How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom: Volume 11 (Premium)

by Dojyomaru

  “Five days from now, on the 16th day of the 8th month, the castle will be holding the ‘Ghost Festival’! In the king... His Majesty Souma’s world, this is apparently a time when the boundary between this world and the next world becomes vague. And, in this festival, they welcome souls that wander into this world, in order to have them return to the next one!”

  Then, Juno twirled around to show off her costume.

  “On the day of the event, a parade of people dressed as ghosts (?) like we are now will walk and dance through the streets! If you have time, please, dress as a ghost, and have fun! Cute ghosts and scary ghosts are both welcome!”

  “Seeking participants. Feel free to jump right in.” That’s what it said on the sign Little Musashibo was holding.

  “Hah, look at them go.”

  On the terrace of a tavern not far from where Juno and her party were working, Souji Lester, the resident bishop, watched with a glass of wine in one hand. Next to him was the high elf and Genia’s research partner, Merula Merlin. Because Genia was being called to the castle frequently of late, work on the drill project had been put on hiatus. That being the case, she decided to go out for a drink with Souji since it had been a while, and they were now drinking in the middle of the day.

  “Is it okay to ignore them, Souji?” Merula asked with unfocused eyes as her pale skin flushed red from the alcohol. “Don’t religious figures hate it when you dress up as ghosts more than anyone?”

  “Well, yes, but... His Majesty spoke to me about it in advance,” Souji explained before throwing a piece of cheese into his mouth. “The day after, representatives from all the national religions will offer prayers, and send back any lost souls that wander in.”

  “He’s keeping up appearances then. But will there be complaints from the Orthodox Papal State?”

  “I’m sure there will, but I’ll dodge them, as usual. There’s been less nagging from Little Miss Mary’s faction lately, so that makes it easy. ...Though, it might just be that the Orthodox Papal State doesn’t have time to be worrying about external affairs right now.”

  “...The conflict between the hardliners and the moderates, right? I believe Madam Mary was one of the moderates, correct?”

  There was presently a division over the interpretation of the Lunalith’s oracles. Because she lived with Souji, Merula had heard the story. As well as the fact that Saint Mary had told Souji she wanted to have the moderates and the saint candidates protected by the Kingdom if it became necessary.

  “Yeah,” Souji said, crossing his arms. “That’s why, as a reward for my cooperation in this matter, I’ve requested that King Souma and the Black-robed Prime Minister help with Mary’s request. There are a hundred people just counting the saint candidates, and if he was to shelter all of the moderates, that would require taking in even more. It will take time and people to put together a plan that includes their escape and transport. A lone bishop like me can’t do it.”

  “Wow...”

  Even just thinking about it seems like a pain, thought Merula. In exchange for his support in this event, Souji had passed the whole nuisance off to Souma and Hakuya. I don’t know whether to say he’d shrewd, or shameless, Merula thought in exasperation.

  “That must be a headache for Souma and his people.”

  “He was clutching his head, saying, ‘Now I’ve got to write another manyewal.’ That’s apparently a book of instructions, by the way.”

  “I’m sure he was.” Merula nodded, sympathizing with Souma.

  “He also said, ‘Maybe we can put together a gospel choir with the saint candidates. Delivering the love songs of the angels,’ with a far-off look in his eyes.”

  “Gospel? Choir?”

  “Search me. I have no clue what he was talking about.” Souji shrugged.

  “I see you’ve been doing your job as bishop after all.” Merula chuckled. “I’ll have to reevaluate my opinion of you a little.”

  The rare compliment brought a wry smile to Souji’s face.

  “Well, you’ve got to work just enough to be able to slack.”

  “Fine words, those. Is that in the teachings of Lunarian Orthodoxy?”

  “Nah. Just my philosophy on life.” Souji raised a glass to the adventurers working on the shopping street. “Young people have no clue that their work may be saving someone’s life. Just like those adventurers are bringing salvation to those who are lost in the Orthodox Papal State. Unknown to man, but not to God. So work hard, young ones.”

