c16 10

Where was it trying to take Haruhiro?
To the mogado, perhaps? If so...
“Nguh, wah, gagh, augh...” Oh, shut up.
His voice kept leaking out on its own. He couldn’t stop it. He was suffering. Was the scarred goblin really holding back? Maybe not. Wasn’t it just dragging him as hard as it could? Like if he died, he died, and it’d deal with that if it happened?
Whatever the case, it was treating him terribly. Was this any way to treat a person? It was beyond barbaric. In the end, it was just a goblin. He’d been wrong to expect better of it. What had he been hoping for? Nothing. It hurt. He couldn’t breathe. It felt like he was drowning. Drowning as it dragged him.
I can’t take it. There’s no way. I’m seriously done for.
He was probably already way past his limits. He was only clinging to consciousness by complaining inside his head like this. Oh, and by insulting them. Hating them. Cursing them. Why should he have to go through this? What had he ever done to deserve this? Had he done anything to deserve this sort of punishment?
Oh, right, I did kill goblins, huh?
He’d apparently killed a whole lot of them before losing his memory, too.
Maybe he was in no position to complain. If this was the goblins’ revenge, they might be reasonably justified.
It made him want to give up.
Not to argue that it was all a matter of determination, but if he lost his will at a time like this, he was done for. No matter how ugly he made it look, he had to keep clinging to life. There was no way he could endure without that feeling.
It’s hopeless. This is meaningless. I should stop trying to endure.
I just want to relax.
If I have to die, make it quick.
As quick as you can.
Could you just let me die already?
He was on the verge. He wanted to die. He couldn’t die on his own, and wasn’t going to fade away just yet, so he silently pleaded for them to end him. If this slow, hopeless dying of his went one step further, then with that one misstep he would give up on survival.
Was he stopping himself just short of that? Or not? No, he must have been. Because Haruhiro still had the relic in his hand. That proved it.
All of a sudden, instead of being dragged, Haruhiro was thrown forward, and rolled sideways. It wasn’t clear if it happened just before that, at the same time, or just after, but the ring around his neck came loose.
His throat ached, but breathing became easier. The pain as he breathed in and out was intense. Even so, he took in all the air he could. Though he coughed and felt like he was going to puke, the oxygen was rapidly spreading through his body. He could feel it.
His face was a mess of tears, blood, saliva, and who knew what else. He had no idea what was going on. He couldn’t see very well, and he couldn’t smell a thing. He was in so much pain that nothing made sense.
“Heah! Mogado! Gwagajin!”
It was the scarred goblin’s voice. Mogado. Gwagajin.
The goblin king. The Mogado. Mogado Gwagajin.
Could it be that this was the royal chamber, or something like that?
“Mogado!”
“Gwagajin!”
“Mogado, Gwagajin!”
“Heah! Mogado! Heah!”
“Mogado! Gwagajin!”
The goblins repeated the call. There was no doubt about it.
Haruhiro blinked repeatedly. He wanted to do something about his blurry vision.
Little by little, his sight returned to him. Goblins.
There were so many goblins.
Around Haruhiro and the scarred goblin, the mass of goblins formed a circle ten or even twenty bodies deep.
It was pretty bright. Was it lightworms? No. The light was shining down from above. This was sunlight, wasn’t it? There was a skylight. Was it daytime now? It looked like it.
Where was Mogado Gwagajin?
There.
About ten meters away, there was some sort of scaffold or tower. It was golden. Up on top, there was... a human? Was that a human? It couldn’t be. It was a goblin that wore fine clothes of red, blue, and white fabric, like a high-ranking human might. He held a red staff, and had a crown on his head. That had to be the Mogado. The goblins’ king.
Mogado Gwagajin.
Beneath the golden tower were white goblins in black robes. It was more than one, but how many of them were there? Four of them? There were four ugoths.
“Heah! Mogado! Gwagajin!”
“Mogado! Mogado!”
“Gwagajin! Heah! Mogado Gwagajin!”
The goblins wouldn’t stop cheering. Some stamped in time with the cries, while others beat their chests. The goblins were excited. Even the scarred goblin next to Haruhiro was swinging its tool around, crying its master’s name.
The four ugoths just stood there. Mogado Gwagajin, up on his golden tower, sat there on some sort of chair, not moving in the slightest.
He was like an ornament. Was that a living goblin? Or was that a model made to resemble the goblin mogado? No.
