AN:

Please use this link to view image references since FF doesn't allow mid chapter images. Please also be reminded that all the photos in the pinterest link are NOT mine. All the credits goes to their original owners because they made really amazing photos that I can use for inspiration.

The board contains images of how I imagine Branwen's looks, Her Clothes etc. I will be continuously updating this together with the fic.

/leiiiriuuki/god-save-our-queen-story-board/

Disclaimer: I do not own Kyou Kara Maou and any of its characters. This story is made solely because I can't get enough of Conrart and Yuuri.

VOLTAIRE CASTLE

Yuuri's POV

Upon our return in the luxury cruiser, I presented Morgif, who has been downgraded into a completely ordinary sword, to Günter. He and Gwendal came to welcome us home, Günter waving so hard that it looked like his arm might fly off, and Gwendal with dark circles under his eyes looking like he's lost weight. I wonder what happened to them in the ten days we were gone?

I asked Günter about the inscription on Morgif's hilt and he told me that indeed there is a small writing on its hilt and it says: 'Call my name, and I will cross the world to you. My name is Willem Dussollier Eli de Morgif. Even if the stone on my forehead should be lost and I am reduced to an ordinary sword, let me yet accompany you to the battlefield as your loyal servant, O Maou, and together we will slay all who oppose us.' So that's how you're supposed to read it.

"But I am deeply interested in the fact that even though Your Majesty cannot read, the words flashed through your mind at a touch. As I suspected, you are not just Mazoku, but one endowed with extraordinary power." He added. He was extremely in awe but dissatisfied as he expressed his desire to teach me how to read since he was not able to teach me how to speak.

Josak, carrying the obsidian stone—the sword's heart, I guess?—got off at Schildkraut. He didn't tell me nor Conrart about which way he was headed.

Lady Cheri took Rick instead of Morgif and set off on another journey. Once he's completed the handsome middle-aged beautician's healing course, he'll be a step closer to becoming a sailor. He's going to be an apprentice sailor on the luxury cruiser with Chevalier to straighten him out and teach him the ropes. Sorry, Rick, I couldn't get you on board a giant shipping vessel. But I think it's at least better than a pirate ship?

Though the ultimate weapon we went through so much trouble to get isn't so ultimate anymore, Günter never uttered a word of blame. He only cried pearly tears, saying 'It is enough that Your Majesty returned safely—that is happiness enough.' I have this image of him as an overprotective mother, which has been completely confirmed. He's just like a doting grandmother. But he's flawless when it comes to his duties as the queen's advisor. After I told him about the trip and my thoughts, he took action immediately.

He had the news that the Mazoku were unable to obtain the demon sword 'leaked.' If we were to announce it publicly, people would be suspicious and think it's some kind of a scheme, but if we leak it like we don't want people to find out about it, they would readily believe it. The advisors are more clever than the person at the top. That's how statecraft is structured.

The master chef of Voltaire Castle stunned me with his display of talent at the welcome dinner, and I ended up with my head in my hands at the table, trying to figure out what to do. "...So what am I supposed to do with this?" I voice my concern while eyeing what's on the table.

"They told me, Your Majesty, that you wanted to eat something called boat-wrap sushi." Guinter beamed proudly

"Okay, sure, boat-wrap sushi, but..." A white boat has been set out in front of me, filled with a mountain of fish large and small. And they're flapping their tails energetically. Yup, very energetically.

"But you said fresh fish." Guinter stated; almost pouting in confusion.

"I didn't say live fish!" (sweat drop) ohh man, they are too literal. I then had no choice but to rummage in the kitchen despite Guinter's and the kitchen staff's protests. I would rather not waste food. Conrart, who is the only one that had been to Earth and who is somewhat familiar with the other realm's spices, became my sous chef. He's the one I asked which spices are similar to the ones that were normally used on Earth. After a few mix and matches of the seasoning, we were finally able to create a decent full course japanese meal consisting of soup, egg rolls, sashimi, grilled fish, rice as for dessert, we left it to the maids to prepare. We then called the other occupants in the castle to sample the dishes and ate merrily. All of them were saying that although they are not used to the entrees, it was good. "Ohhhh, to have sampled the dishes made personally by Her Majesty, This loyal servant could really float to the sky in happiness." Guinter exclaimed in awe. (sweat drop)

After the filling meal, we had to discuss about. Cavalcade, which appeared to be on the verge of declaring war on us, thus precipitating all of these events. Since we can no longer hope for the power of the demon sword to deter them, we must find another route. I fretted over the problem, seriously pondering if I should venture over there, lower my head to them and propose that we improve our relationship. But though we had no hope of any diplomatic overture, they were the ones who leapt to a solution first.

In my pondering, Guinter spoke relaying a message inquiry sent by Cavalcade. Apparently they want a state visit and audience to express their gratitude for a traveling Mazoku who defeated a band of pirates that were menacing their fleet. Saving their former crown prince, his wife and his daughter. I got lost in thought thinking about the events on that luxury cruiser that was attacked by pirates. But I can't seem to remember meeting anyone that sort of resembled a crown prince or a princess for that matter. I was about to dismiss it in my head when Guinter said the crown prince's name. "The gentleman's name is Hiscruyff" I turned to Guinter wide eyed "It's Mr. Shiny and his family!"

Upon seeing my recollection, Guinter continued that apparently Mr. Hiscruyff is the eldest son of the current king of Cavalcade and was engaged in an illicit love affair with a Hildyard merchant girl. Whereupon he eloped from the royal family and left official service. But the current heir to the throne died of illness so the Cavalcade royal family had to write in law giving Hiscruyff's daughter the right to inherit the throne. And that they were on their way home when the pirate incident happened.

