Genjitsushugisha no Oukokukaizouki - Volume 18 - Chapter 6

Chapter 6: For Whom Do You Fight?

While a bloodless staredown continued on the Euphoria Kingdom front, intense bloodshed was occurring on the Lunaria-Amidonia front.

Anne, the Saint of the Tiger, led her forces to attack the Amidonia Region of the Kingdom of Friedonia. This front was just one of many diversions, but the army of the Orthodox Papal State was made up of devout adherents, and they had no compunctions about spilling blood for religion.

“Victory for Saint Anne! Glory to Holy King Fuuga!”

“Don’t cling to your lives! Lady Lunaria is watching over our work!”

“Heathen and heretic blood will guide us to Lady Lunaria’s side!”

“Don’t fear martyrdom! Let’s march towards paradise!”

With these fanatical cries, the forces of the Orthodox Papal State charged towards the Kingdom of Friedonia’s National Defense Force. The Friedonian forces were loath to let this kind of mob into their country, so they’d deployed to block the invasion route and met them on the field of battle.

The Orthodox Papal State was less powerful and wealthy than even the Amidonia Region on its own, so their equipment was rather shoddy when compared to the Kingdom’s National Defense Force. In addition, the wounds of their recent political upheaval remained unhealed. The Orthodox Papal State, which normally should’ve been able to field fifty thousand soldiers, and just as many volunteers on top of that, could only mobilize fifty thousand men in total. And among them, seventy percent were said volunteers.

Their forces charged towards the Amidonian Front Force and their well-prepared defensive line. It was like punching a steel wall with their bare hands, and the Orthodox Papal State’s forces bled a lot for the attempt. Still, this didn’t stop them. They continued to advance as arrows rained down and spears pierced their chests. Even if they saw a comrade felled by an enemy blade before their eyes, they would climb over the dead body to attack. These pious men saw death in battle as the way to paradise.

“Kill them! The way of righteousness is to kill as many of these infidels as possible.”

“Such a path could never be righteous!”

Two swords flew through the air and carved an X into the commander, who was leading the fanatics on horseback. A female knight with lion ears and a tail leaped over him and landed nimbly on the other side. It was Mio C. Carmine, daughter of the former General of the Army, Georg Carmine. She was here today as the head of the restored House of Carmine.

The leader of the Amidonian Front Force was Halbert’s father, Glaive Magna. The commanders serving under him were either those from the former Army who had ties to the House of Carmine or people who came from the Amidonia Region. Essentially, those who lived closest to this land were defending it. Because of this, the defenders’ morale was high, as they felt they were protecting their own domains and hometowns.

“Victory to the saint!”

“Punishment for the infidels!”

“Tch!”

Slice! Mio cut down both her assailants with one slash.

Despite their shoddy equipment, the soldiers of the Orthodox Papal State charged at the obviously powerful Mio and were easily slain. As they went down, there was almost a look of satisfaction on their faces.

Mio bared her fangs and glared at them.

“Your deaths are in vain! The only time it’s a virtue to care so little for your lives is when you fight to defend something you cannot give up on! When you come at us and die, it’s all for nothing! Don’t you understand that?!”

Her voice fell on the deaf ears of the Orthodox Papal State, who fought for faith alone. No words could reach those who did not listen. Mio mentally clicked her tongue at them. It looks like they won’t back down in the face of Sir Julius’s infamous reputation this time...

When the Kingdom of Friedonia had intervened in the previous war between the Gran Chaos Empire and the Great Tiger Kingdom, they’d been able to shake up the forces of the Orthodox Papal State by making it appear as though Julius, the feared “Bloody Prince,” had been about to invade. Now, however, because they anticipated that the enemy would take measures to counter this, the Black-Robed Prime Minister and White Strategist Julius agreed that he should not fight on the Amidonian front. In fact, because the combatants this time were the Orthodox Papal State’s fanatics, they would attack with reckless abandon if their hated foe appeared.

