Arifureta Shokugyou de Sekai Saikyou Zero - Volume 4 - Chapter 2

Chapter II: Queen of the Forest

“So, Miledi. What’s the plan?” Oscar asked, his tone somewhat nervous.

Miledi and the others were currently deep within the forest that separated the Igdol Empire and the Obsidian Tundra. A month had passed since their battle with the demon lord. The group had remained there to keep an eye on Rasul and make sure he wasn’t brainwashed by Ehit again, as well as to help the chimeras he’d been experimenting on rest and recover.

But then suddenly, they received a report that the Elbard Theocracy had declared war on the Haltina Republic, as well as a plea for aid from Badd Virtus, the supposedly missing vice-commander of the Liberators.

The Liberators knew full well how the church would treat the Pale Forest’s beastmen if it managed to conquer the republic. It would be a tragedy the likes of which hadn’t been seen in the history of Tortus. And so, naturally, Miledi and the others were going to help.

However, a war of this scale hadn’t been seen in decades. After the messenger had delivered his report, Miledi had gathered all the Liberators and Schnee clansmen who had gone out to patrol and informed them of the situation. She’d then informed them of her intention to go to save the republic, leading to the current situation where Oscar had asked what the actual plan was.

Miledi considered Oscar’s question for a few seconds, then sucked in a breath and said, “Me, Meru-nee, and Nacchan will go on ahead.”

The other Liberators and Schnee clansmen started muttering among themselves, but Oscar just raised an eyebrow.

“This is a race against time. This combination is the fastest way to get to the Pale Forest.”

“Naiz-kun can teleport, you have gravity magic to help us speed things along, and you’ll need my restoration magic to replenish people’s mana, correct?”

“It takes, what... three months to reach the Pale Forest by horse from here? So even going at full speed, it’ll take us four days.”

Miledi wanted to get even one extra ancient magic user to Badd as fast as possible. And having heard her reasoning, Oscar nodded in understanding.

Of course, he and Vandre weren’t slow by any means. Vandre could fly through the sky while Oscar had plenty of transportation-related artifacts. If they all went together, the others would have more time to rest, too. But there was another reason Miledi was leaving the two of them behind.

“You want us to get everyone safely settled in different villages first, don’t you?” Oscar asked, his eyes closed. Vandre, Marshal, Margaretta, and the others being left behind all looked at Miledi.

“Yeah. O-kun, please finish moving everyone as fast as possible.”

Originally, this location had just been a small stronghold for Jinglebell, the Liberator scout who kept an eye on the demon territories. But now, all the non-combatants from the old Reisen Gorge village were here, as well as the chimeras Rasul had created while being controlled by Ehit’s artifact. Miledi and the others had been in the middle of making arrangements to move them to permanent residences in other villages.

The beastmen’s plight was important, of course, but Miledi wasn’t going to just abandon these people. Providing safe haven for those who’d already been rescued was also part of the Liberators’ job. And Oscar understood that as well.

“Gotcha. We’ll get this done quick.”

He nodded to Miledi, fighting against his desire to go with her. Miledi gave him a warm smile, then turned to Vandre.

“Van-chan, you’ve managed to create enough familiars for everyone, right?”

“Yeah, I can start moving people anytime.”

Originally, Miledi was planning on transporting everyone using one of Naiz’s teleportation gates. But now that this new crisis had emerged, there wasn’t time for that. Oscar had made a few artifacts capable of teleporting people, but they couldn’t move people as far as Naiz. And that was why Vandre’s familiars would be the ones transporting everyone.

He’d lost a lot of them when he’d rescued Ruth and the others from the Reisen village, and then lost even more during the raid on the demon lord’s castle, but he’d replenished their numbers over the past month. But while he had as many familiars as before—

“How strong are they? Will they be able to protect the new village?”

“No, I haven’t created the leader-class monster needed for that. We’ve got Marshal and the others here, but... they might not be enough.”

Vandre’s stronger familiars were capable of independent thought and acted on broader orders from him, but he only had three of those left. His butler-slime, Batlam, his wyvern, Uruluk, and his wolf, Kuou. All of which he’d hoped to bring with him to help with the war effort. As a result, he’d need to make a new leader-class monster to protect the new village.

“Well, don’t worry about it. I’ll make a new one in time.”

“Alright. But if you’re worried about your brother, Van-chan, maybe you should stay behind...”

“You don’t need to worry. Rasul will be fine. Besides, I’m a Liberator now. No way I’ll sit back and be the only one not fighting. I bet the rest of my clan feels the same way, honestly.”

Vandre turned over his shoulder to Margaretta and the others, and they instantly dropped to one knee.

“Van-sama is correct, Miledi-dono. The Schnee Clan stands with you now.”

“Thank you...”

Miledi gave Margaretta a bashful smile, then turned to Marshal and the other Liberators.

“I’ll keep you guys updated on the situation as I learn more. Marshal, you’re in charge of deciding who to leave behind to guard the new village and who to send after us. Oh, but make sure you bring Mikaela with you, okay?”

“Got it. That village already has a guard team, so Mikaela and I will come join you, at least.”

“Mhm. We’re going to need my Soul Sight on the battlefield.”

“Yep. I’ll be counting on you two. Also Jinglebell, I want you to keep monitoring the demon empire for now. But if we need to start rallying troops, you should abandon this outpost and head to the new Liberator village.”

“Roger, Miledi-chan. But it’s such a shame. If I’d had another two days, I could have completed the frilly dress I was sewing for Meiru-chan...”

“Th-That was close... I nearly had to wear that monstrosity...” Meiru muttered quietly to herself. Jinglebell had started sewing a new dress for Meiru because she believed that Meiru’s current outfit was too revealing. Oddly enough, Jinglebell didn’t seem to think the same of her own attire, which covered even less than Meiru’s. Though right now, Jinglebell was wearing a dress similar to Miledi’s. Her massive thighs peeked out from between her skirt and knee-length socks. Miledi gave Jinglebell a grateful look, knowing that Jinglebell had purposely said that to lighten the mood.

“Miledi, are you gonna leave right away?” Oscar asked.

“Yep. Thanks to the Treasure Trove you gave me, I’m ready to travel whenever. Can you head out right away too? Someone needs to tell the villages what’s happened.”

“Yeah, I can. Miledi...” Oscar mumbled. He placed a hand on Miledi’s shoulder and looked her in the eyes.

“I’ll catch up as fast as I can, so please don’t do anything reckless until I get there, okay?”

Miledi nodded solemnly, realizing this was a heartfelt warning. She could tell he was really worried about her. Unsure of how to reply, she just looked quietly up at him. But then, a few seconds later, she realized everyone present was staring at them. And that they were all grinning.

Miledi quickly slapped Oscar’s hand away and said, “D-Don’t treat me like a kid! I can take care of myself! Sheesh, you really are obsessed with me, aren’t you, O-kun? I know you get lonely when I’m not around, but you’re gonna have to learn to let me go eventually!”

She spoke so fast her words slurred together, then ended her speech with an awkward laugh.

Oscar narrowed his eyes thoughtfully. Then, after a brief silence, he said, “Naiz, take care of Miledi for me. You’re the only one I can count on to keep Miledi from pissing the beastmen off so much that they ban her forever.”

“Good point. I’ll keep her annoying personality in check. I’ll make sure she brushes her teeth, too.”

“Thanks. Don’t let her snack in the middle of the night, either.”

“Hey! I told you I can take care of myself! I’m a fully grown—”

“Meiru, I’m counting on you too.”

“Leave Miledi-chan to me. I’ll make sure she makes her bed every morning.”

“Don’t forget to remind her to wash her hands before eating.”

“Of course! I won’t let her be a picky eater, either. You can count on me!”

“How many times do I have to tell you, I’m not a kid! Stop making fun of me!”

Red-faced, Miledi angrily stomped on the ground. At long last, everyone’s tension drained away. The other Liberators started poking fun at Miledi too, saying things like, “Don’t forget your handkerchief, Leader!” and “Don’t stay up too late now!”

When a lull in the conversation finally occurred, two young girls suddenly ran up to Naiz. They’d been waiting for their chance to say their farewells to him.

“Naiz-sama, please stay safe! I’ll be waiting for you to come back to me!”

“You have to come back alive, Naiz-sama! Also, you have to promise to marry us!”

“A-Alright. I promise— Err that I’ll come back alive, not that I’ll marry you!”

Cold sweat poured down Naiz’s back as he tried to stave off Susha and Yunfa’s advances. The two girls brought their hands together in front of their chests and looked up at him with pleading eyes. With how assertive they were, it was hard to believe they were just twelve and ten years old. Susha especially. One had to wonder where she’d learned how to act so seductively.

Naturally, Naiz, who was nearing thirty, had no interest in girls that young. But though his expression stiffened, Susha didn’t stop pushing. She sidled up to him, closed her eyes, and presented rose-colored lips to Naiz. She was obviously waiting for him to kiss her. Seeing her older sister act like that emboldened Yunfa, and she followed suit. Of course, it’d be a crime for Naiz to actually kiss them. However, the girls had tried getting one out of him every day in the month that he’d been here.

Fortunately, Naiz was perhaps the only ancient magic user with common sense. He’d been mature enough to find ways to turn Susha and Yunfa down without hurting their feelings. Likely, he would do the same now. And as he searched for the right words—

“Kiss them! Kiss them! Kiss them!”

“Dammit, Miledi!”

Is this your way of getting revenge!?

Grinning, Miledi egged Naiz on, clapping in time with her words. She even did a little dance.

“Oscar, Van, shut that moron up!”

Oscar and Vandre awkwardly averted their gazes. Even though they were always at each other’s throats, they were oddly in sync there. Naiz gave them a wounded look, hurt by their betrayal. But as much as Oscar and Vandre wanted to help, they couldn’t. Because Susha had given them a positively terrifying look when Naiz had asked them for help. The last thing they wanted was to bring Susha’s wrath down upon them. Meanwhile, the other girls all picked up Miledi’s chant. They knew how much Susha and Yunfa cared about Naiz, and they wanted to see the sisters’ love rewarded.

“Kiss them! Kiss them! Kiss them, you pedophile!”

“I’m not a pedophile!” Naiz shouted, as he always did when this conversation happened.

Meiru and Shushu went as far as to join Miledi in clapping and dancing as they added their voices to the chant. Buoyed up by the support, Susha and Yunfa turned back to Naiz and raised their faces expectantly.

Naiz slowly backed away, looking like a lamb being brought in for the slaughter. When he saw that, Oscar’s pity overcame his fear of Susha and he opened his mouth to help. But before he could say anything, something flew into his stomach.

“Huh? Katy? What’s up?”

Katy was hugging Oscar’s waist with all her might. Seeing that, Corrin ran over as well.

“Stop that, Katy. I know you don’t want Onii-chan to leave, but he has to do this, okay?”

Corrin tugged on Katy’s shirt, gently admonishing her. Katy turned around and slapped Corrin’s hand away. She then pointedly turned up her nose at her sister.

For a second, Corrin just looked blankly at the hand Katy had slapped away, but then she puffed her cheeks out and yelled, “Bad Katy! You’ve been acting like a spoiled brat these past few days! Onii-chan has something he needs to do, so get off of him!”

This time, Corrin grabbed Katy and pulled much harder, but Katy still refused to let go.

“Hmph. I always knew you were as much of a pedophile as Naiz, four-eyes,” Vandre said dismissively as he looked over at Oscar. As always, Vandre was able to rile Oscar up like no one else.

Oscar glared coldly at Vandre and said, “Bah. Is spouting insults all you know how to do, you phony artist? The fact that you think there’s anything perverted about me hugging my sister proves you’re the real pervert. Should’ve known a muffler-loving monster would be so off in the head.”

“How dare you badmouth my muffler, you four-eyed freak!”

“Maybe I wouldn’t insult your muffler so much if you didn’t keep shit-talking my glasses!”

This was hardly the first, or even the tenth argument Oscar and Vandre had had this past month. But really, their constant bickering just showed how close they were. The other Liberators just watched on in exasperation. They knew this argument would keep going for a while at least.

Oscar adjusted his glasses, the lenses glinting dangerously, while frost started gathering around Vandre as he twirled his muffler around his neck. A short distance away, another problem was brewing.

“Hey... Dylan. I really hope you don’t remember this when you come back to your senses. You’d die of embarrassment if you knew what kind of stuff you’re getting up to right now,” Ruth muttered quietly to Dylan, who was standing next to him. The young Synergist was getting rather exasperated with Dylan’s recent antics.

Like Katy, Dylan’s soul had been supplanted by that of an ancient warrior. After Oscar had saved them from the church, the two of them had been in a coma until Meiru’s restoration magic had helped them regain consciousness. But while they were conscious now, the effects of the church’s artifact were still weighing down on their souls. They still couldn’t speak, and the most they could do was follow simple instructions.

However, enough of their ego had recovered that their latent desires had come to the surface. For example, though Katy adored Oscar, she’d rarely let herself act spoiled around him. But this past month, she’d clung to him nonstop. On the other hand, Dylan had normally been the perfect gentlemen, but recently his perverted side had been coming out in full force. Right now, he was mesmerized by the bouncing of Meiru’s boobs as she danced along with Miledi. Marshal walked over and ruffled Dylan’s hair.

“Hahahaha. No man can resist a view like that! You should just be honest with yourself and enjoy it, Ruth.”

Abe, the pessimistic monkeyman, and Tony, Marshal’s disciple, strode over as well. Both of them seemed to have no compunctions about ogling Meiru either.

“Holding back your desires is bad for the body, Ruth. That over there is art. You may as well appreciate it.”

“‘Sides, if Meiru-neesan didn’t wanna be stared at, she wouldn’t dress that boldly. If anything, not looking would be rude when she’s putting those babies out on display.”

“Why are all the grown-ups around me like this...?” Ruth muttered despondently. Ironically, he was more mature than the adults. No amount of cajoling would make him abandon his gentleman’s creed. However, Marshal’s word seemed to have had a huge impact on someone else.

“I see, so Meiru-san’s Marshal-san’s type...”

Marshal and Ruth both whirled around to find Mikaela looking glumly down at the ground behind them.

“Sniffle... I should have known... Marshal-san would never pick a perverted peeping Tom like me over a beauty like Meiru-san... Sob...”

