Chapter 20: Speaking with the Queen

Lüge Lansarz Faubrey, also known as Aultcray Melromarc XXXII, the King Consort of Melromarc, sat in his chamber with his head full of thoughts.

His plan to satisfy his desire for revenge on the god of those blasted creatures called demi-humans had so far backfired on him spectacularly, in a way that he couldn't expect to have happened. He had expected the nobles of the country to support him in condemning that blasted demon called the Shield Hero; after all, demi-humans were no different from animals to them, and they were supposed to hate the Shield Devil as he did.

But they had betrayed him. They had betrayed him, just because of some sweet words coming from the mouth of that devil, and the massive blunders coming from the idiot called the Spear Hero and his stupid daughter.

The Spear Hero was the most handsome, heroic-looking one among the four summoned Heroes. And he had a good relationship with his daughter Malty, so Aultcray had planned for him to be the face of Melromarc, a representative figure for the royal family so that they could gain more support from the citizens of the country, and at the same time, lower the approval of the citizens for the Shield, especially of the lower classes.

However, he just didn't expect that someone like the Spear Hero could be such an utter idiot. Before being the King, Aultcray was also a soldier and a general; he knew who was born to be a warrior and who wasn't. The stupid jock didn't even know how to wield a weapon properly; the only hope for him on a battlefield was the massive power the Legendary Spear provided him. Aultcray had hoped that the blonde Hero would be better at politics, but all of his hope was in vain; the brat was just as useless when it came to managing things. He couldn't even work as a proper Lord for a village. In the eyes of the country's citizens, he was just a bloodthirsty bastard who would backstab people with a smile on his face.

The Bow Hero wasn't any better, either. His etiquette was better than that of the Spear Hero, but he was just a little kid who liked to show off the fact that he was a Hero. He could see it just by looking into his eyes. That boy was more of someone who was interested in looking like a hero than one who actually wanted to work as a hero. In other words, he's just as useless as the Spear, if not even worse.

The only one who seemed capable enough among the Heroes was the Sword Hero. The man was exactly what Aultcray would imagine about an ideal soldier; having him in his hand would be a boon not only for Aultcray himself, but also for the whole country of Melromarc. But the stupid idea of that knight commander had cost him all the chances to get the red Hero as an ally for his cause. Even Aultcray himself couldn't imagine there could be someone as powerful and at the same time, as cynical and vindictive as the Hero of the Sword. Aultcray wasn't even sure that he could be a match for that man at the moment even if he were in his prime, when he was still wielding the Seven Star Staff.

It's too dangerous to let the man turn against him. Unlike the Church, he understood how dangerous a Legendary Weapon might be, and what might happen if those weapons lay in the hand of someone who was actually competent enough to wield them effectively. Even if he couldn't make him his ally, he would need to keep him at least neutral, or this whole kingdom would be razed to the ground.

And if he wanted to do that…

Rikert, the Commander of the Royal Knights… or more accurately, the ex-Commander of the Royal Knights, looked at his King who was glaring at him from the throne with eyes full of horror.

"Y-your Majesty… you're joking, aren't you? Surely you're not going to…"

"Didn't I say it clearly?" the King's voice echoed coldly around the audience chamber. "Your service is not needed anymore, Rikert."

It's not like the knight hadn't heard what the King had said. However, he just couldn't believe what he had just heard. "But…" he protested, but the King didn't let him finish his sentence.

"I had never told you to do something like what you did. I wouldn't care if you did something to the Shield, but you went and involved the Sword Hero in that incident. You cost the whole kingdom the chance to get a Hero to our side, and the reputation of our country has plunged to the bottom since then. And that is something…" he lowered his voice to a dangerously low tone, "…intolerable."

Aultcray's mouth curled upward into a regretful smile. "I'm sorry about that, my friend. I appreciate what you have done for me, but I need to do the best for this country. If there's anyone you need to hate for that… hate the Shield."

The ex-Commander's eyes were bloodshot with anger and hatred. He stormed out of the audience chamber, not even looking back for once.

After the back of the man had disappeared completely behind the wooden doors of the room, Aultcray's smile twisted up menacingly. Even a discarded pawn has its own use… if the player controlling it knows where to place it.

The former Commander trudged into his mansion. His footsteps were wobbling, obviously from the barrels of alcohol he had just poured down his throat earlier.

People usually say that drinking would relieve you from sadness and anger. But no matter how much he drank, he couldn't shake away the hatred which was boiling in his stomach, and heating up his brain.

He could never imagine that there would be someday when he would be kicked out of his position in such a humiliating way. He used to be the right-hand man of the King, and the royal family trusted him enough to give him the position of Knight Commander, the one with the authority to mobilize the entire ground army of Melromarc.

However… everything had changed after that accursed Shield Devil was summoned.

What did he even do wrong? He just wanted to get rid of the Devil. The bastard was a bane of humankind, and he was just doing everyone a favor! Why was everybody treating him as if he were a criminal?!

A trace of red could be seen clearly in his eyes, had anyone been in the room with him at that moment.

It was the Shield. It was the Shield who was the cause of all misery he had been suffering. And Rikert was going to get rid of the devil for good, for the sake of the world.

He reached out his hand, touching the object he was looking for on the wall…

"What do you mean we cannot pass?"

EMIYA looked at the guard in front of him with intrigued eyes full of suspicion. The guard glanced away nervously; he didn't even dare to look straight into the Sword Hero's eyes.

"I-I'm sorry, Sir, but we had an order from the higher-ups. We… are not allowed to let you pass the border."