If that happened, the Kingdom’s National Defense Force would incur considerable losses. Although, even without Julius here, the enemy’s reckless charge was still forcing the Friedonian forces on the defensive. They knew this offense couldn’t last long, but unlike these zealots who didn’t fear death, the soldiers of the National Defense Force had families and homes they wanted to return to. Because of their superiority over their opponents, they were paralyzed by inaction out of a desire to preserve their own lives.

The Orthodox Papal State’s forces continued to push, and there were even places where the defense began to collapse. Mio led a force to those spots to provide support, but she felt the pressure. She wanted this one-sided battle to end so she could return to her beloved Colbert and have him indulge her to her heart’s content.

“We will die and go to paradise...”

“Oh, shut up!”

Fed up with this one-sided battle, Mio swung to slay her opponent, but...

What?! A child?!

It was a young boy who couldn’t have been more than fifteen.

The armed forces of the Orthodox Papal State must have been desperate for volunteers. While only a small percentage in the grand scheme of things, child soldiers were mixed in with the other zealots.

As Mio instinctively withdrew her blades, two adult soldiers joined the boy, attacking her from behind. Mio dodged the boy’s spear, but the men’s swords raced towards her while she was still off-balance.

“For Lunaria!”

“Die, infidel!”

Oh no! Mio panicked, but suddenly a large man appeared, cutting down both the attacking soldiers.

“Don’t let your guard down,” he bellowed, following up his attack with a hard kick to the boy’s solar plexus.

The boy doubled over in pain as the large man confiscated his weapons, then seized him by the scruff of the neck and threw him to the rear. Men dressed all in black were waiting, and they gagged and bound the boy before hauling him off.

The large individual, donning black armor, wiped the blood from the Nine-Headed Dragon katana gifted to him by King Souma. As he sheathed his weapon, he gazed at the lion-eared female.

Mio’s eyes watered when she recognized who it was.

“F-Fath— Urgh!”

He gave Mio a sharp blow to the head.

“You still have much to learn,” he said.

This individual who stood over Mio and protected her as she clutched her head and groaned was none other than Kagetora...commander of the Black Cats.

“If there is a time when you can show mercy on the battlefield, it is only once you have completely overwhelmed your opponent. You cannot possibly have that kind of leeway otherwise. Because their faith is blind, these enemies fight with conviction.”

“Urgh... Yes, sir!” Mio stood up straight and answered, one hand still on her aching head. She looked like an apprentice who was finding new motivation after a sharp rebuke from her master.

Seeing Mio had recovered, Kagetora turned with a swish of his identity-cloaking cape.

“We will help where the defenses are on the verge of collapse. My subordinates are currently probing the inside of the enemy camp. Prepare yourselves so that you are ready to go on the offensive once we know the location of the Great Tiger Empire’s regular army.”

With that said, he left.

Mio brushed the tears from her eyes, looking straight forward as she answered, “Yes, sir!”

At this point, a unit led by Margarita Wonder, who had once been a general for the former Principality of Amidonia, came to their aid. Though she was a singer now, she had returned to active service in order to answer the threat to her homeland.

“Madam Mio! Are you all right?!” shouted the former general as she dismounted.

Mio nodded. “Yes! I’m just fine, Madam Margarita!”

Her energetic response was met with a look of relief.

“Thank goodness. You really made me sweat when you headed off for a spot where the defense looked ready to fall with so few soldiers. Sir Glaive must be worried too.”

“Sorry... You can scold me later. But right now...”

“Yes, you’re right. We’ll need to send these guys packing first.”

Mio and Margarita stood side by side. The Duchy of Carmine had once been the shield that defended the Elfrieden Kingdom from the Principality of Amidonia. Because of that, the Amidonian soldiers and the former subordinates of the House of Carmine had been frequent enemies. Mio and Margarita, two women who belonged to formerly opposing forces, were now comrades in arms. It was an experience that served to rouse their spirits even in the face of this exhausting war.

