis and her second, Tigre set his head askew in thought as he dismounted. It was all very odd. He had just returned, and had yet to greet anyone yet. Moreover, he was required to report to Ellen anyway.

Therefore it must have been something of extraordinary importance, for her to have left him such specific instructions.

“Are they going to remind you not to take so many detours?” Teita asked.

Naturally, she did not say this in earnest. Those mischievous words were only meant to lighten his mood, Tigre guessed as he patted the younger girl on the head.

“Hmmm. That’s possible...” He did after all have a history of chatting Rurick up in the halls for too long while en route to the administration office. This habit which had earned him many a stern earful from Lim, and at times some nattering from the officials who disliked him whenever they could catch him. “In any case I’ll head up there. Thank you, Teita.”

After handing both horse and dragon over to her, he headed up to the administration office. In the dying light of day, the corridors were dim, lit only by the flames of pinewood torches. But Ellen would be in there at this hour, he knew. He walked up to the door and knocked lightly, calling out as he did so. Sure enough, a moment later a ‘come in’ could be heard.

Opening the door, Tigre’s eyes were met by a familiar scenery. A modestly-sized room, a table of black sandalwood piled high with a veritable mountain of books, and two ladies attending to the paperwork.

The first of them sported waist-length silver hair and a blue-based silk dress. Her crimson eyes burned with vigor, and against a wall close within reach she laid a longsword by. She was so fair of face, it was hard to imagine her as a skilled sword maiden capable of holding any man at bay. Yet she was and more. She was the administrator of this capitol, ruler of LeitMeritz and one of the seven Vanadis of Zhcted, seventeen year-old Eleanora Viltaria.

The other was golden-haired Limlishia—Lim, as both he and Ellen would normally address her—, Ellen’s second-in-command and confidante. Tall, twenty and well-endowed, her look of detached stoicism as she silently perused the documents before her was quite the opposite of Ellen’s.

“Looks like you made it back safely.”

After looking him up and down for a moment, Ellen’s expression relaxed visibly, and Lim greeted him with an upward quirk of her lips.

“I’m back indeed,” Tigre noted, before closing the door and pulling a chair over to sit on.

Ellen’s eyes glittered. “And how did the deal with the buck go?”

He gave a simple explanation of what had transpired in the village and on the mountain, while Lim prepared wine for three. Naturally, the whole request had been their doing; Ellen had dispatched him to deal with the problem after the village had informed them of its plight.

Stopping the work in their hands, the three offered up a small toast in celebration of this success, and after having finished his explanation, Tigre switched topics.

“So I hear from Teita that you have important affairs to discuss with me.” At this, the two ladies exchanged glances, and Ellen dipped her gaze to the cup in her hands, as though considering her reply. A moment later, she lifted her eyes once again.

“Tigre. Have you heard of Asvarre?”

The sudden question came as a surprise, but Tigre recovered quickly. “It’s situated northwest of Brune, across the western sea of Zhcted, I think. It’s best known for its agriculture-based economy, but a few generations ago they had a queen who led many campaigns of expansion into the continent.”

In actuality, the number of things he knew for sure about Asvarre could be counted off on one hand, and all that he had learnt from Mashas. But being in the northeast, Alsace had no stake in that country. So for all he knew of Asvarre it could be a fairy tale land—only the story of the conquering queen had made any lasting impression on him.

Once again, the two women exchanged looks. But these were looks of unease.

Draining her cup, Ellen spoke. “A certain someone has requested your presence in Asvarre.”

At this Tigre furrowed his brow. He did so not so much in surprise as he had in consternation. Judging from her tone, this request must be awfully hard to refuse. And there were only so many people in this world who could cause a Vanadis apprehension of this level. “And who might that be?”

“His majesty the King,” Lim replied coolly.

Tigre’s eyes widened.

Victor, King of Zhcted. He had met the man once, when he was living in Zhcted following the conclusion of Brune’s civil strife. It was a formality that no official guest could avoid, especially not one staying for 3 years in the country, and in any case he had heard from Ellen that the king desired to see him.

But for all that was worth the audience itself was frightfully short. The king had merely saw fit to praise his talents, and assure him that he would be given full freedom in Zhcted—with that their meeting had come to an abrupt end.

Within that brief time, he had indeed felt the oppressive stateliness and authority emanating from the man on the throne. But what had struck him most profoundly had been the man’s eyes. Victor’s eyes were tranquil, yet cold and subdued. It made one think of the inmost depths of a dark forest, bereft of sunlight for a hundred years; like a deep bog without breath or sound of life.

But such thoughts about the monarch of a nation could not be shared with anyone, and so Tigre hid them, buried them deep in his heart.

Honestly, he didn’t make a good impression, Tigre thought. ‘An enigmatic old man’ was the most honest summary he could give on his thoughts concerning that man.

And now this person was ordering him to go to Asvarre.

“So what does he want me to do there?”

“Essentially, he wants you to serve as a secret envoy.”

At this point, Ellen put her cup down and folded her arms, a distressed look on her face.

“Tigre. What do you know about Asvarre’s situation, really?”

“Well, that there’s people in it, and they sing, dance and hunt all day long?”

“Indeed, and they slaughter their own people with axe and sword while they’re at it too.” He’d actually expected this, but still it seemed there was no chance that this would be a comfortable topic.

Lim put her still unfinished cup on the table, and then proceeded to retrieve a piece of parchment from a drawer beneath the table.

“...I suppose I’ve never really told you about Asvarre either, Tigre. I’ll try to make this brief.”

“Please do, sensei.” Tigre said mischievously.

Ellen laughed. “Yes, please do, sensei.”

With a sigh, Lim turned to the parchment and began to draw a simple map. “Now, until half a year ago, King Zechariah was still on the throne of Asvarre. At that time there was intelligence to suggest that he planned to invade Brune, but due to his own poor health he ultimately decided to sit back for a while and observe the situation.”

Tigre’s breath caught in his throat. He had underestimated till now just how much Brune had been like a sheep thrown among wolves during those times of turmoil half a year ago. True, Sachstein was repulsed by Roland, and he himself had driven Muozinel back. But if Asvarre had invaded from the west at that time...heaven only knew what would have happened then.

“A short time after the civil war in Brune ended,” Lim continued, “King Zechariah breathed his last. I can’t really say how exactly he died. Some say he died in an accident, others say he died of food poisoning.”

Now, the King of Asvarre had six children. His eldest, Jermaine, was to ascend the throne.
And that was where the madness began.

“A few days before the coronation ceremony, Jermaine called his siblings together and had them executed on counts of treason.”

“Heh, or so we heard afterward,” Ellen added drily, supplementing Lim’s lecture with her own comments. “It seems Jermaine is quite the arrogant character, and paranoid as well. I guess he hid his true colors while his father still lived, but with the throne in sight he must have decided to take action.”

This subject was repugnant to Tigre, but he nodded for Lim to continue anyway.

“However, two of the king’s children escaped Jermaine’s grasp—the second prince, Elliot, and the first princess, Guinevere.”

The larger part of the details that Lim mentioned afterward could be summarized as such: After making his way to safety, Elliot had begun a revolt against his brother. Despite the succession having been the king’s will, there were many among the nobility who had opposed Jermaine’s kin-slaying, and the revolt had been a success. Jermaine was forced to abandon the palace and flee.

“So now Asvarre is split into two—” Lim broke off as she concluded, “no, perhaps you could say three parts. Jermaine has hired mercenaries from Sachstein to bolster his own forces, while Elliot has done much the same by bringing the pirates of the coast into his ranks. Asvarre is in a state of chaos.”

“What about the princess Guinevere?” It was strange that she was not mentioned, so he asked.

“Rumors say that she is indifferent to either side, and has retired to a more quiet life. Most likely, she will not make any moves until the conflict between her brothers has been settled,” Lim said.

“And till now Zhcted has been supporting Elliot,” Ellen added.

“Oh yes. There’s that,” Lim said. “Okay, let’s stop talking about Asvarre for now.” With that, she produced another parchment, and began drawing up a map of the continent. Zhcted in the center, Asvarre west of the sea, Muozinel to the south on land and Brune to the southwest.

“Tigrevurmund.” Lim’s voice was scholarly and stern, like a teacher asking a question of her pupil. That meant that if he answered wrong, he was sure to be reprimanded. “Who, in your opinion, is the greatest threat to Zhcted at this time?”

“Muozinel, I suppose.”

“Correct.” Lim confirmed, unsmiling, as though this answer was a given.

“So you see, the situation in Asvarre is as we stated before. And in Brune, the scars left by the civil war have yet to heal. At best, it would take two or three years for it to make a full comeback.”

Needless to say, the next major factor was Muozinel. Even though they had been beaten back during their assault on Brune six months ago, in reality only their navy had been dealt any significant casualties. Their land army—footsoldiers and cavalry both—had withdrawn before a decisive battle could be fought, as such minimizing their losses.

Muozinel now had an axe to grind against Zhcted as well—Tigre had the help of Zhcted troops in his rout of their advance army. Moreover, currently, Zhcted held Agnes, originally part of Brune, as their own territory, thus forming a strip of land belonging to Zhcted that Muozinel had to pass through first before it could attack. As such, Muozinel could only attack via sea, and that was impossible with their damaged navy: it could hardly even defend against an enemy attack as it was, let alone launch an invasion. So they could only sit on their hands and watch Brune recover.

“Sooner or later, we and Muozinel will surely clash. But when that will happen, no one knows. It could be three, even ten years from now.”

So saying, Ellen gazed at the wall behind her and the two flags that adorned it.

A silver sword upon black, for LeitMeritz, and for Zhcted the black dragon.

“The balance of power hangs on Asvarre’s decision—whether to join hands with Muozinel, or with us.”

Upon hearing Ellen’s words, Tigre at last understood. If Asvarre were to align itself with Zhcted, then the latter could concentrate all its energy on Muozinel. But if Asvarre were to make Muozinel its ally instead, then Zhcted would be beleaguered from both the south and the west, and it would have to divide its forces to tackle such a dire situation.

“As we were saying before, we would have preferred Elliot, but it seems he personally leans towards Muozinel. As such we shall have to support Jermaine instead.”

“So, this secret envoy you speak of...” Tigre trailed off.

Ellen looked distinctly apologetic. Seeing her struggle to reply, Lim stood in for the silver-haired Vanadis. “Tigrevurmund. I believe we had said before that this is the King’s request, not that of Lady Eleanora.”

“I know. There is no way Ellen would ask something like this of me.” He answered decisively to reassure them. It worked. Almost immediately the tension in the room decreased several fold. Both women loosed smiles, and Ellen heaved a sigh of relief while still hanging her head in apology.

“I’m sorry, Tigre.”

“You needn’t be, Ellen,” Tigre said. “More importantly, what does King Victor hope to achieve by sending me?” He didn’t know the foggiest about Asvarre. He hadn’t even been there. Ever. The king’s intentions were unfathomable in this regard.

