c16 2

He might try to bring them under his control.”
“The Volunteer Soldier Corps won’t go along with that quietly,” Eliza said with certainty.
Haruhiro sighed.
“It sounds like coordination isn’t going to be easy...” Barbara tilted her head to the side.
“What will we do, then?”
This was a question from his teacher. As her student, he needed to rack his brains for an answer.
“...Maybe we don’t coordinate, but still launch a simultaneous attack? If the Volunteer Soldier Corps knows when the Expeditionary Force will attack, there’s still the issue of if they can prepare in time, but it shouldn’t be impossible... I guess.”
Barbara-sensei patted Haruhiro on the head, as if to praise him for his keen insight.
“Depending on the situation, we may change course, but that’s our goal for now. With that settled, how do we make it a reality? If this Jin Mogis guy is easy to handle, or unexpectedly trustworthy, that’d make this quick. I guess I really should meet him myself.” Haruhiro had regrets.
How could he not?
There were so many things to regret about what happened.
What if he had never let Barbara-sensei meet with the general? If Haruhiro had been able to handle the man in her place, how would things have turned out? Or maybe if Barbara had been able to focus entirely on gathering information inside Alterna. That sort of arrangement should have been possible. But because Haruhiro was so unreliable, Barbara had been forced to do a bit of everything.
He didn’t blame himself completely for what happened. That would be massively overestimating his own importance. But still, if things had been a little different, he might not have lost Barbara-sensei.
People died so easily.
It might be his turn next. Or one of his comrades’.
When he closed his eyes, he saw Barbara-sensei’s smile.
“Listen, Old Cat.”
Even now that she was gone, she taught Haruhiro things like this.
“Right now, in this moment, you’ve got to live so that you have no regrets. That’s all there is to it.” She was dead.
But it wasn’t as if she had never existed.



3. From the Winter Constellation
In Alterna, the Expeditionary Force had set up impromptu burning sites around the town where they were incinerating the goblins’ corpses. The town had a crematorium, but it didn’t have the facilities to burn so many bodies all at once. Besides, crematoriums were for people. Maybe it was just bad blood talking, but why should goblins be sent off in the same place? Regardless, goblins apparently turned into zombies because of the No-Life King’s curse, too. There was a need to dispose of the bodies quickly.
Haruhiro and Neal entered Alterna through the north gate, and hurried to Tenboro Tower. The largest burning site was on the grounds out front, and it was extra smokey there. Not just that, it smelled terrible. It made his eyes, nose, and even his throat hurt. The soldiers working the burning site were either crying and vomiting, or shirking their duties and getting cussed out by their superiors.
The barricade that the goblins had erected in front of Tenboro Tower still hadn’t been fully removed. It had simply been moved to either side so it no longer obstructed traffic. Cleaning this kind of thing up was a real hassle.
General Jin Mogis was in the great hall. This room had once been used by the Margrave as an audience chamber, and there was a stage along the back wall with an impressive chair adorning it. The red-headed general had taken a liking to sitting in that seat.
What a pompous ass. Does he think he’s the king of the frontier?
But before any of those rebellious thoughts could take hold of Haruhiro today, he found himself surprised.
The general tended to have a number of his black-cloaked soldiers waiting on him at all times. They were loyal men who had served him since he led the Black Hounds, and they were the rare elites in the Expeditionary Force who could fight decently.
There were four black cloaks in addition to the general in the great hall. That was unsurprising, of course. But there was another person standing in front of the stage.
Who was it? Clearly not a member of the Expeditionary Force. They wore a white cloak. Not unadorned. It bore a crest of stars, embroidered perhaps. Seven of them in the shape of an X.
Whoever it was turned to look at Haruhiro.
“Hey,” the man said offhandedly, then, once he really saw Haruhiro, his eyes went wide.
That reaction, it meant the guy knew him. This man with an amiable, dignified face was familiar with Haruhiro.
They must have been acquaintances. So, Haruhiro knew him, too. No, he had known him. He’d forgotten, and didn’t remember.
“Uh... Hey.” Haruhiro bowed his head.
Neal gave Haruhiro a dubious look.
