*

　Thirty years ago, four hundred years into the emperor's career, the struggle for the succession to the imperial throne, triggered by the collapse of the previous emperor, developed into a civil war that divided the Cepheus Empire in two.
　The barbarians invaded from the north and south, and the cities in the northeastern part of the empire strengthened their military power with the huge amount of money they gained from trade, and one after another declared their independence.
　With the birth of the Free City States, the Cepheus Empire lost a third of its territory and trade routes, and even the remaining territory was eaten up by the barbarians.
　In spite of the threat to the survival of the nation, the nobles on both sides were unable to take effective measures or even to stop the civil war.
　The 18-year-old King Lamar V survived this crisis by recruiting talented people, regardless of their status.
　Overruling the old vassals, the mercenaries added to the shogunate broke the deadlock and led the army under Lamar V to victory.
　Lamar V expelled the invading barbarians to the Areos Mountains and appointed the leader of the mercenary group as the lord of the so-called southern frontier to prevent them from invading again.
　Later, Lamar V settled the chaos caused by the civil war and established a military school in the imperial capital based on the lesson that a war that could be won under an incompetent commander whose only claim to fame was his bloodline could not be won and would needlessly spread the ravages of war.
　Although the birth of a free city-state cluster could not be prevented, there are many who praise Lamar V as a great monarch for his ability to minimize the chaos.

　I remember reading a book once about an animal that looked just like it. What did you call it?

　Fana looked at Ramal V sitting on the edge of the bed.
　No matter how much you try to regulate your life, when you are fifty years old, you can't hide your physical decay.
　For example, Count Ernat, who is in charge of the Second Kingsguard, has a physique that is no less than that of a large sub-human, but lately he has been working on training his rearguard due to his declining physical strength.
　Even a knight who never misses a training session is like that, so it's not hard to imagine what happens to someone who has spent years indulging in gastronomy and alcohol.

　.........Se, Sei, did I say walrus?

　The embodiment of this was Ramal V.
　After years of indolence, Lamar V's neck was buried in fat and his belly was swollen to the point of bursting.
　Ramal V stoked the wine on the bedside table.
　Lamar V drank the finest wine like water and tossed the empty container down roughly.
　Fifteen years ago, Fana had risen to the court as a lady's maid, and that year she had become the Emperor's maid of honor.
　It wasn't that she wanted to.
　She had a fiancé who had grown up to be like a brother and sister, and she loved him dearly.
　Fana resisted desperately, but her innocence was taken from her by force.
　When it was discovered that she was pregnant, Fana was in deep despair.
　If Vizier Arkol hadn't reached out to her, Fana might have chosen to die.
　Later, with the help of Vizier Alcor, Fana became the official concubine of King Ramal V, and the child born ... named Alfort with a small amount of malice ... was also recognized.
　Fana continued to work as a woman's officer after the birth of the child, and while she was counseling and lending her strength to the young mistresses, she rose to the position of head mistress and had many subordinates under her command.



　Ramal V wiped his wine-soaked mouth roughly and laid into Fana.
　I wonder if you'll let me sleep for good, Fana chuckled in disgust.
　Just then, there was a small sound.
　It was simply a glass falling over.

Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.

　Ramal V screamed and jumped off the bed and tried to crawl underneath it as if it were a matter of course.

'Yoo, forgive me, forgive me, there is, Alfort!　I didn't want to kill you, I didn't want to kill you!

　Ramal V is begging for forgiveness from his own brother, who was executed thirty years ago for masterminding a civil war.
　Whether from the effects of alcohol or from a sense of guilt, Lamar V is frightened by the ghost of Alfort.
　Aware that her mind was becoming more and more frozen, Fana looked down at Lamar V.
　A petulant man frightened by the guilt of executing his own brother, that was who Ramal V was.
　According to Vizier Alcor, it wasn't this bad thirty years ago.

"Your Majesty, take care of yourself.
Oh, Fana!

　Ramal V clung to Furna's leg as if seeking salvation.

'I ... how can I be saved?　No amount of drinking, no amount of holding a woman can remove the shadow of Alfort!　Give me my country back, you torment me!
Of course.

　'You really can't help it,' said Fana, putting a finger to her lips.

''Well then, why don't you write a letter to Master Alfort saying you'll give up your country?''
Yeah, does that help me?
Yes, of course.

　'That can't be true,' Fana smiled to reassure Ramal V, as she poked around in her mind.

'Oh, oh!'