“From a certain point of view you could say he wants to recruit you,” Ellen noted while passing her now empty cup back to Lim. “It’s basically selling favors, giving you honor and glory in exchange for your services. Isn’t that practice quite common in Brune as well?”

Tigre set his head askew—he still could not accept this. “But I am not King Victor’s subject, I am a citizen of Brune, a guest who will return to Brune in 3 years time, no?”

“And that’s precisely why he wants you. Think about it—do you really expect to live off the fat of the land once you get back after 3 years? If it were up to me I’d make you a military advisor. That way you wouldn’t ever leave the palace even after a few years.”

Upon hearing Ellen speak so solemnly, Tigre could only contemplate in silence. It was true, for he was undeniably a person of meritorious deeds.

“Having received the title of [{{furigana|Star Shooter|Silvrash|}}] and [{{furigana|Knight of the Moonlight|Lumiere}}] from an enemy general and your own king respectively, you are someone who will definitely be in an important position once you get home. So as far as the King of Zhcted is concerned selling you favors is the right thing to do.” Lim added coolly after pouring Ellen some more wine.

For her part the Vanadis pulled open a drawer on her own desk, and from there retrieved a letter, two rings and a sleek tube.

The tube was half an arm long, and covered by a dark black cloth. On its cap the seal of the King of Zhcted was engraved and inlaid in gold.

“This contains a secret message to Prince Jermaine, and the rings will be proof of your identity as the King’s envoy. But what I really want to show you is this—the king’s letter.” Taking the letter, Tigre read it carefully. The words of a king could not be ignored, not a single one.

It started with the normal salutations, with the King giving some praise for his gallantry in Brune and celebrating the newly forged peace between Brune and Zhcted before diving straight into the main topic.

—You are proof of the strong ties between Zhcted and Brune, and thus able to represent both nations before the Prince Jermaine. No one is more suited than you are to accomplish this task.

Written below are instructions as to how far we are willing support the prince in terms of finances and in the sending of troops, as well as the duration for which we shall do so. There are contingencies should extenuating circumstances force you to deviate from the initial plan, but you should return immediately should the situation go too far out of hand.—

So, Tigre mused. He wants to use me as a bargaining chip then.

At the end of the letter there were instructions as to how he should enter Asvarre. He would travel from LeitMeritz to Regnis, and then from there he would rendezvous with some men the King sent before setting out together for Asvarre. He was flabbergasted at the sheer amount of detail the letter went into. It even mentioned what street he should be travelling by.

Suggesting that both Zhcted and Brune were in support of Prince Jermaine—quite clever of the King, really, Tigre thought.

Still. He glanced up from the letter and gave Ellen a look of unease. “Was Brune told of this?”

Ellen shook her head. “I doubt it.”

Lim nodded in agreement. “If it were so, Queen Regin would have passed the orders down to you herself, Tigrevurmund.”

She was right. In the end he was still a guest commandant, and not under any obligation to obey King Victor. Even the letter itself closed with these words—

“I, the King of Zhcted, earnestly ask of you—”

—meaning that this was no order, but a request.

And yet he could no so flippantly refuse. It was a request from a king, after all.

“...Aside from me, is there no one else who can take on this task?”

“Zhcted doesn’t lack for such people. But to the king, he couldn’t claim to be doing you a favor without at least asking you to do this much.”

Tigre tried to contemplate this for a few seconds, and then gave up, shrugging. Immediately, Lim scolded him in a low voice, and then proceeded to explain.

“You see, something like rooting out mountain bandits wouldn’t be adding any additional feathers to your cap. Your role in the Brune civil war has already demonstrated your bravery, and therefore your worth, enough.”

“There are other ways of winning honor, yes, but these would mostly involve you becoming a counsellor to the king. And that would put you in a precarious position—most of our nobles would oppose the idea of Brune interfering in affairs of governance, and it would undermine the king’s authority. So a diplomatic assignment would be the best option.” Ellen sighed.

It was true, Tigre knew. The advantages of sending him were exactly as King Victor had stated—and in those regards no one in Zhcted could compete with him.

“...And that’s how it is. Assuming that the King bears you no ill-will in the first place.” Ellen griped, leaning back in her chair.

Her casual posture relieved the young archer greatly, and he smiled. “I don’t remember ever doing anything to incur his ill-will.”

“If a country has a skilled general, do you not think that his very presence will cause the surrounding nations to be on their guard?” Lim noted coolly, remaining upright and altogether serious despite them. “In our country there are many people who are displeased by your presence, Tigrevurmund...although I am not saying the king is one of these.”

“But the negotiations are important to Zhcted. Failure would be disastrous—so why would he give the task to me if he has enmity towards me?”

Ellen furrowed her brows as she spoke, her displeasure plain to see.“Well, since there is a contingency in place you will most likely be held responsible for any failure.”

“Of course, success would be still be best, but if you were to fail, getting rid of you would eliminate some future concerns. Depending on the situation, the blame could also be shifted onto Brune.” At this Ellen swung back upright with a *BANG*, ignoring Lim, who cocked an eyebrow at her. “Actually, don’t you find it all very strange? If I were in the king’s place, I would throw you a banquet with someone else as the host, and make my request while the host distracts the rest of the guests.”

That was true. Tigre thought. He and the King had only met once—they weren’t friends by any means. There should have at least been some sort of party thrown to improve their relationship.

“It would only take a simple check to know that you’ve never been to Asvarre. Sending you there is like asking a child who doesn’t know left from right to go to a neighbouring village to buy something. And then there’s the men the king sent. We have no details on them. The whole thing practically screams ‘this is suspicious’!”

Indeed, it was getting quite hard to think that the king had given him this job for his ability.

“But King Victor has yet to reveal what he thinks of me, correct?” Tigre asked cautiously.

Both Lim and Ellen nodded.

“I can only think of 3 reasons why this was assigned to you. One would be to do you a favor by letting you take the honor of being a diplomat. The other might be to destroy you by putting you in a situation where you would be helpless. And the last would be to gauge your abilities.”

“Gauging my abilities?”

Ellen held up a hand. “In short, he wants to know if you are merely a person who is skilled in warfare, or if you have other skills besides. I still can’t tell if he wants you on his side, or if he wants to destroy you. But whatever it is, he definitely wants to use you.”

The silver-haired young woman chuckled a little, causing Tigre to grouse silently. None of the three options was anything to be glad about.

“And if he has any other design,” Ellen noted in a low, more serious tone, “it’s most likely to use your actions to see how the Vanadis—myself included—and the Queen of Brune will act.”

“Ellen, what should I—”

“Tigrevurmund,” Lim said in a stern voice, cutting him off. “Do not ask that of us.”

Ellen shook her head bitterly. “No matter what your decision is, I will respect it and do my utmost to help you. But it is you who must make the decision, Tigre.”

“I’m sorry.”

He could refuse. But that would lower the king’s opinion of him, and it would also affect Ellen and Brune. Turning to the map, Tigre thought about what was just said. He did not like Prince Jermaine, whom Zhcted was planning to support. And yet if his rival Elliot were to ascend to the throne, his alliance with Muozinel would threaten both Zhcted and Brune, for Brune and Asvarre shared a border.

And then there was the alliance with Zhcted to think about.

For the sake of our countries, must I support a foreign tyrant?

By virtue of lending support to Jermaine, it might be possible to request that he mend his ways. But he was not the King of Zhcted, Tigre knew. His words would most likely have no significant impact.

But he had to move past that. Sighing, he asked another question. “What sort of person is Prince Elliot, then?”

“Rumor has it that he’s not all that different from his brother. But at least he didn’t kill his whole family.”

“But previously you said that he roped pirates into his army to make up for his lack of numbers. Doesn’t that mean the army is no more than a band of thieves?”

King Victor must really want me to disappear, asking me to go into such a place alone.

“Will you refuse, then?”

“Might as well go. It might be a good opportunity to visit Asvarre anyway.” He meant this in earnest, but more because he did not wish to further burden the similarly-aged Vanadis. “But isn’t this a rather roundabout method? Asking me to be a secret envoy, and yet openly supporting Prince Elliot at the same time?”

“Playing both sides isn’t an uncommon tactic. Ludmira was like that that during the last war.” Ellen said.

“What?” Tigre asked, not comprehending her intent. “I thought Mira was a more straightforward person than that.”

Mira of course referred to Ludmira Lurie, [{{furigana|Snow Princess of the Frozen Wave|Michelia}}] of the seven Vanadis and the governor of Olmutz, a province to the south of LeitMeritz.

“You forget that she was Duke Thenardier’s ally at first, which was why she led troops to constrain us. In addition, she continued her pursuit even when we offered to retreat. In order to fulfill her obligations to the duke, she even fought a duel with me.” Ellen’s eyebrows arched in annoyance as she said this, but Tigre could not tell if it was his casual mention of Ludmira’s nickname, or general displeasure at his reply that caused her to act this way.

“But she protected Eleanora-sama from the assassin’s blade that time, even going so far as to risk her own life.” Lim pointed out stoically.

“W-Well, that was just her trying to make me owe her a favor!” Ellen blustered, her expression that of one caught off-guard. “Even if she didn’t think about it that way at the time, when the need arises she will definitely find an excuse to bring it up!”

“It’s only natural to do that in negotiations,” Lim reminded.

Ellen ignored her, instead turning to Tigre. “And there was that battle against Muozinel. She didn’t come to help you right away, did she? She held off to observe, right? That’s not helping you, that was just her waiting for the moment where she could make you most indebted to her. And she only severed ties with Thenardier after that incident, don’t you forget!”

With that she downed her cup of wine with much gusto.

Tigre for his part understood. This Machiavellian aspect to Ludmira’s character was probably so deeply ingrained that she did not think any worse of herself despite it. Still, given that she had been forced into a conflict due to her rival’s character, it was not surprising that Ellen would be so angry.

If it was Mira, how would she respond to this request?

During his time at LeitMeritz, Ludmira Lurie had paid three visits to the capitol, and she came for three reasons. Firstly, to inquire about the state of the mountain road in Vosyes and Brune in general; secondly, to make a show of being on excellent terms with Ellen. Lastly, she came to prevail upon Tigre to join her.

Every time Ellen received a report of her arrival, she would say ‘tell her not to come again’. But who would dare say that to a Vanadis? And in any case she was half joking. They needed the information that Ludmira regularly brought them concerning Muozinel, and a petty rivalry was no reason to hinder important exchanges of intelligence.

Following her meetings with Ellen she would go looking for Tigre. The first time, she attempted to use the promise of money to win him over, and failed. From then on, she would simply come to make small talk. She did try to invite him on a hunt, but Ellen had turned her down.

If it were her, she would hint at agreeing while avoiding giving a direct answer, all the while gathering intelligence as best she could in the background. And when the critical moment came she would refuse decisively.

