Tsuyokute New Saga (LN)

Book 8: Chapter 16

The following sixth day of the World Meeting was another day off. Most crucial discussions had been finished at this point, and it was planned that everything on the agenda should be done in the morning. Hence, many were already celebrating, holding final meetings with people. As for Kyle, he had been invited to a certain location.

“Thank you very much for coming, Kyle-sama. And Angela-sama, thank you for agreeing to my invitation despite your return later today. Sakira-sama, I’m sorry to ask so much of you.”

“No, I have to thank you. This tea is one of my favorites we have in the Empire, so please try some.”

“Y-Yes, thank you for inviting me.”

Kyle was called to a tea time with the princesses. Milena, Angela, and even Sakira were present. Milena planned it all, with the other three having been invited. Unbelievably, it was tea time with three of the most beautiful princesses that would most likely all be remembered in history. Granted, for a hero like him, it might be fitting, but Kyle himself could curse his misfortune as his stomach once again hurt. That said, he obviously couldn’t decline, so he had to mentally prepare himself. As this was held in a saloon you could enter and leave at your leisure, you had a lot of people watching from afar.

But even more than anything, Kyle felt bad for Sakira. Milena was raised to become the Queen in the future, and Angela was the daughter of the Emperor. Unlike those two, Sakira was a sheltered but well-meaning girl, so she had no sense of politics. She tried to act strong with a smile, but she was visibly hurting on the inside, which made Kyle feel guilty yet again. She would sometimes send him a gaze begging for help, and he would support her as best as he could. They began by talking about whatever came to their minds, but somewhere down the line, Milena completely shattered the mood.

“By the way, Kyle-sama. Do you remember your promise to become my prince consort?”

Kyle almost showed unbelievable rudeness by spitting out the tea inside his mouth, but he could barely keep himself in check.

Did she just say promise?! I made it very clear back then! Is she trying to force this now?!

Looking over, Sakira’s mouth was open in shock, and even Angela put one hand over her mouth, showing a teasing smile.

“Um…You were just saying that as a joke, right? I’m sorry, but I’m not fit for that, and I’m but a commoner. There will be plenty of people opposing this, too.”

“Oh dear, if there would be anybody saying you’re not worthy of being the prince consort…then we don’t need them in Zilgus,” Milena calmly said.

Kyle understood that she was dead serious, and felt a shiver run down his spine. And since it came to this topic, he was also extremely curious about Ninos’ reaction. Kyle just struggled to deal with her. Each time they met, she’d send him glares of death acting like daggers. That said, this hostile attitude came from the fact that Milena genuinely considered Kyle. Milena wouldn’t dare to believe that she was always right, so she had Ninos with her to ask for a second opinion since she was known to be a clever and adaptive girl. She had to look after Milena not misspeaking in the heat of the moment, which in return allowed her a lot of freedom of speech.

Kyle was fairly well-known thanks to his hero status, but she saw that as suspicious more than anything. Despite that, Milena had taken an interest in the young hero, which resulted in Ninos trying to keep a healthy distance between them, showing clear hostility toward him. However, now that he had achieved so much influence, she couldn’t exactly remove him from the picture, so although she clearly disagreed with all of this, she didn’t intervene.

If even Ninos is not butting in…then the condition for me to become prince consort has been achieved?!

Kyle imagined himself becoming the king of Zilgus and immediately knew he couldn’t accept. And while Kyle was panicking, Milena seemed rather relaxed. Meanwhile, Angela, who was also present, actually had an interest in Kyle’s comrade Seran, and Milena knew this. Hence, this was like a declaration of war against Galgan in a way. That said, Angela was rather surprised, but she seemed to enjoy this situation more than anything.

“No, well…Like I said before, I don’t think I’m worthy of being given that kind of position…”

“Oh please, don’t say that. You saved my life, after all, and I’d been admiring you forever. Plus, when you protected me, you even said ‘Even if my body falls, I will protect the princess,’ so you can hardly blame me…”

“You’re faking a lot here, aren’t you?”

Kyle had no memory of ever saying that. In other words, it must be part of the heroic tale spread within Zilgus right now, and she used that as material. She was clearly out to tease him. But then, Sakira carefully spoke up.

“Um, so…Milena-sama, are you and Kyle-sama really…”

Seeing that anxious expression on Sakira’s face, Milena realized she’d messed up.

This…was a miscalculation. I didn’t think Sakira-sama was this infatuated with Kyle-sama.

Her face spoke volumes about how she really felt. One of the biggest reasons why Milena had called Sakira to this tea time was to learn more about her. So far, she had tried to invite her over and over, but she always avoided it. However, the moment she found out that Kyle would participate, she agreed. At that point, Milena should have started carrying doubts. But after talking with her for a bit, it became clear that Sakira was a good soul deep down, holding no political intent whatsoever. And that’s probably why Milena ran her mouth like that.

I thought they were just on good terms, but I misread the situation…

Milena tried to remain reserved when it came to Sakira, but she regretted having jumped the gun.

“That said, there is no need to rush. Please give it some proper thought. As for Angela-sama, it is thanks to you that my dear ministers will be able to return to their families.”

