For the first time, her uncertain eyes peeked out from behind the hood. Her moist eyes were like those of an abandoned puppy. When Colbert saw her like that, he hurriedly said “No!” and shook his head.
“You were trying to save this country in a different way from Lord Gaius!” he declared. “That’s why you never got along with Gaius or Julius, who put ideology before the people, and you feel a kinship with King Souma who always looks at things through the eyes of his people! That is the true proof you are the princess of this country!”
When Colbert said that, Roroa, who had just moments before had the look of an abandoned puppy, said, “Y’sure? Well, good,” then started chuckling to herself.
W-Were those crocodile tears?!
Even the mild-mannered Colbert was ready to snap at her for that, but he reconsidered. Roroa was capable of pretending to be sad, but she was also capable of pretending to be pretending to be sad. Only Roroa knew what she truly felt. So… Colbert said nothing.
Then, suddenly, Roroa pulled back her hood. With her two ponytails hanging forward in front of her, Roroa’s adorable face came into view. Colbert’s eyes opened wide with surprise.
“Princess, what do you think you’re doing?! We are in hiding, you realize?! What if someone sees you?!” he exclaimed.
“Everyone’s busy watchin’ the music program,” she said. “They ain’t gonna be lookin’ at either of us. But, before we talk about that, as the man I’m gonna be up against, I was thinkin’ I should burn the image of Souma’s face into my eyes now.”
In Roroa’s eyes, Souma was a plain, ordinary young man, the kind you could find anywhere. However, she was also well aware that there was more to him than met the eye. A normal person couldn’t restore a declining kingdom, or defeat the three dukes and the principality. He was a difficult opponent to gauge precisely because he looked so normal.
Roroa put her hood back on, pulling Colbert by the arm as she walked away. “Now then, we’ve got some preparin’ of our own to do. Souma moves faster than I thought.”
“…Ah! Yes, ma’am!” Colbert said.
Thinking that this was where things would begin in earnest, Colbert wore a serious expression on his face. As she walked, Roroa turned back, looking at the image of Souma projected by the receiver, and giggled.
Now that you’ve gotten us in the mood, don’t go thinkin’ we’ll let you run off while you’re ahead, she thought. You’re gonna have to take responsibility for it. Oh, yes, you are. Better get yourself ready, Souma! ♪
With Juna’s song finished, it was Pamille’s turn again. We didn’t have enough loreleis yet, so for today’s broadcast, each of them was going to sing two songs.
When Pamille’s turn ended, I waited for Nanna to begin her second song, and then dragged Aisha off to somewhere out of sight, where we wouldn’t show up in the broadcast.
“Wh-What is it, sire?” she asked. “We’re still live, you know?”
“I told you there was something I was worried about during this broadcast, yeah?” I said. “It’s what comes up after Nanna.”
When she heard those words, Aisha took on a serious expression.
I quietly told her, “When the next act begins, I’m counting on you as my bodyguard.”
“Wha?! You don’t mean to say Madam Juna would do somethi—mmmph.”
Even though we were still in the middle of the broadcast, Aisha had started to raise her voice, so I’d covered her mouth with my hand.
Once she’d calmed down, I silently shook my head. “It’s not Juna. In between Nanna and Juna’s second songs, we have a singer who jumped in to participate at the last minute.”
“Mmph… I–I never heard about that!” Aisha cried.
“Like I said, she jumped in at the last minute,” I said. “We decided on it suddenly, right before we went live. Besides, if I’d warned you in advance, I figured you’d be too busy thinking about it and you’d flub your lines.”
“Murrgh… I can’t deny it,” she said.
Oh, come on… I thought.
Still, I clapped her on the shoulder. “So, there you have it. I’m counting on you if it comes to that. You’re one of the hosts, so you can’t carry your greatsword, but do you want to keep a smaller weapon on you?”
“No, in that case, I’m better off bare-handed… Wait, is this person that dangerous?!” Aisha exclaimed.
“Nah… I think, probably, it won’t be an issue,” I said. “I’m just taking out some insurance.”
“Insurance, I see… Understood. I will protect you to the death, sire.”
Aisha thumped her chest once. It usually made a metallic clang because of her armor, but today Aisha was in a cocktail dress. The ample bosom that was usually hidden beneath her armor swayed, so I turned away in embarrassment because I didn’t know where to look.
Now, then… Let’s see how this goes.
“This music program sure is nice…” someone in the crowd said.
By the time they had finished listening to Nanna’s second song, an air of relaxation had set in for the Amidonian viewers. They were sincerely enjoying the music program. Judging by the order of things so far, Juna Doma was up next. They were even excited to hear her singing again.
However, that air was all but blown away in the next instant.
A woman appeared on the screen. She looked to be somewhere between thirty and forty years old. She stood nearly two meters tall, with a build so muscular that it was apparent even through the military uniform she wore. There was a sharp glint in her eye, and she wore her hair slicked back, so it was hard to tell what her gender was.
In fact, the only ones who knew that she was female were the viewers in the principality. It turned out viewers in the kingdom thought she was a guy in drag.
Souma and Aisha appeared on the screen next to the woman. Souma still had his forced smile on, but Aisha was looking at the woman warily.
“Now, we have a surprise guest participant,” said Souma. “It’s the Amidonian commander, Margarita Wonder. While the troops garrisoned in Van were withdrawing, Ms. Wonder remained here to monitor whether we were respecting the agreement and not harming the people.”
The people of Van nodded. That sounds exactly like Madam Wonder, they thought.
Despite living in the Principality of Amidonia, where it was hard for women to make a successful career for themselves, her extraordinary martial prowess and ability to lead had let her rise to the rank of general, and she was now an experienced warrior. Her martial ability and stern appearance made her feared by the people, but she had also gained their trust for her reputation as a fair and upright individual.
Still, that made it all the harder for them to understand. What was Madam Wonder doing here, next to Souma?
“Ms. Wonder was a prisoner of war, but the reason for her capture being what it was, we had her under house arrest,” said Souma. “However, when she heard about this broadcast, she said, ‘I’d like you to let me sing, too,’ and volunteered to participate.”
Souma was talking in a cheery tone, but Margarita herself was silent. That difference in enthusiasm between the two of them was palpable, and it sent a chill running down the spines of the residents of Van.
“Hey… is something about to happen?” someone in the crowd wondered.
“You don’t think Madam Wonder would use this as a chance to try and kill Souma, do you?”