  “From where I’m standing, you look plenty young yourself, Souji.”

  Merula, whose age was unknown, shrugged with dismay.

  ◇ ◇ ◇

  Meanwhile...

  I was in the castle, speaking to Empress Maria of the Gran Chaos Empire over the Jewel Voice Broadcast.

  “Thank you for your cooperation, Madam Maria.”

  “Not at all. I thought it would benefit my own country, too.”

  “That idea of yours, Sir Souma.” Maria smiled. “I’d like to do it in my country, too.”

  “You’ll need to gauge your people’s response as you do it, but... Go ahead.”

  After that we engaged in some idle banter and then terminated the call. Once we did, Liscia, who had been quietly watching us talk, came over to me.

  “If you’re bringing in Madam Maria of the Empire, this has turned into something pretty big.”

  “We needed information that only the Empire could possibly know, after all. I had to play some of my cards in exchange, though...”

  “The Dungeon Origin of Monsters Theory, right? Was it okay to tell her? Won’t Madam Maria reach the conclusion that both mankind and demons came from the dungeons, too?”

  I could understand what Liscia was saying. If possible, I had wanted to keep it under wraps, still.

  “It’s too much to ask them for the information we want, while also concealing everything we know. When it comes to Genia’s theory, it’s still an unproven hypothesis. Even if Madam Maria reaches the Dungeon Origin of Mankind and Demons Theory, she won’t spread it carelessly.”

  If the information leaked, she would have trouble managing her own empire, too.

  “So, for now at least, with Madam Maria’s cooperation, we’ve gained a reason to hold this event. We’ll just have to do what we can currently.”

  “Right... For a project that came up so suddenly, it was all prepared pretty quickly, huh?”

  “I had already been talking about wanting to do an event this time of year. You know how we did the Gaius Memorial Festival in Van on the 32nd day of the 8th month last year? That was pretty popular, so there were requests to do something similar.”

  However, because the Gaius Memorial Festival was aimed at the people of the former principality, it was difficult to turn it into an event that the whole nation would celebrate. That’s why I was taking this opportunity to retool it into a memorial event for the whole country. I called it the Ghost Festival.

  It was primarily going to be a mix of a costume party in the style of Halloween (because the “trick or treat” aspect of that event had been taken by the Spring Announcement Festival, that was cut), the Bon-odori, and a certain strange festival held on the border between two prefectures in the world I came from. On the day of the event, participants would dress as ghosts and monsters, and parade through the town while dancing.

  Meanwhile, in Van, we would hold the Gaius Memorial Festival, the same as the year before. If we overdid these sorts of events, it could stir up the emotions of the people of the former principality, but if we didn’t do them at all, that could cause a reaction, too. It was safest to make it just one festival of many.

  “Hee hee, this takes me back, you know?” Liscia wrapped herself around my arm. “The way you would suddenly come up with an odd idea, and you’re running with it. It reminds me of when you had just been summoned.”

  “Well, yeah, but... aren’t you a bit close to me, compared to back then?”

  Liscia chuckled. “
Of course. We’re married with children now.”

  “Things sure have changed, huh?”

  “Yeah. But there are things that haven’t, too.” Liscia rested her head on my shoulder. “I stay by your side, watching what you do. That’s not going to change.”

  “...You really are amazing, you know that? Liscia.”

  I had thought it countless times, but... Yeah, I was no match for her. That didn’t just go for Liscia; I could say it about all of my queens. No matter how our relationships changed in the future, I was going to fall in love with them anew over and over again.

  ◇ ◇ ◇

  Then, on the day of the event.

  The sun had set, and normally, at this time of day, the shopping street would only be dimly lit by the lightmoss streetlights. Today, however, there were lightmoss lantern decorations everywhere, making it quite bright. Souma had ordered these lanterns placed there for the event.

  The voice of a pretty young girl echoed across the brightly lit streets.

  “Woah! Lu, you’re so cute!”

  “Nyahaha, thanks.”

  Lucy laughed shyly at Tomoe’s compliment. Today she was dressed as a wolf girl, wearing an apron dress along with a wolf ear headband, and a wolf tail on her rump.

