Assassin and Ripples

— Start of the 5th month, 1549th year, Continental Calendar —

Fuuga was leading a Malmkhitan military procession as it advanced

through the ruins north of the Union of Eastern Nations, in the Southeast of

the Demon Lord's Domain. They marched in a long, undefended, snakelike

column as if to boast there was no enemy that could defeat them. In fact, the

monsters that had long infested this area had already been exterminated by

Malmkhitan. The road the troops were traveling along was now stable

enough that traveling merchants could use it.

Here, in this land where it never snowed, they had been able to fight

properly even in winter, but the summer heat made it hard to fight for any

length of time. For that reason, the battle to reclaim the Demon Lord's

Domain would have to take a break during the seventh and eight months of

the year, when the region was hottest. However, in order to stay on the

offensive right up until that point, Fuuga had decided they needed to let the

troops rest. He was currently pulling them back to the safe zone.

Standing out in the middle of the column was the great white tiger,

Durga. Fuuga was lying on the tiger's back, his armor removed. He was

using this opportunity to nap as Durga walked along at a relaxed pace.

"Zzz..."

Audible snoring could be heard. Although they had returned to safe

territory, there were still violent creatures that lived in the area, and he was

surrounded by armed soldiers. That he could sleep in this situation spoke to

Fuuga's strength, and the bold personality underpinned by that strength.

A single temsbock rider approached Fuuga.

"Please wake up, Lord Fuuga!"

"Hm...? What is it?"

Waking to the sound of his name being called, Fuuga sat up and

scratched his head.

Noticing that it was Shuukin who'd roused him from his slumber, he

asked, "What's up, Shuukin? Did something happen?"

"No, nothing in particular. We're about to arrive."

"Hmm? Oh, we're finally there, huh?" Fuuga said, stretching.

"Traveling with an army's always so slow. I could've been here with Durga

in no time."

"You're our commander-in-chief. Who could lead the men if not you?"

"Sheesh. The bigger the military gets, the more people care about stuff

like rank. Even you've gotten used to calling me 'Lord Fuuga' now."

Because of their close age, Fuuga and Shuukin had once treated one

another casually, like friends. And it wasn't just Shuukin; there were many

others in the army like Moumei, Gaten, and Kasen, who had long been his

partners in mischief. Ever since Fuuga took the throne, though, Shuukin had

begun showing him the proper respect as a retainer so as to keep his other

subjects from disrespecting him. It must have made Fuuga feel a little

lonely.

Shuukin shrugged his shoulders with a look of exasperation on his face.

"You're the sovereign of a nation. Of course I'd pay you due respect.

Anyways, we're on the march, so please wear your armor and helmet.

You're setting a poor example for the troops, and more importantly, it's

careless."

"Don't be so stiff. We've pretty much wiped out all the monsters around

here, haven't we?"

Shuukin shook his head, a stern look on his face. "You're right that we

won't see an attack by monsters. However, there are some who have not

taken kindly to your profile rising inside the Union of Eastern Nations.

There could be assassins along the road, Lord Fuuga. I've sent out scouts,

of course, but..."

"Human jealousy's scarier than any monster, huh? What a nuisance,"

Fuuga said, digging the wax out of his ears as he listened.

Shuukin furrowed his brow at his liege's incaution. "How can you talk

like this has nothing to do with you? Your life is in danger."

"Hey, Shuukin... Wouldn't you say our country has grown?" Fuuga

asked, suddenly changing the topic.

"Hm? I suppose it has..." Shuukin cock his head to the side quizzically.

"We've expanded outside the steppes, and we have a lot of protectorates.

It's fair to say we have the greatest momentum of any country in the Union

of Eastern Nations."

"Yeah. It's like this was fate. If there's a will of the heavens, it's

apparently on our side," Fuuga replied, with a suspiciously calm tone.

"Don't tell me...you're saying because the heavens are on our side, we

don't need to worry about assassins?"

Shuukin gave him a pointed look, as if to say, That's not how things

work. Fuuga shook his head with a wry smile, looking up to the sky.

"We've overcome all the trials we've faced to grow our country. So,

maybe that's why...when things are going too smoothly, it actually makes

me more uneasy. Am I moving forward of my own will? Or is there some

unseen force pushing me?"

