Stray

Delia was crying sadly, while her mother’s sister, Andrea, who came back from the dead, patted her on the back and whispered to her, seemingly comforting the young princess, but as soon as she whispered a few words, her freshly baked knight pressed her shoulder and then shook his head.

“What did you mean just now, Salter?”

After the army controlled the scene and the three of them left the dense crowd, Ann asked a little wearily.

She habitually wanted to explain to Oliver and the others where to meet but was quickly stopped by Marshal Gallagher.

As a veteran warrior, Ann undoubtedly gave her new comrade-in-arms a considerable degree of trust. She said a brief greeting knowingly, leaving Oliver motionless, and then terminated the communication.

“You’d better not meet with Tumbleweed for the time being.” Marshal Gallagher stiffened his face.

“Reason.”

“This thing is a demon, but its aura and magic fluctuations aren’t strong,” Gallagher pointed at Cat Whiskers that crawled back to the little princess’ hair accessories and was happily circling it, “but Mr. Light himself is too powerful. His spells are likely to leave traces of abyssal magic that can be traced.”

“I know your concerns,” Ann frowned and thought for a while, “but I think Nemo should have a way—”

“Mr. Salter is right about his concerns.” Delia sniffled; her voice was so low it could barely be heard.

Ann immediately stopped speaking and looked down at the little princess with red and slightly swollen eyes.

In the past ten minutes, Delia undoubtedly vented all the grievances and pain of these years. Now she was calm again— The little princess’ physiological sobbing had not stopped, and her tears seem to dilute the cold darkness a little.

“You can’t tell who the people here are loyal to. If you don’t hide it, the information will be leaked, and if you hide it completely, it’ll be even more suspicious. When you really sit on the throne, it won’t be a problem to interact with people related to the Abyss— Provided you keep a low profile and can justify yourself.”

Delia wasn’t tall. Even wearing the unnecessary high heel, she barely stood above 1.6 meters. Ann thought for a moment before motioning Delia to sit at the table while she sat on the opposite side. She lowered her upper body slightly, propped her arms on the table, and looked up at the little princess.

“Tell me what you think, Delia.”

“The marshal just took a stand in front of everyone and announced that he has no intention to ‘cooperate’ with other families with royal blood, thereby breaking their idea of ‘cooperating with the Salter family to remove the queen and establish their own children’, but even so, when some people react, they will definitely not give up the idea of letting you and me lose the right to inherit. It’s not impossible assassination would be on the table. After all, Alban had never welcomed a queen.”

Ann pulled the corner of her mouth. “I know.”

“So… Ahem… Before the trial is over and you officially ascend to the throne, there will always be some who will find means to plot against you. Especially Uncle… No, the people on Eldric’s side. This means that all your actions will be monitored, and everything related to you will be investigated. Tumbleweed is not deeply involved now, and there is still time to hide their actions. Otherwise—”

“If you are caught with clear evidence of being close to the Abyss, you will be disqualified from the throne,” Gallagher answered.

“If they delve deeper, Nemo may be in danger of exposure.” At the same time, Ann picked up the conversation.

The two stared at each other endlessly for a while.

“All right.” Ann rubbed her temples desperately. “Mr. Mad Dog, how long will it take you to get rid of those old coots?”

“It will take about two months until you officially ascend to the throne,” Gallagher responded with a stink face while wiping his lips with a handkerchief again. “In the meantime, you must be cautious. After all, there are several families who are notoriously stubborn. You’d better put your foot down and be gracious—”

Ann thought for a moment, then stood up quickly and patted Delia.

Then she took her back to the royal hall not far away.

“Who has an opinion on my succession to the throne?”

Gallagher’s army was still in the hall, and the representatives of the nobles had just calmed down, and they were stunned by such a question on the spot.

People who were accustomed to having something to say have never seen such a rude member of the royal family, and they didn’t know how to respond for a while.

“If you have an opinion, it’s best to say it now.” Ann played with the hunting spear in her hand. “If no one says anything, I’ll acquiesced that there are no objectors. Of course, I’m sure you’ll always come around…”

She slammed the end of the spear to the ground.

“You’re welcome to send your assassins at any time,” the female warrior smiled openly, “but if you dare make any bad moves and plan to start with this girl—”

She hugged Delia tightly with her spare hand.

