First meeting

In November 1898, Chiune changed the person in power.

"Have you decided?"

"Well, I just needed a precedent, a precedent that a woman could take a leadership position based on her own strength. Well, later on, I realized that you were much more mature than me as a leader, I mean in handling government affairs."

Aura paused and continued, "...Moreover, I think that the people now need a real knight to lead them, a knight emperor shining with golden light, not someone like me."

Alex retorted earnestly: "You did a great job."

Ola smiled and shook his head, his eyes full of relief: "I'm not belittling myself, I'm just stating the facts. They need hope now, and you can bring more hope than me. People need a hero, and you are that hero... Ha, do you think this is a good job? I think only you would be happy to accept it."

Alex fell silent after hearing this. He thought he understood what Ola wanted to say.

The responsibility of representing all the people of a country would crush one person.

He is to become such a hope.

"His Majesty?"

Quinpeu's questioning voice interrupted Alex's thoughts.

Alex put his hand down from supporting his head and asked with a smile, "What?"

Kumpeu paused and said, "A new great wizard is coming."

"The Great Wizard? Bishop Vito? Or Bishop Bisi?"

“…Neither.”

Alex felt that his pause was a little unnatural, but before he could ask, someone outside the camp called out, "Meet the Admiral!"

The knights guarding the camp are saluting someone.

【Admiral?】

"He's here."

That great wizard? Why would a wizard have the title of admiral?

And Neka?

Is it the Neka family he knew?

Alex looked at Kunpeu in confusion, but still stood up to greet him.

A slender, pale hand drew aside the curtain.

A young wizard dressed in black clothes and trousers like a funeral stepped over the threshold and walked in. His thin body made him look even taller and slenderer, only half a head shorter than Alex himself. Although it was winter, he was not wearing heavy winter clothes like other soldiers. The collar of his thin black shirt was open with two buttons, revealing his neck and the mark of his clavicle. His sleeves were rolled up, revealing the thin and white lines of his arms, and he felt as cool as if it was midsummer.

He nodded and walked in, then slowly raised his head towards Alex.

The pair of eyes that looked back at him were of a rare heterochromatic color. The left eye was an elegant purple, and the right eye was a blood red.

Maybe it was because of the snow and wind when he came in, but Alex, who had never felt cold before, shivered.

The curves of his eyebrows and eyes on his front face were delicate and noble, like a young man from a spoiled family. But when he pursed his lips, all the lines were restrained, revealing an aura as clear and icy as half-melted snow water.

Without saying a word, his eyes conveyed his meaning: Keep away from strangers.

A wizard who was about the same age as Alex stood in front of him and gave an awkward military salute. "Greetings, Your Majesty."

Alex felt that when this person came in, everyone in the tent tensed up.

Ah, if I were to say everyone, it would only be his affairs officer Banqi, his adjutant Kunpewu, and his medical maid Hong Shuya.

Alex didn't know what was going on. He stood there for a while and asked, "Nice meeting, who are you?"

Inger Nyka stared at him for a while with her beautiful heterochromatic eyes, and said in a flat voice: "Inger Nyka."

Alex didn't notice that the other three people were staring at Inger.

When Kunpeu saw Inger answering in person, he suddenly realized and quickly leaned over to Alex's ear and said, "He is the second son of the Neka family. His current military rank is admiral, he is an eighth-level wizard, and he is the disciple of Bishop Bixi."

Alex was stunned.

[Neka? Really? Then why do I have no impression of it at all? ]

Banqi concealed the subtlety in his eyes and added: "Your Majesty, Admiral Neka originally studied magic at the Royal Military Academy and under Bishop Bisi, and later participated in the Southwest Campaign together..."

Alex was immediately overwhelmed with embarrassment. He said sheepishly, "Ah... I'm sorry, we fought together so I should remember your name, but I really don't remember it... I've been having some memory problems lately..."

Before he could finish, Inger gently interrupted him and said, "Don't mind me, Your Majesty. I only attended a few military meetings. The rest of the time I was treating the wounded everywhere. Besides, we were often not on the same battlefield. It's normal that I have no impression of you."

Alex was stunned and turned to the others for confirmation with his eyes.

Kunpeiwu and Banqi both nodded silently.

