episode_0063

“… So you got hit by Camilla?”

Kyle started looking at me with eyes like he was looking at a fool.

“When I asked him why he was worrying so deeply about something that wasn’t even his child’s story, he punched me in the forehead and the bridge of my nose.”

Even though it was our first reunion in a long time, I felt strange because it felt like I was missing someone.

“Honestly, you deserved to get hit.”

“You don’t seem to be on my side.”

“As always, I’m on the side of common sense.”

“… Even if you leave my problem aside, there must be another reason why you wanted to see me, right?”

It was so rare for Kyle to ask to see me that I couldn’t help but be a bit surprised. He was basically the kind of person who would just do his own thing and then just lie down somewhere and sleep.

“I heard that Raul is receiving a flood of marriage proposals.”

“The nobles must know that the demons are starting to run wild again. They probably want me as a force to protect them. ”

“Anyway, Amy Ter… no, you annoying kids. When you curse like that, do you always turn your palm over like this?”

“What would they not do to survive? They must be desperate, too. To the point where they would marry off their precious daughters to me. I am… a dirty blood.”

The truth my mother had spoken was still cruelly floating through my mind. It burned my heart and trampled the memories within it, just as I had trampled the giants.

Now, when I think of my mother, I can’t remember a single thing my father asked me to do. I remember the sentences themselves, but I’ve long since forgotten the meaning of the requests.

No, it would be a lie if I said I didn’t have any feelings. I just don’t know what to call it. It’s an unfathomable feeling that’s sticky to the point of discomfort, hot and cold at the same time, and a feeling of discomfort that I don’t want to see. I’m stupid and don’t know what it is.

I just didn’t want to see my mother. That was the only thing that was clear.

“Why am I here because I have noble blood? All blood is red. Is the blood of nobles blue? What is in a person’s head must be noble.”

“Sadly, I don’t think even that is noble enough.”

“… Anyway, the story is a bit off topic, but the atmosphere is serious enough to warrant that. There are also many opinions that Raul should be reinstated in the military. I wondered if it was right to do that to someone who was already sick… But you know. This country is dirty. It forces sacrifices, then later ignores them, and when it finally feels regrettable, it forces sacrifices again. It’s a dirty country. ”

“There are those who gave their lives for that country, Kyle.”

“… Leila is definitely like that. But most of them were just dragged in while enjoying a rich kid’s party and died like dogs. ”

This would be the perspective of ordinary people. No, the Demon King also said that the Empire is a country where trash gathers, so this could be seen as the perspective of those other than the Empire’s nobles.

“They are forcing Raul to make another sacrifice.”

“Then I must do it. If the enemies start to lurk again, I have no choice but to drag this sick body to the battlefield.”

“But Her Majesty the Empress is angry. You say such things and then you send us to the battlefield again. Do you have any shame? You shameless scum.”

“… That’s pretty much tame now, right?”

“He said he would peel off that thick skin from your face and shove it in your asshole, and he also said that if you forced him to sacrifice, he would dig up your parents’ graves and sacrifice them as firewood, and he put a real donkey’s dick in your mouth like the dog that said such shit to Raoul…”

“Stop. I can guess what the atmosphere was like without listening any further.”

The nobles will want to send us back to the battlefield by any means necessary. It will be the most effective way to deal with the Demon King and his forces. The Demon King is injured, the Phantom King is alive but rarely goes to battle, and even if the Queen of Dragons is alive, I can kill her.

“… Anyway, the nobles’ requests were so strong that His Majesty eventually made a mediation proposal. He said he would give Raoul a special mission. ”

“Special mission?”

“You said you would dispatch Raul to a village in the border region where the movements of the demons have been detected. If you dispatch him as a knight, he might be noticed, so you said you would dispatch him as the lord of a small village to monitor them…”

“Wait a minute. That means…”

“Yes. It’s not much different from what you used to do. You just hit the jackpot, but the nobles were satisfied and left. Anyway, when did that guy’s ability to slander others improve so much?”

I never expected that Your Majesty would go so far as to swindle the nobles.

He was someone who hated the first emperor, so he avoided concubines and even lies. Of course, if I said that I was good at lying like His Majesty the First Emperor, he would definitely kill me.

But did other people really believe that lie?

“… But this is the first time I’ve heard that there are demons lurking in the area I’m in.”

“That’s also a lie.”

“That part is very similar to Seonje.”

“If I heard that, it wouldn’t be strange if I lost my head.”

I was just telling the truth.

