To Those Who Could Not Stand Together
The Crown Prince sat beside me, laughing hysterically with “hahaha” after “hahaha,” his eyes completely dazed.
And right now, my state is… honestly, quite embarrassing. It’s absurd.
I killed him. The Luzens leader. With a single shot. One bullet. Instantly, straight to the heart.
No matter how you look at it, the witnesses and the situation have already narrowed it down to me.
It’s ridiculous. I know my own shooting ability better than anyone.
When others were dying and killing each other with guns in war, I was the one scattering bullets to bring peace.
Be careful. Bullets are flying your way. Ah, don’t dodge. Even if you don’t dodge, you won’t get hit!
Thankfully, I was active in close combat, or else I would have been suspected of being a Gganf spy and had no one to blame.
“That’s how it was… No, what kind of nonsense is this? Why did I aim at the enemy formation instead of the empty air and end up hitting the leader’s heart?”
Thinking back, I hadn’t aimed at the empty air. I had roughly targeted their formation and fired.
They would have been panicking if I’d hit the fence, so I was probably just trying to create chaos.
Even if I say it now, I never meant to shoot anyone in particular.
There was no time or opportunity, and above all, I never intended to.
I ended up throwing away the useless gun right after firing it.
That’s why the squad leader yelled at me, “Where did you throw the gun?” and “Are you going to throw away your girlfriend too?” and gave me a thorough beating.
Anyway, I killed the Luzens leader. Me. With a single bullet.
It wasn’t intentional, but it was so perfect that it could be described as a sharp-shooter taking a long-range shot and withdrawing.
“Wait a second. Is this really okay?”
Did I save my allies by ignoring the Luzens? That’s not a big problem. There are plenty of others who earned honors on the battlefield.
Did I stop a terror attack? Did I protect the international students? That’s also fine. I received the Medal of Honor.
Even if all three of those spread out across the Empire, I don’t think there’s any real issue.
But killing the Luzens leader is different. If this gets out, it could become really troublesome.
It’s not just reporters showing up or receiving another medal.
The remaining Gganf are likely to gnash their teeth and try to hurt me somehow.
If it’s just me they’re targeting, it’s not a big deal. I have no intention of letting them harm me.
The problem is that their rage could spill over to innocent people.
They might use others to hurt me.
Where am I right now? At the Academy. And the people close to me? Students.
They’re far from the battlefield. If the Gganf really decide to fight to the death, it could be disastrous.
Perhaps even in a place filled only with peace, not war, someone might have to watch a death.
“…Your Highness the Crown Prince.”
Once I reached that conclusion, it was clear. It absolutely could not be revealed to the outside world.
Even if the insiders knew, even if important people knew, even if the truth eventually got announced to the Empire. At least not now.
“I’m truly sorry, but if I may ask for just one favor…”
“I know what a favor from Karl’s group means.”
“Eh?”
“It’s about keeping the Luzens leader’s death a secret, right? Am I wrong?”
The Crown Prince rubbed the back of my neck and let out a groan.
“Of course I’ll do that. Look at Karl now. He’s doing well at the Academy. But if that fact gets out, the remaining Luzens will do who knows what. Killing the leader is a completely different matter. They’ll think they have to seek revenge no matter what.”
“Ah…”
“Looking at Karl’s actions so far, you’re not worrying about yourself but about those around you getting hurt. That’s why you’re concerned, right? It’s a perfectly valid worry. If it were the Luzens, they’d scream for revenge even if it meant harming those around you.”
The Crown Prince patted my shoulder a few times.
His gesture felt like he was saying, “Trust me on this.” My confidence rose.
“Karl, I won’t let you face any trouble. The Empire has pride, and the Imperial Family has pride too. Would they really do something to a Medal of Honor recipient?”
“Your words honor me.”
“Of course. It’s only right to protect the Empire’s citizens and treat heroes with respect. I ask for favors and keep you from trouble. If even this isn’t done, why would the Imperial Family exist?”
Um. Suddenly my loyalty to the Empire and the Imperial Family surged. Is this my delusion?
Honestly, this is how it should be. If you sacrificed for the country, you should do this. Damn, are you listening? You military special privileges guys! I should just stuff a bullet in your heads.
