“I’ve heard your three sons are very capable.”

It was on the fourth night, King Andorin’s fourth meeting with the Orc Lord, that those worrying words were spoken.

Upon the Monstress’s suggestion, his shadow had brought tea to their meeting, to help them both stay collected and focused during their midnight discussion. He knew magic to detect and cure poisons, as all royalty likely did, so he had no complaints about a little cup to calm his nerves.

His fingers curled tightly around the handle when his children were mentioned.

“They are all bright and clever boys,” he answered with a forced smile. “But I don’t think they have anything to do with what we were discussing.”

And even that previous topic was absurd. This cruel Queen insisted she possessed the technology to transport her army from one place to another in an instant, and she was negotiating to use that technology while fighting the harpies, so that they could arrive upon the battlefield at a moment’s notice and make a show of reinforcing Andorin’s troops.

What the hell did she want from him, hm? Did she mean to tell him there was nowhere he could run even if he tried to flee? Had she set up a similar apparatus within the palace already? Or did she simply want to drag him down as humanity’s enemy by revealing their alliance as flashily as possible?

Of course, his indirect inquiries about these matters had all turned up only gentle reassurances, but it was so obviously a malicious request; she could only possibly be trying to hide her hand and keep the specific form of betrayal a surprise.

“Our previous topic?” Queen Vyra tilted her head. “You’ve already agreed to the limited use of teleportation pads, no? So we can talk about something else now.”

King Andorin sighed, feeling the inside of his head start to throb from continued stress. If it was a topic she was trying to push after something massive like teleportation, then either it was something similarly grotesque that she wanted to downplay as a minor matter, or it was something even worse that she had been building up to.

Or possibly, she wanted to distract or taunt him after noticing his fatigue piling up.

Seeing no protest on his lips, the Monstress understood that she was free to continue, and she smiled.

“I feel we could learn a lot from each other, and it’s rather quiet during the day, so I’d like a chance to converse with them if I could.”

Again, the king’s grip tightened. Had he the strength of a knight, his cup would be broken at this moment, and it took a great deal of willpower to keep a scowl off his face.

He wished to stand up, point his finger, and shout, but this request was likely made with provocation in mind.

Tormenting me isn’t enough? You want to drag my children into this? he thought.

Or, it was possible, he was slated to die in this Monster’s plans, and she wanted to make a deal with whoever she would place upon the throne next.

When dealing with a sadist, it was hard to separate their hobbies from their plots. But this couldn’t be anything good.

But she’s said everything she’s said in front of me and my shadow up until now, the king thought. Either she hasn’t noticed him, or she doesn’t care if her plans are overheard.

In that case, letting them meet would be better, because he could send his shadow to guard his children and listen in on the conversation. He couldn’t possibly derail this Monster’s plans without knowing what they were. His children would have a hard time, but they would endure. The fate of their country was at stake, after all. He couldn’t back down from any chance to learn enough to prevent that.

The king pursed his lips and hesitated, as the above thoughts raced through his head in a mad flurry. “… Very well. That can be arranged. Would you like to speak with all three of them?”

“Yes, thank you, but one at a time please.”

The Orc Lord smiled, and King Andorin cursed in his heart. Disgusting.

***

First Prince Ryle Andorin was in a foul mood. He, for the first time in a very long time, had made what he acknowledged as a mistake.

His face was calm. Among his lessons, one of the most important was to look at ease even if the sky was falling down. But inside, his teeth were clenched and he was spitting while regretting his actions.

They were going to war. That was what his contacts in the adventurer’s guild had informed him before swiftly leaving the country.

He should have known. The rain, the weapons production; it was so obvious in hindsight.

If he had simply realized what was going on for himself and kept quiet about it, they might’ve been able to drag adventurers into the fight, but word would spread and they would all be gone before then.

While regretting his actions, the first prince began a mental exercise. What would he do in his father’s situation? Granted, his father hadn’t involved him, but this would be his duty someday. He had to improve. He had to be perfect.

The first thing was to look for allies. Never fight alone, the saying went. Never fight while outnumbered, and never fight for too long. The military was Verdi’s sphere, but Ryle at least knew enough to make good policy.

