Chapter 274: The Tin Knight and the End of the Banquet (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 274: The Tin Knight and the End of the Banquet (4)
“So you’ve come.”
Facing the grim reaper in the form of a girl, the words came surprisingly easily.
“Even if this place is to become yours soon, I can hardly say that sneaking in without any notice is good form.”
A pointed remark, a reprimand.
Her tone and attitude were not so different from when she and Adelaide had first met.
Considering how their positions had been completely reversed, it was an act that could be called reckless.
And yet, Giselle had no intention of correcting her words.
She had, at the very least, never done anything she couldn't be proud of.
Therefore, she had no desire to flatter her opponent or beg for her life.
In response to Giselle’s words, the girl offered a bitter smile instead of a rebuttal.
Perhaps she found the loser’s cry pathetic, or perhaps she had gained enough experience to handle it with grace.
Either way, it was a reaction that clearly showed her growth.
“I apologize for that. But if I wanted to meet you alone, Giselle, it had to be now.”
“You don’t need to resort to something like an assassination. If you attempt to execute me, I have neither the will nor the means to resist.”
“If I had been thinking of that, I would have done it three days ago.”
Giselle froze.
As her mind processed the meaning of the words she had just heard, Adelaide continued speaking calmly.
“I returned here before the others. Just in case there were watchful eyes, I prepared a double to take my place in the group that’s on its way now. As it happens, there was a suitable person for the job.”
She had to do it that way, the girl said, to see Friedel as it truly was.
“With the witch’s help, I changed my appearance and looked around like an ordinary traveler. In just one year… so much has changed. As I traveled, I thought a lot about how I would run Friedel, what I would change. But many of the things I had planned to do were already in place, or had been improved upon even further.”
The girl gave a wry smile.
“The residents, the vassals, they all held you in high regard, Giselle. They called you a wonderful lord. They said the desolate domain had prospered thanks to you. Unfortunately, there was hardly anyone who seemed to be looking forward to my return.”
“…That’s not because you are lacking, but simply because they are unaware of what you have accomplished.”
This was not a world with the internet or television.
The spread of information was slow, and communication through magic or messenger birds was a luxury commoners could not dream of. The only way for news to travel from one town to another was by foot and by word of mouth.
Adelaide’s fame might be dazzling around the imperial capital, but it would take a long time for rumors to reach Friedel, which could be considered the countryside from the perspective of the continent as a whole.
“You’ve extorted or received support in the form of immense rights and funds from the magic towers, secured a just cause and talented people from the Empire, and forged connections with the upper echelons of various nations. Are you truly going to be swayed by the reaction of a single domain like this?”
“Yes. Because ‘a single domain like this’ was once my life’s goal. For a clueless little girl who got herself kidnapped by a mere bandit group, that alone was a tremendous challenge.”
“……”
Giselle found it difficult to understand Adelaide.
After all, Adelaide was someone who had obtained all the fame and power that Giselle herself had sought.
If she were to show even a fraction of the brilliance of the many treasures she had acquired, the people and vassals of the domain would surely cheer for Adelaide and support her.
If that were the case, who they supported and respected now was utterly meaningless.
At least, that was how it was in Giselle’s value system.
However, it seemed to be different in Adelaide’s.
“Watching for the past three days has made me certain. If I were to become the lord of Friedel now, it wouldn’t be ‘reclaiming’ the domain. It would be ‘seizing’ it.”
“What are you trying to say?”
“Please, become the official lord of Friedel.”
Giselle’s mouth fell shut.
For it to be a taunt or mockery aimed at the defeated, Adelaide’s eyes were far too sincere.
“I cannot stay here. I still have things I must do, and even if that work is finished, the title of Head of the Lennart family is not one I can bear while tied down to Friedel. To prevent a tragedy like my father’s, I must watch over many things from a higher place. Friedel will be one of them.”
Only then could Giselle understand the meaning behind Adelaide’s words.
“…So, you want me to take hold of Friedel and join the new Lennart you’re creating, as one of its subordinate powers. Is that what you mean?”
