Ch.81Chapter 81. Dawn of the Aeshas

***

For Anima, if she were to recall her most radiant period—it would be her youth.

She could point to the time when she attended Fiviola Academy with her most precious childhood friend.

“Yurie!”

“Anima, you’re here. How was today?”

“Well, academy life is all the same, you know.”

Yurie was already quite famous among her peers.

Fiviola Academy, one of the top three prestigious academies in the Einhart Empire.

Yurie was a talented genius, already a notable figure at this prestigious academy.

The only daughter of the noble Aeshus family.

She didn’t discriminate much against someone like Anima, who was of humble birth.

Moreover, compared to Anima who was merely a martial artist who knew a little about swordsmanship, Yurie was accomplished in many fields.

For Anima, being Yurie’s childhood friend was itself a great source of pride.

“Yurie. Your skills have improved again.”

“Thank you, Instructor Epinel.”

The academy’s young instructor Epinel Rosenkroz was one of those who particularly kept an eye on Yurie.

“How about learning more about combat techniques? People say you’re destined to become an outstanding minister of the Empire, but I think you have quite good physical abilities too.”

“I appreciate your words, but I’m not confident in physical activities.”

“Is that so? I think that might be excessive modesty… Well, if you ever change your mind, I’ll support you. Just say the word.”

“Yes!”

Then one day.

News of the Emperor’s suspicious death reached them.

With no designated successor, the entire nation became somewhat unsettled during that period.

And not long after, shocking news arrived at Fiviola Academy.

“I heard Orlando Brans, who was once the Emperor’s closest confidant, has started a rebellion at Anel Castle?”

“What? Rebellion? Why would he declare independence? Does he have a death wish?”

With news that Orlando Brans, who held power nearly equivalent to being the Empire’s second-in-command, had raised an army, the academy became even more unsettled.

But at that time, everyone thought it would be just a momentary flame.

Not a single person realized it was the signal flare announcing the beginning of a chaotic era.

After all, even without a designated successor—

Wouldn’t Algot von Einhart, the eldest son, naturally take control of the situation, ascend to the throne, and quickly calm the chaos?

However.

What they heard was not news of Algot’s ascension, but rather different kinds of reports.

News of the southern Ohana army’s uprising.

News of the western Walnut army’s uprising.

Additionally, those who held important positions in the Empire began to successively declare themselves as lords, establishing their own nations across the continent.

The beginning of a chaotic era.

The Einhart Empire, which had unified the continent, began to irreversibly fragment.

The already blazing flames of chaos reached Fiviola Academy as well.

Imperial forces of unknown command invaded the academy while armed.

Various conspiracy theories circulated, such as “Because the headmaster was aligned with Algot von Einhart, one of the other siblings made a move to eliminate him”—

But there was no way for Anima and Yurie, who were merely students at the academy, to know the truth.

No matter how excellent the academy students were, and despite having several instructors—

They couldn’t defeat properly trained imperial forces.

It was a one-sided massacre. The imperial army began killing everyone enrolled at the academy, regardless of gender or status.

“Yurie! We need to escape!”

“B-but… I haven’t found Seira yet…!”

“It’s too late! We need to get out of here now!”

At that moment.

A soldier wearing imperial armor began approaching them.

‘Damn it…!’

There was no proper escape route in this situation.

“D-don’t come any closer!”

Despite Yurie’s cry, the soldier said nothing.

His expression couldn’t even be seen as he wore a helmet stained with fresh blood.

Anima gripped a sword in her right hand while looking around for an escape route near Yurie.

Even two against one, they couldn’t defeat the soldier. Objectively, neither of them was particularly skilled in combat.

‘I need to make sure at least Yurie can escape…!’

Just as she adjusted her grip on the sword with that thought—

The soldier’s blade came down upon them with frightening speed.

“Huh!”

Without even properly exchanging a few blows, Yurie’s weapon flew far away.

“…!!!”

As the soldier raised his sword high,

And as the shadow of death flickered in Yurie’s eyes at that moment.

“Yurie!!!”

Anima instinctively threw herself forward.

After that.

Anima couldn’t understand what had happened.

“Huh…?”

When she regained consciousness, her vision was rapidly fading.

An impossible pain was overwhelming her body.

“Anima…! No, Anima…!!!!”

Beside her, Yurie was embracing her and crying.

And watching that scene was Instructor Epinel.

“Instructor Epinel…?”

“Are you conscious, Anima?!”

Ah.

That’s right.