“Let’s go, Madam Mio! To defend our homelands!”

“Yes! We’ll defend it to the end!”

The two of them fell into fighting stances together.

It is said that zealots are more aggressive towards heretics than heathens. This is because heathens have not yet been exposed to the path the believers feel is righteous, and there is room for them to be saved through conversion. But the heretic follows a mistaken belief while professing the name of the same deity; there is no chance of their salvation.

For an easy example from Earth’s history, you can look at the conflicts between Catholics and Protestants. In the Thirty Years’ War—which turned from a war of religion to an international conflict—Catholics carried out massacres in Protestant cities, and the enraged Protestants murdered their Catholic captives as they begged for their lives. This, despite both sides being Christian.

This was partially because those in power took advantage of religious authority. It was inconvenient if the beliefs that justified their rule were too similar to those spread by another ruler. It led to confusion and concern that their own adherents would be drawn in by the similar faith, like a kind of internecine hatred. That’s why the leaders of the Lunarian Orthodox Papal State loathed Archbishop Souji and Mary, who had set up the heretical sect known as Kingdom Lunarian Orthodoxy.

More than seventy percent of the Lunarian Orthodox Papal State’s forces were volunteers rounded up to fight a “holy war.” They were what you might call “soldiers of the faith”—zealots. Despite being so hastily assembled, they threw themselves at the regular forces of the Kingdom of Friedonia so boldly because there were holy men who inflamed their fervor.

“Fight! Bring the hammer of God down on these heretics!”

“Exterminate the Friedonians who spread false teachings!”

“Lunaria is watching you! Fight bravely as soldiers of God!”

The militant clerics shouted to encourage the zealots.

Their violent and bellicose rhetoric came from the uncertainty eating away at them. There had been constant purges in the Lunarian Orthodox Papal State these past few years. They had started with the rise of Fuuga Haan.

The group that supported him clashed with those that viewed him as a threat. Everyone who’d opposed him, except for those who’d fled the country like Mary and the saint candidates, found themselves suppressed as heretics. And so, after the war between the Great Tiger Kingdom and the Gran Chaos Empire, those who simply wanted to make use of Fuuga’s authority and those who worshipped him came into conflict. The worshippers led by Saint Anne won out, burning the ones who had only wanted to use him at the stake.

In short, the clergy of the Orthodox Papal State had been shown what would happen to the losers in any political struggle. They found the very existence of Kingdom Orthodoxy extremely threatening. If Souma defeated Fuuga and Kingdom Orthodoxy rose in prominence, they might be the next to be burned as heretics. Their fear and unease drove them to act, and the zealots moved at their command.

Lombard saw the way they were fighting from the main camp of the Great Tiger Empire’s forces. The unit of reinforcements that he and his wife, Yomi, led for the Great Tiger Empire remained in the main camp to guard Anne, who was effectively the commander of this army. They were strictly here to keep an eye on the Orthodox Papal State forces and had only brought a few hundred men. Their mission was to protect the central pillar, Anne, not to fight on the front lines.

“Despite all of the bloodshed... The Orthodox Papal State forces’ morale hasn’t fallen in the slightest,” Yomi murmured.

Lombard, who was standing beside her, nodded in agreement. “It’s terrifying to see them take on experienced soldiers with faith alone. I wouldn’t want to fight against them or lead them in battle.”

“Even though they’re our allies?”

“Such men are ever turbulent. There is no controlling them. If they perpetrate massacres in the territory we take, there will be no way to rule it with any stability. Of course, I’m sure that Sir Hashim’s goal is not to take territory at all, but to have them run wild and draw the enemy here...”

“So they’re just...disposable pawns?”

Hashim’s plans didn’t intend for the Orthodox Papal State to be able to push deep into the Amidonia Region. The zealots were not afraid of death but couldn’t carry out advanced military maneuvers. They would push against even the hardest points in the enemy’s defense, incurring losses, so even if they made it in deeper, their supply lines wouldn’t be able to keep up with them. Hashim was probably hoping they’d die gloriously while whittling down some of the enemy’s strength and drawing their attention.

