As Pale bowed her head, she advised the king.
“That’s why… Please take care of your body. If you fall, this country will too.”
“You exaggerate.”
The Goblin King wryly smiled, but Pale glanced at him sharply.
“I’m not joking. You can’t even smell anymore, can you?”
“…”
Saying nothing was the same thing as saying yes. At the very least, that was how Pale saw it as she excused herself.
“That’s why… I have to hurry.”
The Goblin King curled his hand into a tight fist.
After Pale left the office, she met Gi Za Zakuend who was waiting outside. Gi Za frowned, looking like he’d eaten a fly, as he turned to her.
“So, how is the king?”
“He can’t smell anymore, it seems. He couldn’t even react to the smell of Karutone.”
“This terrible stench, and he did not so much as flinch?”
Gi Za looked hatefully at the pouch by Pale’s wrists. There is a plant called Karutone, which released a smell that monsters hated. This bag was filled to the brim with its dried roots.
Pale put it away, allowing Gi Za to finally breathe. Having expected that, she asked him.
“What about that matter I left to you, Gi Za-dono?”
“I made contact with that cabinet minister a few days ago.”
“Please spare no money to get his cooperation.”
“Money isn’t something to hold back on. Especially, not when it concerns the health of the king. We’ll stock up as much as necessary.”
“That will do. Well then, if you may excuse me.”
After seeing Pale off, Gi Za looked back at the king’s office.
“It is a subject’s negligence to move only as the king commands… Isn’t that right?”
Gi Za, whose lips were slightly slanted, used his schemes to try and destroy Germion Kingdom.
◇◆◆
Word of Claudia the War Princess’ death spread to every direction, giving rise to various reactions that echoed back to the Holy Shushunu Kingdom.
At the king’s behest, the whole country mourned the death of the war princess, and messengers not only from within the country, but from the minor countries to the east, from Germion Kingdom to the west, from the Kushain Believers, from the Holy Kingdom Alsas at the end of the east, and even messengers from the Oceanic Kingdom Yarma came.
Despite how big the funeral was, the one who managed everything was Claudia’s granddaughter, Blanche. She was 18 years old, and although Claudia adored her, she never once showed any interest in military affairs.
Because of that she was distant from the commissioned officers of the armies participating in the successor wars. As such, it was to her that the king gave his imperial command.
Adventurers and mercenaries who once fought with Claudia in the battlefield were also present in the funeral. Blanche ignored the opinions of the nobles who were against it, saying that it pertained to the country’s prestige, and appealed directly to the king to allow the mercenaries and the adventurers to attend the funeral.
The people protecting Claudia’s coffin was the same sorcerer cavalry (mana guard) that watched over her when she was still alive.
’Loyalty even in death.’
The mana guard upheld the oath they made when they were appointed and watched over Claudia even in her coffin. When the attendants saw that, they couldn’t help but sigh in wonder.
The Great Empire of Shushunu that stood at the center of the continent. The military of this country is made up by the private army of the three great nobles dukes and the royal family’s army. Claudia the War Princess was both the head of a great noble family and the commander-in-chief of the royal army. As such, being her successor meant inheriting the greatest military position of the Holy Shushunu Kingdom.
Until now, Blanche also gathered attention as she was the daughter of a ducal family in possession of a mana guard platoon. Of course, that wasn’t because people thought she would inherit the position of the War Princess, but because people saw her as a possible tool to gain that position.
Her skin was a beautiful white like that of white porcelain. It was almost as if the sun had never reached her. Her two eyes were reddish brown, a trait inherited from her grandmother. Her stature was as one would expect from a woman, and her hair was a vivid gold just like that of her grandfather.
“—30 years ago Claudia Ririnoie supported this country with her sword. After experiencing many danger and fortune, she came to be known as the War Princess.”
But on this day, her position was about to change.
The moment when she read out loud the memorial address, the people present were all bewildered. A normal memorial address would only praise the deceased.
“—She restored dignity to the country and now lies in sleep. As one who has deeply inherited her blood, I will protect her legacy.”
Only a few of the people attending understood her intentions.
This was a declaration of war.
