and brings us more calamity? It's not too late, you know. You can still go to Her Holiness and die instead ofâ€”" "You must really be distraught, to want us to sacrifice our own forces. I hope you'll forgive me this impropriety." The words rang with great courtesy as the fist sank squarely into the priest's cheek. His wrinkled face crumpled inward. The discrepancy between the voice's tone and the sheer violence of the act was a sight to behold. On both counts, the culprit was Izabella. She lowered her fist, her silver hair swaying. However, it was clear that she had held back as much as possible. The priest stumbled a little, but was otherwise none the worse for wear. Another high priest grabbed his shoulder to help support him. The second man had been one of the moderates, as well as Godd Deos's direct pupil. After his mentor's death, he assumed Godd Deos's position. His long hair rustled as he shook his head. When he spoke, his voice was calm. "Compose yourself. In this case, Madam Vicker is right. Now, Elisabeth Le Fanu, you just comported yourself as an apostle heralding a calamity and told us that the Sand Queen is on the move, do I have that right? In other words, she's sided with the Fremd Torturchen and is assisting with her rampage?" "Not in the strictest sense, no. But explaining the particulars would take time we don't have. I'll be sure to write you a full report later. The long and short of it is that she's coming for the human lands, and she won't stop till she's laid waste to us all." This time, it was Maclaeus who spoke up. "Any coordinated bombardment we try with the paladins and priests would cost us too much, and it wouldn't give us the firepower we need anyway. It looks like we don't have a choice but to deploy the saints, even if it means leaving the Capital undefended for a time. Do you know where exactly it is she appeared?" As always, he carried himself with composure. But in truth, he was doing everything he could to keep his terror in check. His eyes still retained a great deal of their youthfulness, and he couldn't conceal the fear lurking in their depths. However, they didn't have the leisure to worry about such things at the moment. Elisabeth chose to ignore the king's emotions. Instead, she just answered his question. "That I do. I shifted her drop site as far as I could. The problem is..." "We still have to deal with the Fremd Torturchen, right," Izabella murmured to continue her thought. "That means we'll want to keep our casualties as low as we can get them... Still, even if this will mark her third death, it's still the Sand Queen we're dealing with. We're up against long odds." Elisabeth nodded. Their only choice was to pull out all the stops to deal with the threat before them. There was no point worrying about the future if they were going to be dead before it even arrived. If mankind was to survive, this counterattack needed to succeed. The discussion moved on to details of how they were going to deploy the saints. The air was thick with tension. Despite the voices clearly audible, the room felt as still as a seabed. That was, until the door swung loudly open. "King Maclaeus, big news!" An outsider barged into the room. It was one of the officials who'd been monitoring the communication devices. Everyone turned anxiously to look at him, wondering what it could be now. Under the weight of their tense stares, the official shouted excitedly. "The message is from Sir Randgrof Elephabred of the demi-humans and Sir Vyadryavka Ula Forstlast of the beastfolk! They've received permission from their respective leaders and are working together to assemble a joint army!" "The beastfolk and demi-humans, together?" "And what's more, the injured Three Kings of the Forest are joining the march. They're coming to stand against the Sand Queen!" That certainly sent the room astir. As it did, Elisabeth finally realized what Lute had meant. So the beastfolk understand. The Sand Queen was being controlled by Aguina, and between his broken mind and his obsession with blood purity, there was little doubt that he would turn his attention to the beastfolk after he was done with the humans. Plus, even if the humans prevailed, Alice's slaughter was right around the corner. And those who numbered strongest among the beastfolk, the Three Kings of the Forest, were ill-suited for battle against pesky little rats. In other words, the beastfolk were doomed if they lost the shield that mankind represented. Considering all those conditions, the choice they were making was more or less the best one they had. And that choice was to help humanity preserve its strength. No one wants to die, after all. However, there were also those whose positions were such that they had to protect others, even if it meant throwing themselves to the wolves. It was a sad, lonely lot, having to shoulder the weight of the world. Yet the Three Kings of the Forest had chosen to act for their people's sake all the same. The room was full of clamor and commotion, but Elisabeth alone remained silent. The official clutched his abdomen as he quickly relayed the rest of his information. "The message went on! 