「Your Highness Frizione, at present, it appears that neither Prince Kabajid nor Prince Shurus have noticed our movements.」
Frizione breathed a faint sigh of relief as Angela, the commander of the White Rose Knights, gave her report.
Escaping the castle……or more accurately, the Imperial Capital, was naturally dangerous.
Widele and the other knights she had sent out had yet to return, but she waited for their return first, it would undoubtedly take time to prepare and her actions might be discovered by her brothers.
As a result……she had decided to start preparing, little by little, over time.
In her last meeting, which was her last hope, she had ultimately been unable to stop the formation of another punitive force.
Given that, she had decided to do the next best thing she could……maintain the balance of military strength to bring the situation to a stalemate.
In terms of pure military strength, the punitive force and rebel army were evenly matched at this point in time. However, with regards to justification, Mercurio was a rebel.
In comparison, there were three members of the royal family on the side of the punitive force.
……To be exact, Vihera was also with the rebels, but she had already fled the country and didn’t want to make a big public appearance right now.
Because of this, if Frizione sided with the rebels, she would be able to force a stalemate.
Frizione’s thoughts had led to her current actions.
Fortunately, with the ongoing civil war, there was nothing strange with her meeting with nobles from her faction.
That was why she had been able to pass her plans to those she trusted.
Of course, not everyone was in favour of the plan. Still, many of them admired Frizione and reluctantly listened to what she had to say.
However……
「So, how long have they infiltrated for?」
Frizione’s voice was filled with sadness as she asked Angela.
It was only natural, as the report concerned those in her own faction who had been acting suspiciously.
As an idealist, Frizione was saddened to hear Angela tell her that there were people in her faction who had ties to Shurus and Kabajid.
Although, Kabajid aside, those with ties to Shurus had been the result of his aide’s, Amare’s, independent actions.
「There are three confirmed cases, and five suspicious but inconclusive ones.」
「Eight in total, is it. Should I be happy or sad……」
As an imperial princess, Frizione’s faction was smaller than that of Shurus and Kabajid, who were princes.
Eight people from a small faction. Whether that was considered a lot or a little depended on the person.
「Obviously, those eight haven’t been informed of this, right?」
「Yes. We’ve sent some trustworthy people to keep watch. However, we can’t do that forever……」
「I know. We’ll try to cover it up somehow for now, but we need Widele’s group to return as soon as possible. Do you think we should send other people to Mercurio?」
「No, if we do something that big, Prince Shurus and Prince Kabajid will definitely notice. Let’s trust Widele for now and wait.」
Angela shook her head as Frizione nodded silently.
「Well, that’s fine. That aside……how about the others? Did they hear out our request?」
Frizione tried to change the mood by shifting the topic, but Angela shook her head again.
However, this time, there was a hint of happiness in her expression.
「I spoke to those who were definitely on your side and most of them said they wanted to join us.」
「……I see, that’s a problem. This was originally a family issue, but it’s gotten out of hand. I’m also going to the rebel army because of my personal feelings. I don’t want others to get involved if possible. They really are a problem.」
As Frizione replied to Angela, a look of happiness could be seen on her face, probably because this news had come after finding out that people in her faction had been in contact with another faction.
But, it also wasn’t something to be truly happy about.
「Is there any way to convince them? If they come with us, if we’re not careful……no, we’ll definitely be treated as rebels. I’m not saying they have to join Shurus’ or Kabajid’s faction right now, but if they could at least return to their territory……」
「That’s true. but it would also be difficult. They are nobles after all. If it’s the path they’ve chosen, they’ll follow it to the end.」
「Angela, what about your father……Count Luxinois?」
As the commander of the White Rose Knights, under Princess Frizione’s direct command, it was only natural that her father, Count Luxinois, was also part of the First Princess’ faction.
When Angela heard her father’s name mentioned, she smiled slightly as she spoke.
「My father was the first to say he would go with you, First Princess.」
「……I see.」
Frizione seemed a little surprised at Angela’s words.
Even so, she was able to continue speaking immediately as she had considered that Count Luxinois might say that.
Frizione smiled as she recalled the Count’s stubborn face, just like his daughter.
This seemed to make Angela a little unhappy as she puffed out her cheeks slightly.
Angela had beautiful features that could be described as dignified, but when she puffed out her cheeks, her expression made her look strangely childish.
Though she was in her mid twenties, she still looked like a teenager……that might have been a bit of an exaggeration, but she definitely look younger than her actual age.
「Anyway, let’s prepare so that we’ll be ready whenever Widele returns. Only the White Rose Knights and volunteer soldiers will accompany me, right?」
「Yes. It has been decided that all the members of the White Rose Knights will accompany you, but as for the soldiers……」
Angela was silent.
Volunteer soldiers. This may sound like an elite group, but in reality, it was made up of people who had just decided to follow Frizione and were by no means an elite force.
Naturally, their numbers were not large. Some were even former adventurers, so they were mashup of fighters in the literal sense.
The only thing they had in common was that they had all been helped by Frizione in the past, so there was no need to worry about them betraying her.
At the very least, Frizione and Angela trusted them more than some of the nobles in their faction, whose loyalty could be questionable.
「That’s right. Seriously, those idiots.」
Although she was insulting them, Frizione was happy in her heart.
They knew that she was doing something stupid but were willing to put up with it.