EMIYA raised an eyebrow. "Based on what rule? I have done a lot of research on the constitution and the laws of this country; there is no rule forbidding us from travelling to another country. In fact, the very first article in the constitution actually states that citizens of this country can do anything as long as they do not violate the laws. And from what I know, travelling to another country isn't something illegal. So unless you can show us what we violated by trying to travel to Zeltoble," he lowered his voice dangerously, "you are NOT going to hold us here."

More soldiers poured out from the barrack of the border gate. They gathered in front of the gate, facing the former Counter Guardian, and to his surprise, brandished their weapons. The one standing at the center of the formation spoke up, his voice was firm and decisive.

"Sorry, but we are not going to let you pass this gate. If you want to pass, you have to kill us first."

EMIYA's eyes narrowed. They couldn't show him any proof, and now they were trying to stop him from crossing the border by force. If it was the King who wanted to keep the Heroes within the border, they could have just shown him a royal decree or something like that. But why couldn't the guards show any proof when asked? Could it be that this wasn't the King's idea… but there's someone else who's behind everything?

He assessed the situation with his eyes. Taking down these soldiers was nothing that difficult for him, but doing that is definitely going to lead to an international crisis. He didn't want to be the cause of a war with the country that summoned him to protect itself.

What should he do now…?

"The Sword Hero and his companions are allowed to go to Zeltoble."

Everyone turned toward the direction of the newly emerged voice, startled. The feminine voice came from a figure who had just landed next to EMIYA from nowhere. The Sword Hero recognized the outfit the newly arrived person was wearing; it was obviously that of a Shadow, just like the one he had fought in the forest a month ago.

The Shadow stood up. She raised a golden scroll that she was holding in her right hand up and said in a cold voice.

"Royal Order from Our Majesty the Queen has arrived. Everyone, kneel."

Everyone hastily dropped down at the presence of the absolute order. The Shadow opened the scroll, cleared her throat and started reading.

"By the power of the Crown Queen of the Kingdom of Melromarc, I, Queen Mirellia Q. Melromarc, hereby: Grant the Sword Hero, Emiya Shirou, and his companions, the right to travel. As long as they do not do anything that violates the laws of Melromarc, and promise to return to help with the Waves of Calamity, they can freely go anywhere within Melromarc and to other countries. Anyone who tries to stop them without at least a royal decree will be treated as treason and will face the highest punishment of the penalty frame of this crime. This Royal Order is in effect starting from the moment it is announced."

The soldiers glanced at each other awkwardly. It seemed they didn't know what to do now. A few of them, EMIYA noticed, even though they were trying their best to hide their expression, were seething in anger.

"So… are you going to let us go now, or not?"

The country of Zeltoble was different from what EMIYA had imagined.

From what he had heard from Erhard and Beloukas, he had thought that this country must have been a wretched hellhole full of bandits and slave traders. But contrary to his belief, since he placed his first steps into the territory of the country, he hadn't even seen a single criminal activity, or even a beggar. The citizens of Zeltoble all seemed so content with their lives, even in the rural areas where they were passing right now.

The team was walking slowly on a trail across a hill. According to a farmer they met on the way, if they passed this hill, the capital of Zeltoble, Zeltoble Harbor, would be within the range of their eyesight. Most activities of this country are held in that city, making it a must-visit place when anyone travels to Zeltoble.

The guards didn't seem to be happy when they allowed them to pass the border, though. It's obvious that Melromarc didn't want the Heroes to leave their country, and EMIYA could understand why; there's no way any ruler would want powerful weapons like them to fall into any other countries' hands, no matter whether they were allies or enemies. Only because of the Royal Order the Shadow delivered to them in time did they have no choice but to let EMIYA and his team go.

Speaking about which…

"All right, I think this place is safe enough. What do you want with us? Why do you keep following us?"

The Shadow who brought the Royal Order to help them at the border gate was still walking behind them silently. It was obvious to EMIYA that she wanted something, and she's not looking forward to harming them, but better safe than sorry. Therefore, the ex-Guardian decided to lead them somewhere they could talk without someone overhearing them, with enough space to maneuver just in case they got into a fight.

The Shadow removed her mask, and EMIYA realized the face of the Shadow who he had assaulted without even trading a word the last month. Based on the fact that she had just brought them a Royal Order from the Queen, she might be one of the Queen's Shadows that Beloukas had mentioned to him before.

"I serve under Her Majesty the Queen, Emiya Shirou-sama," When she opened her mouth, it was for confirmation. EMIYA noticed that she didn't use his title like other people had done since he was summoned here. "I was assigned by Her Majesty to stay close to you and give you assistance in case you were in trouble, but it seemed that there's no need for me to assist you with anything after all."

Then she said flatly. "Well, it's not like I could even assist you with anything, anyway. If there were something that a person who could beat me up easily as if I were just a little child couldn't do, I really doubt there was anything I would be able to do to help."

Tersia glanced at her teacher curiously. "Really sensei? You, of all people, would go around and beat up women?"

EMIYA glared at the girl. "Hey, she was the one who snuck up on me first."

Then he turned back to the Shadow. "How can I trust you? I don't know about others, but I sure as hell won't be able to trust the words of someone who snuck up on me and then ran away after being exposed without even a word of explanation."

"Her Majesty figured you would say that," the Shadow nodded. "And you can believe me or not, no matter. Today I'm here to deliver a message from Her Majesty to you, Emiya Shirou-sama. She can't go to see you directly as she's too far away from here, so she ordered me to deliver the message… or more correctly, what she needs to communicate with you."