　Ramal V gave him a look that told him that Mongolia had opened up and ran out of Fana's room.
　Fana fixed the messy sheets and buried her face in the pillow.

''Well I'm afraid you'll have to stay alive until you give my child the territory.

　Fana has never thought about making her child an emperor.
　Her son, Alfort, will be fifteen this year.
　He's her only son, and she's very proud of him.

For all intents and purposes, my son is not an emperor's vessel.

　Letting out a sigh, Fana closed her eyes.

*

　
　It is true that the city of Canopus seen from the top of the hill is so beautiful that one might be led to believe that the legend is true, but that alone would not be enough for the king to make an important decision.
　The first king must have judged the terrain to be difficult to attack with a large army, said General Ignis Fomalhaut of the Holy Argo Kingdom Army, gazing at the neat and orderly city of Canopus, and immediately shifted his gaze to the soldiers training in the training grounds.
　
　Five months ago, Ignis had invaded the Cepheus Empire with the Crown Prince.
　Naturally, he had the intention of expanding his territory, but his main goal was to show the crown prince's military prowess and reduce the "Temple"'s voice.
　While the neighboring Cepheus Empire thoroughly eliminated the Temple and unified the country, the Holy Argo Kingdom unified the country against the backdrop of the authority of the Temple.
　The theory that kingship was bestowed by the six-pillar gods worked without a problem, at least for the first hundred years.
　However, the Temple has intervened in the affairs of state under the guise of rituals, and now has a voice comparable to that of the kingship.
　The Temple controls forty percent of the Holy Argo Kingdom's military force and plundered twenty percent of its tax revenue in the name of donations.
　If the invasion goes well, Ignis gritted his back teeth so hard that they creaked.

'My lost right arm, my right arm is aching.
....

　Ignis looked down silently and saw a beautiful woman of strange age sitting with a bottle of liquor in her hand.
　She was in her mid-twenties at the age of sixteen, dressed in a dress with a wide open chest that no prostitute would wear in this country.
　Her long, wavy hair is jet-black like the abyss, and her eyes are gentle and loose, but her jet-black eyes hold a light that seems to see into the depths of her soul.

''High Priestess, I am,''
I'm an 'old lady' and I prefer 'me'?

　How dare you do that twenty years ago, Ignis gritted his teeth.
　Ignis would be thirty years old this year, but the High Priest of the Jet-Black Temple ... Baba hadn't changed a bit since they met.
　Even though she is the High Priestess of the Jet-Black Temple, she is a woman who mingles with the people's grasses and uses divine authority techniques in exchange for alcohol.
　When I was a teenager, I used to resent the hag's way of life as she squandered her talents, but now I even envy her.

''If you wish, I can regenerate that right arm for you, okay?
'Mind your own business, old woman. I lost my right hand because of my incompetence. And besides...
And?

　The hag narrowed her eyes as if expecting an answer from Ignis.

'How am I supposed to get my right arm back when a dead soldier isn't coming back!
''Hahahaha, you've got a mean streak!

　Ignis yelled at her, and the old lady rolled around with her liquor bottle in her arms.

''Well if you don't rip the 'Temple' out, this country is going to end.
I know that, too.

　Suddenly, the old lady said with a serious look on her face, and Ignis returned the words in the general's manner.

'You must have learned a lesson from this one.
You don't have to tell me.

　Remembering the battle five months ago, Ignis gripped his right sleeve tightly.
　At that time, they had been ambushed just outside the Coma Forest.
　The fence rendered the cavalry useless, and even if they tried to bypass the infantry, there were enemy soldiers lurking in the forest.
　They tried to push through in numbers, but they could not push through at once.
　While the march was halted, the elven archers attacked the Dauphin.

'I suppose that means you should make a steady effort.
If we could at least make a non-aggression pact with the Empire, we could focus on internal affairs and get rid of the 'temple' forces.

　We can't do this as it is now, Ignis crossed his arms.
　We can't get a clue without a proper war, not a skirmish near the border.
　At least no one would listen to Ignis in his current state.
　Ignis looked up at the heavens.



　Justia Castle is a small castle located half a day's ride away from the imperial capital, Alfirk, by carriage.
　Because it was designed with habitability as a priority, it is undeniably weak in terms of function, and although it is guarded by 100 elite knights of the First Kingsguard, if it were to be attacked by an enemy, it would fall in less than half a day.
　The low defensive strength of the castle in name only, as well as the fact that it stands as if it were left alone in the grassy field, seems to be a clear indication of the lack of affection her father has for her mother, and Tilia dislikes Justia Castle.
　If you say you disliked it, then you also disliked watching your mother lying on her sickbed in her bedroom at Justia Castle.
　Mother the Empress Astraea used to look out whenever she had time, as if she was waiting for her father to come for her.
　It was hard to see her mother like that, and Tilia hated being in Justia Castle.

