My Beloved Princess ~The Boy Called Incompetent Rises with Only a Sword and the Princess's Devotion~ - Chapter 93: Commander of the Imperial Guard

Stone debris from falling fireballs blasted open gaping holes in the houses, feeding savage flames. Black smoke belched from square windows as though gasping for breath, then rose into the sky as if trying to escape those narrow frames.

The village was burning.

The clash of swords rang out from all sides, mingled with furious shouts and screams. This was no mock battle. It was a genuine fight to the death with real blades. Those who were cut down collapsed into the dirt in pools of fresh blood, then clawed desperately at the gravel as they tried to rise with the last of their strength. A finishing blade pierced their backs, and the number of corpses increased by one more.

“So, you chose violence under the very eye of His Majesty the Dragon Emperor. The price for that was steep, wasn’t it?”

He wore a Dragon Robe entirely in black. At the shoulder, Kokuren was embroidered in gold thread, alongside the crest of a dragon spreading both wings. A beautiful man with long hair falling to his waist held his drawn sword in seigan.

Facing him, the man with a blade pointed at him twitched, his pale face contorting as he backed against the wall of a cornered house. His hands shook around the long sword he still held.

“Everyone does things like forced enslavement. That’s just survival of the fittest in dragonkin society, isn’t it?!”

For all his bluster, the man’s voice trembled.

His name was Hiei. He was an adult dragonkin who had lived for a hundred and fifty years, a powerful figure with the peerage of Dragon Flash—equivalent to the top student of Central Dragon Emperor Academy.

With death pressing close enough to touch, Hiei’s face twisted into a pathetic mess.

A merciless vertical flash of steel descended.

“Uwaaaaaaaaah?!”

It was not that he had seen the line of the sword. Hiei escaped only by instinctively throwing his body aside. The slash carved through the stone wall behind him, and the house split cleanly in two with no resistance at all.

An entire house had been cut in half.

At that bone-chilling sharpness, Hiei let out a shriek.

The long-haired beauty curled one corner of his mouth in a sneer.

“Everyone does things like forced enslavement, you say? Then by your logic, it would not be evil for us to crush your flock and enslave all of you in turn.”

“Don’t be ridiculous! Just because you’re the Dragon Emperor, does that make it acceptable to burn villages indiscriminately and enslave people one after another?!”

“Indiscriminately? One after another? Weren’t you the ones attacking immature young flocks and enslaving them indiscriminately?”

Hiei fell silent.

Because it was true.

The long-haired man let out a scornful laugh.

“You enslave as you please, yet refuse to be enslaved yourselves. What a thoroughly inconsistent line of reasoning.”

Another flash ran.

A diagonal line appeared across the long sword in Hiei’s grip. The silver blade slid downward under its own weight, then fell to the ground with a metallic clatter. Hiei stared at the weapon for a moment, then threw away the hilt that remained in his hand.

“Hey, we didn’t violate the Dragon Emperor’s territory. Right?!”

The long-haired beauty coldly twisted his lips, then sheathed his sword.

For an instant, Hiei froze in blank disbelief. Then, perhaps misunderstanding and thinking the danger had passed, relief spread across his face.

And in the next moment, his head dropped from his neck.

The last thing Hiei saw was a world slowly turning.

“There are no slaves in His Majesty’s flock. I will see that your Consorts and subordinates are treated properly as human beings. So die in peace.”

◇◇◇◇◇

The Imperial Guard.

That was the elite force under the Dragon Emperor’s direct command.

Its members were all men, and its distinguishing feature was their black uniforms.

Their main duty was the kind of dirty work, bordering on outright violations of the Code, that could not be entrusted to the Consorts.

If war broke out with high-ranking nobles, they served as the vanguard. Depending on the situation, they would slaughter the enemy by any means necessary, assassination included. In the previous war, when they ran into trouble with a Dragon Duke, one man had infiltrated the enemy residence alone and magnificently taken the head of the opposing commander.

An assassination unit devoted to filthy work.

That was the hidden face of the Imperial Guard, the Dragon Emperor’s elite under direct control.

The man who commanded the Imperial Guard, feared enough to silence even crying children, was a long-haired beauty named Unran. Even among the dragonkin, a race overflowing with beautiful forms, he possessed exceptionally outstanding looks.

Among the people of the Dragon Emperor’s territory, he was affectionately known by the nickname Black Nobleman because of his cool, intellectual appearance, and there were no few girls who secretly admired him.

