“Yes. There is a good chance that’s what will happen.”
Before Gustav could stop her, Remedios barreled ahead. “So if you understand that, then why won’t you help us?! It’s not only you! The nobles here and in our own country—they don’t get it at all! We should be combining our powers to fight!”
“…The reason our kingdom’s nobles can’t help you is a bit different from ours. How much do you know about the Nation of Darkness?”
It was a country built upon usurping one of the kingdom’s cities. And it was a horrible place ruled by an undead king. That was what the people of the Sacred Kingdom knew. When Remedios explained as much, Lakyus smiled wryly.
“Right. You have it almost correct, but there’s one part you’re mistaken on… It’s true that undead are in charge, but supposedly the humans living there are safe.”
“……Huh? But undead despise the living.”
“But there are all different kinds of undead, right? And the King of Darkness is an undead ruler. It must be easy for him to get the undead below him to submit and not harm the humans.”
Evileye pouted audibly.
“Come now, Evileye… Anyway, since we have this issue of the Nation of Darkness, we aren’t able to support you. And we sustained terrible losses in the battle against the Nation of Darkness. We’ll be feeling the effects of that for years to come. Even the nobles who appear wealthy don’t actually have assets to spare.”
“Still, though! Shouldn’t Jaldabaoth be handled as soon as possible?! He’s actually out there harming humans as we speak. The Nation of Darkness or whatever isn’t hurting people, right?!”
“…I don’t think I need to explain how dangerous it would be to open another front while a country is already exhausted.”
Remedios faltered.
“And two members of our party were actually killed in our fight with Jaldabaoth. We resurrected them with a spell, but they still haven’t reached their former strength. If we ventured to the land Jaldabaoth is ruling in such a state, we could be wiped out.”
“But it’s like Gustav said—you don’t have to fight him!”
“Is this lady serious…?”
“Tia! Excuse us. Um, I’m sorry, but I just don’t think things will go that smoothly. If there’s even the slightest chance that we would have to face Jaldabaoth, we have to turn down the job. We need to gather our own strength and prepare for the future…in case Jaldabaoth attacks Re-Estize again.”
The faces of the Blue Roses were unwavering; it didn’t seem like it would be possible to convince them.
Eventually Remedios spoke in a choked voice. “Then who will save our country?”
The Blue Roses exchanged glances with one another.
“There’s only one answer.” It was Evileye who replied. “Really, you should have talked to him first.”
“…Who?”
“Sir Momon, of course! The one who repelled Jaldabaoth the first time.”
“Ohhh! That makes sense!”
“Please wait, Commander Custodio… Isn’t he…I mean…?”
“So you’ve heard? Yes, he’s in the Nation of Darkness working for the king. You’ll have to persuade the King of Darkness.”
“Urk!” Remedios exclaimed.
Neia understood how she felt. It was a pretty complicated matter for a subject of the Sacred Kingdom to go to an undead for help.
She sensed that, even as a squire. Remedios, commander of the paladins and bearer of a Holy Sword, was probably even more eager to avoid anything of the sort. But there was power in her eyes as she looked at the Blue Roses.
“…If that’s our best shot at defeating Jaldabaoth, then let’s do it. Or really, it’s our only choice. Would you mind writing us an intro to this Momon g—?”
“Sir Momon, Commander.”
“R-right! Do you think you could write us an intro to Sir Momon?”
2
After the meeting with the Blue Roses, Neia and the other members of the paladin delegation were quick to depart the royal capital. Not only was there no longer anyone in Re-Estize who could help them, but they realized it would take months to gather any information about Jaldabaoth’s true form. Plus, they now had a lead in the form of Momon, the only person with any chance at defeating the demon leader.
Above all, their wish to do something for the people suffering in Roebel spurred them on.
Giving their horses only minimal rest, sometimes using magic, they proceeded east along the highway at a pace impossible for normal travelers.
After passing one final village, the party entered the buffer zone between Re-Estize and the Nation of Darkness.
Low hills obstructed their view, and there was no telling when a monster might emerge from the occasional patches of virgin forest. It was former Kingdom territory, true, but that only meant the chance of being attacked was slimmer, not zero.
Neia kept her sight, smell, and other senses sharp as they moved through that terrain.
Doesn’t seem like there’s anything waiting along the highway. And no signs that large carnivores recently passed this way.
The highway was a dirt road. Apparently, they would soon enter an area under royal jurisdiction, which would be better maintained. For most travelers, having a proper road was more convenient, but Neia preferred being able to see tracks in the dirt.
She looked down at her palms.
She wasn’t terribly fond of her hands.
They were toughened from training, though it wasn’t as if she hated them. She just hated her lack of ability.
She inherited her keen senses from her father, but unfortunately, she didn’t get anything similar from her mother.
Neia’s mother had been a paladin of some reputation, as well as fairly good with a sword. But her daughter could train all she wanted—she simply didn’t have the aptitude. She hadn’t even trained with her father’s specialty, the bow, but she was rather adept at using one.
Well, she was probably lucky to have inherited even half of their superior skills. But the special powers paladins acquired could only be used with close-quarters weapons. An aptitude for ranged weapons was pointless for someone aiming to join the ranks of paladins.
She returned her hands to the reins and held them tightly.
She lifted her hips a bit and adjusted her position
