A Family Divided

The Kingdom of Friedonia released a statement denouncing the

attempted assassination. This caused a huge shock in the Union of Eastern

Nations.

Fuuga's supporters loudly crowed that, "The Kingdom of Friedonia has

recognized the legitimacy of our claims," and further stretched to claim,

"King Souma is our ally."

In response to this, the countries of the anti-Fuuga faction said, "King

Souma denounces the attempted assassination, but has not declared his

support for either side," and, "The Kingdom of Friedonia remains neutral."

Of these two claims, the anti-Fuuga faction's was closer to the truth. It

was a fact that Souma's statement did not directly support either faction.

However, the pro-Fuuga faction's claims had a greater effect.

Between "Souma is pro-Fuuga!" and "Souma does not necessarily

support Fuuga!", if we look at which of these claims is more powerfully

worded, it is obviously the former. Even if the interpretation is a stretch,

they have stated it definitively, making it easy to reach people.

The latter claim, "Souma does not necessarily support Fuuga!" leaves

Souma's intentions unclear. This is because they could not say, "Souma

does not support Fuuga." or "Souma is anti-Fuuga."

The result was something Souma had predicted. He had thought of

Machiavelli's words, "If you choose to remain neutral, you will fail most of

the time," firmly drilled into his head, so he had been hesitant to remain

neutral when it came to Fuuga. That was why he chose a method that

indirectly made it appear that he supported Fuuga. Souma was still wary of

him though.

At the same time, he sent a letter to Julius who, due to the Kingdom of

Lastania's alliance with the Nothung Dragon Knight Kingdom, was forced

to remain neutral. It said, "If it becomes necessary, our country will shelter

you, so flee to the Kingdom of Friedonia with Princess Tia and everyone

else."

Hakuya the Black-robed Prime Minister warned against the dangers of

welcoming a former enemy like Julius, but it was strictly a warning. He

never thought that Souma would do something that would sadden Roroa the

way abandoning Julius and Princess Tia would. Hakuya believed that as

long as Julius cared for Princess Tia, he wouldn't get ambitious again, but

he needed to raise the complaint so that Souma would always keep the

possibility in the back of his head.

Releasing a statement denouncing the attempted assassination also

caused Duke Chima and the anti-Fuuga faction's attempts to recruit neutral

states to their cause to stagnate. While, ultimately, the anti-Fuuga faction

did grow to three times the size of the pro-Fuuga faction, they were not able

to gather any further allies. The Kingdom of Friedonia's actions were more

than enough to disappoint Mathew.

Mathew was in Wedan Castle in the Duchy of Chima griping to his

eldest son Hashim.

"King Souma didn't have to do that. If he wasn't going to side with

either of us, he should have just stayed quiet. I didn't expect him to

denounce us."

"Calm down, father," Hashim chided the grumbling Mathew. "The

Kingdom of Friedonia must have been uninterested in intervening in the

conflict all along. It's important that we've been able to confirm that King

Souma won't send reinforcements to Fuuga and will stay out of this fight."

"Well, yes, but..." Mathew still seemed unconvinced. "Of all the

children I sent abroad, the only ones to join the anti-Fuuga faction were

Nata in the Kingdom of Sharn, and Gauche who went to the Kingdom of

Gabi. The others are all either pro-Fuuga or neutral. What did I even send

my children abroad for?"

"Gauche's rash actions have brought harsh eyes down on the entire

House of Chima... However, although the state we sent him to has joined

the Fuuga faction, Nike has returned to us," Hashim said in an attempt to

pacify Mathew.

It was true that Mathew's fourth son, the beautiful boy who was a master

of the spear, Nike, had been dismissed from the country he had been sent to

when they joined the Fuuga faction. They must have been scared to shelter

a relative of Gauche, even if he was a relative of Fuuga's wife Mutsumi as

well.

"One powerful warrior returning to us will have no great effect on the

larger picture," Mathew said, slumping his shoulders and resting both hands

on his desk. "Our negotiations have grown the number of countries in the

anti-Fuuga faction. However, that doesn't mean that all of their people are

now opposed to Fuuga as well. There will be those that go to join the Fuuga

supporters, and others who divert supplies to them at all levels of society.

Even if we clamp down on it, they'll risk their lives to join him. It's like

dealing with zealots. Fuuga is practically the founder of a new religion

called Fuugaism."

"That must be Fuuga Haan's potential," Hashim said after a pause.

Mathew snorted.

"It's an abomination. The way things are, we cannot use our numbers to

strategically encircle him until he runs out of supplies. The longer we take,

the more countries will switch sides to join the pro-Fuuga faction... It seems

we truly have no choice but to end it all in one decisive battle."

Mathew stood up straight and walked towards the door.

"Fortunately, we have an overwhelming numerical advantage. Now, it's

simply a matter of how we invite Fuuga to the field of battle. It would be a

nuisance if he were to hole up inside the castle and force us to fight a battle

of attrition..." he mumbled to himself as he left the office.