He was real.
Mogado Gwagajin raised his hi’irogane staff.
The moment he did, the goblins grew even noisier.
Should I wait? Do I keep waiting? Or act now?
Don’t stall.
Don’t rush.
Both seemed like they were right. Perhaps both were wrong.
It was only a feeling. There was no logic to it. Haruhiro had to acknowledge that.
My head’s not working. It’s no good. I can’t think straight.
Haruhiro pressed down on the bottom part of the bud-shaped relic. It took more than a little strength to push it inwards. He gave it all he had.
Work. Please. I’m begging you. All I can do is pray now.
The relic began vibrating. It seemed like it had activated. Haruhiro tossed it. His hands were bound behind him, so he couldn’t see it, and it was too noisy for him to hear it hit the floor.
This is going to be all right, right? It’s working, right?
There was a loud twoooooooooooooong, making the goblins look up, and they gulped or screeched as they jumped away.
Haruhiro turned his head to look behind him. He had been told what would happen, but he hadn’t been given an actual demonstration of the relic working, so he stared in mute amazement for a moment. They couldn’t afford to test it. These relics were one-use items, and came in a set. When you activated one, it triggered the other, too.
He could only describe what he was seeing as wondrous. There was an oblong hole in space, maybe the size of a door left half-open. On the other side of it was another place entirely. It was connected to the ruins in the Old City.
One of the relics was implanted in Haruhiro’s right flank.
Hiyo was carrying the other.
Ideally, he would have gotten into Ahsvasin without being captured. That was what Haruhiro had been trying to do, but he’d failed.
The next best thing was to get in as far as he could, then use the relic. That, or to use it when he was taken prisoner.
Kiichi should have let their comrades know he’d been captured. They would be waiting for this to happen at any moment.
Kuzaku was the first to leap through to this side.
“Hoo-rahhhhh...!”
Kuzaku bellowed like an idiot, and sent the scarred goblin flying, then swung his large katana around, intimidating the goblins.
“Out of the way! Now! You wanna die? Gwarrrgh?!” What are you, some kind of thug?
Haruhiro wanted to poke fun at him. Kuzaku was a sight for sore eyes. It was a little embarrassing to admit that. Besides, he didn’t have time to be relieved.
“Haru...!”
Next came Merry, then Setora and Kiichi at about the same time.
Merry had likely already come up with multiple possible scenarios, and decided what to do in each of them. Her eyes widened as she spotted Haruhiro, and she immediately made the sign of the hexagram.
“O light! May Lumiaris’ divine protection be upon you... Sacrament!”
Oh, this light was a genuine miracle. Honestly, Haruhiro had been on the verge of death. He wouldn’t have lasted much longer. It had felt like he was already half dead. The pain that had made him think dying would be easier, that hopeless suffering, rapidly faded, and was gone entirely in no time.
Kiichi made skillful use of a small blade to cut the ropes binding Haruhiro’s hands and feet.
Setora spun her spear around, striking a goblin that was still nearby. She threw the dagger she kept at her waist to Haruhiro.
“Haruhiro!”
“Right!”
It bugged him a bit that he was wearing nothing but his underwear, but he didn’t have time to complain. Haruhiro took the dagger and stood up, looking at Mogado Gwagajin. He was still on top of the golden tower. He hadn’t moved. Neither had the ugoths.
Right after Neal and Hiyo dove over to this side, the hole in space created by the relic shrank, made a bizarre screeching noise, and then vanished without a trace.
There was no turning back.
Even for Hiyo, the one who had come up with the plan, this was an all-or-nothing gamble.
“Hear me, wise ugoth!”
Still, it was hard to believe she could sound so dignified.
“I offer a humble proposal to His Majesty, the brave and glorious Mogado Gwagajin!”
It didn’t change the weird getup she was in, but as far as the goblins were concerned she was just another human. They wouldn’t see anything strange about the way she dressed. Hiyo stepped forward without hesitation, spreading her arms wide, thrusting her chest out, and looking up at Mogado Gwagajin.
The goblins stared at Hiyo, like they were thinking, What? What’s going on? What’s with that human woman? The four ugoths looked artificial, and it was hard to figure them out, but they turned their eyes to Hiyo, and seemed to be listening.
“What a hero,” Neal muttered. He was presumably talking about Haruhiro, but Haruhiro could only assume he was being insincere.