“I don’t mind cleaning up ‘my distant relatives’ in your family, do you hear me clearly?”

The nobles were silent.

There was a tingling in Gallagher’s temples, and he was convinced that his blood vessels were about to burst. After leaving the hall again, he took a few deep breaths before successfully calming himself down. “What are you doing–”

“Playing the tyrant.” Ann let go of Delia and kept her words concise. “No one wants to go in circles with a crazy woman. Now you only need a month to get them in order, Salter.”

Delia’s eyes turned red again as she obviously understood what Ann meant.

“I personally don’t need to maintain too many interpersonal relationships. You are better at this kind of thing than me. I don’t need to be in power for too long. It’s not good to leave too deep a mark. To be honest, I am not suitable to be king.”

The wanton smile on Ann’s face slowly disappeared.

“I’m very good at scaring people… Anyway, in just a few years, it’s better for me to do everything I can do to pave the way for this girl.”

“Why do you think so?” After a long silence, Marshal Gallagher spoke.

“What do you mean?”

“That you’re not suitable to be king.”

“Because I have experienced that kind of despair. When I took… a certain test.” Ann lowered her gaze, “Maybe you are used to that feeling, but I can’t bear it. For me, there is only one thing that is most terrifying— Making the wrong decision, and this decision can lead to a large number of deaths.”

“…You don’t seem to be such a sentimental type.” Gallagher recalled the blood and corpses in the lower hall, as well as the heads of soldiers who had been thrown back into the ranks not long ago.

“Those people still believed in me when they were dying. They died because of me, but they didn’t hate me. For me, that is hell— Even now, I haven’t been able to walk completely away from it.”

Ann ignored the marshal’s response and continued. She turned her gaze to Delia, her voice was serious.

“And that is undoubtedly part of the king’s ‘job’. It turns out that I really don’t have that qualification. I can’t control my heart, just like despite knowing that Eldric is a complete asshole, I still… will get a little sad.”

The female warrior embraced the blood-stained hunting spear, sat on a chair, and looked up at the gorgeous ceiling.

She suddenly felt that the room was a bit empty.

“Delia… I know that you will be an excellent ruler. You are calmer than me and better at strategy than me. As a foolish elder, I only have one suggestion— In the next few years, I hope you can get out of here as much as possible and reach out to the world as someone who has been burdened with pain. I’m sure you’ll understand because you know how to look down.”

“Didn’t you always want to go to Clementine Academy to study? Now that I am your only guardian, I will help you think of a way.”

She covered her eyes with one hand, as if waking up from a long nightmare, exhaustion and sorrow mixed with a little relief when the dust settled.

“As for the future… Mr. Mad Dog, Andrea Alastair will ascend to the throne, but Ann Savage will not leave Tumbleweed.”

At the same time, outside the capital of Alban.

Bagelmaurus, who had just flown out of the palace, stood dissatisfied on the ground, scraping a torn envelope with his claws.

“What does she take me for? I say, what does she take me for?”

The gray parrot, who was busy tearing up the thick paper, kept squawking in dissatisfaction. “Does she think I’m a god damn pigeon, even if I can mimic it! Hell, this is shameful… She just let me come back! At least make me a duke! I’m a great hero—”

“Because you’ll be expanding her ten-sentence speech into an hour long one,” Nemo pointed out cruelly. “Calm down. Ann must have her own ideas.”

“She wants us to wait for her for a month before meeting and keep a low profile, especially you, Nemo. If they are caught by the tail, that group of opponents may come to dig up our information,” Oliver muttered as he closed the letter and his eyes glossed over. “Ann is really going to become our king.”

“…I know,” Nemo replied dryly.

The two Albanians stared at each other, terrified, and then found that they were really frightened-especially Oliver.

“It seems that there are indeed accurate prophecies in this world,” Oliver said weakly, waving the wrapped letter paper and destroying it completely. “God, I took risks with the king— Forget it, it’s now…”

He glanced at Nemo again, as if trying to stabilize his spirit.

Nemo smiled reluctantly.

“…Are you considering confessing the truth to Ann?” Oliver keenly caught the lover’s mood swings.

“Yes,” Nemo replied honestly. “After all, that’s not…something suitable for communicating on paper or with a communication crystal.”

