Chapter 15: Reward

Within a few days of the kingdom’s victory, the empire’s troops had lost most of their supplies and retreated with their tails between their legs. Plagued by run-ins with the kingdom’s forces and attacks from various monsters, few nobles and soldiers managed to make it back home. Nobles carried with them an opportunity for ransom, and the kingdom had no reason to spare practiced enemy soldiers. The conscripted farmers, on the other hand, were left to return to their villages and work in peace.

Mitsuha was, as you might expect, once again summoned to the royal palace. This was an official event involving a proper audience with the king, so it was clear as day it would be an award ceremony.

Upon Mitsuha’s arrival, dozens of people were already mingling in the hall. Among them were award recipients and bigwigs taking part in the event. Needless to say, Marquis Eiblinger was also present.

Though the fight at the main gate had overshadowed most of the war effort, Mitsuha and Wolfgang were far from the only ones who contributed. There were people who had uncovered vital information, armies who had fought hard to buy time for the capital’s preparations, those who had distinguished themselves in pursuit of the retreating empire, among others.

Mitsuha was certain victory wouldn’t have been possible without them. What if the empire came a day early? she wondered. What if the intel the kingdom had was false or had holes in it? Wolfgang alone certainly wouldn’t have guaranteed victory.

During the ceremony, she was the first to be addressed.

“Mitsuha von Yamano. Your contributions in defending my kingdom from the empire have been invaluable. No doubt, you deserve a reward. Is there anything you desire?”

“I want three things,” Mitsuha replied.

“Three?” a noble gasped.

“Such greed!” said another.

“That’s a commoner for you,” added a third.

I can hear you, you know! thought Mitsuha. And I bet that’s what you want!

“Very well. Speak.”

The busybodies quieted themselves, waiting.

“Firstly, there’s someone who deserves a reward much more than I do.”

“What? Who might that be?”

“The loyal, courageous youth who stood in the way of the bolts that would have hit me and Lord Eiblinger instead.”

“Ohhh.” The nobles nodded in understanding. Some, when reminded of the brave young man, showed bitter expressions.

“Where is he now?” the king asked.

“Well, the wound on his shoulder was a mere scratch, but the one in his stomach is grave, so he’s currently battling death in a medical facility.”

“I see.” The king looked deeply pained. After all, in this world, such injuries were fatal.

Oh, Count Bozes is here, too, Mitsuha realized upon noticing his face in the crowd. Sorry.

“Without his act of bravery, I would have died, unable to lend my aid in battle. Therefore, my contributions are his, and he must be rewarded.”

Those nobles who had initially bad-mouthed Mitsuha were now completely in her favor.

I mean, I’m not being greedy—I’m paying my respects to a dying hero... in their eyes, anyway.

“I understand. Though he is noble by birth, he has yet to inherit his title. I will honor his service and appoint him a proper title of his own. Thus, I grant him the title of Baron. Furthermore, it may be passed down in due time to any child who does not inherit his own position as Count. In this manner, the young man’s achievements will live on with his title... forever.”

Following these words, Mitsuha heard faint sobbing in the audience.

Oh man, it’s Count Bozes. This must be a real honor.

“Are there any objections?”

Yeah, right. Nobody would—

“I object!”

Who’s the punk that—Wait, Lord Eiblinger? The one he saved?

The room let out a collective gasp.

Now the center of attention, the man continued, “I could not agree more that the man deserves a title. I merely think that if baron is all he gets, no one else need get a reward.”

Huh? Mitsuha tilted her head.

“Viscount is the least he deserves! Speaking as someone whose life he saved, a lesser honor than that would be a disgrace!”

Ohhh. His reason for protesting was clear.

“I beg your pardon,” the king said. “I meant no injustice. Does anyone object to granting this youth the title of Viscount?”

Nobody will, obviously, Mitsuha thought. If the hero of the hour doesn’t get this, everyone else is getting zilch. Nice work, Eiblinger. She looked around the room and noticed the marquis profusely apologizing to Count Bozes. Do they know each other? Oh, of course they do. They’re both in the upper echelon of nobles.

With that decided, Mitsuha resumed speaking.

“Thank you for your consideration, gentlemen; I feel a weight on my heart has lifted. Now for my second request.”

And actually the most important one.

“It concerns the soldiers who fought at the main gate.”

Her words caused a stir in the audience.

“Since I was unable to sit idly by while the kingdom was in danger, I sought help from my homeland.”

“Homeland?”

“What country is that?”

“How?”

“Is that where the lightning wand came from?!”

The commotion grew even louder.

“Left with no other choice,” Mitsuha continued, “I used the secret, life-draining art of ‘traversal’ to go to my homeland in an instant.

“However, getting my country’s army to act on such matters is a long process involving numerous meetings, authorizations, and documents. Getting it done in time would’ve been difficult, especially since it would have been for the sake of a country my homeland has no diplomatic relations with.