"Lord Fuuga..." Shirin muttered, hearing his sentimental words.

"Well, it's not a bad feeling. If I keep riding this current, it will take me

further—higher. And if I fall along the way, I'll be able to accept it means I

was never cut out for anything more than that. It's fulfilling, in a way."

"You shouldn't talk about falling like that... It's ominous."

"Ga ha ha! It's fine, Sir Shuukin!" said a wolf-eared warrior as he

approached.

It was Gaifuku of the mystic wolf race. He flexed his pecs and biceps,

striking a pose as he shot the two of them an overbearing smile. He was still

a mass of muscle despite having passed middle age.

"If a vile assassin comes anywhere near my lord, my well-toned body

will be your shield! I have built this strong back and these abs all for the

House of Haan!"

"".......""

Hah! Hah! Gaifuku continued striking poses like a bodybuilder as he

spoke. He was sweaty, and the temperature around him had probably risen a

good five degrees Celsius from his body heat.

Fuuga and Shuukin did their best not to look at him and kept talking.

"By the way, where's Mutsumi? I don't see her around."

"If you're looking for Lady Mutsumi, she went on ahead with the

vanguard to the city where we will be staying starting today... I believe she

was just as bored with the slow journey as you are, Lord Fuuga."

"She's such a free spirit. I'm jealous."

"You'd better not both disappear on me at the same time," Shuukin said

out of exasperation, earning him a shrug from Fuuga. Then...

"Behold these roaring biceps—" Thock!

"Urgh?!"

""?!""

As Gaifuku approached to give them a closer look at his muscles,

something suddenly sprouted from his arm. Upon closer inspection, it

appeared to be an arrow. If Gaifuku hadn't raised his arm just then, the

arrow would have flown straight at Fuuga.

They instantly grabbed their weapons, looking around the area.

"Weren't you supposed to be watching out?"

"We were, over a broad area. We used your effective range as a

guideline."

"Which means they're shooting from outside it. Must be someone

skilled."

Firing such an accurate shot from beyond the scope of their marching

procession was no small feat.

"Gaifuku! You okay?" Fuuga asked.

"Th-This is nothing. If I was able to serve as your shield, I could ask for

nothing more," Gaifuku said, tearing the arrow from his arm with a grunt of

pain. The wound was shallower than they had thought, causing Fuuga to

smile a little.

"Yeah, you saved me. It could be poisoned. Get to a medic

immediately."

"Surely the enemy must still be aiming for you," Gaifuku protested.

"Don't worry about it. You prevented their surprise attack. And without

the element of surprise...!"

Whoosh... Smack! Another arrow flew in, only to be deflected by

Fuuga's Zanganto.

"That's how it's gonna go. If I know the arrow's coming, then cutting it

down's easy. And that shot just told me roughly where they are. Shuukin,

the soldiers who noticed the assassin are starting to make a fuss. Get them

to calm down."

"Don't tell me you're planning to go after the sniper yourself! It's too

dangerous!" Shuukin warned him, but Fuuga was having none of it.

"The enemy's a good distance away. Without Durga's speed, it'll be hard

to catch them."

"But that doesn't mean..."

"Besides, I'm going to make them pay for hurting one of my men.

Personally."

With ferocity in his eyes, Fuuga drove Durga onwards. Having lost the

will to argue anymore after seeing those eyes, Shuukin could do nothing to

stop him from going.

Then, once Durga had leapt into the sky, Fuuga placed a hand on the

flying tiger's back and said, "I know you can sense the enemy, partner. Lead

me to them, would you?"

"Gworghhhh!" Durga roared and they picked up speed.

As they did, Fuuga spotted a figure on top of a distant hill, in the middle

of a thick copse of dead trees. This discovery was quite exciting to him. If

someone could take a shot at him from that far away, the world still had

surprises left to throw.

Then another arrow came flying. Whoosh!

"Ah!"

Because he was closer now, the arrow arrived quicker, and Fuuga

twisted out of its way rather than try to cut it down. The closer he got, the

faster they would be coming. Despite the increasing danger, Fuuga still

smiled.