"Wow! Then Beatrice is a real princess!" I exclaimed

Conrart pokes me in the side with a triumphant expression on his face. "Which means that Your Majesty danced with a possible future queen in her debut evening party! What would your reply be if she fell in love with you at first sight and you got a marriage proposal from the Cavalcade royal family?" he teased.

"Conrart, how could you utter such ill-omened words? How could we allow a Human to steal our queen's lips from us?" Hey we are both women and I don't swing both ways. So no thank you. (sweat drop)

"Oh, but we should be getting interrogated in Cimarron right now—our doll-selves, at least." I changed the subject.

"It's getting to be a case of ingratitude on an international scale—will Cavalcade come to the rescue of...ah, our doll-selves...?" Conrart chimed in also amused at the thought.

It's funny just thinking about it, and even funnier if the air runs out of those Mr. Livesavers. Even Günter, who's usually way too serious, has to hold back a smile betrayed by the crinkling at the corners of his eyes. In any case, it looks like we'll be able to avoid this war. I sink into my chair and breathe a sigh, staring up at the ceiling of Voltaire Castle. "Chance is such a terrible thing." I gathered

"How so?" Conrart asked.

"I mean, because we were on the same ship by chance, we were attacked by pirates by chance, I happened to save Beatrice by chance—and that's how we came to this peaceful resolution, right?" I mused.

"Not everything was by chance." He reached out a hand and brushed a fallen hair strand from my face and smiled. "You would have done the same no matter who was on that ship. That was inevitable, and not by chance. If someone devised this entire plot, their chance of success would be extremely high." He continued.

"Plot? Does someone capable of planning something like this actually exist?!" I exclaimed as I pondered.

"Probably not—at least, not in this world." My impulse to press the question fades away at his good-natured smile. There are a ton of questions I want to ask him, Lady Julia, Lion of Ruttenberg, Von Grantz and the events that transpired more than 20 years ago, but the only thing I say is: "Conrart, which do you think is stronger: tiger or lion?"

"...Lion, I would guess?" He was shocked by the sudden question but answered with a smile regardless.

"Yup, me too. I think so too. There's nothing stronger than a lion!" I smiled at him with my biggest smile and ran towards my room leaving him with questioning eyes.

I finally reach the room prepared for me, with the first non-swaying bed that I've slept in for a long time. It's way smaller than my bedroom at the queen's castle, but the bed here is still super king-sized. No, it's demon king-sized. It can fit a hundred people no problem. I shoo the servants out and told Conrart that I will rest so that I can take my time exploring the room. I confirm that the room has its own bathroom, and turn on the hot water. It flows out of the mouth of a cow with five horns. Planning to stretch my legs a little while it fills, I head back to the bed to take off my clothes.

"...Aaah, so tired...wh-who's there?!" I stared at the bed. Someone is lurking beneath the sheets. I boldly fling off the covers, and— "Wolf...what the freak are you doing here?!" I exclaimed.

"What do you mean, what am I doing?" Wolfram, lying on his stomach and clothed in his purple pajamas. "I sneaked over for a night crawl." He said as a matter of fact.

"Night crawl?! A-as in, when a g-g-g-guy secretly crawls into a bed..." I was visibly flustered at the thought.

"For a rendezvous?" He questioned innocently.

"Yeah, rendezvous...no no no no, that's not what I mean! The guy crawls into a woman's bed...!" Now he's got me going at his pace. I massaged my head. He's really giving me a headache.

"Get out!" I shouted at the top of my lungs. Alerting all that's in the vicinity of my room. Moments later all of my retainers (Conrart, Gunter and even Gwendal) swing the doors open. Their hands on the hilt of their sword ready to attack if there were any danger. Only to be shocked at the scenario that unfolded inside.

Wolfram half-rises, scowling, a hand placed imperiously on his hip. He looks like a pretty boy who's hit the mat after a knockdown, for those with the taste for it. "If I leave it up to you, it will never get settled."

"So, what kind of settlement do you want...?" I brimmed a smile at him. I'm running out of patience. I can feel the veins in my head popping one by one. But I still kept my smile. The former mazoku prince's face brightens, and he pulls me down by the arm. Only to have his neck locked between my knee and the bed; his arm painfully twisted on his back.

I turned to look at the spectators by the door and hissed/ semi growled with a devilish smile on my face. "Can someone please get this FREAK out of my room? Before I kill him myself that is." All of them have a visible surprised and scared look on their faces and have a gappe on their mouths. I can see that Conrart was trying to hold back a laugh. Conrart swiftly moved from the door to the edge of the bed and piqued at Wolfram who was still struggling from being choked by my knee.

"Branwen! It hurts, It hurts! Stop it you woman!" He said as he struggled to get loose from my hold.

"Okay, Your Majesty, calm down. I'm sure that he's about learned his lesson now" I breathed a sigh and jumped away from the little lord brat. "It's Yuuri, Lord Weller" I grinned at him. That caused him to smile as well. "Alright You-Yuuri"

"Wolfram! Your Highness is a lady! How could you just sneak into her chambers like that?" Gunter eyeing Wolfram who is still cradling his neck. Then he was dragged out of my room. Gwendel just scowled and turned away as well.

"That little lord brat is really giving me headaches." I stated; cradling my head. Conrart asked me if I was already okay and I gave him a reassuring smile. At that, he silently bowed and made his way out of my room. I went straight for the bath to ease the tension in my body.

