Chapter 3: Political Strategy Team: Let’s Negotiate!

Adrienne’s Point of View

Once everyone from Noa had left, the royal family spent each day in meetings with His Majesty in attendance. To begin with, we had to decide whether we would outright refuse any unfair conditions that Noa tried to force upon us, or whether we’d seek a compromise.

The influential nobles refused to believe me when I tried to describe the power of Noa to them. “A-class monsters cannot be exterminated so simply!” they argued.

The actions that our kingdom would take were finally set out in a single statement by my older sister Cassis. “The opinions of all present have been considered. We will mobilize every available knight in the kingdom and have them gather in the fortress with ceremonial equipment. We will do so on the pretense of offering the highest level of hospitality to Noa. If it turns out they are a minor nation, they will come to fear us.”

It was undeniable that this crude approach was our only available option. So we gathered 8,000 men from throughout the kingdom, leaving just a minimum number of fighters to defend against attacks by the demon lord’s forces. All of the knights gathered from each area were now here in the fortress.

A group of knights representing our kingdom were arranged and made ready to greet the arrivals from Noa. These included the strongest Iron Knights at the front, the Platinum Knights, the Holy Rose Knights, and the Great Eagle Knights. But all that wasn’t enough to alleviate my fears.

I waited with a heavy heart as a set of armor—the type they called a suit—appeared and began approaching the plaza at high speed. I had already prepared my translation magic and was ready to use it for the messenger.

“Long time no see, Princess,” the messenger said. “I’m only here to let you know how big our delegation is. Is that okay?”

“Scoundrel! Have you no manners?! Kneel before the princess,” an Eagle Knight snarled.

I glared at the Eagle Knight who’d spoken so condescendingly. Please don’t create further problems for us...

I desperately tried to ignore the cramp in my stomach while asking how large the party from Noa would be.

“We’re sending 23,000 people as part of an advance team,” the messenger replied. “Another 32,000 from the main unit will arrive half a day later. There’ll be 55,000 personnel in total. I’m sure you’ll take good care of them.”

I had to take a moment to steady myself as I felt as close to fainting. A delegation of that size clearly has more in mind than peaceful negotiations!

The angry knight standing beside me had gone pale.

We’re finished... Our kingdom is done for.

All I could do was force a smile for the messenger. The destruction of our kingdom seemed inevitable.

**

Kouki Arakawa’s Point of View

“The suit dispatched to the fortress is returning from a bearing of 0-0-1.”

“Acknowledged. Have him land on rear unit Bee #2. Make immediate preparations to guide his landing.”

The Combat Information Center (CIC) of the land battleship Alice was lit by a pale blue glow as the captain gave out instructions to operator personnel. I recognized our captain as the former Tolstoy captain.

How come he’s in command of a land battleship now? I wondered absentmindedly. The captain stood up from his seat and turned to face me.

“The scout has returned, Sir,” he said to me with a salute. “The Alice will be departing in one hour. Do you approve?”

“I’ll leave it to you,” I replied.

The captain saluted again and returned to his seat.

Clare spoke to me next. “Sir, since we have time, can I get you something to drink?”

“If you don’t mind.”

“I’ll prepare something myself,” she said with a smile.

I sat back in my chair as Clare turned to leave. Approximately thirty CIC personnel were busy at work below me. Meanwhile, I was sitting here doing nothing, but no one was complaining. I felt incredibly out of place as Clare returned with some coffee.

“It’s hot, so please be careful,” she said.

The rich aroma of the coffee helped put me at ease. It had been four hours since we departed from Noa Island, so I decided it was about time I asked what was going on.

“Clare, can I ask you something?”

“Please, go ahead.”

“Why did you put me in the admiral’s chair?”

Clare tilted her head curiously as if I asked her something strange. “Kouki—pardon me, Major General. A major general’s rank is equivalent to an admiral. I believe the admiral’s chair is appropriate. But if you’d prefer to retire to your room until the operation begins...”

“No, this is fine. Sorry for asking difficult questions. I’ll let you get back to your work.”

Clare began operating the communications equipment to establish contact with Unit #2 Clare.