“Because of this, the only ones who came to assist me were my friends. They voluntarily abandoned their duties, took the country’s divine weaponry without permission, and used up a great deal of firepower. I imagine they will face harsh punishments for doing so.”

“Ohh, what a tragedy!”

“Egads! Those kindhearted champions!”

Everything was going according to Mitsuha’s plan.

“We were in such a hurry that we didn’t wait for the stars to align. Due to our lack of preparation, the traversal ended up being imperfect, and some of our men lost their lives in the process.”

“Dear me...”

“How terrible!”

I’ve got ’em now. Mitsuha struggled to suppress a grin. Time for the final push!

“If you were to thank my homeland with a monetary contribution, it would justify my friends’ actions and show that they helped foster positive relations my nation and yours. It could also make up for the losses incurred by our use of the divine weaponry, and it may even ensure their punishments are less severe.

“I must add that families of those who die on unauthorized missions receive no compensation from our government. Perhaps your generosity can support them as well.”

There was not a dry eye in the room by the time she finished.

“Treasurer!” the king shouted. “What do we have in our coffers?! No amount is too high for those who saved the capital, if not the whole kingdom, from utter destruction. Wring out as much as we can!”

“At once, Your Majesty!”

All right, that’s Wolfgang’s payment in the bag! Wait, they’re not about to bring out something like a measly three thousand gold coins, are they? Even if I don’t pocket any of it, I still need at least forty thousand. That’s about a billion yen after conversions! It’s half of the money I need to save for my relaxing retirement—the full amount for one world. On this side, that much is like four billion yen back in Japan.

“Three thousand!”

WHAT?!

“My family shall give them three thousand gold coins!”

Ah, it’s just Count Bozes. Wait, really?!

“I myself will supply five thousand!”

Lord Eiblinger...

“Two thousand five hundred!”

“Sorry, but our household took a real hit during the invasion. A thousand is the best I can do.”

“Three thousand!”

“Two thousand!”

One after another, the nobles came up to offer their own gold. The king was bound to give much more than the marquis, so it was clear she’d get the forty thousand she needed and then some.

Wondering what I would’ve done if this hadn’t worked out? Welp, I’d just sell pearls in a different country and then make myself scarce. If I went around selling them to nobles all over the world before rumors caused the price to plummet, I could rake in some serious cash. Forty thousand seemed like a pretty, uh, reasonable limit for that kind of business.

“Thank you so much, everyone. I’m positive my friends will face a lesser sentence, and children who lost their fathers will be able to get the education they need to take over their posts and responsibilities.”

Mitsuha pretended to wipe away a tear.

“I also understand that many lands on the empire’s route to the capital suffered during this invasion. Orphaned children, farmers whose fields were destroyed, and others will surely need financial support. I will be sure to speak with my little br—I mean, the king, and ask if my homeland can support you in any way.”

“You would go that far?!”

“Such benevolence...”

The owners of these lands were moved to tears. While many expressed their gratitude, however, there were some among them preoccupied with her slip.

Was she about to say “little brother”? they wondered. She was, wasn’t she?!

But it was no mistake; Mitsuha was fully aware of what she had just implied. It probably wasn’t news to anyone that she wasn’t the simple noble girl she claimed to be, however.

It was time for her third request.

“Finally, I want you to make me a citizen of this country.”

“She wants what?”

“I am merely a drifter who came here after abandoning my homeland. But now I want to become part of this city, and this country, and make it my new homeland.”

The nobles were audibly moved. In the end, not a single one of Mitsuha’s requests had been selfish, and she had even displayed commendable patriotism. With everything she had done for the kingdom thus far, there was no room for doubt in their hearts.

“Hmm. I must say, I already do consider you part of my kingdom.” The king thought for a moment, then cracked a smile. Apparently, he had come up with the perfect solution. “Very well. I shall use my authority to put forth a motion to ensure your status as one of us.”

Yay, I’ll have citizenship now! Mitsuha cheered internally. That means I’ll be protected by the authorities and have an easier time doing business. A total win-win!

“Mitsuha von Yamano, I bestow upon you the title of viscountess!”

SAY WHAAAAAT?!

Mitsuha grew numb, hardly able to process the rest of the ceremony. Others received their rewards and had their wishes granted, but it all went in one ear and out the other for her.

Why did this happen?!

◇ ◇ ◇

A few days passed after the award ceremony. Mitsuha was running her store as usual, but the many non-paying customers stopping by made her days more difficult. It wasn’t as though she had anything against them; what with her outrageous prices, it was to be expected that some people would come again and again before resolving to make a purchase. Mitsuha wanted to treasure them just as much.

Upon hearing of Mitsuha’s deeds and newly noble status, Sabine became even more attached to her than before. However, the frequency of customers—especially the ones only there to speak with Mitsuha—made the princess’ blood boil. She now had no chance at all to watch her precious DVDs.