“Yes. This area is a kingdom in name only anyway; in reality, it’s a mess of independent factions that are neither kingdom nor empire. That’s why the public order is so terrible and bandit groups run rampant. So, I want to create an order that can unite them. I want to create a place where not only the people of Friedel, but everyone in the surrounding area, can live in peace. I’m not saying I’ll do it right away, but that’s my future goal.”
Giselle thought for a moment about the plan Adelaide had described.
Whether it was feasible or not, whether it was a simple fantasy, and if not, what was needed and what had to be prepared.
Money. The amount she had squeezed from one of the magic towers and received as a gift of friendship from another was immense. If she could bring in even a portion of the Lennart family’s assets, it would be possible to build a new domain from scratch.
Talent. Besides the Lennart faction that would join immediately, Adelaide also held the title of representative instructor of Tik-Tok. The Lennart family on the imperial mainland would gradually weaken, and if she continued to absorb the survivors escaping the sinking ship and used the dojo to prime the pump for new talent, the prospects were anything but bleak.
Finally, military power.
“…There’s no way it would be lacking.”
Unless a nation decided to crush them with its full might, the individual powers of the small and medium-sized cities nearby wouldn’t even dare to bare their teeth.
No, even neighboring countries like the Empire or the Kingdom would likely choose to compromise, unless Adelaide declared independence as a new nation and threatened them.
Of course, that might change in the future, but by then, their side would have amassed sufficient power.
Perhaps enough to repel threats and stand on their own as a nation.
Whether the girl before her had thought that far ahead, she didn't know, but that was a worry for another time.
Life returned to Giselle's dead eyes.
Now that a path she thought had ended had reappeared, just thinking about how to run down it made her body tingle with anticipation.
And so, Giselle knelt on one knee before Adelaide, showing her respect.
“—I pledge my loyalty to you, new head of the Lion Duke’s bloodline.”
*
Impossibly, boundlessly high.
A land above the clouds, a place some who live on the ground wish to set foot on just once in their lives.
Within its deepest sanctum existed four special rooms, where not even the denizens of heaven were permitted entry.
The Angel of Transformation, who possessed so many faces that none knew her true one.
The Angel of Death, a princess who inherited the most noble blood, granted the power to mock even death itself.
The Angel of Extinction, who had never once been unleashed since her birth, but who would vanquish all foes the moment she was.
And the fourth.
No, if one went by order of birth, she was the oldest, the most ancient angel.
During the old war, as the wings of heaven were broken one by one, she was the only angel to achieve victory, not a draw.
But the after-effects left her to wander the earth, where she acquired emotions unnecessary for an angel and was broken. She was the Black-Red Angel.
As she could not stop her rampages when conscious, she spent most of her life in a state of slumber.
Seated on a hollow throne, bound in chains, feeling both hatred and love for the dreams of happier times.
A beautiful face was revealed between strands of red hair.
Her tightly shut eyelids parted, revealing violet eyes, as if drunk on sleep.
In her hazy consciousness, the angel, Kalida, gazed blankly at her surroundings.
There was nothing in particular to see.
As always, she was locked in the room, alone.
And yet, she did not stop searching for someone.
Someone.
It felt as if someone—someone she hated so dearly, yet missed so desperately—had called out to her.
It felt as if they had roared that they were here, that they wanted to see her.
It must have been her imagination.
She, more than anyone, knew that such a thing could never happen.
But why?
Even knowing that, Kalida couldn't stop searching.
She couldn't suppress the feeling that she had to rise from her throne, break free of these cumbersome chains, and run somewhere, anywhere, this very instant.
But it was only for a moment.
As the emerald throne she sat upon emitted a turquoise light, Kalida’s open eyes slowly closed once more.
And that was the end of it.
The wish of a man who wanted to clear the misunderstanding, even if it meant becoming a lingering spirit, failed to reach the one it was meant for.
The heavens were far too high, the distance too vast to be bridged by one man's will alone.
Thus, his efforts were meaningless, worthless, and futile.
At least, for now.
It would remain so until the day a descendant, inheriting his will, finally reached the angel's side.
*
[The ‘Tin Knight’ asks if you’re done with everything!]
[The ‘Tin Knight’ impatiently urges you to leave for the next destination!]
At the Tin Knight’s prompting, the lion, who had found her courage but had not yet finished her journey, replied with a smile.
“Yes, Sir Knight!”