“Wise ugoths! I beseech you! Please, convey our intentions to His Majesty, Mogado Gwagajin!”
Hiyo raised her voice further. But more than that, she took a step or two forward.
“We do not seek further conflict with the goblin race! We wish to forge peace with your people!”
Without taking his eyes off Hiyo, he shouted something like, “Rah! Dashah!” Probably to the ugoths at the bottom of the tower. Haruhiro didn’t know for sure, but assumed it meant, What is that human saying?
One of the ugoths looked up at Mogado Gwagajin and began to speak. Haruhiro couldn’t make it out over the babbling of the other goblins. It seemed Mogado Gwagajin couldn’t, either, because he shouted and struck the base of his staff against the floor of the golden tower in anger. That was probably a Silence! The goblins all shut up.
Haruhiro weaved between the goblins, already closing in on the golden tower. He was using Stealth, so no one noticed him.
The goblins swarmed around the golden tower, surrounding Hiyo and the rest of the group. The four ugoths were standing at the four corners of the tower.
There was a five- to six-meter space between the tower and the wall. Haruhiro made it there. Mogado Gwagajin must have climbed up and down here. There was a ladder set up.
Mogado Gwagajin and the ugoths were still discussing something.
Haruhiro climbed the ladder.
The golden tower was quite impressive. It looked like the scaffolding was made of metal. Though the copious use of gold decorations might not have been tasteful or pleasing to the eye, there were powerful-looking patterns carved into it, and it was clear it had been carefully constructed.
Haruhiro reached the top of the tower.
Mogado Gwagajin sat right in front of his eyes. There was a small chair here, but the goblin was basically straddling it. He really was big for a goblin. Even if you took away his hi’irogane crown, he was easily over 150 centimeters tall. Thanks to that, Haruhiro was able to hide behind him if he kept his posture low.
Looking down from the golden tower, it finally hit him how large this room was, and just how many goblins there were.
This space, which was presumably Mogado Gwagajin’s audience hall, was not square, but a round-ish shape more than thirty meters across. The ceiling was pretty high, too. It was five, maybe six meters high? There were countless ovular skylights. It looked like they had glass in them.
There were no less than a thousand goblins in the hall. Maybe double that.
Near the golden tower, there were goblins with hi’irogane equipment. The close associates of Mogado Gwagajin that Barbarasensei had called the Hundred.
With this many goblins surrounding them, Hiyo, Kuzaku, and the others looked so small and insignificant. If Mogado Gwagajin gave the order, the goblins would all descend on the humans. No matter how good of a fight the humans put up, they would take maybe a hundred goblins with them at best. Even if they slaughtered two or three hundred, it was unlikely they could escape from this hall.
This was life and death for all of them.
He didn’t like it, but their lives depended on Hiyo’s speech.
“Mogado Gwagajin!”
Hiyo pulled a sword from her bag. It was far too long to possibly fit in there. But what was more important, at least to the goblins, was the fact it was made of hi’irogane.
“I have brought the sword of your right hand, the Viceroy, Mod Bogg! We have collected many other pieces of hi’irogane equipment, too! We will return them to you as proof of our friendship!” “Dasshah!” Mogado Gwagajin shouted.
The ugoths were saying something.
Haruhiro could grapple Mogado Gwagajin at any time. He could probably even kill him. But that was a last resort.
“I am sure His Majesty the great Mogado Gwagajin and his wise ugoths must already know this, but we once formed a secret pact with the goblin race, and chose to take the path of mutual prosperity!”
The ugoths were translating what Hiyo said for Mogado Gwagajin.
“It has been a long time since that promise ceased to be upheld, but we are confident that we can cooperate with the goblin race! It is unquestionable that, by joining hands with us, the goblin race will profit greatly—”
Mogado Gwagajin pointed his staff at Hiyo. He was likely ordering her to be silent. Hiyo seemed to take it that way, and closed her mouth.
The ugoths translated Hiyo’s statement for Mogado Gwagajin. Mogado Gwagajin nodded, then nodded again. His interpreters hadn’t been able to keep up. Was that why Mogado Gwagajin had silenced Hiyo in the middle? Was that all?
The ugoth finished translating.
Mogado Gwagajin slammed his staff against the floor of the golden tower.
There was something ominous about it.
When he sensed that, Haruhiro was already moving.