“Whoaaaaaa, hold on, Mikaela! Don’t cry! Your hobbies don’t bother me at all, I swear!”

Some time back, the other Liberators had learned Mikaela was using her special magic, Soul Sight, to peep on Marshal while he was in the bath or changing in his bedroom. Badd’s letter had helped Mikaela momentarily forget her shame, but now it came back in full force, and she started wringing her own neck.

“Oh yeah. I forgot you had a crush on the captain, Mikaela,” Ruth said.

Hearing it laid out so plainly like that caused Mikaela to blush, and she quickly covered her face with her hands. Most of the Liberators from the former Reisen looked on in shock. Though some of them had suspected that was the case, this was the first time they’d received confirmation. Only the housewives from the village seemed unsurprised.

Marshal, who didn’t seem all that opposed to the idea of dating Mikaela, blushed slightly and looked away. It was cute how innocent a man in his mid-forties was, but unfortunately, none of the guys watching appreciated his cuteness. Just then, a bright flash filled the air.

“Hey, Miledi. Why’re you wearing those glasses? Those’re the special artifact Oscar made just for you, aren’t they?”

“So I can take pictures of you, of course!”

“Why’re you taking pictures!? Ah, you’re gonna show Badd, aren’t you!?”

“You and Badd were the two eternal bachelors... I’m sure he’ll cry tears of joy when he hears you’ve finally found someone!”

“You fiend! That’s not how he’s going to react and you know it! Hand those glasses over!”

Marshal charged toward Miledi, who quickly started running. Meanwhile, Susha and Yunfa had nearly finished cornering Naiz, who was fearing for his life. Meiru had taken over Miledi’s role as cheer captain, and she and the other girls continued egging the sisters on. Oscar and Vandre were still arguing relentlessly, while Katy clung to Oscar, and Corrin tried to pull her off. Dylan continued inconspicuously ogling Meiru’s boobs while Ruth tried to rein him in. The serious atmosphere that Badd’s letter had created was all but destroyed. Everyone was going to depart in a few minutes, but the clearing was in chaos.

“Oh my, they’re such unruly children. Margaretta-san, could you please get them in line for me?”

“A-As you wish, Moorin-dono.”

Moorin, who had basically become the de facto Mom of the Liberators, turned to Margaretta, the strait-laced warrior of the Schnee Clan. For a moment, Margaretta looked unwilling, but then she nodded to Moorin and turned to the rest of her clansmen.

“You heard Moorin-dono! Calm everyone down and, uh... get them in the right mindset for a journey!”

“R-Roger!”

“Batlam, restrain Van-sama! Kuou, you stop Oscar-dono! Let’s move, men!”

The Schnee clansmen started running around the clearing and restoring order. Most of them had serious personalities, so they were able to quiet the unruly Liberators relatively quickly. It probably helped that Moorin was smiling menacingly at all the unruly children too.

“Stop goofing off and get to work!” she said in a booming voice, and Miledi and the others settled down almost instantly. Looking contrite, they wrapped up their preparations and set off on their respective journeys.

It was noon, three days after Miledi, Naiz, and Meiru had left for the Pale Forest. They were currently flying in the sky a few dozen kilometers away from Agris, the capital of the Odion Federation.

“So that’s... the Pale Forest.”

“That’s what it looks like from a distance? Amazing...”

Naiz and Meiru stared at the massive sheet of fog that spread out below them like a cloud. At the center of the endless white fog was a mountain of mist that rose over a kilometer high. They couldn’t see any of the greenery hidden within the fog, nor could they even tell where the forest ended and the plains began.

So this is what the forest looks like in wartime... Naiz thought, awed by the sight.

“Haaah... Haaah... This is my first time seeing it, but this is good. If the fog’s this thick, it means the republic hasn’t lost yet... Haaah... Haaah...”

Miledi was pale-faced and exhausted, but she still smiled in relief as she looked down at the fog. She’d used gravity magic to fly herself, Naiz, and Meiru a few hundred kilometers, so her mana was almost completely spent. Naiz, who’d been teleporting the party before that, and Meiru, who’d been using restoration magic on the two of them nonstop, looked about as tired. Fortunately, their grueling trip was finally over.

“Miledi. I’m gonna teleport us into the southern tip of the capital, okay?”

Naiz turned away from the forest and focused his gaze on the city of Agris. A massive army was camped to the east of the capital, and it was clear even from this distance that soldiers were patrolling the streets.

“Sure. It looks like the gates are heavily guarded, so the only way in is teleporting. But are you sure you can manage it, Nacchan?”

“Yeah, just give me a second.”

Naiz fished a pair of glasses out of his pocket. They were a special artifact Oscar had created for Naiz. He’d made specific pairs for everyone, actually. Vandre’s constant insults seemed to have renewed his determination to spread the gospel of glasses. And honestly, they were so convenient that Naiz and the others couldn’t help but use them too.

“Those gates are heavily guarded alright. Sneaking past them’s gonna be tough. But... it looks like the city’s barriers aren’t strong enough to block spatial magic. I think I can get us onto one of those rooftops.”

Naiz was able to analyze the barrier surrounding the city thanks to the glasses’ mana sensing abilities. Furthermore, thanks to the Farsight enchantment on them, he could get a detailed view of his destination. The rooftop he was aiming for was a few dozen kilometers away, the limit of how far he could go with his current mana reserves.

“I knew I could count on you, Nacchan!” Miledi said, giving him a thumbs-up.

A second later, the scenery around the three of them shifted. They were standing on the roof of a building. The building was close enough to the city walls that Miledi could have had a conversation with one of the sentries if she so desired. Fortunately, all of them were looking outward, and no one had seen three figures suddenly materialize on a rooftop. Still, their proximity to the soldiers gave Miledi and the others a start.

“Haaah... Haaah... Is there anyone in the alleyway?” Naiz asked, panting. Meiru strode over to the rooftop’s far edge and looked down.

“We’re safe. There’s no one down here.”

“You rest, Nacchan. We can get down a building easily enough.”

Miledi lent Naiz her shoulder and staggered over to where Meiru was standing. Just as the three of them jumped off the roof, one of the sentries on the wall happened to turn around. As they landed, the three of them held their breath, waiting to see if anyone raised the alarm. One minute passed, then two. No one came rushing over to the alleyway they were in. It seemed their infiltration had been successful. Miledi and the others heaved a sigh of relief. They took a few minutes to catch their breath, then Miledi pushed off from the wall she was leaning against.

“Nacchan, you should probably show off swords. The branch here is a weapons shop, so you’ll blend in better if you’re armed. Come on, it’s this way.”

Miledi nonchalantly walked into the street. Naiz took his twin scimitars out of his Treasure Trove and belted them on before following her. Meiru also took out her whip sword as she trailed behind Miledi.

“There’s not a lot of people here...”

“That’s a surprise. I figured everyone would be overjoyed that their city was chosen as a base for the church’s holy war.”

A few people were roaming the streets, but far less than one would expect considering this was a nation’s capital. Moreover, the few people Miledi and the others passed all looked glum. No one spared their party a single glance. It was as if an aura of despair had settled over the entire city.

“The federation must be having a hard time if people are this depressed... I guess the republic’s warriors were stronger than the church expected?”

Badd’s letter hadn’t gone into much detail. All he’d said was that a war had broken out and that he needed assistance. He’d probably avoided going into specifics because he’d been worried the letter might be intercepted. Seeing as the theocracy had gone all-out for this war, it wouldn’t have been surprising if they’d been trying to control all information going in and out of the area.

That being said, Badd had neglected to even provide a rendezvous point, which was a bit of a problem. And as a result, Miledi had come to the city so she could visit the Liberator branch for the Angriff region. Seeing as Badd had sent her a letter, he must have visited the branch office at some point. Meaning he was either waiting for Miledi and the others there, or he’d left behind a message for them.

Miledi kept a wary eye on her surroundings as she led Naiz and Meiru through the city. After a few minutes, she stopped in front of a large, three-story building. It looked like a minor noble’s mansion. An iron signboard emblazoned with a pair of crossed swords resting above a suit of armor hung from the wall. Beneath the picture were the words “Almeda Weapon Shop.”

“That’s quite a crowd...”

“They look like adventurers... no, mercenaries?”

“Yep, they’re mercenaries, Meru-nee. All the adventurers probably fled to some other country when they heard war was brewing.”

Miledi came to a halt a short distance from the store’s entrance. While the Almeda Weapon Shop was a Liberator branch office, it was also one of the most renowned stores in Agris. The store had purposely distinguished itself in the hopes that it would prevent the church from growing suspicious, but that, unfortunately, meant that it had become a mecca for mercenaries as well. The store was so packed that a line had started forming outside it. Or rather, a disorganized mob of people jostling each other in an attempt to shove their way in. Miledi and Meiru weren’t keen on trying to make their way through that— especially since they didn’t look like the kinds of people who had any business in a weapons store. Miledi had no doubt they’d cause a commotion if they tried to squeeze in now. And so, she led everyone to a nearby back alley.

“When in need, use O-kun’s glasses!”

Miledi put on the red-rimmed glasses Oscar had made for her. He’d enchanted them with Mikaela’s Soul Sight, so they could see through walls and other obstacles.

“Oscar-kun’s glasses just keep getting more and more useful,” Meiru mused.

“Yeah, but I’m not sure I like this see-through power he added to them. I just know O-kun’s gonna give in to his desires and start peeping on me now!” Miledi replied.

“He actually might. Despite appearances, Oscar-kun is quite the pervert.”

Naiz ignored the two of them and swept his gaze south. Honestly, as a fellow man, he sympathized with Oscar.

“Hmmm... I don’t see the branch chief, Howzer, anywhere. That means he’s probably at the safe house. Nacchan, you put your glasses on too. You need to see where the safe house is so you can teleport us there. Actually, do you have enough mana left for that?”

“Just barely.”

“Ufufu. You better not look at us with those see-through glasses, Naiz-kun.”

“There’s no way I’d ever do that. If I did and Susha found out... Ugh, I don’t even want to think about it.”

“Naiz-kun... That’s surprisingly pathetic of you.”

Poor man, he’s already been whipped by Susha-chan... Meiru thought sadly to herself.

While Meiru was lost in her thoughts, Miledi showed Naiz where to look to find the safehouse.

“Oh, there he is! You see that one-eyed, one-armed dude who looks like a gang boss? You see him, right?”

“Yeah, the guy in a wine-red shirt with scars on his face. He looks pretty strong... I’m surprised he’s part of the support team and not one of our fighters.”

“Well, he used to be the leader of a huge mercenary company. But then the church hired him for this one war, and when things started going south, they used his company as bait... He lost most of his comrades in that fight, and since then...”

“I see...” Naiz replied with a solemn nod. He then put a hand on Miledi and Meiru’s shoulders, and a second later, they were inside the safe house.

“Wh-What the—!?” someone shouted as Miledi, Naiz, and Meiru materialized on top of a table. Howzer and the other members of the Angriff region branch were gathered around the table, looking at a map Miledi and the others were now standing on. Howzer instantly assumed they’d somehow been discovered by one of the Templar Knights and readied for battle.

“Who the hell do you think—? Wait, is that you, Leader!?”

“Yo, Howzer, everyone! Long time no see!”

Miledi struck her usual pose, raising one leg slightly and making a peace sign with her right hand while she winked at Howzer. Her smug grin made it clear she expected everyone to be overjoyed by the sight.

“There’s only one person in the world this annoying! Chief, that has to be our leader!”

“Yeah, no way a Templar Knight could imitate that level of annoyingness! That’s our Miledi-chan alright!”

“It’s been a while, you annoying brat!”

“Don’t just pop up out of nowhere like that; you nearly gave me a heart attack! Damn, I should’ve known our leader would somehow find a way to be even more annoying!”

Once they realized it was Miledi and not an enemy raid, the members of the Angriff branch all relaxed and happily welcomed their leader.

“Oh Miledi-chan, you’re such a celebrity. People fawn over you everywhere we go,” Meiru said with a smile.

“No, this isn’t the kind of popularity I’m looking for. This isn’t how I want to be remembered,” Miledi muttered, drooping to her knees in defeat. Indeed, everywhere she went, Miledi’s reputation for being annoying preceded her.

“Uh, anyway, can you get off the table, Leader? Also, that guy behind you’s collapsed. Is he gonna be okay?”

“Ah, Nacchan! Are you okay!?”

Naiz had used up every last drop of mana in that final teleport. The reason the party had ended up on the table was because he hadn’t been able to control his magic perfectly. He’d actually meant to set them down in a corner of the room. The other branch members helped lower Naiz off the table, then those who could use light magic cast spells to transfer some of their mana over to him. While that was happening, Miledi introduced Meiru and Naiz to everyone.

“I see. We’d actually sent guides out of the city to help sneak you in, since we figured you were coming... Though I guess if you can teleport, you didn’t need them. I should’ve known your new comrades had powers as ridiculous as yours.”

Miledi briefly summarized how their journey had gone from the southern continent to here, then asked, “So, Howzer. Where’s Badd? What’s the situation like?”

Under normal circumstances, Miledi would have spent more time reminiscing and enjoying their reunion, but this was an emergency. As soon as they heard Miledi use her leader voice, the other Liberators all quieted down as well.

“That dumbass is in the republic. He’s become the queen’s advisor.”

“Huh? What!? The queen’s advisor!? How did that happen!?”

Miledi knew Badd had gone to help the republic, but she’d figured he would end up as a mercenary for the beastmen or something like that. After all, beastmen mistrusted humans. It was frankly unbelievable that they’d not only let him into the forest, but into their inner circle.

“According to him, the queen...”

“Go on...” Miledi said with some trepidation.

The grimace on Howzer’s face did not inspire confidence. She was worried Badd might have been captured and was being called an advisor in name only while actually being treated like a prisoner. Maybe there was some reason he’d been forced to return to the republic after sending his letter, rather than wait here for Miledi.

As Miledi waited with bated breath, Howzer finished, “...is totally his type.”

“...What?”

“That dumbass ran straight back to the forest after handing over his letter. We tried to stop him, but he kept shouting crap like ‘I’ve finally found the one! Don’t get in my way!’ I have no clue how the hell he got into the queen’s good graces, though. Fucking dumbass.”

