Epilogue: The Reincarnated Prince and Felvolk’s Greatest Treasure

One week had passed since the conclusion of the harvest festival. A number of figures of various heights were gathered on a hill a stone’s throw away from the road that led west from the capital. Two of them were princes of the kingdom, and next to them stood their men of service. Finally, there were two former illegal immigrants.

“Thank goodness the weather is so nice. It’s the perfect day to set off,” the Seventh Prince of Gracis, Herscherik, said with a smile to Kurenai beside him.

Herscherik shifted his gaze to see his older brother performing a final inspection of the carriage along with his own butler of service and Kuro. Shiro was reading by himself in the shadow of a tree, and Oran, Tatsu, and Ao talked among themselves. The white bandage around Oran’s arm looked painful, but he himself claimed that it didn’t impact his day-to-day work.

Ao’s wound had been shallow, and beastmen apparently healed faster than humans, so his injury was almost completely gone. He still had some slight scarring, but that too would likely disappear with time.

After Herscherik brought Kurenai back to the castle, she visited Oran. He’d already woken up, and she apologized to him with a vigorous bow that made her newly-cut hair sway back and forth. Oran, seemingly understanding of the situation, accepted her apology, and there was no bad blood between them after that. Herscherik, too, had apologized profusely for cutting Kurenai’s hair— that was worth as much to a woman as her life, but Kurenai had just smiled and explained that she felt lighter now. Her long hair had apparently been something like a memento for her, or perhaps a prayer—a reminder of her ambition to clear her father’s name and restore the Danvir house, and a prayer for her comrades’ freedom.

“Was this really the right thing to do, Your Highness?” Kurenai asked.

“Huh? What do you mean?” Herscherik replied with a puzzled look.

“Don’t you regret making an enemy out of Felvolk?”

Herscherik had saved the two of them—but at the same time, there was a good chance that he had angered the military nation of Felvolk to the east. While Thomas was unlikely to report his failure exactly as it happened, he probably wouldn’t exactly stay quiet either. All of this could hamper Gracis’s attempts at establishing amicable relations with their neighbors.

Herscherik scratched his cheek in response to Kurenai’s question.

“Well, if I had to say whether this is good or bad... I guess it’s bad. The kingdom still hasn’t had time to stabilize.”

“Then—”

“But Felvolk won’t be able to attack us anytime soon. They don’t have any pretext,” Herscherik said as he pointed at Kurenai. “The public story is that Felvolk’s Greatest Treasure was executed in accordance with Gracis law. There is nothing they can fault us for here. Thus if they want to declare war on us, they need to come up with a persuasive reason.”

Unlike Gracis, where the king had the final say in national policy, Felvolk valued the opinion of the public in addition to the leadership of the army and the ten houses. A war with the continent’s largest nation would result in the loss of many lives, and they would need a reason good enough to convince the populace.

“Now, what kind of reason might Felvolk come up with to attack a country whose military might equals or exceeds their own?” Herscherik mused.

“Oh, I see...” Kurenai nodded.

If they were to attack Gracis, they needed a convincing reason to dispatch their troops. If they wanted to make Felvolk’s Greatest Treasure that reason, they would have to explain what she was doing in Gracis to begin with. But if they told the truth—that they had failed in their attempt to eliminate her after she called for the freeing of slaves, then put a bounty on her head when she fled the country—it might trigger a slave uprising. If they instead claimed that she had betrayed Felvolk, many people would find that hard to believe in light of her past accomplishments. This would undermine the people’s trust in their country, which in time would cause discord that other countries could take advantage of. It was unlikely that Felvolk were so desperate to attack Gracis that they would accept that risk.

Tessily had also explained that there were multiple factions within Felvolk, and that there were many who were hoping to take their place as one of the ruling houses. Any failure could cause one of the current ten houses to fall to ruin just like Kurenai’s family had.

“So then even if they were to attack, we’d probably have some time to prepare. We’ll make arrangements to ensure that nothing happens before then,” Herscherik reassured Kurenai with a smile.

Kurenai was astonished at the way this little prince was quickly devising countermeasures involving entire countries. Another question then surfaced in her mind.

“When did you realize what was really happening, Your Highness?” Kurenai asked.

Herscherik spoke as though he had seen this coming from the beginning. But Ao, and especially Kurenai, had not revealed their identities until the very last minute.

