Chapter 8: Dukedom
There was a shrine a little bit away from the summer festival venue.
Sitting down on the stairway leading there, I hung my head and shed tears in frustration.
Was it strange to have summer festivals and other elements from Japan here? Don’t complain to me. I thought of it as strange, but this was the mad world of an otome game. Those who thought it would be logical would be wrong.
“I wanted the charms.”
Even now, I still had the desire to chase after the guy and buy everything from him. However, Anjie and Olivia didn’t allow it.
They watched over me.
Seeing me feeling quite down, the two seemed rethink their stance.
“D, did you want them that badly?” Anjie thoroughly examined my facial expression. It seemed that she had escaped from her followers. They were frantically trying to regain Anjie’s trust. They were acting quite selfishly though, since they had abandoned her before at a critical moment.
However, leaving that aside, there was the matter of the charms.
“I was really looking forward to this day. I couldn’t sleep last night.”
I wiped my tears.
Was I acting? No, I was genuinely crying in frustration!
Oliva started talking to me, but spoke very awkwardly.
“B, but, I don’t think you should do what you had tried. Buying it all with money, I mean.”
I understood what she was trying to say, but I thought of it as odd that she was denying the ability to buy goods with money.
“I’m paying with money, so isn’t it fine? I could have even bought them at a hundredfold the amount.”
If the charms had the same effect as in the game, then I wanted to buy them at even a hundred times the price.
The item I wanted to collect on this floating island was a charm from that masked man.
However, I wouldn’t know the contents of what I would buy.
In the game, it was completely randomized, and even if one got the short end of the stick, they would still get a “Charm of Good Luck”.
Better than that though was the “Charm of War’s Fortune”, improving battle-related abilities, and increasing the growth rate for physical stats.
The jackpot was the magic-related “Divine Protection Element”. That thing had the game-like effect of increasing magical power.
The growth rate of magic stats would increase, and one’s aptitude to the attribute would increase as well.
For that reason I had been pulling some strings a year prior so that I could go to this floating island during the field trip. What did I do? I just bribed some teachers.
Since the items obtained on this floating island boosted level-ups, I had been challenging the dungeon as little as possible at the academy. Yet──
My plans to become the strongest character had been ruined.
Anjie and Olivia both had expressions of worry.
It seemed that they didn’t think I would cry.
As I was sniffling and crying, the summer festival was approaching its final stage, and the masked man returned.
It seemed that almost all of his items had been sold.
“Ah, there you are. Sir Noble, there are two left, so here you go.”
I got up and bought the two charms.
“Please be a good one!”
“Um, actually, there’s no gain-or-loss factor involved. It’s just that there are different kinds.”
What an idiot! The results varied precisely because there was a variety!
I took the two bags and slowly removed the white paper from one.
My face turned red with tension.
When I opened it, there was a white orb about as large as a marble. It was a charm with metal fittings and a red string attached. Not good. I had no talent for white──healing magic. There was no point in carrying it.
When I opened the next one a little roughly, this time a red orb appeared. Both of them had very beautiful colors, but I didn’t really know if they would have an effect.
I didn’t feel anything in particular. Did they really have a divine blessing inside them? “Red? I have no talent for red.” Anjie tilted her head. “What are you talking about? Isn’t it fine?” The masked man went up the stars and left. “Well then, I’ll be heading back. Take care. Though, it seems the charms match better with the ladies over there than with you, Sir Noble.” The masked man vanished, as if disappearing into the darkness. Leaving that aside, did these match better with Anjie and Olivia than with me? I certainly thought so. What I wanted was something yellow or blue. I wasn’t aiming for red or white. I got the short end of the stick, in a bad way.
I dropped my shoulders and gave a charm to each of them. The red orb for Anjie, the white one for Olivia.
“Y, you’re giving them to us?”
Anjie was slightly hesitant. Perhaps it was from me simply handing over the items I had wanted to the point of tears.
“These aren’t what I was aiming for.”
“I, I see.”
Olivia also reluctantly refused.
“I, I can’t accept this.”
“It’s fine, just take it. There’s no point in me having it. It’s not like they’re expensive items either.”
When I tossed it at her, Olivia grabbed it with a troubled expression.
At my wits’ end, I sat down on the stairway and made a deep sigh.
“Leon, u, um──”
Olivia wanted to say something, but at that moment, Anjie’s followers had arrived.
“M, Milady!”
Hearing that voice, Anjie ran off in a panic.
“S, sorry. I’ll be heading off.”
