Arc 8: Vincent Vollachia
Arc 8, Chapter 1 "Change of Winning Conditions"
--The offensive and defense war between the imperial forces and the rebels that began in Lupgana, the imperial capital of Vollachia, has entered its final phase, scattering the seeds of chaos in every part of the country.
The same is true of the fall of "Vincent Vollachia" to the deadly bullet of light in front of the throne of the Crystal Palace at the innermost part of the Imperial City. The abandonment of duties by the "Nine Divine Generals" who were ordered to guard the city walls protecting the imperial capital, the sudden joining of the main imperial forces that had been reported missing in action, and the mysterious group coming from the west that opened a huge hole in the front line were all seeds of chaos scattered about.
But, the seed that has sprouted the biggest in this war situation at the moment--,
"--Follow me! The situation is already no longer in the realm of armed conflict between the regular army and the insurgents! The intervention of a third party has changed the terms of victory!"
Standing on a pile of rubble, a man raises his voice on an improvised stage.
He is a handsome man with sharp black eyes that hold a fevered reason, dried blood stuck to his black hair, and a voice that carries well even on a roaring battlefield.
On the battlefield where violence reigns--or rather, in the Vollachia Empire, where violence reigns, what on earth is there to be attracted to the ineffectual figure of this man?
No one ridicules the man, even if they want to so ridicule him. They just turn their attention and listen.
The blood of the emperor that flows through their veins, the way of being that the man himself has defined for himself, does not allow them to turn their ears away from the voice that is strung out on an unshapely pedestal.
--From Vincent Vollachia himself, who cries out for the throne above the rubble.
"----"
Vincent's declaration, uttered loudly, was heard up close by a distinguished group of people.
The "Nine Divine Generals" Goz Ralfon and Olbart Dunkelkenn, the Imperial Prime Minister Berstetz Fondalfon, and even Ubilk, a "stargazer" who was allowed to enter the imperial palace as a special position, are all present.
Considering which side they had been on during the previous offensive, it would have been fatal for the two sides to face each other at this distance unprotected.
However--,
"Mogro Hagane is holding him down, but the one facing him in the sky is Balleroy Temeglyph, who is supposed to be dead. Somehow, he has risen from the dead along with his beloved dragon."
"I have a message for you regarding this matter. --I encountered Her Excellency Lamia Godwin in the audience chamber. I believe she is the same person she was at the time."
"You! That report should be raised by me! Your Excellency! It was not only Her Excellency Lamia who was present, but also other members of the royal family who perished in the 'Election Ceremony'!"
In response to Vincent's words, it was Berstetz and Goz who responded.
Goz, who had remained unchanged in his loyalty to Vincent despite his disappearance, was still abhorred by Berstetz's switch.
Nevertheless, since Berstetz's original interest is in the prosperity of the Vollachia empire, the old man's attitude can be described as natural when it comes to a situation where the very existence of the empire is at stake.
Once those ramblings are dismissed as trivial, Vincent's concerns are narrowed.
"Ubilk, you knew in advance how the 'Great Calamity' would happen. Then the revival of Balleroy Temeglyph, Lamia, and other members of the royal family was the 'Great Calamity'?"
"I can say 'yes' and 'no' to that, sir. I was whispering that Vincent Vollachia's death was the catalyst for the Great Calamity, and I was plotting all kinds of schemes to prevent the destruction of the Empire......"
"You don't know the details?"
In response to the question, Ubilk nodded with a goofy look on his face and said, "Yeees, sir."
Although the answer was sort of expected, the certainty gained was a boon for Vincent. It is clear from the fact that he saved Vincent from a fall that Ubilk and his followers, the "Stargazers", are at odds with the "Great Calamity".
"If that is the case, your presence is currently out of consideration. You must only stand around so that you don't die."
"Sir! Please leave this situation to me and put your own safety first! I, Goz Ralfon, will do everything in my power to clear my name in your absence--"
"--Shut up."
"--ngh"
Vincent took one look at the bloodthirsty Goz, and his momentum was frustrated by a single voice.
Goz wants a chance to redeem his loyalty to the emperor and the fact that he was late to the crucial moment, but his work in the first place was enough when he let Vincent escape from Chisha's rebellion.
If not for Goz's strenuous efforts, Vincent would have been trapped in Chisha, and it is highly likely that this situation would not even have been created in the imperial capital. --Yes, the situation was created.
"----"
With his hand on his chin, Vincent draws a map of the Imperial Capital in his mind and assembles the situation.
The blood shed and drained strength affected his ability to think, but fortunately, the pain in his collarbone from being struck by Chisha in the throne room awakened his consciousness. His energy was also full.
He doesn't think that even this pain is what Chisha had in mind--,
"Um-? I'm sorry to interrupt all the chatter, but I'm supposed to be charming the world, so may I be excused?"
"Wha?! General Cecilus?! What are you talking about?!"
"I've heard about this General from time to time, but it doesn't stick in my mind because I don't pay much attention to him. If that's the case, I feel sorry for you, Mr. General, to whom I am compared!"
