ch17 – Hiiro (5)
“Your Highness!”
I returned to myself at the sound of numerous calls.
“Are you safe?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. But…”
I glared sharply at another of the Empire’s negotiators, who was standing nearby on the stage.
“We’ve received the Empire’s intention. Surrender was a lie. They have no intention of reconciling with our country.”
A man who seemed stunned with a gun pointed at him shook his head.
“N-no, that’s not it. We, we don’t have the will to fight anymore… ah, ah…”
And then, in a state of unbearable anguish, he doubled over and vomited.
“I’m sorry, sorry…”
Looking towards the crowd, I saw similar situations—people standing in shock or kneeling and vomiting. I remembered and hugged Naruhito in my arms again. Even though there was no vomit… I wiped his mouth with my sleeve. The slender breath was still there.
“How did that child do such a thing…? We, the people of the Empire, are manipulated to not defy the upper echelons of the country. Controlled by a weak signal. This incident is the will of that man alone… Even if you don’t believe it, I don’t mind being killed here. If you start another war, please exterminate the upper echelons. We don’t want to fight anymore…”
The negotiator, who had finished vomiting, spoke with tears in his eyes. This was something incredibly important…
“Take this man to my office. Negotiations have broken down. Send a protest letter, and depending on the response, we’ll declare war. ”
“Yes, sir.”
I gave instructions to my nearby adjutant.
“This place is to be disbanded. Keep watch until the crowd leaves. Retrieve the Combat Dolls and the Army General over there.”
“Understood.”
“Ikumatsu!”
“Yes, over here.”
“Back to the room. For treatment.”
“Yes.”
“Let’s go, Hitachimaru.”
Hitachimaru, who had been on alert, looked at the right hand of Naruhito’s and bit his lip as if trying to hold back something.
—
ch18 – End of War
Three days after the breakdown of negotiations, a bomb was dropped on the Imperial Capital in the name of the Prince Hiiro of the Kingdom.
Prince Hiiro dropped a forbidden bomb, said to render the land barren for a decade, making it uninhabitable, and engulfed the entire Imperial Capital in flames.
Taking responsibility, he then disappeared from the public eye.