Who was this guy? Haruhiro had forced himself to memorize the names of people Merry had told him that he knew. Their names. A simple profile. Their relation to him, and to the rest of the party. He felt like he’d committed all those to memory the best that he could.
But he didn’t know faces. Words could only describe a person’s appearance so well.
“General,” Neal said, keeping an eye on the man as he approached, then dropped to one knee. He bowed his head. “We have returned.” The general gave a grave nod.
It felt awkward just standing around. Haruhiro was a little behind and off to the side from Neal. He just bowed his head slightly.
The man was still regarding Haruhiro. With a smile. He was grinning. Why? He gave off an awfully friendly impression. He was obviously a good guy.
“Well?” the general asked.
Oh, great. No explanation. Nothing about who this man was. He could have introduced him at least. But Jin Mogis was not the sort of man who followed that kind of common sense. Haruhiro was constantly reminded of that.
“Sir.” Neal made no attempt to raise his face, and spoke with a slightly muffled voice. “Deadhead Watching Keep was an empty shell, like we thought.”
“Then where did the orcs go?”
“I’m sorry. That’s... unclear.”
The general drummed his fingers against the armrest of his chair.
Each time his nails struck it, a loud noise echoed through the hall. The general’s got hard nails, Haruhiro thought, even though it really didn’t matter.
“It seems that the Volunteer Soldier Corps has information,” the general said, looking at the unidentified man.
The Volunteer Soldier Corps.
Haruhiro was sure the general had just mentioned the Volunteer Soldier Corps.
Neal looked at the man, still kneeling.
“...The Volunteer Soldier Corps, you say?”
“I am Shinohara of Orion.”
The man introduced himself.
Shinohara.
Haruhiro unconsciously touched his neck.
I know him.
Shinohara... -san, huh?
It wasn’t like his memories had come back, but he knew this much:
According to Merry, Orion was a fairly large clan, with a membership of around 30 people. Their leader was a man named Shinohara, and he knew Haruhiro well. They were more than just passing acquaintances. What was the best way to describe their relationship? It was difficult to boil it down to one word.
Shinohara tended to look out for other people, and had taken an interest in Haruhiro and his group since back when they were still trainees. That was in part because Merry had actually been a member of Orion at one point. There was a guy called Hayashi who had been her comrade once, long ago, who was still in Orion now. Maybe that was what had gotten Shinohara to pay attention to them.
It was kind of an awkward connection.
They were a little close.
But not, like, super close.
Just how chummy had they been? If they’d met on the street, they’d probably have said hello. Or would they have stopped to chat?
Were the volunteer soldiers making their move? They’d sent Shinohara as an envoy to the Expeditionary Force. Was that what was going on here? Honestly, Haruhiro didn’t know. He’d left coordinating things with the Volunteer Soldier Corps to Barbara and
Eliza.
This was going to sound like an excuse, but it had never even crossed Haruhiro’s mind.
That Barbara might die.
“You may already be aware, but,” Shinohara began, then shrugged slightly, “the other day, we of the Volunteer Soldier Corps took Riverside Iron Fortress back from the kobolds.” Neal raised his face and looked at the general.
The general was impassive. Did he not feel anything? Was he not thinking about anything? That couldn’t be right. The general didn’t want other people knowing his thoughts. Wasn’t that why he masked his emotions?
The general suddenly looked Haruhiro’s way, causing him to break into a cold sweat. Uh-oh. Haruhiro hurriedly covered his mouth with his hand, and stared at Shinohara. Was that good enough? Did he look suitably surprised? He hoped so. Because he was in trouble if he didn’t.
Haruhiro knew the Volunteer Soldier Corps was intact. He also knew they had planned to attack Riverside Iron Fortress at the same time as the Expeditionary Force was taking back Alterna.
But the general and Neal didn’t know that he knew that. He’d deliberately not told them.
This was supposed to come as a total surprise to the Expeditionary Force. If Haruhiro didn’t look shocked, he’d seem suspicious.
“However,” Shinohara continued, “I believe there were around 5,000 kobolds. We were unfortunately not able to completely eradicate them.”
“5,000...” Neal whispered.