As for Mitsuha herself, she had no real complaints regarding the common folk. Most merely wanted to see the savior of the country and express their gratitude. Nobles and merchants, on the other hand, were much more troublesome to deal with. And although her sales had increased, it wasn’t proportional to the customer growth.

Crap, I should really rethink my inventory.

Craving a change of pace, Mitsuha decided to take a trip. Well, you might argue that the word wasn’t entirely fitting, since getting to her destination took only a moment—just a jump to Earth and back again.

On this particular occasion, she made her way to Colette’s village. It wasn’t that she had forgotten to visit. There was simply a great distance between the village and capital, meaning she had to space out her visits so as not to give herself away.

“Hey, Colette! Long time no see!”

Mitsuha was welcomed like one of their own. It could very well have been because of the souvenirs she’d brought along with her, but she wanted to believe that wasn’t the case.

The villagers had yet to hear about what had transpired at the capital. While local lords employed messengers to notify them of major occurrences, commoners had to rely on traveling merchants and carriage drivers or passengers to get their information. Even then, it was still too early for any travelers to have arrived since the invasion. Count Bozes was still in the capital, as well, and soldiers sent to fight on the front lines were in the midst of their triumphant return home.

Even if they didn’t really fight, they technically won just by being on the winning side. Let them be “triumphant”, I say.

Mitsuha went on to tell Colette and her parents—Erene and Tobias—of her exploits in the capital, leaving out everything about the invasion. She mentioned that she had opened up a shop, helped out with a party, and so on and so forth. She made sure to downplay the details, implying her store was small and she was merely renting the building, or insisting she wasn’t the host of the party by any means. However, she did her best not to tell too many lies. After all, the village could be visited by someone from the capital at any time.

Maybe I’m overly cautious, but it makes up for not being overly tall... Agh, what am I thinking?!

Everyone was immensely happy for her. Even with all the trivializing, Mitsuha’s achievements were considered greatly successful by the villagers’ standards. She had traveled to the city where she wanted to go, opened up a store there in no time at all, and now made enough money to get by on her own. It was only natural for the crowd of farmers to be captivated.

They informed Mitsuha that a soldier had come asking about her, and it had them quite worried.

Of course they’d look into me, she thought. I’m a stranger with a suspicious backstory who hangs out with the princess.

Mitsuha brushed away their worries, and soon had them convinced that the soldier was merely looking to know more about someone renting a place in the capital.

I guess farmers don’t have the sense to question why an actual state soldier would be involved in something like that. Oh, uh, oops. My bad, guys.

She arranged to stay overnight as part of her “weary traveler” routine. After speaking with the villagers, she spent the remainder of her time playing with Colette. The younger girl had even been excused from her farm duties for this special occasion.

Mitsuha left the village the very next day. Everyone wanted her to stay longer, but she told them she had merely stopped by on her way to see what the nearby seaside villages had to offer. Once Colette forced her to promise she would come again in their usual ritual, Mitsuha headed for the sea.

If I go there just once, I can easily come back whenever I want. I wanna see what kinds of products come out of this world’s seas, anyway.

She briefly contemplated meeting up with Beatrice Bozes, but decided against it. The count was still in the capital, and Mitsuha would surely see him at a later date. If she were to meet Beatrice, and the girl then told her father about their meeting, he would notice the contradiction. In order to ward off any strange requests, she had convinced royalty and nobility alike that “traversal” was a life-sapping technique only worth using in the rarest of instances. She didn’t want to ruin it for herself.

During her official audience with the king, Mitsuha had claimed to have proficiency in traversal, but added that delivering the kingdom’s letter of thanks and the money alone would cost her a great deal of life force. The nobles had been immensely sympathetic, including one who had muttered, “I thought she was small for a twelve-year-old. It seems this technique is the cause.”

Wait, I can barely even pass for twelve?! she’d thought bitterly. And don’t look away from me, you little—

It may also be important to note that Mitsuha had explained away Wolfgang’s return journey as part of an automatic effect applied to the traversal when it was first cast.

Eventually, Mitsuha arrived at a small seaside village about the same size as Colette’s.

Isn’t Count Bozes a powerful noble? Or is every village about the same size? The center of the Bozes’ territory was a bona fide town, but even that wasn’t anything to write home about.

Considering the absence of starvation and child trafficking in Colette’s village, it was likely a prosperous place. Mitsuha found the fact that the village could easily support a wandering stranger such as herself impressive on its own.

Count Bozes must be doing a great job... and now that I think about it, callin’ it “Colette’s village” makes it sound like Colette is in charge. Welp, I’m not too good at remembering names, so I might as well keep on using it. I don’t even remember the name of the empire that attacked us. Well, that messenger guy we sniped probably said it, but whatever.

