By Zephyria 
Ruben was in the middle of giving a briefing on the current situation.
Of course, there was a separate group of nobles in the capital working to enthrone the Second Prince. Ruben also had his own informants who were busy traveling across the country, searching for people, hiding them, and gathering information.
Separately from that, he explained that he had gathered people he knew personally to inform them of the current situation and brainstorm for future plans.
“So, Senior Edwin being here is also because of that?”
“Yes. The Duchy of Withrow’s movements are suspicious, and I also need to keep an eye on Floyd. It would be good to compile montages and lists of the black magicians and share our defense systems before Young Master Kiadris returns to the Kiadris Duchy.”
“Hmm.”
“And also…”
Ruben seemed hesitant for a moment, but he spoke calmly without avoiding my gaze.
“I felt the need to share some of your personal circumstances with certain people.”
“…Hmm?”
“Of course, this is only if Mika feels it’s alright. The people here are discreet, and they will need to be close to you and help you going forward.”
My personal circumstances?
Ah, could it be.
“I thought everyone already knew.”
“Some are guessing based on their intuition. However, I didn’t want to spread such things around without your permission.”
“…Shayden seemed to know.”
“He…”
Ruben smiled faintly. But seeing his expression briefly harden for a fleeting moment, I was only puzzled. Shayden was a sharp and intelligent fellow, so he wouldn’t have done anything to offend Ruben, which made it strange.
“There were some circumstances. I apologize for that.”
Before Ruben could become somber, Marianne interjected with a bright voice.
“Among the friends who didn’t climb the Yuil Mountains with us, only Shayden knows.”
“How?”
“It seems Your Highness made a slip of the tongue. Mikael, you’re not angry, are you?”
Well, it was Shayden, not some other guy. I easily agreed and nodded.
“Ah, no. He acted so cleverly that I even received help from him… I just thought, ‘Oh, I see.’ I was curious about the reason, as you didn’t directly mention my going to the magic territory to my blood relatives…”
“Yes, that too. I thought you should tell your family yourself.”
“Then Jenny… and how much do the other comrades know?”
“That you became a Grand Sword Master, met the Third God, and that you have to go kill the Ninth God at the god’s request.”
“Others too?”
“Yes.”
Tok.
My gaze shifted to the sound of tapping.
It was Edwin Kiadris, tapping the table with his index finger to gather attention. His eyes sparkled with interest, and a twisted smile hung on his lips. He was looking at me so intensely that it felt like sparks were flying from his eyes.
“What more amazing story could there possibly be than that?”
“…Hmm.”
“The story of someone who graduated from the Academy normally, became a Grand Sword Master before they were twenty, and returned hand-in-hand with a god is already unbelievable. What kind of secret could it be?”
Still, I hadn’t expected to reveal that my homeland was a different place for the second time in front of this man.
The time I beat Edwin in a sparring match was when he was a mere child just past his Geomancy studies. His attitude and actions, like a struggling wildcat, didn’t bother me or scare me, but I remembered he felt quite ashamed of having been tormented by me.
However, there must have been a reason Ruben specifically selected him and brought him here. Others besides Edwin were listening attentively and behaving themselves. After glancing around at everyone present, I no longer hesitated.
“I was born with memories of a past life.”
“…What?”
“It seems people from the same world as me have allied with the Ninth God and are trying to ruin the world.”
“Am I really here at this hour of the morning to listen to this nonsense…”
“… ”
“… ”
“… ”
“…Is it true?”
I smiled sheepishly instead of answering.
Edwin Kiadris uncrossed his legs, rubbed his face, and then leaned his body heavily towards me, gripping the edge of the table. Judging by his momentum, it looked as if he might just pick up the table and throw it.
“…How old are you?”
I had no intention of answering that in front of Ruben’s friend. I replied respectfully.
“I turn twenty this year.”
“No, you crazy bastard, not that!”
“… ”
“I mean, no, what. No, you then… Ah, damn it, I thought you were unnecessarily experienced for a freshman.”
“Even after being reborn, I picked up my sword early, so someone like a senior back then…”
“Shut up.”
“Yes.”
Samantha, Bailey, Mac, and Edwin, who were hearing this story for the first time, were momentarily bewildered and didn’t know what to do. They barely managed to compose their expressions. This was thanks to Ruben’s stern gaze as he looked at each of their faces.
While waiting for them to process their thoughts, I considered something else.
