Vol 2 Chapter 17 (1/2)
Chapter 17
Chapter 2, Episode 17: Commander
Although the right flank of the Fourth I to the left, thethus far and the battle with the rebel arle coned Had these men been conscripted citizens, they never would have been able to deploy this quickly, and there likely would have been a large nu in fear
In that tense atht flank, was the Sixth Imperial Princess, entrusted with its command
Her crimson hair as radiant as the sun, is covered in dust But that did nothing to take away froure, which was re further
In front of her, is a young girl She has dark skin, but it is hidden by a large robe Furthermore, the hood of her robe hides her entire face in a shadow, keeping you fro at her expression
The young girl was acting as the leader of the rebel army— the slave liberation army And so, there are likely many who resent her For the Lichtein Dukedo to kill her, and it’s no different for the Fourth Imperial Army This is why Liz, the Sixth Imperial Princess, is with her to protect her from any ould cross a line that should not be
Adding to that scene, the nearby knights were gazing in slight wonderment at Valdite atop her horse
It probably wasn’t due to their rude stares, but Liz let out a troubled sigh
「Haa…」
Her sigh was filled with affection, like a aiting for her husband to return fro her child to co boy
「Hiro… I wonder if he’s okay」
「There no need to worry about that boy」
Tris responded to Liz, his words full of spirit Though he’s an old soldier, he’s not too old to still actively serve But considering his age, he doesn’t show a single sign of decline, and he maintains his youthfully muscular body
Next to him, there was a zorosta with an even ht, purple skin which is particular to zorostas He appears to be in his early twenties, but he is slightly past 100, and like the young girl, he is also under the protection of the Sixth Imperial Princess
The zorosta nareement to Tris’s words
「I would also say there is no need to worry Though I leave it to you whether or not to believe the words of a former enemy…」
「See, you know!」
Tris enthusiastically patted the zorosta’s shoulder Knowing how strong Gahda was, Liz was surprised to see this— or at least she was for a bit, but she washe says, Tris has also acknowledged Hiro
Liz realized this, but she didn’t say anything sarcastic about it
「But to stop an army’s advance by himself It’s just reckless, no matter how you look at it」
She wasn’t able to finish her thought and express hoorried she was This was because the cause of her worries, the young boy, had returned on his 「shi+ryu」 He’s still a distance away, but it looks like his face is heavily tinted with fatigue Liz grabbed a water pouch and spoke out
「Open a path Let hih!」
Before long, Hiro arrives before Liz
Liz silently hands him the water pouch Hiro thanked her, then pl
aced the tip of the water pouch to his asped
The water pouch Hiro is holding right now belongs to her, and she’s placed her lips on it many times
After realizing what that meant, she blushed and her face turned the same color as her hair
After letting out a silent cry, she held her head in embarrassment
Hiro looked confused after seeing the Ie reaction
But he soon senses a bloodlust and looks to the side of her
Tris was glaring at Hiro, clearly displeased
Confused, Hiro gulps After wiping the water froe of his mouth, he looks around in an attempt to move past the situation
「O-Oh, is this all?」
「Eh?」
It seems Liz didn’t understand what he meant by that
「Ah, there isn’t enough water, is there?! I’ll go draw soht now!」
She voices her et more water
Hiro called out to her and rushes to stop her
「No, no, wait, wait! That’s not what I meant There’s still some left, so there’s plenty」
「… I-I knew that I was just joking」
Liz released the grip on her reins and began to stroke Milieu’s head in front of her
Milieu let her stroke her head quietly, but her head was turned in an uncomfortable direction She probably reached her limit, as she spoke out in protest
「Big sis, that hurts」
「S-Sorry! But it looked like your head was itchy!」
「It’s not really itchy」
「Of course it is!」
As usual, Liz doesn’t listen and scratches her head through the hood You couldn’t irl’s expression hidden behind the cowl, but based on how roughly she was being handled, Hiro could easily guess what she was thinking
The soldiers in the area stare blankly at the sudden change in Liz
