By the ti the qualifiers were over, the sun had already set.
Right now, the Emperor was hosting a ball.
n and won dressed in resplendent clothing were dancing along to a waltz in the hall.
All was well.
Everything except for
Sir Black Knight, dance with !
No, no, hes dancing with !
What are you saying!? You must want to dance with , right?
I was surrounded by aristocratic ladies dressed in gorgeous dresses.
How did I end up in the sa position as Yuusuke!?
(TL note: In case you forgot, Yuusuke is the harem hero childhood friend. In other words, an insignificant side character. You may go back to forgetting him now.)
Also, when did Vice-Commander Charlotte join the fray!?
I looked towards Blue Long-haired Iken, who was in ceremonial attire, for help, but he turned away.
Hey! Why the hell are you trying to stay out of it!?
At least do sothing about Charlotte!!
Im sorry, but could you please let the Commander go?
It was Conrad.
A gift from the heavens!
No! My guardian angel!!
I excused myself and sohow slipped out of the crowd.
Thanks for saving .
I spoke softly, so that the ladies wouldnt hear . Conrad gave a sympathetic smile.
Yep. To , the most iken-like person was Conrad.
I glanced backwards.
The ladies were staring daggers at Conrad.
Hey, shouldnt they be staring at instead?
In my opinion, Conrad looked cooler than .
I looked back at Conrad.
Conrad was also dressed in ceremonial attire.
He was wearing a blue long-coat, which had coattails that reached his calves and a stand-up collar.
Vines were embroidered onto the navy blue coat sleeves.
He was also wearing white pants and black boots.
To top it off, he wore his usual faded blue mantle.
The colors of the coats differed by rank. Ordinary soldiers wore light and dark brown coats, captains wore yellow-green and dark green coats, vice-commanders wore blue and navy blue coats, and commanders wore black and white coats.
The embroidery was grey for captains and below, silver for vice-commanders, and gold for commanders.
Both n and won wore the sa uniform, so the won also wore pants.
Of course, I was wearing the uniform too.
However, I was wearing it under my armor.
I would feel out of place if I wore casual clothing under the armor, so I dressed up appropriately, even though it wouldnt be seen.
I gave him another once over.
You really do look good in that.
Eh!?
Oops, I startled him.
Well, I couldnt bla him for being surprised.
Sorry for saying that all of a sudden. Its my first ti seeing you outside of your work uniform.
My investiture was done in a hurry, so everybody had been wearing their combat uniforms.
Um, uh Thank you.
Hm?
Why was he blushing so much?
Shouldnt Conrad have heard stuff like that plenty of tis from the won around him?
That was what Byron-san told the other day.
Anyway, did you need sothing?
He must have called out to for a reason.
Ah, yes. His Majesty called for you, Commander.
Well, that cant wait. Lets go.
Yes.
We went towards the VIP seats.
The Emperor, Empress, Princess, and Pri Minister were all there, talking together.
I wanted to turn back as soon as I saw the Pri Minister, but since I had been summoned by His Majesty, I couldnt do that.
Also, let just say that His Highness was in the sa boat as .
Excuse , Your Majesty.
His Majesty greeted with a smile, while the Pri Minister scowled at .
No surprise there.
Oh, you ca, Black Knight.
I ignored the Pri Minister and greeted His Majesty.
Well, since I was the only one he disliked, I was the only one who would suffer.
It might be a little late to say this, but well done. I have high expectations for what you and Conrad will accomplish.
I am grateful for your kind words.
I will do my best to fulfill your expectations.
Conrad and I bowed.
Now then, it is ti to get down to business.
Ah, it was aboutthat, huh.
Understood but are you fine with ?
It is fine. Rather, you are the most suitable person.
Her Majesty was right.
But even so
Please be Elenes first dance partner. Elene personally nominated you.
Hey, Black Knight! Dance with during the ball tomorrow!!
Yesterday, after I had finished the escort mission, the princess had requested this of before I left.
I couldnt refuse, since His and Her Majesty were nearby.
In the first place, they knew I was a girl. I had no clue why this was happening.
They didnt really use the princess politically.
That was based on just a half-year of observation, though.
Haah~. I guess this was also part of my job.
