The Hero King, Reincarnate to Master the Art of War (LN) - Volume 3 - Chapter 5

Chapter V: Inglis, Age 15—Orders to Defend the Hieral Menace (5)

Five days had passed since the Royal Guard Captain Reddas had visited the knights’ academy. Ripple was still at the knights’ academy. Silva had done well in postponing her transfer to the Royal Guard. Every knight in the Royal Guard knew that Silva was Captain Reddas’s little brother. Even though many felt Silva’s progress was lacking, as if he was taking his time, no one would publicly take an issue up with him. Because the king’s advisors hadn’t finished their negotiations with Highland yet, there was no pressure for Silva to hand over Ripple immediately.

Meanwhile, the Chiral Knights’ Academy had sent Lahti and Pullum as messengers to the deployed knights near Venefic. Lahti was one of the most skilled pilots at the academy and could push the Flygear past its normal speed limits. Pullum was accompanying him at her own request; she wanted to protect Lahti. Also, if the Flygear was to run out of power, she could charge it directly with mana from her Rune.

Now, the students and Miriela could only wait for their return. Their cover story was unchanged. However, among those who knew the situation, the tension increased day by day.

But they didn’t just sit around with their anxiety; the volatility of nature wouldn’t let them rest. That night, the Prism Flow fell. A glittering, rainbow-colored mist danced across the night sky.

And through that fantastic yet terrifying scene flew Leone and Liselotte, using the white wings created by Liselotte’s Artifact. A magicite beast in the form of a gigantic crow clawed and pecked at the roof of a house.

“Hurry, Liselotte! That magicite beast’s on the attack!” Leone called out.

“Yes, here we go!” Liselotte rapidly picked up speed.

Today Inglis and Rafinha were, in place of Silva, helping the third-years guard Ripple, leaving Leone and Liselotte on their own. Local knights were on the scene as well, trying to clear away the monsters.

The academy had a curfew for students to be in their dorms, but there were some exceptions to this rule; Principal Miriela had allowed some students to leave that night for practice in fighting off the magicite beasts.

That said, Leone already had a habit of occasionally leaving the dorms at night to make the rounds. She’d started sneaking out when Inglis and Rafinha had mentioned they saw Leon in the city. She was well aware it was against school rules, but she couldn’t sit idly by if Leon could be in the capital.

Leone’s roommate, Liselotte, tacitly approved and accompanied her on her patrols sometimes. However, as she cared more about following the rules, she was always nervous the next day that they’d be caught. But with the Prism Flow falling tonight, they could act with impunity and have no such worries.

“I’m closing in!” Liselotte called out to Leone as she approached the targeted magicite beast.

“Off I go!” Leone let go of her hand and sailed through the air on her own. As she fell, she extended her dark greatsword Artifact. “Yaaaaaa!” Using the momentum of her fall, she took a fierce swing at the magicite beast.

That was her intention, at least. Just before she made contact, a shining four-legged animal leapt in from the side and smashed into the magicite beast.

Thud!

Its body exploded into an intense flash of light.

Leone gasped as the incredible force of the explosion pushed her sword away; her hands were tingling. Of course, the magicite beast caught in the explosion couldn’t withstand it either, and it was blown to bits.

“What?!” The explosion wasn’t what took her most by surprise, though. “This... This is one of the lightning beasts from Leon’s Artifact!”

She used to watch him show them off to her over and over. She’d never forget what they looked like. She was absolutely certain. That meant Leon was here! She’d finally caught him!

Leone’s eyes lit up with rage as she scanned her surroundings, tense. “Leon?! Where are you?! I know you’re around here! Come out!”

Liselotte landed nearby. “Leone! What’s gotten into you?!”

“You saw that, right? That lightning beast! That’s the power of the Artifact Leon likes to use! He’s got to be around here somewhere!”

Liselotte drew in a sharp breath.

“Ah! There, over there!” Around a turn in a narrow alley behind Liselotte, Leone glimpsed a lightning beast. “I won’t let you get away!” Leone took off at full speed toward it.

“Ah...! Leone! You mustn’t rush in alone!” Liselotte followed her closely.

The lightning beast vanished as soon as they turned the corner, only to appear at the next corner as if beckoning them on. Then it disappeared again as they approached. As they chased, Leone and Liselotte gradually lost their bearings.

“Leone! It’s obviously just leading us on, isn’t it?!”