“O-Oh, I see.”

Howzer’s already scary face was twisted in rage. He kept muttering “dumbass” under his breath while Miledi’s face stiffened.

“Let’s forget about that moron for a moment. Excuse me, Howzer-kun. But what exactly is the church’s objective with this war?”

“D-Did you just call me Howzer-kun?”

Howzer was fifty-five years old. He couldn’t believe a woman less than half his age was calling him “kun.” After a few seconds of stunned silence, the Liberators working under him started chuckling. He shot them all a murderous glare, and they quickly shut up.

“This is just how Meru-nee is, so you’re gonna have to get used to it. She has to act like a big sister to everyone. It’s like she has some kind of complex about it.”

“Tch... Figures our Leader’s comrades would be just like her.”

“Hey! What’s that supposed to mean, Howzer? I’ll have you know that I’m the embodiment of common sense.”

We’re going to get nowhere at this rate... the other Liberators thought in exasperation. Naiz regained consciousness around the same time and politely introduced himself to the Liberators taking care of him.

Ah, this is the one guy who actually has common sense... they all thought.

“So, what’s the church’s goal with this war?” Naiz asked, getting everyone back on track.

Sighing, Howzer dropped his argument with Miledi and gave Naiz his full attention.

“The queen of the republic is just like you, Leader.”

“Oh... you mean she’s an ancient magic user?”

Miledi and the others easily inferred the rest. The church had started this war because they wanted to capture her. Since this was a fight over an ancient magic user, the church would keep going until one side or the other was obliterated. That also explained why the beastmen were doing so well. Their unnatural strength and the overwhelming power of the mist barrier all made sense if an ancient magic user was aiding them.

“So even with the commander of the Templar Knights, the Paragons of Light, and the Holy Templar Knights, they still haven’t breached the forest? The republic’s queen must be amazing,” Miledi muttered.

“She is. But the church hasn’t gotten serious yet. Far as I can tell, they’re half-assing this. Probably because they’re more interested in finding out where the ancient magic user is than overwhelming the beastmen,” Howzer replied.

Miledi nodded in understanding, and Howzer added with a shrug, “Anyway, this is the message Badd left us. ‘I’ve already told the republic about you guys. Come to the forest, they’ll let you in.’”

“Where in the forest are we supposed to go?”

“Anywhere’s fine, apparently. Once you’re in the trees, the queen will be able to sense you.”

“Wow, that’s impressive... So, how’re the support branches around here reacting?”

“The support branches in the area have sent out a summons to all the fighters in the nearby village. The biggest unit’s gonna be coming from the northwest. It’s the one lead by old man Salus. His plan is to hit the supply convoys coming from Uldia.”

“Yeah, that’s a good idea. Nice thinking, Sal. But...”

“What? Is there something we should be worried about?”

“The empire, probably.”

“Because of what you told us about the Demon Lord?”

Howzer’s face scrunched up in concern.

“I read your reports, but I wanted to ask you directly. Is it really true? Was the Demon Lord actually being manipulated by the church’s god?”

Humans and demons had been at war for as long as anyone could remember. Their faiths were at odds with each other, and both sides had slaughtered millions in the name of their respective gods. But if what Miledi had said was true, then those supposedly opposed gods were actually in cahoots. It was a shocking revelation. So shocking that Howzer’s brain still hadn’t finished processing it. He and the other Liberators looked expectantly at Miledi.

“It’s all true. All of the wars in history were orchestrated by those shitty gods up in heaven. It looks like they enjoy watching us pitiful mortals fight.”

“Dammit... So the church’s top brass know they don’t actually have anything to fear from the demons? That means they can bring the empire’s troops in without worry, since they know there won’t be an invasion.”

Howzer scratched his head in frustration.

“But, Leader. We don’t have enough troops to stall the empire’s army. Maybe if we called in all the guys we’ve sent to other regions, but it’d take half a year to get them all here.”

“Good point... Well, there’s still the possibility the empire won’t get involved. Even if the church knows there’s nothing to fear, they still need to come up with a convincing excuse for the empire.”

“They could just use their authority to force the empire to help.”

“Sure, but it would make the people suspicious.”

At this point, it was impossible to be sure whether or not the empire would join the fight. Especially since the federation had already pledged their aid. A militaristic nation like the Odion Federation wouldn’t fall that easily.

“But well, after I got your report, I sent some of our better spies to scope out the empire.”

“Wait, really!? I knew I could count on you to be on top of things, Howzer!”

“I wasn’t just gonna ignore a report from you, Leader.”

“Oh, you. I’m glad you trust me so much!”

“Yeah, yeah. Don’t let it get to your head, you annoying brat.”

Miledi’s tone had softened, and it looked like she was about to exit Leader Mode. Realizing he didn’t have much time left, Howzer decided to finish up the rest of his reports before she went back to being super annoying.

“Anyway, Leader. We were thinking of abandoning this branch office and moving somewhere else.”

Originally, Howzer had wanted to vacate the area before the church’s knights arrived. After all, this was a warzone. Hiding from the church when they were swarming the city streets wouldn’t be easy.

“Oh yeah, that’s fine. I was just about to suggest the same thing actually. In fact, you should get out of here as fast as possible... Thanks for staying behind to deliver Badd’s message, though.”

“Don’t sweat it. We were just doing our job.”

Howzer affectionately patted Miledi’s head.

“Cut that out!” Miledi shouted, trying to squirm away. But despite her words, she was smiling. The other branch members smiled as well, finally allowing themselves to relax.

After that, Howzer and Miledi discussed specifics, then the meeting came to a close.

Miledi would have preferred to head straight to the Pale Forest, but she knew everyone was exhausted. Besides, she planned to fly in from above, so it was better not to leave while it was bright out. And so, the party decided to rest until nighttime. They ate the warm meal Howzer’s subordinates prepared for them, then snuggled into bed.

About an hour after they went to bed, Miledi opened her eyes. In truth, Miledi hadn’t been able to sleep at all. While her lack of mana had left her physically tired, her mind was awhirl with thoughts. She looked over at Naiz and Meiru, who were sleeping peacefully on their beds. And, careful not to wake them up, she quietly slipped out of the room.

Eventually, she found Howzer in the conference room, writing a letter.

“Howzer, I’m gonna go out for a bit.”

“Huh? Why?”

“I wanna see the state of the federation’s army with my own eyes.”

Miledi pulled on a robe as she talked, and Howzer narrowed his eyes at her.

“That’s not like you. What’s bothering you so much?”

“N-Nothing! There’s nothing on my mind!”

You’re a terrible liar, you know that? Howzer thought with a wry smile.

“It’s just, you know, this is a war. I’m kinda nervous, that’s all,” Miledi said unconvincingly.

“Do you think I’m dumb? You’re the last person who’d get cold feet at the thought of fighting the church.”

Howzer looked like a gruff old man, but he was far more perceptive than he appeared. It was one of the reasons he was this branch’s chief. Moreover, he was still a seasoned warrior, despite missing an arm and an eye. It was why his comrades respected him so much. Plus, he’d looked after Miledi when she’d first joined the Liberators. Back then, she was inexperienced, but she’d still gone out helping as many people as she could. And as a result, she’d often overextend herself and come back hurt. And whenever she had, it was Howzer who’d scolded her for it. Indeed, Howzer was the first person to ever smack Miledi on the head for her stupidity.

The other senior members of the Liberators, like Esperado’s branch chief Rigan and the HQ chief Salus tended to spoil Miledi. Badd didn’t, though. Regardless, the point was, Miledi saw Howzer as a father figure. The kind of father who always nagged his kids, but still looked out for them. Still, Miledi hesitated to tell Howzer her worries.

“A-Anyway, I’m just gonna go out for a bit!”

She turned away from Howzer, who was scrutinizing her carefully, and grabbed hold of the doorknob. Before she could leave, though, Howzer called out to her.

“Miledi.”

His tone was serious. He hadn’t called her leader, but rather used Miledi’s name. Miledi turned back, then flinched at the earnest, unyielding look in Howzer’s eyes.

“The world is starting to change. At least, that’s what I think.”

“Howzer?”

Miledi gave Howzer a confused look. He ignored it and continued his speech, enunciating every word as if to impress its importance onto her.

“For so long, we endured. We hid in the shadows and held our breath. We stood by and watched the innocent die, but even so, we endured and built up our strength. Believing that someday we’d be able to free everyone from the shackles of oppression.”

“...Yeah.”

Miledi was listening intently now. Howzer sucked in a deep breath, then said, “The time has finally come for us to take center stage. To see whether biding our time was worth it. Whether it meant anything.”

This war would be the prologue, the opening chapter to the Liberators’ mark on history, which was why—

“You don’t have to worry about us. You don’t need to protect us. We’ve all decided to follow you, Miledi Reisen. So use our lives as you see fit. For the sake of the world, for the sake of the future, for the sake of mankind’s freedom, order us to do what’s necessary.”

Even if that means ordering us to our deaths.

Silence followed Howzer’s declaration. Miledi looked into his eye, matching the intensity of his gaze. Howzer had scolded her, comforted her, and conveyed his resolve to her all in one go. Miledi processed it all silently for a few seconds, then curled her fingers into fists.

“Yeah... I know, Howzer. Don’t underestimate the great Miledi!”

After a solemn nod, Miledi grinned and gave him a thumbs-up. Howzer harrumphed, and his stern expression vanished.

“When you go up the stairs, enter the fifth changing room. There’s a backdoor leading to an alleyway there. We just finished making it, actually.”

With that, Howzer returned to writing his letter. Miledi stared at him for a while longer, a mixture of respect and exasperation lining her face. But then she spun on her heels and walked up the stairs.

Once she was out of the shop, Miledi wandered the city, sticking to mostly deserted back alleys. And as she walked, she mulled over Howzer’s words.

It feels like he saw right through me... The reason she couldn’t sleep did have something to do with the church, but it wasn’t because she was scared. Ever since she’d heard the Holy Templar Knights were in the city... No, ever since she’d heard there was a war, the thought had been sitting in the back of her mind.

“Laus Barn... I’ll have to fight you again, won’t I?”

After the battle in Andika, Oscar had told her about his conversation with Laus. And about the fact that Laus might have been the one who’d saved Belta’s life the first time around. Of course, there was no proof.

But still... He’s an ancient magic user, so it’s definitely possible. Besides, he’s not anything like the other church fanatics... And that was why Miledi was already half-convinced Oscar’s theory was true. She truly believed Laus had defied the church to give Belta a future, meaning he was partly responsible for shaping Miledi into who she was today. He’d helped her turn into a human girl instead of letting her become the emotionless head of a family of executioners.

It was those thoughts that Miledi had been reluctant to share with Howzer. Belta had been a star of hope for the Liberators. Even after her death, her will lived on in everyone. Indeed, the slogan “A world where the people will finally be free” was something that the Liberators had inherited from Belta. If she’d let the others know that the leader of the church’s knights was responsible for saving her life, there was no doubt many of the Liberators would hesitate to raise their weapons against Laus.

Miledi wanted to believe everyone’s resolve would remain firm, but she couldn’t be sure. And since she couldn’t be sure, she couldn’t afford to share her worries with Howzer. Miledi trusted her comrades, but she didn’t blindly put her faith in them. The last thing she wanted to do was give them more to worry about. Still, she couldn’t shake the burning desire to meet Laus again.

Laus Barn. What were you thinking? If you went so far to save Belta, why didn’t you run away with her? Why are you still working for the church if you defied Ehit once already!? Dammit, nothing you do makes any sense! Miledi pulled at her hair in frustration. An old housewife who’d just happened to be passing by saw her, then hurriedly shuffled away. From her perspective, it looked like a robed figure had suddenly gone crazy.

It was only when she noticed the housewife running away from her that Miledi finally returned to her senses. Sighing, she started coming up with a plan to meet secretly with Laus. She circled the alleys, trying to think of some method that wouldn’t attract attention. An hour or two later, around the time the sun was beginning to set, Miledi—

“Hm?”

“Eeek!”

“Then I’m afraid you’ll have to defeat me.”

“Ah...”

Laus’ reply snapped Miledi out of her reminiscing. Looking up, she realized he already had his back turned to her. She had no way of gauging what kind of expression he was making.

“You want to avoid causing a scene here too, don’t you? Go. When we meet on the battlefield... we’ll settle this for good.”

Laus began walking away. But while it seemed like his reply was a rejection of Miledi and her goals, it seemed to her more like he was trying to convince himself to reject her. And so, she asked, “Why did you save Belta?”

Laus froze mid-step. Miledi’s words had bound him in place. But he didn’t reply. Because he himself didn’t know the answer to her question.

“What... exactly are you fighting for?” Miledi followed up with another question.

“For a world that brings the most amount of happiness to the most people.”

Laus’ reply was devoid of emotion. As if it was the default answer he’d trained himself to give to that question. Which was why Miledi smiled upon hearing it.

“I see you didn’t say god.”

“...That’s what god wants as well. I’m merely enforcing his will.”

“Really? Do you really believe that? Look me in the eye and tell me.”

A few minutes ago, Laus had been scolding Miledi, but now she was the one doing the scolding. She stared at Laus’ hunched back, her gaze unwavering. But even then, Laus didn’t turn around. To Miledi, he looked like a wounded, exhausted lone wolf. Originally, he’d been a proud, unyielding protector of the weak, but now he’d been chained and muzzled, reduced to a whimpering mutt who had no choice but to obey. Still, he’d kept telling himself there was something he could protect, and he’d continued throwing himself into fights he didn’t wish for. But eventually—

“You’ve lost hope, haven’t you?”

“What do you know about—!?”

As Laus glanced over his shoulder he trailed off, stunned by the piercing look in Miledi’s sky-blue eyes. She wasn’t disappointed in him, angry at him, or even belittling him. She wasn’t looking at him like he was the enemy.

“If, during this war, I can prove to you that I won’t lose to anyone, that I can be your hope, then... will you join forces with me?”

Miledi’s eyes were sparkling with hope. She’d seen something in Laus that had convinced her he could still be saved. She was convinced that if she just reached out to him, her word would break through his cynicism.

