Chapter 189
The 6th
Joint Supreme Tournament ⑤
A Secret
Meeting with His Majesty
Translator : PolterGlast
On the night before
the tournament, after all preparations had been concluded without a hitch, I
received a summons from His Majesty the King, with the instruction that I was
to come privately, and alone.
As instructed, after
the evening banquet, I visited the guesthouse, where Knight Commander Gouras
was waiting at the entrance.
"Demon Territory
Count, I apologize for summoning you at this late hour. I will now guide you to
His Majesty's chambers. This way, please."
"For the Knight
Commander himself to guide me, I am honored. What might His Majesty's business
be? Have we caused some sort of trouble?"
"I apologize, but
I have not been informed of His Majesty's intentions, so I cannot answer.
Please hear the details from His Majesty in his room."
It seemed the Knight
Commander did not know the reason either. Could it be a matter of grave
importance? My steps naturally grew heavier as I followed him.
I was led to a room in
the deepest part of the guesthouse, one that I myself called the secret meeting
room.
"Demon Territory
Count, I apologize for the sudden summons. Still, this room is of an
interesting design, as if it were made for the very conversation I am about to
have."
Yes, the secret
meeting room had double doors. From the hallway, one entered an antechamber,
and the room was beyond another door past that. There were no windows, and at
the far end of the rather spacious room, a table and chairs were placed beside where
a window would normally be.
"Your Majesty, I
will be on standby in the antechamber."
The Knight Commander
bowed and departed. On the table, some alcoholic beverages and a simple meal
had been prepared in advance.
So no attendants are
needed. No, perhaps their entry is forbidden.
"Demon Territory
Count, there is no need to be so on guard. I simply have something I wish to
discuss with you at length, just the two of us. In the Royal Palace, there are
far too many eyes and ears; I cannot even create an opportunity such as this.
There are political
matters to discuss with you, but I will deliberately speak of those on another
occasion. For now, there is another important matter. A matter that requires us
to avoid the public eye."
"Your Majesty,
thank you for the honor of your company. I am humbled to be able to listen to
your words, but please forgive the indiscretions of this backwoods noble who
knows not the proper etiquette."
"There is no need
for etiquette in a secret talk. You may rest assured. Now then, shall we get to
the main subject?
This is, for the most
part, a private matter from me to you. What I am about to say has been passed
down only to those who have become king in this country, so you are forbidden
to speak of its contents. I may not be able to answer all your questions, so
please forgive me."
"Yes, Your
Majesty. Understood."
I somehow understood
the gravity of the situation. I felt that asking a question like, 『Are you sure you
should be telling me such a thing? 』 would itself be an act of rudeness.
"You have heard
about the first King Kyle from the old man (the Headmaster), have you not? Much
about King Kyle is shrouded in mystery. But there are stories that are passed
down only to the one who is king."
Yes, I too had some
thoughts about the first King Kyle. He had probably come to this world under
the same, or similar, circumstances as myself.
"King Kyle is
said to have come here from a world outside the logic of this one, a completely
different world.
And he led the descendants
of the demonic people, the inhuman races, who first saved him, and founded this
country. King Kyle possessed wisdom that did not exist in the world at that
time, and could wield magic that was different from the logic of this world.
He found the aptitude
for magic in the inhuman races who had lost it and revived a great many mages.
He foresaw future crises and prepared countermeasures in advance, thus avoiding
the threat of ruin time and time again. Furthermore, with ideas that had not
existed in the world until then, he created new policies and systems.
Does it not seem
similar to what a certain someone has been doing?"
His Majesty said this
and smiled. Not as if he were interrogating me, but as if he were enjoying my
reaction.
"There was one
who foresaw the disasters that would befall the land of Estol and did various
things, was there not?
Foreseeing famine, he
revived the public granaries that had been forgotten.
Foreseeing droughts
and floods, he constructed waterwheels and levees.
Foreseeing an enemy
invasion, he strengthened his arms and forces in advance.
With original ideas,
he created systems for training and appointing soldiers.
Finding an
unbelievable number of mages from among the common people.
Calling the scorned mages
his comrades and giving them a place to shine.
Developing a base to
resist an invading army that attacks with great numbers.
Fortifying the
developed domain and achieving a magnificent victory with a small force.
Creating new weapons
that do not exist in this world to stand against a powerful enemy.
Wielding unknown
tactics, fusing magic and weaponry to achieve victory.
Foreseeing the
outbreak of a plague and the ensuing crisis, he exhausted all measures.
Devising unknown and
original quarantine measures and preparing countermeasures.
These are all the
footprints of a certain someone's journey, and they all serve to affirm my own
questions. Especially for me, who knows of the first King Kyle..."