“Your Highness, then was the invitation to the meeting hall from the Heigens side also because of this?”
“That’s not it. Well… by now the upper echelons of Heigens would have heard this news, so it could be a reason. But from my perspective, the reason I called Karl was something else.”
If it’s something else… um, the train terror and stopping the Academy international students’ attack, right?
Thinking about it, besides the Empire, there was another place that benefited greatly from my actions.
And that force naturally took the opposite stance from the Luzens: the Heigens.
“If I thought either the train terror or the Academy attack succeeded, or both, the Empire’s hatred for elves that had cooled down would have flared up again.”
Would that flame only burn the Luzens? From what I see, no.
At first they’d just curse the Luzens. Those Gganf bastards. Then it would turn into hatred for all elves, making their feelings toward Heigens extremely negative.
The Imperial Family couldn’t ignore such nationwide anti-elf sentiment. And if hatred continued within Heigens, traitors who wanted to side with the Luzens might appear.
No matter what, it would flow the way the Luzens wanted.
The Empire would fight the elves again. The elves would realize they could never unite with the Empire. Isn’t this exactly the result the damn Gganf bastards wanted after giving their lives?
“…For these reasons, from the Heigens’ perspective, Karl, you are truly the greatest benefactor and benefactor. You crushed all the Luzens’ evil deeds and prevented the elves’ image from falling to the bottom. It seems you want to convey your gratitude directly.”
Now I can add that I’m grateful for the assassination of the hardline leader as well, unofficially.
The Crown Prince finished speaking, took a sip from the teacup in his hand, and nodded as if to say “That’s it.” That Crown Prince, Your Highness. Self-praise is a bit much though…
“Karl, do you not like tea? You should have a cup too.”
“Ah, no, thank you. And it’s an honor. You personally poured the tea for me…”
“I can tell Karl isn’t very close to tea.”
Huh. How did he know? Honestly, I was wondering why I was drinking this leaf tea.
The Empire’s Crown Prince really is something special. Is this guy using some kind of sonic energy? Reading people’s minds and saying “You’re a traitor? You’re being purged”? No way.
Anyway, the reason I came to see Karl in person was exactly that. I wanted to hear it directly. What exactly happened that day. Whether Karl really fired the gun on the spot. In the end, I got the Empire’s hero to become a hero, and again a hero.
By the way, are you thinking of receiving another Medal of Honor?
At those words, I gulped down the tea I was drinking and said, “Two would be enough.” Here, I’d be making a bulletproof vest if I got any more. Your Highness.
The Crown Prince finished his cup of tea and stood up, saying he was going back.
Looking at him like this, the Crown Prince of this great Empire didn’t seem like a Crown Prince but just like a student at the Academy.
“Be there at the Medal of Honor ceremony. Karl. You can look forward to it. Since it’s hosted by the Crown Prince, it’ll be grander than when the Crown Princess was there, I hope.”
“I-I’ll be looking forward to it.”
If I’d known this, I would have just gone to the palace to receive it.
*
“Dear honored guests. First, let us pray to our protector and guide, the Divine.”
“Oh. Deja vu? I heard this kind of opening not long ago too.”
I glanced around. Not only the Academy students and staff, but also the Empire’s senior officials had gathered. Several high nobles who are hard to see normally were there.
Those standing there seem to be the heads of the families belonging to the Four Musketeers’ faction. After the ceremony, I should go and say, “Please give those successor kids a good scolding!”
“Next, the Crown Prince’s Medal of Honor presentation will begin.”
Humans are animals that adapt, right? The second Medal of Honor ceremony wasn’t as embarrassing as the first.
Applause poured out and the Academy was about to erupt in cheers, but now it was fine…
“The Empire’s hero! Come here! Let’s hug!”
“…”
No. Cancel. It’s not fine. It’s even more embarrassing. Kyaaah! Your Highness the Crown Prince, why are you doing this? Really!
Before the Medal of Honor ceremony, the Crown Prince suddenly grabbed me and hugged me tightly.
I was bewildered by what was happening when the Crown Prince patted my back.
And the words he said lingered in my heart for a long time.
“To those who could not stand together with you, there is also glory. The moment you remember them is the moment the Empire is great. The moment you forget all of them is the moment the Empire disappears.”