Under the circumstances, it is not only Vincent's head that moves around at a dizzying pace.
The battle with the combination of "Cloud Dragon" Mezoreia and Balleroy continues within a few dozen meters - within a single step of Mogro's huge body.
It is only a matter of time before the water in the reservoir, which they saw crushed in the distance, starts to flow out and surges into the entire imperial city. Besides, it is the smaller Cecilus that is making all the noise.
Even though Goz, Berstetz, and even Olbart are waiting for Vincent to make a decision, only this young lightning bolt does not fit their intentions.
Cecilus, who seems to be biased toward childhood not only in his appearance but also in the content of his head, does not have the eyes to give his heart wide open to Vincent's declaration,
"Your speech earlier was quite a fine one! I am sure it is true that you are the Emperor of Vollachia, but unfortunately, I am the Emperor of Vollachia and I am not beholden to anyone else. If you want to change my path, you must prepare a path for me!"
"--. As Natsuki Subaru did?"
"--? Unfortunately, I don't know who it is. The name sounds similar to someone I know, but I think I talked about this earlier with a beautiful woman."
Cecilus answers, twisting his head and jiggling his short legs.
He is not even sure who the "beautiful woman" is that he is so concerned about, but Vincent is sure as soon as Cecilus, in his infant form, enters the imperial siege.
An unexpected group of people ravaged the battlefield from the west, and that it was led by Natsuki Subaru, and that he was probably the one who brought Cecilus with him.
And then--,
"It's not the first time you've disobeyed my instructions, not just in the current situation. You can run around as you please."
"I understand what you're saying. But I had no intention of obeying you maturely no matter what you said, so for my part, I'll let you off the hook here."
"Cecilus."
He waved his hand at Vincent, who made the decision to leave the field, and Cecilus's diminutive frame tried to jump out of the way. His back called out his name, "Yes?" and the young lightning bolt turned around.
To those eyes that held the same unwieldiness as when they first met,
"As we agreed in the past, I will arrange for your big day."
"--Ah-ha."
At Vincent's brief declaration, Cecilus disappears, leaving behind one small laugh.
The speed of his gale-force lightning that cannot even catch a remnant shadow, and the fact that it is still incomplete, the title of the strongest in Vollachia has not been shaken from that man.
In any case--,
"Sir, if you don't mind. General Cecilus is......"
"I don't have time for trivial matters, like the treatment of you and Ubilk. Rather--"
Rather than dealing with the missing cecilus, the issue at hand needs to be addressed.
Vincent faces Berstetz's narrow eyes and tells him, in a voice that Goz, Olbart, and others beyond them can hear.
It is--,
"--I will abandon the Imperial City. We will retreat, maintaining all possible forces."
△▼△▼△▼△
The group rides through the Imperial City in a whirlwind of confusion and chaos, astride a red gale horse.
The flag bearer is the well-known Natsuki Subaru, flanked by the accompanying cavalryman Idola Missanga and the red-hot and powerful girl Tanza, the breakthrough power of the Pleiades Group is still strong.
"Plus, now we've got Beatrice and Louis on there, and we're the ones with the momentum!"
In front of him, between Idola's back, who holds the reins, Beatrice is held in Subaru's short arms, and Louis is furtively clinging to Subaru's back.
Unsurprisingly, the four youngsters are led by an adult, Idola, who is also a member of the group--,
"--Minya!"
"Uawh!"
"I beg your pardon."
Beatrice's dark blue arrow, which she held out her hand, Louis's inexhaustible attack that freely transfers space, and Tanza's hard fist that clears away obstacles with brute force, pave the way for the next attack.
After climbing over the destroyed walls and flying into the city of the Imperial Capital, Subaru and his friends are aiming for the Crystal Palace, which can be seen in the distance--a rather sparkling castle where a fake emperor resides.
The fake emperor in that castle, the one who deceives Vincent Vollachia.
If they can defeat them, they can put an end to the great civil war in the Vollachia Empire in which Subaru was undeniably involved.
Believing this, he plunged in, ready to go on a crazy rampage.
"Schwartz! They are the ones who spring up wherever they exit! What in the world?!"
Idola's voice, not quite a scream, but throaty with a fundamental fear.
The gallop has lost its way, perhaps because of his uneasiness in holding the reins, but it is also cruel to urge him to bear it and forget it.
At any rate--,
"What is it with these pale-faced people, really!"
They knew that if they rode into the imperial capital, they would naturally be met with bold interference from the imperial soldiers.
However, it was only during their first visit to the Imperial Capital that Subaru and the others were actually greeted by Imperial soldiers. From then on, Subaru and his friends were confronted by strange-looking beings, all of them with pale faces.
Those with pale faces and golden eyes, with glassy cracks all over their bodies, obstruct Subaru and his friends with a cold, heatless attitude.
--No, they are not the only ones standing in the way of Subaru and his friends.
"Master Schwarz, those men, they are also harming the Imperial soldiers."
Tanza, who kicks a group of pale faces and slams them against the wall, throws so a report.