“Yes,” Shinohara confirmed with a smile and a nod. “We’ve counted a total of around 2,000 kobold bodies. The remaining 3,000 didn’t flee to their old den in the Cyrene Mines, but to an old castle on Mount Grief.”
In broad terms, Riverside Iron Fortress was next to the Jet River, and the Lonesome Field Outpost was located another ten kilometers east-northeast of there. The Wonder Hole was a kilometer or two northwest of the Lonesome Field Outpost, and seven or eight kilometers north of there was Mount Grief.
Haruhiro didn’t know anything more about that place than its name. Shinohara had just mentioned an old castle. So there was a castle there a long time ago?
“We aren’t fully confident of this yet, but our supposition is that the orcs of Deadhead Watching Keep relocated to Mount Grief, too. We have a number of thieves infiltrating the area now, so we’ll find out soon enough.”
“If I take you at your word,” the general suddenly interrupted, “the Volunteer Soldier Corps, which is to say you people, are highly competent. You took a fortress held by 5,000 soldiers, even if they were mere savages, in the space of two days. Then, rather than celebrate your victory, you immediately pursued your routed enemy, determined exactly where they had gone, and are considering your next move against them.”
Shinohara turned to the general again. Haruhiro wondered what he would say, but of course he just smiled, and rather than acting humble...
“Thank you,” he replied.
This might have been obvious, but he wasn’t just the affable guy he seemed to be. Shinohara could be brassy, too. He had to be pretty confident in his skills. He was acting bold in front of that inscrutable and unsettling general.
“If I trust what you’ve said...” The general twisted his neck slightly. “You people attacked Riverside Iron Fortress at almost the exact same time that my forces were assaulting Alterna.”
“That is what it would mean, yes,” Shinohara replied with an almost worrying lack of concern.
“That’s simply too convenient,” the general said, pausing dramatically, “for it to have been a coincidence. If you weren’t monitoring my army, you must have been very lucky.”
“It’s not just us, General.” Shinohara brought a hand to his chest, and bowed his head. “You’re lucky, too.”
The red-haired general laughed without raising his voice. It was hard to imagine any human laughing like that. Though, maybe the general wasn’t human at all. Either way, his smile was unsettling.
“I am here by order of the king. Now that the Margrave has passed away, my will is the will of His Majesty, King Idelta of Arabakia.”
“The Margrave has... I see.” Shinohara furrowed his brow. “He was a friendly man, even inviting a mere volunteer soldier like myself to Tenboro Tower to talk. That’s unfortunate. I’m sad to hear he’s passed. When did that happen?”
“When we retook Alterna, he was already gone,” the general responded instantly.
“I understand.” Shinohara crossed his arms and frowned. “You see, there was actually a volunteer soldier who held out in Alterna for a long time. When he narrowly escaped with his life, he told us that the Margrave had been taken prisoner by the goblins, and was being horrifically mistreated as they paraded him around town. I wanted to find some way to save him. It’s a shame.”
“Garlan Vedoy. Of the famous House of Vedoy.”
The general leaned his head against the back of his chair, with a faroff look in his eyes. It seemed almost as if he was reliving and reveling in the moment when he killed the Margrave, but that may have just been Haruhiro overthinking things.
“I deeply regret being unable to save him, but he is dead now.”
“Where is his body?”
When Shinohara asked that, the general didn’t hesitate for a moment.
“He’s been cremated,” he answered.
“The Margrave...” Shinohara paused, seeming to have a little difficulty asking this, “was he moving?”
“Under the No-Life King’s curse?”
“Yes.”
“I put him down myself. He was in too pitiful a state to do otherwise.”
That the general was able to state that so plainly showed just how abnormal he was.
“I understand.” The pain on Shinohara’s face, it was... well, it was incredible.
There were only a select few who knew the truth behind how the
Margrave died. Only the general, Haruhiro and his party, as well as Regimental Warrior Commander Anthony Justeen. Shinohara probably only knew that the Margrave had been a prisoner in Tenboro Tower.
But had he figured out what really happened during that exchange just now?
When Alterna was retaken, the Margrave had been alive. But General Jin Mogis had murdered him. For the general, someone who was the official ruler of Alterna, and was even of higher birth, was nothing but a hindrance to him. Even now that he had some sense of what had happened, Shinohara remained calm.