She led everyone to a secluded corner of the hill, where she knew no one would be able to eavesdrop. Then she kneeled down on the ground and pulled out a scroll from the tool pouch she carried on her belt. She opened it and spread it on the surface; EMIYA could see arrays of something which looked like magical runes, making a perfect circle on the parchment. She placed her hand on top of the circle, and the ice ball given to her by the Queen popped out.

"That looks pretty similar to the inventory function of the Legendary Sword," the ex-Guardian noted. The Shadow nodded.

"Many generations have tried to replicate the functions of the Legendary and Seven Star Weapons. However, no attempts that have been made are successful. The best we could do was creating tools and weapons with similar abilities, but there's no way those cheap imitations could ever compare to the original in terms of power and utility."

She placed the object on the ground. The ball started glowing, not unlike what happened when Yuki touched the crystal ball in Ecclesia's shop when they were there to determine their elements. A ray of light shot into the air from the object, and…

The figure of a woman appeared in midair. She was a very beautiful mid-aged woman dressed in a decorated black and purple royal gown, and her purple hair was tied up into a bob behind her head with bangs hanging on the sides. Her sharp purple eyes exuded a regal commanding presence which EMIYA could feel crawling up his spine just by looking into them. And EMIYA knew immediately who she was, without even needing her introduction.

"Greetings, Sword Hero Emiya Shirou-sama. I believe this is the first time we meet each other. I am Mirellia Q. Melromarc, the Crown Queen of Melromarc."

While everyone else except for Yuki and Wyndia hastily dropped to the ground in the presence of the Queen, EMIYA's attention was focused more on something else. "A holographic projector, hm? So the technology of this world is pretty advanced, I would say."

"Is this even the time for that, sensei?" Tersia gritted her teeth, horrified.

But contrary to her worry, the Queen just gave him an amused smile. "Actually, this is a product of magic rather than technology, Emiya-sama. And because of that, we cannot keep this conversation dragged out for too long, since it is tied to my magical energy reserve and it's not limitless, you know. I'm really sorry that we need to have our first talk like this, but there is actually an international crisis going on and it's impossible for me to return to the country at the moment. Oh, and by the way, everyone, please stand up. You don't have to kneel like that all day."

Everyone stood up, but obviously, it was impossible for them to stop trembling from the overwhelming presence of the mighty woman that easily.

"You said something about an international crisis," EMIYA looked at the hologram of the Queen in the air. "What kind of crisis is it, and does it have anything to do with whatever is happening in the country right now? Like, how the King and the Church of the Three Heroes are treating the Shield Hero?"

The Queen closed her eyes. "I'm afraid it does, Emiya-sama. In fact, that's what the conversation today is going to be about. The summoning of the Four Cardinal Heroes actually resulted in a gigantic diplomatic mess. Right now, Siltvelt and Schildfrieden's armies have already been at the border, and if they attack right now, I'm sure that Faubley and Zeltoble are not going to sit at the sideline to watch. And you know what will happen after that, I believe, Emiya-sama?"

EMIYA nodded. "A world war is going to come."

The royal woman nodded. "You understood the problem. If a world war actually breaks out in the middle of the cataclysm we're having right now, not only Melromarc, but this whole world is going to be destroyed for sure, no matter how many Heroes we could summon. Holding them back from starting a total war is something only I can do, and I cannot leave it to anyone else."

She suddenly stopped for a moment, as if pondering something, then continued with a lower tone. "Also, there are… problems within the country at the moment. Melromarc is just not ready to deal with enemies from both inside and outside of the country yet."

Her eyes lingered for just a very brief moment on Farrie's face. It was a very vague gesture, but EMIYA was someone more than professional in reading people's faces. Of course that expression couldn't escape his eyes.

"It is something related to the Church of the Three Heroes, isn't it?" he asked sharply.

The Queen's eyes narrowed. "I don't think this is a proper time to…"

EMIYA didn't let the royal woman finish her sentence. He placed his hand on Farrie's shoulder and squeeze it, gently but firmly.

"This girl is one of the most trustworthy people I've ever met since I arrived in this world. She knows what is right and what is wrong. If she cannot be trusted, there's no other person in this world that I can put my trust in anymore."

Farrie looked at her teacher with eyes full of gratitude. "Sensei…"

The Queen narrowed her eyes at the priestess. She looked her up and down, judging the girl with her inquisitive eyes. Finally, after considering all the pros and cons, she said.

"Very well, then. From what we know, it seems that the Church of the Three Heroes is planning a coup d'état to overthrow the royal family of Melromarc."

The declaration sent a shock through the spines of the three young disciples, especially Farrie. She stuttered; her eyes widened in disbelief.

"Y-you're kidding! There's no way… There's no proof about that, isn't there…?"

The Queen shook her head. "At the moment, there's no concrete proof about that, indeed. The Church was very careful in hiding their movements, so we still haven't found any evidence showing that they are planning an insurgence. However, it was actually the Church who orchestrated the summoning of your Four Heroes, and they took the opportunity that I needed to travel abroad for that very same reason to rope my husband, who I put in charge of the country when I am away, into assisting them in summoning all of the Heroes instead of just one Hero like it should have been if I had been there. I believe you understand what I'm implying here, don't you, Emiya-sama?"

EMIYA's eyes narrowed. "Are you saying…?"

