NOVEL NEXT Volume 8, Chapter 5 – The Rose Princess and the White Night King, Part 5
Volume 8, Chapter 5 - The Rose Princess and the White Night King, Part 5
“If you don’t come out, I’ll kill you.”
Hiro announced this with murderous intent, and several young women and a middle-aged dwarf appeared.
Hiro’s brow furrowed, but he motioned with his finger for them to come to the throne.
As they approached, he saw that the women were dressed in dirty burlap sacks, while the middle-aged dwarf was a picturesque noble adorned with jewelry.
“A large family, huh? Parents and children?”
When Hiro asked, the middle-aged dwarf nodded vigorously.
In contrast, the women’s faces were downcast. That attitude alone gave him some idea of what was going on.
“I see…”
It’s a big banquet. There may have been nobles who called for prostitutes, but these women seemed to be different.
The women were not wearing make-up and gave the impression of being somewhat plain and simple. They were probably kidnapped from somewhere. The fact that they treated even their own race in this way made them even more irredeemably rotten.
Hiro beckoned the middle-aged dwarf with his hand and grabbed him by the neck as he approached.
“Gah!”
“I’ll let you live.”
At this, the dwarf’s eyes lit up with hope in the midst of his pain.
“But on one condition. The guards will hear the commotion and come. So I want you to keep them at bay and, if possible, remove them from the palace under the guise of providing security.”
The dwarf nodded, but Hiro snapped his neck with all his strength.
“I’m sorry. I lied.”
Once Hiro let go of his hand, the dwarf collapsed to the floor like a puppet with broken strings. Several small screams emanated from the women. When Hiro turned to look at them, they fell silent with their mouths clamped shut.
“The uprising crowd is concentrated near the north gate.”
It is where the mansions of the nobles are concentrated. There, looting must have repeatedly been happening. It is not difficult to imagine what would happen if they headed for such a place.
“So, you should run away from the south gate. The gate is open, so it will be easy for you to escape. You can take some of the money and goods of the influential people here and return to your family. Oh, and when you leave the palace, use the back gate, where there are no soldiers patrolling.”
The dwarf women ran out of the entrance, picking up jewelry from nearby corpses. Some of them, perhaps more dazzled by the jewelry than by their lives, even took a long time to gather it up and carry it in their arms as they fled. As one might expect, even Hiro was taken aback by this, but even if they could not escape because of it, he could not care for them that much.
After the women left, it was quiet, and the empty night wind caressed the corpses of the looted influential people. Then Luca came to Hiro. Wiping the blood from her cheeks, she licked her lips and moistened them glossily. Finally, she sat down at Hiro’s feet and puts her head on his lap.
“Were you satisfied?”
“Yes, it was quite sturdy.”
Luca’s lightless eyes wandered through the room, and Hiro smiled at her.
Then he looked around. The fire spread from the fallen candlestick to the corpse, and with the help of the liquor that filled the floor, the fire spread violently. The light of the flames leaped over the mask and created shadows.
“Two years have passed since the baby bird left the nest.”
It is not something to say to anyone.
Hiro stretched his arm over the blazing fire in the moonlit, bloodstained world.
“How have you grown? Are you laughing or crying?”
In the world’s silence, Hiro rested his back against the throne and looked up at the ceiling.
“Liz, is the sky still clear for you?”
The azure sky is no longer reflected in Hiro’s eyes. Instead, the world is dark and stagnant.
The wind was coming in through the broken window that connected to the balcony. The stifling smell of blood that filled the room was taken away, and the flames gained momentum from the wind.
“Show me how you’ve grown.”
Hiro’s smile widened amidst the popping sparks.
Infinite possibilities spread into the future of the red-haired princess.
From now on, the coming age swells, and the age of slaughter is upon them.
“The world that had stood still will begin to move.”
The wheels of a thousand years have begun to turn with a clatter. All races will once again be on the move on the central continent.
No one can remain unaffected.
――Not even God.
“It has been repeated over and over again. Failure has been repeated over and over again.”
Hiro thrust out his fist as if to tighten his grip on the great flame spreading before him.
“It’s a turning point.”
Luca looked up at Hiro, who cleared his throat happily, with vacant eyes.
Hiro noticed the somewhat sad look in Luca’s eyes, but he could no longer allow himself to stand still.
He has no choice but to keep moving forward. There was no turning back from the moment he chose this path.
“Good grief… what am I doing?”
Eventually, Hiro, who had been hiding his laughter, sat down deeply on the throne as if he were tired.
His right hand suddenly came into view ― what came to mind was the promise he made to Liz on a distant day.
“Liz… I will wait for you on the highest of heights.”
The stiff atmosphere of the past is gone, and Hiro’s eyes were distorted with sadness, as is appropriate for his age.