“I know! But I can’t let it get away! If you want to leave, go ahead!”

“No, I’m with you! If worst comes to worst, we can use my wings to retreat!”

“Thanks!”

As they chased the lightning beast, they turned a corner that led to a straight segment of road terminating in an underground passage. The lightning beast descended into it and disappeared.

“Up ahead...!”

“It might be a trap. Be careful.”

“Yes. Here we go!”

The two shared a nod to each other and followed the path below ground.

Ahead of them was a large empty space that seemed to be some kind of warehouse. They walked on for a while, their own footsteps cutting through the silence, until a lightning beast suddenly appeared. Its glow illuminated the surroundings, and a shadow emerged.

“Yo. Long time no see, Leone.” Leon’s tone was cheerful, but he looked uncomfortable.

“Brother...! And—”

Leon was not alone. There was also the black-masked leader of the Steelblood Front, as well as their hieral menace, Sistia.

“Leone, do you know them?” Liselotte asked.

“Liselotte, be careful! That’s the Steelbloods’ leader and their hieral menace!” Liselotte may have seen the former holy knight Leon before, but she was unlikely to have seen the other two. Even when they had appeared at the assassination of Ambassador Muenthe, Liselotte had just missed them.

“Why—! If it isn’t the evil boss!” Liselotte said.

“That is not our intent,” the man in the black mask said. “Terms like ‘justice’ and ‘evil’ have a change in meaning depending on one’s position.”

“For us, this country’s future knights, you’re obviously the evil ones!” Liselotte declared, brandishing her halberd Artifact.

“Hmph. That’s brave of you.”

Sistia took a defensive position in front of the masked man. “Pay her no heed. She only says that because she knows nothing.”

As she watched them, Liselotte thought, Just who is this man? Leone had said before that Leon himself might be the leader of the Steelblood Front, but that didn’t seem to be the case. Seeing him here along with the masked man debunked that theory. If a person with a special-class Rune—like Leon—was the leader, the presence of a hieral menace in their organization would make sense, but there was something else going on here.

Who could command the loyalty of both a holy knight and a hieral menace? Why did he hide his face? If he wanted to gather supporters and lead people, he’d be more effective by showing his face and giving his name. Did he have some reason to hide them? Perhaps this was a second identity, separate from his first? What was the first, then?

“Hey, Sistia. Don’t just go and attack her on your own,” Leon chided.

“I know!”

“Really, do you? You’re the most bloodthirsty hieral menace I know. But we didn’t come here to fight tonight.”

Leone’s sword slashed through their exchange. “I don’t care what you have planned!” The extended blade of the dark greatsword swung down toward Leon.

Clang!

Sparks flew and a loud sound rang out as Leon’s gauntlet blocked Leone’s sword.

“Leone...! Stop! This isn’t the time for such things!” her brother cried.

But Leone was in no mood to hold back. “What are you saying?! For me... For me there’s nothing more important than this!” Leone withdrew her sword to its original length and then thrust again from a distance. It rocketed forward, using her own strength behind a full-force thrust plus the speed of her Artifact extending ahead. Combined, the two brought more speed than Leon expected. The thrust grazed Leon’s shoulder lightly as he tried to dodge, taking him by surprise.

“I see you’ve improved!” he said.

“I won’t let you get away!” Unfortunately for her, Leon leaped out of the path of her follow-up sweeping strike. Moreover, the lightning beast remained in place to take the blow for Leon, and her sword struck it. The beast immediately exploded, and the shock jerked her sword around in her hands. “Ugh...!” she grunted.

“Leone! Please, listen!”

“I will not! Not to someone who betrayed his country, his family, his hometown, even his own aspirations!” Leone recovered, and again slashed at Leon.

“Hmph. She’s more bloodthirsty than I am,” Sistia commented.

“It’s beyond us. This is between two who share blood. It isn’t our place to interfere. Let us watch,” the black-masked man ordered, watching the siblings fight. Sistia looked astounded. “And you, the Arcia girl. Please refrain from interfering. If you move to join her, we’ll be forced to protect Comrade Leon.”

“Indeed we will,” Sistia said after a brief pause.

With Leone’s fighting style being made up of strong, all-in-one aggressive pushes, it would be difficult for Liselotte to make a move to assist, for sure. But the masked man seemed to know about her. Liselotte may have been the daughter of the former Chancellor Arcia, but she was still only a first-year student at the academy. The Steelblood Front would need insiders and collaborators to gather that kind of information about her. She wondered if perhaps such people were hidden among the Arcia family’s servants or inside the knights’ academy.

