“Queen Kokoro la Peppyseed has arrived.”

A tall knight clad in a full suit of golden armour kneels in the dirt, a gloved hand pressed against their breastplate in a display of deep reverence. Behind them, knights of silver stand with raised shields, the hazy blue light of the moon gleaming off of their shiny armour and lighting up the night around us.

A ring of knights now surrounds the crowded clearing that was once the heart of the battlefield. Marching in from all sides, these silver soldiers had quickly combed through the camp, quelling any previous signs of battle and rebellion, while funnelling all remaining survivors towards the centre where me, Mash, and the golden knight were all chilling as we watched a troll bleed out across the dirt.

This place is pretty packed with people now—unhappy slaves and slavers alike—and the silver knights have formed a wall of shields around the entire area so nobody can slip out. Behind each knight is another standing at his back, forming an encircling sea of silver that stretches out as far as the eye can see.

I can’t help but notice that, apart from the mostly-dead troll, there doesn’t seem to be any other monsters in the clearing. I can’t imagine goblins and kobolds playing nice in this situation, so I assume they were either cut down by the soldiers or tossed back in their cages.

In the distance, an orchestra of trumpets blares out into the night. As the sound of trumpets approaches, the sea of silver beside the golden knight begins to part, opening up a pathway through. Two lines of soldiers—clad in ornate, red padded gambesons—march down through the newly opened gap, each one belting out a grand tune in perfect synchronization through the trumpets held at their lips.

As the front of the line makes its way into the crowded clearing, their trumpet playing reaches a crescendo and they stop in their tracks. Turning to face one another, they bow their heads low, pointing their trumpets into the dirt and interlocking their bodies to form a red bridge across their bent backs. A bridge that travels straight through the sea of silver knights and into the darkness beyond. And from the beyond, a figure in the distance makes its way across it.

The silver knights on either side hold up a lantern as the figure passes by. With each step they take along the crimson carpet of bent backs, the trumpet players below their feet rumble a singular note. A note that climbs higher and higher with every padded back they step across on their path towards us.

It’s a girl— No, a woman. The small figure of a woman struts across the red carpet of soldiers, her honey-coloured curls—twintails twisted into long drills that hang down past her knees—bounce along with each stride. Like a radiant beacon in the night, the lanterns at her sides gleam off her gold-accented mantle and robe, as well as the many jewels adorned on each one of her fingers and encrusted in the crown atop her head.

As she reaches the end of the bridge, the trumpet players reach another grand crescendo, and then—

The woman clicks her gold-laden fingers. Immediately, everything falls into a deathly silence. Commanding complete and total dominance over the hundreds of soldiers, slaves, and slavers standing present, not a single one dares to make a peep over her impressive display of authority. Quietly shuffling in from the wall of soldiers, six silver knights rush in past the crowds, carrying a large ornate throne between them. Planting it firmly in the ground next to the kneeling golden knight, they themselves dive onto the dirt, sprawling their bodies across the soil.

Stepping down from her bridge of backs, she walks across the path of sprawled soldiers and approaches the throne. A throne that would clearly be too big for even a regular-sized person, let alone one of her size. With a big jump into the high seat, she scoots her small body into the backrest, kicking her little feet out in front of her with a satisfied look.

“Mm. Very good,” she says, giving a nod to all the soldiers surrounding her. “But it’s probably a little too late in the night for the trumpets, don’t you think? Some people might already be in bed by now.”

“M-my apologies, Lady Kokoro. We’ll keep that in mind for next time...” A silver knight bows his head low before the throne, sounding deeply disappointed in himself.

“Oh, the lanterns were nice though. I was scared I was going to trip and fall in the dark but they really helped me out. Thanks for that.”

“—!” The knight instantly perks up again at her words and water begins to drip from beneath the gaps in his full face-masking helmet. “Your words of praise honour me, my Lady.”

Sniffling under his helmet, the silver knight runs off to join a group of his comrades.

“She said she liked the lanterns! She even thanked us! I knew that last-minute decision would pay off!”

