by Ryota Hori
An only natural reaction, as Ryoma’s muscular physique gave him the definite appearance of a man of brawn. If nothing else, the average first impression would be that he was the type to solve issues with his fists, rather than his head.
“You know about me?” Ryoma tilted his head at her surprised reaction.
“Why, of course I do. I may be retired, but I love this country deeply. I’m aware of most matters that go on in Rhoadseria. Even ten years later, to this day, there are still people who remember me... And they often bring me word of such events.”
A glance at Helena’s face made it clear to Ryoma she was keeping in touch with people from the knights’ faction.
I see... I suppose that’s a former general for you. This saves us having to explain everything... It’s a definite godsend.
The current state of affairs was that the knights’ faction didn’t hold absolute loyalty to the royal family, but that was mostly because General Albrecht sat at the lead, eyeing the throne greedily. Knights were normally those who swore fealty to the kingdom and the throne and served as a check to the nobles’ independent ambitions.
Though they abided by General Albrecht for the sake of their position and livelihoods, there could be more knights with doubts in their hearts than Ryoma had imagined, and Helena served as the receptacle of their concerns.
“I see. Well, I should consider it an honor that Rhoadseria’s White Goddess of War knows my name.”
“My... You do recall some old stories.” Helena’s face contorted, barely concealing the annoyance in her expression. “I’ve not been called by that title in ages...”
“Do you not appreciate that title?”
“That is all in the past for me now, after all... Incidentally, may I ask the reason for your summoning me here?”
Apparently, Helena preferred to not touch on that, from how she changed the topic.
“I shall cut to the heart of the matter. We want you to lend Princess Lupis your assistance and take up the position of this country’s general again.”
Helena’s expression stiffened. She likely hadn’t expected Ryoma to be this direct.
“My... Just as you say, you certainly do cut right to the heart of the matter.” Helena fell silent for a moment, only for lips to curl up in a smile. “But this certainly makes it easy to understand. I admire boys like you.”
Her tone and gaze somehow felt like it was appraising Ryoma.
“Why, thank you. So, what is your response?” Ryoma replied, meeting her glance squarely.
“Oh, I’ll have to deduct some points for that one. I may be old, but I’m still a woman. A man trying to coax a woman to do his bidding must never press for an answer like this.”
Ryoma smiled wryly and bowed his head apologetically at Helena’s teasing expression.
“Oh, sorry about that. Yes, pressing you like this goes against manners... Still, we don’t have the luxury of time.”
Ryoma then fixed a sharp gaze at Elena’s smiling face, and the silent pressure in his eyes made her flinch back for a second.
“My talk of manners and etiquette was all in jest, of course...” Helena began her retort after regaining her bearings. “But I do think I can’t be expected to answer without meeting Her Majesty in person first. Right?”
But Ryoma’s following words put the initiative back in his hands, just by how utterly unexpected they were.
“Oh, so you wish to meet Her Majesty, Lady Helena...? I’ll be honest, then. Frankly, we don’t have the time to waste on that.”
“‘“What?!”””
Ryoma’s statement went far beyond rudeness. It made it seem as if Lupis Rhoadserians was only a marionette. Those words made Helena, Meltina, and Mikhail all exclaim at once.
“Y-You fool! Do you intend to insult Her Highness?!” Meltina rose from her seat in rage, but Ryoma simply glared at her coldly.
His intense gaze seemed to coldly state, ‘Be quiet or I’ll kill you where you stand!’ His eyes delivered that message all too clearly to anyone who faced that glare.
Nailed down by Ryoma’s menacing gaze, Meltina sank back into her seat.
“My apologies... She just can’t get used to negotiations for the life of her...” Ryoma returned his gaze to Helena after ensuring that Meltina had quieted down.
“I’m surprised... You’ve quite the spirit for one so young.”
“Much obliged. But our survival is very much in the balance here.”
Helena took a deep breath, and her expression completely inverted. The gaze she directed at Ryoma made it clear that she wouldn’t forgive a single lie.
“So? Why is it impossible for me to meet Princess Lupis?”
Ryoma met her gaze head on with a shrug of the shoulders.
“If meeting Princess Lupis is all it would have taken to get you to join, you’d have approached the castle of your own volition by now... Am I wrong?”
This woman had been in retirement for ten years and was now being asked to return to service. The conditions for her cooperation were bound to be extraordinary, and Helena saw little value in money or fame. Having risen to the rank of general, she likely wasn’t troubled financially, and there wasn’t an offer one could make her that stood above her existing reputation as a national hero.
And loyalty to the royal house wasn’t an option, either. This woman rose from being a commoner to the rank of general; if this could persuade her, she’d have picked either Princess Lupis’s or Princess Radine’s side by now.
But she didn’t. She had kept her position hidden until now, as if to say she couldn’t judge which side had more legitimacy. Perhaps she didn’t care about it to begin with.
“I see. Your reasoning is sound enough... But the question begs asking. If you know that much, why bother to call on me?”
“Because we require your help at any cost,” Ryoma said, reflecting on her words with a sigh.
