A few days later, after a long while, I went out with Amber to the outskirts of the capital.
“Is it all right for me to come this far?”
“As long as I’m with you, it’s fine, Your Highness. Well… please just don’t suddenly run away. I’d like to live a long life too.”
“You’re saying that because you know I won’t run, right?”
“That is true. Ah, they have apricot pie today!”
At the high-end dessert shop where Madam Rene, the manager, and the clerks were slowly beginning to recognize my face, we bought armfuls of cake, macarons, and pie, then went all the way to the enormous lake park on the outskirts of the capital and began to eat.
The lake water lapped gently, and the warm afternoon sunlight pouring through the leaves of the tall trees was soft and bright.
For me, who had spent the past few days steeped in the smell of metal and sweat, this dazzling peace was so sweet it felt unreal.
“Ugh… I feel alive again.”
I opened the box, took a big spoonful of chocolate cake, and let out an exclamation of admiration.
The sweetness melting softly in my mouth was so very welcome.
“At least it’s a relief that His Highness the Second Prince isn’t trying to control my diet too. How is a person supposed to live on chicken breast alone?”
“That may be true, but… if he knew I was feeding Your Highness sugar like this, he would be appalled.”
“Since we’re on the subject, Amber, do you want to work out with me too?”
“If you mean muscle training, I’ll decline. I’m a soldier, so I train regularly anyway.”
Amber looked at me with a hint of pity as I polished off a pie and began eating macarons.
“By the way, among all the royalty I’ve seen, I think you like desserts the most. Do you not eat them much in Sterling?”
“Sterling is a poor country. We have plenty of fish and agricultural products, but we didn’t really have the luxury to make things like this. Well, the fish is really fresh, at least.”
“…Oh, I apologize.”
“No, it’s fine. Being captured has its perks, I suppose. I get to eat things like this.”
My quality of life had certainly improved a lot compared to when I lived as the second son of a baronial family.
And to be honest, even Joseph, who was royalty, hadn’t eaten and lived this well.
I would know that better than anyone, considering how often I used to play at the royal castle.
“By the way, Amber, can you tell me more about the empire? Things that might be useful for me to know.”
The knight before me was more knowledgeable than I’d expected and knew quite a few interesting stories.
“Hmm, last time I explained the empire’s territory to you, but I suppose there’s no need to go over that again?”
“No, not really.”
“Then… may I explain the history of the empire?”
“Sure. I like history.”
As I chewed on a strawberry macaron and perked up my ears, Amber gazed at the lake and quietly began to speak.
“You may find this hard to believe, but… the small tribe that became the beginning of the empire was, long ago, a little nomadic tribe that lived by herding sheep and horses in one corner of a barren, desolate wasteland.”
“A shepherd tribe? This great empire?”
“Yes. They were an ordinary little tribe that lived on the meat and milk of their sheep and horses, sold them to neighboring tribes, sold them to other tribes and nations, and did a little raiding whenever the opportunity arose. I believe there were about five hundred tribesmen. Even now, in the wastelands annexed by the empire, many people still live that way.”
“I knew they came from a nomadic people, but I didn’t know it was a tribe that small.”
“But everything changed when a once-in-an-age war hero named Ujarat was born as chieftain of that small tribe.”
Amber’s voice held reverence for the origins of the imperial family.
“Ujarat was a child born with the eyes of a beast. There is even a tale that he devoured his twin in the womb before he was born.”
‘What is he, Sukuna?’
“As soon as he turned fifteen, he single-handedly slaughtered a hostile tribe that had been threatening his own. It is said that in that war, Ujarat killed every male taller than a wagon wheel.”
“Is that a metaphor?”
“It is literal. A brutal method unique to nomadic peoples.”
“Good heavens.”
“With that brutal, overwhelming might, Ujarat unified the entire vast wasteland at the center of the continent before he turned forty. That was the beginning of this empire.”
“He was an incredible man.”
“Among his many sons, his most talented eldest son succeeded his father and greatly expanded the kingdom, then devoted his life to bringing down another empire, the strongest on the continent at the time. Even after that, the imperial bloodline continued striving to unify the entire continent, and at last, in the reign of the current emperor, they brought down the south. You know this story well, don’t you?”
“I do. I was captured because of it.”
“Now all that remains is the Laurent Kingdom in the west, but since it is a natural fortress with extremely treacherous roads, I think it will take a long time. There is an enormous basin between sheer mountain ranges, and it’s an incredibly fertile place, so if they decide to seal themselves in, there’s no telling how long it will take. I may not live to see it.”
