Chapter 11
Kiel, the largest city in the eastern part of the Empire.
The city, at the center of the Knight Hunting Festival, was livelier than ever.
Merchants had racked their brains, and all sorts of stalls had appeared throughout Kiel. Even during my brief stroll earlier, I'd seen bizarre things for sale that I'd never encountered before.
After buying and eating some of them, I was on Kiel's walls with Leo.
"Quite a crowd."
"It really is. That's a good thing. The people of the East have been troubled by monsters all this time, so I think they need times like this."
"That's true. Father seems to regret how late he was in responding, too. Apparently, he distributed money to the people of the East in advance. He told them to enjoy the festival."
He must have realized that the festival alone wouldn't dispel their dissatisfaction.
Besides, unless people loosened their purse strings, holding the festival would be pointless. To get them started, the Emperor had covered the initial expense.
The people of the East, who had been plagued by monsters for so long, were highly wary. Without handing out money, they probably wouldn't have opened their wallets even for a festival.
In that sense, he was quite a man.
"You were here?"
The two of us turned around at the same time when we heard the voice behind us.
Elna stood there.
"Hey, Elna. How are things?"
"Hmm, I guess I'm doing fine. What about you?"
"I'm fine too, I suppose. But I feel quite fulfilled."
"Oh? Why?"
It was unusual for Leo to say something like that.
By nature, he was the type to say only something safe and unassuming in situations like this.
He must have gone and done something troublesome again.
"On the way here, I visited villages that had suffered monster attacks. I think we have a duty as members of the imperial family to cheer them up. Besides, there's prize money if I win. I was thinking of combining that with the money I have and donating it."
"...You were doing that...?"
"Sigh... What were you doing during that time, Al?"
"Making the rounds of the stalls."
When I showed Elna my spoils—a roasted earth lizard—she pressed a hand to her forehead and sighed.
She didn't have to lament it that much.
"If Al had even one of Leo's virtues, I could feel reassured as his childhood friend, but..."
"Brother has any number of virtues. People just don't notice them."
"That's just like Leo. Well said. As a reward, you can have a bite."
"Thanks. Hmm? It's better than I expected."
"See? I have a talent for finding delicious things at food stalls."
"A prince doesn't need a talent like that... Come on, we're leaving. Leo, you should go back too. It's almost time."
Urged on by Elna, I quickly stuffed the roasted lizard into my mouth.
The Knight Hunting Festival was finally about to begin.
■■■
"Our Empire is a nation with little experience suffering from monsters. Perhaps because of that, our responses to monsters have consistently lagged behind. Once again, because of my own failings, I have caused hardship to the people of the East. I am truly sorry. Please forgive this foolish Emperor."
My father was giving a speech before a great many people.
Our turn would come a little later.
We were using the lord's residence, which normally served as his home, as a waiting room when a guest appeared in my room.
I'd assumed it would be Elna or Fiene, but the person standing there was someone I hadn't expected.
"Christa...? What brings you here?"
"Brother..."
The person standing there was Christa Lakes Adler, the twelve-year-old Third Princess.
She was my younger sister, with lustrous golden hair and violet eyes. She was beautiful enough to rival Fiene in the future, but people said her beauty was doll-like. That was because Christa rarely showed any expression.
Holding her favorite stuffed rabbit, she looked up at me without expression, and she certainly did resemble a doll. However, her eyes were trembling ever so slightly. It was a sign that she was feeling anxious.
"Come in for now. What's wrong? Is something troubling you?"
"No... Christa isn't troubled... The people here are troubled..."
It wasn't a very clear explanation.
Most people would give up at this point. But that wouldn't do with Christa.
I sat Christa down in a chair, then crouched to meet her gaze.
This girl was an extremely unusual member of the imperial family.
No one had noticed. Or perhaps they were pretending not to notice. But this girl had been born with magic.
Magic was normally something one acquired through training, but there were a rare few people in this world who could use it naturally. Those who wielded what was called innate magic were extremely valuable and powerful. After all, the magic they could use belonged to them alone. No one else could ever use it.
Christa showed signs of possessing it.
It was probably precognition or something similar. Even when the Crown Prince died, she had wailed in front of me that her eldest brother was going to die.
If word got out, someone like Zandra would be delighted to exploit her, so I'd told her not to tell anyone. But I'd also told her to come to me if she saw something. The fact that she had come here meant that was exactly what had happened.
"What did you see this time?"
"...This city was surrounded by monsters..."
Christa's ability was not yet stable.
Sometimes she saw what appeared to be images of the future, but they were almost always more like nightmares to her.
Moreover, they didn't always come true. But sometimes they did.
That was precisely why I couldn't leave her alone.
"You didn't see anyone's specific death, did you?"
"No..."
"I see. Good job coming to tell me. I can act much more freely now."
"...Are you going too, Brother?"
"Yes. I can't stay here with you."
"..."
Christa looked displeased.
She probably didn't like being left behind while she was anxious. Even so, I couldn't stay behind just for Christa.
Besides, if the city really was going to be surrounded by monsters, it would be easier to deal with them from outside.
"Excuse me. It's Fiene."
Fiene arrived at my room at just the right time.
She was holding sweets in her hand.
Perfect!
"Christa, let me introduce you. This is my friend, Fiene."
"Ah, it is a pleasure to meet you, Princess Christa. I am Fiene von Kleinert."
"I know you. The Blue Gull Princess. The most beautiful person in the Empire."
"You know about her?"
