96-096-The courage of Prince Leica

128 years in the life of the King, the 8th of the Red Moon.

＜Jadeite Imperial City, Castle Royal, Hall of Audience

'My God, no!

When His Majesty Emperor Dinosis raised his voice with an intensified expression, Elena stepped forward while swaying her light blue hair softly in my place and replied.

''Yes. I'm not going to be able to say that I'm not going to be able to do that. Of course, it would be better if "my prophecy" did not come true.

'Oh, oh.... I hope I am too.

-- Tomorrow, the Demon King's army will attack the Jedite Empire!

Although this is a future event I once saw and an event left in my diary, I decided to convey the series of events to His Majesty the Emperor as 'Prophecy by Water Spirit Elena'.

Naturally, water spirits don't have the ability to predict the future, but such a premise was meaningless in light of the fact that this spirit, which is rarely seen in public, had informed me of the crisis.

''I also believe that preparation is absolutely necessary regarding this prophecy.''

Prince Laika then stepped forward and spoke of the events of the past few days.

'Initially, I refused to ask for instruction from my teacher and went to the capital,' he said, 'but no matter where I went, he appeared before me instantly. But wherever I went, he instantly appeared in front of me.

The heavyweights were surprised by Prince Laika's words, but only one of them huffed with satisfaction after hearing his explanation.

''No wonder. This me being treated like a baby was also the future that was decided from the beginning.''

Well, denying it won't be a positive thing, so I'll keep quiet.

Now, here's where I come in.

''The Demon King's army is dominated by the Dark Attribute, and the cooperation of the users of the Holy Attribute is essential to counter the curses and disease-causing magic (debuffs) used by those people.

Holy shit!　You may not know this, but most of our people are in combat positions, and less than 10% of our people are in support positions.

I have some understanding of that, too, based on Zwei's statement when he caused the earlier Greater Demon summoning incident.

Of course, I also know that in the Jediite Empire, where it is common for people to establish a hierarchical relationship with their opponents by screwing them over with force, non-combatant priests are rarely given a vocation.

At this point I decided to bluff some more.

''In the dungeons of this castle, there should be a man who once held the position of High Priest, the man who is considered to have the most outstanding ability in the Holy King's Capital, Platena... the clergyman Einz. He would be capable of defeating even the Demon King's army.

What?

Immediately after His Majesty the Emperor raised his voice in astonishment, the faces of those who seemed to be a few old-timers changed.

Perhaps they are the ones involved in sabotaging the establishment of the Imperial Church and imprisoning Einsatz, but His Majesty himself and Leopard seem surprised by the fact that there is a great clergyman in this country, so he must be clean.

And there's one more fact I've learned from the current reaction.

For sure, Einz is alive--!

I folded up further so as not to miss this opportunity.

''We will negotiate with Einz and have him join us in the battle against the Demon King's army. And if he shows any suspicious movements, I will take full responsibility to defeat him........How about these terms?

"Hey, Your Majesty!　The words of these dubious people are not worth listening to!

One of the old-timers countered my words with a panicked look.

But the next moment--

"Rude!

What?

Not only the old-timers, but even the Emperor himself widened his eyes in surprise at the sudden loud voice.

It's a good thing that it was Prince Raika who raised his voice.

It's not just a matter of time before you get your hands on a new one.

"But, Prince...!

"Sir?　Am I correct in assuming that you intend to speak disparagingly of me?

"...I'm sorry, I'm sorry...

His Majesty took a glance at the man who had fallen silent after being rebutted head-on by the prince, who he had previously dismissed as a youngster, and concluded with a look of satisfaction: ''Raika, I agree with you and consent to your proposal.

I agree with your opinion and agree with his idea. It's a good thing that you're not the only one who has a problem with this, because you've assured me that you'll take full responsibility.

Oh, thank you.

I said a few words of thanks to His Majesty the Emperor, but 'judge them all' means that if anything happens, they will all be executed.

As for me, I was planning to take responsibility alone, so this was completely unexpected.

For once, I definitely can't fail........

◇ ◇ ◇.

''But to think that Raika-sama would speak so bravely like that....... This leperd, I almost cried for joy.''

After we finished our earlier discussion, Leopard spoke to us as we went outside.

Seeing him impressed, the prince smiles shyly and replies with a bit of pride.

''I'm surprised even for myself, though. But........this case is a matter of concern for the future of our country, so we must do something about it.

It's true that the invasion of the Demon King's Army must be prevented at all costs. This is your chance to go from a mere criminal to a hero, and I'm sure this Einz guy won't mind.

Receiving Leopard's optimistic words, the prince turned to me with a slightly troubled look to the side.

Well, I guess it can't be helped if we've come this far.

And from what he said and did during the audience and from what he's done so far, I'm sure he's trustworthy enough.

''This prisoner named Einz, he's probably being held for an innocent crime.

What?

Then, after explaining the series of disturbances in the Central Church that occurred in the Holy King's Capital and how Einz was attacked just before the Imperial Church was established, Leopard angrily bit down on his back teeth with a gritty smile.

''Those military guys, they would go to such lengths to protect themselves.......I can't forgive them!

"But who can say that I am going to barge in on someone who has suffered so much and conveniently ask for their help...

Looking at Prince Laika who was muttering anxiously, I gently stroked his head.

''Sensei........''

'Well, it's actually the people who cheated Einz who are to blame, and the prince didn't do anything wrong. I'm sure he'll understand.

We went to the dungeon to meet up with Einz.