“Ah, it’s a shame about the trumpets though. If it’s late in the night, we should probably use harps or something instead.”

“Wait, I don’t mind learning the harp, but harps are pretty big, right? How would she walk across us if we were playing the harp?”

“Yeah, it’s gotta be a flute or something instead! I even removed all the padding from my gambeson so I could feel her boots dig into my back!”

No longer pressured by the silent tension, murmur and chatter begin to fill the air once again.

Fwah! Who is this woman?! After a big entrance like that, she’s gotta be some kind of a big deal! She’s really small and super cute too! Totally my type! Although she’s noticeably taller than Mei-Mei, her height is still only a little above the average goblin. From my guess, she’s probably another dwarf.

“Who is that?” I nudge Mash and point over at the little dwarf woman, currently being served drinks and snacks from atop her throne. “She’s cute!”

“What, were you raised in the Underground or something?” Mash responds sarcastically. “That’s Queen Kokoro la Peppyseed. I don’t know what she’s doing here though...”

Queen, huh? There’s been a lot of talk of queens lately. The Demon Queen, the Queen of the Desert Elves... What’s this one the queen of? The Dwarf Queen, maybe? Although, from all the knights around her, there doesn’t seem to be anyone else of her size around.

“Queen of what?” I ask.

“Of what? Well, I guess she’s the Queen of—”

“Everything.” Overhearing our conversation, the tall golden knight—still kneeling next to the throne—interrupts Mash with an answer to my question. “Lady Kokoro is the Queen Who Stands Above All. The One True Queen. Anybody claiming otherwise is a liar and a fool. Banish the thought of any false kings or queens from your mind.”

“Nuh-uh!” I argue back. “Gluttony and Lust are real queens! And they’re both one of the Seven too! That makes them, like, double real!”

“What!?” Seething in anger the golden knight clenches her fists as she spits her words. “Your insolence towards Lady Kokoro is—!”

“Lemon.” She’s suddenly silenced by the Queen herself. From atop her oversized throne, she leans over and raps her ringed fingers across the knight’s shoulder. “Don’t be like that. I don’t particularly mind, you know? It’s fine.”

“But, my Lady—”

“And why are you still kneeling? I told you you don’t have to do that. Now you’ve gotten your armour all dirty.”

“M-my apologies...” Looking a little defeated behind her full helm, the golden knight—Lemon—stands up and bashfully brushes the clumps of dirt from her legs.

“And what happened to your trident?” the Queen adds. “You look kinda silly just standing there holding nothing.”

“My— Ah. I... I threw it. At the troll over there. It’s probably somewhere in the woods behind the camp, I think...”

“You threw it? Into the woods? That’s gonna be a pain to find. I’ll help you look for it after we’re done here. It can’t have gone too far.”

“N-no, you needn’t trouble yourself for me. It should have left a path of destruction through the trees. It should be easy enough to follow.”

Queen Kokoro is a lot more chill than I figured she would be. I can see why she’s so well-liked. From the way she casually chats away at her, she seems to care about her aide, Lemon, a lot too.

From my side, Mash leans in close and whispers in my ear. “You mentioned Gluttony and Lust before but it sounded like you didn’t know...”

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“Fweh? Know what?”

“Queen Kokoro la Peppyseed is one of the Seven too. She’s Greed. But don’t say it to her face, I don’t know how she’ll—”

“Fweh?! Greed?!” I exclaim loudly, attracting the attention of everyone packed into the camp. “You’re Greed?!”

She doesn’t look very strong and my back muscles aren’t reacting to her at all. But there is certainly an air of dominance about her. Maybe she’s somehow hiding her true strength. Or maybe her strength lies not in brute strength, but in something else entirely...

As all eyes fall on the queen atop her throne to see how she’ll react, she simply turns her head my way and raises an eyebrow.

“Greed, huh? Is that what they’ve been calling me? I had no idea.” Her lips curl up into a sly smile. The knowing smirk of somebody who knows more than they’re letting on. “How fitting.”

“Lady Kokoro, let me cut down this insolent—!”