If it were possible, Ryle wanted to observe the discussions they would have with foreign allies. He stood to learn a great deal from them.

While thinking about when his father’s schedule was free in order for him to request to sit in on those meetings, a servant knocked at the door. Coincidentally enough, the king was summoning him.

***

Second Prince Verdi swung his sword more viciously than usual. Anger boiled in his heart, hotter than the mid-fall sun beating down on him.

In this part of the world, it would be blazing hot until they were suddenly plunged into winter.

But that was exactly why the second prince was subjecting himself and the royal guard to outdoor training. To take his anger out on them—er, to prepare them for a sweltering war.

Like his brother, Verdi had been investigating the rare metals their country had suddenly acquired. Originally, he was considering using adventurers for that task, but he figured his older brother would already be doing that, so he sent some soldiers in casual clothes instead.

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It took a while, but he finally learned that Claymore was preparing for war. And by the time he realized what that meant, dozens of adventurers had already begun fleeing the country.

How stupid Ryle must be feeling now, huh?

Verdi hadn’t made that same gaffe, luckily, but he still had cause to be angry.

Father hadn’t told him anything! That meant somebody else was going to be training and leading the soldiers during this war. After all of his hard work and efforts, he wasn’t even going to be the acting General for the first war in his lifetime?

With a parry and a kick, Verdi knocked back the soldier that was facing him. And called the match in favor of a water break.

Whatever. Even if he wasn’t the general, there was no way he wouldn’t be a commander. His father had to know this was an opportunity that couldn’t be missed when it came to his education.

Wiping his sweat with a towel and drinking water to replenish his lost fluids, Verdi rested in the shade. And then a servant approached him with an order to go and see his majesty.

***

Corinth had holed up in the archives once again. It had now been several days since the incidents he was investigating, so there was no need to intrude upon the chamberlain’s office: the relevant documents were filed away already.

He believed he had deduced the identity of the secret palace resident—at least the most important aspects of it.

Their nation was going to war with Claymore after the rainy season, and yet the foreign dignitaries who had come to visit all left without any notable fanfare or feasting.

For one reason or another, they must have refused to aid Andorin in this war.

In that case, it was most likely that the so-called “secret lady of the palace” was not the king’s mistress… but a foreign dignitary from a nation they normally wouldn’t be allied with.

Corinth imagined his father was a little desperate after being abandoned by his former allies. Perhaps he was negotiating an alliance with Espert, who had always hated the nations that stigmatized dark hair, as their own royal family possessed raven black locks.

The idea that something as superficial as hair color indicated one’s rightful place in society had always seemed ridiculous to Corinth. His father and brothers agreed also, that it was silly. But the common people absolutely clung to the idea. There were, in fact, no laws in Andorin that treated people any differently based on hair color. It was entirely a social construct enforced by the masses. But then you had nations like Espert and Baldira who hated and praised Andorin for what they couldn’t control.

Anyway, Espert was a candidate. But if he broadened his considerations, it was also possible that his father had reached out to the Demons in the far south. They had been known to meddle in human wars in the past.

Of course, there were plenty of other possible allies, but none that would have to be hidden so carefully.

Corinth tapped his cheek with the back of his pen, pondering the mystery in the quiet and dim archives. And then a knock at the door interrupted his thoughts.

***

King Rufus Andorin looked at his three sons with eyes full of tender concern. Even if they four were alone in his office, it was still ill-advised for a king to display his worry. The fact that he did caused anxiety to leak into the hearts of the three princes, though each of them had a glint of something hidden in their eyes.

Perhaps they’ve already realized it, to some extent, he pondered.

“You came quickly. Thank you for that,” the king started.

“Of course,” Prince Ryle put his hand on his chest and bowed neatly. “You took the time to summon us, after all, father.”

The other two princes nodded, keeping quiet. Perhaps they were being polite, or perhaps they simply hoped he would get to the point in short order.

“I’ve called the three of you today to announce some unsettling news, I’m afraid,” King Andorin lowered his chin. “Claymore is preparing for war against us.”

There was not a hint of surprise on his sons’ faces. So they knew.

