Chapter 7

It has been less than a day since I started a conflict with them.

It was only then that I knew, the Saralegui who had travelled with us and the Yelshi waiting for us in Seisakoku are brothers, and that was when I got caught in their schemes, was even forced into signing a document with my countrys fate at stakeall this, not more than 24 hours ago.

You are Saralegui!? Dont tell me you swapped places Whats happening here, why are you sitting on this countrys imperial throne?

Aside from those glasses that really suit him, the only difference between the brothers is their hair length and clothes. Other than that, its just that the younger brother Yelshi looks more like a puppet, but thats still a mistakable difference.

So the one here isnt the Emperor of Seisakoku Yelshi, but the king of Shou Shimaron Saralegui. Its true that his acting skills could fool an entire crowd.

The little finger with the diamond ring I cant remove starts to hurt.

Calm down, the one who can control this ring is the little brother Yelshi, not the older Saralegui. Sara cant use houjutsu, thats why he was kicked out of the country he was born in. So the pain I feel know, must be a trick caused by my cowardly mentality.

Your reaction is so exaggerated, Yuuri.

Saralegui shakes those extravagant sleeves and holds out his hands, looking just like his younger brother. Thats right, this is what they mean by shinzoku.

Its just a game, Yuuri. Since were twins, of course we would want to swap places. Isnt that the fun of being born as identical twins? And besides, we havent seen each other for more than ten years, can you blame us for wanting to play a little?

So youre saying, executing someone is a game?

Maybe the person being executed faces certain death, but to the spectators, it counts as entertainment, doesnt it?

Then why dont you go be the person being executed!

The evil young kings pretty face, the face that I hate all the way into my bones, smiles adorably as he looks down.

Even though Im the king of an entire country, Ive never witnessed an execution up close before. Thats why I accepted Yelshis suggestion, to try being that spectator all the way up there once. My brother said hes seen countless executions since he was young anyway, and got tired of them long ago. Oh, right, isnt the one over there Lord Wellers guard

He lifts a neatly-manicured, sakura-shell fingernail at my spy,

Could you please put down that sack. Because in it, are female trainee officials from the palace.

What!?

Josak, who held himself down low so as not to be seen by the soldiers on the ground, puts the sack down before I yell out, and opens it upinside are two unfamiliar girls. Except for their eye and hair color, theres nothing at all similar between them, much less enough to call them sisters.

You tricked us?

What? What on earth are you saying, Yuuri? Whoever told you that the people youre looking for are in this sack? If they were, that would be really ridiculous misinformation! Too bad, you were fooled by whoever gave you that information.

Saralegui creases his pretty brows, looking sincerely sympathetic. No one told me that. Its just that I, as usual, jumped to conclusions and stubbornly went ahead with it, and as usual, I fell flat on my face. Thats all.

If there was really a mole, then what about the news brought by our ally, Ajira? The date and times are all correct, the execution did indeed go on. If it wasnt for the explosions in the square directly underneath us, those three men would have long since lost their lives.

But I dont see those children anywhere here. Should I be glad theyre not here.

The names in the namelist

Oh, do you mean those children with those strange-for-shinzoku names?

The young king who was once my travel companion, claps his hands in front of his slender chin.

Theyre not here, yknow. They in a faraway facility, there was just not enough time to bring them here.

What does this mean?

Compared to Saraleguis voice, like the tinkling of silver bells, the sentence I squeeze out of gritted teeth makes me sound like the quintessential bad guy. If an unknowing third person saw us, they would probably confuse our roles.

All I did was add the names I heard on the boat. I believed that if I did that, Yuuri, you would definitely come back.

Then he says, giggling, You must never say the important things out too loud, yknow. Watching his idiotic prey fall into the trap just as he hoped, seems to be making him especially happy, huh.

Yuuri, you came back after all, didnt you?

