157 – Scene 157# Northern Garden
*
Northern Garden.
Commonly referred to as the North in the Empire, it refers to the barren region at the northernmost part of the Empire, and is the name of a small city there.
It is first mentioned in the original work through the mouth of one of the displaced people whom the main character met by chance during his wandering days.
In front of a blazing bonfire, the middle-aged man who was a wandering peddler said like a sigh.
-Everything collapsed that fall. no. I don’t want to say that I was the only one who got away with it because I was lucky. Who would have thought that after that day, I would never be able to return to my hometown again? I haven’t even been able to go and check the bodies of my family members until now. If it weren’t for those damn monsters… .
At one time, the Northern Gardens were a strategic point for the Meikahel Empire.
The Northern Garden, which borders the ‘Devil’s Realm’, the land where demons and demons live, has faithfully played a role in preventing demons from moving south.
Kyle Loelgreen, the Marquess who ruled the Northern Gardens at the time, was a capable young man.
They plowed the barren land to make it habitable and overcame chronic food shortages by actively interacting with cities in the south. At the same time, the desolate Northern Garden gradually began to prosper.
no… . It would be more accurate to say that he could not even prosper.
One autumn, the Northern Garden was destroyed due to the massive invasion of monsters.
At that time, it is recorded in the history of the empire that the army of monsters was so enormous that it was thought that it was the second coming of the demon king.
The Empire quickly dispatched an army to defend the Northern Garden, along with the Northern Army, to stop the monsters, but it was not enough.
In the past, Aslan of the Ruelberta family was dispatched and managed to defeat the army of monsters, but the results were disastrous.
Neither the inhabitants of the Northern Gardens nor the Union Army survived. Only 10 of the 50,000 imperial troops who rushed in were returned alive. Also, Margrave Kyle Roelgrin fought the demons until the end and died heroically. The members of the Roelgreen family also shared their fate with Kyle, the head of the family.
Excluding when the demon king appeared, the most people in the Meikahel Empire died… The painful history of the empire.
After this incident, the Empire decided to give up the northern part, the Northern Garden.
It was based on the judgment that too many sacrifices had been made and that the land had become uninhabitable.
The Empire stepped back from the North and all roads to the North were controlled.
Northern Garden, which was once the northernmost city of the empire, is now completely in the domain of demons and is inaccessible.
And… . Suddenly, the emperor informed me that he would conquer the place.
However, I wasn’t surprised.
There were several reasons I guessed.
After a short silence, I opened my mouth.
“… I wonder why.”
“There are several reasons. First of all, when the demon king appears, it is to prevent the demons from trying to go south. The northern part is a place where demonic energy has been strong since ancient times. If the demon lord appears, the demons will undoubtedly start active. If we take back Northern Garden beforehand and use it as a strategic point again, we will be able to prevent the fires of war from spreading downwards… … Luna said.”
It was exactly as I expected.
The demon king is an existence that brings chaos to the world. When the demon king appears, the demons also begin to actively work.
If we take back the north, it will be much easier to deal with monsters.
I also had the intention of reclaiming the north by mobilizing Aslan someday. I didn’t know that the Empire side would come out first, but… .
But wasn’t that the only reason?
I decided to continue listening to Lucy.
“The second reason is… . Compared to your Aslan, the Imperials lack practical experience. In the future, I have to deal with monsters, but it can’t be anything but difficult. That’s why I’m thinking of using this as an opportunity to let the Imperial Army gain real combat experience through the northern conquest that fell into the clutches of monsters. Oh. Do not worry. Because we have already thoroughly investigated the northern part.”
“Research?”
“Yes. According to intelligence, the number of monsters that occupied Northern Garden for several years has rapidly decreased. The conquest was decided under the judgment that there is no major threat now, so there is nothing to worry about… … Luna asked me to pass it on.”
indeed. Once again, Luna was able to confirm that she was an excellent emperor.
