The Price of a Miracle

"And for some reason, the latter sounds far more plausible to me."

Soldiers stepped forward and led her away. The Master of Arcana furrowed her brow for a moment, then turned her head back.

"We will speak again... formally. You and I are destined to meet again."

She gave me one last, lingering look with eyes that seemed to pierce through everything before she finally walked away.

I lightly scratched my cheek.

I actually wanted to tell her it was the former.

But seeing her so completely absorbed in her own dramatic monologue, I simply couldn't bring myself to interrupt. Besides, I was planning to seek asylum soon anyway, so I didn't see much point in clearing up the misunderstanding.

More than that...

I looked up at the sky. There were an unusually large number of birds flying around today.

Step.

Hearing footsteps behind me, I lowered my gaze.

"Did I interrupt your thoughts?"

Arsen had approached and stood beside me as I watched the birds. His expression was far softer than before.

This battle had ended without a single casualty on our side, and it had completely shifted the course of the war. For Arsen, the Grand General leading the legion, this was an achievement no one could ever hope to eclipse.

"Your contributions will be reported to the crown without omission."

"Your sentiment alone is more than enough, General. What I seek is not personal greed... but to convey the will of Lord Ifrit. Besides, the true protagonist of this war is not me."

I pointed down at the soldiers laughing and chatting below the watchtower.

"Are not all those gathered here the true heroes? Therefore, I ask that you downplay my contributions as much as possible."

If I put it this way, Arsen would surely get the hint. He would realize that I truly didn't desire such glory.

However, when I turned my head, I was met with Arsen's deeply apologetic expression.

"...About that, it is already too late."

"What do you mean?"

"...I have already sent out the messenger pigeons."

If it had been an ordinary victory, even he wouldn't have acted so hastily. But this was the Elium Kingdom's very first victory against the Zenith Kingdom after a string of consecutive defeats. It wasn't just a minor skirmish, but a massive clash of legions.

A historic, sweeping victory that had literally rewritten the fate of the kingdom.

Moreover, the manner of victory was entirely different. It wasn't a narrow win achieved after a grueling war of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠attrition. It was an overwhelming, flawless triumph that defied description.

Perhaps sensing what I was about to say, Arsen spoke first.

"I apologize, but I did not send just one."

"That..."

"And I did not send them only to the capital."

Just how many did you send?

Seeing the bewildered look in my eyes, he cleared his throat awkwardly and avoided my gaze.

"The kingdom... needed hope."

Now he was making excuses.

"...So, how many did you send?"

"I sent every single messenger pigeon in our possession to every corner of the nation, save for those absolutely necessary for legion operations."

I looked back up at the sky.

The birds that had been filling the sky since earlier...

They were all messenger pigeons?

By now, they had shrunk to tiny, microscopic dots, vanishing into the far reaches of the horizon.

The landscape of the Elium Kingdom was always the same.

Geographically, it was a nation sandwiched between numerous powerful empires. The soil was not fertile, nor did it overflow with natural resources. Yet, countless nations constantly coveted this land.

It was solely due to its single geographical advantage: its central location.

If one could occupy this territory, they could keep every neighboring nation in check. It was a vital trade hub and the crossroads of the battlefield.

Because of this, the Elium Kingdom had spent centuries merely surviving, constantly battered by the surrounding superpowers.

This perpetual vulnerability had naturally left a deep, lasting mark on the hearts of its people.

To the citizens of Elium, this war in particular had felt like a death ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sentence.

It was a war initiated by the Zenith Kingdom under an absurd, almost nonsensical pretext. Yet, the Elium Kingdom had been unable to utter even a proper word of protest.

And so, the war had begun.

Every piece of news filtering back from the front lines had been utterly bleak.

Defeat after defeat.

Thus, even when he saw the soldiers hurriedly pasting up notices on the walls early in the morning, James simply thought, What will be, will be.

Whatever became of the kingdom's fate, he had to move diligently if he wanted to survive. He still had to put food on the table today, after all.

As he was stepping out of the alleyway—

"Hans?"

His old friend was standing frozen in front of the wall.

No matter how many times James called his name, Hans didn't answer, his eyes glued to the poster.

"What is it... is the news that shocking?"

When Hans slowly turned his head, James instinctively flinched.

Hans's pupils were completely dilated, unfocused.

Just as James was about to take a step back—

"...Shocking? Yes. It is shocking."

Suddenly, a spark of life returned to Hans's vacant eyes.

Staring straight at James, Hans spoke.

"...They say we won."

"What?"

"Our Elium Kingdom... defeated the Zenith Kingdom."

Only then did the poster enter James's field of vision.

It was that familiar piece of paper he had been unconsciously avoiding.

For a moment, even after reading the words, the meaning didn't register.

