"Ah, geez..."

Yuni, as always, let out a sigh while walking through the academy garden.

"How long has it been since school ended and yet again..."

Yuni was preparing for the Homecoming Day.

She set up various facilities and placed them in the necessary positions, checked the list of events to be held, and measured the appropriate budget for them. In addition to this, she also spent time inspecting the spaces to be used.

"At least it's smaller than other years, so I guess you should be thankful for that."

Kuhn, who was next to Yuni, scolded her for her grumbling.

At Kuhn's words, Yuni snorted.

"Thankful, my ass. That's the problem."

The reason this year's Homecoming Day was scaled down was because of the rebels' movements.

It was difficult for alumni to return to the academy, and with the professors busy preparing, the event size was significantly reduced. Originally, the event could have been canceled, but it was proceeding as usual.

"Why not just cancel it? It was canceled last year, after all."

"Last year, the rebels directly invaded, that's why."

"They could come this year too."

"That's true but..."

Kuhn couldn't argue against Yuni's words. Looking at the rebels' actions so far, they always had an obsession with the academy.

Their forces were stationed near the academy, so there was a sense of unease.

"Should we just say not to do it?"

"......Hmm."

Yuni clearly didn't want to work, but suggesting to stop didn't seem like a bad idea.

Preparing for such an event might be less important than preparing for the rebels.

But then, what was the point of stopping now?

There were only four days left until Homecoming Day.

The preparations were practically completed. Canceling the event at this point wouldn't do anything.

"Let's go talk to Vice-Principal Cromwell, at least..."

"Talk?"

At that moment, a voice came from behind them.

"......Vice-Principal?"

Behind Yuni and Kuhn, Cromwell was standing tall.

Cromwell approached them with a smile.

"Is there any problem with the event? Talk?"

"No, it's not that... But, what brings you here, Vice-Principal?"

"Can't a Vice-Principal walk around the academy?"

"That's not it but..."

"Heh, don't worry. I didn't mean anything by it. I was just checking to see if the preparations for the event were going well. Don't worry."

"Ah..."

Kuhn, hearing Cromwell's words, looked around cautiously.

He wanted to bring up the event, but standing in front of Cromwell, he couldn't decide what to say.

'Proposing to just cancel the event outright might look problematic...'

While Kuhn was thinking that,

"Vice-Principal. What about canceling the event?"

Yuni blurted out abruptly.

Kuhn, flustered, waved his hands.

"No, if you say it like that..."

Cromwell brushed off Kuhn's reaction and looked at Yuni.

"What's the matter?"

"With the possibility of war, doesn't it seem odd for us to be giggling among ourselves? Practically no one will come anyway. Wouldn't it be better to use these resources elsewhere?"

"......Yuni?"

Kuhn was taken aback by Yuni's logically structured argument.

Was it really just her aversion to work that led to this suggestion, or did she genuinely hold these beliefs?

That was unclear.

Nevertheless, what Yuni said was also what Kuhn had wanted to say.

It was a question he had subtly raised to Cromwell when the event was first announced, but Cromwell hadn't given a definitive answer.

He simply instructed to hold the event as planned.

Kuhn watched closely to see how Cromwell would respond.

"Hmm... For now, both of you follow me."

"Yes?"

"There's something I need to say about that. You'll understand if you follow."

With a puzzled look, Yuni and Kuhn hesitated but decided to follow Cromwell, hoping for an explanation.

"......Senior?"

Yuni and Kuhn's eyes widened.

The place Cromwell led them to was the vice-principal's office.

Inside, Rudy was sitting.

Rudy smiled and waved his hand.

"Have you arrived?"

"Rudy... and that person is..."

But that wasn't all.

The woman sitting next to Rudy, wearing a priestess's attire and a black eye patch, was Saint Haruna.

"Hello. Are you the current student council members?"

Haruna smiled and greeted them.

"How did this happen..."

