Omniscient First-Person’s Viewpoint -
Chapter 235: Veni
｢Huh? How did we end up in a full-scale war with the Military State? I was just trying to recruit them…?｣
The hastily decided full-scale war threw everyone into confusion.
The Regressor, who had provided crucial information to the Resistance, was just as confused. It was the same with the Princess, who had issued the decisive order to prepare for an attack.
Nevertheless, someone had to take action.
There was no other choice. The Princess turned to her Guardian Knight and issued her command.
“Sir. This is an order. We need someone to convey this news to the Resistance and prepare them for action.”
“Understood, Your Highness… but why are you telling me this?”
Of course, it meant that he was the one who had to do it.
The Guardian Knight's expression shifted rapidly as he grasped the significance behind her words.
Sir Landemeyer, the youngest and strongest knight in the Resistance, was the right person to mobilize their forces.
There was no question about it.
However, he held dual responsibilities as both a commander and the Princess's guardian knight.
Even the strongest knight in the Resistance could only be in one place at a time, and focusing on one duty meant neglecting the other.
“I’m telling you to do it.”
The Princess commanded her guardian knight to abandon his duty of protecting her and return to lead the Resistance.
The Guardian Knight vehemently objected.
“No, Your Highness!”
“No matter how I think about it, this is the only way.”
“We have one of the Six Star Generals here!”
“She’s the last graduate of Hamelin who voluntarily got captured. Look. Even she can’t do anything to Shiati. As long as Shiati is safe, so am I.”
“Shiati isn’t safe alone on a vast plain! If she has nothing to burn, she’ll set herself on fire! Let me stay instead. Please lead the Resistance yourself! You are their leader!”
The Princess offered a wry smile.
That wasn’t the case at all.
She didn't perceive herself as their leader or ruler.
Her role was merely symbolic, a figurehead to rally those who still held hope in her bloodline.
The Princess was a scapegoat.
She was chosen by the remnants as a symbol of defiance against a bygone era.
She spoke with self-deprecation.
“I’m just a figurehead. A symbol of the kingdom, an expensive scapegoat. Negotiating with other forces is my only role, so I have to be where I can fulfill that role.”
“A scapegoat?! Who uttered such nonsense? Just tell me. I’ll execute them on the spot!”
“It was me. Would you like to execute me?”
“I take back what I just said! Your Highness, please reconsider!”
The Guardian Knight remained resolute.
It was only natural.
Leaving the last heir of the royal family, the Princess whom he had sworn to protect, among the worst criminals?
His loyalty to the royal family was unwavering, despite the weariness of other Resistance members.
It was absolutely unacceptable to him.
“No matter what, I cannot leave you alone! Especially on the front line where a battle is imminent!”
Even though recent intelligence of the temporary alliance suggested the group was less threatening than initially believed, that was before they planned to attack Command.
Their plan to assault the Command with just five people was extraordinarily risky.
It wasn't their moral character but their exceptional power and readiness to make irrational decisions that made them dangerous.
Despite the Guardian Knight's persistent objections, the Princess sighed deeply.
“Hoo. It seems I have to use harsh words.”
“I’m sorry, but even harsh words won’t change my decision.”
The Guardian Knight steeled himself against any tantrum or anger from the Princess.
Until she uttered one word.
“Oppa. Are you playing around right now?”
Hearing that title for the first time in years, the Guardian Knight was more filled with fear than joy.
Seeing him flinch, the Princess recalled their past, when they had lived in disguise, and shouted.
“Or what? There has to be at least one person here, right? We are not the Military State. We don’t have signallers. If we leave the base and can’t use the Great White Wall, who will communicate and negotiate?”
“T-That’s. Shiati is here, so you don’t need to.”
“That would be great! If we leave negotiations to Shiati, we’ll find ourselves leading the entire force in a charge against Command at some point!”
“That’s probably true, but…”
“Should I go back to the base alone? Do you think people will listen to a clueless figurehead like me?”
“Wait, please wait a moment.”
“It’s urgent! Aren’t you going?!”
Startled by the Princess's sudden intensity, the Guardian Knight stepped back.
As steadfast as he was in his loyalty as a guardian knight, he couldn’t win against the Princess when she was in her little sister mode.
Overwhelmed by the Princess's resolve, the Guardian Knight found himself at the entrance of the container.
The Meta Conveyor Belt continued to move steadily. If he was to act, he had to act swiftly.
Just before opening the container door, he hesitated and emphasized to the Princess.
“…I’ll leave Selphy here. So, if anything happens, ride Selphy to escape. She's a white horse that can run a thousand Li; no one will catch up. Get Shiati to prepare you, and the extra clothing packets are here…”
“Just go!”