“Oh?” Helena’s expression clouded over. “Are you implying you’ll force me to cooperate against my will...? I cannot help but conclude that you are patronizing me.”
If neither gain nor reasoning would sway her, then perhaps resorting to force would. Helena’s face contorted with scorn.
“I had some expectations upon hearing Princess Lupis had a tactician on her side, but I seem to have judged you too favorably.”
“Spare me the bad jokes.” Ryoma shook his head at Helena’s look of disappointment. “The thought of doing something so rude never even crossed my mind.”
“What did you intend to do, then?”
Ryoma responded to her question with a smile.
“Money and fame won’t move you. But you accepted Princess Lupis’s letter and came to meet us here in the castle. That means there’s room for negotiation, yes...? You likely have something you want. Something you can’t achieve on your own... Am I wrong?”
Ryoma was in complete control of the atmosphere in the room. No one dared speak, out of sheer astonishment.
“Right... I see.” Helena eventually whispered. “You are a sharp one.”
That whisper confirmed Ryoma’s conjecture was correct.
“Then, why don’t you tell me what is it I wish for...? Depending on your answer...” Helena gazed at Ryoma with black flames in her eyes. “Very well, then. I will lend my strength to Princess Lupis.”
“Understood... Honestly speaking, I think I have an idea as to what your wish might be.”
Meltina and Mikhail reacted with surprise to what Ryoma said, but Helena’s expression made it seem as though she’d expected as much.
“As you should... There’s no hope for you if you can’t be expected to piece together that much.”
“All the same, I don’t have proof yet.”
“Hmph... It is difficult to tell whether you’re cautious or just a coward...”
As she placed a hand on her chin, pretending to be deep in thought, Helena fixed her gaze on Ryoma, as if she was trying to see into the depths of his mind...
If his heart were to betray even a hint of fear or hesitance, she would never forgive him, but Ryoma met Helena’s gaze with composure. All to make her acknowledge his worth...
“But I suppose if we’re putting resourcefulness to the test, that kind of caution is a necessary evil... Very well. I shall grant you some time to think, and then you will have your answer.”
Helena saw the will in Ryoma’s eyes, and that made her want to wager over it. Wager her own life...
This boy... Is he what I’ve been waiting for...? The final piece of the puzzle I’ve been waiting more than ten years for...?
It had been over a decade since she retired as a knight, but she didn’t do it of her own volition. She was forced to retire by that man...
By Hodram Albrecht and his schemes.
Rhoadseria’s White Goddess of War? Such a pompous title... How laughable... What Goddess of War would fail to protect even her own family...?
Helena’s lips twisted with scorn. Yes, she truly had been called a Goddess of War once. That name was widespread in Rhoadseria, of course, but was even sung by the neighboring countries. Helena was celebrated by all.
But Helena didn’t know. She didn’t know that the assassin’s blade was creeping in her shadow, its tip fixed against her family. She didn’t know that the more glory her name gained, the more it bought her the ire of others.
If this boy can see through my wish... If he had that much foresight and wisdom... Then my wish... My wish might still be granted!
Expectation and anxiety mingled in her eyes. The expectation that she could possibly see her wish granted, and the anxiety that the time was not yet right.
Ryoma could feel the stirring in Helena’s heart. She was holding great expectations for him, and whether he could answer them or not would be what steered this discussion.
Ryoma matched the information he’d looked up regarding her, and what he learned through their meaning, to piece together his hypothesis.
So she probably does want revenge against Hodram Albrecht after all...
Regardless of the ten years she spent in retirement, the will and vigor in Helena’s body was still that of an active commander, and she still held some influence over the knights. Putting two and two together, it seemed to Ryoma that the most probable motive for her actions was revenge. Adding to that was her expression when he called her Rhoadseria’s White Goddess of War; Ryoma clearly saw the contempt she held for her own title.
But... I don’t have any proof.
The reason as to why she retired as Rhoadseria’s general and faded into obscurity remained unknown. Anyone who knew the circumstances of that time were tight-lipped and refused to say a word about it.
I guess I’ll have to gamble on it...
Ryoma steeled his resolve. His hypothesis was conjecture and nothing more, and no matter how many theories he piled on top of each other, proof wouldn’t appear all on its own. All he could do was trust in the answer he’d assembled by piecing together what he’d researched so far with his impressions from this meeting.
“Do you... want revenge on Hodram Albrecht?”
“And why would I want that?” Helena regarded his answer with a dark smile.
“I sensed it when we met. You’re not retired as a knight. You haven’t neglected your training, and you keep savvy about the goings-on in the knights’ faction. But in practice, you retired more than a decade ago... Which means you didn’t retire of your own will. And after you retired, General Albrecht took over your position. I met him the other day myself, and right away he seemed to me like a person convinced of his own privilege. I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but... Lady Helena, you were born a commoner. You come not from the house of a noble or knight, but a commoner’s family. And from what I understand, Albrecht would never acknowledge you.”