“Anyway, Lemon,” she continues, not giving her golden attendant any time to get angry at me again. “Would you mind finally explaining to everyone what exactly it is we’re doing here?”

“Hm? Ah, of course.” Taking a step forward, the golden knight clears her throat and raises her voice above the chattering crowd packed into the camp’s centre. “The initial purpose of Lady Kokoro’s departure from the Royal Capital was to look into the destruction of Surstrom Spire first-hand. Shortly after arriving, our Lady immediately expressed a desire to leave, suggesting we take a shorter route through the wooded trail for our return home. For what purpose, I did wonder. But soon did the answer become clear!”

Behind her, Queen Kokoro lets another mischievous smirk cross her lips.

“It was to put an end to this rebellion! To punish the fools attempting to break the laws upheld by our esteemed Lady herself!” the golden knight finishes, head held high in admiration for her queen.

“Th-that’s impossible!” a slave shouts from the crowd. “You came from Surstrom Lake? That’s hours away! There’s no way she could’ve caught wind of the rebellion and made it here in such a short time! Not even the slavers knew about it until the moment we broke free!”

The knowing smirk only grows wider in response.

“No... She’s known as the Omniscient Overlord, right? The queen who knows all, sees all, and stands above all...”

“You know, I don’t think Mistress Thea even reported our camp to the Capital yet either. She said it was a temporary campsite to take in the prisoners from the Spire’s collapse. Nobody should even know we’re here...”

“Then how did she...?”

As the slaves and slavers chatter away, the smirk on Queen Kokoro’s face only grows wider and wider. She’s clearly enjoying herself. After absorbing the comments of disbelief at her all-knowing foresight, she finally speaks up again.

“Prisoners from Surstrom Spire, huh? What a lucky break that must’ve been. That’s gotta be a big payout, right?”

The slavers all fall silent at her words, looking away guiltily.

“It’s awfully opportunistic, isn’t it?” Lemon nods. “As a deterrent for crime, the law allows licensed slavers to hunt and capture criminals before selling them into slavery. This goes for the capturing of monsters too, of course. However, taking advantage of such a monumental tragedy for personal gain, especially one so fresh... Awfully opportunistic indeed.”

“...” The slavers don’t say a word. Even Mash is looking away awkwardly.

“How should we punish them, my Lady? Shall I cut them all down?"

“No, no, we don’t need to go that far.” Waving off her knight’s suggestion, her face lights up, as if just coming up with an idea. “Oh! There was a tournament coming up in the Capital soon, right? When was that again? I wanted to go see it.”

“Hm? A tournament, my Lady? As you know, there’s scheduled to be one next week, but why are you bringing that up right—?” With a short gasp, the golden knight suddenly stumbles backwards in surprise as if coming to a sudden realization. “N-no way... Has this all been a part of your plan from the very start?”

Queen Kokoro only responds with another knowing smirk.

“How long...?” Lemon asks, still in shock. “How long have you planned this out? From the upcoming slave exhibition in the Capital, to the collapse of the Spire, and to the exact night of this rebellion... Just how far have you seen ahead? As always, I am in complete awe of your unfathomable wisdom and foresight.”

"Sure," the Queen responds simply, a smirk still on her face. "Ah, I told you to stop kneeling. You're gonna get dirty again."

A tournament? It seems Queen Kokoro’s been planning something big for a while now. Something that involves us somehow. I don’t really get it, but it sounds exciting! Although, fighting off hundreds of silver knights, one big gold knight, and one little Greed sounds like it might’ve been fun too!

“Rejoice at the mercy of your Queen!” Lemon steps forward again, addressing the crowd. “She has decided upon your punishment and it is a most lenient one! In addition to the upcoming exhibition of slaves in the Capital, there shall be a tournament as well! Commanded by their masters, slaves from all across the land shall fight one another in combat! The winning slaves and their owners shall be personally rewarded by Lady Kokoro herself! Of course, that reward includes the right to freedom, if that is what you so desire!”

There are some agitated murmurs from amongst the crowd.

