"We've been waiting for you, Angel-sama!"
"Ugh!" (Kaoru)
When I reached the town just before the royal capital, something unpleasant was waiting for me in front of the inn.
…That's right, it's him!
"Prince Ferry[1]..." (Kaoru)
"It's Fernand!" (Fernand)
Well, I can't stand it if he multiplies. I'm enough for the multiplication. Anyway…….
"I only came here to crush those who started a fight, so I have no intention of doing anything unnecessary, and I don't intend for anything unnecessary to happen to me!" (Kaoru)
Even though I stated it so clearly, Fernand didn't seem to be bothered.
He was technically a prince, so I couldn't call him by his first name verbally, but calling a guy like him by his first name in my heart was enough.
We separated the armies of both countries a little and advanced with just Francette and me, along with four guard knights sent from the rear by Roland, a total of six knights, but we were ambushed in a town just before the royal capital. We were ambushed by Fernand, Alan, and the group of people I met once at the shop and once in _GRUA_, the capital of the Balmore Kingdom's capital, called Fur..., no, I think it was Fabio and his friends. It seemed their main force was waiting a little way from the town.
After all, with the royal palace and influential nobles seized in the blitzkrieg operation, and the first prince still missing, it was impossible to openly oppose the second prince, so the majority of them were likely only following his orders out of necessity.
Of course, if the King and the First Prince were not around, the Second Prince would be the legitimate successor. Anyone who opposed him would be treated as a traitor trying to usurp the throne, and his entire family would be killed. Especially if the ruler was a timid, cruel, and foolish person who knew that his footing was weak.
That's why everyone probably just obediently followed orders until that time came.
If the first prince had died, things might have been different. Should he give up everything and follow the second prince, or should he start a rebellion and accept the stigma that would befall his country?
However, the First Prince was still alive. So, all we needed to do was wait for the right time.
Then justice would be with me, and I would have no fear of wiping out the usurper, the traitor, the likely murderer of my father, and all the parasites and wicked ministers who had infested the country.
And now that time had come.
It was likely that there would never be a full-scale battle, or civil war.
Everyone was simply unable to act because they knew that "If we resist we will be killed" and they had no just cause.
In this regard, the Second Prince was a brilliant man, as he first eliminated the King and anyone above him in the line of succession, and then executed a plan to divide the influential people without giving them time to discuss and deal with the situation. However, this was probably due to someone else's advice, and not because the Second Prince himself possessed any outstanding talent.
And when they failed to kill the first prince and let him escape, the castle built on sand had already begun to crumble.
That's why they might have tried to attract the military, merchants, and militant nobles by invading a friendly country, and to divert the discontent of the people. Or perhaps they feared that the first prince would defect to the Balmore Kingdom and plot to retake the throne with the Balmore Kingdom's army.
Certainly, that was a possibility.
At the request of the First Prince, the legitimate successor to the throne, he rose up to punish the usurper, showed justice and save the people, and for his friendly country, the Kingdom of Brancott.
This was a more than sufficient justification for invading another country, and it would surely create a huge debt of gratitude for the First Prince, and for the Brancott Kingdom...
At that time, which of the two princes would the nobles and national army side with?
...It's no wonder that people are overwhelmed by a sense of crisis.
And in fact, that was now a reality...
"Kaoru, please rest in this city and wait for the armies of both countries to catch up, then join up with the forces we have gathered and head straight for the royal capital..."
"I won't drop, you know?" (Kaoru)
"Eh……"
Why would you want to attack your own country's royal capital? Are you an idiot?
...Was I stupid?
Also, judging from his familiar attitude, it seemed that this man thought that I was "The Kaoru from back then," that is, the Kaoru who worked at the restaurant in this country's capital. ... He had decided that the "Alpha Kaoru Nagase" I met in the capital of the Balmore Kingdom and the "Milfa Kaoru Nagase" who worked at the restaurant in this country are the same person. Even though the two were clearly two different people.
Hmmm...