That wasn’t what I meant, I thought. That wasn’t what I was asking you! I want to know why it’s me here in the admiral’s chair of Unit #1 acting as supreme commander to 25,000 members of the advance team. For some strange reason, no one seemed to think this was unusual. What if I shout, “All forces, attack the fortress!”? Will they actually do it?!

Uneasily, I decided, I may as well watch this documentary about the life of Earth’s sea turtles until we establish contact with my mom and her people on Unit #2. Not that I’m refusing to face reality or anything...

“Sir... Sir?” Clare called out to me.

I was watching a scene showing the sea turtles returning to the sea. A significant amount of time must have gone by.

Clare began reporting the current situation to me when I looked up to face her.

“At present, Unit #2 is further ahead than expected. They have therefore instructed Unit #1 to begin the operation. Unit #1 Alice is currently ready to launch. I believe we are to head toward the Merkava Kingdom. Do you approve?”

“Yes...”

Having gotten my approval, Clare relayed the same order to the captain.

I don’t get what’s going on, so all I can say is “yes,” “no,” or “I’ll leave it to you.” Clare is making the decisions for me... Oh, now I get it! Clare’s here to back me up since I’m just a figurehead. I finally understood why I was sitting in the admiral’s chair. In that case, Clare will put me right if I give out any dumb instructions. I’ll try answering with more confidence next time she asks me something.

The captain was preparing to launch. “Prepare to launch! Disengage optical camouflage and start all engines.”

“Engines starting. Nuclear reactor output is stable at 35 percent. Suits deployed to defensive positions are being recalled and anchored... All suits recovered. We are ready to depart.”

“All right. Alice, launch now!”

Whoa! This is awesome. It’s like something from an anime I saw in my past life.

The captain noticed me leaning forward with excitement.

“Sir,” he said, looking at his stopwatch. “It takes us 98 seconds to launch from a state with all engines fully stopped. Is this satisfactory?”

I had no idea how quick that was, but I guessed it was praiseworthy because the captain spoke with a smile. I responded with some vague praise. “I think it’s fantastic. Everyone is so well-trained.” I looked over at Clare, and she nodded to me with a smile.

After about an hour of sitting and drinking coffee, a member of CIC personnel had something to report: “Captain! The kingdom has positioned a team of knights in front of the fortress. They number approximately 8,000. I’m enlarging the image.”

This initially came as a surprise, but I relaxed once I saw the enlarged image. Oh, they’re just honor guards awaiting our arrival.

“Sir, how should we proceed?” Clare asked.

I’ve totally got this! I’ve been hesitant every time she’s asked me what to do. But not this time. I saw this one coming. I know just how to greet the host’s honor guards during diplomatic ceremonies.

If Macho Man could use Earth’s manners and customs to deal with Crovence, it was likely that other Earth customs would also work.

Let’s see... a warship from the other nation is supposed to fire a 21-gun salute when the honor guards are lined up like that. We’ve got to show them that none of our cannons contain active rounds so they know that we’re not here to wage war.

“Clare, aim our main cannons into the sky and fire four consecutive salvos. Please use blank shells.”

The Alice had two sets of three 26-centimeter cannons, so four consecutive salvos would be 24 shots. That was three too many, but I didn’t think it would matter.

“Y-Yes, sir,” she stuttered. “Blank shells. Captain! Fire four consecutive salvos from our main cannons into the sky. Use blank shells.”

Well, Clare didn’t argue, so that must have been the right call.

Thinking about how I’d just shown off my knowledge to a beautiful girl made me grin as I watched over the work of the CIC personnel.

**

Captain Dylan’s, of Land Battleship Alice, Point of View

It had been fifteen days since the original crew of the Tolstoy gathered on Noa Island. The human resources department assigned me the role of captain of this ship—the Alice-type land battleship, Unit #1 Alice.

At first, I suspected it was no more than a massive tank with the exaggerated name of land battleship, but my expectations had been high anyway because I was told this was a weapon designed by Kouki.

