Chapter 3 – Story 100: Old Friend
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Having obtained a major victory on the Plains of Caliraya, Romania’s royal army openly began its march towards Holmea’s capital, Holmenia, after taking a break of two days. However, Holmea was unable to take countermeasures whatsoever against this. Now that the main force of the royal army had been annihilated alongside its commander King Warius, you wouldn’t be able to find any military force capable of repelling Romania within Holmea.
Because of that, not only the citizens, but also the knights and lords, whose original duty it would be to oppose the invaders, had no choice but to escape from Romania’s approaching army. And as such, Romania’s army advanced through Holmea’s territory unhindered as if taking a walk through an uninhabited wilderness.
But, on top of all of this, the fact that they had defeated Darius, the one called the biggest barrier, in the great victory of the Plains of Caliraya caused Romania’s army to grow impudent. The soldiers stole not only food but also valuables and money, raped the women, and slaughtered the elderly and children for fun wherever they went.
Even Daraios couldn’t help but frown at this behavior. He admonished Kind Doldea to have the army level down its acts of brutality and barbarity as it was too intolerable no matter how you looked at it. Lending his marshal an ear, King Doldea passed on an official proclamation that useless slaughter and looting was prohibited for the whole army, but the brutality of Romania’s army knew no limits.
Restricted by the royal decree, the lords and commanders would now thoroughly destroy the plundered villages and towns while massacring all the people who lived in them. All following the simple motto of no plaintiff, no judge.
You could even go as far as saying that it was ironic how a decree supposed to better the situation had actually created an even worse tragedy. Moreover, King Doldea’s response to this new development was pretty bad, too. After all, he only chided the offenders a bit by saying, “It was a flawless victory, so it cannot be helped for them to let loose a bit,” when he should have punished them harshly.
In short, King Doldea himself was the one reveling in the afterglow of the big victory the most. And for this reason, many soldiers repeated their cruel acts of brutality within the range they defined as “letting loose a bit.”
As might be expected, even Daraios couldn’t help but lament over this.
“I cannot allow Her Highness the Princess to see any of this.”
Contrary to her outstanding military talent, Piarta was still a young maiden. Even if these acts of brutality were directed at the people of an enemy nation, her innocence would still compel her to hate these barbaric cruelties. As such, it was a slight consolation for Daraios that Piarta wasn’t with Romania’s army at this moment.
And then, at long last, Romania’s army arrived at Holmenia after leaving a trail of violence and oppression in its wake. The royal capital Holmenia used to also be the capital city of the old kingdom which preceded Holmea and Romania. Its wall was tall and as thick as the number of years it had accumulated. Armed soldiers were lined up on top of the wall, making it clear that the city was ready to resist until the bitter end.
In addition, because it was the royal capital, it also held the highest population of citizens in Holmea. Their numbers were estimated to range from at least 30,000 up to 50,000. Furthermore, thanks to the refugees that had likely streamed into the city from the east, ahead of Romania’s invasion, that population number had probably grown even further.
Even if you considered that only one fifth of the entire city population were men who had taken up arms, that alone would still be around 10,000. If such a group were to put up a do-or-die resistance, you couldn’t underestimate their force, regardless of them being ordinary people who weren’t used to combat.
It was clear that even Romania’s army, which was on a roll right now, would find it difficult to invade such a city straight from the front.
But, King Doldea thought, in that case it’s fine to not force matters and instead besiege the city. Even if this might be the capital, their reserves aren’t infinite. As long as they can’t get any reinforcement or aid from somewhere else, the city with its thousands of citizens and refugees will quickly eat through the storages, becoming unable to keep holing themselves up. And if it looks like they lose their mind and launch an attack on us, it’ll spell their end. If you lightly beat reality into a mob, which has never received any proper military training, they should swiftly fall into chaos.
King Doldea ordered Daraios to erect an encampment at a distance from the city, which would allow to deal with a break-out attack, and prepare for a protracted siege.
