The King's Return (4)
This memory was a fragment of time Luna had always cherished deep within her heart.
It was a day from that brief stretch of peace after she had met Swen at Zeiland Castle — after they had accomplished several things that had once seemed impossible, and lived side by side for a little while.
"Swen!"
When she passed through the audience chamber and found her way to the office tucked into a corner of the small royal castle, there he would be — the first outsider they had ever recruited, the man who had effectively taken on the role of state strategist, the sole intellect of the Lunarien Army. A handsome young man with white hair, quill in hand, drawing something.
"You've arrived, my lord."
"What are you working on?"
"I was drawing a map."
She stepped closer for a look and found a map of the terrain surrounding Zeiland Castle, rendered in considerable detail.
"Wow... Swen, were you originally a cartographer?"
"Nothing of the sort. I've simply traveled around quite a bit."
His skin was rather too clean for someone who claimed to have wandered the continent far and wide, but Luna did not bother questioning his words.
She trusted Swen.
He was the only one who had chosen her. If she did not believe in him, who would?
Indeed, after he arrived, vitality had begun to stir within the Lunarien Army. Her childhood friend Tifa was one thing, but Kane — who had suddenly come seeking refuge one day — had been a rather listless general who merely did as he was told. Yet as Swen continued to produce remarkably impressive results, Kane himself seemed to find renewed motivation and began engaging more actively in internal affairs.
Honestly, Luna herself had changed just as much. Securing a small territory by luck and raising her own banner had been a joyous thing, but she had continually crashed against the harsh realities of the world, waiting for the day she would be conquered by the Brans Army like the other minor powers around them... until he arrived. Then hope appeared — the thought that maybe, just maybe, she could actually do this.
All of it had begun with Swen's arrival.
And so Luna found herself saying it again.
"You're truly amazing, Swen. Really."
"..."
Hearing this, Swen set down his quill for a moment, then looked toward Luna and let out a short sigh. It might have been an inappropriate gesture for a subordinate before a nation's sovereign, but Luna was not the type to fuss over such things.
"My lord. As I mentioned last time... wouldn't it be better if you used informal speech with me rather than honorifics, even when we're alone?"
"But this feels more comfortable for me."
"Your comfort is important, of course, but to become the sovereign of a unified continent, one must display dignity before one's subordinates. I am merely a general in your service, Lady Luna. Using honorifics before me is not a good look."
"I understand what you're saying... but our nation is still small. When the time comes, I'll make sure to use informal speech as you say!"
"..."
Swen looked at Luna for a moment, then turned his head away again. Watching him, a question suddenly occurred to her.
"Swen. May I ask you just one thing?"
"Please, my lord."
"Can I truly become the sovereign who unifies the continent?"
At those words, Swen's hand stopped again. Then he slowly turned his head and asked,
"What do you mean by that?"
"Well, you always tell me things like 'you must cultivate the dignity of a unifying sovereign' and 'if you're going to unify the continent, you can't do this.' It's a little embarrassing to say this myself, but..."
Luna pressed her fingers together and lowered her head, her face flushing.
"It's just... even I can see that our nation has far too many shortcomings to be called a power capable of unifying the continent... We're managing Zeiland Castle somehow, and we've kept repelling the Brans Army, but... it feels like you're speaking with such certainty about it."
"Of course, since it's your word, Swen, and since it's my own dearest wish, it's not that I don't believe in the will to achieve it or the possibility... but somehow... um... ahaha, I can't seem to organize the words in my head..."
Luna herself knew. She knew she was still immature. Hadn't Tifa scolded her time and again for being too soft-hearted to be a sovereign?
And yet Swen continued to give orders with the assumption that she would become the unifying sovereign. Everything he had said so far had proven correct in the end, but even Luna couldn't help wondering why he placed such absolute faith in her. Especially for someone as earnest as Luna.
Swen listened, gazed into the distance for a moment — then met Luna's eyes and spoke.
"Well, Lady Luna, there is indeed a condition under which you can certainly become the unifying sovereign."
"A condition?"
"If you promise not to laugh when you hear it, I'll gladly tell you."
Startled, Luna waved her hands vigorously.
"Laugh? I... I would never laugh at anything you say, Swen...!"
Swen put on a serious expression, as if steeling himself for something. Then he said —
"Just follow everything I say."
"Excuse me?"