As proof of that, when Lombard and Yomi had been sent to observe, the one thing they’d been cautioned against was not to overextend themselves and allow a total collapse.

Yomi looked towards the main camp of the Orthodox Papal State. “Does Madam Anne...understand that?”

“She must. She understands, and yet inflames the zealots anyway.”

“It pains me...looking at Madam Anne’s face now. She’s just like Sami was that day,” she said, her expression darkening.

She brought a hand to her chest as she recalled her estranged twin sister. Seeing Anne act like a soulless doll in her role as a saint reminded Yomi of when Sami had been despondent over the loss of her adoptive father, whom she’d loved so much.

Lombard showed gentle compassion to Yomi as the memories raced through her mind.

Meanwhile in the Orthodox Papal State’s main camp, Anne watched the battle with an empty expression.

The believers fought with faith in God and in her as a saint as they were wounded and fell. Anne didn’t bat an eye. The only way she could protect herself was to become a soulless puppet. Anne wouldn’t command the soldiers on her own. That was a job for the militant clerics to do. She merely stood here as their saint, telling them to fight. She believed that was the task set before her by heaven.

A change on the battlefield occurred as she watched. The believers had been charging onward recklessly, but their movements suddenly became strange.

Something was happening. Anne sensed it...

A faint singing voice drifted on the wind.

“Is that...a song?”

The voice was quiet enough to be lost in the din of the battlefield at first, but it gradually grew louder and soon became so distinct that she could make out the words. It was a Lunarian Orthodox hymn.

The voices were being carried all this way from the Kingdom of Friedonia’s camp.

Was this song dulling her zealots’ movements on the battlefield? She saw a large ball of water forming on the opposite side of the Kingdom of Friedonia’s forces. It was the kind used to display a jewel broadcast. As Anne realized this, the image of Mary, who had defected to the Kingdom of Friedonia, appeared.

“Hello, everyone. Can you hear me?” Mary said as she looked forward. “I am speaking to all the believers of Lunaria who are fighting on the battlefield. And to you, Anne...Lunarian Orthodox Saint.”

Anne jumped a little when she was mentioned by name. Despite how far away the image was, it felt like Mary was right there with her.

“Is my voice reaching you?”

In a room in a fortress a little to the south of the battlefield, Mary stood before a broadcast jewel, her eyes focused ahead.

“I am sure that you, the faithful, see us as heretics for accepting the protection of the Kingdom of Friedonia because the clerics you believe in have told you so. But can you still believe that when you hear this song?”

Mary fell silent, and the sound of a Lunarian Orthodox hymn could be heard.

This was the Lunaria Girls’ Choir, composed of the saint candidates who’d fled the country with Mary. Ever since it’d been discovered that songs could be used to give form to a magical image, thus increasing its power, the Kingdom of Friedonia had been studying the relationship between songs and magic.

There was a secret art used in Lunarian Orthodoxy called Area Heal, and they’d learned that having the wounded sing along with the song increased the healing effects of recovery magic. As a result, the Kingdom of Friedonia had set up a broadcast program during which the Lunaria Girls’ Choir would sing at all times, switching out members so they could take breaks as necessary. This song played at medical facilities on every battlefield, and Mary was playing it now to heal the wounded.

Mary spoke again. “As you know, this song is a Lunarian Orthodox hymn. It’s no different between Papal State Orthodoxy and Kingdom Orthodoxy. So what is so different about us, who you call heretics? The Lunaria we believe in is one and the same. The foundation of Lunarian Orthodoxy is saving the weak and helping one another. Our beliefs have not changed. All that differs is whether our protectors are the Kingdom of Friedonia or the Great Tiger Empire.”

With this, the look in Mary’s eyes became harsh.

“Do those of you watching this understand the differences between us? Or is what you know simply true because your bishops and priests said so?”