Girls who were Anjie’s followers chased after her as she escaped.
Once they left and the noise they made faded out, this time boys who were her followers us spotted and surrounded me.
There were three of them.
“Baltfault, you again?” “Don’t get so conceited just because you got a slight promotion.” “You’re just a lowly noble trying to butter up Milady.” I raised my head and looked at the faces of these incompetent boys. I could tell they were worthless just from my own perception. I sensed a certain irresponsibility in them. Now that they had betrayed someone in a critical moment, no matter what they would do, it would not be an easy task to regain her trust back to positive levels.
Since they’re trustworthiness is in the negatives right now, perhaps it would go to zero if they did their absolute hardest. I wasn’t in the mood to humor them at this late of a time.
“Oh? Are you guys frustrated? Envious that your lady has taken a liking to me? How unfortunate. If you guys hadn’t deserted her during the uproar of the duel, you would have been Anjie’s favorites. You guys may be good at reading the mood in the academy, but you should take more notice to reading the mood in the world of nobles, or rather society as a whole. Are you not ashamed of trying so hard to make up to her now?”
As I agitated them, I motioned my hand for them to come at me. When I tried to annoy them into accepting my challenge, Olivia stood in front of me and stretched out her arms, as if to protect me. “D, don’t fight!” One of the boys yelled. “He’s the one trying to pick a fight!” “I, I’m sorry. B, but, you still can’t fight.”
“──Tsk, let’s go. He’s just a pathetic guy who hides behind a girl.”
I really wanted to retaliate against what he just said. These were the people who wanted Anjie as their shield, after all.
Once the boys left, I spoke to Olivia.
“It would have been fine if you left things alone. Those guys wouldn’t want to start a fuss, so I think they would’ve backed off at some point.”
I agitated my opponents because I knew they wouldn’t lay a hand on me.
Though, since youths were full of passion, it was possible that they would resort to violence. If that happened, there would be punishment from society. Fights between adults didn’t stop at just exchanging fists.
When Olivia turned around towards me, she let out a sob.
“──I’m sorry. Leon, I’m really sorry. I wanted to apologize all this time. I’m sorry for the trouble I caused when we were suppressing the sky pirates.
I’m sorry for──the mean things I said.”
I scratched my head in front of a crying and apologizing Olivia.
“There’s nothing for you to apologize for, though. In the first place, it shouldn’t be you apologizing to me, but──” When I was about to say something, but my sight turned towards an old woman who came nearby.
Just how long had she been here? It was a little frightening.
“Um, who are you?”
Pulling attention towards the old woman, Olivia also looked surprised.
The old woman smiled while carrying a cane.
“Well, I just want to talk to you because you took care of my son.”
I averted my gaze from the old woman. Her son was likely the masked man who sold the charms.
“Perhaps you think that what I did was quite inexcusable──”
While I was starting to explain myself, the old woman took out a white bag from her pocket.
“That was the first time someone wanted to pay a large amount of money for the charms I made. However, they were for the many people who were looking forward to them at the festival. I feel bad for what little there were in the end, so here you go.”
Was the item inside the white bag a Charm of War’s Fortune? Indeed it was.
“A Charm of War’s Fortune, is it? Though, the shape looks different, doesn’t it?”
“You’re quite the keen gentleman. I made it specially, is it to your liking?”
A new prototype model?
It was a bit different from what I wanted, but I was glad that I got it.
“Thank you so much. Oh, the cost──”
“No need. If you want to repay me, then please visit the shrine. This is a shrine for marriage, so you may receive a blessing.”
After saying that, the old woman went up the stairs.
Was she the priest for the shrine?
While Olivia looked at the stairway in surprise, I examined the charm. Instead of it being a charm decorated with a sword and shield, it featured three swords crossing together. I raised the charm up to my face, and then grasped it tightly in my hand.
“Not bad.”
I wasn’t sure what its effects were, but I took a fancy to the design. I liked those sword-shaped keychain accessories as souvenirs, after all. A lot had happened, but I managed to enjoy myself. At any rate, she said it was a shrine for marriage…and the night was a bit frightening, so I suppose I could visit tomorrow morning. If I recall correctly, there was an event in the game where the protagonist headed towards the shrine with the capture target they were the closest with──hmm? Could it be?! As I pondered about various things, I heard a voice. Olivia seemed embarrassed. “Leon, she said marriage──” “That’s how it is. A blessing for marriage. I’m thinking about coming here tomorrow morning. I’ll be wishing for a suitable partner.” I probably should prepare a large amount of money for it. When I left the area, Olivia seemed lonely, but I left her alone. I couldn’t get involved with her anymore.