Blooploop.

I fall in backwards like a diver and submerge myself up to the top of my head. Even the bathtub is king-sized, so it takes a while to reach the bottom...yeah, as if! I'm in a virtual reality whirlpool. Though it feels a lot more real than virtual. I curse my own stupidity as I'm sucked into the swirling flow of hot water. I'm crying on the now-familiar Star Tours journey, thinking: This is way better. Rather than being stuck like that (or maybe having it made for me), going back to Japan is way better. It's getting a bit chilly with the air brushing against my wet body. Light blue fills my cloudy vision. Light blue, light blue, light blue—that was the color of the pirates' collar.

EARTH

Yuuri's POV

"...Sailor uniform...?!" The shadow crouched next to me mutters in disbelief, peering at my face. "Sailor uniform? That's what she says as soon as she wakes up...Branwen?!"

I perked up at that. I looked at myself and my surroundings. I find myself back in the public bath in my hometown with a smiling Hakone Hachiri no Hanjirou on the wall. The bathtub where I was pickling myself is empty. But I can't find a hole anywhere. I noticed that Ken's jacket is laid on my body.

"Ken! Tadaima!" I hugged him without even worrying that he was going to get wet as well nor worrying about my nakedness. As children we often went to baths together and now we just wrote it off as normal.

"Tadaima? I was thinking that you were taking a bit too long, so I came looking for you. That's when I found you asleep in the tub and going under. Didn't you hear me? I was shouting that we were going to miss the start of the game at the top of my lungs. What's with you? Hey! Your hair!" He pushed me out of the hug and looked at me with worried eyes. My childhood friend who I can be comfortable with no matter what the situation was.

I clutched his jacket around my body and told him that I want to get changed first and before talking about anything else. I hurriedly dressed and went out of the baths where Ken was waiting. He still has that questioning look on him. I rubbed the back of my head looking for the right words and explanation.

"You know Ken, a lot has happened in my country that's why I had to cut my hair." I started.

I remember the pirates attacking our ship, I remember a fight to the death with a boy in a coliseum resounding with cheers. I remember Morgif's hilt fitting perfectly into my hands. All the reasons converge like a folding fan.

"Your country? Story from where?" He asked.

"A story from my country..."

"What are you talking about, Branwen? You're Japanese. Do you have another country?" His eyes studied mine. He must be thinking that I went crazy.

I think dimly: the match is starting at the stadium. Japanese DNA and the soul of the new Maou.

"It's a dream I had Ken...I can't really explain it to you right now… But I've decided on eternal pacifism." I said without answering his question. I'm sorry Ken, I really don't know where to start telling you about my trip to Shin Makoku. Anyone else would have taken a step back from me. But Ken only smiles vaguely and says, "What's with you all of a sudden? Making such comments...?"

Well, that's a given. The Maou's gotta be decisive, right?

"But I'm glad. Branwen, You look cheerful despite being unconscious a while ago. You got me worried back there." Ken just smiled and we continued to watch the game.

.

.

.

Few weeks passed on earth. I resumed most of my daily activities, mostly focusing on baseball with Ken and violin practice. I also restarted my fencing training with mom on Tuesdays; with occasional wall climbing every other week. She was thrilled at the thought of sparring with me again and I am beyond awed as I know that my mom was a fencing champion back in her time. I always think that mom is more amazing than dad when it comes to being physically fit. I have to say that I'm also improving with the way that I conduct myself with the sabre and my physical prowess are also improving bit by bit.

Summer vacation came; time for baseball. The newly formed amateur team and the Seibu Lions, of which I have been a devoted fan most of my life, took up all of my time. Until I got a call from Ken. He asked me to meet him on the dike. I can tell from his voice that he has quite a predicament and therefore did not waste a minute to go to where he is. I see his back looking over the water as I pedaled my way to him. What could be the reason for his slouched back? I wondered as I set my bike on a stand and made my way to him. "Yo! Ken!" I slapped his back and he straightened looking at me visibly shocked. He must have been in deep thought.

Apparently my best friend got rejected by a girl. LOL. I tried my best to hold my laughter so as to not add to his injuries. "Branwen! It's not nice to laugh, you know. I'm heart broken enough already and you are certainly not helping." He wailed.

"But I'm not Ken! I just find it amusing that you were.. You know. It's you and I do believe that you are a great guy!" I countered.

I asked him how it happened and all. He told me that the maiden rejected his offer to date in Sea World Aquarium despite already having a ticket for it. He waved the tickets in front of me and surveyed it and looked at the date. It was purchased nearly a month ago already. "You must have been serious about this girl when you have already purchased tickets in advance for your date." I said.

"I know Branwen! All fault lies with you!" He eyed me accusingly.

"OHH, Wait a minute, what does having your heart broken have anything to do with me huh? I have a lot of problems as it is." Thinking about Shin Makoku and my role as their queen has my mind occupied most days when I'm not doing anything and therefore I tried my best to fill my schedule leaving only short amounts of rest. I wonder how they are doing back there.

"She thought that I was dating you. Heck! My best friend. She can't even see that! I accompany you to baseball most of the time because aunt Shibuya asked me to keep my eyes on you and now I can't have a girlfriend because they think that I'm into you. How are you going to make up for this? Huh?" He breathlessly explained his situation as he sulked to the ground. This time I was not able to stop myself from laughing.

