My Desertion Would Be Faster Than Heros' Obsession-Chapter 53Vol 2.
“What do you mean...?”
“Do not misunderstand. We are not declaring independence from the Empire. We are merely establishing an autonomous city. And...”
Gavle continued speaking in a gentle tone.
“From now on, we will continue to fend off the monsters crossing the border and defend against invasions from neighboring nations. In return, we will govern an autonomous city.”
“B-but isn’t stopping the monsters the duty of the hetero sapiens?”
It was a rather shameless statement. However, Gavle remained unfazed and calmly explained.
“That was only due to the ancient dark sorcery that bound us for generations. I’m sure a man of your education is aware of this. But during the capture of the Imperial Palace, we completely destroyed that dark magic. There is now nothing left that can keep the hetero sapiens chained to the border.”
At those words, the man’s expression twisted into one of dismay.
The truth behind the contract magic had been meticulously kept secret from the citizens of the Empire. They still believed that monsters would continue pouring in from beyond the border and knew that the Empire alone was not strong enough to fend them off.
He was probably calculating at this very moment which option would benefit them the most.
After a brief silence, the man finally spoke.
“So, if we permit the establishment of your autonomous city, are you saying you will continue handling all the monsters?”
“Yes. And we will also drive out the Kingdom of Butein’s forces from this land.”
“...I don’t think this is a decision I can make on my own.”
Exchanging glances with his colleagues, the man seemed to reach a conclusion.
“We will deliver our response as soon as possible.”
“Very well. I hope you make a wise decision.”
Thus ended the first negotiation between the Border Defense Army and the Citizen’s Assembly.
***
"The only thing left to decide is where and how long the Border Defense Army will be stationed, as well as defining the territory of the Arkon autonomous city."
Grain summarized the situation concisely.
At that moment, the Border Defense Army was gathered in the training field behind the Imperial Palace. Normally, the imperial citizens would have feared us, but perhaps due to their excitement over recent events, they simply smiled as they passed by.
Looking at the assembled people, I felt an odd sensation.
There were recruits who had just joined the Border Defense Army, commanding officers close to their discharge, and even middle-aged veterans who had been retired for a long time...
‘So many people actually survived the Border Defense Army.’
Of course, not all of the soldiers were here. The majority of the Border Defense Army was still outside the capital, fighting against the remnants of the Adolph Imperial Army. It would have been impossible to gather everyone in one place.
The people here were those who had suffered under the contract magic. A sense of satisfaction washed over me at the thought that I had avenged them. At the same time, a deep anger surged within me at the sheer number of people who had suffered.
As I was caught in this mix of emotions, a sudden warmth spread «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» to my hand.
Aquila had grabbed it.
“What? What is it?”
He looked like he had something to say, so I asked. Then, in a quiet voice, he murmured,
“Salvia, should we, mere foot soldiers, really be involved in deciding the military’s overall strategy and national borders?”
“...I see your point.”
I didn’t need to understand everything, but at the very least, I knew one thing—he was absolutely fed up.
And it was no surprise. We should have been enjoying our blazing-hot newlywed life, yet we had been forced into a revolution. On top of that, our newlywed home had been taken over by the revolutionary forces. This was outright injustice.
And Aquila had a point. There wasn’t much we could actually do at this stage.
I still didn’t fully understand the structure of the Adolph Empire, and even with my knowledge from my past life, I wasn’t qualified to get deeply involved in politics.
“Aquila, you’re right. We need to take a break.”
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
I really wanted to write ‘And so, that’s how things turned out.’ But it had been far too long since I last had the luxury of writing that kind of line.
Finally making up my mind, I boldly marched toward April.
“Lady April, I have something to say!”
“What is it?”
“I... would like to request leave—”
“Sure, take some time off.”
“...Of course, I figured it wouldn’t be possi—wait, what?”
I snapped my head up in disbelief, but April simply smiled at me, as if confirming that I had heard correctly.
She had actually granted me leave!
“L-Lady April!”
“Well, you two are newlyweds. You need some time off. Planning to spend it together?”
“Yes! We’re going to prepare for our wedding!”
