"There's fighting down below. Looks like it didn't start because of us." Shirakawa adjusted their flying altitude so they could clearly see what was happening on the battlefield.
Down on the ground, it looked like a war between two different factions. One side was made up of soldiers from the Goren Kingdom, people they were familiar with. The other side was a force Shirakawa didn't recognize.
"That's our country's soldiers," Kather Lynn said suddenly from within his arms.
"Is that so? Then your country's military really is pretty pathetic."
Right now, the numbers on both sides were about the same. But when it came to combat strength, the Goren Kingdom's soldiers were clearly a cut above the soldiers of the Mor Kingdom.
Watching more and more of her country's soldiers fall, Kather Lynn buried her face in Shirakawa's chest. She didn't dare look at a scene like this, or rather, she couldn't bear to.
Just then, Shirakawa descended and set her down on the ground as well.
"What's wrong?" Feeling her feet touch the earth, Kather Lynn looked up, puzzled.
"The main reason we agreed to help you was to get some training on a real battlefield," Shirakawa said. "So we can't exactly miss a fight like this."
"Thank you..." Kather Lynn said with tears in her eyes, deeply moved. Sure enough, Shirakawa wasn't cold-blooded.
"Don't misunderstand," Shirakawa said. "We never said we'd definitely help your country's soldiers. Which side we help depends entirely on our mood. Or you could say everyone here can become our enemy."
Kather Lynn's expression instantly turned awful.
So all that emotion just now was fake. He really was as cold and heartless as ever.
"I curse you to stay single for life," Kather Lynn muttered softly.
But Shirakawa still heard it. For some reason, whenever someone talked badly about him, his ears became especially sharp.
"Relax. That curse isn't coming true," Shirakawa said. A lifetime? Staying single for a lifetime was impossible. Maybe one day he'd get sick of living and just kill himself instead.
"Who are you people?" Both sides finally noticed the group that had dropped from the sky. Shirakawa's outfit stood out far too much. No matter where he went, it was always that white trench coat.
"We're just passersby. Don't mind us. Carry on," Shirakawa said, spreading his hands.
"Uh... isn't that Princess Kather Lynn?" A Mor Kingdom soldier suddenly started whispering.
"You're the ones who kidnapped the princess. Arrest them!"
"Hey, are you sure you want to arrest me right now?" Shirakawa asked with a smile. "You didn't forget what kind of situation you're in, did you?"
"Damn it." The leading general looked at the Goren Kingdom soldiers watching them like hawks from the side, his face full of unwillingness.
"Isn't that Princess Kather Lynn? Didn't our people snatch her away? How is she here?"
"Are you stupid? Your memory's that bad? Didn't word come down ages ago that Kather Lynn was taken by a band of thieves? Those thieves have to be the few of them."
"Really? I forgot. But if we grab Kather Lynn back again, that's a huge merit."
"Absolutely." The Goren Kingdom soldiers stared at Kather Lynn with greedy eyes. A big piece of meat was right in front of them. How could they not drool?
But right now, Shirakawa and the Mor Kingdom soldiers were still locked in a standoff. Fortunately, Kather Lynn stepped forward and broke the deadlock.
"General Green Mountain, you misunderstood. They're the ones who saved me from the Goren Kingdom. This time, they came specifically to help us defeat Goren Kingdom."
"Hey, don't make decisions for me, alright?" Shirakawa looked at Kather Lynn with open disdain, as if saying she was taking herself far too seriously. "When did I ever say I'd help you?"
"Princess Kather Lynn, you still remember me?" Hearing her call his name, Green Mountain was so excited it was like he'd won a battle.
"Of course. Father often mentions you."
"What does he say?" Green Mountain asked eagerly. Since he had to guard the border, he rarely returned to the royal capital. He desperately wanted to know how people evaluated him in the past.
"Father says General Green Mountain is a meritorious pillar of our kingdom. Because of you, our country's interior can remain peaceful and calm."
"The king really said that?" Green Mountain still didn't quite believe it. The praise felt far too high.
"Of course. Do you think I'd lie to you?"
"I wouldn't dare. I wouldn't dare," Green Mountain said quickly, immediately bowing in apology.
"But they really were the ones who saved you?"
Green Mountain seriously doubted Shirakawa's group. Look at them, skinny arms and thin legs, looking like they'd fold in a strong breeze. How could they have the strength to rescue anyone? And there were two who were still minors. One of them even looked like he'd wandered out of a circus.
"It's true. Don't let their looks fool you. They're genuinely very strong." Kather Lynn even gestured with her hands, as if that could somehow describe their strength.
"Hey, can you even talk properly?" Shirakawa said. "If you can't, then don't. What do you mean we look weak? We look very strong, alright?"
"Hey, brat, how dare you speak to our princess like that. Apologize right now!" Green Mountain reached out as if to shove Shirakawa, but his wrist was suddenly caught in Shirakawa's grip.
"You'd better not put your hands on us," Shirakawa said coldly. "Remember, we're here to help you."
He released him, then shoved him away.
If a friend got handsy with him, he could treat it like a joke. But if a stranger dared to touch him, that stranger was an enemy.
"Hey, aren't you three taking us a little too lightly?" a Goren Kingdom soldier shouted, finally unable to take it anymore after being ignored for so long. "We're a whole group here. You just ignore us like that?"
"Oh, sorry," Shirakawa said. "Forgot about you."
"Damn it! Brothers, charge! Capture Kather Lynn alive. Kill all the rest!"
"Yes!"
"Hey." Shirakawa shoved Kather Lynn toward Green Mountain's side. "Protect your princess. Shanks, Bucky, let's go."
"Alright! Finally, a real fight."
Shanks had been holding it in for ages. His hands were itching. Ever since Rog had humiliated him last time, he'd been dying to find a group of people to vent his anger on. Perfect timing. These soldiers had walked right into his gun sights.
Shirakawa's thoughts weren't much different. Last time, Rog had beaten him so badly it was still his nightmare.
But since Rog was already dead, there was nowhere to get revenge. So he could only pour that rage onto soldiers from the same country as Rog.
"Don't ask me why I'm doing this to you," Shirakawa said before the fight. "It's because your general offended me."
The Goren Kingdom soldiers looked completely baffled.
/-\
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