HAHAHAHAHAHA! I can't believe it! I laughed so hard tears were already forming in my eyes. "You know Ken, that can never happen. Well I'm sure now that she wasn't for you. I mean if you are with the right one, she wouldn't mind you being with me as your best friend. We have been with each other since we were young. I can't even imagine what life would be like without you anymore. Heck you are the only one I'm comfortable with enough to bathe together when we were younger. So there really is no malice between us and you know it." I smiled warmly at him.

Although I tried to cheer him up, Ken only smiled weakly. He didn't want to waste the tickets he had bought, but it was troublesome to return them. He was willing to give them away, but it was near the end of July, and most of our friends already had plans.

"Well how about I join you on this trip as your impromptu "girlfriend"? When is it" I declared as I cheekily smiled at him and offered my hand to pull him up. He looked at me and smiled too as he reached out to stand.

"The tickets are for the 28th."

"But that's when we have the night game at the Seibu Dome..." I protested blinking at him.

"Oh, to hell with the night game!" Ken said irritatedly, which was unusual for him. "Have you forgotten how much time I've sacrificed for your stupid baseball games? Not just the games, you dragged me along to the training sessions too. And now you choose a damned game over your good old friend, even when he has a broken heart?! Come on, it costs you nothing. I've already paid for tickets. Come with me, please! And you have already offered!" I held my arms up in defeat.

"Okay, okay, I understand, I'll go with you." My friend looked up to the sky with an exaggerated expression.

"Shibuya Yuri Harajuku Furi, naive as you are, you can't possibly know what it's like having a broken heart." He lamented.

"Hey Ken! Stop that it doesn't suit you at all! Plus I already said that I'm going!" I smacked his head with my hand and we both laughed while staring at the horizon as the sun set. After finally being engulfed by the night, Ken deposited me at our doorstep and waved goodbye.

28th of July came and so Ken and I went to Sea World aquarium. I dressed in black shorts and striped white and green t-shirt with suspenders attached to my shorts, knee high socks and sneakers. I let my now shoulder length hair hang loosely. While he sports a military green polo shirt, black pants and shoes.

All I can say is that it's a great afternoon! Walking along the glass tunnel that ran right through the water, we could see the nautiluses, the fire fish, the banner fish, the Arapaima, and the sawfish swimming gracefully together with the delicious sardines and bonitos. We took our sweet time exploring different tanks. The most amazing view of all is the jellyfish tank. The room of the jellyfish tank is dark and is covered by glass aquariums sporting different colored jellyfish. It's like a light show. The movements of the jellyfish looked mesmerizing. My childhood friend and I were having the time of our lives and although he was not able to go out with his "girlfriend", I could sense his contentment, at least his mood was lifted up even a little.

"It would have been nice if we really got to do this with our significant others; Right Branwen?" He snickered at me.

"Stop complaining already Ken! You should be glad that you are with me. Else you will not be true to yourself." I put my tongue out at him.

"Which reminds me, Branwen! It's your birthday tomorrow! What gift would you want? Do you want a cellphone strap?" He then dragged me to the nearest gift shop and pointed at different commodities asking me to pick one that I like. This childhood friend of mine really knows how to please me.

"I'm good Ken! I don't need any presents." I smiled gingerly at him and dragged him out of the shop.

We had moved away from the exit of the aquariums and were now at the entrance to the show "Friends of the Sea." A heat wave suddenly hit us: we were in an open stadium and the summer sun was burning mercilessly above us. We walked down tiers of blue benches, looking for two empty seats. At the other side of the large water pool was the white performance stage.

My thoughts wandered. Who was more majestic, the emperor penguin or me? Which formation should my team take for the practice match next week? Tilting my head to one side, I absentmindedly watched the seals performance: a seal headed a soccer ball through a basketball hoop, and a woman in a swimsuit tapped a pink drum vigorously.

"27! Number 27! Would you please come to the stage?" On the adjacent seat, a toddler clung to the knees of his father and started to bawl.

"Hey, Branwen!" Murata called out and prodded me with his elbow. "Number 27! That's you!" he pointed to the stamp on the paper that I'm holding.

"Sorry, what am I?" I still asked in confusion.

"The visitor with the number 27! May I ask you to come on stage?" The trainer repeated.

"Go on, go on! Hurry up, otherwise they will think you're not here at all." Ken nudged me again. I glanced at the piece of paper in my hand. It had indeed number 27 printed on it. It's the stamp for the sea lion show. With a broad smile, Ken grabbed my arm and pulled me down the stairs, as if he won a lottery.

"Hey! Slow down! Not so fast!" I protested. The trainer put a blue cap on my head and led me through an acrylic door. Then she gave me a small thing that was hanging from her fingers.

"Congratulations! These are your souvenirs, a cool dolphin cap, and a key chain with a cute little dolphin. I'll trap it to your suspenders so you won't lose it."

I was still in a daze. Indeed, my gifts were all decorated with gray-blue dolphins. The cap had a brim shaped as the dolphin's beak, and two black eyes on two sides. The key chain had a little dolphin dangling with his beak slightly open. It looked very cute, much nicer than the real dolphin.

"On behalf of our audience, could I ask you to shake hands with our stars today?" said the young woman smiling.

Whom am I going to shake hands with? A dolphin? No way! Without saying a word, three people from the staff pulled me to the side of the pool. "Wait, wait a minute! Dolphins are not really my favorite. Don't you have a couple of whales or sea lions I could shake hands with?"

No response.

"Here we are, our friends Bando and Eiji, the bottlenose dolphins!" The trainer announced. Two shiny gray dorsal fins came gliding through the water to the side of the pool next to us.

