Chapter 97 - Alliance Meeting (3)
9 min read ·
Karmakses III, King of Coloni, wore the expression of a man with a splitting headache.
The cause was Seollang, Coloni’s proud foremost Baba Yaga, standing before him.
“So...”
Karmakses unwittingly drew out the word. After wondering what to say, he continued.
“You want to accompany me to the meeting as my aide?”
“Yes.”
Seeing Seollang nod without hesitation, Karmakses let out a sigh.
She had insisted she would never attend a meeting like this even if the sky fell, yet now she suddenly wanted to be his aide? What on earth had happened?
... Of course, there was nothing wrong with Seollang accompanying him as his aide. In fact, it would be the best possible development for Karmakses.
The allied kingdoms’ meeting was a conference, but, as was usually the case, it also served as a venue for subtle power struggles among the kingdoms bound together by their alliance. That was why he had wanted to bring her in the first place.
There was just one problem.
“Well, didn’t you originally say you didn’t want to go?”
After hearing that Seollang would rather die than attend, Karmakses had already decided to bring someone else as his aide: Makria, Coloni’s second Baba Yaga.
“I changed my mind.”
“Do you, er, absolutely have to go?”
“I absolutely have to go.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
Her firm refusal to yield so much as an inch left Karmakses at a loss.
Frankly, this was not easy. Bringing Seollang would benefit him far more, of course, but breaking his promise to the second Baba Yaga after all the arrangements had been settled would cause problems.
... Of course, bringing both would be easy enough if he disregarded the aide position, but that would clearly create problems of its own.
Accompanying a king to a meeting like this as an aide carried a certain amount of prestige. That was precisely what the second Baba Yaga had hoped to gain by accepting his offer.
But if Seollang came along now, all eyes would inevitably turn to the foremost Baba Yaga, even if the second Baba Yaga were the appointed aide. Seollang, standing before him, possessed strength no one else could hope to rival.
In short, the second Baba Yaga’s resentment was bound to boil over.
“... How about attending the next one?”
Karmakses asked, regretting that he had not informed her a little sooner.
“Ah.”
The instant he posed the question, she spoke.
“I said I want to go, didn’t I?”
Her tail had been gently swaying only moments before, but that might as well have been an illusion. Her demeanor turned so cold that anyone would have flinched.
“... Very well.”
He could only agree.
“Hmm... ♬”
Her expression relaxing as though she had obtained everything she wanted, Seollang left the royal castle, humming.
Watching her go, Karmakses rubbed his weary eyes.
“...”
'Today is a day that calls for mana weed,' Karmakses briefly reflected.
Meanwhile.
“... So you want to attend the meeting?”
“Yes.”
“But the Third Sword is already scheduled to—”
“I would like to go.”
“Hmm... The matter has already been decided.”
“I would like to go.”
“...”
The same thing was happening in Callivan.
“Hmm...”
Palmarian IV, King of Callivan, made no attempt to hide his mild bewilderment as he questioned Deus Makalian.
“Well, didn’t you refuse last time because you had no time?”
He was saying exactly the same thing as a certain king in the desert.
“I can make time now.”
But seeing how casually Deus Makalian changed his stance, he fell silent.
It was not that he did not want to bring him. He, too, knew very well that the allied kingdoms’ meeting was a meeting in name only, and in reality a place for unseen power struggles.
But Deus Makalian had already refused the aide position, and Palmarian IV had appointed the Third Sword instead. That made this request difficult to accommodate.
Even a king could not truly do everything as he pleased. Indeed, he knew that a king had to be all the more scrupulous about such matters.
A king had to inspire trust in his subjects.
After considering it for a long while, Palmarian IV spoke.
“Unfortunately, I cannot grant that request.”
“Why is that?”
“Because all the arrangements have already been agreed upon.”
“With the Third Sword, you mean.”
“Yes.”
As he nodded and spoke with Deus, Palmarian IV began to dimly understand why he wanted to attend this meeting.
'... It must be because of Count Pallatio—no, Marquis Pallatio.'
He must have rushed here the moment he heard that Marquis Pallatio would be attending as the Kingdom of Asteria’s aide.
It was rather remarkable.
'... Just how much does he admire him?'
He knew very well that Deus Makalian’s feelings toward Marquis Pallatio went beyond immense admiration to profound respect.
No, there was no way he could not have known. At the Five Swords’ meetings, held every few months, the slightest mention of mages would send Deus straight into talking about Marquis Pallatio—or rather, singing his praises.
Once, the newly appointed Fourth Sword had even grown so sick of hearing the same stories that he made a dismissive remark about the marquis, only to be beaten within an inch of his life in a duel.
As a result, Deus’s respect for Marquis Pallatio was common knowledge among everyone in the know.
... Though a rumor had also spread that one should not so much as utter the first syllable of “mage” in front of Deus.
Palmarian had been somewhat worried about what he would do if Deus stubbornly pressed the issue.
“Understood.”
