Finally, I can Retire, Or so I Thought

While Dion worked away in his domain, the atmosphere inside the communication rooms across every royal palace grew intense after Gred explained his encounter to the assembled monarchs via the magical mirrors.

Slam! Alexius struck the armrest of his throne, his face flushed with anger and his jaw set tight. Standing beside him, Mateo remained silent, his expression just as dark.

”So... you saw my royal court mage there?” Alexius asked, his voice trembling with rage.

”That is correct, Your Majesty Alexius. The protective barrier was unmistakably her work. Besides, that wasn’t all. I also saw... the princess of Northgard, my adoptive sister and the princess of Thetor, who was supposed to be my fiancée,” Gred answered through the mirror.

”What did you say? My daughter... Aria is there too?” Lamberd shouted through his mirror.

”Yes, Your Majesty Lamberd,” Gred replied.

”Hmm... this is turning out to be extremely serious. With an SSS-rank royal mage and four SS-rank figures gathered in one place... they pose a severe threat to the world,” Kenzo muttered from his mirror.

”Indeed, Your Majesty Araki. We cannot simply sit by and do nothing about this,” Theobald added through his mirror.

”Please, Your Majesties, do not act rashly. Gemmeth is with them... We all know Gemmeth must never come near the seal we have guarded together for a thousand years,” Gred urged.

At Gred’s words, the other four kings went silent. Their knuckles turned white as they clenched their fists inside the mirrors. Just then, a crow landed on Haruto’s hand in his reflection. He promptly retrieved a letter from its leg and read it, then leaned down to whisper into Kenzo’s ear.

”Ah... I see,” Kenzo said.

Alexius, Theobald, Lamberd, and Gred turned their eyes toward Kenzo’s mirror.

”According to a fresh report from a spy on the ground, they are currently building up their territory. The spy also spotted the man King Gred mentioned, he was constructing a wall to block off the new road connecting that land to my kingdom,” Kenzo revealed.

”W-what? Do they... intend to establish their own kingdom?” Lamberd asked.

”This is unacceptable. We must dispatch an army immediately and burn them to the ground,” Theobald interjected furiously.

”No... for now, it’s best we leave them alone,” Alexius stated.

Silence fell over the room once more. Everyone turned to look at Alexius, even Mateo standing beside him eyeing his king with gravity.

”What do you mean, Your Majesty Alexius? We can’t possibly just let them grow!” Theobald shouted, standing up with a wrathful face.

”Think about it. Gemmeth is there... along with Cleo... plus three SS-rank hero classes and... a man whose true power remains unknown, who appears to be their leader. Their combined force is more than enough to obliterate our troops, even if we join forces. We cannot afford to act recklessly; we must approach this with extreme caution,” Alexius explained.

The kings fell silent, weighing his words. Theobald sat back down in his seat, muttering incoherently to himself. Then Lamberd looked toward the mirror.

”King Alexius is right. We certainly shouldn’t act rashly or launch an immediate attack. But there is one thing I must remind you all: for a thousand years, our ancestors warned us that the evil dragon Gemmeth must never draw near the seal at the heart of the dark forest. It was to prevent that terrifying power, one capable of shaking the world and plunging it into an era of darkness, from awakening,” Lamberd stated.

”Yes... I agree with King Lamberd. We can’t simply leave them be, but I also agree with King Alexius, an attack on their territory would be futile. I deployed the Shadow Hand there and not a single one returned. Even the S-rank monster, the cave leviathan we intentionally placed there to deter adventurers, was killed,” Kenzo added thoughtfully.

”So then, what is our best course of action?” Gred asked.

”Hmph... I don’t care. I only care about the safety of my kingdom. So let me make this clear to all the kings here: on behalf of the Minatheras Kingdom, I am ready to mobilize whenever we move to conquer this evil. That is all. I shall take my leave, as I have plenty of domestic affairs to handle,” Theobald declared.

His mirror flickered off, signaling his departure from the conference. Meanwhile, Alexius, Gred, Lamberd, and Kenzo remained locked in deep thought, none of them uttering a word as a heavy tension filled the air. Then Kenzo stood up from his seat.