"Hey guys! That wasn't a joke! I really do not get along with dolphins!" Still no reaction.

"Hey, Ken, Ken! Please help me!" I panickedly tried to reach out to my friend. But the little imp only looked at me with envy. "Branwen, you lucky devil! I envy you!" was what he said amidst my misfortune.

Then one of the two dolphins, I couldn't tell whether he was Eiji or Bando, jumped out of the water then fell down, splashing all around. Holy shit! The beast was huge! He extended a blue-green shimmering flipper toward me, his eyes looking straight at me and his beak slightly open, showing two rows of small sharp teeth like a zipper.

"There goes my sixteenth birthday tomorrow," I muttered.

"Don't be scared! He's not going to bite you." The trainer assured me. There was no way out; the staff had blocked my escape route. The dolphin was at my feet and still looked at me attentively, his flexible tail and waist muscle moving gracefully as he stood floating in the water. "Hey you, human! Let's get this over with quickly, so I can finally have my sardines!" His eyes seemed to say to me. He opened his gaping beak and a screech filled the air "Kschaaaaaa!"

"Ahhhhh!" I also let out a small cry of terror. Hesitantly I reached out my right hand and finally touched the slippery flipper. It felt sticky and cold as ice. I felt my hand squeezed tightly.

Wait a moment! How could it be? He was just a dolphin; he couldn't possibly hold my hand with his flipper, could he? But then what was it that was pulling on my hand? "Hey, let me go! Let go!" I yelled.

Just before I was pulled into the pool, I could hear the indistinctive shout of the staff and the audience, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ken stretch his hand toward me. But the next moment, blue water engulfed me. Although the pool could not be very deep, I sank deeper and deeper into what felt like an abyss. My clothes were completely soaked and became heavy, still wrapping around my arms and legs, pulling me down. Damn it, where's the bottom of the pool?! Wait a minute. Hadn't I been through something similar before? Twice?

"Not again!"

Dream FLASHBACK~~

"Tell me, Mama..."

"What, Yuu-chan?"

"Why are people so fond of playing with dolphins? It's stupid." I asked, eyeing the sea creatures on the TV.

"But they're cute! Don't you love dolphins?"

"Well, not at all. You never know what goes on in their heads. They might shake hands with us and swim around us amicably, but what if they are secretly mocking us? What if they actually look down upon us and think to themselves "Let's have some fun with these little humans"?"

"Ah! I got it! You can't get along with those you can't understand. But that's why, for Mama, it is important that you work toward that understanding. Friendship needs time to grow and blossom. Spending time together, gazing up at the stars while talking to each other, that's how we come to understand one another better. Do you understand what I mean, Yuu-chan?" my mom explained to the six year old me.

Friendship? With dolphins? Thanks, but no thanks.

Dream FLASHBACK End~~

Present Yuuri's POV

I looked up to a blazing blue sky dappled with contrasting white shreds. Salt water burnt my eyes. Probably that meant I was floating in the ocean and not in a pool. Listlessly, my body drifted like a jellyfish, slightly rocking back and forth. I tried not to panic to keep myself afloat.

The sun was still high in the sky, blindingly bright and intense. The skin on my face and neck felt painful under the summer sun. It reminded me of the summer vacations when I was a child. I had always looked forward to going to the beach with my family; we would have a lot of watermelon, fireworks and collect piles of sea shells.

I'd become somewhat used to waking up in a completely different world, since this had happened to me for the third time in my life. So they summoned me again. Traveling through a whirlpool of water, being dragged here almost against my will, was no longer something new. But I had never expected it to happen in front of such a large audience. I had been lulled into a false sense of security.

Fortunately, I know the final destination of my journey, and I had friends there, so it was not all that bad. The story in broad strokes: the protagonist landed in a strange world of swords and magic and must perform heroic deeds. Plots like this were not at all uncommon. The only thing was that in this story I was not a hero, but the Demon Queen, the enemy's last boss. It took me three months on Earth to accept the situation more calmly.

A gray triangle floated in the water and approached my right leg. It must be one of the dolphins. Poor guy, now I had accidentally dragged an innocent animal to this world. I overcame my fear and held out a hand to him to pat his shiny head. The tips of my fingers touched his forehead lightly. It felt much rougher than the dolphin's flipper, which I had touched during the show.

Gulp… This is not a dolphin. Our eyes met. I found myself looking into the eyes of a shark ... A huge white shark!

I had always disliked large sea creatures because you never knew what was going on in their heads. But this time it was totally different! What that animal was thinking at the time was not at all difficult to guess: dinner was served, in the form of a human! With the theme song of the movie "Jaws" as background music.

I gave a little cry and tried to calm myself as I swam away from the shark. From the movies, you have to stay calm in front of a ferocious animal inorder to not excite them further.

"Your Majesty, are you all right...? Oh no...!" From the distance, a familiar voice pierced my ears. An overly showy luxury boat approached, moving at a breakneck speed towards me. In the boat sat the duo who were determined to make Me an experienced Maou - no matter what it cost.

"How outrageous! A shark dares to approach Her Majesty!" Lord Günter Von Kleist paled with anger.

He brandished the oar in his hands wildly, as if to challenge the shark to a duel. His long disheveled gray hair fell on his back; his sparkling lilac eyes were bloodshot; and the very seductive baritone voice was reduced to a hysterical falsetto. No woman could ever resist the beauty of this autocratic teacher, but when it came to me, this epitome of perfection inevitably crumbled into pieces.