She is right, what is unfolding at the edge of her vision is the presence of "enemies" that are not facing Subaru and his people, but attacking the Imperial soldiers who were guarding the city.
Of course, these "enemies" do not take Subaru's feelings into consideration like the Pleiades group. With their brandished weapons, they mercilessly try to take the lives of the imperial soldiers.
So--,
"--Tanza! Please!"
"I know."
Hearing Subaru's reckless request, Tanza accelerates as she kicks the ground.
She charged like a bouncing ball into the enemy lines - the Imperial Guard - and caught up with the group that was trying to take their lives, and reared them back with her thick-soled shoes.
"--!"
A short, bitter cry goes up, and the kicked-away "enemy" crashes into buildings on either side.
Tanza took one look at the destroyed buildings and the Imperial Guard soldiers who had escaped with their lives, and then said, "Go ahead," and fled the scene.
Fortunately, the rescued soldiers did not aim for Tanza's back and chose to leave the scene.
"That's helpful......but, these guys..."
Tanza's efforts averted unwanted deaths, but instead Subaru took her blow and gasped at the devastation of his "enemy" who crashed into the building and was crushed.
The "enemy" does not get up, partly because Tanza's kick is so powerful, but more importantly because he is in no condition to get up.
The body of the "enemy" was shattered and in pieces. However, it was not a grotesque corpse, but broken like a ceramic cup dropped on the floor.
There is no blood there. Like there is no blood in the body.
"How does it work? Like a doll, or a robot......"
"--No way, it's the 'Sacrament of the Immortal King', in fact?"
"--! You have an idea, Beatrice!"
Beatrice rests her body on Subaru's chest and entrusts him with her complete trust. Subaru does not miss the words spun by those lips as lovely as cherries.
At Subaru's reaction, Beatrice pulled her chin in a small way,
"The magic that brings the soul back to the body once it has died and left the body...... is a kind of forbidden art, I suppose. It was originally researched by my mother, but it was supposed to be incomplete."
"I'm not sure if this is a necromancer type of magic or not. I'm not sure what's going on in that part of my head, but your mother is a bonus!"
"I'm sure it's not the first time Subaru has spoken ill of my mother, in fact. But if you say those things too many times, Betty will get angry, so be careful, I suppose."
Beatrice raised her eyebrows, and Subaru stuck out his tongue and closed one eye to reflect.
However, the opinion of the cute Beatrice should never be dismissed. If it is the necromancy named "Sacrament of the Immortal King" that is creating that "enemy".
"You mean there's someone like a necromancer in the 'Nine Divine Generals' of the Empire or something?"
"......If it is, Abel is crazy for not talking about it beforehand, in fact. Besides, it would mean that he doesn't know the difference between friend and foe, I suppose."
"I guess that's possible in an empire with buggy ethics too, but......, wait! You know about Abel?!"
".......I do, in fact."
Subaru rolls his eyes as the unexpected name comes out of Beatrice's mouth. To Subaru's surprise, Beatrice affirmed it with a sullen look on her face.
The connection between Beatrice and Abel, and the fact that it is not just another person with the same name, is clearly conveyed in her reluctant face.
Basically, since Abel is incompatible with everyone, the story would be that he was naturally incompatible with Beatrice as well.
Just thinking about what in the world kind of irreverence Abel had put Beatrice through makes Subaru's stomach turn in knots, but--,
"--Of course, he's here."
It was inconceivable that Abel would not be in the middle of the offensive and defense in this great battle, but as long as he did not know the specific composition of the rebel forces, he felt a different emotion when he was told that this was clearly the case.
If Abel is there, then Subaru's rampage would need a twist.
"Then should I leave the zombie fighting to that one over there rather than me? Or would you rather I run to deal with them with the lovely Beatrice, who knows a lot about zombies...... ouch ouch ouch! What?!"
"Enough, I suppose. I'm a little pissed off with Subaru's face, in fact."
"Why?! If you have this look between charming and cocky, you were born with it?!"
"I was annoyed that he looked strangely relieved when he heard Abel's name, I suppose."
Beatrice, who makes an unreasonable allegation, pinches his thigh, and Subaru's mouth curves into a smile.
Although it is a little hard to say exactly how much, in her honest opinion, Beatrice's view of Subaru may have become harsher in the little time she has been away.
Certainly, they acknowledge that Abel is superior in terms of ability, but they do not take comfort in his name in the context of this massive war situation.
By all accounts, meeting Beatrice was a more pleasant event than Abel.
"You're the best thing that ever happened to me, Beatrice, don't get me wrong."
"Then you're going to have to prove it down the road, in fact."
"Oh, of course!"
In response to Beatrice's beneficence judgment, Subaru tapped Idola on the shoulder and brought the gale horse to a halt once and for all.
There are no enemy or civilian targets in sight, but we need to decide what to do next.
"What are you going to do now that you've had your fun, Mr. Schwartz?"
"I wasn't playing around with her! I wasn't playing around...... but Beatrice! Does that zombie magic stop when the magician is defeated?"