“What do you...?” Laus whispered, his voice hoarse. It was hard to tell if that was because the invisible collar around his neck was tightening, or because he was overwhelmed with emotion. Miledi at least seemed to believe it was the latter. Smiling, she proudly declared:

“I promise you, Laus Barn. I’ll win back your freedom for you!”

“......” Laus was at a loss for words. He stared at Miledi, who met his gaze with a fearless smile.

After a few seconds of silence, the two of them suddenly turned toward the alley entrance.

“Araym, huh...?”

It appeared Araym had been searching for Laus, and he’d finally found him. If Araym had personally gone to look for Laus, there was likely some kind of emergency going on. Either that, or Araym’s obsession with Laus had reared its head again.

Laus slowly closed his eyes. When he opened them again, his expression was as cold as ice.

“Get out of here before I change my mind about killing you.”

“Okay.”

Miledi turned on her heel and dashed toward the alley’s other exit. But just before she was out of sight she turned back and shouted, “Laus Barn! Thank you for saving Belta! It’s because of you that I am who I am today!”

Miledi’s worries from earlier had vanished, and there was a beatific smile on her face. Laus said nothing in reply, and Miledi quickly vanished before Araym arrived. A second later, the Holy Templar Knights’ vice commander turned around the corner. Sighing, Laus turned around to meet his subordinate’s suspicious glare. But his thoughts were still focused on his conversation with Miledi.

Thanks to their coincidental reunion, Miledi was no longer conflicted. She headed back to the Liberator branch office with a new spring in her step. But her joy was short-lived, as Howzer greeted her with a smack to the head upon her return. She’d said she’d just be going for a little walk, but then had disappeared for hours. Little wonder he’d been worried about her.

Normally, Miledi disappearing for hours at a time wouldn’t have been that big a deal, but they were in the middle of enemy territory during a war. Moreover, Miledi’s mana still hadn’t fully recovered. And so, she’d been forced to sit down and listen to Howzer lecture her for hours on end about how she needed to act more leaderlike. By the end, she was in tears, crying, “Waaaaaah! I’m sooooooorry!” The other Liberators watched with smiles on their faces, commenting how she hadn’t changed a bit from when she’d first come here four years ago. Around the time Miledi’s knees were starting to go numb from sitting on them for too long, Naiz walked in.

“Why can’t you just sleep when you’re tired like a normal person?” he asked with an exasperated look on his face. Fortunately, his arrival brought an end to Howzer’s scolding. He grabbed her by the scruff of her neck and bodily threw her into bed, ordering her to rest. Now that her fears had been assuaged, Miledi was able to fall asleep right away this time.

A few hours later, in the dead of night, Miledi stood in front of her fellow Liberators in the deserted weapons store.

“Alright, Howzer, everyone. We’ll be going now.”

Miledi’s mana had recovered enough that she was fit to travel at least. Naiz stood next to her, and a snoring Meiru lay in a sleeping bag at her feet.

“Shouldn’t you wake her up first?” Howzer asked, looking bemused.

“Waking Meru-nee up is impossible.”

Technically, Meiru was half-awake. When Miledi pinched her cheek and shouted, “Wake up Meru-nee, it’s time to go!” Meiru at least poked her face out of the sleeping bag. She just looked like a turtle the whole time.

“Come on, Meru-nee.”

“The republic’s managing to fend the church off, right? We’ve still got time, Miledi-chan. Let’s just go tomorrow.”

“Shut up and get out of the sleeping bag.”

“Don’t wanna.”

Meiru had been sleeping for over eight hours already. It seemed she was quite enamored with this particular sleeping bag. The weapons store was rich enough that they were able to afford high-quality sleeping bags. Of course, the branch office in Esperado had possessed wonderful beds too, but Meiru was especially fond of whatever local materials this sleeping bag had been made out of.

“Miledi-chan. I’m not the kind of person who can keep going non-stop. I need to take breaks. A lot of breaks.”

“Liar. Back when you were a pirate queen, you got the preparations for that coup d’etat done at the speed of light.”

“That was because I needed to save Diene. I can do anything if it’s for my little sister’s sake.”

“Aren’t I like your honorary little sister!? Do this for my sake!”

“Diene>>>>>>An insurmountable wall>>>this sleeping bag>Miledi-chan.”

Annoyed, Miledi tried to drag Meiru out of the sleeping bag. But right as she reached down, a blast of water hit her in the face. Meiru had smacked her with the magic version of a water gun. This sleeping bag was Meiru’s new paradise, and nothing could get her to leave it. She had reverted to a sloth.

Miledi wiped her face down with a handkerchief that Naiz handed her, then turned back to Howzer with a stiff expression.

“See what I mean? This is why we’ll just take her like this. You don’t mind losing one sleeping bag, right?”

“Not really, but... are you sure you should bring someone like that with you?”

“It’ll be fine... probably. When it really matters, she’s reliable.”

As Miledi said that, Meiru started snoring again. Sighing, Miledi scooped the sleeping Meiru into her arms while the other Liberators gave her sympathetic smiles.

“Anyway, we’ll be going now. You guys better evacuate quickly too!”

“Yeah, don’t worry about us. Tell that idiot Badd we said hi. Naiz, take care of those two for me, okay?”

“I will. You guys take care.”

Naiz nodded to Howzer, then teleported his comrades out of the Angriff branch office.

The fog within the Pale Forest was as dense as the rumors said. The moon was hidden by clouds, making visibility within the sea of white even worse. However, there was one thing the rumors seemed to have been wrong about.

“Hey, Nacchan. Does your sense of direction feel messed up?”

“Nope, not at all. At least not as far as I can tell.”

Miledi and Naiz’s sense of direction didn’t seem warped by the fog like it was supposed to. Miledi fired a wind blast at a nearby tree as a test, and it hit right on target.

“I guess this is what Badd meant when he said the republic would let us in?”

“The forest isn’t resisting us like it does everyone else, I guess.”

“In that case, you probably didn’t need to teleport us this far out from the Grand Tree.”

It was common knowledge that the republic’s capital was somewhere near the Grand Tree, though most humans had never seen it. Chances were that was where Badd was too. But Miledi had told Naiz not to teleport directly there because she hadn’t wanted to spook the beastmen by suddenly showing up out of nowhere.

“You can never be too cautious. Besides, this is territory humans like us were never meant to step foot in. Also... you’ve noticed, haven’t you?”

“Yeah... There’s a weird presence here. It feels like someone’s watching us.”

The air within the forest was different, as if this were a separate world. Furthermore, Miledi definitely felt someone’s gaze on her, though she couldn’t tell from where. Nervous, Miledi and Naiz waited for their welcoming party to approach them.

“I can’t believe Meru-nee can sleep through this...” Miledi muttered as they waited.

“Tell me about it,” Naiz replied, looking down at the sleeping bag.

Meiru was still breathing deeply, clearly fast asleep. Her ability to fall asleep literally anywhere was godlike, especially since she could wake up at a moment’s notice if necessary. Unfortunately, now that they’d taken this sleeping bag, Meiru would probably make use of it more often than ever. And right as that thought crossed their minds, and they considered disposing of the sleeping bag, Miledi and Naiz heard a voice in the distance.

“Nacchan, did you hear that!?”

“Yeah, it sounded like a scream.”

The high-pitched voice likely belonged to either a woman or a child. Miledi and Naiz exchanged a brief glance, then dashed toward the source of the scream. Incidentally, Naiz carried the sleeping Meiru in his arms. They moved as fast as they could through the dense undergrowth.

Twenty seconds later, their vision suddenly cleared up as they reached a village where the fog wasn’t present. The settlement was encircled by a sturdy fence, and currently, five beastmen were fighting a group of three monsters right outside it. Behind them, a young dogman girl was lying on the ground. From the looks of it, she’d encountered the monsters first, and the other dogmen had come to help her when they’d heard her scream. However, they were currently being pushed back. There was something strange about these monsters.

“Tiger monsters covered in auras of light?”

“Those aren’t regular monsters! They belong to the Paragons of Light!”

There wasn’t any time to contemplate what the church’s monsters were doing within the forest, since one of the tigers suddenly unleashed an explosion of light that sent the beastmen flying.

One of the beastmen managed to stay on his feet and stop the tiger monster’s charge. But the other two tigers circled around him, heading for the defenseless girl. It almost looked like they were competing to see who could eat her first.

“Nacchan, you take the right one!”

“Roger!”

Miledi reoriented her gravity to fall forward, while Naiz teleported in front of his quarry.

“Not on my watch!”

He grabbed the tiger’s head in an iron grip and slammed it to the ground. Then, he used a spatial shockwave to shatter its skull. A small crater appeared on the ground where Naiz cast his shockwave, and the tiger died instantly. At the same time, Miledi made her move.

“Miledi Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiick!”

Miledi’s gravity-enhanced kick hit the other tiger square in the back of the neck. There was a sickening crunch, and the monster was sent flying. It crashed into the village’s fence, then slowly slid to the ground in a lifeless heap as blood spilled from its eyes and ears.

Miledi and Naiz’s arrival was so sudden that the other beastmen didn’t know how to react. The final tiger bared its fangs at the stunned dogman, but before it could strike, Miledi flattened it. All that remained of it was a bloody stain on the floor. While the other villagers started rushing over after hearing the commotion, Miledi squatted down in front of the dog-eared girl.

“Are you okay? Did you get hurt anywhere?” she asked with a gentle smile. The girl looked Miledi up and down, then turned to Naiz, who had run up next to her. When she saw the bundle in Naiz’s arms, she suddenly paled.

“Eek! Humans!? Please don’t kill me!”

“Huh!?”

The girl backed away, tears spilling from her eyes. Miledi sat there blankly, wondering what about her smile had scared the girl so much.

Eventually, the other villagers arrived on the scene. They too looked from Miledi to Naiz, to the bundle in Naiz’s arms, then paled.

“B-Bastards! How dare you try to kidnap a little girl!”

“How did humans get this far into the forest, anyway!?”

“Dammit, where are our warriors!?”

“Release that dagon at once!”

“Have you no mercy!? How could you wrap her up in a sleeping bag like that!?”

“I knew humans were all evil— Wait, a sleeping bag? Also, is it just me, or does she look really happy in there... A-Anyway, we won’t hand our family over to you!”

Suddenly, Miledi and Naiz realized why everyone was so wary of them. They both looked down at Meiru.

“Mmmmmm, stop being so loud, guys.”

Indeed, from an outsider’s perspective, it did kind of look like two humans were trying to kidnap a dagon woman.

Incidentally, some dagon clans lived within the Pale Forest as well. The eastern edge of the forest bordered the ocean, and the dagons had a large fishing town there. In fact, they provided a lot of the food the republic used and were vital to its functioning.

This isn’t good... Miledi thought to herself.

“Get up, Meru-nee! If you don’t resolve this misunderstanding, we’re gonna be in big trouble!”

Meiru withdrew her head back into the comfort of the sleeping bag.

“Hey, this is serious! What happened to your ability to wake up whenever the situation called for it!? This is no time to be sleeping!”

But Meiru refused to poke her head back out. She looked ready to spend the rest of her life inside that sleeping bag.

We definitely need to get rid of that sleeping bag soon, or Meru-nee’s gonna become a lazy mess.

As Meiru remained unresponsive, Miledi’s panic gave way to anger.

“Get out here already, goddammit!”

Miledi stuck her hand into the sleeping bag and tried to drag Meiru out by force. Just then, ten armed beastmen arrived on the scene. The beastmen who’d been fighting earlier hadn’t really been warriors, but rather part of the village’s watch. The beastmen who’d come now were the real fighters. They looked from Miledi to the villagers, utterly confused.

“Nooo, stoooooop. You can’t take this sleeping bag away from me!”

“I can and I will! I’ll take everything away from you if I have to!”

To the beastmen, it sounded like their dagon brethren was crying out for help. Considering the rather dangerous things Miledi was saying, there was little reason for the beastmen to doubt the humans were evil.

“Save our comraaaaaaaaaaaaaaade!”

“Don’t let those humans leave here alive!”

The warriors howled and brandished their weapons.

“Oscar, Van. Hurry up and get over here. I can’t handle this insanity on my own,” Naiz muttered, his eyes glazed over. He quickly grabbed his two companions and teleported them behind the beastmen fighters. And at the same time, he surreptitiously put Meiru’s sleeping bag in his Treasure Trove.

“Ah!”

“I can’t believe I didn’t think of that! Nice going, Nacchan!”

Naiz gave Meiru, who’d now fallen to the floor, a glare as cold as ice.

“Hurry up and sort out this misunderstanding, Meiru. I won’t ask twice. Are we clear?”

“C-Crystal. Sorry, the sleeping bag just felt so good that I stopped thinking straight. I won’t do it again so, uh, Naiz-kun, could you stop looking at me like I’m a worm? Um, actually, nevermind.”

Naiz was the kind of person who rarely ever got mad, but when he did, he became furious. Naturally, Meiru decided against provoking him any further. Besides, the beastmen warriors were still charging toward them, so this really wasn’t the time for banter.

Meiru stepped in front of Miledi and Naiz, holding her arms out protectively. Then, in a serious tone that Miledi hadn’t heard since she’d left for the demon lord’s castle, Meiru said, “Please listen to me, these—”

But before she could finish, an ominous rustling noise interrupted her.

“Oh, Meru-nee, look down.”

“Huh?”

Meiru looked down to see a black creature at her feet. The creature spread its wings in front of her, as if trying to tell the beastmen she wasn’t an enemy. However, the creature was quite small, and alone it couldn’t even catch the beastmen’s attention, let alone stop them. But it wasn’t alone. There were tons of them.

Black smoke rose up around Meiru’s feet. A second later, thousands upon thousands of the same black creature which struck fear into the hearts of those who saw it welled up from the ground. More of them started coming out of the fog, surrounding Miledi and the others. In seconds, they were surrounded by a tornado of them.

“Hang on, are those cockroach—?”

“Naiz-kun!”

Before she could ask him to teleport them away, one of the cockroaches landed on Meiru’s face and a few others dove into her cleavage. Meiru plucked the cockroach off her face and watched it scuttle around in her palm.

“Heh.”

She laughed weakly, her eyes rolling into the back of her head. The mental shock of seeing so many cockroaches had knocked her out.