Moreover, he had no intention to waste the time of waiting pointlessly either. He’d make Vulitas demand the capitulation of the city.
Receiving that order which was a request in name only, Vulitas immediately headed over to the main gate of Holmenia while wagging his tail like a dog who had a bone thrown in front of it. His elder brother King Warius was dead, Warius’s only son Alexius had gone missing, and the only one hiding herself in the city right now was Princess Warina.
Convinced that no one but him could succeed the throne of Holmea at this point, Vulitas believed that he had already become the king and as such he raised his voice towards the city, using an arrogant and pompous tone.
“I am your new king, Vulitas Sadoma Holmeanis! Open the gate at once and welcome me as I deserve it!”
Vulitas’s voice resounded throughout the area while leaving a faint echo behind. However, the only answer he received from Holmenia was silence.
He addressed the city several more times, but all of it was answered with ironclad silence. This caused Vulitas to fly into rage and curse, “How insolent! This is the height of lese majeste!”
Yet, his angry shouting didn’t change anything in the situation.
Swearing to himself that he’d decapitate all those rude people as soon as the city surrendered, Vulitas turned around, trying to go back to Romania’s encampment.
But, at that moment the small side entrance next to the huge tower gate of Holmenia finally opened. And the ones stepping out of it was an old man in a shabby outfit, riding a donkey.
They finally sent someone to welcome me, huh? Vulitas pushed out his chest and raised his nose in pride. He himself believed this to be a haughtiness as befitting of a king. But, thanks to his belly protruding more than his chest, he looked more like a toad that was on the verge of toppling over.
Once the donkey had approached Vulitas closely enough that they could recognize each other’s faces, the old man stopped it. Vulitas raised an eyebrow at the sight in front of him. After all, Vulitas couldn’t identify the old man’s face at all. Yet, it was doubtlessly clear that he was a messenger of Holmenia.
Vulitas pushed out his belly even further and announced with a haughty attitude, “I am King Vulitas. How dare you not answer your new king’s calls at once!”
Vulitas intended to intimidate the other party, but the old man’s reaction was completely outside his expectations.
“Haah? I’ve got no business with the likes of you. Hurry up and call Doldea, errand boy.”
With those words, the old man waved his hand as if shooing away an annoying bug.
Not only Vulitas, but also the accompanying Romanian knights stared at this in utter disbelief. Leaving aside his treatment of Vulitas, that old man had just addressed King Doldea, the invader who was leading a massive army to conquer the capital, without any honorifics or respect. Far from disrespect, this went even beyond recklessness, reaching the level of sheer madness.
After being dumbfounded for a while, the knights of Romania belatedly reached for their weapons, about to butcher this scoundrel at any moment. But, the old man said, as if reining in their rage, “Hurry back to Doldea and tell him that I want to talk with him as old buddy who drank with him in the 『Drunkards’ Burrow』.”
This caused the knights to hesitate. Even if the old man might call himself an old friend of King Doldea, it’d be easy to slay him for his rudeness here, but if he truly was an old friend of their lord, this would lead to serious trouble. The knights looked at each other and reached the conclusion that one of them would go back to King Doldea for the time being.
Just like that, one knight went to King Doldea to report, but he only did so to make absolutely sure that it’d be no problem to slay the old man. Yet, his lord’s reaction to his report was truly drastic.
At first King Doldea had quizzically furrowed his eyebrows, but his eyes quickly flew wide open and he completely froze for around ten slow breaths. Even his attendants had never seen King Doldea suffer this much of a shock.
While his retainers were closely observing him, wondering just what was going on, King Doldea finally said with a trembling voice, “Did that man truly called himself an old buddy who drank with me in the 『Drunkards’ Burrow』?”
King Doldea’s question contained a faint trace of hope that the reply would be positive, and the knight readily realized this hope for the king. Immediately following, the king jumped up from his seat as if controlled by the emotions welling up inside him.