With Tanza's blank expression stabbing him in the profile, Subaru asks for Beatrice's detailed opinion. Beatrice is asked to do so, fiddling with her fingers on her own vertical rolls,
"The two main types of magic that interfere with another's body are yin and yang magic, I suppose. The effects of both types of magic generally cease when the magic user is defeated, in fact. So I would like to think that this is the same, I suppose."
"You say things with a mixture of wishful thinking. Are you sure?"
"Even Betty has never seen the realization of the 'Sacrament of the Immortal King', in fact! It would be childish and irresponsible of me to speculate and make blanket statements, I suppose!"
"I'm not sure! So you don't have any idea of the area of effect or where the magic is being used?"
"......It's frustrating, but it's up to the user, in fact."
Beatrice looked at her regretfully as she answered, as if she thought Tanza might be sarcastic again. But Tanza did not blame Beatrice for admitting that she was not strong enough.
In that area, it is Tanza who does not undermine even those with whom she does not agree.
"I don't have time to get into a tussle and that helps. And Beatrice, thanks."
"That's a complimentary answer, I suppose."
Beatrice's cheeks puffed up as he stroked her head while thanking her. He felt the urge to poke her swollen cheeks with my fingers, but he also felt that he was in a difficult situation.
Given the circumstances, this zombie attack is clearly an alien situation.
The fact that imperial soldiers were being attacked makes it possible that there are necromancers in the rebel army and that the warfare method of not thinking of people as people, set up by Abel, who is dead of ethics and warm humanity, is somewhat tricky to put in place and the way the zombies are springing up is strange.
These zombies clearly have the atmosphere of a city outbreak running rampant, rather than one that is riding into the city from outside the city.
If this is Abel's plan, he feels it would be more advantageous to set up a war of attrition from the beginning. Perhaps there are some military techniques being used that Subaru is unaware of.
"If you start using zombies, I'm going to have to think twice."
Besides, it was felt, though only vaguely, that Abel might use "death" politically, but not use the "dead" in a forceful way.
He thought that Abel's view of life and death, which is not exempt from the Vollachia model in any way, would not allow it.
Therefore--,
"The presence of this zombie-meister should be an irregularity. If the war doesn't end with this, even if we beat up the fake emperor in the castle......"
"What do you say, Schwartz? We'll follow your lead."
"Idola......"
Turning his head only to Subaru, who puts his hand on his chin, Idola speaks of trust.
This is not a sign that he is throwing the responsibility to Subaru, but rather that he agrees to risk his life with Subaru in a situation where he may also go to his death.
Subaru has achieved this position by its own volition.
They must fulfill that responsibility. And thanks to Idola and everyone in the Pleiades group, Subaru has a wider range of hands to extend than before.
"It's not decisive, but I knew this place was...... ow ow ow! Owww!"
"Subaru?!" "Master Schwartz?!"
Subaru nodded at the realization of his responsibility, but he screamed in pain from Beatrice pinching his thigh and another pain, to which Beatrice and Tanza looked at him.
This time, Subaru felt pain because he was pulled by his hair.
And it was not Beatrice, Tanza, or much less Idola who did it--,
"What the hell, Louis? Don't pull my hair! Keeping up with your care from a young age is your defense against suffering from thinning hair when you get older......"
"Uawh! Uh! Awh! Augh!"
"What is it?"
Louis desperately pleads something to Subaru, who is protecting his pulled scalp.
She pats Subaru on the back, then points to the north side of the Imperial City - the direction where the Crystal Palace is located, but slightly off the beaten path - and makes a constant appeal.
Head there, is what they know what she's saying.
"What's there?"
"Awh!"
In response to Subaru's question, Louis repeats it in a high voice.
It must be said, she seemed quite mentally stable after meeting up with Subaru. Subaru, despite their complicated relationship, was honestly relieved to see her safe.
On top of that, if there is something that Louis is calling for so desperately--,
"--Beatrice, let me ask you one thing. Are you all staying together?"
"......Not all of us, in fact."
Beatrice's answer to Subaru's quiet question was one that avoided a clear statement.
But he knows that she did not mean to be pretentious, but to avoid shocking Subaru. He also understood why she muddled the issue.
So--,
"Tanza, Idola! Also Beatrice and Louis, change of policy!"
Summarizing what needs to be done, Subaru calls on the members around the gilt horse.
Perhaps the battle around the Imperial City will not subside, but intensify. As long as the zombies and their maesters are unknowable, they must be prepared.
Of course, they can put together such a theory, but--,
"First, I'm going in the direction Louis is pointing! Let me pick up something important there!"
"Louis's...... would be up ahead, I suppose."
Subaru's decision gave Beatrice a sense of what was ahead, as indicated by Louis.
Nodding at Beatrice's words, Subaru turned to Tanza and Idola, who were also looking at him, and continued.
It is--,
"--I'm going to pick up Rem and flee the Imperial City with as many people as I can! We're running out of time!"
Said the man who was not present here, and oddly enough, the decision was in the same direction.
