Chapter 67: King's Meeting

The temporary office was filled with the scratch-scratch-scratch of pens signing documents.

Now that my strength had mostly recovered, I was working through a stack of urgent paperwork that had been brought to me.

At the moment, the only people in the room were me, the "Sword King," and Julia, the "Spear King." We were each handling our own work. Every now and then, issues would arise that required coordination between neighboring countries. Since it was a hassle for both of us to keep going back and forth to consult one another, we ended up working in the same room.

Paperwork was important, so I never slacked off.

That said... my troubles never seemed to end.

"The grand reconciliation plan was completed before we even launched it... Impossible. How did that happen...?"

"That whole party ended up being completely pointless. I'd like my time back."

Several days had already passed since Shion and Ciel reconciled.

I was relieved to see them talking normally again and getting along just like before, but I still couldn't figure out what had prompted the reconciliation. The fact that it bothered me a little was a secret.

Still, the important thing was that they had made up. There was nothing bad about that.

"Hey, are you even listening? I want my precious time back."

Correction.

Julia's mood was absolutely terrible because I'd dragged her into helping with that whole affair.

To be fair, I couldn't really blame her.

After spending the past few days around her, I'd learned one thing for certain: Julia Deuce absolutely hated wasted effort.

Especially wasted time.

Efficiency seemed to be fundamental to who she was. Everything had to be done as efficiently as possible, or she couldn't stand it. Since I didn't know much about her past, I couldn't tell whether that was something she was born with or something she developed later.

"Hmm... giving time back... I don't actually know any way to make that happen."

"The fact that you're seriously thinking about it proves you're an idiot. I'm obviously just complaining. You could've ignored it."

"Even so, it's true that you helped me. And it's also true that I made you spend time helping me. If that's the case, shouldn't I compensate you somehow? Otherwise, we wouldn't really be equals."

I had become the "Sword King" almost by accident.

Julia had become the "Spear King" through entirely different circumstances.

Neither of us had ever wanted to become kings, yet here we were.

Because of that, I wanted to avoid owing each other favors whenever possible.

Part of that was simply my personal preference, but there was also the fact that, as a king, I couldn't afford to place myself beneath the ruler of another nation.

"From my perspective, I'm already heavily indebted to you."

"You mean because you're dealing with Layla? She became completely obsessed with you. Though Hikari's the one who spends the most time with her, so if you're thanking anyone, shouldn't it be Hikari?"

"That's not what I meant. Though I am genuinely grateful for everything you're doing with Layla."

Julia let out a deep sigh.

The exhaustion on her face was obvious.

Honestly, I couldn't blame her. The way Layla treated Julia these days was a little strange. It felt less like affection and more like someone who had no idea how to properly express affection.

That aside, I did genuinely feel bad for dragging Julia into the Shion-and-Ciel situation, and I was seriously considering some kind of apology.

The other two women from the Kingdom of Yaranri didn't really need compensation.

Leila had been delighted ever since she got time off work and plenty of delicious food.

And Layla had actually thanked me, since it gave her a chance to dress up Julia, who normally had zero interest in fashion.

"Come to think of it, I've never really talked to Layla properly, but I feel like we'd get along surprisingly well."

"I can picture that way too easily, and that's exactly why I don't want to imagine it. The two of you would absolutely get excited and start saying weird things."

"Maybe."

"And don't say your interests are different, either. People with obsessive hobbies like that usually end up having huge fights eventually."

I couldn't deny that.

A disagreement over differing interpretations was entirely possible.

And if that happened, neither of us would be willing to back down.

"As expected of Julia. You understand both me and Layla really well. Maybe keeping some distance is the healthiest option."

"I'm just trying to prevent two perverts from bonding and becoming even more annoying. And stop causing so much trouble for that maid and the Saint."

She had a point.

I'd made Hikari and Alicia help me with all sorts of things.

Especially Hikari. She'd had almost nothing to do with any of this, yet she'd stayed by my side and followed me all the way here.

If someone asked whether I'd adequately repaid everything those two had done for me...

I couldn't honestly say yes.

Compared to everything they'd done, what I'd given back was nowhere near enough.

That's how much they had helped me.

"Still, you're one of the people who helped me this time. I'd like to repay you somehow too."

"...You don't have to worry about it. I've already been compensated in the form of personnel. And technically, I still owe a debt to the previous Spear King for helping me during the King's Battle."

She muttered the words reluctantly.

For all her sharp tongue, Julia was surprisingly conscientious.

Though I couldn't say I liked hearing that particular event described as a debt.

"I didn't fight the Spear King who possessed your body to save you specifically. I fought her because I couldn't forgive what she was doing. So you don't need to think of it as me saving you."

"Maybe. But from the perspective of the person who was saved, it still feels like a debt. When I think about what would've happened if things had continued..."

She wrapped her arms around herself.

Only then did I realize she was trembling.

The usual strength in her eyes was gone, replaced by a deep, inescapable anxiety.

I'd only known her for a short time, but even I could tell this wasn't a side of herself she showed others very often.

Having your body stolen.

Having your own mind sealed away.

It was horrifying.

And it made perfect sense why Julia had been willing to sacrifice Shion if it meant avoiding that fate.

"So honestly, if even something as stupid as that party helped you, then that's good enough for me. It's healthier for my mental state too."