  Because the Royal Academy was on summer break, Tomoe, Yuriga, Ichiha, Lucy, and Velza were dressed up to participate in this Ghost Festival event. Obviously, a group from the Black Cats, led by Inugami, was watching over them from the shadows.

  When she looked at Lucy’s outfit, Yuriga said, “...It looks pretty familiar to me,” with dismay.

  Yuriga glanced at Tomoe. It was true, wolf ears and a tail were both traits she naturally possessed. If Souma could have seen Lucy right now, he might have muttered, “The Player 2 palette swap for Tomoe?” to himself.

  Lucy grinned, pulling her mouth open with her index fingers. “My crooked teeth are one of my charms. Gotta put ’em to good use. Besides, I always thought Tomie’s ears and tail were cute.”

  “You’re super cute, Lu!”

  “Thanks. Y’know, it feels like we’re sisters now.”

  Lucy hugged Tomoe. Yuriga pressed her fingers to her temples and let out a sigh as she watched the two of them play around.

  “Honestly... I mean, how is Tomoe any different from usual?”

  “I’m totally different. Look!”

  Tomoe raised her hands, and there were puffy paw gloves on them. She has a choker with a bell around her neck, and three whiskers drawn on each cheek with paint.

  “Today, I’m not a wolf girl, I’m a cat girl! Meow!”

  “That’s barely a change at all!”

  “Murgh. You say that, Yuriga, but all you’ve changed are your clothes.”

  Yuriga was wearing her usual tribal outfit, but with a small black hat called a tokin on her head. She wore a pompom sash called a yuigesa, which hung from her shoulders to her belly, and she held a conch shell in her hands. These were all traditional tools of a Yamabushi mountain ascetic from the world Souma came from. Because Yuriga also bore the signature wings of a celestial on her back, she looked exactly like a (slightly moe) crow tengu.

  “This is supposed to be a monster called a tengu from your brother’s world. He made the hat and sash himself, too.”

  “Hee hee, Big Brother made my paw gloves, too.”

  “Listen, I’m sorry to say this when you sound so happy, but isn’t it weird for the king to be good at sewing?”

  When Yuriga raised that doubt, Tomoe puffed up her chest with pride. “Big Brother is also a good cook. You’ve eaten his food, too, haven’t you, Yuriga?”

  “Sure, it was good, but... either way, those aren’t very kingly skills.”

  “Well, I love Big Brother anyway.”

  “Yeah, yeah, whatever. I’m sure you do.”

  While the two of them were bickering like that, Ichiha and Velza came over.

  “You two, if you two keep squabbling like that, you’ll stand out.”

  “If too many people gather around, the bodyguards will force them to disperse, correct?”

  “Well, yes, but... what are you two wearing?” Yuriga asked.

  Today they were wearing their casual outfits, but with round hats on their heads. There was some sort of tag hanging from the front of them. On closer inspection, those tags were made from cloth, not paper, and what was written on them was geometric symbols, not text.

  Velza pointed to a stall at the side of the road. “We bought them at that shop run by The Silver Deer. Right, Ichiha?”

  “Yeah. They’re apparently for a monster from Souma’s world, the... Janky? Jiangshi? ...Something like that. These talismans are used to control a dead body, apparently.”

  “Moving corpses? Are they somethin’ like zombies?” Lucy asked.

  Ichiha and Velza immediately stretched their arms out in front of them and stood up ramrod straight.

  “I hear they hop like this.”

  “They cry ‘paa, paa, paa,’ too.”

  Ichiha and Velza hopped along, saying “Paa, paa.”

  “Paa paa...? What a weird monster,” said Yuriga with an exasperated sigh.

  “Aww, I’m jealous. You two have matching hats.”

  Lucy hugged Tomoe. “Now, now, Tomie. We’re a beast girl pair, now aren’t we?”

  “Oh, yeah. I guess we are, huh?”

  “Hold on! You’re making it sound like I’m the odd one out!”