Arc 8, Chapter 1 "Change of Winning Conditions"
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--The offensive and defense war between the imperial forces and the rebels that began in Lupgana, the imperial capital of Vollachia, has entered its final phase, scattering the seeds of chaos in every part of the country.
The same is true of the fall of "Vincent Vollachia" to the deadly bullet of light in front of the throne of the Crystal Palace at the innermost part of the Imperial City. The abandonment of duties by the "Nine Divine Generals" who were ordered to guard the city walls protecting the imperial capital, the sudden joining of the main imperial forces that had been reported missing in action, and the mysterious group coming from the west that opened a huge hole in the front line were all seeds of chaos scattered about.
But, the seed that has sprouted the biggest in this war situation at the moment--,
"--Follow me! The situation is already no longer in the realm of armed conflict between the regular army and the insurgents! The intervention of a third party has changed the terms of victory!"
Standing on a pile of rubble, a man raises his voice on an improvised stage.
He is a handsome man with sharp black eyes that hold a fevered reason, dried blood stuck to his black hair, and a voice that carries well even on a roaring battlefield.
On the battlefield where violence reigns--or rather, in the Vollachia Empire, where violence reigns, what on earth is there to be attracted to the ineffectual figure of this man?
No one ridicules the man, even if they want to so ridicule him. They just turn their attention and listen.
The blood of the emperor that flows through their veins, the way of being that the man himself has defined for himself, does not allow them to turn their ears away from the voice that is strung out on an unshapely pedestal.
--From Vincent Vollachia himself, who cries out for the throne above the rubble.
"----"
Vincent's declaration, uttered loudly, was heard up close by a distinguished group of people.
The "Nine Divine Generals" Goz Ralfon and Olbart Dunkelkenn, the Imperial Prime Minister Berstetz Fondalfon, and even Ubilk, a "stargazer" who was allowed to enter the imperial palace as a special position, are all present.
Considering which side they had been on during the previous offensive, it would have been fatal for the two sides to face each other at this distance unprotected.
However--,
"Mogro Hagane is holding him down, but the one facing him in the sky is Balleroy Temeglyph, who is supposed to be dead. Somehow, he has risen from the dead along with his beloved dragon."
"I have a message for you regarding this matter. --I encountered Her Excellency Lamia Godwin in the audience chamber. I believe she is the same person she was at the time."
"You! That report should be raised by me! Your Excellency! It was not only Her Excellency Lamia who was present, but also other members of the royal family who perished in the 'Election Ceremony'!"
In response to Vincent's words, it was Berstetz and Goz who responded.
Goz, who had remained unchanged in his loyalty to Vincent despite his disappearance, was still abhorred by Berstetz's switch.
Nevertheless, since Berstetz's original interest is in the prosperity of the Vollachia empire, the old man's attitude can be described as natural when it comes to a situation where the very existence of the empire is at stake.
Once those ramblings are dismissed as trivial, Vincent's concerns are narrowed.
"Ubilk, you knew in advance how the 'Great Calamity' would happen. Then the revival of Balleroy Temeglyph, Lamia, and other members of the royal family was the 'Great Calamity'?"
"I can say 'yes' and 'no' to that, sir. I was whispering that Vincent Vollachia's death was the catalyst for the Great Calamity, and I was plotting all kinds of schemes to prevent the destruction of the Empire......"
"You don't know the details?"
In response to the question, Ubilk nodded with a goofy look on his face and said, "Yeees, sir."
Although the answer was sort of expected, the certainty gained was a boon for Vincent. It is clear from the fact that he saved Vincent from a fall that Ubilk and his followers, the "Stargazers", are at odds with the "Great Calamity".
"If that is the case, your presence is currently out of consideration. You must only stand around so that you don't die."
"Sir! Please leave this situation to me and put your own safety first! I, Goz Ralfon, will do everything in my power to clear my name in your absence--"
"--Shut up."
"--ngh"
Vincent took one look at the bloodthirsty Goz, and his momentum was frustrated by a single voice.
Goz wants a chance to redeem his loyalty to the emperor and the fact that he was late to the crucial moment, but his work in the first place was enough when he let Vincent escape from Chisha's rebellion.
If not for Goz's strenuous efforts, Vincent would have been trapped in Chisha, and it is highly likely that this situation would not even have been created in the imperial capital. --Yes, the situation was created.
"----"
With his hand on his chin, Vincent draws a map of the Imperial Capital in his mind and assembles the situation.
The blood shed and drained strength affected his ability to think, but fortunately, the pain in his collarbone from being struck by Chisha in the throne room awakened his consciousness. His energy was also full.
He doesn't think that even this pain is what Chisha had in mind--,
"Um-? I'm sorry to interrupt all the chatter, but I'm supposed to be charming the world, so may I be excused?"
"Wha?! General Cecilus?! What are you talking about?!"
"I've heard about this General from time to time, but it doesn't stick in my mind because I don't pay much attention to him. If that's the case, I feel sorry for you, Mr. General, to whom I am compared!"
