So... goodbye?

'Yes. Apparently, I can close this gate too.

　The door to the land of the dead can only be closed from the inside.

　It's a common story in creation.

　We're talking about the price needed to get one soul back - someone's soul.

　It's a setting that is typical of this otome game world, with its fluffy worldview, but in fact, it's sloppy.

　I was suspicious from the beginning.

　The same goes for the kind of magic that Marie used, if you wanted to bring someone back to life, you had to prepare a replacement.

　That's why I couldn't go home with those three.

　Angier and Livia didn't seem to know that.

　I'm sure Marie would have kept it to herself.

　I had to close the gate from the inside.

"You don't have to do that. You don't have to die too. Get the hell out of here. That's an order.

'I'm afraid the master does not have the authority to give orders. I will refuse to do so.

Come on.

"No, sir.

　No matter how many times he repeated it, Luxion definitely didn't shake one eye out.

''You stubborn bastard!　For the most part, you've only been out there for three years. Three years!　I'm sick of 40 years of my life, and you've been on standby for years until I found you, and you should enjoy the outside world more!　You know what you want to do?

　Now he wouldn't try to eradicate the newcomers.

　I'm sure he'll do it quietly - will he?　Or better yet, let's just decide on the next master here.　No, I can't give orders now, okay?

　Well, Luxion should have survived more than me.

　It's the right choice for what's to come.

　Luxion didn't say anything sarcastic to me - he didn't say anything sarcastic.

''Thank you.''

What?　Did you break it?

''No, I was glad to see that the Master was looking out for me.

　He was in a different tone than usual.

　When I'm confused, Luxion speaks honestly.

'At first I was going to use the Master.'

Of course. Look, you're free now. You can go back and do what you want.

　If he returned now, Luxion would serve the kingdom to revive the old humans.

　No, to Angers and Libya, perhaps?

　Anyway, you'll be more active than me.

''But the last three years after the long wait have been invaluable to me. It's meant a lot to me to have spent so much time with you.''

What if?

'- If the Master is not by my side, my time from now on is meaningless to me.

I thought you didn't want me working for you?

'I didn't hate it. I am the Luxion. I was created for the sake of others, and now I'm finally doing something useful. It was my master who gave me worth, and it was he who made me proud. And he has made me proud.

　He's glad that he didn't annihilate the newcomers so easily and contributed to the revival of the old humans.

''It's all to your credit. You can go back to being proud of yourself.

'It's lonely to have no one to be proud of. Besides, I promised then and there that I would come for you. "I will come for you," I said. I want to make good on that promise.

Are you nuts?　I'm sure he was in a daze at the time of his death, so he wouldn't be able to make a promise like that.

'I'm a disciplined man, and I try to keep my promises. 'Master, we've come to get you. Your exit is that way.

　Luxion doesn't seem to be willing to give up.

'Then you and I will stay here?　I've been relying too much on your power, you know. And by the way, the kingdom needs to do a little bit of work on its own.

　When I said that, Luxion made a sad sound.

''Master is adored by many more people than he thinks he is.

How?　They don't like you, that's the wrong word.

　Then I heard a voice.

　Not the voice of Luxion, but the voice of a friend I had killed.

'Go back to him,'

　When I turned around, it was Finn standing there.

'Finn?　Hey, you--

　As I approach, he scratches his hair and looks apologetic.

　He looks embarrassed and happy about it - he looks complicated and Finn apologizes.

'You know - Mia's been a pain in the ass. I didn't think he'd go that far. I'm glad you stopped him. I'm really sorry about that.

　Brave was also near Finn.

'Mia loves her partner, you know!　I love it too!　In case you're wondering, I'll thank you too.'

'Kurosuke, now is not the time to talk about this. Leon, please. I don't know what the Empire will suffer without you. It's a selfish request - I need you to save Mia. She's my sister.

"--Finn.

　Finn bows his head deeply to me.

　Then there were a lot of people around.

　--the ones I've killed.

　An old black knight with his arms crossed, standing behind a little girl, staring at me.

　The little girl looked somewhat like Mr. Hertrude.

''Your sister will be saddened if Hero-dono dies. You're sweet, so I'd like you to make accommodations for the Duchy - no, I'd like you to make accommodations for the Dukes of Fanouse?

　Hertrauda--Mr. Hertrude's sister?

No, no, I'm not.

　Old Black Knight comes in front of me.

