So the Emperor has regained consciousness. That was pretty quick. From what I've heard from Carol-san, his physical condition is much more stable, and he seems to be able to talk to me.
　With Carol following me, we enter the room reserved for the Emperor. There I see the emperor talking calmly with his daughter. She really seems to be okay.

''Fuyu-sama! Your father is awake!
...Are you Fuyah-dono Mochizuki?

　Lou turns around happily and the Emperor of the Empire looks at me with a quiet expression on his face. His long white beard and skinny face give me the impression of being somewhat of a hermit.

''First of all, I have to thank you. I can't thank you enough for saving my life and Lucia's life....

　The Emperor bows his head. It's kind of embarrassing.

''Don't worry about it. I just happened to be in the imperial capital to buy something at that time.''

　It was a coincidence, as it were. A day earlier or later, I must have done nothing.

That's good to hear. It's a good thing that you're not going to be able to find out what's going on. I regret to say that I am very sorry...
'So what do we do now? I haven't informed Belfast yet, so if you have any idea where you're going, I'll send you over at 'Gate'?

　When I told him that, the Emperor rolled his eyes in surprise and looked at me sullenly. What is it?

''No ... isn't Lord Fuyuya from Belfast?
'I'm a resident of Belfast in the sense that I live here. It's not like I'm in the service of the state. I'm a good friend of the king, but when it comes to matters between nations, it's a different story.

　And if you have a place to go, I think it would be better to defect there. Maybe the First Princess's bride or the Second Princess's allies studying abroad.
　The emperor was lost in contemplation for a while.

'No, I would like to see the King of Belfast. I would like to speak to him in private, if possible.
'It's probably okay, but........ Are you sure?
'This is the time. We need to talk about what we've done and what we're going to do.

　Hmm, it's still late at night, and I wonder if the king has time now. For now, I'll ask Yumina to follow me. I left the emperor and his friends' room and headed to Yumina's place.



''I'm sorry, can you repeat that?''
''Ah... actually, I was hiding Emperor Regulus and the Third Princess in our home. I'm sorry.

　His Majesty was shocked by my words and started to hold his head in his hands. It's a bit amusing.

''Emperor Regulus is in my royal capital? Utterly, today is full of surprises... what the hell is going on here!

　That's what I'm saying. Even if the queen's pregnancy is irrelevant, the rest of it may be my fault... or maybe it's my fault.

"So, Your Majesty wishes to meet with His Majesty in private. What do you think?
The emperor?

　The king huffed, leaned back deeply in his chair and laced his fingers together on his stomach. He seemed to think about it for a while, then stood up as if he had made up his mind.

'We can't just run away from this. Let's get in on that conversation, shall we?
Okay, we'll move directly to our house.

　He opens The Gate and transitions directly to the room where the Emperor is, taking the King and Yumina with him.
　The Emperor, who was lying in bed, was startled by the Gate, but sat up and looked at the King of Belfast, who appeared in front of him. The two men were silent for a while, not removing their gaze from each other, but eventually the Emperor lowered his eyes and bowed his head lightly.

'I am sorry for my appearance, King Belfast. I'm afraid I've brought trouble to your kingdom as well.
''No, don't be too hard on yourself, Emperor Regulus. Lord Fuyu has told me what has happened.

　With that, the king sits down on a chair next to the bed. It's a meeting of the heads of state, in case it's a meeting of the heads of state, and outsiders should leave the table. I walked out, leaving King Belfast, Emperor Regulus, and each other's daughters, Yumina and Lou, in the room.
　Carol was standing in the hallway, guarding the room. She was surprised to see me come out of the room even though I hadn't entered the room, but she immediately guessed that I had used the 'gate'.

'The King of Belfast and Emperor Regulus are meeting inside, you can't interrupt them, can you?
'What? When did that happen!

　Carol is surprised again. Every single time this guy's reaction is over the top.
　Suddenly, my eyes stop on Carol-san's sword. That crest engraved on the hilt.....Ah!

Excuse me, Miss Carol. I'm looking for the sigil on that sword...
What's the meaning of the Riette family crest?

　We get a good look at it up close and personal. It's still the same. It's the same pendant that Renee had.

I've seen a pendant engraved with this coat of arms.
' Is that the one with the wind magic stone embedded in it! Where! That man!

　Carol comes at me with a different color of her eyes. This must be a very good reason. I don't know what's going on yet, so let's not mention Renee.

I heard the owner passed away. "I heard the owner died, I heard he was ill.
Well.....

　My words lost their earlier momentum and Carol looked down weakly. Was he so important to you?

'The owner of that pendant is my sister. She's the only sister I've ever had who rebelled against her strict father when I was very young and ran away from home.

　It was your sister. That would be desperate, wouldn't it? So does that mean that Renee is Carol's niece? I don't think they look much alike. Carol has blonde hair, but Renee has flaxen hair. I guess it's genetic on her father's side.

Are the Rietts a famous noble family in the Empire?
'I don't know if I'm famous or not, but I'm the youngest member of the Imperial Twelve Swords.
"The Twelve Swords of the Empire?
'It may not be well known in Belfast, but it's the first emperor who founded the empire, and the twelve loyal subjects who supported it. One of them, 'Keel Riette of the Twin Swords', is my ancestor. Well, most of the Twelve Swords of the Empire are now nobles in name only...

　Carol-san laughs sadly as she says that. The fallen aristocrat... even if it's not that far, he's probably not in an important post in the Empire already. He said that he didn't know the family's coat of arms either, Lime-san.

