Thirty minutes later, in the previous throne room…

Cycelia enters the old throne room, interrupting the gathering of magnates sitting around a long table as they turn their gazes to her.

「Queen Cycelia… What can we do for you?」

Sir Vinis asks, interlocking his fingers as he leans onto the table with his elbows.

「Sir Vinis, is the new government building usable yet?」

She asks as she leans onto the table with her hands, emerald eyes focused on the long-haired magnate's face. He glances at his ministers then meets Cycelia's gaze.

「…It's incomplete, but the bulk of the ground floors should be complete. Why do you ask, your highness?」

He shrugs his shoulders, his hair flowing down them like a waterfall.

「I'd like you to move this meeting room there and return the throne to its place before the messengers return.」

Cycelia straightens out, speaking with a serious face. Her words appear to stir the magnates, and they are now rapidly exchanging glances.

「…If that's what you wish, your highness. Well then, gentlemen, let's call a break. I shall arrange the move. Let's reassemble there in say… Two, three hours' time?」

Sir Vinis asks, spreading his hands as he looks at the men sitting around the table. They nod, then the entire gathering stands up.

「Thank you, Sir Vinis.」

Cycelia nods in gratitude as he approaches her.

「Please, I'm only doing what I have been tasked with… Should I be here when the messengers return, your highness?」

He asks, briefly bowing his head with his hand on his shoulder.

「Yes, I'd like you to be. Straf will be there too. It's an important matter. I will listen to what King Telas has to say with a calm heart, but I'm also ready for war.」

Cycelia nods, smiling lightly through the concern on her beautiful face, gently furrowing her brows with her hands held in front of herself.

「As you wish, your highness… Now excuse me, I have to make arrangements for the move. Until later, your majesty.」

Sir Vinis bows again and steps out of the room. Cycelia turns her emerald eyes to where the throne was, now mere empty steps that lead to nowhere, and lets out a sigh…

…

In the afternoon, in Telas Kingdom, in the throne room…

「Greetings, King Telas!…」

A man with a serious expression on his face enters the throne room. Guards at the sides of the room watch him carefully as he approaches the bored, middle-aged man in the throne.

「And who might you be?」

The man wearing a golden crown on his head asks, looking at the visitor with bored eyes.

「…I am a messenger from Queen Cycelia of Redwing Kingdom. Your men have attacked and razed Hohenplatz, a village by your kingdom's border. She demands an explanation.」

The messenger stops ahead of the throne's steps and speaks in a grim tone. The king's head perks up from his fist in surprise, brows furrowed.

「What? What are you talking about? I've ordered no such thing.」

King Telas replies, straightening out on his throne. His aides by his side start whispering something amongst themselves.

「Yet a village has been destroyed, and we have evidence your men had done it. The queen demands an envoy to speak for you. If you refuse, she will consider it a declaration of war.」

The man below the throne replies. One of the king's aides finishes whispering to the rest, and leans into his ear to whisper to him.

「…This is nonsense. Why would my men to attack your kingdom? You are our gem mines' main buyers. Our armies are about equivalent, and I'm not a warmonger.」

The king asks, throwing his hand up as his aide rejoins the rest. The whole group watches the messenger with sharp glares.

「With all due respect, King Telas, but you are wasting your breath on me. You should tell this to your envoy, we will take him back to the kingdom.」

The man says, and points his hand at the door behind him. King Telas looks at his aides, then returns his eyes to the messenger, tapping his temple deep in thought.

「…Wait here.」

The king stands up and walks down the steps. His aides follow him to a side room…

…

Five minutes later, in the side room…

「Yes, my liege?」

A man asks as he enters the room, King Telas is sitting around a table with his aides, all bearing grim expressions on their faces.

「…You are going to Redwing Kingdom. There's been an incident at the border. A village has been razed, and they claim it was my men. I have not ordered any attack.」

The king stands up and approaches up to the envoy.

「Should I tell them it was a bandit attack, then?」

The envoy nods, and asks.

「I don't know if it was, they claim to have proof, but they also may be making things up. One thing is certain, I do not want a war with Redwing Kingdom if I can help it…」

「Understood, your highness.」

「…Their messengers will take you back with them. Insist to the queen that I am willing to find and punish the perpetrators if the men acted out of line. Now go.」

King Telas says, and nods towards the doorway as he walks past the man.

「Yes, your highness! Right away!」

Nodding repeatedly, the envoy follows him with a bent back and lowered head. The aides move to follow the king back to the throne room.

「…This is my envoy, he will speak to the queen for me. I deny any and all allegations of an attack on her kingdom. She is too hasty to speak of war, when it could have been bandits.」

The king points his hand at the envoy approaching the messenger while he himself returns to the throne, aides joining his side up at the steps again.

The envoy greets the messenger with a polite bow of his head. He replies with the same.

「I will relay your words, but your man will have to speak for you beyond that, King Telas. Farewell.」

The queen's messenger bows along with the envoy, then both turn to leave. The king taps his temple with his finger, then begins rubbing his short beard with his free hand…

…

In the evening, in Redwing Kingdom's capital, in the royal palace…

Two messengers and the envoy from Telas Kingdom return, approaching the throne while the plumed guards stand at attention, watching the stranger with halberds in their hand.

Cycelia is sitting on her throne, jeweled crown on her chestnut head, sitting on top of her royal mantle. Draped over her shoulders, it flows down the throne. The captain of the guard, Sir Vinis, and Straf are standing beside her throne while she watches the man with a serious expression on her face.

「Queen Cycelia, I bid you good evening…」

The envoy bows low, his arm on his other shoulder.

「I assume you have been informed what this is about?…」

She asks, tilting her head ever so slightly. The man nods and straightens out.

「…Yes, your highness. Your messengers have informed me of everything.」

Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

He glances at one of the men standing beside him then returns his gaze back to the queen.