“Prepare my palanquin. I will head out in person.”
It was outrageous and unthinkable for the king, and thus supreme commander, to answer the enemy messenger’s call and come out in person before the capitulation negotiations had even started. The lords and officers warned King Doldea to not do it, but for some reason the king remained firm in his decision. And once he climbed onto his palanquin, he ordered for not one to follow him, and had the palanquin head towards the messenger.
While being gently swayed inside the palanquin, King Doldea thought back on the past. 「Drunkards’ Burrow」 was the name of a bar thirty years ago. It had been located in one of the most dangerous areas of Romania’s capital――the part where the slums and red-light district met. Nowadays this bar had already vanished without a trace since that area of the capital had transformed into a bustling district thanks to the growing prosperity.
The king suspected that only a few of the people still living in that area recalled the existence of that bar. But, for King Doldea it was a place of unforgettable memories.
This dated back to the time when King Doldea was still a young prince. Having an undue interest in this place that was labeled as dangerous due to his youthful curiosity, he had gone there with his friend while staying incognito.
But, those two young men in fine clothes quickly became prey of the outlaws in that area. After making the two youths drink cheap wine spiked with drugs, they robbed them off all possessions and tossed them into some back alley waterway. There they were rescued by a guard whom King Doldea’s father had sent after the two.
Even though both acted meek and rueful while getting scolded together, they both mischievously joked that they’d do better next time as soon as King Doldea’s father left the room. Now the old king remembered the face of his friend from that time.
“It is the person over there, Your Majesty.”
King Doldea was pulled back into reality by the knight, who had come to report, calling out to him. Once he looked in the direction where the knight was pointing, he spotted an old man in a shabby outfit sitting on a donkey. This man was different from the friend in King Doldea’s memories. The youth from back then wore proper attires and bore a look brimming with the conceit and willpower to support his homeland.
But, his eyes twinkled like those of a mischievous boy. Just like they had done in the past.
King Doldea covered his face with a hand. What he felt through his palm was his own dry, rough skin and the deep wrinkles carved into his face.
I guess both of us have grown old.
King Doldea raised his voice while smiling bitterly at the cruelty of time, calling out to his past close friend, “Long time no see, Aurelius Elbaghis.”
“I’d say it’s the first time in more than thirty years, Doldea,” responded Aurelius――the old man going under the name Solon these days.
However, neither continued beyond this. Silence reigned for a while between those two.
It wasn’t as though they didn’t have anything to say. Rather, they had too many things they needed to talk about, resulting in neither knowing where to start.
For starters, King Doldea began with the current situation.
“I hear you seek a discussion, but what business do you have with me?”
Solon curtly answered, “I’d like to request peace.”
King Doldea had expected as much.
Very likely Holmea has asked him to mediate a peace based on his well-known relationship with me.
Making such an assumption, King Doldea nodded lightly as if telling Solon to continue.
“Not only have you taken Warius’s head, but also Darius’s. No matter how you look at it, at this point nobody can doubt Romania’s victory. Be satisfied with this and withdraw your soldiers, Doldea.”
But, King Doldea firmly answered, “I cannot do so.”
Even if this request came from an old friend, it wasn’t one he could heed.
“It is Romania’s dearest wish to subjugate Holmea and revive the great kingdom of old. We have finally reached a state where we’re about to grasp that wish with our own hands. As such, I cannot withdraw my soldiers at this point.”
Naturally, Solon had expected this answer as well.
“Figures. After all, you finally made your way to this point.”
King Doldea nodded deeply.
“Indeed. Finally. I finally reached this point after paying for it with countless lives.”
He had resolved himself to make the necessary sacrifices to fulfill his own ambition. And many of those, who died for him, had been aware of that and willingly followed his dream. King Doldea was so convinced of this that you couldn’t find a shred of doubt or hesitation in his mind.
