Episode 88: Townsman A Witnesses the Founding of a Nation

Unfortunately, Amy and her cohorts managed to make a clean break of it.

Amy had apparently made full use of her abilities as a witch, lashing out with powerful Kotodama to bend both soldiers and civilians to her will. Of course, the Ramslett Army hadn’t just sat idly by. They had immediately dispatched a pursuit team and succeeded in capturing Oscar, but they lost the trail of Amy, the Crown Prince, and Marcus once the trio entered the forest.

I didn't know if they would actually make it through those woods alive, but if I was being honest, I hoped the monsters or wild beasts would just finish them off. Yeah, I know how harsh that sounds, but Amy is just too dangerous to be left at large.

Furthermore, we put out a "Dead or Alive" bounty of three hundred million through the Adventurer’s Guild, officially branding her a wanted witch who manipulated others with her voice. While the "Alive" part was technically an option, a request like that was essentially a "please kill her" order; adventurers were certain to come back with her head to guarantee the payout.

Even in a world where colorful hair was the norm, I had never seen anyone else with that specific shade of pink. With luck, someone would spot her.

On a more positive note, we discovered that people whose minds had been warped by her Kotodama could be restored using Ana’s Holy Ice Magic. The specific spell was called Holy Ice Awakening.

When used on someone under Amy’s influence, the spell literally encased their head in ice. The ice shattered almost instantly, but that brief flash-freeze was enough to snap them out of the spell’s control. Essentially, it was a literal manifestation of that "cool your head" trope you see in manga or anime.

According to Ana, she could even hitch the spell to a blizzard to cast it over a massive area. I’m probably not the only one who thinks they might fall into an eternal sleep before they actually "wake up" from that, I thought.

Now then, despite the chaos, the Kingdom of Ramslett proceeded with its founding ceremony.

As part of the preparations, I took the Vytol Custom to several major cities in the Est Empire and the United Kingdom of Northorne. There, I used the Adventurer’s Guild to arrange the delivery of personal letters from the King of Ramslett to their respective diplomatic departments. This was a necessity, as we couldn't reach those two countries from Ramslett without passing through the Sentlaren Kingdom.

Since we shared borders with the Zaus Kingdom and the Westerdale Kingdom, we delivered the letters directly—sending one to a border town in Zaus and another to a port city with regular ferry service to Westerdale—before dispatching formal envoys. The letters were, of course, notifications of our founding and requests for diplomatic recognition.

In response, the Zaus Kingdom—having been utterly crushed by us just the other day—recognized our sovereignty on the condition of a peace treaty. We hadn’t received replies from the others yet, but I predicted the Est Empire and the United Kingdom of Northorne would likely grant recognition, while Westerdale would probably waffle and delay their answer.

My reasoning for the Empire and Northorne was simple: the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Both nations viewed the Sentlaren Kingdom as an adversary. If the vital southern region of their enemy declared independence, it weakened their rival without them having to lift a finger. For them, there was no downside.

Of course, I personally couldn't forgive the Est Empire for what they did to Ana, but the current Kingdom of Ramslett didn't have the luxury of fighting a war on that many fronts. Since I’d already killed the two primary instigators, I was willing to let it slide for now. But if they ever lay a finger on us again, I’ll turn the Imperial Capital into a pile of rubble!

As for why I expected Westerdale to stall, it was because they were currently allied with the Sentlaren Kingdom. That said, we figured that if Sentlaren actually collapsed, Westerdale wouldn't hesitate to rush in and carve out a piece of the western territory for themselves. They didn't want to burn their bridges with Ramslett just in case, but they couldn't exactly pick a fight with Sentlaren yet, either. Their best move was to wait and see.

In short, international relations were never pretty. Honestly.

The day of the founding ceremony finally arrived. The palace square in our royal capital, Wiechen, was packed with people. Because we were still technically in the middle of a war of independence against the Sentlaren Kingdom, we didn't hold a massive parade. Instead, Gerhardt simply read the declaration of independence and introduced the new King and the royal family.

Since this city had always been the territorial capital of the Ramslett Ducal Territory, the actual ruler hadn't changed, but this was a necessary formality to mark the new era.

The second order of business was the announcement of my engagement to Ana.

For the occasion, I was decked out in a flamboyant, ceremonial Ramslett military uniform, while Ana was dressed in a gown so radiant she looked every bit the princess. Well, she was a daughter of a Ducal House and was now the First Princess of the Kingdom of Ramslett, so "princess" was exactly what she was. I was more used to seeing her in her school uniform, but she looked truly stunning in a dress.