The nobles in her faction, the White Rose Knights, and those soldiers……
「They really are all stupid.」
「That’s right. But Princess Frizione is the leader of those idiots, is she not?」
「Hehe~, that is true. Then I’ll do my best to act stupid. Tell the people who want to come with me to be ready to leave the Imperial Capital at any time. If Shurus and Kabajid’s men ask me what I’m doing……」
「We’ll be the ones to defend the capital after the punitive force leaves, so we need to prepare. Is that right?」
「Yes. Please do that.」
Thus, the First Princess’ faction busied themselves, preparing to leave before Widele and Rei arrived. Of course, Shurus and Kabajid didn’t miss those movements. Especially since Kabajid had been investigating Frizione’s movements for some time now.
Several people with ties to Shurus’ and Kabajid’s factions may have been caught, but that didn’t mean it was all of them. Some just laid low and didn’t take any actions.
These people contacted their employers or superiors and reported the movements made by the First Princess’ faction.
However……those with the information didn’t take any particular actions in response as they wanted to use the situation to their own advantage.
Not to mention there was a clear lack of evidence.
In the current situation, if the First Princess’ faction told them they were preparing to defend the Imperial Capital, they couldn’t say much against it.
About an hour’s distance from the Imperial Captial. A little off the road, Rei, Set, Widele, and the rest of the White Rose Knights were present.
The reason they were off the road was because they couldn’t let people traveling see them with Set.
Needless to say, Griffons were exceedingly rare and when it came to tamed Griffons, Rei would be the first person to come to mind.
This tendency was especially strong, considering the recency of the fighting tournament.
That was why, since information that Rei was with the rebel army had definitely been sent back, they couldn’t do anything that obvious.
(It would have been a different matter if no one had escaped the night attack. But since at least one person in Sobble’s group escaped, it’s safe to assume that my information is definitely known.)
If that hadn’t happened, Rei could have just used the excuse that he had come back, but……Rei stroked Set’s head as he thought about how suspicious that would have been.
「Set, I’m going into the Imperial Capital now. I don’t know how long it will take, but it will probably be a few days at least. In the meantime, I’m sorry, but please wait outside the Imperial Capital. You can hunt and eat the animals around here. …..There probably aren’t any monsters considering how close we are to the Imperial Capital, but animals are fine, right?」
「Guru~」
Set gave a sad cry, but he probably understood that he would only get in Rei’s way if he went any further with them. He took a few steps back obediently as he put some distance between himself and Rei.
「I’m sorry, Set. If I find any tasty food in the Imperial Capital, I’ll buy some for you as a souvenir, so please look forward to it.」
「Gurururu~」
Rei’s words seemed to cheer him up a little as they turned around to leave.
……As they left, the White Rose Knights saw Set turn his head around to look at Rei many times and they all cried as they grit their teeth. ……It was only natural for someone to react like that after seeing Set’s actions, making them want to protect him.
Perhaps knowing that he would stand out if he flew into the sky, Set ran along the ground.
(This would have been picturesque if it were lush grasslands in the spring or summer.)
As he watched Set leave, the thought crossed Rei’s mind, but he quickly regained his composure as he turned to Widele.
「Well, I’ll leave to you as agreed on yesterday.」
「Yes, leave it to me.」
After dinner last night, the topic turned to how Rei would travel to the Imperial Capital after parting ways with Set.
Rei had said he could just walk or run the remaining distance, since they would be parting with Set close to the Imperial Capital. But, Widele said that she wanted to repay the favour for the meal and decided to give Rei a hand with the remaining distance.
To do that, Widele reached out and pulled Rei up onto her horse behind her.
Rei himself wasn’t that heavy, so the horse didn’t seem to find it particularly tiring.
Although, if he was holding the Death Scythe, that would have been a different matter.
「Well then, let’s go.」
Widele spoke to Rei, looking a little embarrassed, probably because Rei was pressed up against her, even through her armour.
As the White Rose Knights, Widele and her fellow knights didn’t get close to men very often.
As a result, fighting and training aside, they rarely had the opportunity to be in close contact with men, leaving Widele nervous inside.
However, as the captain of her unit, she couldn’t show it on her face.
「It’s the White Rose Knights. Welcome back.」
This gate to the Imperial Capital was one reserved for nobles.
It was the same gate that Rei had passed through when he first came here with Daska and the others.
The guards manning the gate bowed respectfully when they saw Widele.
It was immediately clear from their pure white armour that Widele and her companions were members of the White Rose Knights.
Widele herself was also quite well known as a unit captain in the White Rose Knights, so the guards didn’t mistake her.
However……
「Who is that person behind you, Widele-sama? Judging from their clothes, they don’t seem to be from the White Rose Knights.」
「This person certainly isn’t from the White Rose Knights, but they are an ally. I will take responsibility.」
The guard was a little suspicious at Widele’s firm response, but couldn’t pry any further.
「Then, responsibility will be yours, Widele-sama……」
In the end, he accepted Widele’s response and bowed slightly.
If he had looked at Rei’s face directly, he would have recognised him from the potraits given to soldiers, but Rei was currently wearing the Dragon Robe with the hood up. They were allowed to pass with the word of a captain from the White Rose Knights.
So, with Rei in the care of the White Rose Knights, they complete the procedures to enter the city……and he set foot into the Imperial Capital once again.