Although it was mentioned earlier that the zealous are more aggressive towards heretics than heathens...that only applies to the ruling class, who are inciting those beneath them. The rank-and-file believers haven’t thought it through that well. They’re told to kill the heretics, so that’s what they do, believing that it must be the truth. The higher-ups have told them they can do anything to the heretics, so any act against them, no matter how inhumane, is justified.

But when pressed to explain the reasons for persecution themselves, they’re suddenly less confident. If one were asked to explain the difference between Nestorianism, Arianism, and Athanasianism, or the difference between Theravada and Mahayana, they wouldn’t know unless they’d studied it. The only people who obsess over such differences are those in charge who fear the loss of their authority.

Mary presenting the hymn in this manner directly attacked the psychology of the soldiers of the faith. They wouldn’t listen to reason, but the song was familiar to their ears. Once they were in a listening mood, there was a chance Mary’s voice might reach them.

“Let those in the Lunarian Orthodox Papal State’s forces hear our hymn.”

This plan came from the Black-Robed Prime Minister, who was good at manipulating the intricacies of the heart. Now that they suspected their opponents might also be believers in the same Lunaria, even those who had previously been able to recklessly throw their lives away started to have doubts that dulled their edge. The weight of the sin of murder, which they’d forgotten in their fervor, started to feel very real to them once again. Most zealots were just ordinary people who had been pushed into service. The mental stress on them must have been incredible.

In practice, the song served to massively slow the zealots’ maneuvers. Mary couldn’t see it from where she was, far from the battlefield, but she spoke with conviction.

“In this country, I learned that faith is for the living, not the dead. It’s there to support people in times when they are suffering, and it should not, by any means, be used as a tool to drive them to madness... Right, Saint Anne?”

Mary spoke to Anne as if she were right there with her.

“Who is your faith for?”

Anne had no words.

She grew up an orphan. Alone in the world, with nowhere to belong, and never needed by anyone. However, when she was chosen as a saint, she was finally needed by others, and that became her identity. Her selection as a saint was a message from heaven, telling her it was all right to exist in this world. That’s why Anne played the role of a saint like others wanted her to. Even if people called her a doll, she believed that was her reason for existing. As long as she was a saint, people would need her. If asked who it was for, she’d be able to say it was for the people...or she should have been able to.

However, she’d seen too much blood for that. Those who had been burned as heretics; those seen as zealots who had fallen in battle, believing they were fighting for Lunaria—believing that she was a saint; the face of the man who’d been brought past her on a stretcher one day and clung to her with his bloodstained hand. Countless deaths were seared into her memories.

No...I’m doing this...for Lady Lunaria...for the Holy King... Anne thought of beings higher than herself. She tried to justify nullifying her own will by convincing herself that this was all in line with their greater designs. However, she’d never met Lady Lunaria or heard her revelations directly. Holy King Fuuga had not treated her poorly, but sometimes he seemed to look at her with pity. She felt as though his eyes were the same as Mary’s had been when she told her, “Come with me.”

“Who is your faith for?” It was now that Anne realized she had no answer to Mary’s question.

Then a large man appeared from off to the side of Mary. He was bearded with a shaved head, dressed not in his typical casual monk’s outfit, but in a splendid vestment befitting an archbishop.

He stood beside Mary and spoke. “Ahh... Ahem. Adherents of Lunarian Orthodoxy, can you hear me? I am Souji, head of Lunarian Orthodoxy in the Kingdom of Friedonia. I know you’re busy fighting, but just lend me your ears for a moment.”

It was Archbishop Souji Lester of Kingdom Orthodoxy. The reason he called it Lunarian Orthodoxy in the Kingdom of Friedonia and not Kingdom Lunarian Orthodoxy was likely due to what Mary had said about there being hardly any difference between the two.

“Now, back when I was in the Orthodox Papal State, my teacher and those around him said this: Lady Lunaria is merciful. She offers the hand of salvation to everyone, no matter how sinful. Lunarian Orthodoxy is the teaching of how to accept that hand, and all of the faithful will be taken to Lady Lunaria’s side after their deaths... Perhaps you’ve all been taught similarly?”