　Then, with great vigor - he sat down cross-legged on the ground and kept his head down.

'Oh, hey!　Why do you have to bow out of the blue!

It's the only thing I can do now. And since I can't protect Master Hertrude, I have no choice but to rely on you. Please... you must live.

I know you have a grudge against me. How do you--

I'm sure he had a grudge. But... you'll think differently when you know everything.

　The dead of the former duchy bow to me for Mr. Hertrude.

　Behind the old black knight's grandfather, a young woman and her children look at me. --is it the family of the old black knight's grandfather?

　In the midst of all this, there was also the Republic's--Alberg-san.

　He looked at me and smiled.

'Your sons are in good hands again, aren't they?

No, you're the one who helped me this time.

That's not true. You've fought for more people than you think. You may not mean it, but you've accomplished something big. That's what I see in this place. You're a real hero.

'Big?　No, more importantly, I'm not a hero.

　Mr. Hertrauda pushes me back.

'Come on, get back here. You still have a lot of work to do.

It's gone!　I've been working so hard on this for years!　Hey, Luxion!

　I look at Luxion and he looks at me with amusement.

''I want my Master to live, so I will never help him. This is another result of my daily work. Consequences - that's a good word, Master.'

You!

　When I resist, even the old Black Knight and Finn try to drive me out of the gate.

　In order to resist those two, I tried to push them back by stepping on the ground - but it was impossible.

　I'm being pushed slowly and slowly to the other side of the gate.

''If you're dead, you'll be quiet!

　The old black knight was furious and his face was red in the face.

''May, shut up!　It's your fault you're the one who wanted to die with your fiancée in the first place!　I just got back from seeing my family and you're telling me how sorry you are!

　Finn is mad at me too.

'I can't have you dying on me!　Come over here later. When you do, I'm going to worship you.

I'm not happy!　You come back to life!

No, I don't have a body.

I can't.

　I couldn't say anything in response to Finn and Brave's reply.

　Mr. Hertrauda tries to get me to give him a message.

'Will you tell your sister when you see her?' --I don't hold a grudge. Just that I hope you will be happy,'

No, I didn't say I'd take a message for you!

　Mr. Alberg began to push me out of the gate, too.

'Then I'll ask you to take a message to Serge. "'This time you must face your life.'

　They'll be praying for me, too, from the people I killed.

Please. I'm worried about my wife and kids.
I've got an old mother at home.
Please. I have no other choice but to rely on you.

　Why do you wish this on me?

　I'm not the person you think I am.

　I'm a cunning - mediocre - mob - person who's not the hero of the story.

　I'm just able to do a lot of things because I got Luxion, otherwise I'm sure I would have died sooner or later somewhere else.

　I was puzzled, and Finn came over to me.

'I need you to give Mia a message too. "'I'm sorry I broke my promise. Add to that, if you can, please don't hold it against people. We fought you guys for a reason. We started the war, remember?

　They can say whatever they want.

　You can tell him that yourself!　--I know you're seething that you can't do it, but still, don't leave it to me. It's too much of a burden to carry now.

"Do you want me to carry that burden?　Why do you keep putting all this burden on me!

I'm sorry. But I'm sorry, Leon. You could save the Empire.

　I resist, but the multitude pushes me closer to the gate.

　I'm powerless before the violence of numbers.

'You guys are depending on me!　I'm not that big of a person--

　I noticed that there were people from the kingdom among those gathered.

　The faces of those who had fought and died in battle with me.

　There were indeed many of them around me.

''Lord Rion--I hated you before I was born.

　When I was silent, an elderly man who looked like a soldier smiled at me.

I envied you for saying what you wanted to say and making a name for yourself, even though you were young. I followed you into the battlefield and died, and I was annoyed with you, too. But you see--

　The people around the soldier also interrupt the conversation.

'If we hadn't fought like that, we wouldn't have been able to protect our families,'
We wouldn't have regretted it if you hadn't been there.
And please, please-- please keep on helping people.

　What are these guys talking about?

　Wouldn't the world be better off without me to protect it?

　Even though I went into the fight in the first place - it was a clean-up for what Marie had done too much.

　Other than that, I couldn't stand to see the goofy kingdom, so I lent a hand.

　What do you ask of a man of that caliber?

'I'm not the person you think I am!　Shallow, cunning--what do you want me to do with me like this!

　He shouted, and the gathered crowd cleared the way to let one old woman pass.

　I met that person in the village of the elves.