Sir Weller's face, however, bore a mixture of calm serenity and a pained smile while watching the "video-clip-of-the-dismemberment" of a child. Conrart, how could you do this to me?! Your only baseball companion in this world was about to become fish food!

"Calm down, Günter! Use the rudder to steer closer to Her Majesty, try to get close to her head, I'll pull her up." Conrart instructed. Once the boat was near me, Conrart took my arm and helped me climb up the boat, which I did with the last bit of my strength. I was drenched, breathless and my heart pounded with fear. Conrart held me steady with ease.

"I'm saved! I was almost eaten by the beast." I gasped.

"Don't worry, Your Majesty! These animals do not attack humans." Conrart assured me.

"That's a shark, Conrart! A huge white shark! And it was about to bite my right leg!" I said hysterically my calm completely shattered.

"Sharks are vegetarians, Your Majesty. I'm sure he just wanted to play with you a bit." Conrart said as he tried to coax me in my panicked state.

Oh yeah, that's right. Most animals in this world behaved very differently than those in ours. I had already noticed that in my last stay. I left Conrart's arms.

"How many times have I told you not to call me Your Majesty? It was you who gave me the name; Y U R I." I narrowed my eyes on him and he just smiled at me.

"Damn, it's so hot here! Can't we have another way of transportation from earth to here? Why does it always have to be water? I'm completely drenched. I don't suppose you have a change of clothes here right?" I groaned. I feel a little bit under the weather. Although I love swimming, I'm not really good with sea creatures up close. Sure I like snorkeling since I can just observe them from afar, but touching a dolphin and being super near a shark is not really one I could describe as enjoyable. Summer seemed to be at its peak even in this world. My clothes were all wet but I didn't feel cold. Damp clothes clinging to my skin made me sweat even more. He handed me a large cloth. And guided me to a makeshift boat tent where I could change. Clearly there is no change of clothes, so I'm once again forced to just make do with the large cloth and make it into a robe.

With difficulty I pulled my suspenders away from my shoulders and peeled the T-shirt off. When I reached the buckle connecting the suspenders and my shorts, my hand scratched against the dolphin keychain. Those stupid dolphins!

Conrart looked at me closely as I exited the tent. I tied the ends of the cloth together on one shoulder, used my suspenders as a belt to keep the large cloth from falling out of place and it looked like I'm wearing a stylish greek sleeveless dress instead of a plain cloth. Revealing my toned shoulders, arms and bare back.

"I never knew that a simple cloth could look marvelous with a simple trick." He seemed in awe as he commented on the makeshift dress. "You've seemed to have grown too." he added.

"Ohh save the flattery Conrart. I just did what I can with what I have at the moment. I've been working out, you know." I'd rather have this than just hold the cloth using my hands. It's less prone to wardrobe malfunction this way.

This was my third stay in this world. And this time I landed at a place completely unknown to me. The white sand and greenish blue water would have made a perfect travel brochure for the Greek Adriatic. Not far from this picturesque backdrop was the Royal House, a summer residence with the architectural style of a castle, but its structure was quite different from the two castles where I had stayed previously.

Upon arriving at the beach, we were greeted by men who were waiting with our horses. Since I am wearing a dress and barefoot, I had to ride the mane in a side the saddle riding style sitting in front of Conrart. I'm like a princess in the arms of her_ stop.. stop ..those thoughts I said to myself I clearly heard the jumping of a CD track cracking inside my head. zzzzzzzzzzt. And so we rode to the castle with Guinter mumbling about where we were.

I was worried that I would have to wear my school uniform in this unbearably hot weather, but fortunately the clothes that the maid brought me were a set of two-piece upper and lower summer clothes in beige color, made of a light material that felt like linen. I put the slightly large pants on. The waistband was a little loose. The maid lowered her head with a fearful look in her eyes. Probably she was worried that she had made a mistake with the clothes and I was going to get angry with her for that.

"Never mind, I can wear a belt and everything will be alright." I tried to cheer her up. But the girl only looked at me worriedly and asked if my health was deteriorating. I reassured her not to worry and that it's just because of rigorous training that some of my baby fats are shedding. I told her that I needed to be fit in order to be queen. She then smiled at that and continued helping me with my clothes and hair.

I need to be able to wield a sword and bat as self defense after all. After fixing my clothes, I went out of the dressing room and the girl signaled that the men could already enter the room.

"One moment, Your Majesty, I will make sure you can enjoy a pleasant temperature." Guinter said as he entered.

In a world of magic and swords, of course electricity or household appliances wouldn't exist. But despite the lack of air conditioning, the further one went into this stone house, the cooler it became. Once I took off my shoes and socks and stepped on the stone floor, I felt coldness penetrating the soles of my feet.

However, before I could assure him that it wasn't so hot, Günter had already made a gesture with his right hand. An attendant gracefully stepped forward, his hand holding a large duck by its neck. The tortured duck flapped his wings with all his might. Aha, I got the idea! And indeed, the air felt cooler, only the breeze stank of poultry, and I felt terrible for the animal. I immediately asked them to stop the animal torture only to gain a squeel of delight from my tutor.

"Oh, the compassion of His Majesty has no limits! His kind heart feels for even these insignificant creatures! This is our Majesty, the 27th Maou of our Kingdom: 'Glory to the Mighty Shinou and his people, the mazokus! Never let it be forgotten that our people, the mazokus, have existed since the dawn of the world! Our strength, wisdom and courage have once forced even the Creator Gods to kneel! The mazokus will prosper in this kingdom for all eternity!'" While he talked, his hands moved beautifully in perfect choreography.