Due to its size, the Alice had been transferred to the newly constructed frontline base on the continent, rather than to Noa Island. I was astonished when I first saw it. The Alice was roughly the same size as the flagship of a carrier strike group, and it looked just how you’d expect a battleship designed to travel on land would look. Having only ever been aboard nuclear submarines, I told Mrs. Arakawa that I wasn’t a worthy captain for the Alice, but she laughed and disagreed.

“I expect that Kouki will be aboard Unit #1. It will take a high level of skill to operate the ship, and I believe the only people capable of this are you and your crew. You all have experience operating a state-of-the-art nuclear-powered attack submarine. I did consider my husband for the role, but in the end, I decided you’re the most appropriate person.” And with that, Mrs. Arakawa finished speaking and bowed to me.

I was overcome with emotion and lost for words. On Earth, nuclear-powered attack submarines had virtually become useless baggage following advancements in missile defense technology and the abandonment of all forms of nuclear weapons. And yet, Mrs. Arakawa came to me to ask that I serve as captain. Having Kouki aboard my ship was an even greater honor.

I gave the only reply I could. “I would be honored to serve as captain. I’ll give it my all.”

Today we set out with Kouki aboard for the first time, but now Kouki—that is, the major general—had little more to say than, “I’ll leave it to you.”

Ordinarily, my crew and I would have objected to this apathetic attitude, but we remained cooperative because the major general had aided us during the rescue operation.

“Captain! Have Unit #1 Alice launch and head for the Merkava Kingdom,” instructed his adjutant, Lieutenant Colonel Clare.

I did as instructed and made preparations to launch the Alice. I measured the time until launch on my stopwatch and found that it took just 98 seconds. It was a good result. In previous attempts, it had taken more than 120 seconds, so I was satisfied with our current speed.

Before resetting my stopwatch, I reported the result of 98 seconds to the major general.

“I think it’s fantastic,” he said. “Everyone is so well-trained.”

The major general smiled in satisfaction and praised us for the result. There were also many smiles amongst the CIC personnel. We trained hard to avoid embarrassing ourselves, and now it was paying off! I watched the major general ask for another coffee, and then I resumed my duties as captain.

We passed approximately an hour uneventfully before the fortress came into view ahead. A crew member monitoring for enemy activity focused one of the ship’s cameras on the fortress and zoomed in. He turned pale at what he saw.

“Captain! The kingdom has deployed a team of knights in front of the fortress. They number approximately 8,000. I’m enlarging the image.”

The formation of knights deployed by the kingdom was clear to see. I studied ancient history out of interest in my younger days, and recognized this formation as the Roman legion formation used by the Roman army.

The kingdom had prepared themselves for a battle. It seemed wise to withdraw and report the situation to the unit behind us. Before I could ask the major general for his opinion, a member of my crew stopped me.

“Captain, the kingdom appears to be using ceremonial equipment. It’s hard to say whether they have any intention of fighting. If we withdraw, there’ll be political implications.”

Hm. This is a dilemma.

If we were to withdraw, we’d be yielding to the kingdom’s forces, but meeting them head-on could incite them to attack us.

We’ll have to leave this to the major general’s judgment, I thought, looking over at the admiral’s chair where he was sitting. He gave his instructions to the Lieutenant Colonel with unexpected swiftness.

“Clare, aim our main cannons into the sky and fire four consecutive salvos. Please use blank shells.”

“Y-Yes, sir. Blank shells. Captain! Fire four consecutive salvos from our main cannons into the sky. Use blank shells.”

He can’t be serious! We’re firing warning shots?! If things went wrong, the kingdom could immediately become hostile.

I was about to reconfirm the order before firing, but I stopped. The major general was grinning as though he was enjoying this.

Now I see...

The Lieutenant Colonel hesitated to give the order to fire warning shots, but as long as the major general refrained from blowing the enemy away with high explosives, she wasn’t going to put a stop to it.

I shouted my orders to the officer managing the cannons. “Prepare to fire four consecutive salvos from the main cannons! Use blank shells.”

“Anchoring the ship in place... We are anchored! Confirming that accompanying vehicles have withdrawn from the danger zone. Target is set to 40 degrees over port side. We are ready to fire.”

