Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody

“Food aid from the Shiga Kingdom?”

The newly ascended Empress Mollienus of the Saga Empire frowned as she received the report from the Prime Minister.

“Yes, ten million preserved meals have been sent.”

“They just sent it without prior consultation?”

At the astonished Empress’s question, the Prime Minister answered, “Yes, Your Majesty.”

“What’s the catch? What does the Shiga Kingdom want in return?”

“That is—”

The Prime Minister hesitated, and the Empress prompted, “Very well, read aloud what is written in the letter.”

“‘The Shiga Kingdom, out of righteousness, provides food aid to your nation’s people. In return, it requests that there be no starvation deaths among the populace,’ the letter states.”

“Those sound like polite words. I don’t care about hypocritical preambles. Hurry up and read the main point written afterward. Probably they’re demanding the Blood Jade or Blood Orb extracted from the Bloodsucking Labyrinth.”

The Empress snapped her folding fan shut with a displeased expression, urging him forward.

“W-well…”

“What is it? Is the demand so shameful that you can’t say it? Do they shamelessly ask for the Holy Relics left by the successive heroes?”

The Empress waved her fan to press him on.

“No, that’s all. The only consideration requested is the one I mentioned before—‘no starvation deaths among the people,’” the Prime Minister said.

“Ridiculous. A ruler wouldn’t provide aid without expecting something in return. That can’t be.”

The Empress snatched the letter from the Prime Minister’s hand and scanned it thoroughly.

“…Impossible.”

Nowhere in the letter except for that one point did it mention any demands.

It even explicitly denied the usual tactic of lending aid first and demanding payment later.

“There are reports that the first king, Hero King Yamato, has been resurrected from his mausoleum in the Shiga Kingdom.”

“Did Hero King Yamato intervene and grant mercy?”

She dismissed that thought internally.

Though not recorded in the official history, the Empress knew the Saga Empire had done things to deserve Hero King Yamato’s resentment.

Hero Yamato, summoned with a unique skill ill-suited for battle, was stripped of the Holy Sword and forced to transport supplies to the front lines, only to be captured by the Orc Empire led by the Demon King.

“Shall we refuse the food aid?”

The Prime Minister asked.

In the old Saga Empire, they could easily dismiss after-the-fact demands, but now, severely wounded by the Demon King disaster, this was difficult.

“Hmm, that may be unavoidable—”

“P-please wait, Your Majesty!”

The Minister of Agriculture desperately interjected.

“At this rate, food shortages will become apparent within six months, and the low-income classes will starve. If that happens, there will be riots—”

“Why not release the food reserves?”

“What are you saying! We just released them after repeated disasters!”

The Minister of Agriculture raised his voice against the Minister of Military Affairs’s objection.

“But if we owe the Shiga Kingdom now, future diplomacy will suffer—”

“That’s the Foreign Minister’s job to handle!”

“How about accepting this as Princess Merryest’s dowry?”

“If you say that, the name of the Saga Empire will be dragged through the mud.”

“But Chief Ceremonial Officer, it’s better than ceding land—”

“Don’t speak of Her Highness as if she were collateral! How dare you treat the imperial family so!”

The ministers all voiced their self-interested opinions, and the Empress looked on with troubled eyes.

The nation’s core leadership was lost in the Demon King disaster; those gathered—including the Empress—were from local administrations. Although they were capable individuals, they lacked the experience necessary for national governance.

After a long meeting, the Empress’s decisive word led to accepting the food aid.

It would be counterproductive to suspiciously reject food aid from the Shiga Kingdom and then suffer starvation deaths or riots that would weaken the Saga Empire.