"In other words, do everything I tell you to do. Don't question anything I order. Just do as I say. Before you know it, you'll naturally have become the unifying sovereign."
Luna stood there blankly for a moment at Swen's utterly serious words... then gradually began to smile.
"...I see. I really did ask something pointless, didn't I... Of course I should follow your guidance and work hard. Honestly. A question like that has no meaning at all, but since it came from a sovereign... you just gave me a suitable answer, right? I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking carefully enough."
"No. I wasn't giving a suitable answer. I'm quite serious."
"Oh, Swen. Hehe... Still, I think I understand what I did wrong."
Of course. If someone simply said "just follow everything I say," it would only sound like a joke to the listener. So why had he made a joke? From Luna's perspective, it wasn't hard to figure out with a little thought.
To Swen, Luna's question was essentially meaningless. Asking "Can I really do this?" was no different from childish whining. So perhaps Swen had simply given a perfunctory answer to her foolish question. She needed to realize that asking such a question was wrong in the first place.
Come to think of it, even at their very first meeting, Swen had asked her to promise him her absolute trust. Thinking of that — his answer made sense.
Some time passed. Swen let out another short sigh and spoke.
"My lord, you clearly need to become a bit colder. A sovereign of a nation must be able to reach their hand into dirty places. There will be times when you must stain your hands with filthy blood. Noble ideals alone do not make a sovereign."
"Can I... do that?"
"It's not a matter of whether you can. You must."
"...That's a difficult thing to hear... It makes me think again that this might be beyond me, and I feel sorry for no reason."
To the dejected Luna, Swen paused for a breath —
"...Still, your strength is that no matter what you do, you seem like the kind of person who would never lose those noble ideals. As long as that heart doesn't change, you'll surely be able to paint the future of the continent you've dreamed of."
"Swen..."
Hearing his words, Luna lowered her head, her face flushing red. This man... sometimes it felt as if he had appeared before her specifically to complete her — he always said the things she most wanted to hear, the things she most needed, and it made her heart feel strangely unsettled.
Swen said nothing more, turning back to pick up his quill and resume scratching away. Then, as if tossing it out casually —
"Don't worry too much, my lord. There's no need to be impatient. No matter how meager and difficult our situation is now, in the end, we win."
"...!!"
In the end, we win.
Strangely... that sentence wrapped around Luna's body like a legendary spell. It carried a sacred quality, as if everything would truly come to pass exactly as he said.
"So don't lose heart. As long as nothing unexpected happens, I'll be by your side, Lady Luna."
That confidence, overflowing with certainty. She could feel it glittering before her eyes — a piece that had never existed in the Lunarien Army, yet was absolutely essential for realizing their dreams.
Luna answered the man who now felt so thoroughly like her strategist that she couldn't even imagine anyone else in the role, with a bright smile.
"...Yes!"
"I remember what you said about giving me your absolute trust. Don't tell me that was a lie?"
That's right.
"I'm not trying to become a sacrifice. As your vassal, I've simply chosen the best move available. I will survive. And we will definitely meet again."
Swen is waiting for me.
The fateful day. The day he bore everything for their sake and sacrificed himself. The white-haired man who said he would place the world in her hands, then threw his own body alone into the Brans Army, staking his life solely to protect her — her strategist.
"Lady Lunarien. If you place your trust in me, in return, I will place the world in your hands."
Beyond the realm of mere faith — there had not been a single moment when Luna did not think of that man.
——And now.
Wait a moment...
Only after hearing Tifa's words did Luna recall the fundamental reason she was able to stand in this position, and objectively grasp the current situation.
A unilateral appointment forced through despite Karelia's opposition. The extremely high position of Supreme Commander of the invasion force.
As long as she held this position, Lunarien could redeploy troops however she wished. She could even pull in additional supplies. Since the Supreme Commander would be issuing orders for the war, it wouldn't even need to go up to the sovereign level.
Of course, considering that Vanessa — who wielded considerable influence within the nation — was constantly keeping her in check, even this authority might last only a moment.
Yes.
Luna slowly opened both her hands and looked at them.
If she simply made the decision to betray Karelia, who had trusted her——
——Then into these hands would come Teppelo Castle, a territory of excellent strategic position, along with some ninety-three thousand troops and their supplies.
Would she cast aside honor for practical gain? Or, even in this chaotic age, would she never be the first to abandon her faith?
Luna sensed it instinctively. Whatever decision she made, this choice right now — might change everything that was to come.