Perhaps this is only the first of more difficult requests to come.

He still didn’t like the given task, but he could see it for its uses. And in any case, his complaints were best kept to himself.

===Part 4===

After staring at the door Tigre had closed in his exit for a while, Ellen let out a sigh.

“Is this really alright?” Lim asked.

“We don’t have a choice, do we?” Ellen replied brusquely.

She’d agreed to let him go to Asvarre after their meeting. It was an odd thing—actually, she had been prepared to give way should he refuse adamantly, but as it turned out he gave an unexpectedly decisive answer. She should have been glad about that, but her heart still felt heavy. Unwilling.

“I’m sorry about just now, Lim,” Ellen said with an apologetic smile. ‘Just now’ naturally referred to the point when Lim had butted in to stop Tigre from asking for her help in deciding. “I...probably wouldn’t have been able to answer him.”

In her heart of hearts she wanted to say ‘don’t go’. But to deny the king’s request, they needed a viable alternative. Another way to foster closer ties between Zhcted and Asvarre. Or even someone to replace Tigre. But there was no such option. With regards to the king’s requirements there was none better than him, and she would be hard pressed to find such a substitute.

During Brune’s civil war she was able to mollify the king by claiming that she had no choice but to do battle. And it had been a sweet deal overall. Brune footed much of the war bill, Zhcted had gained Agnes in the south, and Ellen had gained Tigre’s services through her co-ruling of Alsace.

This time, she had no such cards to play—without such, even a Vanadis must obey her king.

So despite herself, she could not tell him to stay. Supporting him was the only thing she could do now.

Turning her face to the window, Ellen gazed out at the scenery. The slow breeze of late summer blew across a land where the descent of darkness was nigh complete, with only a little sun peeked out from beyond the western horizon. The stars too, though she could not see them, must have already come out.

“When he came, the snowdrops were still in bloom...”

Snowdrops grew everywhere in Zhcted, and they were the herald of springtime. But spring had passed them by in a hurry. She spent hers governing, and he spent his getting accustomed to the land. And now, even summer was drawing to a close.

With a sigh, Ellen shook her head vigorously. Clearing her mind, she turned back to Lim once more, with a smile on her face. “Well, since he has decided to go, we should pave the way for him. I’ll be counting on you, Lim. This is the king’s request, so people can’t speak ill of it anyway.”

“Yes.” Lim flashed a rare smile, her voice ringing clearer than usual. But it seemed some anxiety came upon her, and cast a shadow over her turquoise eyes. “Yet there is still much to worry about. Becoming a secret envoy to an unknown country, with only one other person following...”

“Let us trust him,” Ellen said brightly, her words and eyes brimming with confidence. “He has shown us many miracles during this year we spent together. Yes, you could call it luck, but without the skill to use such good-fortune there would have been no miracles, and he has that sort of ability.”

That was exaggerating somewhat, but that was because she too felt uneasy. She could not help but worry. Indeed, perhaps she had even wished for him to refuse back then.

“He will return successful. We will send him off smiling, and we will receive him with that same smile. We can do that much, even if we can neither officially celebrate his designation as envoy due to its secret nature, nor reward him easily due to his status as a citizen of Brune.”

“Indeed.” Lim said, glad that her master had erased her worries.

With that they returned to their duties. But as Ellen sorted through the papers, a sudden thought came to her.

I wonder, has the distance between him and I lessened any?

Though she was busy most of the day, and Tigre was under constant scrutiny by the court officials, they still spent their free time together often. When the weather was good they would take afternoon naps on the roof, sometimes even sneaking out the palace under the noses of Lim and the other officials to roam the city streets. During official breaks, they would have tea and refreshments with Lim and Teita. These were all small, but important memories.

We even danced together in the city once.

In the tradition of Zhcted such festivals always began with everyone singing and dancing together, and only later would couples form and dance alone. Apparently, this had originally been a way for men to choose their brides, but that custom had long been phased out, leaving behind only that fragment of knowledge and the form of the dance itself.

When they had found out about the origins of the practice, they had both gone red in the face, but did not stop holding hands as they departed. (Of course, no one else knew, for both of them were too embarrassed to speak of it.)

They never crossed the line, each having understood the other’s position. But the silver-haired Vanadis recalled those memories of their daily lives together, and she felt her heart grow warmer.

===Part 5===

Tigre’s room was somewhere in the bowels of the palace. Here, unlike outside where the employees of the palace still milled about even after sunset, there was relative peace. This had been one of Ellen’s considerations, for as a guest he drew significantly more attention than when he had been a captive.

It was not a particularly luxurious place, but the deep green carpet, brick fireplace and an oak table-and-chair set gave it a relaxing atmosphere. There was no lack of necessities either; in the corner there was a cabinet draped with grapevine as well as a long table.

Upon entry, Tigre lit the lamp by the doorway, and hit the bell on the table.

Before long, footsteps approached the door. Teita’s footsteps.

“Tigre-sama, may I enter?”

“You needn’t be so uptight, I’m the only one here,” Tigre replied in a gentle tone.

The door opened, the chestnut-haired maid entering with a curtsy before lifting her head and sticking her tongue out at him. “I’m used to it already. And besides, I’m away from home.”

Back in Alsace they had been even less formal with one another. Tigre favored shouting across the hallway to ringing a bell anytime, and Teita for her part would inquire clearly as to his requirements before entering, sparing them a lot of hassle. But this was not Alsace, and there were many officials here who disliked him for being so close to the likes of Ellen, Lim and Rurick. In front of such people, they had to pay more attention to such formalities.

“So,” Teita asked after receiving Tigre’s outer coat, “have you finished speaking to Lady Eleanora on the matter?”

A dark look crept over his face. “Do you have some time, Teita? I have some things I need to tell you concerning that.”

She nodded, perplexed.

Seeing that, Tigre walked over to the cabinet and took out a bottle of wine and a pair of wine glasses. This would be worrying to her, he knew, but nonetheless he wanted her to know the truth.

After having her take a seat, he poured the wine. First for her, then for himself.

He downed a mouthful.

And then made his announcement.

“I need to go out for a time. I’ll be counting on you to take care of this place.”

Her eyes shot open, staring into the depths of the glass before her, the crimson fluids reflected her depression.

“This isn’t a hunt, is it?”

She was right. If this was a hunt or just some inspection in a nearby city he would have spoken differently. He had done his best to sound calm, but there was no way he could completely hide the anxiety of stepping into unknown territory. Not from Teita, who had been serving him for so long.

So he didn’t bother playing dumb, merely lowering his gaze to meet hers.

“I know you won’t say unnecessary things to others. So I need you to keep a secret for me.”

After confirming her assent, he told her of the trip to Asvarre.

“I can’t tell you the details, but this a very troublesome matter. While I’m gone, you will tell anyone who asks that I have gone to Silesia,” Tigre said. “And...oh yes. Take care of Lunie while I’m out.”

“I understand the part about Lunie. But ‘to the capitol’?” Teita shook her head, uncomprehending.

“Don’t worry, Lim and Ellen are the ones cooking up the cover story. You just need to tally your account to theirs,” he assured her. “I did think of claiming illness to avoid meeting people, though.”

“That wouldn’t have been like you at all, Tigre-sama. I mean, those aren’t the sort of words a person who would go out during deep winter in furs to hunt would say. And I don’t think I could fool everyone like that,” she said, displaying her resolve in an ironic sort of way, to which he could only scratch his head, at a loss.

Seeing this, she smiled. “Tigre-sama. How far away is this Asvarre?”

“I don’t know. It’s my first time going there too. All I know is that I need to go northwest from here, and then head there by ship.”

“Ship. Sea,” Teita muttered, her eyes wide. Neither of them had ever even seen anything like those. The closest they had come was in images stirred up by the songs of a wandering troubadour, or from the stories of travelling artists who had been as far as Celeste, a town in Asvarre.

She bit her lip, her fists tightening about her apron as she tried to restrain the unease welling up inside her. Reaching for her cup, she downed it all in one go—

—and with a sigh she stood, placing the cup back on table, hazel eyes locking on his.

“I don’t really understand how important this task is. But you must come back safely, Tigre-sama.”

Tigre placed his own cup aside, and held her lightly, the fragrance of her hair wafting into his nose as he did so.

You’ve grown taller...

“I will come back,” he repeated over again. “I’ll definitely return safely.”

===Part 6===

Tigre left the palace before the dawn of the next day. He would travel not as Tigrevurmund Vorn, but as a common soldier of LeitMeritz. He had said his farewells to Lim and Teita, but not to Ellen.

I wish I could have said goodbye to Rurick and the others as well.

These things left him quite a few regrets, but as a secret envoy his departure needed to be made known to as few people as was possible. Perhaps Rurick might figure it out on his own, though.

He also had to leave by the back gate, instead of from the front. At the side of the gate a saddled horse was already awaiting him—Lim’s handiwork, most likely.

Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Tigre placed his black bow on the saddle and secured a quiver full of arrows to his luggage—if one could call a small pack with a bear doll tied to it ‘luggage’—behind.

The bear had been obtained from Lim the night before, when she had come to check on his luggage to confirm that he had brought everything.

“Well then, take everything out.” She had said this rather strictly, and he had complied, laying out each item on the table. Food and water for several days, a stone flint, a dagger with a bottle of oil, and a purse full of silver and copper coins.

There was also a letter Ellen had written to her friend Alexandra Arshven, the Vanadis Sasha. She had done this in a hurry, had given instructions for him to see her friend when he passed through Legnica.

“Sasha will give you additional guidance on my behalf, so it doesn’t matter if you are late by one or even two days—You must go to see her. Understood?” And with that she had given the letter to him.

Lastly there were the two rings as well as the silk-covered tube that contained a secret message in the king’s own hand. The surface of the tube had been rolled over with a tanned hide painted black, rendering it completely waterproof.

After inspecting everything item by item, Lim had told him to wait, and left the room for a while.

Before long, she returned, carrying between her arms quite a few new items: a bag of herbs, a bottle of ointment, ropes of hemp and straw, needle, thread and even a hand mirror.

“Bring these along too.”

She said this matter of factly even as she let him help her to arrange these additional things, much to Tigre’s shock.

“Isn’t this a little overdone?” Actually, all of these should have been necessities for travel as well, but he hadn’t thought to bring them with him initially. When he got to the port town at Legnica, he could just purchase all of those trifling things there.

“And what will you do if something happens before you get to Legnica?”

His suggestion had been coldly rejected. He knew she meant well though, and didn’t argue.

But his thoughts inadvertently spilled out into words. “It feels like you’re my mother or something.”

“M-Mother?!” Lim’s stoic mask shattered outright, her eyes going wide as she stared at Tigre, dismayed. In the face of this unexpectedly strong response, Tigre quickly backed down.

