Events in the Imperial Territory (11) (2)

──Ricardo's Perspective──

"What is this feeling of defeat? What is this!?"

Prince Ricardo clawed at his head.

A few minutes earlier, he had gone to the minister's office and asked what had happened to the 'box.'

But they had not told him.

──That matter is strictly confidential.

──We cannot tell you without Crown Prince Dias's permission.

──Prince Ricardo, please continue to devote yourself to magical training as before.

That was all he had received in response, however polite.

What was more, they had not looked down on Ricardo.

On the contrary, they had sincerely admired him.

"Prince Ricardo acquired the 'box.' It was a wonderful achievement. You would be wise to relax in the Imperial Capital for a while."

"...No. That's not it!"

"What isn't it?"

"This Ricardo──"

(This Ricardo did nothing. Sophia acquired the box, and I merely received it from her!)

But he could not say those words aloud.

The Empire had officially decided that 'Prince Ricardo was the one who acquired the box.'

As a prince, Ricardo could not deny it.

Besides, Ricardo's achievement had already been recognized, and his subordinates had received their rewards.

Sophia would receive a reward as well, but that was a separate matter.

"In any event, tell Brother Dias that this Ricardo wishes to go to the border region. Ask him to give me the opportunity."

"Understood."

"...I am counting on you."

Ricardo began walking unsteadily.

He had been like this ever since returning from the border region.

Even when he trained in magic or swung his sword, his sense of defeat would not disappear.

"This Ricardo was defeated by Sophia. By the people of the Demon King's Territory who aided her. By Daryl Zanno, too... What am I supposed to do with this feeling of defeat...?"

If he had failed his mission, Ricardo would have been punished.

He would have been sent to some front, assigned to a sinecure, or, in the worst case, stripped of his right to succeed to the throne──that was what should have awaited him.

That would at least have been some consolation.

He could have exerted himself to clear his name.

But Ricardo had fulfilled his orders and brought back the box. There was no one to punish him.

He would not be given an opportunity to clear his name.

All that remained was the fact that he had been unable to do anything, and this sense of defeat.

"...There is no one I can consult. I can't. What is this Ricardo supposed to do?"

The Empire prized strength above all else. There was no place for the weak or the defeated.

But it had never accounted for losers who had actually succeeded.

That was why no one understood Ricardo's sense of defeat.

"...No, there is someone I can consult. There is one person right nearby."

Ricardo suddenly stopped.

There was a member of the Imperial Family who had once been defeated by the Demon King's Territory.

Someone who had fought the new species of magic beasts, nearly been killed, and been saved by the Demon King's Territory.

She might understand how Ricardo felt.

Just as Ricardo thought that──

──"Excuse me, Prince Ricardo."

Before he knew it, a woman was standing beside Ricardo.

She was a lady-in-waiting serving a princess.

She knelt on the floor and, with a reverent gesture,

"A request for an audience with Prince Ricardo has arrived."

"...From whom?"

"From your younger sister, Princess Riana. She would very much like to meet you and hear what you have to say."

"From Riana... to this Ricardo?"

It was exactly what he had been hoping for.

Ricardo had wanted to speak with his younger sister, Princess Riana, as well.

Riana had effectively lost the battle to subjugate Magic Beast Galgarossa.

The Empire had announced it as a victory and praised Riana's achievement.

She was in the same position as Ricardo. She must have felt a similar sense of defeat.

Perhaps she knew how to make that feeling disappear.

"Let us go at once. To my little sister──Riana."

And so Ricardo headed to the room where Riana was waiting.

"Welcome, Brother. Now, tell me about Sister Sophia."

"...Huh?"

Ricardo entered the room and found himself gaping, his mouth falling open.

This was one of the guest rooms in the royal palace.

It was used when princes and princesses spoke with one another or received guests.

The room held Ricardo and Riana, along with several maids. The maids set down tea and sweets, then left the room. Ricardo and Riana were left alone.

Riana looked... happy.

She carried the dignity of the 'Princess of the Holy Sword.'

Her expression was calm and cheerful. She even looked as though she was holding back a smile.

Something was strange, Ricardo thought.

Riana had effectively lost the battle to subjugate Magic Beast Galgarossa.

Afterward, she had defeated the giant scorpion magic beast alongside Grand Duke Karon and cleared her name. Ricardo wanted to know how it had come about, but... this did not seem like the right atmosphere.

"Riana... could you answer this Ricardo's question first?"

"What question would that be?"

"Tell me how you overcame your sense of defeat."

Ricardo asked, steeling himself.

"You were defeated by Magic Beast Galgarossa and rescued by the Demon King's Territory, were you not?"

"Ah... so that is what you mean."