"Your Majesty, I have deliberately inserted a mistake. Can you tell which part of the name was incorrect?" He eyed me as he quizzed me on that matter.

"Uh... Sorry, I... uh... was not paying attention." I stammered. The beautiful man looked disappointed.

"Really, Your Majesty, I must earnestly request you to spend more time here and learn more about the country, its people, and the basics of our diplomatic relations. You should no longer return to the other world. Your Günter would like to remain by your side forever." (sweat drop)

The situation was clearly straying from the right track. But Conrart, who had ushered out the fanning duck, beautifully and effortlessly turned it around again. He always knew how to handle tricky situations. There were many things I could learn from him, for example, how to deal with Günter. With an attitude as calm and composed as usual, he said: "Günter, haven't I told you already? We have no exclusive right to Her Majesty. She is also very important to Earth and Japan."

Thank you Conrart. I said in the back of my mind. I have indeed decided to be this world's Queen. But the thought about leaving all of my activities not to mention my parents back on earth doesn't sit too well with me.

"Günter! What is the meaning of this?" A voice bellowed. The thundering footsteps that were rapidly approaching sounded extremely intimidating.

Why was my brother the only one who went to pick Branwen up?! Without informing me! I will not let you treat me like a fool! As her fiancé, I have the right..."

The one who barged in was the angel-like bishounen, Wolfram von Bielefeld. He stopped dead in the hallway upon seeing me, and seemed to be at a loss for words, his face flustered. "Branwen... my God! Your face and arms ... So dark! Have you caught a terrible disease? Or a curse?"

"Are you looking for a fight?" I glared at him.

In fact, my face and my arms were well-tanned, but my torso and legs were still white as snow. For baseball players, having this shirt-like tan would be considered an achievement. With the thumb and forefinger, Wolfram pinched my cheek.

"Ow-ow-aie-ooh-aie! What do you think you're doing?" I snapped back at him and slapped his hands away from my already swollen face. He looked directly at Conrart and asked. "Is she real?"

Conrart nodded.

"But if this is Branwen, who is the one my older brother went to pick up?" Wolfram perked his head and pointed at me as he question the other occupants of the room

"Probably an impostor." When Wolfram mentioned his big brother, it would not be Conrart who was in front of him, but his other older brother, Lord Gwendal von Voltaire. The military general of the kingdom.

Conrad, Wolfram and Gwendal were half-brothers, sharing the same mother. Until recently they were Their Royal Highnesses, the mazoku princes. But when their mother, the former Maou stepped down and I had to take over, the three brothers became Their Excellencies, the former princes.

Wolfram was a rival-less super bishounen, like a Vienna choir boy who had jumped straight out of a shoujo manga. He had inherited his mother's shiny golden hair and her emerald green eyes. I imagined all artists in the world would fight over the chance to paint his portrait. If he had appeared in someone's dream, the dreamer might even be moved to tears thinking they had seen an angel. However, he was angel-like only as long as he kept his mouth shut. Else he was just a terribly spoiled and bratty prince. As he claimed, and if one could believe his words, he was already over eighty years old. If he was living in Japan, he would be a stubborn old man. And because of a small tiny minor cultural difference, we were engaged to each other. I should really rectify this as soon as possible.

Lady Cecilie von Spitzweg was the mother of the three brothers as well as the former Maou - who insisted that we call her "Cheri." Her love for men extended beyond the barrier between different species, as she happily declared. The son of her union with a human of unknown origin was the half-blooded Conrad. Maybe it was because of his human DNA that Conrad's features were not as captivating as the other mazokus. However his face with a cheeky smile and a thin scar across one eyebrow could still be described as attractive. Had he lived in the United States, he would probably have become a model for the GI Joe. No one looked as good as Conrad in a military uniform.

"Wolfram, how could you put your hands on Her Majesty!" Günter admonished him in an upset tone, and pulled the younger ex-prince to his side. "What would happen if one small fingerprint leaves a mark on her beautiful face!"

Really how can they say those kinds of complements as if the object in question is not around to hear it. I can't help but have a flushed face because of the comments. Especially since Guinter himself, if turned into a woman, would be beautiful beyond words.

"What is really going on here? What impostor are you talking about? Why should I not be 'me'?" I interjected at their exchange.

"While you were away, a brazen woman pretended to be you and committed crimes under your name." Günter said.

"Incredible! Someone claimed to be "Yuri Shibuya"?"

"Not exactly so, Your Majesty. In Suveria, the southern country near Conashia, a criminal was caught posing as the Maou. We ignored this at first because we believed it couldn't have been you. But now that the execution date has been announced, we all felt a bit uneasy. As long as we couldn't say with absolute certainty whether that criminal was Your Majesty or not..." Guinter explained.

Conrad interrupted him. "We could not exclude the possibility that Your Majesty had come to our world outside the country and without our knowledge. We had to clarify the actual circumstances. This was also the reason why we called you back this time."

I rolled my eyes at the turn of events. Expressing my agony as to being forced to shake hands with Bando in the middle of a dolphin show and how a vortex suddenly appeared in front of me as water splashed to my hands.

Wolfram growled unhappily at the mention of Bando's name; asking me if he was a male… (Sweatdrop) I had no choice but to tell him that Bando-kun is in fact a dolphin and I don't know its gender. With that said, I turned back to Gunter and Conrart saying that since I'm here, the other person must be a fake.

"That's right, Your Majesty! Your wisdom always delights me." Now that wasn't a difficult one to figure out. With Günter sloping all over me, I badly wished I could indeed be somewhere else at that moment.