We have, thought Anne. That was exactly what she’d learned, and why she could believe that in her existence as a saint for the sake of Lady Lunaria.

Souji cracked his neck and then continued.

“Isn’t that a little odd? If Lady Lunaria is willing to forgive anyone, no matter how sinful, and all of the faithful will be saved after death, then what’s it matter how we live? We’ll be saved anyway, right? This tells us that so long as you believe, you don’t have to do anything for the faith.”

Huh...? His words gouged deep into Anne’s heart. This was an absurd argument. It’s only Souji’s personal interpretation.

However, while thinking about this, she didn’t outright reject the sentiment. In fact, every teaching rested on someone’s interpretation of it. People couldn’t meet God themselves, so no faith could be established without people interpreting the will of God.

“Once that thought occurred to me, I felt like I understood why the teachings tell us to aid the weak and help one another. If everyone who believes in Lady Lunaria will be saved, there’s no need to help each other, right? But there are so many people suffering these days that, yes, we do need to help one another. Since the merciful Lady Lunaria will save us after our deaths, while we’re in this world, we need to support one another until we die.”

He paused to let his words sink in.

“Right now...your priests might be telling you, ‘The path to Lady Lunaria is to die in battle,’ but a truly merciful Lady Lunaria wouldn’t discriminate between those who did or didn’t fight here. Now, sure, you can fight. And even if you kill people or are killed yourself, Lady Lunaria’s going to save you, but you really don’t have to do that. You can run back to your families, and she’ll still save you.”

It was a crafty use of words. If he had said, “Lady Lunaria won’t save you even if you fight here,” then the zealots would’ve brushed it off as the enemy’s nonsense. However, by stating that they’d be saved whether they fought or not, the zealots were made to wonder if his words were true. They would’ve ignored him outright if they felt he was repudiating them. But hearing his acceptance of their actions, they considered his viewpoint. This was all thanks to Souji’s skills as an expert quibbler.

“Lady Lunaria will save those who believe in her. Believe in Lunaria, help the weak, and help each other... After that, you’re free to do whatever you want.”

Souji’s words broke the zealots.

They were free to fight and free to go home to their families. Either way, Lady Lunaria would save them. It was hard to continue fighting once they heard that. Some might’ve wanted to die here and have their salvation now, but that wasn’t the will of the entire group. Once people began to run away to return to their families, others followed suit.

The battle lines of the Orthodox Papal State quickly fell into shambles as more and more fled, realizing their defeat. The Kingdom of Friedonia’s forces did not pursue the fleeing zealots, focusing only on the soldiers who came at them, but many chose to run away.

Anne watched the total collapse of her forces in silence.

“Lady Anne! This battle is hopeless!”

“It’s dangerous here! We must retreat at once!”

As the commanders with her offered their advice, the guards protecting the main camp were sent flying by a sudden cavalry charge.

“Seize Saint Anne! Once we do, victory is ours!”

A unit led by Mio Carmine had raced across the chaotic battlefield, penetrating the Orthodox Papal State’s main camp. Mio rode on horseback, cutting down men with her two longswords as she passed, closing in on Anne, who could only stand there.

As she approached, a knight suddenly rode in from the side, striking at Mio with a lance.

“I won’t let you!” he yelled.

“Urgh!” Mio blocked the attack, but her charge was stopped.

Lombard, the armored knight, commanded, “We’ll take over from here! Forces of the Orthodox Papal State, retreat with haste!”

“You think I’ll let you?!”

Mio’s two longswords swung at Lombard. She had the skills to go toe-to-toe with Aisha, the Kingdom’s greatest warrior, so Lombard was quickly forced onto the defensive, but he used his lance and shield to endure her attacks.