I really didnt think I was suitable to be the Princesss partner.
I guess there would be an annoying power struggle if she danced with a suitable male noble.
His Majesty did have political relationships with the nobility to consider.
Conrad was a bit too tall for her.
It was the sa for the Iken.
The Stupid Swordsman was out of the question.
Mr. Muscleheadwas already married.
I had been shocked when I found out last week.
Everybody else was like, Huh? We never told you?, to which I had responded, Nope!.
What a tiring exchange that had been.
I hadnt t her yet, but I heard that Mrs. Musclehead was his childhood friend, three years younger than him, and that she was quite pretty.
I was secretly jealous that he was blessed with such a childhood friend.
Back to the point, all the other n couldnt do it for various reasons, leaving as the last option.
Of course, I read the mood and didnt object.
While enduring the tingling sensation of the Pri Ministers glare, I nervously made my way over to the Princess.
Well then, it may be presumptuous of , but may I ask you for a dance?
I bowed and offered my right hand.
You may.
The Princess took my hand, and I escorted her to the middle of the ballroom.
The other dancers moved aside as we made our way there, and once we reached the center, they all stopped and moved to the side.
The music also ended, and the conductor looked towards us.
We were surrounded by the gazes of nobles, soldiers, and servants alike.
The nobles gazes were quite aningful, but I couldnt pay attention to it.
We faced each other, and then held each other.
Upon seeing that, the conductor raised his baton, and the musicians began to play a slow waltz.
We began to dance to the music.
Heh. It was going pretty much the way Alice told it would when we practiced together.
I would have been fine with just learning the male part when we practiced, but she threatened into learning the female part.
She taught it to quite enthusiastically.
As I recalled my practice with Alice, the Princess and I continued to smoothly dance through the hall.
As I watched the Commander and the Princess waltz through the hall, Her Majesty whispered to .
I feel a little guilty for asking the Black Knight to do this.
She was smiling, but her eyebrows were drooping.
Her guilt showed on her face.
Theres no way thatis what I would like to say, but I suppose that it is true.
I wanted to deny it, but it was the truth.
Everyone who worked in the castle knew that she disliked flattery and hypocrisy.
In the Commanders case, he doesnt really hate it, but
Had she wanted to participate as a woman instead?
The rest of the sentence was left unsaid.
It seed that Her Majesty understood what I was going to say.
Unlike the average girl, the Commander didnt care for things like makeup and clothes.
Rather, her passion was Katanas.
Even so, she wasnt necessarily unfeminine.
The way she smiled when she played with Hayate, when she looked at flowers, or when she ate sweets
Even when the Commander got angry they all made realize, yet again, that she was a girl.
So, why was I getting more and more uncomfortable? Such thoughts didnt stop racing through my mind.
I knew that I couldnt do anything, since we had to keep her appearance secret.
Conrad, I would like to ask sothing of you.
I bent down to give her my ear.
Eh?
I let out a startled cry upon hearing Her Majestys request.
She smiled in satisfaction at my reaction.
However
Is that okay? The Black Knight is the main attraction tonight, right?
I whispered as softly as I could.
As the winner of the previous tournant, I was automatically qualified for this one.
It would be a problem if both of us were gone.
However, her next words drained of energy.
Well, the reason that Elene invited the Black Knight to dance was so that I could request this of you. The three of us, including Alice, planned this a month ago. Of course, His Majesty and the Prince also know about it.
When did
I was truly no match for Her Majesty.
I will take care of this.
I probably had no choice.
Personally, I wasnt sure if she would be fine with , but the only n who knew of the Commanders circumstances were Claude, the Emperor, the Prince, Kyle, , and a few of the servants and soldiers who had been with the Royal Family when we t the Commander for the first ti.
His Majesty was obviously out of the question.
Claude was excluded because he was pursuing Alice, and he also had an important mission.
Either way, he and the Commander were only friends.
None of the soldiers were attending this ball.
The servants were busy working.
That left Kyle, the Prince, and .
However, why was I so reluctant to hand her over to anyone else?
I nodded in reply.
Her Majesty smiled and turned back to watch the Princess and the Commanders dance, ending the conversation.
