While I was thinking about that, we arrived at the room which was our destination.
In front of the door, Hakuya stepped aside to make way for me, standing with his back to the window across from the door. He probably meant to wait here. I hadn’t forbidden him from entering the room, but Hakuya had decided to refrain from doing so on his own. Then, crossing his arms in front of himself, he gave me a respectful nod.
“I have the Black Cats patrolling the area,” he said. “Take as long as you need to talk.”
“Got it.”
I nodded, then opened the door and entered through it.
When I closed the door, the room suddenly became dim. In the room with flickering candlelight, what caught my eye was the king-size bed, and the moonlit terrace beyond it. The people I was looking for were drinking tea at the glass table by the windowsill. When I approached, those people put down their teacups and rose.
“Why, Sir Souma, it’s been some time.”
“It’s good to see you again, Your Majesty.”
I greeted the two who had welcomed me here. “It has been a while, Sir Albert and Lady Elisha.”
The ones waiting for me were Liscia’s parents, the former king, Sir Albert, and his queen, Lady Elisha.
“Have some,” Elisha said.
“Thank you,” I said.
When I took the proffered cup of tea, former queen Elisha gave me a broad smile. Lady Elisha was like Liscia, only calmer, with a more womanly sexiness. Would Liscia eventually become like her? If so, I had a lot to look forward to as we grew older.
I was sitting at the glass table, with Sir Albert across from me.
Having finished making us tea, Lady Elisha stood in waiting behind Sir Albert. It seemed she intended to stick to the role of server.
…When I thought about it, I hadn’t spoken much with Lady Elisha, had I? She was my mother-in-law to be, but she was a woman of few words, always just standing at Sir Albert’s side with a warm smile. From what Liscia had told me, she had always been a quiet person who never said much.
While I was thinking that, Sir Albert opened his mouth to speak.
“I am glad that you have come here today,” Sir Albert greeted me and then smiled gently. “I would also like to congratulate you on your victory in the war with the Principality of Amidonia and subsequent annexation of the principality. It has only been half a year since I passed you the crown, and yet your deeds are great. I believe, with your accomplishments, you needn’t be embarrassed if people call you ‘Souma the Great.’”
“No… It was only possible with Liscia and everyone else’s help.” I took a sip of tea and looked Sir Albert straight in the face. “Finally, we’re able to meet.”
“I am sorry for making you wait so long,” the former king said and bowed his head to me.
I had sought to meet with Sir Albert a number of times before today: when I hadn’t known anything, when I’d wanted to have him convince the three dukes to cooperate, and when I’d requested his help in convincing Castor not to rebel against the sudden change of power. Then, once I’d understood everything, I had asked for an audience a number of times to seek an explanation.
However, each time I’d asked, he’d said:
In the earlier instances, “This country is yours now. It is not my place to do anything.”
In the later instances, “I will reveal everything to you soon. Please, wait until then.”
And that was all I could get out of him.
Once he’d started saying, “I will tell you soon,” all I could do was wait for him to do so. Because, if I pressed him, there would be no way to be sure he was telling me the truth.
At last, today, I was here because he’d said he would tell me everything.
“You’re going to tell me everything, right?” I asked.
“If that is what you wish,” Albert said.
“I think it’s time you finally cleared some things up for me. Like what you were thinking.”
He’d said he would tell me everything. I figured I might as well go down the list.
“I have three things I want to ask you. The first is about when you ceded the throne to me. At that point, when I had just been summoned to this world, we were meeting for the first time. Yet, just from hearing my plan to enrich the country and strengthen the military, you turned over the throne to me. With a betrothal to Liscia as a nice bonus. That did give me the freedom to move, but… it was also unnatural. Why were you able to give your crown to some kid from another world whom you had only just met so easily?”
Sir Albert listened to me in silence. It seemed he meant to answer only once he had heard everything I had to say. In that case, I might as well ask him everything I had to ask at once.
“The second concerns Georg’s devotion. Our former General of the Army, Georg Carmine, took all of the blame on himself while committing suicide and taking all of those who might become my enemies with him. Looking at the result, and even considering the letters Liscia sent to try to convince him, I have to think that Georg had prepared this plan in advance. That’s bizarre, too. I only met Georg once at the very end. He put his life on the line for this plan, so he shouldn’t have been able to do it without trust in and loyalty to me.”
Albert was silent.
“Georg and I weren’t even passingly acquainted. There was no way he could feel loyalty toward someone he’d never even met. Well, who was his loyalty toward, then? I can only think… it would be you, the former king.”
I had tried to verify that when I’d met Georg. But: “When the proper time comes, I am sure that person will tell you themselves” was all that the man would say. Today must have been that proper time he was talking about.
“Lastly, why did you refuse to meet me up until today? If you were waiting for everything to be settled, you could have done that after the victory of Amidonia or the annexation. Why did I have to wait until today for an opportunity to meet you? I want to hear that, too.”
“…Is that everything?” Albert asked.
“More or less,” I said. “Let me ask about the finer details as I listen to your explanation.”
“I understand.” Nodding, Sir Albert began to speak at a relaxed pace. “First, I want to say, there is one thing that connects all three of those points you raise.”
“One thing?”
“Before I explain that, I want to answer your three questions. It was because we were coming to a decision. On whether we should answer you or not. We thought it might be best to continue telling you nothing…”
I was silent.
“However, my heart is not so strong that I can keep the sins I’ve committed locked away inside it,” he added.
The sins he’d committed? What was he talking about?
“Sir Souma… Have you ever wished you could live your life over once more?” Albert suddenly asked me.
I answered him, somewhat suspicious. “…All the time.”
A lot had happened since I’d been handed the throne. I had carried out disaster relief, and experienced war. I couldn’t help but think… hadn’t there been another way? A better way? Couldn’t I have saved more lives? Even when it came to those I fought as enemies and cut down, I sometimes thought that, maybe, we could have come to an understanding. Even though I knew it wasn’t reasonable to think that.
“But why do you ask?” I went on.
“What I am about to tell you is the story of a certain world, a certain country, and a certain foolish king,” Albert said.
With that introduction, Sir Albert began to smoothly relate this tale.
In a certain country, there was a king.
The king was not wise, but nor was he a fool. He did not govern well, but he did not govern poorly, either. That was the mediocre sort of king he was.