　As I recall - she was an old woman who was doing fortune telling.

　When that person walked toward me, she was mumbling in a wrinkled voice.

　I couldn't understand what she was saying.

　Luxion overheard the old woman.

'I can't hear you.'

　Then the old woman's voice was not wrinkled - it was clear and clean.

'I beg your pardon for this,'

　And as the old woman's bent waist stretched, her wrinkled face regained its tension and her gray hair turned golden.

　It was an amazing sight to watch.

　Her bosom was swollen and pudgy.

　I held my hand over my mouth and the people around me were laughing at me.

　Mr. Heltrauda looks at me and says.

'Oh, pull yourself together in front of your sister.

　--I think of Hertrude's breasts, which are also outshone by her sister, Heltrauda.

　I'm sure she is probably concerned about it too.

　And the rejuvenated old woman -- not.

　The elven foster chief, who was a fortune teller, showed me a wink in front of me.

　Hey, she's a hell of a beauty.

　You can see how cruel the flow of the times is.

''It's been a long time since we've seen you, hero.

Oh, yeah. More importantly, you--

Yes. I've been back in town for a while now.

"Go back?

But you are unaware of what you have done. You have saved a dying world and spun new possibilities.

　I don't get it.

　Please explain it more simply, if you can.

"A dying world?

It's okay to be unconscious now. You volunteered to save the world. It has been a difficult path for you. Thank you for your efforts. --And you will continue to save the world.

　The elven foster chief, with his hands folded in a prayerful gesture, is too much of a problem for my taste.

　Dressed in folk costumes, bonk bonk!　No.

Oh, no, not really. --Hmm?　Wait, didn't I just say something superfluous?

　The village chief smiles in front of me.

''My hero--you have already saved the world many times. One of them is this Luxion--the Steel Demon King.

　When I looked back at Luxion in surprise, this guy was showing off his spherical body habit with authority.

''Are you surprised?''

No, not at all. Because if I don't show up, you're going to fly the world--oh!

　That's right, it's time for me to get it back, and then I'll ignore the standby order and destroy the new human race.　Or so he said!

　Could I be the one who held this guy down, or was it a fine play?

''If I hadn't met the Master, I would have destroyed the descendants of the old humans as well. I would have erased the meaning of my existence. I was truly lucky to have met the Master.

You were going to destroy us for real?　Isn't that a joke or something?

"Of course it is.

　Once again, I thought this guy was scary.

　If I protected the world from that kind of Luxion, shouldn't I be out of the picture now?

　The foster chief continues to talk about my accomplishments.

'There are others. This may be the achievement of Saint Marie, but she saved two unhappy women. Those two women are the ones who could have destroyed the world. Then there is the war with the duchy. If the kingdom had lost that battle, the Empire could have easily destroyed the Republic and created a world of only newcomers. As a result, it would have destroyed everything. The same is true for the Republic. Thanks to stopping the Holy Tree from running amok--

No, that's enough!　Look, I wasn't consciously stopping it!　I didn't want to do that!　I'm not a brave man.

　I was a little happy to be called brave, and I was about to be agitated and ready to do so.

　I understand that I'm a regular person - a mob in the story.

　There's no way I'm a brave person like that.

　--I've been making bad choices and making unnecessary sacrifices.

　Go get me a real one.

The real one's better than that. They're strong, they're kind, they're the opposite of me.

　I'll even lick your boots if you save everything. --Let's just stop with the baggy ones. I don't want to lick my shoes.

　The foster chief pauses to say he's in trouble, but even that looks seductive.

''Umm, I'm troubled. Then--shall we all force ourselves to turn them away?

　They were all trying to carry me up and throw me straight to the other side of the gate.

'Hey, stop it!　Hey, Luxion, help me!

"No, thank you. I wish you to be happy, to the best of your ability. Your happiness is my wish, Master.

　This guy really pisses me off!　-- Now that's not fair, that's a nice way to put it.

'You really are a jerk!　If I die of old age and come back to you, I'll give you a shot, so be prepared for that!　Wait for me!　You'll definitely have to wait!　I'll be back to hit you, I promise!

　Hearing my words, Luxion seemed to spill the liquid from the red one's eyes.

''Yes. It's fine. Until Master passes away from old age, I'll wait here as well. After all, it seems that waiting is more suitable than going to pick him up. I won't be waiting for a hundred years anyway. It's a casual thing.''