“I’m really sorry if that made you unhappy. Teita’s mother was like this too—she would inspect my luggage very scrupulously every time I headed out of town.” Here he paused for a moment, barely stopping short of calling her naggy. “You reminded me of her.”

“I understand. Still, you should watch how you say things,” Lim said. She seemed to have regained her composure after a few moments, but Tigre still felt terrible about calling a twenty-year old woman ‘mother’.

“In that case, take this with you.”

At this moment, Lim put something into Tigre’s hand. Into his hand, not onto the table—it was a small bear doll.

“It’s a charm. Mothers always give them to their children when they go off travelling, so take it. —I don’t remember having a child this old, though,” she said roughly as his shocked gaze alternated between her and the doll. Perhaps if the room had been brighter lit he might have seen her blushing right up to her hair.

Honestly speaking, it was embarrassing to have to hang a bear doll onto his luggage. But when he thought of Lim’s feelings, he could not bear to take it off.

Leaping into the saddle, Tigre trotted the horse forward a few steps. Then suddenly he turned, gazing atop the city walls. It was still dark, and the contours of the palace walls were silhouetted against the darkness. But he could feel someone watching him.

Straining his vision, he caught a small movement.

Who’s there?

It wasn’t a soldier—a soldier would be carrying a torch at this hour. But it was not an intruder either. He could not feel the person trying to conceal his or her breathing.

A gust of wind blew in.

It did not come from the left or the right. It came rushing down from above, blowing his hair every which way and forcing him to squint.

In the midst of the gale he caught sight of an object hurtling towards him, glittering faintly as it caught the light. About the size of an insect, but not as fast. He reached out and caught it.

It was a silver coin, and on closer inspection there were words written in ink on it.

‘Good luck’

His eyes scanned across the walls again, but that person was gone.

Glancing at the coin once more, he put it into his waist-pocket with great care. That done, he grabbed the reins and rode out into the streets, his form enveloped by the darkness.

He knew who the one standing on the walls was. The Vanadis who commanded the winds.

She could not send him off openly, and so she had chosen this method instead.

His drowsiness was far behind him now, gone with the wind. He felt warm, and full of vigor.

I will definitely return safely.

He would give her a pleasing result with his own hands.

So decided, he spurred his horse forward, through the streets at the crack of dawn.

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Back to [[Madan_no_Ou_to_Vanadis:Volume06_Illustrations|Illustrations]]
| Return to [[Madan_no_Ou_to_Vanadis|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Madan_no_Ou_to_Vanadis:Volume_06_Chapter_2|Chapter 2]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Madan no Ou to Vanadis:Volume 06 Chapter 1

2013-07-27T21:28:40Z

EcoJakk: Changing some names to correspond to the names and terminology page

== Chapter 1: Emissary ==

===Part 1===

A buck was walking casually atop a mountain ridge, with arid wind whistling around it.

The creature stood head and shoulders above its brethren, and with its right horn grew in a bizarre shape. the beast looked repulsive, monstrous.

To the villagers living at the foothills it was a monster to be feared. The creature trampled their fields as it pleased in broad daylight, eating its fill of the crops before disappearing into the mountains.

They could not stop it. Those who dared to give chase, hoes at the ready, were gored by its horns, suffering grievous wounds. Teams of seasoned hunters were sent to hunt it down. But this buck had a prodigious sense of smell, and leg strength beyond the norm. It saw through every trap, and when the hunters drew close, it would leap across cliffs, jump atop the rocky crags, or simply slide down steep slopes to elude them. As a result, even after three days and nights they had not been able to take it down.

And yet one young man was now bringing his bow to bear on this creature.

He could not have seen more than twenty winters, and was of average build. But if one espied the arm that peeked out from his sleeves one could see that he did not lack for training. There was vigor under his dark red locks, and his gaze was keen as he bent his gaze to that buck.

From his hiding place in the crags below to the stag’s ridge there was a distance of about 300 alsin. No distance for a mere bow. If one asked any seasoned hunter he would shake his head and advise that one closed sixty, even seventy paces. What more then for this boy, who was aiming against the grain of gravity, shooting from a low position to a higher one. A light breeze blew downhill from ridge to crag. By this his approach and attack was be masked against his prey. Yet if he missed, this good fortune would have been in vain.

All this, the young man knew well. But he did not waver. He kept his cool, notching a single arrow with an ease born of unceasing practice, following through till he had drawn the bow taut.

The wind ceased for but an instant. The young man, as though foreseeing this pass, let loose that arrow. It traced an arc through the sky, and struck the stag in the neck.

It was an unerring blow, almost as if it was sucked in by some unknown force. And yet the beast did not cry out. Rather, it turned and fled in the direction opposite to the young man.

At this, he at last showed consternation. “Looks like that huge frame wasn’t just for show...”

Leaving his hiding spot, he nocked another arrow as he made his way up the slope. It was not meant for the buck - in his mind the hunt had been nigh unto ended by his first strike. This arrow was meant for any surprises that might crop up along the way.

<nowiki>*</nowiki>Patata* The sound of flapping wings entered his ears, as a creature the size of a large cat passed by his side.

But it was no cat. It was a dragon - its reptilian form scaled bronze with a greenish hue from head to tail, with horns, coarse sharp teeth, and wings that reminded one of a bat. Flitting about freely, as though disregarding the young man that was its companion.

And if they were on ground level he might have traveled on equal pace with it. But as it was he stood in the rough of the rocks, only able to smile bitterly at the departing form of the dragon.

Regulating his breathing carefully, he scaled the ridge-

-and was dumbfounded by what he saw.

Where he had hidden, there was naught but a barren rocky wasteland, and yet beyond the ridge there sprawled a large forest, all trees and bark and dense greenery.

“Well. It’s not that I can’t find it...but this is going to be a chore.”

He was loath to go down. But he could not simply leave the mountain. The villagers would remain uneasy if he merely told them ‘the beast has been taken care of’. He needed proof of his hunt.

“And I still need to find Lunie...”

Lunie, of course, was the dragon who had just ditched him. Thankfully, he knew that he needn’t worry. It was small, but it was a dragon nonetheless. No creature in the wood would dare attack it. And though it was now nowhere to be seen, it was most likely that it had gone after the wounded buck.

Making his way down the slope, the young man took great care as he stepped into the thicket. There could be snakes about, and he didn’t want to risk snagging his clothes on the branches. Once past the thicket, the cold air wrapped around him as he stepped into the verdant woods. The sunlight was greatly dimmed by the undergrowth, and some trees even snaked along slope’s surface.

Indeed, there were few things worse than traversing a forest infested by overgrown weeds and roots.

As he approached cautiously, another *patata* of flapping wings could be heard. He stopped, and sure enough out from deep within the forest’s gloom came Lunie. Recognizing him, the dragon whelp did an artful about-turn in mid-air and went back the way it came.

The young man gave chase, and not ten paces hence he found himself standing before the fallen buck. It had long breathed its last, having bled enough from the wound on its neck staining its fur-coat a deep crimson. Even so he did not relax - many were the tales of beasts seemingly dead using their last ounce of strength to rise up and bring their killers down with them in a rage. And judging from the distance between the ridge and the forest there was still a possibility that more wild beasts could come, having caught the scent of blood.

But Lunie seemed unwilling to humor his cautiousness, plonking itself unceremoniously onto the carcass and spitting him with a look of impatience. ‘Hurry up’, it seemed to say.

The young man grimaced, but made no hurried move nonetheless. Slowly he crept up to the buck, making sure that there were no other creatures about. Only when he had been absolutely certain did he return the arrow to its quiver, before taking a knee in front of the creature.

“Well done, Lunie,” he said, and at last flashed a genuine smile.

The young man’s name was Tigrevurmund Vorn.

Those close to him called him Tigre.

This year, he would be 17. Half a year had gone by since the day he left the land of his birth in Alsace to live in LeitMeritz, in the neighbouring country of Zhcted.

Tigre had initially thought to bring the buck down the mountain with him, but he’d happily quickly given up upon realizing that the creature was heavy. Extraordinarily so at that.

So he hung the creature by its legs to a tree using a rope he’d prepared beforehand, and prepared to dissect it.

Uncharacteristically, Lunie was curled up at his feet, but Tigre was not fooled. It was there only so it could get at the entrails that fell from the carcass at its convenience. It seemed rather eager to do so too, at that.

“Well, I guess I can only take the pelt back with me.” He definitely needed to bring the oddly-shaped horn back as proof of his success, and that was no small amount of baggage to carry by itself. So, unfortunate though that was, he knew apart from that which he would eat he had to leave the rest of it behind. Bones—those would work for proof too, but no, too heavy—meat, it seems like I have to discard them all...

Suddenly he became aware of something rubbing against his trousers. As he looked down, he was chagrined to see Lunie stuffing a face full of blood and entrails into the bottom of his pants—its unique way of saying ‘More, please’. Well, nothing to be done about that. With a sigh, Tigre hefted his dagger, slicing off a few more pieces of meat for the hungry whelp.

By the time he actually finished the whole process, the sun had already reached its zenith. The removal of the horn had taken a large amount of time due to their size. He tied the pelt, still ringed with residual flesh and fats, with a rope of hemp, and put it into a backpack. Afterward he washed his hands using the water in his canteen and got to starting a campfire. That done, he dug a trench, into which he dumped and buried the arbitrarily sized remains of the carcass.

While he was doing all this, Lunie, having eaten its fill, was lying asleep beside the campfire.

Half a year ago, when the breath of spring had only just begun its reign, Tigre had come to LeitMeritz. There a chill wind still blew upon the plains, as a sign of Zhcted’s late-come springtime when compared to his homeland Brune.

He had waited for the mountains of LeitMeritz to thaw before trekking across them, hoping to see with his own eyes the land he now lived in, to feel with his hands and feet its depths and heights—or so he claimed; in actuality all he simply wanted was to experience to the fullest the thrills of hunting in unknown terrain.

Interestingly, for all they had interacted during his time as a captive in the court, or even later as a guest commander, he had never once enjoyed Lunie’s favor. Rather, that honor was given by the dragon to his servant-girl, Teita. Yet it insisted on being by his side when he went hunting. It would even sit on the horse that Tigre rode on when he went hunting, insisting that it be brought along regardless.

And how did the silver-haired Vanadis who was the whelp’s master reply when asked for her opinion on this strange turn of affairs?

“This fellow is probably bored to tears from being cooped up in a world of stone walls, so if you would be willing to bring him along...”

She even tacked a joke onto the request. “Don’t go returning to the wild now...”

Though he was unwilling, it was impossible to refuse her. Not when she looked upon the dragon she petted with an expression of both affection, and regret at her inability to satisfy its desire to fly freely in the skies. She wasn’t all that different from the dragon, Tigre realized. She too was a person who could not live and do as she pleased.