“But the empire will win in the end, won’t it?”
“That is only natural. There is a decisive difference in national strength between the empire, which can draw power from the entire continent, and the Laurent Kingdom, which, no matter how fertile it may be, is still nothing more than a basin in a mountain valley.”
“I hope the Laurent Kingdom realizes that and surrenders peacefully.”
“The empire offered to grant the king of the Laurent Kingdom even the rank of imperial duke, but he refused. It wasn’t a rude refusal, so the empire will not immediately try to fight the Laurent Kingdom to the death, but war is all that remains.”
“Do you think war will break out soon?”
“Well, I imagine the empire will focus more on settling the south for the time being. Although the southern kingdoms surrendered more easily than expected and the damage was light… even for the empire, a three-front war is a burden.”
“Wait, why three fronts? The west was originally imperial land, and the south and the east… Uh, wasn’t the north imperial land too?”
“It was imperial territory then, and it is imperial territory now. However, if you ask whether it is land ruled by someone who obeys His Majesty the Emperor’s commands… that is difficult to say with certainty.”
Amber’s brown eyes turned cold.
“Who rules the north?”
“His Majesty the Emperor’s cousin and the Grand Duke of the North, Victor von Argenheim.”
The Grand Duke of the North. Right, of course. There was no way a romance-fantasy world wouldn’t have a Grand Duke of the North.
“The previous Grand Duke of the North, the younger brother of the current Emperor Caesar’s father, lost at the council but refused to acknowledge the result. He remained in the northernmost reaches of the empire while holding onto his own forces… and his son inherited his position, becoming the grand duke who now rules the north.”
Amber rested her chin on her hand and continued.
“The members of House Argenheim are certainly capable, if nothing else… and the Grand Duke of the North is said to be the foremost man on the continent when it comes to war.”
“How does he compare to you, Amber?”
“Even if we were given the same forces and stood on the same front line, I would lose before a week passed. He is not simply a man of remarkable personal strength, but also a genius in tactics, strategy, and administration. You can tell just by looking at how he maintains sufficient military power while holding back the trolls and monsters that endlessly pour down from beyond the Northern Wall.”
“He sounds impressive.”
“I wish he were at least unlucky with his children, but both of his two children are famous throughout the empire. His son, Eric von Argenheim, is known as the Greatest Sword on the Continent, and his daughter, Ella von Argenheim, is the empire’s greatest mage. She is also known by the epithet the White Witch.”
“…I don’t know if I should ask this, but if Princess Victoria and that man Eric fought, who would win?”
“Uh… Eric stands at the pinnacle of one-on-one swordsmanship, while Her Highness the Princess stands at the pinnacle of army-versus-army warfare, so their specialties are a little different… but if they actually clashed, whoever was in better condition that day would win. To be honest, once martial prowess passes a certain level, everyone becomes rather similar.”
Amber shrugged.
“Well, they are all of the imperial bloodline too, but I don’t like them. From my position, as someone loyal to His Majesty the Emperor, Her Highness the Princess, and the current imperial family, they are all people I wish would just die—”
Amber failed to finish her sentence and shut her mouth, then suddenly placed her hand on the scabbard at her waist.
I wondered why she was acting that way, puzzled, but a few seconds later I immediately realized what was wrong.
Crack, craack.
The gently lapping lake water before my eyes began freezing from the edges at a terrifying speed.
As I trembled at the sudden chill, a cool voice reached my ears.
“Is it all right to say such things where the person concerned isn’t present? Wishing someone would die and all… It isn’t a very pleasant experience.”
The empty air froze white, then began to fall away like shards.
Through the gap, a woman with white hair smoothly appeared and stood before me.
Amber drew her sword and stood between me and the woman, shouting fiercely.
“The White Witch…!”
“Calm down, Sir White. I have brought a letter from my father and come solely as an official envoy of the north. Wouldn’t it be better to lower your sword?”
When the woman placed a white finger against the blade and pushed it lightly away, the sword froze white and shattered with a clang.
Ignoring the horrified Amber entirely, the woman took a step toward me and smiled with her eyes.
“So this is… the southern prince about whom so many rumors have spread.”
“……”
“My name is Ella von Argenheim. I am the eldest daughter of the Grand Duke of the North and the rightful heir to the grand duchy. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”