Mogado Gwagajin was probably about to give the goblins an order. Something along the lines of, Kill all the humans, maybe. Haruhiro had to stop him. There was no other way.
“Keah—”
Mogado Gwagajin was about to shout something, then turned to look behind him, surprising Haruhiro more than a little. Had he noticed him?
He’d detected Haruhiro? This goblin mogado was special.
Because he was shocked by it, his methods got sloppy, or rough rather, but he grabbed Mogado Gwagajin and held a dagger to his throat. Mogado Gwagajin was big for a goblin, but Haruhiro was still bigger. The goblin seemed tough, but if he showed any sign of resistance, Haruhiro wouldn’t hesitate to act. What would happen if he killed Mogado Gwagajin here? It was a shame he didn’t have time to think that through, but he had no choice. This was his only option. “Fuuungh... Fungh... Fuuumh...”
Mogado Gwagajin was overwhelmed with regret. He snorted angrily, ground his teeth, and glared at Haruhiro with a look of incredible rage on his face.
The goblins in the hall were completely silent. They must have believed that one peep out of them could spell the death of their master.
“S-Stop! Don’t!” One of the ugoths at the bottom of the golden tower shouted.
“We want you to hear everything we have to say. Tell Gwagajin that,” Haruhiro said, and the ugoth started translating.
Mogado Gwagajin simply grit his teeth, not responding.
I’d say it’s fifty-fifty, Haruhiro thought. He wasn’t thinking calmly. His heart was racing, and his legs felt a little weak. His hand quivered with fear. Thinking he had a fifty-fifty chance of this working was just a way to try to feign calm.
Mogado Gwagajin might say, Just kill them. In that case, Haruhiro would immediately end his life. If even one of them could make it out of the ensuing chaos alive, they’d be doing well.
Or perhaps he might come to the negotiating table. That, or pretend to, then try to escape his current predicament.
How was this fifty-fifty again?
“Alterna!”
Hiyo was desperate, too. Her tone and expression were both tense in a way he hadn’t seen from her before. He couldn’t imagine she was putting on an act.
“O Mogado Gwagajin! We are prepared to hand Alterna over to the goblin race once more!”
Haruhiro nearly let out a “Whuh?” He was super confused. It was tough to keep it from showing.
Hand over Alterna... Wait, what?
What the hell?
No one told me about this.


 
14. The Savior of Those Who Believe
To bottom line it, Mogado Gwagajin expressed an interest in Hiyo’s, which was to say Jin Mogis’s, offer.
We will save reflecting on what happened after that for later. The point is, after a series of events that required the utmost caution, Haruhiro and the others were able to leave Damuro.
Incidentally, Haruhiro got his stuff back, but his clothes were a torn and bloody mess. Damn it. But he couldn’t borrow a new outfit from the goblins, and couldn’t very well walk around naked, so he was forced to wear them.
When they arrived back in Alterna before sunset, the general called for a celebratory feast. Or so it was called, but all they did was gather in the dining hall for a dinner that, while they were eating better than the common soldiers, was not in any way fit to be called a feast. There was alcohol, too, but Haruhiro was in no mood to touch it. Aside from Hiyo constantly babbling, and the general tolerantly indulging her, there was no real conversation to be had.
Haruhiro and his party had done their job. So maybe they ought to be on guard against poisoning. But by the time Haruhiro hit on that thought, the meal was already half over. How could he have been so careless? Sensing his shock, Setora said, “It’s fine.”
Unlike Haruhiro, who had let exhaustion and everything else that was happening dull his judgment, Setora was alert. He saw Kiichi at Setora’s feet, eating the same things as his master. Kiichi wasn’t so dumb as to let himself be poisoned.
Haruhiro and his team could still be of use. That was the general’s reading of the situation, it seemed.
It looked like it was entirely possible that he would get his alliance with the goblins.
They were going to return the hi’irogane weapons that they had captured. That work would be carried out in the coming days.
At the same time, the general would dismantle the Expeditionary Force, and reorganize them as the Frontier Army. It was just a change in label, but the general planned to withdraw from the Kingdom of Arabakia, prepare a new war flag, and declare himself the Commander of the Frontier Army.
Then, Commander of the Frontier Army Jin Mogis and the goblin mogado Gwagajin would exchange a pledge of mutual nonaggression. Commander Mogis would go to Damuro in person, and Mogado Gwagajin would leave the New City to meet somewhere suitable in the Old City of Damuro.