“Fire!!”

Boom... Boom...

Although we fired blank shells, there was an incredible shock that shook the hull after we started firing. Alice-types were relatively light considering their size; if the hull hadn’t been anchored to the ground before firing, the recoil would have lifted us off the ground. This made it impossible for us to fire while advancing, but 40 vertical launch systems installed to the rear made up for this deficiency. There was also a secret weapon to be used if the main cannons and the vertical launch systems both became inoperable, but we wouldn’t have to resort to that here.

“All salvos fired. The front of the fortress is displayed on the main screen.”

The screen showed that the knights deployed by the kingdom had broken ranks and begun to withdraw.

“Major General, how shall we proceed?” I asked.

The major general gave his orders while still smiling the same smile. “Have some of our powered suits go out and get permission to enter the fortress.”

“How should we explain our firing of the main cannons?” I asked.

We’d have to explain why we fired warning shots at the kingdom. Does he intend to use gunboat diplomacy to move things forward? I wondered as I waited for his reply.

With a grin, he responded, “Tell them I said, ‘Your honor guards were most impressive. We have returned the gesture with a 21-gun salute.’”

I see... We’re passing it off as a diplomatic ceremony. The major general has a keen grasp of political matters.

**

Adrienne’s Point of View

After the messenger left, the idiot nobles declared they would place a formation of knights in front of the fortress before Crovence and I could stop them.

I pleaded with them, “Please don’t anger Noa!” but only the Platinum Knights and the Iron Knights had seen Noa; the other knights mocked us as cowards.

The different groups of knights were close to fighting each other, so His Majesty reluctantly allowed some knights to be deployed in front of the fortress.

Crovence came over to speak with me before we left the fortress. “We can hold back Noa if things go badly. Please use that opportunity to escape from the fortress with His Majesty. I’m certain we cannot win... but please escape to the capital.”

I watched as Crovence left. His spirits were low because he understood the hopelessness of the situation.

Sometime later, a lookout using a magic tool to see far ahead cried out, “In front of the fortress... a mountain is coming!”

A mountain? What does he mean? My question was immediately answered as I caught sight of the gigantic thing that was heading toward the fortress.

“What in the world?” I asked.

A general named Auguste answered my question with a trembling voice. “In the northern Empire there is a weapon known as a cannon that fires round balls over long distances. Only once have I seen these things firsthand, but those things attached to this mountain and iron box are remarkably similar to those cannons. Though these are on an entirely different scale... Even an ordinary cannon is a weapon with fearsome power.”

“If they were to use such a weapon, what would become of our knights?”

“They would be obliterated by a single shot.”

I should have done more to stop those knights from going out there.

Auguste realized what I was thinking and grabbed me before I could go out to bring the knights back in. “Princess! I’m sorry, but you must accept our situation. There is movement on the mountain.”

The moment Auguste spoke the words—boom... boom...—there was a sound many times louder than thunder. The sound rang out loud enough to make my entire body, still held in Auguste’s arms, shake. I watched as the entire mountain became covered in flames with each burst of sound. It was as though the god of the mountain was roaring in rage at the sight of the knights.

“I’ve made the wrong decision...” said my older sister Cassis with regret. “We should have greeted them with humility.”

Noa had no interest in diplomacy from the outset. They are probably starting their full-scale assault on this kingdom this very day. I sighed as I watched the knights, who had not even been attacked directly, break ranks and withdraw into the fortress.

“Something is approaching us from the vicinity of the mountain!” the lookout suddenly cried.

Must I stand by and watch the massacre of our knights?

But the scene didn’t play out like I was imagining. Instead, Noa’s forces stopped just before the knights, made the same gesture of surrender that I’d seen before, and then slowly approached the knights.

“Could they be handing over a formal declaration of war?” Cassis asked. She looked confused as she watched the soldiers approach them.

One of the knights then came running toward the fortress. Fearing there might be danger, my sister and I asked His Majesty to wait inside the fortress while we headed out to the plaza.

“Noa is requesting permission to enter the fortress,” the knight informed us.

