Chapter 121

The moment I thought—what if I trained with the soldiers?

The ending of the Future Diary was rewritten.

I immediately decided to check the newly written conclusion of the Future Diary.

'If only it changed to a story where we win the war against the monster army, just as I hope... that would be great.'

Standing beside my desk, I read the Future Diary.

…….

Four months had passed since the war with the monster army began.

My army fought valiantly.

Even after the human-Giant allied forces led by Jereuth were defeated, my army did not lose its courage and hope.

No matter that Jereuth was defeated and killed in action.

No matter that the Giants were annihilated.

No matter that Seria's mages could no longer use magic for the time being.

My army fought to the end with me. The damage sustained by the monster army was also considerable, so the war between the kingdom and the monster army was unpredictable.

To kill all the enemies before dying.

That alone was becoming the condition for victory.

But… it seemed the goddess of victory was not smiling upon me.

—Kuaaaaaaaah!

—They're coming again, again! The Gargoyles!!

—A-arrows! Fire the arrows!

—Don't scatter! Square formation! The square forma… keok!

—Kiyaaaaaaaah! Crack!

—S-save me…!

—Shields! Raise the shields!! Rocks are falling from the sky!!

—Raise your spears! If you want to live, raise your spears!! I said raise your spears!!!

I, no, we, fought our final battle on the 'Ness Plains,' a short distance from the royal capital.

At first, it seemed we had a chance of winning.

However, the Gargoyles that dominated the sky were the problem.

Every time they swept through the battlefield, dozens of soldiers were killed or injured.

They seemed to enjoy it.

Besides the direct attacks from the Gargoyles.

The fist-sized rocks they dropped from the sky were also fatal.

Wooden shields were shattered. If a rock wasn't blocked and hit someone's head, it was instant death.

A helmet? That wasn't much help either.

Dropping rocks from the sky was certainly a primitive method of attack.

But to me, it felt as if a fighter jet was firing a machine gun.

But more than anything.

The very presence of the Gargoyles flying in the sky broke the soldiers' morale.

—Uh, ugh….

—We can't win. Absolutely not!

—They said the reason Commander Jereuth was defeated was because of the Gargoyles... it was true.

—To think he held out for weeks against such Gargoyles... but we can't.

I fought at the very front of the battlefield.

From behind, I could hear the screams of the knights and soldiers, the sound of their morale breaking.

'A defeat... I see.'

I really thought we could win.

But we couldn't.

Pfft—.

A hollow laugh escaped me.

'They say air superiority is the most important thing in modern warfare, and it was the same here.'

Well, not that anything is unimportant in war.

Dung— dung— dung— dung—.

As the Gargoyles swept through and the kingdom army's morale broke.

The sound of drums came from the monster army's side. It was the drumbeat of their main force advancing.

Beyond the ridge, their main force revealed itself. As expected, their numbers weren't that great.

Jereuth and the Giant allied forces had truly performed remarkably.

That's why I thought we could win.

But with the Gargoyles dominating the sky, we were merely their playthings.

'So this is how it ends. Everyone fought so well….'

—The moment I had that thought.

Swiiisssshhh….

Thwack—!

I heard the sound of something cutting through the air, and then a terrible pain in my head.

Was I hit by a rock thrown by a Gargoyle?

I didn't know for sure, but that's how I died.

This was the end of the newly written Future Diary.

What should I say….

'Honestly, it's not as much of a change as I had hoped. The conclusion of losing the war itself hasn't changed.'

But.

'Still... I'm one step closer to hope. Definitely.'

My original ending was one where the soldiers ran away without even putting up a proper fight until the end.

But this time, it said we fought until the end.

In other words, my choice to train with the soldiers was the right one.

'Is the problem air superiority?'

The Gargoyles that threw rocks from the sky and swept across the ground.

I didn't know how to deal with them.

There were no hints like, 'If only I had prepared in this way, I could have dealt with the Gargoyles.'

My future self even described the Gargoyles' attack as feeling like 'a fighter jet firing a machine gun.' It must have been that desperate.

'In the end, I have to figure out how to deal with the Gargoyles myself... hmm.'

After thinking for a long while.

Thud—.

I closed the Future Diary and placed it on the bookshelf.

The bookshelf where I usually kept the diary.

