Chapter 243: 228

Four days left.

Though time was running short, I kept finding it difficult to start preparations.

Just before noon, a messenger arrived with a summons from the king that said, “Come to the castle”. Thinking that ignoring it would only cause more complications later, I reluctantly obeyed.

I wondered what it was about on the way there, but I was led to the audience room and given a reward for sealing away the spiders.

Four hundred gold coins, a letter of appreciation from the king, and a beastkin woman with royal blood in her veins.

In other words, he had officially acknowledged my relationship with Lanseal.

That was a surprise.

I had expected him to be against it until the day he died, but did he succumb to his daughter's stubbornness?

The public part of the event went by without incident.

Next came the behind-the-scenes part, the real reason for all this.

When I went into the castle’s kitchen, I found the king waiting there alone and without any guards.

He was pouring hot water into some kind of cup-like container.

「Would you like some too?」

「No, thank you」

It was cup miso soup.

This was the second instant product created after the cup noodles.

It contained dried mushroom soup stock and dried pork and vegetables as ingredients, in the style of pork miso soup. It was currently being sold in limited quantities at the【A Respite From Adventuring】store and the seasonings store next door.

「This miso soup not only tastes exquisite after a night of drinking or after eating oily food, but according to Rutsuko, it's very good for health. It's truly a cure-all」

「Is that so?」

It is good for health, but I think calling it a cure-all is quite the exaggeration.

「I have to take care of my health. I plan to live for another 20 years」

「Why not just try to live to be a hundred?」

People with skin as thick as him tend to live long lives.

「It would be nice if we could live to a hundred or a thousand like the great magicians, but we’re ultimately just ordinary people. I don't understand the secrets of magic」

「Well, why don't you just hire someone from somewhere?」

I mean, you have money and you're a king besides.

「You fool. How many royal families do you think have been taken over by magicians because they were duped into believing that they could live forever? It's not just ten or twenty, you know? It's a common scam of theirs. You remember that woman you shot(sounds like “co-inhabit”) a while back? The magician」

「Woman………hmmm」

I didn't have that kind of relationship with Zenobia though. [1]

「The one in my idiot son's party」

「Oh, I remember now」

That one I shot first because she was about to cast some weird magic on Rana, huh?

I have the impression that she was beautiful, but I can't really remember her face anymore.

「When I fell ill, what do you think that woman said?」

「No idea」

Did she say that it was caused by your womanizing or something?

「She said that I wasn't getting enough nourishment and that I should eat lots of sweet things. But both you and Rutsuko have said that sweet things were the cause of my illness」

「Well, it's more that your diet was too unbalanced and you were drinking too much」

「She was a misguided and useless magician. She had a letter of introduction from a noble of Elysium, but now that I think about it, I suspect it was a forgery. Most of the magicians who try to curry favor with royalty are such lowlifes」

「So, what happened to that magician?」

If I had to guess, she's probably no longer in this country.

「I exiled her from the continent. I'm sure she's scamming some moderately wealthy person right now」

「Is that so?」

If she were male, she would likely have been executed, I'd imagine.

King Lemuria sipped the miso soup. He didn't even use a spoon, but drank it like tea.

He then let out a single sigh.

「Now, Souya, there's a reason why I approved of your relationship with Lanseal」

「………………」

Oh, the reason is definitely nothing decent.

That's the feeling I have.

「I've decided to join the new Vindoobunikuru army」

「Huh?」

What are you saying all of a sudden?

「I got a letter from my son, you see?」

「Which one?」

The idiot prince cannot be trusted.

「The one who got into a fistfight with you」

「No, I've gotten into fistfights with both of――――――」

The king smirked.

「"I knew it". Berhardt wrote in his letter that "he had a fistfight with a man who had relations with Lanseal" at a feast. He also said that the man, who has the exaggerated nickname of【Wolf Knight】, is the last vassal of the renowned and valiant King Ashtalia」

「………………」

This one hurts.

My secret has been uncovered by the last person I wanted to know about it.

「You disappeared from Lemuria for a time, didn't you? That was back when Princess Rauaryuna made a scene in the city. During that time, you were with the armies of the Myriad Kings on the left continent. You probably have a portal I don't know about, right? Or is this some kind of foreign technique?」

「No, it's a technique of this world. Gastolfo forced the crest of the Brave on me, and because of that, I got summoned by Her Highness Princess Ashtalia」

「Gastolfo, huh? That's another annoying family」

Well, in the alternate world, justice and courage are just a big nuisance.

「So, why are you betraying Elysium?」

「It's simple. There's no reason for me to continue to follow a waning kingdom. According to the news my son sent me, Elysium's expeditionary force on the left continent has been wiped out. This means that the new Vindoobunikuru army can now invade the center continent with all their might. It will likely be the greatest offensive in the history of the Myriad Kings」

「So you want to sidle up to the winning side」

「If they win, it's all well and good. But even if they lose, the center continent will inevitably be in turmoil. There will be plenty of opportunities for us to become independent amid the chaos. We will likely see an influx of talented people as well」

「Well, that's quite smart of you」

You bloody bat(opportunist/turncoat).

