After a moment of hesitation, the Crown Prince quietly approached and placed his hand on everyone’s hand. As he slowly surveyed his team members, he closed his eyes and exhaled deeply, then spoke with clearer eyes.
“……At first, I was envious of you all. I was envious not only of you, but of everyone living a normal life. I suppose I just wanted to be in a position to ignore this matter.”
The tremble in his voice steadily decreased.
“But after meeting you, I became curious about why you are going so far. Unlike me, you could easily turn a blind eye; why are you willing to take the risk of becoming a traitor by risking your lives? I may never understand heroes like you while I’m still such a petty person. Yet….”
He bit his lip once and then forced a smile.
“With all that you’ve done for me, it seems I, as a prince, can’t avoid this matter.”
Simon and Lorraine smiled. Dick wiped his nose, and Hector snorted.
“Let’s do it.”
The Crown Prince spoke, and Dick shouted as if he had been waiting for this moment.
“On the count of three, let’s go for it! One, two, three!”
“Let’s do it!”
Everyone shouted together, raising their hands high.
It was an important turning point.
* * *
Simon and the team immediately finished their preparations and got ready to leave the hideout.
Just before they set off.
“Your Highness!”
People sent from the Cardel territory visited the hideout.
In fact, the Great Lord of Cardel appeared in person, dragging his sick body after hearing Simon’s report.
“I apologize, Your Highness, I sincerely apologize! I wonder how much trouble you’ve gone through. I’m deeply sorry for not protecting you as your vassal.”
“It’s not your fault.”
The Great Lord greeted Simon politely after having a long conversation with Rias.
“Thank you for bringing the prince and for keeping him safe, President. The entire Baldwin Kingdom owes a great debt to you.”
“Not at all.”
The Great Lord highly appreciated Simon’s decision to return Crown Prince Rias, who was of royal blood, to Baldwin without informing anyone else.
Had he sent him elsewhere, numerous political issues would have arisen, tearing the Baldwin Kingdom into factions.
“I wish you luck.”
“Please take good care of the prince.”
Thus, Simon and his party left the hideout.
Each of them would use the teleportation magic circle to move to the border and then gather in Nobaren.
To avoid being noticed all at once, Simon, Lorraine, and Dick would form one team, while Hector, Cerne, and Kajan would be in another team heading toward Nobaren.
As they rode the phantom horse through the night from the border.
“I see it!”
Dick shouted.
“It’s the great territory of Nobaren!”
They could see the tall, magnificent castle gate and walls.
In the field before Nobaren, countless people were gathered, walking along a narrow path, all hoping to witness the independence ceremony and see the King of Baldwin in person.
Due to the large number of entry seekers, people could enter the castle simply by showing their identity cards without any special procedures. Simon and his companions could also easily enter with forged identification.
Murmur, murmur, murmur!
As they passed through the castle gate, the streets were bustling with crowds.
There were people sitting and eating food they had brought, searching for acquaintances, and long lines at the public restroom in the city.
“Hmm.”
Simon’s gaze sharpened.
Red flags were fluttering throughout the city. It was something he had never seen in the Baldwin Kingdom before.
“Hey Simon! Look over here!”
As Dick seemed to discover something, he waved his hand. When Simon and Lorraine approached, they noticed a long red line painted along the inside of the castle wall.
That red paint extended far to the end of the castle wall.
“Isn’t that used by the First Army to create magic circles?”
Simon lowered his stance to inspect, then confirmed with a blood analysis kit before nodding.
“Yeah, it’s definitely that.”
“Alright! I’m going to stop the First Army’s plan right now!”
Dick suddenly made a loud commotion, extending a finger, and swiped through the middle of the red line as if erasing it.
Then he stretched out his arms.
“Done! I saved millions of citizens!”
Simon and Lorraine exchanged awkward smiles as they looked at each other. Dick folded his arms and grinned triumphantly.
“As Professor Abo mentioned, a magic circle made of blood ultimately has an extremely classic structure; if the blood doesn’t connect directly, no powerful magic will take effect! So I’ve stopped the First Army!”
Lorraine tilted her head.
“But the First Army isn’t stupid, so wouldn’t they just repaint it before the independence ceremony starts?”
“Well, then I can just erase it again with my hands! As long as it doesn’t connect!”
“Dick.”
Simon called out to Dick and pointed up.
In the direction he pointed, there was a bridge that connected high hills, and beneath that bridge was also covered in red paint.
“……This is insane.”
That red paint stretched past the bridge and over the hills.
“Here too.”
Lorraine pointed at the nearby wooden barricade. The red paint was also evident on the barricade. Dick scratched his head in frustration.
“……So do we have plans B, Y, and X ready? I have no idea which magic circle to stop then.”
“We should do our best to block everything we can see.”
With that said, Simon put his hands in his pocket and froze with a startled expression. Lorraine looked at Simon.
“Simon, what’s wrong?”
“Ah.”
Simon slowly withdrew his hand from his robe pocket, opening his palm.
The golden thread that had been slack was now tightly pulled.
“It seems like I’ve found something substantial.”
The widow Brimantia, whom they had met at the secret gathering, was also here in Nobaren.
It felt as if Rakum’s thoughts waiting in the spatial realm were echoing through.