Reunion and the Empty Seat
"Bess!"
"Sister!"
Still clad in her filthy pilot suit, Beatrix had barely set foot aboard the Rastold Silverion when her sister came running, calling out the childhood nickname. Beatrix threw her arms wide and caught her in a fierce embrace.
"Ah— Sister, wait, I'm filthy…"
She realized too late how grimy her suit was and tried to pull away, but Eirin only held her tighter.
"Thank you… thank you for being alive…"
Eirin buried her face against her sister's shoulder, drinking in the simple miracle of their reunion. Beatrix wanted to demand why it had taken so long, what had happened in all those lost days—but those questions could wait. For now she simply returned the embrace, letting the joy of the moment fill her.
Two sisters with the same noble emerald-green hair, clinging to each other as if the universe itself might try to tear them apart again—the sight carried a quiet, almost magical beauty that left everyone watching moved.
Still unwilling to let the moment end, Eirin took Beatrix by the hand and led her deeper into the ship.
"Come. First a bath. The chef is already preparing every ingredient we have—tell him whatever you want to eat."
Huh. Am I invisible?
Jincheon stood off to the side like an afterthought, watching Eirin refuse even to glance his way. He tilted his head, puzzled.
"And you."
At last Eirin turned those cool, distant eyes on him.
"You worked hard as well. That will be all."
With that she swept away, Beatrix in tow, leaving Jincheon staring after them.
…Ice cold.
Whatever had put that frost in Eirin's voice, it was nothing like her usual self. Jincheon turned toward Heliane and Calsira, who had come out to meet them. The rest of the welcoming party had already withdrawn; only their little group remained in the corridor.
He had expected at least the same warmth Eirin once showed him. Now he opened his mouth to ask what in the world was going on—
"Jincheon."
"Jincheon-nim."
—but the two women spoke first and answered the question before he could voice it.
"You never told her about your true strength."
"When we explained it, she nearly jumped out of her skin."
"…Ah."
Only then did the meaning of that frigid stare become clear. She was furious that he had kept the full measure of his power from her.
"I forgot."
"Haaah."
Heliane sighed as if she had expected exactly that answer.
"At first she looked ready to burst into tears. She kept asking us how we could stay so calm. We hesitated—telling her felt dangerous—but she was going to find out eventually, so we had no choice."
"You did the right thing. This one's on me. I meant to tell her at the proper moment and just… let it slip."
Jincheon scratched the back of his head, blaming himself for missing the window.
He headed for the baths to wash the salt and grime from his skin, and the questions that had piled up finally began to spill out.
"Levin Poltein. That bastard?"
The question was clipped and incomplete, yet both women nodded at once.
"Once he joined the rebels, the front stalled completely. To make matters worse, two of our star systems fell one after another. Morale took a hard hit."
He had already guessed Poltein was the reason things had bogged down, but the loss of entire systems was news he had not expected. No wonder the loyalist advance had slowed to a crawl.
"And that knight's mecha is said to be top-tier A-class."
"Top-tier A-class…"
"Speed, power, durability—everything is exceptional. But the real problem is the same high-mobility fighting style you use, Jincheon-nim, the kind that ignores recoil completely. We're lucky we watched you fight up close; without that experience we would have been shot down more times than I can count."
Poltein's machine was the strongest mecha Jincheon had ever faced. And they were calling something of that caliber merely top-tier A-class.
Just how far does S-class go, then?
Even in a galaxy of hundreds of billions of planets and dozens of nations, S-class mechas numbered fewer than ten. They were true strategic weapons—capable of crippling ordinary battleships and cruisers in a single blow, of rendering even dreadnoughts combat-ineffective in moments. Anything that could roam a battlefield with that kind of power deserved the title.
Curiosity about S-class machines stirred, but for the moment Jincheon simply let the hot water wash the salt from his skin.
"So how did you finally manage to come get us?"