In any case, he had the excuse of studying the geography of LeitMeritz. Of course he wasn’t just there to hunt. So he had ended up bringing Lunie along anyway. And it had exceeded all his expectations—well, at least his expectations for a companion in battle anyway, like during this buck hunt. The rest of the time it did not display any such attitude. In fact, Tigre fully expected that it would start treating him akin to a roadside pebble once they got off this mountain.

A regrettable situation. But despite his disappointment Tigre made no move to improve their working relationship. After all, this wasn’t a human he was dealing with. Lunie may still be but a stripling, but it was still a dragon.

I can’t even understand for the life of him why it follows me at all. Maybe for now I should keep my distance, thought Tigre as he watched the dragon snoozing by the fireside.

And as he continued to keep watch, well fed on a meal of venison, his thoughts turned to the events that led up to the present day.

He was born as the heir to Earl Vorn of Alsace in the northwest of Brune. He had inherited the title at the tender age of 14 when his father succumbed to illness, and with it the stigma of being of the lowest rank of nobles in the land.

But his life would a turn, on a battlefield at summer’s end .

At Dinant the nations of Zhcted and Brune had clashed over the right to control the stream along the borders, and Brune had been defeated. Tigre had led a hundred men in that battle, and there he had encountered the commander-in-chief of Zhcted’s forces—silver haired Eleanora Viltaria, whom they called [{{furigana|Danseuse of the Sword|Meltis}}] and [{{furigana|Wind Princess of the Silverflash|Silvfrahl}}], one of the Seven Vanadis.

His attempt to assassinate her did not avail him, but Ellen was taken by his skill with the bow and took him as a captive.

In the aftermath of the battle, the rivalry between Dukes Ganelon and Thenardier—the two foremost nobles of Brune—came to a head, and Alsace was swept up in by the wave of turmoil into the fires of war. Upon hearing this news from his father’s loyal servant Batran, Tigre borrowed soldiers from Ellen to save the place of his birth, eventually avenging himself upon Thenardier after a great many battles to the death.

And yet even after all this, there was no happy conclusion. He had only achieved a brief time of peace, and he would have remained Ellen’s captive if not for the new ruler of Brune, the king’s daughter Regin, having helped to intercede on his behalf. Under the terms negotiated, he was to be returned to his homeland after spending three years as a guest commandant in Zhcted. That was the best that could be done for now. And so with the promise that he would return to them in three year’s time, Tigre bid farewell to the people of Brune and crossed the border into Zhcted, with his only companion being his maid Teita.

===Part 2===

Half a year had passed since that day. The tardy spring had gone swiftly by, and now even the summer would soon pass. Indeed the brief nature of Zhcted’s summer as compared to Brune’s was enough to leave an impression in and of itself.

His life in LeitMeritz so far had not been easy—one half of that he’d expected, and the other of it he’d experienced. He had to learn how to speak, write, and to immerse himself in the local culture.

There was also no shortage of important personages from Zhcted who wished to meet with him, and though most of these chose to send emissaries rather than come in person, Tigre knew that establishing good relations with them was a necessity. In any case failure was not an option; any failing on his part would smear the name of Ellen, who had given him a place to stay, and he couldn’t rightly allow that to happen.

Adding to his litany of woes were the almost daily assignments left to him by Ellen’s second-in-command Limlishia. The topics were of a grand scale, ranging from governance to military affairs—indeed, under governance the subject could be anything between internal governance and multilateral relations.

She would also enlist his aid in her work often. This was cause for some complaint on his part. But he went along with it anyway. For one thing, the knowledge he gained while accompanying her would be useful in developing Alsace upon his return.

And for another, she wasn’t all work and no play. Under the guise of ‘inspections’ or ‘reviews’, she would sometimes allow him some free time to roam.

At last, dawn broke.

Smothering the fire with mud, Tigre shouldered his backpack and set out. Antlers in his right hand, bow in his left, and Lunie tagging alongside him, trademark *Patata* resounding as it flew. They reached the village in the foothills by the afternoon. There they presented the antler and pelt to much rejoicing and many eased minds among the villagers. However, among those who had been counted with the hunters there were many wide eyes.

“So he really managed to bring it down, eh...” The village chief, who had been responsible for leading the hunters, had only this to say.

He had gone into the mountains three mornings ago. Alone, having turned down the offer that the villagers had made to have their hunters serve as his guides.

“For a hunt like this, I alone will be enough.” He’d said that even as he gazed up at the foothills from the village. “And with more people we run a greater risk of the buck getting wind of us, whether it be by sight or sound.”

It wasn’t arrogance, of course. And besides, he had subsequently grilled both the chief and the hunters for detailed information concerning the mountain.

Seeing this, the village chief had mixed feelings. On one hand he thought: “As expected of a knight of the court.” And yet on the other he felt that the boy was only 17. Could he really be relied upon?

But Tigre had surpassed all their expectations, setting out alone and returning triumphant, having shot the beast down brilliantly.

He had succeeded where a group of six—including the chief himself—had failed to do throughout their five day long hunt. And he did not waste his breath on swaggering or on boasts of his ability.

Rather, Tigre just asked for a bed he could borrow for the night, which the chief obliged. He turned in rather early too.

When Tigre rose the next morning, the sky was still dark. It was a tad early for ‘morning’—even those whose farms were their livelihood had barely gotten out their beds.

“I’m sorry to wake you at this hour,” he said as he called the village chief forth from dreamland before informing him of his decision to leave.

The chief seemed shocked, and even a little disappointed. “If it is convenient for you, sir knight, please do tarry another day in our good village. We will prepare a feast for you as much as we may with our meager means.”

He asked once again. However, soon after expressing both gratitude and pushing a gentle refusal, Tigre quietly left on the village and went on his way. The horse galloped along the path under a brightening sky, though it wasn’t very fast—it couldn’t, what with both Tigre and Lunie sitting on it and all.

“What a waste...” Tigre mumbled to himself as he gazed heavenward. “...It’s not like I had anything urgent to do anyway.”

He was, of course, bemoaning the missed opportunity in the village chief’s offer. If this was Alsace, he might just have taken the proffered boon, but here he had Ellen to consider. She might have been alright with it, but she did not speak for all her subordinates. Particularly for those who already held a certain dislike for Tigre himself.

He couldn’t care less if they criticized him, but he would not allow them to do the same to Ellen.

===Part 3===

The sun was already falling into the west when they arrived at the capitol. They rode in via a side road constructed for the exclusive use of those in official service—with Lunie around the two of them would have made a sight for sore eyes in the crowded main streets of the city.

“Master Tigre!” Just as they passed the gates, a familiar voice reached their ears, calling the youth’s name. It was Teita, chestnut hair tied behind her head, running towards them. She dressed after her usual fashion, long-sleeved one-piece dress falling into black folds below her legs and a clean white apron over it. Notably she had discarded her old twin-tailed hairstyle for a single ponytail, which Tigre believed looked well on her too.

Of their immediate reactions Lunie’s was the greater. It took to the air with a *Patata* and flew into her arms. Tigre merely exchanged smiles with her.

“I’m home, Teita.”

Upon catching Lunie, she held it close and it snuggled in her embrace. While doing so, she walked over to the youth.

“Welcome home, Tigre-sama.”

“Are you alright? You don’t have to carry it like that if it’s too heavy, you know?”

“Thank you. But Lunie’s not as heavy as it appears. I might get my clothes dirty though.” So she said, but if she was distressed it did not show. Instead, like a mother beguiling a child she petted the little dragon whelp.

This sixteen-year old girl, who like him was born in Alsace, had served him in the capacity of a maidservant since she was 11 till today, and even when he was set to live in LeitMeritz, she had insisted on following him.

This had been his wish as well, and Ellen had acquiesced. Nonetheless, he had worried at first that she, whom he treated like a sister, might not be able to adapt to the new environment. She had rendered his concerns moot, however, breaking the ice easily with the ladies of the court and their maids. Indeed, naught but a few days had passed before they all loved her.

Upon hearing this, Ellen had grimaced before saying thus.

“You’re quite something yourself, but it seems Teita hasn’t fallen behind. Quite the unexpected catch, isn’t she?” These words relieved Tigre greatly.

“Oh, yes. Tigre-sama, the Lady Eleanora and Miss Limlishia have important matters to discuss with you.”

“Important matters? With me?”

“Indeed. Lady Ellen instructed me to inform you of this upon your return.”

Upon hearing Teita recall her previous conversation with the Vanadis and her second, Tigre set his head askew in thought as he dismounted. It was all very odd. He had just returned, and had yet to greet anyone yet. Moreover, he was required to report to Ellen anyway.

Therefore it must have been something of extraordinary importance, for her to have left him such specific instructions.

“Are they going to remind you not to take so many detours?” Teita asked.

Naturally, she did not say this in earnest. Those mischievous words were only meant to lighten his mood, Tigre guessed as he patted the younger girl on the head.

“Hmmm. That’s possible...” He did after all have a history of chatting Rurick up in the halls for too long while en route to the administration office. This habit which had earned him many a stern earful from Lim, and at times some nattering from the officials who disliked him whenever they could catch him. “In any case I’ll head up there. Thank you, Teita.”

After handing both horse and dragon over to her, he headed up to the administration office. In the dying light of day, the corridors were dim, lit only by the flames of pinewood torches. But Ellen would be in there at this hour, he knew. He walked up to the door and knocked lightly, calling out as he did so. Sure enough, a moment later a ‘come in’ could be heard.

Opening the door, Tigre’s eyes were met by a familiar scenery. A modestly-sized room, a table of black sandalwood piled high with a veritable mountain of books, and two ladies attending to the paperwork.

The first of them sported waist-length silver hair and a blue-based silk dress. Her crimson eyes burned with vigor, and against a wall close within reach she laid a longsword by. She was so fair of face, it was hard to imagine her as a skilled sword maiden capable of holding any man at bay. Yet she was and more. She was the administrator of this capitol, ruler of LeitMeritz and one of the seven Vanadis of Zhcted, seventeen year-old Eleanora Viltaria.

The other was golden-haired Limlishia—Lim, as both he and Ellen would normally address her—, Ellen’s second-in-command and confidante. Tall, twenty and well-endowed, her look of detached stoicism as she silently perused the documents before her was quite the opposite of Ellen’s.

“Looks like you made it back safely.”

After looking him up and down for a moment, Ellen’s expression relaxed visibly, and Lim greeted him with an upward quirk of her lips.

“I’m back indeed,” Tigre noted, before closing the door and pulling a chair over to sit on.

Ellen’s eyes glittered. “And how did the deal with the buck go?”

He gave a simple explanation of what had transpired in the village and on the mountain, while Lim prepared wine for three. Naturally, the whole request had been their doing; Ellen had dispatched him to deal with the problem after the village had informed them of its plight.

Stopping the work in their hands, the three offered up a small toast in celebration of this success, and after having finished his explanation, Tigre switched topics.

