19-6
Beyond the Tunnel Was...
Translator : PolterGlast
On the night of the
second day since departing Fimbul, we finally arrived in Elfinshil.
According to Yumil, arriving in two days is absolutely impossible, but
since we had indeed arrived in two days, it couldn't be helped.
「Wh-What
are you people...?」
There is one more
trivial problem. The underground tunnel built by the First Emperor, for some
reason I don't understand, connected to a bathhouse. There was a single
half-naked young elf boy there, bashfully hiding his crotch.
「Yumil,
what is the meaning of this?」
「I-I
don't know!?」
「Wahaha,
yours is so tiny!」
「I-I'm
not looking, wan, I didn't see anything, wan...!」
From a third party's
perspective, we probably looked less like diplomatic envoys and more like
absolute assassins. However, that boy just stared at me with wide eyes.
「Sorry,
it seems I connected to the wrong place. My apologies for interrupting your
bath, I'll close it back up now.」
「...Could
it be, are you Ausar-sama? The legendary one who, in the olden days, appeared
by smashing through the bathhouse...」
First Emperor, what
on earth were you doing...? I'm also to blame for proceeding down the path you
built without a shred of doubt, but why did you connect it to a bath...?
「Wahaha,
then this will be quick! Shovel Man, show him your dragon's eye and arm! That
will settle the matter!」
「Is
that—are you sure that's really okay...」
However, it seemed
faster than explaining with words, and since that suited my preferences, I
complied. It was frightening to expose my grotesque form, but perhaps I had an
expectation that he might acknowledge me.
「Th-The
real one...!?」
「No, I
am not the First Emperor. I am his distant descendant, Ashley. Some
people call me a throwback to my ancestor, but I am me. Much more so than the
ancestor who smashed through a bathhouse.」
Then, that boy,
whatever he was thinking, knelt at my feet. And he raised a gaze full of
expectation.
「I
apologize for the delayed introduction. I am the one acting as the King of this
country, named Gufen. We have been waiting for the day you would appear
again, Ausar-sama. Ah... we were not forsaken by you all, were we...」
「...Yeah,
if you'll swallow our demands, I don't mind playing the part of Ausar.
First, my apologies, but let's see, let us borrow a bath first.」
「Y-Yes,
as you command...」
「You're
too much at your own pace, wan...」
「But
that's the kind of person Ausar-kun is, after all... Mmm, but living in
a hole has left us sticky and muddy. Perhaps I will take you up on that
offer...」
When King Gufen
called a page, as expected, they seemed surprised by us ruffians. But since the
King was convinced, it didn't matter. When my companions left the bathroom, I
had a naked bonding session with him, who was quite youthful for a King.
「You're
quite young though, aren't you.」
「No, I
have accumulated more years than this appearance suggests.」
「Then
shall I do something befitting someone younger? King Gufen, I will wash
your back.」
「...You
are an eccentric, just like the legends.」
「Like I
said, that's just an accidental resemblance. I am Ashley, Prince of the A-Zir
Empire. The reason we came here is—」
「The
demise of the Emperor. An incomplete coronation ceremony. A blood-soaked
dispute among siblings. The situation over there seems to be at its worst.」
「Well,
that's about it. For that reason, King, lend us your strength. If we mess up,
it'll turn into a war involving the whole world. We want to avoid that.」
「Requests
of that sort have been coming from every conceivable faction within the Empire.
However—no, let's relax for now.」
We washed each
other's backs, and after freshening up, we headed to the audience chamber. It
seemed that even as a King, he could not act on his own authority regarding
such matters.
◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆
When we gathered in
the audience chamber, there was an elderly Horned man next to the King. He was
apparently an advisor, and Gufen explained to me that no important
decisions would pass without his approval.
「Sigrun,
huh... You've grown.」
「Wahaha,
it's not just my breasts that have grown!」
「Sigrun-sama,
nobody said anything about that, kyan!」
「Is
that so!? More importantly, who are you, old man!?」
「I just
know you from when you were young... Child of Calamity, you haven't changed.」
「What,
you're from the same hometown, geezer?!」
She thumped her
chest loudly as if boasting about it, dumbfounding those who did not know her
personality.
「We
shouldn't have brought her...」
「Sorry,
you can just ignore this one. She'll only complicate the conversation.」
「Don't
say that! You people of Elfinshil, cooperate with us! I, a Horned
person, guarantee that this Ashley and Georg are the winning
horses! Ouch, what are you doing, Yumil!?」
Yumil pulled Sigrun,
who had stepped forward, back in. Is there anyone who would agree to such a
demand? Being suddenly disrupted like that, we lost track of our next words.
「Gufen-sama,
about this matter...」
「W-Wait,
wan! We want you to pretend Sigrun-sama didn't say that, kyan!」
The advisor, the
Horned person, declared flatly.
「Accept
them. Her words and actions are crude, but there is some truth to that
ruffian's words.」
「I am
also in favor. Let us form an alliance with them.」
Accept them, he
said. It wasn't even a negotiation anymore, and we companions looked at each
other in confusion.
「What
do you mean? It would sit better with us if you hesitated a little more...」
「I
merely thought strategically as an advisor. The truth is, similar invitations
have been coming from various factions on the Empire's side. Some forces try to
conciliate us with gold or territorial cessions, while others have even gone as
far as saying they will harm the elves in Imperial territory or destroy this
country in the future if we do not obey.」
「That
is a disgrace to the Empire... I apologize.」
「However,
I hear that you have revived the white underground tunnels. If you have that,
it's a different story. As long as you have that, you are undoubtedly the
winning horse.」
Having thought it
over rationally, he said he would side with us.
「I hear
that in the past, the rebelling Empire led by Ausar built roads beneath
the enemy's strongholds and recaptured the country through surprise attacks. If
Ashley-sama possesses the same power as his ancestor, then siding with him will lead to victory.
Assuming it turns into a war, that is.」
「Ooh,
you understand quite well despite being a geezer! That's right, by the hands of
this Ashley, the wealth of scoundrels will—Funguuu?!!」
Yumil and Yashu pounced and covered the
mouth of Zirant's favorite troublemaker. I do not want the world to find
out that the chivalrous thief Pretty Bell was actually a man... Ah, I'm
saved...
「Are
you truly sure about this?」
「Yes,
because we always believed that the day you returned would come.」
「Gufen...
Like I've been saying, my ancestor and I are different people...」
「To us,
you are the same.」
It didn't quite sit right with me, but in this way, the great eastern power of Elfinshil became our ally. They said they would provide financial aid and dispatch troops using the underground tunnels. In order to solidify those arrangements, it was decided that Miss Yumil would remain here. But our final destination is not here. From here, we will turn back to the ruins of the underground empire and aim south this time. This is why we borrowed Yashu as a companion. Our goal is the beastman country of Kaha. By opening up this path leading south, we will make it so that we can obtain additional reinforcements from Kaha at any time. If we gain the strength of the Elves in the east, the Horned race in the west, and the Beastmen in the south, we should be able to prevent a civil war.
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