'In any case, the direction I'm heading is correct. So for now, let's train with the soldiers and think about the Gargoyles slowly.'

I had a feeling.

A feeling that if I could just figure out how to deal with the 'Gargoyles,' I could completely change this outcome.

Good premonitions and feelings always tended to betray me, but this time, I felt truly certain.

I had a strong gut feeling that I really only needed to solve that one problem.

'Gargoyles... there must be a way to deal with them.'

Finishing my thoughts, I roughly took off my clothes in front of the bathroom and stepped inside.

First, I needed to wash up. I wanted to scrub off the sweat and dust that had accumulated on my body for a long time.

'Let's wash up and get some sleep.'

***

Late in the evening, after the sun had set.

Elly lingered in front of Leonardo's room, fidgeting with her caller.

'For the King to pass away….'

Elly had received the news a little later than others. It was because she had been doing a final check of Leonardo's room and couldn't go to the castle gate to meet him.

'His Highness... will he be alright?'

When Leonardo had purged the nobles before.

Elly thought her entire family had died as well.

At that time, she had thought, 'His Highness Leonardo must have had his reasons,' but truthfully, she was very sad.

'His Highness didn't show the slightest hint of sadness... but he might be crying on the inside.'

Everyone in the world called Leonardo a 'cruel crown prince with no blood or tears.' But Elly knew what a warm person Leonardo was.

He was considerate, couldn't stand injustice, and thought of others' pain as his own.

'And yet he is a strong person.... Should I be the one to comfort him? Would I be overstepping my bounds?'

After pacing in front of Leonardo's room for a long time.

Elly made a decision.

'Yes, let's go in. If His Highness is sad, it's my role to at least brew him some tea.'

Knock, knock—.

“Your Highness, it is Elly. May I come in?”

—Ah, yes. Come in.

Unlike what she had worried about, Leonardo's voice was the same as usual.

While relieved by this, she wondered if Leonardo was hiding his sadness and trying hard to appear strong.

As Elly entered the room, she saw Leonardo.

He was tidying his bed.

"Your Highness, why are you tidying the bed... That's something I can do."

"I just felt like tidying it myself. I took a short nap."

“……”

"More importantly, you've come at a good time. I just called for the Commander with the calling bell. He should be here soon, so please prepare some simple tea to drink."

"I understand. But Your Highness…."

Elly was about to speak about the king's death.

'I shouldn't be the one to bring it up first. If His Highness is overcoming it on his own, mentioning it won't do any good.'

"...What kind of tea should I prepare?"

"The usual coffee, please. The Commander doesn't really like tea, so please get him cold water."

"I understand."

Elly hid her concern for Leonardo as much as possible.

She opened the door to leave the room to fetch the tea.

Then, she was startled to see a man standing in front of the door.

"Ah, Commander."

"Is His Highness inside? He called for me."

"Yes. He is waiting. I believe you may go in."

"Mm."

Elly stepped aside, and Jereuth entered Leonardo's room.

Elly was curious about what Jereuth and Leonardo would talk about, but she had to get the tea, so she hurriedly closed the door and left.

'Is he holding a meeting with the Commander without even resting much after returning to the royal capital….'

***

As Elly left, Jereuth entered. It wasn't intentional, but the timing seemed perfect.

"You called for me, Your Highness."

"Yes, Commander. I'm sorry to call you when you must be tired. I have something to discuss."

"You may call me anytime."

Jereuth replied calmly and sat in the chair in front of my desk.

I decided to get straight to the point.

"As you know, Commander, the monster army might attack the kingdom. No, to be honest, I think the monster army will eventually attack the kingdom, whether it's sooner or later."

"I think so as well."

"Yes. So for now, I would like only you and I to know about the monster army. The kingdom is still in turmoil, and if word about the monster army gets out, it will cause a lot of confusion."

"Understood. But shouldn't we prepare for it?"

"Yes. Actually, I wanted to discuss that, which is why I asked you to come."

I crossed my arms and organized my thoughts.

I continued speaking.

"Honestly, I don't know much about how to prepare for war. From increasing troops to training, supplies, and food stockpiling, there's not much I know. All I know are the theoretical things I've read in books. So I would like to entrust the war preparations to you, Commander."

"...Yes! Thank you for your trust, Your Highness. I will prepare thoroughly."