''I see........Your sister is dead....... Father also regrets that he had broken up with your sister until just before she died. I wonder if they have made up with each other over there....
Uh...well, you know, she's my sister. Actually, she has one daughter. She's with us right now, but...
...What?

　Carol rolls her eyes and exclaims. I wonder if she is upset to be told that her suddenly deceased sister's forgotten memento is here.
　Then, at an unsure time whether it was nice or bad, Rene came running down the corridor.

''Brother Fuyao-chan.......Master, your meal is ready.''
Oh, thanks Renee. I'll take it later.

　I bowed my head to me and my guest, Carol, and went back down the hallway. Carol-san's eyes follow Rene. Eventually, when Rene was out of sight, she turned her gaze on me, wondering if it was possible.

''It's her. Her name is Rene. Before I came here, I used to pickpocket in the favelas.
No.
'He couldn't live without doing that. His father was an adventurer and never came back from the place where he was asked to defeat a magical beast. He kept the pendant that was his mother's mementos with him all these years.

　Carol, who had been staring at the end of the hallway, turned her gaze back to me.

''Well I'd like to talk to that girl one of these days, if that's okay with you?''
Should I go get him?
''No, please keep this matter under wraps for a while, since the empire is in this state right now. It seems that she is also living here happily. However, I'd like to let her meet your mother someday.

　Carol's mother means that she is Rene's grandmother. I hope to be able to let her meet him properly one day....
　As I was thinking about this, the door behind me opened and Yumina peeked out.

''Mr. Fuyao, your father and the Emperor are asking for you.
Me?

　What is it? I excused myself from my seat because I thought I was interrupting a discussion between the nations.
　When I walked in, I saw the emperor on the bed and the king sitting in the chair next to him. They both looked peaceful. I wondered if they had already discussed it.

''Fuyu-dono, in the daytime........''
In the daytime?

　What did I say? He tilted his head at the King of Belfast's words.

'I heard you said you'd do something about General Bazur.... Can you really do something about it?

　The emperor opens his mouth to take over the king's words. 'Oh, you mean that.

''Somehow, or rather, I think we can defeat the general. And the other soldiers can be neutralized as well. As I say, we can take control of the imperial capital tomorrow.
"..........

　The three of them except for Yumina, who froze in surprise. Yumina was naturally puffing out her little chest. ........It's still a growing process.

''I just wanted to ask you, but if you put it down, what are you going to do with the soldiers who joined this rebellion? Are they all going to be executed?
''No, the general and the other principal officers have no choice but to relieve those who merely obeyed him of their military duties and leave the imperial capital in exile.

　The rest of them are all fired. Well, I guess that's appropriate. It seems that only about ten and a half percent of the entire army is in the imperial capital, so although it's a painful blow, it's still within the scope of recovery.

"Map view. Imperial Capital of Regulus.
Copy that. Accessing map.

　With a whimper, a map of the imperial capital appears in the center of the room.

''What, what is this?
''It's a map of the imperial capital........ It's also so detailed........
It's my unattributed magic. Isn't it useful?

　No big deal to the astonished Emperor and Lou? He replied by including the feeling that His Majesty was surprised to see you. 'Well, I've never shown it to you.

'Search. Blue for knights and red for soldiers.
Copy that. ...end of search. Copy that.

　A red dot spreads across the imperial city in a whirlwind. It seems like there are more of them than I saw in the daytime. Did they call in people from other cities? And in one corner of the castle, a blue dot was solidified.

'What is this place?'
"...a dungeon. Perhaps the Knights of the Order are being held captive. But not all of them. Not many. The others have escaped or were killed...

　The emperor clenches his fists in frustration. Seeing this, Lou is slowly calling out to me.

''Um, Fuyao-sama. Can you find your brother?
Is there anything unique about the Crown Prince? You'd know he's the Crown Prince at a glance.

　This search is based on "search", so it's based on how I look at it and judge it. If I can determine that you are a soldier because you are wearing a military uniform, I can search by "soldier".
　That's why I can't search for people I've never met. If you have a sword scar on your cheek or something like that, like Yae's brother, you can recognize him at a glance.

"Characteristics...? Well, my hair is silver, and I have, uh....what? Features...features...

　Lou ponders. The Emperor smiles as he watches it. He has a very normal face, doesn't he? I don't know what to do. Let's steal his memory.

I'll take it. Give me your hand.
"? Yes...? Ah.....

　I take the small hand that's offered to me. Lou's face immediately turns red, but I speak to him as calmly as I can.

'Close your eyes and think of your brother. As recently as possible.
Yes, sir.

　I place my forehead against Lou's forehead as he closes his eyes and concentrates. Honestly, I wouldn't mind getting the crown prince's memory, or the emperor's, but I don't want to put my foreheads together with other men if I can help it. What would you write if the writer of Leafy's, the Princess of Leafy's, knew about it?

'Fluffy!
Concentrate.
Yes!

　Tasting the woozy Lou, I focus my magic power on this one as well and activate my magic.

''Recall.''

　A blurry face appeared in my mind and gradually tied the statue together. The face of a young man with silver hair and not much of a feature, but a kind-looking young man with... what?

If this is the Crown Prince I've met him before...?
""What?"

　I flipped through my memories despite the four surprised people. That's right, I'm sure of it. It's the young knight who was confronted by the soldiers when the imperial capital was attacked. Huh? That's the Crown Prince? I don't know if you were in disguise or something to escape!
　........oh shit. I left him behind.