How about North ......?

　Aldis, who had been treated as a concerned party and participated in the discussions, suggested modestly.
　One of the guards, who had been called Endri by Moore, responded to his words.

'North?　What town in the north could possibly host refugees?

There won't be a town, but there will be a small village or two. The hills that Suzuyoori used to call home should not have been settled so much yet. People would be welcome here, wouldn't they?

　Ardis is referring to a settlement in the northern part of the royal capital that has only been touched up in the last ten years or so.
　In the past, a demon called the "bell-neighbor" reigned over that area and kept people at bay.

　After the defeat of the bell-tie, one of the three most powerful demons, by Ardis, the settlers had built many small villages in his land, where heavy iron veins were originally known to exist.

But I don't think the Empire is going to leave that area of heavy iron ore alone. They'll reach out to you sooner or later.

　This time, the bodyguard named Jake speaks up and expresses his concern: "We're not trying to live there permanently.

It's not that I want to stay there permanently. Even the empire will take some time to stabilize the capital and the dukedom, it could take six months or a year. We can buy time for six months or a year. During that time, the situation might change and we can move again to another place.

　It was a temporary measure for the time being, Aldis insisted.

　The kingdom's main army led by Duke Nilesteria was probably still intact, and the army that had intercepted the Tholian army had not been defeated.
　Even if the capital and the dukedom were to fall under imperial rule, if they could defeat the Tholian army and make Thoria, the second largest city in the kingdom, their home base, they would be able to rebuild.

　Of course, that's if they could only get the backing of the Bronchell Republic and the Union of City States. ......
　But if you can't even exert that level of diplomacy, then the kingdom is left with nothing more than its own demise.

　I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make it work.
　As long as acquaintances like Minerva and Moore were safe, the rest was of no concern.

'But what about food?　I don't think the frontier villages have the reserves to keep three thousand refugees fed.

　This time, Moore posed a real problem.

　In addition to the refugees from the original royal capital, the refugees from the territorial capital have now joined in, and the total number of refugees has swelled to roughly three thousand people.
　It's true that they can obtain temporary materials for housing by cutting down the trees in the vicinity, but that's not the case with food.

　If it was the territorial capital of the duke's territory that Minerva and the others had initially chosen as their destination, they would have had enough reserves to allow them to receive refugees from the royal capital.
　The union of city-states bordering on the west shows a friendly diplomatic stance towards the Kingdom of Naglas, and there is also a means of securing food for the time being by temporarily importing it from there.

　But this is not possible in the northern settlements.
　Minerva and the others don't have the funds to import food, and even if they had the funds, they would have to pass through the sphere of influence of the empire that occupied the territorial capital to get to the Union of City States.
　Even if it was a small amount, if it was food for three thousand people, they would be suspicious of the unnaturalness of the situation.

''I can handle that on my end. It won't be enough to keep them free, but just enough to keep them from starving.''

　However, it is possible for Aldis and Rona to get food through the eyes of the Empire.
　If it weren't for the existence of a gate that connects the other world with this one, Aldis wouldn't be proposing such a thing.

　There is a limit to the amount that can be left in the other world through the gate.
　But if Aldis went to a large town to buy food, he could send it through the gate to the other world.
　At the same time, if Rona continues to extract food from the gate in the frontier village, theoretically, the capacity limit need not be considered.

　The downside would be that Aldis and Rona would be tied up in scavenging for food for quite a few days, as this is a method that no one else can replicate.
　Also, in order to cover up the method of transporting the food, and to actually purchase and transport the food to the village warehouse, a certain number of trustworthy collaborators would be needed.
　The existence of the "gate" used by Aldis will also have to be revealed to the collaborators.

　Rona would say that the burden and risk is too great for the lack of benefits, but as long as Minerva showed difficulty in abandoning the refugees, Aldis was the result of compromising to the extent he could.
　It's just a matter of what, but Aldis tends to be lenient with those who have it in their pockets.

　However, as expected, I have no intention of accepting such a role unconditionally.

However, there is a condition.

"Conditions?

　'Tell me,' Moore replied with his eyes.

'The priests of the church are to be appointed by the people we have designated. And that we will not accept anyone from the church who cannot follow that priest. Those two things.

　He refused to accept people who blindly believed in the doctrine of the church, no matter how destitute and displaced they were.
　Aldis does not want to save people who treat those who do not follow the church as evildoers or who direct their harmful intentions toward the twins.