As they fought, Lombard shouted, “So long as we have Saint Anne, the Orthodox Papal State remains a threat that the Kingdom of Friedonia can’t ignore. You must pull back now, so as not to let this unit go after Lord Fuuga!”

Hearing him, the commanders next to Anne started to drag her away. Mio’s unit tried to pursue them, but Lombard’s men desperately pushed back.

“Ngh! Get out of my way already!”

“I refuse!”

While Lombard’s overall abilities were high, he didn’t have anything extraordinary that set him apart from other warriors. Still, his temperate personality and his sincerity meant that he was considered one of the more reliable people in the Great Tiger Empire. Despite Mio’s relentless onslaught, he held on to performing his duty.

Suddenly, Lombard’s lance shattered. He went to grab the sword at his hip, but Mio’s longswords were closing in.

“Lord Lom!” A chunk of ice shot along the ground towards them, forcing Mio back and putting some distance between them. Lombard’s wife, Yomi, had arrived in time with her unit of mages.

Yomi tried to order them to attack Mio, but Margarita rode in with a unit of her own from the Kingdom of Friedonia’s land forces, and they put up a defensive wall in front of Mio. A back-and-forth struggle broke out between the different units. But with the Orthodox Papal State forces fleeing while more of Friedonia’s forces gathered, only Lombard and his men remained, holding their ground.

Seeing that the retreat was finished, Lombard cast down his sword and shouted, “Hear me, my men, and men of Friedonia! With the Orthodox Papal State having fled, our job is done! Further fighting serves no purpose! Everyone, cast down your weapons! And men of Friedonia! We surrender, so please, let the hostilities end here!”

Once they heard Lombard, the fighting gradually stopped, and Lombard’s men dropped their swords to signal it was over. There was the ringing of weapons falling to the ground for a while, but eventually, the battlefield fell quiet, and Lombard knelt before Mio, his head lowered.

“We give up our weapons. People of Friedonia, I wish you to know that the responsibility for this losing battle is mine, and I ask that you guarantee the safety of my troops!”

“Lord Lombard...” Yomi got down beside him, also lowering her head.

Seeing both of them, Mio and Margarita exchanged glances, then nodded together.

As their representative, Mio spoke. “For now, we will disarm the survivors and take them prisoner. His Majesty will be the one to decide what to do with you, but I can guarantee your safety until that time.”

“Thank you.”

“Yes...”

Lombard and Yomi bowed their heads.

The surviving soldiers who could still walk were bound and taken away while the wounded were carried away. Lombard and Yomi were the last to be tied up. As they were loaded onto a prisoner carriage, Mio called out to them.

“Umm... I know I probably shouldn’t say this right now, but, Madam Yomi, you’re Sir Ichiha’s elder sister, right? I have instructions from Sir Glaive to see that you’re treated with every courtesy.”

The two of them bowed their heads slightly at her words.

“I’m in your debt...”

“Thank you.”

And so the carriage took them away. Mio watched the carriage go by when she suddenly noticed Kagetora was standing beside her.

Without turning to look at him, she said, “Normally...I shouldn’t say that sort of thing to a defeated general. Will you scold me for it?”

It sounded almost like she wanted him to rebuke her. However, Kagetora neither nodded nor shook his head.

“You are already the head of the House of Carmine. You must choose for yourself whether your decisions were correct.”

He neither confirmed nor rejected her methods. But the care in his voice brought a wan smile to Mio’s face.

“Ha ha... You’re as strict as ever.”

Meanwhile, around that same time...

Having finished the broadcast, Mary quietly observed as the members of the House of Juniro (the family of Ivan Juniro, who played Overman Silvan) carried off the jewel and other equipment. They’d already received word of their victory via messenger kui. Their job here was done. The forces of the Orthodox Papal State had collapsed, and some important commanders had been taken hostage. That being the case, another attack from across the border was unlikely.

“Little Miss Mary.”

Souji’s voice brought Mary back to her senses.

“Ah! Your Holiness.”