Hashim let out an exasperated sigh as he watched Mathew go. Then,

once his father was gone, a slender and attractive young man entered to take

his place.

"Nike?"

"Brother. I passed by Father mumbling to himself in the hall," the fourth

son of the House of Chima said to Hashim, resting his spear against his

shoulder as he spoke. "He seems rather agitated."

"He is. Gauche's overeagerness must have messed up all his plans."

"And yet...you still plan to follow him when he acts like that?" Nike

asked, suspicion in his eyes.

"What do you mean...?"

"What I'm saying is that playing along with a gamble like this doesn't

suit you. The brother that I know doesn't take losing bets, or even ones with

even odds."

Hashim shrugged his shoulders at this.

"Who can say? Aren't you the same way?" Hashim replied, staring

straight into Nike's eyes. "Although, even if you were dismissed by your

master, I had expected you to go to Mutsumi instead. You like her more

than Father, don't you?"

This time, it was Nike's turn to shrug. "Well, yes, but...I had my own

reasons for coming. I'm here of my own will, okay?"

Hashim looked at Nike for a time, but Nike had always been aloof, and

Hashim couldn't read his thoughts. It might be more accurate to say that

Nike wouldn't allow him to. Hashim gave up.

"That is fine with me... As I wrote in my letter, so long as you refrain

from any rash actions."

"I understand, brother. I'll be going now," Nike responded and left the

office. As he walked through the halls of Wedan Castle, Nike sighed. He'd

sensed something unsettling about Hashim. Our brother has something in

mind...Big Sister Mutsumi.

Just as Hashim had said, Mutsumi was the only one in the House of

Chima that Nike felt any affinity towards. Up until Ichiha was born and

branded the talentless one, it had been Nike who'd been the brunt of Nata

and Gauche's bullying. Mutsumi was the only one to protect him then.

With time, once Nike awakened to his gift for the spear, and his abilities

grew, Nata and Gauche stopped saying anything about him. Instead, they

moved on to tormenting Ichiha. That was why Nike had no attachment to

the House of Chima. The reason he had returned here at all was because of

a request from Mutsumi. A secret entreaty that she had kept secret even

from her beloved husband Fuuga. Our house really is divided, huh...?

Mathew and the eight siblings were each acting towards their own ends.

Their hearts were so far apart that they each had to make their own

decisions. One result of that had been Gauche's attempt to assassinate

Fuuga. Even their youngest brother, Ichiha, had found a place for himself in

the Kingdom of Friedonia where he was growing in prominence.

I'm glad Ichiha went to the Kingdom. Mutsumi would have been

devastated if he'd been caught up in all this. Out of all his brothers and

sisters, in a way, Mutsumi was the only one who had tried to stay connected

to him. Nike wanted to respect those feelings, if nothing else.

◇ ◇ ◇

The anti-Fuuga states in the east of the Union of Eastern Nations were

the first to rise up. The main force that Fuuga was leading to retake the

Demon Lord's Domain was north of the Union of Eastern Nations. They

formed a wedge that separated that main force from Fuuga's base in

Malmkhitan. Fuuga had left half of his elite soldiers behind to defend his

home country. The anti-Fuuga faction believed that by keeping those elites

from rejoining the main force, they would be reducing Fuuga's strength of

arms.

In addition to this, the operational planner of the anti-Fuuga faction,

Mathew Chima, had closely studied the Elfriedenian-Amidonian War of

1546.

The (then provisional) King of Elfrieden, Souma Kazuya, had made a

show of attacking the capital city of the Principality, Van. This allowed him

to lure the Principality forces led by Sovereign Prince Gaius VIII to a

favorable battlefield where he destroyed them. Mathew decided to use these

events as a reference. By using Fuuga's homeland of the steppes as bait, he

would keep Fuuga from settling in for a siege, and instead settle things with

a short, decisive battle on favorable ground while they still had the

numerical advantage.

With Fuuga's supporters spread throughout every country, it was

effectively impossible for them to encircle Fuuga's company and cut off

their supplies. And the longer they took, the more nations would switch to

Fuuga's side. This demanded a swift and decisive victory in battle. In fact,

Mathew had already received reports that Fuuga's forces were marching

towards Malmkhitan. With the Kingdom of Sharn at their center, the forces

of the anti-Fuuga faction headed for the grain-producing region, the Sebal

Plains, where they had set up their defensive line. This region was part of

the Kingdom of Gabi.

It was as if a tiger was heading towards many layers of traps.

As the final confrontation with Fuuga drew near, inside Gabi Castle,

which looked down over the Sebal Plains, Mathew was in the room that had

been assigned to him, enjoying a drink alone. As he did, his fourth son,

Nike, came to visit him.

When Nike entered and saw the glass in Mathew's hand, he furrowed his

brow. "Father... Is this really the time to drink?"