“Meru-neeeeee!” Miledi wailed in despair. However, she didn’t step forward to save Meiru. After all, the dagon woman was covered in cockroaches. No way Miledi was gonna touch them.

“Miledi, stop panicking.”

“Nacchan!?”

Naiz looked unperturbed. Truly, he was a man among men. Miledi clung to him, begging for salvation.

“Just pretend they’re big sesame seeds or something. I’m a fan of sesame seed bread, personally.”

“Oh no, he’s lost it too!”

Upon closer inspection, Miledi realized Naiz’s eyes had glazed over. He wasn’t being brave, he had just escaped from reality. Naturally, Miledi wasn’t any more resistant to cockroaches than the others.

“H-Hold on! Don’t come any closer. Wait, stoooooooooooop!”

On that day, three ancient magic users strong enough to take on even the demon lord were defeated by a writhing black mass of pure evil.

“Heeeeeey, Leader. I’m here to get... What the hell happened?”

By the time Badd came to pick Miledi and the others up, they’d been mentally obliterated by the cockroach swarm. For a while, he just stared at them with a look of disbelief, but eventually, he sighed and started carrying them away.

“Huh!? Where am I!? Who am I!? Oh, that’s right, I’m the world’s most beautiful girl!” Miledi shouted, waking with a start.

“Hey, world’s most... pffft... beautiful leader. You come back to your senses yet?”

“Huh? Wait, is that you, Badd?”

Miledi looked up to see her vice commander poking her shoulder. Not only that, but she was on her feet and walking through the forest. Naiz was next to her, with Meiru in his arms, and a group of beastmen soldiers trailed behind them, constantly shooting Miledi and the others suspicious looks.

“When did we meet up? Hang on, why are my memories all fuzzy? Did I see a nightmare or something?”

“Oh, well if you don’t remember I probably shouldn’t tell you. There are some things better left forgotten.”

“Huh? But...”

Miledi gave Badd a confused look. She then turned to Naiz, hoping for an explanation.

“Badd’s right. There are some things in the world you should just forget. Honestly, I wish I could forget what happened too...”

“I-I see... Anyway, why are you carrying Meiru princess-style like that? Are you cheating on Sue-chan and Yun-chan? You better fess up, or I’ll tell them.”

Miledi grinned, regaining a little of her usual annoyingness. This was the first time she’d seen Naiz carry anyone so gently. And though he normally got riled up at the mention of Susha, this time he met Miledi’s gaze and said, “I figured we should treat her well, since we’re in beastmen territory right now. But more importantly... she had it worst back there. She’s earned this much at least.”

Naiz looked gently down at Meiru. His kind, mature expression didn’t fit him in the slightest.

“What the heck happened...” Miledi muttered in confusion. At the same time, Meiru groaned and slowly opened her eyes.

“Mmm, I feel like I just saw a horrible nightmare... Huh? Naiz-kun? Are you cheating on Sue-chan?”

Meiru reacted the exact same way Miledi had. Sighing, Naiz dropped Meiru. She landed lithely, then took a look at her surroundings. Like Miledi, her memories of the last few minutes were hazy.

“Ummm, what happened here?”

“Meru-nee. I feel the exact same way as you. But according to Badd and Nacchan, we’re better off not remembering.”

“Why’s that?” Meiru asked, cocking her head to one side.

Badd flashed her a wry grin and said, “Yo, I see you’re awake too. Alright, let me introduce myself again. I’m the Liberators’ vice commander, Badd. Welcome to the Liberators.”

The reason he said “again” was because he’d introduced himself once to Naiz a few minutes. Naiz nodded quietly, while Meiru narrowed her eyes and scrutinized Badd.

“It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Badd-kun. My name is Meiru. Oh yes, how is your search for a wife going? You look quite handsome, but I hear you’re not very popular with the ladies. Is that because of your personality?”

“Nice self-intro. You wanna die that badly, huh?” Badd growled, his face reddening. Grinning, Miledi chimed in with the perfect follow-up.

“Hey, Badd, did you know? Marshal’s been getting it on with Mikaela recently.”

“What!? Fuck! Shit! That traitor, I can’t believe he got a girlfriend before I did! He’s the one who fucking said being a bachelor for life was better than getting married! And with Mikaela, of all people!? Sure, she might be a glutton, but she’s smoking hot! And she’s totally my type, too! Next time I see that fucking bastard, I’m gonna kill him!”

Badd dropped to his knees and slammed the ground in jealousy. His mana-eating scythe, Egxess, glowed with an ominous black aura as he cried. He was really quite immature for a man in his forties.

“Hahaha, you’re exactly like how everyone described you. I think I like you,” Meiru said with a smile.

“Bahahahaha. I bet Marshal wouldn’t have beaten you to the punch if you hadn’t disappeared to go looking for a wife. Hey, how does it feel, Badd? Knowing that you lost even after trying so hard to find a woman? Look, I even have a picture of Marshal and Mikaela blushing together. How does that make you feel? Come on, tell me! Gahahaha!”

Badd looked so pitiful that even the beastmen warriors gave him sympathetic looks. Incidentally, they were now one hundred percent certain that the dagon woman they thought was being kidnapped was indeed these humans’ comrade. No dagon from the republic was that cruel.

“Alright, you two, give it a rest,” Naiz said with a tired sigh. Managing Miledi and Meiru without Oscar to back him up was proving quite stressful.

“Badd, the republic’s queen wants to see us, right? Hurry up and take us to her.”

“Yeah, she does. Thanks for stopping those two by the way... Wait, you’re the guy who’s got those two sisters pining him after you, right? Tch, popular guys sure have it easy. I don’t need any sympathy from you, you damn pedo—”

Badd stopped talking the moment Naiz’s icy glare pierced through him.

“Say another word and I’ll teleport you three thousand meters into the air and leave you there.”

“Ah, I’m sorry.”

Naiz’s wrath was far more terrifying than anyone else’s.

The party hurried to the republic’s capital, moving quickly to make up for lost time. There was no road to speak of, since the beastmen didn’t want humans who stumbled into the forest to be able to find it, or even know what direction it was in. However, there were plenty of markers that only beastmen would notice. The party made good time, and soon enough Miledi was staring at the capital’s massive walls.

The walls were made of massive trees lined up parallel to each other. The fog made it hard to tell exactly how tall they were, but they were bigger than any trees Miledi had ever seen. Their unnatural formation made it obvious that they’d been placed here by people, yet Miledi had a hard time wrapping her head around the fact that these walls were manmade. For humans, a feat like this would have been impossible without gravity magic. Moreover, the trees looked identical, meaning they must have been chopped down in exactly the same way.

At the bottom of this massive wall was an arch-shaped gate. A veil of hundreds of thousands of branches covered the entrance, serving as the gate’s doors.

Badd gave a signal, and the entwined branches began to glow. They disentangled themselves from each other and retreated into their respective trees, leaving the passageway open. That spectacle was already impressive enough, but the sight that greeted them on the other side of the gate was even more amazing.

“Wow... So this is what the republic is like...”

“Oh my...”

“......”

Miledi and the others were at a loss for words. That was just how awe-inspiring the sight was. The fog was completely absent within the city, allowing those within to see the city in its entirety. And the city itself was built out of the trees. Trees so large they likely didn’t exist anywhere else in the world. Whole houses fit inside their trunks, sitting hundreds of meters in the air. The trees’ long branches served as walkways, connecting trunks to each other, allowing people to go from one treehouse to the other without ever touching the ground. The capital was a three-dimensional marvel of engineering that made use of all available space. Because it was late at night, countless lamps filled with multicolored glowing moss illuminated the streets, giving the city an ethereal feel. Most amazing of all, though, was the tree sitting at the center of the capital.

“That’s Uralt, the sacred tree. Impressive, isn’t it?” Badd said, puffing his chest out proudly.

It was impossible not to be moved when laying eyes on it for the first time. It was the largest tree in a forest full of giant trees. It stood nearly a thousand meters tall and was wide enough to look like a wall even from hundreds of meters away. Each of its countless branches was as thick as the trunks of the trees around it. Its leaves were a vibrant green, and every single one was large enough to cradle a child. But surprisingly, it didn’t feel overbearing in the slightest. In fact, just being in its presence made people feel relieved.

“The beastmen have another name for it too. The Mother of the Forest. The tree’s leaves cover the entirety of the capital. As a matter of fact, the city was built around it.”

Badd’s explanation finally brought Miledi and the others back to their senses. It was then that they realized they were surrounded by beastmen. They’d actually appeared the moment Miledi and the others had stepped foot in the capital to keep an eye on them, but Miledi had been too distracted to notice. However, the beastmen didn’t seem offended that she hadn’t seen them. If anything, they looked proud that their capital had awed Miledi and the others so much.

A little embarrassed, Miledi followed their beastman guides deeper into the city. Eventually, they arrived at the base of the Grand Tree. Looking up, they saw a spiral staircase made of branches snaking around its trunk. Further up, branches shot straight out to connect the tree to other trees within the city. There were even elevators to take people up and down. Moreover, there were hundreds of tiny entrances all across the trunk. Judging by the light spilling out of most of them, they were windows.

“Wait, are we going to go inside the tree?”

“Yep. By the way, the rooms inside weren’t carved. For generations, the ruler of the republic’s been able to alter the tree’s shape. All they have to do is ask the tree to make a new house inside it, and it’s done.”

“Th-That’s amazing... It’s like the tree has a will of its own.”

“According to legends, it does. It doesn’t talk anymore, but apparently, centuries ago there used to be priestesses who could telepathically communicate with it.”

Miledi and the others got into an elevator while Badd showered them with trivia. The elevator came to a stop around one hundred meters up, right in front of an intricately carved wooden terrace. They left their weapons with the warriors waiting on the terrace, then walked into the passageway at the far end.

After a few minutes of walking, the terrace opened up into what looked like a throne room. The room was so vast it was hard to believe it was inside a tree. It rivaled the demon lord’s throne room in size. However, it felt far more sacred than the demon lord’s throne room. Though it was very sparsely decorated, the few pieces of wooden furniture were so exquisitely carved that they took one’s breath away. Beastmen stood at attention on either side of the room, creating a humanoid corridor leading to the throne. The fact that most of them were soldiers rather than ministers showed that the beastmen were still wary of Miledi and the others.

At the end of the corridor was the throne. It sat atop an altar of wood that grew directly out of the tree and was made from the tree’s leaves and branches. Sitting atop it was a beautiful woman wearing a white robe and a crown of flowers. Her jade-green eyes stared quietly down at Miledi and the others. She had an aura of majesty that almost overwhelmed them.

Miledi gulped. She couldn’t take her eyes off the queen. Still, she managed to keep her wits about her long enough to advance down the corridor and kneel in front of the young queen. Badd, Meiru, and Naiz knelt as well. But they remained a few steps behind Miledi, indicating that she was their leader.

The queen of the Haltina Republic looked so regal that she seemed almost like an avatar of the Grand Tree itself. She looked down at Miledi for a few minutes, studying her.

Miledi met the queen’s gaze, though she remained kneeling. The beastmen started whispering about how she was being disrespectful, but Miledi refused to break eye contact. She wanted to see what kind of story the queen’s jade-green eyes told. She wanted to know what kind of person this fellow ancient magic user was. And at the same time, Miledi wanted the queen to see what kind of person she was. Just as she was peering into the queen’s soul, she wanted the queen to peer into hers.

The queen of the Pale Forest and the leader of the Liberators continued staring at each other, sharing a silent conversation only they could understand. Finally, once the beastmen’s whispers had turned to mutters, the queen broke the silence between them. She smiled gently, as if she understood Miledi at last, and said, “Welcome, those who resist the will of the world. I am the queen of the Haltina Republic, Lyutillis Haltina.”

“It’s an honor to meet you, Your Majesty. I am the leader of the Liberators, Miledi Reisen. Thank you for allowing us to grace these sacred halls.”

Meiru and Naiz looked up at Miledi in shock. They had never before heard her talk in such a polite tone.

Miledi noted their reactions out of the corner of her eye, and her lips twitched a little. Did you guys forget that I used to be part of a noble family?

Lyutillis seemed to find Miledi’s reaction amusing, as she hid her mouth with her sleeve and chuckled.

“Hehehe. I see Badd-dono wasn’t exaggerating when he called you a tomboy.”

Miledi glared at Badd over her shoulder. The vice-commander whistled innocently and averted his gaze. Sighing, she turned back to Lyutillis and said, “Fine, I see there’s no point in trying to act courteously. Let me guess, he told you I’m a shitty brat and an annoying leader?”

“That he did. He also expressed his jealousy over how popular you are with the opposite gender.”

“I-I can’t believe he’d say that to a queen’s face... I’m terribly sorry for my subordinate’s rudeness. Also, I would like to set the record straight. I am not building a harem! Badd’s just jealous because girls hate him!”

“Wanna say that to my face, you shitty brat!? Who’s the one who keeps sending reports about how much fun you’re having with your new comrades, huh?”

“What’s wrong with having a little fun? Or are you so jaded you hate it when other people are happy!? You know this is why you’re still single, right?”

“I’m gonna kill you!”

“I’d like to see you try!”

Miledi and Badd started squabbling like children in the Haltina Republic’s throne room.

Most of the beastmen looked shocked, but Lyutillis found the scene hilarious. But after another chuckle, her expression grew completely serious and she asked, “I’ve heard about the Liberators from Badd-dono. I know what it is you’re fighting for, and that you’re ancient magic users just like me. He also told me that you wish to aid us and that without you we will not be able to defeat our shared enemy.”

Lyutillis paused, sweeping her gaze over the other beastmen in the room. Then, in a cold voice, she said what they were all thinking.

“To be perfectly blunt, everyone here finds that quite hard to believe.”

The mist barrier covering the Pale Forest was absolute. Indeed, in this last battle, it had managed to repel even the church’s strongest knights.

“As a fellow ancient magic user, I believe I can entrust you with this information. My ancient magic is evolution magic. I can enhance any ability I wish with it. Therefore, as long as this barrier, the forest’s blessing, and my warriors remain, the republic cannot be defeated.”

