How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom: Volume 10 (Premium)

by Dojyomaru

  Halbert was dumbfounded.

  Souma had felt just as threatened by Fuuga, but he’d been thinking about it in an entirely different way.

  Halbert had thought they needed a single person who could defeat the man, but Souma had been thinking of a way to win using a large group that included Halbert.

  Because of Souma’s weakness, he wasn’t picky about the methods he chose to survive.

  Halbert felt the scales falling from his eyes.

  “I don’t necessarily need to beat Fuuga?”

  “I told you, didn’t I? If you can, nothing would be better. But don’t push yourself too hard. In order to convince the people you’re a great man who’s Fuuga’s equal, the first priority is for you to survive. That sort of heroic figure will provide emotional support to the people. That’s why, no matter how dirty it is, you and Ruby have to survive together.”

  “You make it sound so simple,” Halbert said slowly.

  Standing in front of Fuuga and surviving wasn’t going to be easy.

  However, it would be a lot easier than being expected to beat him. Just for that... he felt it was worth having come here today.

  Halbert smiled a little and waved his hand. “Thanks for hearing me out. Well, I’m gonna head off now.”

  “Hmm, you’re done already? Wait, your wedding’s close, too, isn’t it? Should you really be hanging around here?”

  Halbert laughed. “I’m on the last training retreat I’ll get to take as a single man. I’ve got to become strong enough to fight equally with Fuuga thanks to a certain king, after all.”

  He said that a little spitefully.

  ◇　◇　◇

  It happened while Halbert was on a journey to train and reevaluate himself.

  Kaede and Ruby, having seen him off on his journey, were staying at the House of Magna’s mansion in Randel. Because the extended leave they’d been granted was about a month long, they had been using it to relax and wash off the grime of the campaign trail.

  And today, in the House of Magna’s dressing room, Ruby was trying on the wedding dress she would wear at the ceremony.

  “W-Well, what do you think?” Ruby asked, looking down at her pure white dress. It was a simple, clean color, and the contrast with Ruby’s blazing red hair made her look very pretty.

  When a dragon transformed into human form, their clothing was made of their transformed scales, and it wasn’t possible to change them to differ from their body color. So, red for Ruby, and black for Naden.

  That meant that to put on the pure white dress she was wearing now, Ruby had temporarily made her scale clothing disappear and become naked before putting on the prepared dress.

  Using this method, the dragon race could partake in fashion. But, unlike the outfits made of their own scales that transformed with their bodies, ordinary clothing would be torn to shreds when they transformed into dragon form. So if they wanted to transform, it would require getting naked.

  Ruby spun around in front of the mirror, letting out a sigh of delight. “What a lovely dress...”

  “Hee hee, it really looks good on you,” Halbert’s mother Elba said, pressing a hand to her cheek as she looked at Ruby’s dress.

  Kaede stood at her side, smiling. “It really does suit you, you know, Ruby.”

  Ruby smiled bashfully. “Thanks, Kaede.”

  Elba nodded in satisfaction. “Because our hair colors are so close, it feels like you’re my real daughter, seeing you like this. I was grateful just to have Kaede, who I’ve known since she was young, come marry into our family, but to have you, too, Ruby... My boy is so blessed.”

  “N-No, that’s not true,” Ruby said quickly.

  “Yes, it is. Honestly... How could that boy leave his adorable brides to go off traveling by himself? Glaive’s just as bad, too, getting him fired up to do it. When he gets back, make sure Halbert does plenty of what the two of you want from him. You have my permission.”

  “Ahaha... We’ll do just that, you know,” Kaede replied with wry smile.

  Incidentally, Glaive had gotten an earful from Elba when she’d learned the reason Halbert had left on his journey.

  “It was fine to hear him out, but sending him on a journey was going too far. Think of those two poor girls who were left behind! You need to understand women’s feelings more!” And so on, and so on.

  Kaede and Ruby had interceded saying, “He did it with our permission,” mollifying Elba, but Glaive had been forbidden contact with his two daughters-in-law-to-be for a while as punishment.