"By the way, why are you calling me by my first name in such a familiar manner? I believe we only met once, for a few minutes, in the royal capital of Grua, right? And do you behave in such a familiar manner with all women from other countries? At first you said Angel-sama, but the next moment you were calling me by my first name without any honorifics, Kaoru. It's no wonder that the second prince thinks you are unfit to be king..." (Kaoru)
"Wha-?! Wh, what...?" (Fernand)
Fernand had his eyes wide open in shock. The people around him were also stunned.
Yes, it's okay to hit him with a counter like this. Otherwise, this guy would just get so cocky he'd never stop.
"This is unpleasant. I don't want to be with you, so please stay away from me. If you touch me, I might get pregnant." (Kaoru)
"Wha, wha-wha..." (Fernand)
Yep, that's good!
Originally, there was no intention to have armies clash or besiege the royal capital. Whether it was between people of the same country or different countries, there was no need for them to kill each other in a meaningless battle.
As a soldier or nobleman, you might want to fight gloriously, defeat the enemy, and liberate the royal capital as an emissary of justice, but what about those who died in vain? That would be one thing if they were on the side of justice, but what about the position and future of the soldiers who died on the enemy side, the bad guys, their families, their wives and children...
Yes, there's no way I was going to let these guys enter the royal capital as the "Heroes of justice" or the "Goddess's army."
To that end, steps had already been taken.
To buy time for preparation, we deliberately advanced slowly. Even so, we advanced faster than the army with its supply trains, and so we had left them slightly behind, but it wasn't a major hindrance for the light cavalry to travel between us and the troops in the rear. So, Roland, who led the main force behind the outpost, dispatched four guard knights—the royal guard knights who had been bestowed with the sacred sword, the "Four Walls"—and he did various things, such as issuing orders to the Brancott Kingdom army.
And these were the instructions I gave to the Brancott Kingdom Army.
"Select from among the cavalry the most good-looking and eloquent, and send them ahead to the royal capital. Then, have everyone, nobles, soldiers, and commoners alike, spread the rumor that the Goddess will not tolerate a usurper who murders his parents, or anyone who sides with him, and that she will send an emissary for that purpose..." (Kaoru)
That's right, anyone who opposed me was an enemy of the Goddess and would receive divine punishment.
Everyone knew about the incident that occurred in the neighboring country just over four years ago. With this, how many people would try to stop me from entering the castle?
If there was such a person, then they were heretics who did not fear God. In other words, they were my enemy who attacked Layette-chan. It was very easy to understand.
So we didn't need soldiers who think about killing others and getting credit and fame. Those guys were likely to start killing each other on their own, which was very dangerous, and I was trying so hard to settle things through negotiations, but they might get carried away by their desire for fame and ruin it.
...So, I'll pass!
Was there evidence that the second prince killed the king?
No, I just said, "I will not forgive a usurper who murders his parent, or anyone who supports him," and I didn't say that the second prince was a parricide or a usurper. I just said that I would not forgive those who commit parricide or usurpation. ...Normally, those two things were not forgiven, right?
No, I didn't say anything strange or wrong.
"I'm afraid that if I stay here, I might get pregnant. Let's not stay in this town today, let's go a little further and camp for the night." (Kaoru)
"Yes, ma'am!" (Everyone)
"What..."
Francette and all of the Four Walls reply in unison.
And so we quickly rode on.
Fernand and his companions who were left behind were glared at with resentful looks by the people from the inn and town who had come to greet them.
That's true. The opportunity to use advertising slogans like "The inn where Angel-sama took her final rest before entering the royal capital" or "The town where Angel-sama was used as the base for a counterattack" was destroyed, so it's no wonder people looked upon it with resentment.
Well, it's not like the second prince is better than Fernand, so it doesn't matter.
I wanted to take a nice long bath at the end, but oh well. I could sleep in a bed even if I was staying overnight, so it's no problem.
Tomorrow was the real day.
I would get revenge on Layette-chan and the other orphans for beating and injuring them. And for trying to kill me. I would make sure that no one ever thinks of harming me or anyone related to me again.
Translation Note
[1] It's 増えるなん (Fuerunan), which comes from 増える (Fueru) = grow, expand, multiply; The prince's name is フェルナン (Ferunan)