This was what the pledge would state:
The Frontier Army would recognize Damuro and the area around it as the domain of the goblins, and would not violate it.
Further, the Frontier Army would have Alterna and the area around it as their domain. The goblins would not violate it.
This much Haruhiro and his party had been told in advance. What they weren’t informed of was the next bit.
The Frontier Army would aim to secure the Free City of Vele. Once Vele was taken, the Frontier Army would return Alterna and the area around it to the goblins. From then on, the Frontier Army would recognize everything south of Damuro as the goblins’ domain, and would not violate it.
South of Damuro included Alterna, of course, but the Tenryu
Mountains were also south of there. The mainland of the Kingdom of Arabakia lay beyond the Tenryu Mountains. Did the goblins have the means to cross the Tenryus and take the mainland? No, obviously not. However, Jin Mogis suggested they would have the right to do it.
The more of Hiyo’s explanation that Mogado Gwagajin heard through his ugoth interpreter, the happier he seemed. The goblin mogado even looked giddy to Haruhiro.
The goblins likely felt a major inferiority complex when it came to the other races. They likely feared them, too. But it’s not like we’re evil or anything. It was only human to want to think that. Goblins weren’t human, but they did possess some degree of intelligence, so one could understand if they felt the same way. They had their own culture, and their own civilization. They had their mogado, and their own society. They would get angry about people looking down on it, and if others recognized them, and showed due respect, they would be pleased, too.
The No-Life King had once treated the goblins as equal partners in his alliance. But perhaps the orcs and other races hadn’t felt the same way.
In the orcish clans’ and the undead’s recent advance south, the goblins and kobolds attacked at the same time. Though the goblins received Alterna, and the kobolds gained Riverside Iron Fortress, the orcs and undead had largely packed up and left.
Ultimately, as far as the orcs and undead were concerned, the goblins and kobolds might have been no more than convenient tools.
Had Gwagajin, the mogado of the goblins, sensed that? That the orcs and undead were no friends of theirs? That they looked down on, and took advantage of, them? That they weren’t allies at all?
It seemed that Jin Mogis had succeeded in flattering Mogado Gwagajin and winning his favor for now. Next would be the two of them meeting, and seeing where things went from there. There wasn’t really any basis to think this, but Haruhiro suspected that the man seeking to become king of the frontier and the mogado of the goblins might, somewhat surprisingly, find they had a lot in common. He couldn’t help but feel that way.
“Haruhiro,” Kuzaku, who was sitting next to him, leaned in and whispered. “Uh, hey. Shouldn’t we, y’know... bring up Shihoru-san soon?”
“Yeah.”
Haruhiro knew that. He didn’t need Kuzaku to remind him. Haruhiro had already been looking for the right time to broach the issue.
“Yes?”
The general’s rusty eyes were fixed on Haruhiro. They seemed inorganic, without a shred of humanity. Those eyes made Haruhiro uneasy. That wasn’t good.
“...I wanted to talk about something. Is that all right?”
“I don’t mind.”
The general wiped the area around his mouth with a napkin, then folded his hands on the dining table.
There was a ring on the index finger of his left hand. That blue stone. With the three-leaf pattern in it. That had to be a relic. What power did it hide?
“Say whatever you wish.”
From the moment they had first met him, Jin Mogis had seemed superhuman, as if nothing frightened him. Was there anything that could move this man? Even if he saw his own friends and family die before his eyes, he probably wouldn’t even raise an eyebrow. If he was threatened personally, well, he’d likely panic a little, but he wouldn’t completely lose his head. Maybe it was just an act. But even if he was simply playing the role of Jin Mogis the Unflappable, that was impressive in and of itself. If he never broke character, it was no different from the real thing.
It has to be just an act, Haruhiro thought.
He wouldn’t say the man was a paper tiger, but he was definitely putting up a strong front. Probably because he felt he couldn’t afford to show any weakness. It wasn’t like he was really as composed as he seemed.
As Haruhiro figured, the general certainly was a battle-hardened warrior, an experienced commander, so he could no doubt wield a sword better than most.
But Kuzaku was pretty good in a sword fight, too. He was blessed with the right physique for it, and didn’t scare easily. On top of that, he could do more than just swing his large katana around with nothing but brute force. He might not have been what you would call clever, but if you considered how many enemies he took on by himself, he had to be good at keeping an eye on multiple things at the same time. Also, each swing of Kuzaku’s large katana threatened his opponents with lethal damage.