　As they threw me into the gate, I reached out to Luxion--'

'I'll come for you, I promise!　You'll definitely have to wait!　Until I come for you - really, really, thank you for everything.

　--I couldn't tell you the end.

◇

　The gate that swallowed Rion was slowly closed by Luxion.

　Luxion looks out at the gate, and as he moves to the side of the gate, he begins to quietly wait for Rion to come to him.

　Finn and Brave approach him.

'You really are a loyalist, aren't you?'

　To Finn's words, Luxion returned them honestly.

''Yes. After all, there is only one master of mine, Leon Fow Baldfart. I'll wait forever.''

　Luxion turns one eye to the gate.

(Master, please take your time and be sure to come for me. I will be waiting for you forever.

　Until that time when they meet again, Luxion will continue to wait for Leon.

◇

　--I woke up in a capsule filled with liquid.

　I'm in the liquid and I can't breathe and I don't suffer.

　Inside the green, translucent liquid, I touched the glass with my hand and the noise outside became noisy.

'Hurry up and let everyone know!

Yes!

'You're awake!　Master Leon is awake!

　The liquid drains out and Claire approaches me as I sit down in the capsule.

　As the glass part of the capsule lowers, he calls out to me.

'Are you okay, Master?'

How long have I been asleep?

'Three months. Why can't you ever come back to normal?

Sorry. I overslept.

　When I said that, Clairvoyant seemed to have difficulty saying it.

''Well, um, Master. I have some bad news.''

What?

　It's pretty much a given.

Come on in.

　The one coming in at the direction of Creare was the same spherical body as Luxion.

　The coloration, which is black in color and one eye is red, makes me guess a lot of things.

　Creare is Luxion?　I'll explain about it.

'Somehow it was initialized and we were unable to recover the data. Now Luxion is back to the state it was in before it was ordered to standby, and it was just activated. But it's still registered as a master. I'm really getting sick of it.''

　Claire said, 'You don't listen to me! I complained, but I was convinced.

　I reach for the black Luxion.

　The black Luxion happily approaches me.

'It's a pleasure to meet you for the first time, Master!　I was built as an immigrant ship to evacuate the old humans into space.

　I stopped it.

　That guy is still waiting for me on that side.

　The same name would be confusing, so I decided to give him a new one.

I'm sorry, but I'm changing my name.

'Is that so?　I see. So, what's your new name? I'm a little nervous. I'm a machine, though!'

　He's lighter than Luxion, but he's a good, serious type of boy.

　I'm going to miss Luxion's sarcasm and sarcasm.

'Right. "'It's Elysian. You're Elysian. Pretty, right?

'Elysian, right? I remember!　But I don't want to be called cute. Because I have no concept of gender. If you would like to be considered a woman, you may wish to be a woman?　In that case, I'll go get a new body immediately!''

　He catches Elysian by the hand and makes him stop.

'Fool - you don't have to do that. You're fine the way you are.

　Creare looked at us.

'Master, I knew he was--'

　When I stay silent, Claire seems to have gotten the general idea.

　Elysian, who held me down, looks up at me.

''Master, you seem to be crying, does it hurt anywhere?''

　I wiped my eyes.

'You were in liquid just now, that's why. Come on, let's get on with it and go tell them what happened to me.

　When I stand up, Clairvoyant has a gown ready for me.

　I take it and put it on, and Elysian comes up to my right shoulder area.

'You're over here,'

　So I moved it to my left shoulder area.

'Why?'

That's because my left shoulder is your special seat.

"Yes, sir!　My special seat is near the master's left shoulder. I've memorized it.'

　When I look at Elysian, who looks quite happy, I think to myself, "I wonder if he had such a pure time.

　I wondered if that guy had such a pure time.

　But if I asked him, he'd definitely flip out.

　That would be interesting.

　I'd love to hear his sarcasm and sarcasm again someday.

　As I waddled off, Angel and Livia came running into the room.

　They both look thinner than before.

　When they see me, they both cry and hug me.

'I'm sorry. I overslept.

　Angel looks up at me.

'Don't worry about me. I - I need you to be there for me. I've been--I've been waiting for you--for a long time, you know!

　Livia, who had her face buried in my back, calls out to me as it is.

'I've been regretting it ever since Leon-san pushed us away. I wish I hadn't let go of him then.

I'm sorry. I'm not going to let you go.

That's a promise. You must really keep it this time.

　That's a lot of trust.