“So I hear from Teita that you have important affairs to discuss with me.” At this, the two ladies exchanged glances, and Ellen dipped her gaze to the cup in her hands, as though considering her reply. A moment later, she lifted her eyes once again.

“Tigre. Have you heard of Asvarre?”

The sudden question came as a surprise, but Tigre recovered quickly. “It’s situated northwest of Brune, across the western sea of Zhcted, I think. It’s best known for its agriculture-based economy, but a few generations ago they had a queen who led many campaigns of expansion into the continent.”

In actuality, the number of things he knew for sure about Asvarre could be counted off on one hand, and all that he had learnt from Mashas. But being in the northeast, Alsace had no stake in that country. So for all he knew of Asvarre it could be a fairy tale land—only the story of the conquering queen had made any lasting impression on him.

Once again, the two women exchanged looks. But these were looks of unease.

Draining her cup, Ellen spoke. “A certain someone has requested your presence in Asvarre.”

At this Tigre furrowed his brow. He did so not so much in surprise as he had in consternation. Judging from her tone, this request must be awfully hard to refuse. And there were only so many people in this world who could cause a Vanadis apprehension of this level. “And who might that be?”

“His majesty the King,” Lim replied coolly.

Tigre’s eyes widened.

Victor, King of Zhcted. He had met the man once, when he was living in Zhcted following the conclusion of Brune’s civil strife. It was a formality that no official guest could avoid, especially not one staying for 3 years in the country, and in any case he had heard from Ellen that the king desired to see him.

But for all that was worth the audience itself was frightfully short. The king had merely saw fit to praise his talents, and assure him that he would be given full freedom in Zhcted—with that their meeting had come to an abrupt end.

Within that brief time, he had indeed felt the oppressive stateliness and authority emanating from the man on the throne. But what had struck him most profoundly had been the man’s eyes. Victor’s eyes were tranquil, yet cold and subdued. It made one think of the inmost depths of a dark forest, bereft of sunlight for a hundred years; like a deep bog without breath or sound of life.

But such thoughts about the monarch of a nation could not be shared with anyone, and so Tigre hid them, buried them deep in his heart.

Honestly, he didn’t make a good impression, Tigre thought. ‘An enigmatic old man’ was the most honest summary he could give on his thoughts concerning that man.

And now this person was ordering him to go to Asvarre.

“So what does he want me to do there?”

“Essentially, he wants you to serve as a secret envoy.”

At this point, Ellen put her cup down and folded her arms, a distressed look on her face.

“Tigre. What do you know about Asvarre’s situation, really?”

“Well, that there’s people in it, and they sing, dance and hunt all day long?”

“Indeed, and they slaughter their own people with axe and sword while they’re at it too.” He’d actually expected this, but still it seemed there was no chance that this would be a comfortable topic.

Lim put her still unfinished cup on the table, and then proceeded to retrieve a piece of parchment from a drawer beneath the table.

“...I suppose I’ve never really told you about Asvarre either, Tigre. I’ll try to make this brief.”

“Please do, sensei.” Tigre said mischievously.

Ellen laughed. “Yes, please do, sensei.”

With a sigh, Lim turned to the parchment and began to draw a simple map. “Now, until half a year ago, King Zechariah was still on the throne of Asvarre. At that time there was intelligence to suggest that he planned to invade Brune, but due to his own poor health he ultimately decided to sit back for a while and observe the situation.”

Tigre’s breath caught in his throat. He had underestimated till now just how much Brune had been like a sheep thrown among wolves during those times of turmoil half a year ago. True, Sachstein was repulsed by Roland, and he himself had driven Muozinel back. But if Asvarre had invaded from the west at that time...heaven only knew what would have happened then.

“A short time after the civil war in Brune ended,” Lim continued, “King Zechariah breathed his last. I can’t really say how exactly he died. Some say he died in an accident, others say he died of food poisoning.”

Now, the King of Asvarre had six children. His eldest, Jermaine, was to ascend the throne.
And that was where the madness began.

“A few days before the coronation ceremony, Jermaine called his siblings together and had them executed on counts of treason.”

“Heh, or so we heard afterward,” Ellen added drily, supplementing Lim’s lecture with her own comments. “It seems Jermaine is quite the arrogant character, and paranoid as well. I guess he hid his true colors while his father still lived, but with the throne in sight he must have decided to take action.”

This subject was repugnant to Tigre, but he nodded for Lim to continue anyway.

“However, two of the king’s children escaped Jermaine’s grasp—the second prince, Elliot, and the first princess, Guinevere.”

The larger part of the details that Lim mentioned afterward could be summarized as such: After making his way to safety, Elliot had begun a revolt against his brother. Despite the succession having been the king’s will, there were many among the nobility who had opposed Jermaine’s kin-slaying, and the revolt had been a success. Jermaine was forced to abandon the palace and flee.

“So now Asvarre is split into two—” Lim broke off as she concluded, “no, perhaps you could say three parts. Jermaine has hired mercenaries from Sachstein to bolster his own forces, while Elliot has done much the same by bringing the pirates of the coast into his ranks. Asvarre is in a state of chaos.”

“What about the princess Guinevere?” It was strange that she was not mentioned, so he asked.

“Rumors say that she is indifferent to either side, and has retired to a more quiet life. Most likely, she will not make any moves until the conflict between her brothers has been settled,” Lim said.

“And till now Zhcted has been supporting Elliot,” Ellen added.

“Oh yes. There’s that,” Lim said. “Okay, let’s stop talking about Asvarre for now.” With that, she produced another parchment, and began drawing up a map of the continent. Zhcted in the center, Asvarre west of the sea, Muozinel to the south on land and Brune to the southwest.

“Tigrevurmund.” Lim’s voice was scholarly and stern, like a teacher asking a question of her pupil. That meant that if he answered wrong, he was sure to be reprimanded. “Who, in your opinion, is the greatest threat to Zhcted at this time?”

“Muozinel, I suppose.”

“Correct.” Lim confirmed, unsmiling, as though this answer was a given.

“So you see, the situation in Asvarre is as we stated before. And in Brune, the scars left by the civil war have yet to heal. At best, it would take two or three years for it to make a full comeback.”

Needless to say, the next major factor was Muozinel. Even though they had been beaten back during their assault on Brune six months ago, in reality only their navy had been dealt any significant casualties. Their land army—footsoldiers and cavalry both—had withdrawn before a decisive battle could be fought, as such minimizing their losses.

Muozinel now had an axe to grind against Zhcted as well—Tigre had the help of Zhcted troops in his rout of their advance army. Moreover, currently, Zhcted held Agnes, originally part of Brune, as their own territory, thus forming a strip of land belonging to Zhcted that Muozinel had to pass through first before it could attack. As such, Muozinel could only attack via sea, and that was impossible with their damaged navy: it could hardly even defend against an enemy attack as it was, let alone launch an invasion. So they could only sit on their hands and watch Brune recover.

“Sooner or later, we and Muozinel will surely clash. But when that will happen, no one knows. It could be three, even ten years from now.”

So saying, Ellen gazed at the wall behind her and the two flags that adorned it.

A silver sword upon black, for LeitMeritz, and for Zhcted the black dragon.

“The balance of power hangs on Asvarre’s decision—whether to join hands with Muozinel, or with us.”

Upon hearing Ellen’s words, Tigre at last understood. If Asvarre were to align itself with Zhcted, then the latter could concentrate all its energy on Muozinel. But if Asvarre were to make Muozinel its ally instead, then Zhcted would be beleaguered from both the south and the west, and it would have to divide its forces to tackle such a dire situation.

“As we were saying before, we would have preferred Elliot, but it seems he personally leans towards Muozinel. As such we shall have to support Jermaine instead.”

“So, this secret envoy you speak of...” Tigre trailed off.

Ellen looked distinctly apologetic. Seeing her struggle to reply, Lim stood in for the silver-haired Vanadis. “Tigrevurmund. I believe we had said before that this is the King’s request, not that of Lady Eleanora.”

“I know. There is no way Ellen would ask something like this of me.” He answered decisively to reassure them. It worked. Almost immediately the tension in the room decreased several fold. Both women loosed smiles, and Ellen heaved a sigh of relief while still hanging her head in apology.

“I’m sorry, Tigre.”

“You needn’t be, Ellen,” Tigre said. “More importantly, what does King Victor hope to achieve by sending me?” He didn’t know the foggiest about Asvarre. He hadn’t even been there. Ever. The king’s intentions were unfathomable in this regard.

“From a certain point of view you could say he wants to recruit you,” Ellen noted while passing her now empty cup back to Lim. “It’s basically selling favors, giving you honor and glory in exchange for your services. Isn’t that practice quite common in Brune as well?”

Tigre set his head askew—he still could not accept this. “But I am not King Victor’s subject, I am a citizen of Brune, a guest who will return to Brune in 3 years time, no?”

“And that’s precisely why he wants you. Think about it—do you really expect to live off the fat of the land once you get back after 3 years? If it were up to me I’d make you a military advisor. That way you wouldn’t ever leave the palace even after a few years.”

Upon hearing Ellen speak so solemnly, Tigre could only contemplate in silence. It was true, for he was undeniably a person of meritorious deeds.

“Having received the title of [{{furigana|Star Shooter|Silvrash|}}] and [{{furigana|Knight of the Moonlight|Lumiere}}] from an enemy general and your own king respectively, you are someone who will definitely be in an important position once you get home. So as far as the King of Zhcted is concerned selling you favors is the right thing to do.” Lim added coolly after pouring Ellen some more wine.

For her part the Vanadis pulled open a drawer on her own desk, and from there retrieved a letter, two rings and a sleek tube.

The tube was half an arm long, and covered by a dark black cloth. On its cap the seal of the King of Zhcted was engraved and inlaid in gold.

“This contains a secret message to Prince Jermaine, and the rings will be proof of your identity as the King’s envoy. But what I really want to show you is this—the king’s letter.” Taking the letter, Tigre read it carefully. The words of a king could not be ignored, not a single one.

It started with the normal salutations, with the King giving some praise for his gallantry in Brune and celebrating the newly forged peace between Brune and Zhcted before diving straight into the main topic.

—You are proof of the strong ties between Zhcted and Brune, and thus able to represent both nations before the Prince Jermaine. No one is more suited than you are to accomplish this task.

Written below are instructions as to how far we are willing support the prince in terms of finances and in the sending of troops, as well as the duration for which we shall do so. There are contingencies should extenuating circumstances force you to deviate from the initial plan, but you should return immediately should the situation go too far out of hand.—

So, Tigre mused. He wants to use me as a bargaining chip then.

At the end of the letter there were instructions as to how he should enter Asvarre. He would travel from LeitMeritz to Regnis, and then from there he would rendezvous with some men the King sent before setting out together for Asvarre. He was flabbergasted at the sheer amount of detail the letter went into. It even mentioned what street he should be travelling by.