"Yes. Still, I think there is something I can do. A process of raising the soldiers' morale and building their faith in me, perhaps."

"The soldiers' morale... you say?"

Jereuth tilted his head, then immediately continued.

"Your Highness. The current morale of the kingdom's army is sky-high. Their loyalty to you is also the same. I have been a knight for a long time, but this is the first time I have seen the army with such high morale."

"That would be so. Since it is a time of peace."

At my words, Jereuth's expression hardened.

***

"In times of peace, any army's morale is high. Their loyalty is high as well. But when a crisis hits, it can be different."

At Leonardo's words, Jereuth wanted to say something.

That it wasn't so, that your kingdom's army would stand tall no matter what crisis came.

But he couldn't say that.

Because what Leonardo said was true.

An absolute truth at that.

'The army in times of peace and the army in a crisis are different. Yes, His Highness is right. Did His Highness read that in a book as well? It's something hard to know unless you're a knight who has been to the battlefield.'

Leonardo continued.

"To maintain an army's morale in a crisis, there needs to be a 'trustworthy presence' with them. Someone like you, Commander."

"Just leave it to me, and I will stand at the forefront of any battlefield—."

"I know. That you would fight for me without sparing your own life, Commander."

“……”

"But what about a battlefield where you are not present, Commander? What if you were injured or killed in action? Could the current kingdom army maintain its high morale then? The kingdom army without you, Commander? I wonder-."

"...Your Highness! I will never die."

While speaking firmly, Jereuth had an uneasy feeling.

That strange feeling that his life didn't have much time left.

It was the feeling of his own death approaching, just as Philip had said before.

Also, Jereuth wanted to refute Leonardo's words.

No, he wanted to say, even without me, the knights and soldiers would offer you their infinite loyalty.

But Jereuth couldn't say it. Because he knew it too.

That the current spiritual pillar of the kingdom's army was himself.

'That's why I'm raising the next Knight Commander. Yoanna, whom Hagen recommended... that child.'

But no matter how great Yoanna's achievements were or how much she proved her skills.

That child could never be him. It would take 15 years, at least 10 years.

'I am worried too. Just as Philip said... with each passing day, it feels like the future where I die is getting closer.'

"...I apologize, Your Highness. I interrupted you."

"It's alright. More importantly, I will make myself clear as well."

Leonardo looked Jereuth straight in the eye.

And then, he spoke with a voice full of firm conviction.

"If it seems like you are going to be killed in action, Commander, I will prevent that future somehow. Even if it is destined to be so, I will change it by any means necessary."

“……”

"But even so, first, I must gain the strong faith and trust of the soldiers. Only then do I think we will have a chance of winning the war against the monster army."

Leonardo, speaking powerfully.

At his words, Jereuth nodded as if he understood.

"In that case... what are you planning to do, Your Highness?"

"I plan to train with the soldiers. By enlisting as a new recruit."

"...Pardon?"

Jereuth felt the heavy thoughts that had been swirling in his head wash away in an instant.

That was how absurd and sudden Leonardo's words were.

"W-what do you mean by that? That you will train with the soldiers?"

"Literally. I mean that I will sweat with the soldiers, and go out on missions and bleed with them. Even if I do that, I won't become a reliable 'hero' like you, Commander, but I will at least be able to prevent the soldiers from collapsing when you are not there, Commander."

"Y-Your Highness. I understand your intention. And a king training with his soldiers will certainly be able to give the soldiers trust. If Your Highness were to train as an 'ordinary recruit,' we could assign drill instructors who do not know Your Highness's face to the training and hide Your Highness's identity."

Jereuth's words were long.

That's how flustered he was.

"But... do you really have to go that far? I am asking if you must go to such lengths to gain the soldiers' trust."

"Yes. I must."

“……”

"There are probably many other ways to gain the soldiers' trust besides this one. But when a true crisis hits, I believe the ones who can give the soldiers trust are those who have trained and fought alongside them. Just as you do, Commander. There's no one more trustworthy than someone with whom you've shared sweat and pain."

At Leonardo's words, Jereuth thought for a moment.

'A royal training with soldiers is an unheard-of thing, but... His Highness must have a reason for saying so.'

"...I understand. In that case, new recruits are coming in next week, so I think you can enlist then."

Jereuth decided to accept Leonardo as a soldier.