He understood why the war had stalled because of Levin Poltein. What he still did not understand was how a rescue had become possible at all.
"That…"
As Heliane explained, Jincheon's eyes went round with surprise.
"Lady Beatrix, here you are. Please eat as much as you like."
The chef hired from loyalist territory set down a feast fit for royalty. Fresh from her bath, Beatrix brightened at the sight of the lavish spread.
"If there is anything else you desire, simply say the word."
"Mm. Thank you."
She carved a thick slice of meat with knife and fork and placed it in her mouth. The flesh was tender, still rich with juices, the sauce perfectly seasoned—luxury that made her tongue sing.
Delicious.
She had to admit it rivaled anything she had ever tasted in the imperial palace. She savored every bite.
"Jin…"
Yet across from her, where Jincheon should have been tearing into food with bare hands like a barbarian, there was only an empty chair.
—I marinated it in the wild spices that grow on this island and roasted it.
—Well? Good, right?
—Catch that one!
—Got it! Tonight's dinner is settled!
The empty seat brought every memory of the deserted island flooding back. Catching fish on the beach and grilling them together. Digging clams from the mudflats and roasting them inside bamboo. Roaming from island to island, eating the meat of freshly hunted animals. As the days passed, Jincheon had gathered native plants and turned them into spices and seasonings of his own.
It's missing something.
Compared with those meals, this feast—however exquisite—felt incomplete. Objectively the food here was far superior. No matter how skilled Jincheon was, wild plants alone could never match centuries of refined seasoning and technique. And yet, no matter how much she ate, no matter how her tongue rejoiced, a hollow place remained in her chest.
Jincheon.
The man who had shared every hardship, who had hunted and gathered and cooked beside her over open flames, was not here. That absence only deepened the emptiness.
"I have a question."
"Yes, my lady?"
The attendant serving her stepped closer and bowed.
"The man who drifted with me—Jincheon. What is he doing now?"
"Her Majesty the Empress Dowager gave no particular instructions regarding him."
"Sis— the Empress Dowager?"
"Yes."
Beatrix tilted her head, a strange feeling settling over her. She had been certain her sister would treat Jincheon with the same care.
Come to think of it… Sister only looked at me. She never even glanced at him.
The same sister who had once valued him as a critical asset was now treating him so coldly? The behavior baffled her, but what she needed to do was clear.
"Call Jincheon as well. I am alive because of his help."
"But Her Majesty—"
"I will speak to Her Majesty myself. You will suffer no consequences."
"…Understood. One moment, please."
The attendant bowed and left. Moments later he returned with Jincheon, still slightly damp from his own bath.
"You made it. Sit down and eat."
"I was about to grab something on my own. Appreciate it."
"You—!"
The attendant bristled at the casual speech Jincheon used toward Beatrix and opened his mouth to rebuke him.
"You may leave."
"Pardon?"
"I said leave. He can handle the rest."
"…As you wish."
Seeing that Beatrix herself took no offense, the attendant decided the two must be closer than he had realized and withdrew. Only Jincheon, Beatrix, and the chef still preparing a fresh plate remained in the dining room.
Delicious.
The moment Jincheon appeared, the hollow feeling vanished. Beatrix could finally taste the food at one hundred percent.
"I don't know why Sister is acting this way, but don't take it to heart."
"It's fine. I don't care about things like that."
Jincheon already knew exactly why Eirin was angry. He shrugged it off lightly.
"Want some of mine?"
"No need. Mine should be out any second."
As if on cue, the chef signaled that the new dishes were ready. Jincheon, now playing attendant himself, collected his own plate.
"Mm. Good."
"Right? This part especially."
They fell into easy conversation like any couple on a date. The talk was nothing more than ordinary small talk, yet simply sitting across from Jincheon and sharing a meal was enough to set a soft smile on Beatrix's lips.
Still, the news they had both received was too heavy to ignore forever.