I patted her head, but Christa's expression didn't change. However, she didn't show any sign of disliking it either.
Christa was attached only to me, Leo, and perhaps our eldest sister, who was at the border. She was a child who wouldn't let down her guard even around her own father, so the people around her found her extremely difficult to handle.
She would of course remain here this time as well, but I couldn't bear to leave her in this state.
"Fiene, I hate to ask, but could you stay with Christa?"
"I want Brother..."
"Fiene is trustworthy—much more than I am. Besides, her sweets are excellent. You like sweets, don't you?"
As I said that, I took a sweet from the bag Fiene was carrying and showed it to Christa.
It was a rabbit-shaped cookie.
Christa hesitantly put it in her mouth, then immediately fixed her gaze on Fiene.
Seeing that, I gave a wry smile.
"Congratulations. She's taken to you."
"Huh? Has she...?"
"This child never stares at anyone she's not attached to. She simply has no interest in anyone else. Christa, Fiene will stay by your side until Leo and I return. Is that all right?"
"Yes..."
"There you have it. I'm sorry, but please stay by Christa as much as you can."
"Certainly. If that's what you wish, Lord Al, I'd be happy to."
Saying that, Fiene smiled and began giving Christa some of the other sweets as well.
For an instant, the word "feeding her" came to mind, but it would have been far too rude to say aloud, so I swallowed it.
Then a tremendous cheer erupted outside.
My father's speech had probably ended.
From here on, we had to take center stage.
"Well, let's go. Christa, let's show ourselves to the people for now."
"..."
"Don't look so unhappy. It can't be helped. We're members of the imperial family."
"...Brother always skips out."
"I'm not skipping out this time, am I? Come on, let's go."
I took Christa's hand and left the room. Fiene followed behind us.
At that moment, I ran into someone troublesome who had just come out of a room at the same time.
"Oh? So babysitting is a breeze for you, isn't it, Arnold? Is that because you acquired the prodigy of the Amsberg family?"
It was Zandra, the Second Princess.
Christa immediately hid behind me. Seeing that, Zandra twisted her face in displeasure.
"Sister, that's a harsh way to put it. Looking after my little sister is only natural for an older brother."
"How irritating. You seem awfully composed in your replies, too."
"You seem rather irritated yourself, Sister. What happened? Is something not going well?"
At my retort, Zandra wore an incredibly furious expression for an instant, but quickly returned to her usual composure. She must have realized that losing her temper here would accomplish nothing and would only give me something to use against her.
Well, I already knew the assassin was one of Zandra's subordinates, but there was no need to say so.
"Prepare yourself. I'll teach you that no matter how powerful a sword you obtain, it's meaningless if you can't wield it properly."
"Hmph! What could the likes of you possibly teach me?"
Gordon appeared after overhearing my conversation with Zandra.
Honestly, these two seemed unable to stand being in the same place without opposing each other.
But Gordon's piercing gaze fixed on me. For an instant, I felt as though my heart had been seized in a giant hand.
As one would expect from someone who had distinguished himself on the battlefield, his killing intent was formidable. If I couldn't use magic, he would undoubtedly kill me instantly.
"What do you say, Arnold? Will you give your sword to me? It's not too late. Beg Father to take it back. Cry and plead that it doesn't suit you, then recommend me as the one truly worthy of it."
"Unfortunately, I don't have the nerve to do that, Brother. It would be like saying Father's judgment was wrong. Besides, Father is more frightening than you are."
"Hmph. You lack even the generosity to give a treasure to someone else. You'll let it go to waste. Very well. I'll crush you and those women with you."
"That's my line."
Zandra and Gordon glared at each other.
While they were distracted, we quietly slipped away.
There was nothing to gain from getting dragged into a quarrel like that.
"Brother... I'm still scared..."
"It's all right. Fiene is with you. And if anything happens, I'll come help you. I promise."
"Really...?"
"Yes. I promise."
With that, I squeezed Christa's small hand.
Perhaps reassured by it, Christa showed the slightest hint of a smile.
Then, after all of the Emperor's children had gathered on the balcony and shown themselves to the people, the Emperor made a declaration in a loud voice.
"Throughout this festival! The Imperial Guard Knights shall each swear loyalty to the children they are charged to protect! My children shall respect their knights, and the knights shall show my children due respect! Work together as one and stand against the mighty monsters! We are the imperial family! We have a duty to destroy every enemy of the Empire! Go forth, my children! My knights! From this moment on, I declare the Knight Hunting Festival open!!"
"Wooooooah!!!!"
"Do your best, Prince Erik!!"
"No, this is obviously going to be Prince Gordon's show!"
"Princess Zandra is sure to show us some unconventional strategy!"
"I'm cheering for Prince Leonart! I've never seen anyone so kind!"
The Emperor's children departed from the residence one after another, each leading a group of knights.
This time, Christa was the only one staying at the residence. Everyone else would go hunting monsters with their knights.
The children carried military banners bearing their own symbols, made especially for this day.
My banner was a white cross on a black field. Leo's was the reverse: a black cross on white. It was such an obvious shortcut. Mine was a complete reversal of Leo's, showing how little thought had been given to me.
Still, it wasn't a design I disliked.
"Ready?"
"Of course. Let's go."
With that, I urged my horse forward.
The Third Knight Order, led by Elna, followed behind me.
Only Elna drew cheers, but that was fine.
My job was to remain in the shadows and work behind the scenes.
If someone was scheming behind the scenes, that was fine. I would simply outwit them.