Vol 1 Chapter 5 – The Queen of the Warrior Nation Hides Her Tears【Vol 1: The Beastkin Hero Arc】

Could there have been a different future?

If only I had done this back then. If only things had gone differently.

Those thoughts overflow—and time and again she recognizes the magnitude of what has been lost, and falls back into despair.

Labilia Sigid is both the queen of the battle-women Amazonian race and one of the heroes who protects the world.

Among those appointed to the 【World Knights】, she bears the heaviest sense of responsibility, and she understands that ruthless choices are sometimes necessary.

Labilia is currently twenty years old, and within the 【World Knights】 she is the third eldest, after Gavreel and Nozes.

Several months ago, such a woman—having been told by her colleague, fairy-elf princess Eufaria, about the cost of the Thunder-Annihilation Sword Allen wielded—confronted him during their first joint mission.

The location was Vista, the main city of the Duchy of Insteria on the western side of the human continent.

At the time, the duchy had been struggling against the Demon King’s army, with its other cities having been overrun by one of the Eight Demon Commanders—【Hewitt of the Death-Powder】, a member of the Steel-Moth clan and one of Evil-Eye King Gaivis’s most trusted subordinates.

With only Vista and a handful of smaller towns remaining, the nation faced a crisis of survival. At the request of the kings of various nations, two 【World Knights】—Allen and Labilia—were dispatched.

“…Allen. That power of yours. How many times have you used it by now?”

The two pressed forward toward Hewitt, the ringleader, cutting down their demon-kind enemies—members of the Steel-Moth clan, hard as tempered steel, flying freely through the sky in every direction.

Labilia wiped the blood from the blade in her hand and watched Allen—who had wrapped his sword in violet lightning and cut down an especially large enemy—with a steady gaze.

In response to her concern, the knight in black sheathed his deep-violet longsword and replied with the same expressionless face as always.

“…Don’t make that face. This body is the world’s shield. No one afraid of death can serve as a World Knight.”

“…But… the way things are going, you will…”

“Labilia. Surely even you aren’t about to say something as childish as Leonhardt and Eufa?”

Allen gave a small smile. Seeing that nonchalant demeanor, Labilia pressed her lips together and said nothing more.

He was not afraid. Not even a little. Not of sacrificing himself.

“The World Knights throughout history have driven back invaders from the demon continent and protected humanity. My mentor was the same.”

“…”

“I have no intention of fleeing from that duty. I will fight until the very end. Until this life burns out—alongside all of you. That is the role of a 【World Knight】.”

Leonhardt and Eufaria were desperately trying to convince him to stop out of concern for his life. Please don’t fight anymore. I want you to live even one second longer.

She understood those feelings. Labilia cared for Allen too. He was the first person who had never laughed at her dream.

But at the same time, she was an adult. Different from Eufaria and Leonhardt.

(Evil-Eye King Gaivis is a Demon King rumored to be the most powerful in recorded history. Without Allen, total annihilation is a certainty.)

Labilia was looking straight at reality. Besides, he would not stop no matter what she said.

He would surely never accept these feelings. Then at the very least—

“…Allen. I am proud to have lived in the same era as you. I leave my back to you.”

Sealing those feelings away, Labilia resolved to simply fight at his side as a comrade.

“…Understood.”

Allen gave a nod, and having ended their exchange without further incident, the two made their way down the main boulevard of Vista—a city now a battlefield with clouds of poisonous powder drifting through the air. But midway through, Allen’s expression stiffened and twisted with something that looked like pain. He pressed his hand over his mouth and turned his back to Labilia as though trying to hide his face.

“…Allen, is something wrong? Don’t tell me an enemy landed a hit on you—”

In that instant, Allen expelled something from behind his hand. What slipped through his fingers and scattered across the ground was a red liquid.

There was no mistaking it. Blood.

“…Allen…!”

Labilia felt her resolve begin to crack.

The cost of the Thunder-Annihilation Sword—his lifespan. It was without question carving away at his life. How much time did he have left?