“Permission? They won’t invade the fortress?” Cassis asked skeptically.

I had the same doubts. They aren’t requesting our surrender?

“They’ve asked for your permission. Apparently, their attack just now wasn’t an attack. It was a gesture of appreciation that they call a ‘21-gun salute,’ fired for our honor guard.”

Appreciation...? I thought, dumbfounded. I know sarcasm when I hear it. I think the message is clear: “Allow us into the fortress immediately, and we’ll overlook what just happened. Refuse, and we will attack.”

Now that an opportunity to negotiate had been presented to us, it seemed best to give them permission immediately.

Cassis must have reached the same conclusion.

“They have our permission,” she told the messenger. “Tell them that we are preparing tea in preparation for their arrival.”

“How many people are permitted to enter the fortress?”

How stupid can this messenger be?

Cassis responded to him calmly before I could express my anger. “Tell them that they may bring as many armed soldiers as they please.”

The dissatisfied-looking messenger returned to the front line to deliver our instructions.

This is for the best.

My sister and I called His Majesty to the plaza so he could welcome Noa.

**

A short while later, I was informed that a party of two hundred from Noa had appeared before the fortress. In the center of the party stood the demonic armor, from which Kouki emerged to greet us.

“Long time no see, Adrienne. I’m meeting some of you for the first time, so allow me to reintroduce myself. I’m Kouki Arakawa. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“The pleasure is all mine. I am King Carlos of the Holy Merkava Kingdom.”

“I am Cassis, first princess of the Holy Merkava Kingdom,” my sister said.

I was not surprised to hear Cassis introduce herself so politely, but I hadn’t expected His Majesty to speak in such a way. Clearly, His Majesty understood that our lives were at stake. He was paying Kouki as much respect as possible.

With the greetings finished, I informed them that tea had been served and tried to guide them inside, but Kouki stopped me.

“Please wait. I’m sorry, but our advanced party is very tired. With your approval, I’d like to allow some of my people to rest outside of the fortress. Would this be this acceptable?”

“Of course. Please do as you wish,” His Majesty replied.

Kouki gave some sort of instruction to the girl beside him. The girl waved her arm, and members of Noa that had been deployed in front of the fortress began to move as if intending to encircle us.

I know he said to do as you wish, but he didn’t say he wanted you to surround the fortress!

“Let’s go,” Kouki said, seeming pleased with this situation. He asked us to guide him inside and we each entered the fortress in a cold sweat.

“Master Kouki, what is that mountain-like structure?” his Majesty asked Kouki while the maid was pouring the tea.

“Mountain? Oh, that’s a battleship that can travel across land. Just think of it as a ship with large cannons that can move freely. I brought it with me because I’m a little scared of those worms we saw last time. Haha...”

Don’t lie to us! “Scared”? You defeated those A-class monsters in seconds. Besides dragons and Fenrir, there isn’t a monster stronger than a sandworm.

“That thing is named Alice, by the way. It’s named after my girlfriend.”

“W-What a perfect name for something so elegant and awe inspiring! Miss Alice must be quite beautiful.” His Majesty’s eyes darted around as he struggled to respond appropriately.

I can’t believe anyone would be insensitive enough to name a weapon after their lover. If I were her, I would not stand for it.

His Majesty continued to ask questions, but Kouki’s disingenuous responses made me wish I was back in the royal castle.

I expected this entire exchange would prove fruitless, but then a woman standing beside Kouki whispered something into his ear. Kouki nodded several times.

“The main unit has arrived earlier than I expected,” Kouki said to us with a stern face. “I know this is rather sudden, but our head negotiator has arrived, so I expect you’d like to start the diplomatic discussions.”

I expected this to take place tomorrow. Now we would have to begin a fight, fought without weapons, for the survival of our kingdom.

**

Cassis’s Point of View

I was preparing to welcome the diplomat from Noa into the fortress when my father, the king, spoke to me.

“Cassis, I’ll leave the negotiations to you. Please negotiate as you see best for this kingdom. I can tolerate our nation becoming the most pitiful vassal state if that’s what it takes for the name Merkava to live on. I believe in you.”