They were too far apart to see each other’s expressions. Kindness was often difficult to convey, but negative conjectures could be magnified countless times.

“One month.” Oliver breathed a sigh of relief. “We should have time to go to the headquarters of the Mercenary Guild, find Telaranea, and find out what happened in the past. According to the agreement, Ann will pardon us later. At that time, we will have both freedom and answers— Things are getting better, Nemo.”

He didn’t hesitate to open his arms and encircle the person in front of him.

Yes, they will no longer be Black Chapters. As long as there wouldn’t be any expedition in the next few decades, the answer they would get won’t necessarily be terrible. Then they may be able to have… a normal life.

Leave the chaotic battlefield, no longer wander around, and even have a home.

Oliver’s body was warm, and his heartbeat was strong. He hugged Nemo tightly, as if he was grabbing on hope itself. Nemo suppressed the anxiety in his heart, tried to let go, and enjoyed the peace at this moment.

“To put it another way, our luck is actually pretty good.”

Oliver’s palm pressed tightly to Nemo’s back and slowly slid down soothingly.

“You see, we met Ann as soon as we ran out of the Border Forest… If we encountered other Black Chapters, we might have become three thousand gold coins in someone else’s pocket long ago. Now that Ann has become king, we can even be pardoned directly— From the perspective of two fugitives, this is lucky enough.”

“Although a lot of things happened, we rescued Mr. Cross and cured my Trent Plague inadvertently… The most important thing is that I can stand with you like this.”

Nemo raised the corner of his mouth and was about to respond, but a certain sense of violation enveloped his nerves, and a subtle tingling sensation suddenly hit.

Ann became the king of Alban, and Ann was their original guide.

No, Ann was Oliver’s original guide.

Nemo suddenly realized the source of this unknown panic—

[Born of death and betrayal.]

Oliver’s mother, Sonia, passed away after giving birth to him. After that, Medes snitched to the emperor, causing Oliver’s father, Flint, to go incognito.

[Stepping on the bones of a close relative.]

He witnessed Oliver killing Flint with his own eyes.

[Break the curse and embrace the abyss.]

Because of his knight oath, Oliver escaped from the curse of Trent Pleague. Embracing the abyss… perhaps there is no more suitable concept to symbolize the abyss than the “Demon King”.

[A knight who follows the king’s guidance and is blessed by God. He follows the stars and comes like winter.]

He followed the guidance of the Queen of Alban, and he was… literally helped by Jesse. His swordsmanship instructor was the “Shining Morning Star”, who was personally given that title by the Pope, and he uses ice magic…

Nemo began to have difficulty breathing, and he increased his strength to hug Oliver. His fingers accidentally scratched the clothes on the opponent’s back.

[His sword will bring the real end.]

If the outcome waiting for them in front was really a peaceful and uncontested outcome, why was it “his sword” that brings the end?

Nemo shook uncontrollably, but he immediately suppressed his abnormality. The sun was shining on the two of them, and he could smell Oliver’s joy and happiness. Facing the coming answer, his lover was doing his best to stay optimistic, trying to make him happy.

They’ll wait until sunset. After sunset, he would confirm with that noisy guy who was good a prophecy… If necessary, he would tell Oliver this cruel thing.

But at least now…

“Nn.” Nemo buried the tip of his nose into Oliver’s shoulder and took a deep breath. “You’re right, Ollie. Things are getting better… We are really, very lucky.”

The author has something to say:

Finally, someone realized who Oliver is (×

Of course Jesse knew it a long time ago, except for the bottom of the Abyss, Jesse knows everything.jpg

——

Let’s take a look at the current situation—

King & Knight Group A:

[The little flag bearer is in love]

Ollie: When these things are over, we’ll go back home…

Nemo: …

King & Knight Group B：

[The essence of God is an echo machine]

Jesse: Do you like me? Do you like me? Do you like me?

Adri: …

King & Knight Group C:

[Mutual dissing is part of the oath]

Ann: Seriously, I’m running away after a few years of work. I’m not doing such a thing like dying while on the throne—

Gallagher: ? Wait, what about me?

Ann: ?

Gallagher: ?

Kinky Thoughts:

No one thought “embrace the abyss” was in the literal sense lol.