Sepia asked back on an unexpected topic.
“That’s strange. I thought they arrived near the capital a month ago.”
“Your Majesty knows. But they still haven’t entered the capital. His Majesty has issued a standby order.”
“Standby order?”
So does that mean the troops are stopped in front of the capital gate?
It was an order that didn’t make sense.
The ladies must have felt the same way, as she also had a bitter expression on her face.
“I don’t know the reason either, but this is the first time I’ve seen a national subject treated like this.”
The other ladies nodded.
They also seemed to know nothing more.
“I see. Thank you for telling me.”
Sepia said goodbye to them and left them.
She was on her way to the treasure trove. Sepia asked Jacob, the escort knight who was following her, about the incident earlier.
“Jacob, is what the ladies are saying true?”
He looked a little embarrassed but soon nodded.
“They say they’re still waiting in front of the capital gate.”
After confirming, her headache became even worse.
'The victory ceremony is only a week away.'
A standby order means that you have to wait indefinitely in that place because you never know when or what order will be given.
You can't even move until the order is given, and if there is no accommodation nearby, camping is the norm.
She couldn't even imagine that the punitive force was going through such hardships. After all, it was the Emperor's authority, not the Empress's, to enter the capital.
Did Demios want the main characters of the party to just not attend?
No matter how personal his feelings were, how could he treat those who sacrificed themselves for the empire like that? It was hard to understand.
'I have to meet Demios.'
That's how she arrived in front of the Empress's room.
He planned to have his maid visit him right away.
Suddenly. Before Sepia could even put her hand on the doorknob, the door to the Empress's room opened.
"Madam Remody?"
It was Sepia's maid.
Madam Remody told her with a troubled face.
"Empress, His Majesty is waiting."
Demios?
When Sepia was puzzled, Madame Remody held the door for her.
The Empress’s room was structured so that before entering the bedroom, there was a reception room and a long hallway.
As she followed the maid’s guidance and went inside, she saw Demios’s back.
He was standing there with his legs nailed to the wide sofa.
How long had he been waiting like that?
Sepia asked, looking at him standing there like a lone wolf.
“Your Majesty? You’re not sitting.”
Demios looked back at Sepia. His movements were stiff like a wooden doll.
His red eyes were bloodshot and he was glaring at Sepia fiercely.
“What happened?”
It was the first time she had seen him so sensitive, so he couldn’t help but ask.
Demios, who had been continuously expressing his fierce feelings, finally opened his mouth.
“...Titi said so. He saw the Empress with another man at the secret lake.”
She had completely forgotten what had happened at the lake.
'There's no way Titi wouldn't tell him about that time.'
Was he coming to make a fuss about insulting her again? Or was he coming to question who made Titi cry?
'That's fortunate.'
Even she didn't know anything about Roxanne, so she had nothing to say.
However, words completely different from what Sepia had guessed came out of Demios' mouth.
"What kind of relationship did you have that brought him all the way to the lake? Were you two having a secret meeting and caught by Titi?"
Sepia couldn't close her mouth in bewilderment.
What on earth did Titi say that made the accident turn out that way?
"We're just friends."
"...Ha."
Even when she tried to correct him, he only responded with a sneer.
"In this place where only beasts swarm? And a female and a male are friends? That's surprising."
It was clearly a derogatory remark.
Sepia's expression hardened, thinking that Demios was in no condition to communicate.
"I can do it. But Your Majesty."
Demios's eyebrows twitched at the words aimed at the government.
Before he could raise his voice, Sepia changed the subject.
"That's good. I had business to attend to anyway, Your Majesty."
Immediately after speaking, she had the illusion that his face softened a little.
“...What’s going on?”
Judging from the fact that he asked back, it seemed that he was still willing to listen, so she was glad.
What if he changed his mind?
Sepia hurriedly got to the main point.
“Please withdraw the standby order for the punitive force.”
As soon as she finished speaking, Demios’s expression distorted again.
He barely managed to suppress his anger and ground his teeth.
“This is not something the Empress should get involved in.”
“No. They are your subjects, just as they are my subjects. Or is there a clear reason for ordering the punitive force to stand by other than personal feelings?”
Although they were of different species, Sepia had been taking care of her subjects as the Empress of the Beastkin Empire.
Right now, she was making a legitimate appeal.
Sepia advised Demios, who was not opening his mouth.
“Your Majesty. Regardless of the feelings between you and Duke Leopold, they are heroes who have sacrificed everything for the empire. If you acknowledge that, there will be no more gossip.”
This advice was also sincere.
However, he could not accept Sepia’s words.
“...Be careful with your words.”
It was a rough voice, like scraping iron.
All the windows in the reception room were closed.
In this place where not a single breeze blew, Demios’ silver hair was swaying.
It was a sign of beast transformation.
‘No way.’
Drodian was the wolf of the goddess.
A divine beast with enormous strength and size compared to other beasts.
Like all beasts, the royal family also had difficulty controlling their reason when they turned into complete beasts due to anger rather than will.
Sepia had only seen Demios’ true form when she was very young.
The immature entity and the Emperor would be completely different now. It was a tense situation.
Sepia’s escort knight, Moose, bulged his huge muscles and reached for his sword sheath.
Even so, if Demios had turned back to his original form, he would have fallen in one blow.
However, the worst did not happen.
“...Do as you wish.”
Whoosh.
Although they were of different species, Sepia had been taking care of her subjects as the Empress of the Beastkin Empire.
Right now, she was making a legitimate appeal.
Sepia advised Demios, who was not opening his mouth.