Suggesting that both Zhcted and Brune were in support of Prince Jermaine—quite clever of the King, really, Tigre thought.

Still. He glanced up from the letter and gave Ellen a look of unease. “Was Brune told of this?”

Ellen shook her head. “I doubt it.”

Lim nodded in agreement. “If it were so, Queen Regin would have passed the orders down to you herself, Tigrevurmund.”

She was right. In the end he was still a guest commandant, and not under any obligation to obey King Victor. Even the letter itself closed with these words—

“I, the King of Zhcted, earnestly ask of you—”

—meaning that this was no order, but a request.

And yet he could no so flippantly refuse. It was a request from a king, after all.

“...Aside from me, is there no one else who can take on this task?”

“Zhcted doesn’t lack for such people. But to the king, he couldn’t claim to be doing you a favor without at least asking you to do this much.”

Tigre tried to contemplate this for a few seconds, and then gave up, shrugging. Immediately, Lim scolded him in a low voice, and then proceeded to explain.

“You see, something like rooting out mountain bandits wouldn’t be adding any additional feathers to your cap. Your role in the Brune civil war has already demonstrated your bravery, and therefore your worth, enough.”

“There are other ways of winning honor, yes, but these would mostly involve you becoming a counsellor to the king. And that would put you in a precarious position—most of our nobles would oppose the idea of Brune interfering in affairs of governance, and it would undermine the king’s authority. So a diplomatic assignment would be the best option.” Ellen sighed.

It was true, Tigre knew. The advantages of sending him were exactly as King Victor had stated—and in those regards no one in Zhcted could compete with him.

“...And that’s how it is. Assuming that the King bears you no ill-will in the first place.” Ellen griped, leaning back in her chair.

Her casual posture relieved the young archer greatly, and he smiled. “I don’t remember ever doing anything to incur his ill-will.”

“If a country has a skilled general, do you not think that his very presence will cause the surrounding nations to be on their guard?” Lim noted coolly, remaining upright and altogether serious despite them. “In our country there are many people who are displeased by your presence, Tigrevurmund...although I am not saying the king is one of these.”

“But the negotiations are important to Zhcted. Failure would be disastrous—so why would he give the task to me if he has enmity towards me?”

Ellen furrowed her brows as she spoke, her displeasure plain to see.“Well, since there is a contingency in place you will most likely be held responsible for any failure.”

“Of course, success would be still be best, but if you were to fail, getting rid of you would eliminate some future concerns. Depending on the situation, the blame could also be shifted onto Brune.” At this Ellen swung back upright with a *BANG*, ignoring Lim, who cocked an eyebrow at her. “Actually, don’t you find it all very strange? If I were in the king’s place, I would throw you a banquet with someone else as the host, and make my request while the host distracts the rest of the guests.”

That was true. Tigre thought. He and the King had only met once—they weren’t friends by any means. There should have at least been some sort of party thrown to improve their relationship.

“It would only take a simple check to know that you’ve never been to Asvarre. Sending you there is like asking a child who doesn’t know left from right to go to a neighbouring village to buy something. And then there’s the men the king sent. We have no details on them. The whole thing practically screams ‘this is suspicious’!”

Indeed, it was getting quite hard to think that the king had given him this job for his ability.

“But King Victor has yet to reveal what he thinks of me, correct?” Tigre asked cautiously.

Both Lim and Ellen nodded.

“I can only think of 3 reasons why this was assigned to you. One would be to do you a favor by letting you take the honor of being a diplomat. The other might be to destroy you by putting you in a situation where you would be helpless. And the last would be to gauge your abilities.”

“Gauging my abilities?”

Ellen held up a hand. “In short, he wants to know if you are merely a person who is skilled in warfare, or if you have other skills besides. I still can’t tell if he wants you on his side, or if he wants to destroy you. But whatever it is, he definitely wants to use you.”

The silver-haired young woman chuckled a little, causing Tigre to grouse silently. None of the three options was anything to be glad about.

“And if he has any other design,” Ellen noted in a low, more serious tone, “it’s most likely to use your actions to see how the Vanadis—myself included—and the Queen of Brune will act.”

“Ellen, what should I—”

“Tigrevurmund,” Lim said in a stern voice, cutting him off. “Do not ask that of us.”

Ellen shook her head bitterly. “No matter what your decision is, I will respect it and do my utmost to help you. But it is you who must make the decision, Tigre.”

“I’m sorry.”

He could refuse. But that would lower the king’s opinion of him, and it would also affect Ellen and Brune. Turning to the map, Tigre thought about what was just said. He did not like Prince Jermaine, whom Zhcted was planning to support. And yet if his rival Elliot were to ascend to the throne, his alliance with Muozinel would threaten both Zhcted and Brune, for Brune and Asvarre shared a border.

And then there was the alliance with Zhcted to think about.

For the sake of our countries, must I support a foreign tyrant?

By virtue of lending support to Jermaine, it might be possible to request that he mend his ways. But he was not the King of Zhcted, Tigre knew. His words would most likely have no significant impact.

But he had to move past that. Sighing, he asked another question. “What sort of person is Prince Elliot, then?”

“Rumor has it that he’s not all that different from his brother. But at least he didn’t kill his whole family.”

“But previously you said that he roped pirates into his army to make up for his lack of numbers. Doesn’t that mean the army is no more than a band of thieves?”

King Victor must really want me to disappear, asking me to go into such a place alone.

“Will you refuse, then?”

“Might as well go. It might be a good opportunity to visit Asvarre anyway.” He meant this in earnest, but more because he did not wish to further burden the similarly-aged Vanadis. “But isn’t this a rather roundabout method? Asking me to be a secret envoy, and yet openly supporting Prince Elliot at the same time?”

“Playing both sides isn’t an uncommon tactic. Ludmira was like that that during the last war.” Ellen said.

“What?” Tigre asked, not comprehending her intent. “I thought Mira was a more straightforward person than that.”

Mira of course referred to Ludmira Lurie, Michelia of the seven Vanadis and the governor of Olmutz, a province to the south of LeitMeritz.

“You forget that she was Duke Thenardier’s ally at first, which was why she led troops to constrain us. In addition, she continued her pursuit even when we offered to retreat. In order to fulfill her obligations to the duke, she even fought a duel with me.” Ellen’s eyebrows arched in annoyance as she said this, but Tigre could not tell if it was his casual mention of Ludmira’s nickname, or general displeasure at his reply that caused her to act this way.

“But she protected Lady Eleanora from the assassin’s blade that time, even going so far as to risk her own life.” Lim pointed out stoically.

“W-Well, that was just her trying to make me owe her a favor!” Ellen blustered, her expression that of one caught off-guard. “Even if she didn’t think about it that way at the time, when the need arises she will definitely find an excuse to bring it up!”

“It’s only natural to do that in negotiations,” Lim reminded.

Ellen ignored her, instead turning to Tigre. “And there was that battle against Muozinel. She didn’t come to help you right away, did she? She held off to observe, right? That’s not helping you, that was just her waiting for the moment where she could make you most indebted to her. And she only severed ties with Thenardier after that incident, don’t you forget!”

With that she downed her cup of wine with much gusto.

Tigre for his part understood. This Machiavellian aspect to Ludmira’s character was probably so deeply ingrained that she did not think any worse of herself despite it. Still, given that she had been forced into a conflict due to her rival’s character, it was not surprising that Ellen would be so angry.

If it was Mira, how would she respond to this request?

During his time at LeitMeritz, Ludmira Lurie had paid three visits to the capitol, and she came for three reasons. Firstly, to inquire about the state of the mountain road in Vosyes and Brune in general; secondly, to make a show of being on excellent terms with Ellen. Lastly, she came to prevail upon Tigre to join her.

Every time Ellen received a report of her arrival, she would say ‘tell her not to come again’. But who would dare say that to a Vanadis? And in any case she was half joking. They needed the information that Ludmira regularly brought them concerning Muozinel, and a petty rivalry was no reason to hinder important exchanges of intelligence.

Following her meetings with Ellen she would go looking for Tigre. The first time, she attempted to use the promise of money to win him over, and failed. From then on, she would simply come to make small talk. She did try to invite him on a hunt, but Ellen had turned her down.

If it were her, she would hint at agreeing while avoiding giving a direct answer, all the while gathering intelligence as best she could in the background. And when the critical moment came she would refuse decisively.

Perhaps this is only the first of more difficult requests to come.

He still didn’t like the given task, but he could see it for its uses. And in any case, his complaints were best kept to himself.

===Part 4===

After staring at the door Tigre had closed in his exit for a while, Ellen let out a sigh.

“Is this really alright?” Lim asked.

“We don’t have a choice, do we?” Ellen replied brusquely.

She’d agreed to let him go to Asvarre after their meeting. It was an odd thing—actually, she had been prepared to give way should he refuse adamantly, but as it turned out he gave an unexpectedly decisive answer. She should have been glad about that, but her heart still felt heavy. Unwilling.

“I’m sorry about just now, Lim,” Ellen said with an apologetic smile. ‘Just now’ naturally referred to the point when Lim had butted in to stop Tigre from asking for her help in deciding. “I...probably wouldn’t have been able to answer him.”

In her heart of hearts she wanted to say ‘don’t go’. But to deny the king’s request, they needed a viable alternative. Another way to foster closer ties between Zhcted and Asvarre. Or even someone to replace Tigre. But there was no such option. With regards to the king’s requirements there was none better than him, and she would be hard pressed to find such a substitute.

During Brune’s civil war she was able to mollify the king by claiming that she had no choice but to do battle. And it had been a sweet deal overall. Brune footed much of the war bill, Zhcted had gained Agnes in the south, and Ellen had gained Tigre’s services through her co-ruling of Alsace.

This time, she had no such cards to play—without such, even a Vanadis must obey her king.

So despite herself, she could not tell him to stay. Supporting him was the only thing she could do now.

Turning her face to the window, Ellen gazed out at the scenery. The slow breeze of late summer blew across a land where the descent of darkness was nigh complete, with only a little sun peeked out from beyond the western horizon. The stars too, though she could not see them, must have already come out.

“When he came, the snowdrops were still in bloom...”

Snowdrops grew everywhere in Zhcted, and they were the herald of springtime. But spring had passed them by in a hurry. She spent hers governing, and he spent his getting accustomed to the land. And now, even summer was drawing to a close.

With a sigh, Ellen shook her head vigorously. Clearing her mind, she turned back to Lim once more, with a smile on her face. “Well, since he has decided to go, we should pave the way for him. I’ll be counting on you, Lim. This is the king’s request, so people can’t speak ill of it anyway.”

“Yes.” Lim flashed a rare smile, her voice ringing clearer than usual. But it seemed some anxiety came upon her, and cast a shadow over her turquoise eyes. “Yet there is still much to worry about. Becoming a secret envoy to an unknown country, with only one other person following...”

