“I’ve been waiting!”
The first to greet us was none other than Uriel.
In her letter, she expressed so much joy about being invited after spending some time in the Holy Kingdom that it felt almost overwhelming.
It wasn’t like this before the Trial; I could feel her personality became much more lively after undergoing it.
Well, I suppose having this sort of personality is better for her.
Previously, perhaps due to her position, she tried to maintain a serious demeanor, but to be honest, that didn’t suit Uriel at all.
I feel like the term “tomboy princess” fits her the best.
It seemed that everyone else thought the same way, aside from me.
“[Aha ha… Hic!]”
“I’m so glad to see you, Aria~!!”
As soon as I came out, Uriel rushed over to hug me, jumping up and down.
I didn’t think she was the type to act this way, but perhaps it was because she felt quite sad when everyone else went to the Holy Kingdom without her, and upon seeing me, she forgot about her surroundings and just embraced me.
“Y, Your Highness!”
“Please maintain your dignity!”
The other knights gasped and exclaimed, likely because she hugged me in front of them, but the fact that the saintess of the Holy Kingdom, Barcan, and the princess of the empire were happily embracing each other wasn’t really going to be a huge issue.
Besides, it looked lovely, so they just said that for appearances, while all of them wore content smiles.
Anyway, at the knight’s admonition to maintain her dignity, Uriel finally recalled her position and pulled away from me, asking if I had a hard time getting here as she looked around.
I mean, it couldn’t have been that difficult, right?
I replied that I was fine, chuckling.
In reality, it hadn’t been very hard at all.
“Let’s go inside quickly! My father is waiting!”
Ah.
Hmm…
Initially, since my friend Uriel invited me, I thought I should comply with whatever she wanted, but the moment I arrived and thought about meeting the emperor, I wanted to go back home immediately.
Stella’s thoughts seemed to resonate with mine as she cautiously asked Uriel if we could go back.
Of course, returning at this point was practically impossible, so Stella reluctantly had to meet the emperor with tears in her eyes.
‘Well… it shouldn’t really be a problem to meet him…’
How many people had I saved from the empire?
Of course, it was more because I was driven by enjoyment rather than out of a pure desire to save someone witnessing death in front of me.
Most had spent time in the Realm, so even if I saved many people there, the average citizens probably only knew me through those who had interest in me or through the statues made of me.
‘Wow…’
Yet, thinking that all these people came out to welcome me and Evan made me feel like I hadn’t wasted my life.
Evan too was looking around, showing his confusion at the friendly gazes directed towards him.
‘Isn’t this great that no one here is staring at him like they do back in the Holy Kingdom?’
Anyway, it looked like the image of the country was tarnished because of those foolish uncles.
Were they really that displeased that their idol was simply getting to know a guy? They kept staring daggers at Evan the whole time.
I told Dannes, so I trust that they won’t do that next time, but I wonder if we’ll return to the Holy Kingdom together again.
“The Holy Kingdom and this place are completely different…”
It was clear from just hearing them speak.
It looked like they weren’t planning on going to the Holy Kingdom anymore.
Once the Demon King was dealt with, I didn’t have any intention of settling down in the Holy Kingdom either, so it seemed like we were on the same page.
Especially since there’s really not much to do in the Holy Kingdom, I wasn’t keen on lingering there. Honestly, staying in the empire wouldn’t be wrong if I thought about my original hometown; it felt closer to the truth.
As I walked further inside, I briefly paused.
‘… Huh?’
What was I just thinking?
Not planning to settle in the Holy Kingdom, we’re on the same page?
Saying it wasn’t preferable to settle down due to the lack of activities there?
Living in the empire?
‘Eh…’
I realized those didn’t seem like things someone who planned to return to their original world would think about…
Saying I would return to my original world, yet now my thoughts turned to where I would settle down after dealing with the Demon King—I began to question whether I genuinely intended to return.
“Arrived!”
In the meantime, Uriel, smiling, opened the door and guided us inside.
“Uriel!”
“Papa!”
“It’s been a while! Ho ho!”
Seeing that, I felt there was no need to worry.
After all, even in the game, the emperor didn’t usually show such a serious demeanor in private, so I didn’t need to worry about any bothersome occurrences.
“Come this way. We’ve prepared for you.”
The empress smiled at us.
Evan glanced at me before carefully walking inside.
I didn’t know why he looked back at me before entering, but I figured it must be a first for him as well, so I let it be.
‘Anyone would feel confused seeing such a scene…’
The doting emperor.
To be honest, I felt a little confused as well.
*
The emperor narrowed his eyes as he looked at the two people before him.
‘The Hero and the Saint…’
He felt a complicated emotion seeing the blonde, young girl with her eyes closed and the dark-haired young man standing in front of him.
No matter how much he was the emperor of this nation, he wasn’t pleased that such young children had the duty to save the world…
It was hard to accept that they bore such a heavy burden.
It was undoubtedly an obligation that should have been handled by adults, but unfortunately, for those trying to destroy the world, opposing them without bearing the duty of the Hero and the Saint was nearly impossible.
‘What a pity…’
It was truly unfortunate.
That these little kids were shouldering such an incredibly heavy burden for the peace of the world… and feeling obliged to save it.
Though it was sad, he, who bore the responsibility for countless citizens of the empire, had to turn a blind eye to this sacrifice.
All he could do was sincerely hope they would succeed.
For the Demon King was such a being.
“…”
Aside from that, he only felt sorry for the Saint.
Even if it was for the new focal point of the citizens, there was something about exploiting that young girl for propaganda that he didn’t like.
Moreover, it felt as if it undermined the spirit of a child who had stepped forward to sacrifice herself solely for people.
But for him, there was no alternative beyond this. There wasn’t a single citizen who didn’t passionately support the Saint; not one.
In reality, there were just as many citizens in the Holy Kingdom who respected the Saint as there were in Barcan.
It was indeed true that thanks to the Saint, the relations between the two nations had improved beyond compare from before.
“I am always grateful, Saintess.”
Typically, one might consider that he, as the ruling emperor of this country, held a position similar to that of the Saintess.
In other words, under normal circumstances, there wouldn’t be a need to show such formal respect…
‘But I have a human respect for her.’
How could he not show respect when this young girl, who had disabilities in her eyes and ears, was sacrificing herself for the world?
There was a reason why the people of Barcan held her in such high esteem.
So…
“I hope you can relax as much as you want and then return.”
“[T, thank you…?]”
He hoped that the empire he had built would be just a bit of a sanctuary for her, smiling at the Saintess.
As she tilted her head in confusion at his expression, she eventually bowed, saying thank you.
In that warm exchange, everyone watched with smiles as the usual conversations began to flow, starting with stories about how his daughter had changed a lot since attending the Academy and what happened there.
Discussions about the Demon King Army’s officers and the battles to defeat them followed.
There were plenty of stories to share.
Of course, to maintain this pleasant atmosphere, most of them ended up sharing stories of fun and enjoyable experiences.
The conversations continued until the sun began to set.