"Now is exactly the time to drink. I've already made every move I can.

Now we simply wait to see which side the heavens favor. If all I'm doing is

waiting, what better way than with a drink?"

The calmness in Mathew's voice made Nike feel uneasy, and he

subconsciously clenched his fists. Mathew had seemed to suffer from

intense mood swings lately, but now he seemed awfully calm. Nike had

thought he would be showing more excitement or trepidation before the

battle with Fuuga. It didn't feel like he was using alcohol as an escape

either.

"The battle with Fuuga...with Mutsumi's husband is almost upon us.

Doesn't that make you feel anything?" Nike asked, his anger bleeding

through into his tone slightly.

And yet, Mathew didn't bat an eye.

"I've long since run out of such hesitation," Mathew said in a relaxed

tone as he looked at his glass of red wine. "Look back on the history of our

country—of our house. Here in this land where so many nations have been

born and then perished, why is it that our petty state has maintained its

independence using every means available to it? It was solely to keep our

line going. In order to maintain the House of Chima's independence, there

were even times when we had to fight against our own family. Only one

side needed to survive."

Mathew paused, taking another sip of his wine before continuing.

"We fought among ourselves, and after the war, the winners would plead

for the losers to be spared. If that was not granted, they were cast aside...

We stand on top of many such sacrifices. You and I both."

Hearing his father's words, Nike felt as if his feet were giving out from

underneath him. I'm intimidated? Me? By father? Nike was confident that,

in purely martial terms, he had surpassed his father long ago. In fact, if they

were to fight here, Nike would surely have won. Mathew wouldn't stand

even a remote chance of winning. Yet, in spite of that, and despite Mathew

not placing any particularly strong emphasis on his words, Nike was

overwhelmed by his speech.

"And now it's your turn to fight with my sister, you're saying?" Nike

somehow forced himself to ask. Even he thought he sounded like a petulant

child.

Mathew laughed scornfully at himself. "After Gauche's recklessness,

this became inevitable."

"And it's not your fault that he acted so recklessly, father?"

"In order to spread you all across many countries, as a means of

preserving our line, I talked up your gifts too much. Planting the seeds of

the arrogance that would destroy him was certainly my own failure."

You sound so detached from all this, Nike nearly said. But he didn't.

Regardless, Mathew seemed to be cognizant of his words here. Through

this conversation with his father, Nike had learned that this was how their

house had preserved their bloodline.

"If we win this battle, then even in the worst scenario, the House of

Chima will only lose Mutsumi," Mathew told the now silent Nike. "The

Kingdom of Remus, where Yomi is betrothed to the king, is part of the

Fuuga faction, but they are far from Fuuga's main force and Malmkhitan, so

they will focus on defending their own borders. They won't be directly

involved in this war. Even Mutsumi, provided she doesn't die in battle,

might be able to be saved after the war."

"Knowing Mutsumi, I think she'll follow Fuuga to the end, though..."

"That is her decision. If she chooses life, there are still ways to save

her."

"......"

"Conversely, if we are defeated here, I am the only one who must die."

"Wha?!" Nike's eyes widened in shock. Mathew, however, still spoke in

a relaxed tone.

"Lay all of the blame on me. If you say that you were only following my

orders, I am sure Mutsumi will plead for your life. It seems Hashim is well

regarded by Fuuga too. I'm sure he'll manage the House of Chima well."

"Father! What are you saying?! Do you not care for your own life?!"

Nike protested, and Mathew smiled a little.

"I do only as our family has for all this time. At the very least, our line

will live on."

Once he had said that, Mathew drained the rest of his wine.

"That man...will drag everything in. He'll destroy all the bonds our

house has created, swallowing us whole. If we ever side with him, the lives

of our entire clan will be in his grasp. As head of the House of Chima, I

couldn't bear that."

"Father..."

"If you think about it, Ichiha leaving for the Kingdom may have been

divine providence. Now, no matter how chaotic the Union of Eastern

Nations becomes, our blood will survive."

"Divine providence...? It's not like you to say that, Father."

He was supposed to be more calculating. To plan for every eventuality,

doing whatever was necessary to avoid the worst outcome, that was how

Mathew—how the House of Chima—was supposed to operate. It was

almost as if Mathew had decided that his own death wasn't the worst

outcome.

"No, father... Don't tell me you..." Nike started to say, but didn't finish.

Mathew chuckled.

"You may be right. So, Nike, my boy... Don't waste your life."

"I wish you had said that to me sooner, and in a different way..." Nike

turned to go, unable to face his father any longer. "Big Sister Mutsumi

probably understands how you feel better than any of us, father. That's

why...I didn't want the two of you to end up opposing each other."

"I see..."

"I don't need you to tell me not to throw away my life. I will

act...according to my own will."

With that said, Nike took his leave.

Alone in the room once more, Mathew poured himself a fresh glass, and

slowly sipped away at it.