“I will do my best.”

Father was neither incompetent nor exceptional as a king. If the peace lasted, he was the sort who would have lived out his life as an unremarkable ruler. But times had changed for the worse. We lived in fear of attack by the demon lord’s forces, and were bordered by rapidly developing nations to the north and east.

“I’d also like you to talk about the assembly of allied nations,” he said.

“Yes, Father.”

I had almost forgotten. I would need to make Noa promise that they’d attend those headache-inducing meetings. I felt overwhelmed by these two great responsibilities, and it was difficult not to succumb to despair. Just as I finished setting up the meeting area, the diplomats from Noa entered the room with accompanying guards.

“It’s nice to meet you,” one of them said. “I am Miki Arakawa, a representative of Noa.”

Arakawa?! Based on her appearance, I guessed she was the mother of the boy Kouki. Could it be that the queen herself is attending the negotiations? Well, that would explain why they brought so many soldiers.

“I’m Clare Dauntless, a political negotiator,” another one said.

“Elise Dauntless, also a political negotiator.”

“I’m Roberta Scarlet, their secretary.”

I studied the four diplomats as they introduced themselves. They were wearing similar clothing to the boy, but with skirts and in black. They looked intimidating, but what bothered me was the large bag held by a guard behind the diplomats.

Whatever could be in that thing?

“I have a request to make,” Miki said. “Please don’t use the translation magic on Roberta here. I’ll need her to remember what words everyone used for later.”

“I understand.”

I excluded the woman from the area of the translation magic. The woman named Elise then acted as interpreter.

How could she be capable of remembering words in a language so different from her own? I wondered.

I was about to begin the negotiations, but then Miki started the negotiations herself. “First, I’d like you to look at this. This is a map that we made ourselves. The island and the part of the continent marked in red are the territory of the Merkava Kingdom, correct?”

“This is correct.”

I lost my nerve at the sight of the map. It was so intricate that it was as though the continent itself had been cut out of the ground and I was now looking down on it from high above.

This won’t do... I can’t let my feelings show on my face...

“This marking is where we’ve constructed an outpost. At present, we’re illegally occupying territory belonging to the Merkava Kingdom. We’d like to begin by offering you compensation.”

Miki snapped her fingers and the guard standing behind her removed something from inside the large bag. There was a great clanging sound as he placed a gigantic gold block on the table. One of the diplomats then upturned another bag over the table. Diamonds, sapphires, rubies, and other precious stones spilled out in great number. The high value and purity of the stones was apparent from the way they glittered.

“This gold bar weighs 10 kilograms. That’s a unit we use to measure weight. As compensation we’ll give you 500 kilograms, which is equivalent to 50 such bars. Our offer comes without any conditions. If gold has no value to your kingdom, we’d like to offer you an equivalent amount of another precious stone of your choosing.”

I couldn’t understand what they were thinking. Do they expect to claim this back later?

“I’d like to apologize for bringing an excessively large delegation with me,” she added. “We didn’t intend to create any misunderstandings. We’ve no intention of using our military might to impose unfair conditions such as making your kingdom our vassal. We want only one thing: To coexist with your nation as equals.”

“You must forgive me, but I find that difficult to believe.”

“That’s understandable,” she said. “Let me begin by explaining our history. It’s a long story, but please listen to the whole thing.”

With that, she began explaining the history of Noa. What she told me was astounding.

“Noa” was not actually a nation. They were something like a guild. What surprised me most was that they had migrated to our world from another.

A certain child had been born in that world 15 years earlier. The name of the child was Kouki Arakawa—the boy wearing the white military uniform. Soon after his birth, he displayed an unusual level of intellect, and by the age of three, he shocked his mother by constructing a theory relating to an important magic number. The technology of that world had been moved ahead by more than 50 years by the power of a single person’s mind.

Rather than accepting this gift with great gratitude, their world had come to see Kouki as dangerous, as if they could not accept him. Even though the boy himself was a gentle child with love for nature and animals, his world branded him a demon child.