The only reason Lyutillis had agreed to meet with Miledi at all was because of Badd. When he’d learned that the church was going to invade the republic, he’d risked his life to inform the beastmen. He’d wandered into the Pale Forest, which no human had ever returned alive from, just to deliver the news. Even after he’d been captured and interrogated, he continued aiding the republic, telling them everything he knew about the church. It was only because of his resolve and his contributions that Lyutillis had allowed him to become the republic’s advisor and agreed to his request to meet with Miledi.

However, Lyutillis and the beastmen still didn’t completely trust Badd. In fact, the queen had assigned spies to watch his every move, and he hadn’t been allowed to join the fight until Sim and the others were at risk of being killed. That was how deep the beastmen’s suspicions ran. And like Badd, Miledi was a human. Even if she claimed she opposed the church, she had no proof. For all the beastmen knew, she might be a spy. Moreover—

“I’ve also heard that despite this being a war, you refuse to kill anyone not affiliated with the church. That means when it comes to the Federation soldiers, the most you can do is render them powerless, correct?”

Since the Liberators’ goal was to free people from the church’s twisted rule, they couldn’t exactly harm the people they were trying to liberate. After all, unless they truly were complete scum, the soldiers of the Federation were also among the people Miledi wanted to protect. However, as far as the republic was concerned, the Federation was also the enemy.

From the beastmen’s perspective, it looked like Miledi just didn’t want to hurt her own. They were worried she might try to push her ideals onto them—or worse, side with the humans if it looked like they were getting massacred. As a result, they were unwilling to trust Miledi. It was hardly surprising that Lyutillis said what she did.

“We can protect our homeland by ourselves. If you truly wish to help us, why not go back to the Federation and strike the enemy army from behind?”

Lyutillis smiled again, but this time it was a very cold smile that symbolized the deeply embedded distrust beastmen had for humans. The reason Lyutillis had allowed Badd to stay was because she knew he could be handled. But there was no way she’d be able to stop multiple ancient magic users if they decided to turn against her. That made the risk of betrayal that much greater. Combined with her general mistrust of humans, rejecting the Liberators seemed like the only rational choice to Lyutillis.

“I see. Your suspicion is understandable,” Miledi replied coolly. Lyutillis narrowed her eyes, waiting for Miledi to continue. “But since we’re being honest here, I’ll be frank. You’re far too naive if you think you can win on your own. You know nothing about the true terror of the church.”

Now Miledi’s gaze was as cold as Lyutillis’. Naturally, the beastmen of the republic didn’t take kindly to being told they were ignorant and overconfident.

“Don’t underestimate us, you bitch!”

“Hmph, I should have known you looked down on us just like every other human.”

The two who’d spoken were the wolfman Valf and a leopardman who looked to be one of Lyutillis’ personal guards. Of course, the other beastmen looked like they wanted to give Miledi a piece of their mind too. However, Miledi ignored them and looked only at Lyutillis.

“Alone, I’m strong enough to fight on even terms with Laus Barn, the commander of the Holy Templar Knights.”

“So what? We can—”

“But there is another enemy I could barely hold my own against, even with two other ancient magic users to help me. It took everything the three of us had just to survive. That enemy has no soul, and though she looks human, she most certainly isn’t. In fact, I doubt she’s even alive.”

Miledi’s words carried an immense weight, and Valf and the others fell silent.

“She is the church’s ultimate trump card, the silver-haired Apostle of God.”

“Apostle... of God,” Lyutillis muttered quietly.

Miledi’s gaze grew sharp and she said, “I can say this with absolute certainty. If she appears, the republic is finished. That woman is the crystallization of Ehit’s might.”

“She’s that strong?”

“Yes. Only ancient magic users stand a chance against her.”

Miledi then went on to talk about the divine will that had possessed the Demon Lord. She explained that the gods might try to control Lyutillis in a similar manner. Everything about Miledi’s demeanor, from her gaze to her tone to her posture, was so serious that the gathered beastmen had no choice but to accept the veracity of her words.

Once she was finished, silence filled the throne room. The beastmen still didn’t trust Miledi, but now their fears were bigger than their doubts.

“What is it you want in return for protecting us? Surely you have a reason to risk your lives?” Lyutillis asked softly, breaking the silence. Her gaze was much warmer than it had been a moment ago. It suddenly occurred to Miledi that Lyutillis might have been willing to accept her help all along. But because Lyutillis was the queen of the beastmen, her duty had demanded that she voice their doubts for them. While Miledi couldn’t be certain that was the case, she was certain that Lyutillis wasn’t the kind of person to discriminate against humans. She had listened to Miledi without bias, after all. Therefore, Miledi decided to reply with equal sincerity.

“Nothing. We just want you to continue being yourself.”

Miledi dropped the polite tone she’d been using until now, but no one called her out on it. Because they could tell from the look in her eyes that this was her true, earnest self. Smiling awkwardly, she scratched her cheek.

“Honestly, I’d normally ask you to join me but... I don’t want to deprive the beastmen of their queen. So all I want is to keep you safe from the church and let you live freely, according to your own will.”

That really was all.

“Please, let me protect you.”

Even if Lyutillis told Miledi to get out, she’d still try to protect her.

“I... No, we swear we’ll keep you safe.”

Miledi needed no reward for doing so. This was her raison d’etre, after all. Miledi looked back at Naiz, Meiru, and Badd. She then looked off into the distance, where all of her other comrades were waiting. On second thought, I guess there is one thing I want...

“Actually, would it be possible to make one request?”

“And what would that be?”

Miledi turned back to Lyutillis, meeting the queen’s gaze. The two stared into each other’s eyes for a few seconds, then Miledi said, “We’re going to change the world into a place where people can be more accepting of each other. Doubt me if you want. But once we do succeed, please don’t reject others if they come to you in good faith. At least listen to them if they say they want to get along with you.”

The same way you’re listening to us right now. Miledi’s sky-blue eyes were unwavering as she spoke about her dream. The other beastmen looked at her like she was some kind of strange, alien creature. Some of them frowned, unsure of how to react to her declaration. However, none of them disparaged her resolve. Their anger at her began to ebb away.

Meanwhile, Miledi went back to sounding more respectful, though her tone remained light.

“Of course, Your Majesty, I realize you can’t afford to trust us right away. Allowing three ancient magic users and the famous Knight Hunter to remain in the republic is a huge risk. I understand completely if you have to ask us to leave. But I would like it if we worked out some kind of signal you could give us if God’s Apostle appears, or if someone tries to take control of your personality. That way, we’ll be able to rush to your aid anytime!”

We’ve got Nacchan with us, after all. We can be anywhere in an instant! Miledi thought with a smile. Lyutillis nodded and turned to a well-built, old-looking catman woman standing next to her. The stern woman nodded when she felt Lyutillis’ gaze on her. Next, Lyutillis turned to a grizzled bearman warrior, the republic’s general, Sim. Looking somewhat unsure, Sim, in turn, looked to his warriors. After gauging their reactions, he turned to Miledi. She resolutely met his gaze, and eventually, Sim also nodded.

“Your Majesty. I have no way of judging how severe a threat this enemy the Liberators speak of is. However, as the leader of our troops, it would be unwise of me to dismiss her warning as nonsense.”

“Then you have no objections to them staying here?”

“None, Your Majesty. Assuming their claims are true, that is.”

“By that do you mean... Oh, I see. You wish for them to display their strength?”

“Precisely.”

Sim looked Miledi up and down, then took a step forward.

“I propose we have a duel. Prove to me that your abilities truly do surpass those of the republic’s finest warriors. That your assertions are not just empty boasts.”

Miledi nodded in understanding. If she couldn’t beat these beastmen, there was no way she could hope to protect Lyutillis.

“Very well,” Miledi replied without hesitation. Sim’s lips curled up into a feral grin, and he took another step forward.

“Hang on, General. Mind if I fight her instead?”

“Hm? Why, Valf?”

Valf took a few steps forward and said, “Because I’m the strongest close-quarters fighter we’ve got. Besides—”

“Besides what?”

“She pisses me off.”

Valf glared not at Miledi but at Meiru. Meiru cocked her head, giving Valf a blank look.

“Why the hell are you working with those humans? Why do you follow that brat? Just cause she’s got the same kinda power our queen does? Then shouldn’t you be helping us instead!? We’re your people!”

It appeared Valf took issue with the fact that Meiru was part of the Liberators.

“Ummm, I can’t really say this is my home, since I was born on the western sea.”

“That shit doesn’t matter. This forest is every beastman’s ancestral home! And now it’s being invaded! Don’t you want to help your brethren!? You belong on our side, not theirs!”

Valf identified more strongly with his homeland than most beastmen. However, that was because he loved his comrades and his country more than anything. And so, he couldn’t stand that a dagon woman like Meiru was part of a human organization.

Miledi realized all of that, but that didn’t make this any less awkward.

“So, uh... what do you want to do about it?” Miledi asked.

“I want you to fight me. And if I win, I want you to swear you’ll let that dagon leave your group and live here in the republic. And that you won’t ever bother her again.”

If Valf won, Miledi and the others would have to leave the Pale Forest. There’d be no point to them being there anyway if they were that weak. But Valf didn’t want Meiru to leave with the rest of them. He was certain she’d be happier living in the republic with her fellow beastmen. In a way, one could say he was thinking of her when he made his proposal. But because his thinking was clouded by bias, it came out sounding more like arrogant self-righteousness. And that really struck a nerve with Miledi.

“Oh? You want to take Meru-nee away from me, huh? Hahaha, don’t get too cocky, you mutt.”

Though Meiru annoyed Miledi at times, Miledi still loved her. It was hardly surprising that she was angry at Valf’s suggestion. She glared at Valf. There was no way she’d let this wolfman cuck her. As the two of them stared each other down, Meiru chuckled quietly. She was looking at Miledi, a rapt expression on her face.

“Hey, Naiz-kun. Don’t you think it’s cute how Miledi-chan’s fighting so hard to keep me from getting stolen away?”

“No comment.”

“This is where I should jump in and say something like ‘don’t fight over me, you two,’ right?”

“Don’t ask me... Just don’t make things any worse, please.”

“My, how cold. Don’t you feel anything after seeing how passionate Miledi-chan is?”

Though Meiru was joking around with Naiz, she too, had been offended by Valf’s suggestion. She slowly got to her feet, a bloodcurdling smile on her face.

“Hey, mutt. I’ll be the one to fight you. Be glad I’m even granting you this opportunity.”

Meiru goaded Valf mercilessly, beckoning him with her finger. At the same time, she walked over to Miledi and patted her head with her free hand.

“What was that!? You think a dagon like you can beat a wolfman in close combat!? Do ya!?”

“You sure bark a lot for a little puppy. Why don’t you show me what your bite’s like, huh?”

At that, Valf snapped. His eyes twitched, and he bared his fangs at Meiru.

“Fine. I’ll crush you into the ground, you arrogant bitch. But if I win, you’re gonna have to do more than just leave your friends. You’re gonna have to become my servant. I’m gonna beat some manners into you.”

“Ufufufu, sure. It’s been a while since I’ve had the chance to cut loose. I’ve been dying for someone to vent my frustrations on.”

Miledi looked frantically from Meiru to Valf, while Naiz and Sim rubbed their temples, their expressions identical. It was just Lyutillis who looked like she was enjoying this.

“U-Umm, I’ll fight, okay? So can you stop provoking Meru-nee, please?” Miledi asked timidly.

“I’m asking as well. If you’d rather not fight Miledi, then I’ll face you. But please don’t pick Meiru.”

Miledi and Naiz both started begging Valf. Unfortunately, he assumed they were panicking because despite being an ancient magic user, Meiru wasn’t good at close combat. The reason he had such a fatal misunderstanding was because Lyutillis tended to remain on the backlines herself, and dagons were known for being weak fighters on land. Furthermore, the only frontline ancient magic user he knew of was Laus, and Sim had managed to fend him off at least. Valf didn’t understand that the only reason Sim had managed to fight on equal terms with Laus was because he’d been holding back, or that Meiru was actually one of the most dangerous fighters among Miledi’s friends. And thus, the stage was set for a tragedy.

“Y-Your Majesty! Please, let me fight instead!” Miledi begged one last time. She desperately wanted to save Valf from the hell she knew awaited him.

“Fear not, I’ll stop the fight if things get dangerous. Besides, Valf isn’t looking to kill his opponent. The same holds true for your friend, does it not?”

Technically, yes, but you don’t understand! He might lose something even more important than his life if he fights Meru-nee! Miledi opened her mouth to say as much, but Valf had made up his mind. He strode to the center of the throne room and dropped into a fighting stance.

Naturally, Meiru was already in position. It was obvious the two of them weren’t going to let anyone interfere with their duel.

“N-Nacchaaaaaaaan!”

“Sorry, but I can’t do anything. Just pray. Pray this doesn’t ruin our relationship with the republic.”

“You’re giving up already!?”

“If only Oscar was here...” Naiz said with a wistful look.

He couldn’t bear to face reality. At the same time, he massaged his stomach, which was not dealing with all this stress too well.

“H-Hey, Leader. Is this really that big a deal? I thought you said she was pretty strong in your reports. Plus, she can use restoration magic, right? What’s the problem?”

Badd, who’d just been watching the proceedings as a silent bystander until now, shot his leader a confused look.

“I’m not worried about Meru-nee losing! She just has a bad habit of... Crap, it’s already starting! Meru-nee, you better restrain yourself! Promise me you won’t take things too far!”

Meiru flashed Miledi a reassuring smile and gave her a thumbs-up.

“Don’t worry, Miledi-chan. Half of me is made up of kindness.”

“Yeah, I’m worried about what the other half of you is made up of... Whatever, I’m trusting you!”

“Good. I’m just going to destroy— I mean, teach this mutt what happens when you insult my Miledi-chan.”

“I heard you correct yourself!”

With that, the duel finally began. The rules were simple. Whichever side surrendered or was incapacitated first lost. Lyutillis’ guards returned Meiru’s whip sword to her, while Valf equipped his clawed gauntlets. Sim, who was still a little shaken by Miledi’s sudden transformation from a calm and collected leader to a panicking mess, warily called for the match to begin. “Just don’t kill each other, you two. Begin!”

The moment the fight began, Valf vanished. Or rather, he moved so fast it looked like he vanished. A second later, he reappeared behind Meiru.