  The punishment was quite a shock to him, apparently, so Glaive was staying shut up in his room and sulking.

  Kaede smiled wryly, remembering that fact.

  As Elba pinched the sleeve of the wedding dress Ruby was wearing, she narrowed her eyes. “Let me tell you about this dress. It’s the one I wore when I came to marry into the House of Magna, you know.”

  “Huh?! It is?!”

  Elba giggled. “Yes. I’ve never had a daughter, so I was wondering when it would ever see the light of day again. I’m sure the dress is happy to have you wear it.”

  “I-Is it okay to let me wear something so important?! R-Rather than me, shouldn’t the head wife, Kaede, be the one to wear it?!”

  Kaede smiled wryly. “In the House of Foxia, we have our own garments for these sorts of wedding ceremonies, you know. My elder brother has already inherited the house, but there is a traditional outfit our women are supposed to wear. We’re a family that originally drifted here from the Nine-Headed Dragon Archipelago, you see.”

  The wedding outfit used by the House of Foxia was a pure white shiromuku, a colorful iro-uchikake, and a long-sleeved hikifurisode, closely resembling the Japanese style wedding dresses of Souma’s world. The House of Foxia wanted Kaede to wear that traditional dress, so she wouldn’t be able to wear Elba’s dress.

  “That’s why I’m leaving the dress to you, Ruby,” Kaede said.

  “I see... But it sounds like your kimono will be lovely, too.” Ruby was delighted by the description of it.

  “Hee hee, it’s going to be pretty,” Kaede giggled. “But Aunt Elba’s dress is lovely, too. I’d have liked to wear it.”

  “Oh, then why don’t you wear both?” Elba clapped her hands as if she’d come up with a brilliant idea. “You’re both about the same height, so why not trade outfits halfway through the banquet? I’ll get permission from the House of Foxia.”

  “I think that would be lovely, but... recently, I feel like Ruby’s chest has been getting larger,” Kaede sighed, glancing at it.

  “D-Don’t look at me like that!” Ruby hurriedly brought her arms up to cover it.

  A dragon’s human form started out androgynous, but then changed to the sex which matched that of their partner. Ruby’s body was becoming more and more feminine, and Pai, whose knight had been a woman, was becoming a man.

  That said, Naden, who had contracted with Souma, was as puny as ever, so there was individual variation in how those changes manifested.

  As Kaede eyed Ruby’s chest with jealousy, Elba smiled wryly. “Well, you’ll just have to do what you can with padding there.”

  “The world is unfair, you know,” Kaede complained.

  “If Naden heard you complaining with your breast size, I think she’d snap...” Ruby commented.

  While the three of them were chatting, one of the servants entered the room with a knock.

  “My lady, there is a person who says they wish to meet with the three of you,” he told them.

  It turned out the person in question wanted to see Kaede and Ruby as well, so Elba had that person seen through to this room. It turned out to be a young man, accompanied by a dark elf girl of about twelve.

  “Oh?” Ruby said. “If I recall, you two were...”

  The dark elf girl bowed her head. “It’s been too long, Lady Ruby. And it’s a pleasure to meet you, madam. I am Velza, daughter of Sur, of the God-Protected Forest.”

  “Ahh, so you’re
Velza!” Elba said. “I’ve heard about you from Hal. If I recall, you were the girl Hal saved during that disaster.”

  Velza gave an energetic response. “Yes! I truly must thank you for what he did.”

  “Hee hee, what an energetic and adorable girl you are,” Elba said fondly.

  “So, what have you come for today?” Ruby asked. “What is your business here, Sir Sur?”

  Sur smiled wryly and shook his head. “Oh, no, I’m just here accompanying my daughter...”

  Velza stared hard at Kaede. “Fox ears... Would you happen to be the one who will become Lord Hal’s head wife, Lady Kaede?”

  “Huh? Uh... yes, I am. Why do you know my name?”

  “I heard about you before when Lord Hal and Lady Ruby came to visit the God-Protected Forest. I see... So you’re Lady Kaede.”

  Velza suddenly dropped to one knee, lowering her head.