Thus, he looked surprised when Deus obediently nodded and backed down. He had expected Deus to pull some stunt... no, do something to secure the aide position.
Yet...
“Since the matter is already settled, pressing my request would only put you in a difficult position.”
“Thank you for understanding.”
“Not at all.”
Deus paid his respects with impeccable courtesy, then turned and left.
“...”
Exactly one day later, Palmarian IV, who had been left looking bewildered, received a request for an audience from the Third Sword who was to accompany him to the meeting.
“... I greet the lord of Callivan’s five Great Swords.”
“Yes, what is it?”
“Forgive my presumption, Your Majesty, but might I step down from the aide position?”
“... So suddenly?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“... I believe my blade is not yet sharp enough to serve as Your Majesty’s aide.”
At those words...
“Ah.”
The scene from yesterday flashed through Palmarian IV’s mind.
[“Unfortunately, I cannot grant that request.”]
[“Why is that?”]
[“Because all the arrangements have already been agreed upon.”]
[“With the Third Sword, you mean.”]
[“Yes.”]
It did not take him long to understand what had happened.
“... Very well.”
“Thank... you.”
That day, Callivan’s aide changed.
####
Three weeks later.
Having returned to Teria after barely two weeks of rest, Alon set out with Critenia Siyan for Tern, where the meeting would be held.
During his rest, he had learned why Critenia Siyan wanted to bring him as her aide.
'A power struggle, huh.'
Recalling what Evan had told him, he continued his train of thought.
'True, wherever powerful people gather, this kind of power struggle is practically inevitable, childish as it is... Well, why she picked me for it... Actually, am I a reasonable choice?'
Objectively speaking, his record was quite impressive, so he could see why she might choose him.
... Of course, it was impressive only on the surface. In reality, he was a half-baked mage whose tiny mana pool left him unable to fight after just one or two spells.
'Well, I suppose it’s a win-win in the end.'
Critenia Siyan could make use of Alon’s prestige, while Alon could acquire an item available only inside Tern.
About a week later, they reached their destination.
'Oh.'
He inwardly marveled at the enormous castle in the distance, built solely to serve as a conference venue for the allied kingdoms’ royalty.
Standing in the middle of a vast grassland, its outer fortifications had considerable charm, and the exterior was quite magnificent as well.
Of course, it felt more like a grim military fortress than a conference venue.
In any case, when Alon arrived at the castle a short while later, Siyan told him,
“The conference is this evening, so go to the banquet hall and rest for now.”
“Understood.”
He nodded and headed for the banquet hall.
####
'Surprisingly few people here.'
Arriving at the banquet hall as Siyan had instructed, Alon briefly surveyed its quiet interior before shrugging and beginning to sate his hunger with the desserts laid out there.
He would have liked to get moving immediately and retrieve the item, but unfortunately, what he sought could only be obtained at night.
'Delicious.'
So he was enjoying the sweetness of an egg tart when a voice spoke.
“Are you Marquis Pallatio, by any chance?”
“?”
Alon turned toward the voice and saw a man: a conventionally handsome fellow with red hair, a cross earring in one ear, and a sword at his waist.
“I am. Who are you?”
“Oh, it really is you. A pleasure to meet you!”
With a bright smile, he introduced himself.
“I am Philian, the eldest son of the ducal House Merkillan in the Kingdom of Ashtalon.”
“... Yoman, the Swordmaster of Ashtalon?”
“Oh? You know of me? To think a celebrity recognizes me—I hardly know what to do with myself. I suppose I’m getting rather famous now.”
Watching Philian laugh cheerfully as he spoke, Alon thought,
'Well, it’s not really because you’re famous. I already knew about you.'
Alon knew him.
Philian Merkillan.
He was the Kingdom of Ashtalon’s youngest Swordmaster, and a character who joined the player’s party in Psychedelia.
“You are fairly famous. You’re the kingdom’s youngest Swordmaster, after all.”
“Thank you for the compliment. But...”
As was evident, Philian had an agreeable personality. Being one of the player’s companions, he was quite cheerful and had no hidden side to him.
There was just one drawback.
“Marquis, you seem weaker than I expected.”
“...”
Perhaps the intention had been to show that every last point had gone into his talent for the sword, because outside swordsmanship and combat, his interpersonal and social skills were hopelessly poor.
“That’s strange. I thought you’d be much stronger.”
... As he was demonstrating right before Alon’s eyes.
He was also rather competitive.
“... Hmm.”
Of course, Alon knew Philian meant no harm. Philian Merkillan was not the sort of person to mock anyone.
... Whether that was because sarcasm never occurred to him or because he lacked the intelligence for it, Alon did not know.
In any case, as he watched Philian speak with innocent sincerity and no trace of malice, he wondered how to respond.
“What did you just say?”
“... Huh?”
At the voice behind him, Alon instinctively turned.
“?”
His eyes almost widened at the familiar silhouettes.
'... Seollang, and... Deus?'
Seollang and Deus stood before him, both wearing unmistakably furious expressions.