“Hah. Pathetic. You didn’t even last a second,” he said with a smirk. Valf’s claws were poised to strike Meiru’s jugular. To most of the spectators, it looked like the victor had already been decided. But the conclusion was so anticlimactic that even Sim hesitated to call the match.

“Hm? If I recall correctly, the rules say we keep fighting until one of us surrenders or is incapacitated. That’s why I let you have the first move, you know? But I still haven’t been incapacitated.”

“Huh? You a sore loser or something? I’ve got my claws on your neck. It’s ove—”

“How soft.”

Grinning, Meiru stepped backward, impaling her neck on Valf’s claws. Blood spurted from the wounds.

“Wha—!? Idiot!”

Panicking, Valf hurriedly withdrew his claws and took a few steps back. But what happened next shocked him.

“My, what seems to be the problem?”

“Huh? What? Your wounds are... gone?”

Indeed, Meiru’s neck was unscathed. Even the blood was gone.

“Come on, why are you stopping? Didn’t you say you’d crush me? Here, I’ll even stand still for you. Attack me all you want. But you better come at me like you want to kill me. Otherwise, this won’t even be a warm-up for me.”

“D-Don’t underestimate me, you bitch!”

Thinking Meiru had just used some kind of illusion, Valf rushed forward once more. This time he wouldn’t stop his blows just before they landed. He’d avoid her vitals and cut her up until she surrendered. He darted around Meiru, moving faster than the eye could follow.

Holy shit, is this bitch seriously not planning on dodging!? Valf dashed past Meiru’s side and cut at her arm. However—

“Wha—!? You’re unhurt!? I know I cut you!”

“Ufufufu,” Meiru snickered provocatively. The spectators were all shocked, but Valf didn’t have time to register their reactions. He leaped forward again, unleashing a rapid-fire barrage of swipes.

“Uwoooooooooooooh!”

He cut at Meiru’s shoulders, arms, stomach, and thighs. Though none of the cuts were fatal on their own, she’d need urgent treatment to survive after this. He distinctly felt each and every one of his attacks connect, his claws tearing into flesh. Yet, Meiru remained unscathed.

“I thought I told you to strike to kill. Trust me, even that won’t be enough to win.”

“You’ve gotta be kidding me...”

There wasn’t even any blood on her. Of course, the reason for that was because she was using restoration magic the moment she got hit. But to those who didn’t know what her ancient magic did, it looked like she was invulnerable.

An icy silence fell over the throne room. Miledi and Naiz shook their heads in exasperation. They knew Meiru was doing this to mentally crush Valf before she annihilated him.

Still smiling, Meiru took a step forward. Valf reflexively backed up a step.

“Come on, my heart’s right here. Stab through it with all your might.”

“A-Are you serious!?”

“But of course. Not that I’ve experienced it, but you probably wouldn’t be able to kill me even if you cut my head off. If you want, you can try that instead.”

Meiru spread her arms wide, as if to say she’d accept anything Valf did to her. But while she looked like she was as benevolent as the ocean, she terrified Valf. After all, she was telling him to cut her head off with a smile on her face. As if she was utterly confident she wouldn’t die unless he was able to vaporize her entire body in an instant.

She’s a monster... Valf thought with a shiver. No matter how magnanimous her expression was, she just looked like the devil incarnate to Valf.

“Are you done?”

As she asked that, Meiru finally drew her whipsword. As it slid out of its sheath with a metallic snick, everyone shivered.

“If you won’t come to me then... I’ll carve you up.”

Meiru narrowed her eyes dangerously. Before he knew it, Valf was charging forward.

“U-Uwoooooooooooooooooh!”

“O-Oh no. Valf, stop!”

Valf was terrified. It felt like he was facing down an evil god. Sim hurriedly tried to stop him, but it was too late. There was a dull thud, and his claws sunk into Meiru’s chest. It was obvious her heart had been pierced.

“Ah...” Valf paled as he realized what he’d done. There was no undoing this, he’d killed her. And yet—

“Now then, I think it’s finally my turn.”

Meiru calmly grabbed Valf’s arm, her voice surprisingly calm considering she’d just been stabbed through the heart. She pulled Valf’s claws out of her chest, and all he could do was watch in dumbfounded silence as the wounds closed up with a tinge of orange light.

“H-How the hell am I supposed to beat that...” Valf muttered in shock.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Meiru brandished her whip sword and said, “You’re not.”

This was the gap that existed between ancient magic users and normal people. There were only seven alive at any given time, and each was the incarnation of unreasonable strength. No warrior, no matter how skilled, could hope to match up to the unfair advantage they possessed.

“Hahaha...” Valf laughed weakly.

She’s way out of my league. I was the one being cocky, not her... Still, Valf’s pride wouldn’t let him admit defeat. He was the republic’s strongest close-combat fighter. If he lost without even putting up a fight, it’d affect the prestige of all beastmen.

It doesn’t matter how broken her magic is, it’s still magic. Once she runs out of mana, she won’t be able to do a thing! I just need to get one good hit in! Even if I can’t win, I wanna wipe that smug grin off her face! All I need to do is—

“Now then, let’s begin.”

“Huh? Gyaaaah!?”

Meiru’s whipsword whistled through the air, slapping Valf on the face. Though she’d casually swung it with one hand, the sword hit Valf so hard he was sent flying. The links of the sword coiled around him as he sailed through the air, preventing him from reorienting himself for a landing. Just before he hit the ground, Meiru flung him forward, sending him crashing into the wall. He gingerly got to one knee, then screamed when he saw what was coming next.

“This is what you get for insulting my precious Miledi-chan.”

“Oh, uh, I didn’t mean to...”

Valf trailed off as he saw the smile on Meiru’s face.

“Come... I won’t stop until you’re squealing like a pig.”

The words coming out of her mouth fit her smile so well it was terrifying. Needless to say, Valf’s suffering was just beginning.

In the beginning, Valf used what little strength he had left to fight back, but once Meiru’s sadistic switch had been flipped there was no stopping her. She shut him down at every turn, using a combination of water whips and her whip sword to mercilessly rain blows down on him. She also used her restoration magic on him to revive his old wounds, and before long his war cries had turned to pained whimpers. And because Meiru had erected a soundproof water dome around him, Sim wasn’t able to hear his cries of “Yield” until it was too late.

“Miledi-chan is a wonderful human being, isn’t she?”

“Yes, yes she is, Master!”

“Excuse me? Who permitted you to talk, mutt? I told you to bark your replies.”

“Woof! Huh!? What did I just—”

The light vanished from Valf’s eyes as he realized he surrendered in both body and soul to Meiru. It was then that Sim finally returned to his senses and started shouting, “I’m begging you, please stop tormenting him!” At the same time, Miledi restrained Meiru with gravity magic and screamed, “I told you not to go overboard, Meru-nee!”

As the match came to an end, Valf looked off into the distance. His life had been spared, but he’d lost something far more valuable: his dignity. It looked like the slightest breeze could knock him over now.

“Hey, Naiz... Who the hell is that woman?” Badd asked.

“The pirate queen who cowed even the most ferocious hooligans and tamed them into obedient followers. Normally, after this, she’d give Valf some candy and incorporate him into her family.”

“I know she’s another ancient magic user, but I can’t believe you recruited someone like that.”

“Tell your complaints to Miledi.”

Badd looked scandalized. It was hardly surprising. Naiz had made the same face the first time he’d seen Meiru punish someone. Naturally, the other beastmen were terrified of her.

“Hey, Sui! You go challenge that witch! Our nation’s pride is resting on your shoulders!”

“What!? No way! I don’t want to die yet!”

“I bet you could win with your Refraction and presence manipulation skills!”

“I can’t! I tried hiding earlier, but that crazy lady spotted me anyway! Hell, that stoic guy over there’s been able to see me this whole time too!”

It appeared Sui had been hiding in a corner of the throne room this whole time, in case something happened and she was needed.

Incidentally, Meiru had been able to spot her because she’d read from the moisture in the air that someone was breathing in that spot while Naiz had known because his spatial magic had alerted him to the fact that that corner wasn’t empty. When she heard Sui’s whispered conversation, Meiru grinned and turned to the rabbitman girl. Sui squealed and bolted out of the room, abandoning her queen and her comrades.

Sighing, Sim proclaimed Meiru’s victory with a troubled expression. While she’d clearly gone overboard, she hadn’t technically broken any of the rules. Plus, it was the beastmen who’d proposed this duel. Most importantly though, Sim didn’t want to attract Meiru’s ire and end up like his comrade had. With that, the Liberators had unequivocally proven their might to the republic.

However, now it wasn’t the humans the beastmen were afraid of, but rather one of their own brethren, if Meiru could even be called that. The Liberators may have cleared the beastmen’s conditions, but now there was something else to be worried about.

As the awkward silence stretched on, Miledi finally turned to Lyutillis and said timidly, “U-Umm, Your Majesty. I’m terribly sorry for what Meru-nee did. But she only went that far because she was thinking of me so, ummm, if you could find it in your heart to forgive her—”

“She’s forgiven,” Lyutillis replied flatly before Miledi could finish. The other beastmen turned to their queen in shock.

“Umm, does that mean we—”

“You may stay here. Those were the terms of the agreement, after all. Onee— Ahem, I mean, Meiru-dono has proved her strength, meaning I have no reason to object to your request. None whatsoever.”

Hm? Is it just me or... is she leaning forward a little? Also, it looks like she’s blushing. And she’s talking really fast... Miledi thought to herself. Strangest of all, though, was the fact that she was panting despite not having exerted herself at all.

Did she get that excited over the duel? Also, what was she gonna say when she started saying onee and then cut herself off?

“Parsha, please show Onee— I mean, Meiru-dono and the others to their rooms. Since they’ll be guarding me, I insist that you provide them rooms in the palace. Rooms as close to mine as possible. And make sure the maids know to show our guests the utmost courtesy.”

“Your Majesty, aren’t you letting your guard down a little too—”

“I will brook no objections!”

“...Haaah. As you wish, Your Majesty. But shouldn’t you at least introduce us first?”

The old woman Lyutillis had addressed as Parsha said her full name was Parsha Mill, and she was actually the republic’s prime minister, as well as Lyutillis’ right-hand woman. Lyutillis nodded reluctantly, seeming oddly annoyed.

“This woman is the republic’s prime minister, Parsha Mill. Those standing to my right are this country’s commanders. First, we have the infantry commander, Sim Gato. Then the commander of the army commandos, Valf Rugal. Behind him is Nirke Zouk, commander of the aerial division. That over there is the captain of the royal guard, Craid Ulks. That just leaves... the commander of the scouting division Sui... but she ran away so we can skip over her for now. I’ll introduce the others tomorrow.”

Those were the sloppiest introductions I’ve ever seen... Miledi thought to herself. Lyutillis’ retainers looked down dejectedly, but she ignored them.

“Now that that’s settled, I’m going to take Meiru-dono— and the other Liberators on a tour of the palace. I want to speak privately with my fellow ancient magic users so I won’t be needing any guards. Oh, but you can come if you want, Parsha. Come, let’s go, Onee— I mean, Meiru-sama... and everyone else.”

Craid, the wise leopardman captain of Lyutillis’ royal guard, didn’t even have time to object. He hurriedly tried to say something, but Lyutillis got to her feet and swept past him. Incidentally, it hadn’t escaped Craid’s attention that the queen had gone from calling Meiru Meiru-dono to Meiru-sama. There was a lot he wanted to say, but unfortunately, the queen’s word was absolute.

Sim and the others didn’t look very pleased with this arrangement either, but they relented because Parsha would be going with Lyutillis. Also, Badd offered to stay behind as a hostage, which swayed them.

Smiling in satisfaction, Lyutillis stopped in front of the Liberators and said, “Thank you very much for coming to meet me.”

Then she led Miledi and the others out of the throne room, a strange spring in her step.

“I’ve never seen Her Majesty act like that before...” her retainers muttered as she left.

In a strange turn of events none of them had been expecting, Miledi and the others received a tour of the palace from the queen herself. And in the process, they learned just how much power she wielded. The palace, which was basically the entirety of the sacred tree Uralt, could be reshaped in an instant according to her whims. With one wave of her staff of office, a thirty-centimeter long wand of wood known as the Guardian Rod, she could transform any part of the tree. There wasn’t even any need for them to walk through the halls or climb stairs. Lyutillis could just order one of the tree’s branches to carry them wherever she wanted to go. She was practically one with the tree.

According to Lyutillis, the Guardian Rod was made from a fusion of the tree’s bark and a set of special crystals. It was an artifact that had been made long ago that chose its wielder, meaning one didn’t receive the rod upon becoming the ruler of the republic. Instead, a person became ruler of the republic if they were chosen by the rod. The republic’s monarch could freely control the Grand Tree, manipulate the forest’s mist, and regenerate any damaged part of the forest. They could also create fertile soil that could bear crops regardless of the climate or season. The rod’s powers were quite versatile. The massive trees Miledi and the others had seen around the city were actually part of Uralt’s roots, and Lyutillis could freely regenerate or reinforce those as needed too.

Little wonder she was called the Guardian of the Forest. Especially since her ancient magic, evolution magic, allowed her to enhance all of these abilities to a level never before seen in the forest’s history. Miledi could see why Sim and the others had absolute faith in their queen.

Incidentally, the monsters Miledi and the others had faced upon entering the forest hadn’t been immune to the fog’s effects. And they’d been more of an attempt at harassing the beastmen than a concerted attack. The Paragons of Light had just captured some random monsters and transformed them into sacred beasts, then set them loose into the forest. They were strong enough to take down a few beastmen warriors, but that was all.

At best the Paragons of Light had expected them to accidentally stumble across a village and kill a few civilians. Even if they didn’t manage that, maybe they’d exhaust a soldier or two. Of course, Lyutillis could instantly sense the presence of intruders in the forest and dispatch extermination squads, so the Paragons of Light knew there was little their monsters could do.

As Lyutillis explained all of that to Miledi and the others, she led them to the tree’s apex. The whole thing was covered in a dome of pure white fog, and was perfectly smooth, like a stump. Compared to the base of the trunk, the top was small, only five meters in diameter. But it felt bigger, as branches spread out from the trunk in all directions.

The tree’s summit was a special place, and only a select few beastmen were allowed to visit it. Miledi and Naiz were the first humans in history ever to stand here. Naturally, Prime Minister Parsha was not happy about that at all. But of course, Miledi and the others ignored her.