◇
It was the next morning. The airship would depart at noon, but I had some free time until then, so I went sightseeing. At any rate, it was easy for a distinct culture to thrive on a floating island.
The reason being that we had to use airships to go back and forth to other islands. At times, there were floating islands that didn’t have airships, so the people there built their own society by themselves.
There were also adventures set to discover such floating islands. Though sometimes people with ill-intent would raid them. No matter how much people tended to gloss over it, there were many adventurers who were wild. Actually, I suppose I also destroyed some historical ruins in order to obtain
Luxon back then. I climbed up a stairway made of stone. The gate and shrine I then saw were indeed reminiscent of Japan. Since the floating island itself was styled after Japan, it made me feel as if I had stepped into a completely different world. I spotted a shrine maiden cleaning the grounds. She was an adorable shrine maiden who looked around ten years old. “Hello. Is this the shrine for marriage?” Once I asked that, the cute shrine maiden smiled and nodded her head. “Yes. There’s a god of marriage. There’s also blessings for war and magic.” The god seemed appreciative of military personnel and magicians. As I was heading towards the shrine to give my thanks, some people came by while I was talking with the shrine maiden. “──Ah.”
“So you’re here as well?”
“U, um.”
While I could only let out a few syllables, Anjie looked at our faces while seeming troubled. It seemed she met Olivia below the stairway and then came up here.
The small shrine maiden greeted us with a smile.
“Ah, you’re the nobles from the academy. Um, do you know what to do?”
The cute shrine maiden politely proceeded to tell us what to do.
Ah~, this was soothing.
It was like it washed away all the outrageous things in this otome game world.
I came here to visit for that reason, but now the three of us were standing in front of an offertory box.
──This was awkward.
“W, we’re supposed to make an offering, right? How much?”
An embarrassed Anjie took out a gold coin from her purse.
Olivia looked at her.
“T, that much?”
“Is this not right? This much is normal in temples.”
It was nice that temples were monotheistic, but didn’t reject other religions. I really did not want a religious war. This was the first time I thanked the lackluster setting for the world of that otome game.
While standing beside the two, I put in a roll of banknotes and some gold coins to repay for yesterday. Was I insane? I think not. In the game, paying a certain amount of money led to the protagonist’s likability with the capture target to drastically increase. Placing trust in such a blessing, I put in a great deal of money.
I only remembered it last night, and regretted that I hadn’t brought more money with me.
While the two were dumbfounded, I politely made my prayers.
“God, I won’t ask for anything luxurious. So please, please, let me have a wife! Please let me get married to a kind woman with good sense! I don’t want a woman who looks down on their husband and raises their child as if they’re a stranger. Please give me a suitable partner!”
My strong wish escaped from my mouth.
The two were shocked, but this was a very important matter for me.
Despite having done all I could, the results had gone awry and I had to suffer hardships, so please grant this wish to my pitiful self, god!
While I frantically prayed, Anjie and Olivia also began praying next to me. As expected, they didn’t voice out their wishes. I wondered what the two would wish for. I had no clue about Anjie’s prayer, but it probably had to do with marriage since that was what the shrine was for. As for Olivia──I wondered if she would get closer with anyone other than the worthless Greg and Brad.
No wait, there was little hope. Since Julian and Jilk were useless as well, that left only Chris as a candidate.
──Whatever, as long as Olivia is happy, then anyone is fine.
I just wanted the country to be saved.
I returned to thinking about my wish.
“If possible, make her chest big, and a narrow waist would be nice as well. It would be even better if she was slightly frisky! Honestly, I want an amorous adult who can pamper me and──”
Listening to my prayer of unstoppable desire, Anjie and Olivia pulled me by the ears and dragged me out in embarrassment.
“Wait! I didn’t say everything yet! There’s still more I want to say!”
Anjie’s face was bright red.
“W, what are you saying in front of a child, you idiot?!”
The young shrine maiden’s face was red as well.
That was pretty cute though, wasn’t it? No, I didn’t mean that in a twisted sense. I just found it precious that a girl was so pure.
Pure enough that it made me embarrassed of my own desires.
Olivia apologized to the shrine maiden.
“I’m sorry. Please forget what you just heard.”
“U, umm, it, it’s okay. I was a surprised at a lot of it, but do your best!”