Under the circumstances, it is not only Vincent's head that moves around at a dizzying pace.
The battle with the combination of "Cloud Dragon" Mezoreia and Balleroy continues within a few dozen meters - within a single step of Mogro's huge body.
It is only a matter of time before the water in the reservoir, which they saw crushed in the distance, starts to flow out and surges into the entire imperial city. Besides, it is the smaller Cecilus that is making all the noise.
Even though Goz, Berstetz, and even Olbart are waiting for Vincent to make a decision, only this young lightning bolt does not fit their intentions.
Cecilus, who seems to be biased toward childhood not only in his appearance but also in the content of his head, does not have the eyes to give his heart wide open to Vincent's declaration,
"Your speech earlier was quite a fine one! I am sure it is true that you are the Emperor of Vollachia, but unfortunately, I am the Emperor of Vollachia and I am not beholden to anyone else. If you want to change my path, you must prepare a path for me!"
"--. As Natsuki Subaru did?"
"--? Unfortunately, I don't know who it is. The name sounds similar to someone I know, but I think I talked about this earlier with a beautiful woman."
Cecilus answers, twisting his head and jiggling his short legs.
He is not even sure who the "beautiful woman" is that he is so concerned about, but Vincent is sure as soon as Cecilus, in his infant form, enters the imperial siege.
An unexpected group of people ravaged the battlefield from the west, and that it was led by Natsuki Subaru, and that he was probably the one who brought Cecilus with him.
And then--,
"It's not the first time you've disobeyed my instructions, not just in the current situation. You can run around as you please."
"I understand what you're saying. But I had no intention of obeying you maturely no matter what you said, so for my part, I'll let you off the hook here."
"Cecilus."
He waved his hand at Vincent, who made the decision to leave the field, and Cecilus's diminutive frame tried to jump out of the way. His back called out his name, "Yes?" and the young lightning bolt turned around.
To those eyes that held the same unwieldiness as when they first met,
"As we agreed in the past, I will arrange for your big day."
"--Ah-ha."
At Vincent's brief declaration, Cecilus disappears, leaving behind one small laugh.
The speed of his gale-force lightning that cannot even catch a remnant shadow, and the fact that it is still incomplete, the title of the strongest in Vollachia has not been shaken from that man.
In any case--,
"Sir, if you don't mind. General Cecilus is......"
"I don't have time for trivial matters, like the treatment of you and Ubilk. Rather--"
Rather than dealing with the missing cecilus, the issue at hand needs to be addressed.
Vincent faces Berstetz's narrow eyes and tells him, in a voice that Goz, Olbart, and others beyond them can hear.
It is--,
"--I will abandon the Imperial City. We will retreat, maintaining all possible forces."
△▼△▼△▼△
The group rides through the Imperial City in a whirlwind of confusion and chaos, astride a red gale horse.
The flag bearer is the well-known Natsuki Subaru, flanked by the accompanying cavalryman Idola Missanga and the red-hot and powerful girl Tanza, the breakthrough power of the Pleiades Group is still strong.
"Plus, now we've got Beatrice and Louis on there, and we're the ones with the momentum!"
In front of him, between Idola's back, who holds the reins, Beatrice is held in Subaru's short arms, and Louis is furtively clinging to Subaru's back.
Unsurprisingly, the four youngsters are led by an adult, Idola, who is also a member of the group--,
"--Minya!"
"Uawh!"
"I beg your pardon."
Beatrice's dark blue arrow, which she held out her hand, Louis's inexhaustible attack that freely transfers space, and Tanza's hard fist that clears away obstacles with brute force, pave the way for the next attack.
After climbing over the destroyed walls and flying into the city of the Imperial Capital, Subaru and his friends are aiming for the Crystal Palace, which can be seen in the distance--a rather sparkling castle where a fake emperor resides.
The fake emperor in that castle, the one who deceives Vincent Vollachia.
If they can defeat them, they can put an end to the great civil war in the Vollachia Empire in which Subaru was undeniably involved.
Believing this, he plunged in, ready to go on a crazy rampage.
"Schwartz! They are the ones who spring up wherever they exit! What in the world?!"
Idola's voice, not quite a scream, but throaty with a fundamental fear.
The gallop has lost its way, perhaps because of his uneasiness in holding the reins, but it is also cruel to urge him to bear it and forget it.
At any rate--,
"What is it with these pale-faced people, really!"
They knew that if they rode into the imperial capital, they would naturally be met with bold interference from the imperial soldiers.
However, it was only during their first visit to the Imperial Capital that Subaru and the others were actually greeted by Imperial soldiers. From then on, Subaru and his friends were confronted by strange-looking beings, all of them with pale faces.
Those with pale faces and golden eyes, with glassy cracks all over their bodies, obstruct Subaru and his friends with a cold, heatless attitude.
--No, they are not the only ones standing in the way of Subaru and his friends.
"Master Schwarz, those men, they are also harming the Imperial soldiers."
Tanza, who kicks a group of pale faces and slams them against the wall, throws so a report.