　Normally, he would want to get rid of all those involved in the church, but that would make the refugees uncomfortable.
　Fortunately, in the hidden village where Aldis lives, there are priests, including Elmer, who preach the doctrines of the church before it was transformed five hundred years ago, and there are apprentices who have taken over its teachings.
　The village in the settlement was probably still before the church sent a priest to it, considering its size.
　That was a good thing, Aldis had planned to send Elmer and his sect as the new priests.

''Ah. Well, it's only natural from your perspective.

　It seems that Aldis reminded him that he was being arranged by the church as an evildoer, and Moore is convinced.

　Of course, the others were all people who had lived in the royal capital.
　They were aware of that situation, and none of them opposed the conditions.
　In the end, they all agreed to accept Ardis' proposal and head north.

　We have decided on a course for the time being, but we decided that it would be getting dark soon, so the group began to prepare for the camp.
　Most of them had fled from the capital without making any preparations, even though they were making camp.
　Most of them can do little more than lie down and sleep on their tired bodies while enduring their hunger.

　In the midst of the silence that surrounds us, Aldis and Rona stood at a distance from the group.

''You didn't have to take care of all of them, did you?

　Rona asks about the provision of food that Aldis proposed at the earlier meeting.

'I don't see any reason to save the Churchmen,' she says, 'but other than that they're just ordinary citizens. But other than that, they're just ordinary citizens. If they follow the teachings of the Church blindly, we'll cut them off, but if they don't, we'll give them a chance.

　If Elmer and his colleagues, who do not condemn twins, are put in charge of the church, the consciousness of the refugees will eventually change, if not immediately.
　The vast majority of the public does not have blind faith in the churches of today; they are simply giving in to the world's peer pressure.

What about church officials?

'I don't know if you're there or not, but if you are, you'll be under Elmer's thumb. If you're not happy with that, then you can ask him to leave.

　Aldis sat down on a nearby large rock.

I wonder if it will be that convenient. I'd rather spread out the refugees to several villages and gather the church officials from the royal capital and the territorial capital to just one of them.　This would make it easier to cut off, and if there's a conflict with Elmer and the others, we don't have to worry about where we stand. If they rebel against Al or Elmer and the others, we'll just stop supporting that village.

　Rona makes a simple and awful suggestion: "Or do we build a church in the same village that worships Elmer and his friends, and a church that worships that crazy woman?

Or should we build a church for Elmer and his friends and a church to worship that crazy woman in the same village?　So, they're going to distribute food only from Elmer and his church. I'm sure this would slip over to Elmer and his friends unless they're very dedicated believers.

That's not going to happen either: ......

　Aldis was also reluctant to show his reluctance to the other idea that popped out of his partner's mouth.

　Certainly Rona's idea would eliminate any future concerns early on.
　But that seemed to be a bit of a radical method.
　It's a dangerous way to dare to cause a disturbance on the plains.

　Aldis doesn't intend to show any mercy to his opponents, but that doesn't mean he doesn't want to expose potential enemies and eliminate them, either.
　At the very least, if they don't have active harm in mind, it's fine to leave them alone, and if they don't have bad intentions directed at you, you'll just deflect them to do what they want.

Well, it's a matter of figuring out what to do about it in the near future: ......

　As he spoke the words to shelve the problem, Aldis noticed the person approaching him.
　He looked at the person and uttered his name.

'You're Minerva?'

What's up?　If you can't sleep, do you want me to lie down with you?

　It's not just a matter of time before you'll be able to get your hands on a new one.

Oh, no ....... It's not like that.

Yeah?　Then I'll be the first to sleep over there.

　I'm not sure if she sensed something from the reply, but Rona deliberately yawned and walked towards the Moore's.
　I'm sure she thought she was being clever.

''Next to ......, may I?''

Yeah.

　Minerva asked hesitantly, and Aldis shifted to the side to make room.
　Minerva sits quietly, her long hair swaying slightly in the night breeze.

　A silence that was never short.
　Without exchanging words, they just looked up at the moon, which was open in the night sky.

　A sudden thought occurred to Ardis to manipulate her magic power and gather it in front of Minerva.
　It's not going to make you do anything in particular, it's not going to bring about any particular change, it's just a mass of magical power.

　Minerva's eyes are lured by that magic power.
　When Ardis gently moved the lump of magic power and placed it on her own hand, Minerva's gaze also moved along with it.

'You can see the magic power.

After all, that was the magic, wasn't it?

　An answerable conversation is exchanged between master and student.

'When did you find out?'

'Now that I think about it, two years ago, it's already. ...... At first I thought my eyes were tired and just blurry. It wasn't until about six months ago that I started to think it was magic.

Okay.

