“I think that’s an apt way to put it, but… couldn’t you find something a little nicer?” I asked.
“It’s a fact, though, isn’t it?” she asked. “But it’s their country, right? Can their minds be changed that easily?”
I said, “In my old world there’s a proverb: ‘Oppressive government is fiercer than a tiger.’ In this case, I guess I would say, ‘Tyranny is more loathsome than an invader.’ The people don’t move according to moral codes or ethics. If their own country is beneficial to them, they’ll defend it from foreign threats, but if another country is more advantageous to them, they’ll actively work to open the castle gates to them.”
When I said that, Liscia sighed. “When I’m walking alongside you, I only see how people act in hard times.”
“Have you gotten sick of it?” I asked.
““Bring it on!”” Liscia and Aisha both cried,
For some reason, Aisha had joined in on that one, too.
“Why did you say it, too, Aisha?!” I burst out.
“If Your Majesty walks alongside me, then no road is hard!” Aisha declared proudly.
Talk about being way too loyal. If she kept it up, she was going to earn herself a nickname like “The King’s Dog.”
Looking at Aisha, Liscia giggled. “I feel the same. If I’m with you, I feel like I can accept any reality.”
“…I see,” I said. “Well, let’s head back.”
Head back to our country, where everyone is waiting.
— One week later.
When Jeanne returned to the Gran Chaos Empire and reached the castle in the imperial capital, she was immediately summoned by her sister, Empress Maria, without even a moment to catch her breath. Though somewhat exasperated, she dragged her feet up to Maria’s governmental affairs office, where she found her sister standing in the middle of the room, waiting for her.
Usually, at this time, there would still be bureaucrats busily working away, but today Maria must have cleared the room because she stood there alone. With a soft smile on her face, the elegance with which she stood there carried a hint of her majesty as an empress.
Jeanne brought one hand to her bosom, bowing to Maria. “Sister. I have just now returned from the princely capital, Van.”
“It is good to have you back, Jeanne,” said the Empress. “How did things go?”
“There were some issues, but it went more or less as we had hoped,” said Jeanne. “Van and its surrounding territory have been returned from the Elfrieden Kingdom to the Principality of Amidonia.”
“Excellent,” said Maria. “You have served me well…Now, then.” Maria clapped her hands and smiled. “That’s it for work mode. Welcome home, Jeanne!”
Maria burst down from her throne and rushed over to hug Jeanne.
“S-Sister?!” The sudden hug threw Jeanne into a confused panic. “What’s this, all of a sudden?! This is conduct unbefitting an Empress, you know?!”
“Well, I was lonely, not being able to see you for so long,” Maria complained. “Everyone outside the family gives me the Your Imperial Majesty treatment, and our other sister is cooped up in her laboratory, the same as ever!”
“Don’t give me that! You’re not a child anymore!”
Even as she protested, Jeanne patted Maria on the back. She was aware of the solitude and the heavy burden her sister had to contend with as Empress, so she didn’t want to push her away.
When Maria let go, she went over to sit down on the magnificent bed installed at the side of the office and patting the spot beside her, encouraging Jeanne to come have a seat too.
“So, so, what kind of gentleman was Sir Souma?” Maria asked eagerly.
When she saw her sister with her eyes shining, like a child badgering her parent for a bedtime story, Jeanne felt a headache starting to come on. However, it seemed unlikely she would be dismissed until she talked about it, so Jeanne gave up and decided to tell her what happened during the talks.
“All right,” Jeanne relented. “First, let me tell you what happened when I went to scout out Van…”
Jeanne explained the course of events from when she’d met Souma on a street corner in Van until their agreement to form a secret pact. As Jeanne told the story, Maria’s expression changed rapidly. She looked relieved when she learned that Souma wasn’t upset about being summoned, and that he fully understood their intent.
When she heard Souma had said, “Monsters and demons may have the same relationship as what this continent refers to as mankind and animals,” she wore an expression of surprise and uncertainty.
When she heard that something called a spaghetti bun that they had eaten during the conference was delicious…
“Jeanne, that’s not fair!” Maria cried, puffing up her cheeks angrily.
It had been some time since Jeanne had seen her sister so animated while listening to her. She was probably excited.
The greatest explosion of emotion came when Jeanne talked about the secret pact, Souma’s proposal that the Empire would defend the west, while the kingdom would defend the east. When Maria heard that, she threw herself back on the bed holding her belly as she laughed.
Jeanne was taken aback by her sister’s reaction. “Sister. I don’t think it’s really anything to laugh about, is it?”
“Hehehe… S-Sorry. It’s just so funny,” Maria said as she wiped away the tears that had formed in the corners of her eyes from laughing too much.
“Funny?” Jeanne asked incredulously.
“I mean, think about it,” said Maria. “Not that long ago, we had to show special consideration towards that country because they had declined so much, but at some point, they turned into a trustworthy ally who can handle the eastern side of the continent for us. I feel like I’ve been tricked by some fairy’s illusion.”
“Well… it’s true, events are moving at a blindingly quick pace,” said Jeanne.
“Yes. Yes, that’s precisely it, Jeanne.” Maria ‘s smile suddenly vanished, her face entirely serious. “Hey, Jeanne. Do you remember how a hero is defined in the kingdom?”
“It was in the reports, yes,” said Jeanne. “If I recall… it was, ‘One who leads the change of an era,’ right?”
“Yes,” said Maria. “Not ‘One who defeats the Demon Lord’ or ‘One who conquers the world,’ but ‘One who leads the change of an era.’ Souma was summoned as a hero, but all he does is administrative work, so some people doubt whether he truly is a hero.”
“It’s true, he doesn’t feel quite like what we’d expect from a hero,” Jeanne said. “He didn’t seem all that strong, after all.”
Maria nodded. “You’re right. I think he’s a long way from what we envision as a hero. But what if we avoid getting caught up on that image, and to instead evaluate him as ‘One who leads the change of an era’? When you think of the speed things have been moving lately, don’t you feel like the times are changing?”
When she heard that, Jeanne gulped.
Maria rose to her feet and walked over to the windowsill. “He sounds like a more interesting person than I expected. Oh, I do hope I can talk to him in person soon.”
Looking to the eastern sky, Maria smiled softly.
Extra Story: The Story of a Certain Group of Adventurers 3
The adventurers’ guild.
They would buy relics or materials harvested from monsters found in dungeons explored by adventurers, who made their living doing so. They also were an intermediary for quests that involved things such as dangerous beast eradication, protection of merchants, and slaying of monsters that came out of dungeons.
Because adventurers traveled around many countries, the adventurers’ guild was independent from the states it operated in.