Ryoma stopped for breath and directed a sympathetic look at Helena. The pained expression on her face told him his hypothesis was correct.
“After I learned of you, I looked into who you were, but found almost nothing about what happened in the period you retired. In all likelihood, someone is suppressing the information so it doesn’t become known. In which case, the most suspicious person is the General who took over your position, Albrecht.”
Silence fell over the room. Meltina and Mikhail were struck speechless at what Ryoma had just said. Their faith in Rhoadseria’s White Goddess of War was too great for them to easily swallow this story.
“Yes, if you could gather this much... You truly are a sharp one.” Her voice was filled with agony that seemed to reverberate from the depths of the earth.
The hatred she had kept bottled up was finally leaking out.
“I want Hodram Albrecht’s head on a pike... That man... killed my husband and daughter...”
Ten or so years ago, Helena Steiner was a general of Rhoadseria. She rose from commoner to knight, and from knight to general... Her unusual talents and accomplishments pushed her up to the highest ranks of the military, and she was admired by all in the kingdom.
But there was someone who scorned her background as a commoner. And what started as just hints of resentment grew thicker in direct proportion to her success. Just as intense light casts a dark shadow... That man’s name was Hodram Albrecht.
Hodram was blessed with an exceptional physique and talented with the martial prowess expected of a knight. He was born the eldest son of the Albrecht house, which had produced fine knights for generations, and was promised the role of family head. Hodram was the very image of the ideal knight but lacked only one thing— self-restraint.
Despite being superior to most people as a matter of course, Hodram was never satisfied. He’d reached the peak of what a knight could hope to accomplish, leading an order of knights, but craved more.
Yes, he wanted the highest position achievable in the Rhoadserian army. The rank of General.
The one who controlled all the knights’ orders in the kingdom, save for the two dedicated to the defense of the monarch, the Royal Guards. Though, depending on the situation, the king could even grant the general command over the royal guards, and in that regard the general could be seen as holding absolute power over the Rhoadserian military.
Traditionally, a general was eventually nominated by the king, but in order to gain the position, one would also need to be designated by the former general upon their retirement. It was, after all, a position that consolidated the power of a country’s military. One would obviously need the achievements and skill to hold this position. Candidates were vetted in terms of their character, ideology and even their blood relatives, with the king giving the final approval.
But what mattered the most was how much popularity and clout the person had from those around him. The question of how much trust the knights had in said candidate was of the utmost importance.
When the general preceding Helena retired, Hodram spun many schemes and ploys to heighten his standing among the knights. Bribery, threats, and promises of promotion. Behind the scenes, his plotting knew no limits in his effort to get his way.
And yet, Helena was chosen as the successor. Her sociable nature bought her the title of Rhoadseria’s White Goddess of War. The people lauded her fair and impartial attitude as the very image of what a Rhoadserian knight should aspire to be. It was only natural the retiring general would name her as his successor.
But Hodram didn’t give up easily. His inflated ego and notion of being a superior person couldn’t tolerate the idea of a commoner like Helena being above him, and he spun many schemes to drag her down from that position. Be it assassination or fabricated proof of corruption, he tried any idea imaginable to make Helena submit.
Helena cut through all those plans, with the help of her colleagues and friends among the knights. But as Hodram gradually lost his temper, the fangs of his malice finally reached Helena.
On that day, Helena returned home after a two-month campaign of suppressing a revolt sparked by a small governor of a terr
itory in the outskirts of the country. But when she opened the door to her house, no one came to greet her. Though she may have been a commoner, Helena was still in charge of the country’s military, and in order to keep up diplomatic appearances, she was given a respectable manor with several servants.
But oddest of all, there was no sight of her beloved ten-year-old daughter, who would always run to greet her. Suspicious, Helena moved to the living room, where her family usually was. And when she opened the door...
“The first thing I saw was my husband’s head...”
What she saw was a room splattered with crimson, and her husband’s freshly severed head resting on the table. He was likely killed after being viciously tortured, because his expression was one of agony.
Helena’s mind failed to accept the reality of what she saw, it seemed, because she could only recall awakening on a bed in her aide’s house several days later. Being a general was by no means an easy role, and a commander on the battlefield had a mountain of work to do. Even without a war to fight, a general watched over the results of the knights’ training and kept wary attention over the neighboring countries’ movements.
And so, the only day she could rest from the campaign was that same day she returned to her manor, and the next day she would need to draft and work through a mountain of paperwork. So thankfully, when she failed to arrive at headquarters for days, her aide grew suspicious and visited her house.
When her aide discovered her, Helena was squatted in her manor’s living room, hugging her husband’s head against her chest. Amid the smell of rusted blood and the decaying stench of the head, she sat, her eyes completely hollow.
Her aide took Helena, who had lost her grip on sanity, to his own home, and brought his colleagues to inspect her house. It was a crime scene, but letting the normal guards handle it was too dangerous. From what the aide had seen there, he suspected this wasn’t just some random brigand attack.
He was swiftly proven correct.
“They... left a letter behind. Saying they had my daughter. They demanded that I retire from being a knight.”