The start of the information war.

Despite the twists and turns, things move quickly once the Great Spirits agree to help. Lovell immediately relayed the news to Ravisel.

"Preparations here are complete."

"Ah. Just in time—I was finishing up the magic for communication."

If the other side wants war and is connected to Amiel, they’ll have to move. Or rather, they’ll have no choice but to move.

I’d already made it clear I didn’t want to be left behind. I asked the Great Spirits to stop me from being killed, should they decide I was useless.

The spirits can’t touch Amiel directly, so we couldn’t bring him back through direct teleportation. Instead, we’d calm the situation first, then use indirect teleportation—like how we brought the Prince back from Vanclift territory before—to retrieve the guards and bring him home.

"Trouble to manage."

The room had been cleared of everyone except the two of them, yet Lovell still blinked in surprise at Raffilia’s straightforward bow.

Since fighting Elen, she occasionally showed this unguarded politeness toward Lovell—something that still unsettled him, despite years of conditioning. He just couldn’t get used to it.

Raffilia was wrestling with paperwork at the study desk. Always working. No, not always—now, thanks to Amiel, she was buried in the mess of Helgner-related headaches.

The dark circles under her eyes stood out sharply.

“Honestly, I’d have expected you to finish off Agiel and all of them right there, back when you were still you. A misstep like Amiel wouldn’t want saving, would they?”

“…Yes. I would’ve ended it without hesitation.”

“You really have changed. If I’d known your wife was already around, I’d have thought you’d taken up with a daughter instead.”

"If you say so, Your Majesty has changed too."

"…………"

A wrinkle formed between Lavisel’s brows, as if struck by the realization only now.

She must have been recalling her exchange with Elen two years prior.

"Surprised you’re aware of it."

"…I can’t imagine you’d ever surpass Elen."

"Ah, well, well."

"Still, I doubt Helgunner could either."

"Of course not."

"If only they’d tasted the same fear I did."

Lavisel chuckled, low and dark. Inside, Lovell couldn’t help but smile wryly—she’d really managed to terrify her own daughter like that?

Being cornered to the brink of a nation’s destruction—yes, that was fear. Watching the people you were supposed to protect turn into enemies in an instant.

In Lavisel’s case, the castle was surrounded by people afflicted with illness. The slow, creeping spread of the sickness, soldiers collapsing one by one—it must have felt like an invisible terror pressing in from all sides, unbearable.

Just then, a message came from the guard: the magic was ready.

“Alright, let’s go.”

Lavisel rose from her chair. Lovell followed suit.

Now began the battle of wits with Hellgner.

The tension spiked instantly. Lavisel and Lovell grinned at each other, sharp and knowing.

＊＊＊

At the edge of the Hellgner kingdom, in the village of Faro, a young man was searching for something at the forest’s edge.

A tall youth with golden hair and blue eyes, slender but with muscles clearly visible beneath the rolled-up sleeves of his shirt.

A sword hung at his waist, the scabbard worn smooth from frequent use, its leather surface cracked and softened by time.

"Hey… you not here?"

He pushed aside the grass, sighing. Usually, he’d be right here.

"Today, huh… not around?"

In his hand, a makeshift pouch—just a scrap of leather tied at the edges with a simple string.

Inside: bread and cheese. His lunch, but he’d always shared a little with his distant friend, ever since they were kids.

Still, the friend was unpredictable—rarely bothered to show up.

"Miss Yuui? Over here?"

Seemed the guard had finally come looking, the appointed time having passed.

His friend absolutely hated that guard. If the man even stepped near, she’d vanish entirely. So for lunch, he’d asked the guard to keep a respectful distance—just for now.

"……Tetsu, I couldn’t see her today."

The guard called Tetsu gives a wry smile at Yuu, whose shoulders slump.

"Please don’t tell me you’re blaming me for this?"

"Exactly! Maybe she wasn’t there because you were looking for me!"

"Wait—didn’t I just say *don’t say that*?!"

Tetsu laughs, and Yuu laughs back, apologetic. "Sorry, sorry…"

"So… lunch is still on, then?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"Well, guess we’ll have to eat before the foreman yells at us."

"Guess so…"

They reach a patch where fallen tree stumps are lined up neatly. Using one as a chair, they sit facing each other.

Yuu unrolls a leather pouch and starts eating bread and cheese. There’s extra—enough for a friend, so she eats a little more than usual.

Tetsu sighs, a dry chuckle slipping out at Yuu’s quiet, subdued eating—she didn’t get to see her friend, after all.

The young man known as Tetsu, who’s always looking after Yuu, was twenty-eight this year.

His real name was Tiotsu. Tetsu was his nickname. Short brown hair, brown eyes, and a gentle smile that made him popular in the village.

Yuu, who was turning eighteen, stood out in looks too—popular behind the scenes, but in this Helgner nation, pale hair was seen as a sign of weak spirit connection, a bad omen, and people kept their distance.

Tetsu had looked after Yuu since childhood, even though they weren’t blood-related—more like a brother.

When Yuu’s parents passed and she was left alone in the world, Tetsu, then serving as her guard, had, through twists and turns, taken her in.

They’d moved from her old home, settling now in Faro Village, where Tetsu’s relatives lived, and the two of them live together.

Tetsu’s relatives were blacksmiths who forged swords. Under Tetsu’s guidance, while apprenticing in sword-making, he also trained in handling them—learning the craft, not just the metal.

The black cat, known as “she,” had been by Yuui’s side since they lived in the old family home with her parents.

But she’s not much for companionship—usually ignores you. Still, the rare times she’d curl up against Yuui’s side, purring like a tiny, furry engine, those were the moments that felt like pure, unearned joy.

When Yuui was adrift, alone and hollow, it was she who stayed.

And when Yuui knelt, face down, weeping into her own hands, it was Tetsu who reached down, took her wrist, and pulled her up.

To Yuui, Tetsu and her cat were the only family she had.

Tetsu still keeps his distance, as if the gap between her noble blood and his common roots can’t be bridged—but his trust in her runs deeper than anyone else’s.

And she has a name. But I was told not to call her by it—never from Tez’s lips.

So Yui and the others just call her “her.”

“…Yui-sama, I’d like to share something with you.”

“Hm? What’s this sudden formality?”

“Apparently, a massive order for swords has come in from the capital.”

Yui’s hand froze at Tez’s words. It was the look of someone deep in thought.

“…It’s got nothing to do with me.”

“Yui-sama… you’re not forgetting, are you?”

“…………”

Tez’s words make Yui’s face twist—like she’s chewed on a bitter pill and crushed it between her teeth.

“We’re blacksmiths, remember?”

“Don’t tell me work’s piling up during mealtime!!”

“Guess we’ll be gathering firewood for a bit, then.”

The earlier tension vanished. The two were chatting casually now, as if nothing had happened.

“Come on, we should head back soon.”

“Yeah, sure.”

She folds up the leather cloth spread across her lap, brushing off crumbs of bread.

The sky above them was open, like a gaping hole punched through the forest.

It was clear, yes—but something vaguely sour hung in the air, making Yui frown between her brows.

Tetsu watched silently. He had nothing left to say.

Even the small, dark figure watching from a distance, keeping its distance, tilted its head up at the sky, just like Yui. Then it froze, eyes widening as if it had just noticed something.

And in a flash, it stood and vanished into the trees.