'We and the demi-humans are old friends, and as their friend, the duty to cut off their head falls to us. We wish to leave the battle with the Fremd Torturchen to our new friends the humans.' And there was one more thing..." "The Three Kings of the Forest are marching to their deaths." And march they would, for the sake of the countless lives that hung in the balance. Shedding rivers of their noble, precious blood as they went. The Three Kings' declaration echoed through the room, then vanished into silence. Come, let us sing a victory hymn. What lies beyond death? What lies after death? What awaits us following death? It isn't oblivion. It isn't tragedy. It isn't despair. It isn't the end. It's life. Our deaths will pave the way for new life. The moment we drew our swords, victory was already at our hands. So let us sing. Let us sing our victory hymn. Sing of a battle that will live on beyond us. Sing loud the victory hymn of our kings. And sing loud they did, scores of soldiers all in unison. It was clear to Elisabeth that it wasn't merely a victory hymn. It was just as much a funeral march. The soldiers all knew the implications of the choice the Three Kings of the Forest were making, and still they chose to honor their kings' resolve and fight for the sake of their people. However, that didn't stop them from grieving for their kings' willingness to die. Their procession had a dignified gravity to it, and the grim sound of their march echoed through the forest. They were walking to their own graves, and they all knew it. Yet even so, not a single one of them even thought of stopping. Leading up the solemn march were Randgrof and Vyadryavka. Both of them had been impressively fast to make their choices and act. They had made their case themselves, they had won over the rest of the beastfolk imperial family, and now they were standing at death's gate. And there was another familiar face among the soldiers' ranks as wellâ€”Lute's. "So this is what you were getting at earlier," Elisabeth said to him. "'Twas a welcome choice from our perspective, but I'll admit to some shock at your Three Kings having chosen to battle to their deaths amid your country's national crisis, much less that such a thing was allowed." "C-Captain Elisabeth! What are you doing here, ma'am?" "Really?" Elisabeth shot back in exasperation. "What could possibly compel you to believe I would sit this battle out after hearing its particulars? The very thought of doing so would be ludicrous. Am I wrong?" Lute's tail was all puffed up. By the look of it, he really was surprised to see her. The man had many talents, but reading the room wasn't one of them, nor was being quick on the uptake. Even deep in the undeveloped mountains, the path between the trees was flat and easy on the feet, and the view was clear and unobscured. A damp forest wind lapped at Elisabeth's cheeks. The air was humid and ripe with the smell of rusty iron. That was all due to the Three Kings of the Forest mowing down the trees and leveling the ground in their path. Everything in their wake was dyed red with their blood. Lute veered away from the beastfolk procession for a minute. He and Elisabeth took shelter behind some trees. There, he gave her his thoughts on the current state of affairs. "In a sense, it's that same national crisis that made this possible. Before, the imperial family was divided. But they all shared the same fear of annihilation. That was what made them tearily accept the Three Kings of the Forest's decision. It simply goes to show what sort of influence the Three Kings of the Forest wield." "Kings going to battle gravely wounded to fight for their people and the lives yet to come... Why, 'tis almost like something out of a storybook. I can easily imagine what a beautifully tragic scene it would have made for. Little wonder, then, they were able to move so many hearts." Elisabeth frowned. You wouldn't have known it by her words, but she despised heroic epics. More often than not, stories that ended with everyone living happily ever after were just there to mask the tragedies that lay beneath, with their heroes stripped of every last vestige of their personalities. At the same time, though, there was something she had to begrudgingly admit. Beautiful stories had the power to spur people into action. This story was one well worthy of being told for ages to come. What she and the others were about to witness was the birth of a legend. She shook her head to dispel her saccharine reverie. Once she'd cleared her mind, she spoke calmly. "Mankind has sent me, Torture Princess Elisabeth Le Fanu, as well as three-fifths of the saints to join in this battle, with Jeanne de Rais, Izabella Vicker, and one of the other fifths waiting on standby. That said, we've already lost La Mules and La Christoph, the two who'd be best suited for this sort of counterattack. I intend to stand on the front lines, but the plan is to have the others acting solely as support for the Three Kings. We sent a signaller ahead, so Vyadryavka should already be aware of our intentions." "Roger that, ma'am. I'm sure that's about what the Three Kings of the Forest, Sir Randgrof, and Lord Vyadryavka Ula Forstlast expected. At the end of the day, it's us beastfolk and a handful of the demi-humans who have chosen this place to die. The victory hymn is ours, as is the funeral march. If Lady Vyade Ula Forstlast were here, I imagine she would say the same thing." "I see. Very well, then. Oh, and Lute...one other thing." "What's that?" "Don't you dare die today." When he heard her curt warning, Lute conspicuously avoided meeting her gaze. Elisabeth gave him a kick in the rear, and a rough one at that. It nearly sent him crashing into a tree. Then, speaking as his captain, she tore him a new one. "You absolute dunce, you have a child on the way! My plan is to act independently of the army, but I have every intention of doing it with my men by my side, and I'm of no mind to let you lot die. So don't.