“Since the day we met, probably. Though I only became convinced after hearing the results of Kuro’s investigation,” Herscherik said after a moment’s thought. “I’ve always had a habit of planning for the worst. Besides, this isn’t nearly the worst-case scenario anyway.”

“What do you think that ‘worst-case scenario’ would have been?”

“You want to know?”

Herscherik gave Kurenai an adorably curious look, and she nodded in response.

“If you’d revealed your identity and manipulated Gracis into attacking Felvolk,” Herscherik explained. “You told me that your chances of success were about thirty percent, but if you’d used the kingdom as a pawn, wouldn’t that have increased your chances significantly?”

Gracis was the largest country on the continent, and as they had to protect this vast territory from their enemies, their military strength was also extraordinary. Had Kurenai revealed who she was and convinced Gracis to launch an attack on Felvolk, there would have been no telling what might have happened. She could have disrupted Felvolk from the inside, and then invited Gracis to invade. The chances of success for such a plan would have far exceeded thirty percent.

However, war also inevitably meant significant casualties on both sides. Herscherik detested war—as idealistic as the causes might often be, he didn’t want to see people die, regardless of whose side they were on. Had Kurenai attempted to go through with a plan like that, Herscherik would have been unable to help the pair.

Listening to his father explain the situation for beastmen in Gracis, Herscherik had steeled himself for two things. One was to use every possible means at his disposal to help Kurenai and Ao. The other was, if worse came to worst, to use every means at his disposal to stop them instead—even if it meant taking Kurenai’s life.

Herscherik was relieved from the bottom of his heart that the latter had never come to pass.

“I’m no match for you, am I?” Kurenai said. That was proof that she had indeed considered the plan in question.

“Kurenai—I mean, Alterisse...” Herscherik said, unsure what to call her.

“Won’t you call me Kurenai, Your Highness?” she responded.

The name Herscherik had given her was no longer a mere alias. The same was true for Ao. For some reason, whenever the prince called her by that name, she felt a strange sense of comfort and relief.

“Got it. Kurenai it is!” Herscherik said with a nod. “Kurenai, you are no longer Felvolk’s Greatest Treasure, Alterisse Danvir. Alterisse Danvir was executed by a prince of Gracis.”

Kurenai held her breath in suspense.

“You died, and were reborn as Alterisse di Rot.” The tactician who suffered from her mistakes, hated her homeland, and cursed herself no longer existed. “I won’t tell you to forget. But just like the people who fought to protect you, I want to see you happy. I wish for your happiness from the bottom of my heart.”

Her pain would never fully go away, no matter how much Herscherik tried to convince her to leave it behind. Herscherik knew how far-fetched his reasoning was, but he still had to express his feelings. Perhaps he saw a bit of himself in Kurenai’s suffering.

Herscherik wanted to free Kurenai from her curse.

“I’ll bear all your suffering in your stead. I want you to live freely.”

“Your Highness...”

Herscherik gave a smile, one far too mature for a child merely seven years old. Seeing that smile, Kurenai’s heart began to race.

Thinking back, Kurenai realized that she had always had a hard time keeping up her tactician’s mask in front of Herscherik. She had spent ten years as a tactician in Felvolk, during which she had always maintained a smile. No matter how distressing the situation, no matter how much contempt and scorn others hurled at her, her smile would never fade for a moment—with the exception of that night when she succumbed to despair surrounded by a sea of flames.

But this prince would cut right through her mask as though it was nothing. And even after saving the two of them, he hadn’t expected anything in return. Despite declaring them to be his retainers, he had not said anything further about it nor compelled them to do anything after returning to the castle. Even now, he only smiled as though nothing had happened as he saw them off. A feeling of sadness filled Kurenai’s heart, and she fell silent, unable to express her feelings.

“Oh, it’s almost time for you to depart,” Herscherik said as he shifted his gaze from Kurenai to Ao, who was approaching them wearing a coat to hide his wings. “Ao, are you feeling all right?”

“Yes, I’m fine,” Ao said, placing a hand on the center of his chest.

The Brand of Servitude that had once enslaved him no longer existed. Shiro had removed it.

“I still can’t believe it was actually possible to remove it,” he continued.