"That's right," the Queen nodded in confirmation. "They are trying to use you Heroes as tools not only for political reason, but also as a military force under the control of the Church. Although I believe that the summoning of the Shield Hero wasn't a part of their plan. The Shield Hero is the Church's mortal enemy; I don't understand why they would deliberately summon him to this country like that… But anyway, the fact that they are trying to sabotage the growth of the Shield Hero is undeniable. Do you remember the time when the Shield Hero was attacked by an Orthrus in the forest on the outskirts of Castle Town, Emiya-sama?"

When EMIYA nodded in confirmation, the Queen nodded and continued. "That was the work of the Shadows of the Church. My Shadow managed to capture one of them when he was escaping from the scene, but he committed suicide before we could get any information out of him. From what I could understand, I presume that because they couldn't stop the Shield Hero from being summoned, they're trying to sabotage his growth, in order to keep him weak enough for them to get rid of when the time comes… or maybe even kill him on the way if they could."

"No way…"

Farrie mumbled in horror. If what the Queen said was true…

Her religion, her ideal, her belief, everything was shattering into bits right in front of her eyes.

"That is also the reason I want to have this conversation with you today," the Queen said with a slightly louder voice. "No, I'm not planning to tell you to take my side or become my lackey or anything," she added upon seeing EMIYA's face. "I'm just here to ask you for a… favor. You see, with this diplomatic mess we're having over here, it's simply impossible for me to return to this country until at least a month later. I'm not going to be able to give direct assistance to any of the Heroes, and with the Church acting in the shadow like that, it's impossible for me to ensure the safety of you four… at least with how incompetent the Spear and Bow Heroes are, according to the reports of my Shadows."

"And what are we going to do then?" asked EMIYA incredulously. "Are you suggesting that we should crawl into a hole and wait there until you come back?" he said in a rather snide tone, but to his surprise, Mirellia shook her head.

"Of course not. Didn't I say that you are all free to live and enter the country as you want? What I'm saying is that you need to be careful with how you do things from now on. I have to say that you and your little priestess over there actually managed to piss off a lot of people of the Church with that drama the other day," she waved her hand at Farrie, who looked terrified from the revelation. Obviously the Queen was referring to the incident at the class-up ceremony. "You might be strong, Emiya-sama, but when the Church realizes that they are not going to be able to keep you on a leash, they will decide that they can do without you, after all. Their intention when they summoned you Heroes was to have in their hand the weapons they can use to establish their presence all around the world. But if such deadly weapons go out of their control…"

"They are going to do anything they can to prevent them from falling into the hands of their enemies," EMIYA finished the sentence for her. The Queen nodded.

"Naturally. In the worst case, they are going to kill all of the Heroes, including you, and summon a new batch who they can manipulate. And with the other Heroes in their current condition… I don't think they are going to survive if the Church decides to attack them right now. The Spear and the Bow Heroes do not have a proper mindset, and while the Shield Hero is a decent person, with his current level of power and the Church's sabotage, it will be a very big problem for him if they decide to go all out."

She stopped for a moment, then continued.

"Therefore… if it's possible, I want you to act as a leader for the Heroes. You are the only one who I feel would understand best the burden of fighting a war, and you have proven to be both a competent combatant and a level-headed commander. You are the only person I can trust who is strong enough to guide the other Heroes to the right path."

EMIYA's eyes narrowed. The Queen's face looked sincere, and her words didn't show any intention to sway him to her side or something. She even offered to let him and his party leave the country, something no politician who was holding weapons of mass destruction like them in their hand would have done. However, his experience had hammered into his head that it wasn't wise to trust someone if he couldn't see them face-to-face first.

It reminded him of how the warlord Liu Bei recruited Zhuge Liang to his side. There was a reason why it took Liu Bei three visits to recruit the genius strategist; contrary to people's belief, it wasn't because the Sleeping Dragon wasn't at home, was sleeping or anything that was mentioned in the story. The truth was, the genius strategist actually used those three visits to judge the sincerity and temperament of the Shu warlord from behind the curtain, and only after confirming that the warlord was actually worth serving did he step out to meet him. He hadn't had any chance to talk face-to-face with the Queen before, and this first conversation was basically just a phone call. There's no reason for him to trust her, no matter what kind of good words he had heard from people about the royal woman. After all, it's not wise to put his trust in any politician, no matter who they are, just because they approached you with a smiling face.

But should he put his trust in her, after all…?

She had asked her to look after the other Heroes, to lead them on the right track. However, the other three Heroes didn't have any intention to leave Melromarc, so it basically was no different from a veiled attempt to tie him to the country. And frankly, that wasn't EMIYA's problem, in fact. If anything, that duty lay on the shoulders of the Queen herself. Her country summoned the Heroes; as its leader, she's the one with the responsibility of taking care of their wellbeing, even if she wasn't in the country.

But before he could open his mouth to say anything, a voice rose next to him.

"So based on what you said, your husband – the King – didn't do anything wrong?"

It was Tersia who had just raised her voice. She was glaring at the Queen's silhouette with eyes full of anger, and she had blurted out those words before EMIYA could stop her.

"I don't know about the Church or anything, but I know for a fact that it was him and his lackeys who are bullying Sir Naofumi the most," she continued with a voice full of hostility. "No matter what you say, it is your husband who is making the life of Sir Naofumi and Raphtalia-chan miserable. Are you trying to push all the responsibility to the Church to cover up for your husband? If you had really cared about things, you would have been here already to put an end to this mess!"

EMIYA groaned. That was actually what he was thinking, too, but while he was pretty sure that the Queen wouldn't do anything to him because of his status as a Hero, this foolish disciple of him would definitely face being beheaded for lese-majesty.

