CH 87

※Told from the perspective of Manaria Sousa.

What awaited me when I returned from my time as an exchange student in Bauer was the family feud I was long fed up with. Questions like who would succeed the throne, which political faction would result in the sweetest nectar, and other such trifles… Those things seemed to be all that filled the heads of these so called nobles. It was clear they had long ceased to care about the people.

I don’t believe that you could make the claim that I had a sincere personality, but I was aware of my status as royalty. I had never taken much interest in politics, but I believed I still possessed the bare minimum amount of love a royal must hold for their kingdom’s people. And, even from my perspective, the Sousa I saw when I returned, was… unbearable.

―If left the way things were, the kingdom would surely collapse.

Sensing impending peril, I reluctantly announced my candidacy to succeed the throne. This wasn’t something that I wanted to return to, but if I left things as they were, the people would suffer. As someone with a royal lineage, if there was something that I could do, I wanted to do everything within my power.

『… But… Just what is it that I can do?』

Having been exiled, it only made sense that most people refused to support me at first. The scandal over my sexuality and womanizing, which had previously only been dealt with internally, was leaked to the public by an opposing faction. This put my campaign in a difficult spot, and for a while, it remained that way. Even so, without losing heart, I steadily and earnestly advocated for policies that truly would benefit the people of my kingdom.

“Manaria Sousa, I take it? This is who I am.”

The tide began to turn when I accepted an interview from the largest news press in Sousa. Until now, they had only published articles about the candidates leading the race, but one younger reporter reached out to me to request an interview.

The reporter’s name was Bettina Ermini. She was one of the few female reporters in an industry still primarily dominated by men. When I met her, her black rimmed glasses and disheveled hair worried me, but those worries were short lived. She afforded me no space to be able to even consider them.

『I will be straight to the point. Are you an enemy to womankind?』

Bettina did not soften her questions on the account that I was a noble. Contrary to what her appearance suggested, she maintained a sharp eloquence throughout the interview causing me to re-evaluate her. Among the many reporters who simply wrote fluff pieces of no value, she was one of the few pursuing true journalism. With her own eyes and through her own pen, I felt that she sought to shed light on the truth.

Her questions were many and varied. She, of course, inquired about my previous scandals, what kind of politics I wanted to conduct, how I envisioned Sousa’s future, and much more. The interview continued for five and a half hours. During that span of time, she never once let up. It took my all, both body and soul to keep up with her.

Looking back, I don’t believe that I had ever spoken about myself in such detail to anyone in that way before. The number of questions that involved my personal life and such details were by no means few. If she were just asking these questions out of curiosity, I would have declined to answer. However, I knew immediately that wasn’t the case. I could tell that she truly wanted to learn about me so she could judge my character for herself, without relying on prejudice.

『Exclusive Interview: Manaria Sousa’s Character and Visions for the Future』

Bettina’s article caused big waves. This was possibly the first time I, Manaria Sousa, as one of the kingdom’s royalty, was properly seen by the kingdom’s people.

Right after the article had been released, public opinion of me remained split. However, I was certainly under the spotlight. This meant the number of people looking at and evaluating my policies had increased as well. From then on, I diligently promoted myself while also collecting public feedback. By quickly incorporating the feedback that I felt required immediate action to my policies, I could see the public sentiment shift toward me.

I really hadn’t thought this far ahead. At first, I simply thought I might find a hint for what to do next. But this should have been obvious from the start. Even then, my actions achieved a greater effect than I could have anticipated. The thought brought shame to me as royalty, but it was clear that Sousa’s ruling class, until now, hadn’t even been capable of doing something this obvious.

The kingdom’s people were simply disgusted at the kingdom’s royalty and nobility who seemed incapable of this introspection. Support for my campaign and my policies spread, and my adversaries who only seemed capable of touting my past scandals steadily lost ground.

After a few months, the one who inherited the crown was none other than me. It happened so quickly and easily, that I couldn’t help but feel that it was anticlimactic. However, this was unmistakably the choice of my kingdom’s people. The number of people who opposed my policies were not few, but they all gave up and left the kingdom. It was clear that this country was tired.

At first, the thought of taking responsibility for an entire kingdom was heavy, but after assuming my responsibilities, I found it surprisingly rewarding. I doubt that I would ever give birth, but I found taking care of my kingdom just as, if not more, interesting than raising a child. Of course, I knew that such a remark would cause backlash, so I’d never say that out loud.