She is right, what is unfolding at the edge of her vision is the presence of "enemies" that are not facing Subaru and his people, but attacking the Imperial soldiers who were guarding the city.
Of course, these "enemies" do not take Subaru's feelings into consideration like the Pleiades group. With their brandished weapons, they mercilessly try to take the lives of the imperial soldiers.
So--,
"--Tanza! Please!"
"I know."
Hearing Subaru's reckless request, Tanza accelerates as she kicks the ground.
She charged like a bouncing ball into the enemy lines - the Imperial Guard - and caught up with the group that was trying to take their lives, and reared them back with her thick-soled shoes.
"--!"
A short, bitter cry goes up, and the kicked-away "enemy" crashes into buildings on either side.
Tanza took one look at the destroyed buildings and the Imperial Guard soldiers who had escaped with their lives, and then said, "Go ahead," and fled the scene.
Fortunately, the rescued soldiers did not aim for Tanza's back and chose to leave the scene.
"That's helpful......but, these guys..."
Tanza's efforts averted unwanted deaths, but instead Subaru took her blow and gasped at the devastation of his "enemy" who crashed into the building and was crushed.
The "enemy" does not get up, partly because Tanza's kick is so powerful, but more importantly because he is in no condition to get up.
The body of the "enemy" was shattered and in pieces. However, it was not a grotesque corpse, but broken like a ceramic cup dropped on the floor.
There is no blood there. Like there is no blood in the body.
"How does it work? Like a doll, or a robot......"
"--No way, it's the 'Sacrament of the Immortal King', in fact?"
"--! You have an idea, Beatrice!"
Beatrice rests her body on Subaru's chest and entrusts him with her complete trust. Subaru does not miss the words spun by those lips as lovely as cherries.
At Subaru's reaction, Beatrice pulled her chin in a small way,
"The magic that brings the soul back to the body once it has died and left the body...... is a kind of forbidden art, I suppose. It was originally researched by my mother, but it was supposed to be incomplete."
"I'm not sure if this is a necromancer type of magic or not. I'm not sure what's going on in that part of my head, but your mother is a bonus!"
"I'm sure it's not the first time Subaru has spoken ill of my mother, in fact. But if you say those things too many times, Betty will get angry, so be careful, I suppose."
Beatrice raised her eyebrows, and Subaru stuck out his tongue and closed one eye to reflect.
However, the opinion of the cute Beatrice should never be dismissed. If it is the necromancy named "Sacrament of the Immortal King" that is creating that "enemy".
"You mean there's someone like a necromancer in the 'Nine Divine Generals' of the Empire or something?"
"......If it is, Abel is crazy for not talking about it beforehand, in fact. Besides, it would mean that he doesn't know the difference between friend and foe, I suppose."
"I guess that's possible in an empire with buggy ethics too, but......, wait! You know about Abel?!"
".......I do, in fact."
Subaru rolls his eyes as the unexpected name comes out of Beatrice's mouth. To Subaru's surprise, Beatrice affirmed it with a sullen look on her face.
The connection between Beatrice and Abel, and the fact that it is not just another person with the same name, is clearly conveyed in her reluctant face.
Basically, since Abel is incompatible with everyone, the story would be that he was naturally incompatible with Beatrice as well.
Just thinking about what in the world kind of irreverence Abel had put Beatrice through makes Subaru's stomach turn in knots, but--,
"--Of course, he's here."
It was inconceivable that Abel would not be in the middle of the offensive and defense in this great battle, but as long as he did not know the specific composition of the rebel forces, he felt a different emotion when he was told that this was clearly the case.
If Abel is there, then Subaru's rampage would need a twist.
"Then should I leave the zombie fighting to that one over there rather than me? Or would you rather I run to deal with them with the lovely Beatrice, who knows a lot about zombies...... ouch ouch ouch! What?!"
"Enough, I suppose. I'm a little pissed off with Subaru's face, in fact."
"Why?! If you have this look between charming and cocky, you were born with it?!"
"I was annoyed that he looked strangely relieved when he heard Abel's name, I suppose."
Beatrice, who makes an unreasonable allegation, pinches his thigh, and Subaru's mouth curves into a smile.
Although it is a little hard to say exactly how much, in her honest opinion, Beatrice's view of Subaru may have become harsher in the little time she has been away.
Certainly, they acknowledge that Abel is superior in terms of ability, but they do not take comfort in his name in the context of this massive war situation.
By all accounts, meeting Beatrice was a more pleasant event than Abel.
"You're the best thing that ever happened to me, Beatrice, don't get me wrong."
"Then you're going to have to prove it down the road, in fact."
"Oh, of course!"
In response to Beatrice's beneficence judgment, Subaru tapped Idola on the shoulder and brought the gale horse to a halt once and for all.
There are no enemy or civilian targets in sight, but we need to decide what to do next.
"What are you going to do now that you've had your fun, Mr. Schwartz?"
"I wasn't playing around with her! I wasn't playing around...... but Beatrice! Does that zombie magic stop when the magician is defeated?"