Only then did he finally understand why Hans had been staring so blankly at the wall.

It took time to comprehend.

It couldn't be helped. The news was simply that unbelievable.

A grand ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠victory where both the enemy commander and their chief strategist were captured alive. It was practically an announcement of the war's end.

As the reality slowly sank in, James felt his ears grow hot, and the voices of the people around him, who were also just receiving the news, began to erupt.

"We won!"

"Long live the Elium Kingdom!"

In the capital of Elium:

In the trade hub of Bahum:

And even in dozens of cities and towns, large and small.

Though there was a slight delay in the news reaching each city depending on its distance, the tidings of victory eventually reached every single corner of the nation without exception.

And at the bottom of those posters, the names of the two heroes of the war were deeply engraved.

— Grand General Arsen Walter Crane
— Grand Pontiff Kaimu Doyunes

"Waaaaaaah!"

"Hooray!"

"Waaaaah!"

The entire city shook with deafening cheers.

Petals rained down from above, and the crowd chanted our names.

Yet, for some reason, I found myself riding at the very front of the legion, right alongside the highest-ranking figures in the kingdom.

To my side, Arsen held up a hand to acknowledge the crowd's cheers, while on the other side, two members of the royal family rode parallel to us.

I couldn't bring myself to rejoice.

My face was being sold to the public in real-time.

"Prophet! We are almost at the inner castle!"

There was another reason why my mind was in such a state of turmoil.

As it turned out, Bardomir Aljan Kraus, the Grand General of the Zenith Kingdom, was a far more influential figure than I had anticipated.

He was of direct royal blood—the younger brother of the current King of Zenith.

The moment he was captured, the Zenith Kingdom immediately declared an unconditional surrender and promised astronomical reparations for the prisoners and the war itself.

And just like that, the war was over.

And in that exact moment, my plan to seek asylum was utterly ruined.

Grand General Bardomir.

And the Master of Arcana, Rachel Auf Krin.

Once those two returned to their homeland... my true identity would be exposed in an instant.

Information carried by regular soldiers takes time to filter up. It has to be cross-referenced, verified, and polished along the way.

But what if the high-ranking commanders who personally directed the war opened their mouths?

The report would go straight to the top. Direct and unfiltered.

Of course, they might not bother to mention me.

But I remembered the look in her eyes.

The last words she had spoken to me that day.

There was no way she would keep quiet.

The gates to the inner castle came into view. I quietly dismounted from my horse.

Now—it was time to meet the Queen.

The royal palace of the Elium Kingdom was silent.

I was guided into an audience chamber adorned with golden silk and draped in deep red carpets. Following the proper etiquette, I slowly knelt.

The figure seated before me.

The one who had lost the rightful king of Elium and had formally ascended the throne in his stead.

The new ruler of the Elium Kingdom.

— Queen Elium la Ericel Ereberk.

She gazed down at me silently. Her eyes were entirely unreadable, making it even more difficult to maintain eye contact.

"Kaimu Doyunes."

She was entirely different from the impression I had gathered from Yerin.

I had heard tales of a fragile queen, a tragic figure forced onto the throne by cruel fate, but as I faced her now, there was not a single trace of such vulnerability.

"You have achieved a monumental feat."

At her words, I offered a mild, defensive deflection.

"I merely... acted in accordance with the divine will."

She blinked slowly, then gave a quiet nod.

"Even so, the fact that his will saved this nation remains unchanged. Especially the miracle you wrought at the Rhine River."

The corners of her lips twitched upward ever so slightly.

I couldn't tell what part of my words had piqued her interest.

"Originally, I had prepared two rewards."

Her voice was calm and steady.

"One was gold and silver. The other was a position. I had intended to grant you only the material reward."

"I was debating it until just moments ago, but our brief conversation has made me certain. Now I understand why Arsen went so far as to establish a new department for you."

She continued slowly.

"Right now, this kingdom needs someone 'trustworthy.' ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Someone who is not swayed by personal greed."

"...Even if it is not me, such people already exist in the kingdom."

"Trustworthy, perhaps. But there is no one whom the people would truly follow and find solace in."

After a brief pause, she raised her hand slightly to signal a servant. A courtier stepped forward and handed me a document.

As I unfurled it, my pupils trembled at the heavy titles written upon the parchment.

"I, too, shall bestow a reward upon you."

"In addition to the rewards Arsen prepared, I shall grant you two things in my name."

"One is a position granted under my personal authority, and the other is my gift to you. A position that grants you absolute authority over all religious affairs within the kingdom."

As if offering an irresistible temptation—

You're not going to reject this, are you?

Her confident expression practically screamed those words.

"What say you?"

...It seemed she was mistaking my sheer dread for deep contemplation.

(...Can't you... just give me the money instead...?)