Right! I would do my best. I would do my best at seeking marriage.
I waved my hand at the smiling shrine maiden, and we descended the stairway
◇
Returning to the luxury liner, I watched us leave the floating island from the deck.
I took out my charm and examined it.
Luxon, perhaps having interest in it, voiced out to me.
[It seems like it goes around your neck.]
“Say, do you think this thing is blessed?”
[It’s not a bad thing to rely on something for spiritual reassurance. You shouldn’t rely too much on it, though.]
It didn’t deny the existence of gods, but it seemed that it didn’t believe that the charm would result in good luck either.
I put it around my neck and looked up at the summer-like sun, squinting my eyes.
“It’s hot.”
[It seems so. Anyways, I’m a bit curious.]
“About what?”
[Could it be that you didn’t actively tackle the dungeon because you didn’t have that charm yet? Are you expecting some game-like effect?]
“I, idiot, that’s not it.”
[Is that so? I’ve had my suspicions since you were constantly pushing back the retrieval of that ‘Holy Bracelet’.]
“Y, you really are a distrustful thing.”
To be honest, I hadn’t challenged the dungeon any more than I needed to, hoping for an effect from the charm. I was expecting a game-like effect, but I didn’t really know if it would become a reality.
This was a little embarrassing.
“It’s hard to get to where the bracelet is. It’s a tough place for even the upperclassmen. I need to make preparations for safely retrieving it.”
[Is that so? I’m worried since you’re not doing it in a hurry. I’m curious about how you’re not rushing it despite the threat of Marie.]
If Marie played the game, she wouldn’t do anything stupid.
Originally, conquering the dungeon was something that would happen during the third school term.
At that point, I would earn money through the dungeon until the middle of my second school year.
[All things considered, I thought I would be able to unveil ”Schwert”, which I had taken great pains to make.]
“Did you just arbitrarily give a name to that air bike? You know, the owner of that thing is me. Actually, you called it Schwert, right? I suppose it’s fine since I like the name, but what meaning does it have?”
[Master, do you know about how air bikes are compared to a fish? They’re likened to them because they’re small compared to an airship.]
“I’ve heard about that. What about it?”
[No, it’s nothing. Schwert means sword.] “Ain’t that nice! I like it even more. That air bike has a pointed tip, so I feel like it matches well.” [Erm, I was actually going for a swordfish analogy──never mind.] I admired the naming sense of this thing. “At any rate, you must have done quite a bit of remodeling. Maybe you can make it a metallic color.” [Sounds good. Would you like there to be some blue mixed in? Even better, I can take the rudder and──never mind.] “I’ll entrust the coloring to you.” [Leave it to me. Also, Schwert is a like a restless, moody horse, making it hard to regulate. Master, handle it with care.] What? Did this thing cherish the air bike after having named and modified it? Come to think of it, it also cherished Partner quite a bit as well. I better not say anything bad about Partner or Schwert.
As I was speaking with Luxon, Chris came out onto the deck. He had a face of exhaustion. “Good grief, I have no time to be by myself.” Judging from what he said, it seemed that he had escaped from some girls.
Was this guy trying to get guys to pick a fight with him?
Luxon hid behind my back.
Before I knew it, he approached me with a fearless smile. His blue, well- groomed hair fluttered a bit in the wind, making me irritated at how stylish he seemed.
He took off his glasses and spoke to me.
“Baltfault, it seems you had a match with Brad. Why not have a fencing match with me?”
It seemed he wanted to beat me in his own field of expertise.
I laughed scornfully.
“Brad challenged me in a field he was weak at, and yet you’re challenging me to one you excel in? You’ve got a lot of nerve.”
His facial expression warped as soon as I compared him to Brad.
He was childish.
He shouldn’t have gotten disordered by only this much.
“I’ll take you on in a field I’m not skilled with, so come at me!”
Chris was a guy who specialized in swordsmanship. Due to that, he was a character that was useless when it came to anything else.
Huh. He was the same as Brad! These guys were too unbalanced.
“I, I──never thought of myself as being skilled with swordsmanship.”
I was shocked at Chris, who hung his head and put his glasses back on.
“How disgraceful. An expert swordsman should be more dignified.”
“I’m not lying. I’ve been practicing the sword for a very long time. Yet, my father told me that I had no talent. Just a while ago, I was told that a failure me would be excommunicated.”
Had he been scolded when he got back home?
He looked quite concerned about it, but considering what he and the others had done, it seemed inevitable.