Ao’s surprise was only natural. Brands of Servitude were not the same everywhere in the world—each country and organization used its own magical formulas. Removing any one Brand therefore required a unique formula. A third party would need a vast amount of knowledge and time to accomplish it.

However, as soon as Herscherik had learned of Ao’s Brand of Servitude and asked his Spellcaster of service, Weiss had started researching its removal in between his preparations for the harvest festival. He had claimed to simply be interested in beastman physique and Brands of Servitude generally as an excuse to investigate Ao’s mark—though from an outsider perspective, Shiro’s fondling of Ao certainly looked suspicious.

“Yeah, my Spellcaster’s a bit too OP...”

Between the opening performance during the harvest festival, the removal of the Brand of Servitude, and even managing to construct a flying spell, Herscherik was at a loss for words. He vacantly stared off into the distance, where that very same totally overpowered and far too pretty Spellcaster was reading next to a tree.

“O...P...?” Ao asked, bewildered at the unfamiliar word, but Herscherik simply gave him a vague smile before going to fetch Shiro.

Ao watched the tiny figure walk off before walking up to Kurenai.

“Alte... Are you sure about this?”

“Gale?”

“Are you sure you want to leave the prince like this?”

Ao seemed to have seen right through her, and Kurenai looked conflicted.

“You don’t have to hide your true feelings anymore,” Ao continued as he put one hand on Kurenai’s head. “I’ve made up my mind as well.”

I wish I could have served that prince like you. When she’d thought that she was leaving for good, those were the words that slipped from her mouth. All of her feelings from that moment still existed, buried in her heart.

Kurenai closed her eyes. Alterisse Danvir, the tactician who had been obsessed with her revenge on Felvolk, no longer existed. Though she still carried those feelings of hatred, with Herscherik’s help they no longer dominated her soul. So what did she need—or want—to do now?

Kurenai imagined her future self. If she left for Lustia, she would be able to live a quiet, happy life with Ao. She would give up her identity as a tactician and instead find happiness as an ordinary woman.

No, that’s not right. Kurenai rejected the idea. Such a future would indeed have been a happy one—but it was not the future she sought.

She opened her eyes again. There was not a hint of hesitation in them.

She started walking, and Ao followed after. They walked in the direction of Herscherik, who was dragging Shiro toward the carriage.

“You two, it’s almost time to...” Herscherik turned around, but stopped mid-sentence. Before him, Kurenai and Ao were kneeling while bowing deeply. The gesture signified the loyalty of a subject toward their master. “Kurenai? Ao?”

“Your Highness—no, My Liege,” Kurenai started speaking with her head still turned down. “My Liege, allow me to confess. When I first met you, I underestimated you and sought to exploit this country for my own purposes.”

If it meant she could destroy Felvolk, she would have used any means she could have gotten her hands on.

“But,” she continued, “after spending time with you, and seeing how you would stop at nothing to protect this country and its people, even sacrificing yourself without a second thought, I abandoned any such thoughts.”

His childish smiles; his mature expressions; the pride and dignity he possessed as a royal. She had been unable to take her eyes off him. Deep down, she had started longing to serve someone like him.

“I never trusted anyone in this world besides Alte and my comrades,” Ao followed.

He had become used to enduring oppression. The only people he could trust were the comrades in his unit and Alterisse.

“But you never cared about things like appearance or race, and protected both me and my desires,” Ao continued.

Never asking for anything in return, Herscherik had extended a helping hand for no other reason than because he wanted to help the two of them. Ao couldn’t express how happy that had made him.

“I have no idea how I can repay you,” he finished.

Herscherik looked at the two of them, still bowing, with bewilderment.

“I only did what I wanted,” Herscherik explained. “You don’t need to feel so indebted to me.”

As far as Herscherik was concerned, he had just dragged everyone along with his own whims. If anything, Herscherik felt like he should be apologizing to them instead.

“I only made you two my retainers as a pretense, or rather, a means to an end. I never intended to tie you down.”

Though he hadn’t had any other choice at the time, making them his subjects had meant forcibly tying them to the kingdom. It may have been a last resort, but he still felt sorry about having restricted their freedom, if only on paper.

Kurenai lifted her gaze and looked Herscherik straight in the eye.

“In that case, will you grant us our wish?”

She laid her right hand on her chest.