“I hear that some called him the king of the frontier,” the general said, his eyes on Shinohara. “I know that was only a metaphor, of course, but I am the one who sits on his throne now.”
So bow before me, was what the general was suggesting. Why did he only hint at what he wanted, not state it outright?
The Expeditionary Force had lost around a hundred men in the battle for Alterna. That included many of the black cloaks on the team led by Dylan Stone that raided Tenboro Tower. They were the general’s trusted followers, his own hand-raised troops. The Expeditionary Force still had over nine hundred men left in it, but it largely consisted of ruffians and deserters who had been scraped together.
From what Barbara and Eliza had told him, the Volunteer Soldier Corps had less than a hundred and fifty members in total. Even with those small numbers, they took Riverside Iron Fortress, which had been held by over 5,000 kobolds. The volunteer soldiers were not average soldiers. They were elite warriors, and excellent mages.
It could be that Jin Mogis was projecting false confidence. He might have been frightened of the Volunteer Soldier Corps. And even if he wasn’t quite that worried, he probably didn’t think he could force them to submit to him easily.
Shinohara was also confident that, despite their smaller numbers, the Volunteer Soldier Corps was equal in power to the Expeditionary Force.
If the general obstinately tried to issue an order, Shinohara might refuse. It was highly unlikely that he’d just willingly become the general’s thrall.
“General,” Shinohara addressed him. Jin Mogis was not the king of the frontier. At the very least, Shinohara and the volunteer soldiers had no reason to kneel before him as their monarch. “If the kobolds and orcs have gathered at Mount Grief, we cannot ignore them. The goblins in Damuro concern me, too. The volunteer soldiers won’t be able to move from Riverside Iron Fortress for a while.” The general remained silent for a little while.
In terms of relative power, it was actually the general, not Shinohara, who was at a disadvantage here. Yet the red-haired general was able to dominate the room using nothing but this tense silence. There was no telling what he might try. It always felt like he might do something unthinkable at any moment.
“I understand your situation. Shinohara, was it? You should rest here at Tenboro for today. I will have food brought to you later.”
“I thank you for your kindness, General Mogis.”
Shinohara bowed to him with a smile that looked completely natural.
I dunno, this is hard to watch.
Haruhiro couldn’t deny that was how he felt. It was hard to breathe, and his shoulders were stiff. No, it wasn’t just his shoulders. His whole body was in rough shape.
The general waved his hand a little. That probably meant, Get out. Neal practically jumped to his feet and turned to leave.
“Well, I’ll see you later.”
Shinohara was leaving, so Haruhiro ought to, as well — or so he thought, but it wasn’t that easy.
“You stay,” the general called after him.
Come again?
You?
Who?
He hadn’t been called by name. He could have tried to play dumb but, no, maybe not. The general was looking at Haruhiro. Staring at him hard. It was clear he meant Haruhiro.
“...Yes, sir.”
He had to stay, even if he didn’t like it. And he really, really didn’t. But it got worse. Once Neal and Shinohara had left the great hall, the general even chased out his black cloaks. Haruhiro really wished he hadn’t.
They were all alone now.
It was beyond unpleasant.
The general wasn’t saying anything for some reason. Ordering Haruhiro to stay, then getting all quiet? What was he up to? It made no sense.
Finally, giving in, Haruhiro asked, “...What is it?”
He was letting the general get the better of him, wasn’t he?
Words, attitude, power — the general used every means at his disposal to control others. Haruhiro didn’t like his type. But even setting aside his personal preferences, he had to be cautious when dealing with someone like this. If he didn’t keep his will strong, he’d just end up going along with what they wanted him to do.
“That man, Shinohara.”
The general was still looking at Haruhiro, but his eyes were unfocused. He was clearly thinking about Shinohara.
“You seemed familiar with him. Is he reliable?”
“Well...” Haruhiro mumbled. “I know him, yes. We’re both volunteer soldiers, after all. And Shinohara-san is the leader of a large clan called Orion. He’s kind of famous, you could say.”
“Who will you side with?”
“...Come again?”
His tone sounded less demeaning, almost friendly. The general continued.