“Your Majesty. Regardless of the feelings between you and Duke Leopold, they are heroes who have sacrificed everything for the empire. If you acknowledge that, there will be no more gossip.”
This advice was also sincere.
However, he could not accept Sepia’s words.
“...Be careful with your words.”
It was a rough voice, like scraping iron.
All the windows in the reception room were closed.
In this place where not a single breeze blew, Demios’ silver hair was swaying.
It was a sign of beast transformation.
‘No way.’
Drodian was the wolf of the goddess.
A divine beast with enormous strength and size compared to other beasts.
Like all beasts, the royal family also had difficulty controlling their reason when they turned into complete beasts due to anger rather than will.
Sepia had only seen Demios’ true form when she was very young.
The immature entity and the Emperor would be completely different now. It was a tense situation.
Sepia’s escort knight, Moose, bulged his huge muscles and reached for his sword sheath.
Even so, if Demios had turned back to his original form, he would have fallen in one blow.
However, the worst did not happen.
“...Do as you wish.”
Whoosh.
Demios took a deep breath and exhaled again.
In the process, his irregularly shaking hair and sharp eyes barely calmed down.
Having calmed down, he passed Sepia and left the Empress’s room.
“Why are you like that?”
He was getting angry.
His body, which had frozen for a moment, could not move properly.
Soon after, the maids came in and helped the frozen Sepia to sit on the sofa.
“Your Majesty, are you okay?”
“What on earth happened...?”
The maids also looked quite surprised as they watched Demios leave the Empress’s room.
Sepia could not figure out what he was thinking. But the important thing was.
“I got permission.”
They could open the capital gate to the punitive force. It was before the tension had completely subsided.
Sepia stood up and delivered the official document with the Empress’s seal.
In the process, his irregularly shaking hair and sharp eyes barely calmed down.
Having calmed down, he passed Sepia and left the Empress’s room.
“Why are you like that?”
He was getting angry.
His body, which had frozen for a moment, could not move properly.
Soon after, the maids came in and helped the frozen Sepia to sit on the sofa.
“Your Majesty, are you okay?”
“What on earth happened...?”
The maids also looked quite surprised as they watched Demios leave the Empress’s room.
Sepia could not figure out what he was thinking. But the important thing was.
“I got permission.”
They could open the capital gate to the punitive force. It was before the tension had completely subsided.
Sepia stood up and delivered the official document with the Empress’s seal.
“Send a servant to the eastern gate of the capital right now and tell them that I have permission for the punitive force to enter. So that they can go through the capital and enter the imperial palace straight away. I will provide them with a place to stay with the authority of the Empress. All costs will be paid from the Empress’s palace finances.”
“Understood.”
The gate had to be opened today so that the punitive force would not have to wait any longer.
Sepia looked at the servant who had received the permit and left with complicated eyes.
‘There should be no more trouble.’
The gate would be opened, but there had to be no trouble afterward.
As Sepia worried about this, Roxanne’s existence suddenly flashed through her mind.
‘But how did Roxanne get in?’
Even as the sun set, she could not find the answer.
That night.
News that the gate had been opened for the punitive force reached Sepia’s ears.
***
The evening was dark with sunset. The red-haired knight Groer ran toward the campsite.
“The gate is open! I finally got the permission to eat!”
A loud shout echoed in front of the east gate.
The knights who had been waiting for the gate to the capital to open began to murmur at this.
“Vice-Chief, is the east gate really open?”
The second knight commander, Biltman, asked incredulously.
His suspicions were justified.
The standby order had not been lifted even after more than two weeks had passed since the punitive force arrived in front of the capital.
The soldiers who had hoped to quickly return to the capital after the long war suddenly became angry.
“Yes. It seems the Emperor has finally come to his senses.”
“..Commander-in-Chief. If you keep talking like that after entering the capital, you’ll be arrested for insulting the imperial family before the victory ceremony.”
Despite the joking rebuke, Groer continued to grumble.
“Ah, arrest them. What does His Majesty know about war that he treats us like this? His pride has its limits.”
Biltman held his tongue at Groer’s passionate speech. It was because he agreed with him.
“Understood.”
The gate had to be opened today so that the punitive force would not have to wait any longer.
Sepia looked at the servant who had received the permit and left with complicated eyes.
‘There should be no more trouble.’
The gate would be opened, but there had to be no trouble afterward.
As Sepia worried about this, Roxanne’s existence suddenly flashed through her mind.
‘But how did Roxanne get in?’
Even as the sun set, she could not find the answer.
That night.
News that the gate had been opened for the punitive force reached Sepia’s ears.
***
The evening was dark with sunset. The red-haired knight Groer ran toward the campsite.
“The gate is open! I finally got the permission to eat!”
A loud shout echoed in front of the east gate.
The knights who had been waiting for the gate to the capital to open began to murmur at this.
“Vice-Chief, is the east gate really open?”
The second knight commander, Biltman, asked incredulously.
His suspicions were justified.
The standby order had not been lifted even after more than two weeks had passed since the punitive force arrived in front of the capital.
The soldiers who had hoped to quickly return to the capital after the long war suddenly became angry.
“Yes. It seems the Emperor has finally come to his senses.”
“..Commander-in-Chief. If you keep talking like that after entering the capital, you’ll be arrested for insulting the imperial family before the victory ceremony.”
Despite the joking rebuke, Groer continued to grumble.
“Ah, arrest them. What does His Majesty know about war that he treats us like this? His pride has its limits.”
Biltman held his tongue at Groer’s passionate speech. It was because he agreed with him.
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