If I remember correctly, Chris had an inferiority complex centered around his father, who was a master swordsman, or some kind of troublesome setting like that.
All of them had unthinkably troublesome settings. Settings that would fill up dozens of papers.
When I grumbled in a low voice about how tiring I thought of it, Luxon said [Then there’s you on the other end of spectrum, living a shallow life,] while still hidden.
How noisy! I already knew there was nothing else about me other than the fact that I had reincarnated here.
Even so, I was better than those troublesome guys──I think.
“So you’re trying to say that you became an expert swordsman from being a hard worker, huh? So what, are you saying that we, who can’t even become expert swordsmen, are lower than a talentless hack like you?”
Chris glared at me.
“If you can still say that after devoting everything to swordsmanship, then I’ll do whatever you want, whether it be apologizing or whatever. Just what do you know about me?”
Did I know him?
“I don’t know anything. I don’t want to know you either. So let’s turn the question around, what do you know about me? If you’re here to and talk about how pitiful you are and gain sympathy, then go talk to Marie. You probably told her this before, though.”
“I hate guys like you who don’t even have to put in much effort.”
Effort? I had to put in effort.
I had been working in the fields in order to survive, study under the light of a lantern, among other such things.
Meanwhile, the second and third daughters of the household got to study inside rooms lit by electricity and didn’t have to work in the fields.
And what’s with the shoddy excuse they gave about the girls needing to be treated with care?! Hmph──it was sickening.
They treated guys way too cruelly.
“What a coincidence. I also hate you people. I especially won’t tolerate guys like Brad and Greg, who betrayed my hopes.”
Of all things, they did exactly the what that I hated the most. I would definitely seek revenge.
As we were deep in our discussion, glaring at each other, an alarm quickly went off.
I surveyed my surroundings.
“What?”
“Nothing had been happening up until now!”
As Chris said that, a large number of monsters appeared from white clouds.
They came out from the clouds in tens, hundreds, and continued to increase.
“──Hey, you’ve gotta be kidding me.”
The monsters mimicked the appearance of aquatic animals, and flew through the air as if they were swimming in the sea.
Although their numbers reached a point where we could no longer count them, more were still rushing out from the clouds.
We were a distance away from the floating island, and there weren’t any other airships in our surrounding area.
Sailors came out onto the deck carrying weapons, but flinched from the overwhelming number of monsters.
There were even young sailors holding their weapons while trembling.
Chris drew closer to a sailor.
“What the hell happened?! What’s with that number?!”
“I, I don’t know. The monsters suddenly appearing like this──i, is a first.”
Chris was losing his composure, but it seemed that the crew were also the same.
I observed the state of the monsters.
“Why are they only surrounding us, but not attacking?”
Usually, monsters would attack upon sight, but they were strangely surrounding the airship while being quiet.
Luxon appeared around my shoulder.
If it made an appearance despite others being around, then it seemed to have judged that this was dangerous. Chris glanced at Luxon for just a moment, but ignored it in light of the impossible scene around him.
[They’re being commanded. Their current behavior does not align with my data.]
Assuming that they were operating as a group, I had never heard or seen a group of monsters this big being controlled.
Someone seemed to emerge from around the forehead of the white, slightly pink monsters.
I couldn’t make it out, but Luxon projected an image of it to my surroundings.
“A crest? I feel like I’ve seen it somewhere.”
[It’s the crest of the Fanoss dukedom.]
“Fanoss? That has to be a lie!”
The Fanoss Dukedom. A nation originally affiliated with a duke of the
Holfault Kingdom, but had long since declared itself an independent dukedom.
My familiarity with them was a necessity.
After all──they were enemies from the final stage of the game.
[Do you know something?]
“In the game, the Fanoss Dukedom started a war. Even so, this is still too early. I thought that I would have three years to prepare for this.”
[Is that related to the monsters?]
“There’s a magic flute in the dukedom. According to the game’s setting, it can command monsters. However, I didn’t know that it could command this many.”
There were thousands, or even tens of thousands.
That many monsters were surrounding the luxury liner.
The girls who were on the deck began causing a commotion.
“Hey, someone do something!”
“D, don’t we have weapons?”
“I’ve never seen that many.”
Perhaps we would be able to hold out if there were only dozens or hundreds of them, but it was futile for this many around a luxury liner. The weapons were loaded, but even so, this was an airship that prioritized comfort.
It would be unwise to assume that this would be the main battle.
The girls and their exclusive servants fled inside. The noise gradually got louder, then a sailor fired a gun, perhaps losing composure.