"I like this! It's tense! Haven't felt this pumped up in a long time!"

He soon closed the distance to his enemy. Neither of them would miss at

this range.

Fuuga jumped from Durga's back and spread his wings to glide, taking

aim at his enemy in the treetops. The enemy was doing the same. They got

the shot off before him. Its aim was true, hurtling straight towards the center

of his face.

"Guh...!"

Fuuga instinctively twisted his head to the side, but couldn't get

completely out of the way, and it struck the gap between his helmet and

cheek. The arrow must have been magically enhanced; he felt it tear

through his cheek's flesh inside the helmet. But despite feeling his own

blood splatter inside the helmet, his eyes never left the enemy.

Twang! Fuuga loosed an arrow from his own great bow. It flew straight,

impaling the sniper through the chest. They fell headfirst, like a puppet with

its strings cut.

At that moment, either of them could have fallen. The deciding factor

had to be where they'd aimed. The sniper, confident in his own abilities,

had aimed for the head, certain he would make the kill. Meanwhile, Fuuga

knew that even if he messed up the shot, he could still win if he closed the

gap, and so had aimed for the center of mass.

"Urgh... Tch!" Fuuga tore the arrow from his helmet as he touched down

on the ground.

Having escaped the threat to his life, and with the adrenaline from

slaying a powerful foe fading, the gouge in his cheek started to throb with

pain. Fuuga took off his helmet and walked over to the sniper. He'd been a

young man, no more than twenty years old. The arrow Fuuga fired had

taken him in the heart.

Hm? This guy's... Fuuga had a feeling he knew the man, but couldn't

remember from where.

Not long after, Shuukin and the temsbock riders caught up with him.

"Lord Fuuga, are you all right?!" Shuukin asked, sounding concerned.

"I'm fine," he replied with a wave. "I took a minor wound, that's all."

"You're bleeding! Please, don't be so reckless!"

"I'll be more careful next time. We've got more important stuff to talk

about now." Fuuga wiped away the blood running down his cheek,

indicating to the sniper with his chin. "This was the sniper. I think I've seen

him somewhere before."

"Huh...?! But this is...!"

"You know him?"

"You should too. This man is Gauche Chima. Lady Mutsumi's younger

brother."

"Wha?!" Fuuga's eyes bulged as he looked at Gauche's corpse. He'd

seen Gauche at the awards ceremony, but had only had eyes for Mutsumi,

and so he hadn't remembered him.

"My brother-in-law tried to kill me, and I struck him down...?"

Gauche had been a simple warrior. This couldn't have been something

he'd decided to do on his own. Someone must have directed him to make an

attempt on Fuuga's life.

The image of a man flashed through his mind. It was the face of the man

who was the father of his darling wife, and who had always seemed

suspicious somehow. This is what happens the moment I start moving

towards my ambition, huh? His grip on Zanganto tightening, Fuuga looked

up to the sky.

At some point, solitary raindrops had begun to fall.

I guess...I'm gonna have to tell Mutsumi about this... Fuuga thought

before walking back to Durga, a feeling of hesitation gripping his heart.

◇ ◇ ◇

It was a silent night.

Mutsumi sat at the window of a dimly lit room, idly staring outside. The

earlier rain had let up, and a round white moon had shown its face through a

gap in the clouds.

I wonder what kind of face I must be making right now... Mutsumi

thought to herself.

She had certainly been shocked when she heard about the death of her

brother Gauche, and that Fuuga had been the one to kill him. Yet, despite

this, she was not as torn up about it as she'd expected to be. That confused

her. From the moment she decided to join Fuuga on his road to dominance,

she had known this was a possibility. She'd sensed her scheming father

might try something. Perhaps that was the reason. It wasn't that she didn't

feel sadness and anger, but that at some point she had resigned herself to

this happening.

She didn't want to see herself in the mirror now. Because, probably, her

face wasn't that of an elder sister mourning the loss of her younger brother.

As she stared vacantly out the window, there came a knock at her door.

It was Fuuga.

"...Can I come in?"

Normally, he would have strode in without asking, but this time he did.

Taking note of the consideration he was showing her, Mutsumi smiled a

little.

