Chapter 82: Interlude – Rafiel

Rudel was in his new airship, Schwert, flying direct to Aster.

He had a stack of letters that were from the kingdom to the officials and ambassadors working in Aster.

One of those letters sent was to him.

He wondered how that was possible until he read who it was from, the sender was Rafiel.

The letter read as follows.

"Good morning, afternoon or evening as you read this. I am writing to inform you that your help is slowly helping the former commonwealth."

After the war, the Talis Commonwealth lost and was abducted by the kingdom.

Because the Kingsfort betrayed the kingdom, the Kingsfort were eliminated. This left a gap in the title of the three lords.

The current Talis Duchy is the one who became the new third lord.

But it was only so that the other kingdoms would not think that Altfode was weakening.

In the end, there are only two lords and a replacement that no one expected anything from.

Rudel while reading the letter, remembered how he met Rafiel.

It was after the war. To Rudel, a group of adults were bothering a child.

They gave him his own room which was guarded by maids.

Rudel had asked permission and entered with a board game.

Rafiel saw him, but did not move from his bed.

Time passed and Rudel kept coming in and playing only different board games.

Among them, it was chess that caught the young king's attention.

Rudel was playing badly, Rafiel remembered that his father played a lot and taught him.

He could not stand it any longer and decided to teach him how to play. Rudel smiled and so, they both passed the time until he returned to the old commonwealth.

Rudel finished reading the letter and muttered.

"I hope that's okay."

◇◇◇

The former commonwealth, now called the Talis Duchy.

It was a poor land, its structures were made of stone and not cement like those of the kingdom.

Poverty was evident in the streets and even in the palace.

The people lived from day to day.

Rafiel took a break and went to the cemetery.

He visited not only the grave of his parents, but also those who died in the war.

A group of servants accompanied him.

There was another group of people at different graves.

Rafiel prayed to the Saint for the deceased.

(Mother, father, I hope you are well.)

(I will strive to try to improve our country with the help of the count.)

At a nearby grave I could hear a woman crying. She had some small children beside her.

The children were screaming their father's name while the mother was clinging to her grave.

In the grave to the left side where Rafiel was, a young woman was crying.

Her belly was growing.

She was weeping at the grave of her brother and her fiancé as she pulled up the grass.

Rafiel understood her pain. Everyone's, the kingdom had made them suffer so much and now they were tied to it.

The girl said something that made Rafiel tremble.

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"I curse you. Demon of the Realm!"

Rafiel knew who the one they called a demon was. For his face was on banners plastered in different parts of the country.

He understood and knew Rudel from a few weeks ago, but he could tell that Rudel was not a bad person, and just like the former commonwealth he was just used.

There were armed forces, officials and ambassadors of the kingdom sent there.

Among them, a man sent by the kingdom as the new prime minister looked at his pocket watch and spoke to him.

"Acting Duke, it's time to get back to work."

The man informed him that it was time to get back to work, but the others protested.

"Be a little more flexible at this time at least."

"You clearly have no idea how much Rafiel-sama has been looking forward to this moment."

"This is how the people of the kingdom behave."

The servants... the people of the duchy defended Rafiel, but the kingdom ambassador put on a cold expression.

"The paperwork in the kingdom will be delayed if matters here drag on any longer. Also, I wish they would be more grateful for allowing them this kind of activity."

From the perspective of the inhabitants of the kingdom, they did not care about the circumstances of the former commonwealth at all.

"Many people died in the territories that were invaded by you. If this is happening to them, it is solely and exclusively your fault."

The man did not harbor any positive feelings towards this duchy. In the first place, right now it would also be a nuisance for the kingdom to invest resources into crushing what's left Talis Household; they would just let them be. That was the kingdom's stance.

The ambassador scoffed at the sight of them.

"Very well. I hope they will be more obedient from now on. Well, even if they tried to object, I doubt very much that Talis Household would be in a position to do anything."

The servants were annoyed to hear their king being mocked and belittled after losing the war. Rafiel noticed how the man who was smiling wickedly and mockingly.

"If anything were to happen to me, my good friend Earl Bradford would not be quiet. Are you really willing to stand up to him? And even more so if he should see me hurt, for after all, we are great friends."

The guards of the Acting Duke's Household looked away as soon as Rudel's name appeared.

They trembled just remembering how a teenager could destroy an entire army and kill hundreds without being a soldier.

They all ducked their heads and apologized as the ambassador chuckled.

Rafiel saw it.

(You are nothing but a liar hiding behind the name of the count.)

(If he were really here, you would run away.)

"It is time to go, this was my rest."

The servants saw their young king say very adult words for a child.

"Good. Let's get back to work, Prime Minister Ritzburg is looking forward to the report."

With those words they all climbed into the carriage.

The ambassador climbed into one that was highly decorated and much larger than the others.

Rafiel climbed into his and as the carriage moved, he watched ships of the realm entering and leaving in the sky.

While on the other side were strange machines piercing the earth and throwing seeds.

Rafiel smiled because Rudel kept his promise to help them.

He closed his eyes and remembered that his father had once told him that everything would get better.

When he opened them again, he knew what he meant.

"...Things might have been different for us if we had met before this. I would have liked to have met your island back then."

Rafiel fell asleep remembering the good times as the carriage rounded the hill to the palace.

The duchy of Talis will have dark and hard times, but the will of their king is not weak. Unlike the game, they will see the light of a new day as no one knows more than Rudel and Ixion; the wonders of fruits and crops they will be able to sell in the future.

In a selfless way, Rudel saved the commonwealth after the war.