Sparks flew again. With a clang, Leon had caught Leone’s sword between his gauntlets. They were standing close together now.

“Father and mother are gone! But for the sake of those who remain in Ahlemin, I won’t forgive you!”

“None of that will matter if the city itself is gone! That’s how drastic things have become!”

“Huh...?!”

The instant that Leone’s brow furrowed, the black-masked man spoke. “The royal court has decided to give up land on the surface in order to improve its relations with Highland’s Altar faction. The regions in question...are Ahlemin and Charot.”

Leone and Liselotte both yelled, “What?!” in shock. Ahlemin was Leone’s hometown, and Charot was Liselotte’s.

“They’re just offering them up?!” Leone gasped.

“Why?! Why would they do that?!” Liselotte asked.

The black-masked man continued in a gentle voice. “There’s nothing strange about it. With Ahlemin no longer fulfilling the role of observing the frozen Prismer, and Charot’s lord retiring from his role as chancellor, they’re distanced from both the king’s and prince’s factions. Meaning, they’re of no further use to either side. Losing them will have the least possible impact.”

The two girls pointed fierce questions at him in a fury.

“That’s not the point!” Leone insisted.

“Why must they resort to such extreme measures? Where is the justice in that?!” Liselotte protested.

“I agree. We’re here because we can’t accept it either,” he said.

Sistia raised her voice as she addressed the pair. “That’s right! Don’t be misled! If you’re going to vent your anger, let it out at your foolish king who’s willing to sell his own subjects for Highland’s favor!”

Leone and Liselotte tensed. Neither had a counter to Sistia’s accurate criticism.

“Hmph. This country is in a petty squabble between the king’s and prince’s factions, unable to see what is most important. And that blindness will kill innocents,” Sistia said, pausing to turn toward Leon. “I don’t like this man, but I think he’s a lot smarter than those foolish royals.”

“That’s going a bit far,” Leon protested. “My choices brought misfortune to the city of Ahlemin, my parents, even my little sister—I’m a fool to the end. I’m a fool who couldn’t live up to their expectations. In the end, I only cared about myself.”

The masked man chided, “Sistia, no matter how Leon appears, he’s a kind man. His heart aches when he considers the path untaken, caught between his ideals and the people closest to him. So let him be.”

“All right.”

“And these young women too. They’re cadets, the future knights of this country. There are things they cannot say, things they cannot do. The liberation of each surface country is work for its people alone. It is out of our hands.”

“Yes. I understand.” As proud and haughty as Sistia could be, she complied with his orders to the fullest.

“I don’t understand...! Why are you telling us this?!” Leone asked.

Liselotte was equally suspicious. “Indeed. This makes no sense. What are you after...?!”

“I have no ulterior motive. I’m simply sharing information. This serves your needs, doesn’t it? The hieral menace in your care will be handed over in four days’ time. A ship will arrive from Highland to attend the reception and the final signing of the agreement one day before then. Before the signing is complete, we will attack the Highland ship and strike down the signing ambassador—our only enemy is the Highlander who preys upon the surface,” the black-masked man explained.

Leone and Liselotte gasped. This was a Steelblood Front plot to attack a Highlander. He had openly admitted it to them in advance too.

“You must have your own agenda, your own plans. If you’re going to make any sort of move, you’ll be moving with us. Make good use of this information.”

“Why should we believe an enemy’s words?!” Leone asked.

“Indeed!” Liselotte agreed.

“You’re free to believe me or doubt me. Feel free to inform the head of the academy, or say nothing if you so choose. Hopefully, you’ll pass this on and keep them from interfering with our plans.”

Leone and Liselotte went silent. Neither could say what they’d likely do.

“And now that I’ve informed you of the situation, if you’ll excuse me.” The black-masked man turned on his heel, and Sistia followed immediately.

Only Leon called back to Leone and Liselotte. “I think you know this now...but if you choose to stop us here, your victory would just mean there’ll be no one left to keep Ahlemin and Charot out of Highland’s hands. So let’s drop this for now, and pick it up again next time.”

“Brother! Even still, I... No matter what reason you had...!”

“Yeah. Leone, you have your own thoughts, your own things you must do... Walk forward. Do what you must. Don’t let anyone stop you. But hear me out on this... I know I wasn’t there for you, but you’ve grown up well. I’m happy. Keep it up.” Leon smiled faintly before following the black-masked man.