With Tanza's blank expression stabbing him in the profile, Subaru asks for Beatrice's detailed opinion. Beatrice is asked to do so, fiddling with her fingers on her own vertical rolls,
"The two main types of magic that interfere with another's body are yin and yang magic, I suppose. The effects of both types of magic generally cease when the magic user is defeated, in fact. So I would like to think that this is the same, I suppose."
"You say things with a mixture of wishful thinking. Are you sure?"
"Even Betty has never seen the realization of the 'Sacrament of the Immortal King', in fact! It would be childish and irresponsible of me to speculate and make blanket statements, I suppose!"
"I'm not sure! So you don't have any idea of the area of effect or where the magic is being used?"
"......It's frustrating, but it's up to the user, in fact."
Beatrice looked at her regretfully as she answered, as if she thought Tanza might be sarcastic again. But Tanza did not blame Beatrice for admitting that she was not strong enough.
In that area, it is Tanza who does not undermine even those with whom she does not agree.
"I don't have time to get into a tussle and that helps. And Beatrice, thanks."
"That's a complimentary answer, I suppose."
Beatrice's cheeks puffed up as he stroked her head while thanking her. He felt the urge to poke her swollen cheeks with my fingers, but he also felt that he was in a difficult situation.
Given the circumstances, this zombie attack is clearly an alien situation.
The fact that imperial soldiers were being attacked makes it possible that there are necromancers in the rebel army and that the warfare method of not thinking of people as people, set up by Abel, who is dead of ethics and warm humanity, is somewhat tricky to put in place and the way the zombies are springing up is strange.
These zombies clearly have the atmosphere of a city outbreak running rampant, rather than one that is riding into the city from outside the city.
If this is Abel's plan, he feels it would be more advantageous to set up a war of attrition from the beginning. Perhaps there are some military techniques being used that Subaru is unaware of.
"If you start using zombies, I'm going to have to think twice."
Besides, it was felt, though only vaguely, that Abel might use "death" politically, but not use the "dead" in a forceful way.
He thought that Abel's view of life and death, which is not exempt from the Vollachia model in any way, would not allow it.
Therefore--,
"The presence of this zombie-meister should be an irregularity. If the war doesn't end with this, even if we beat up the fake emperor in the castle......"
"What do you say, Schwartz? We'll follow your lead."
"Idola......"
Turning his head only to Subaru, who puts his hand on his chin, Idola speaks of trust.
This is not a sign that he is throwing the responsibility to Subaru, but rather that he agrees to risk his life with Subaru in a situation where he may also go to his death.
Subaru has achieved this position by its own volition.
They must fulfill that responsibility. And thanks to Idola and everyone in the Pleiades group, Subaru has a wider range of hands to extend than before.
"It's not decisive, but I knew this place was...... ow ow ow! Owww!"
"Subaru?!" "Master Schwartz?!"
Subaru nodded at the realization of his responsibility, but he screamed in pain from Beatrice pinching his thigh and another pain, to which Beatrice and Tanza looked at him.
This time, Subaru felt pain because he was pulled by his hair.
And it was not Beatrice, Tanza, or much less Idola who did it--,
"What the hell, Louis? Don't pull my hair! Keeping up with your care from a young age is your defense against suffering from thinning hair when you get older......"
"Uawh! Uh! Awh! Augh!"
"What is it?"
Louis desperately pleads something to Subaru, who is protecting his pulled scalp.
She pats Subaru on the back, then points to the north side of the Imperial City - the direction where the Crystal Palace is located, but slightly off the beaten path - and makes a constant appeal.
Head there, is what they know what she's saying.
"What's there?"
"Awh!"
In response to Subaru's question, Louis repeats it in a high voice.
It must be said, she seemed quite mentally stable after meeting up with Subaru. Subaru, despite their complicated relationship, was honestly relieved to see her safe.
On top of that, if there is something that Louis is calling for so desperately--,
"--Beatrice, let me ask you one thing. Are you all staying together?"
"......Not all of us, in fact."
Beatrice's answer to Subaru's quiet question was one that avoided a clear statement.
But he knows that she did not mean to be pretentious, but to avoid shocking Subaru. He also understood why she muddled the issue.
So--,
"Tanza, Idola! Also Beatrice and Louis, change of policy!"
Summarizing what needs to be done, Subaru calls on the members around the gilt horse.
Perhaps the battle around the Imperial City will not subside, but intensify. As long as the zombies and their maesters are unknowable, they must be prepared.
Of course, they can put together such a theory, but--,
"First, I'm going in the direction Louis is pointing! Let me pick up something important there!"
"Louis's...... would be up ahead, I suppose."
Subaru's decision gave Beatrice a sense of what was ahead, as indicated by Louis.
Nodding at Beatrice's words, Subaru turned to Tanza and Idola, who were also looking at him, and continued.
It is--,
"--I'm going to pick up Rem and flee the Imperial City with as many people as I can! We're running out of time!"
Said the man who was not present here, and oddly enough, the decision was in the same direction.