However, he was surprised to see that the royal woman actually showed an expression of dismay upon hearing those words.

"I… don't have any excuse for that," finally, after a while, she answered with a heavy voice. "What Aultcray did was definitely unforgivable. The only thing I can say to defend him is that he has a reason to do that… Siltvelt was at war with us for quite some time before, and they did something unforgivable to my husband; that's why he's so deep in hatred for demi-humans like that. But you don't have to worry about that; even though I'm not here, my Shadows are not going to allow things to go overboard. If things DO go overboard… I promise he is going to face the proper penalty if that happens."

So the King had some kind of grudge towards the country of Siltvelt. And as the founder of the demi-human country, the Shield Hero of legend was the prime target for him to direct his hatred. And the man had sworn vengeance on the Shield Hero ever since that day.

Now EMIYA could understand why and how the Shield Hero was summoned to Melromarc. It's entirely possible that it wasn't the Church's ambition, but the King's petty desire for revenge that forced Naofumi into the problems that had been haunting him since he was summoned to this place. The Church might be the one who orchestrated the summoning of the Sword, Spear and Bow Heroes, but it was, most likely, the King who added the Shield Hero into the summoning ritual. It didn't matter who the summoned Shield Hero actually was; he just needed someone holding the title of the Shield Hero, just so he had a chance to enact his revenge on the Hero that he loathed with all his heart. He wanted to make the whole country condemn a poor innocent boy who was pulled into this situation without his consent and turn him into a devil, just to fulfill the desire of seeing his enemy suffer, even though that boy wasn't even that enemy at all.

He knew for sure that the Queen also understood this. And he also understood well the reason she wanted to move the conversation away from it.

And that pissed him off.

"So what you mean is that everything that has been happening recently still isn't enough for you to consider 'overboard'?"

Mirellia was startled by the suddenly harsh voice of the Sword Hero. "That's not what I…"

"Yes, I know it might not be your intention. However," EMIYA cut in before the Queen could finish her sentence. He glared at her silhouette in the air with sharp eyes full of criticism, "the fact that you let it happen until now is the problem here. You are the Queen of this country, and you should have known for sure that letting such hatred remain in your royal family would lead to trouble. I'm not saying that you have to beat the hatred out of him, but even though he might be the one ruling the country right now, the true power still lies in your hand. You should have been the one who did something about that by now. You said that your Shadows were watching over him, monitoring him so that things wouldn't go overboard, didn't you? So why didn't they do anything to stop the King when he and your Princess framed Naofumi for raping her? Why didn't they do anything to help him when he was treated like a piece of garbage by your whole kingdom? Why didn't they do anything when he nearly got killed by Motoyasu during that duel? Is it because they couldn't, or is it because…" he narrowed his eyes at these words, "…you, their commander, didn't want to do anything about it?"

The Queen looked completely shocked at the words of the Sword Hero. Hell, EMIYA himself also knew that he might have gone too far. Those words actually burst out of his mouth without him even thinking; losing himself to anger wasn't like him at all.

However, he refused to back down. Because this time, it was personal.

Why? It's because the situation of Naofumi right now reminded him of someone he'd had to face in his life, the very same being who shaped his life into how it was today. The wicked god of evil with the name Angra Mainyu.

Angra Mainyu wasn't originally a god, or anything similar to that. In his life, he was just a nice young man who was chosen by the people of his world as a scapegoat, so that they had something to blame when evil was committed. He was tortured to the point of insanity, stripped of his own identity and corrupted to the point he lost all senses, personality and humanity until he finally succumbed to it, when he lost even his human body and took the shape of a void containing six billion curses of humanity. And he went and corrupted the Holy Grail when summoned by the Einzberns during the Third Holy Grail War, and became the direct reason for everything that happened in the life of the person named Emiya Shirou.

Was it his fault? Obviously. Should he be to blame for all of them? No.

Angra Mainyu was, in the end, just a victim. It was the cruelty of the people he trusted, and in a broader sense, the humankind of his era, which twisted his very being into such an entity of evil. He didn't have any choice but to corrupt; it has been carved into his nature by the beings that turned him into the God of Evil. If anyone was to blame for all of those terrible things, it should be the people who created the being called Angra Mainyu. And if a village could do something like that to an innocent person, there's no guarantee that the same thing couldn't happen to a person who was, at the moment, suffering the very same tragedy that had fallen onto the head of the so-called God of Evil.

And EMIYA refused to let something like that happen again. He glared at the Queen's hologram in the air. His voice got louder and louder with each word.

"You didn't act. You didn't even think about how the victim in this actually feels and thinks. You didn't even approach him to make sure that he's all right after all this shit he has been suffering from. I understand that you have your own duty to your family, but you have to remember that as a ruler of the country, you have responsibilities to your citizens, also. If you prioritize covering up the bad things your close people do, while ignoring the welfare of the other citizens in your country, then you are just a failure of a leader, no more, no less!"

Suddenly he felt a blade nicking the skin of his neck. The Shadow had moved behind him faster than any of his disciples could even see, and was now glaring at him from behind with eyes full of anger, and a really sharp kunai-like knife was pointing at his throat.

"Apologize!" she snarled, and EMIYA's hand inched towards the hilt of the Legendary Sword. But before he could do anything, the Queen had shouted, her eyes flashing.

"Akari, no! I order you to put down your weapon!"

The Shadow flinched, and slowly withdrew her knife, but still gave him a scathing glare that threatened to burn his head.