"You heard, right? About the large-scale pitched battle that's coming."
"Yeah…"
Beatrix nodded.
A pitched battle—when two armies gather in a chosen place and decide the war in a single clash. In space, that meant assembling in a designated star system. The rebels had proposed it. Their advance had met fiercer resistance than expected; every planet they took required the complete destruction of military facilities, and the cost in time and money was mounting. Both sides were fighting for everything they owned. If the war dragged on, whichever side won would still face opportunistic attacks from neighboring nations eager to exploit a weakened Giranlek Empire.
So the rebels had offered a decisive battle in a system of little strategic value. Eirin had been thinking along the same lines, yet the enemy's strength forced her to deliberate carefully. In the end she agreed—on the condition that the nearly conquered Galantid System be handed over to the loyalists. Both fleets would gather at the appointed place. The terms required both supreme commanders to participate in person: the rebel emperor Galdorn on one side, Empress Dowager Eirin on the other.
Of course the enemy might try some trick, so reconnaissance units had already been dispatched. Once Eirin secured control of the Galantid System she deactivated the jamming fields—and that was when Beatrix's signal had finally been detected.
"Oh, and that facility we found? I proposed we hand everything inside it over to you. Luckily Sister accepted."
"Thank you, Bess."
"Ugh… That's my childhood nickname. Hearing it from you is… a little embarrassing."
"Somehow it suits you. Cute."
"D-don't say that."
Color rose in Beatrix's cheeks; she ducked her head.
"Bess."
"Hm?"
"Do you remember what you said to me on the island?"
"…I remember."
Understanding exactly what he meant, Beatrix nodded with a solemn face.
—I will! I'll be your woman for the rest of my life!
That was the answer she had gasped out while writhing on his cock, when he asked if she would stay with him.
"I'll ask once more. Did you mean it?"
"……"
Beatrix closed her eyes for a moment. She recalled the emptiness she had felt only minutes earlier, then opened them again and gave a heavy nod.
"Yes. I meant it."
This meal had shown her the difference between eating alone and eating with him. Without Jincheon even the finest food left her hollow; with him, the same food became richer, sweeter, and filled her with quiet happiness. Now that she knew that happiness, she was ready to resign as captain of the Imperial Guard and endure every sneer and pointed finger that would follow.
"Heh. Another reason I have to win this war."
Jincheon rose, declaring he would claim victory for the sake of their promise.
"Thanks for the meal. I'll be going."
"Already?"
"If I'm going to win for you, I need to get my edge back and test the performance of the new enhancement parts we picked up. Besides, it's already late."
They had been rescued deep into the night; by rights they should have been asleep long ago. Jincheon glanced toward the chef, who was yawning and nodding off, then stepped around the table to Beatrix.
"Ah…"
He took her by the waist and arm, drew her up, and pressed a deep, lingering kiss against her lips.
"Mmh…"
As captain of the Imperial Guard she could never allow such a display in public. She seized the chance and returned the kiss with everything she had, determined to leave no regret.
When they finally parted they held each other's gaze a moment longer, shared one last embrace, then stepped back into the formal distance of their public roles.
"I look forward to working with you, Captain of the Guard."
"…Yeah."
Beatrix watched him go, wishing she could go back and thrash her past self for ever having hated him. Until the war ended, she believed, there would be no more chances to confirm their love.
Of course, that belief was about to be thoroughly shattered.
Jincheon left the dining room and started toward the quarters assigned to him—
until a hand seized his arm and yanked him hard into a nearby restroom.
"Wha—"
He was dragged inside with no resistance. The moment the door sealed, a red warning light flared and a maintenance notice appeared.
UNDER MAINTENANCE — ACCESS RESTRICTED
True to the standards of an imperial flagship, even the restroom was spotless; not a single unpleasant odor lingered.
"Eirin."
Jincheon spoke the name of the woman who had pulled him inside and offered her an awkward smile.