At this moment, Blanche Ririnoie was saying that she herself would succeed Claudia. The successor of the Ririnoie Family would also be the successor of the War Princess. That was essentially what she so casually announced.
3 months later, Blanche Ririnoie crushed all the other contenders for the position.
So great were her abilities that it seemed as if Claudia had come back to life. The gallant figures of the sorcerer cavalry (mana guard) as they obeyed her made it loud and clear for all that the War Princess had returned.
◇◆◆
The Colonial City, Middled.
It was just recently that a guild was established at this colonial city that boasted a population of 7,000. The one who established the state-managed job recruitment agency was the Governor-General of the Western Capital, Yoshu. As a slave gladiator, Yoshu was able to travel to many places, so he tried imitating the adventurers guild that he saw in several small countries.
The governor-general of Middled, Princess Shunaria, was herself very supportive in executing the idea as she herself acknowledged its usefulness. A company would ask for a job to be done, then the guild would examine it and rate its difficulty. Immediately after, the job would be posted on the bulletin board for people to apply for.
Due to being a country of goblins and other monsters, there are no jobs to hunt monsters, but there are many other jobs like jobs to hunt dangerous beasts, procure medicine, or serve as an escort to a trading caravan.
No large business have been established yet, so most of the jobs were posted by the office of the governor-general. The jobs ranged from the simple labor that only required a body, such as the maintenance of roads and transport of materials for the wall repairs, to more complicated jobs that required special skills, like the construction jobs.
People came to and fro the halls of the guild to get a job from the bulletin board. The office of the governor general had already anticipated that there would be a lot of people coming for the jobs, so – true to the spirit of capitalism – they built a bar along with the guild. With the construction of the guild and the bar also came the introduction of jobs to help people that couldn’t read. Surprisingly, these jobs actually became popular.
Within that guild was a female elf whose ears had been cut halfway through. She languidly fell onto the counter meant for receiving jobs and the male receptionist wryly smiled.
“I-I finally finished it.”
“You look tired, Selena-chan.”
“Fei-san is too cruel to his friends… What did he mean ‘exterminate some night dogs’! That’s not a job you do alone.”
“It’s the governor-general’s office that requested for those.”
“…Uu. I want to go back to the forest and have an afternoon nap while bathing in the sun.”
“Well, it’s good that you’re so popular. Here you go. From the governor-general’s office.”
“Huh!?”
She jumped up in shock because it was a job directly from Princess Shunaria. The male receptionist thought it was amusing how her ears twitched while reading the contents of the job. Of course, as an upright man, he would never voice those thoughts out loud.
“…Uu. That’s it! I’m suing! This is clearly oppression!”
Teary-eyed, she once again fell languidly on the desk, but then a voice called out to her.
“Oh? Pray, do tell, who is this that’s oppressing you?”
“P-Princess!?”
Like a spring-loaded doll, Selena jumped up, and when she turned around, Princess Shunaria was indeed there.
“A-About that… I just finished doing a job just now, you see.”
“Oh? But wasn’t it you who taught me that the best way to get along with the humans was to do the same job as them?”
“T-That’s true, but working so frequently is…”
“And the jobs this time are also meant to test if the guild’s system is functioning well or not. Please do your best.”
“Y-Yes.”
As Selana’s shoulders fell in disappointment, Selena saw her off with a smile.
“How is that child doing?”
Shunaria Forni asked in a gentle voice to the male receptionist.
“She’s doing her best. She’s one of the top highest earners of those that registered.”
“I see… Now that the Goblin King has started a war with the human countries, it’s no longer possible to play adventurer in the outside world, but just a little… I want her to have a taste of that life.”
Shunaria knew of Selena’s past, so although she was being a bit strict, this was actually a present to her. Of course, the person herself didn’t notice that. The girl that once left the forest, hoping to become an adventurer… Although it’s a bit different, there was no doubting that her dream was being fulfilled.
“That aside, why are you here, Governor-General?”
“Fei-san came back from his patrol, so I thought I’d sneak out a little.”
Shunaria said as she stuck out her tongue and smiled. In response to that, the male receptionist could only wryly smile.
This was what an ordinary day was like in the Goblin King’s Middled that was relatively distant from the battlefield.