  “I have come today with a request!”

  “A... a request?!” Kaede yelped. “Of m-me?!”

  “Yes! I... I want...” Velza raised her face, full of determination, looked straight at Kaede, and said, “I want to serve Lord Hal! Please, make me a retainer of the House of Magna!”

  It was decided they should talk this over calmly. After Ruby got changed, they moved to the reception room and listened to Velza speak.

  Velza brought a hand to her chest and explained her reasoning. “Lord Hal saved my life. I wish to repay that debt, and to swear loyalty to Lord Hal. We dark elves pride ourselves on remaining by the side of those we swear our loyalty to and defending them until the day we die. So, please, place me at your side.”

  “Now that you mention it... Madam Aisha did say something like that,” Kaede said, recalling Souma’s second primary queen to be.

  If she remembered correctly, the reason Aisha had become Souma’s self-imposed bodyguard was because she’d sworn loyalty to him.

  Seeing the seriousness in Velza’s eyes, Kaede and Ruby were taken aback, and Elba smiled, saying things like, “Oh my, oh my,” and, “Ah, to be so young again.”

  Kaede broke into a cold sweat as she asked, “But, in that case, shouldn’t you be asking Hal directly?”

  “When he came to the God-Protected Forest before, I did tell him subtly. However, Lord Hal thought it was a childish joke, and he wouldn’t take me seriously. He would only say, ‘When you get bigger.’”

  That dense oaf! Kaede and Ruby thought simultaneously.

  There was a faint romantic yearning visible through Velza’s words. Their fiancé’s complete inability to understand how serious the girl was gave both of them headaches.

  Velza kept on going. “You will be marrying Lord Hal soon, correct? That being the case, I wanted you, who will be his wives, to know my intention in advance. And I want your permission. When I am bigger, please, allow me to be at Lord Hal’s side.”

  Velza stared straight into Kaede’s eyes. Her seriousness was apparent.

  Ruby looked at Elba, but this time she only smiled, saying nothing. It seemed she intended to leave this to Kaede and Ruby.

  Meanwhile, Kaede stared probingly at Velza. There was a brief silence, and Ruby, who could no longer handle the stress in the air, cried out and clutched her head.

  “Augh! What is with this atmosphere? ...What do you think, Kaede?”

  Kaede was silent.

  She looked into Velza’s eyes and gently spoke. “You said you wish to serve Hal as a retainer of House Magna, but will you really be satisfied with just that?”

  “That’s...” Velza was suddenly at a loss for words.

  Kaede didn’t take her eyes off her.

  Velza, realizing she couldn’t hide the rest, honestly confessed her own feelings. “...No. That is the bare minimum, the least of my wishes I want granted. If Lord Hal has no intention of going further, I want to stay at his side as a retainer. However... in truth... if at all possible...”

  Velza worked up the courage to continue.

  “If at all possible, I would like to be Lord Hal’s wife. I wish to be at his side as his wife.”

  “I thought as much. That’s what it comes down to, then.” Kaede sighed. From what she’d heard so far, she’d anticipated this.

  For this girl, Halbert, who had rescued her from the sand and dirt, was a kind of prince on a white horse. In her mind, he probably looked three times cooler than he usually did.

  If I were in her position, I think I’d have fallen for him, too, Kaede thought. Honestly, you know. That Hal. When he’s cool once in a while, he really gets a girl going.

  While complaining in her head about her absent fiancé, Kaede thought hard.

  She’d learned through Aisha that if a dark elf swore her loyalty to someone, they would serve them until death did they part. If she rejected Velza here, that might only inflame her passion further.

  In addition, having a tie to the dark elves, who because of their previous insular tendencies had had few exchanges with the outside world, would not be a bad thing for the House of Magna.

  It was a hard offer for Kaede, who was marrying into the House of Magna as the head wife, to refuse.

  Hal has to be the one to make the final decision, but I’ll have to be prepared to accept her if it comes to that, Kaede decided. It’s a complicated feeling, but... I’ll need her to become someone deserving of my acceptance.