　If Ardis hadn't been certified as a heretic by the church and left the royal capital, he could have been able to learn how to use magic much earlier.
　After all, even Kirill, who was an outstanding student at the Marieles Academy in the royal capital, was unable to see magic until the end.
　Considering his qualifications as a sorcerer alone, Minerva could be said to be extremely talented.

'If you can see magic power, then you'll eventually be able to use sword magic as well. And scaffolding.

Yeah, right: ......

You don't sound too happy. What's up?　Has your interest in sword magic waned already?

'No, that's not what I meant. It's just that ......

　As if it was hard to say, yet painful, Minerva says her current thoughts.

　For two years, she has been honing her sword skills with the help of Moore, even while Ardis was away.
　The fact that I can now see something that looks like magic, though dimly.
　As is customary for a young lady, she mixed in with the guards' training and was recognized as a swordsman, not the daughter and hired hands of her employer.

　After a surprise attack by the imperial army, she picked up a sword to protect the people of the city as a nobleman's duty.
　He was able to save a few of his people.
　He was angered by a nobleman who tried to flee, using his people as a shield.
　When the castle fell and you were forced to flee from the capital, you tried to defend your people from their pursuers.
　You couldn't leave your injured comrades behind, and as a result, you drove your allies into a corner.

　As Ardis listens in silence, Minerva speaks slowly, as if she is letting out her pent-up emotions.

'I don't want to think that I was wrong. I think it is natural for a nobleman to take up a sword and become a shield for his people. So I don't want to deny that. But the result was that after inflicting serious injuries on Cain, he was one step away from being annihilated. If my master hadn't come to me then, I'm sure we wouldn't have all been alive.

　Minerva clenched her fists.

'Should I have abandoned Cain then?　Or was it a bad idea to try to intercept the Imperial Guard with just five men in the first place?　Is it wrong to be as good as I am, and to think that I'm up to protecting someone else?

　She found herself feeling a little agitated.
　Exhaling slowly to calm herself down, Minerva mumbles in a whining tone.

''I'm sorry ............. I know I'm sounding incoherent myself. I just didn't ...... know how to make it right.

　At the sound of his student's voice, which seemed to be fading away, Aldis told him a comforting truth: "Nobody knows the right answer.

No one knows what the right answer is. I don't know what a nobleman's duty or pride is, and I don't know what it is either. I don't know what the duty and pride of a nobleman is, or what the pride of a nobleman is, but I can tell you one thing that I've seen before you. I'm sure that in the end, no one died and got away with it.

　The conclusion has been reached in Ardis as to where he made the wrong choice.
　However, there would be no benefit in confronting the current Minerva with that.

　If Minerva is going to continue to put herself in the field of battle in the future, she will surely realize this on her own sooner or later.
　Then what Aldis had to do now was to lighten Minerva's heart.

It's possible that Minerva's decision was wrong somewhere. On the other hand, maybe she didn't do anything wrong and made the best choice. But as a reality, the result obtained should not be a bad one. Reflection and lessons learned are important, but there is no point in continuing to regret. Mistakes and regrets are inevitable as long as you're alive anyway.

'Master also ......, is that right?'

Hmm?

No mistakes, no regrets.

'Oh, ....... Well, well, ....... There are, like, an infinite number of them.

　A stabbing pain in Aldis' chest.

　There are a number of things he could have avoided losing if he hadn't made a mistake.
　The regret had only increased with the years he had lived.
　The mistakes of the past can no longer be reversed and the weight of regret will never be lessened.

Yes, I see. ......

　At the end of Minerva's voice, which mumbled that, there was silence again.
　Eventually, as if her feelings were coming to an end, Minerva turns to Ardis with a slightly forced smile.

''Master ......, will you teach me swordsmanship again?''

'Good. But you're good with sword magic?

Sure, tell me about it.

　Aldis can't help but fall out of favor with her student's unexpectedly positive reaction.

Ha-ha. Haha, I've become greedy after not seeing you for a while.

　Raising her voice, Aldis nudged Minerva's head lightly with one hand.

'No. ......?'

　Minerva, who has unintentionally turned upward, asks fearfully.

'No, of course not. It's good that your students have ambition.'

　Although her iris-colored hair is stroked more roughly than before, Minerva doesn't brush her hands away.

''Once again, thank you, Master. I'll definitely learn sword magic.

Yeah, I'm on it. I'll keep you company until you're relieved of your role as my mentor.

　A teacher and student, reunited after two years, make a promise to each other.
　Under the countless rays of light pouring down from the moon, the shadows of the two men, lined up on a large rock, are reflected in the ground as if they are joking with each other.