"Of course, you defeated the giant scorpion magic beast, Magic Beast Nozerias. You achieved merit and cleared your name. But I want to know what you did in the meantime. How did you overcome your sense of defeat?"

"I have not overcome it. I am still defeated."

Riana answered with a puzzled expression.

"You misunderstand, Brother."

"Misunderstand?"

"Yes. I did not defeat a magic beast. The giant scorpion magic beast was defeated through Grand Duke Karon-sama's power and the advice of someone else. It was not my achievement. Therefore, I have not cleared my name."

"You have not cleared your name?"

"Nothing about me has changed since I lost to Magic Beast Galgarossa. I am still the same person. Sometimes I space out, remember things from before, and find myself laughing. That is who I am."

"That makes no sense. It makes no sense at all, Riana!"

"Why not?"

"The Empire is all about strength. You were defeated by a magic beast. If you have not cleared your name, how can you sit there smiling!? At any moment, someone might point at you and shout, 'Loser!' Yet you..."

"Because I have a friend I respect."

Riana declared it firmly.

"I want to remain someone who would not be ashamed in front of that person. That is all."

"...W-what did you say?"

"I accepted my defeat. And I decided to learn from my own inexperience and weakness. Sister Sophia and a friend who accepted me just as I am were the ones who made me realize that."

Ricardo listened to Riana's words in a daze.

The person before him was Riana, the 'Princess of the Holy Sword.'

She was supposed to be the girl who possessed powerful light magic and had been raised under the tutelage of Military Minister Zagran, a symbol of the Empire.

And yet──

(...Is this really Riana, the 'Princess of the Holy Sword'?)

The Riana before Ricardo seemed like an entirely different person.

With a gentle smile on her face and her cheeks flushed──

──she looked like an ordinary girl her age, talking about someone precious.

"It is strange, isn't it? Whenever I think about that person, my heart feels light and fluffy. I feel warm and peaceful. That is probably why I can keep smiling."

"But you are the 'Princess of the Holy Sword,' Riana!? Isn't victory everything...?"

"It is not everything. At most, it comes third or lower. The most important thing is to remain someone who is not ashamed before the people dear to me. That is all."

"...Riana, you..."

"More importantly, tell me about Sister Sophia. Was she well? What did you talk about? Was the black-haired boy with her? Anything is fine. Tell me everything you saw and heard, Brother."

"N-no. I cannot tell you everything because of my mission."

"Just tell me what you can. Please, Brother."

Riana stared intently at Ricardo.

A cold sweat ran down Ricardo's back.

Hadn't Riana been a dignified, regal girl who kept others at a distance?

What had changed Riana? The Demon King's Territory? Or perhaps the 'Unwanted Princess,' Sophia?

"...Sophia was well."

That was all Ricardo could finally say.

Talking about Sophia was painful.

It made him remember his own defeat and failure.

"I think the black-haired boy was nearby too. Sophia... really did seem to have recovered. She could move something so heavy it would require a carriage with a single punch. I had no idea. I never knew Sophia possessed such tremendous strength..."

"I see."

"You are not surprised?"

"Unexpected things happen in the border region."

Riana said it as though it were obvious, then sipped her tea.

(...I should not have come.)

Ricardo clenched his fists on his knees.

(It is the same as with the 'Unwanted Princess.' They are on a different level. Even in front of Riana, this sense of defeat will not disappear. Sophia and Riana... are these twins different from the other princes and princesses?)

Riana spoke of the battle against the new species of magic beasts as if it were a happy memory.

Ricardo could not even imagine how she was able to think of it that way.

"Excuse me for interrupting. A letter of orders from Crown Prince Dias has arrived for Princess Riana."

Suddenly, someone knocked on the door.

When Riana answered, a civil official entered with a letter in hand.

Riana accepted the letter and broke its seal.

She read through its contents──

"Understood. Tell him that I accept the mission as an envoy."

"Yes, Your Highness."

"I will go to Brother Dias at once. Ah... but I must also ask how Sister Sophia has been lately. Brother Ricardo, could you wait here for me?"

"I do not mind. But..."

Riana looked very happy after opening the letter.

It was the same expression she had worn when Ricardo spoke about Sophia.

If that was the case, then the place Riana would be sent as an envoy was──

"Riana, I have a request to make of you."

"A request?"

"If, hypothetically, your mission is to head to the northern border, then I would like this Ricardo to accompany you. No, of course, I am speaking hypothetically. If it is difficult for me to accompany you as a prince, I would be willing to go as your retainer. I beg you."

Ricardo stood and bowed his head to Riana.

In the Empire, it was rare for a prince or princess to bow to another prince or princess.

Even siblings born of the same mother were rivals competing for achievements.

But Ricardo had no other choice.

(If I do not overcome this sense of defeat, I feel as though this Ricardo will never be able to move forward.)