Milena realized that this was as far as she could take it and decided to change the topic, albeit it definitely being a bit forced.

“You don’t have to worry about that. It was for the sake of our country.”

“Even so, you even helped me return to my country safely, so I cannot thank you enough. If there is anything I could do, don’t hesitate to tell me.”

It was thanks to Angela acting as the body double that Milena could sneak out of the Empire and head back to Zilgus. Angela thought about it for a moment and then spoke up.

“It might be a bit impudent, but I have a request to make.”

“Yes, of course. As long as it’s something that I can provide.”

Of course, Milena only agreed to such an extent to see where this was going. She couldn’t possibly know how far this could reach.

“Would it be possible to immediately repair your relationship with Taihon?”

Angela’s request was utterly unexpected, and not something Milena could agree to.

“What…could you possibly mean with that?” Milena was bewildered.

The first one to act was Ninos, standing right behind Milena. Since she was not allowed to state her own opinion, she carefully whispered into her master’s ear.

“Milena-sama, the impression of Taihon within our country after they tried to drag us to war couldn’t be lower. An order of secrecy has been issued, but not many know of the real circumstances, so even if the Empire asks for it, we cannot agree.”

Since Ninos couldn’t see where this was supposed to go, she urged Milena to be as cautious as possible.

“What a loyal retainer you have. Not afraid to voice her opinion in a situation like this.”

Naturally, Angela knew that those two were talking amongst each other, but she didn’t mind much.

“I have a reason for this, of course. And trying to hide it will be futile, so I will be honest with you. Father will most likely pass away in the next few days.”

Hearing that, not only Milena but even Sakira and Kyle were shocked. Naturally, she was referring to the current Emperor of the Empire, Benedix, and although he had been sick for a long time, this would eventually happen.

“His death itself could not be avoided, so I’m well-prepared. The issue is the succession of the throne.”

“I thought that Maizer-sama was announced to be the successor?”

“Yes, and that’s not the big problem. However, the Empire was born from Father’s actions, and grew because of his authority…that said, it’s too great at this point.”

The man with the greatest honor in the Empire, Emperor Benedix planned to slowly retire from the public space while teaching his oldest son Eldorand to take over as the Emperor. However, all of that was ruined by the abrupt death of Eldorand, which ended up in a civil war.

“Brother Maizer is doing his hardest, but it will take quite some time until the inside of the Empire will regain its balance.”

That said, they also couldn’t give up on their plan of unifying all of humanfolk, but at this current stage, internal affairs mattered much more than outside.

“Of course, there is the option of striking our enemies on the outside to unify us again, but in this situation where everything is unclear, it would be very unwise.”

“That is true…A war in a situation like this might be nothing short of a bet.”

“That is why we need a reason. One that doesn’t allow us to go on the offensive even if the majority of us decided so.”

If the relationship between Zilgus and Taihon grew stronger again, it would create a reason to not attack the other countries, which could help suppress the pro-war faction.

“…For the next ten years, Galgan will not use any military power for anything other than to protect ourselves. That is the direction that Brother Maizer decided on.”josei

That information was incredibly convenient for Zilgus. If they could act that long without having to worry about the threat of the Empire, they could stabilize and prepare. However, that was only the case if everything went as Maizer planned it.

“…As much as I hate to say it, I have no reason to believe the Empire.”

Believing that the other party would always keep their promises was already foolish enough, and there is plenty of a chance that they would do a simple 180 while saying ‘The circumstances have changed.’ Once you let down your guard, they stab you in the back. History has proven that, and the Empire making up reasons to start a war was nothing new.

“Yes, of course. But that is why I wanted to bring this up in Sakira’s presence. I don’t mind if we put this down on paper.”

“M-Me? I mean, if I could be of help, then gladly…”

Sakira had been in her own world up to this point, but now the conversation was suddenly directed her way, which threw her off.

“If that still isn’t enough, then I don’t mind sending you a few hostages under the pretense of calling it studying abroad. Of course, that includes my relative Nord or even myself.”

Nord is the son of the late Eldorand and the person in line for the throne right after Maizer. This offer alone showed how serious she was.

“I cannot give an immediate answer…But I will give it some thought. I don’t dislike the idea, myself, but it depends on the people around us.”

With Ninos at her back, Milena showed a confident smile.

“Are you certain…?” Angela was surprised that her request wasn’t shut down immediately.

“Of course, I have my own thoughts about this. However, I do have a debt to repay. And…I’m sure Kyle-sama would wish for this, too.”

“Wha…?”

“Please don’t play dumb. You’ve been staring holes into me for a while now.”

After all, Kyle was extremely invested in the possibility that Zilgus and Taihon could repair their relationship. Even the fact that the Empire offered a complete cease-fire was a surprise.

“W-Was I really looking that excited?”

“Yes, of course. And naturally, I have to do my hardest if it would please you.” She evidently wanted to earn points with Kyle. “But, enough of the difficult topics. This was supposed to be a tea time, and I’m very excited to see where this is going,” Milena cut off the previous conversation, to which both Angela and Kyle smiled.

Only Sakira was more relieved than anything.