It started on an ordinary day like any other.

“Your Excellency, Madam.”

While Diello and I were in the office, a report from a knight of the Fifth Zone came in.

“A monster has escaped. Reports from the scene suggest it crossed over to the waters of Alors.”

It wasn’t unheard of for monsters to cross over to other territories. Still, of all seas, it had to be Alors.

I scratched my head as I thought about the map of the Fifth Zone. Well, there was nowhere else it could have gone.

“What kind of monster is it?”

The knight hesitated at my question before replying.

“It’s a monster of the ‘Talos’ species.”

Diello’s eyes narrowed at his words.

“Of all things.”

“Why?”

Talos? I had seen the name a few times while processing Argenta’s documents. It seemed to be a tricky monster to deal with, but I didn’t know much about monsters since I didn’t often go to the battlefield.

Diello answered my question with a troubled expression.

“They have a high reproductive rate and are good at hiding.”

Then, he raised an eyebrow slightly.

“…I’m reluctant to say this, but it went to Alors.”

Explaining that it could lead to diplomatic issues if we didn’t inform them, Diello reluctantly gave the order.

“As is customary, send someone to Alors.”

If we didn’t let them know, they might make a fuss about how we ‘deliberately sent a troublesome monster to Argenta.’

“Understood.”

And so, Betty, the youngest knight in the Knights’ Order, was dispatched to Alors. She volunteered because she was worried about the people of Alors, having lost her family to a Talos.

I thought that would be the end of it, but a short while later—

“…My lord, madam, urgent news.”

—Vielle, her voice heavy, came to the office with Redias. The next moment, she set down a bloodstained box.

As soon as we opened the box, we saw Argenta’s power crystals.

Dried, crimson blood clung to the crimson crystals. Unlike when Diello had sent them to Alors and Cartiel, this was clearly meant as a provocation, as if they had intentionally desecrated a corpse.

“Surely, this isn’t….”

[ Alors will not stand idly by in the face of Argenta’s aggression. ]

A note with the name of Pentas Alors was attached to the crystals. I unconsciously covered my mouth with one hand.

These were the power crystals of the youngest knight who had been dispatched.

* * *

Betty, the youngest knight who had been dispatched this time, was an Argenta of the fourth floor that I knew well. I had seen her name in supply documents and met her several times. The young knight, who often had romantic troubles, had even consulted a lot with Sir Redias.

“Like this…”

…She just died?

Argenta had simply followed the usual protocol.

They hadn’t sent an excessive number of troops, and the youngest knight and her group hadn’t even carried longswords, indicating that they had no intention of attacking. They had only carried daggers that could be used against monsters along the way.

But an act of aggression?

What? The youngest knight going there? Or the monster going there? Either way, it was ridiculous nitpicking and slander.

“….”

Diello’s blue eyes reflected the crimson power crystal. He remained silent for a while before reaching out for the crystal. The moment the bloodstained crystal touched his fingertips.

―Roar!

With a faint roar, the crystal was absorbed into his fingertips.

Diello stared at the box in silence. The gentle smile he usually wore was nowhere to be seen. His blue eyes, quietly blazing with anger, glared at the box. Still, it didn’t feel out of place because this was also a side of him that I had seen.

“…I thought they would resort to any means necessary.”

He uttered in a low voice.

“But I didn’t know they would be this… aggressive.”

A blunder.

I couldn’t say anything to him as he calmly berated himself.

…A malicious slander, a war, was beginning.

From that day on, Diello began to burn silently. An arrow with a letter bearing his name was embedded in the outer wall of Alors.

[ I formally request a meeting regarding this incident. ]

Alors would scoff at the idea of coming here after being wronged, but we waited for their response because that was what we wanted. The moment they set foot on Argenta’s land, whether for a meeting or under some other pretense, they would fall right into the trap.

And…

[[ This incident is clearly the fault of Argenta, so we expect an apology in the form of a banquet along with the meeting. ]

They had taken the bait perfectly.