“If you choose to side with me, I will see to it that you’re treated favorably. You’ll likely be placed in charge of a unit within my expeditionary force.” And if he refused?
Haruhiro knew, instinctively, that he had better not ask that.
Siding with Jin Mogis. Honestly, it was out of the question. Haruhiro had lost his memory, but even despite that, if presented with the choice of the general or the Volunteer Soldier Corps, he would choose the Corps without hesitation.
Didn’t the general understand that? The general had threatened Haruhiro, forced him to submit, and used him as a convenient pawn.
So the general wasn’t checking what Haruhiro’s intentions were. It was more likely that he was making his demand in the form of a question.
Shut up, and side with me, he was saying. If you don’t, I will have to take action. That was the suggestion here.
Basically, Haruhiro was being threatened.
He felt more than a little psychological pressure, but he wondered. Was this fear he felt really rational?
It was true that he didn’t know what the general might do.
But that was all. Naturally, the general was not all-powerful, so it wasn’t like he could do absolutely anything.
For example, imagine the general came at Haruhiro right now. Haruhiro didn’t want to fight, but he wasn’t just going to let himself get cut up. He’d fight back. Could he beat the general? He wouldn’t know until he tried. But it wasn’t like he didn’t stand a chance. Besides, Haruhiro was a thief. He didn’t need to try to trade blows with the general. If all he was trying to do was escape, he felt like he could manage that much.
Also, as the head of the Expeditionary Force, the general could mobilize his whole army if he set his mind to it, but the core of his forces was really the black cloaks, along with Neal and the other scouts. Because of the losses they had taken, there were less than fifty of them left. That didn’t mean they weren’t to be feared, but there was no need to overestimate the threat they posed.
He was feeling a little better now.
He had no reason to succumb to the general’s threats. He just wanted to avoid giving a firm refusal now, and tearing up their relationship. Now, it would feel really good to do that, but there was no other reason for it.
“I’m not sure we humans can afford to be at each other’s throats right now.”
The general was silent. The pressure he could put on people was as incredible as ever.
But wasn’t it just pressure?
The general might actually have been little more than a paper tiger. Haruhiro suspected that, but also knew that if he underestimated the general, he could still get tripped up.
“Maybe the Expeditionary Force and the Volunteer Soldier Corps ought to cooperate. I want to do whatever I can to make that possible. I think, in our situation, that’s what we have to do.”
“Is that right?”
The general smiled.
Yeah, he was scary. There was something inscrutable about him. Haruhiro didn’t know how to interpret that smile.
“Leave me.”
The general waved his hand.
Haruhiro nodded slightly, then turned away from the general.
Just before leaving the great hall, he glanced back.
The general was still smiling. There was quite some distance between them, so he couldn’t be sure, but it felt like their eyes met. Haruhiro bowed his head despite himself.


 
4. The Illusion of a Crossroads
Jin Mogis had assigned Haruhiro and his comrades a room in Tenboro Tower.
It looked like it had originally been used as a staging room when banquets were held. It was impressively large, but nearly empty, with no furniture other than tables and chairs.
Incidentally, this room was larger than the one given to the black cloaks, or the one given to Frontier Army Regimental Commander Anthony Justeen and his subordinates. Was that the general’s way of showing how much he valued Haruhiro and his team? Even if it was, so what? It didn’t make Haruhiro happy at all.
Shinohara was in the room too, waiting for Haruhiro and his party to arrive. There was a ton of stuff Haruhiro wanted to talk about, but he couldn’t speak freely in Tenboro Tower. So, he figured that since Shinohara had to be interested in what things were like in Alterna, Haruhiro could take them all outside under the pretext of looking around.
As they passed by the Volunteer Soldier Corps Office and the Temple of Lumiaris, he checked to see if they were being followed. It looked like two scouts, Neal’s subordinates, were monitoring them. He could have shaken them, but there was no need to do anything that would agitate the general yet.
On Shinohara’s request, they dropped by the Yorozu Deposit Company.
The Yorozu Deposit Company would securely store anything you deposited with them for a fixed fee. It was a familiar business to a lot of volunteer soldiers, one they couldn’t have lived without. When Alterna fell, the company must have had a massive store of gold, silver, arms, equipment, and other treasure, but it wasn’t pillaged.
