No Romance, Only War (MobuSeka SI Chapter 3)

King Roland finished reading the message from the royal court of Repard. He set it aside for his wife to read, while chuckling to himself, and leaning his head back.

"Heh, they're all but begging us to take him back, and to never send him anywhere near them again." Roland shook his head, before looking toward Queen Mylene. "Quite the scary person, that Crimson Knight of ours, don't you think?"

"He destroyed the physical island of Selika itself, Roland." Mylene commented with an unusual serious look, as her eyes studied the letter intensely, wanting to be sure that her former home only wishes for Nathanel Fou Lamanton's return to Holfort and nothing else. "Destroying the Sanctuary Shell itself should have been impossible."

The Selika Sanctuary Shell wasn't a simple magic barrier, of just a defensive layer, or several layers. It was a field filled to the brim with focused, energized magic that can formed into any spell at a moment's notice. Rather than think of it like a magic barrier like a balloon, it would be as if the balloon was filled with liquid (magical energy), not air (unused natural energy). And the balloon was actually a ball of steel all the way through.

It's why the idea of "breaking" the Sanctuary Shell was a foolish endeavor, which the Repard and Holfort generals constantly ignored, thinking upon seeing the Selika mainland, their victory was in sight.

Entering Selika would have been a death sentence, as the very land and air could have been weaponized against their United Kingdom's and their allies' troops; spells being launched from any point in space, even inside of people.

Mylene had constantly sent for the Repard royal court to start negotiations with the Selika Kingdom, yet both sides refused, thinking their victory was inevitable.

And truthfully Selika didn't have any reason to fear being defeated. Mylene thought, before frowning.

"Well, they did have enough 'resources'." Roland said with an amused huff.

"Please don't make light of that topic, Roland." Mylene said back.

The Magic Reactor in the center of the Selika island upon which the capital was build, was a marvel of magic advancement. It was able to create all kinds of magic spell sequences within the field it generates, as well as redirect, or rewrite, or even import the magic spells deployed as needed. Supposedly the Selika mages were able to come together and created, by studying and reverse engineer the design from a Lost Item.

However such complex and near god-like power naturally had a high cost.

Life force.

Living being needed to be feed to the Magic Reactor. Specifically living beings with strong emotions, the stronger and more vibrant the emotions, the more power and better results that can be gotten from the Magic Reactor.

"Come on now, at the very least we can say we stopped an inhumane practice. By the end they were even using their owe citizens. I would say our Crimson Knight had done them a mercy." Roland said back. "Honestly, I would say what was worrying was the rumor that they figured out how to move their whole island. That wouldn't have made them the nation with the strongest defensive military, but they would have been a terrifying rival to Alzr and Fanoss combined."

"Rumor is just that, rumor."

"Yet they are based in truth, and could we really take the chance? I suppose we'll never find out." Roland said lazily, as the subject began to bore him.

"I suppose. However there is something we can not afford to take and chance on, and find out the results." Mylene said pointedly.

The Queen's eyes went to the open metal box in the middle of the table, filled with letters and documents. Very incriminating letters and documents.

A metal box was delivered in the King and Queen's meeting room, although it was usually the Queen's office, as she handled all the kingdom's affairs from it. The box was delivered by a magic steel familiar, that looked like a miniture version of Nathanel's knight armor, Ignis.

The Mini-Ignis set the box on the meeting table, with a note on it, that said the box will only open and the information inside it, will be reveal by the voices of royalty.

Roland loving the theatrics acted before Mylene could wisely caution him, and demanded the box open.

It opened...to reveal paper, which Roland quickly lost interest in.

However when Mylene looked through it, she slowly grew horrified as the documents pained a terrible picture of her kingdom.

She and Roland understood that Nathanel had gathered all this evidence and presented it to them, so that they would act upon it.

"I think the answer is simple." Roland said with a causal wave. "We publically decry those 'Forest of Ladies', gather them before us, and punish them for their crimes. That should satisfy Nathanel and his men, right?"

"I don't think it's going to be that simple." Mylene shook her head. "I think he wants blood. I don't think anything less than their execution would satisfy him. Can we afford to just play politics with Nathanel and his people?"

"It would be a challenge to my royal authority." Roland said with a frown as he sat up. "Letting this boy carry out any 'justice' he thinks he's own, will weaken our faction's standing in the kingdom." He said in a rare moment of wise kingship.

"He can destroy an island, Roland. And killing him will just give us another Fanoss, or worse." She said before he could refute her. "No, what we do...is make it look like he's sanctioning our actions. That when he's carrying out his justice, he's actually acting on our will."

"Hmm," Roland sat back, deep in thought. "We need something to tie him back to the kingdom. Something more than just land, and killing those noblewomen."

"I'll look into which duke's daughter is eligible and message them then." Mylene nodded, getting the files on nobles of Lower Rank 2 and Upper Rank 3. Princes, princess, duke, duchesses, and royal blooded nobles.

"I think...we might need something more than that, to show how serious we are." Roland said in a careful manner, than how he usually acts.

"B-But, I mean..." Mylene hesitated. "Erica isn't engaged to Elijah Rapha Fraser yet, but..." It felt like giving up her daughter as a lamb to the wolves to prevent everyone else from being slaughtered. "No, we're not giving Erica up as a hostage."

"What? That's not what I'm saying at all." Roland said before spreading his arms. "I'm saying the only thing that can conquer hate is love! Our dear Erica is cute, so why not have her heal his wounded heart, and thus tie the strongest knight to ever live to us." He said bombastically, before cupping his own chin. "My genius...it's truly frightening at times."

Mylene slowly rested her face in her palm, at her husband's romanticism.

It would be nice if he directed some of that romance toward me. Came the stray thought to Mylene, before she dismissed it as foolish.

Still as she looked back at the last picture they had of Nathanel from his military file, Mylene couldn't help but wonder.

They sunken red eyes, with a focused stare. They seem to glare at her even from the photo.

Such hate and indifference present even in something like a photo.

Does such a person truly hold the capacity to have anything but hate in their heart?