“Brother...” The kind smile on his face was just like the ones he gave her when she was little. Leone couldn’t help missing her life with him when she saw it. That emotion was something she couldn’t allow herself to feel, though. When the time came, it would dull her will. She shook her head forcefully, trying to clear away the sentimentality.

“Leone, what shall we do? Do we...?” Liselotte began to ask.

“I think we should tell the principal. Let’s go straight to her when we get back.”

“Yes. We need to keep Ahlemin and Charot safe!”

When Leone and Liselotte returned to the academy, they relayed the night’s events to Principal Miriela. Inglis was also there, so she got to hear the Steelblood Front’s plans.

“Hmm... So we just need to capture the Steelbloods while defeating all the demihuman magicite beasts? Sounds like more fun than just taking on the magicite beasts alone.” Inglis’s eyes gleamed with glee.

◆◇◆

One night a few days later, the group sat in the knights’ academy cafeteria.

Inglis and Rafinha, dressed in the attire of palace maids, placed plates in front of Leone and Liselotte. “And here you go, mistress!”

“A super-sized supreme blazin’ hot pasta.”

“A super-sized bone-in meaty cheese melt.”

“A super-sized supreme Alfredo pasta.”

“And for dessert, an entire cake assortment!”

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! The plates landed on the table intimidatingly.

“W-We didn’t order this!” Leone protested.

“There’s no way we can eat this much...” Liselotte groaned in dismay.

“Yeah, we know,” Inglis and Rafinha said together. It had been a joke all along; the food was for themselves. “Let’s eat!” They dug in ravenously.

“The cafeteria really does strike a great balance between flavor and portion size. And they have a menu just for us!” Rafinha exclaimed.

“And it’s even free,” Inglis added.

“But the principal is gonna stop paying for our meals soon. Our agreement is just about up.”

“Yeah. But she promised that if tomorrow’s operation goes well, she’ll extend it.”

“Really?! Nice, Chris! We absolutely can’t mess it up, then!”

“We have to prepare ourselves for what’s to come.”

“Of course! All right, let’s eat up!”

“That’s exactly what I was thinking, Rani.”

Nom, nom, nom, nom!

While the group talked, the mountains of food disappeared at an alarming rate.

Leone and Liselotte were so used to the speed at which the two ate that they didn’t even comment on it—but one thing in particular caught their attention.

“So, why are you wearing those maid outfits?” Leone asked.

“Are you practicing for tomorrow?” Liselotte followed.

Tomorrow, Karelia and Highland would hold the official signing ceremony between the king’s faction and the Altar faction. The maid outfits were necessary for Inglis and Rafinha’s plans tomorrow.

“Yes, that’s right,” Inglis confirmed.

“We thought we’d practice blending in as maids. And besides, these are super cute, so isn’t it great that we get to dress up Chris? We’ll have bigger things to worry about tomorrow, so let’s enjoy it tonight,” Rafinha explained.

“It looks good on you, Inglis. You’re really beautiful,” Leone said.

“No matter what you wear, Inglis, you always look stunning,” Liselotte commented.

“Thank you both,” Inglis said with a laugh. I think the same thing whenever I look in the mirror, so I’ll just take the compliments in stride, she thought.

“C’mon, Chris, spin for us! Spin around, say something like a maid would, and smile!”

“Sure, okay.” Inglis swiftly but quietly stood. And as she spun around, the hem of her dress and her long platinum-blonde hair swayed softly. “Welcome home, mistress,” she greeted with a grin.

Rafinha and the others struggled to hold back laughter. “Pfft—”

“...Heh heh.”

“Aha ha...”

“Huh?” Inglis tilted her head in confusion.

Rafinha softly touched her cheek. “You have a crumb on your face. Going for the cute-but-clumsy look, huh?”

Leone laughed. “Ha ha ha, I was so worried about tomorrow, buuut...”

“Aha ha ha. You two are acting so normal. It really puts me at ease,” Liselotte said.

They’re laughing at me, but it’s not so bad if that cuts the tension.

At that moment, Silva was passing by. He stared at them in surprise. “Why in the world are you playing around like this is dress-up?”

“Ah, Silva.” Inglis said.

“Good evening. How does Chris look as a maid? Cute, isn’t she?” Rafinha asked.

“I didn’t acquire those for you to play around in them. Are you taking this seriously at all?”