What should I say to my blood relatives?
Shayden acted so casually, as if he knew everything, so I had assumed my blood relatives had also heard the story from Ruben and knew what they needed to know. But now I realized they knew nothing and had only trusted and worried about me.
During my time in the capital, my uncle and cousins had received Ruben’s current situation report and expedition plan. Therefore, my blood relatives would surely know that I, as a Grand Sword Master, fought Wesley Kiadris to protect the country.
Should I visit the townhouse once more while I’m in the capital?
No, do I really need to tell them this?
I intended to live and die entirely as Michael Ernhardt.
The reason Edwin Kiadris was present was clear.
The Kiadris Duchy bordered Floyd and was also close to the Duchy of Withrow. While the inside of the high walls of Withrow Castle might be safe, if mutated monsters descended along the outer walls of the castle, the capital and Kiadris’s forces would have to combine their strength to stop them.
If the worst happened, I might have to lead Kiadris’s troops myself.
On the other hand, the Duchy of Valentia was in a slightly better situation.
The Ninth God couldn’t keep a portal open long enough for a large number of monsters to pass through. Even Spiritus, the god of magic, could only keep a portal open for about 20 minutes; opening it for longer would destabilize the world.
Therefore, if they could effectively block the monster forces crossing the high Yuil Mountains at the border of the Duchy of Grimesbane, there wouldn’t be an immediate crisis. Naturally, Ruben from the capital would help my blood relatives…
If something happened, they would surely listen to my words without refusal.
I shouldn’t take my eldest son away from my weak-hearted father and mother with unnecessary words.
It was at that moment I decided to hide my past life from my family.
Ruben, calmly waiting for the commotion to subside, continued.
“The reason I brought this up now is to reveal that Mikael knows more about the enemy than anyone else. It will undoubtedly be helpful if you can quickly accept his information without questioning its source and carry out Mikael’s orders.”
“…That is true.”
“I also hoped that you wouldn’t dismiss him because he is young.”
Mac Weaber, who received a particularly long gaze from Ruben, shifted in his seat with a startled expression.
I found it amusing and felt grateful, thinking Ruben must have called Mac Weaber aside and reprimanded him. Even if it was a temporary organization, it was close to a military one, so a clear hierarchy was beneficial. After hearing everyone’s agreement, I asked what I was curious about.
“Even if Wesley Kiadris is summarily executed with the help of the gods, what about the First Prince?”
“If possible… it would be better to capture him alive.”
Ruben answered without hesitation and immediately continued.
“But if there’s even the slightest chance you’ll be in danger, don’t hesitate to execute him. So that Richard can never set foot on Sierran land again.”
I checked to see if the child had a sad expression, but Ruben looked composed.
I knew he was already strong enough, but I still felt concerned. Ruben had lost his father, and he hadn’t seen his runaway sister’s face in a long time. Even if she wasn’t his full sibling, ordering the murder of a blood relative must be weighing heavily on him.
Since there was nothing I could do to help, I clasped Ruben’s hands. The child bit his lower lip as if trying to suppress a laugh, then, keeping his hand in mine, he took out a map with his free hand and spread it on the table.
It was a map of Floyd.
Floyd was generally shaped like a plump kidney bean. Owen was to the northwest, Felix to the southwest, and the rounded, mountain-like eastern side bordered the Sierran Empire. Two-thirds of it shared a border with the Duchy of Withrow, and one-third with the Kiadris Duchy; the border was not straight but uneven, like a flowing stream.
The capital, Galia, was located slightly northeast of the center of Floyd.
Ruben continued his explanation, looking only at me and disregarding the others. Since everyone else had been in the capital the whole time, I assumed they already knew this story.
“See here. To the left of Galia, there’s that reservoir.”
“…Is this a reservoir made artificially?”
“Yes. It’s a very large reservoir with a diameter of 130 kilometers.”
130 kilometers? That’s over 330 li in width! I was truly surprised.
I had already experienced the desert winds blowing into Owen. Since there were no large streams in Floyd, only small springs, I assumed its situation wasn’t much different from Owen’s, so how did they achieve such a feat?
Ruben seemed to be thinking the same thing as me.
“Floyd is located west of the Sierran Empire, so it’s affected by the desert to some extent. There’s no place to draw this much fresh water, and there isn’t enough groundwater, so it was considered an impossible feat. But…”
“But?”
“It’s different if the power of the Oasis is infused.”