EMIYA glanced at the Queen. And he was surprised to see that instead of getting angry, the woman seemed to look even more distressed than before.

Finally, after a few seconds, she looked up. Her face looked miserable; gone had the regal aura of the Queen of a country, now she only looked like a weary middle-aged woman who was completely drained by all the burdens she had to carry on her shoulders.

"I know that I've made a lot of blunders," she said in a heavy and sad tone. "But from now on, I'm going to do everything I can to make up for my mistakes. I will give all the Heroes as much assistance as I can. But right now, I'm desperately in need of help. If you don't help me, Emiya-sama, I don't know who else I can depend on anymore. So please, give me your assistance. I swear on my title as the Queen of Melromarc that I will do everything I can to ensure you have anything that you want or need, after that."

The declaration of the Queen took EMIYA aback. He had expected the Queen to snap and order her Shadow to put him down right there, but for her to straight-up admit that she was the one at fault and swear in her name to make up for her blunders? That was something he had never seen in any monarch he had met before.

He swallowed the criticism he was preparing to throw at her down. Maybe she wasn't as bad as he had thought.

"Very well then," finally, he gave his answer. "Even if you didn't ask me, I'm still going to look after the other Heroes. However, I have to tell you in advance that I cannot fully trust you yet. I've worked with a lot of politicians before, and sorry if it's insulting to you, but so far I've never seen any among them who is completely trustworthy. Besides, taking sides is against my work ethic. I'm not going to act against you, but I'm not going to take the side of the Church, or of Siltvelt, or of anyone, either. We're still going to do our best for the sake of this world, but in our own way, and if that happens to benefit your cause… then so be it."

The Queen looked a little bit down upon hearing EMIYA's declaration. However, that short moment passed as quickly as it came, and her face softened. She smiled at the Sword Hero and his companions.

"I'm glad to hear that, Emiya-sama. Then, I will leave Akari with you as my personal courier. If you want to contact me, just send me a message through her. I promise that I will try to quell the diplomatic problem with the other countries as quickly as possible, and then I will return to give you assistance. Is that okay with you?"

Upon receiving the nod of confirmation from the Sword Hero, she sighed in relief and smiled at the team.

"Then we got a deal. Please take care of yourself and your team, and I wish you all good luck on your trip to Zeltoble."

And with that, EMIYA's first conversation with the Queen of Melromarc concluded. The hologram of the woman disappeared, and the ball of ice melted into a puddle of pure water.

"My work here is done, then," The Shadow girl, now known as Akari, bowed. "If you have nothing else you want, I shall take my leave."

"Didn't the Queen just say that you are going to come with me?" pointed out EMIYA.

"Her Majesty only told me to work as a messenger between you and her," the Shadow answered in her emotionless voice. "She didn't tell me to come with you as a companion. If you need me, just call out loud and I will be there to assist. Until next time, Emiya Shirou-sama."

Then she disappeared.

"That girl is so weird," Welt said as the hill returned to its original serene and peaceful state.

"She must be incredibly strong, though," Tersia scratched her cheek. "You know, the weirder people are, the stronger they are, right? Just look at sensei."

"That's so rude, Tersia-chan!"

However, EMIYA didn't actually pay attention to the conversation of his three disciples. There were a lot of things for him to process right now he couldn't afford to think about any other trivia. And one of those concerns, at the moment, was actually Wyndia's strange behavior.

Before, whenever the name of the Church of the Three Heroes was mentioned, he could notice a sudden reaction coming from the dog girl. She would touch her chest and grimace, as if something was hurting her there. And the location she touched was the place where EMIYA saw the slave crest being applied on Raphtalia's chest a few days ago.

"Is there something wrong?"

Wyndia raised her head when she heard the voice. Her face immediately turned into a scowl when she realized who had just asked.

"Why do you care?" she asked coldly. "Didn't you say that my wellbeing is not your problem?"

EMIYA looked straight into her eyes. "Before, that might be true, but now, you are a member of my squad. As the leader of the squad, I have the duty to take care of my teammates. Besides, your father told me to look after you; even though I don't like it that much, I still have an obligation to fulfill. If you don't tell me what's wrong, there's no way I can help you."

The scowl on Wyndia's face deepened. She started opening her mouth to shoot back an insult at him…

…then the words halted suddenly in her throat when the tiny hand of Yuki grabbed her own. The little kitsune was staring at her with teary eyes; her lips were trembling, and she whispered in a tone that could melt the heart of even the cruelest person.

"Nee-chan… don't fight with Papa…"

Wyndia flinched when she looked at the kitsune. Trying as hard as she could, there's no way she could resist those… those cursed… adorable eyes! Screw immense ice energy; the most dangerous weapon this wicked mikon had was actually her cuteness!

Everyone else on the team was now gathering around her. They were all staring at her with worried and caring eyes. She squirmed uncomfortably under their gazes.

"Ah, mou, that's not fair!" Finally, she snapped. "Fine, I'll tell you! But don't think that you're going to charm me that easily!"

She stomped ahead and sat down on a rock nearby. Hugging her legs with her small arms, she buried her face in her knees and started talking…

Wyndia had stopped talking for a while, but everyone in Team EMIYA still couldn't say anything. They already knew that the dog girl had a terrible childhood, but after hearing the whole story from her own mouth, they realized that what they had known about her so far was just the tip of the iceberg.

"So… are you saying that the Church of the Three Heroes was responsible for what happened to you in the past?" Farrie was the first person who managed to open her mouth. Her voice was shaken, as if someone had just hit her head with a hammer.

