Vol 2 Chapter 49 – Grentze Fort – Part 3【Exile to the Empire Arc】

Dart’s explosion scroll mines were removed, and Manabu’s fifty Stone Lances pre-stored in Yukino’s Item Box along with scrap materials rained down from above like hail.

Even this was broken through by enhancement magic from the support corps and heavy knights wielding tower shields positioned overhead. That said, the kingdom army that had lost massive amounts of magical power and personnel to reach this point could be called defeated in war without exaggeration.

In the first place, any commander should issue a retreat order once their casualty rate exceeds twenty percent.

If you think you can win with eighty percent remaining, you should quit being a commander. Moreover, this wasn’t an unavoidable decisive battle but merely a trivial rebel suppression operation…

Then Roy executed his final strategy—lightning hell. He cracked the water tank with his prized throwing dagger, and the water poured down vigorously onto the enemy.

The flowing water ran down the slope, wetting the ground all the way to their distant rear.

“Sarina, thrust that spear into the ground.”

“Got it.”

When it was the Magic Spear Keraunos, it bore even more lightning than now, but even after becoming the Meteor Spear and dropping to A-rank, it still possessed considerably powerful lightning.

Sarina thrust the spear into the ground.

Blue lightning instantly flowed through the water to the soldiers. Most soldiers fell to their knees, their consciousness being reaped away.

—At that moment.

A blonde, blue-eyed girl running along the passage wall approached, carrying a golden longsword toward them.

“Sarina, you can’t handle that one yet! Leave this to me!”

Sophia’s white dress billowed as she headed toward the blonde, blue-eyed girl. She fired from her spear like a laser at the enemy, but as if her firing line was predicted, the girl tilted her face to avoid it and closed into a blade lock without reducing speed.

Then one man walked toward Sarina with slow steps.

“Sarina… you’re safe.”

“Haruto, long time no see.”

“Did that man do anything to you?”

She was slightly disappointed that was his first question, but since it concerned her wellbeing, it wasn’t quite bad enough to call despicable.

“No, nothing. Roy isn’t that kind of person…”

“Huh?… Roy? Why this atmosphere like you’re comrades?—You were just forced to stay together, right?”

Sarina shook her head in denial. Meanwhile, heavy knights with lightning resistance lined up in a row behind Haruto.

“Haruto-sama—we’ll assist in subjugating the rebels.”

“Wait!… She’s my girlfriend.”

“However, if we don’t strike now, enemy reinforcements may arrive. Every bit of combat power—”

“Please!” Haruto said, silencing the heavy knight. Sarina asked Haruto about his earlier words.

“You still think of me as your girlfriend?”

“Of course! We… did that, after all.”

“But Yukino’s alive, you know? What are you going to do?”

“…If possible, I want to make both of you happy. I can’t choose just one.”

If Roy said he wanted to make Sophia and Yukino happy, it would somehow feel right, but when Haruto says it, why does it sound indecisive?

This world has no law about only one wife. So it wouldn’t be strange for Roy to think that way, but Haruto is different.

When they return to their original world, one of them will definitely be abandoned in the future—it’s clear as day. A common-law wife is more troublesome than you’d think… inheritance issues, public appearances, and above all, children could get hurt.

“Haruto… a relationship without blessing is sad. And if you stay on that side, you’ll definitely get dragged into bad things, so come with us? We can find a way home somewhere other than there!”

Kairo’s words flashed back in Haruto’s mind. Those words suggesting that Yukino and Sarina might have relationships with Roy—mere speculation.

“Hey, Sarina… why are you wearing your hair in a ponytail? Why won’t you affirm me?”

“Huh?”

That change was unacceptable to Haruto.

Sarina, who had always affirmed everything from their original world, was “for some reason” denying Haruto and trying to admonish him. Not just that—Sarina, who wore fairly heavy makeup, had “for some reason” switched to this world’s cosmetics and natural makeup.

What did these two “for some reasons” have in common?… It could only be that man who stood next to Yukino at the Tower of Agni!

In Haruto’s vision, the black hair tie Roy had given her swayed in the wind. The design of the clothes worn by the Shadow Clan that Kairo had told him about and the design of Sarina’s hair tie were strikingly similar… when he recognized that, something snapped inside Haruto.

“Staying in the kingdom… makes it easier to return! Getting dragged into bad things? Wrong—I’ll become king and swallow such trivial matters!”

“W-Wait, Haruto?”

When Sarina tried to touch his shoulder, Haruto thrust his sword into the ground.

“Uooooooooooh!”

A torrent of light swirled around Haruto as the center, blowing away Sarina and the knights together.

“Yukino too, Sarina too—I’ll become king and cure you both!”

Seeing Haruto on the verge of running wild, Sarina froze in shock, unable to move. Haruto approached Sarina with an intimidating presence, step by heavy step.

“Holy Magic: Luminous Prison”

A light magic circle deployed at Haruto’s fingertips, and the spell was about to be invoked.

—Slash!

That magic circle never activated.

“Shadow Edge… Sorry I’m late. Sarina, the persuasion failed, right? Go to Palco and Manabu—leave this to me.”

The magic that had been about to restrain Sarina was sliced apart by Roy’s shadow sword just before activation and vanished.