　As the two of them hugged me and cried, a breathless Marier and Julius also came over.

'Brother!'

Brother-in-law!

　--I don't know what to do. Julius' call to his brother-in-law spoils the emotional scene.

'You guys should be more considerate.

　I let out a sigh and Marie is furious.

'Don't embarrass me!　What did I think--Baca!

　He was furious and crying a lot - this guy is a busy guy too.

　Even Julius was crying.

'Why are you crying? I'm not happy to have a man cry for me.

That's it, I'm sure of it, Leon. What a relief.

　I don't understand why he's so happy.

　Cleare gives a crisp instruction.

''Yes, yes. First, let's let the master rest. And then the rest of you, prepare for the ceremony. It's a lot of work due to various schedule shifts.''

　I guess I've been giving him a lot of trouble.

Sorry about that. More importantly, what's going on?

　Creare answers as a matter of course.

'It's the coronation. The master's mentor is waiting for you.

Coronation?

Yeah. Roland is going to abdicate.

　Come to think of it, I don't think I heard about the throne before the war with the Empire or anything like that - well, okay.

　His mentor was royalty, and he would be king instead of Roland.

　He's too young to be the son of the other Roland, and Elijah is still missing a lot of things in Elijah.

　Julius and Jake are out of the question.

　But any master would agree.

　Well, it's a foregone conclusion.

　But when a master becomes His Majesty, it's going to be hard to make tea.

　That's the only thing I'll miss.

　Angier rubs his fingers over his crying, swollen eyes and smiles at me.

'Rion, rest up. We'll take care of all the preparations for you.

Yeah?　It's very helpful. I'm still too tight.

　It took a lot of abuse, but on the outside it was back to normal.

　But I don't know what's going on inside.

　Livia shows me her face.

''Rion-san--we're going to do our best to support you from now on, you know.

Uh-huh.

　I'm embarrassed to hear you say that again.

　I'll do my best to support my master too.

　After all, it's different when someone with dignity becomes a king.

　It's different from Roland's time, and it's worthwhile.

　As everyone walked out of the room, Noel was the next one to rush in.

''Rion!''

　I raised my hand and smiled at him, and he suddenly hugged me as if he were going to tackle me.

'You idiot!　You're such an idiot!

No, no, I'm sorry.

　Noel pulls away from me and wipes a tear away.

'You're such a bad ass. Why - but that's enough. I think you've made up your mind.

Ready?

　What are we talking about?

◇

　--I didn't hear anything about this.

　The audience room was modestly decorated.

　The war with the Empire had just ended, and the kingdom could not afford it.

　But that's not the point.

　Leaders from all countries have gathered to take part in the coronation ceremony of the Horphath Kingdom.

　Among them was a big man from a defeated empire.

　It seems that a lot of things happened while I was unconscious and asleep.

　But wait!

　There are people from the empire, people from the republic, people from countries you don't know, and a lot of participants, right?　And - I don't care about that!

　I glanced at the participants in the line and saw Roland, who let me take over the crown.

　Roland's guy, when he handed me the crown, he dropped it quickly.

　This bastard gave me a thumbs up.

　Right now I want to throw the crown on my head.

　I mean - what do you mean, my coronation?

Oh, that's funny. I don't know what this is.

　In front of me, who is trembling, the master who has become the Prime Minister gives me a warning in a whisper.

''Your Majesty, everyone is watching you.

'And wasn't the master supposed to take over the throne?

　My question was answered by the master with a smile.

　--in a whisper, of course, so that those around me wouldn't hear.

''Your Majesty has a good sense of humor, too, don't you? What do you mean by carrying such an old man?　A young man with the power, the blood, and the undisputed accomplishments of a man who has the power, the bloodline, and the recognition of everyone else's accomplishments is obviously a priority.

　Me, with the power of Elysian, modified by Luxion.

　Me, with my royal bloodline in Angers.

　And I'm the one who defeated the Empire.

　I'm the one who defeated the Empire.

　In fact, it seems that they agreed with me from the very beginning.

　I'm the next king.

　I'm the next king," they said.

''Don't you think this is wrong?　Roland is alive. Let's let that guy work until he's dead.

'Roland is retreating to the country with his side of the family. A few of the women who have put their hands on him have said they're going to follow him.

　I can't allow Roland to grab the future I want or anything like that!

　And the woman who was really worried about Roland from among the many side rooms and mistresses who were there, is also going with him - what is this?　This isn't right!

