The Water Magician

A few days after Ryo and Abel exchanged such conversations, the group from the Naitorei Kingdom was still at the guesthouse.

"It's been a while since the second army was deployed, and we haven't received any updates, have we?"

"None."

"Why is that? Isn't the battle already over?"

"I can't say. They might still be facing off on the battlefield."

"Ah, that is a possibility."

Ryo read the magic formula reflected on the ice plate, while Abel read a book he borrowed from the royal palace library.

Both of them were avid readers.

Since their conversation was alongside their reading, it was rather casual.

"It seems that no detailed information has reached the military command either."

"Huh? So, the people at the royal palace are not aware if both armies clashed, or what the battlefield is like?"

At this point, Ryo finally looked up.

The lack of frontline information reaching the headquarters was not a good sign.

"In the Central Nations, messengers and birds send information, but... I don't know how things are on the dark continent."

"There may be monsters that prey on birds, I suppose."

Ryo nodded at Abel's words.

"Ah... that is a possibility."

"Huh? Did you mean something else?"

"As I said, I just don't know the circumstances."

"I overestimated you, Abel."

Ryo sighed and shook his head lightly.

He thought it was amazing, honestly...

"You mentioned earlier that no information had reached the military command, right?"

"I did."

"Is that information from Scotty, the one he got from the lady-in-waiting?"

"Yes, but it seems he heard it from the deputy of some general, not a lady-in-waiting."

"Is that deputy... perhaps a woman?"

"Apparently so."

"That's impressive, Scotty. I couldn't do that."

"I couldn't do it either."

Both Ryo and Abel shook their heads slightly.

In many ways, Scotty was a valuable asset.

That Scotty was a friend of Abel from his time at the Royal Academy.

"Abel, during your time at the academy, you did nothing but bad things, right?"

"Bad things?"

"You sneaked out of school and hung out with delinquents, causing trouble for the good citizens of the royal capital, didn't you?"

"No, I didn't do that. Occasionally skipping class to read books was all I did. And that was on school grounds."

Ryo looked at him with skeptical eyes while Abel shrugged.

"Scotty and Zack were incited by you to commit bad deeds, right? They had no choice but to comply since it was the second prince..."

"Yes, did you listen to what I said? I didn't do any bad deeds."

"Skipping class is a bad deed."

"Oh, well, that..."

"If Prince Noah skipped class, would you praise him?"

"No, I wouldn't."

"See?"

Before they realized it, Ryo had crossed his arms in front of him, looking very self-important.

While the two of them were having such a trivial conversation, there was a knock at the door, and the squad captain, Scotty, entered.

"Your Majesty, Crown Prince Zorn has arrived."

"Let him in."

Crown Prince Zorn was the prince of the Bardale Principality, where the group was staying, and currently, with the chief of Battuzon deployed, he was the one in charge of the royal palace.

The guesthouse where they were staying was located on a corner of the royal palace grounds.

"Thank you for taking the time, Your Majesty Abel."

"No, Crown Prince Zorn, please don’t mention it."

The two sat on the sofa.

Zorn's bodyguard stood diagonally behind him, so Ryo stood behind Abel, trying to give off a guard-like atmosphere.

It was undeniable that he was curious about the content of their conversation...

"You may have already heard, but... we have not been able to contact the defensive army for the past few days."

"Yes."

"We’ve also sent out confirmation troops from the royal palace, but... we haven’t been able to contact them either..."

"...."

Zorn's expression was exactly what one would call "anguish," and seeing that, Abel found himself at a loss for words.

Abel understood his feelings.

He was in a position that had responsibilities towards many people.

The lives of many depended on a single judgment... and the pressure of that was something that could never be understood by those who had never experienced it.