If Kuzaku and the general fought in single combat, who would win? Obviously, there was no way to know without seeing it, but it was hard to imagine Kuzaku would go down easily. He’d make it a close fight, at the very least.
The rest of the party would be there, too. Kuzaku wouldn’t have to fight alone. It might be cowardly, sure, but if they all ganged up on the general, it would probably be over in no time.
This was a dangerous topic, but they could kill the general if they decided to. But the general wasn’t an idiot, either, so he had to know that. When the time came, Haruhiro and the others might refuse to heed his orders. That’s why he took Shihoru hostage as a threat.
“It’s about our comrade.”
Once Haruhiro had said that much, the general snorted, his expression not changing in the slightest.
If you piss us off, you do know what will happen, right? We could end you. We did what you asked. We did it. Now you do what you ought to. Or else.
“Our comrade who isn’t here.”
“You mean your old comrades in the Volunteer Soldier Corps, perhaps?”
He wants to play dumb, huh? I want to start shouting. But no. I have to hold back. Now’s not the time.
“No. Not them.”
The general used his left index finger, which bore the ring, to tap his right hand twice, then cocked his head to the side.
“Who, then?”
Neal chuckled. Hiyo shrugged her shoulders. Damn them. The blood raced to Haruhiro’s head.
He heard someone click their tongue. Looking over, he saw Kuzaku’s face was turned downward, contorted with emotion. Merry looked pale. Hiyo was glaring at them.
Setora leaned down. He wondered what she was about to do, but she just stroked Kiichi’s head. She was even smiling, as if she was totally unconcerned.
Haruhiro looked back to the general, who was, as always, unfazed.
Was this man really putting up a strong front? Or was he just unbelievably dense? Was it possible the man had reached some sort of enlightenment after all the hell he had been through?
“We did our part. I think you should do yours, too. If you can’t pay our price, we can’t work.”
“Let me give you whatever ranks and honors you desire.”
When Haruhiro shook his head, the general’s brow furrowed faintly. “How unambitious. What do you want instead? I know. We’ve been struggling to open the Yorozu Deposit Company’s treasure vault. Do you want to take a crack at it? They say it’s overflowing with incredible riches. I’ll give you a share.”
“We don’t need that junk.”
He did his best not to raise his voice. Was that out of pride? His way of opposing the general? He didn’t even know anymore.
“We just want you to return what’s ours.”
“You need a debt repaid? I’ll reward your efforts. I believe that’s what I’ve been saying this whole time.”
“Oh, come on...!” Kuzaku slammed his palms down on the table. It was pretty loud, but the general didn’t even glance in his direction. His eyes were set on Haruhiro.
“I have not, to my recollection, taken anything of yours. But let’s suppose I did. What would I gain by returning it to you?”
“What...?”
“There are a number of things that I can give to you. You may be too greedy to be satisfied with them, but I find it quite offensive when I have been trying to find some way to show my sincerity to you. If you seek more from me, how will you respond? What can you give me? What will be the price?”
“The price...” Haruhiro hung his head.
What? He’s not getting it. What the hell?
Was it all in vain? Had they just been made to work for free? Did the general have no intention of returning Shihoru from the beginning?
Or was there no way for him to return her?
Shihoru had been abducted, and was being held somewhere. Was that really it?
Or could it be something else?
Like she was already — already what?
Haruhiro didn’t want to think about it. He was trying to avoid the thought. Wasn’t the general taking advantage of that?
He didn’t want to consider the worst possibility. So, since that couldn’t be it, since that couldn’t have happened, Haruhiro had to listen to the general. Had to obey him. He could only cling to what little hope there was.
Even if it didn’t really exist.
Yes, there might have been no hope to begin with.
“I value you people,” the general said, then, considering for a moment, “I value you highly,” he corrected himself. “It will be young people like yourselves who open the way to the future in this frontier. It goes without saying that I need your strength. You people don’t know me. There is likely some misunderstanding here. However, if I were to offer a word of advice to you young people, it would be that even if you can’t accept the way things are at present, you should take the long view. The thick fog that hangs in the air now may have cleared come tomorrow.”
Haruhiro raised his face, and looked the general directly in the eye once more.
“Why don’t you be a little more direct? So we can understand.”

Chapter end