Please consider supporting us by disabling your ad blocker or becoming a Patron.
Reunion, and Showdown
The units of ground distance used in this story:
1 Arna (about 1 metre)
1 Myure (about 1 kilometre) The white fall sunlight quietly cast its light upon the ground. It was past midday, and the sky had finally taken on a slightly bluish hue. The clouds were few, and the wind was calm. Upon a hill, sparsely decorated by some grass and trees, Luceide, the Prince of the Kingdom of Carvelle, was sprawled upon a blanket. Over his linen clothing, he wore a set of very plainly styled leather armor. It wasn't very becoming of a prince, but to Luceide, it was simply proper attire to be worn on the battlefield.
Constance moved closer to get a look at the watch. After confirming the time indicated on the dial, she made a funny face towards Luceide and smiled.
“If something like that happened at this stage, it would be a problem for us after we returned; unless time were to skip right into tomorrow, with us having been declared victorious and the war being over!”
“Onii-sama, you're so greedy!”
“I've been together with you throughout this war up until now, and I had gotten the impression you were much more calm about it. Or is it that you're distracted by something else and you quickly forget the time and map?”
“Even when you make a scary face, Onii-sama, you have neither solemnity nor intensity about you. At best, you give off an air of crumbled bread, or a construction made from clay that has been trampled. I believe I've seen the soldiers taken aback when you show them that face!”
Smiling in sarcastic response, Luceide looked toward Constance, who purposefully breathed a typical sigh.
“Why would I know the sorts of things those people would say about my smile? It's not as though I set out for the battlefield with the advice of ladies in mind.”
“And of course you are no exception. I'll give you 100 soldiers. Before the battle starts, I want you to get away from here as fast as possible. Do you understand me, Constance?”
Up until now,Constance had followed Luceide's armies on many occasions. She had also stowed away more than once in the past, like she was doing now; and had even once obtained King Vacelius's official permission to remain with Luceide. Because of this, many of the soldiers and other members of the Carvellian army were familiar with Constance. By manipulating all of them, she was quite successful in working behind her stepbrother's back.
“Is there really no way you'll let me stay?”
However, it had no effect on Luceide, who only saw her as nothing more than his little sister.
Constance's expression soured, but she soon returned to her usual smile, and gazed upon her stepbrother.
“The outcome of the third battle is not limited to my defeat.”
As it stood, Falshella had become the most celebrated soldier in all of Parmia. She had led her first campaign to a successful conclusion at the age of fourteen, and had defeated numerous soldiers of great repute. Furthermore, she continued to prove the enduring nature of her battle prowess in the many battles that followed. Falshella already stood at the head of the Parmian army, and with the treasured Holy Sword of the Parmian Kingdom, her determination to cut through the enemy line, taking down famous knights and decorated soldiers had rewarded her many victories. It was said that hearing of her showing herself on the battlefield caused enemy forces to tremble in fear, and this was a great boon to the morale of the Parmian armies.
The first time Luceide graced the battlefield was when he was thirteen years of age. In the four years since then, he had entered many battlefields in foreign lands and suppressed many domestic criminals. In doing so, he had amassed many victories. In terms of battle prowess, Luceide had been reluctantly recognized by many persons who disliked him, and his ability to use his intellect to overcome adversity and notions of inferiority had earned him many titles such as 'The Resourceful General'. However, Luceide held great contempt for such titles.
Being reminded of the current situation, his humiliation and fear became inflamed, and ignited his princely spirit, causing his unending anger to edge quietly into his outward expression. Seeing this reaction, Constance proudly replied.
A small small flame suddenly burst, dancing briefly before Luceide's bewildered eyes. Beaming with confidence, Constance indicated the fingertips of her right hand, where flames about the size of her nails swayed back and forth. They were flames born of magic. Constance was born to the Carvel family, which was well known as a family of magic users. Because of this trend, Carvel was often referred to as the 'Kingdom of Sorcerors'
“I can't make use of somebody who has never once set foot on any battlefield. It's far too dangerous.”
“You, Father, Mother, all of you say the same thing! I'm fifteen now! Onii-sama, you yourself led your first campaign when you were only thirteen! I've also heard that Fal nee-sama took to the battlefield when she was only fourteen!”