''Why don't you hold a ball?''
What do you mean, all of a sudden?

　Astraea looked out the window at Tilia and said in a somewhat interminable tone of voice, "You don't have a fiancé, do you?

'You don't have a fiancé, do you?　So I thought, why not throw a ball?
No, I'm not looking to get married.

　In the first place, as a member of the royal family...........................As long as you are born into a noble family, it's impossible to have a love marriage.

So, yeah.
Oh, is that what you mean?

　Tilia realized her mother's true intentions and her shoulders slumped.
　Perhaps her mother was telling her to hold a ball as a matchmaking event.
　Until now, Tilia had avoided any kind of banquet for various reasons.
　If you have a face-to-face meeting with a powerful nobleman, it's easier to talk about it until the engagement.

''However, if you're going to hold a ball, don't you have to ask for help from Lady Chief Ferna?

　Honestly, Tyria didn't want to be in the care of Fana the poisonous woman who had cuckolded her father.

'I know you don't like the Chief Mistress but the girl has been very useful indeed.
I understand.

　Shouldn't we say excellent, not useful?　Tilia tilted her head inwardly.

'Mother, I have a friend I would like to invite?
Do what you want.

　It's been a long time since I've seen Crono, Tyria said with a small smile.



It's like the city just spilled out of the citadel.

　The citadel guarding Hashel........From near the gate, Crono looked at the scene of the foundation construction of the new barracks.
　It seems that the foundation is built by digging up the ground deeply, laying down gravel and pouring concrete.
　I was completely unaware of this until now, but concrete is used in construction in this world.
　It is surprising that it has been used to build the foundations of bridges and castles, not recently, but long ago, when no one remembers it.

'When the new barracks are built, the next step is to rebuild the barracks we're using now.

　Until now, the barracks had been a one-man room for the second-in-command, a two-man room for the captain's class, and a six-man room for the general soldiers.
　Both the two-man room and the six-man room are about the same four-mat size, and they are equipped with multi-level beds to make the most of the small space, but even so, there is no space left in the six-man room for free use.
　It would be natural to change the treatment based on the role, but Crono wanted to provide the general soldiers with a space where they could stretch their legs and relax.
　Of course, as he told Elena, he also hoped that it would be a tax rebate and a place for the lords to go out of work in the winter.

''........Crono-sama.
Speaking of which, you're off duty today.

　When Crono turned around, Leila was standing there in her normal clothes.
　Everyday clothes ... the skirt and vest she had purchased at the Pix Trading Company before.

''Where's Deneb and Alideed?''
Those two are studying with First Officer Mino and the other captains.
They are.
I think he had a lot on his mind when he was promoted to captain.

　Crono said, and Leila replied nonchalantly.
　With the replenishment of the soldiers, Crono promoted Leila, Deneb, and Alideed to centurion.
　Even though the centurion was called a centurion, the salary didn't change, and in terms of treatment, it was just a change from a room of six to a room of two, but it was probably a good motivation for the two of them.

''Crono-sama, if you are able to continue your inspection, please allow me to accompany you.
I don't mind.
Yes!

　Leila replied happily.

At first it was a field that was being settled.

　Crono moves to the south side of the city along the citadel, tilting his head inwardly, wondering if it's right to call that a field.
　The ground where his men use it as a training ground is firmly trampled, but the south side of the city is the wilderness itself.
　I'm sure you'll be able to see firsthand the hardships of pioneering in this place: grass, bushes, and a whole bunch of rolling rocks.

"Leila, watch your step........!
Are you all right, Mr. Crono?

　Layla held Crono flatly as he was hobbled by the mud.

'Oh, yeah ... Leila, you're the one with the arm strength?'
I think it's normal.

　Leila tilted her head as if to say she didn't understand the intent of the question.
　Could it be that my strength is low?
　Crono couldn't resist when they were teamed up in bed, and Crono lost a bit of confidence.
　He walked along the citadel for a while, and suddenly his vision opened up.

'We've already settled so much.
It's great, Mr. Crono.

　The trees they grow are used to make paper, but Leila was understandably surprised to see a field measuring a hundred meters on one side appear in the middle of the wilderness.

''Is that place in the middle of pioneering?''
I think...