“My intellect exists for your ideals, my will for your glory, and my life for your righteous rule.”

This was the oath she had sworn at the age of fourteen, when she had first joined the Felvolk army as a tactician. Back then, she had given it to her country, not an individual, and it had said “mighty rule,” not “righteous rule”—and she had put absolutely no emotion into it.

“My name is Alterisse di Rot,” Kurenai said, stating the name that Herscherik had given her as she once again bowed down. “I beg of you, My Liege—let me serve at your side.”

Ao followed Kurenai’s example.

“I, true name Gale Fal Kilvy Blau, devote everything to my master, Herscherik.”

In addition to given names, beastmen also had true names, which they would only reveal to their lifelong partners and those they swore fealty to. Alongside his true name, Ao had additionally included the new name “Blau,” meaning “blue,” that Herscherik had given him. Ao was effectively swearing his fealty to Herscherik for life.

“My body is a sword that cuts through your enemies, a shield that protects you from harm, and a staff that guides your way.” Kurenai recited the pledge of loyalty.

“My Liege, please allow us to join you,” Ao said, seeking Herscherik’s permission.

The pledge of loyalty was famous enough in Gracis to be made into picture books. Originally, it was the pledge that the servants of the hero Ferris had sworn long ago. Over time many variants had sprung up in other countries. The oath Kurenai had originally sworn to Felvolk was also descended from this pledge.

During her stay in the castle, Kurenai had come across a picture book featuring the pledge of loyalty and asked Oran about it—whether he himself had pledged his loyalty to Herscherik using these same words. Oran had given her an embarrassed nod in response, which had made her jealous.

“Please allow us to call you Our Liege,” Kurenai pleaded.

Herscherik observed the two as they kneeled; everyone else simply watched over the scene that was unfolding. A breeze stroked Herscherik’s cheek and shook his light golden hair.

The silence that followed went on for no longer than a minute, but it felt like an eternity. Herscherik took a deep breath and then exhaled.

“Okay, fine! I give up!” he said—as his face brimmed with joy. He then knelt down himself next to the pair. “Raise your heads, both of you.”

The two of them looked up at Herscherik, who greeted them with a warm smile reminiscent of spring sunshine.

“Alterisse di Rot, Gale Fal Kilvy Blau, you have my permission. Come with me.”

Herscherik extended one hand to each of them, which they took.

“Your wish is our command,” the two said in unison.

Holding their hands, Herscherik brought them both to their feet. Seeing his small but happy brother, Tessily let out a silent sigh.

“See, I knew this would happen!” Tessily exclaimed.

Tessily, the rest of the family, and Herscherik’s men of service had all sensed how sad Herscherik had been about parting with them—but Herscherik had refrained from saying anything, as he didn’t want to tie the two down.

“Tessily?”

“And that, my dear brother, is why I brought this!” Tessily said with a smirk as he handed a crumpled document to Herscherik, who was pouting in an attempt to hide his embarrassment.

“Thank you, Tessily.”

Herscherik took the paper from Tessily, turned to the couple, and held it out toward them.

“Read this, you two.”

“This is...” Kurenai said, trailing off in surprise as she read the words written upon the paper.

The document was a decree written by Solye, the king of Gracis himself, appointing the two of them as the Seventh Prince’s aides and declaring them emissaries responsible for forging relations with the Lustian Confederation.

“This country is still not ready to accept Ao and his fellow beastmen,” Herscherik explained.

Ao may have been one of Herscherik’s servants now, but he was still a beastman, and would not be able to live openly in Gracis for the time being. Thus, until the country was ready to fully embrace him, Ao needed to stay outside the kingdom borders—and the safest country on the continent for beastmen was the Lustian Confederation.

“I want you to visit the Confederation as official emissaries from the kingdom. Tessily will explain the details and what will happen next during the ride.”

“Will... Will Gracis really change?” Kurenai asked, grasping the significance of what Herscherik was saying.

Herscherik nodded. The kingdom, which until now had prohibited the entry of non-humans, was about to change all of that, and establishing relations with Lustia was a vital first step on that path. However, if one of Gracis’ usual emissaries attempted to visit, the Confederation might have refused them entry as a precaution. That’s why Herscherik wanted Ao and Kurenai to go instead, and lay the foundation for future relations between the two countries. As this would also ensure the pair’s safety, it was two birds with one stone.