The Guardian Knight, his worry evident in his eyes, reluctantly turned and left the container.
He quickly surveyed the surroundings and leaped outside the belt.
He would probably gather the forces and follow soon.
｢…He’s gone? Phew, what a relief.｣
The Princess, who had been maintaining an angry expression until his presence faded, sighed and relaxed her face.
At that moment, the Regressor approached her from behind.
“Wait a minute. Princess. Are you going to follow us?”
Startled by the sudden proximity, the Princess straightened her back in tension.
“Huh, yes!”
“We’re not going on a picnic.”
The Regressor's cold reminder caught the Princess off guard, making her visibly flustered.
She stammered nervously,
“You said you needed a spy, right? It’s better if I stay. I’ve handled various negotiations that knights would find trivial.”
“You could die.”
“I’m part of the Resistance too. I’m prepared. And… I have my own reasons.”
“What do you want?”
The Princess hesitated briefly. With the attack on Command imminent, the only one who could help her was the Regressor.
｢Sir Knight provided us with crucial information. Concealing my true intentions now would be ungrateful. I hadn’t planned to be a burden, but it’s better to be honest…!｣
“I want… to meet Command. I want to talk to them.”
The Princess clasped her hands before her chest and confessed calmly.
“Let me be clear. I don’t see the Military State as evil. Extreme luck runs through the blood Grandiomor royal lineage. Despite this blessing, the Kingdom crumbled due to internal strife… it failed as a nation.”
As a member of the Resistance and the Princess of a fallen Kingdom, blessed with extreme luck, she confessed her true sentiments that she couldn’t express within the Resistance.
The fact that the Regressor was the chosen audience was unexpected, but a wise choice.
Perhaps there was a connection from a previous timeline, but it allowed the Regressor to fully empathize with the Princess's hidden thoughts.
The Regressor even had similar thoughts.
The Regressor chuckled softly.
“That’s not something a princess should say.”
“I’m the only one who can do it. Isn’t that the duty of the royal family?”
“So, what now? Do you plan to surrender to Command?”
“I can’t do that. They wouldn’t accept it. As long as I’m alive, I’m a threat to the Military State… regardless of my thoughts, I can’t be on the same side as them.”
the Princess murmured self-deprecatingly, suppressing her loneliness, and continued.
“However, even if not me, the Military State has the potential to become a better nation. Instead of repression, persecution, and exploitation, it can evolve into an ideal country where everyone can prosper together. I want to ask whether they are deliberately ignoring this potential or simply unaware of it.”
“If you meet them, you will most likely die.”
“Hehe. I have been marked for death from the moment of my birth as a princess.”
The Princess chuckled awkwardly before settling into a resigned smile.
“You can consider it a reward for cooperating. Or just think of it as using me to infiltrate as a spy first. Before attacking Command…Can I speak with them?”
The Princess clasped her hands and earnestly requested.
Her pitiful and desolate look would have swayed any romantic to agree without hesitation.
But the Regressor had long lost her romantic notions and wasn’t a man either. Even in the face of the Princess's heartfelt plea, the Regressor remained composed.
“I don’t know where Command is.”
｢Even when I destroyed the Military State in the past, I couldn’t pinpoint Command or the Generalissimo issuing orders from within. Not until that timeline ended. When the Military State fell, they just vanished without a trace.｣
Huh? She doesn’t know?
This is unexpected, even for me.
I thought she knew the location and was planning to attack, but after thirteen timelines, she still hadn’t found it? How are we going to find it if she doesn’t know?
Thankfully, the Regressor wasn’t that reckless.
“But I know where their orders come from. If we go there… you might be able to have the conversation you want. Whether they respond is another matter entirely.”
“Where is it?”
“The command and control center.”
The Regressor recalled fragments from previous timelines.
From the recesses of her memory, a faint image began to form.
In one corner of Command, there was a restricted area publicly known as the Signalers' Quarters, though their identities remained unknown.
A structure similar to the Windowless Rooms seen during the Tantalus collapse.
Recalling this, the Regressor overlaid the image of the Princess in front of her with that of a slightly older Princess from the past.
It seemed to be the Princess she had met before.
｢In the previous timeline, you were more desperate. You wanted to talk… but didn’t pursue it at the expense of your comrades or yourself. This time…｣
“Within a corner of Command, there is a small base housing twenty-six signallers who relay commands from the core. It’s the only direct link to Command. It’s a strategic target anyway… if we take over that base, you can have the conversation you want.”
The Regressor, always generous to her comrades from the previous timelines, spoke kindly and softly.
The Princess bowed her head and clenched her fists.
“Yes…! Thank you!”
｢As expected, he’s a good person…!｣
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