Again, Ryle bowed. “Father, I would like to ask for permission to be present when we meet with our foreign allies.”

“And of course,” Verdi saluted, “I request to learn under whoever you’ve appointed as our acting general, father!”

Half amused and half miserable, the king glanced at his third son, Corinth, who was quiet despite being unsurprised.

Taking the cue, the young man quickly bowed, his movements ever so slightly awkward and unfamiliar. “Father… I would like to know which nation’s representative we’re currently hosting in the palace.”

The half-smile vanished from the king’s face. He sucked in a breath through his nose and released it through his mouth, clasping his hands in front of him. “… I’m impressed, Corinth. That you were clever enough to realize it… and wise enough to not stick your nose into it.”

Again, the king took a deep breath, clearly distressed, and Ryle in particular looked less confident than before.

“Father…?”

“Our allies,” Rufus began, “have refused to assist us in this war. I apologize, Ryle, but I met with them about a week ago.”

The first prince lowered his hand from his heart, standing straight with a completely blank, unreadable look on his face. Corinth respected his brother a bit for controlling his disappointment so well.

“Meanwhile, Claymore has somehow made peace with the nearby harpie population. We expect their two forces to fight us together.”

The corner of Verdi’s mouth twitched down.

“We are clearly at a disadvantage. A large one.” King Andorin paused once again.

Now, he was debating whether or not to tell the princes who had likely instigated this war. He decided that he didn’t have to, since they were all so clever. Better not to, in case his more expressive children gave away to the Orc Lord that he himself was suspicious of her.

“We did receive one offer for reinforcements,” he spoke carefully, “I would’ve liked to refuse, but we aren’t in a situation where we can be picky about our allies… A new Orc Lord has risen to prominence. For the past few days, I have been negotiating with her on the terms and extent of her support.”

Now, all three princes looked downright shocked. Rufus was glad because it meant his sons had a better opinion of him than what he deserved.

“Father—!” Verdi began to shout, but Ryle held up a hand to silence him. The second prince glared but yielded to his brother.

“We have several concerns,” Ryle stated, his expression and voice still unreadable. “Please explain the situation to us more thoroughly. For example, why a Monster wants to help us, and why you determined it was safe to accept that help.”

The king nodded. He responded to his first son’s good conduct by fixing his own bearing. Gone was the apologetic and concerned face of a father: now not a thing could be gleaned from it.

“Her name is Orc Lord Vyra. A few weeks back, she sent a letter here requesting trade between our nations. She wanted spices in exchange for magic metals. I was worried who she would offer that deal to next if I refused, so I accepted the deal.”

He bit his tongue regarding his secondary motive, which was to one day request her to revive his beloved from the dead. These days it felt like a monkey paw he shouldn’t ask for in the first place.

“She claims her motive for joining our side in this war is to protect a valuable trading partner, and simply because she likes war. By accepting her offer, we obtain an army of monsters to fight against the harpies. We can handle Claymore’s troops alone, as long as only our side has armaments made of magic metals. On the other hand, if I refused her offer, it was possible she would cut off our magic metals supply. She might even offer them to the other side instead, just to ensure she was able to participate in this war she so enjoys.”

King Andorin allowed his words to sink in for a moment. “Additionally, our allies will find it difficult to blame us for fighting alongside monsters as long as our enemy is doing the same. We stand to gain far more by accepting and lose far more by refusing.”

“I understand your reasoning,” the first prince said. Who knew how true that was? “If everything has already been decided, why are you telling us this? Is the war about to be officially announced?”

“Soon, I’m sure,” the king nodded. “Officially, we’re going to try and spin this as aid from an ordinary Orc Queen’s army. This is the first recorded appearance of a female Orc Lord, so it may be possible. Regardless, if we are confronted, we will claim not to know the true nature of our ally.”

“She’s here in the palace, isn’t she?” Corinth interjected.

The king was a little surprised to see his normally timid third son looking simply curious when discussing one of the greatest enemies of mankind. Personal growth in the midst of adversity… As a father, he was proud.

“She is,” he replied. “And she has requested to meet each of you.”