Vol 3 Chapter 74 – Operation: Rescue Eiden Ignia【Empire War Arc】

Roy and the others headed for the base where King Volga had last met with Eiden.

Because they would have to pass through other nobles’ territories, they were moving as a small, elite group to be as cautious as possible. Defense of the Ignia territory was left to Ange’s Union Knights and ninety percent of Stark’s members, with village chief Shuten taking command of the defense.

Just as they were about to reach the place where Eiden had last been seen, King Volga raised a hand to stop them.

“From here on, we’re entering the Kingston family’s domain. That’s why we can’t afford to let our guard down.”

“Isn’t Ganalkin locked up? His title was stripped, and his lands are supposed to be divided up among the nearby Pawn nobles, right?”

“Under normal circumstances, this stretch should have been easy to pass through. However, a letter just arrived from my body double. It said, ‘Ganalkin, killed in transit.’”

Hearing that, Roy grasped the broad outline of what had happened and nodded in understanding.

“Ah, I get it. So even though that bastard is dead, this land is still Kingston territory, which means somebody pulled a fast one in the succession process, yeah?”

King Volga nodded, but Yukino was completely lost.

“Wait a second! I don’t understand any of this! Even if Ganalkin-san died, doesn’t his territory still get redistributed?”

Volga wagged his finger left and right and replied with theatrical flourish.

“Ganalkin, you see… was murdered by someone. And at the same time, the ‘Kingston Sword’ that was being transported with him was stolen.”

“Wait, what!? Stolen by who?”

“It’s a weapon of the Geas, whose power manifests only when held by the right person… and the one who newly inherited it is Lydia Kingston. Because of that, the Geas that had been in effect was canceled, and the lands in the middle of being distributed were frozen in their current state…”

According to King Volga, inheriting a title should have taken a fair bit of time. Unfortunately, however, the Empire had stripped Ganalkin of his title at the same time they imprisoned him, which erased the usual inheritance period. That meant that if the next person to hold the sword was the rightful successor, the title would pass to them immediately.

“If that means ahead of us is enemy territory, shouldn’t you, Your Majesty, turn back?”

“If the king does not move, no one will follow. I am not some useless king like that whelp, King Regulus of Regzeria, who just lounges on his throne all day!”

Ange burst out laughing at that, and her Union Knights joined in, mocking their former sovereign along with her. Seeing that, Roy felt a chill run down his spine.

These fanatics who’ll turn anyone into an enemy just because the princess says so… they’re kinda scary…

“Well, even if I die in battle, I’m not an Imperial, so it’s not really my problem.”

“Ku ku ku, I know all about you. I’ve heard the stories. You act all cold and standoffish, yet always lend just the right amount of help. That’s how you’ve been winning over one young girl after another, isn’t it? Let this old man join that little harem of yours toooo.”

“Like hell! Who told you that!? I’m not doing anything like that!”

King Volga pointed toward the automobile Testeed. Over there, Manabu jolted in shock, then quickly started gesturing, Boss, I’m sorry!

After that, Roy vented his frustration by completely wrecking Manabu’s mushroom-like haircut.

☆☆☆

Riding in the automobile Testeed, they went over their combat strength. Roy’s party, a small number of Stark members, a small number of Union Knights, and a large contingent of the Shadow Clan Ombra… After living together for several months, everyone had gotten fairly close.

Yeah, coordination shouldn’t be a problem. As Roy sank into thought, trying to anticipate every possible scenario, something bumped lightly against his shoulder.

—Tap.

When he looked that way, he saw Yukino, who had been sitting next to him, resting her head on his shoulder as she drifted off to sleep.

He was about to wake her when, across from them, Ange lifted a finger to her lips in a “shh.” Roy gave up on waking Yukino, folded his arms, lowered his head, and decided to rest a bit himself.

…
……
………

—Clatter!

“Roy-san!? Not the chest today, please!”

Mumbling nonsense in her sleep, Yukino got a rude awakening, and from there they headed over to Palco.

“What happened?”

“Boss Roy, there’s some knight-looking guy standin’ smack in the middle of the road. What do we do?”

“Dart—no, that’s not him. Never seen this guy before. Sophia, come here a sec. Do you know who that is? He’s blocking our way.”

“That gentleman… is Lord Warren. A Pawn noble whose lands lie to the northeast of ours. But why is he here, so close to the imperial capital?”

“This is giving me nothing but bad vibes… No helping it. Our party will handle this one.”

Roy got out of the automobile Testeed and faced the knight head-on.

“That look on your face says, ‘What are you doing here?’ doesn’t it?”

“In fact, it turns out you and I are neighbors, right? …So yeah, ‘What are you doing here?’”

Roy deliberately threw out the exact words the enemy probably wanted to hear, just to provoke him. Warren brushed his bangs aside with a flashy flick of his index finger—and then drew his sword.

“Hey, Volga-geezer, got a question.”

“What is it?”

“Even without Ignia blood, I can still use the Geas, right?”

“Yes. As long as Ignia lent it to you willingly, you should be able to use it—wait, surely you’re not—!?”

Roy waved a hand back at King Volga in a dismissive, leave it to me motion and stepped forward. In response, knights who seemed to be Warren’s men began filing out from the nearby trees.

“…Man, planning on an ambush from the start? Some knights you are. Warren!”

“A filthy commoner has no right to call my name so casually!”

“If we’re gonna fight anyway, we might as well do this first. Makes things easier, since the magic will handle all the paperwork afterward, right?”

Roy raised the Ignia dagger up before him and activated the Geas.

“W-Why!? Why do you have that!?”

“I just felt like knocking some sense into a noble who’s basically a bandit, blocking the road to squeeze travelers for pocket money. How about it? If you beat me, you don’t just get my gear—you get my lands too.”

Warren thought it over for a moment, then had one of his underlings bring him a weapon compatible with the Geas. While they were doing that, Roy tossed King Volga bodily into the automobile Testeed.

The king’s mouth was covered, so he could only “mmph mmph” in protest, but they could not allow Warren to learn of his presence, so His Majesty would be spectating from inside the vehicle.

The enemy force was fifteen ambushers emerging from the woods. On Roy’s side were Roy himself, Yukino, Sophia, Sarina, Manabu, and Ange—six fighters in total. With that, the combatants were set.

“Now then, let’s decide on the conditions.”

And so, Roy and the others found themselves about to battle the neighbor who had suddenly appeared before them.