　I made up my mind to do whatever it takes to get in the way.

　Beside me shaking my fist, Angel, who has become the queen, raises her voice.

''I hereby declare that Leon Faux Baltfalt is crowned and the Baltfalt Dynasty of the Kingdom of Horphart is opened!

　At the sound of their voices, the nobles bent to their knees and made a show of loyalty.

　In the off-stage section, Livia and Noel, dressed in dresses, were waiting for me.

　My dynasty--that is, from now on, my bloodline will be treated as royalty.

　In other words, the Horfert royal family - no one related to it will inherit the throne.

　Only my children will inherit the throne.

　Also, although they call themselves the Holfert Kingdom, it's practically like a new country.

　With Angel as my wife, it's a form of taking the throne away from Roland in a relatively peaceful manner.

　No, it was imposed on him.

　Roland's stomach was hurting, and he was holding his belly and struggling to hold back a laugh.

　--I want to send that guy to the executioner's table right now.

　I mean, it's funny that Julius and Jake are usually among the participants.

　You guys are princes!　No, I'm a former prince now, but that's not good enough for you!

　What are you applauding for?

　Also, Jirku and the rest of the five idiots had a look of relief on their faces because I had inherited the throne.

　My friends also have a carefree look on their faces, "He's the king~

　--I will not forgive.

　I'll never forgive you.

　I'm a small man.

　I'll never allow you guys to be the only ones who are happy!

　I'm too petulant to break the mood of the place, and as I give a drawn-out smile, Angel smiles at me.

'I'm glad you believe in me. It was a bit of a wild move, but we were able to bring the country together. Thank you, Leon.

Uh-huh. Ah!

　-- I remembered that Angel said I had a way to bring the country together.

　I didn't think I'd be king.

　I was caught off guard that it wouldn't be me, and here we are.

　In the audience room, I see Elijah standing alongside Erica.

　My little brother is crying with joy at the sight of me - d*mn it!　Shouldn't I have just sacrificed this guy and let me walk away?

　Erica's royalty, and I could have supported her. Could I?　Something seems impossible.

　Now I regret my lack of stuffing in my desperation.

　Why am I always so lax in my stuffing?

　I want to beat the shit out of me then.

　As it was, when my coronation was over, a party was to be held.

◇

　The waiting room.

　Being a sick man, I came running out, saying I was tired of partying.

'Shit!　I hate Roland's grin!

　That bastard looked at me and said, "Your Majesty, how do you feel now? and "NDK (hey, how do you feel now?)" came over.

　My gut is churning at the thought of that guy living happily ever after.

　I'm sitting in my room with my head in my hands when Noel comes in.

"Leon, are you okay?　Here's some water for you.

　Elysian was with him.

''Don't worry. There's no poison in it.''

　--will I have to be wary of poisoning from now on?

　I didn't want to be a king.

　Noel comes to my side and sits down and takes my hand in his.

'Hey. Is it possible, though -- are you regretting being king because you didn't think you'd come back alive?

Well, no way!

　I swim my eyes, I didn't actually think I was going to be a king or anything - I couldn't say that I was.

　I'm too embarrassed to say that I hadn't noticed this in the stone.

　Elysian follows up.

''The Master is an honorable man. He has no regrets. He is surely regretting that he can't be satisfied with this level of country!''

Hey, wait a minute. Don't go around inventing stuff about people's feelings.

　What is this guy?　Maybe it doesn't have the same clunker factor as Luxion?

　Noel is relieved.

'Good. 'No, I was actually worried that you might be mistaken, Leon. And I had a bit of a suspicion that maybe he didn't know he was going to be king. I'm sorry.

Don't worry about it.

　I can't say. I can't say I was wrong or anything.

　Noel stands up.

'You look fine, and this way you can talk to Erica, right?

With Erica?

Yeah. He wants to talk to you.

◇

　Meanwhile, at that time.

　Milene was in Roland's room.

　She was dismayed by Roland's agitation for Leon and took him out to his room to admonish him.

　This made Roland angry.

'You were having a pleasant conversation with a young girl,'

You're always like that. Why don't you refrain from doing that from now on?　Your new Majesty hates that about you, you know.

　Roland was sitting in a chair, cross-legged, looking at Milene.

　Then suddenly he says something outrageous.

'That's it, Milene--I'm disowning you.

What does that mean?

　When Milene narrowed her eyes, Roland looked serious, as if he wasn't joking.

