10 (Yuzuriha’s Perspective)
To be honest, Yuzuriha thought they had a chance.
After all, it was four-against-one.
And on their side was Yuzuriha herself, Suzuha, and the top two Amazoness.
If they joined forces for this one objective, putting aside personal desires,
they had assembled essentially the second through fifth strongest fighters on the continent.
And yet–!
“Why can’t I land a single hit on you–!!”
Yuzuriha shouted as she swung her sword diagonally from Suzuha’s brother’s right at a 45-degree angle.
Of course, it was a feint.
The real attack was the Amazoness’ rising and falling double slash from behind…
Or so it seemed, but it was actually Suzuha diving from 10 meters up with a moon salt short sword stab.
Any one of those strikes would be unavoidable even for a top knight –
a certain killshot combination attack. If caught in that hellish assault, Yuzuriha herself would undoubtedly be defeated. And yet.
“Kuh!?”
Yuzuriha’s strike was easily blocked by Suzuha’s brother’s right hand.
The Amazoness’ attacks were stopped by his feet, and Suzuha’s by his left hand.
As if having four limbs made deflecting the quartet’s attacks easy,
the next instant they were all blasted in the opposite direction with tremendous force,
all four were smashed to the ground.
“Ugh…you’re being way too merciless today…!”
Yuzuriha could more or less guess what was going on.
No doubt that idiot Toko must have said something unnecessary to Suzuha’s older brother.
Probably something like, “Don’t hold back, utterly crush them!”
Well, Yuzuriha understood the reasoning.
Just being able to spar four-on-one against people like her and the Amazoness was already an insane advantage, so overwhelming them would showcase his strength even more.
But Toko was an idiot who failed to realize:
When telling Suzuha’s brother “don’t hold back,”
what kind of devastation that would unleash–
“Ah…!”
In front of Yuzuriha’s eyes, the two Amazoness moved.
They had already been smashed down over a hundred times.
Their stamina and willpower were in tatters.
At first, the idea of the four of them coordinating an attack when none had landed a single hit seemed impossible.
But just the two of them linking up made Yuzuriha realize–
“I see. So that’s what you’re aiming for…!”
Yuzuriha understood.
Having reached their limit, the two Amazoness were going for one final strike.
Of course, they knew it wouldn’t actually hit Suzuha’s brother.
But that wasn’t their goal–!
To show the strongest attack they were still capable of, in hopes of earning a “Well done” head pat from him, or maybe even a reward kiss for their efforts – completely separate from whatever prize Toko had mentioned. It was the Amazoness’ desperate brainwave to forcibly seize the result they desired–!!
“Yuzuriha-san!”
“!”
As Yuzuriha turned towards the voice calling her, she saw Suzuha staring intently at her, his eyes eloquently conveying:
“That’s one way to go about it.”
“Shall we do the same?”
Of course, as the Killing Goddess War Maiden,
Yuzuriha had her pride as a female knight. Her arrogant self-confidence. So her answer could only be one thing.
“Ah, of course!”
I thought, “Let’s go for it!”
If we unleash our absolute best attack one last time, he’s sure to be surprised.
After that, if we beg him with all our might, he’ll probably let us pat his head.
Who knows, maybe we’ll even get a chance to—a kiss?!
…And so, the two Amazonesses and the Yuzuriha-Suzuha duo each launched their final attacks.
Of course, such lust-filled attacks had no chance of working on Suzuha’s brother.
All four of them were blown sky-high like fireworks, and the duel ended in a complete victory for Suzuha’s brother.
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11
After that, the party with guests from around the country went off without a hitch.
After escorting the guests to the parlor, I could finally relax.
Normally, we would have planned a small private afterparty for just our group, but after pushing themselves so hard in the duel, the two Amazonesses, Yuzuriha, and Suzuha’s group were all resting in the infirmary.
Even I, who knew the situation, was amazed at the intense, passionate way they all fought. I wanted to let them rest peacefully.
So as I finished cleaning up and dimmed the lights in the party hall, I took one last look around.
“Ah, there you are, Suzuha-nii.”
“Toko-san? Is something the matter?”