"Yes, please do, darling."

"Yeah... I will."

Fuuga closed the door behind him and walked over to Mutsumi.

"Sorry," he continued, "for shutting you up in your room like this."

"Have I been shut up in here...? Really?" Mutsumi cocked her head to

the side a little. "There are no guards. And the door wasn't locked."

"It's just a temporary measure anyway. My retainers all know what

you're like. They know you wouldn't do something short-sighted out of

anger. But some of the newcomers are worried you might try to avenge

your brother. Just try to think of this as us protecting you from them doing

anything malicious."

"Yes. I understand," Mutsumi said, pressing herself tightly against

Fuuga. When she did, his body stiffened a little. "Do you think...I would try

to avenge Gauche, darling?"

"No, not really, but...I'm ready to accept your anger and grief. I'm ready

to get slapped...no, punched for what I did. I'll stand here and take it for ten

or twenty hits."

"If I were to punch your brawny body that many times, I think my hands

would come off the worse for it."

Mutsumi smiled a little, but it was short lived.

"I've been thinking. What would I be doing now if you were the one

who fell? I doubt I'd be nearly as calm." She stroked the fresh wound on

Fuuga's cheek as she continued. "If the arrow had been a little closer, I

might have lost you. If you had died, I don't think I would have been able to

forgive Gauche or my father who no doubt instigated this. I am certain I

would have sought revenge."

"That's pretty intense. I like that about you though."

"And yet, I cannot even resent you for what you did. When I think about

how little my bond to the House of Chima meant to me, I feel a sense of

loneliness."

Her house had survived in the Union of Eastern Nations with its mess of

small- to medium-sized states through subterfuge. In their history, they had

repeatedly taken advantage of their own parents, siblings, and children.

That was partly why Mutsumi felt a bit of a disconnect with Mathew,

obviously, but also her own siblings. The twins, Yomi and Sami, were close,

but the other siblings all had their own areas of expertise, and that left little

in common for them to talk about.

Mutsumi had really cared about her youngest brother, Ichiha, who had

been seen as talentless at the time. If he'd been the one killed, she might

have bawled her eyes out. Ichiha had left her side to go to Friedonia, where

his gift had been given the chance to blossom. Mutsumi's only place now

was here with her husband Fuuga, surrounded by the men of Malmkhitan's

army.

"I know you just said he instigated it, but...you're sure it was Duke

Chima pulling the strings?" Fuuga asked and Mutsumi nodded.

"It has to have been. Although the plan feels too sloppy to be one of

father's."

In light of the haphazard nature of the plan, Mutsumi suspected

something had gone differently from how Mathew envisioned.

"Nata and Gauche both had a tendency to overestimate their own

strength and ability. He may have struck before my father intended him to."

"Oh, yeah...?"

"I'm a cold woman, aren't I...? Calmly analyzing my own brother's

death like this."

"No, I can tell how hurt you are," Fuuga said, hugging her from behind.

"You were betrayed by your own family. There's no way you wouldn't be

sad. You're just telling yourself it was inevitable because of the kind of

house you were born into."

"Darling...?"

"Yeah, that's right. I'm your darling husband. Your family. Tch, these

sorts of lines suit that guy better... Well, whatever, just for today, I'm gonna

say them. As your husband, I'll accept all of the sadness and anger you feel

towards your family."

Mutsumi buried her face in Fuuga's chest, clutching his clothes.

"I...can't forgive my father."

"Yeah."

"I can't forgive the way he uses us for the stability of the house, and

then throws us aside for the same reason. I-I can't allow him to obstruct

your path, darling."

"Yeah."

"I want to cry! I never wanted it to come to this!"

"Go ahead and cry. You don't need to hold it all in."

Mutsumi let out a little sob, and then a much louder wail. Her complex

feelings had left her unable to cry, but now she finally did. The tears flowed

ceaselessly like a dam had broken.

Fuuga seethed with anger as he held the bawling Mutsumi.

You made her cry, Mathew Chima. You made Mutsumi cry.

His arms tightened around Mutsumi.

You made my woman cry! That's gonna cost you! Big!

On this day, Fuuga decided that Mathew was his enemy.

◇ ◇ ◇

Meanwhile...