“Don’t tell me your lifespan is already… running short?”

Seeing his back trembling with pain, she reached out without thinking.

“…No, this isn’t blood. I moved too suddenly—that was my mistake. I simply ate too much of that dish made with toma-fruit from the Duke of Insteria’s castle banquet. Let’s push on—this has actually made me feel lighter. I’ll fight Hewitt easier now.”

But the moment before her hand touched his back, Allen threw out a joke—to keep her from worrying. He even went so far as to blink and affect a mildly bewildered look, doing everything in his power to make sure Labilia didn’t worry.

As the mightiest hero, he could never let anyone see him weakened.

Not even to his comrades was he permitted to show vulnerability. That was what it meant to be captain of the 【World Knights】—guardians of humanity.

Yet she couldn’t help but think. Even heroes are hurt. Even heroes grow weak.

She had truly wanted to support him. To hold him. To let him rest.

“Come on—let’s go, Labilia.”

“W-wait, Allen! In that state—y-you should rest now—”

“I’m already fine.”

“…You are clearly not fine…! Leave Hewitt to me—you go back to the imperial capital!”

“N-no, really, I’m fine. This one genuinely was just overeating.”

But he would never take that hand. He never wanted anything like that. He pushed forward through the battlefield.

“…Allen… could it be you don’t trust me to handle this mission alone?”

“…That’s not it. But it lacks certainty. If both of us go, we can contain this without the damage spreading any further.”

“…”

“I am the current captain. This conversation is over. Let’s move, Labilia.”

Were even his fellow 【World Knights】 something Allen considered his to protect?

Pulling her gaze from the back that swept its black mantle forward and pressed ahead, Labilia looked down.

And in the end, that premonition proved true.

At the very last moment, he drove the rest of them away from the Demon King and stayed behind alone in the Evil-Eye Fortress.

——How absurd. “I leave my back to you”—what a joke. I couldn’t even stand at your side.

She had been protected, over and over again, by the one person she most wanted to protect. The image of the knight in black, swallowed by black flames, smiling with quiet contentment—it was burned into Labilia’s mind and refused to leave.

＊　　　＊　　　＊

A month had passed since the day the Evil-Eye Fortress collapsed.

The world had erupted in celebration over the victory of the Great Human-Demon War—but only for a moment. The news of the 【Obsidian Knight】’s death, spreading across every nation, brought a grief that refused to heal and tears that would not stop.

With the death of a hero beloved by all, many people throughout the world had still not found their footing. Amid all of that, news driving even deeper anxiety was spreading through the capital of the Holy Imperial Kingdom—sovereign nation of the Human Alliance.

“…Did you hear? They say Eufaria-sama has gone missing…”

“…And apparently Leonhardt-sama hasn’t left her tower at all…”

“Allen-sama… he was still so young. What a cruel fate…”

“…What’s going to become of the 【World Knights】…?”

“I imagine there’ll be another world conference where the kings vote to decide a successor.”

“…A replacement for Allen-sama too?”

“There’s no replacing that man…”

“…Maybe it’s fine to leave the seat vacant for a while? The war is over now, after all.”

Across every part of the city, unsettling rumors about the movements of the heroes representing each race were being whispered from person to person.

Learning of this situation through reports from her subordinates, Labilia was troubled.

The 【Tower of Warriors】—built in the holy capital and used as a base of operations by generations of the battle-women Amazonian race’s 【World Knights】.

Its ground floor connected directly to a circular arena, and Labilia stood on the stage surrounded by empty spectator seats, swinging her beloved sword over and over with a cleared mind.

But when the rain began to fall, drop by drop, Labilia halted her beautiful, dance-like practice swings.

“……If only I had more strength…… none of this would have had to happen.”

She looked up at a sky buried beneath thick gray clouds.

“……Hey, Allen. Without you, we can’t even hold ourselves together. Everyone is falling apart.”

Pushing back her damp crimson hair, Labilia exhaled with a troubled sigh.