I also went back to watching them dance, while wondering about the best way to invite the Commander.
I wanted to quickly understand a girls heart.
After a while, the music ended and we stopped dancing.
The people around us applauded.
Ah, I had forgotten that everybody else stopped dancing to watch us.
We both bowed, and then returned to His Majesty.
Elene, you danced well. Black Knight, I thank you for being my daughters partner.
It was my honor.
I bowed to His Majesty.
It was a splendid performance.
His Majesty smiled at us.
The Princess flashed a dazzling smile at the complint and started talking with Her Majesty.
She must have been very happy that her beloved parents had complinted her first dance.
As I observed the charming scene, His Majesty called out to .
Black Knight, arent you a bit tired?
Huh? No, Im not
Even though I said that:
No, you are definitely tired.
Yeah, Black Knight is tired.
His Majesty and the Princess insisted.
Huh? What was happening?
When I glanced at the Pri Minister, I noticed that his bad mood had disappeared, and he had a blank expression on his face. His mouth was wide open.
Then, please use the Royal Familys terrace to rest. There, you wont have to worry about other peoples gazes, since it is tightly guarded and only those we allow can enter. You can even still hear the ballroom music from there.
Her Majesty chid in.
B-but, if Im not here, then
Conrad, take the Black Knight to the terrace. He would be bored alone, so please accompany him. The food will be served later, so please take your ti. Tonights full moon is quite beautiful right now. You should enjoy it.
Her Majesty dropped yet another bombshell.
Eh? Even Conrad is leaving?
Certainly, Your Highness. Now, let us go, Commander.
Eh!? Wait a minute, Conrad!
In the end, Conrad ignored my protests and pushed from behind.
Without understanding what was happening, I was led out of the ballroom.
Please enjoy your al. His Majesty told to tell you that you are dismissed for today, and that your normal work will resu tomorrow.
You two must have been conspiring with Their Majesties.
Conrad pushed , who was still flustered, to the terrace and sat on a chair. When I saw a grinning Alice carrying and setting dishes onto a table illuminated by the Raitoree spell, I cald down.
This was most likely planned by Alice, the Empress, and the Princess?
Only those three would do sothing like this.
Fufu.
Alice left the terrace with a giggle and a bow.
Even though she didnt answer, I could tell that I was right.
Let just say that Her Majesty just told about this. I was more or less out of the loop.
Conrad grimaced.
He didnt seem to be lying.
Haah
I sighed, took off my mantle, and turned my armor back into a bracelet.
I had my hair in a ponytail, and I was wearing the ceremonial red mantle underneath the armor.
I knew that nobody would co here because I often accompanied Her Majesty for tea.
There were very few tis when I was wearing neither the robe nor the armor.
Ah, you were wearing that underneath.
Well, I cant wear casual clothing under the armor.
I leaned into my chair.
Sorry about that, Commander.
Its fine. Honestly, I was feeling a bit suffocated, so it was good timing.
I responded to Conrads apologetic statent.
I had thought that I could relax with the nobles children, but instead, I had been mobbed by young ladies of marrying age, and then made to dance with the Princess in front of a large crowd. That had worn out.
If I had stayed there, I would probably have been sward by the noble ladies and Charlotte asking for a dance, so I feel relieved.
Conrads smile cramped.
I can imagine that.
Right? I looked to Long Blue-haired Iken for help, but he just turned a blind eye. When you ca, I really thought that you were my guardian angel.
Haha, that guy is pretty much useless, isnt he? Im glad I was able to help.
Before we knew it, we had both started chatting happily.
We talked about mundane topics as we ate, but I was having fun for the first ti tonight.
Oh yeah, Conrad, was it fine for you to accompany ? Normally, wouldnt people ask you for a dance if I wasnt there?
Conrads eyes started swimming.
Ah, about that
I looked at him curiously. He sighed, then began to speak.
The way I treated the ladies during the ball four years ago made it so that they do not want to ask for a dance.
Oh? How exactly did you treat them?
Well, I was still quite crude back then, so there were so youthful indiscretions
Conrad spoke more and more vaguely.
He murmured softly.
They were too pushy, so I yelled at them.
Huh?
So they didnt like that one outburst?
