How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom: Volume 16

1. Auflage 2022
ISBN: 978-1-7183-0930-2
Verlag: J-Novel Club
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 250 Seiten

Reihe: How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom

Two years have passed since the Spirit King's Curse shook the world. In this time, Souma and the Kingdom of Friedonia have been preparing for an impending period of unprecedented chaos.

However, the Kingdom was not the only country to burgeon over the two years. Fuuga has been expanding the border of his Great Tiger Kingdom of Haan as well. Following the acquisition of the Lunarian Orthodox Papal State, Fuuga sought to bring the Mercenary State Zem under his control. Now, having gained such powerful forces, he declares war on mankind's greatest nation-the Gran Chaos Empire.

With this move, an agonizing question now hangs in the air: should the Kingdom abandon the Empire, their ally, to avoid conflict with the great Fuuga Haan?

The cruel war begins in volume sixteen of the revolutionary administrative fantasy series!

Autoren/Hrsg.

Dojyomaru

Weitere Mitwirkende

Fuyuyuki

Mccann, Sean

Leseproben

Chapter 1: A Wedding and a Family Vacation

—End of the 4th month, 1552nd year, Continental Calendar—

On this day, in the capital of the Republic, Sapeur, there was a major celebration.

Sapeur had many white-walled buildings. And in this season, the snow in the streets had yet to fully melt, so it was blindingly bright with reflected sunlight on a clear day. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky. Under the open blue expanse, a large crowd of people had gathered at a temple-like building that’d been built in a slightly elevated position. We were but a few of the people in that crowd.

“Come to think of it, I’ve never been to the capital of the Republic before, huh?” I said quietly to myself, as it had just occurred to me.

Liscia tilted her head to the side. She was standing next to me wearing a dress with a thick shawl to protect her otherwise exposed shoulders from the cold.

“You haven’t?” she asked. “You came to the Republic while I was pregnant, didn’t you?”

“Sure did, but we only ended up goin’ to Noblebeppu near the border then. The meetin’ with their former leader, Sir Gouran, ended up happenin’ in secret there too,” explained Roroa, who was dressed the same as Liscia.

I nodded. “It’s my first time coming. The architecture in a place like this sure is interesting.”

This building was the center of the Council of Chiefs that ran the Republic’s government, and also where ceremonies were held. It had large, thick pillars that reminded me of historical Roman or Greek architecture. It was seemingly called Sapeur Temple. And today was the marriage of Kuu, Taru, and Leporina.

Invited as a foreign guest of honor, I had come with my wives and children—Tomoe, Yuriga, and Ichiha. Carla had also come, doubling as both maid and bodyguard. We were seated in a section reserved for guests of honor. In attendance were Liscia of the Royal House of Elfrieden, Roroa of the Princely House of Amidonia, and our bodyguard Aisha. Yuriga was attending as a representative of the Great Tiger Kingdom. Yuriga wasn’t here strictly as Fuuga’s representative, but at the request of Kuu, who wanted to make himself look more impressive by having more foreign attendees.

Juna, Naden, Carla, and Ichiha were with the children in a room a little further away. There, they could watch the ceremony anonymously. Being a ryuu and a dragonewt, this country’s weather was too cold for Naden and Carla even in April. They were all bundled up to keep warm, so they were probably happier watching from indoors.

Incidentally, Nine-Headed Dragon Queen Shabon had also been invited to this ceremony, but unfortunately, she was unable to fit it into her schedule. In her stead, I’d been given a congratulatory message to pass along.

“Aren’t you two cold?” I asked Liscia and Roroa.

“A lil’ bit... I wouldn’t be able to keep sittin’ here long if it weren’t for this shawl.”

“The wood furnace behind us helps keep it bearable.”

In this cold land, human women needed spirit and guts if they wanted to dress fashionably.

Kuu’s subordinate Nike Chima came out to announce, “His Excellency Kuu Taisei, Head of the Republic, and his wives Lady Taru and Lady Leporina have arrived!”

Kuu and his wives emerged, having finished a traditional marriage ceremony inside Sapeur Temple. Instantly, there was roaring applause. We rose to our feet as well, applauding the three of them.

Today, instead of dressing like a kabuki actor, Kuu was wearing a dashing white tuxedo. Meanwhile, Taru and Leporina were both in pure white wedding dresses. Taru’s dress was long-sleeved, while Leporina had short sleeves. Their shoulders were fully exposed, but as members of the Five Races of the Snowy Plains, they were used to the cold.

The crowd was so large it felt like every person in the Republic was in attendance. Turning to face them, Kuu raised his hands.