At present, he was on a mission to suppress forced enslavement—the practice of attacking other flocks without regard for appearance and mass-producing slaves.

“Is this the sixth one?”

At a campsite quietly set up in the forest, Unran tossed another piece of firewood onto the bonfire and sighed in disgust after finishing the job.

“Commander. If you make such a gloomy face, good fortune will run away.”

“That’s right. You’re gloomy even at the best of times, Commander. If you stay unsociable even after the battle’s over, your men will wither.”

The ones joking with him like that were the Number Two and Number Three of the Imperial Guard, the two vice-commanders seated nearby.

Several decades had passed since the Imperial Guard was formed. Of the founding members, only the three of them—including Unran—were still alive. The only people familiar enough with the unsociable Unran to speak to him so freely were these two.

“I get depressed too. No matter how many times we clean them out, they keep springing up like maggots.”

He tipped back the flask and gulped down black sake.

Men dressed in black surrounded the fire as though melting into the night itself.

“Among nobles, the type who attacks other flocks and turns them into slaves has always existed, but…”

“Lately, even those with commoner airs have started copying them. Calling it the trend of the times sounds nice, but really it just feels like everything is going off the rails.”

The men poured sake for themselves and grumbled with flushed faces.

There were no beautiful women here to pour drinks for the all-male Imperial Guard.

Among the men who belonged to the Imperial Guard, many supported the advanced policies promoted by the Dragon Emperor. One of those was the Dragon Emperor’s stance of having no slaves. Unran in particular felt a strong revulsion toward forced enslavement.

“What a vulgar trend. If this tendency spreads, it will become harder and harder for weak, small flocks to survive. If young flocks are weeded out like this, the dragonkin race will surely begin walking toward decline before long. That should be self-evident. To fail to understand even that… what despicable creatures.”

He took another swallow of sake. Warmth spread through his body.

A cold night wind blew through the camp, and Unran closed his eyes in quiet comfort.

“How are the captured women?”

At his question, one of the vice-commanders turned his gaze toward the tent.

Imperial Guards carrying torches had been patrolling through the night. Pointing his chin at the large tent set up farthest back, the vice-commander replied,

“We put them in the big tent. We posted guards at the entrance, but we left them unbound. If that seems problematic, should we tie them up?”

Unran rested his hand on his chin and considered the suggestion.

Dragonkin women who lost their master generally fell into three types.

One: those who followed their master in death and resisted to the bitter end.
Two: those who gave up resisting the moment their master was lost.
Three: those who pretended to submit obediently while secretly plotting revenge.

Types One and Three were common among the Six Consorts and others of Princess rank. Slaves and lower-ranked women were mostly Type Two.

Considering the status of the captured women, Unran shook his head.

“No. That is unnecessary. If they want to run, let them run. Our objective is not domination. If they wish to become strays, they may do as they please.”

Then, showing a cold mercy, he added in a freezing voice,

“However, if they take hostile action, kill them. I will not tolerate casualties on our side.”

When necessary, he did not hesitate to make cold-blooded decisions.

That was the kind of man Unran was.

Just as the vice-commander replied, “Understood,” the sound of wings beating came down from overhead.

When Unran raised his right arm, a black pigeon fluttered down to perch on it.

“A message from His Majesty?”

“Judging by the black pigeon, it seems urgent.”

Removing the small cylinder tied to its leg, Unran found a letter inside.

His expression darkened as his eyes moved over the short message.

“It seems General Consort Rakuyō has given us a special assignment.”

◇◇◇◇◇

“The Commander of the Imperial Guard?”

“Yes. The Imperial Guard is the elite force under His Majesty’s direct command. Its commander is the very top of that force.”

They stood on the promenade in the deserted little forest, just ahead of the meeting place, at a small bridge crossing the stream.

Leaning against the railing, Kōran spoke while Kishō stood beside her, watching the water murmur below and pursing his lips.

“And why exactly do I have to fight the top of that?”

“Because you were too strong.”

“Too strong…? No, that’s not right. No matter how you put it, this is just too unreasonable.”

“This is what happens when you leap ahead in one bound after another. Before Mother and General Consort-sama could properly recognize your ability, you had already established your position in the Upper School. There are no longer any students willing to challenge you. The teachers have also lost their pawns and can do nothing. Which means they have no choice but to bring in outside help.”