"Keeping track of favors is such a pain. Trying to account for all that while talking is way too difficult for me."

"Considering you speak on pure instinct, I can see why."

"I don't speak on instinct. I just say whatever I'm thinking. I do think first."

"If that's what you call thinking, then I have serious concerns about how your brain works."

"That's a terrible thing to say."

We both laughed.

At the same time, neither of us stopped signing documents.

At this point, it had become second nature.

I'd been doing this ever since becoming the Sword King.

Even in my previous life—which I'd mostly forgotten by now—I probably did similar work.

Those memories felt increasingly distant and unreal.

Eventually, I would probably forget my previous life entirely.

Yet the thought didn't scare me.

Maybe because I'd already forgotten so much of it.

The fact that I didn't mind leaving it behind suggested I might be colder-hearted than I thought.

"Looks like you're pretty used to paperwork too. Even though you're getting help, you've already cleared most of that mountain of documents."

"Can you blame me? The previous Spear King was like that. She put everything into combat and neglected everything else. Corruption among her subordinates ran rampant. Every now and then, someone would do something so stupid that even she noticed and had them executed. As long as you didn't go too far, you could do whatever you wanted. Most of the people running the government were rotten too, aside from a few exceptions."

"Anyone who managed to stay honest in an environment like that deserves respect."

"I wasn't exactly innocent either. I skimmed off a few benefits here and there. Expensive cosmetics. Shampoo. Things like that."

She casually played with her hair.

"I'm pretty particular about my shampoo."

Looking at her hair, I couldn't help staring.

It was beautiful.

Smooth, glossy, and clearly well cared for, while still being cut short enough not to get in the way.

Whoever styled it was definitely a professional.

"Though I leave the actual cutting to Layla."

"...Wait. Wasn't she the third candidate for Spear King after Shion and you? Hasn't she mastered an absurd number of unrelated skills?"

"Getting your hair cut leaves you vulnerable, so you only trust people you can rely on. There aren't many people like that where I'm from. So we all found people we trusted and handled things for each other. I cut Layla's and Leila's hair too."

That surprised me.

Their circumstances were surprising enough, but even more surprising was the fact that these three women—who had each demonstrated completely different spear techniques—had mastered so many skills outside of combat.

Meanwhile, my swordsmanship had basically been brute-forced through dark magic and the Holy Sword.

I supposed the difference came from years of training since childhood.

Thinking about that made me appreciate the Holy Sword's power all over again.

It was incredible enough to let me stand alongside them as an equal.

And I still hadn't unlocked its full potential.

"Ah, this is just something I was curious about. You don't have to answer if you don't want to."

"What?"

"The Royal Spear you're carrying now. Does it have any special abilities? Like making you stronger just by holding it?"

"Hmm... It's not exactly a secret, so sure. It has 'Magic Enhancement,' 'Indestructibility,' and 'Shape Transformation.' As a magical artifact, it's pretty top-class."

As I thought.

Its abilities resembled those of my Holy Sword.

Though it had far fewer functions.

Either Julia was hiding something...

Or there was another reason.

Most likely the latter.

The previous Spear King had resided within that spear.

If they tried to load it with too many functions like the Holy Sword, it probably wouldn't be able to fully perform its primary purpose: possession.

So they sacrificed additional functions and left only the essentials.

At least, that's what my intuition told me.

And lately, my intuition had been frighteningly accurate.

"Honestly, just being indestructible makes it incredibly useful. I use it all the time. If I focus hard enough, I can even transform it into the spears I used before."

Smiling, she split the Royal Spear into two weapons and held one in each hand.

Yet despite her smile, it seemed forced.

And that was understandable.

That spear was proof of status for Julia, Layla, and Leila.

It was the symbol of the Spear King, ruler of their nation.

Something they could never simply discard.

But at the same time, it was also the possession of the woman who had tried to steal Julia's body.

As long as she remembered being possessed, carrying an object that reminded her of nearly losing herself couldn't possibly be pleasant.

"...Just so we're clear, I don't need your sympathy."

Julia glared at me.

"I may be inexperienced, but I'm still going to become the Spear King. You and I are equals. I'm not interested in being looked down on."

"I don't pity you. Not even a little. And looking down on you would never cross my mind. But you literally said remembering it makes you shake."

"Shut up! I never said that! I'm going to become a perfect and merciless queen!"

Her face turned bright red as she wildly shook her brown hair.

At that moment, she looked exactly like a girl her age.

And yet she would soon stand as the representative of an entire nation.

The way she continued moving forward despite nearly being possessed by the Spear King was inspiring.

She seemed like someone who could overcome anything.

I genuinely respected her.

She had nearly lost herself.

Nearly had her body stolen.

And yet she still carried the object that caused it all.

That strength of will was proof of her strength as a person.

Knowing that someone like her considered me an equal made me happy.

At the same time, being equals made me want to help her.

And whenever situations like this arose, there was only one choice I ever made.

"Alright! Once we finish this batch of paperwork, let's go out and have some fun together! I'm going to lose my mind if I don't eat something sweet soon, and this place is apparently a tourist destination, so I want to look around too!"

"Haaah?!"

It was completely out of nowhere.

But honestly, that summed up most of my life.

So I hoped she'd just accept it.