However, there existed but a single exception.
“The sole thing I regret is what I lost because of my foolishness and stubbornness more than thirty years ago.”
Solon’s eyebrow twitched in response to Doldea’s words. Without minding that, King Doldea looked into the distant sky. But, what he was looking at wasn’t the sky of today. It was a scene of a long-gone past.
“Having just taken the throne, I had been festive in front of the hundreds of retainers and thousands of soldiers who had sworn their vassalage to me. I believed that I’d be able to do anything. I deluded myself into believing that I’m the incarnation of a god――no, that I’m a god myself.
Moreover, when I noticed how wrong I was, I was too narrow-minded to admit my own mistake and stubbornly insisted on being in the right. Because of that, I ended up losing the person whom I considered my best friend.”
Recalling his foolish self of the past, King Doldea released a deep sigh of regret. And then he looked straight into Solon’s eyes.
“It was my mistake. Forgive me, Aurelius.”
A painfully blaring silence swooped down on the area.
“Even if you apologize now, it doesn’t change anything. I could have stopped you at the risk of my life, if I actually wanted to do so. And even though I left while lamenting my inability to do so afterwards, it was only proof of my own incompetence.”
King Doldea felt like a weight had been taken off his chest due to Solon’s remark.
“How about it, Aurelius? Won’t you serve me again?”
Freed off his old burden, King Doldea felt cheerful.
“I will entrust the rule over the former Holmean territory to the Prime Minister of the Left and the reign over the former Romanian territory to the Prime Minister of the Right. On top of that I plan to install you as Great Prime Minister of the Grand Romanian Empire as my right hand. Aurelius, I’d like you to help me as Great Prime Minister of the Grand Romanian Empire.”
King Doldea’s retinue was startled by this. Romania possessed a respectable prime minister. Moreover, this post was currently held by a distinguished authority within Romania who was also the father-in-law of the second prince. This man was currently running the governmental affairs during King Doldea’s absence, and if one went by order, he should become the Great Prime Minister.
As such, this would be an exceptional, sudden promotion of an unknown old man. King Doldea’s retinue didn’t know what happened between the two in the past, but this was beyond unprecedented, and if things went slightly wrong, it would likely lead to a rebellion within Romania.
Of course, King Doldea understood as much himself. But, he had made this statement after preparing himself to push this through, no matter how much opposition he might face.
Solon placed a hand on his mouth and lowered his face due to King Doldea’s invitation. And then, as if enduring something, his shoulders began to tremble ever so slightly.
Seeing him like that, King Doldea believed that Solon might be overcome with joy and delight.
However.
What he heard next from Solon weren’t crying and tears of pure joy, but a laughter he couldn’t hold back any longer. That laughter gradually grew louder, accompanied by Solon lifting his face. And finally he started to roar in laughter while bending his back backwards.
King Doldea widened his eyes, wondering just what was going on. But he didn’t have to wait too long.
His face twisted in scorn, Solon declared, “Serving you once more? That’s a bad joke, Doldea.”
“What was that?” King Doldea whispered in surprise.
Solon continued further, “Why must I serve the likes of you when I’m already serving someone who surpasses you by leaps and bounds?”
And then Solon raised his right hand. In the next instant, furious drumming could be heard from Holmenia, followed by the flags of Holmea on the wall falling down, just to be replaced by new flags. In the middle of those new flags, right on top of the huge tower gate, towered a huge, jet-black banner that seemingly dominated all the other flags.
That flag bore a crest combining an 8 and a ∞ in its center. It was an eerie crest that gave one the impression of two snakes intertwining their bodies, biting each other’s tails, and squirming. This was nothing other than the seal of Aura, the Goddess of Death and Destruction. And only one person on the whole continent of Seldeas bore that cursed seal.
“You’re too late, Doldea. Holmenia has already surrendered to my Lord, the Divine Son of Destruction Soma Kisaki!”
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