Luxon was calm.
[I can form a sortie out of my main body and Partner. Master, I request permission.]
“Do it right now! How long will it take to arrive?”
[I can hurry it, but even so, an immediate──]
Thereupon, an especially large monster appeared from the clouds. Its figure was like that of a whale, and on its back was some structure that looked to have been prepared by people.
“Will the princess make her entry on that monster turned into an airship?”
The one who operated the magic flute was the princess. If it came to that, then things would really get bad. I never thought that I would have to deal with the dukedom during my time as a first year student.
I thought that I would have been a third year student by the time this would happen!
There were airships around the large monster the princess was riding──flying battleships displaying the crest of the dukedom.
From the clouds behind them emerged a floating island remodeled into an airship. Before anyone was aware, the large clouds scattered off.
They were torn into by the dukedom’s fleet and the monsters, causing them to vanish.
When Chris adjusted his glasses with his slightly trembling fingers, he squeezed out a voice.
“A dukedom, you said? What are they thinking, entering the kingdom’s territorial airspace?”
Without a doubt, they were planning to invade.
The number of airships they had were small, but they compensated with monsters.
While many students from the deck were taking refuge inside the ship, Anjie and Olivia came out. They rushed over when they saw us.
“Leon, so you were here!”
“Leon! ──Err, Leon, there’s something floating next to you!”
They seemed alert about Luxon floating beside me. Did it judge not to hide itself since this was a matter of life or death for me?
Certainly, it was dangerous to have this many foes.
The two watched Luxon. They also looked at the image being projected next to me.
“I, is it safe to touch?”
In contrast with the concerned Anjie, Olivia touched the projecting image in mid-air with her fingers. It seemed her curiosity got the better of her.
Then, she looked at Luxon.
“Leon, this sphere──”
I was troubled with an explanation, so I went with──
“Oh, this? This is my familiar, Luxon. Look, introduce yourself.”
However, Luxon seemed to dislike it.
[Familiar? No, I will not agree to that. I am the labor of science, not to be affiliated with magic. I absolutely will not yield on this. Nice to meet you, lady. I, Luxon, support my master. I’m not a familiar, but an AI──”
Olivia was listening to Luxon’s explanation while impressed, but Anjie ignored it. She seemed to judge that the current situation was more important.
“A strange familiar. Leon, so you have talent in magic as well? Though, I suppose the matter of focus right now should be those people. They look like they’re from a dukedom, but why are there monsters with them?”
Monsters attacked people.
It seemed that she couldn’t believe how monsters weren’t attacking despite being so close.
I shrugged my shoulders.
I knew the reason, but it would seem strange for me to know at present.
Chris stared at the large monster and then spoke.
“Wait, someone’s coming out.”
Anjie squinted her eyes. The princess of both the dukedom and the enemy nation, “Hertrude Sera Fanoss”, appeared.
“Princess Hertrude?”
While paying attention to Luxon, Olivia asked about the princess.
“U, um, do you know her?”
“I’ve only met her once before. However, why is she in a place like──”
Upon which, Princess Hetrude’s figure was projected above the big monster. Everyone was astonished at the image of the princess being magnified into the sky.
While everyone was on alert, she spoke to us using a megaphone.
“This is the first princess of the Fanoss Dukedom, Hertrude Sera Fanoss, reporting. We are declaring war on the Holfault Kingdom.”
The young lady declared war with an expressionless look.
I knew this would come, but I still wasn’t adequately prepared.
“Hey hey, there’s a limit to how rushed things can move forward.”
Just where did the schedule go out-of-order?
There was normally supposed to be time before the war would happen.
“Aristocratic children of the foolish kingdom. It’s time to prepare yourself.
Do you surrender, or will you die? You have one hour.]
We were given a grace period of an hour.
Anjie struck the handrail.
“Does she plan on keeping us hostage? ──Coward.”
I suppose that we were going to be used for negotiation material as they declare war.
My sight glanced around. The sailors were in a panic, but some of the students who remained on the deck were relieved. Being taken hostage meant that they wouldn’t be killed. A small boat with messengers appeared from beside the dukedom. Luxon spoke to me. [Master, this has gotten dangerous.] “It seems so.” I looked at Anjie. Unlike nameless people like me, she was the daughter of a duke household with connections to the royal family. Perhaps from the perspective of the dukedom, she would make for an attractive hostage. “Just where did I go wrong?” Why was a third year event happening now? I was at my wits’ end.
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