“No, I was just looking for you, Suzuha-nii.”
Toko-san was still in her party dress.
The deep neckline revealed her figure without restraint, making her look like a goddess—definitely dangerous for my heart.
As Toko-san walked towards me, the dim starlight reflecting off her dress made her look like a fairy from a fairy tale.
“Suzuha-nii, thank you so much for today.”
“Not at all, it’s I who should be thanking you, Toko-san. Thanks to you, we were able to get through this safely.”
“—I have to admit, I was worried I might get targeted during the party, like Yuzuriha did.”
“But we took proper precautions for that. Even the maids were on high alert.”
“…The maids?”
“You can trust Kanade’s work. It seems there were no spies or assassins who managed to sneak in after all.”
I had just confirmed with Kanade, and she hadn’t reported any such incidents.
She’s very capable, and our preparations were solid, so it’s not surprising there were no intruders.
Though she did say, “I crushed a ton of cockroaches trying to sneak into the castle, give me some praise,” so I gave her head a good pat.
“And Toko-san, what were you planning to do if you were actually attacked?”
“That’s when Suzuha-nii would come save me, right?”
“…Well, yes, I would save you.”
“Even though I was imprisoned in the royal castle, Suzuha-nii still rescued me. Saving me at a party would be a piece of cake for you, right?”
“I can’t always be there to save you, you know…”
“Ahaha. If there’s a situation Suzuha-nii can’t save me from, then that’s just my fate. I’ll accept it then.”
After her amused chuckle, Toko-san looked me in the eye.
It was a very serious gaze,
with the resolve of someone about to make a once-in-a-lifetime confession.
“—Suzuha-nii. I’ve always, always wanted to tell you…”
“…What is it?”
“Not as the princess or the queen, but as a girl—to thank you for saving me.”
That’s strange, I thought.
After all, Toko-san always thanks me, and she was even more grateful than I was about the coup d’etat.
But, as if seeing through my thoughts,
“No, it’s not that. That day, I forced you to call me ‘Toko,’ so you would treat me as a girl, not just the queen.”
“I see…”
“But you know, the fact that I could demand that means I was still seeing you from the position of the queen. Even at the coronation and enthronement, I’ve always interacted with you as the queen.”
“That’s… only natural.”
No matter how familiar we may seem,
there is an unmistakable line between us.
That is the nature of being the monarch of a country.
And of course, Toko-san is well aware of that.
“That’s fine. It’s the path I’ve chosen.”
“…………”
“But you know, just for now, just the two of us—can you call me by name?”
And Toko-san,
For the first time, called me by my name.
“—Thank you for saving my life. Thank you for supporting me all this time. And please, continue to be by my side.”
She suddenly kissed my cheek, and then,
“—I love you.”
She embraced me lightly.
In front of me, Toko-san’s dress shimmered in the starlight.
Her soft, yet resilient curves pressed against my body.
“Don’t worry about it, Suzuha-nii. This is just a special big hug between friends, you know?”
I couldn’t see Toko-san’s expression since I was being hugged.
“I absolutely don’t want to fight with Yuzuriha over you, and a royal can’t marry a commoner, and there’s no precedent for a noble-born commoner to marry either, and if Suzuha became my sister-in-law it would be such a hassle—”
“…………”
“But, but, even so, I—!”
Guuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu────
A sound like something from the depths of hell echoed.
It took me a few seconds to realize that it was the rumbling of Toko-san’s stomach.
“…Huh? Was that just now… your stomach growling?”
“Wawawawa, forget that ever happened!!”
Toko-san jumped back, her face flushed with embarrassment.
Ah, she was back to her usual self.
“But it can’t be helped! I was busy with the signing ceremony and the party the whole day, and I didn’t have a single chance to eat!”
“Even so, you had time to nibble on sushi during the party, didn’t you?”
“But! I had promised to eat with you, Suzuha-nii, and the timing just didn’t line up at all!”
“I see. So it was completely my fault.”
“Hmph! Suzuha-nii is making fun of me, the queen!”
As Toko-san puffed out her cheeks in displeasure,
I couldn’t stop laughing.
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