I want nothing more than to slap his pale face, then scold him as harshly as I knew how. But I desperately press down the urge to grab his chest and shake him, demanding where are those two children, telling myself instead non-stop, hes not worth your punch.

Lets fall back!

I obediently take Josaks suggestion. Looking down, I see the prisoners put own cloths that blend into their surroundings, already mixed into the panicked, escaping crowd, being supported by others on their way out. I even see Hazel and Conrad. How I managed to confirm so many things in such a short time is beyond me.

The spy doesnt wait for my reply, grabbing my hand and preparing to lift me. Just as Im about to protest, and say that I can get down on my own

A string of white flashes in the corner of my eyes, and Saraleguis voice, calling out to me, stops in mid-air.

Yuu

He doesnt say the -ri.

This scene is familiar. Although my rational mind knows its best if I dont look, itll bring me nothing but trouble, so I must not look no matter what, but I never learn my lesson, and so I cant help but turn back to look.

An arrow is embedded in the middle of that pale green outfit.

Its exactly the same as that time. Only this time the target is extremely obvious, and the narrow never came close to me.

Faced with that terrifying trauma, I feel as though all the blood in my body has been sucked away by the ground. Someone else got shot by an arrow in front of me. Right beside me, hit by that most primitive weapon.

Wolf

No.

Thats not Wolf.

I shake my head desperately, grabbing at my hair through the hood of the cloak. Hang in there, Shibuya Yuuri! Wolframs not here, he cant be shot or hurt! Dont be afraid, the one they aimed for is Saralegui.

The casualtys steps are a little jarred, his legs set apart and unmoving, and he stubbornly tries to pull the arrow out. But he cant, so he tsks his tongue in anger. Looks like the wound isnt as dangerous as it looks. Subconsciously I dive at him, pressing his slender body to the ground.

Dont just stand there, its dangerous!? Someone wants your life here! Aaah, dont try to take it out!

Why? No one likes having such a hateful thing touching their bodies, right?

If it causes excessive bleeding

Saralegui doesnt hear a word I say, pushing me aside and pulling the intricate arrow out from his chest. The arrowhead is clean as a whistle, without even a spot of blood on it. I feel as though hes showing off how lucky he is.

Your Majesty, theres no need to save that kind of person, sheesh!

Josak is splayed onto the ground, and he grabs my foot.

But

There are buildings on every side of the square, so theres no way to determine which window the arrow came from. Not only that, theres the possibility of a second attack, so its best to leave this place as soon as possible.

But this guy knows where the girls are.

Gurrier glares at Saralegui, still holding the arrow, hatefully.

Really!

He quickly grabs the empty sack, and roughly stuffs the thin boy king inside.

Josak!?

He moves his jaw, tossing the sack over his shoulder,

Later you must be my witness, I didnt support this! Okay, lets go!

I look backwards as Im climbing down from the shrine seat, just in time to see a heavily-armed group standing out like sore thumbs against the afternoon square come towards us. But the faces on those leading the march, dont look that of beings living in this world, almost causing me to lose my grip on the ladder.

Corpses?

Theyre called zombies, or the living dead, etcetera etcetera. But they look the same, like malfunctioning radios or nearly rotting human bodies. With weapons in their hands and armor over their bodies, in a way they fit really well in a fantasy world of magic. No, wait, they seem to show up around 21st century London, too.

Its corpses, rotting corpses are dressed in armor and moving around!

How can that be? Really, Young Master, please try to make jokes that men would appreciate too. We dont have nasty creatures like that even in Shin Makoku!

Skeletons are everywhere, though.

But really

No buts, please pretend you didnt see anything, for Gurrier.

I-if you say so.

When my feet step away from the final rung and back onto solid ground, I finally heave a sigh of relief. Only then do I notice that I havent breathed properly until then. In order to run to the meeting spot, I take in a lungful of air, and find that there really is a smell of rot there.

Looks like something happened.

In a place we dont know, something definitely happened.