On the ring finger of her left hand, she still wore the Ring of Substitution I had given her. She had insisted that she wanted that specific one, so it had officially become her engagement ring. I wore a matching ring—a normal one, but a custom piece made to look identical to hers.

The ceremony proceeded without a hitch. King Gerhardt read the declaration, citing the tyranny of the Sentlaren royals as the reason for their loss of legitimacy and explaining how House Ramslett had stood up as the protector of the people. It was a standard speech, but it felt right for the House Ramslett.

"And finally, I have one more joyous report for you all," Gerhardt announced, signaling the start of our introduction. "It concerns my daughter, First Princess Anastasia."

He paused for effect.

"I am pleased to report that my daughter, Anastasia, has become engaged to Allen, the hero who protected our land of Ramslett from the invaders!"

Cheers of joy erupted from the crowd, though I definitely caught a few groans of disappointment from the guys in the audience. Gerhardt pressed on regardless.

"Allen, recipient of the Divine Protection of the Wind God, has displayed peerless talent across repeated battles. He is a hero among heroes who single-handedly annihilated eighty percent of the enemy forces. It is no exaggeration to say that, through him, our Kingdom has secured the very protection of the gods!"

The crowd went wild at that. Apparently, a hero who brings home a victory is always going to be a fan favorite.

"Allen shall marry Anastasia and take the name Allen von Ramslett. I ask all my citizens to join us in blessing this joyous occasion!"

As Gerhardt concluded his speech, the square turned into a sea of celebration. Ana and I stood on the dais, waving to the crowd.

So, this is the view from the other side, huh? I wonder if I’ll ever truly get used to it.

"This is incredible," I whispered, watching Ana wave with a bright smile.

"Yes, it is," she replied. "I didn't expect this much support. It’s all thanks to your hard work, Allen. Thank you."

"Th-thanks. It’s a bit embarrassing, though."

Get it together, me. You decided to stand by her side. You can't start shrinking back now.

Ana gave me a gentle, knowing smile in response to my awkwardness.

Once the relatively brief ceremony concluded, a ball was held at the palace. The guests included the former Sentlaren nobles who had sworn fealty to the Kingdom of Ramslett, as well as the Second Princess of the Zaus Kingdom.

The Zaus princess was being incredibly persistent in talking to Friedrich, but he seemed to be brushing her off with practiced ease. I guess that’s just how things are going to be for him.

Since I wasn't much of a dancer and Ana was still recovering her strength, we didn't plan to stay for the whole party. We intended to make our rounds, offer our greetings, and then make an early exit.

We moved through the hall arm-in-arm, attending to the guests. I was a nervous wreck, wondering if I was following protocol correctly, but Ana was a natural. She chatted and laughed with everyone, gracefully using me as an excuse to turn down every invitation to dance.

"Lady Ana! Allen!"

Two familiar faces approached us: Margaret and Isabella. They had both returned to their respective family lands when the academy closed, but they had apparently pestered their parents into letting them attend the ceremony.

"Congratulations on your engagement," Margaret said.

"Our sincerest congratulations," Isabella added.

"Ah, thank you," I said, finding it much easier to smile naturally around them.

"Thank you so much," Ana added.

The two of them had always been Ana’s friends, but they had treated me normally without any social barriers. My happy memories of the academy were largely thanks to them.

"Still, Allen, you really did it," Margaret teased. "Crossing so many dangerous bridges just to win Lady Ana’s hand. And now you’re recognized by the Duke—I mean, His Majesty—and you're starting a branch family as an adopted son-in-law. Talk about the royal treatment!"

"But he earned it," Isabella countered. "Allen is amazing. I’m still in shock that you can actually fly!"

"Thank you," I said.

"Honestly, Lady Ana," Margaret said, leaning in. "You really are loved, aren't you?"

"It's true," Isabella agreed. "Please, tell us the secret to being adored like that."

"Wh-what? Hey! You two!" Ana stammered, her face turning bright red. It was adorable.

"I see," Margaret nodded sagely. "It's the contrast. That gap in her personality."

"I understand now," Isabella said. "Lady Ana, we shall follow your example!"

"Wait! Margaret? Isabella? High, Allen, say something!" Ana turned to me, eyes pleading for help.

She was just too cute.

"Ana, you're adorable," I said. "I love you."

"Wh-?! You—idiot! Not in front of everyone!"

"Ana, I love you. I love you more than anyone in the world."

"Ugh... you moron... me too..." she muttered, hiding her face.

Margaret and Isabella let out synchronous squeals of delight.

A short while later, we took our leave, finally bringing the long day of the founding ceremony to a close.