Side Mana
“I am truly grateful for your assistance this time,” the woman bowing to us said.
This is Grand Trader Master Clinos Agrotis, who oversees the Trader’s Guild.
I had noticed the Solemn Army closing in from behind, but with many young children among them, and traveling on foot, she had planned for the Grand Trader Master and the Hunters to act as decoys if necessary, so that at least the children could escape.
However, a strong wind suddenly began to blow from behind, and when the wind stopped, a dragonized Dragonian appeared. She mistakenly believed we were all done for and dropped to her knees, shedding tears.
The children had never seen a dragonized Dragonian before either, so they started crying uncontrollably.
Athena had no intention of scaring them, but she was so shocked by the children’s tears that she remains in her dragon form, feeling dejected.
Yamato is desperately trying to comfort her.
“I’m glad we made it in time. We were asked by Grand Duke Liar to come and pick you up.”
“R-really!?”
They had walked for three days with the children, and at night, they had managed by having Trader’s Guild staff and Hunters who volunteered to protect them set up camp. However, fatigue was evident on everyone’s faces, not just the children’s.
They had left Estrella immediately after its fall, so they didn’t have enough food, and they had spent their nights fearing monsters and Pursuers from Solemn. It’s understandable.
Originally, I had planned to go to Estrella afterward and sink all their Steam Battleships. However, with the children exhausted, there was no way I could take them along. Thus, I had to reluctantly postpone it for another day.
“Yes. Now everyone, get into that Beast Carriage. There’s plenty of food, and you can sleep soundly inside.”
“Will that dragon attack us?”
“Don’t worry. That child is Athena, and she’s a Dragonian. She’s a very strong older sister who can turn into a dragon.”
The children are all a bit scared of Athena, but if they don’t ride her, I can’t take them to Lichtenfels.
There are no Dragonians in Libertà either, but it’s well-known that they are of the same dragon race as Dragonewts. So, the Trader’s Guild staff and Hunters are doing their best to soothe the children.
“Haven’t you heard of it in fairy tales before?”
“The story about the princess who turned into a dragon and lived happily ever after after getting her prince back?”
“That’s right. Wasn’t the princess in that story very kind? This older sister is the same.”
A Hunter pulled out a fairy tale I’d heard somewhere before and soothed the children.
That story was actually based on a true incident where a Dragonian, who had been subjected to a slave magic item, lost control in anger and nearly took down Solemn’s Emperor’s Castle, wasn’t it?
Well, it’s a famous fairy tale, so I know it too.
“Is that so!”
“So this older sister is also kind~?”
“She is kind. So, let’s thank her properly and all get in the Beast Carriage.”
“Okay!”
This Human female Hunter is really good at soothing children.
We don’t have much opportunity to interact with children, so we didn’t know what to do, and it was a great help.
“I apologize, Your Highness. However, they are still children who cannot discern, so I hope you will forgive them.”
“There’s no way I’d get angry over something like that. Rather, you were a great help. Thank you.”
“I am honored.”
Surprisingly, this Human Camellia is also from that orphanage.
Four out of the five Hunters escorting the children belong to the same Raid, but Camellia is different; she apparently just registered as a Hunter recently.
Even so, she has been promoted to B-rank Hunter, and she was starting to gain recognition in Estrella as a promising Hunter.
“I’ll hear the details in Lichtenfels. You all should get in too.”
“Thank you.”
The other four Hunters belong to a Raid called the Red Bracelet, but it seems many of the High Hunters who opposed Solemn lost their lives.
The Red Bracelet originally consisted of sixteen members, but they apparently took on the escort of the children through their connection with the Grand Trader Master.
However, they were discovered by Solemn as they were leaving Estrella, and the Hunters, including High Hunters, risked their lives to buy time for the children to escape.
Since there were no High Hunters among the escorts, two are High Class. However, both are in their mid-twenties and are engaged, so they said with sad faces that they were almost forced into escort duty.
The Red Bracelet, as the name suggests, all wear red bracelets, which apparently signify family bonds.
Verde, the Hydragonewt, and Violetta, the High Vampire, were also chosen because they were the youngest among the High Class members.
“Wow! Amazing, amazing!”
“I can see so f-far!”
Just as the excited cries of the children were heard, they had all gone up to the observation deck.
There were seven children in total, ranging from three to nine years old.
Despite being tired, they are full of energy.
Camellia is watching them so they don’t fall, but with the Barrier’s Tenma Stone, there’s no need to worry.
“It seems everyone has boarded.”
“Yeah. Athena has somehow cheered up, so we can leave anytime.”
That’s good.
Well then, let’s head back to Lichtenfels.
“Right. Athena, please.”
“Understood. It’s going to be a bit bumpy, so hold on tight to something.”
Hearing the children’s cheerful replies, Athena took off more cautiously than usual.
Camellia, Verde, and Violetta are wide-eyed at the sight of actually flying in the sky, but the children’s eyes are sparkling.
The observation deck offers a great view, but the deck itself is also nice for its open feel.
“Prim, where is the Grand Trader Master?”
“She’s resting in the VIP room. It must have been quite an arduous journey, so it’s understandable.”
“That’s true. Verde, Violetta, Camellia. We’ll watch the children, so you three should rest as well.”
There are five Hunters and six Trader’s Guild staff, including the Grand Trader Master.
However, since the staff members are not capable of fighting, the burden on the five Hunters must have been considerable.