He scratched his head awkwardly, seemingly unsure what to say. “Um... Hey... You okay? You look rather troubled.”

“Oh... Do I?”

“Yeah. If you need to talk to someone, I’m all ears, you know? It’s part of church business, after all.”

“Now that you mention it, I suppose it is,” Mary said with a little laugh. “I was thinking about Anne.”

“The Great Tiger Empire’s saint?”

“Yes. She is...one possibility of what I could have become.”

Mary lowered her eyes, pained to think about it.

“She has no will of her own. Good or ill. She’s looking for a place to belong, and she’ll go on silencing her own thoughts and being a saint just so that someone will tell her it’s okay for her to be there. That’s the fate of an orphaned girl chosen to be a saint candidate by the Orthodox Papal State.”

Souji was at a loss for words.

Mary had once been exactly the same. After being chosen as a saint for King Souma, she had the chance to leave the Orthodox Papal State and experience this country’s culture, and in doing so, she’d realized how warped it all was. But Anne never had that opportunity. Mary couldn’t help but think of Anne as similar to herself back then, having become a saint without knowing any other way of life.

“No matter how many faithful believers she sends to die on the battlefield... No matter how many of her political opponents are burned before her eyes... Deep down, she is still pure and innocent, doing what people ask her to.”

Tears streamed from Mary’s eyes. Tears for Anne.

“What... What I was saying earlier... It’s going to push her into a corner. I just told a girl who’s been suppressing her own will for the sake of others that she has to reflect on her actions. That’s forcing her to confront what she’s been looking away from to protect her own heart. If she looks back now, aware of all the bloodshed along her path, it could very well break her.”

Souji kept listening as Mary spoke, her words mixed with sobs.

“In all the world...I’m the one...who should understand her better than anyone else... And yet, I’m the one trying to destroy her place... I know...that I’m doing it for the greater good, but...that doesn’t mean it’s not frustrating...”

If Anne and the Orthodox Papal State had been left as they were, no doubt even more of this country’s blood would have been shed. Even if it hurt her emotionally, Mary couldn’t let herself regret it. Because if the people of this country heard her talking this way, they’d angrily ask if she thought they ought to be suffering instead. Filled with such thoughts and emotions, she felt something tighten in her chest.

“C’mere, little lady.”

“Your Holiness...?”

In a move that was rare for a guy as tactless as Souji, he gently put his arms around Mary. He didn’t tell her that she was right or wrong, he just wrapped himself around her like an unfamiliar vestment.

“Ohhh... Your Holiness... Wahhhhh!”

Like a dam breaking, the tears she’d been holding back rushed out. Souji gently patted her on the head as she wailed.

“The heart’s not easy to heal. But time and compassionate people can gradually fill in the scars. I’ve seen it a lot in my line of work. When people want to rely on God, it’s usually to vent about their suffering, so a lot of folks come talk to me about their emotional wounds.”

His words floated down to her from above.

“If someone is going to collapse from those wounds, and it’s someone you care about, then keep extending the hand of salvation. You know how the king’s been saying he’s gonna train...psychologists, I think he called them? Some kind of heart doctor. And that he wants the Kingdom Church to help him with that, right? Well, maybe...this country can heal those wounds of the heart. So, little missy, you’ve gotta be ready to help her when the time comes.”

Mary raised her head. “Is it...okay to help her?”

She seemed uncertain, but Souji gave her a firm nod.

“Faith, and the church, are there to save the lost. That’s a whole lot more churchy than suppressing heretics or stirring people up so they’ll go off and shed blood for you, now isn’t it?” he said in a deliberately jokey tone.

Wiping her tears, Mary nodded. “Yes, Your Holiness!”

Thus did the battle on the Lunaria-Amidonia front come to an early end with a victory for the Kingdom of Friedonia. However, while Lombard and Yomi were taken captive, Saint Anne was still out there, so the Amidonian Front Force had to remain on guard against the Orthodox Papal State.

The war would be decided by the showdown between Souma and Fuuga.