There was no way to loot it. The solid warehouse had no windows and remained tightly sealed, with no way to get it open, not that that stopped anyone from trying. The general certainly hadn’t given up. There were a number of soldiers hanging around, guarding the warehouse.
Next, Haruhiro and the rest pretended not to notice the scouts tailing them, and entered Sherry’s Tavern in Celestial Alley, where they could talk in private.
“...This is pretty miserable.”
Seeing the tavern in this sad state pained Shinohara. Not having any memory of the place, Haruhiro didn’t think anything more than, The goblins messed this place up pretty bad, too, but, yeah, it was a real mess. Most of the chairs and tables had been flipped upside down or knocked over, and more than a few of them had been smashed. There were shards of plates and bottles scattered across the floor, and a sour smell permeated the building. The flies must have been drawn to the rotten food and drinks.
“This place.” Merry clutched her chest, speaking to no one in particular. “We used to come here. A lot...”
The group split up and opened all the windows. They propped the door open, too.
Airing the place out helped with the stench, but the sunlight just made it easier to see how much of a disaster the tavern was.
“When Alterna was attacked, I’m sure there must have been fighting in here.”
Shinohara closely examined the darkened stains that looked like blood, and the arrows sticking out of the wall.
“Most of the volunteer soldiers got away, but nearly all of the soldiers of the Frontier Army and the civilians died in Alterna. Unlike us, this was their homeland, the only place they could be. Even if they fled, they had nowhere to go.”
“It’s kinda hard to take in...” Kuzaku sat on the counter, hanging his head.
Setora sat on the stairs leading to the second level, and Kiichi rested next to her.
Shihoru just stood there in the middle of the tavern. She seemed lost.
Merry walked over to Shihoru, putting a reassuring hand on her back. Shihoru shuddered for a moment, but turned a tense smile her way. Then, in a voice so small it was nearly inaudible, she said, “Thank you,” or something close to that.
Eventually, Shinohara started setting the tables and chairs back upright and putting them in rows. Haruhiro and Kuzaku helped.
Shinohara, Haruhiro, Kuzaku, Merry, and Shihoru sat around one table. Setora stayed on the stairs. She could see most of the tavern from there, including the windows and door. Kiichi went out the window. If their watchers were eavesdropping, Kiichi would let them know.
“It’s been a while, Haruhiro. Let me start by saying I’m glad you’re all right.”
“I just wish I remembered you, too, Shinohara-san.”
“I’ve heard some of the details.”
“...I’ll bet.”
“I heard the thieves’ guild—” Shinohara lowered his eyes. “The thieves’ guild mentor Barbara passed away.” Haruhiro sighed.
“Yeah,” he answered. His voice was low, and awfully thin.
Shinohara laid his hands on the table.
“I knew her when she was in active duty as a volunteer soldier.”
“You... did?”
“It was only for a short time, but we were in the same party.”
“Huh?”
“We were comrades.” Shinohara looked down at his hands. “She seemed like the last person who was going to die. When she quit the volunteer soldier business and became a mentor in the thieves’ guild, I was convinced she was going to be all right. You never know, huh? I’ll bet she never saw it coming herself. But these things happen. All the time here. That’s the way of the world here in Grimgar.”
“Shinohara-san...” Merry seemed to be trying to say something. But she couldn’t find the right words, and looked down.
“Sorry,” Shinohara said with a self-effacing laugh. “This isn’t the time to get sentimental. I heard about your amnesia from Eliza. She said Merry was the only one not affected.”
Rather than nod, Merry seemed to lower her head further. “...Yes.”
Shinohara stroked his chin, a pensive look on his face.
“This is the first time I’ve heard of anything like this. Honestly, it’s hard to believe. Though, we’ve all experienced the same thing once.”
“Erm...” Haruhiro rubbed his cheeks as he spoke. “What happened was we woke up in the Forbidden Tower. It was dark there... We were underground. All we remembered were our names. According to Merry, before that we were in some... other world? I guess that’s what you’d call it. Some place that wasn’t Grimgar.”

Chapter end