A number of good people decided to repay him for what he had given them. But they knew a direct war would make him sad, so that was out of the question. So they thought, why not remove him from the world that hated him? It sounded like a fairy tale, but they approached the task with earnest intent, and succeeded. This meant finding another world that they could migrate to while gathering people who had a respect for the boy. It was this world that they eventually chose.

“So you truly wish to work together as equals?” I asked.

“Yes. But there is one warning I must give you. Under no circumstances should my son Kouki be unnecessarily... provoked. As his mother, it’s embarrassing for me to say this, but the boy’s sense of ethics have been a problem. It’s the result of him being mistreated by our world. It’s difficult for me to say, but if my son were provoked, he would be capable of laying waste to a nation on the scale of the Merkava Kingdom within half a day.”

I think the story of Noa’s history may have been slightly inaccurate. To me, it sounds as though Noa’s inability to remain in the other world was roughly 30 percent Kouki’s own fault.

Rather than dwelling on this, I composed myself and resumed our talks in hope of reaching a fair agreement with Noa.

**

Miki Arakawa’s Point of View

After returning to the Alice-type Ground Warship Unit #2 Clare, I slumped into the admiral’s chair.

I’ll never get used to wearing this uniform.

“Welcome back,” Shuuichi said to me. “How’d the negotiation go?”

“It went all right. We haven’t dealt with the finer details yet, but we’ve signed a provisional agreement for now. Noa Island, a limited lease on the continent, and a guarantee of their national sovereignty were all included in the pact, so there was no problem signing it. But another awkward problem came up.”

“Which is?”

“Attending the assembly of allied nations.”

“What’s one of those?” Shuuichi asked.

According to what the kingdom told us, it seemed to be an organization made up of armed forces of five nations from this continent that were preparing for war against the demon lord’s forces. The Merkava Kingdom was much weaker than the other four nations and was basically taking orders from them.

They bowed to me and pleaded, “Please! Attend the assembly!”

I hadn’t been able to refuse after Cassis begged me, almost in tears. It sounded like trouble and I was seriously thinking I might not go along, but then my beloved husband spoke my biggest fear aloud.

“If you don’t go, you know Kouki’s going to say something like, ‘I hate Mom because she doesn’t keep her promises!’”

That really worried me. I wouldn’t be able to go on living if he hated me.

“That reminds me,” I said dreamily. “I was having lunch with Kouki recently, and he was telling me, ‘Mom is so good at her job; she’s amazing. I think I might call the third unit Miki.’”

I must attend this assembly of allies for the sake of friendship between our nations! This might actually be a great chance to make contact with other nations, too. I should at least greet their officials.

“By the way, where exactly is this assembly of allied nations thing?” Shuuichi asked.

“It’s happening in the royal castle. There’s a magic item in the conference room that allows them to talk to people far away.”

“Something like a video call device, I imagine.”

Shuuichi had no more to say, so I let him go and started thinking of other things. Roberta was on my mind. Ever since reaching Noa Island she’d done nothing but eat, and yet she was fluently speaking the kingdom’s language by the time the meeting finished.

She said, “Once you’ve memorized the vocabulary, it’s simple.” But I knew this was impossible for any ordinary person. The rate at which she learned languages was fearsome, just as Kouki said. I only wished she’d refrain from consuming enough food for fifteen soldiers within a single day.

I also had to think about the demon lord’s forces.

It might require all five allied forces to work together, but why can’t they combine their military power to launch an attack against this one nation? I wondered. I remembered how they acted as if they were entirely reluctant to enter into a war. And it seemed unnatural that the kingdom had taken time to create elaborately disguised defense installations. Could something be going on between two of these nations?

I thought deeply about the current situation, and before I knew it, night had fallen.

**

Two days later, we arrived at the capital after a slow journey at a pace set by the kingdom. Once we arrived, we were soon guided into the royal castle. The furnishings inside the castle were modest, and my initial impressions were favorable.

We stopped before entering the conference room so that Cassis could explain the situation. For some reason she couldn’t seem to meet my eyes. “I’m sorry about this,” she said. “The representatives of the allied nations are already waiting in their respective conference rooms. I realize how troublesome this is, but please...”