After I told them to shut up, nobody else dared to approach !!
Conrad was as red as a tomato as he forced out the last sentence.
Ah, so in other words, the sheltered noble ladies were yelled at for the first ti and beca frightened of him?
That was understandable.
I could sympathize with Conrads irritation, but I could also see how the sheltered ladies would have been scared of him.
I couldnt really judge who was in the wrong.
I could only say that they both shared so of the bla.
Conrad was blushing furiously while looking down.
Hm? I thought that he resembled a dog for a second.
No, calm down. He wasnt a therianthrope.
He looked really cute though.
Based on how he normally looked, I never would have imagined that he could look like this.
Was he really that embarrassed?
The more I thought about it, the funnier it beca.
Pfft!
Hey! Commander!!
I burst into laughter, causing Conrad to look up.
He still seed downhearted.
AHAHAHAHAHAHAH!
I held my sides as I laughed.
This continued for a while.
Aah, that was a good laugh!
You laughed too much
Conrad had both hands over his face.
(This isnt actually from the series, just for amusent.)
Ah, sorry, sorry.
I took a deep breath.
Conrad was just too amusing.
So thats why? Thats why you have never been invited to dance.
Exactly.
He responded with his hands still on his face.
He must have been extrely embarrassed.
Sorry about that, Conrad.
Youre too good for those ladies.
Eh?
His hands left his face in surprise.
Thats right, you know? I dont know about the past you, but the current you is handso and has a good personality.
U-uh, thank you very much.
Conrads shy face was now only slightly red.
Wasnt that even cuter?
Not that I could tell him that.
Well, I always spent these balls talking with His Majesty and Adolf. I have never danced with anyone.
Hm?
Huh?
Did I hear wrong?
You never participated?
I looked at him with wide eyes.
Yeah, thats correct?
He seed confused as he replied.
Wait, waitso he had never danced, since he was never asked to?
Ah, it made sense if it was Conrad.
He, like , didnt like gaudy things very much.
I had realized that much in the half-year I had been here.
However, not even once
Hey, would you like to dance with ?
Huh!?
Wait, what the heck had I just said!?
I probably startled Conrad as well!?
Ah, um, I an, were alone right now. Also, we can hear the music. The terrace is wide enough to dance on, and it might be fun to do once in a while
Really, what the heck was I saying?
AAAH, that was so embarrassing, my face felt hot!
Ah, sorry, that was a-
I-if youre fine with !
Huh?
Huh? What?
I couldnt understand what he had just said.
Conrad stood up and walked over to . He then straightened his back, took a deep breath, and said:
May I have this dance, Miss?
Conrad bowed with his eyes closed, his left hand on his chest, and his right stretched out to .
My face heated up in a different way when I saw his gallant figure in the moonlight.
Yes.
Before I knew it, I had taken his hand and agreed to a dance.
Conrad stood up and guided away from the table. We faced each other.
We had left the area illuminated by the Raitoree, but I could see that Conrads face was red.
Seeing his flustered face cald down.
Ah, Conrads heart was also beating furiously.
That thought helped relax.
Alice has more or less taught the female partbut please lead well, Sir Knight.
I said while laughing. After getting over his surprise, he smiled.
Please leave it to , Milady.
It was my turn to be startled.
Pfft
Pfft.
When we saw that we were both shocked, we burst out laughing.
We both corrected our postures. I curtsied, using the hem of my coat instead of a skirt, while Conrad bowed with his left hand on his chest.
We then held each other and began to dance to the music from the hall.
It was just us two, dancing in the moonlight.
What a romantic setting.
I felt guilty about just wearing a military uniform, but as a woman, it felt great to be able to monopolize such a fine man.
It wasnt bad to do feminine things from ti to ti.
I thought that for the first ti in my life.
I should have been the one to ask her. It wasnt like I was Adolf.
I grumbled to myself silently.
Her Majesty had told , After this, be Chies dance partner.
I had been waiting for a chance to ask.
How uncool of to have been asked by the Commander.
Wellwhatever.
It didnt feel bad to be able to monopolize the Commanders feminine side.
She looked like a moon spirit, with the way her black hair and black pupils glistened in the moonlight.