  Kaede resolved herself and then spoke. “Velza.”

  “Y-Yes?!”

  “How old are you now?”

  “Twelve.”

  “I see... In that case, I would like to impose one condition.”

  “...What might that be?” Velza asked hesitantly.

  “That you attend school in the capital Parnam beginning this spring, and you must successfully graduate.”

  “Sch-School?”

  While Velza was blinking, Kaede had taken on an extremely serious expression.

  “You wish to be of help to Hal, yes? I am aware that members of the dark elf race are excellent warriors. I think you have high potential as a martial artist. However, I am sure Hal will be flying to the front lines on Ruby’s back. This is not a place someone can accompany him half-heartedly, and I can imagine many scenarios where fighting alongside him would instead be a hindrance.”

  Velza was silent.

  “Thus, it will be important for you to provide support from the rear. If you are to be his partner, I want for you to master academics, and to be someone who can support Hal from off of the battlefield.”

  “To support Hal... That’s what going to school is for?” Velza asked.

  Kaede nodded. “I will leave the ultimate decision to Hal, but if you can graduate from either the Royal Academy or the Officers’ Academy, I will respect your intentions.”

  Elba had been watching in silence, but now she spoke. “Kaede, are you all right with that?”

  “There’s no helping it.” Kaede shrugged. “There is currently high demand for talented people in the kingdom. It will take at least four years to graduate from either school. If she learns academics, and still feels the same way four years from now, I have no reason not to welcome her.”

  “Honestly... you’re too good for Hal, you know that, Kaede?” Elba said, smiling.

  Kaede gave her an uncomfortable smile in return.

  Velza, who had taken on a thoughtful look after hearing the condition, nodded firmly. “Very well. I wish to learn in the capital, and four years hence, I will appear before Lord Hal as a lady befitting of the House of Magna. When that time comes, I will be in your care.”

  Velza bowed deeply to Kaede, Elba, and Ruby. Then, in a hurry to enroll, she dragged Sur off and they left.

  After seeing them off, Ruby asked Kaede, “Are you thinking, with four years, she’s bound to change her mind?”

  “From what I’ve seen of Aisha... I don’t think that’s going to happen. When the time comes, let’s resolve ourselves to welcome her warmly.”

  “Okay,” Ruby said slowly. “But was it really all right f
or us to discuss this without Hal?”

  “This is his own fault for being so damn cool. But... if I think about it, that girl wanted to become his subordinate. That means he’ll have a wife among his superiors, his coworkers” (his mount) “and his subordinates.”

  “That sounds... difficult. I feel a little sorry for him.”

  Kaede laughed happily. “He’ll have to suck it up. We’re going to work together from above him, beside him, and below him to see to it that, no matter how high he rises, no more girls fall for Hal.”

  “Count me in on that.”

  The first and second wife exchanged a firm handshake.

  “That boy’s such a troublemaker,” Elba said, still smiling.

  ◇　◇　◇

  Around the same time...

  “Achoo!” Halbert sneezed.

  Having met Souma in Parnam, Halbert was heading further east. Conveniently, there had been a unit heading to the island where the island carrier Hiryuu was stopped, so he had left his horse at the castle and taken a ride with them.

  Speaking to Souma had done a lot to lessen his fear of Fuuga.

  But that doesn’t mean I can be incautious. I have to protect Kaede and Ruby, after all.

  Pondering that, Halbert had decided to continue his voyage to reevaluate himself.

  And thinking about where best to train, he’d figured it had to be the Hiryuu, the home base of the Dratroopers he was the commander of.

  Upon reaching the Hiryuu, he immediately headed to where the members of the Dratroopers were training.

  “Hm? Commander?” one of them asked.

  “Weren’t you on leave with Young Miss Kaede?”

  “Didn’t you say you had a wedding to prepare for?”

  Halbert was supposed to be on leave at home with his fiancées, so the unit members looked at him like they’d seen a ghost.

  With a wry smile at their befuddled looks, Halbert shouldered his spears and casually said, “Well, you know, the home life was a little boring, so I came in to get a little exercise.”