“You’re quick on the uptake, Kurenai. But it’ll probably be harder than you think, you know.”

Regardless of the actual circumstances, officially the two countries had broken off connections. It was hard to imagine that reestablishing diplomatic relations would be that easy.

Additionally, just as beastman were discriminated against in other countries, Herscherik couldn’t help but worry about how the human minority was treated in a country of beastmen.

Kurenai gave the visibly anxious prince a warm smile.

“It should certainly be easier than destroying a whole country,” she said, her smile brimming with confidence. Her face was now that of the tactician once called Felvolk’s Greatest Treasure.

Seeing Kurenai’s encouraging expression, Herscherik responded with a conflicted smile.

“Well, you sure seem confident...” the prince said. “Ao, I’m sure it’ll be hard for you too, but I’m counting on you.”

“I’ll be fine,” Ao answered stoically.

Herscherik was overjoyed with his two reliable new friends.

But then, the time came for them to part.

“We’ll depart now, My Liege,” Kurenai said, giving Herscherik a deep bow. Ao nodded along with her.

“Just call me Hersch,” Herscherik responded, suddenly realizing something. “Oh, I almost forgot—there’s another important job I need you to do.”

“A job?” Kurenai asked quizzically, and Ao gave Herscherik a confused look. The men of service and even Tessily looked at him with similar expressions, but Herscherik answered them all with a radiant smile.

“I want you to have a happy life together! I can’t wait to see your children!”

The moment Herscherik uttered these words, an awkward silence fell over the gathering, as though everyone had frozen solid. Herscherik threw the others a puzzled gaze.

“Huh? Why are you all so quiet? I mean, they’re lovers, aren’t they? They are getting married, right? What’s wrong, everyone?” he said, perplexed.

The fruit shop couple’s daughter Risch was very cute, and Herscherik was sure Kurenai and Ao’s child would be just as adorable.

Looking around, Herscherik noticed the genius tactician, who would otherwise be smiling at all times, staring down at the ground with a face as red as her hair. Ao was hiding his face with one hand, but he too was red all the way to his ears.

Tessily approached his confused brother and silently smacked him across the top of his head.

“Ow!” Herscherik exclaimed, holding his head with his eyes starting to water. Looking up, he saw his older brother wearing a cold smile.

“Hersch, you’re a bit of a busybody sometimes, you know.”

Herscherik looked at his brother, still confused.

Later, Herscherik learned that while Ao and Kurenai were in love, their relationship was not exactly physical yet. The moment he realized that he had effectively sexually harassed an inexperienced couple, he went down on all fours to apologize in the direction that they’d set off. In time with Herscherik, the windcatcher of fortune—decorated with feathers in both their colors—rattled by the window, its crystals glittering in the sunlight.

There once was a female tactician known as Felvolk’s Greatest Treasure. She joined the Felvolk army at the tender age of fourteen, where she devised many a plan to lead her country to victory on one battlefield after another. However, following her defeat in battle during an uprising, she defected to the kingdom of Gracis, where she was ultimately executed. She died at the age of twenty-four.

At the same time, a tactician with deep crimson hair appeared before the Hero of Light, Herscherik Gracis. Her name was Alterisse di Rot. Coincidentally sharing a name with Felvolk’s Greatest Treasure, she dominated the battlefield as though guided by the gods, bringing her master Herscherik victory time and time again.

Always maintaining a smile on the battlefield, no matter how hopeless the situation, people referred to her as the “Smiling Crimson Tactician.” “Where the Hero of Light goes, so does the Smiling Crimson Tactician,” people would say. As long as his tactician was by his side, the Hero of Light’s victory was assured.

The Crimson Tactician also had a single child together with a birdman who served Herscherik, known as the Blue Tempest. The child had dark purple hair and dark eyes and grew up skilled in wind magic; just like the Crimson Tactician, this child would go on to defend the kingdom. From then on, all descendants of the Smiling Crimson Tactician would devote themselves to ensuring the peace and stability of Gracis.

With time, the Rot house became the most prestigious house of tacticians in Gracis, while the genius tactician once known as Felvolk’s Greatest Treasure was forgotten by history.

The Reincarnated Prince and the Hero of Light — Fin.