It takes a little over two hours to get to Lichtenfels, so they should rest and recover their bodies during that time.
“Is that alright?”
“Of course. Hunters’ bodies are their capital.”
If they are tired or hungry, they won’t be able to exert their full strength, and they’ve been on high alert constantly, so their limits must be near.
“Thank you, Your Highness. We’ll take you up on your offer.”
With that, Verde and Violetta head down to the Mirror Room. But I can empathize with their feelings.
It’s no exaggeration to say that all but four of the Red Bracelet have been wiped out, including the two from Normal Class.
Although Verde and Violetta are young, the two from Normal Class are not yet adults, so I believe they were made to escape under the guise of escorting children.
They had been on edge until now, but now that they’ve merged with us, their guard will surely drop. It’s best to leave them be.
Side: Ludia
The day after we safely escorted the Grand Trader Master, Trader’s Guild staff, and the children to Lichtenfels, we returned to Float via Arca, accompanied by three of Grand Duke Liar’s wives and his two daughters.
However, Princess Seras Lichtenfels, the second daughter of the Grand Duke’s family and a Half-Rabbit Lamia, is inexplicably attached to Raus.
“Rebecca, Carol. Is it okay?”
“I’m in a similar situation, so I can’t really say anything.”
“It’s only three or four more people, so maybe something like this happens?”
Rebecca and Carol seem resigned, or rather, they don’t seem to know what to say.
The reason Princess Seras is attached to Raus is because he single-handedly defeated the G-rank Monster Canal Rhinoceros, which appeared near Lichtenfels while we were on our way to Estrella.
The Canal Rhinoceros is a rare species of S-rank Monster called a Rhinoceros, which has a large horn and can move freely both on land and in water.
These Rhinoceroses inhabit estuaries near the Nadal Sea, but due to Solemn’s Steam Battleships, they have been driven out and have come all the way to near Lichtenfels.
Yesterday, a pack of nearly twenty Rhinoceroses appeared, and although the Lichtenfels garrison also sallied forth, they were severely outmatched because their numbers had been reduced to confront Solemn.
Raus, Rebecca, and Carol almost wiped out those Rhinoceroses, and Raus alone defeated the Canal Rhinoceros that led them.
Grand Duke Liar, Prince Adeline, and Princess Seras also fought alongside the Lichtenfels garrison, as every bit of manpower was needed. However, thanks to the support from Raus and the others, they managed to overcome the ordeal without any damage to Lichtenfels.
Princess Seras, who is 12 years old, had some dangerous moments during her first battle, but Raus apparently supported her well, which is probably why we are in this situation now.
“That’s what happened.”
“As expected of Yamato’s disciple, or rather…”
Emperor Reinhardt, upon hearing the story, looked like he had a headache.
Of course, while we were dispatched at Grand Duke Liar’s request, it was completely unexpected that Grand Duke Liar’s own daughter would fall for Raus.
“Well, it’s not a bad situation for Grand Duke Liar either. And with Yamato as an example, let’s respect their wishes.”
So that’s how it’s going to be.
However, if I do nothing, there’s a non-negligible chance that Raus will be taken away by Lichtenfels. So, I’ll probably appoint him to a G-rank Order soon.
“And about Estrella, you haven’t confirmed it yet?”
“Yes. We couldn’t take the children with us, so we plan to go there next.”
The children were energetic while riding the Beast Carriage that Athena was carrying, but once they arrived in Lichtenfels and were able to relax, they immediately fell asleep.
We had actually planned to return to Float yesterday, but I felt it was inappropriate to forcibly move the sleeping children, so we had no choice but to postpone it for a day. Of course, I did report this.
“That’s fine. The problem is that the Steam Battleships have approached Lichtenfels. This is truly a matter of urgency.”
We thought so too.
Estrella is located in the central part of Libertà, but Lichtenfels is in the southeastern part, closest to Amister among the nearly twenty bridgehead cities.
The fact that the Steam Battleships have approached such a place means that cities other than Lichtenfels may have already been occupied.
“Grand Duke Liar is reportedly contacting the other bridgehead cities, but he said he can’t say anything at the moment.”
“As expected. The bridgehead cities on the west side, in particular, wouldn’t be surprising if they were all wiped out. Given that Estrella was attacked, the same applies to the central cities. What remains are the eastern cities, but here we have to be wary not only of Solemn but also of attacks from Retisencia, so it’s impossible to predict what’s happening.”
Even for the Libertà army, Retisencia is not a significant opponent, but this time, the odds are not in their favor.
The members of the Libertà Parliament who had sided with Solemn apparently rushed to mobilize forces from other bridgehead cities after realizing they had been betrayed by Solemn, but the result was total annihilation.
Therefore, the fighting power of the eastern bridgehead cities has also significantly decreased. This was also the case for Lichtenfels.
“Libertà is already as good as destroyed, so why not gather our forces in Libertà and launch a counter-offensive from there?”
“That’s a good idea. I apologize, but please accompany me to Torencia. I need to discuss matters with Hilde.”
Are we finally going to advance into Solemn?
Ah, but we need to sink the Steam Battleships that have invaded Libertà before that, so that’s what we’ll do first.
I had planned to go immediately after this, but if I have to meet with Torencia, that will have to be postponed again.
However, since it’s a meeting about the decisive battle with Solemn, it can’t be helped.