[ The location will be… ]

Of course, Alors had designated the meeting place to be near the water in Argenta. They must have chosen the location that seemed most advantageous.

Not realizing that it was a trap.

* * *

On the eve of the battle, which was rapidly approaching like an oncoming storm, I couldn’t help but feel puzzled by Alors’ sudden actions while responding to them.

Why were they picking a fight so quickly?

Of course, I knew they would attack.

Nonetheless, didn’t they think that I had only erased two of Diello’s lilies? Argenta hadn’t found the real Ferro yet, so I guess they could still attack even if they didn’t completely stop Ferro’s awakening. The possibility of him becoming stronger with only two lilies sealed away had been sufficiently eliminated.

However, it seemed strange to think that way. I was sure they told me to contact them once I had removed all three lilies.

“Was there a pressing reason to attack now?”

I tilted my head slightly.

Why on earth would it benefit Alors to attack Argenta now? According to the information provided by the intelligence agency, there was no sign of external help coming to Alors.

Then why? Had Alors’ power suddenly grown stronger?

“I don’t quite understand why they’re suddenly trying to attack now.”

When I finally spoke, Diello replied thoughtfully.

“Well, that might be because…”

He seemed to have been pondering the same question.

“The head’s mark may have appeared on Pentas Alors.”

When my eyes widened at his words, Diello held out his hand to me.

“Immediately after the head’s mark appears, there is no significant change in the current head power, so they can have maximum power for a brief moment.”

Diello went on to explain that the head’s power would decrease rapidly soon after, but until then, the current head and the new host would coexist, resulting in unusually strong power. It seemed that Alors intended to attack Argenta with that power.

Judging from the way he spoke, it seemed like a possibility he had considered many times.

“In that case, they’ll be a difficult opponent for us.”

“But unlike what they think, we’re fully prepared.”

Diello smiled.

“We won’t lose.”

What good was having many people who could use water if there was no water to use? I smiled, thinking about our plan.

“Cartiel won’t make a move in the meantime, will they?”

At my words, Diello handed me a document.

[ Cartiel Movement Report ]

It was a report written by Rick.

“We’ve already investigated their movements in advance.”

Diello grinned.

In the past, he would have added, ‘I learned from my wife.’ However, he didn’t say anything more.

I looked at him and asked.

“You studied, Diello?”

If he were still the Diello Argenta I knew, he wouldn’t have thought of using information warfare like this. He had shown me that side of him when we first entered into a marriage contract. However, things were different now.

Diello smiled softly at my question.

“No, I’ve always been like this.”

As I looked up at him quietly, I began to think that this man, who seemed so innocent, might not have learned much from me at all.

“You didn’t teach me something this basic.”

Still, the gaze that met mine was that of a good student. He then handed me the document I was holding.

“As soon as Cartiel received information that a war was likely to break out here, they immediately redeployed their troops to a location from which it would be easy to dispatch them to Alors.”

“Oh…”

I glanced down at the document. Rick’s simple map showed several attack routes leading from Cartiel to Alors.

“This is…”

“An obvious attack route. Cartiel probably thinks that Alors will be victorious in this war.”

That wouldn’t happen.

Our narrowed eyes met.

“It’s an annoying misunderstanding, but it’s a good situation.”

They must think we were completely unprepared.

As I looked down at the word Alors, my heart suddenly sank.

Originally, our marriage contract was only until I destroyed Alors. However, now that Cartiel had begun to target us, the situation had changed from when we first made the contract. Cartiel had already targeted me once, so even if we defeated Alors, we would still be exposed to the same threat.

It would be nice if the real Ferro appeared before Cartiel targeted me, Argenta.

“Diello.”

“Yes.”

Diello responded naturally.

“If we win the battle, will Cartiel target Argenta?”

Diello nodded as if it were an obvious question.

While I watched him, I wondered what would happen to the contract between us… or maybe he wasn’t thinking about it.

Finally, I opened my mouth.

“Then, what will happen to our contract?”

His expression gradually hardened at my words.

—