Judging from how confidently she spoke, Luna seemed to have been keeping an eye on the North’s trends.
Lucy continued.
Unlike the extreme Luna, she was very polite and calm.
“And the last reason… I’m trying to honor the souls of those who died in the North. In the Northern Garden, there are countless people who have not even been able to recover the remains, including Marshal Sir Kyle. I don’t know if there are people who can confirm the identity as the years have already passed, but if it’s possible… . It would be the right thing to return to the arms of the family.”
I was a little surprised by her words.
Because it was a kind reason unlike the cruel Luna.
I looked at Lucy.
“Did Luna decide that too?”
“… Nope. This is my judgment. We must do what we can for those who died for this country. Those who died during the ‘Autumn Tragedy’… .”
“Oh, the tragedy of autumn?!”
Wendy reacted in shock at Lucy’s words.
I was the one who answered Wendy’s question instead.
“yes. It refers to a battle that took place in the North, Northern Garden. It was named so because countless people lost their lives that fall. But why?”
“ah… … . it’s nothing. I’m sorry… . I don’t know… .”
Wendy lowered her head with a worried face.
It seems that Luna is still confused about the fact that she was actually an emperor.
It was a pity, but it must be a problem she had to overcome alone.
Lucy finally got to the point.
“anyway… . Now that that’s the case, I’ve come to inform you that your private, Aslan, must also participate in the Northern Conquest. Unlike the Imperial Army, Aslan is almost the warriors of the reverse who almost survived during the ‘Tragedy of Autumn’, so if you can guide me on this expedition-“
“Sounds funny.”
I was so shocked that I let out a snort.
“In the end, he said to take the lead after seeing us.”
“… It may sound like that, but the Imperial Army and Aslan are in a relationship that eventually has to work together. With your help, unnecessary sacrifices can be minimized.”
“How is that different from saying that my soldiers should shed the blood of the imperial army instead?”
“different. Our military will take the lead, so if your Aslan can guide you the way-”
“Because it is cooperation and sacrifice, don’t wrap it up in such shiny words. Above all, if you really want to cooperate, you should have asked me, not notified me. Isn’t it?”
My ‘wrath’ was passed on to Lucy.
However, the power was adjusted as weakly as possible.
The object of my anger was always ‘Luna’, not ‘Lucy’.
And again, Lucy was different from Luna.
“I made a mistake… .”
Lucy apologized to me very politely.
“I was trying to convey Luna’s will, so it ended up like this. This time, I will speak not as Emperor Luna, but as Emperor Lucy. Count Ruelberta, I ask for your cooperation in this northern expedition.”
Even though he fell short of Luna, Emperor Lucy was also an emperor.
Not only did she convey Luna’s will, but Lucy was also doing her best to get my cooperation somehow.
of course… My legs were shaking because of my ‘rage’, but let’s pretend we didn’t know that.
“… I, too, have no objection that the Northern Gardens should be reclaimed. So, I have thoughts of cooperating with the expedition… . It cannot serve as a guide.”
“Yes?”
“The Aslan of today is not the Aslan of that time. At that time, all those who had suffered the ‘tragedy of autumn’ had retired. Those under me now are either those who did not participate in the expedition or those who are new to it after that.”
“is that so… .”
“It is inevitable to encounter monsters in the north anyway. If you intend to give the Imperial Army experience in combat, don’t even think about taking the easy route.”
When I coldly shot at her, Lucy, involuntarily intimidated, opened her mouth.
“Then, does the count mean to cooperate with us?”
“yes. However, there are conditions.”
In fact, I had already decided on an answer.
I just had no intention of collaborating.
“what is that… ?”
“Hand over command of the Northern Expeditionary Force to me.”
“Yes?!”
Lucy’s eyes widened.
“To hand over command of the entire army?”
“yes. If you hand over the command, of course I will participate in the expedition myself. I will recapture the north as soon as possible.”
Before I knew it, the carriage passed the front gate of the school and stopped in front of the main building where the office was located.