  As Yuriga protested, Tomoe gave her a cute smirk.

  “What? Were you feeling lonely, Yuriga?”

  “Argh! You’re such a cheeky little kid!”

  “Aww, aww, aww.”

  Yuriga grabbed Tomoe by the cheeks, as per usual, and then...

  Boom... Boom... Cannons sounded from the direction of the castle.

  “Oh, looks like things’re gettin’ started.”

  The two shots signaled the beginning of the Ghost Festival.

  In the next moment, music began playing throughout the town. At the same time, they saw a drum and fife band, each member dressed as a monster, coming towards them from the direction of the castle.

  In the midst of the cheering, Yuriga checked the sign nearby. On it, there was an outline of the Ghost Festival.

  [Ghost Festival Outline]

  - The goal of this festival is to help any souls that wander into the living world return to the next world without regrets by having a good time together -

  - In order to make the souls think we are like them, every participant must be dressed as a ghost or monster -

  (This is voluntary for spectators, but you will have more fun in costume.)

  - When the cannons fire, our costumed band and parade will begin to march -

  - Spectators should sing along with the music, and dance -

  (All are welcome to jump in and participate.)

  ...Well, that was what was written there, more or less.

  “Yaaaay.”

  “H-Hold on, Tomoe, you’re spinning me too much!”

  “...Hey, can I have a moment?” Yuriga called out to Tomoe, who had already taken Ichiha’s hand and started dancing.

  “Hm? What?”

  “Is this festival one of King Souma’s policies, too?”

  “...Hmm, I wonder?”

  “What? Are you playing dumb again?”

  “You can say that, but I really haven’t heard anything this time. Though, knowing Big Brother, I’m sure there’s some deeper thinking behind a fun event like this.”

  “.........”

  “But before that, come on.” Having finished spinning Ichiha, she now offered her hand to Yuriga. “You can’t enjoy the festival with that look on your face. Let’s dance, Yuriga.”

  “...Hmph.”

  Even as she acted unamused, Yuriga took Tomoe’s hand.

  ◇ ◇ ◇

  “This is a good place, just like Tomoe said.”

  “Nyaha! Everyone needs a younger girl who’ll call them Big Sister, huh?” Roroa said with a la
ugh.

  This was the fruit parlor at The Cat’s Tree, run by Tomoe’s school friend Lucy’s family.

  In order to watch the Ghost Festival we had planned in anonymity, we had asked Lucy to reserve the whole place for the royal family. I was here together with my five wives, and our bodyguards and subordinates. To be honest, I wanted to bring Cian and Kazuha, too, but I was told it would put more of a burden on the guards, so they were left with Carla and the others in the castle.

  “I know we paid, but do you think we’re hurting them, since this is a profitable time?”

  “Don’t you fret. Lucy’s family’ll be makin’ their profit off the stall they’re runnin’ today, so they couldn’t spare much staff for the main business, and were only plannin’ to run it like any other day.”

  “Well, I guess it’s okay then.”

  “That’s right. But more importantly, Darlin’, we’ve got a good view of the fountain plaza from here.”

  The fountain with the Jewel Voice Broadcast receiver system was easy to see from the second floor terrace. The image of the costumed parade dancing to the drum and fife band’s music was projected there, and it made for a fantastic, or rather a nightmarish scene.

  If I recalled, Tomoe had used this place during the song battle. It was a bit far away, but you could see the gathered crowd, so it was a pretty good spot.

  “Colbert and Sebastian, thank you for your cooperation, too.”

  Minister of Finance Colbert, and Sebastian, the proprietor of The Silver Deer, were here too. Their help in arranging this event had been monumental.

  Colbert had managed the funding and placement of loreleis, while Sebastian had handled the production of spooky costumes (basically cosplay goods) for the event. The money from goods would go to the business Roroa ran from behind the scenes, so we would be able to make back the costs of running the event somehow.

  “If I have been any help to you and Lady Roroa, it brings me the greatest honor, sire.” Sebastian brought a hand to his chest and bowed reverently. He was a true gentleman.