「At the moment, the odds of the new Vindoobunikuru army winning are quite good. That being the case, it's in my best interest to bring you, who has close ties with them, into the family. If their claims of "liberating the beastkin" are not just rhetoric, I'll even allow you and my daughter to get married………………maybe」

「At least promise it, for crying out loud」

Human nature is just unbelievable.

What's more, he's not one bit abashed about using her.

「You hate lies, don't you? Your intuition is also so uncanny that it borders on ridiculous. Thus, I won't say that I will do something I won't. This is the courtesy I'm extending to you」

「Is that so?」

He can be trusted when he tells the truth and doesn't lie, but it's kind of depressing to think that him making it clear that he will commit an act of betrayal in future is proof that he's trustworthy.

I guess I'd better put it into words properly too.

「I'll never introduce a person like you to His Majesty Ashtalia, nor will I do anything to help you gain favor with the Vindoobunikuru army. If anything, I'll spread the word that you're an insufferable and untrustworthy person」

「I don't care. This is who I am, the king who built a city of adventurers. That speaks more of me than any falsehood could. Souya, you have a tendency to glorify the nature of rulers. But it's not all sunshine and rainbows at the top. There's an ugliness that emerges, one that cannot be seen by the creatures that crawl on the ground below」

「Is that how it is?」

「That's how it is. You'll see for yourself soon enough. I have faith in the caliber of the man my daughter has fallen in love with」

I would rather live my entire life crawling on the ground than understand such things.

「You're with someone of my blood. You had better be prepared」

「………………」

I'll just reply with silence. Things could get complicated again if I tried to argue with him.

「Alright then, if you'd excuse――――――」

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I have a mountain of work to do.

I want to get out of here as quickly as I can.

「Wait, I'm just getting to the main point here」

「The main point?」

What more is there?

「The fact that the spiders became active means that a threat that could lead to Lemuria's ruin is imminent, right? You're in a hurry because you've been warned by them, isn’t that so?」

「………………Well, yes」

Come to think of it, the spiders had contacted King Lemuria in the past. It’s also possible that the spiders had given warnings of crises many times over the years.

「This morning, I received a secret letter. It was from the Fifth Pope, the Wanderer King Kerustain, with whom I have a close relationship. He informed me that the First Hero is on his way to Lemuria」

It's what I thought after all.

A friend of Khius, whom I had already sent packing. The hero that Zamonglass found terrifying. A man who's said to possess the same power of curses as me.

The more information I gather about this guy, the less I understand.

Some say he commands the spirits of the dead.

Some say he leads beasts.

Some say he is a destroyer of magic.

Some say he is a reincarnation of one of the beast-hunter princes. No, he is "the prince himself" who has lived for thousands of years.

That's just ridiculous. Humans are not gods.

Even if he has the power of curses, the idea of him living for thousands of years is just absurd.

「I've fought him once before」

「Huh?」

I was suddenly told something rather shocking.

「It was a mistake I made when I was young. It was back when I had lost myself to despair after losing Verxina to the City of Ghosts. As the spiders had warned me, he showed up」

When King Lemuria was young……that would make it almost 30 years ago.

「Though we were one short, we were still four advanced adventurers, and yet, we were completely helpless before him. We were mere child's play to him. He looked ordinary, but it was impossible to tell what he was thinking. He was an eerie man」

「And then what happened?」

This is strange.

If the spiders are right and he’s a destroyer of civilization, Lemuria would never have been founded.

「At that time, there was a foreigner in my party」

「A foreigner?」

That's the first I've heard of it.

「He joined my party after Medimu, Alma and Melm had left. He was initially taken in by the flame religion and was doing charity work in the city. He was quite intelligent, and it was all thanks to him that we were able to fix this country's sanitation problems and the damaged sewage system. The hot water system inside the dungeon was also built by the dwarves based on his designs. Not only that, he was also steeped in adventuring knowledge. He saved my life many times. Without him, I would likely never have become an advanced adventurer」

Why is it that neither hide nor hair remains of a man with such accomplishments?

There isn't even a single rumor about him.

「His name was Alma Guest. That's not his real name. He had named himself that as a joke that he was merely a guest until the missing Alma came back. No one knew his real name. Well, maybe the priestess of the flame religion knew it. If he were still alive today, she likely wouldn't still be single」

The footprints(contributions) left by a foreigner who once lived here.

I'm curious, but for now……

「What does that foreigner have to do with the First Hero?」

I have a pretty good idea of what the answer is, but what's important are the feelings and actions of this king.