”Eredor will keep a close watch on that territory. I will report even the smallest movement to Your Majesties. Please excuse me, as I am still recovering. Thank you,” Kenzo said.

His mirror shut down, leaving only Lamberd, Gred, and Alexius behind. Still, the three remained silent, staring blankly at the dimming mirrors before them. Gred then turned to speak to Helga beside him before facing the mirror once more.

”Very well. Northgard will close off the path leading to their domain and take the shortcut to the Thetor and Eredor Kingdoms instead. We will assemble our forces to move if necessary. Please excuse me, I have just returned and still need rest. Thank you,” Gred said.

At last, only Alexius and Lamberd remained, gazing at the mirrors ahead.

”What do you make of this, Alexius?” Lamberd asked.

”I honestly don’t know... but there is one thing I gathered from our discussion just now. It seems King Theobald will act long before the rest of us do,” Alexius answered.

”We both know how corrupt the Minatheras Kingdom is... so if they want to charge in first, I won’t stop them. And if they get wiped out... I won’t lift a finger to help,” Lamberd replied.

”I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that,” Alexius replied.

”Fine... let’s just pretend I never said anything,” Lamberd conceded.

”Still... the prophecy passed down through our five royal families has finally come to pass after a thousand years,” Alexius said softly.

”Yes... the divine messenger descended upon the world as its guardian, the ancient one, releasing Gemmeth, awakening the world’s power to confront the coming darkness... He is already here, judging by what Gred described. And I am thankful my daughter is at his side,” Lamberd said.

”So you’re thinking the exact same thing I am?” Alexius asked.

”Hey... we’re the two oldest among the five kings. Of course our minds work the same way,” Lamberd answered.

”What’s terrifying isn’t the release of Gemmeth or the unsealing... it’s what comes afterward... That is why the ten heroes will gather alongside the guardian to wipe out the darkness once and for all,” Alexius added.

”Indeed... so what we should fear isn’t those living in the heart of the dark forest, but what comes after. According to the prophecy, the world will fall into ruin before the heroes make their move,” Lamberd concluded.

”It’s a good thing Cleo is there... at least she’s in a place that should be safe,” Alexius said.

”Cleo? Your royal mage and your niece?” Lamberd asked.

”Yeah... there’s no other Cleo besides her,” Alexius answered.

Both kings fell dead silent, their faces casting dark shadows. Beside Alexius, Mateo looked at his king with a grim expression.

***

Meanwhile, having finished constructing the barricade to seal off access to the road, leaving only a single gateway guarded by the two soldier golems, Dion sat on his side balcony, taking in the view of the lovely garden beside his mansion.

”Ah... if every day was like this, does that mean I’m basically retired?” Dion thought to himself.

Flip.

He heard the sound of a book page turning. His expression soured slightly as he turned to see Cleo sitting casually across the table.

”Hey, Cleo,” Dion called out.

”Yeah?” Cleo asked.

”Aren’t you going to help the others? Luna is teaching the kids, Sheila and Mei are training the villagers, and Aria is building the wall. Why are you sitting here sipping tea and reading a book like you don’t have a care in the world?” Dion asked.

”Hmm... my job is watching you, watching Gina, keeping an eye on the barrier, and being retired. So just enjoy it and stop asking so many questions,” Cleo replied casually, pointing her finger at Dion, then at Gina roaming the garden, and finally at the colorful barrier dome in the sky, all without taking her eyes off her book.

”Are Gina and I little kids who need constant supervision or something?” Dion asked. ”Hey, I’m way older than you,” Dion thought in his head.

”Yep... just be grateful your pretty big sister is willing to watch over you 24/7,” Cleo replied smoothly.

Dion clenched his jaw, turning his gaze back to Gina in the garden as she chased a butterfly.

”Yeah... yeah... thanks a lot, pretty big sister, for keeping me company... sigh,” Dion sarcastically remarked, leaning back and crossing his arms over his chest, grumbling to himself.

Cleo glanced at Dion and smiled, but she didn’t say a word. She casually went back to reading her book, taking the occasional sip of her tea. Meanwhile, Gina sat in the garden with a cheerful smile, playing around with the swarm of butterflies and beetles fluttering all around her.