Silva had used his connections to obtain temporary work for them as maids; the pair would be infiltrating the palace tomorrow. The Royal Guard was inseparably linked with the palace. Silva, brother of Captain Reddas and bearer of a special-class Rune, was a familiar face there.

“Silva, you seem a bit nervous.” Inglis could see the tense grip of his hand on his dinner plate.

“Of course I am. So many things will be determined tomorrow—by our own hands, even. The country’s future. Lady Ripple’s fate. If things don’t go well, Lady Ripple will blame herself and assume it’s her fault. I don’t want to let that happen. Your work will be crucial for our success. I won’t be able to help on that end.”

Inglis and Rafinha would be acting separately from the academy’s main force tomorrow, and Silva would not be able to help them.

“So please. For Lady Ripple’s sake,” he added.

Silva had a deep concern for Ripple’s situation. Actually, Ripple had mentioned that she had no problems with Silva and thought they’d make good partners. Maybe he treated her in a respectful, gentlemanly manner. Even when he’d been wounded severely, his first thought was for Ripple. Furthermore, Ripple’s weapon as a hieral menace was a gun, while Silva also typically used a gun. Was there a link there?

“Silva, do you like Ripple?” Rafinha asked bluntly.

At times like these, it’s good to have Rafinha around, Inglis thought. The kind of intrusive personal question that she’d want to ask but shied away from, Rafinha went straight for.

“Th-That’s absurd! It’s absolutely not that sleazy kind of thing!” Silva was flustered, his ears red—so it probably was that kind of thing.

Rafinha grinned while Leone and Liselotte watched with smiles. “Mm-hmm... Nothing wrong with that, right, Chris?”

“Agreed. There’s nothing wrong with that.”

“That would be inappropriate! I’d never think of something as rude as pursuing a hieral menace! I do have a great deal of respect for her, but...”

“Did something happen?” Inglis asked.

Silva’s voice got quiet as he stared at the floor. “A long time ago... When I was a little boy, she saved me from a magicite beast. But before she arrived, the friends I was with were killed... They didn’t have Runes, and yet they still protected me. My own weakness led to my friends’ deaths.”

Thinking back, Inglis remembered that Silva had been opposed to Inglis and Yua joining Ripple’s guard because the two of them were Runeless. Inglis had thought he looked down on them, but then he’d taken blows meant for another squire, Lahti. He hadn’t complained about that either. With all of this for context, Inglis now thought Silva actually wanted to keep the Runeless away from danger; he wanted to protect them at all costs. Inglis and Yua were exceptions to that rule, cases where such care was unnecessary—which caused some friction—but to the average Runeless, he was a reliable pillar of support.

“Ah, sorry to bring something like that up...” Rafinha said, her expression remorseful.

“No, it’s fine. I simply want you all to know how important this is to me. Lady Ripple held me in her arms and comforted me as I sobbed. She told me to be strong for my friends who were gone, to be able to protect tens or hundreds in the place of each of them... I am who I am now because of her. Since then, I’ve been training with the intent to fight alongside her.”

“By any chance, did you choose to use a gun Artifact to match her?” Inglis asked.

Pleased, Silva nodded. “Yes, I did. This Artifact makes it easiest to fight alongside Lady Ripple.”

“Hieral menaces really are a divine presence, protecting the country and its people,” Leone observed.

“Indeed. Lady Ripple is quite noble,” Liselotte assented, nodding in heartfelt agreement.

“But please don’t tell Lady Ripple I said that. I thanked her again recently—and she remembered, but for some reason she had a pained expression. I don’t want to cause her any worry or distress.”

“Okay, we won’t. But why would she act that way?” Rafinha asked, tilting her head.

“Hmm. I don’t know,” Inglis said. “But I don’t think we need to worry about it too much. If she stays in this country rather than returning to Highland, maybe someday she’ll tell us of her own accord.”

“Okay. Let’s do our best tomorrow! Right, Chris?”

“Yeah. Leave it to us, Silva. On your end... Just give us as much time as you can. I want to go over there and fight when we’re done.”

“Just how much do you like to fight?” Silva asked.

“Well... If my appetite didn’t get in the way, I’d like to never stop, I suppose,” Inglis replied with a smirk.

Silva stared at her blankly. She’d rendered him speechless.

Once the sun rose, the day of Karelia and Highland’s official signing ceremony would begin. Things were going to get busy.