I was so swept up by the atmosphere that I began having thoughts I normally wouldnt have.
However, the Commander really did match with the moon.
It felt good to be able to monopolize a side of the Commander that nobody else knew about, so I was glad that I had accepted Her Majestys request. Such thoughts crossed my mind as we continued to dance.
I headed to His Majestys office with two docunts in my hand.
I had finally gathered enough information to report.
It was fortunate that it had not interrupted the tournant.
I took a deep breath in front of the door to the office.
Knock Knock
I knocked on the door.
Who is it?
Pri Minister, Your Majesty, it is I, the Black Knight.
The Pri Minister had been the one to call out.
You may enter.
This ti, it was His Majesty who responded.
Please excuse .
I entered the room.
Not surprisingly, the Pri Minister was scowling at , but I just ignored it.
Your Majesty, Pri Minister, I have so urgent news that I must report to you.
I handed one docunt to His Majesty.
His Majestys eyes widened as he read it.
This is!
He exclaid.
What shall we do about it, Your Majesty?
Raiz, you read this too!
As the Pri Minister read the docunts, his face paled.
What in the blazes is this!?
The Pri Minister also shouted in shock.
It is as you see. I am sorry that this report ca late, but I judged that the situation would deteriorate if we moved openly, so I investigated this by myself.
I bowed.
The Pri Minister stayed silent, probably acknowledging my reasoning.
Black Knight, you did well to discover this.
I was rely inford of this through an information broker. The informant has been placed under protective custody.
I was truly thankful to Aaron.
He had risked his life by poking his nose into this matter.
Will the Three Countries Martial Tournant go on as planned, I wonder?
Shall I ask the other countries to postpone it?
I respectfully interrupted them.
The tournant should go on as planned.
Huh!? What are you saying?
You seem to have a reason
I told them my thoughts.
If we change it, they may get suspicious. It is likely that the situation will worsen.
Hmmthat sounds reasonable.
They continued to listen.
That is why we should hold it as planned. As for the deploynt of the soldiers-
I handed them the other docunt.
This cant possibly
But, like this
Their eyes widened once again, and then they nodded in approval.
Then, deploy the soldiers at once.
I have already instructed the soldiers to do so. The report I gave you is highly confidential.
How fast.
Even the Pri Minister was surprised.
When I saw that, I felt relieved.
Only the Commanders and Vice-Commanders know about this. The plan hinges on the enemy not finding out.
Understood. Then, let us et in the conference room at once.
Yes, Your Majesty!
Just as I was about to leave the office, His Majesty called out to .
Black Knight, how is the [Crow]?
Its quite troubleso when it pecks.
Crow?
The Pri Minister was slightly confused as to why we started talking about crows, but we ignored him.
This was a codeword I used with His Highness, mainly when around people other than Alice or Conrad.
Claudes existence was a secret between the four of us, so when we had to discuss sothing related to him, we called him Crow.
Our previous exchange could be translated to:
Is Claude fine?
Yes, but we occasionally squabble.
We had decided that it would be least suspicious to use animal codewords.
I bowed and left the office.
Now then, I would probably be quite busy for a while.
To be continued
Afterword
Thank you for waiting for so long.
How was Chapter 29?
I tried to depict a sweet atmosphere.
I thought that it would go quickly, but RL work kept busy and, before I knew it, a year had passed.
I wish there was more ti.
Thank you for waiting so long.
This month, I have two rare back-to-back holidays, so hopefully I will be able to release two chapters.
Next ti, ti will fly.
I will try really hard to release two, three, or even four chapters.
Please continue to enjoy this story.
Translators Note: heres the update dates of a few chapters. (makes feel better about being slow)
(YYYY/MM/DD)
Ch 28: 2015/07/16
Ch 29: 2016/01/12
Ch 30: 2016/01/17
Ch 31: 2016/06/18
And on another note: /docunt/d/1vufcJFZmmmrz8C6I_Te6jxx_N8CBQcGEIK9V_mZvMiQ/edit?usp=sharing) here is the link to a character glossary, in case both mine and the authors (mostly mine) slowness gets you to forget stuff. Uhh other than that co read my other series (google )? Elephant No. 5
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