「Since you have come here, I will presume at the very least that King Telas doesn't wish for a war… And yet his men have razed Hohenplatz by your border…」

Cycelia glares at the man with cold eyes, but her voice remains neutral.

「…Now some of the survivors have made it to the city, and are telling the tale of「Men of King Telas」that have「come to take what's theirs」and such. How do you explain it?」

She adds, throwing her hand up with a lightly angered frown on her face.

「First of all, please allow me to say that King Telas denies any allegations that it was his doing-」

The envoy spreads his hands as he explains. Straf immediately scoffs.

「Of course he does! He wants another bite!」

He exclaims, grinning and pointing his hand at the man below with his eyes turned towards Cycelia.

「Straf, let him speak their words first… Then we shall see.」

Cycelia says to Straf, briefly glancing up at his handsome, smug face before returning her angry emerald eyes to the envoy.

「…As I was saying, King Telas denies that he had ordered the attack. There is peace between our kingdoms, and your kingdom is a large buyer of our gems.」

「I am aware. But we have witnesses, both the survivors and the adventurers we have sent out to investigate, as well as hard evidence in form of photos.」

She replies, expertly veiling her anger with none of it leaking into her serious but neutral tone.

「…Excuse me, photos? What is that?」

The envoy's head perks up as he asks, glancing at the kingdom's messenger at his sides for answers. They shrug.

「You want to see the photos? Here they are!」

Straf declares with a smug grin on his face, and throws a file folder towards the man. It spins wildly through the air.

Fwap!

As it lands, photos of the Hohenplatz incident spill onto the floor at their feet. Furrowing his brows, the envoy's eyes dart between him and the floor before he squats down, and picks them up.

「…And how do you explain that? Are these not men of King Telas? Is it not his heraldry? Is that not your flag?」

Cycelia asks in an increasingly accusative tone as the man stands up, pointing her hand at the man while he browses through the photos with his brows greatly furrowed in confusion.

「They are, but… Your highness, these could be paintings! Anyone could have-」

The man replies, confused. The queen cuts him off.

「Silence!…」

She shouts in an authoritative tone that makes the envoy jump, Sir Vinis snap his eyes to her, and the guards suddenly stand at attention. Straf raises his brows in mild surprise.

「…Such a ridiculous excuse. Paintings? Of that detail, that quickly, combined with testimonies of the adventurers? And now the survivors that are confirming everything?」

Cycelia asks, glaring at the man. The anger on her face becomes apparent.

「I- Well… All I'm saying is-」

「Filthy liar! How dare you!? You think the queen is stupid!?」

Straf shouts as well, pointing at the man while descending down the steps. He points his hand back at Cycelia in her throne, staring at the envoy with cold, emerald gaze.

「N- No, I'm just-」

The man stammers. His eyes dart left and right towards the scowling, plumed guards.

「The king sent you to lie! Admit it! Guards! Seize that liar!」

Straf continues accusing the man, then commands the plumed guards with a wave of his hands. Alarmed, the man's head swivels left and right as the armored clatter of armor nears him. Straf looks at Cycelia, meeting her gaze. She stares at him, silent, watching the situation with the same unchanged expression. Straf watches the guards twist the man's arms behind him, then force him to his knees and lower his head.

「That's not true! That's not true at all! I'm only relaying what his words are!-」

The man's eyes widen when Straf produces a sword from a whirling purple vortex that has appeared out of nowhere. Just as suddenly as it appeared, the vortex vanishes.

「Then there's the other option… You're a sacrificial pawn! You don't actually know anything! You're lying out of ignorance, rather than malevolence!…」

Straf shouts, pointing at the frightened man's face. It only twists further into terror when he raises his sword. Cycelia remains silent, glaring at the envoy.

「…So which one is it!? Are you a loyal liar ready and willing to lie his life down for the king, or a stupid, innocent dimwit who knows nothing!?」

He asks menacingly. Cycelia only briefly glances at Straf's face before returning it to the man. The guards lower him further to expose his neck, and retract their arms out of the way.

The two messengers standing at their sides exchange nervous, tight-lipped glances between each other and remain silent as they watch the situation unfold.

「…Well!?」

Straf shouts, and the man gulps while he's staring at the blade above his head.

「I- I…」

The man's terrified eyes jump between the queen, her armed aide threatening him with a weapon, the tight-lipped captain of the guard beside her, and the cold-eyed guards.

「…I know nothing. Please don't kill me.」

The man says as he lowers his head, clenching his teeth in dismay. Cycelia sighs, and her gaze softens.

「…Straf, that's enough. Guards, release him.」

She commands with a wave of her hand towards Straf and the guards. He shrugs and throws the sword back into [Portable Storage], while the guards let go and step away.

「…Lia, I think there is only one reasonable option left.」

Straf says, spreading his arms with a tight-lipped grimace as he's returning to the throne's side. The terrified man stands up, and she stares at him pensively in silence.

「…Tell King Telas this… I have no taste for blood, I will be merciful even now. Avoid the unnecessary bloodshed. Surrender, or you will be crushed.」

She says after a long, intensive moment of thought, staring at the man with a light frown. The envoy nods his head rapidly and powerfully, too frightened to reply.

「That is my message to King Telas. I still don't know or understand why he had done this, but I will not be made into a fool…」

Cycelia stands up, her mantle flutters behind her from its own weight.

「…Too many people have tried to take a bite out of the kingdom my father and his father before him had built. I will not allow King Telas or anyone else to dismember it. Go.」

She adds, walking up to the man. Her tone once again bears no hostility, but her face is serious and bordering on scowling.

The man rapidly nods his head again, bows low, then runs out of the throne room. Straf chuckles, nodding in approval as he joins Cycelia's side…