"I don't know the name," Wyndia shook her head. "The only thing I remember was that even before I was old enough to remember anything, I had been imprisoned in a church. And those days… are the days I'm never going to forget."

She stood up from the rock. To the shock and horror of everyone, she started unbuttoning the blouse she was wearing. The piece of garment slipped off her upper body, and Team EMIYA was horrified to see what was unfolding under the layer of cloth.

The whole body of the poor dog girl was riddled with scars of all sizes. Some looked like they were from excessive whipping, and some on her back even looked like someone used a really sharp knife to carve them onto her skin. EMIYA had heard about how some old families of witchcraft practitioners used brutal violence to force magic to emerge from their children when they didn't show any talent for magic during the Age of Gods, but to see the result of that right in front of his eyes like this didn't help him reduce his disgust a little bit.

Now everyone understood why she objected so fiercely when Gaelion entrusted her to EMIYA. Having suffered from this much torture, it's obvious why she didn't want to leave the one who had rescued her from it to fall into the hand of someone who she didn't even know anything about.

Wyndia pulled her blouse up to cover her body again in silence. Then, she turned away, ready to continue their journey…

…only to be engulfed in hugs.

"Wha…?!"

"I'm sorry," Tersia, one of the people who had just pulled the dog girl into a hug, choked out with tears running down her cheeks. "I didn't know that your childhood was so terrible… I shouldn't have thought of you as a spoiled brat…"

The dog girl growled while struggling like mad to escape the grasp of the girl. "I don't need you to pity me…"

"It's not like that, Wyndia-chan," this time, it was Farrie who said while squeezing the other girl in her embrace. "Before we might be strangers, but now we are family. From now on you don't have to hide anything from us. No matter what happens, we're going to be here for you. Shirou-sensei is going to protect you, I promise."

Wyndia bit her lips. Those words were sweet and kind, and it was true that she felt relieved and happy hearing them… but…

Should she put her trust in him?

It's not like she didn't trust him. Hell, she couldn't even afford to not trust him, considering what he was wielding was the Legendary Sword itself. Even a child like her could feel the power coming from that sword; the magic engraved in the weapon alone was otherworldly.

No, it's more like something in her head was trying its best to stop her from believing in the man named Emiya Shirou.

To a lot of demi-humans, the Shield Hero was revered as their God. The first Shield Hero was the one who founded the country of demi-humans Siltvelt, and for all of his life, he had spent every bit of effort on protecting demi-humans and making the country flourish into a superpower of the world, as it was today. To them, the Shield Hero is the only Hero; any other Cardinal Heroes are just unnecessary things.

However, not all demi-humans have that kind of extreme bias. To Wyndia and her parents, it was the Sword Hero who was the true hero in their hearts.

She still remembered that song her deceased mother used to sing to her, during the rare moments the two of them could spend with each other…

Our hero, our hero, with a righteous soul

He descends from the heaven, in a land of old

A heart of justice, wielding the Sword of Promised Victory

A person of great strength, the Sword Hero grows to be

The Sword never surrendered

And he never turned away

If anyone needed his help,

He would always save the day

He always fought bravely, for our rights and liberty

He would fight until the end, if he could help the other three

It's an end to all the evil of all our land's foes

Taking down the darkness, his legend still grows

No matter how cynical and bitter she might be because of her past, Wyndia was still only a fourteen-year-old child, a child at an age old enough to have their mind filled with romantic thoughts, but still innocent enough to believe that everything they imagined was going to become true. Her naïve mind stubbornly believed that the legendary Sword Hero must be like what she imagined, an embodiment of justice, a handsome knight in shining armor who would fight for justice with all of his might, to save her and the other oppressed people who had been suffering from evil tyranny. That image was the only thing that helped her retain hope, and prevented her from losing herself under all the tortures she suffered at the hands of the evil people in that accursed church. The Shield Hero might be the protector of demi-humans, but the Sword Hero is the ally of all the weak living beings. All of her childhood, she had dreamed of the day she could finally meet the Hero of her dream, to follow him in his journey to protect the weak and the oppressed…

But instead, when he finally came…

This self-proclaimed Sword Hero was nothing like her imagination. Hell, he didn't even look like a hero at all. Sure, he dressed like a knight, but what kind of knight in shining armor would dress in that dark red and black color?! And what kind of hero would say that being a hero is stupid? Looking at him, she couldn't help but think that he was actually the Devil in disguise.

Not to mention… he… he had just tried to kill her papa. Even though the dragon himself didn't seem to take it to heart, there was something in her mind which prevented her from letting go of the anger. He was the Sword Hero, she had to accept it, but her mind stubbornly refused to believe it. And she had decided to join him on a whim, partly because her papa wanted her to, and partly because she wanted to make sure that the title of the Sword Hero wouldn't be "tarnished" by that thug who claimed to be the Hero of legend. She wanted to make sure that the image that had saved her during her days of despair would stay forever with her.

She glanced at the aforementioned Hero, who had just walked past where she and his two disciples were. He glanced back at her; there was no sign of a smile on his face. He was looking at her with eyes full of a weird emotion. Was it pity or disappointment that she was seeing?

She started opening her mouth to shoot a snide remark at him, but before any sound could escape her mouth, the Sword Hero had raised his voice first.

"I'm not saying that I am a good person," he said, his voice still as cold and indifferent as ever. "If you're thinking that I'm going to be some kind of knight in shining armor who will swoop in and take you away from your prison tower in a bridal carry, then you're going to be disappointed. However," he continued before Wyndia could say anything, "your father told me to look after you, and since that moment, you have become a comrade of mine. I'm not going to say that I won't let you get hurt, because that would be a lie. However, you can rest assured that I am not going to let what happened to you in the past happen to you again."

