Tsuitsui

By: Tsuitsui

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Chapter 52: The Coming of Spring

Spring arrived, the snow fully melted, and the river’s flow grew stronger.

That was when Moonforest Castle—constructed at breakneck speed—was finally completed. It seemed a wide range of magic and tools had been used to finish it in record time. The castle stood on the lakeshore, built from white bricks in a Western architectural style.

Size-wise, it was barely more than a glorified mansion, but its appearance was suitably grand.

With its completion, the barrier’s core was relocated to the castle, and houses began to fill the land between the former village and the new stronghold. A modest castle town had begun to form.

Riara-san assumed the role of chancellor, taking charge of state affairs, while Kasai-san was elevated to the position of great general, the cornerstone of the nation's defense.

As for Yuria and Lulu, while continuing their duties as handmaidens, they were now also training hard to take revenge on Itome. Fere, meanwhile, had repeatedly held concerts to soothe the hearts of agitated refugees and wanderers, eventually gaining idol-like status as a songstress.

Master spent his time dashing through the forest, gathering certain items to strengthen their position.

The Liberation Army, led by Arakis-san and his comrades, had been steadily recruiting members and was beginning to take solid form. No doubt they were also preparing for the likely outbreak of war.

And so, each day we prepared for the battles to come—yet life remained enjoyable. Clarice-san's emergency contact came just as we had wrapped up most of our daily preparations.


“Looks like Forlitz has finally made their move.”

We were in the conference room. Master placed a letter on the table and took the head seat. Riara-san and Kasai-san sat in order of rank.

At some point, Yuria and Lulu had taken on the titles of head handmaiden and captain of the guard. They sat with us as well. Fere and I quietly listened from the sidelines.

“Took them long enough.”
“They probably didn’t have the guts to invade before the thaw.”

The one who responded to Riara-san’s exasperated remark was Goran-san, the bipedal tanuki who had been made captain of the special assault unit “FOX,” which Master and Kasai-san had gleefully put together.

There’s a lot to unpack there, but I’ll leave it alone.

“So, what’s their play?”

I raised my hand slightly and asked. Master nodded in acknowledgment and answered calmly.

“They’ve put out a high-profile request to adventurers—to take down the most wanted criminal, Shuya Kisaragi. The charges are treason, slave theft, and a bunch of others... Apparently, I’ve been brutalizing the demi-humans I ‘forcibly took away.’”

“That yakitori really was brutal though. Coming home from work to that delicious smell every day? I couldn't take it anymore.”

Goran-san patted his belly with a pop, earning chuckles from around the room. It looked like the kingdom was starting by using adventurers to gauge our strength and keep us in check.

“What about their real combat force?”

“About 80% ready. We could fight right now if needed, but it’s not perfect.”

A deep voice replied—it belonged to the wolfman commanding the frontline troops. Preparations seemed to be progressing well, and perhaps it was lucky they hadn’t yet launched a full attack.

“What should we do? I was thinking we should assist in defending the village.”

Arakis-san raised a hand slightly, speaking with measured calm. Master brought a hand to his chin, falling into thought.

“For now, stay on standby and focus on shoring up defenses. At this stage, it’ll likely just be disputes between adventurers and me personally. There's no guarantee assassins won’t sneak in amidst the chaos either.”

This was a subtle standoff—Arakis-san wanted to create a track record of cooperating with the royal army, while Master wanted to prevent any unnecessary movement.

It seems the Arakis faction nobles in the capital were spreading bad rumors about the current king, doing their part to slow him down. That, at least, should be buying us time. After all, military achievements attract followers.

“Understood. I pray for your success in battle.”

Arakis-san, as if expecting this reply, ended his questions. With that, the briefing wrapped up. Everyone moved to carry out their assigned roles in preparation for the incoming adventurers.


That said... I was just there for appearances. To be honest, I have no combat ability whatsoever.

Even the two skill gacha rolls I got during the winter gave me nothing useful in battle.

Actually, one of them was the worst skill I’ve ever seen. And despite getting one extra roll compared to everyone else, I ended up with this mess. I wanted to cry.

So, as always, I can only fulfill the duties I’ve been assigned—nothing more, nothing less.

“――Therefore, Chris-chan can buy 20 apples.”

My current workplace is an open-air classroom. Writing equations on the blackboard with chalk, teaching math to the kids is my daily routine.

“Chris-oneechan can’t eat all those apples by herself, right?”

“We’ll eat them for you!”

However, teaching calculation to kids who don’t even understand the concept of math is quite a challenge. Honestly, I feel like they’re just messing with me, which makes it hard to get through the lesson properly.

“If you don’t get serious, Yuria-oneesan’s school lunch is off limits, got it!?”

I put down the chalk and raised my voice, causing the children to jump up and start booing.

“Ehh! Sora’s so mean! Flat-head!”

“Boo! Boo!”