I don't want to be stabbed in the back by him.

「He wanted Alma Guest's life」

「The life of a foreigner……」

A person from another world can be a catalyst that sparks the advancement of civilization. To hinder the progress of civilization, they're hunted down.

I can understand that, but it's more simplistic and cheaper than I had expected.

「So, King Lemuria, you……」

「You think I sold out my party member?」

「………………Somewhat」

I mean, I suspect you have every intention of doing so this time as well.

「When the First Hero demanded Alma Guest’s life after we had lost to him in battle, Alma Guest took his own life without a second thought. With eyes that saw deep into the depths of people. I suppose all martyrs are like that. His caliber as a human was immeasurable. Then, the Wanderer King appeared before me, and ordered me to become king, saying, "It's those who know how dark and murky the world is that are worthy of being kings recognized by Elysium”」

「It's ironic, isn't it?」

「It’s ironic」

It's the worst kind of irony.

If it were me………………what would I have done, I wonder?

Would I have fought to the bitter end rather than surviving on the back of my party member's suicide?

Or would I have fought to live on for the sake of my departed party member?

「I've considered revenge so many times…… No, I believe that this time is one more opportunity for me to exact revenge」

「I see」

Then I suppose King Lemuria is an ally this time. Revenge is a sentiment I can trust.

「And that's exactly why I cannot make any moves right now」

「Huh?」

What?

「I need to assemble an army, join up with the new Vindoobunikuru army, and then when everything is in place, we'll launch a pincer attack on Elysium. For this reason, I'll offer him a sacrifice just once more in order to placate him」

「Hey」

「Right now, there are "three" foreigners in this country. The first is you, the second is Rutsuko, and the third is a greenhorn adventurer who has just started adventuring」

「Wait a minute」

That’s……

「You're out of the question. At the end of the day, the future of my lineage rests on your shoulders. It would be a sad thing if the child who will be born one day doesn’t have a father. Rutsuko isn't an option either. The food she cooks is necessary for maintaining my health. More than anything, there are too many people who enjoy her dishes. But what do you know, isn't there one more?」

「Hey!」

I directed killing intent at the king.

But he brushed it off with an unperturbed look.

「Souya, people endure pain, embrace pain, and live with pain. It's as simple as that. I highly doubt you don't understand that. The sacrifice of a single foreigner, someone you just met yesterday, could turn this entire problem around」

「You can't be sure it'll work, can you?!」

「Nothing is ever for sure in life」

「In that case―――――――」

「Are you going to sacrifice yourself instead? That would be the height of folly. Think. Don't let your emotions get the better of you. You have more than just one or two people depending on you. Taking on reckless challenges is not the adventurer's way. Betting everything on what has the highest possibility of success is the right approach to take for adventurers」

His argument is sound.

The argument he’s making couldn’t be more sound.

「That's right. You're right. But――――」

Don't mess with me.

Don't mess with me!

Don't you frigging mess with me!

Those words just kept coming to my mind.

So, before I spat them out, I took a deep breath then exhaled.

Calm down……

After I had calmed down, I put my fury into words.

「If something like that is the right approach, then I quit being an adventurer!」

[1] Just in case, when King Lemuria said, “…that woman you shot a while back”, it could be misinterpreted as “…that woman you co-inhabited with a while back” or “…that woman you hit(which can be taken sexually the same way it can be in English) a while back” because all those sound identical in Japanese. Needless to say, we know which one is right because it’s written text for us, but it’s totally conceivable that Souya could have taken it the other ways because he was hearing it. It’s telling that his mind went there, I suppose.

Ah, Japanese is so deep! I just learned something new and groundbreaking(to me) doing this chapter. In Japanese, “bat(Komori)” can be a derogatory term meaning “opportunist” or “turncoat”! That’s what Souya calls King Lemuria, of course. It also adds so much to one of my favorite animes, Aldnoah Zero. It totally adds an additional layer of meaning to what the first MC calls the second MC and shows more motivation for why he doesn’t trust him(which was a bit shaky for me before I realized this!). Side note, Hiroyuki Sawano rocks!

Well well well, lots to talk about, huh? So we’ve finally learned what secret it is that King Lemuria learned that gave him the “Almagest” name and allowed him to be king. To be clear, what I had translated as “Almagest” and “Alma Guest” are the exact same in the original, I simply had to deliberately spell it differently as it would have been too obvious to English readers. And King Lemuria also uses it as if it’s one word a lot.

King Lemuria’s plan is logical, so logical, but Souya can’t do it, can he? Not to Yukikaze. Even though the bond is gone and they don’t remember each other, he still feels it inside him, doesn’t he? He almost had King Lemuria on his side, but looks like that isn’t meant to be. What will happen now? Souya still hasn’t succeeded in making any preparations for the First Hero’s imminent arrival. Time is ticking away! Stay tuned!

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