After I threw myself forward… shortly after, Instructor Epinel had inflicted a deep wound in the soldier’s abdomen.

Before that, what happened was…

‘Ughh…!!!’

With pain surging again, I slowly turned my head.

My right arm.

The right arm that should have been holding the sword… was nowhere to be found.

No, to be precise—

Far away, an arm was lying on the ground.

“…!!!!!”

After realizing this, well.

Thinking back now, I don’t remember clearly what I thought.

Only fragmentary scenes come to mind.

“For now, let’s go somewhere safe to hide! There are medicines there for treatment too.”

Instructor Epinel temporarily hid us in a basement deep within the academy building.

That’s all I remember—that he provided basic first aid there, which somehow allowed me to survive.

“*sob sob*… Anima, I’m sorry. Because of me… because of me.”

“Yurie…”

When I first lost my arm, I did wonder how I would manage from now on—

But honestly, if it meant Yurie could survive, I was satisfied with that.

“Anima. I’m sorry. This is all the treatment I can provide…”

“No, Instructor. I’m alive thanks to you. Thank you.”

After spending some time like that,

When we went outside during a quiet moment, what we saw was—

‘…My God.’

Countless bodies of academy instructors and students.

A hellish scene where those bodies were piled up like mountains.

“Damn those Einhart bastards… What the hell is happening?!”

Epinel cursed in anger, but nothing changed.

For whatever reason, Fiviola Academy had been targeted by someone and marked for elimination.

“*sob sob*… Everyone…”

Yurie knelt and wept for a long time.

There were… no survivors.

As we spent time in a daze among the corpses, at that moment.

“Lady Yurie!”

In the distance, a woman and a man were approaching us.

“Emma… Erinandorf…!”

“You’re alive, Lady Yurie…”

Emma and Erinandorf.

Faces that Anima knew as well.

They were retainers serving the Aeshus family. Certainly.

“What happened? Our home? Father and… Mother?”

“…”

At Yurie’s words, Emma and Erinandorf could only bow their heads in silence.

She seemed to understand what their silence meant, as she collapsed to the ground again with a pale face.

“…Ah…ah.”

And so—

Anima and Yurie lost everything in an instant.

The peaceful daily life they had taken for granted, the fruits of their efforts, ordinary happiness and such things.

All of it was swept away by the Empire’s karma.

*

After that day.

“Yurie.”

“Anima… *sob*, *sniff*.”

Whenever she saw Anima, she would only make a sad expression and whimper.

Was it guilt over the arm that had already been lost?

Or was it sympathy for themselves, who had been unable to do anything and were simply swept along by the flow of history?

Without being able to do anything properly, they were continuing their lifeline by depending on Emma or Erinandorf for basic necessities.

Anima, if anything, was of the opinion that they couldn’t continue living like this.

The Aeshus family had suffered a near-extinction level blow, but Yurie, who carried their bloodline, was still alive, and two retainers had survived.

Almost everyone from the academy had died, but three people were still alive: herself, Instructor Epinel, and Yurie.

Five survivors.

We who survived must take revenge on the Empire.

In an era where lords were rising to power across the land, we had Yurie, the legitimate heir of the Aeshus family.

If others could do it, why couldn’t we!

“Yurie.”

“…”

“Snap out of it, Yurie!”

Anima grabbed the collar of the sniffling girl with her left hand.

“How long are you going to be like this?!”

“B-but. Anima… you, because of me… *sob*.”

“If you’re truly sorry to me, don’t just sit here like this, but move forward.”

“…Huh?”

“Let’s establish a nation. With your own hands.”

Yurie’s eyes turned pale at those words.

Anima didn’t avoid those trembling eyes.

She continued to stare. She projected all the aspirations of how she had lived until now, and how she had survived, directly into those two eyes.

“The Einhart Empire is already finished. You’ve seen countless lords declaring independence, haven’t you? A new era has begun.”

“I, I…”

“Yurie. We can do it. No. Let me be precise.”

Anima recalled the past.

The peaceful days at the academy.

Now was the moment to leave that unreturnable fantasy behind.

“You can do it.”

“Me…?”

“And.”

—–I’ll be your wings.

From this moment on, Anima Ingram—

Decided to entrust her fate to her childhood friend before her.

* * *

Even as Anima recalled memories that had now become old tales,

As if that moment was still vivid before her eyes.

“Yurie. Epinel. Emma. Erinandorf. And me… these five people. From that moment, transcending age and status, we became blood brothers—engraving the name of Aeshus in each of our hearts.”

That was the dawn of the Aeshus army.