Riana watched Ricardo, then──

"Understood. I will ask Brother Dias."

"You will!?"

"I can only ask him, you understand. I must prioritize my duty."

"...I understand."

"Then I shall be off."

With that, Riana left the guest room.

(I have incurred a debt to Riana.)

If everyone learned of this, Ricardo would find himself beneath Riana in status.

Everyone would say, 'Has Prince Ricardo withdrawn from the race for the throne and become Princess Riana's subordinate?'

Even so, he did not care.

For Ricardo, erasing this sense of defeat was more important.

"I will go to the border region once more and either defeat Daryl Zanno... or learn the secret of Sophia's strength. So that this Ricardo can rise again and aim to become a Hero once more..."

Thus Prince Ricardo resolved himself to do just that.

──Riana's Perspective──

"I can see Sister Sophia again."

That night, Riana was soaking in a bathtub.

The palace was vast. Riana had also been given several rooms as her private chambers.

One of them was a room for bathing.

Whenever she wanted to bathe, she would tell the maids and have them arrange for a bathtub to be brought to her room. The servants filled the tub with boiling water, then diluted it with water created by magic, completing a bath at the proper temperature.

But──

(It still cannot compare to the 'fizzy bath' I took with Sister Sophia.)

Thinking that, Riana climbed out of the tub.

She dried herself with the cloth a maid held out and went to her bedroom.

She sat on the bed and looked at the curtained window. It was the north-facing window, toward the border region. Beyond it, far away, was Sophia. And her respected friend, Thor Canaan.

The thought of seeing them again made her heart pound.

Sophia and the alchemist Thor Canaan had seen her in embarrassing situations time and again.

This time, she had to keep herself together.

"Otherwise, Sister Sophia will be embarrassed for me."

Pressing a hand to her chest, she found herself murmuring those words.

After speaking with Ricardo that afternoon, Riana had gone to Crown Prince Dias.

There, she received her formal orders.

She was to go to the Demon King's Territory as the Empire's official envoy.

However, as a preliminary step, she was to enter Noza Town and stay there.

With Princess Sophia's cooperation, she was to look for a date on which she might be able to enter the Demon King's Territory.

For example, a holiday, a festival, the anniversary of the Empire's founding, or the birthday of an important person.

She was to choose such a day and enter the Demon King's Territory as an envoy bearing congratulations.

──That was the order Crown Prince Dias had issued in the Emperor's name.

"Brother Ricardo's request to accompany me was denied, but... I suppose it could not be helped."

Riana had kept her promise and asked Dias to let Ricardo accompany her.

The request was denied.

She had conveyed that to Ricardo as well.

He had looked disappointed, but as promised, he told her about Sophia.

He also told her about the black-haired boy who had been beside Sophia when they met in Noza Town.

She had heard only a little, but it was enough for Riana.

After all, she would soon be meeting them in person.

"I am looking forward to it. What shall we talk about?"

Riana sat properly with her knees together and gazed at the north-facing window.

With dreamy eyes and a rapturous expression, she said,

"First, I will ask why Sister Sophia became so strong. For that, we will need to go somewhere peaceful. Then I will take another 'fizzy' bath with Sister Sophia... like when we were little... sitting side by side."

"...Um, Your Highness."

"What is it?"

"Perhaps you should put something on soon..."

The maid's words made Riana realize that she was wearing nothing at all.

She had completely forgotten.

It was surely because she had been thinking about the 'fizzy bath.'

That bath's steam and mysterious light concealed the bodies of those bathing in it.

While bathing and remembering that, Riana had ended up feeling as though she were in the 'fizzy bath.' Believing that the steam and mysterious rays were hiding her body, she had come all the way to the bedroom like that.

"With respect, Your Highness, lately you often enter your bedroom without putting anything on after bathing. Is there a reason?"

To the maid, who asked in puzzlement, Riana replied in the tone of a princess,

"There is no need to worry. I merely forgot, that is all."

"I-is that so?"

"All sorts of things happen in the border region."

Riana murmured that as she put on her nightclothes.

The maids' eyes lit up when they heard it──

"I understand! So you fought such fierce battles in the border region that you did not even have time to get dressed!?"

"As expected of the 'Princess of the Holy Sword'!"

"I am honored to have become one of Your Highness's attendants!"

"I will imitate Princess Riana too!"

──They raised voices of admiration one after another.

But Riana was not listening.

Her heart had already flown to the border region.

She was entirely focused on meeting her twin sister Sophia and her friend Thor.

"Please wait for me, Sister Sophia. Alchemist-sama. So that the two of you can live in peace, this Riana will carry out her duty splendidly..."

Thus Princess Riana murmured as she gazed at the northern sky.