“This is bullshit!” One slave speaks up. “Why should we have to fight for this scum to gain our freedom!”

"Yeah! I was from the Spire! I was doing my time like I was supposed to! What happened to punishing the slavers for taking advantage of the collapse?!"

“I heard Lady Kokoro was working to abolish slavery! Not enforce it! Was that all just a lie?!”

I don't know what all the other slaves are so up in arms about. A slave tournament sounds great! What's not to love about beating the snot out of one another in mortal combat? In fact, where's that one guy who interrupted my date with Cinnamon? Let's get this fight started right here and now!

“Silence!” Lemon shouts over the heated protests. “Lady Kokoro la Peppyseed is a ruler who does what’s best for her subjects. Know your place and fall in line, lest I cut you down for your insolence!”

And just like that, the protests are brought to rest, the defeated slaves realizing there’s nothing more they could possibly do in this situation.

“Well, I’m tired. Let’s go home now.” Yawning, Queen Kokoro slides off of her throne and onto the dirt. “Ah, right, we gotta go find your trident first. Which way did you say it was?”

“There’s really no need to trouble yourself with me, my Lady! Ah, please stay on your throne! Your boots will become dirty!"

“Hah! Like you can talk! Look how dirty yours are! Come on, let’s go.”

“V-very well...”

Happily chatting away, the two women walk off in the direction of the troll, still bleeding out across the floor. In the meantime, the silver knights begin rounding up slaves and escorting them into the back of caged carriages, the fires of rebellion in their eyes replaced by the hollow stares of despair that I was more used to seeing from them when I had first arrived here.

“Ah, my Lady, about Sir Grave. We sent him back to the Capital on our fastest carriage along with our best medics. If you didn’t find his body along the shore when you did, he surely would have perished by now.”

“Mm. Very good.”

Hm? Grave? I feel like I heard a familiar name from the Queen and her aide just now but nothing’s coming to mind. Oh well.

“Hey! This troll’s still alive somehow!” A slaver shouts out to his comrades. “Someone find that little pink-haired dwarf with the smart mouth! Have her fix this thing up before we move out to the Capital!”

“On it!”

As knights and slavers run back and forth across the camp—making preparations to leave for the upcoming tournament—a group of the silver soldiers approaches me and are quickly waved away by Mash.

“Ah, it’s okay. This one’s mine,” he says.

Nodding, the knights leave us to find some other slave to drag away.

Taking a seat at a nearby bench, we watch the surrounding commotion in silence for a while before Mash eventually breaks it with a sigh.

“So?” he asks. “What did you want to do?”

“You know what I wanna do. The question is, what do you wanna do?”

Mash sighs again, lifting his red and white cap for a moment to wipe away the sweat streaming down his greasy forehead.

“You know, I had a dream once,” he says, gazing up into the blue moon. “When I first became a slaver, I wanted to be the very best. Like no one ever was...”

“Mm.”

“To catch and train them... Travelling across the land, searching far and wide...”

“Mm.”

“I quickly learnt just how impossible that dream was... That somebody like me could never become a slave master. I had lost all hope of ever achieving that dream from all those years ago...”

“... And now?”

Taking a moment of silence to continue gazing up into the moon, he eventually turns to me. “Let’s do it!” he says, a newfound fire burning in his eyes.

A wide grin spreads across my face. “You sure? There’s no take-backs. If we enter that tournament, I’m in it until the end!”

Jumping to his feet, Mash balls up his chubby little fists in determination.

“It’s you and me! Let’s win it all! We can— No, we will win it! I know it’s our destiny!”

“Fwahaha! Now you’re talking, Mash!” I jump to my feet as well and laugh up into the sky. “Pepper Black is a woman who will become the strongest slave in all the land! Fwahaha!”

In response, Mash grips the rim of his cap and swivels it around on his balding head, turning it backwards.

“That’s right!” he says. “And I’ll finally become the slave master I’ve always dreamed of becoming! Soon, the whole world will know the name Mash Ketchup!”

Fwah~! This is gonna be so much fun!