Alex stroked his chin with his fingers and thought carefully: "Then you are Lanmore's younger brother? He seems to have only one beloved younger brother who is rarely shown to others, but I thought his brother had already...ah..."

He remembered that Lanmore's younger brother seemed to have been poisoned, but he didn't have a clear impression.

He thought he was dead, and Langmore was very sad at the time.

But that was something that happened in his previous life. In this life, he seemed not to have heard about the outcome of this matter, or maybe he heard about it but couldn't remember it.

Inger said calmly, "It's okay, it was just an accident. I'm still alive and well, but I seldom go out since then."

The more Alex thought about it, the more strange it seemed to him. He pondered for a while and asked everything he could think of: "...But with his personality, would he really be willing to let you out on this battlefield?"

Alex was still carefully observing the wizard. There was a knife wound on his neck, which looked like it had healed for a long time. There was also a circle of broken marks on his exposed arm, as if the forearm had been cut off and then glued back on. He had seen this on the hands of other soldiers before.

Like many others on this battlefield, he probably had other signs of injuries on his body.

He only vaguely remembered that Lanmore always mentioned to him how good his brother was during work. It was hard to imagine that Lanmore would be willing to send his precious brother, who was almost lost and found, to the battlefield.

Moreover, it was really rare. He mostly saw such wounds on knights, but rarely on wizards. In any battle, knights must first protect wizards.

Is this why he was given the title of general? Or is it because the Duke's family is of low status?

Inger lowered his eyes, looking indifferent and distant. He answered every question: "I came here on purpose. He locked me up several times, but I escaped."

Alex blinked and laughed out loud, "Hahahaha, it doesn't look like it. I didn't expect you to have such a strong personality."

Inger continued to look at him expressionlessly, as if he had no idea what was so funny about it.

Alex reached out his hand and patted his shoulder as he did with other generals. "Then I won't forget it after today. I will remember it well, Wizard Inger Neka."

He didn't want to ask how his injury came about because it was his private matter.

Inger politely put his hand down and said, "Your Majesty, you are too polite. Please tell me what you want to do."

Alex remembers that the casualties in the Southwest War were low, thanks to this wizard?

After thinking for a long time, he really didn't have much impression, so he gave up.

It’s okay, as long as we get to know each other now.

A great wizard who has reached level eight is an extremely valuable fighting force no matter what he specializes in.

Alex asked without thinking, "Which war zone were you in before? Why are you here all of a sudden?"

Before Inger could answer, Kumpeu quickly reminded him, "Admiral Neka was previously in the southern theater of operations. He is here now because the eastern front has advanced to the edge of the Dukedom of Neka."

Alex didn't expect that he could be confused twice in this matter after living two lives. He opened his mouth and said, "...ah, sorry."

You've already knocked on the door, why wouldn't he come over?

Inger shook his head. "I was able to come here because the situation in the southern theater has stabilized. I heard that two demon kings have gathered here."

Alex's eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but pinch his shoulder again: "Yes, after the aircraft began to be put into use, we finally got some information about the demons' whereabouts in advance. We have been chased and beaten by the demons for long enough. It's time to exchange the positions of prey and hunter."

At this moment, he didn't know if it was an illusion, but he saw a faint smile on Inger's face: "Then it seems that I came at the right time."

Alex smiled brightly, "More than that. It's reassuring to have another great wizard join us. You look younger than me. Bishop Bisi is a genius herself, and she has a disciple who is even more powerful than her."

[Hmm… She is about the same age as me physically, but much younger mentally. I am not wrong.]

[Bi Xi's statement to the outside world is that she was brainwashed by the Queen, but whether this Bi Xi is actually her is still debatable. It would be abnormal to release her, and this cannot be told to her disciples yet.]

[But I have to tell you this a little early. I hope he won’t be too sad when he finds out.]

[Hmm? I've never heard of him even though he's in the same school as me... Maybe he's not in class often because he's weak? Well, I often take a leave of absence too.]

In the time it takes to say this, Alex has already asked himself the same question several times in his mind.

The action of Inger grabbing his arm and putting it back made Alex feel a thick and solid wall in his heart. He said, "… Your Majesty, I am 23 years old."

Alex: “…”

That means he is the same age.