“This kind of reminds me of our own wedding ceremony,” Aisha said, and Roroa and Liscia both nodded as they continued to clap.

“Me too. The people were cheerin’ for us the same way back then, right, Big Sis Cia?”

“Hee hee, you’re right. It was the biggest day of my life. Not just as a public figure, but as a woman too.”

“Hey, Yuriga. Is this the kind of thing you want for yourself?” Tomoe asked, whispering in Yuriga’s ear.

“Yeah, I guess.” Yuriga shrugged. “It seems like the kind of thing you’d like.”

“Mm-hm. I only wish I could have a nice ceremony like this someday...”

“Well, try asking for it. I mean, you’ve already got someone lined up to be your husband.”

“Heh heh, if I push him too soon, he’ll probably run away on me, so I’ll have to take my time.”

“Yeah, yeah...”

I didn’t know what to think. Both of them had started to have some rather mature conversations these days.

Suddenly, Yuriga’s smile faded and she stared off into the distance. “I wonder...what’s going to happen to me. Ultimately, it’s all up to my brother, I guess.”

“Yuriga?”

“It’s nothing...”

I saw Kuu whisper something to his brides. Taru nodded, and Leporina started walking over to us. She then offered the bouquet to Tomoe and Yuriga.

“Master Kuu says it’s for the future brides,” Leporina explained.

“We hope you’ll both find happy marriages. We received a bouquet ourselves in the Kingdom of Friedonia, so consider this repaying the favor.”

“Wow! Thank you so much!”

“Y-Yeah? Uh... You have my thanks.”

Tomoe seemed delighted, while Yuriga was not entirely displeased with the gift.

? ? ?

Some days later...

“Yahoooo!”

“Please wait, Master Kuu!”

Kuu effortlessly slid down the powdered slope on a snowboard as Leporina chased after him on skis. Athletic as he was, Kuu had mastered the snowboard not long after being told they existed.

We were at a ski slope near Noblebeppu, the city where Taru had her workshop. Having taken an interest in the idea of recreational skiing, Kuu got to work setting up this place shortly after returning to the Republic. The location was ideal since Noblebeppu was in proximity to snowy mountains, hot springs, and fresh seafood from the port of Moran.

The ski lift utilized the revolving mechanism of the drill, and Noblebeppu had turned into a serious ski resort town in the time since I’d last visited. We’d been invited to come here after the wedding. Kuu had said it would do us good to take some time off, soak in the hot springs, and enjoy skiing as a family. Obviously, the offer wasn’t purely out of the goodness of his heart; he had his own motives, but, well... For now, we decided to enjoy the slopes.

“Whoa, Ichiha. Easy. Take it easy.”

“R-Right. I can handle it.”

“Unsteady as you are, it’s only a matter of time before—”

““Ahhh!””

“Told you so...”

Glancing over, I saw Yuriga, who had been the first of the trio to master skiing, teaching Ichiha and Tomoe. Those two were bookish by nature, and seemed to be struggling to learn. Now, Yuriga was watching with exasperation as they took a tumble together.

Tomoe was bowing her head and apologizing profusely for landing on top of Ichiha. ..

“Doesn’t this seem...wrong, somehow?”

“Hee hee! It’s nice, me being the one to ride you once in a while... It’s still cold though.”

Currently, I was skiing with Naden on my back. She’d curled up into a ball due to the cold, but I wanted her to experience skiing at least once, and this was the only way she’d do it. Granted, Naden being on my back all bundled up in warm clothes made maneuvering kind of hard. I had to take it slow doing snowplow turns, but she was still enjoying herself.

“You’re sure you don’t want to do it yourself?”

“Not a chance! I’d freeze to death if I didn’t have you acting as a windshield and warmer.”

“Come on, you’re exaggerating.”

Naden tightened her arms around my neck, pressing her chilly forehead against its nape. I shuddered at the sudden cold touch.

“Whoa! Cut it out!”

“Hmph! That’s what you get for saying I’m exaggerating. I feel like hot springs are more my style.”

“Ah ha ha... You figure?”

By now we’d reached the bottom of the slope. Cian and Kazuha, Juna’s daughter Enju, and Roroa’s son Leon were all bundled up in warm clothes at the base of the hill. They were playing in the snow with Liscia and Carla. Kaito couldn’t stand very well yet, so Juna was carrying him.

Looking at Liscia, I asked, “What are you doing? Making snowmen?”

Liscia groaned in confusion. “What we doing?”

“Huh?”

“Ah ha ha... The kids just got really into making...