“So-and-so’s dad” could stay “So-and-so’s dad” as far as Mitsuha was concerned. The name was tucked in her memory somewhere, but she wouldn’t feel inconvenienced should it escape her. She didn’t even remember the names of the owner of the restaurant or the pompous merchant. “Owner of the restaurant” and “pompous merchant” were enough for her. If two people happened to fit the bill, she would simply default to something like “Owner A” and “Owner B”.

Even the seaside village would be “fishing village” to her, despite the fact that it hosted industries beyond just fishing. She learned soon after her arrival that the fish caught here were either sold locally, exported to nearby villages, or shipped out to stores in the county’s central town. Mitsuha considered telling them to secure a place for direct sales, but it occurred to her that this would take business away from the stores. Merchants were locals, too, and thus fully taxable.

You pickle and dry them, too, huh? And you even sell some of these to the capital? Hmm. These are your fishing ships? Really? I see, I see. All right, that’s enough for today!

Satisfied, Mitsuha jumped to her home in Japan. She checked her email and her mailbox, then went off to stock up on ingredients and daily necessities.

Boy, having a car sure helps when you’re buying a lot!

She also made rounds throughout her neighborhood just to make an appearance. People would worry if they didn’t hear from her for too long; she was a child living all by herself, after all.

Hey, I’m eighteen, and I can pass for a fifteen-year-old in Japan! Oh, that’s still a child? Damn, you got me.

◇ ◇ ◇

At last, the day for Mitsuha to receive her title arrived. Incidentally, she wasn’t the only one who would be given the honor. While ennobling as a reward was uncommon, a number of nobles had lost their titles for their betrayal or refusal to answer the call to arms, and their positions needed to be filled.

Of course this is a special case. If people got noble titles too often, you’d have no one but high-ranking elites all over the place.

The eccentric seamstress had finished the dress Mitsuha had asked for right on schedule. After hearing her customer had been summoned to a royal ceremony in another country, the lady had spent an entire night making the dress. She had even prostrated herself before Mitsuha, begging to come along, but of course Mitsuha couldn’t take her.

Some other time, maybe. Wondering what happened to my other dress? It was all covered in blood. That a problem? Oh, and my left shoulder is completely healed. There’s a bunch of other things I did in preparation for the ceremony. Stay tuned for more details after these commercials!

This event, which also took place at the palace, had even more guests than the award ceremony. Nobles from all over the kingdom had come to the capital despite it not being the ballroom season. Needless to say, Marquis Eiblinger and Count Bozes were among those present.

Mitsuha was last in line. I guess mine’s gonna be the climax? Oh, it’s because it’d be tough for everyone else if the audience got all soppy. Got it.

The proceedings went smoothly, and finally, it was Mitsuha’s turn.

What’s that? You’re all in love with my dress? Why, thank you! I’ll be sure to pass that along. Would that lady like it if I took some orders for her? Not sure what she’d think about being paid in gold coins, though.

“Mitsuha von Yamano, I hereby grant you the title of viscountess!” the king proclaimed.

Following his words, Sabine handed Mitsuha a dagger. It was small, about the same size as a kitchen knife, but held a special meaning: “With this power, banish monsters and defeat our enemies to protect your land and your people. If you betray the king’s trust, you shall plant it in your own heart.”

Man, that’s hardcore. Mitsuha gulped.

The others had received their own daggers from the chancellor, but Sabine had insisted on giving Mitsuha’s herself. Mitsuha gladly accepted and was about to walk away when the king called out to her.

“Viscountess Yamano. Seeing as he is not present, can you accept the title intended for Count Bozes’ son, Alexis?”

Mitsuha looked over at Count Bozes, who nodded silently. She knew exactly how to respond.

“I refuse.”

Both the king’s and Count Boses’ jaws flopped open, and silence filled the room. Paying them no mind, Mitsuha whirled around and headed for the main door.

“The impudence!”

“Capture her!”

Voices cried out, but no one dared to stop her. Even the king had yet to recover from his bewilderment. As she approached the door, the guards stood paralyzed, unsure of how to react.

Mitsuha then threw the door open, revealing a figure behind it.

No longer a boy, but not yet a man, he ambled toward the throne. His right arm hung from a sling around his neck, and his stomach had been bandaged several times over. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, but had his left arm in a jacket with the other side hanging over his right shoulder. The buttons were undone, but it made him exude virility rather than vulgarity.

His footsteps on the plush carpet made no sound, but it was almost as though you could hear them echo throughout the room. Tears slid down Count Bozes’ cheeks. Marquis Eiblinger nodded as he patted the man’s shoulder. No one said a word as the boy—no, the dignified youth—stood before the king.

It was up to Mitsuha to break the silence. She took a breath and cried out, “Give it to him yourself!”

Roars of joy erupted from the crowd.