Kishō looked up at the sky. The forest trees towered high, their branches stretching toward the blue above.

“Is he strong?”

“Yes. Unquestionably. He is a Dragon Duke class man who has the feat of slaughtering a Dragon Duke alone.”

At the words Dragon Duke class, Kishō caught his breath.

Dragon Duke class was a term used for someone who had not reached the formal rank of Dragon Duke, but whose actual ability could rival one.

“Kuroyō told me before. She said your skill with the sword was Dragon Duke class.”

“I see… so that was Onee-sama’s assessment. Then it was inevitable that the white-feathered arrow would land on Unran.”

The usual liveliness had left Kōran’s voice, and a melancholy note colored it instead.

Perhaps the gloomy atmosphere of the forest made her seem that way. Wanting to blow away that oppressive mood, Kishō deliberately cracked a joke.

“Well, what’s decided is decided. No matter who the opponent is, the fact that I have to win doesn’t change. That’ll be true even after graduation.”

Kishō raised his fist and declared it loudly.

But Kōran gave no reaction at all.

Her hollow eyes stared blankly at the moss-covered stones lining the stream.

“Hey, oi. If you don’t react, my bluff just falls flat.”

Kōran slowly raised her face.

“There is a wall between adult dragons and young dragons that cannot be overcome no matter what. The eighty-five years between fifteen and a hundred are the growth period, and once a dragon passes through that, they become a battle-hardened veteran without exception. The most outstanding among them are Dragon Saints and Dragon Dukes. And Unran is exceptional even among those of Dragon Duke class. He is His Majesty the Dragon Emperor’s hidden blade, a man who possesses ability on an entirely different dimension.”

Kōran added that he was the kind of man who could infiltrate a Dragon Duke’s residence alone and successfully assassinate the target. Even General Consort Rakuyō, she said, could not accomplish such a feat.

“Neither I nor Onee-sama want you to lose your life here. So don’t die. Right now… that is all I can say.”

Then Kōran hesitated and shook her head.

“I… even think it would be fine for you to refuse this. No one would laugh and call you a coward. That is how reckless this is. To stand against Unran, Commander of the Imperial Guard.”

Because she was usually such a reckless, high-spirited girl, those words struck Kishō heavily.

And yet, even so, his answer did not change.

His tone grew solemn, but what he said remained the same.

“You told me before, didn’t you? What position a person stands in, what that person has to accomplish, and what they should do to accomplish it. Those two things are what matter. Everything else is just trivial nonsense not worth thinking about.”

At the shopping mall, she had advised him that earning money was a woman’s job, and that financial matters could be managed however one liked later. She had told him not to get caught up in boring little details and to focus only on marrying the Princess.

Kishō had taken that to mean this: if one wanted to achieve something great, then one had to discard petty attachments.

“What I have to accomplish is marrying Kuroyō. And what I need in order to accomplish that is proof of my ability. In that case, in this situation, I have no choice but to accept the challenge.”

Nodding firmly, Kishō continued.

“Sure, I know it’s unreasonable. Of course I want to fight back against it and say no. But if I want to marry Kuroyō, then I have to endure it. Compared to the harsh environment waiting after graduation, even betting my life is a trivial matter. Only by going that far can I finally stand in balance with the exceptional Kuroyō. Only then can I overcome the difference in our status.”

Leaning on the railing, he clenched his fist until it creaked.

At that resolve, Kōran’s eyes widened.

But she immediately shook her head.

“That may be true, but the opponent is… too much.”

“That doesn’t sound like you. At least say something like, ‘Give him a good whack.’ I’d get more fired up that way.”

“Even I know there is a time and place for things.”

Turning away, Kōran lowered her gaze.

Feeling as though he had seen an unfamiliar side of the usually lively girl, Kishō laughed softly.

Apparently she did not appreciate that reaction, because Kōran shot him a sidelong glare.

Leaning on the railing beside her, Kishō lightly patted the head that now sat lower than usual.

“Because of your advice, I was able to decide on the alliance on my own. I had no choice but to accept it to protect Tsukino. I hated being sized up like that, but if it meant saving Tsukino, then I could think of it as nothing more than a trivial matter. The reason I didn’t hesitate then was because of you. Thanks.”

Looking down, Kōran mumbled something under her breath.

It did not reach Kishō’s ears.

“…What is with you? You’re actually kind of a good man.”