　Next to the trees being cultivated, there seemed to be a new cultivation going on.
　About ten people were hard at work cutting the grass, hauling stones, and using horses to clear the land.

''Oh, isn't it Crono-sama?''
Goldie.

　I turned around and saw Goldie and his men standing there holding a scythe.

'Goldie, what's that scythe?'
This is a sickle made of the same material as your armor. It is said to help you to cultivate the land faster, and the improved heavy plough is easier to use... Then!

　Crono looked delicately at Goldie's back as she ran away happily.

'Are you sure?'
I'm not idle, and I'm the one who ordered the land reclamation.

　At this rate, we should be able to make ten times as much sugar next year, Crono said, looking at the cultivation and smiling.


Where is it?

　Crono muttered gloomily, and Leila tilted her head in wonder.
　He thought he was being careful, but even on the way home, Crono slipped in the mud and Leila held him back.

''........here.''
Okay, so,

　Leila seemed to have come to a point when Crono stopped just as he ducked through the gate.
　That's where they had been attacked by vagrants...or rather robbers, when they had seen off Ariston.
　The roughness of the place hasn't changed, but it seems to be less crowded than before.

'What do you want in a place like this?'
Now Kane.

　As soon as I stepped into the favela, Kane emerged from the shadows of the building. He was not alone, but with his impersonal men.

I'm here on a fact-finding mission.
It's still very, very bad in this neighborhood.　Not very much, but with a woman....
Rest assured. I will protect you, Master Crono, even if it costs me my life.

　Standing next to Crono, Leila turned her challenging gaze to Kane.

'From Kane's point of view, how safe is it around here?'
It's better than it was at one time. When I make my rounds, I'm focused on looking around and I'm under strict orders not to take bribes from my men.
A bribe?

　When Crono nodded his head, Kane scratched his head awkwardly.

The quality of the soldiers who patrol these unsafe places is also bad. You can take bribes from muggers and prostitutes, miss crimes, and give out information about the rumor mill. So, you'll have to take a look at this area some other time.
Okay.

　Kane rolled his eyes, as if he was surprised that Crono obeyed honestly.

'Are you sure?'
It's a spur-of-the-moment visit. I'm going, Leila.
Yes, sir.

　Abandoning her tour of the favelas, Crono headed for the commercial district.
　On the way, he noticed that Leila was gone and turned back, and she was looking up at the proprietor's shop.

'Leila, I was surprised to see you gone on the way.
I'm sorry, too!
Well, that's okay.

　Crono stood next to Leila and looked up at the landlady's dining room.
　Apparently the landlady comes to clean the dining room once or twice a week.

''Well, let's go then.''
You know what?

　When Crono reached out his hand, Leila looked at his hand as if she was confused.

''I was wondering if you would let me hold your hand so we wouldn't get separated.
Yes, yes, I understand.

　I wonder if we've ever held hands much, Crono said as he began to walk with Leila's hand.
　When he returned to the Marquis' mansion after his inspection of the busy commercial district, the sound of hammering echoed from the dwarf's workshop today, and the steam of boiling wood bark rose from the paper workshop.
　On the other side of the room, Faye was teaching one boy the art of swordplay.

'Faye, I'm teaching him today,'
Yes, Master Crono.

　Faye straightened up when Crono called out to her.

'Where are the other two?'
Lord Theon has taken it from us.

　Faye looked away from Crono and said sadly.

'You two seem to have more fun studying, so I don't blame you.
But the art of swordplay is important!
Studying is important, too.
Uggh, the days of the sword are over, are they not?

　Crono said, and Faye hung her head, her hand trembling in the grip of her wooden sword.

I think it's a romantic thing for a man to be able to stand up for himself with a sword.

　The boy interrupted his pretense and said.

''Even Master Crono has risen through the ranks to become a marquis, hasn't he?
Yes, sir!　Master Crono should have been able to stand on his sword!

　Encouraged by the boy's words, Faye looked up vigorously.

I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make it work. I'm not sure if it's a good idea to live by the sword alone, but it's a good feeling.
I'm gonna study hard, too.
Master Crono!　Not good enough!

　The boy easily reversed his previous statement and Faye shouted with tears in her eyes.

''Well, I'll continue my inspection.

　Crono left Faye alone and fled the scene.
　Then Crono observed the Zion classes being held at the Marquis' mansion.
　It was a very surreal sight to see his deputy Mino, Rizad, Deneb, Ariddead, Leo, the human lion centurion, and Horus, the minotaur centurion, studying with the children.