“Anyway, Raul, you have been dispatched under His Majesty’s orders, albeit in name only. It seems you will have to put on your military uniform again.”

“It’s funny to be told to wear clothes that I wouldn’t wear even on the battlefield.”

“Well, since it’s just a show, wouldn’t it be okay to just do a show?”

As Kyle spoke, he took out my old military uniform.

From the two stars on the shoulder epaulettes to the eagle insignia unique to the Military Intelligence Command, it was a military uniform that resembled the ostentatiousness that I disliked.

“It’s a burdensome outfit no matter when I see it.”

“I don’t think there’s anything more fun than wearing this and patrolling the city with the Imperial Army.”

“… You have bad taste too.”

Who would have thought that little girl who cried because she lost her parents would grow up like this?

Although she is the same age as Lizel, she must have become rotten due to all the absurdities of society because of her status. It seemed like there was room for sympathy.

“I’m telling you, the reason I became corrupt is because I was working as your adjutant.”

“I don’t remember making you do anything particularly difficult.”

“I’m the one who took care of everything from cooking for 400 people, finding the top-secret documents that Raul lost, and cleaning up after Raul to military chores?”

I had nothing to say.

It was also true that Kyle’s cooking was always delicious, so I always left the job to Kyle. If others helped, the taste would have declined exponentially, so cooking was always Kyle’s job.

Moreover, it was true that he had Kyle do odd jobs so that he could focus on the battle, that he had Kyle look for the cryptic documents he had used to wrap the jerky, and that he had him do things like laundry.

“… I’m starting to get worried about my territory. I should go back tomorrow.”

“When I see your true ability to turn the conversation around, your usual communication difficulties seem like an act. What’s the big deal about that little rural town?”

“Even if it’s just a pastime for the rest of your time, it’s still my duty, Kyle. And there must be dozens of Kyles from the past in that rural town. Isn’t it absurd for you, who has received our favor, to say such things?”

“I appreciate the grace you have given me, but… That’s why I’m telling you this. So that you can use the little time you have left preciously.”

That’s okay now. I don’t care about that anymore.

For now, I just wanted to clear my head of this complicated thoughts. I wanted to breathe in some clean air, away from the nobles and other things that were giving me a headache.

“Well, I have to follow along too, so I’m not in a position to say anything.”

“Are you following me?”

“… Didn’t I tell you? Raul, you were sent on a mission under orders. I was sent as his adjutant. I had to make up for it. ”

I wanted to refuse. If I brought Kyle into that town that already hated outsiders, there would definitely be conflict.

Kyle, who would always get revenge if he was ignored, was the antithesis of the town.

But the taste of the breakfast my maid Betty prepared and the food Kyle prepared were also in conflict. It was obvious that there would be conflict, but I thought I could somehow handle it within my means.

I’m not taking Kyle with me specifically because of his cooking skills. It’s the duty of a subject to follow His Majesty’s orders.

“By the way, His Majesty the Emperor and Her Highness the Empress…”

“Raul, over there…”

When I turned my head in the direction Kyle was pointing, the wife of the former count was standing there.

When did you come? That was fine, but I was not happy when the conversation stopped.

No, maybe I just feel bad looking at that person’s face.

The wife of the former count approached me quietly and spoke to me.

“Raul.”

“… Kyle. Let’s move. ”

Then Kyle started to stutter, seeming a little embarrassed.

“Oh, no, I…”

“I said I would move.”

As I was about to get up from my seat and move, the wife of the former count grabbed my arm.

“What on earth does this act mean?”

“… I have something to tell you.”

“I’ve never heard of you before. You want to talk to me.”

“I’m not trying to joke.”

“I know. Have you ever even told me a joke?”

I knew this wasn’t right.

He knew better than anyone that there was nothing more foolish than actions or words driven by emotions.

Because those who are moved by emotions are no different from the Demon King. They are no different from me, who slaughtered the giants.

Yet my mouth did not follow that belief.

“I have tried to talk to you many times. I have knocked on your door many times. I have made room for you many times. But have you ever responded to my challenge?”

“That’s me…”

“Did you ever worry about me when I came back from the war? Did you ever ask me why I couldn’t be there for my father when he died? Talking to you now… Don’t you realize that it’s funny?”

Just as the Demon King swung his sword in anger, I too let out words fueled by inexplicable emotions.

“Sometimes you tell me that you regret giving birth to me.”

“… Yeah.”

“I didn’t want to be born from you either.”