Reaching out his hand, Luceide gave Constance a light pat on the top of her head. Constance did not answer, and began pouting her lips, putting on a pouty face. The flames at her fingertips danced about as if to show her fighting spirit. Luceide continued.
Three seconds after Luceide finished speaking, the flames finally disappeared from Constance's fingertips. She breathed a deep sigh, exhaling the smouldering emotions within her breast, and she smiled.
“Alright, good”
“O... Onii-sama! Just what do you think you are doing!?”
“Please! Wait! If you won't cry in protest, I can't feel any sincerity in your words!”
Answering his stepsister in a feigned tone, Luceide turned his gaze. His associates had begun to gather a small distance away. A few of them seemed to be having some pleasant conversation, but the rest were gazing at Luceide and Constance with amused looks on their faces. They seemed to be taking in the situation. They were probably being considerate to not interrupt the quiet time between siblings this close to the impending battle. This had happened many times before. To be honest, Luceide would have preferred if they interfered, but since it would be undesirable if it seemed like he didn't get along with his sister, he didn't mention anything.
“Onii-sama! Do you really intend to do battle with Fal nee-sama? Were Fal nee-sama and Alt nee-sama not kind to you all those years ago!?”
“Last year, and the year before that, this is the third of our battles. I don't particularly remember the past to the same extent you do. I can't even recall what the Princess's face looks like. There's no reason for me to take what you've mentioned into consideration.”
“Do you mean to say that if Fal Nee-sama happens to be captured by us, you would forget our history and humiliate her like you would any other prisoner?”
In so saying, Luceide lightly spanked Constance's butt. It always came to this when they spoke seriously. Constance beganflailing her legs about in a pained manner.
“I also believe I'm the only prince who allows his stepsister to speak to him like you are now.”
'I've come this far. If I start worrying now, who knows what will happen. I just have to steel myself.' Luceide thought.
“You hang on to this until after the battle.”
“I said hold on to it. Also, don't go killing people on your own.”
“Well then, Onii-sama, Until after the battle.”
“Of course, I understand, I'm grateful towards your men. Onii-sama, please make sure it's over by nightfall. Around here there are rumors of demons coming out when it gets dark.”
Luceide gestured with his hand as if to shoo his stepsister away. He knew even without her telling him. He had been looking at the watch earlier worrying about nightfall. Two day's journey on foot to the west of these wilds of Listion would take you to the edge of the Kingdom. In places like this, when the sun goes down, demon's tend to appear.
While the attendants were cleaning up the table and the blanket, Luceide looked down upon the sparse landscape from his place on the hill. At the base, six thousand soldiers and horses of the Carvellian Royal Army were getting into formation. The view from the top of the hill looked as though ingots of silver were amassing upon the blackened landscape.
'Fal nee-sama... Hm........'
However, Luceide quickly shook off his sentimentalism, and began to strongly tell himself.
At that moment, the attendants who had been cleaning up the blanket and the table returned to Luceide's side. Luceide turned to them and announced to them in short:
Following behind Luceide, the men began to descend down the slope of the hill.
Subscribe to our releases by entering your email below!
Powered by BlogtrottrComments & Discussion /** * RECOMMENDED CONFIGURATION VARIABLES: EDIT AND UNCOMMENT THE SECTION BELOW TO INSERT DYNAMIC VALUES FROM YOUR PLATFORM OR CMS. * LEARN WHY DEFINING THESE VARIABLES IS IMPORTANT: https://disqus.com/admin/universalcode/#configuration-variables */ /* var disqus_config = function () { this.page.url = PAGE_URL; // Replace PAGE_URL with your page's canonical URL variable this.page.identifier = PAGE_IDENTIFIER; // Replace PAGE_IDENTIFIER with your page's unique identifier variable }; */ (function () { // DON'T EDIT BELOW THIS LINE var d = document, s = d.createElement('script'); s.src = '//lightnovelbastion.disqus.com/embed.js'; s.setAttribute('data-timestamp', +new Date()); (d.head d.body).appendChild(s); })(); Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. You can reach us on our email at [email protected]