The Saint was expected to come for Homecoming Day, but Rudy was not.

The Empire was in a tumultuous state right now.

They naturally thought Rudy would be heading to the front lines.

He was a highly regarded talent in the Empire.

With such a person at the academy, many questions arose.

"You said it, didn't you? Shouldn't we prepare for the war? We're not just fooling around. Everything we did was necessary."

"But, but. Just calling Saint Haruna and Rudy seems..."

Rudy may be strong, but preparing for war requires more than just strength.

A war needs numerous soldiers and commanders, not just a few powerful individuals.

This left Kuhn feeling that just the two of them were insufficient.

Cromwell shook his head at Kuhn's doubt.

"It's not just the two of us coming. What's the name of the event we're hosting?"

"Homecoming Day... So..."

"A lot of people will come home to the academy. What we sent to the alumni wasn't an invitation to an event but a letter asking for help."

"What? Why go through all that... You could have just called in the troops from the start."

"Moving troops always requires caution. It's much better if the other side doesn't know. Besides, preparing for the event allowed us to make several preparations. With the students gathered here, there's no need to evacuate separately, and the items we've placed can be used for protection."

Cromwell wasn't interested in the event itself.

He was just looking towards the future.

And exploiting it.

To create a more advantageous situation by making the opposition complacent.

He was preparing for that.

Then Yuni tilted her head.

"So why is the Saint here?"

"Hmm? Since it's Homecoming Day, naturally..."

"No, if we're really preparing for war, shouldn't the Saint be evacuated to a safe place? It's dangerous if she's here when they attack."

Yuni's doubt wasn't unwarranted.

Cromwell had acted under the assumption that the opposition would attack.

Then, shouldn't the Saint, who lacks combat ability, be sent to a safe place?

Haruna shook her head in response.

"I came here to do my job."

"Your job?"

"There's a place I need to protect."

"Deputy Commander."

As Astina walked along the sacred wall, she turned her head.

Behind her was a soldier.

"What's the matter?"

"It seems they're beginning to move."

"Which direction?"

"Towards the academy."

As expected, the rebels were moving towards the academy.

"Pass the message to Commander Ian, and we'll move out."

"Understood."

After speaking to the soldier, Astina headed towards the barracks.

The soldiers outside the barracks were all looking in Astina's direction.

'The beginning, then.'

Astina scanned the soldiers looking at her.

"Listen up, everyone. The rebels have moved. They're heading towards the Liberion Academy, and we're going to protect it."

"Understood!!!"

The soldiers responded with a resounding voice.

These were soldiers who had been with her for about half a year, dear to her heart.

Astina bit her lip briefly before speaking again.

"......What we're engaging in is war. The person next to you might die, and you might die too. But, it's not a meaningless death. Because you fight, the citizens of the Empire, our families, will survive. So, on their behalf, I say thank you."

Some soldiers were visibly moved by Astina's words, but most burst into laughter.

"Deputy Commander! Saying it like that makes it sound like we're already dead!"

"Deputy Commander is so meticulous yet clumsy. Why say something like that now?"

The soldiers chuckled and teased Astina.

Astina smiled at them.

In a situation where they could be tense and afraid, they were laughing.

"Alright, sorry. Then tell this inexperienced Deputy Commander what needs to be done."

"Aren't there simple words you can use? Easy words."

"Easy words?"

"Really, you're so dense."

The soldiers suggested a few words to Astina.

With a burst of laughter, Astina cleared her throat again.

"Fine. Here goes."

Astina raised her fist to the sky and shouted.

"Let's kill all those bastards! We're going home!!!!"

It was a straightforward statement.

It wasn't the kind of phrase you'd expect from the usually stern Astina.

The soldiers laughed, seeing Astina utter such refreshing words.

"Deputy Commander."

Then, a soldier approached Astina and handed her a helmet.

"Alright, let's go."

Astina mounted her horse, leading the barracks' soldiers towards the academy.