Chapter 35: There's a Cow Behind the Wall?! (Patreon)

What's that supposed to mean?

"What's with you? Did you overdo the wet dreams and now your back's killing you?"

"No, no, no! I told you, I didn't have any of that! And it's not my back, either. It's more like my head's a little, uh, I don't know how to put it. But I think I know the cause, so it's fine."

The exchange between Felt and Subaru Natsuki had started because the latter's face had looked off ever since he woke up, like a man who'd overindulged and run himself hollow.

Subaru actually knew how to describe the feeling. It was his mind. No, deeper than that. His soul, really.

It felt as though, last night, someone had attacked and tampered with his soul in every way imaginable, hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands of methods, without a break, not even for half a second, all night long.

And thanks to the notebook's earlier compensation, his soul could never be altered or influenced by outside forces. It would always stay his own, so none of that tampering had done a thing.

But even if the tampering was useless, it had still been attempted tens of thousands of times in earnest, so some sensation was bound to linger. His soul felt as if a little girl's soft, feeble hands had stroked it over and over, coaxing him coquettishly.

There was no damage, but it left a feeling that was, well, not exactly fit to be seen in public. Um, how to put it... like his soul had melded, like water and milk, with some nice girl's. A wonderful, subarashii sensation...

Of course, as everyone knows, no such nice girl exists: one who tampers with souls, yet is light and resplendent, the very embodiment of beauty and sex.

So it was obvious. There was only one truth.

And that truth was this: Subaru Natsuki had practiced swordsmanship last night for who knew how long, and it had affected his soul. In other words, swordplay was this wonderful!

Damn it, and he was only figuring that out now! He'd wasted so many years of joy. He couldn't even imagine how happy Reinhard, the Sword Saint of the Kingdom of Lugunica, must be.

Swordplay was such a glorious thing!

But Subaru's mind wasn't only on that. "Oh, right, Felt. Can I trouble you to hold down the fort here today? If Anna shows up, I'll deal with her if I'm around. If I'm not, go over the contracts with Otto. I'm off to pull something big."

"Huh?"

"I'm going to gather intel on the Royal Selection candidates, and then work out some alliances!"

"Wait, you're serious?"

Felt was startled and dumbfounded in equal measure. Fine, she'd never thought this melon-head was joking, but starting on intel this soon? Wasn't that way too fast?

"Otto told me the Dragon Tablet prophecy names five Royal Selection candidates, and four have already shown up. At this rate, the last one should arrive before long. Time to start stirring things up."

Subaru stroked his chin, his mind made up. Things here were thriving and finally on track, the returns had started flowing back, and he had a little money now.

But money was only one point on the road to the throne, important, yet not that important. Otherwise, why would the kingdom bother with a Royal Selection at all? They could just install Anastasia, who was rich enough to rival a nation.

"I can't stand you..."

Felt bared her teeth as if she had a headache and scratched at her head. If she could, she'd really like to break this guy's arms and legs, tie him up, and keep him safe and sound for the rest of his life.

Too bad she couldn't. She couldn't beat him.

"What's so great about being king, anyway? It's dangerous and exhausting, and with your background, it's way too hard. The people of this kingdom will never accept you... Wouldn't it be better to just stay here with me and live comfortably?"

Felt muttered and grumbled. She'd already given up on herself. She knew this guy would never quit, and she knew she couldn't bring herself to make him quit by putting herself on the line, so all she could do was complain, and then help him anyway.

Her grumbling, however, made Subaru's expression turn solemn.

He straightened up and said earnestly, "Felt, this is my goal."

"At the very beginning, it was an accident, but one I caused myself, which is why I wanted to become king. But it's different now. I really admire it, Felt."

"Cru-Cru, Anna, Aragorn... Cru-Cru and Anna aren't kings, but I think they both have a presence that's every bit as good as a king's. And Aragorn is even more so, the Human Emperor who protected humanity and fought the Dark Lord Sauron. How cool is that... I guess I really am a pretty shallow guy."

"I admire them, and I want to become someone as amazing and dignified as they are. I want to get back the confidence I had as a kid, when I believed I was gifted, that I could do anything, that I wasn't an ordinary guy. That high-spirited feeling. And this time it isn't just narcissism. I want to become someone who's truly amazing."

"I want to be king. I want everyone to see me in a new light. I want to actually be amazing. And... I want to protect people, to save more of them. That's my small wish, too."

The hardship of the slum in the beginning was still vivid in his mind. And from what he'd learned about this world in the time since, he knew.

Even the Kingdom of Lugunica, which had a place like this slum, was already one of the two nations that treated their people best among the four great nations. The other was Kararagi.

As for the northern nation buried in snow year-round, and the Vollachian Empire, Lugunica's sworn enemy, they were far crueler and more extreme. Most of the people under their rule could hardly be said to have any good days at all, and countless people were being enslaved there even now.

Then there were the many kinds of magic beasts roaming the world and the Witch Cult, which killed people like cutting grass. Just hearing about them sent chills down his spine.

If someone else became king of the kingdom, if someone else unified the four great nations, could they wipe all that out? Could they set the whole world right?

Probably not. They probably wouldn't even think of it.

But he could.

Even if it was thanks to the power of the notebook, he could!

Even if it was only a possibility, that was enough. He'd been drifting through life in a daze until now, with no goal at all. Now that there was something within his reach, something so great that it would earn him songs of praise, love, and admiration from the people, did Subaru Natsuki need any reason not to do it?

This was no longer a misunderstanding.

Felt, the slum, Anna, Cru-Cru, and Aragorn, who'd trained him last night and talked heart to heart with him while he did, were all clearing away the fog before his eyes.

"Understand me, Felt. You're the only one whose understanding I want."

Seeking his family's support, Subaru's eyes burned with intensity.

To him, Felt was special, someone like family. So: "Understand me, support me, Felt!"