Slam! On hearing the report of Gauche's death, Mathew Chima kicked

over the chair of the desk in his office.

"Why?! Why did Gauche die?!"

He'd just been told that Gauche had attempted to assassinate Fuuga,

which resulted in his death. As Mathew threw a fit, his eldest son, Hashim,

watched him with an impassive look on his face.

"Was this not your plan, father...?"

"No! When we gathered the kings of the anti-Fuuga faction for a

conference, we talked about a plan to assassinate Fuuga when he was

returning from his campaign. We assumed that after eliminating the

monsters, he would let his guard down, and it might be possible to slay

him."

Mathew slammed his hands on the nearby table.

"But I never proposed anything this sloppy! Gauche's skills were suited

to the task, so I did discuss an assassination plan centered around him. But

the idea was rejected because, if we were to fail, it would put Fuuga on high

alert."

"Yet Gauche carried out the assassination plan," Hashim pointed out.

"And I don't know why! What was Gauche doing there alone in the first

place?!" Mathew clutched his head. "The proposed operation had him

leading a unit, or possibly an even larger force, not going in by himself.

That would have lowered the risk of Fuuga escaping. And yet Gauche goes

and tries to assassinate him on his own."

He released his hands and raised his head up.

"It's also strange that he stayed there and let himself get killed. When

you consider his long range, Fuuga shouldn't have been able to pinpoint

Gauche's location after the first shot. Had he run and hidden when his first

attempt failed, he should have been able to get away."

Mathew looked utterly baffled. Hashim sighed at him.

"I can think of only one possibility. Gauche was acting on his own

initiative."

"What?!"

"Of all my siblings, Nata and Gauche have always been the most

confident in their abilities. Overconfident, you might say. And he had been

waiting for a chance to put those skills to use and make a name for

himself."

"N-No..." Mathew's eyes widened with surprise. Hashim nodded.

"It seems probable that Gauche heard about the ambush plan from the

King of Gabi, who he served. He then thought that, with his skill at archery,

he could definitely slay Fuuga... If this was, indeed, Gauche acting on his

own initiative, it would explain why he didn't bring anyone with him.

Knowing his personality, he would have thought that a large group

increased the risk of him being found, and they would only get in his way."

Hashim sighed as Mathew's jaw hung open.

"And so," Hashim continued, "the reason he didn't flee after missing his

first shot is that he knew he would have several more as Fuuga closed in on

his position. He only needed one of them to hit, and so was certain he could

kill Fuuga. That is just how highly he overrated his own abilities."

"That fool!" Mathew punched the table again. "That damned,

overconfident fool!"

Hashim watched his raging father with cool eyes.

You are the one who raised him to be that way, he thought, but he didn't

say it out loud. You praised our abilities far more than we deserved in order

to raise opinions of us abroad. That was what made Nata and Gauche

arrogant, and they came to look down on those without talent. They were

especially harsh to Ichiha, and our sisters hated them.

Nata and Gauche had belittled and tormented Ichiha because, at the

time, he was believed to be without merit. Their younger sister, Mutsumi,

stood up for him, but Hashim had been uninterested in their quarrels. Later,

when Ichiha developed an unusual talent in the Kingdom of Friedonia,

Mathew and the other rulers of the Union had deeply regretted letting go of

him.

If we consider this most recent outrage, I think it's clear to see who was

truly the talentless one, Hashim was thinking as Mathew suddenly looked

up, as if realizing something.

"This is bad. Fuuga's anger will turn towards us and the Kingdom of

Gabi. We can't afford to sit around. We have to unite the anti-Fuuga faction

before he makes his move!" Mathew said, hurrying out of the office.

With a cold look on his face, Hashim snorted as he watched Mathew go.

"I cautioned him against acting rashly, but he goes and embarrasses

himself like this, overconfident in his own abilities." Crossing his arms,

Hashim stroked his chin as he thought about it. "Still, this Fuuga Haan... He

managed to escape Gauche, did he? No matter how excellent a man is,

without the love of the heavens, he will fade away all too easily. I suppose

this means that he has the makings of a great man, loved by the heavens. In

which case..."

Hashim smirked to himself.