“no… . Whatever it is… .”
“I’m not saying you have to answer right away. There will still be time before the expedition. Go back in the evening and talk to Luna.”
After saying that, I got off the carriage first.
I was in a state of anticipation at the unexpected event.
The reason why I thought to recapture the North someday… . That’s because Northern Garden was close to the birthplace of the third demon king.
*
“… … .”
Wendy was very upset.
Because of the story he had heard in the carriage in the morning, the contents of the class did not come into his head at all.
It was all the more so because the morning class, of course, was taught by Professor Ariel Leishette.
The words Professor Ariel had said the other day kept ringing in Wendy’s head.
-Student Wendy, do you know about ‘The Tragedy of Autumn’?
Wendy couldn’t help but think.
At that time, what was Professor Ariel’s expression… Because I looked sad.
– I guess the chairman didn’t talk about it? but… . Of course the man can’t talk. If you find out about that, the way you look at him and Ruelberta might change.
Wendy shook her head.
Professor Ariel’s words sounded like Tristan was doing something bad and ignoring it.
For some reason, she was so reluctant to Tristan that she forgot about ‘The Tragedy of Autumn’, thinking that it was just a word from Professor Ariel.
In Wendy’s opinion, Tristan was a kind person. This kind of evaluation was natural because he was longing for him, but on the other hand, there were many things he didn’t know about him.
Wendy came to a clear realization from the conversation she had just had in the carriage. The fact that I still only knew a part of Tristan… .
Especially Tristan is Luna… No, I already knew Lucy’s identity.
As Wendy moved to her next class, she glanced at the person next to her.
Lucy, wearing glasses, was walking beside her in silence.
yes. Right now, Wendy’s biggest problem was Lucy.
Wendy still couldn’t believe it.
In addition to the fact that she is the emperor of this country, even the super secret that she has a dual personality… .
I wished someone would have told me it was all a joke.
Throughout the class, I even looked back to see if I had committed rudeness without knowing it.
It wasn’t particularly rude, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t the kind of attitude one would treat an emperor.
‘Ugh… … .’
Wendy covered her head with her hands.
When they got off the carriage, Lucy said only one word.
-I will attend until this semester, but it’s a secret… do i have to protect you?
-… … .
Wendy only nodded desperately.
The sense of betrayal of having been deceived had long since disappeared. It looks like it’s going to blow off my neck, but is that a problem now?
As soon as he became conscious of the fact that an extremely high being called the emperor was walking side by side with him, his mind filled with all sorts of thoughts turned white.
“… … .”
And Lucy had been walking beside Wendy without saying a word from earlier.
I couldn’t quite figure out what she was thinking.
no How could she, a mere attendant, understand the emperor’s thoughts?
Wendy, too, kept her mouth shut and just walked to the next class… .
It was then.
A calm voice cut through the heavy silence between the two.
“Oh my goodness. Where are you two going?”
“Sia-san… ?”
A black-haired female student with an oriental feel.
Shia Ryumin stood in front of the two.
“Oh, we were all on our way to our next class… .”
“Next class? It’s lunch time now.”
“Yeah… ? oh… .”
It was indeed lunchtime when Wendy looked at the clock tower outside the window.
I guess I was completely at a standstill.
On the other hand, Lucy’s expression that she didn’t know at all… . No, it was expressionless throughout.
“ah! I really won’t run away, so let go!”
But next to Sia, a female student was struggling. He was a classmate, but his name must have been… .
“Rachel… Seed?”
“Hey! you talk to him Well, I’m not going to run away!”
Having said that, Rachel was held captive by Shia. To be precise, her and Sia’s wrists were handcuffs made of water.
“Ugh. I barely found them all. I really knew where everyone had run away.”
“Yes… ? come on us… ?”
“You haven’t forgotten, have you?”
At Wendy’s bewildered question, Sia smiled and said,
“We promised before the exam. The person who placed first in the test will make the other 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place do whatever.”