Lyutillis casually waved her rod like a conductor’s baton, and the mist cleared away. The sight resembled clouds breaking apart around a particularly tall mountain. The view that opened up before the party was spectacular. The moon shone brightly through a gap in the clouds, illuminating the surroundings. The mist down below sparkled in the moonlight, looking like a sea of jewels.

Miledi and Naiz sighed in wonder as they took in the scenery. Meanwhile, Lyutillis glanced timidly over at Meiru and asked, “What do you think, Onee— I mean, Meiru-sama? The view is wonderful, isn’t it?”

“Y-Yes. It’s quite enchanting.”

“I’m glad you like it, Onee— I mean, Meiru-sama.”

“O-Okay? Umm, Your Majesty, why are you so close to me?”

“Come now, Meiru-sama. We may have been born in different lands, but we’re still brethren, aren’t we? Feel free to call me Lyutillis, or just Lyu if you want.”

“E-Err, wouldn’t the others get mad if I did that? I’d rather not cause a scene.”

Meiru’s instincts were telling her that it’d be dangerous to get too deeply involved with Lyutillis. She didn’t know why, but this was definitely awkward. However, it seemed Lyutillis wasn’t taking the hint. Her ears drooped despondently at Meiru’s response, but she still stepped closer and hooked her arm around Meiru’s.

“Please... don’t be so cold. We’re comrades, aren’t we, Meiru-sama?”

“Since when!? We just introduced ourselves a few minutes ago! Please stop sticking so close to me!”

“Don’t wanna! I won’t let go until you agree to call me Lyu, Onee— I mean, Meiru-sama! No matter what!”

“Seriously, what’s gotten into you!? What happened to all that solemn majesty you had back in the throne room!?”

“That’s just my public persona. It’s important to cut loose when I’m in private. Now call me Lyu.”

“Fine, fine, I’ll call you Lyu. Happy? Now let go—”

“I’m so happy... I should probably call you onee-sama now, huh?”

“Why!?”

It was exceedingly rare to see the usually calm and composed Meiru this flustered. She seemed at a total loss as she tried to pry Lyutillis off her arm.

Oh, so she was trying to call Meiru onee-sama this whole time... Naiz thought absently as he watched the two of them.

Meanwhile, Miledi turned to him with a panicked expression and asked, “Wh-What do I do, Nacchan!? She’s trying to steal Meru-nee away from me!”

“Don’t ask me.”

Naiz turned to Parsha and asked, “Parsha-dono. Is there a reason the queen is acting like this? And why is she so obsessed with Meiru?”

“Hrmmm. Well... this is sort of a state secret,” Parsha replied hesitantly, rubbing her temples. Lyutillis was a constant source of stress for her, and she wasn’t as young as she used to be. Naiz felt an affinity with this old woman.

“If it’s confidential, I guess I shouldn’t ask?”

“No, it’s fine. It’s not like I can hide it anyway, with the way she’s acting. Besides, she’s been pretty stressed since the war started. If anything, it’s a good thing you guys came when you did. It’s allowed her to loosen up. That being said, I’d appreciate it if you could keep this a secret from the other beastmen.”

“Including the army commanders?”

“Yes. It’d affect their morale.”

Just what kind of crazy secret is this that they can’t even tell the army generals?

According to Parsha, Lyutillis had lost her parents at a young age and had been raised by Parsha’s family. This was why only Parsha and a select few of Lyutillis’ maids knew this secret about her. Miledi’s expression grew serious as Parsha launched into her story. A secret so important that not even the country’s generals were allowed to know had to be something big.

“We’ve tried to cure her so many times, but it’s proven impossible...” Parsha muttered regretfully. She did her best not to look at Lyutillis, as if trying to pretend there wasn’t any problem at all.

Misinterpreting her expression, Miledi guessed, “Does she have some incurable illness or something? Is that why she got so excited when she heard about Meru-nee’s restoration magic...”

“W-Well, she certainly is excited to see Meiru-dono. And I suppose you could say she has an incurable illness of sorts.”

Parsha looked hesitant to say anymore.

Is it that serious an illness? Miledi thought to herself.

I guess that explains why they can’t mention it to the commanders... It would crush the beastmen’s morale if they learned their beloved queen might collapse at any moment. Miledi and Naiz gave Parsha reassuring looks.

“Don’t worry. No matter how debilitating the disease, Meru-nee can fix it! So tell us what’s wrong with her, Parsha-san.”

“Miledi’s right, Meiru’s restoration magic can do almost anything. Please, explain to us what’s wrong with the queen.”

Out of the corner of their eyes, Miledi and Naiz watched as Lyutillis chased after Meiru, driving her to the edge of the tree trunk. She looked desperate.

They shot Lyutillis a pitying look, then turned back to Parsha, whose eyes had glazed over. The prime minister said in a flat, deadpan voice, “She’s a pervert.”

Miledi cocked her head, a blank look on her face, while Naiz cleaned out his ears. Both of them looked like they couldn’t believe what they’d just heard.

“She’s a pervert!” Parsha repeated, making it absolutely clear they hadn’t misheard. Her words echoed throughout the apex of the tree, rustling the branches.

“I don’t know where I went wrong raising her, but she’s grown up into a hardcore masochist! She loves being scolded, spanked, and glared at! Why!? Why couldn’t I prevent this!? I’m sorry, Maryu, Jade, I’ve failed you! I don’t even know how long I’ll be able to keep this horrible truth a secret! Every day, the stress grows and my heartburn gets worse!”

“C-Calm down, Parsha-san.”

“N-Not good. She’s started hyperventilating.”

Once she’d started, Parsha just couldn’t stop talking. She vented all the frustration she’d built up over the years. Keeping the queen’s secret had been such a mental strain that she was at her wit’s end.

Incidentally, Maryu and Jade were the names of Lyutillis’ late parents. Both of them had been perfectly normal people.

Miledi rubbed Parsha’s back, helping her calm down and regain control of her breathing. Meanwhile, Meiru gave Lyutillis, who was still clinging to her arm, a terrified look. Parsha’s shouting had been loud enough that both of them had heard it.

“Haaah... Haaah... Oh, Parsha. I know no one else is here, but insulting me so splendidly in front of people we just met today is so... amazing!”

Lyutillis was panting heavily. She had none of the majestic dignity she’d possessed when they first met her and looked like nothing more than a masochistic pervert. Her transformation was so stark that Miledi would have believed it if you told her she had a split personality. The perverted monarch looked up at Meiru with pleading eyes. Her cheeks were red, and her heavy breathing tickled Meiru’s ears.

“G-Get away from me, you freak!”

“Ooooooh!”

Meiru slapped Lyutillis with all her might. The republic’s queen sailed through the air and landed in a heap near the center of the trunk. She brought a hand to her swollen cheek, her expression ecstatic. Writhing in pleasure she said, “Y-You hit me. Even though I’m a queen, you hit me! No one’s ever done that to me before!”

That was hardly surprising, considering she was a queen. Still panting, Lyutillis turned to Meiru and said passionately, “I knew I was right about you! You really are my soulmate, Meiru-oneesama!”

“Disgusting,” Meiru replied.

When she’d seen Meiru’s sadistic side during the duel, Lyutillis’ masochistic side had rejoiced. And though Meiru wanted nothing to do with Lyutillis, Lyutillis’ desire was unstoppable. The young queen crawled over to where Meiru was standing.

“I’ve been looking for someone who would play with me for so, so long! But when I was five, I discovered I could use evolution magic and everyone gave me special treatment! They all worshiped me, but no one would play with me!”

“What does that have to do with me!? Let go of my legs!” Meiru roared, lashing Lyutillis with her water whip in an attempt to get the elf off of her.

The usual composure Meiru had was nowhere to be seen. Had her old pirate crew seen her now, they would have been shocked. There had been quite a few people in the past who’d enjoyed Meiru’s sadistic punishments, so seeing someone who liked being whipped was nothing new. But the difference there was that those pirates had been reformed, and come to respect their new captain. Lyutillis, though, just wanted to use Meiru to fulfill her sexual fetishes. Moreover, her masochism was on a whole different level compared to the other people Meiru had seen. Chills ran down her spine as she watched Lyutillis.

“I-I’ve always dreamed of a whipping like this! I’ll follow you for the rest of my life, Onee-sama! Actually, let me call you Master!”

“Absolutely not.”

“Then how about Queen!?”

“You’re the one who’s actually a queen!”

Meiru whipped Lyutillis harder, but that just made the elf moan in ecstasy. She looked like she’d finally been freed from some painful burden she’d been carrying for decades. And honestly, that wasn’t far off the mark.

Tears pooling in her eyes, Meiru turned to Miledi for help. Miledi sucked in a deep breath, then closed her eyes to burn this rare sight into her memory. She then put her left hand on her hip, her right hand on her cheek, and winked at Meiru with a mischievous grin.

“You two are perfect together!”

Meiru’s eyes glazed over as she realized Miledi was just going to be her usual annoying self.

“Miledi-dono, thank you so much for approving of my relationship with Onee-sama. You’re so kind. Feel free to call me Lyu as well. You don’t have to worry about what the others might think, I’ll tell them we’ve all come to trust each other as fellow ancient magic users.”

“You got it, Lyu-chan! If you want, you can call me Miledi-tan too!”

“Lyu-chan... That’s the first time anyone’s called me that... I’m so happy, Miledi-tan.”

Oddly enough, even though Miledi was being nice, Lyutillis still seemed glad. Miledi had expected Lyutillis to respond positively only to sadistic people, but it appeared that wasn’t the case.

“Oh, and this is Nacchan!”

“H-Hey, I can introduce my—”

“Understood, Nacchan-san.”

“My name isn’t Nacchan. That’s a nickname, so you don’t need to add an honorific after it...”

“This is the first time I’ve addressed a man by his nickname... Does this mean I finally have a boyfriend? Ufufufu.”

“She’s not listening to a thing I’m saying, is she...?”

It turned out Lyutillis’ refined, dignified persona was just a facade. In truth, she was a hopeless masochist. Honestly, it was a miracle her retainers hadn’t discovered the truth yet.

Why do all ancient magic users have such problematic personalities? Naiz thought sadly to himself. Unfortunately, the worst was yet to come.

Rustle, rustle.

Vrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

A familiar noise filled the Liberators’ ears.

“Onee-sama, Miledi-tan, Nacchan-san, let me introduce you to my friends.”

“H-Hang on, Lyu-chan, doesn’t that noise belong to...”

“O-Oh? I’m suddenly getting goosebumps. Granted that happened when Lyu tried to touch me too, but this is worse.”

“Oh no... don’t tell me—”

Only Naiz, the one person who remembered their previous ordeal, predicted what was coming. Paling, he turned to Parsha. The prime minister looked surprisingly serene. She’d finally been able to divulge the secret she’d been protecting for so long, and the people she’d revealed it to had been willing to accept Lyutillis despite her quirks. It was like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. This was no longer her problem, and if the Liberators hadn’t balked at Luytillis’ masochism, she was confident they’d be able to accept the rest of her too.

“There’s one other type of magic aside from evolution magic that I have an affinity for.”

Lyutillis smiled, still lying underneath the heel of Meiru’s boot.

“No, really, Lyu-chan. I don’t think we—”

“We’re friends, so I don’t mind telling you guys about it.”

“I get the feeling I really don’t want to ask, though.”

“Come now, no need to be shy, Onee-sama! You see, my job is insectomancer. It’s a very rare job that allows me to understand the hearts of insects. And combined with my evolution magic, well... Hehe, I can make millions of friends.”

The ominous whirring noise grew louder. Miledi could feel her repressed memories resurfacing, and she struggled to keep them sealed away. But even if she didn’t let herself remember, her body instinctively knew that what was coming would be hell. Panic overwhelmed her, and all she could do was stand there.

“You see, because everyone gave me special treatment...”

No one treated Lyutillis like an equal. As a result, she’d had no idea how to make friends. Whenever she tried, the people she talked to would all look uncomfortable and leave. Lyutillis explained her sad past to Miledi and the others with a smile on her face.

I see, so she’s been a loner this whole time, Miledi thought absently. In order to fill the void in her heart, Lyutillis had turned to insects for friendship.

“Let me introduce you to the very first friends I made! My best friends!”

Lyutillis crawled out from under Meiru’s boot, got to her feet, and spread her arms wide. A second later, black fog erupted from the tree trunk. That black fog was comprised of millions upon millions of tiny, disgusting creatures. Smiling, Lyutillis held out a hand to Miledi and Meiru as a whirlwind of cockroaches swirled behind her. A few cockroaches leaped onto her outstretched hands.

“These are the wise, enlightened rulers of the deep forest, my good friends Uroboros! You can call them U-chan for short!”

The cockroaches bobbed their feelers as if bowing to Miledi and Meiru. It was clear these were the same cockroaches who had rescued Miledi and the others from that misunderstanding with the beastmen a while back.

Why did you give them such a fancy name?

Are they even happy with a name like that?

Isn’t it sad that your only friends are cockroaches?

Is this how you keep track of everything going on in the forest?

Wait, doesn’t that mean you sent those cockroaches to us back there?

Numerous thoughts swirled around inside the Liberators’ heads, but they couldn’t give voice to any of them.

“Blaaaargh!” Miledi and Meiru opened their mouths and instantly vomited.

“Milediiiiiiiiiiii! Meiruuuuuuuuuuuu!” Naiz shouted.

The two of them fell unconscious, their brains unable to cope with the memories that had just resurfaced. Naiz ran over to them and tried to slap the two girls awake. He didn’t want to be left alone in this nightmare world. As he did his best to ignore the reality unfolding around him he thought, So she’s an airhead, a masochist, a loner whose only friends are bugs, and has the cringiest naming sense of all time. Isn’t this a bit much, even for an ancient magic user?

“Nnngh. Not yet, Belle, I can’t join you just yet...”

“Diene! You’re always here to cheer me up!”

“O-Oh no, they’re hallucinating now. Oscar, Van, get over here already! I can’t take this anymore!” Naiz shouted desperately as millions of cockroaches buzzed around him.

Lyutillis cocked her head to one side, wondering why her new friends were fainting left and right, while Parsha just sighed in resignation.