For a while, I concentrated my efforts on internal reforms to the kingdom’s policies, until an… Unexpected report came my way.

『My queen! There are reports that the volcano in Bauer Kingdom has erupted!』

As our kingdoms were in an alliance, I quickly drafted plans for relief missions to Bauer. However, when I heard that Bauer’s nobles had set up their own provisional government, I felt that things may be too risky. The nobles there ignored even the kingdom’s own royalty, and shaped policies that abandoned the people. It had even come to my attention that the one leading the efforts was none other than Dor.

Something just didn’t make sense. Even so, I did not have the luxury of discerning his true intentions. After all, there were clear signs that the Naa Empire was lurking in the shadows. Preparing for the very worst, I decided to rally Sousa’s troops and rush toward Bauer.

And so, after many twists and turns, we made it to Bauer, but both the provisional government and the revolutionaries were unsure how to handle our appearance. The revolutionaries had the Naa Empire backing them, so I could make sense of that, but Dor’s provisional government also appeared to be in disarray. I decided to meet with Dor in person.

Then, I witnessed the start of the revolution.

Dor was captured by the revolutionaries, and Claire soon surrendered to them as well. Things simply didn’t add up, and I only grew more perplexed the more I learned.

『This doesn’t make any sense.』

It didn’t make sense that Dor would accept this dishonor. That Dor would toss Claire out to the wolves. And above all, that Rei hadn’t stepped in to prevent any of this.

I decided to carefully gather information. Then, I finally caught up to Rei as she came to rescue Claire. Rei fought valiantly. However, in the end, Claire was the one who rejected her. And that was when I finally clued in.

―This had all gone according to script.

It was likely Dor who had written the script. Or, perhaps it was a co-authorship with Rei. Regardless, Dor and Claire had likely willingly given themselves up for their chosen cause, and… Rei had opposed that―and been rejected.

『…』

As Rei stared at the broken window on the second floor of the government building, she fell to her knees. She had lost herself.

『Over here! Provide Alter-sama with your backup!』

『Don’t let her leave alive!』

There was no time to dawdle. Claire had reacted in that way to even Rei. Even if I were to try to convince her, I doubt the result would be any different. For now, I thought our best option was to retreat.

『…』

When I held Rei in my arms, she was surprisingly light. I couldn’t help but wonder just how many burdens she had continued to carry within her frail body. Dor had really put her through the wringer.

『…』

I brought Rei back to the tavern my Sousa army established as a base of operations, but she had yet to recover. Considering the circumstances, it was understandable. She truly loved Claire from the bottom of her heart. The one who forced her to realize that, was none other than I. At that time, I thought that was for the best, but now that things have turned out like this, I had no choice but to admit perhaps my efforts had backfired.

It took a couple of days before Rei came to her senses.

『Manaria-sama…? Why are you here?』

But she still hadn’t returned to her usual self. Her eyes were clearly dyed in despair. It was evident just how important Claire was to her.

―If I were to be honest and confess now… I did feel just a little tempted to try.

If I were to take advantage of Rei’s weakened heart, perhaps this time I would be able to make her mine. Rei really was an attractive lady. The words I said when we competed over the Love Scales were by no means a lie.

―However… I knew it wasn’t truly possible.

This Rei, who had lost Claire, was no longer Rei. Claire’s existence had practically already become part of her personality. That was just how irreplaceable Claire was. Say that I were to try and take advantage of Rei in her current weakness. In that case, I believe that it would be possible that she’d become mine. However, the moment she did, that Rei would be nothing more than a husk of her old self. The Rei I love, is the Rei that loves Claire, she loves Claire so much that she just can’t contain herself.

―Good grief, she really is nothing but trouble.

So, I decided to once again light Rei’s fire. I just narrowly succeeded, and Rei once more found the will to steal Claire back. Truly, what a sinful girl. I thought I had a chance, but to think that I’d again be made to play second fiddle.

But well, that was how things should be.

Besides, as royalty, sooner or later… I would be forced to give up on a personal romance anyway. That’s why, this was for the best.

If possible, I pray that my beloved and the girl I consider my precious little sister, can hold hands and bear witness to the beginning of a new era.

Translator Note: It was really nice to be able to get more perspective into what happened with Manaria after she left! In ILTV she kinda just returns as a queen and it’s like, cool, but wow, I guess a lot happened. Also, having to accept that the Rei she loves, is the Rei that loves Claire ;~;