Then he walked away, but not before yelling back at his team.

"Are you going or not? We're going to waste all day here if we don't start walking now!"

He didn't say anything else, but those words alone had already shaken Wyndia to the core. A weird sensation suddenly surged in the girl's stomach. To her surprise and shock, she realized that it wasn't anger or hatred that she was feeling. If anything, it was more like… relief and hope?

Damn it! Why am I feeling that now? Stop it! You can't let him sway you that easily!

The two oldest girls of the team released her. They stood up, and at the same time, offered her their extending hands. On their faces, the same kind smile could be seen; anyone who didn't know could swear that they were just like a pair of twin sisters.

"Let's go, Wyndia-chan!" they chorused happily and grabbed the dog girl's hands, one each. She obeyed the pulls without really thinking, and the two older girls, supporting her by her waists, started following their sensei with the dog girl in their arms.

Maybe… they're not as bad as I thought…

Mirellia slumped down on the bed in her room.

Never before had she felt herself so… exhausted. Not only because the distant conversation made her spend all of her magical energy, but also because her mind couldn't stand the torture anymore.

And could she even call it torturing, when everything the Sword Hero and his disciples had said was just the truth?

She had known what her husband did was completely wrong, and she wasn't going to deny that. However, since the Shield Hero had come out of mostly everything so far alive and well, she had taken it for granted. She had told herself that since the Hero could manage to stand firm even against all of those tortures her husband sent at him, there's nothing she had to worry about him. She had decided to wait for a while to see if her husband would turn over a new leaf, and reprimand him when she returned to her country if he continued. She had tried to convince herself that his actions wouldn't lead to anything that bad, and things would move in the right way.

She just didn't think about what those actions of her stupid and vengeful husband could have done to their victim.

The Shield Hero could still keep up until now because he happened to stumble upon that raccoon slave girl at Beloukas' slave shop. Since then, she had been the anchor that kept the man from going over the edge and embracing his unfair reputation as a criminal. What would have happened if instead of getting that sweet, gentle little girl, he had gotten a bloodthirsty gladiator beastman or someone similar? Would he go around and murder everyone out of spite? Or would the slave revolt and kill the Hero himself before he could do anything? Either way, everything would not end well for himself, for the Kingdom of Melromarc, and for the whole world.

And if something like that happened, she would be the one who regrets everything the most.

The Sword Hero was completely right. She had neglected her duty as the ruler of the land too much. This time the world might have been saved by a stroke of sheer luck, but there was no guarantee that luck would be able to save them if something like that happened again. In the end, even though people hailed her as a wise, honorable and fair Queen of Melromarc, she's just a woman who failed her own duty as a ruler, and as a wife also.

Tears started to run down her cheeks as she held her face in shame. This was the first time in years that she, the Ice Queen of Melromarc, had actually cried.

"Mother? Is there something wrong?"

Mirellia looked at the entrance of the room, where the worried voice of her daughter, Melty, had just risen from. Letting out a forced smile, she reached out her hand to rub the little girl's head when she sat down on the bed next to her.

"No, it's all right, dear. I'm fine. It's just… I have a lot of things to worry about, these days… that's all…"

The girl looked at her with concerned eyes. "Is there anything I can help you with, Mother?"

The older woman sighed sadly. "Thank you, dear, but I think this is beyond anything you c—"

She stopped mid-sentence. Maybe there was still a chance…

"Melty, there is something I think you can do for me…"

And there we have it; Chapter 20, and the first conversation of EMIYA with the Queen.

First of all, I have to apologize for the sudden break of almost 2 months. Things are getting hectic with jobs and everything here, and my laptop actually broke down twice over 2 months with the draft of the story in it; I was really afraid that all of my efforts were going down the drain, but luckily that didn't happen.

Something I don't like about how the original author portrayed Mirellia in the canon is the inconsistency between how she spoke and acted. She was built up to be a benevolent and proficient ruler who put her country before her family, but the fact that she didn't do anything when Eclair was captured and imprisoned by the King and the Church, and neglected to actually try to make a contact with the Heroes besides Naofumi until she returned to the country, or at least that's how I think it was written in the main timeline, showed that she might not be as good as the author wanted to present her as. Granted, letting her appear too early in the story might make it less interesting, but still. Had she actually been active in monitoring the Heroes, a lot of blunders Ren, Motoyasu and Itsuki committed could have been avoided, and there would have been nothing for Naofumi to do. Someone might argue that she was away from the country when all of those things happened, but the Shadows she had under her command were basically the S.H.I.E.L.D of Melromarc, whose duty was to act undercover against those very same problems, and yet they didn't even move a finger to help when they happened, and just let them unfold like that. That didn't make any sense at all, unless it was their leader who told them to do so.

And I wonder if anyone felt that the situation of Naofumi would have been the same as Angra Mainyu if he hadn't happened to stumble upon Raphtalia at Beloukas' shop like me. Naofumi was summoned as the Shield Hero to act as a scapegoat for Aultcray to have his revenge, similar to how the man who would become Angra Mainyu was chosen to be the scapegoat to bear all the evils of the world. The only difference between them was that Naofumi had Raphtalia. She was the anchor that held Naofumi back so he wouldn't lose himself, while Avenger didn't have anyone like that.

Next time: EMIYA and co. arrived at Zeltoble Harbor, and a lot of other things.

Until next time.