“Yo, Haruto… I’ve been pretty irritated by nobles and royalty. Let me straighten you out—show me your face!”

“Don’t—casually call my name!”

The man in black readied a silver longsword, and the man in white readied a jet-black longsword.

The battle between these contradictory opponents—now began.

Vol 2 Chapter 50 – Grentze Fort – Part 4【Exile to the Empire Arc】

Haruto and Roy clashed swords. As if hurling their convictions at each other…

“Why won’t you listen to Sarina’s words?”

“Sarina always affirmed me… even before we came to this world! Holy Magic: Luminous Prison”

Since Roy had seen that magic once before, instead of backstepping, he avoided it by slipping past Haruto’s side and released Shadow Edge aimed at his arm.

“Mighty Guard”

It was blocked by Haruto’s defensive skill, and the clash resumed.

“That’s simply because it was a world without battle, right? If you stay in the kingdom, you’ll just be used, and you might even lose your life!”

“Maybe so, but that’s not a problem if I become king!”

The exchange of swords might look evenly matched, but with each clash, Roy’s entire body was pushed back. That was simply because he’d obtained his artifact later than Haruto, resulting in a difference in enhancement values.

Level and enhancement value—different genres of strength indicators, but the difference in acquisition timing manifested as battle results.

(At this rate, I’ll be worn down… I need to purify Haruto’s corruption so we can at least talk—the way he is now, we can’t even have a proper conversation!)

From their blade lock, Roy activated Shadow Prison and restrained Haruto.

“—! What are you!”

“Wait a bit! I’ll purify you now—”

Roy said that and touched Haruto’s left chest with his right hand, but it only purified slightly with a small sizzle—there was no real effect.

“Ah, you think I’m misjudging things because of corruption. But too bad… thanks to Kairo-san, I’m already purified!”

Haruto spun Laevatein once in his hand, thrust it into the ground, channeled magical power, and created a torrent of light around them.

“—Tch!”

The shadows were blown away, and Roy was slammed against the wall.

“…So you mean, that’s naturally you.”

“You’re talking as if I’m insane. I’ll become king and cure both Sarina and Yukino… sounds perfectly reasonable, doesn’t it?”

“Haruto, Yukino and the others aren’t crazy! Wake up already!”

The hero before him wrapped light around his jet-black longsword and shifted to attack stance.

“You—you stole them from me! Surely they must be under aphrodisiacs or brainwashing!!!”

An overhead slash—Roy countered with Shadow Edge, but being overpowered, he was blown even further back.

“—!”

He stabbed his sword into the ground just before hitting the wall, avoiding collision. Haruto walked toward him, swaying like a ghost.

“Haruto, you’re the one who abandoned them! You know what? Lost things don’t come back!”

Roy still faced him head-on. Outmatched in strength, Roy changed his sword’s angle, deflected Haruto’s crude blade, immediately grabbed Haruto’s arm, and converted it into a shoulder throw.

Haruto couldn’t break his fall and scraped along raising sand and dust.

“Lost things don’t come back—that includes my parents you killed. But humans can move forward… Sarina and Yukino hope you can be saved too.”

Haruto stood up and held his hand forward.

“Shut up… shut up shut up shut up! Holy Magic: Shining Lance!!”

For Roy, this was the second time seeing it… the magic he’d taken in that ruin, the magic that started this journey. Back then, he’d taken it to the stomach and been pinned to the wall. But now, I have… the Holy Sword Gram.

“Holy Sword Gram—fire!”

The flying light spear and the silver longsword fired from Roy’s hand collided. With a pop like something bursting, the impact and light explosion blinded him.

“—Ugh!” That voice reached Roy’s ears. When his vision recovered, Haruto was pinned to the fort wall together with the holy sword.

“Remember? The day you and I met, I was in that state feeling frustrated. Trying to take at least one of you down with me was the beginning.”

Finally reminded of that, Haruto remembers. That day, in the divine chamber where the Artifact was enshrined—the insignificant boy who challenged them bravely.

He’d seemed small then, an existence not even worth considering, now standing as an undeniable enemy.

The words “what goes around comes around” floated through Haruto’s mind. Then he smiled faintly, hung his head—and said.

“Fine, just kill me.”

Roy summoned the holy sword back to his hand, and Haruto collapsed.

Roy turned Haruto face-up and used the highest quality Ex-grade potion he possessed on Haruto’s wound. Since it hadn’t been long since the stabbing, the potion could save his life… Haruto lost consciousness from the pain of the wound forcibly closing.

As Roy took out rope to bring back this troublesome prince, he heard Yukino’s voice.

“Roy-san, dodge!!”

Confirming multiple shadows overhead, Roy immediately avoided them with a backstep. Stone pillars fell one after another where he’d been standing, lining up as if to separate Roy and Haruto.

“Tch! Where the hell from…”

When Roy looked in the direction the magic came from, a group in black robes stood in a row atop the fort’s ramparts. Then, clapping his hands, that man appeared.

“Who would’ve thought Kairo-sama’s concerns would actually come true… strange things do happen in this world.”

What appeared was Kairo’s direct special knight order, the Black Helm… the captain of the 4th unit, Haugen himself.