Alex: “Haha…”

Inger was unmoved: "If there is nothing else, I will go and see the injured first."

Alex stopped him and said, "Wait, Bishop Bixi has already treated him."

Inger: “…………Yeah.”

Alex put on a serious face and said, "You came at the right time. We will have a meeting later to discuss how to defeat the Demon King. I will ask someone to call them over. You don't have to go back and forth."

Inger: “…”

Alex noticed that he was not very good at communicating with others, and his posture was a little tense and reserved. In order to make him relax a little, he said kindly: "We can take this opportunity to chat. After all, there may be many opportunities for us to interact in the future. You don't have to call me Your Majesty, Sir, just call me Alex in private. After all, we are classmates."

Inger looked at him with an indescribable look, with a subtle, patient and moving emotion in his eyes.

Alex thought he was a little touched by him, so he put his arm around his shoulders and said, "The two young men and women from the Stella family will be here soon. They are my friends and are in the same school and year as you. Do you know them?"

Inger's body was obviously frozen. A knight grabbed his neck and he couldn't break free. He could only say, "...He looks familiar. I sometimes go to the knight class to take military theory classes."

"Hahahaha, a wizard like you goes to the Knight Class... Hmm? I seem to remember a little bit, that... the principal has a project for fighting wizards?" Alex was talking, looking at Benqi and the others who were frozen there, waved his hand and said casually: "Go, call the generals over, we will go to the War Situation Camp for a meeting later."

The Combat Intelligence Camp is right next to Alex's personal rest tent.

Ban Qi took the order and ran out as if waking up from a dream.

Kun Peiwu glanced at the two of them, sighed silently, and walked away silently, saying, "I'll go prepare the information."

Alsophila had packed up his things long ago and left: "I'll go get some food and drinks."

Generally speaking, their meetings take a long time and they are already familiar with the process.

After the three men left, Alex asked Inger to sit down and even poured him tea himself.

Inger stood up suddenly.

Alex gently pushed him down and said, "You haven't looked at me much since you came in. You don't have to be afraid of me, right? The emperor is just a title. I am like a brother to all the officers and soldiers. We eat and live together. And I am famous for my good temper. Don't you know that?"

Inger: “…”

Alex was just trying to make a little joke.

Just then, Alex saw Inger's eyes move to his own chest.

Alex took out two magic nameplates for communication. "Oh, this, you have to remember it? It's my number. It will be convenient for us to contact each other later."

He continued to stare at the other, non-public nameplate.

Alex picked up another plaque. He was also confused and said uncertainly, "…This is…I don't know. It seems to have been here forever, but I don't know what it is used for. Who can I use it to contact? There is no response even if I inject magic power into it."

Inger: "...Why not throw it away?"

Alex was curious and asked, "Why would you throw it away? It should be something very important, right?"

Alex thought about it and didn't know why it was important, but it should be fine to keep it close to his chest and keep it safe. Who knows when it might come in handy.

As for the origin of this thing...he really couldn't remember.

Ever since he was seriously injured, his memory has often been disrupted after he wakes up.

I don't know if it's a sequelae.

But it seems that my memory of important things like the war is clear, so it doesn't matter.

It’s okay if you can’t remember.

But it still has to be kept.

Alex stuffed the plaques back into his chest.

However, when he looked up, he saw that Inger's eyes were slightly dilated, his pupils were trembling, but his mouth was tightly closed, his cheeks were tense, and his teeth seemed to be clenched together.

Alex didn't know what was wrong with what he said, but he saw that he looked a little strange. He asked with concern: "...What's wrong?"

However, that wavering look seemed to be just an accidental crack in the wall, and was soon blurred by the thick fog.

Inger finally said, "Nothing."

The lips were pursed into a monotonous line without any curves, and the coldness that came from the bones was so chilling that it made one's teeth tremble.

Alex felt that the distance that had just been shortened was suddenly pulled far away again, and he tilted his head in confusion.

He wondered if it was something he had said that had made him angry.

Next, Alex spoke a few words and Inger responded, but no matter how hard Alex tried, Inger was always flawless, neither impolite nor enthusiastic, maintaining the proper distance between a monarch and his subject and a strange alumnus.

Alex was depressed.

This was the first time in his two lives that he encountered such a setback in making friends.