Maybe it was because he couldn’t stand to see the Sixth I so shamefully, but…
「Ahe if we are only left with these soldiers here」
Tris came in for the rescue
「R-Right I knew that」
Liz released Milieu’s head and thrusted her finger at Hiro
「It looks like I spaced out because of the heat! Sorry!」
Hiro forced a smile and shook his head
「It’s okay, I don’tclear」
「… This sure is a carefree lot」
Hiro pretends not to have heard Gahda’s scathing words and asked his question once more
「So… were you only able to gather these numbers? What happened to the reserve unit?」
It was only the right flank which was assembled in a horizontal formation and prepared for an assault
Hiro is certain he sent ato inform hin of theht of a few prisoners of ho had taken up arms, and a few soldiers here and there There were alsoa break
「I don’t h… if he has some sort of plan」
It’s not in carelessness… but the men look too unmotivated to have received such instructions
Hiro looks confused Liz hesitantly opened her mouth
「U officer, I can not listen to the instructions of the supposed Fourth Imperial Prince”…」
Liz touched her fingertips together and looked apologetic
「I sent a nus like, 2,000 cavalryainst the weak soldiers of the Lichtein Dukedom We couldn’t convince him… Sorry」
「I see You didn’t do anything wrong, Liz You don’t have to worry about it」
Maybe it was because of his curt response, but Liz hung her head and looked dejected
Hiro senses Tris’s anger It feels like he ht draw his sword any second now
He didn’t have the courage to confirm whether it was towards Hiro’s reply, or General Kielo’s rude response
「… Liz, for now, let’s go to headquarters It’s probably best to ht be difficult to see hi on you」
It seems this made her happy
「Yeah, leave it to me!」
Liz s flower Hiro stroked his chest relieved
「Then, I know this is sudden, but let’s get going」
「We have to tell his about you, Hiro」
「No, a light introduction is fine」
「Are we taking Milieu, too?」
The wind carried Gahda’s dissatisfied voice
「Based on what I’ve heard, this General Kielo doesn’t seeerous to take Milieu to him?」
「But if we don’t take her with us, you ht take her and run」
Liz glared sidelong at Gahda with hatred e from her cold eyes
「I’ll never forgive you for using a young little girl, so we’re taking her with us So that you won’t be able to start another war」
Gahda ed his shoulders
Then, Hiro took notice of Milieu He could see her le Her lips are turned down in a frown as if unhappy, but perhaps she feels Liz has a point as she doesn’t say a word
It e
Hiro decides to et any darker
「Tris」
「What is it?」
「Please instruct the soldiers to rest」
「You don’t ht come attack us」
「It’s the opposite If everyone else is resting and only the right flank is on alert, they’ll realize there’s a break in the chain of command and attack」
Tris tilted his head
「Hmm… But if we’re not on alert, won’t they attack us all the more?」
「If the eneed already I actually would’ve been grateful if they did… Anyway, it seeilance, that will actually increase his suspicions So I think it should be fine as long as we’re able toshould happen」
Hiro paused and looked to the east
His feint attack was a success As long as they don’t do anything rash, the opponent likely won’t do anything careless either
「Let’s take advantage of them as much as we can There are the soldiers, too— but please let the horses rest at least for a bit also」
It was a miscalculation that General Kielo was reluctant to send out the reserve unit, but it was actually effective in fanning the opponent’s vigilance
Once Tris was convinced, Hiro lightly patted the 「shi+ryu」 on the neck
「I’ll leave the rest to you」
Tris approached the now「shi+ryu」 with his horse
「Mm, leave this to me Go let that General Kielo have it!」
He gives Hiro a hard slap on the back
This old style of encourage violently as he headed for headquarters
Hot rays of sunlight are blazing down on the Fourth Imperial Army But the atmosphere around them is relative calm
It’s such a carefree scene, with soldiers chatting away, that it would hardly suggest the enemy presence was detected nearby
There was a tent set up in the center to ward off the dust Inside was a simple table with a map spread atop it, and around it was General Kielo and his staff officers
「According to the scout report, it seems the Lichtein Dukedom’s army has retreated—」
One of the staff officers places a piece on the map