“Let us trust him,” Ellen said brightly, her words and eyes brimming with confidence. “He has shown us many miracles during this year we spent together. Yes, you could call it luck, but without the skill to use such good-fortune there would have been no miracles, and he has that sort of ability.”

That was exaggerating somewhat, but that was because she too felt uneasy. She could not help but worry. Indeed, perhaps she had even wished for him to refuse back then.

“He will return successful. We will send him off smiling, and we will receive him with that same smile. We can do that much, even if we can neither officially celebrate his designation as envoy due to its secret nature, nor reward him easily due to his status as a citizen of Brune.”

“Indeed.” Lim said, glad that her master had erased her worries.

With that they returned to their duties. But as Ellen sorted through the papers, a sudden thought came to her.

I wonder, has the distance between him and I lessened any?

Though she was busy most of the day, and Tigre was under constant scrutiny by the court officials, they still spent their free time together often. When the weather was good they would take afternoon naps on the roof, sometimes even sneaking out the palace under the noses of Lim and the other officials to roam the city streets. During official breaks, they would have tea and refreshments with Lim and Teita. These were all small, but important memories.

We even danced together in the city once.

In the tradition of Zhcted such festivals always began with everyone singing and dancing together, and only later would couples form and dance alone. Apparently, this had originally been a way for men to choose their brides, but that custom had long been phased out, leaving behind only that fragment of knowledge and the form of the dance itself.

When they had found out about the origins of the practice, they had both gone red in the face, but did not stop holding hands as they departed. (Of course, no one else knew, for both of them were too embarrassed to speak of it.)

They never crossed the line, each having understood the other’s position. But the silver-haired Vanadis recalled those memories of their daily lives together, and she felt her heart grow warmer.

===Part 5===

Tigre’s room was somewhere in the bowels of the palace. Here, unlike outside where the employees of the palace still milled about even after sunset, there was relative peace. This had been one of Ellen’s considerations, for as a guest he drew significantly more attention than when he had been a captive.

It was not a particularly luxurious place, but the deep green carpet, brick fireplace and an oak table-and-chair set gave it a relaxing atmosphere. There was no lack of necessities either; in the corner there was a cabinet draped with grapevine as well as a long table.

Upon entry, Tigre lit the lamp by the doorway, and hit the bell on the table.

Before long, footsteps approached the door. Teita’s footsteps.

“Master Tigre, may I enter?”

“You needn’t be so uptight, I’m the only one here,” Tigre replied in a gentle tone.

The door opened, the chestnut-haired maid entering with a curtsy before lifting her head and sticking her tongue out at him. “I’m used to it already. And besides, I’m away from home.”

Back in Alsace they had been even less formal with one another. Tigre favored shouting across the hallway to ringing a bell anytime, and Teita for her part would inquire clearly as to his requirements before entering, sparing them a lot of hassle. But this was not Alsace, and there were many officials here who disliked him for being so close to the likes of Ellen, Lim and Rurick. In front of such people, they had to pay more attention to such formalities.

“So,” Teita asked after receiving Tigre’s outer coat, “have you finished speaking to Lady Eleanora on the matter?”

A dark look crept over his face. “Do you have some time, Teita? I have some things I need to tell you concerning that.”

She nodded, perplexed.

Seeing that, Tigre walked over to the cabinet and took out a bottle of wine and a pair of wine glasses. This would be worrying to her, he knew, but nonetheless he wanted her to know the truth.

After having her take a seat, he poured the wine. First for her, then for himself.

He downed a mouthful.

And then made his announcement.

“I need to go out for a time. I’ll be counting on you to take care of this place.”

Her eyes shot open, staring into the depths of the glass before her, the crimson fluids reflected her depression.

“This isn’t a hunt, is it?”

She was right. If this was a hunt or just some inspection in a nearby city he would have spoken differently. He had done his best to sound calm, but there was no way he could completely hide the anxiety of stepping into unknown territory. Not from Teita, who had been serving him for so long.

So he didn’t bother playing dumb, merely lowering his gaze to meet hers.

“I know you won’t say unnecessary things to others. So I need you to keep a secret for me.”

After confirming her assent, he told her of the trip to Asvarre.

“I can’t tell you the details, but this a very troublesome matter. While I’m gone, you will tell anyone who asks that I have gone to Silesia,” Tigre said. “And...oh yes. Take care of Lunie while I’m out.”

“I understand the part about Lunie. But ‘to the capitol’?” Teita shook her head, uncomprehending.

“Don’t worry, Lim and Ellen are the ones cooking up the cover story. You just need to tally your account to theirs,” he assured her. “I did think of claiming illness to avoid meeting people, though.”

“That wouldn’t have been like you at all, Master Tigre. I mean, those aren’t the sort of words a person who would go out during deep winter in furs to hunt would say. And I don’t think I could fool everyone like that,” she said, displaying her resolve in an ironic sort of way, to which he could only scratch his head, at a loss.

Seeing this, she smiled. “Master Tigre. How far away is this Asvarre?”

“I don’t know. It’s my first time going there too. All I know is that I need to go northwest from here, and then head there by ship.”

“Ship. Sea,” Teita muttered, her eyes wide. Neither of them had ever even seen anything like those. The closest they had come was in images stirred up by the songs of a wandering troubadour, or from the stories of travelling artists who had been as far as Celeste, a town in Asvarre.

She bit her lip, her fists tightening about her apron as she tried to restrain the unease welling up inside her. Reaching for her cup, she downed it all in one go—

—and with a sigh she stood, placing the cup back on table, hazel eyes locking on his.

“I don’t really understand how important this task is. But you must come back safely, Master Tigre.”

Tigre placed his own cup aside, and held her lightly, the fragrance of her hair wafting into his nose as he did so.

You’ve grown taller...

“I will come back,” he repeated over again. “I’ll definitely return safely.”

===Part 6===

Tigre left the palace before the dawn of the next day. He would travel not as Tigrevurmund Vorn, but as a common soldier of LeitMeritz. He had said his farewells to Lim and Teita, but not to Ellen.

I wish I could have said goodbye to Rurick and the others as well.

These things left him quite a few regrets, but as a secret envoy his departure needed to be made known to as few people as was possible. Perhaps Rurick might figure it out on his own, though.

He also had to leave by the back gate, instead of from the front. At the side of the gate a saddled horse was already awaiting him—Lim’s handiwork, most likely.

Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Tigre placed his black bow on the saddle and secured a quiver full of arrows to his luggage—if one could call a small pack with a bear doll tied to it ‘luggage’—behind.

The bear had been obtained from Lim the night before, when she had come to check on his luggage to confirm that he had brought everything.

“Well then, take everything out.” She had said this rather strictly, and he had complied, laying out each item on the table. Food and water for several days, a stone flint, a dagger with a bottle of oil, and a purse full of silver and copper coins.

There was also a letter Ellen had written to her friend Alexandra Arshven, the Vanadis Sasha. She had done this in a hurry, had given instructions for him to see her friend when he passed through Legnica.

“Sasha will give you additional guidance on my behalf, so it doesn’t matter if you are late by one or even two days—You must go to see her. Understood?” And with that she had given the letter to him.

Lastly there were the two rings as well as the silk-covered tube that contained a secret message in the king’s own hand. The surface of the tube had been rolled over with a tanned hide painted black, rendering it completely waterproof.

After inspecting everything item by item, Lim had told him to wait, and left the room for a while.

Before long, she returned, carrying between her arms quite a few new items: a bag of herbs, a bottle of ointment, ropes of hemp and straw, needle, thread and even a hand mirror.

“Bring these along too.”

She said this matter of factly even as she let him help her to arrange these additional things, much to Tigre’s shock.

“Isn’t this a little overdone?” Actually, all of these should have been necessities for travel as well, but he hadn’t thought to bring them with him initially. When he got to the port town at Legnica, he could just purchase all of those trifling things there.

“And what will you do if something happens before you get to Legnica?”

His suggestion had been coldly rejected. He knew she meant well though, and didn’t argue.

But his thoughts inadvertently spilled out into words. “It feels like you’re my mother or something.”

“M-Mother?!” Lim’s stoic mask shattered outright, her eyes going wide as she stared at Tigre, dismayed. In the face of this unexpectedly strong response, Tigre quickly backed down.

“I’m really sorry if that made you unhappy. Teita’s mother was like this too—she would inspect my luggage very scrupulously every time I headed out of town.” Here he paused for a moment, barely stopping short of calling her naggy. “You reminded me of her.”

“I understand. Still, you should watch how you say things,” Lim said. She seemed to have regained her composure after a few moments, but Tigre still felt terrible about calling a twenty-year old woman ‘mother’.

“In that case, take this with you.”

At this moment, Lim put something into Tigre’s hand. Into his hand, not onto the table—it was a small bear doll.

“It’s a charm. Mothers always give them to their children when they go off travelling, so take it. —I don’t remember having a child this old, though,” she said roughly as his shocked gaze alternated between her and the doll. Perhaps if the room had been brighter lit he might have seen her blushing right up to her hair.

Honestly speaking, it was embarrassing to have to hang a bear doll onto his luggage. But when he thought of Lim’s feelings, he could not bear to take it off.

Leaping into the saddle, Tigre trotted the horse forward a few steps. Then suddenly he turned, gazing atop the city walls. It was still dark, and the contours of the palace walls were silhouetted against the darkness. But he could feel someone watching him.

Straining his vision, he caught a small movement.

Who’s there?

It wasn’t a soldier—a soldier would be carrying a torch at this hour. But it was not an intruder either. He could not feel the person trying to conceal his or her breathing.

A gust of wind blew in.

It did not come from the left or the right. It came rushing down from above, blowing his hair every which way and forcing him to squint.

In the midst of the gale he caught sight of an object hurtling towards him, glittering faintly as it caught the light. About the size of an insect, but not as fast. He reached out and caught it.

It was a silver coin, and on closer inspection there were words written in ink on it.

‘Good luck’

His eyes scanned across the walls again, but that person was gone.

Glancing at the coin once more, he put it into his waist-pocket with great care. That done, he grabbed the reins and rode out into the streets, his form enveloped by the darkness.

He knew who the one standing on the walls was. The Vanadis who commanded the winds.

She could not send him off openly, and so she had chosen this method instead.

His drowsiness was far behind him now, gone with the wind. He felt warm, and full of vigor.

I will definitely return safely.

He would give her a pleasing result with his own hands.

So decided, he spurred his horse forward, through the streets at the crack of dawn.

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Back to [[Madan_no_Ou_to_Vanadis:Volume06_Illustrations|Illustrations]]
| Return to [[Madan_no_Ou_to_Vanadis|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Madan_no_Ou_to_Vanadis:Volume_06_Chapter_2|Chapter 2]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>