She must be under pressure because they’re all waiting for me, I realized.

“It’s no trouble at all,” I said with a smile before taking a seat in the conference room.

Over the previous two days, Clare and I had decided that I should approach this meeting by being humble while trying to learn more about the situation. It was also important to avoid conflict as much as possible, so as not to disgrace the kingdom. As I waited for the conference to start, the mirror in front of me became blurred and changed to display four men.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you all,” I said. “I am Miki Arakawa, a representative of Noa.”

The second man from the right quickly expressed his displeasure. “They’ve sent a woman to an important meeting between nations? How uncivilized.”

Princess Cassis spoke to me through the earpiece I was wearing. “He’s a representative of the Ragille Principality.”

Next, the man furthest to the right stood up and yelled with such passion that a good amount of spit flew from his mouth. “These damnable small nations! Stand up when you greet us.”

I bowed to him while trying not to laugh at his strange way of judging people. Meanwhile he continued to yell until he was red in the face. I was told that this man was a representative of the Recule Holy State.

“Ha! There’s no use in trying to teach manners to a savage.” Furthest to the left was a man so hairy he seemed more like an ape. He was a representative of the Rinkdolfr Empire.

Lastly, I was told that the old white-haired man who hadn’t spoken yet was a representative of the Capus Kingdom.

Looks like I’ll need to change my approach here. The kind of high-level political talk I used with Princess Cassis isn’t going to work with these idiots.

I spoke bluntly to the four men. “I’m told this is the assembly of allied nations. Will your nations be hoping to establish diplomatic relations with Noa?”

There was silence after I’d spoken, but they understood the meaning. As I expected, the representative of the Recule Holy State became so enraged that I worried he might burst a blood vessel.

“Don’t play games with us! You know you need us to keep you safe from the demon lord!”

“That won’t be necessary,” I said. “We’ve already demonstrated our ability to eliminate A-class monsters without trouble. And we have no intention of engaging in combat with the demon lord. If anything, we’d like to negotiate a peace.”

After I cleared up the Recule Holy State representative’s misunderstandings, the Capus Kingdom representative spoke for the first time. “Very well. I think Noa’s position is very clear. I suppose now that the subhuman leaders of the Merkava Kingdom have formed an alliance with Noa, they no longer have any need for our alliance?”

The Capus Kingdom representative’s statement cleared up the final mystery. I’d heard from Kouki that the elven race made up most of the Merkava Kingdom. He told me they were closer to demons and spirits than humans were.

Perhaps they feel a sense of solidarity with whatever race is serving the demon lord and have no real desire to fight. That would explain why they’ve no desire to fight the demon lord and are using elaborate delay tactics. What is the kingdom really trying to accomplish? Depending on the answer to that question, we could find ourselves having to make a difficult decision.

I looked over at Princess Cassis. She approached the magic item with a commanding air and stated the policy of her nation clearly.

“We, the Holy Merkava Kingdom, have formed a fair diplomatic relationship for the first time in our nation’s history. Whatever decision Noa makes, we will stand by it and follow its lead.”

“You damnable demi-humans dare defy us humans?! This will not end well for you!” the representative of the Capus Kingdom snarled.

The policy that the kingdom just laid out was being condemned harshly. It was up to me to protect the kingdom now that they declared they’d be working together with us.

The smile that I’d been wearing until now vanished.

As a representative of my nation, I declared, “I must apologize. Noa refuses to join the alliance. We have already established a diplomatic relationship with this kingdom. If any of your nations use economic sanctions or military power against the kingdom, Noa will immediately declare war against all four of your nations as per our safety assurance pact. We will use the full extent of our power to retaliate.”

The representatives of the four nations were enraged by my statement and began to disappear as they disconnected from the magic device one by one. The representative of the Capus Kingdom was the last to disconnect. “We will remember this,” he said glaring at me.

That pushed me over my limit. For the first time in long while, I became truly angry.

“We’re ready take you on any time. We are Noa! We’ll eliminate all who stand in our way!”

I felt better as soon as I’d said those words.

I was already beginning to form a plan as the mirror disconnected.