CH 314.2

Far northwest of the royal capital, just north of the imperial capital.

『With this, the war is over. There will be no more counterattacks.』

The wasteland to the south of the Spirit Forest. An A-class Samurai Knight standing there, arms crossed, muttered through the external sound system.

Sitting in the pilot’s seat is an old man, the leader of the Imperial Order of Knights.

After burning down the elven village, the Imperial Knights left the forest and changed to observing from a short distance away. At first, there had been attacks by elves magicians, and C-class Knights, but several days had passed since they stopped appearing.

『I think it’s safe to say that they’ve exhausted all of their forces.』

The one who replied was an A-class Knight with a large rose on a black background. It was Count Rosehip, the leader of the elite and renowned Rose Knights.

The old warrior made his Samurai Knight nod to him and continued.

『I was afraid that a large magic beast would flood in, but it didn’t turn out to be as bad as I thought.』

The Spirit Forest is home to many spirits and magic beasts, as well as elves. They feared that the fire and smoke would drive them into Empire territory in droves.

In reality, however, only small groups appeared sporadically.

The most powerful of them was probably the Heavy Lancers. However, a few of them were no match for a group of Knights, and after a few of them were killed, they turned back into the forest.

(They may have feared the wilderness that spread out to the south and fled north or east through the mountains.)

The old warrior guessed while rubbing his chin. The truth is, however, there were not as many powerful magical beasts left in the forest as he thought.

It was before the first shot of the Spirit Cannon when places with strong magical power appeared in various parts of the world. Many of the beasts had already left for those places.

He exhaled lightly and shifted his thoughts to other matters.

(The casualties we suffered weren’t a few, but we were able to prevent the Spirit Cannon from shooting again.)

The Spirit Cannon is an offensive magic that is activated by using the World Tree as the rifle. Even if the elves in hiding attempt to activate it at a later date, they won’t be able to if the World Tree itself is burned down.

(From now on, the war will be back to being fought with Knights.)

The humanoid golem is the highest fighting force of the human race and the symbol of the power of a country. The war between countries is a battle between Knights and does not include non-combatants.

Killing civilians using large-scale offensive magic was not his idea of a 『War』.

(Something like that, I will never let it happen again.)

The Samurai Knight turns around and faces the burnt ruins of what was once the Northern City.

The image that comes to the mind of the old warrior sitting in the cockpit is of a swarm of Fire Arrows covering the sky, raining down on the city like rain.

(For now, sleep in peace. Not too long from now, I will be on my way to you.)

The person he called out to in his heart was a crimson A-class pilot who lost her life at the base of the World Tree. It was the mature Viscountess.

As the lord of the Northern City and the superior of her long-time deputy, she has had her subjects killed. Her soul, which had been burning with a dark flame of vengeance against the elves, surely has found some peace.

(….)

After a brief, silent prayer that went unnoticed, the commander of the Imperial Army told Count Rosehip at his side.

『I will return the Imperial Army to its former position. And His Majesty will return to the Imperial Capital.』

Besides the elves, there are other threats both at home and abroad. They can’t keep the main forces in one place for a long time.

Thus, they decided to leave some forces on the northern border, and the main force withdrew.

***

The stage returns to the royal capital once again.

It was still too early to call it evening. I have returned to my home on the southern outskirts of the entertainment district, or in other words, on the northern outskirts of downtown.

Normally I would be playing in a brothel, but today I wanted to share some good news with Imosuke and the others, my familiars.

(As I thought, it’s something I should discuss with them.)

I thought as I climbed the stairs to the third floor.

When I went to the merchant guild to discuss my wish to go on a journey at some point, the vice guild master offered me an unexpected offer, which was to give me a long vacation.

「And so, it’s decided that we’re going out. But we still have to wait a little longer.」

By the looks of it, it’s probably at least autumn or even later.

The fifth instar larvae of the swallowtail butterfly and the dung beetle, emit a wave of cheers on the bath towel laid out in the living room. I called out to the turtle, who was listening quietly.

「Don’t worry about the Pomelos. We’ll depart when it’s ready to be eaten.」

Slowly nodding his head, Zaratan, a long-lived and knowledgeable great spirit beast.

This tree, which I call 『Pomelo』, takes a lot of work to take care of.

Imosuke who’s an expert on plants, and Dangorou who’s an expert on the soil. Without the combined efforts of these two spirit beasts, the tree would not bear fruit.

「Actually, I’ve decided to leave it on the tree as is. So whenever you feel like eating them, just take them off the tree.」

This was Imosuke’s suggestion.

Exposure to wind and rain will make them look worse and change their flavor. However, it does not mean that the taste is lost.

The water loss tightens the fruit and gives the pulp a crunchy texture. The sweetness is also said to be more refreshing for grown-ups.

『You will probably like this one.』

Imosuke said to the turtle. He decided so based on the conversation so far.

By the way, I like it that way too.

「But, next year is going to be a problem huh.」

Zaratan turned to me when I folded my arms and made a difficult expression.

The journey is expected to last from six months to a year. During that time, if Imosuke and the others don’t come to tend them, they may not be able to get the flavor right.

The two experts look at each other and exchange waves.

『Don’t worry about it.』

The turtle who loves Pomelos emitted a gentle wave. He says he is happy enough to be able to taste them this year, after not being able to eat them for so long.

Hearing these words, Imosuke and Dangorou moved closer.

『We’ll think of something.』

『We will.』

Each of them said to him, and Zaratan pushed with his head as if he were petting his grandchildren.

I watched them with my eyes narrowed, but at some point the next topic to discuss popped up in my mind. Not about those who remain in the Garden Forest, but about the preparations for those who are going on a journey.

「I’m thinking of putting the medicinal tree and garden forest plants in pots and loading them on the carriage, what do you think?」

It is their food source.

Imosuke prefers the leaves of the medicinal tree, while the dung beetle is a staple eater of fallen leaves. They need the plants in the garden forest because the medicinal herb tree does not turn into fallen leaves.

Their translucent green leaves dissolve into the air and disappear when they leave the branches.

『I think it will be fine.』

If I use the potion, the potted plant will not wither and will continue to live. So says Imosuke, the leader of my familiars.

「Now all we need is a means of protection.」

Unlike the communal scheduled golem carriage service, which carries many passengers, I’m going to travel alone in a small carriage. If I were to be attacked by a magic beast or bandit, I would be in serious trouble.

The main roads within the Kingdom were fairly safe, but I was heading out of the country.

「I suppose it would be nice to have an adventurer escort.」

But then the problem is that I have spirits beast with me. I heard that they are rare outside of the Spirit Forest, so they are sure to draw attention to me.

While I was worrying about this, Dangorou climbed up onto my lap.

『I’ll protect us. Leave it to me!』

It then curls up and drops to the floor from the tip of my knee. After a small bounce, it rolls a little and stops in front of Imosuke.

『What do you think?』

General Dangorou backed himself up and looked at me. I suppose he’s trying to show off his defensive skills.

Imosuke praises him, but Zaratan is quiet. He must’ve thought that it won’t work against a magic beast.

While I vote for the turtle in my heart, I tell Dangorou with a slight twist.

「That’s dependable, but let’s use that as a last resort. Let’s make another plan for that.」

There are many problems, but we also have time. Let’s take our time and solve them one by one.

That’s what I think.