“...Wait. You two weren’t already married? But you were living together?”
“Lady April, then I’ll be on my way! Please take care of the aftermath of the revolution!”
I gave April a perfectly innocent farewell, ignoring the way her pupils trembled in disbelief. Then, grabbing Aquila’s hand, I sprinted off.
Ah, finally! I had fulfilled enough revolutionary duties to earn myself a vacation!
To be honest, the revolution itself had become a burden, shackling me down. But now, I was free.
There was nothing left that I had to do.
I was completely and utterly free!
***
We ran all the way home at full speed. To outsiders, it must have looked like we were dealing with an urgent matter. And as soon as we arrived—well, that’s how things turned out.
After spending a very long time on that, we finally decided to sort out our plans.
“We can’t just be sitting around like this. We have something important to do.”
I had just made a big speech about finishing all my obligations, but in truth, there was still something left before I could declare my happily ever after.
That was—our wedding preparations!
“We’ve been way too busy since we got married.”
The wedding was mostly an excuse. The truth was, we just needed some time to be together.
Ever since our marriage, we had joined the Special Task Force for Dark Magic Investigation, taken Victim into our home, and then I had suddenly been dragged off to the North. We had been through way too much.
Now was finally the time to enjoy some peace.
Leaning comfortably in Aquila’s arms, I began listing out the things we needed for the wedding.
“First, we need someone to officiate the ceremony.”
“Let’s go with Altair. He talks a lot, so he’d be good at it.”
“Agreed. What about the officiant?”
“Hm... let’s just pick one of the battalion commanders. We don’t really know any other adults.”
Damn. The only people I was close with were my military comrades. Just what kind of social life did I have in this world?
“We’ll skip the piano performance.”
“Yeah, that’s already been settled...”
I chuckled, remembering how many times Benny had declared, “I’ll be playing the piano accompaniment!”—at least a hundred times. There was a time when I had no idea what she meant by that.
“Do people usually pick a special song for the ceremony?”
“A song? People sing at weddings?”
“...Maybe not, then. Moving on...”
I ticked off my fingers as I continued.
“The wedding dress, your suit, the venue, the date, the rings... Oh, have you ever heard of a honeymoon?”
“A honeymoon? Is that some kind of new trend?”
“No... Never mind, we’ll skip that too. Anyway, that should cover it!”
We weren’t planning anything extravagant, but once I listed everything out, it turned out to be quite a lot.
Without wasting time, Aquila and I headed to the shopping district.
The city streets were bustling. Many citizens were gathering at the palace for the public discussions held by the Citizen’s Assembly.
“If everyone’s rushing to the assembly, I wonder if the merchants will even bother opening today?”
“We should check the shopping district. Some of them are probably still open.”
Following Aquila’s suggestion, we made our way to the shops, and thankfully, many were open.
It seemed that even those staying in the capital were occasionally stepping out to buy supplies, making business livelier than usual.
“What’s over there?”
I pointed at a shop with a large crowd gathered around it. Aquila glanced over and answered,
“It’s a grocery store.”
“Oh.”
Well, if people were planning to stay in the capital for a long time, they’d need to stock up on food. A long line stretched in front of the store.
As we passed by on our way to the jewelry shop, a voice called out from behind us.
“W-wait a moment! You... you’re...!”
We turned around absentmindedly.
The moment Aquila locked eyes with the middle-aged woman who had called out to us, her face contorted in shock.
“...Aquila?”
“Yes, that’s me...?”
Even as he answered, Aquila’s expression remained blank, as if he didn’t recognize her.
The woman, on the other hand, was trembling.
Who was she? Did someone in this city actually know Aquila? And why was she reacting like that?
Just as I was tilting my head in confusion, Aquila’s expression hardened. His eyes shook as if he had suddenly realized something.
And then, he dropped a bombshell that sent this entire situation spiraling into full-blown chaos.
“...Mother?”
My jaw dropped.
No way.
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Was this really happening?
Was I actually witnessing a full-fledged soap opera plot unfold in real time?
But reality didn’t change.
Aquila had just run into the mother who had abandoned him—right in the middle of the street.
This was an absolute disaster.
