“…Mm.”
Huan Xuezhi gave an incredibly soft hum of acknowledgment, then turned her graceful figure around, her back to Weilin, and said flatly, “Times have changed. You are now the Illusory Snow Princess… naturally, you have a duty to serve the country.”
These words left the Ranger dumbfounded.
…Your Majesty, oh Your Majesty, who was it that deliberately made things difficult for Weilin back then? How has it become a matter of course today…?
Airi could only grumble internally, not daring to voice it. Otherwise, she felt that Huan Xuezhi was not nearly as unapproachable as others claimed. Her Majesty was simply a kuudere through and through.
“Eh, is Your Majesty going back?”
Seeing Huan Xuezhi suddenly turn to leave, Weilin hurriedly followed. “…Um, I’ll accompany you back.”
“…” Huan Xuezhi paused slightly, not turning her head, and asked indifferently, “Weilin has just taken command of military forces, shouldn’t you spend more time familiarizing yourself with the soldiers?”
“Well, what needs familiarization will happen sooner or later. The main thing is… since I promised Your Majesty that I would elevate the Ice Snow Guard to a level that can contend with the Paradise Armament, holing up here and reinventing the wheel definitely won’t solve the problem. I… actually, I’d like to request a leave of absence. Mm, before the war truly begins, I must return to a place, but I will be back before tomorrow.”
Return where…? By Weilin’s meaning, could simply going back to “that place” solve the problem?
How could such a place exist…
Though curious, Illusory Snow City could not be without its ruler for a day… alright, the truth was simply that Weilin hadn’t invited her. So her expression betrayed a hint of reluctance, and she gave a cold snort. “…Fine. But at a time of life or death for the Snow Kingdom, you cannot leave without authorization. Tomorrow morning, I must see you.”
“Ara, ara… Your Majesty needn’t worry, I’m not going to run away.” The young girl’s beautiful eyes glanced around, her pretty smile enchanting.
Fearing Weilin’s words might invite disaster, the Ranger stepped forward, shielding her, frantically signaling with her eyes while forcing anger into her voice. “…You! How dare you! Do not tease Her Majesty the Queen!”
“Why are you panicking? A monarch’s word is law. It was Her Majesty who allowed me to dispense with formalities and act as I please.”
Airi suddenly recalled that such an incident had indeed occurred, but on second thought, this wasn’t right… Falling for Her Majesty, staying by Her Majesty’s side—she had clearly been first…
Heaven shines bright, all things fall prey to White Album scenarios. Even more so in a snow domain where heaven and earth are a pure white.
“…In—any case! Her Majesty is the ruler of a nation, she has no time for romantic dalliances. I advise Weilin-san to mind her words and actions!”
“Alright, alright, your face is already this red. I won’t compete with you…”
“I don’t believe it… Weilin clearly told Her Majesty… something about love at first sight…”
“Oh, that was when Her Majesty the Queen forced me to find a reason and I just made something up off the top of my head. My desire to save the Snow Kingdom is purely personal. It’s not that I actually like Her Majesty or anything. Satisfied?”
“…Really?”
“Really. And speaking of which, you stopping me from teasing her while secretly having a crush on Her Majesty yourself is pretty selfish, don’t you think?”
“Ah… I’m not, I wasn’t! Her Majesty is my lifelong benefactor, how could I ever have such thoughts!… Y-Y-You, you, you, you, you stop slandering me!”
Weilin felt that Huan Xuezhi, who had already walked quite far, probably wouldn’t be paying attention to her bickering with the Ranger…
But, whether because she found it amusing or for some other reason, although Huan Xuezhi had physically left, her attention had been on the two of them all along. So, upon hearing Weilin’s explanation…
Huan Xuezhi: ?
“If you keep blocking me, Her Majesty will reach Cold Dove Hall, you know.” Weilin lifted her gaze, glanced at Huan Xuezhi’s figure, already some distance away, and said to the Ranger.