So in a foreign country, an impostor had claimed to be me, and had painted the town red. How bold! As far as I knew, only Master Mito Komon, the Bold Shogun, or Michael Jackson had been impersonated. For the celebrities or deities, it is inevitable that there would be cheap imitations. Then wasn't an impostor the best way to prove that my fame had elevated?

"But, why do you want to go to look for my double? The fact that I'm here would clear all doubts, right? And why would Gwendal himself take the trouble...?" I trailed off. Suddenly I could imagine the figure of the eldest brother in front of my eyes.

"You are right. Of course, Your Majesty, we wouldn't really care if a crazy man or woman who impersonated you would die on the scaffold. But this ... what is the word he used?" Guinter was still clearly confused with the words not spoken in their language. So I had to explain what "double" means.

After a short explanation Guinter continued his explanation as to why Gwendal personally went on the trip. He said that they have received information that my double is in possession of a special item that only the Maou can handle. The precious treasure was taken out of the country two hundred years ago and has since disappeared. Then twenty years ago they had sent a man, a relative of Gwendal, to look for it.

Conrart who was listening to the conversation asked about the name of the said relative.."Lord Grisela, Lord Gegenhuber Grisela" Gunter said.

"Ah, yes, exactly, this Huber." Conrart nodded at the recollection. It didn't escape my eyes to see that Conrart tugged his ear uncomfortably. Although he was kind and pleasant by nature, even he, did not seem to get along with everybody. I turned to the younger brother, trying to find out some information about this Huber. Conrart seems irked just by the sound of his name. I wanted to reach my hand out to him just to try and console him. But I immediately stopped my hands. I don't know what has happened between them and it was not right for me to over step. But I also need to gather information.

"Who's that?" I turned to Wolfram and asked. Wolfram explained that it's Gwendal's cousin from his father's side. Guinter continued to explain that the treasure can be held by anyone but can only be played by me. The Demon Queen.

"Play it?" I wondered what kind of treasure it was.

"Yes, in Svelera there are people who have seen the Mateki, a Mazoku treasure." Guinter said.

"The Mateki?!" Wolfram stepped into our conversation excitedly. As expected from a Vienna Boys Choir singer, the tone of his voice would even be a little annoying for Mozart. He mused at the thought of the treasure. He explained that he heard stories from his father and that the flute sounds fantastic. He didn't fail to mention that the flute can make the sky roar and the earth shake. "It can conjure a loud storm, that would make you cower!" He added with clear excitement.

Since it can conjure a storm, it must certainly make a very loud noise and be as destructive as the open air solo recitals of Kouda Takeshi in the vacant lots. As I had immediately imagined a flute with a clear sound or a piccolo, I forced myself to revise my picture of the Mateki. Maybe it was a kind of conch?

"I've always wanted to hear the sound of the Mateki. I can't wait! I'm curious to see how well Branwen can play it. She knows how to play the violin; she would play whenever she was at Covenant Castle so I take it she also knows how to play the flute" Wolfram said cheerfully.

"Hmm Playing the flute. I want to try it too!" I also beamed with excitement. I learned a few musical instruments including the flute, hence I'm excited to play this mateki to see if it would sound different from the ones on earth.

Arms folded on his chest, Conrart had leaned against the wall and was listening to the conversation, as usual with his eyes closed, he opened them to say "I strongly doubt that the people of Suveria will do us a favor and show us the possessions of the executed criminal in his coffin."

I pondered on his words. He/ she will get executed on my behalf...I asked them what the other has done to get that kind of punishment and they told me that he ran away without paying the bill..Just for that someone will die. My double was going to be executed for failing to pay for his food! You might not like such a person, but you can't kill him! I had to stop that! Plus the demon flute is there and I can't wait to try it out.

I turned to Conrart saying that we need to save my double. Only to gain a confused look from Gunter asking if I was seriously considering the idea.

Conrart only smiled. "I expected that you would say that, so I had the horses ready already." with a light bow he motioned me to the door.

"Well if Branwen is going then I'm going too!" Said Wolfram. Then he headed out first saying that he still needed to prepare.

With that, we motioned to leave the room. I was suddenly taken aback when Conrart grabbed me on the arm and sitted me on the chair. I looked at him with questioning eyes when he suddenly kneeled in front of me and grabbed my foot. My toes curled at the contact. "You are not leaving without any shoes are you, Your Majesty?" He smiled, reaching for my shoes and proceeded to place them on my feet. I was flustered by that. I totally forgot that I'm still barefooted. "I can do that, let me!" I tried to bend over to hurriedly grab the pair of shoes on his hand but was halted when I realized the close proximity of our faces at the action. His face was inches from mine, my hand stretched to get my shoe. "It's okay, please allow me." He gestured to my shoes and feet. Left with little choice, I pulled back to the chair and allowed him to carefully, with all his gentleness slip the shoes to my feet. I looked at his movements under my bangs to hide the burning red that I'm sure was forming on my face. Once done we silently headed to the courtyard where the mounts were waiting for us.

Guinter, who was still troubled by the decisions of his Queen, stood frozen in place. He was about to utter words of protest but swallowed it immediately as he watched the peculiar interaction between his queen and his student. He hid his amusement with his hand on his lips, eyes twinkling in delight. He was like an invisible presence in the room completely forgotten by the two individuals who are obviously_ NOOO! It can't be! Not MY QUEEN! He pushed the thoughts deep into his mind commenting on how young his queen is for that matter. (T_T)