Chapter 51: Round Table (2nd time)

When I was in the Academy, I would never have said this, “Trust in your own magic”. Entering the Western Territory, I experienced the atmosphere of the battlefield, albeit backwards, I was able to confirm that my magic can be used in a battle.

Of course, it’s no match for a battle magician who changes the battle situation in an instant. However, even if it cannot damage on a large scale, it is still effective against small forces as long as it is used correctly.Translated by Yume Neiji

“I will do anything to end this battle. Not only as a military doctor, please make me work as a magician as well when needed. I’ll surely be useful for Your Highness.”

Her Highness’ eyes are tinged with worry. I can feel that her hesitation to pull me into the battlefield still remains. I expressed my will by not looking away from her. I didn’t hide my cowardice nor squeeze out my courage, it’s just that I’m not afraid.

If you succumb into fear, instead of having done something useful, you might end up doing nothing at all.

“…..Thank you, Grass. Your resolve has been relayed.”

“…..Uh, T-Then, Your Highness…”

Perhaps Her Highness felt conscious and she worried whether to turn her back to me, in the end, while pulling the sheets towards her chest, she looked at me.

“I’ll borrow your power. I’ll tell what you have to do in tomorrow’s war council. I’ll have a seat prepared for you so come together with your assistant.”

“Y-Yes, I understand… Your Highness, regarding “his” circumstances…..”

“I heard about it in advance via letter. At that time, I even wondered why someone from Lenklus bloodline would accompany you… Millenia has some rough spots but she rarely does things without thinking so I didn’t ask for details.”

“Thank you. If “she” was asked about her identity first, she wouldn’t be here.”

When I thanked her, Her Highness smiles back. As she smiled with her well-placed eyebrows, I can no longer associate her as same figure that has devilishly slashed myriad of enemy soldiers on the battlefield.

This is true for all the knights of this fortress. To be honest, one must become a demon to protect the people.Translated by Yume Neiji

“…You yourself may not think of it but, your desire moved the girls. Presha, Dite, Katie… and Raquel too, even the maids who just met you… Instead of me who served as their leader, they might open their hearts more to you who’s here to heal them.”

“….Speaking of healing, it’s not only about curing injuries. First of all, it’s about the meals. I heard that Your Highness is eating the same thing as the lower ranked soldiers but that is not enough nutrition. Overall, we need to improve our diet.”

Perhaps because the story suddenly changed to a petition about the food situation, Her Highness’ paused and her gaze was fixed at me –she reacted as I suddenly said such thing.

“…Abstinence helps to make our bodies cleaner and eliminate impurities. That’s what I thought.”

Certainly, effective dieting or fasting can improve the body’s metabolism. However, it is only the case when nutritional benefits is taken into consideration, and even if the present diet can supply heat and a part of nutrition, it is not enough to maintain the body of a highly active soldier.Read at yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com

“Once I have some prospect for stabilizing the food supply, can I consult with the cooks? Improving the diet will improve the morale and health of the soldiers.”

“…I’ll think about it. If possible, I would like to ask for some guidance on our current meals first… As a Princess, although I received an education as a knight, it’s embarrassing to say but other than that, I’m poorly informed.”

“Y-Yes…. I’ll do as Your Highness wishes. I think that serving as a military doctor should be the first priority.”

“…Change the battle situation and create a situation where the enemy will no longer attack. Everything else will come after that, right?”

She reverted back to the look of a commander, completely erasing her naive behaviour that asked me for guidance. First of all, what kind of guidelines will Astina-denka demonstrate for tomorrow’s war council?

I greeted Soara and Karin then left Her Highness’ bedroom.

◆◇◆

I was fortunate that the room I was assigned to was a room with two separate bedrooms. Each room is barely large enough to sleep in, but if the beds were lined up in the same room, it would not have been easy to fall asleep.

In the Academy, dormitories for men and women were separated by the school building and it was strictly forbidden to come back and forth to the other’s premise. Occasionally, girls sneaked into the boys’ dormitories and vice versa, but it was a story that me and Leslie had nothing to do about, it was just a topic during our conversations.

―Thus, I feel like I had a little dream about those days that I had spent at the academy. When the morning sun starts to appear in the sky, Leslie woke me up.

“Good morning, Grass-nii”

“Oh, Good Morning. We have to attend the war council today, so let’s finish the hospital round for the patients before that.”

Leslie has changed into men’s clothing but she hasn’t worn her glasses and hat yet. It’s unlikely that I will see her with her hair down, but when I look at her again, it makes her feel strangely refreshing.

“…I already tied my hair so I just have to put my hat.”

“You’ve had it tough… Well, it’s bad to speak of it like it’s none of my business. Is there anything I can do to help?”

 “No, it’s okay. When I’m all set, I’ll call you Grass-sensei. What about Grass-nii?”

 “Alright, it’s “Lendl-san”. I’ll call you that until we can tell everyone about it.”

“…I’m sorry for the trouble.”

Even so, this is unavoidable because she wants to accompany me. However, even if the Lenklus family knows about Leslie’s whereabouts, I do not intend to easily make her return with them when they come here.

I need someone with medical expertise, even a little bit of it to assist me –if possible, I should also consider nurturing her. With that in mind, I got out of bed and started preparing.Translated by Yume Neiji (yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com)

After finishing the hospital round and eating breakfast at the cafeteria, I took Leslie to the round table. Raquel-san assisted me and told me where to sit in the round table –me and Leslie were in the lowest position, almost directly opposite Her Highness.

I never expected a day will come that I’ll be sitting here –Raquel-san, Presha-san and Dite-san. And there are two other attack captains who I haven’t talked to yet and one archer captain, although I haven’t heard the exact details, there are also captains from other units, there are ten knights in all.

We all remain standing while waiting for Her Highness to come in. Eventually, the guard announced that Her Highness is going to enter the room, the knights similarly greet with salute.This is translated by Yume Neiji (yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com)

Her Highness looked at everyone and put her right hand on her chest in order to pray. Then she opens her eyes again, and when she nods, the knights return to an upright position.

“I will now commence the war council. Please sit down.”

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