CH 29

The Beginning of The Festival

Just as Chrono was escaping reality with red wine because of that unexplained fate ……

In the middle of a room in Lionel’s mansion, two martial artists were exchanging swords.

“Hiya!!!

“Haa!!!

The force of the blow was so strong that pieces of the wooden sword flew apart.

In the room, which had been built to absorb more light, the moonlight reflected brightly off the sweat of the two men.

Only now was Harmal able to focus his mind on his sword without distraction.

“Ha, ha, ha.”

“Well, let’s stop here. As expected, I’m still too tired.”

Lionel said to Harmal, who looked like he was about to break, as he stood there supported by his sword.

“Understood…”

The sudden arrival of Harmal was greeted with a very pleasant welcome, and at last the father-son conversation with the sword, which had been going on instead of greetings, was over.

After washing their bodies at the well, they returned to the sword-playground where they had been before.

The walls of the room were adorned with the sword of the House of E (Lionel’s surname) , known as the Magic Sword, and they were facing each other as if under its guardianship.

The silence of the night and the touch of the cold wooden floor, to which they had long been accustomed, calmed Harmal and Lionel’s hearts.

“- You still seem confused.”

“That’s …… I’m very sorry ……”

Sure enough, he was still seen through by his foster father. While bowing his head to apologize, he felt an incredible sense of peace of mind.

“There was no need to apologize. Anyone can be confused. Life is a constant state of confusion. I don’t think that’s a bad thing, I even think it’s quite enlightening. …… Well, in short, there is only one thing I want to tell you.”

“…… Please do tell me.”

Harmal’s heart hung in the air, but what Lionel said was not something special, but a matter of course.

“That is, that you are still the son of this old man.”

“…!”

Harmal trembled at the emotion that came over him.

“If you had become an enemy of your country, I am sure that the sword of this old man would have stood in your way. But even so you are still the son of this old man.”

“Sob… sob…”

The tears that were hard to stop flowed down indefinitely.

Lionel removed the magic sword from his back and approached Harmal, pressing it to his chest and declaring in a loud voice.

“Whatever choice you make, you must march towards the justice you believe in! You are the proud son of this old man!”

“Sob …… sob …… yes!!!”

Facing Lionel who was laughing brightly, Harmal responded powerfully while trembling.

Because of what Lionel said, Harmal’s fate was thus decided.

♢♢♢

The sun rises.

The nobles of the Kingdom of Light, along with guests from various countries, entered the drill ground that served as the venue for the royal tournament.

Normally, there would be no one from other countries participating in the Imperial Competition, which is a high level of national force for warriors in front of the King of Light.

However, over the years many people from foreign countries have become eager to participate.

It goes without saying that their purpose is of course ……

“…… Oh, oh …… how ………… beautiful it gets every time I see it! ……”

In the queue that was set up for this purpose, similar compliments were heard many times.

The person to whom these words were directed was, of course, Celestia, who was sitting on a chair in front of her. Covered in white light armour, she was more lovely and beautiful than usual, but at the same time she had the aura of a goddess of war.

To her left and right she was guarded by Mary and another man. Around her were a large number of knights and soldiers with a twinkle in their eyes, not daring to watch the movements of the nobles and dignitaries who were offering lavish gifts while talking eagerly.

“Please accept this Morbou’s loyalty– ”

“No contact.”

Mary immediately stopped Viscount Morbou, who wanted to approach Celestia.

He probably wanted to kiss the back of her hand. This was a clear violation of the rules, and he was bathed in the murderous glare of the many people in the queue.

“Your parents didn’t teach you manners? Anyway, from now on you are no longer allowed to be received by Celestia-sama.”

“How can that be! I am a nobleman of this country!”

“Take him away.”

Having seen what happened to Morbou, who had been taken away by the soldiers like a prisoner, although not particularly roughly, the rest of the meeting went very smoothly.

Conversation with Celestia was limited to two sentences, contact with Celestia was forbidden, and gifts were kept in a special space.

If you pay attention to these three points, you will not be interrupted as long as nothing major happens.

“…… As usual, Celestia-sama has a very strong defence against men.”

“Well, that’s pretty thorough. I’ve heard rumors that she hates men, but if you think about it the other way around, we still have a chance, don’t we?”

“Ha ha ha ha, Your Excellency the Marquis. That’s a very good idea. Oh yeah, wow, my turn.”

Whoever it was, they hide their desires in their hearts, compress them in this very short period of time and express them hard, and then end their greetings with the incarnation of beauty.

“Well, then, …… I look forward to seeing you again. ……”

“Yes. I guess we’ll see you again if we get the chance. Goodbye.”

From morning until the sun came overhead, the last one was finally finished.

“You two have worked hard.”

Celestia, as if she was not tired at all, spoke to the two guards who had half a day’s work left but were already exhausted.

“Please don’t worry about us. Compared to that, this time it has really increased too. …… Aren’t you tired, Celestia-sama?”

Mary was really worried about the number of people she wished to meet, which increased with every event. Even Celestia must have accumulated a lot of stress and fatigue.

However, Celestia responded with a smile that was more pleasant than ever.

“Yes, I’m perfectly all right. So, let’s go to Father now.”

“Yes!”

They hung the swords they had deposited at their belts and hurried to the place where King Light was waiting.

Knights and soldiers came and went in the kingdom, keeping a strict guard in a tense atmosphere.

Because of the high level of information about the assassins, the seriousness of the knights and soldiers could be seen to be ready for battle.

“Father, Shiro-sensei. I’ve kept you waiting.”

At the entrance to the most luxurious viewing gallery in the drill ground, they met up with Shiro Yusia, who had been appointed as the king’s escort.

“Nothing, just in time. …… Although you may be tired …… but we counting on you.”

Shiro gave a quiet salute in response, while King Light consoled Celestia for her previous hard work.

The thought that there was an important job to be done after this made them frown with a sad expression.

“Yes. This is, after all, the plan I have set out. It’s only natural …… So, let’s go.”

“Umm, then …… open the door.”

Hearing the king’s words, the knight in charge of the guard at the entrance hurriedly opened the door to the viewing gallery.

Then, amidst the roar of cheers that overflowed from the door, the crowd led by the king entered it.