“Who’s the flat-head here!?”

I don’t really care, but somehow that remark really annoys me.

Those naughty puppies calling me “flat-head” will get their tails all twisted like that dog named Francois, who was rolled up by some madam somewhere…

“Kyah! Sora’s angry!”

“Waaah!”

“Wait! I’ll curl your tail fur right up!!”

By counting each twisted tail hair one by one, I’ll engrave the concept of math into their hearts—with a side of fear!

“Oh, you’re lively today too.”

“Ah, Chris-oneechan!”

As I chased the running puppies and kittens around, Chris—the golden cat lady with a big belly—arrived.

You see, during winter, she had a rock ’n’ roll baby, and it was a smashing success.

Because preparations for war had started, the baby boom wasn’t as intense as one might expect, but there were quite a few who managed to have kids, and she was one of them.

I’d rather not recall Riara-san’s reaction when the pregnancy was discovered. At first, she was thrilled like it was her grandchild, but as her drinking deepened, she realized even that ‘grandchild’ had gotten ahead of her…

Kasai-san was pale at first, but once he made up his mind, he became a very devoted husband. Well, the men’s story is not important here.

“Sora-chan, I came to help.”

“Thank you. These guys just won’t listen at all…”

Wiping sweat and sitting down, Chris chuckled softly as she was pulled by the kids and sat beside me. Now that she’s in a stable period, she’s helping with the open-air classroom.

“I think it’s pretty amazing that you get everyone to actually attend class every day.”

“It’d be great if they actually studied too…”

Honestly, it feels like they’re just teasing me, and no real learning is happening. Kids swarmed around Chris, timidly stroking her belly.

“Chris-oneechan, is the baby doing well?”

“Yeah, it’s healthy.”

It’s a heartwarming sight, really. Then something tugged my sleeve. Looking over, one of the dog girls who had been running away from me earlier was now staring intently at my belly.

“When will Sora and Shuya-nii’s baby be born?”

“It’s not happening!?”

What a terrifying thing for a kid to say!


After escaping the kids who kept pestering me about the baby, I left Chris and the children in the care of another beastman teacher and headed to the town square halfway between the old village and the castle.

There, a group of beastmen clad in heavy black leather armor stood in formation. They carried swords on their backs and had twin pistols holstered at their hips.

They were the musketeer unit that fought using the guns and swords Master had crafted. Since many beastmen are well-built, the sight of them lined up was quite imposing.

By the way, the guns were magical firearms that fired shockwave spells. The recoil was pretty fierce—I couldn’t handle them myself. Every time I fired, my arm would jerk up, making it impossible to aim.

As the apparent captain, a wolfman noticed me and immediately gave a sharp salute, holding his hand vertically to his forehead. Wolfmen and other beastmen who operate in groups tend to be serious at heart, and this gesture was perfectly executed.

“Salute to Her Majesty the Queen!”

“Who the heck do you think I am, you furry beast!”

Come to think of it, some of these people had started treating me like a queen. It’s scary how the outer moat seems to be filling in around me without me realizing it.

“As always, Your Majesty, it seems intruders have appeared, so we will be heading out to respond. Lord Shuya is in the castle, so please return early.”

“Understood. Take care.”

The captain dismissed my rude remark with a slight smile, gave his orders, and led everyone toward the forest. I sighed, replied quietly, watched their backs as they headed off, and then returned to the castle.

Well now, I wonder how this will all turn out.


◇◆ADVENTURE RESULT◆◇
【EXP】
—Experience gained over time
◆【Sora Lv.95】+100
◆【Lulu Lv.37】+60
◆【Yuria Lv.39】+70

================
Sora Lv.95 [957] → Lv.105 [1057] <<Level Up!!
Lulu Lv.37 [371] → Lv.43 [431] <<Level Up!!
Yuria Lv.39 [391] → Lv.46 [461] <<Level Up!!

【RECORD】
[MAX COMBO] >> 40
[MAX BATTLE] >> 40

【PARTY-1 (Main)】
[Shuya] [Lv125] HP 3700/3700 MP 4560/4560 [Normal]
[Sora] [Lv105] HP 70/70 MP 1685/1685 [Normal]
[Lulu] [Lv43] HP 950/950 MP 42/42 [Normal]
[Yuria] [Lv46] HP 2540/2540 MP 91/91 [Normal]
[Fere] [Lv40] HP 445/445 MP 1450/1450 [Normal]

【PARTY-2 (Sub)】
[Makoto] [Lv85] HP 5500/5500 MP 170/170 [Normal]
[Chris] [Lv15] HP 210/210 MP 20/20 [Pregnant]

【PARTY-3 (Sub)】
[Riara] [Lv130] HP 850/850 MP 3200/3200

================
“Why does everyone call me the Queen!?”
“That’s way too late, senpai.”
“Everyone in the village shares the same understanding about the young lady…”

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