“When the time comes, I――”
Only one wish. It’s what the young man has always wished for.
It’s something he’s kept in his heart for a long time, and he knows he’ll have to make a hard choice for her.
But it is a path that cannot be avoided.
The sound of a rupture echoes through the throne room.
The sparks of fire soaring in the air are dispelling the darkness coiled in the corners of the room and creating new sparks.
In the midst of all this, Hiro noticed a faint noise and turned his gaze toward the collapsed entrance.
“Wise Brother, our men who were inciting the people have found Utgarde under assault.”
It was Hugin who appeared quietly, frowning in the hot wind.
Behind her were two of her subordinates.
Flanked by them stood Utgarde, the dwarf with his arms restrained.
“You did well.”
Hiro, exerting himself, held out his hand in front of him. Hugin, who recognized this gesture, approached with Utgarde in tow. Utgarde, on folded knees in front of the throne, glared at Hiro. His swollen face suggests that he is about to say something. However, he is gagged, so he is unable to speak.
“It has been a long time, Utgarde. You look healthy for a defeated survivor.”
Utgarde, freed from the gag by Hugin, howled as he raised his hand and said casually.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing? You came here to form an alliance with Steichen, didn’t you!”
“No one said anything about that. I just came to negotiate.”
Hiro put his arm on the armrest and looked down at Utgarde contemptuously with one hand raised.
“What?”
“I wanted you to free the Zahle River. The people of the Principality of Lichtine are suffering from water shortages.”
“Freeing the Zahle River… is that all?”
Utgarde repeated the question with a roll of his eyes.
“Yeah, that’s it.”
Hiro shrugged and let out a sigh, and Utgarde’s face reddened.
“You’re going to all this trouble just for that?”
“No, rest assured, I have other questions I want to ask you.”
Sensing that he was about to get up, Luca pulled his head back, and Hiro, leaving the throne, approached Utgarde.
“Torkil-sama! Senators, please give us your orders! The people are rioting――!?”
A voice was heard in dire need. Soldiers, unable to cope with the unusual situation in the city, rushed into the throne room. However, they stiffened when they saw the sea of flames that was gaining momentum and the horrific scene in the throne room, which was filled with corpses. Utgarde shouted at them.
“Help me! Help me! There are insolent people here!”
Perhaps invigorated by his voice, the soldiers came to their senses and drew their swords.
“Utgarde-sama! You bastards――”
Utgarde’s hope was instantly crushed. Hugin’s arrow pierced their throats, killing them. The blood drained from Utgarde’s face as he once again stood on the edge of despair.
“Y-you bastard, are you going to wage war with Nidavellir?”
“How can there be war with a king without castles, a king without troops, a king without power?”
“There are still those who support me. If I can get them to contribute money――”
“To the one who will lose even his country?”
Utgarde gulped down the words at the strange presence emanating from Hiro.
“No one will help you. You have nothing left. Give up.”
“T-then I will make peace with the Lichtine in exchange for the liberation of the Zahle River and the slave trade――”
Hiro stomped on the floor, cutting Utgarde’s words short.
“I am sorry, but the Zahle River has already been liberated. By 10,000 men of the Lichtine army.”
“Huh?”
“Even if I have only 500 men, there is nothing you can do if you are attacked from the inside.”
The border should have already fallen by the 500 “Raven Army” that came with Hiro.
Utgarde had placed Torkil, the border guard commander, at the palace for the purpose of monitoring the situation and had also sent most of the guards to defend Garza. They may have been conceited in their iron fortress and thought they could defend it with only a few men, but if that was the case, they could easily collapse if they attacked from the rear. All that remained was for an avalanche of 10,000 Lichtine troops to pour through the border.
“W-was that your goal?
“Not only that but… I don’t have to tell you everything.”
Dense darkness is created by Hiro. The pure white cloak was stirred up by the wind and danced violently.
“There is no time left. I’m not going to burn myself to death with you.”
Hiro motioned to Luca and Hugin to go outside first.
After receiving the order, they left the throne room, which had become a sea of flames, without haste.
After watching their backs, Hiro looked again at Utgarde.
“Now, I have a question. I want to ask you about the Grantz nobleman who gave you assistance.”
“H-how did you know about that?”
“No, it was just a coincidence.”
Hiro stretched his arm around Utgarde’s neck.
“I found out about this when I was investigating it.”
The lion ornament shining under Utgarde’s neck was shooting a fiery flare of light.
“Just in case things go wrong…”
With a gentle hand, Hiro removed the necklace of the first emperor from Utgarde.
He then carefully placed it in the “Black Princess Camellia” and grabbed Utgarde by the neck.
“You have nothing to do with Altius.”
With an almost refreshing smile, Hiro raised his black sword.