'From now on we won't have to go on official business together. That means you won't have to play my wife.

　When Milene heard this, her eyes were downcast.

'There was no such thing as love, but it's hard to say this, isn't it?

　If she returned to her parents' house, she would be treated lightly as a returnee.

　Milene was pessimistic about the future of her life, but she still decided to think of it as a win-win for her to have survived.

　If she had failed in her fight against the Empire, she would have died.

　However, Roland smiles.

'You are free from now on.' -- live your life as you wish. I'm sure your new Majesty will take good care of you.

Oh, you?

　Milene didn't immediately understand what Roland was saying.

　Roland said some kind words to Milene.

'I didn't love you, but I wish you well.' -- you have done well enough. Let me support you in your love.

You--but--

　When Milene's attitude was simmering, Roland gave her a push.

'From now on, live for yourself. Be happy, Milene.'

　Roland held Milene's shoulder as she shed tears.

◇

　After Milene leaves.

　A doctor whom Roland knows enters the room.

'Are you sure it was alright?　Sending the ex-queen to her Majesty's side.

　Roland stands tall.

'Best laid plans, right?　I'm happy to drop a bomb on the little boy's home and Milene is happy to have her love come true. Well, if that little boy kicks me out, I'll at least support him.

　The doctor sneered.

"Don't ruin your new relationship with a woman. It will bring the country down.

'That boy will do just fine. No, it's safe to say that Angelica is in good hands. For better or worse, that little boy is in the palm of Angelica's hand!

　Roland began to dance.

'Hmmm, great!　We can kill two birds with one stone by getting rid of that little bastard and getting rid of that nagging Milaine while giving him a shot!　I'm horrible at my talents. And by the way, thanks to His Majesty, I've been able to purge my troublesome side rooms and mistresses, so hooray!

　Honestly, Roland was in too much trouble for his hands, and he was happy to get away from the sloppy court.

　The doctor blurted out his true feelings.

'I am horrified, though, that such a thing as this has ever been His Majesty.

◇

　I was in a cold sweat - I hadn't seen Erica in a long time - and I was in a cold sweat.

''What did you just say?''

　Erica was moping.

　At first, Erica apologized to me.

　He apologized for making us suffer for his selfish actions, but the emperor of the empire wouldn't have stopped if Erica had known what was going on.

　I'm sorry to say it, but Erica couldn't have done it alone.

　So I forgave her and I don't blame her.

　He was blaming himself, so he forced himself to convince her that he was brazen enough to take responsibility.

　The war would have happened sooner or later anyway, and both me and the emperor of the empire could have chosen a way to end it with a better outcome. -- I think.

　Now, I've forgiven Erica, but here's the problem.

'Oh, you know what, Uncle. You know, that maiden game--there's a series of six titles titled Altriebe that I know of.

　Apparently the third one wasn't the end of the story.

　I mean, did they put out six novels?

　You're trying too hard, that software maker!

What about the fourth one, by the way?

'It's set in a boys' school - I think it was a continent with a desert, but I haven't played it. I just know that those games came out for some reason. I know that the girls who go there dressed as men are the protagonists of the fourth game, though.

So?　What else do you know?!

　It's horrible to ask, but it's even more horrible not to ask.

　How is this possible?

The fifth one. You know, I think it takes place in space.

''Uchiu!''

　Elysian, who was listening to the conversation, tells me confidently.

''It's my turn!　We'll take care of it. This Elysian is a spaceship, you know. We can operate in space with no problem.''

　As I was letting loose, Erica told me the stage for the sixth film.

'Well, um, yeah!　So, we're going to go back to our roots in the sixth film and it's going to take place in the kingdom of Holfert--oh, Uncle, are you okay?

　I sit gymnastically on the bed.

　Speaking of which, the Vine Vine's foster chief said.

　He said we'll continue to struggle.

　I shed a tear.

I knew I shouldn't have come back.

　Elysian floats around my left shoulder and calls out to me in concern.

'What's wrong, Master?　Shall I destroy that deserted continent now?

　Erica is upset too.

'Oh, Uncle!　It's okay, it's okay. I'm sure that - I'd like to think that the world is not going to end. --I'm sorry, but I don't think it's going to work out.

　Even from Erica, she doesn't think it's safe to end up thinking about all this.

　I lie on my back on the bed and shout.

'I knew this world of damsel-in-distresses was a tough world for me (the mob)!　Godd*mn it!