“Eh…” Turning her head, the Ranger only then realized she’d been stalling Weilin for who knows how long. No longer caring about Weilin, she spun around and chased after Huan Xuezhi, calling out, “…Your Majesty, wait for me!”
Weilin chuckled softly.
At that moment, a cold wind, a common sight anywhere in the snow domain, suddenly swept over her. Weilin paid it no mind. The next second, this gust, seemingly carrying a faint trace of someone’s subtle resentment and bitterness… at a temperature of over a hundred degrees below zero, immediately made Weilin shiver violently, nearly pitching face-first into the snow.
“…Tsk… Damn, is this wind cursed or what?” The baffled girl was utterly confused.
?
Weilin had finally decided to return to the Eternal Mineshaft.
But she had said earlier that she would accompany Huan Xuezhi back, and naturally, she couldn’t break her word. There was no rush anyway.
The distance from the training grounds to Cold Dove Hall wasn’t long. If one focused solely on returning without distraction, it wouldn’t even take the Ranger a few minutes.
However…
Because of the ‘Luotendo Declaration of War,’ which had plastered every corner of Illusory Snow City overnight, a powerless sense of despair, like the swiftest virus, had spread and fermented among the citizens of Illusory Snow to a terrifying degree in just half a day.
The sky was clearly so bright, yet on people’s faces, one could see a vision as if the heavens were collapsing and doomsday was arriving. Although order was chaotic, the one silver lining was that order hadn’t completely broken down yet.
“I will appear publicly to reassure the citizens.”
Walking down the long street, her figure concealed within a hooded cloak enchanted with a concealment effect, Huan Xuezhi said softly.
The Ranger and Weilin, who had no need—and didn’t bother—to hide their appearances, flanked her on either side.
“…Is Your Majesty going to be alright alone?” Having witnessed all the chaos and despair along the way, Weilin’s expression had also turned somewhat grim. She asked with a touch of concern, “How about…”
As if guessing what Weilin was about to say, Huan Xuezhi refuted her without hesitation. “—Just focus on returning safely.” Though barely perceptible, the Young Majesty’s voice indeed paused for a fraction of a second. “…I have always been alone.”
“No! Now, Your Majesty has me!” Airi declared with unwavering determination. “…After I release the Frost Trap spell a million times and train it to Weilin-san’s level, I’ll be able to stand against a thousand troops for Your Majesty!”
Weilin, Huan Xuezhi: “…”
It would have been better if you’d left out that last part. Suddenly, it felt like having the Ranger around made no difference whatsoever.
“Damned Imperial dog…! Kill her—!”
“If we don’t kill her now, are we just supposed to wait for the Empire to kill us?!”
“You fools, all of you, shut up! The Empire dares to attack our very doorstep. We finally caught an Imperial Citizen, killing her outright is letting her off too easy!”
“Wait! This brother is right. I worked as a jailer for a while. I can execute her by a thousand cuts and let her die from the sheer pain. Let me handle this Imperial dog!”
“…Are you insane?! Hehe… she’s just a bit dirty. It’s not hard to see she’s a pretty little thing. We’re all going to die at the hands of the Imperials anyway. Before I die, I want to f this Imperial woman to death. Now that’s what I call venting hatred!!!”
“Damn! Great idea! Tie her up and drag her back, everyone gets a turn until she’s fed to death! Damn, this is way too good for her, dying this way… Heh, lucky you’re cute, otherwise, it’d be death by a thousand cuts followed by dismemberment!”
“…”
As the three passed a filthy alleyway where a crowd had gathered, hearing the vicious, cruel, and obscenely vulgar curses, they all stopped involuntarily.
“Your Majesty, I’ll go take a look!”
Half-guessing what was happening from those words, the Ranger, ever ready to right wrongs, anxiously turned to Huan Xuezhi for her consent.
“As you wish.” Huan Xuezhi lowered her eyes faintly. “But Weilin is already on her way.”