"No, not at all,
Your Majesty. I simply scoured what was written in old books and made
predictions based on similar cases."
I felt a cold sweat
trickle down my back. Be calm... become a fox, I told myself.
"Well, there is
more.
The development of the
thing called disinfectant, which was used during the plague.
An inhabitant of the
borderlands, who knows not the sea, using oyster shells for soil improvement.
The idea of a
self-defense force and the treatment of prisoners called the Matsuyama Method.
All of these were
things that did not exist in this country—no, in this world."
"..."
Ah... it's no use. I'm
completely speechless.
"Are you aware?
That the literacy rate
of the children in your domain easily surpasses even that of the Royal Capital.
To provide educational institutions that accept all citizens, to give them free
lunches, and to give the children and their parents a reason to learn. There is
likely no other place like it in this country."
"..."
This is bad... I'm
definitely being cornered. Did I get carried away and do too much?
It's getting to the
point where I can't bluff my way out of this anymore...
"I am not blaming
you. Shall we change the subject? The true name of King Kyle has also been
passed down, only in part, to the royal family. His name was said to be『Kai』."
If his name was Kai, a
few things came to mind. For example, in Japanese, it could be the surname Kai
(甲斐) or the given name
Kai (櫂). I think... there
were names like that in Germany, Scandinavia, and Vietnam as well.
"It seems you
have some idea. And the country where that Kai was born was said to be a
country called『Nippo』. Have you ever heard of it?"
"That... I have
never heard of."
It's probably Japan
(Nihon/Nippon). There's also the possibility of Ningbo (ニンポー) in China, but that's
not a country name.
But I have never heard
of a country called Nippo. Though I can't help but feel this is a bit of a
quibble...
"You knew the
word『Hakuraku』, did you not? This has been passed down to only a
very small number of people in this country because King Kyle used to call
himself that. However, the books you speak of do not contain any mention of
that."
His Majesty was
smiling. Is he telling me to just give up?
"At first, I
thought that you had followed the same path as King Kyle and had descended upon
this world. But no matter how much I investigated, the fact that you were born
from the womb of the Countess Solis did not change..."
Wait, you investigated
that far? I had no idea...
"Oh, I have a fox
who loves to investigate. Incidentally, that fox does not know much about the
circumstances of King Kyle. No, even the royal family is not told much.
Therefore, he does not feel much doubt.
What do you know? With
what thoughts do you create the wisdom and intellect that is outside the common
sense of this world? Your ambition, the future you see—where does it lie?
Today, I wanted to
speak with you frankly about these things, beyond our positions as king and
subject."
It's no use. If it's
come to this, it can't be helped.
His Majesty is
serious. He's asking me, even going so far as to break the prohibition passed
down in the kingdom for generations, to tell me stories that are only passed
down to the king.
No matter how I look
at it, there's no escape.
"Hah... Ah! I
apologize.
I have resolved that I
must also speak the truth. Normally, it is not a story that anyone would
believe, but now, having heard your story, Your Majesty, I am convinced that
you will believe me."
"Oh! Then, is it
true?"
"In truth, I was
born as the child of my father, Darren von Solis, and my mother, Chris.
However, since the time I was born, I have had the memories of having lived
another life.
Probably in the same
country where King Kyle was born, Japan. That country, its logic and its
culture, are different from this world in many ways.
It may be different
from King Kyle, but I can vaguely understand the crises of the future.
However, that is only
until I turn 20. It may be that I am destined to leave this world at the age of
20. Of course, even now, I am trying my best every day to ensure that does not
happen..."
"It is true, it
is true..."
Is His Majesty acting
strangely? It's as if... he's overcome with emotion.
"There is just
one thing I must say. The blood of the House of Solis, which has sworn loyalty
to the royal family, flows in my veins. And my own feelings are the same.
I bear the mission to
protect my current family, those who admire me, and this country, and I have
sworn to do so. Even if I have different memories, I will not betray this oath,
this loyalty."
"Ah! It was true.
The last will of King Kyle was true. After 500 years, in this era when I am
king, it has come to pass. For a member of the royal family, there is nothing
happier."
Tears were streaming
from His Majesty's eyes. I didn't know how to reply.
"The last will of
King Kyle?"
"That's right. In
the last moments before he passed, King Kyle left a certain will.
『As I have already told
you, I am not originally an inhabitant of this world, but have come from a far,
different world, a different country. One day, a person will appear who
possesses ideas and wisdom that surpass the logic and knowledge of this world, and
who will bring about reform.
When a person
suspected of being such appears, keep them close and carefully observe their
character. If they show loyalty to the kingdom and are judged to be a person of
great ability, help them with all your strength as a friend and make them an
ally of the kingdom.
