Lord of Disease (JP-GL) 131

131: Fools and Smoke Like High Places

I stood in the royal castle, accompanied only by Liz.

Dressed in my formal attire, with a single maid in tow, I was still the subject of gossip.

While my true identity was gradually being revealed, fewer people in the capital knew I was human.

Aside from the Sixth Army and His Majesty’s personal staff, only the Beastman Army at the Dark Forest and the troops stationed at Fort Litalside knew.

But thanks to the bromides, there probably wasn’t a single soldier who didn’t know what I looked like. Especially those stationed at the royal castle.

But today, I was not here on official business.

I hadn’t been summoned by His Majesty, nor was I here to discuss the bromide business. This was purely personal.

So, I didn’t have to be in my formal attire, but it made things easier.

Rather than a half-hearted disguise, it was better to use my position to my advantage.

After a while, Liz took the lead.

I’d lived here before, but I hadn’t had much freedom, and besides, this was a castle.

It wasn’t a maze, but the layout was a military secret, and there was no map, which was a source of great anxiety for a modern Japanese person like myself. And of course, no map app.

I didn’t think I had a bad memory, but the layout of the rooms and hallways was different on each floor, and I was confident I would get lost if I were alone.

But with Liz, I felt safe.

We headed for the highest rampart in the castle.

Liz pushed open a thick, iron-reinforced wooden door, and a biting cold wind swept in.

Without my robe, I would have frozen and insisted on turning back immediately.

It was quite high up, and the wind was strong, and there was no one else around, so the air was frigid.

I stood in the middle of the rampart, gazing at the scenery in silence.

The clear winter air allowed for an expansive view.

The first thing I saw was the Lital Mountains.

Looking down, I could see the Dark Forest, but it was a dark, dense forest, and it was hard to tell where anything was. Even with the Lital Mountains, it was hard to tell how far I was seeing.

If that mountain range were on Earth, alpinists would be overjoyed, risking their lives for a first ascent and a new record. The sense of distance was overwhelming.

There were probably towns and villages, but they would be like specks of dust from here. And of course, I could see the capital, but from this height, it looked so small.

—This was Listrea.

A cold, northern land.

And yet… I found even its coldness endearing… was it because the people I loved were from here? Or… was it because this, too, was now my home?

If there were peace, it would be a more comfortable place to live. If they were freed from the burden of stationing their forces at the border—

If humanity were exterminated.

How long would this country need me?

Until there was peace?

Or until they decided they could win the war without the help of a ruthless human?

As I entertained these cold, bleak thoughts, I seared the winter scenery of the country I loved into my memory.

“Master, why did you want to see the view from up here?”

Liz spoke, breaking the silence.

“In my homeland, there’s a saying,” I paused.

“Fools and smoke like high places.”

“…Um, what does that mean?”

I answered Liz’s bewildered question with a shrug.

“No deep meaning.” I’d just wanted a change of scenery, a view from up high. …I had, at least, told Liz that much.

She had probably been expecting a more profound reason.

“—You don’t seem like smoke, Master.”

“I won’t deny that.” I stepped away from the rampart and faced her. I closed the small distance between us and gently touched her cheek.

“I’m not going to disappear like smoke.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

“But you’re a fool, Master. You’ll probably forget what you said, won’t you?”

“I thought you were trying to be subtle.”

Liz laughed.

“You don’t mind, do you?”

“No. And I can’t imagine a more reliable vice-commander than you, Liz.”

“Yes, yes. I’m honored.” She brushed me off.

But her scarf twitched, a happy little flicker.

I looked out one last time.

The Lital Mountains.

The de facto border, the front line of defense.

That was the next battlefield.