(……I can’t even manage to see Leonhardt. Eufaria has vanished somewhere. Gavreel burns with hatred for the demon-kind and sets his sights on the demon continent. And Nozes—I have no idea what he’s thinking.)

A memory of the six of them laughing together drifted through her mind, and a deep sadness washed over her. Labilia closed her eyes.

After the battle with the Demon King, Labilia had visited each of the towers—but the only one she was able to see was Gavreel. Naturally, they could not speak the way they once had.

Everyone was wandering somewhere between self-blame and blaming others.

That was why their every interaction had turned stiff and awkward.

(Can we really protect this world in a state like this…… Allen, if you could see us now, what would you think?)

“——Watch over this world for me.”

His final words replayed in her mind, and tears slid silently from Labilia’s eyes.

“……You’ll catch a cold, you know?”

She had been standing in the rain for some time. The words that arrived without warning from behind her received a reply from Labilia without so much as a twitch.

“……Nozes. What do you want.”

“Am I interrupting your training, Labilia?”

The 【Tower of Warriors】 was home to a large number of Labilia’s subordinates. There were few people who could slip past those subordinates—who handled not only her personal affairs but security as well—and reach Labilia directly.

When Labilia turned around, there he was, exactly as expected: a halfling with round-framed glasses, standing beneath an umbrella and wearing a smile.

“I asked what you want. Let me say one thing upfront—I am useless as a consultation partner for alchemy.”

“……Labilia, I didn’t come as a 【World Knight】. I came simply as a friend, worried about someone who’s been crying her eyes out.”

Labilia, a warrior through and through, and Nozes, a researcher to his core—their personalities were complete opposites, yet the two of them had always been strangely in sync.

“The way you say that—I am not a child. His death grieves me, but I am a warrior. It is nothing worth crying over.”

“……Labilia, you don’t have to put on a brave face. You might not have noticed, but your eyes are completely red, you know?”

Nozes pointed it out with a wry smile.

Labilia, in turn, pressed her lips into a firm, sullen line—

“……So I’ll ask again: what do you want. You don’t go around genuinely worrying about people. Even if you dress it up in words that sound like concern, I know what’s underneath is something else entirely.”

She folded her arms and looked away. Nozes stretched up to hold the umbrella over her and continued.

“I came to ask a favor—as a friend.”

“……”

“……Reports from various places show growing unease about Eufaria’s movements going forward. A 【World Knight】 disappearing without reason cannot be permitted.”

“……You want me to search for her?”

“Glad you catch on fast. If at all possible, I’d like you to bring her back to the holy capital.”

Labilia closed her eyes and turned the request over in her mind.

Eufaria had left without telling even her comrades where she was going. But one thing could be said with certainty—her reason was almost certainly something she believed was for Allen’s sake. If someone tried to bring her back, there would likely be a clash.

“……I see. So you intend to drive me—someone who opposes the counteroffensive into the demon continent—out of this place? You plan to head to the demon continent alongside Gavreel?”

“That’s not it.”

“……Nozes. What are you thinking? Is my presence here a hindrance?”

At that question, Nozes smiled ambiguously with a look that seemed somehow unsettled. He was apparently not going to reveal his true intentions.

(……Even so, the fact that nothing will change if I stay put here doing nothing—that much is true.)

If she chose to see it as an opportunity to mend the fraying bonds between her scattered comrades, Labilia could find it within herself to commit.

“……Understood. I will see to the matter of Eufaria. In exchange, Nozes—I am leaving Leonhardt and Gavreel to you.”

“……Yes. Of course. And Labilia—”

“……What.”

Nozes hesitated, then pushed up his round glasses and looked down as he spoke.

“……I never said this before, but—the plan to launch a surprise raid on the Evil-Eye Fortress using only the 【World Knights】 was something I proposed to Allen. He agreed to it, and that’s what led to what happened.”

“……”

“You’re welcome to hate me for it.”

From the corner of her eye Labilia watched Nozes’s body begin to melt and collapse into liquid—and she spoke.

“……The only thing I hate is my own weakness.”