That person will
surely become a guide who will save the kingdom. This matter, as a secret of
the kingdom, must be passed down through the generations. Now, at the moment of
my death, I leave only this. 』
So he is said to have
left these words and passed from this world."
"Such a
thing..."
And more to the point,
just how amazing a person was the first King Kyle?
If he was Japanese
like me... no, if I think simply, 500 years ago would be the Warring States period,
wouldn't it? In that era, there would be almost no knowledge cheat, and the
metric system wouldn't exist as a unit of measurement. That contradiction, no
matter how I think about it, cannot be resolved.
"Actually, it was
I who invited you to the academy. To put King Kyle's will into practice, I
asked the old fox to do it.
At a critical time...
yes, even if you were to resent me for it, I had to be certain. And just as
King Kyle's will stated, you have saved this country from crisis time and time
again. Once more, I offer my thanks."
His Majesty's words
cleared up many of my past questions.
The time before, when
His Majesty had gone out of his way to come to Teigoon.
For the king to visit
a land governed by a mere baron who was not even a landed noble, as a deputy,
was something that would normally be unheard of, and I couldn't make sense of
it no matter how I thought about it. It was not something that could be
dismissed as a simple whim of His Majesty the King.
The sudden summons to
the academy from the Headmaster.
This was also
something I had been suspicious of for a long time. For the Headmaster, a duke,
to personally send a letter of admission to the academy, which had not even
been requested, to the second son (a baron) of a viscount's house on the remote
border, was something that should not have been possible.
What's more, later,
the Headmaster had said he was sorry for pulling me away from my domain at a
critical time. Knowing that, why had he done it?
If it was to protect
my fellow mages, to protect me from the Restorationist faction, then all he
needed to do was summon me to the Royal Capital under some pretext; there was
no need to have me enrolled in the academy for a long period of time.
I felt like I finally
understood the reasons for all of that now.
His Majesty had felt
suspicion towards me since that time and had been secretly keeping an eye on
me. Perhaps the investment of 50,000 gold coins was also a piece of the puzzle
to test his suspicion.
Understanding all the
various behind-the-scenes circumstances up to now at once, I shuddered.
"It's not as if
there were no objections to the conferment of honors this time.
Regarding the
unprecedented triple-jump promotion. Regarding the unprecedented amount of the
reward.
At that point, I had
already felt something close to certainty. Therefore, I followed the will and
supported you with all my strength. That that was not a mistake, I am now
certain. You would not understand this joy."
"So there were
indeed objections and opposition?"
"It is the
nonsense of those who know not war, so you need not worry about it.
To those who
complained, I told them. If you achieve the same military merit under the same
circumstances, I will treat you in the same way, so you should desire to be on
the front lines in the war with the Empire.
Show me that you can
achieve a complete and magnificent victory with a small force against an enemy
several times your size. Show me that you can capture an impregnable fortress
without any casualties on our side. Can you achieve victory while holding
plague victims and being surrounded by an enemy five times your size? Can you
discover a cure for an unsolved, difficult disease?
If you can achieve
even one of these, I will grant you a promotion, so if the opportunity arises,
you should not hesitate to raise your hand. Furthermore, I will promote you as
many times as you achieve these things, so do not hold back. I said this with a
laugh.
Those who had
complained turned pale."
"I have no words
to express my gratitude for your consideration. But... please, do not overexert
yourself."
"To you, I offer
my thanks... Originally, you should be treated on par with, or close to, the
first King Kyle, but for now, I ask you to be patient. In time, I will make
you..."
"What are you
saying, Your Majesty! I have already received an excessive title and position,
so please, do not trouble yourself over it. I am still a citizen of the Kyle
Kingdom, and from now on, I will be a member of the kingdom's nobility who prides
himself on his loyalty to Your Majesty."
"Because of the
ways of the country, I may cause you inconvenience in the future as well. When
this conversation is over, we will return to our relationship as king and Demon
Territory Count. Please, I ask you to forgive me on that point.
However, as your
friend, I intend to spare no assistance from the shadows in the future. I ask
for your favor."
"There is no
greater honor than your words. If you would treat me as one of Your Majesty's
subjects, as you have until now, that is more than enough for me."
"You are truly...
The first King Kyle, too, in a different world, became a comrade to our
ancestors, the oppressed people, and saved them and created a kingdom. As one
of the inhuman races himself. To live as a citizen of the kingdom, just like
you."
After speaking that
far, His Majesty showed a smile and then uttered a single word.
"The company was
much appreciated. Truly delightful! I enjoyed it, Demon Territory Count. You
have done a great service!"
When he said this in a
loud voice at the end, His Majesty's face had returned to normal. Knight
Commander Gouras quietly opened the door and sent me outside.
I did not yet know
that the words we exchanged at this time would, later on, greatly change my destiny.
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